Nightmist writes "The UCLA Daily Bruin recently printed an editorial in which the author examines how defendants in high profile cases are judged guilty and their lives irreparably damaged by the court of public opinion, regardless of the facts. I must agree that society as a whole assumes guilt when someone is charged with a crime (witness what's currently going with Robert Blake and the way the story is treated by late night talk show hosts...he's already guilty). This is the uphill battle which men, especially, face in our courts."

In addition to the "battered wife syndrome," which has excused dozens of women from attacking and/or murdering their husbands, a U.S. court has now acknowledged "shopaholism," which can excuse women from theft. The Sydney Morning Herald reported here that a woman (whose salary was $250k/year to begin with) was not given a jail sentence for stealing more than $500,000 from her employer - because her "shopaholic" tendencies were a symptom of depression. In the end, she was sentenced to five years of probation.

Rick Neagle from FACT (Fathers Are Capable Too) wanted to remind everyone that there will be a one-day workshop in Toronto, Canada on June 3, 2001, for divorced/separated fathers and non-custodial mothers, their supporters, and people who work with or provide services to divorced parents. Warren Farrell will be participating, and preregistration is required. Click here to download an info flyer in MS Word Format, or contact Rick at rickneagle@hotmail.com. If you already know you want to register, just go to this site and sign up.

ABCNews has a great article about techniques for approaching fathers about improving their health. It acknowledges that older men often don't take care of their own health well enough but offers ways to approach the issue effectively, without talking down to him. I especially liked the suggestions to work out with your father or bring the grandchildren for a visit and a walk every week - having more involvement with fathers/grandfathers is a great boost to emotional health, as well as encouraging physical activity.

I knew the one year anniversary of The Men's Activism News Network was coming up soon, but I missed it! It was yesterday, May 26. Mensactivism.org is now a year old, and still going strong. And once again, I'd like to thank the regular visitors to this site for their support and participation in the men's movement - because this web site would be pointless if so many visitors weren't making use of it. I have some great things planned for this summer, and will be giving details about them next week - stay tuned!

There are several marches planned, the first is on june 15th called Events to mark Fathers Day by the UK Men's Movement. There's also the American Coalition for Fathers and Children protest happening on June 5 referred to as the National Family Courts Protest so check it out if you're interested. And to finish off, there's the Fathers Rights March & Rally from June 11th to June 17th - Fathers Day. Kindly pass these links along to everybody you know, and lastly, I hope these marches are a great success for all involved!

Claude sent me this link to an article from Insight Magazine. It's a point/counterpoint debate on whether the family court system is biased against dads. Stephen Baskerville, a great choice for the article, lists more than a dozen jaw-dropping injustices that fathers have received at the hands of family courts, and claims that this mistreatment is not uncommon. Tim Tippins argues that while the courts aren't perfect, most fathers do get a fair shake in court, and custody decisions are generally not unfair to men. Read it and decide for yourself - and furthermore, send a letter to the editor expressing your own views. Baskerville mentions in an e-mail that "This magazine is sent to all congressional offices and media outlets, and it is influential with policy makers."

Nightmist writes "Another shattered stereotype. The proliferation of these types of "studies" disturbs me. It's almost another one of those "let's find some more differences between men and women we can exploit and use to make men look stupid so women buy our products" study, but if that was its true intent, it must've backfired."

Not PC sent me this story from the Vancouver Province, which is about a court battle a father lost to have his newborn children given hyphenated last names. The mother instead registered the two sons under her own last name and fled (kidnapped) with the boys. "When he found her living on Vancouver Island, he said, she told him "to go to hell." "She said if I didn't like it, she'd say I was being violent and stalking her."" Excerpts of the judicial decision are included, which explicitly state that as a father, he has no rights. It's a very frustrating and depressing story.

Neil Steyskal has a very depressing outlook for men, which he explains in his article for LewRockwell.com. "It has become clear that left-wing feminists dominate the media, the schools, and key parts of both the legal system and the government. They saturate the country with false or misleading statistics to back up the message that men are violent by nature; and that in the right circumstances, men are only too willing to abuse women and children." I hope his article will serve as a wake up call for many men - we have a long way to go.

frank h submitted this article from TooGoodReports about the media hype over "deadbeat dads." It's an interesting, insightful article that is satirical in many places, and unfortunately, all too true. "Wake up guys! 'Deadbeat Day' is coming, and if you think you can escape the snare of a feminized society, you should be a Hollywood script writer because you are living in virtual reality."

Nightmist writes "According to this article from the Atlanta-Journal Constitution, new information indicates that the number of elderly men in this country is on a sharp increase. Men are starting to live longer, catching up to women in lifespan. It suggests that the growing population of elderly men may start to experience some of the frailty generally associated with elderly women now that men are living longer. Also, the number of elderly men is increasing more than the number of elderly women."

This article from the Boston Globe (by Cathy Young) outlines a Judiciary hearing in which argument were heard to reform the Abuse Prevention Law, which covers domestic violence restraining orders. "While many see the well-intentioned law as a necessary shield for abused women, there is mounting evidence that it is often used as a sword in messy domestic disputes." Young cites several examples of non-violent men who were thrown in jail for making a phone call to their child on the wrong day of the week, and similar situations. Some were even pushed to suicide after being alienated and mistreated for so long. How can this happen? Young writes, "Blame the mentality that it's best to err on the side of safety for women, even if it means trampling on the rights of some innocent men." No kidding.

Nightmist writes "A big part of me would love to see a day when women must register as well. This article on Excite claims the men who do not register are "missing opportunities." To quote: "But even more tragic is that our experience shows the young men most likely to miss the message are the very men who may stand the most to gain from these opportunities.""

AngryHarry submitted this article from the UK Telegraph, about a woman who threw her 10 month old daughter out a third-floor window to "get her own back" on her boyfriend during an argument. The child was killed. "[Helen] Patterson, 23, of Newcastle upon Tyne, denied murder but pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility. [The prosecuting attorney] said the Crown had decided to accept the plea following reports from psychiatrists that she was suffering from depression and other mental problems."