Story here. Excerpt:

'A lot of things — critical thinking, comprehension, imagination — bubble up into a child's brain from a book. But none of that can happen if the book isn't cracked open.

Turning reluctant readers, especially boys, into eager ones is the idea behind a reading program that a University of Northern Colorado education professor helped develop.

Michael Opitz, a former elementary school teacher who specializes in reading and language arts, said he's hopeful the new program, called Pair-It Extreme, will get children in first through third grades hooked on reading.

Opitz said boys are 50 percent more likely to be held back a grade and three to five times more likely to have a disability placement in school. Young boys often consider reading boring or a girly activity.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'There is scientific evidence that circumcision can lead to a reduction in the risk of males contracting HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. AIDS has been at epidemic levels in Africa and studies show that African men who have been circumcised reduce their risk of getting AIDS by half. The clinical trials performed in Kenya, South Africa and Uganda focused on heterosexual males who were at risk from getting HIV from infected female sexual partners. The studies showed they were 60% less likely to become infected with AIDS if they had been circumcised. Circumcision did not seem to have an impact on the likelihood of homosexual men contracting the disease.

Story here. Excerpt:

'An 18-year-old matriculant who ran away from home to visit her boyfriend was arrested on Monday for allegedly lying about being raped, Pretoria police said.
...
"She was taken to a doctor for treatment at the expense of the state and penetration was confirmed."

According to police she had consensual sex with her boyfriend during her stay at his house.

She would face a charge of perjury in the Atteridgeville Magistrate's Court on Tuesday. - Sapa'

Article here. Excerpt:

Article here. Excerpt:

'WELLINGTON (Reuters Life!) - Boys get better grades at single-sex schools than when they're in mixed-gender schools, where girls consistently outperform them, a recent New Zealand study shows.

The study, based on the long-term Christchurch Health and Development Study at the University of Otago, compared the educational achievements of over 900 boys and girls who attended single-sex and coeducational secondary schools in New Zealand.

For students attending single-sex secondary schools, there was a slight tendency for males to outperform females.

For students attending co-educational schools, however, there was a clear tendency for girls to outperform boys, a pattern that continued when students were followed up to the age of 25.'

Looks like the CDC employee directory is available again at http://directory.psc.gov/employee.htm. Some contact info as follows:

Dr. Peter Kilmarx, chief of epidemiology:
email: peter.kilmarx-at-cdc.hhs.gov
phone: 404.639.8998
fax: 404.639.6127

Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, Director of the CDC:
email: txf2-at-cdc.gov
phone: 404.639.7000

Article here. Excerpt:

'South Africa's policy on circumcision is still being finalised, guidelines need to be drafted and health workers trained, so the Bophelo Pele centre is the only one in the country offering free male circumcisions.

Other countries in southern Africa have already begun rolling out mass male circumcision programmes in response to evidence that circumcision, safely performed in a medical setting, lowers a man's risk of contracting HIV by about 60 percent.

In South Africa, public health facilities only perform circumcision for medical reasons; those choosing it for other reasons must pay a private practitioner.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'Voodoo is an African word, but not an African monopoly. Every society has its own voodoo -- a fear of some mysterious ailment which can only be cured by magical means.

The recent comedy film Year One is noteworthy since it appears as if it is the first time in American film history that the term "genital mutilation" is used to describe circumcision as noted here (page-search on 'Year One' to find the film's entry). Excerpt:

'Many a true word is spoken in jest! This could be the first time "genital mutilation" has been used to describe male circumcision in a mainstream movie. With its exposed corona and sulcus, and dried surface, a circumcised penis is far from "sleek". Most reviews have panned the movie.'

Unfortunately the movie, despite some funny parts here and there, overall did not seem to me to be that funny. Nonetheless, this is some mainstream media exposure with regard to this issue, and given that the target market for this movie seems to have been adolescents in general, it's good they are getting some counter-message for it some place.

Story here Excerpt:

'It used to be that a woman caught driving under the influence stood a good chance of getting a break from the police officer.

Not anymore.

Over the past decade, DUI arrests of female drivers have shot up in Chicago, as well as across Illinois and the nation, new government figures show.

That's happened even as the number of men being busted for driving drunk has been steadily dropping in the United States over the last decade.

The rising number of DUI arrests of women probably reflects a change in attitude by police.'

Article here. If ever there was a time to stand up for basic human rights for males, this is the time.

This issue is not about religion. It is about the right of men to decide for themselves about whether or not a life- and body-altering operation should be performed on them. This is not a decision that can morally or ethically be made for a man even while he is an infant. Yet, it seems for whatever reason of the moment, societies want to make it.

Article here. Excerpt:

'It could be construed as a black day for the English language — but not if you work in the public sector.

Dozens of quangos [link added] and taxpayer-funded organisations have ordered a purge of common words and phrases so as not to cause offence.

Among the everyday sayings that have been quietly dropped in a bid to stamp out racism and sexism are “whiter than white”, “gentleman’s agreement”, “black mark” and “right-hand man”.
...
Many institutions have urged their workforce to be mindful of “gender bias” in language. The Learning and Skills Council wants staff to “perfect” their brief rather than “master” it, while the Newcastle University has singled out the phrase “master bedroom” as being problematic.'

Story here. Excerpt:

'A 22-year-old East Stroudsburg University student admitted lying about being raped at knifepoint on campus Aug. 13 because she was not doing well in school and having personal problems, state police at Fern Ridge said.

The woman initially said she was walking to her car in the parking lot at 11:15 a.m. Aug. 13 when a man with a knife grabbed her from behind, forced her into the bushes and raped her. She has since recanted her statement and said the problems she had been having led her to file a false report, according to police. Police will now see if she should be charged with filing a false report to law enforcement.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'As a 2007 Department of Education and Science report, Sé Sí – Gender in Irish Education, points out, girls have been outscoring boys in English and Irish since the 1930s. What has changed is the extent of the difference. However, girls also now do better than boys in so-called “non-traditional” areas such as maths and the sciences. Applied maths was the only maths subject in which boys outshone girls in the 2009 Leaving Cert.

Some people frame the discussion in terms of gender wars, as proof that men are now becoming the oppressed species. Others wonder what the fuss is about. Is this not just a good news story for girls? Or is the “feminisation of education” a genuine concern?

Story here. Excerpt:

'OTTAWA — The mother of an autistic boy says he continues to suffer from severe emotional trauma after his school bus driver allegedly threatened to cut his head off with an axe, according to documents filed in court Tuesday.

The boy’s mother has filed a $750,000 lawsuit against the bus driver, the driver’s employer and the school board for the “serious and permanent consequences” sustained by the boy, including post-traumatic stress disorder, a statement of claim said.
...
After the boy began crying, his bus driver, Ariette Schoorl, threatened to cut off his head if he didn’t stop, according to the plaintiff’s claim. “The defendant then proceeded to remove the emergency axe located on the bus to further emphasize her threat,” the document said. “The incident terrified (the child).”