Article here. Excerpt:

'Canadian Member of Parliament Maurice Vellacott has once again introduced a bill that would establish a presumption of equal parenting in child custody cases nationwide. Here’s his press release on the bill.

Mr. Maurice Vellacott (Saskatoon—Wanuskewin, CPC) moved for leave to introduce Bill C-560, An Act to amend the Divorce Act (equal parenting) and to make consequential amendments to other Acts.

He said: Mr. Speaker, I am quite honoured in these few moments to be introducing a private member's bill which would direct the courts in regard to divorce to make equal shared parenting the presumptive arrangement in the best interest of the child except in proven cases of abuse or neglect.

Fifteen years ago, a joint House-Senate committee presented to Parliament a report entitled: “For the Sake of the Children”. That report urged Parliament to amend the Divorce Act to make equal shared parenting the normative determination by courts dealing with situations of divorce involving children.'

Story here. Excerpt:

'Serena Nicotine used pop cans, pens as weapons in prison hostage-takings.
...
On Friday, when the 31-year-old Nicotine pleaded guilty to her sixth and seventh hostage-takings.

Creagh handed Nicotine a 10-year sentence to run concurrent with the life term she is already serving. She also cautioned the Parole Board of Canada to "exercise their greatest care and concern for the risk (Nicotine) would pose to the Canadian public if she was ever to be released."

According to agreed facts of the case, Nicotine took fellow inmate Debbie Miller for nearly four hours on May 22, while both were both being held in cells at Edmonton's downtown Law Courts Building on May 22.
...
At the time, Nicotine was at the courthouse to appear on charges stemming from a Feb. 21 hostage taking at the Edmonton Institution for Women.

In that incident, Nicotine grabbed inmate Sonya McLeod in a reverse chokehold and held the exposed sharp edges of the woman's glasses to her neck.

From SAVE via Men's E-News 12/5/13, item here:

Here's how the Avon Foundation explains its one-sided DV message: "The Avon Foundation for Women recognizes that both women and men can be domestic violence victims. For ease of communicating the signs to our ......social media audience -- which is 93% women -- the campaign positions the woman as the victim. This choice is in no way intended to indicate that abuse is limited to women."*

Do you agree? Tell Christine Jaworsky, (212) 282-5519
christine.jaworsky-at-avonfoundation.org

Story here. The original sentencing was in 2011. It was appealed and upheld earler this year. So while this item is a bit dated, it's too significant not to run. It aptly points out that the rights if males are off-handedly sold away for profit, even if they aren't even adults yet. If male children can't see their rights protected in the legal system, who thinks male adults can expect any better?

'( Black News ) Mark Ciavarella Jr, a 61-year old former judge in Pennsylvania, has been sentenced to nearly 30 years in prison for literally selling young juveniles for cash. He was convicted of accepting money in exchange for incarcerating thousands of adults and children into a prison facility owned by a developer who was paying him under the table. The kickbacks amounted to more than $1 million.

Article here. Excerpt:

'Annie Dookhan, a chemist for the Massachusetts police, was sentenced to three to five years in prison after committing a fraud so extensive that her crimes call into question the validity of over 40,000 convictions.

Dookhan worked in a laboratory examining evidence in drug cases. She wa a go-to analyst for law enforcement and prosecutors, thanks to her rapid turnaround time and penchant for delivering much-needed drug evidence to score convictions.

Video here. Caption:

'A disturbing video showing a teenager being punched and kicked in the face goes viral after it was posted online.'

It speaks volumes that some people have actually found this video "entertaining". Would they have done so if the assailant had been male? The take on this is hinging on race, but I rather think gender has more to do with it. While the assailant was female, the victim was also female, so only *some* viewers have found it "entertaining". Had the victim been male, I think *many* viewers would have thought it was "just ROTFL funny!" Yeah, ha ha. Right up there with the ol' groin kick.

Article here. Excerpt:

'Johnny Jones, 10, was reportedly suspended from South Eastern Middle School in Fawn Grove, Pa. for "shooting" an imaginary arrow at a classmate.

The Rutherford Institute, which is defending Jones, claims the fifth grader was told he violated the school’s zero tolerance policy on weapons when he drew back the strings of an imaginary bow and “shot” an imaginary arrow at a buddy.

That's when an unidentified girl in the class told the teacher, who referred the incident to the principal, claiming that “firearms” had been involved.

Jones was allegedly suspended for one day and threatened with expulsion for “making a threat” to another student using a “replica or representation of a firearm."'

Story here. Excerpt:

'The ladies-only swimming sessions have been available for one year at the Rantakylä swimming hall in Joensuu. Only women work at the facility during the two-hour swimming sessions on Saturday mornings.

"It's related to migrant integration and has received a positive reception. About 50 – 70 customers attend the sessions every week, and that's about half of our total visitor numbers," explained Pentti Ryhänen, Joensuu city facility manager.

However the popular swimming session has also caused some bewilderment. Some believe that the city should not segregate swimming times based on gender. One local mother was taken aback by the strict enforcement of the segregation rule when she tried to take her toddler son to the swimming class.

"I thought it would not be a problem because he's such a small boy. However when we got to the ticket kiosk they asked whether the child was a boy or a girl and they turned us away. Naturally I was upset," the mother said.

Story here. Excerpt:

'Melanie Sykes[1] has been arrested and cautioned by police after assaulting her husband, Jack Cockings.

The 43-year-old TV presenter was taken to a police station following the incident at their North London apartment, but she was later released.

Earlier this year we were shocked when news broke that 22-year-old actress, Emma Roberts[2], was also arrested for domestic violence. The star was turned over to police in Vancouver on 7 July after a fight with boyfriend Evan Peters turned nasty.
...
According to men's rights campaign group Parity, male victims of assault are ignored by police, have fewer refuges to flee too and often have to watch their attacker go free.

Article here. Excerpt:

'While most people are aware of the abuse some women face in domestic violence situations, perhaps not as well known is that men also experience this form of abuse.

Since Portage la Prairie’s Real Men Live Abuse Free committee put up their banner at City Hall, the Portage Family Abuse Prevention Centre (PFAPC) has received a few calls from men asking where they can go in situations of partner abuse.
...
Although the PFAPC will offer resources and can facilitate aid to men facing domestic and family abuse, currently, there are no specialized centres for those men to go to in Portage. Schrader said the PFAPC will direct men to organizations in larger urban centres.

Article here. Excerpt:

'Mark Coulter, the manager of the programme, Strength to Change, describes the 87-point checklist that greets perpetrators at every meeting as "like looking in a mirror".

It details psychological abuse (threaten affairs, dictate what clothes she wears), financial abuse (make her beg for money), intimidation (threaten to hurt the children in front of her, destroy possessions she loves) and sexual abuse (force her to have sex with someone else, rape).
...
On the whole, we as a society concentrate on simply cleaning up the mess. The absence of men from the debate – and the solution – probably betrays the collective attitude we have towards domestic violence. As Coulter explains: "There is often a cynicism about the capacity of men to change – are they just pulling the wool over everybody's eyes? At a more fundamental level, there's also the reaction: why should we offer services to these animals?

"I think, morally, we have a duty to provide services and challenge the culture that accepts men's violence," he adds. "And we need many more early-intervention programmes. This is not to minimise or take away from the need for women's services. It's not an either/or, it's a both/and."

Story here. Excerpt:

'A federal judge in Eugene ruled Thursday that Monica Emeldi hadn't provided enough evidence that sex discrimination and retaliation caused faculty to quit working with her, The Register-Guard reported.

The five-year case attracted national attention because the gender discrimination law known as Title IX was used in an academics case rather than athletics.

At the beginning of the lawsuit, a trial judge ruled Emeldi was not entitled to a trial, but an appeals court and then the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that she was.

A jury was seated Monday and heard Emeldi's case Tuesday and Wednesday. On Thursday, Judge Michael McShane ruled against her.
...
She said she complained in a 2007 memorandum and in a meeting about discrimination in the UO College of Education. There weren't enough high-ranking female professors, she contended, and her adviser seemed to favor male students.

Article here. Excerpt:

'Immigrant rights and feminist organizations are coming together in an attempt to reframe immigration as a women’s issue, which they hope will redefine the fight over changing the nation’s immigration laws.

So far, the groups have sought to influence immigration legislation in the Senate, undertaken large-scale demonstrations and united national women’s groups.

And even as chances of an immigration overhaul have faded in recent weeks, their efforts have mobilized women across the country.

Story here. Excerpt:

'Citing costs and Title IX compliance, Temple [link added] announced Friday that it will cut seven sports—including baseball—after the 2013-14 academic year.

Five men’s sports (baseball, crew, gymnastics, outdoor track & field and indoor track & field) plus two women’s sports (softball and rowing) will be eliminated, bringing the school’s total from 24 to 17 varsity sports. The decision is a result of a seven-month analysis of Temple’s athletics situation.

“Temple does not have the resources to equip, staff and provide a positive competitive experience for 24 varsity sports,” Temple vice president and director of athletics Kevin Clark said in a release. “We need to have the right-sized program to create a sustainable model for Temple University Athletics moving forward.”

Team co-captain Matt Hockenberry, a senior righthander, tweeted after hearing the news, “I’m physically and emotionally shattered. Thanks for the support everyone.”'

----

Story here. Excerpt:

'Here's a guy who's not ashamed to let everyone know how he feels about penises.

This truck with the "NOCIRCM" license plate was spotted this morning in Phoenix, along the Loop 202 Red Mountain Freeway.

Adding to it all, the vanity license is on the "It Shouldn't Hurt to be a Child" plate.

And the guy driving had four anti-circumcision bumper stickers on his truck, featuring phrases such as, "Circumcision: A Cruel Ripoff."

(He was also driving about 60 miles per hour in the center lane of a 65 mph zone; what the hell, man?)

There's nothing wrong with having an opinion on circumcision, but there's a wonderful saying out there about some opinions being best kept to yourself.'