This week in...

...sex

• Is casual sex worth it? Yes, yes it is. Any other questions?
• If you’re going on a date sometime soon, think about incorporating some of these libido boosters. Hint: wear red, hold her hand, and get her adrenaline pumping.

...alimony

• It’s gonna happen! The end, er, restriction of lifetime alimony in MA. Catch the fever!
• Just when it looked like Arnie was going to stand up against alimony, he pussed out.

Weekend reading

1. The New Yorker explores the history of online dating. Personally, I'm more interested in the future.
2. In case you didn't know, coupons are tacky on a date. Women think it's romantic when you throw money away.
3. Definitely read this very thorough discussion of the many problems with child support calculations. Then read my analysis again.
4. The majority of Canadians now support legalized prostitution. Oh sure.
5. Hopefully you'll never need any of the five legal documents that can protect you in a relationship.
6. Most New Zealanders favor child support overhaul.
7. Good for Malaysia Airlines, banning babies First Class.
8. It turns out the success of female politicians might have a lot to do with nepotism.
9. Here are some good tips on how to be a better liar.

Men vs Women and the Great Recession

If you’re frustrated about the harsh impact of the latest US recession on men, read this article to make yourself feel better:

[Men] have been benefiting disproportionately from the modest job growth during the recovery... [W]hile the number of jobs held by men has grown by 768,000 since the recession officially ended in 2009, the number of jobs held by women today is actually lower than it was at the recession’s end: There are 218,000 fewer nonfarm payroll jobs employing women today than there were two years ago.

Or if you subscribe to the women-as-victims narrative try this discussion of the same study with the headline Recovery Is Bypassing Women. But if you want the whole story, you're going to have to read the original source report:

A successful woman’s perspective on workplace inequality

Perhaps the women of the Wal-Mart class action suit should read this from a successful female techie/entrepreneur:

When I entered the industry, it was burgeoning. Though being a woman was a novelty, it was growing so fast the opportunity was there, just as the opportunity was there for women during World War II. Tech is a true meritocracy. Either you have the goods or you don’t. There’s less concern with gender, race, color and creed. I really truly believe that, despite data on the dearth of women in technology, tech doesn’t have a barrier up to women. In fact, if anything, women who are technically prepared have an advantage.

I couldn’t agree more. The statistics often sited to argue that women are discriminated against in the workplace are scientifically bogus. They are usually broad societal averages that don’t make any attempt to account for all the perfectly fair and legitimate factors that may affect the achievement of women as a demographic.

Five more reasons (links)

1. A woman adds some needed perspective on the case of the man who set himself on fire over child support.
2. It looks like I’m not the only one with the balls to defend men against the British PM’s attack.
3. Planned Parenthood is hurting financially due to the push by conservatives to defund the institution.
4. It turns out loyalty is a good thing. I couldn’t agree more. But why, exactly, do you need to be married to be loyal?
5. Where did gender inequality come from in the first place? Whatever it was, we know it didn't happen during the past 30 years.