Stephen Baskerville wrote an article for the Washington Post several months ago in defense of fathers. However, his two biggest critics were David Blankenhorn, author of "Fatherless America : Confronting Our Most Urgent Social Problem" and Wade F. Horn, president of the National Fatherhood Initiative. I have to say, for father's advocates, their letters are quite surprising. I did some digging and found this interview with Wade Horn where he says "...Some are fathers' rights groups, keeping you angry and outraged. They give you excuses why you haven't been a good guy." That was said by the man who's the President of the National Fatherhood Initiative? You work it out.

There's an awesome article on DrKoop.com about the ways fathers interact with babies, and the benefits of dad's unique style of parenting. Everything from how dads hold and talk to babies to the way they encourage rough-and-tumble play styles, which actually makes children less aggressive as they get older, is mentioned. It's a great article to show others when discussing the importance of fathers even when a child is in its infancy.

I know it's a little late notice, but tonight's Mensactivism.org chat will be on how the media has handled domestic violence this month. Personally, I haven't seen a lot on the subject considering the current focus on terrorism. This could have both good effects and negative ones. Come to our chat by visiting this page at 9:30 PM Eastern Time tonight (10/10), and share your views.

Finally, after all the debate, here it is from the horse's mouth: Why women aren't required to register for the draft. A supplemental backgrounder document is also available. To draft women, military policy must first be changed to allow them into combat roles. The wording of the law must then be made gender neutral. Then funding must be provided for requiring women to register. Also from the backgrounder: The U.S. came close to drafting women during World War II, when there was a shortage of military nurses. However, there was a surge of volunteerism and a draft of women nurses was not needed.

Slowlane.com has announced an At Home Dads Convention to be held at Oakton Community College in Des Plaines, Ill. for later this month. A new, wide-open discussion format and two keynote speakers focusing on the joys of fatherhood through all ages await at-home dads attending the 6th Annual At-Home Dads' Convention at Oakton Community College, just outside of Chicago, on Saturday, November 17.

About a month ago, I approached Elliot Zaret, the editor of The Guy Code about writing a bi-weekly men's issues column for his e-zine. After reading some of my clips, he welcomed me aboard. Here is my debut column on his site about a false accusations incident that nearly ruined my life way back in high school. Look for my column on The Guy Code every other week.

Getting straight to the point, this quote is what caught my eye: "this is the Gloria Steinem line: Masculinity is something that is pernicious and is the cause of all wars and destruction and violence and battering against women, and slowly we're going to be programming it out of our youth. I said it in the Playboy interview: All it takes is one natural disaster for that entire artificial world to come crumbling down, and suddenly everyone will be screaming and yelling for the plumbers and the construction workers. Only masculine men of the working class will hold the civilization together. " Does this remind you of the WTC? The rest of the interview is an interesting read, to be sure.

There is a great article from the Washington Times about men as heroes making a comeback (have they ever really been gone? I doubt it). Personally, I think it should have been called "Men make a comeback" as it shows masculinity is on the ascent to greater things. Anyway, it's well worth reading, so why not read it here.

Paul Clements had an excellent letter printed in Foster's Daily Democrat about the unfairness of the sexist military draft. Clements lists a series of tasks that women could perform in the military without going into combat, so he avoids that hot-button issue entirely. I have to say I agree completely with his comments.

Trudy W Schuett writes "Julianna Margulies (ex-Carol) will next star in the movie Evelyn, where she will play a woman who helps Pierce Brosnan's character regain custody of his children, who were taken from him by Irish authorities. The movie may also star Stephen Rea and Aidan Quinn and will be directed by Bruce Beresford. There is no release date yet announced." It would be great to see some mainstream movies include some men's rights issues. I hope Trudy will give us further updates when she hears any more news about this particular film.

I am now seeking written works (fiction, non-fiction, poetry, journalistic commentary/articles) for publication in a new anthology of masculist literature. I plan to compile these works over a year's time and publish them as a collection in both e-book and physical form (if possible). Any writers interested in contributing to this compendium may do so by e-mailing me at nightmist@mensactivism.org. Click "Read More" below for full details.

Anonymous User writes "Since the September 11 attacks, DivorcePort.com has begun offering extensive coverage of current events as they relate to the Men's Movement. DivorcePort provides a broad range of links related to men, activism, ideology, community support, legal resources, and many other resources."

Trudy W Schuett writes "Featured yesterday on the About.com portal site, is coverage that various "About Guides" are giving to DV Awareness Month. Paul Reed, author of the "Guide to Current Events: Law" section was first on 10/1 with a balanced view of DV as it affects both men and women. Rod Powers, from the "Guide to U.S. Military" section, also admits he's seen it both ways in military families. About.com has a variety of sites devoted to specific women's issues, while the Fatherhood and Men's Health sites are the only ones for men. The Men's Health section is currently without a Guide."

Intellihealth.com printed a very useful article about men's health which includes a table of what kinds of tests men should get and how often, along with a description of what the test is for and how they are done. Please take a moment to check this out and see if you're due for any medical screenings!

This story on Canada.com details a recent Canadian controversy in which a former president of NAC spoke to a women's conference (to much applause) about America's "trail of blood," adding that people should not feel pain for the deaths of those who were attacked and killed on Sept. 11. (One wonders if she would feel the same had 80 percent of the victims been female.) Naturally, the speech has generated much controversy. One interesting thing about this woman, though, is her stance on mainstream feminism: As the outspoken leader of the NAC, Thobani created much controversy when she said in 1995 that only white, middle-class women had benefited from the feminist movement. Although I do not agree with her anti-American rant, I actually do tend to agree with her statement about the feminist movement.