Link here. From the USAID Newsletter:

'In December 2011, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution declaring Oct. 11 the International Day of the Girl Child.

The day was established to recognize girls' rights and the unique challenges they face around the world. This year marks the first time this day in honor of girls is being observed and provides an occasion for reaching out and educating others about the status of girls.

See USAID's vision on ending child marriage and meeting the needs of married children.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'As they gather Friday for the 19th annual Santa Clara County Domestic Violence Council Conference, hundreds of participants -- from domestic violence shelters to law enforcement agencies, from judges to doctors -- might be surprised to learn that their well-meaning efforts over the years were critically hampered by a lack of coordination and accountability from some of the very county officials who support their efforts.

A recent state audit revealed that $715,000 in state-mandated funds collected by the county since 1995 and meant to be distributed to local domestic violence shelters sat in an account virtually forgotten by officials until the oversight was accidentally discovered in 2010. It wasn't until earlier this year that the money was ultimately distributed to shelters.

Article here. Excerpt:

'In April of last year, the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights made clear its stance that when colleges assess Title IX-related complaints on their campuses, including those involving sexual violence, they should follow the "preponderance of the evidence" standard. In other words, the accused should be found guilty if it is more than 50 percent likely that they committed the act. Those are welcome instructions.

In a recent commentary in The Chronicle, Joseph Cohn, legislative and policy director at the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, argued that the low standard was unfair to the accused because the burden of proof should be higher in cases of sexual misconduct. We, however, support the use of the preponderance standard, for two main reasons: First, it protects colleges from being held liable for violating Title IX, the law that bars sexual discrimination at institutions receiving federal money; and second, it is the only standard that is equally fair to men and women.
...

Article here. Excerpt:

'Women graduate from college in larger numbers than men, but they fall behind when it comes to degrees in some of the fastest-growing — and most lucrative — fields. Not only did just 18% of bachelor's degrees in computer science go to women in 2010, their numbers are down from 38% in 1985, Education Department data show.

The center, a coalition of 300 corporations, colleges, government agencies and non-profits, was created in 2004 to promote efforts to reverse that decline. It has been helped along by member organizations such as the Girl Scouts, the Computer Science Teachers Association and this program, called Inspiring Girls Now in Technology Evolution, or IGNITE, offered through Seattle Public Schools since 1999.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'Males, not females, are presently the ones being discriminated against. By arbitrarily forcing males and females to have parity in sports and not in other extra curricular activities, an unattractive and hostile environment for males in higher education communities has been created. Not only are the contact sports teams, that are part of the male DNA dwindling, young college men are vulnerable to persecution under Title IX even with consensual sexual partners.

In the recent past these sexual encounters have not been considered sexual assault. These sexual encounters between college students on campus were usually not prosecuted by the local criminal system because they were "he said, she said" incidents where the rights of both parties have to be protected. After initial university and/or police investigation found probable cause that a possible sexual assault took place, it was turned over to the courts for prosecution.

Article here. Excerpt:

'Feminists have long abused the law called Title IX in order to cancel men’s sports teams in colleges and universities. For example, they have forced colleges to cancel hundreds of college wrestling teams because the feminists hate anything so masculine as wrestling. Now the feminists are making the same kind of assault against men who are interested in science and math. The feminists, who virtually control the Obama Administration, have gotten the federal government to announce a new set of rules to enforce Title IX in what are called the STEM courses. STEM stands for science, technology, engineering and mathematics. There has never been any discrimination in the STEM courses; they are open to males and females on the same basis. But traditionally more men are interested in those subjects than women.

Article here. Excerpt:

'A merry group of men and women gathered in the McCune conference room on Monday, Oct. 15, to kick off University of California Santa Barbara’s two week celebration of Title IX.

Signed by President Nixon, Title IX was added to the Higher Education Act of 1965 in 1972. The act is widely known for expanding opportunities for female athletes at the college level, and it also bans sexual discrimination from any federally funded educational program or activity. Female professors, graduate school applicants and athletes, once small in numbers compared to their male counterparts, became legally protected from discrimination thanks to Title IX.
...
“I think we will have a wonderful opportunity to have a dialogue,” she said, speaking to her diverse audience. Chancellor Yang came to offer opening remarks about the celebration. He discussed the welcomed implementation of Title IX at UCSB and the progress made by women on campus because of the law.

Article here. Excerpt:

'As pediatricians gather Saturday at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, they'll be greeted by protesters urging the medical group to rethink its position on an issue that makes most people squirm: the circumcision of newborn boys. Although the American Academy of Pediatrics doesn't recommend routine removal of infants' foreskins -– that has been its stance since 1999 -– its report, released two months ago, does cite literature saying that the procedure can prevent urinary-tract infections, cancer of the penis and sexually transmitted diseases, including AIDS.

Such benefits, the report says, justify its coverage by private insurance and Medicaid. Louisiana is one of 18 states where Medicaid does not pay for the procedure.

Opponents, who call themselves "intactivists," go beyond mere opposition to the circumcision of healthy infants.

Article here. Excerpt:

'Sydney (CNN) -- The Australian Macquarie Dictionary has re-ignited the so-called gender war that shone so brightly after the country's prime minister's blistering attack on sexism and misogyny in parliament earlier this month.

Julia Gillard's tirade, which drew global attention, and at the time of writing had been viewed almost two million times on You Tube, was directed at the Opposition leader, Tony Abbott.

"The leader of the opposition says that people who hold sexist views and who are misogynists are not appropriate for high office. Well, I hope the leader of the opposition has got a piece of paper and he is writing out his resignation," Gillard blared.

Slate has recently published an interactive map purporting to show income inequality by gender down to the county level, based on the US Govt. data from the American Community Survey. You'll immediately notice the ubiquitous pink and red tones screaming that women earn up to 50% less than men.

Lets educate them a bit in the comments shall we?

Article here. Will wonders never cease? I think years of walking a few miles in mens' mocassins has taught her a few lessons. Wonder if she'd recognize that whining panderer she was not too long ago if she met her in the hallway? Now I don't see this as proof of a magical transformation; I have no doubt she still cares diddly about males, much less men's issues-- after all, she's still Mrs. Circumcision-For-All-African-Men, last I knew. But I'm glad to see that after so much time, she's finally grown up some and not only seems to have stopped her endless whining herself but has developed a healthy intolerance for it. Better late than never. Excerpt:

'Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says in a new interview that she can’t stand “whining” by women who are unhappy with the work and family choices they’ve made in life and complain that they have no options.

Unbelievable, but read it here. Excerpt:

'Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky asked a judge on Thursday to overturn his child sexual abuse convictions and grant him a new trial, claiming his lawyers lacked sufficient time to prepare and the statute of limitations for some charges had expired.

Sandusky's lawyers made the filing at the courthouse in Bellefonte where he was sentenced two weeks ago to 30 to 60 years in prison after being convicted of abusing 10 boys, some on Penn State's campus in State College.

''The defendant submits the court's sentence was excessive and tantamount ... to a life sentence, which the defendant submits is in violation of his rights,'' they wrote.

The 31-page set of motions, technically not appeals because they were filed with the trial judge, cover a wide range of assertions, including insufficient evidence, improper use of hearsay testimony and improper rulings from the bench.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'The philosopher Iain Brassington has recently expressed a similar concern. On the Journal of Medical Ethics blog, he wrote: “Though I [have] mentioned the [recent] decision of the German court that ritual circumcision constituted assault, I’ve wanted to stay clear of saying more about it [because] it seemed too potentially toxic”[2] (Brassington, 2012, para. 2). To give another example, the bioethicist Dan O’Connor from Johns Hopkins University—in an article entitled “A Piece I Really Didn’t Want to Write on Circumcision”—has recently said that: “when [a reporter] calls my work and ask[s] if there is a bioethicist in the house who will give the anti-circumcision viewpoint, I beg off. … I would be a terrible interviewee anyway, [since I would have to preface] my every argument against circumcision with rambling spiels about what loving and caring parents my [Jewish] friends are” (O’Connor, 2012, para. 10).

Something smells very rotten in Ellsworth, Maine.

Even though you made the calls this week on behalf of falsely accused and persecuted domestic violence victim and single father Vladek Filler, he was incarcerated yesterday. But that's not the worst of it.

Asst. District Attorney Mary N. Kellett is facing a disciplinary hearing next week for procedural misconduct in the Filler case. And now Vladek is in Mary Kellet's jail. He's in her jail without an attorney.

Background: http://www.saveservices.org/camp/intolerable-injustice/

Six weeks ago Vladek filed two motions, including one asking the court to recognize his new attorney. Judge Robert E. Murray waited until the very last minute, then denied both motions. Vladek Filler doesn't have an attorney to make sure he is allowed to testify at Kellett's disciplinary hearing next week.

Do you smell it now?

Please call the Board of Overseers of the Bar. Tell them to bring prosecutor Mary Kellett to justice at 207-623-1121

Article here. Undoubtedly the vast majority of adults in Scouting are NOT child molesters, in the same way that the same can be said for college football coaches and clergymen. The issue here is that once again, boys were the victims of sexual predators (male or female, makes no difference), and instead of other adults standing to defend them, they turned their backs on them. Need I make the point yet again: Would they have done thus if the victims had been girls? No way. Excerpt:

'PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — An array of local authorities — police chiefs, prosecutors, pastors and town Boy Scout leaders among them — quietly shielded scoutmasters and others who allegedly molested children, according to a newly opened trove of confidential files compiled from 1959 to1985.