This humorous column in the Nashville Scene points out that Internet dating services are now taking advantage of men's wallets in the same way women have been doing for years: shell out loads of cash, potentially get some company. Note the final paragraph of the column, as it has the most relevance to the men's movement.

In a new woman-oriented PR move for Motorola Corp., the company is rounding up old mobile phones, which it then plans to donate to shelters for female victims of domestic violence. The company claims it wants to provide safety for women by providing them with an easy way to call for help. There are no plans for a similar campaign for male victims of domestic violence. I suppose this is better than donating pepper spray.

Neil Steyskal wrote in to let us know that the New York Times has printed a few responses to Maureen Dowd's recent article where she interviews people who think that women who pay for or split the cost of dates are "archaic feminist relics." The responses, which were overwhelmingly critical of this self-serving view, can be read here (free NYT registration required).

frank h writes "This article in the LA Times decries the establishment, in the law, of the recognition of the provocation of rape in northern Mexico. While I don't know the details of how it's implemented, I applaud this measure and I think that the states in the US ought to recognize this notion as well. Hopefully, we have some Mexican readers out there who will let their legislators know that they agree with this instead of allowing only the women to speak against it." I agree that an open discussion on this topic should be allowed - and that somehow we've got to restore some balance to rape laws, which currently give false accusers too much power and not enough accountability.

Rsutaruro writes "In this incredibly sexist article, Ellen Goodman, feminist writer to the extreme gloats about a university study about men and women's brains." I found that the article itself really had no focal point - making me wonder if Goodman was using "both halves of her brain" while writing it. :)

According to the the drug war prison facts just being a man makes you more likely to be imprisoned. While that's hardly news to most of you, the gender ratio will be. Based on my calculations, there are 15-16 men in prison for every woman on the charge of drug offences. If some of you thought the drug war was a war on men, albeit an undeclared one, the sad fact is you could well be right. On a side note, the site has a special section on women but not on men. Care for some activism, anyone? dmcvay@drugwarfacts.org

Trudy W Schuett writes "As you read this, your local media is planning their coverage of DV Awareness Month (October). This is a good time to contact them suggesting that they cover the men's side of the issue. This not a letter to the editor that you'd expect to see published; rather it is a suggestion for an issue you'd like to see addressed in their programs or pages. Many local talk shows have a spot for feedback or suggestions on their websites. Provide them with links to info, orgs, and support groups that you know of, online or off. Even better if you have someone with an org or website that would be willing to appear or be interviewed. You may have DV counselors in your area, or a local chapter of one of the men's groups. If you can provide them with this info, you have already done half their work for them and you may be pleasantly surprised at the result! The DesertLight Journal is more than willing to help. If you have questions or would like to know where to find this info, e-mail me at dsrtlite@mindspring.com. But time is critical - we need to get our suggestions to them within the next few days if at all possible."

frank h writes "The LA Times Article SAT's Gender Gap Widening analyzes, not very carefully it seems, the gender gap that persists in SAT performance. The "experts" STILL do not recognize the the SAT is a VOLUNTARY test, and that because of this, it NOT a good generalized assessment of academic performance for any group, whether divided along gender or ethnic lines. A better assessment of academic performance is a test that EVERY student must take, such as the New Jersey ESPA and GEPA, which show that girls are ahead by a lot, especially in reading and language arts. The gender and ethnic reports for the NJ 4th and 8th grade tests can be found here."

Bad news for fathers groups in Canada, a while back we reported that women's groups shunned father's advocates and refused to sit at the table with them over divorce law reform hearings. Following on from that, there was more bad news to go around as we learned that the feminists might be granted their own hearing. Now, it's been brought to a conclusion. Sadly there won't be any justice for fathers yet as Anne McLellan has buried the report, which is unsurprising as she has strong feminist leanings. Read the conclusion for yourself to find out the bitter truth.

Robex writes "I was reading this fairly innocuous article which claims that "workplace violence is all too common in corporate America". In stating this, the female author claims that bad behavior goes unpunished and cites as an example that "Sports figures still play, even if they've beaten their wives"....It seems that "crimes against women" outweigh any other type and the ludicrous inference is that not only should jail sentences be imposed, but the perpetrator should be prevented from working at his job thereafter....Is anyone else concerned at the level of bitterness and spite involved in this particular feminist thought process?" For space reasons, I had to shorten Robex's submission, but I have included it in full in the comments section. There he gives some specific examples.

In the commentary in the National Post, Donna Laframboise echoes the recent comments by Doris Lessing, that feminists need to lay off men and boys. It's not what feminism was supposed to be about, she says. She also says that because men are either too afraid to speak out, or are too extremist to be taken seriously, women need to speak for them. On this, I disagree. Certainly, women should speak out for men if they feel so inclined, but not in place of men speaking out for ourselves.

frank h and Andrew sent in this very disturbing article from Ananova News. It reports on a survey done by the women's magazine That's Life, which found that 24% of women would "try to conceive without their partner's consent if they wanted a baby." Other quotes from the article: "The Scruples and Lies Survey found that modern women are willing to lie about everything from contraception to the size of their bank balance. Whether it's little white lies or serious porkies, 94% of the 5,000 respondents confessed to telling fibs, with 48% lying on a daily basis...The vast majority (84%) said they could lie with a clear conscience, with many justifying their deceit as a means of sparing other people's feelings."

Mark writes "This article (free registration required to read) from NY Times columnist Maureen Dowd discusses how many women today still feel that even after women's liberation, men should still pay for dating..."Going Dutch is an archaic feminist relic. It's a scuzzy 70's thing, like platform shoes on men." One man admitted that he had to spend $10,000 on dates to "get his wife.""

Neil Steyskal submitted this essay from the National Review. John Derbyshire writes about the increasing "feminization" of culture, and the growing redundancy of men. His outlook is depressing, to say the least, and Derbyshire offers no suggestions on how to avoid the dystopia he describes. It's a fairly somber read.

Tonight's chat (starts at 9:30 PM EST, click here, etc.) will be a very important chat session. During it, we will be designing some flyers and informational materials which can be used by battered men's advocates during October's Domestic Violence Awareness Month campaign. Now's your chance to do something to help raise awareness of domestic violence against men. The flyers will be created and then posted to Mensactivism.org for anyone to print out and distribute. Every year, advocates for abused men are silenced and mocked. It's time for this to change, and we need your help. Please join our chat tonight for some serious activism.