"Initially, Ben was too embarrassed to go to the police. 'They were girls, after all,'..."

A boy is attacked and sexually assaulted by a group of girls in Woolwich, South-East London (Hat tip: Mecurior) and is afraid to come forward but does:

The group, aged 15 and 16, dragged him into a nearby flat where they stripped him, repeatedly beat him with a broken broom handle, and made him perform sex acts.

They filmed his three-and-a-half hour ordeal on a mobile phone...

Had his sister not eventually persuaded him to inform the authorities, his story would have been difficult to believe. He gave evidence against the gang via video link because he was too embarrassed to face them in court.

I wonder if they just took the boy's word for the assault or used the video from the mobile phone? If so, thank goodness for teenage exhibitionism--that seems to be the only way girls get caught in our society.

Ace of Spades: "Duke Rape Liar Crystal Mangum Gets Degree from Podunk College in Field of... Police Psychology."

Amazon Kindle

I am debating whether or not to buy an Amazon Kindle. There is a thorough review over at Pajamas Media that may just sway me to purchase one. The price is a bit too high for my taste but my house is overflowing with books and the extra closets and bookshelves that I need to hold them all is much more costly than this device. If anyone has experience with the Kindle, let me know what you think and whether it is worth getting.

Dr. Melissa: He's Just Not That Into You Because You're A Dumbass & A Vegetarian.

Ask Dr. Helen: Dating the Divorced

My PJM column is up:

Dating a divorced person can present many challenges, but do men and women have different needs in post-marriage relationships? Double standards abound.

Have you ever dated a divorced man or woman? If so, what were the issues? Did it work out or not? If you are a divorced man or woman, do you have any better, less sexist advice? Read the column and let me know.

Remember "Billy Don't Be A Hero?"

Do you have an embarrassing song from your youth that marks your passage into the teen years that you sort of remember with fondness from time to time? I was reminded of mine last night while talking to my daughter about her favorite songs. Friends and family have always made fun of my taste in pop music--and I don't blame them. My song from when I was around 12 was "Billy, Don't be a Hero" performed by Paper Lace and later by Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods. The song reminded me of all the brave soldiers who served in the war -- many of my classmates had older brothers who served in Vietnam. I used to have a record that I would play all day long for weeks, and then, one day, I lost interest. Today, I think of the song with fondness and from time to time, it goes through my head, despite my best efforts to get rid of it. If you are too young to remember the song or just too cultured to listen to such stuff, here is a clip of Paper Lace (from 1974) singing "Billy, Don't be a Hero." If you have one favorite song from your youth, what was it and why did you like it?

The Future of Man

Writer Roger Simon, author of The Big Fix, has a great idea for a sci fi plot:

So I have an idea for sci fi writers. It's 2212 and for the first time in a hundred years a MAN is running for the White House, battling all those stereotypes about men (bellicosity, lack of education, etc.)."

Hey, maybe I should write it... or Dr. Helen!

Or maybe Roger and I should collaborate on such a book or film--but the question is, would you read it or watch it?

Is Racism really "more deadly" than Ageism in this Presidential Race?

An article in the New York Sun (Hat tip: Instapundit) states that the racism that Obama faces is a much bigger deal than the ageism that McCain faces:

But there is a double standard in operation. Of the two sins, racism is by far the more deadly. Color is strictly off limits while a person’s age, it seems, is fair game for humor. ..

A Newsweek poll taken between April 24 and April 25 asked voters whether America is ready for an African-American president, and 19% said no, with 7% saying they were unsure. That is more than a quarter of the electorate.

A subsidiary question was worded to test the true feelings of respondents. It asked whether those who said America was ready for an African-American president held views about voting for a black candidate they were not willing to express. More than half, 53%, said they believed that “most” (12%) or “some” (41%) of the 74% saying America was ready for a black president were disguising their real thoughts.....

Although Mr. McCain may appear to be at a disadvantage because his perceived weakness is regurgitated and reinforced nightly by entertainers who ridicule him because of his age, Mr. Obama ultimately may suffer the most because his disadvantage is not spoken about openly.

Mr. McCain can address the issue of age head on. He can point out that the very notion of age is fast changing. Sixty is the new 40 and 80 the new 60.

Mr. Obama, meanwhile, dare not raise the issue that, like an iceberg, threatens to sink his chances. Truly, it is no laughing matter.

Funny that the author points out all kinds of stats and percentages for those who say that racism is an issue, yet fails to provide the same information on those who say they will not vote for McCain because of his age. I'll help the author out here. Here is just one sample of how voters feel about McCain's age in an article entitled, "Is McCain too Old to be President?":

One-fifth of New Hampshire residents surveyed in a recent University of New Hampshire poll said McCain's age would make them less likely to vote for him.

So, a full 20% in New Hampshire are unlikely to vote for McCain due to his age. That is comparable to the 19% who said they simply did not believe the US was ready for an African American president. And how many more outside of New Hampshire might be hiding how they feel about age? Who knows?

My point is that many people will not vote for various politicians based on a lot of factors, but when it comes to race, those factors get front and center stage while the others are pushed off to the side as unimportant when they may be as important or moreso.

The Carnival of Homeschooling is up!

Glenn Sacks on the "Bad Dad" Campaign:

Fox has received over 5,000 calls, letters, and faxes from our supporters, and our protest garnered coverage in over 300 newspapers. Nearly a hundred educators, mental health experts, and family law professionals publicly condemned Fox's Bad Dads and endorsed our campaign. We also drew support from advocates for low income families.

As Kathleen Parker noted in her syndicated column, this campaign was an early, preemptive strike. The pilot has not been made yet, and all that has been contracted is a 10 minute promo for a pilot. We now have good reason to believe that we will never see Bad Dads aired.

Given the large response and media coverage, we have made our point to Fox, and have decided to suspend the campaign against Bad Dads. We will continue to monitor the situation, and if in the future we have good reason to believe that Fox will be going ahead with the show, we will renew our efforts. The campaign web page will remain up, as will all relevant information concerning the campaign.

Cookware

I have been shopping the 50% off cookware sale at Amazon to look for good deals on pots, pans and possibly another slowcooker. I have this All-Clad one that I got as a gift and it has been the best thing ever--especially for someone like me who doesn't cook much. Tonight we made an organic pot roast with potatoes and it was awesome. If you haven't checked out this sale, you might find it of interest.

What if ...Schools Actually Taught?

Google has a contest called "Doodle 4 Google:"

Doodle 4 Google is a competition where we invite K-12 students to reinvent Google's homepage logo. This year we asked U.S. kids to doodle around the theme "What if...?"

Apparently, the kids can write up the answer to "What if" in any form they choose. Take a look at the answers of some of the finalists--most have to do with social justice, global warming and going green:

My doodle, "Up in the Clouds", expresses a world in the sky. This new world is clean and fresh, and people are social and enlightened. Every person here is treated as family no matter who they are. The bright sun heats this ideal place with warmth, love, and brightens everyone's day.

What if … the world stops racism, and all people , black and white, and all religions, can join together. Most people think racism has been over for a number of years, but everywhere in the world people are still battling because they are different.

What if the whole world lent a helping hand? There wouldn't be homeless people. Also, we'd all have equal rights. There would be angels, no devils, and only heroes. There would be peace on earth. That's what would happen if the whole world lent a helping hand.

What if we could save the rainforest? Rainforests combat global warming by absorbing carbon dioxide and they provide us with numerous resources such as food, pharmaceuticals, and industrial goods that we use in everyday life. It is essential that we save these wonderous forests for the good of the planet.

My answer to the "What if" question and the corresponding logo would be somewhat different. It would show Google with the PC police hanging off the logo yelling various slogans about going green and "social justice" that is rarely about justice and more about looking and feeling smug and self-justified.

"What if ...schools stopped brainwashing kids in PC rhetoric and actually taught them to read and write?" We might have fewer kids who ended up like the ones in Dallas--75 percent of the seniors headed to Dallas community colleges can’t read above an 8th grade level and others can't add or subtract-- and more who actually knew something.

Men Talking Back

These comments from the Men's Health article "8 Things She Hates About You" I mentioned in a previous post are spot on (thanks Jeff):

I hope the author's boyfriend reads this: LEAVE THIS WOMAN RIGHT NOW! If this is the kind of girl he's been dating, the boyfriend in the article needs to take a long, deep look in the mirror, and asks himself how to be not such a loser.....Gee, Men's Health as name of magazine is pure irony.

Shorter Lisa Jones: It *IS* all about me.

GEEZ! I cannot believe this is Men's Health! It actually reminds me of Cosmo Magazine. A TOTAL DISAPPOINTMENT. Strategy does not equal love, it is just not worthy. Why not learn how to avoid being an outdated pain in the nuts princess from high school and start contributing to have a good relationship. *HINT* Communication. If we need to get words out with a spoon for two hours, you are the one who is wrong.


#1: LeMystic hit the nail on the head: Men's Health IS Cosmo for men. (As is "Best Life" and others. Then, there's stuff like "GQ" for metrosexuals who want to be *even more* insecure.) That's why, when I need to feel insecure about my salary or hair or abs or resting heart rate, I read it. Oh, wait -I DON'T need that - So I rarely do.

Plus, if I wanted to be nagged, I'd just go home and misbehave.

#2: That's funny. I don't wait for the third or fourth hour of silent abuse. I leave the house, go somewhere else, after an hour or two. By the time I come back, she's had a chance to get over whatever irrational snit she's in and she's usually glad to see me. (At that point, if what was bothering her really matters, we discuss it like, you know, grownups.)

It is funny that all the articles in Mens Health always and yes I mean always point out the short comings of a male, ie "What you are doing wrong" not what the two of you could do to improve your relationship. I used to read Mens Health for the honest "helpfull" articles you had, now you are like Cosmo for men!!!! Guess that is why I started reading "STUFF magazine" at least they don't make you feel or believe that you are crap just because you don't do something to please a female. HMMMMMM could the editor of Men's Health be female?????

The more magazines like this that get blowback from male readers, the better. Better yet, drop your subscription if you have one and tell them why.

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there.