Article here. Excerpt:

'The French government has warned 500 companies they face fines for failing to comply with gender equality laws.

Women's rights minister Najat Vallaud-Belkacem said the firms had been given an ultimatum to comply with anti-discrimination legislation dating back several years, but were still dragging their heels.

She said five companies were already being fined "penalties of several million euros for each month … until they bring themselves in line with the law".

"It is no longer a virtual sword of Damocles hanging over the heads of enterprises, but a real one. Suddenly the companies are sending us their professional equality plans. More than 4,000 have done so since January," Vallaud-Belkacem told Europe 1 television.

"But to be efficient, it [the legislation] has to be dissuasive and above all plausible," the minister, who has said that fining businesses who break the law is a "last resort".

Article here. Excerpt:

'A Hamilton councilwoman’s comments about sexism at Tuesday’s meeting have some politicians explaining, and one resident calling for her resignation.

While voting in favor of a salary ordinance that included a raise for newly elected Mayor Kelly Yaede, Councilwoman Ileana Schirmer said individuals who opposed the increase may be chauvinists because the mayor is a woman.

“When the previous mayor was there, Councilman Meara voted to give that mayor a raise, and then all that junk happened, and they rescinded it, rightfully so. If you go to the council meeting, you can see a pattern; everything the mayor proposes, Councilman Meara goes against,” Schirmer said Wednesday.
...
The councilman said he is not opposed to pay increase ordinances, but that he didn’t vote for this one because Yaede is newly elected and it is not during the budget process.

Article here.

'An African American art student at Sacramento State University, Christina Edwards, is defending her art project, which features two white males dangling from a tree with nooses around their necks.

"The purpose of this performance was to bring to light social injustices and the issue of inequality that impact me and my community as a whole," Edwards said. The student used real men in her project, which divided opinions among fellow students.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'“If you are a white male, you don’t deserve to live. You are a cancer, you’re a disease, white 'males have never contributed anything positive to the world! They only murder, exploit and oppress non-whites! At least a white woman can have sex with a black man and make a brown baby but what can a white male do? He’s good for nothing. Slavery, genocides against aboriginal peoples and massive land confiscation, the inquisition, the holocaust, white males are all to blame! You maintain your white male privilege only by oppressing, discriminating against and enslaving others!” Professor Noel Ignatiev [link added], a tenured professor at Massachusetts College loudly proclaimed to his class last Monday, his final teaching day before retirement.
...
Ivan Fernando: All whites, or just white males should commit suicide?

For those who mark this day, MANN says "Merry Christmas!". And for those who don't, have a great day anyway!

If you are apart from loved ones, especially all you dads (and a few moms, too) out there separated from kids or your families in general due to divorce, work, or military service, an extra helping of good vibes your way.

Article here. Excerpt:

'So if the barrier to integrating women into the infantry isn’t a physical one then what is it?

It’s cultural. And that’s why the infantry may not be the best place to start in military gender integration. Instead, as counterintuitive as it might sound, the military should begin with its Special Operations Forces: elite units such as the Green Berets and SEALs. Although not the obvious move, starting here would likely make for a smoother transition over all.

The infantry, our nation’s foot soldiers, exist in a hyper-masculine culture, awash with 19-year old riflemen, “grunts” as they call themselves. For what the infantry does—combat at close quarters—that type of hyper-masculinity works. It creates an unshakable determination to accomplish the mission and to protect your friends. When fighting house-to-house in Fallujah, or valley-to-valley in Kunar Province, technology counts for very little. Culture counts for everything. That doesn’t mean it can’t be altered to accept women, but it will be different. Not better, not worse, but different.

So how do you responsibly alter the culture so women are accepted and the force remains effective?
...
If the military were to integrate elite formations such as the SEALs, Marine Special Operations and Army Special Forces, a few highly capable women in those communities would provide cultural proof that females can hang with “the toughest of the tough.”

Article here. Excerpt:

'However, critics of the initiative say it comes with social and health costs that are counterproductive. And they say they are deeply skeptical of claims by military leaders that standards will not be altered.

“The Pentagon and the White House see this as being about equal opportunity—it’s not about that,” said retired Army Lt. Col. Robert Maginnis, author of the book Deadly Consequences: How Cowards Are Pushing Women into Combat, in an interview. “What kind of nation pushes its young women into direct ground combat? A nation that is willing to compromise security even more and a nation that will not survive in the long term.”
...
“If we do decide that a particular standard is so high that a woman couldn’t make it, the burden is now on the service to come back and explain to the secretary, why is it that high?” Dempsey said in January. “Does it really have to be that high?”
...
“The use of the term ‘gender-neutral physical standards’ raises questions depending on how it is defined,” the memo said. “A plain reading of the term suggests that men and women would be required to meet the same physical standards in order to be similarly assigned.”

“However, in the past, the services have used this and similar terms to suggest that men and women must exert the same amount of energy in a particular task, regardless of the work that is actually accomplished by either.”

A report released last month by the Center for Military Readiness (CMR) notes that the Marine Corps’ implementation plan for women in combat includes similar criteria. Scores for men and women on the Physical Fitness Test (PFT) and Combat Fitness Test (CFT) were “gender-normed” in 2009 in order to “account for physiological differences between genders,” according to footnotes in the plan.

Article here. Excerpt:

'Melissa Mertz, Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association associate executive director, said the courts determined in 1975 that the PIAA could not prohibit girls from participating in boys sports or boys from participating in girls sports. Also, Title IX from 1972 states, "No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance," which includes athletic programs.

However, in early September, Commonwealth Court Judge Kevin Brobson ruled the PIAA can adopt a policy that bans boys from girls' teams, essentially reversing the 40-year ruling that allowed boys to compete against girls under the Pennsylvania Equal Rights Amendment.

Mertz said a survey of PIAA membership showed strong support of limiting boys on girls teams, but there has not been much discussion in limiting girls on boys teams.'

Story here. Excerpt:

'A woman in Pennsylvania who tried to frame her husband after she put explicit images of children on a computer has been arrested for the shocking crime.

State police arrested 42-year-old Meri Jane Woods, of Cherry Hill Township, while charging the western Pennsylvania woman with uploading explicit images involving children and also other material considered child pornography on a computer in an attempt to frame her estranged husband.

Records available online did not list and attorney for Woods and there was not a listed home phone number either.

Troopers from Indiana, Pa. say she started the investigation when she came to their barracks on Aug. 14 to report her husband sexually abused children and put images of same on their home computer, as reported by AP.

Police investigated and determined the images were put on the computer Aug. 11 but that Woods' husband left the residence July 23.

Article here. Excerpt:

'Bill Gates makes big – $1.4-billion to date – donations to the Global Fund, the worldwide effort to combat and eradicate the triple scourge of HIV-AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis. Results have been remarkable. The Global Fund, operating in more than 140 countries, has 6.1 million people on antiretroviraltherapy for AIDS, has treated 11.2 million people for TB, and distributed 360 million insecticide-treated nets to protect families against malaria. But it’s about far more than money and numbers.
...
"HIV is our toughest because we still have a lot of people who got HIV in the past who will progress to needing treatment. In the case of HIV a lot of the money goes to increase the number of people on treatment which avoids deaths. A fair bit of the money goes to HIV prevention, like scaling up circumcision and that will bring the numbers down. You know, we do have behavioural change … where we need to convince people not to do risky things, convince them to use condoms."'

Article here. Excerpt:

'The ongoing problem of the AIDS epidemic, which these days are centralized mostly around the African continent, is one that is of concern to millions.
While considerable strides have been made in finding a medical solution for at least curtailing the spread of AIDS, Tzameret Fuerst and her co-founders at Circ MedTech have followed an initiative instituted by the World Health Organization two years ago.

An initiative that recommended that if circumcision of males could be carried out inexpensively and effectively it would dramatically reduce the risk of being affected by the HIV/AIDS virus.

From that point onwards considerable research resources at Circ MedTech were extended to finding an inexpensive but highly effective device that would allow the male circumcision process to be carried out without the usual extensive loss of blood that typically occurs in such a situation.

Article here. Excerpt:

'A Montreal doctor accused of botching more than 30 infant circumcisions is facing another complaint about his medical conduct.

The investigative unit with Quebec's Collège des Médecins has already filed a complaint against the family doctor, documenting 31 cases in which boys who underwent circumcisions performed by Dr. Raymond Rezaie required corrective surgery.

The dates of the cases in that complaint range from July 2010 to October 2013. The matter is now before before the college's disciplinary council.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'Eastern Cape government has called an emergency meeting after 30 initiates were killed in the summer initiation season so far.

Eastern Cape government revealed on Monday that 30 initiates died in the province since the start of the summer initiation season.

Now the provincial government is calling on the police and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) to prioritise the cases that have to do with the abuse and deaths of initiates at initiation schools.

On Monday, MECs of several departments – including those for local government, health, safety and liaison, social development, provincial police and members of Eastern Cape's house of traditional leaders – held an urgent meeting to discuss how to deal with the death of initiates in initiations schools in the province.'

Article here. Since when do women chemically castrate lesbians? Why are men so cruel to other men, especially those who don't fall into line with the traditional husband-supporting-a-woman arrangement? Excerpt:

'Dr Turing, who played a pivotal role in breaking the Enigma code, arguably shortening the war by at least two years, was chemically castrated following his conviction in 1952.

His conviction for "gross indecency" led to the removal of his security clearance and meant he was no longer able to work for Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) where he had continued to work following his service at Bletchley Park during the war.

Dr Turing, who died aged 41 in 1954 and is often described as the father of modern computing, has been granted a pardon - effective from today - under the Royal Prerogative of Mercy by the Queen following a request from Justice Secretary Chris Grayling.

Article here. Excerpt:

'Both were underclassmen at Alabama's Auburn University when a common acquaintance introduced them. "We instantly became attached at the hip and did everything together," she recalled six months later. "I rather quickly moved into his place. . . . Everything was great until pretty much June 29."

That night, an intimate encounter in Mr. Strange's bed went wrong. She called police, who detained him for questioning. She said she had awakened to find him forcing himself on her; he said the sexual activity was consensual and initiated by her. There was no dispute as to the physical acts involved.
...
But the relationship soon disintegrated. Phone records show their communications ended in mid-August. In early September he was arrested again after she told police that two days earlier he had confronted her in a public place and struck her. He flatly denied it, saying he was 15 miles away at the time. This time she did press charges, for misdemeanor simple assault as well as for felony forcible sodomy in the June 29 incident.

Mr. Strange was cleared on both counts. On Feb. 3, 2012, a grand jury handed up a "no bill" indictment on the sodomy charge, meaning the evidence was insufficient to establish probable cause for prosecution. On May 24, when the simple-assault case went to trial, the accuser didn't show up. "I don't have a witness to go forward with, your honor," said city attorney Michael Short. Case dismissed.