http://www.thepunch.com.au/tags/women/ Politics, political opinion, world news, sports news and the latest news and views updated live, daily on The Punch - Australia's best conversation. en Copyright 2012 The Punch penberthyd@newsltd.com.au penberthyd@newsltd.com.au Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:45:28 +0000 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:45:28 +0000 Politics, opinion, world news, sports news, latest news, views, Barack Obama, Kevin Rudd, Julia Gillard, Nathan Rees, Malcolm Turnbull, Peter Garrett, Barnaby Joyce, Australian, federal politics, opinion polls, election, The Punch, thepunch, punch ExpressionEngine 1.6.7 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss 15 http://www.thepunch.com.au/images/punch-logo-rss.png http://www.thepunch.com.au/ 144 70 Politics, political opinion, world news, sports news and the latest news and views updated live, daily on The Punch - Australia's best conversation. Search The Punch keywords http://www.thepunch.com.au/search/ http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/is-it-sexist-weve-got-nothing-to-compare-it-to/ It all started with the empty fruit bowl on a stark kitchen bench in Altona. The Fairfax profile of Julia Gillard in her first early days of prime ministership was a sign of times to come. Being Australia’s first female PM was going to be far from easy. From grooming, decorum and the sound of her voice, to the appropriateness of her relationship with de facto partner, Tim Mathieson. To the lack of emotion displayed on cue from the devastation of the Queensland floods.  When it comes to scrutiny of the personal nature, as a politician Julia Gillard has copped more than most.  As a prime minster it’s been unprecedented. The only real question is why. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Tory Shepherd) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/is-it-sexist-weve-got-nothing-to-compare-it-to/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/is-it-sexist-weve-got-nothing-to-compare-it-to/#item7694 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:45:28 +0000 Can you hear a faint sort of teeth-grindy sound? No it’s not the rats in the roof gnawing the wires again, it’s just those thousands of lady drivers with the windows down as they motor past the bottle shop. Even just four days into Febfast, the annual excruciating month of alcohol abstinence, the novelty will have well and truly worn off and we’re already down to the bare bones of resentment and “I know it’s for charity and all but what the feck was I thinking”. All around Australia there are mild-mannered ladies cursing the leap year, too, as were it not for that stupid spare day, there would only be 24 grogless ones left. For many of us talented drinkers, when it comes to one’s consumption of alcohol there is the comfort of denial and “look over there, is that a rare orange-bellied parrot? (Yes waiter top me up)” for 11 months of the year, and then there is the long, hard look in the mirror that is horrendous February. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/working-women-need-to-escape-the-grog-bog/ Can you hear a faint sort of teeth-grindy sound? No it’s not the rats in the roof gnawing the wires again, it’s just those thousands of lady drivers with the windows down as they motor past the bottle shop. Even just four days into Febfast, the annual excruciating month of alcohol abstinence, the novelty will have well and truly worn off and we’re already down to the bare bones of resentment and “I know it’s for charity and all but what the feck was I thinking”. All around Australia there are mild-mannered ladies cursing the leap year, too, as were it not for that stupid spare day, there would only be 24 grogless ones left. For many of us talented drinkers, when it comes to one’s consumption of alcohol there is the comfort of denial and “look over there, is that a rare orange-bellied parrot? (Yes waiter top me up)” for 11 months of the year, and then there is the long, hard look in the mirror that is horrendous February. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Tory Shepherd) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/working-women-need-to-escape-the-grog-bog/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/working-women-need-to-escape-the-grog-bog/#item7667 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:45:28 +0000 Can you hear a faint sort of teeth-grindy sound? No it’s not the rats in the roof gnawing the wires again, it’s just those thousands of lady drivers with the windows down as they motor past the bottle shop. Even just four days into Febfast, the annual excruciating month of alcohol abstinence, the novelty will have well and truly worn off and we’re already down to the bare bones of resentment and “I know it’s for charity and all but what the feck was I thinking”. All around Australia there are mild-mannered ladies cursing the leap year, too, as were it not for that stupid spare day, there would only be 24 grogless ones left. For many of us talented drinkers, when it comes to one’s consumption of alcohol there is the comfort of denial and “look over there, is that a rare orange-bellied parrot? (Yes waiter top me up)” for 11 months of the year, and then there is the long, hard look in the mirror that is horrendous February. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/maybe-women-are-just-bad-at-asking-for-a-higher-salary/ When the annual figures come out on the gender gap in salaries the standard argument is that women earn less because a) they take time off work to have kids, and b) they dominate lower-paid industries such as health and education. While both those points are solid explanations for the gap, new figures that have nothing to do with either (a) or (b) show women graduates are paid less than the men who graduate from the same degrees - 14 per cent less. Graduate Careers Australia found in 2011 graduate males started work on a full-time median salary of $52,000, and women on $50,000 (which could be accounted for by different industries). But in 14 industries male starting salaries were higher than female starting salaries in the same industry. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Tory Shepherd) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/maybe-women-are-just-bad-at-asking-for-a-higher-salary/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/maybe-women-are-just-bad-at-asking-for-a-higher-salary/#item7556 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:45:28 +0000 Can you hear a faint sort of teeth-grindy sound? No it’s not the rats in the roof gnawing the wires again, it’s just those thousands of lady drivers with the windows down as they motor past the bottle shop. Even just four days into Febfast, the annual excruciating month of alcohol abstinence, the novelty will have well and truly worn off and we’re already down to the bare bones of resentment and “I know it’s for charity and all but what the feck was I thinking”. All around Australia there are mild-mannered ladies cursing the leap year, too, as were it not for that stupid spare day, there would only be 24 grogless ones left. For many of us talented drinkers, when it comes to one’s consumption of alcohol there is the comfort of denial and “look over there, is that a rare orange-bellied parrot? (Yes waiter top me up)” for 11 months of the year, and then there is the long, hard look in the mirror that is horrendous February. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/if-you-really-want-to-help-the-sisters-keep-your-gear-on/ Next week New Idea will feature a half-naked George Calombaris on the cover. “I want to be a role model for all the short and stocky men out there,” he says. Meanwhile, Hugh Jackman reveals all on the cover of the Australian Women’s Weekly about how to stay fabulous in your 40s. “I’m doing it for all the insecure men out there,” he grunts between his 112th and 113th rep. “You too can look like this!” Of course, this is all happening in a parallel universe. Generally, men don’t feel the need to take off their clothes for the cover of a magazine. So why do some women? This wasn’t what the suffragettes had in mind when they fought for women’s emancipation all those years ago. Emmeline Pankhurst, speaking at the Women’s Franchise League in 1889 didn’t say: “One day, women will be able to remove their clothes in public and be judged on how hard they work out at the gym. What a glorious day that will be!” Let’s start with Deborah Hutton’s cover shot. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Tory Shepherd) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/if-you-really-want-to-help-the-sisters-keep-your-gear-on/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/if-you-really-want-to-help-the-sisters-keep-your-gear-on/#item7505 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:45:28 +0000 Can you hear a faint sort of teeth-grindy sound? No it’s not the rats in the roof gnawing the wires again, it’s just those thousands of lady drivers with the windows down as they motor past the bottle shop. Even just four days into Febfast, the annual excruciating month of alcohol abstinence, the novelty will have well and truly worn off and we’re already down to the bare bones of resentment and “I know it’s for charity and all but what the feck was I thinking”. All around Australia there are mild-mannered ladies cursing the leap year, too, as were it not for that stupid spare day, there would only be 24 grogless ones left. For many of us talented drinkers, when it comes to one’s consumption of alcohol there is the comfort of denial and “look over there, is that a rare orange-bellied parrot? (Yes waiter top me up)” for 11 months of the year, and then there is the long, hard look in the mirror that is horrendous February. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/BBCs-panda-propaganda-is-utterly-bamboozling/ The BBC has compiled a list of 12 Female Faces of 2011 (one for each month) and guess who took out the final spot? Angela Zhang who at the age of 17 discovered a nanoparticle that kills cancer cells? Nope. Eman al-Obeidi, who defied Muuammar Gadaffi’s regime by confessing to the foreign press that she had been beaten and gang-raped by members of his militia? Nope. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Tory Shepherd) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/BBCs-panda-propaganda-is-utterly-bamboozling/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/BBCs-panda-propaganda-is-utterly-bamboozling/#item7454 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:45:28 +0000 Can you hear a faint sort of teeth-grindy sound? No it’s not the rats in the roof gnawing the wires again, it’s just those thousands of lady drivers with the windows down as they motor past the bottle shop. Even just four days into Febfast, the annual excruciating month of alcohol abstinence, the novelty will have well and truly worn off and we’re already down to the bare bones of resentment and “I know it’s for charity and all but what the feck was I thinking”. All around Australia there are mild-mannered ladies cursing the leap year, too, as were it not for that stupid spare day, there would only be 24 grogless ones left. For many of us talented drinkers, when it comes to one’s consumption of alcohol there is the comfort of denial and “look over there, is that a rare orange-bellied parrot? (Yes waiter top me up)” for 11 months of the year, and then there is the long, hard look in the mirror that is horrendous February. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/dont-keep-mum-about-being-a-working-parent/ So, at last, and hopefully once and for all, women in the workplace no longer have to regard being a mother as some kind of dirty little secret. Thanks to the frankness of Tanya Plibersek and Julie Collins, the idea that working mothers need to somehow disguise or apologise for their maternal status has been blown to smithereens. I, for one, am rapt. News of this welcome development came in simple form last week; a single-sentence intro on a plain old news story, but one that felt a whole lot like a turning point. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Tory Shepherd) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/dont-keep-mum-about-being-a-working-parent/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/dont-keep-mum-about-being-a-working-parent/#item7401 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:45:28 +0000 Can you hear a faint sort of teeth-grindy sound? No it’s not the rats in the roof gnawing the wires again, it’s just those thousands of lady drivers with the windows down as they motor past the bottle shop. Even just four days into Febfast, the annual excruciating month of alcohol abstinence, the novelty will have well and truly worn off and we’re already down to the bare bones of resentment and “I know it’s for charity and all but what the feck was I thinking”. All around Australia there are mild-mannered ladies cursing the leap year, too, as were it not for that stupid spare day, there would only be 24 grogless ones left. For many of us talented drinkers, when it comes to one’s consumption of alcohol there is the comfort of denial and “look over there, is that a rare orange-bellied parrot? (Yes waiter top me up)” for 11 months of the year, and then there is the long, hard look in the mirror that is horrendous February. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/You-dont-win-friends-with-salad-unless-theyre-women/ What do women want? This question has vexed philosophers, feminists and talk show hosts since time immemorial (or at least since Mel Gibson started making bad romantic comedies). The good news is that we now have a definitive answer – and it doesn’t involve equal pay, housework help or a nude frolic on a Northern Territory balcony. As it turns out, nothing brings a woman more pleasure, euphoria or knee-trembling jouissance than… (anticipation-enhancing trumpet flurry)… chowing down solo on a salad. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Tory Shepherd) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/You-dont-win-friends-with-salad-unless-theyre-women/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/You-dont-win-friends-with-salad-unless-theyre-women/#item7366 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:45:28 +0000 Can you hear a faint sort of teeth-grindy sound? No it’s not the rats in the roof gnawing the wires again, it’s just those thousands of lady drivers with the windows down as they motor past the bottle shop. Even just four days into Febfast, the annual excruciating month of alcohol abstinence, the novelty will have well and truly worn off and we’re already down to the bare bones of resentment and “I know it’s for charity and all but what the feck was I thinking”. All around Australia there are mild-mannered ladies cursing the leap year, too, as were it not for that stupid spare day, there would only be 24 grogless ones left. For many of us talented drinkers, when it comes to one’s consumption of alcohol there is the comfort of denial and “look over there, is that a rare orange-bellied parrot? (Yes waiter top me up)” for 11 months of the year, and then there is the long, hard look in the mirror that is horrendous February. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Strike-a-woman-and-you-strike-all-of-society/ Picture a woman. She might live anywhere in the world. She could be part of any socio-economic group, of any ethnicity, of any religion. On a typical day this woman starts her day before the sun rises. She works for 8-12 hours in a store or on a farm or at a factory or in someone’s home for a small wage, but her children and elderly relatives depend on her income for survival. When she comes home, she asks her children what they learned that day at school and what they want to be when they grow up. She spends hours bent over a small stove or fireplace preparing meals for an extended family. In many parts of the world, she also grows the food that feeds everyone at her table. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Tory Shepherd) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Strike-a-woman-and-you-strike-all-of-society/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Strike-a-woman-and-you-strike-all-of-society/#item7332 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:45:28 +0000 Can you hear a faint sort of teeth-grindy sound? No it’s not the rats in the roof gnawing the wires again, it’s just those thousands of lady drivers with the windows down as they motor past the bottle shop. Even just four days into Febfast, the annual excruciating month of alcohol abstinence, the novelty will have well and truly worn off and we’re already down to the bare bones of resentment and “I know it’s for charity and all but what the feck was I thinking”. All around Australia there are mild-mannered ladies cursing the leap year, too, as were it not for that stupid spare day, there would only be 24 grogless ones left. For many of us talented drinkers, when it comes to one’s consumption of alcohol there is the comfort of denial and “look over there, is that a rare orange-bellied parrot? (Yes waiter top me up)” for 11 months of the year, and then there is the long, hard look in the mirror that is horrendous February. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/forget-over-the-counter-give-us-the-pill-for-free/ The federal government wants to give women easier access to the contraceptive pill by making it available, without a prescription, over the counter at the local chemist. Hooray for that, says anyone who’s ever waited in a fit of frustration just to get an appointment to see their doctor when a script runs out. But the new legislation, that’s been kicked about since last July, has ruffled some feathers among the medical profession. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Tory Shepherd) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/forget-over-the-counter-give-us-the-pill-for-free/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/forget-over-the-counter-give-us-the-pill-for-free/#item7301 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:45:28 +0000 Can you hear a faint sort of teeth-grindy sound? No it’s not the rats in the roof gnawing the wires again, it’s just those thousands of lady drivers with the windows down as they motor past the bottle shop. Even just four days into Febfast, the annual excruciating month of alcohol abstinence, the novelty will have well and truly worn off and we’re already down to the bare bones of resentment and “I know it’s for charity and all but what the feck was I thinking”. All around Australia there are mild-mannered ladies cursing the leap year, too, as were it not for that stupid spare day, there would only be 24 grogless ones left. For many of us talented drinkers, when it comes to one’s consumption of alcohol there is the comfort of denial and “look over there, is that a rare orange-bellied parrot? (Yes waiter top me up)” for 11 months of the year, and then there is the long, hard look in the mirror that is horrendous February. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/good-body-image-is-a-big-fat-myth-lets-change-it/ Yesterday, Mission Australia released the results of their 10th National Survey of Young Australians. Among the most reported of their findings was evidence that more young girls than ever before have a problem with body image. “All the well-meaning efforts to combat the problem have failed,” said Mission Australia spokesperson, Eleri Morgan-Thomas. “More work needs to be done.” That should not come as a surprise to anybody. Good body image campaigns have failed because so very few people actually have it. Good body image is a myth. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Tory Shepherd) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/good-body-image-is-a-big-fat-myth-lets-change-it/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/good-body-image-is-a-big-fat-myth-lets-change-it/#item7275 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:45:28 +0000 Can you hear a faint sort of teeth-grindy sound? No it’s not the rats in the roof gnawing the wires again, it’s just those thousands of lady drivers with the windows down as they motor past the bottle shop. Even just four days into Febfast, the annual excruciating month of alcohol abstinence, the novelty will have well and truly worn off and we’re already down to the bare bones of resentment and “I know it’s for charity and all but what the feck was I thinking”. All around Australia there are mild-mannered ladies cursing the leap year, too, as were it not for that stupid spare day, there would only be 24 grogless ones left. For many of us talented drinkers, when it comes to one’s consumption of alcohol there is the comfort of denial and “look over there, is that a rare orange-bellied parrot? (Yes waiter top me up)” for 11 months of the year, and then there is the long, hard look in the mirror that is horrendous February.