Carolyn Moynihan
New Zealand referendum rejects smacking banCarolyn Moynihan | 25 Aug 2009Other nanny states with an eye on New Zealand’s anti-smacking law nowhave referendum results to inform them how popular it is to outlaw theuse of smack for the purpose of correcting a child.Art galleries that don't respect childrenCarolyn Moynihan | 24 Aug 2009Is it safe to take your children to an art gallery these days? A writer complains in the New York Times about taking his twin boys, aged 7, to one of his favourite galleries and running into an exhibition with “graphic images”. The name, “And/Or”, provided no clue to the genitalia displayed; the warning sign at the entrance was in very small print.Are girls risking death now to avoid cervical cancer?Carolyn Moynihan | 21 Aug 2009The vaccine promoted as a safeguard for girls against developing cervical cancer later in life has been linked with at least 20 deaths in the United States and hundreds of other serious adverse reactions. This is prevention, if you like, but not the sort most parents envisage.Smile and live longerCarolyn Moynihan | 13 Aug 2009Can pessimists learn to be optimists? If so, they could lengthen theirlives, an American study shows. Research on nearly 100,000 women foundthat pessimists had higher blood pressure and cholesterol; but evenwith those risks, optimists fared better than their cynical sisters.British tax and benefit system favours single parentsCarolyn Moynihan | 11 Aug 2009Does the British government actually not want some people to marry? It rather looks like it, judging by the financial penalty many couples face as a result of the tax they pay and the benefits they do not receive. In fact, it looks as though the government wants those who are married to split up.Hollywood history so much more memorable than the factsCarolyn Moynihan | 7 Aug 2009Was Mozart a childish and vulgar young man who mocked royalty? Was Marie Antoinette able to quell the revolutionary mob at Versailles just by appearing on the balcony? Did the exploits of the American navy lead to the cracking of the German Enigma code? Well, no, probably not, and no.Families gather around TV to do their own thingCarolyn Moynihan | 6 Aug 2009Electronic media, once a force for togetherness as whole families gathered around the radio or television, are now pulling families apart, according to a report from the UK’s communication’s regulator, Ofcom.Lead us not into temptation...Carolyn Moynihan | 5 Aug 2009In a refreshing change from research that looks for excuses for everyday vices in people’s genes or family background, a study from the Kellogg School of Management looks at things like temptation, willpower and humility (yes, really) in impulsive and addictive behaviour.Grand expectationsCarolyn Moynihan | 4 Aug 2009In vitro fertilisation clinics should be doing a freeze during the recession, but in Britain their income is going up and up. Research conducted for a women’s magazine indicates that £2.9 billion will be spent on fertility treatments this year compared with £1.8 billion in 2007. Government funded IVF is in short supply, so where is the private money coming from?China's abortion surge blamed on young, single womenCarolyn Moynihan | 31 Jul 2009A report in the official Chinese newspaper China Daily reveals some shocking figures on abortion in that country: 13 million surgical abortions a year performed in hospitals, 10 million abortion pills sold every year, and unknown number of abortions done in unregistered rural hospitals. “Family planning” statistics are usually considered state secrets, so why this sudden revelation? subscribe donate
We depend on you! follow us
 our shop |
|
Home MercatorNet |
