The Rights Of Man

MALE SUICIDE RISES AGAIN BUT GOVERNMENT AND HEALTH PROFESSIONALS DO LITTLE

This week, the annual suicide figures were released albeit covering up to the end of 2011:

• There were 4,552 male suicides in 2011 (a rate of 18.2 suicides per 100,000 population) and 1,493 female suicides (5.6 per 100,000 population).

• The highest suicide rate was seen in males aged 30 to 44 (23.5 deaths per 100,000 population in 2011).

• The suicide rate in males aged 45 to 59 increased significantly between 2007 and 2011 (22.2 deaths per 100,000 population in 2011)

As the Daily Mail pointed out, more men commit suicide than die in road accidents. There was more coverage in the Guardian and Independent. CALM's, Jane Powell was in the Guardian (Suicide is a gender issue)

Norman Lamb, the care services minister, said the figures caused very real concern, and they needed to be tackled "head on". This was after he launched a new suicide prevention strategy last year (if you click on the link at the bottom of the release it is broken - says it all).

So what are the issues.

Firstly, despite the biased rhetoric the recession and continuing problems in the job market will lead to more suicide and more amounts men (and women). Liverpool University showed that between 2008 and 2010, an extra 846 men had taken their lives and an extra 155 women.  When anyone from the Guardian, Fawcett Society, TUC and Labour Party state this remind them that men are literally dying because of the recession.

Secondly, the policy response in the strategy is startling and weak. If you compare the policy response to domestic abuse (c33% victims are male/66% are female) and suicide (c75% victims are male/25% are male) there are huge differences which prove once again the institutional discrimination faced by men in Britain.

For domestic abuse, the government strategy to tackle this is called Ending Violence Against Women and Girls  - and covers all genders (yes, I know, how can men be represented in a strategy called this and they get one mention). Yet the strategy for suicide is not gendered - it is not called Ending Suicide Amongst Men and Boys.

If there was no institutional discrimination and sexism against men then this is what the suicide strategy would be called.

The suicide strategy strategy's press release cannot even bring itself to mention men in the text (only in a fact at the end) even though the strategy does talk about men as the biggest high risk group. If 75% of those who committed suicide were women, it would run through it like words in a stick of rock. The strategy itself just seems full of public-sector speak with very little practical action. It looks like a tick box exercise. 

There is an argument rightly that strategies should be overarching but have gendered approaches within them if required (men and women are different and may need different approaches where necessary) so long as they do not negatively impact on the other gender. It is just the hypocrisy of highlighting gender when it affects women and not mentioming it when it effects men.

Posted by Skimmington

NHS MISANDRY - 5 A DAY ADVERT ON CAUSES OF OBESITY

More everyday misandry - on the taxpayer this one from the NHS (yes the very same NHS that treats men as second class citizens)- portaying men as buffoons. Seen on TV this weekend.

Posted by Skimmington

INSTITUTIONAL DISCRIMINATION AGAINST MEN EXPOSED BY PROSTATE CANCER UK

Thanks to Brian for sending over the link to the Daily Telegraph article on "prostate cancer -the neglected killer, loses out on research cash."

Breast cancer receives twice as much research funding as prostate cancer despite both diseases killing similar numbers of people, a charity has said.

Despite being the most common cancer in men and the fourth most common cancer overall, prostate cancer lies 20th in the “league table” of annual cancer research spend per case diagnosed, figures show.

Breast cancer, the most common female cancer which has a similar death rate to prostate cancer, received more than double the annual research spend with  £853 per case diagnosed compared with £417.

Prostate Cancer UK are really stepping up a gear. Not just in launching their sledgehammer campaign  and their advertising campaign, but also in publishing this research. It certainly builds on the responsible campaigning theme and does make the case rightly that money should be switched from breast cancer research to prostate research.

The chief executive alludes to what part of the problem is in his comments: "Men in the UK have a problem and they don’t want to talk about it. Neither do the wives and partners who will end up supporting them, the doctors who will treat them, nor the politicians who will count on their vote. Prostate cancer is the UK’s best kept worst secret."

What he is saying but doesn't want to 'say it', is that this is as clear an example of the  institutional sexism and institutional discrimination that men face.

Play the 'reverse the gender' game and does anyone really think that politicians, and doctors would not do anything about, not lead campaigns, not increase funding etc. Of course they would but they stay silent when comes to men's health because as we know men are the disposable sex.

It also shows why we need a Minister for Men to ensure this state discrimination does not take place.

 And of course where is the anti-male Equalities and Human Rights Commission in all of this? They have a statutory duty under the Equality Act 2010 to ensure that this type of state institutional discrimination does not take place in terms of government research. Why are they so silent?   

This is a great start to 2013 in exposing discrimination against men, and then doing something about it  - fighting male discrimination that actually costs men their lives.

Posted by Skimmington

Media update - BBC and Daily Mail

CHRISTMAS EVE NEWS UPDATE

Sorry for slackness, here are a few from the last week or so and thank you to those who sent them on.

Daily Telegraph: So you think you know about homeless (Cathy Newman) - No one wants to see anyone homeless, man or woman, but what would be good is to see an article about why 85% of those who are homeless are men and what is to be done about them - and of course those women in the same boat. There is a lazy acceptance that men being homeless is Ok and acceptable.

Daily Telegraph: Sexual display around board table is why women won't succeed (Louisa Peacock) - Coverage of Steve Moxon and Mike Buchanan at a recent select committee.

Daily Telegraph:  How Louise Mensch and the A-List will make it harder for women (Cathy Newman) - Ms Newman is taking on the we need special treatment and discrimination against men mantle in the Telegraph.

Daily Telegraph: Will Jimmy Saville case put men off from childcare (June O'Sullivan)

Daily Telegraph: Fathers earn more, mothers earn less (Patrick Hennessy) - Proof of the strength of the family unit and the clear cause of the diminishing gender pay gap - not discrimination against women.

BBC: Five things about women in the press - Nothing about all men being portrayed as idiots or potential sex offenders.

BBC: Child Abductions up 88% - FCO press release but Huffington Post says 70% of abductions are by mothers so why is this not in the headline. If it was 70% men then the headline would 'fathers responsible for spiralling numbers of child abduction cases'.

Daily Mail: Connors' family jailed for slavery (Mark Deull et al) - Now lets never hear a story about slavery in Britain without men being a core part of the narrative.

Front Page (US): Women's Studies and the spread of men hatred (Ben Bawer)- Plus watch the link to the Toronto video to see full-on misandry.

BBC News: Teenage fathers feel marginalised - Research by Barnado's show how teenage fathers are ignored and never thought of by the authorities. Groundbreaking work by the charity not only because of the research itself but just the fact it is putting it out there and speaking up for fatherhood. The report says the authorities are "driving fathers apart from their children through a ‘culture where fathers are not valued."

Daily Telegraph: A dad is tenth most wanted Christmas present (Hannah Furness): Perhaps if their mothers had not gone through the family courts to stop them enjoying life with their fathers then this would not be an issue.

BBC: Nurse kills baby in botched circumcision and calls for a ban

BBC: Half of men to get cancer by 2027 - The story touches upon but does not delve into why there is no effective screening for men and why there is such a lack of pace in making it happen. The Men's Health Forum are as pathetic as ever, blaming men for not getting screening for bowel cancer rather than taking on the authorities who do not tell men it is available.

The Sun: X Factor glasses ex and avoids jail (Alice Everley) - Equality in British courts and this laughably weak sentence shows what happens when you have campaigns against women going to prison. The subliminal message gets to judges.

The Guardian: More protection needed in family courts (Amelia Hill): Notice how the judge mentions crimes committed by 'fathers' and others by 'parents' - I wonder if the 'parents' were mothers but it would do to mention that in the Guardian.

Daily Mail: More boys put off university than girls due to hike in fees (Laura Clark) - Mary Curnock Cook, UCAS chief executive, said: ‘The fact that women remain more likely to enter higher education than men are  to apply is a striking and worrying finding.’ So what is she and government going to do about it? 

The Guardian - Education is leaving boys behind (Ally Fogg)

Merry Xmas everyone and thank you for your support.

Posted by Skimmington

NEWS ARTICLES

Hi Everyone

A couple of things - first as you know sometimes my work and other activities mean I am unable to keep up with posting which sometimes leaves the site looking a bit outdated. It means many readers link new articles or news in the latest post. I think this does those who kindly do that a grave disservice because they want to start a debate but I cannot keep up.

One way around this is to go back to A-level days ( I would have said O-level but only those of a certain vintage would know what I meant!) and if I post something like "GENDER PAY GAP NEWS - PLEASE DISCUSS", due to a news item then readers can comment away.

Happy for comments on this and here are some latest news articles anyhow - in no particular order:

The Guardian - Why do so few men take gender studies courses (Jane Martinson): An amazing article when gender studies should be renamed men-hating studies. The front of it.

Lords Select Committee - Women on Boards report

Daily Express - We are the battered husbands (Sadie Nicholas)

Daily Mail - BBC News snubs economist becuase he is a man (Tom Kelly)

The Independent - Movember, why would a woman grow a moustache (Rita Amin)

Daily Mail - Met Police could be sued for promoting women (Martin Beckford)

Daily Mail - Men are better at multi-tasking (Mark Prigg)

The Guardian - It's time to break the glass ceiling (Viviane Reding): Reding desperately wanting sexism

Men's Network - German government funds men's conference

Daily Telegraph - French minsters attend sexism classes : There is a women's ministry. These classes sound like sonme Opus Dei-like self flaggelation!

The Guardian - Female experts wanted (Caroline Criado-Perez)

The Guardian - Government reforms place domestic abuse victims at risk (Alexandra Topping): Men not mentioned.

The Guardian - Boardroom quotas are dangerous (Zoe Wood)

Equalities and Human Rights Commission - Equality Advisory Service launched

Business Insider - F4J want Asda advert banned (JIm Edwards)

The Guardian - Judge wants poistive discrimination for female judges (Owen Bowcott) Lord Sumption, another sexist judge

CBBC - Should Guides just be for girls

Ally Fogg - Reconciling feminism with the Men's Movement

The Guardian - Gender discrimination is banned, car insurance and annuities (Patrick Collinson)

Daily Telegraph - Male presenters on Today too aggressive

Daily Telegraph - Girl Guides are the ultimate feminist organisation

Sunderland Echo - Vera Baird pledges to not bother about male victims of domestic abuse

The Guardian - Men to blame for not going to Doctors (Jamie Doward): Always men to blame

Reddit - British male nursery teacher speaks out

Daily Mail - Women winning gender pay war

Daily Mail - 20% of primary schools have no male teachers (Laura Clark)

Posted by Skimmington

MISANDRIST QANTAS JUMPS ON THE MOVEMBER BANDWAGON

Having witnessed years of neglect of men's' health I've been very pleased with the success of Movember this year, and it's excellent to see such issues finally getting some much needed attention. One new feature of this year's Movember is for airlines to places a moustache on their aircraft, not only do they look great, they really help raise awareness too.

Regrettably, there are still some very misandrist airlines out there who regard all men as untrustworthy child abusers and insist unaccompanied minors are only ever seated next to females on flights. One would have though that any airlines that hate men to this extent would have absolutely no interest, nor any right to have an interest in Movember, yet bizarrely Qantas have decided to take part.

Men's health isn't a simple, isolated issue where men simply go to the doctor more often or where research into cancer finally gets the funding it needs. It isn't even simply about exercise and healthy eating either. "Health" is inseparable from all other aspects of a person's life. To be healthy we need to have good mental health, home life, social relationships, self worth, and self esteem. Ultimately, just like anyone else, men need to be treated fairly, with dignity and respect.

Unfortunately, Qantas blatantly hates adult males and has no regard for their health whatsoever. As Lord McAlpine can now testify, to falsely brand a single man as a child abuser is a horrific crime, and such allegations clearly take a considerable toll on the health of the victim not to mention putting them at risk of violence. However, Qantas doesn't falsely smear one single male, but every adult male who steps on one of its planes. To openly operate a discriminatory policy suggesting all men potentially abuse children damages society and lives immeasurably. It fuels the unfair outcomes and sexist culture of the family courts, it contributes to the culture where men are unable to work as teachers or with children in other roles. It encourages further false allegations against males and the type of atmosphere where parks and other venues become no go areas for men. Above all else, it endorses the hatred of men we see from gender feminists and encourages their attacks on our society.

Simply put, false smears of child abuse against men damage their health. If Qantas cared the slightest for men (and children) they'd end their sexist seating policy immediately and apologise for their years of misandry. Instead, they pretend to like men, and paper over the cracks by painting  a symbol of masculinity on their planes, a symbol their policies associate with mistrust and child abuse. Put simply, you can't claim to care about a man's health whilst simultaneously falsely branding him a child abuser. Ending such policies and admitting how hateful they are would arguably achieve more for men and their position in society in the long term than every penny raised by Movember this year.

by John Kimble

INTERNATIONAL MEN'S DAY GAINS MOMENTUM IN THE UK

Today, is a great day. It is of course International Men's Day - celebrating men and boys and campaigning to help men live longer, healthier and happier lives - and tackling discrimination is a key part of this.

Every November,  there are  a number of events that not only celebrate the contribution that men and boys make to society but also raise areas where they face disadvantage. This includes Movember,
the national men and boys conference and also International Men’s Day on Monday. Momentum for these events continues to grow with the latter being celebrated and highlighted by groups of women and men across the UK.

As the article by Glen Poole (UK co-ordinator) on the IMD UK website shows not only is there now a UK steering committee, there are organisations up and down the UK now using this weekend or today to support men and boys across the UK. Two years there was a few students, now 14 organisations are behind it.

The ambition has to be treble that next year and if a company can get behind it (like Gillette  and HP sauce amongst others have do so brilliantly with Movember) then it will go places.

And a key part is not just celebrating men and boys but breaking down the barriers they face. The committee have published a press release  (Download)  highlighting the top ten issues that men and boys face in the UK. The top three are not surprisingly male suicide, equality for fathers and mothers and ending violence against men and boys.

It will be interesting by the end of today whether the mainstream media has covered International Men's Day at all - or are they still ignoring this landmark, unlike International Women's Day which garners acres of coverage.

Let's all celebrate today!

Posted by Skimmington

NEWS UPDATE - THE CRACKS ARE STARTING TO SHOW

There has been a substantial amount of coverage on men's issues this past ten days and below is a summary of the main articles. The cracks are just starting to show in the war against men.

Employment and boardrooms

Mike Buchanan - Angela Epstein receives a Maggie and the coverage on Sunday Morning Live. Mike and friends have launched the Winston, Maggie and Harpy awards.

Parliament (Women and 'Equalities questions) - Debate on women on boards and Philip Davies MP stands up for equality and meritocracy.

Third Sector - FTSE boards view female third sector executives as toxic (Jenna Pudelek) More scaremongering without any factual foundation.

TUC - Black boys have experienced sharpest rise in unemployment during recession: The TUC proves itself wrong. 

Daily Telegraph - Female quotas 'negatively affect' business, says minister (Rowena Mason)

Daily Telegraph - Equalities Minsiter says women need to challenge themselves and play a wider role in society (Rowena Mason): What is significant here is that this and the above article show that some women are now challenging the myths and hypocrisy of quotas which we know are solely being advocated as a discriminatory measure against men, meritocracy and equality.

Daily Telegraph - Companies to be forced to publish gender audits of employees (Louisa Peacock): does this count for the public sector which is dominated by women? The comment in the Telegraph comments section sums it up:

"Yet more discrimination against my white English husband who supports his family and has never been unemployed in his life"

Feminism

Netmums - What does feminism mean to the modern women: The research showed that only 17% of women described themselves as feminists (though more young women did which shows their radicalisation), that modern-day feminism did not represent them and that 28% felt it was too aggressive with 17% thinking it was anti-male. This landmark research has had the feminists blogs apoplectic as it damages their whole reason to be. Coverage in The Express, Telegraph and Daily Mail

Politics

Guido Fawkes - Quota of the Day

The Times - We do not need a Minister for Women (Ruth Porter): Subscription only

Family Law

Daily Mail - Why I stole my children (Ian Gallagher)

Daily Telegraph - Female breadwinners losing out (John Bingham): Staggering hypocrisy of the "want their cake and eat it kind". Pannone can be added to the list of anti-male organisations in the UK.

Prisons

Parliament - Download Prison Sentence Inequality - UK Parliament 16 Oct 2012 (2) (Philip Davies MP) : Again the MP excels himself by bringing into Parliament the myth that sentencing is far harsher for women than men. The Men's Network summarises the story. Thanks you to James Williams for circulating far and wide.

False Accusations

Teeside Gazette - Middlesbrough man hounded after being cleared of rape

Health

BBC - Prostate cancer barcode tests: Unless there is 'compulsory' organised screening for prostate cancer on a national basis like there is for breast and cervical cancer then there can be as many tests as you like but until that is in place things will not progress as they should.

Hanna Rosin book - The End of Men

Daily Mail - Is the male of the species now redundant (Bev Mooney)

Daily Telegraph - Interview

The Guardian - Cardboard men (John Harris)

The Guardian - It's not the end of men (Ally Fogg)

The portayal of men

Daily Telegraph - The descent of men (William Leith)

Education

Daily Telegraph - Young boys stuggling to write their name (Graeme Paton)

Domestic Violence

One in Three Report - Gaps in services revealed

General

Daily Mail - Why men love bossy women (Cosmo Landesman)

Daily Telegraph - BBC to draw up top 100 female power list: More Opus Dei-like self-flaggelation from the Beeb.

 Posted by Skimmimgton

 

Thanks to those that send links over

LATEST JOHN TAYLOR COMPLAINT TO CANCER RESEARCH UK

Please find the link (Download CRUK CHMN 13th October 2012) to John Taylor's complaint to Cancer Research UK about Race for Life.

Posted by Skimmington

NEWS UPDATES

Thank you to everyone for their patience - here are a few from the past two weeks and thanks to those that have sent them through or added them in to the comments on the Citizen Khan story.

Daily Mail - The real price of feminism (Bianca London) Amazing misandry in the article by the journalist - this shows the cake and eat attitude of modern-day anti-male feminism. The journalist says you are not a true gentleman if you expect the woman to go Dutch.

The Independent - Take a bow, Sir Roger Moore (Ally Fogg)

Daily Telegraph - Domineering men face domestic violence proscutions (Martin Beckford) and Daily Mail - Stopping your wife having a bank account could be domestic abuse (James Chapman) More misandric headlines when the changes are clearly gender-neutral (although we know they may not be in practice) although any official involvement of the NSPCC in the Youth Panel means bias as boys as victims will be ignored as they are only seen by them as perpetrators.

Daily Mail - Forgiveness saved my life (Deborah Arthurs)

Daily Mail - Mother-of-four, 34, had sex with two schoolboys while her toddler slept in the  same (Larisa brown) No equality in justice as there is now way she should not be in jail.

Order Order - Disolve companies that do not meet gender quotas (Guido Fawkes)

BBC - Samaritans report that men born in their 60's and 70's at risk of suicide and Daily Mail - Why male suicide rates go up (Tamara Cohen) - The report is here.

Financial Times - Business leaders urge government to stand firm against boardroom quotas (Brian Groom)

Daily Telegraph - The BBC need more women (George Entwhistle) and then he tries to backtrack which we know is false -  his views are those that he stated first time. Watch this space.

Daily Telegraph - Thousands of boys are behind at reading (Graeme Paton)

Daily Telegraph - Father wins right to know who false accusers were (John Bingham)

Posted by Skimmington