PJTV: Happy Father's Day: Why Dads Matter

In the spirit of Father's Day, I have Dr. Richard Driscoll, author of You Still Don't Understand back on to talk about why fathers matter. His theory? That fatherhood is an extraordinarily versatile benefit that fueled progress and the prosperity that now gives us the options to condemn men and marginalize fathers. "So long as we fail to recruit men into families, we face a lower quality of life for ourselves and we bequeath the same to our posterity." But fatherhood and marriage is not such a good deal these days for men. Driscoll discusses what to do about it.

You can watch the show here.

How the government is killing jobs

I read over at Confederate Yankee that Amazon.com is letting their North Carolina associates go:

We regret to inform you that the North Carolina state legislature (the General Assembly) appears ready to enact an unconstitutional tax collection scheme that would leave Amazon.com little choice but to end its relationships with North Carolina-based Associates. You are receiving this e-mail because our records indicate that you are an Amazon Associate and resident of North Carolina.

According to Wikipedia, there are over 900,000 "Associates" working with Amazon. If legislation and regulation cause Amazon to let many of these affiliates go as they are doing in North Carolina, unemployment will only increase. My guess is what is happening with Amazon is happening to companies across the country-- regulation and regime uncertainty are causing companies and small businesses to get rid of, or not hire workers in the first place.

This becomes a vicious circle. Everyone will talk about how high unemployment is without understanding how the government is sinking jobs at a fast pace. There will be a demand for government intervention which will only further the problem. Until people realize that more government, regulation and taxes is not the solution, my guess is unemployment will rise.

"I wish I had a bit more courage,...."

The Spectator: "Toby Young says that Father’s Day is nothing to celebrate: today’s neutered dads have become overworked assistants to their children rather than paternal role models." Young makes some good points about dads in the article and how their role is diminished, but the main item that caught my eye was this:

I wish I had a bit more courage, particularly as I have three sons. Among advocates of men’s rights, the main focus is on the iniquities of family law — and the bias shown towards women in custody agreements is clearly indefensible. But the people who suffer most from the diminution of paternal authority are adolescent males. A recent study by the Department for Children, Schools and Families discovered that white boys do worse in their GCSEs than Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Indian, African and Chinese boys, not to mention girls from any background. The only groups that perform worse are ‘Traveller of Irish Heritage’, ‘Gypsy Roma’ and ‘Pupil in Care’.

I think a lot about how boys are faring in a society where they are treated like second class citizens, along with their dads. I was recently at a spa getting a pedicure and a young boy and his sister were sitting next to their mom. The young boy blurted out, "I can't help it that I'm not a girl!" in response to something they were saying. I was taken back a bit. When did you used to hear boys saying that and in a serious way?

Our society simultaneously thinks it's funny that boys have been regulated to second class citizenship and at the same time, they feel it it their "just desserts." Afterall, they must pay for whatever happened to women in past times. This is cruel and vindictive but worst of all, it is happening because we let it.

Perhaps this Father's Day, we should all think about what it mean to have "a bit more courage," when it comes to helping the next generation of boys succeed. Without courage, we (and they) are lost.

Women behind Bars on WE

I was on an episode of "Women behind Bars" on WE (Women's Entertainment) last night that featured the story of Natasha Cornett, the teen who was part of the Lillelid murder and in my documentary Six. I thought they did a very nice job of telling several sides of the story from the perspective of experts, law enforcement and Cornett herself. You can watch the episode if you are a night owl (or have insomnia) again tonight at 2 AM eastern. For those who have more normal hours, it airs at other times noted here.

'"Complicated Patient" is the new scarlet letter..."

Dr. Wes has an open letter to patients regarding health reform:

Dear Mr. and Ms. Patient,

It has come to my attention that in order for you to enjoy success as patients in the new era of health care reform, you must start working now to prevent illnesses that might befall you. Do not, under any circumstances, eat or drink too much. Fast food might as well be considered illegal. Exercise three, four, five times a day, even if it means take time off from work. It goes without saying that you should not smoke. The government has data that demonstrates how you have become fat, lazy, and a huge burden on our health care system. Your non-compliance threatens the very fiber of our economy....

Also, do not be a surgical case that has any risk of failure. After all, "Complicated Patient" is the new scarlet letter as we work to cut even more costs. Fortunately, thanks to the new multitudes of guidelines for care that we must follow, I will be carefully interviewing you to assure that you fit into one of several pre-determined renumeration bins called "bundles." Please don't confuse me with more than one major disease since there is currently no way to handle this circumstance. I would suggest you pick the disease that bothers you most.

As a "Complicated Patient," who already does all of the above to take care of herself, I don't look forward to our new socialist overlords of health care.

Chris Burgard at Big Hollywood: Dear Mr. President, Please don't kill my kids.

Vox Day is having a discussion of Jonah Goldberg's book, Liberal Fascism, including a quiz over at his blog. Go take a look.