The European Union Commission has proposed a new directive, to be voted on in March, that would make maternity leave compulsory for the first six weeks after a woman gives birth. You read that correctly -- compulsory. As in, women would be forced to stay home, regardless of their own wishes, if they have children.
Beyond the obvious affront on personal free will, the problems with this proposal are so numerous and egregious it's making our heads spin. Firstly, Europe as a whole already suffers from low female labor participation rates; continent-wide, only six out of ten women work. This is a major problem for the region, as it turns out women have been the key factor driving economic growth worldwide in recent years ("women have contributed more to global GDP growth than have either new technology or the new giants, China and India," according to a pre-mancession article in The Economist). Stigmatizing women by telling employers outright that women will not, by law, be as committed to the workplace as men is a foolish and self-defeating move.
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March 11, 2010
March 10, 2010
Grayson Offers Medicare Buy-In Bill, Makes Impassioned Speech (VIDEO)
When Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) first became a father, his health insurance company refused to pay for the birth of the child, and Grayson had to pay $10,000.
Grayson told the House that story Tuesday during an impassioned and personal speech urging fellow lawmakers to support legislation that would allow Americans to buy into Medicare. Grayson introduced a four-page bill Tuesday that would make that a possibility. He asked would-be opponents to grant Americans the option to buy into the same health care plan that the federal government already offers.
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Grayson told the House that story Tuesday during an impassioned and personal speech urging fellow lawmakers to support legislation that would allow Americans to buy into Medicare. Grayson introduced a four-page bill Tuesday that would make that a possibility. He asked would-be opponents to grant Americans the option to buy into the same health care plan that the federal government already offers.
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March 6, 2010
‘Tom Thumb’, World’s Smallest Baby Boy, Born Weighing Half A Pound (VIDEO)
Meet 'Tom Thumb,' the 25-week-old baby boy who weighed a mere 9.7 ounces at birth - less than a can of soda.
Doctors believe the baby is likely to be the most premature boy to have survived in the world. He was born 15 weeks early at the University of Gottingen, in western Germany, in June.
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Doctors believe the baby is likely to be the most premature boy to have survived in the world. He was born 15 weeks early at the University of Gottingen, in western Germany, in June.
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March 4, 2010
Kendra Wilkinson Talks Postpartum Depression, Post-Baby Sex
Kendra Wilkinson has repeatedly appeared a happy new mom in the past 11 weeks, but Season 2 of 'Kendra' (premiering March 14) will revisit a dark period she went through after her son's birth.
"After giving birth, I never brushed my hair, my teeth, or took a shower. I looked in the mirror one day and was really depressed," Kendra told OK! magazine. "I thought, 'Look at me!' I had this glamorous life in L.A., and now [in Indianapolis] I didn't."
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"After giving birth, I never brushed my hair, my teeth, or took a shower. I looked in the mirror one day and was really depressed," Kendra told OK! magazine. "I thought, 'Look at me!' I had this glamorous life in L.A., and now [in Indianapolis] I didn't."
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February 27, 2010
The Slow and Senescent Death of Health Care in America
August 31st, 2010 will be the 75th anniversary of Eldridge Cleaver's birth. Perhaps, there will be some kind of celebration, somewhere, but I doubt it. After all, white America pretty much hated Cleaver and the Black Panther Party of which he was a part. But Cleaver was a true student of human behavior and, because of his "marginalization" knew white America better than white America knew itself. I think that was fairly self-evident in his book, Soul on Ice. Cleaver was known for a lot of quotes:
"All the gods are dead except the god of war."
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"All the gods are dead except the god of war."
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February 5, 2010
Birther Babble
In a recent TIme Magazine article on the top ten conspiracy theories, the Birther Movement, which maintains that President Obama is not a natural born citizen of the United States of America, did not make the list, even an honorable mention. Whether or not Jesus kissed Mary Magdalene was still going strong. Since conservative Republicans seem to be at the helm of the BM (appropriately sharing the same initials as another popular movement) it brings up an interesting question: Why do these people have no problem confirming an immaculate birth that happened 2000 years ago in a manger in Bethlehem, but have trouble accepting the much more recent birthplace of our highest elected official?
Did Jesus have to supply a birth certificate? Let's face it; even the Three Wise Men didn't give their names in reference to the Virgin Mary story. "She had the child without sex, but we going to remain anonymous". The fact that they didn't give their names may be what got them the "wise" moniker to begin with. And how come no one ever talks about the Virgin Joseph? Rumor has it that not only wasn't the birth immaculate but her house was a mess.
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Did Jesus have to supply a birth certificate? Let's face it; even the Three Wise Men didn't give their names in reference to the Virgin Mary story. "She had the child without sex, but we going to remain anonymous". The fact that they didn't give their names may be what got them the "wise" moniker to begin with. And how come no one ever talks about the Virgin Joseph? Rumor has it that not only wasn't the birth immaculate but her house was a mess.
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January 31, 2010
Matthew McConaughey & Camila Alves Step Out Weeks After Baby (PHOTOS)
Grammy weekend kicked off Friday night and Camila Alves joined boyfriend Matthew McConaughey at an event less than 4 weeks after giving birth to their second child, daughter Vida on January 3.
The pair was attending the 2010 MusiCares Person Of The Year tribute to Neil Young at the Los Angeles Convention Center.
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The pair was attending the 2010 MusiCares Person Of The Year tribute to Neil Young at the Los Angeles Convention Center.
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January 28, 2010
Protecting The Last Right Whale Nursery
Today NRDC and other environmental groups filed a lawsuit challenging the Navy’s plans to build an Undersea Warfare Training Range off the coast of Jacksonville, Florida. The lawsuit against the Navy and the National Marine Fisheries Service contests the reckless rush to construct a $100 million training range without adequately assessing the environmental impacts, considering a full range of alternatives, or completing the most basic surveys to determine the presence of marine wildlife.
The Navy’s credo to build first and think later is particularly careless here, because it plans to construct the training range right next to the only known area where the critically endangered North Atlantic right whales give birth and nurture their young. There are only about 300 North Atlantic right whales left in the world. I’ve written before about right whales and the Navy’s scientifically unsound proposal.
Science tells us that the loss of even a single North Atlantic right whale could threaten the survival of the entire species. Constructing a training range near the only waters where the North Atlantic right whales give birth and nurture their young will only exacerbate the already tenuous grip this species has on survival.
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