Sorry to pile on the political news. But, lately, there is so much of it to go around.

Because no one died or was seriously injured, I could not help but chuckle at this Associated Press report. Conservative columnist Robert Novak hit a pedestrian with his Chevrolet Corvette in downtown D.C. recently.

The funny part about this story is a nearby cyclist had to tell him to stop even though the pedestrian was splayed across his windshield. Perhaps it's time to turn in the keys, Bob.

In related news, our favorite conservative commentator Bill O'Reilly took on Planned Parenthood for calling out Sen. John McCain for brushing off a question on whether it was fair that health insurance companies covered viagra but not birth control. O'Reilly's rant:

"Viagra is used to help a medical condition; that's why it's covered. Birth control is not a medical condition. It's a choice. Why should I, or anybody else, have to pay for other people's choices?

"Do I have to buy you dinner before you use the birth control? Give me and every other taxpayer a break, Planned Parenthood."

I loved Salon's Catherine Price's response:

Ah, yes. Because "taxpayers" should be responsible for ensuring that every American man can get an erection on demand, but not help prevent unwanted pregnancies caused by those pumped penises. And surely choosing to take a medication that, in addition to preventing those unwanted pregnancies, can reduce the symptoms of PMS, even out one's periods, reduce excessive bleeding, stabilize moods and improve diabetic blood sugar control has less to do with medical conditions than a drug that gives you a hard-on.

Oh, Bill. At least you don't need to worry about being covered for Viagra: You're already a dick.

Ha! What other political news has caught your eye lately?

Excuse my impending rant. But I have been seething at the Bush administration's plans to pump in as much as $100 billion in taxpayer money to floundering mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Not only do I consider these businesses unethical because they prey on our most vulnerable citizens -- people who have no money for college or to buy a home -- but I am sick and tired of the government coddling the rich at the expense of everyone else.

This Washington Post quote by Republican lawmaker Spencer Bachus really resonated with me:

"I do have a problem with stepping in and bailing out shareholders of Fannie and Freddie that have made billions on the way up. They never shared that with taxpayers," said Rep. Spencer Bachus (Ala.), the senior Republican on the House Financial Services Committee.

Seriously. It will be a good day when we miraculously come up with this kind of money for, let's say, education.

But here is where Bachus is totally off the mark:

He suggested capping any assistance to the companies at $100 billion to reflect the worst-case scenario laid out by the Congressional Budget Office.

The office arrived at that scenario by analyzing the financial statements of the firms and consulting with federal regulators, financial analysts and administration officials. It concluded that the most likely outcome is that the firms will not see losses in excess of the $85 billion they have already acknowledged and will not require government assistance. But there is a 5 percent chance that the firms could have additional losses of more than $100 billion, Orszag said, and would require assistance to continue to operate.

Well, these companies have been freely operating under the aegis of the "free market." I say let the free market take its course and allow these investors pick up the pieces. That's what their clients have had to do.

Here is a column many of us work-at-home moms can relate to. How do you juggle work and children when there is little to no childcare? From Parenting columnist Denene Millner:

I work from home, and I feel like I completely ignore my 16-month-old, even when she's in the same room. How do I balance work and kid time?

It isn't easy--I know from being a work-at-home mom. You're juggling three jobs at once: the paying gig, caring for your baby, and caretaker of the house. And you feel like you're not doing any of them effectively, especially the babycare. You have to trust you're doing the best you can.

You can't spend every second of the day with her, so don't beat yourself up. Make the most of the time you do have together. I schedule a lunch break and a few 20-minute breaks during the day (just like office workers) so that my girls and I can do something together, whether it's sharing a snack or drawing pictures.

When Lila was a baby, I hired a sitter to take her out for an hour every other day. I was amazed at what I could get done--and how less guilty I felt knowing that she was active and engaged. Guess what? Both of my kids are just fine--and confident that their mom works hard and loves them all the same.

For full disclosure, I do share a nanny four days a week with three other families -- at varying time slots -- for Eli. Otherwise, I could never get any writing done. I tried to write and take care of Ari at the same time, but after one crying bout during an interview --  I put him in his crib and shut the door, which left me feeling guilty and distracted -- I decided it was best to have someone entertain the baby for me while I work.

Of course, this isn't economically feasible for many families and I do feel like I have to hustle in a short amount of time to patch together what I feel is a respectable enough paycheck. During my frantic moments, I just want to throw up my hands and stay home full-time with the kids so I feel like I am excelling in at least one thing. And just to keep life simpler.

But it is much easier to juggle the two when the children are older as I have had to do this summer with Ari. I have scheduled playdates or headed over to the famous Tumble & Tea cafe to work while he entertains himself with the play structure. Then, there is always television as babysitter, although I really, really try to use this as a last resort. Speaking of mommy guilt...

How do you WAHMs budget your time?

This is kind of an old story -- two weeks old -- but I must share it with you as it illustrates so clearly what happens when government services are shrunk to the point you drown them in a bathtub as Republican anti-tax crusader Grover Norquist so famously put it.

Six-month-old baby Isiah Garcia of Washington D.C. died on June 25, prompting the Child and Family Services Agency to remove his parents' three other young children from their Trinidad home in Northeast, according to the Washington Post.

In an exclusive interview with the Post, Isiah's parents, Morgan Herrera-El and Jesus Garcia, opened up about their troubled relationship which has led Herrera-El and the kids to a shelter for abused women and their struggles to raise their children in a crime-free area.

Throughout the interview, I was angry at the couple for not keeping their relationship together to care for their baby, who apparently died of neglect. I was also indignant at a system that allowed this family to be swindled out of $3,000 when they did attempt to do the right thing and rent a nice apartment. That court case is still a couple months away.

Other ways in which this family was failed: No one at the shelter helped Herrera-El with the kids who were aged 3, 2, 1 and six months. A social worker who said she would visit the family, didn't. She has since been fired. But why couldn't she visit? Because she had 50 cases to tend to. Why does she have 50 cases? Because there is not enough tax money in the program to hire more social workers. See where this sort of thing leads us?

The couple, who are not married, frighteningly sounded like any other young parent trying to make ends meet.

This month's Vanity Fair "Proust Questionnaire" featured entertainer Bette Midler. And what a class act she is:

What is your idea of perfect happiness?
An empty house and a good book.

What is your greatest fear?
That the greatest days of my country are past.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Impatience.

What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Ignorance and arrogance.

...What do you dislike most about your appearance?
My roots.

Which living person do you most despise?
The Bluetooth-wearing S.U.V. driver who idles in front of my building.

...What do you consider your greatest achievement?
My daughter, Sophie.

Amen sister!

The Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission has released a report into gender inequality.  Gender equality: What matters to Australian women and men is the result of a nationwide “listening tour” and while it reveals some depressing data, it also shows that inequality is something that men also feel they suffer, too.

It doesn’t make for very pleasant reading. First, the economic stats for women:

• half of all women aged 45 to 59 have $8,000 or less in their superannuation funds, compared to $31,000 for men. [nb: superannuation funds are retirement funds. In Australia, employers are obligated to contribute 9.5% of an employee’s gross salary to a retirement fund]
• Currently, the average superannuation payout for women is a third of the payout for men - $37,000 compared with $110,000.
• In Australia, women working full-time today earn 16 per cent less than men.

Ouch.

Interestingly enough, when it comes to work/life balance, women and men both feel that the working culture of Australia forces unwelcome choices because of gender perception. While Australia is only one of two coutnries in the OECD not to have a paid maternity scheme (marching in lockstep with the US. Axis of Freedom my a$$.), there are arrangements for unpaid maternity leave. There are no legal allowances for paternity leave. Men told the HREOC that they feel they can’t access flexible working hours without significant career damage.

Since our trusted servants in Washington are expected to pass a $25 billion bailout, I thought it timely to share my own personal story regarding this housing mess.  My family is relocating 1200 miles away next week.  We’re very excited to be starting a new stage in our lives.  It’s the first time we’ll have two professional incomes,  the first time at least one of us is not in school full time, and the first time we’ll be able to save for a real vacation.  In a world where the economy is killing many of our family and friends, we’re feeling quite fortunate to have been living beneath our means for so long and we are now able to realize the benefits.  But as we pack our things into boxes and help our son adjust to the changes, we are dealing with the realization that we are homeless.  That’s right; we have no place to go when we get there.

Sometimes when single parents travel, it can be an isolating experience. The children tend to meet other children on the road, but their parents are left babysitting and with no one to talk to.

Newsweek recently profiled some organizations that cater to single parents by offering childcare and even discounts. Through Single Parent Travel, for example, Lisa Gentile, who was interviewed by the magazine, went on an all-inclusive trip with two dozen other single-parent families.

Lisa and (daughter) Claudia spent most days chatting and playing on the beach with other families, then meeting up again at night for dinner, a stroll or a variety show. They befriended a mother-daughter pair from their home state and have stayed in touch ever since. “The best part is the company,” says Gentile. “You’re meeting people you have something in common with, and their reason for being there is the same as yours.”

...A number of companies are taking steps to make single parents feel more welcome. Breezes resorts (breezes.com) in Curaçao and the Dominican Republic waive their single supplement from May through late December for one adult traveling with kids, and some Beaches resorts (beaches.com) offer single parent weeks, with discounts and activities that allow families to socialize with one another. In July, the Offshore Sailing School in Ft. Myers Beach, Fla., is hosting a weeklong class with special rates for single adults with kids (offshore-sailing.com; $2,893 for one parent and one child, July 13–18). For general advice, singleparenttravel.net publishes a monthly newsletter that includes travel specials and destination ideas. Gentile’s main tip is to just go for it. “You deserve a vacation and to have a good time with your child,” she says. “Don’t worry about what anyone else is thinking.”

Sounds good. How do you single moms decompress on the holiday? How do you decompress period?

Thank you all for your outpouring of support for our dear Round Peg In A Square Hole. I heard from her husband Pablo last night and his brother-in-law was undergoing surgery as his back was broken in at least six places from the fall. He thanked Melinda for the attorney lead and all the support shown here.

I will take food to them tonight, make sure to get in touch with local MTers who have offered to do the same and make sure to keep you in the loop. Please continue to keep this family in your thoughts and prayers.

Missing Children: Remember that case in Portugal, in which a four-year-old girl on vacation with her parents just disappeared? Police are suspending their investigation into the disappearance of 4-year-old Madeleine McCann, at least until new evidence is presented, according to the Associated Press.

The parents and a third suspect will not be charged.

In related news, the Washington Post ran a multi-part series on the Chandra Levy case. She was the D.C. intern from Modesto, California, who had gone missing eight years ago and was found murdered in a D.C. park. The series shared the story of how Levy's parents were able to keep their daughter's case in the news, partly because of the salacious news around her affair with Congressman Gary Condit.

More on New Yorker Cover of Obamas: The media trade publication, MinOnline, had a write-up of the public fallout from the New Yorker cover cartoon of the Obamas satirically portrayed as Muslim extremists. New Yorker editor David Remnick insisted to Charlie Rose that the American people are smart enough to recognize satire when they see it.

With all due respect to him and others who have defended the New Yorker, including apparently Jon Stewart, I have traveled widely this summer and run across family members, acquaintances and strangers who believe that Obama is a Muslim or is anti-American and did not say the Pledge of Allegiance. They looked at me as if I had three heads when I set the record straight and assured them that there are no pastors in Islam. "Obama's pastor is REVEREND Wright, not MULLAH Wright," I'd tell them.

God help us.

We have been so busy with family building, that we have yet to arrange for wills and guardianship of our children in the event of our deaths.  I know it's far from a cheery topic, but it's past time to make sure these things are in place.  The main issue is, we have 4 kids.  Our families are older and not an appropriate choice, and our friends all have intentionally small families with just one or two kids.  I can't imagine asking people who planned to have 1 or 2 kids (and think we're nuts for having 4) to suddenly have 5 or 6 kids in their family, even if they would say yes.  But we can't ask my 65 year old parents or dh's 80 year old parents to raise 9,5,2 and 1 year olds for the next 20 years.  

(more after the jump)

Ah yeah. Berkeley Parents Network is back! As are cranky letters by cranky parents ratting each other out:

Chore trouble. I am a SAHD and grad student. She works and is a grad student. She has rejected all my plans for division of chores, my request that we do dishes together, and my request that we pick up the floor for five minutes together. When pressed, she finally came up with her own plan, but has consistently failed to follow through with what she says she will do. The bar has been lowered and lowered, so that now she has committed to doing one chore a day, and she has a hard time following through with that. She asked me if I wanted her to prioritize doing chores over spending quality time with her, and I said, ''Yes!'' She was surprised, and I explained (as I have countless times in the past) that it's hard for me to feel loving towards her when: I feel like we don't help each other AND I can't count on her to do what she says she's going to do. From my perspective, it would be pretty easy to me feel like we are in an equal partnership, but she refuses to meet me halfway here. (Incidentally, I don't know why she can spend two hours watching a movie with me, but refuses to spend five minutes with me picking up toys.)

Am I nuts? Is it unrealistic to expect that my wife does SOMETHING to help around the house? She says she's too busy, or too tired... but dangit, I'm busy and tired, too! Is there any hope for this situation? Thanks!

Reliving my parents' problems

It's always nice to see a man -- and not just mom -- gripe about household chores. That's progress!

But it led me to re-visit and reconsider the division of labor in my own household. So far, so good. I do the food shopping and cooking. We both do dishes and laundry, although lately, none of us has been picking up the kids' room and it is a mess. Then again, this does not bother us. We figure we will get the house back when the kids are older.

What about you? How is domestic labor divided up in your home?

Ok, so I've written about the very unfriendly practices designed to mommy-track women in academia before. (See: Feeling like a career failure after baby...). However, one year later and still feeling the sting, I found an article in the NYT (Poor Economy Slams Brakes on Women's Workplace Progress) that confirms that this phenomenon of involuntary mommy-tracking extends beyond academia and into all types of work environments.  The article points out that many women are just thinking about giving up.