Story here. Excerpt:

'A gang of teenage girls may have blown up a house with a home-made liquid bomb, which killed a man in a neighbouring property, after arguing with another girl about a love rival.

Purple liquid was poured through the letterbox of the Victorian house before the an explosion destroyed three houses.

Their intended victim, Charlotte Anderson, was caught in the blast and was rushed to intensive care suffering with severe burns.'

How can a woman who stabs her boyfriend to death...AND....has stabbed him on two previous occasions get charged with only 2nd degree murder? You got it...she says that he approached her in a "threatening" manner. A man would have gotten LWOP'd for doing the same thing to his girlfriend. By the way, in Nebraska she can get patrolled after serving only half of the lower term (3.75 years). Excerpt:

'Trial testimony indicated the pair had argued over Porter's desire to attend a party, a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Grant admitted stabbing Porter, saying he was approaching her in a menacing manner.

Evidence showed that the couple had a "turbulent relationship" and that Grant had stabbed Porter on two previous occasions and had threatened to stab him three other times, the statement said.'

Article here. Excerpt:

"No constituency is more eager to see a woman win the presidency than America's feminists, yet — despite Hillary Rodham Clinton's historic candidacy — the women's movement finds itself wrenchingly divided over the Democratic race as it heads toward the finish."

"At breakfast forums, in op-ed columns, across the blogosphere, the debate has been heartfelt and sometimes bitter. Are the activist women supporting front-runner Barack Obama betraying their gender? Are Clinton's feminist backers mired in an outdated, women's-liberation mind-set?"

"We're squandering an opportunity to be seen as a voting bloc that turns elections," Feldt said. "Unless we are working together, in a strategically thought-out effort to vote in our own best interests, we are in danger of never having another election where people will say women can determine the outcome."

Ed note: Given that women make up an ever increasing majority of voters, how can one say women do not determine the outcome of elections?

dooquidis4ever submitted this article noting a lenient six-month sentence for a female high school teacher who was charged with 17 counts of sexual conduct with a minor. At least she won't be able to return to teaching again, as she gave up her teaching certificate as part of this plea deal - one which a male teacher no doubt would never have been offered.

Article here about segregation in classrooms based on gender.

From the article: "According to Gurian, at the elementary school level, for example, boys tend to lag in language arts (history, social studies and reading)."

From the article: "Many teachers also have caught on to the advantages of letting boys be boys, which means encouraging physical movement. Short of letting them run screaming through the school yard, teachers can assign boys tasks, such as passing out papers or cleaning the chalkboard. If you have an especially active son, ask the teacher if he can play with a softball while working at his desk."

From the article: "Girls especially benefit from the mixing of methods, and teachers can change things up in the classroom, encouraging writing, role-playing and other activities -- even in math classes -- to help girls absorb the material."

What's next? Back to white kids in one room and black kids in another? Which race would have to clean the chalkboard and pass out papers?

Article here:

If a stay-at-home mom could be compensated in dollars rather than personal satisfaction and unconditional love, she'd rake in a nifty sum of nearly $117,000 a year.

That's according to a pre-Mother's Day study released Thursday by Salary.com, a Waltham, Mass.-based firm that studies workplace compensation.

The eighth annual survey calculated a mom's market value by studying pay levels for 10 job titles with duties that a typical mom performs, ranging from housekeeper and day care center teacher to van driver, psychologist and chief executive officer.

This year, the annual salary for a stay-at-home mom would be $116,805, while a working mom who also juggles an outside job would get $68,405 for her motherly duties.

Ed note: No mention is made of what's men's unpaid work is worth. One can imagine that plumbing, auto repair, carpentry, painting, and landscaping work would add up pretty quickly too.

More and more double-standards in relationship articles show up when I log out of Hotmail.

From the article: "And we women can continue not telling you why we're mad, because we'll figure, "Hey, he should know already!" Besides, who said this would be fair?"

From the article: "If he wants to come on to me, he needs to ditch his gross dress socks and gym clothes and make an effort. Otherwise he ain't getting any."

Folks, I came across this story, surprisingly, on MSN.

As much as I hate saying it, perhaps it has to get real bad for men to prod us into the kind of revolt needed to force changes in our system. How much longer? Excerpt:

'They eat from the same dishes and sleep in the same beds, but they seem to be operating in two different economies. From last November through this April, American women aged 20 and up gained nearly 300,000 jobs, according to the household survey of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. At the same time, American men lost nearly 700,000 jobs. You might even say American men are in recession, and American women are not.

What's going on? Simply put, men have the misfortune of being concentrated in the two sectors that are doing the worst — manufacturing and construction. Women are concentrated in sectors that are still growing, such as education and health care.'

Story here. If a father had been videotaped encouraging his toddler to smoke pot, he would never be able to visit his kid again! Excerpt:

'The three adults were all smoking marijuana inside a Menomonee Falls home, but it wasn't the drugs that got them in trouble. It was what police found on one of their cell phones.

The cell phone video shows a 2-year-old boy taking a marijuana blunt and smoking. The video shows his mother's friends teaching him how to do it.

...
Weber is taking parenting classes, but she still has custody of the boy.

Weber's attorney says his client has maintained complete sobriety since her arrest last fall. "She is gainfully employed and has been doing everything in her power to better her life and the life of her son."'

Story here. Excerpt:

"Washington University's decision to bestow an honorary degree on conservative political activist and author Phyllis Schlafly has stirred outrage among some students and faculty.
...
Mary Ann Dzuback, the director of the women and gender studies department at Washington University agreed, said it was "grossly inappropriate" for the university to honor Schlafly with a degree.

"She's spent her entire career speaking against women in the workforce and for them remaining in the home," Dzuback said of Schlafly, who rose to prominence during the successful campaign against the Equal Rights Amendment in the 1970s."

Story here. Excerpt:

'FORT WORTH -- A Tarrant County jury sentenced Tracy Roberson to five years in prison because she made a false claim of rape that got her lover killed. Jurors deliberated two hours before reaching a decision on her sentence.'

Okay, not so "horray", but it's better than what her misandrist lawyer wanted: probation.

About time they start penalizing women for this.

National Public Radio offers a webpage in which the general public can suggest topics for NPR to cover.

The thesis of Neil Munro's April 7, 2008 National Journal article "Domestic Politics" - "The question of how to respond to family violence has become controversial, as ideology and research collide" - would be an excellent topic for NPR to cover, and Mr. Munro would be an excellent guest for one of their shows to talk about it.

Neil Munro specializes in the politics of science and the high-tech economy for National Journal. According to Wikipedia, "National Journal is a weekly magazine that reports on the current political environment and emerging political and policy trends.... It is read by members of Congress, Capitol Hill staffers, the White House, Executive Branch agencies, the media, think tanks, corporations, associations and lobbyists."

Story here. Excerpt:

'Modern life is bedevilled by political correctness, PD James, the crime author, said last night.

There was a growing risk that Britons would live in "ghettos" and experience little contact with other people, she said in a speech on policing in the 21st century.
...
"Our society is now more fractured than I, in my long life, have ever known it.
...
"...And in our relationships we are bedevilled by the cult of political correctness."
...
It would be "unfortunate" if the police became "enamoured" of political correctness, which she described as "a pernicious if risible authoritarian attempt at linguistic and social control".'

Story here. Excerpt:

'The bodies of three infants have been found bundled into the freezer of a large family home in Germany, it was revealed today.

Police investigating the gruesome find said they were attempting to determine whether the children had been alive when they were put in the freezer.

A 44-year-old woman, believed to be the children's mother, has been arrested on suspicion of murder.'

I am happy and relieved to see Thundercloud has returned to the MANN site after a way-too-long hiatus, and not for cheerful reasons. Our friend was involved in a very bad motorcycle accident but has lived to tell about it. Old-timer regulars (no offense, guys!) of MANN will recall him and be glad I am sure to see him back, just as I am. And new regulars, well, he is one helluva great guy, as you will learn from his posts.

Thundercloud, you are all that! Welcome back to MANN!

-- Matt