ScienceDaily: Homicide Rates Linked to Trust in Government, Sense of Belonging, Study Suggests.

A question for Jessica Ashley, a proponent of violence against men

It seems that Shine staff columnist Jessica Ashley feels sorry for Elin, the wife of Tiger Woods (via Instapundit):

I am not going to opine about whether Elin should or should not stick with her husband (although early reports are saying she's planning to stand by him, after a revision of the prenup). Instead, I say that she should do whatever it is she has to do. If that is taking the tool of her husband's trade to smash the window of his Cadillac Escalade, so be it (my emphasis).If that is combing through his phone and dialing up any suspicious numbers, go to it. If that is trying to work through it (hopefully, with help of a professional), then help yourself. If that is to handle it behind closed doors, then do that.

Although none of us is in the relationship with Tiger and Elin, many of us certainly have been in that situation. If this statistic is right, that 1 in 4.6 married or cohabitating men have been unfaithful, then big crowds of us can understand any of the choices Elin might make (my emphais).

While there will certainly be an audience waiting with bated breath to criticize whether Elin stays with Tiger or walks away, I think we should stand by Elin instead. And if she needs a friend to go at the rest of the windows, pass the golf clubs, Elin. I've got your back.

Gee, Jessica, have you ever read Newsweek? It seems that American women lead secret lives that are not so secret to many people, if they would just open their eyes:

Just how many married women have had sex with people who are not their husbands? It's hard to say for sure, because people lie to pollsters when they talk about sex, and studies vary wildly. (Men, not surprisingly, amplify their sexual experience, while women diminish it.) Couples therapists estimate that among their clientele, the number is close to 30 to 40 percent, compared with 50 percent of men, and the gap is almost certainly closing. In 1991, the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago asked married women if they'd ever had sex outside their marriage, and 10 percent said yes. When the same pollsters asked the same question in 2002, the "yes" responses rose to 15 percent, while the number of men stayed flat at about 22 percent. The best interpretation of the data: the cheating rate for women is approaching that of men, says Tom Smith, author of the NORC's reports on sexual behavior. When Michele Weiner-Davis, a marriage counselor and founder of the Divorce Busting Center in Woodstock, Ill., started practicing 20 years ago, just 10 percent of the infidelity she knew of was committed by women. Now, she believes, it's closer to 50 percent. "Women have suddenly begun to give themselves the same permission to step over the boundary the way that men have."

So my question to this proponent of violence against men is this: Given that women's marital infidelity is approaching that of men (who are catting around just like Tiger), should their husbands feel free to take the tool of his wife's trade and smash in her car and perhaps her face? Because that is what you are advocating. Cheaters get beaten and their property trashed. I don't agree.

Or maybe what you are really saying is that you are for female privilege. If so, just say it out loud so everyone can know where you and your fellow sadistic "crowd" stands, not for equality between the sexes, but as a proponent of violence against men.

Will Obama donors, academics and Union leaders lead to job growth?

I somehow doubt it. I wonder how jobs will grow when many of the people going to Obama's White House jobs summit today are either academics, Union executives or Obama donors or a combination? Few of these people know how to run a small business where jobs are created, or their politics are such that they may hinder growth by sucking up to bad policies to keep on Obama's good side. The only CEO on the list thus far that looked promising to me was Fred Smith (though the list is not exhaustive and there may be more):

Of the several award-winning economists slated to attend, some are academics who donated hefty amounts to candidate Obama, like Joe Stiglitz of Columbia University, an early supporter who doled out more than $4,000 for his presidential run.

Of the 29 known attendees, only one CEO -- Eric Schmidt of Google -- donated to Obama. Schmidt gave $25,000 in personal contributions to the president's inaugural celebration last January. Employees from Google Inc. doled out a whopping $803,436 for Obama's presidential campaign -- the fifth highest of any organization to donate to his record-shattering campaign bounty.

One other CEO slated to attend, Frederick Smith of Federal Express, gave money during the 2008 presidential campaign -- but not to Obama. Smith contributed $2,300 to Republican presidential nominee John McCain and served on the Republican's "kitchen cabinet" of campaign advisers.

I am glad to see that only one CEO donated to Obama. But it seems to me if you want to promote job growth, it would help to have small business owners or those who represent them more fully present, and to take their ideas into consideration. The regime uncertainly of this administration is certainly stifling job growth. Businesses are scared to hire because they don't know what to expect next. Maybe lessening the tax burden and regulations on small business would be a step in the right direction for job growth. I imagine this job summit is more for show, however, so I won't hold my breath waiting for any sensible policies to emerge. I hope I am wrong...

Toys for boys

If you are looking for gifts for boys, here are some of my favorite suggestions:

First are the Snap Circuits SC-300 which is good for the budding 8-14 year old engineer on your list that loves electronic projects. Another good toy for this age group is the Air Hogs Havoc Heli which is described as "the Smallest and Lightest Micro R/C Helicopter in the World." A number of guys seem to like this LEGO Mindstorms NXT 2.0 which is a building kit (though a bit pricey) that lets a kid construct robots that see, speak, feel, and move. And finally, for boys, there is always the old standby, The Dangerous Book for Boys. You can hear our interview with the author, Conn Iggulden, here.

If you have other holiday gift suggestions for boys, drop them in the comments.

Good news about porn

Many of you may have already seen the study saying that porn does not change men's perception of women or their relationship (via instapundit). The professor who oversaw the study had this to say:

Lajeunesse believes the early findings of the study cast significant doubt on the common perception that pornography dramatically changes the sexual behavior of those who view it.

“If pornography had the impact that many claim it has, you would just have to show heterosexual films to a homosexual to change his sexual orientation,” he says.

I have often known women who seem very ill at ease if their husband or boyfriend viewed porn. Perhaps they should read this study and realize that viewing porn for most guys is not harmful (not that this should matter, I think guys should be free to view porn as long as there is no abuse or underage kids). This study might help those women realize that porn use is normal, so much so that the researchers couldn't find any guys in their twenties who had not viewed it.

David Harsanyi:...as Climategate proves, a bit of skepticism will rarely steer you wrong. In fact, it's one of the key elements of rational thinking.

Is Tiger hiding something?

So far, 94% of the 241,227 respondents polled say "yes" to a TMZ poll.

What would Milton Friedman say?

Stephen Moore, senior economics writer at the WSJ, speculates about Friedman's response to the current economic crisis in his new book, How Barack Obama is Bankrupting the U.S. Economy:

At times like this, I become more nostalgic for the indispensable missing voice in this debate: Milton Friedman's. No one could slice and dice the sophistry of the left's government-market interventions better than Friedman. Imagine what he would have to say about the arrogance of the U.S. government of owning and operating the car companies or managing the $2 trillion health-care industry. "Why not?" I can almost hear him ask. "After all, they've done such a wonderful job of delivering the mail..."

"I've been thinking a lot lately about one of my last conversations with Friedman, when he warned that "even though socialism is a discredited economic model and capitalism is raising standards to new heights, the left intellectuals continue to push for bigger government everywhere I look." He predicted that people would be seduced by collectivist ideas again. He was right.

As Friedman said in his book, Capitalism and Freedom, "freedom is a rare and delicate plant."

Yes, it is.