.
A study of Australian women has revealed just four per cent aged between 18 and 44 view having a baby as their top priority. 43 per cent said their number one priority was family and friends. The research, conducted by Galaxy on behalf of ovulation test company Clearblue, did find that careers fared even worse with only three per cent of women saying their work rated highest in importance.
More than 1000 women were surveyed.
- Have you seen the ‘before baby’ bucket list?
SLIPPER SEX SCANDAL DEEPENS AS SPEAKER STEPS ASIDE
And then there was one. A one vote majority for the Labor Government as Deputy Speaker Anna Burke stepped into the Speaker role while scandal-plagued Peter Slipper stepped aside pending the outcome of a criminal investigation relating to the use of blank Cabcharges. But even that majority might fall to create a perfectly deadlocked 74:74 vote Parliament, depending on whether the Opposition can wrange the vote of any of the Independents.
While PM Julia Gillard said it was ‘appropriate’ Mr Slipper stepped aside, Opposition Leader Tony Abbott earlier said the PM’s refusal to act in the same way her Government acted by standing aside the Australian Defence Force Academy head Commodore Bruce Kafer after the Skype sex scandal, was a matter that went to the core of her integrity.
- Go here for a full rundown on what the Slipper saga means for all those involved.
.
MAN JAILED FOR NUDE PHOTO FACEBOOK REVENGE
It’s the first case of a jail-term for a social media nude photo revenge plot in Australia. A man decided he would post pictures of his former girlfriend on his own Facebook wall because, he said, it was the only way to get back at her for leaving the relationship.
Ravshan ”Ronnie” Usmanov told police: ”I put the photos up because she hurt me and it was the only thing [I had] to hurt her.”
The six pictures, according to court documents, showed his ex-girlfriend ”nude in certain positions and clearly showing her breasts and genitalia”.
Usmanov emailed his ex and told her where the photos could be found and she phoned the police after turning up at his door and demanding he remove them.
Deputy Chief Magistrate Jane Mottley said:
”The harm to the victim is not difficult to contemplate: embarrassment, humiliation and anxiety at not only the viewing of the images by persons who are known to her but also the prospect of viewing by those who are not. It can only be a matter for speculation as to who else may have seen the images, and whether those images have been stored in such a manner which, at a time the complainant least expects, they will again be available for viewing, circulation or distribution.”
NOT EVEN GUIDE DOGS ALLOWED AT THIS MOTEL
Jason Merkley was turned away from a NSW Central Coast motel because he was blind and the owner insisted his guide dog could not stay, even though it is illegal under discrimination laws to do so. Mr Merkley had travelled from Sydney with his wife and young daughter for the Easter weekend.
They were forced to drive back to Sydney, late, as there was no other accommodation available.
“I started to feel like I was going to break down and cry. I tried to walk back to the car and walked into a potted plant,” Mr Merkley said.
The motel will likely now be fined by Wyong Shire Council.
Comments
47 Comments so far
Bruce Kafer after the Skype sex scandal, was a matter that went to the core of her integrity.
http://www.disneyworldtickets.com/
loading...
I hope the motel is fined, named and boycotted by everyone for refusing this young family with a guide dog. The irony is that the dog would likely be a much more civilized and less disruptive guest than many of the two legged ones the motel allows!
loading...
Babies were never high on my priority list until I’d done everything I had on my list – travel, finish uni, get a good job, have a happy relationship (tick, tick tick).
In fact, even after I achieved all of that , I still wasn’t fussed on kids.
It wasn’t until earlier this year that I was told my epilepsy would probably prevent me from ever having a healthy pregnancy – sure, I can risk it, but is that really fair to my partner and my unborn child?
Now I’m faced with the complicated procedure of adopting a baby, or just accepting that kids aren’t on the cards for me, and being happy with all of the other blessings I have in my life.
loading...
re the babies-
I plan to never have children. bleck
loading...
Re the ‘babies’ thing, it sounds to me as if that ‘study’ was badly worded. Sounds like total nonsense to me. I can think of several ways that the study may have been worded that would produce such a result, none of which would provide an accurate reflection of reality. In fact, I cant think of a way to structure the question or the participant groups so that you could get a real answer! The age range is too wide, the question too general. It’s just HOGWASH.
loading...
I am glad this guy went to jail for posting nude pics of his ex, but does anyone find a weird parallel betwen this and the St Kilda schoolgirl case. There, a 17 year old posted nude pics of footballers she had not even met as a vindictive tactic against a player that didnt want to pursue a relationship with her. what punishment did she get…not even charged, and a tv deal worth big bucks for her trouble.
If thr crime is that serious in the eyes of the law, why does she, 17 or not, get off scott free.
loading...
The St Kilda schoolgirl thing doesn’t compare, it was so much more complicated than this case with all the who slept with who/Ricky Nixon/them paying for her hotel/her underage.. what really happened. That whole thing was a mess. She is awful and so are the majority of people who were involved.
I don’t think it’s a female/male thing. If their roles had been reversed in the story above I think it would have been the same outcome.
loading...
The whole Ricky Nixon and media thing was post her putting the pics online. Two wrong dont make a right.
loading...
I’m in no way saying what she did was right. I’m observing that they are two very different situations and I think it’s a bit of a stretch to compare them
loading...
I agree. She should have made restitution, even at age 17. She knew what she was doing was wrong.
But, no-body should allow pictures of themselves to be taken nude without understanding the risks involved in this day and age…
loading...
agreed, but poor old Nick Reiwolt was photographed getting out of bed without consent. He asked that the pic be deleted straight away, and was falsely told that happened. Yet he copped huge ridicule and loss of sponsorship opportunities. And the girl got not even a slap across the wrist.
loading...
I am so sad that the guide-dog and the family were turned away from the motel. I work in a 5 star hotel where dogs are not allowed but if we see a guide-dog they are of course allowed to come in.
I am glad the motel was fined but disappointed on behalf of the family who had their Easter weekend ruined, it is just unacceptable.
loading...
That’s so disgusting; I hope when his legal case if over the motel is named and shamed. I feel so sorry for Jason and his family; especially travelling with a baby too…makes me furious reading about this!
loading...
It is disgusting that the motel staff either didn’t know, or chose not to recognise, the laws about guide dogs. I can’t imagine the way that man felt… or his family!
Interesting survey results, but so many reasons why the results may have been the way they were. I fit the age group surveyed having a baby isn’t my top priority either. When I was 18, I was still at school.I was at Uni until I was 25, married at 23. Having a baby wasn’t at the top of my priorities then. When I was 26, it was on top of my list and stayed there for quite a while. I had my first baby at 28, followed by three more in the next four years. I am 39 now, divorced, parenting those four kids alone, dealing with their everyday issues and others associated with ASD. Having a baby isn’t on my list of priorities again. I would be interested to see results broken down by age groups.
loading...
Has the name of the hotel been released? Shame on them. For one its a breach of disability discrimination law, and two, there is just something suspect about people who don’t like dogs!
loading...
Mr Merkley said he wouldn’t release the name of the motel until after the Council has investigated as he didn’t want to prejudice the claim. Fair enough, too.
loading...
How disgusting of the motel.
In the last few years I’ve become a seeing eye dog sponsor – the amount of time and money that goes into training these dogs is phenomenal. The dogs are angels who would never cause any issues.
loading...
Exactly! My uncle has had several guide dogs, and they were all impeccably perceptive and well-behaved. Dogs are in general not allowed because they may shed all over the place, take food they weren’t given, playfully make a huge mess… guide dogs sit quietly, are trained to keep themselves (including paws and tails) out of the way, are routinely not fed anything with the harness on, are usually non-shedding breeds, and are even inclined to be perceptive and supportive in a variety of circumstances i.e. my uncle’s guide dog was often inclined to walk supportively beside my grandfather as a balance support when he knew my uncle was seated, talking/eating and OK. There would be less well-behaved *humans* in that motel! (slightly tongue-in-cheek, but you take the point!)
loading...
That last story is absolutely heartbreaking, and disgusting behaviour on part of the motel. Despite anti-discrimination laws we still have a long way to go in educating businesses IMHO – I had a really tricky experience when out to lunch with my 89 year old nan, who is now confined to a wheelchair for 90% of the time. The restaurant clearly displayed the “disabled” logo for their bathroom, and the bathroom itself was well designed with handrails etc. Unfortunately the restaurant had decided to place a large fridge in the corridor leading to the loo, rendering access by a person in a wheelchair impossible, even a tiny 45 kilo lady like my Nan. When I mentioned this discrepancy to the staff they had the good grace to look shame-faced, but had no good reason as to why it had happened. Surely this should be against council regulations at the very least??
loading...
What happened to the mobile site? I miss reading Mamamia but it’s just too hard to do so in this format from my phone. Anyway to get back into the mobile version?
loading...
Yes! Mine disappeared sometime last week – very frustrating! Does anyone know how I get it back?
loading...
We took it down, but only to make it a bazillion times better. It was getting too many functionality complaints in its old form so we decided to re-write it completely to make it work. It’ll be back soon, and the wait will be worth it
Sorry for the inconvenience.
loading...
Woo-hoo! It was terrible!
loading...
A mobile site for all users? ie Blackberry users??
Although I don’t really have any trouble reading the stories or the gallery’s on my BB. Just struggle to browse around and comment.
loading...
My blackberry is horrendous to use the internet on, contstantly closing down my browser because the page is ‘too large’ I have a sneaky suspision it may be my provider’s fault!
loading...
In the future I hope we have the option to just tick to receive notifications but not have to type our email address – surely signed in members shouldn’t have to do this every single time, as we have to now?
loading...
Yes, I was just going to post the same thing!
loading...
If you turn your phone sideways and enlarge the story to fit the width it’s actually heaps easier to read than theold mobile site.
loading...
Not to be a nitpicker (OK, maybe a little) but the article doesn’t say that babies aren’t a priority for australian women, as the headline of this article suggests – merely that they’re not the TOP priority. I’m sure a lot of women would agree it’s almost impossible to choose what your top priority is – and family and friends covers a lot of things! I would wager that if women were asked to name their top 5 priorities in no particular order then babies would’ve made the list.
loading...
The brevity of headlines sometimes requires dropping some of the nuance contained in the story, but I made sure to clarify it in the first line of the brief.
loading...
Totally understand Rick, like I said I’m a nitpicker. I think it was probably a wee bit deliberate on the part of the funders of the study, being an ovulation testing product and all.. or perhaps I’m just being a bit cynical this morning? Makes for a snappy headline anyway – I clicked through
loading...
Ha, not at all, you may be right! Always look who commissioned the study. I had to go looking for who it was this morning because most of the news yarns didn’t mention it. Smack on wrist
loading...
Oh, thanks for finding out who sponsored this research. So many news outlets are lazy about that and it makes a huge difference evaluating the credibility of a report. Kudos!
loading...
Agree with Katherine on this. Well done, Rick.
loading...
You know, I’m not normally one for conspiracy theories, but the whole timing of the Peter Slipper stuff (just before the budget) to me is a bit suss…
Still, it’s been no secret in Canberra that Peter Slipper would end up in trouble for something at some point…I was hoping for better, but looks like Gillard has made yet another stupid political mistake…
…and as for Peter Slipper…if any of these allegations are proven true, well what a bloody idiot…the days of politicians getting away with stuff like this is way over…
…and finally…isn’t it sad that men still feel the need to hide their true sexuality behind a facade of supposed heterosexuality…if you’re gay, just be gay…
loading...
Heard of bisexuality JJ. Or are you of the (disproven) view that men are always 100% one way or the other.
loading...
Oh FFS.
My point is about men hiding their true sexuality. Yes, of course he could be bisexual. It still doesn’t change the fact that he is yet another man who has gotten into trouble because he has tried to hide his true sexuality from the public.
Of course I don’t think sexuality is 100% one way or another. I am surprised you would think that of me.
loading...
I think anyone cheating on their wife is hiding something, but who are you to suggest he has hidden his sexuality from those that need to know, ffs.
loading...
…from the general public…he’s a public figure…if he is straight or gay or bisexual, there should be no need to keep it private…all I’m saying is that people should be open with their sexuality and sexual preferences…when they are not, things like this happen…
loading...
So you are saying that anyone in the public eye has a duty to disclose their sexuality. What hogwash. So they need to swear a oath as to their Kingsley score JJ. How is it relevant to someones ability to fulfill their role. So what if someone married fantasises of the same gender.
Cheating is another issue that comes down to character, but this is an issue totally unrelated to sexuality.
loading...
*sigh*
Please stop putting words in my mouth…
I’m not forcing anyone to disclose anything…I’m just making the point that when they don’t, and when people hide their true sexuality, they can wind up getting themselves in trouble…it’s still their choice…
It’s not a person’s sexuality I have issue with…it’s some people’s desire to hide their sexuality that I think can be a problem…
loading...
I am not putting any words in your mouth JJ, your original point was very clearly stated. And do we really need all the ‘ffs’s and ‘sigh’s to have this discussion.
Simply put, I dont think sexuality needs to be anyones business, period.
loading...
I agree with you JJ regarding hiding sexuality. There are a lot of men out there who identify as gay or bisexual who feel they have to hide it, and end up having a lot of problems because of it. I’m not talking about Peter Slipper, just in general.
I grew up with my friend’s dad who was married but identified as being gay, he was so ashamed of it that he ended up committing suicide. He left a note explaining it all. It was very sad, he was such a lovely man who was in so much pain because he didn’t think anyone would accept him.
loading...
I agree, JJ.
Judging from the text messages (assuming they are legitimate) Slipper’s facade has contributed to the “harassment” aspect of his relationship with Ashby… rather than being able to be forthright with him (to which Ashby would have been able to give him a clear “yes” or “no”), he has had to disguise his advances in suggestion and innuendo, which makes it all the more difficult for Ashby to reject him without having to make assumptions about his sexuality, which may have put his job in jeopardy (which is why Slipper’s alleged behaviour was an abuse of power).
If Slipper felt comfortable enough to be an openly gay man, he would be less likely to resort to hiring gay men to be on his staff and harassing them in the hope that they would fall in love with him. I think it is really sad. The wrong thing to do – a sackable offence, in my opinion – but also sad.
loading...
What a disgrace- that motel should be named and shamed.
loading...
I agree. This is such a sad and chellenging expereince for both the man in question and of course his family.
But I also think it again raises the importance of disability awareness/ education for businesses.
loading...
I agree! Was just about to write the same thing.
loading...