After the Nov 7 elections VAWA funding reauthorization will be up for a vote in the Senate. The President's budget has allocated $350 million to fund VAWA. This is in line with other social spending priorities. Unfortunately the House has passed a 25% increase in VAWA funding.

Last Friday we went to all the Senate offices and asked for two things.

• Support the President's VAWA budget.
• Hold hearings on how VAWA actually harms woman.

We gave each Senate office a copy of our flyer Six Reasons why VAWA is Bad for Women (.pdf file). The message resonated with the Senate staffers we spoke to.

We need your help in getting the message out. Here is what to do:

Story here. Excerpt:

'ERIE, Pennsylvania (AP) -- A woman used her 4-week-old baby as a weapon in a domestic dispute, swinging the infant through the air and striking her boyfriend with the child, authorities said.

The baby was critically injured in the attack early Sunday, said District Attorney Bradley Foulk.

"Never, never, never. I can never remember anything like this," Foulk told the Erie Times-News.

Chytoria Graham, 27, of Erie, was charged with aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and simple assault. She was held Monday in the Erie County Jail in lieu of $75,000 bail.'

Yes, you read that right. Watch it here (embedded video). For those of you who are outraged enough as it is by the notion of "alimony", you will probably need to pick your jaws up off the floor after watching the clip. Not only is this man compelled to pay his ex-wife alimony *for life* or until she remarries, but she is no longer a she. She is now legally a he and he (the husband) still has to pay her (the ex-wife, now a him) alimony.

Why bother reading works of fiction when you have the news? Stuff like this makes video games and movies look tame in comparison.

Yet another falsely imprisoned man is released from prison after being unlawfully held for 21 years.

This case is different from the others we have been hearing about because blood tests at the time before DNA testing came on the scene failed to link him to the crime. He was convicted basically on the woman's testimony alone. Her husband who was tied up by the real rapist and got a good look at him was not able to identify him as the attacker.

This may be taking equality of the sexes a bit too far.

In a school in Norway boys are told they will have to sit on the toilet to urinate. The rationale by the female principal is that the boys aim is not always so good when they stand and it wets the toilet seat for the next girl who might use it. This school doesn't have separate restrooms for boys and girls and I guess wall mounted urinals would be obvious sexism.

This is just insane. Andrea Yates and Dena Schlosser are now buddies. That's right. They give each other, "emotional support" and have a "relationship" . The article that follows seems to portray them as poor wounded victims clinging to each other for surivial. Let me ask you, would two men who murdered thier children ever see the light of day again much less be allowed to buddy up? I think not. The world has gone insane...

Is depression now a license to kill for women? Maybe each Prozac prescription should include a defense attorney's phone number. Story here. Excerpt:

"Kathleen Hill, doctors for both the defense and the prosecution testified that she suffered from depression and post-traumatic stress disorder because she was a battered wife."

So writes Kansas City reporter Mike Hendricks. Excerpt:

'The recent tragic murders of ten Amish girls has fueled a renewed effort to define violence against women as a special category of "hate crimes." "Too many of us would rather isolate crimes against women, rather than look at them the way many women do — as just more evidence that they are victims of hatred by men in general. Certainly, the National Organization for Women saw it that way. The group has been trying for years to pass legislation that would make gender-based violence part of hate-crime laws. "Every woman saw this and said, ‘Oh, my God, they sent all the boys away and targeted all the girls,’ NOW President Kim Gandy told me Thursday. It’s easier than facing the fact that there’s a sickness in this society in need of a cure. What that cure is, I don’t know. A starting point would be to recognize misogyny for what it is. And then to give its victims names."'

Story here. Excerpt:

'A Warren County mother who tried to get child support ended up getting arrested Thursday.

Twenty-two-year-old Kimberly Baker sued for support for her 3-year-old daughter.

Prosecutors became concerned when they found out father is 16 years old. That means he was 13 when the child was conceived.'

The media now cares enough about homeless men to at least do a single story about them. Or maybe it was misandry in disguise? You decide:

Homeless Men Are Aging on the Streets

A couple of false rape allegations have come to light and the police are pressing charges in the UK.

Two women, three instances.

Ex-wife who made false rape claims faces prison

Rape claim raised 'serious doubt'

A judicial inquiry into a woman who:

- was out on bail pending her trial for murder
- had a record of child abuse complaints against her
- eventually committed murder/suicide by walking into the ocean and drowning with her son

... is somehow a victim of "substandard child protection practices".

"It is evident that substandard child protection practices contributed to the outcome of Zachary Turner's murder and the mother's suicide," Ms. Neville told a news conference after delivering the report.

Story here: here

A woman who killed her husband has had her legal battle for a widow's pension dismissed by the Court of Appeal. She stabbed her husband, a retired police officer, to death, and was sentenced to only two years in prison. I believe she may have been released after one year. She then applied to the government for a widow's pension. The judge has had the good sense to refuse, but still described her as a 'decent, hard-working woman'. Amazing. Story here.

Looks like college students are finally beginning to do something to show their disaffection with the many ethno-genderal interest clubs that openly proclaim their proud affiliation with any group of people except whites, men, or both. Clip on CNN.com is here (embedded video). To note is that membership isn't restricted to white men only, in the same way other college campus groups can't restrict membership based on gender or ethnicity. My only reservation about it is the ethnic issue, since men's issues are men's issues first and foremost But I suppose including it may be unavoidable in terms of making a statement, in that there are generalized men's groups already on college campuses but these are usually affiliated with feminist goals, groups, or their inclinations.

In any case, these people are making a strong statement around the idea of "equal time and consideration" that college administrators at ASU and on other campuses should hearken to.

Here it is. Exceprt:

'Every few years, a report that women are gaining ground prompts panicky articles proclaiming that "men are falling behind!"

Don't get me wrong: I believe in equality for all. I'm concerned about women's status and I'm concerned about the race, ethnicity and income divisions revealed in the Department of Education survey.'