Thomas writes "This article describes the recent refusal by the US Supreme Court to hear the case of a man forced to pay child support for children born by his then-wife as a result of her cheating on him. For now, at least, this all-too-common, monstrous injustice must be fought on a state-by-state basis." Ouch. This is a major loss for the cause of men's reproductive rights.

This Sunday's (1/20) joint MANN/iFeminists.com chat will be on whether the law is morally responsible for the suicides of fathers who seem to be arbitrarily denied access to their children. The recent protest/suicide of Derrick Miller has temporarily, at least, brought some attention to this problem. What should be done? What are also the implications for the children, the women, society? Join us at 9:00 PM EST at the iFeminists.com chat room.

Neil Steyskal sent us Cathy Young's latest column in Reason magazine. In it, Young makes some important observations about rape shield laws, and the problem of achieving justice when potentially important and relevant evidence is barred from the courtroom. She argues that rape shield laws were enacted when there were abusive practices involving prejudice against the alleged victim, but now the pendulum has swung too far in the other direction.

JimBWarrior has announced a recent merger between his group, Family Oriented Men, and the International Men's Network. As such, they have a new web site, which can be seen here. I think it's great to see more co-operation between groups in the men's movement. As more people work together, our effectiveness increases.

Calls from angry divorced fathers flooded KABC Los Angeles radio phone lines during Glenn Sacks' two-hour appearance on the Al Rantel Show Thursday night. Glenn and Al discussed Glenn's column on the dramatic courthouse suicide of distraught San Diego father Derrick Miller, and the discrimination which men routinely face in family court.
To listen to the full show (minus news and commercials), go to Glenn's website at GlennJSacks.com. To contact KABC's Al Rantel with comments, e-mail him at Alrantel@aol.com. To contact Glenn Sacks, e-mail him at GlennJSacks@cs.com.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation recently released an action alert including information about two proposals that have implications for fathers. The American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators is recommending that driver's licenses be modified to be used as a National ID card, and are promoting a Driver Record Information Verification System, which would track all sorts of personal data on people to be shared by state and federal agencies. This centralized database will be certain to track fathers and child support payers, if not immediately than in the future. Click here for contact info for the AAMVA, a sample letter, and more background info.

Thomas writes "Colorado Majority Whip Bill Sinclair has proposed a bill that, if passed, will eliminate some of the gross injustices of the family law juggernaut. To see a summary of the bill, click here. Unfortunately, you'll then have to scroll down and use the link to "House Bill 02-1190" [Due to frames]. The bill requires a presumption of equally shared parenting, to be overruled only in extenuating circumstances. It also contains a clause for - get this - a change in primary custody if the non-custodial parent is victimized by a false allegation on the part of the custodial parent. In addition, it increases the standard for certain allegations from the vague and much abused "preponderance of evidence" to a more stringent "clear and convincing.""

If turn-about is fair play, then this article on AskMen.com is playing fairest of them all. Challenging the common feminist-perpetuated notion that "men are pigs," Curt Smith points out the ways in which women, in general, are just as swine-like. I want people to better understand that men and women are more alike than they think when it comes to sex and sins of the flesh. Oink, oink!

The Men's Health America campaign to lobby the media to include news about the brutalization of Afghan men is about to enter phase II. A special thanks to everyone who participated in the first phase, it was a great success, and many letters were published in leading newspapers around the world. Click Read More for an announcement about phase II.

Neil Steyskal submitted this USA Today story about Michael Gurian's new book The Wonder of Girls. In the article, Gurian is credited with launching the "Boy Movement" after his previous book, The Wonder of Boys, drew attention to the shortchanging boys get in reading and writing versus the special attention girls get in math and science. In this book, Gurian challenges the gender feminist vision of girlhood: Feminism ignores scientific explanations for young girls' dilemmas, he says, in favor of saying the culture ''socializes'' them. He sums up his central message: ''Female biology has to be more important than feminist ideology.''

Neil Steyskal sent in this story from the Washington Post about Virginia's decision to allow SANE (Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner) testimony in sex criminal trials. Although the courts will allow the testimony about the physical attributes of the victim's injuries, they have barred SANE nurses from testifying whether those injuries were caused by a sexual assault. In issuing its ruling, the court ordered a new trial for a Fairfax County man convicted of rape in 1999, saying that the jury heard improper testimony from a SANE nurse called by the prosecution. Eduardo V. Velazquez was found guilty of assaulting a 15-year-old girl.

Neil Steyskal sent in this column from WorldNetDaily about a new generation of female pop stars, all of them resentful and hateful toward men. The latest is Brandy, singer and star of UPN Network's defunct sitcom dud "Moesha." Her latest single, "What About Us?" plays out on a soon-to-be released video of Brandy lamenting a failed relationship, while standing on a hill. But, according to MTV News' Shaheem Reid, the hill is made of men. Nice messages they're sending to our youth. Fortunately, the columnist is also female, and she displays a significant amount of disgust at the hatred.

Steve Burke sent in a wonderful article from New Hampshire's Union Leader. It's about a single father and what he's done for his daughter, who needed two heart transplants before she was even three years old. The dad's dedication is praised several times, and it's clear that this is a guy who has really turned his life around for the better. It's amazing enough to see such a positive article on fatherhood, but this one is one of the best.

thrudd sent in this Fox News story and writes "A women's rights group is demanding a share of the $11 billion in federal disaster relief for the 9/11 terror attacks, saying it wants the money for affirmative action programs to help more women break into traditionally male fields like firefighting, construction and policing." Perhaps Wendy's recent article on this is drawing others at Fox to report on the issue?

According to this article, dads can expect no sympathy from anyone for their troubles and the discrimination they face. To quote, "More than a quarter of Australian fathers believe they are expected to sacrifice time with their children to put in more hours at work, but their female co-workers are not sympathetic, a survey has found." Where’s sensitivity when a man needs it? There’s never been a greater need for it, in my opinion.