'MARRIAGE' NEWS- June 2007: The REAL Proposal For Marriage magazine

"Marriage In The News" is not a representation of The Real Proposal magazine...

The news articles and features presented below are simply an indication of how topical, controversial, and all-encompassing the issues surrounding marriage are throughout our society--and the world-- today. Some of the views and opinions expressed, and their respective web sites, do NOT reflect the views or opinions of The Real Proposal™ magazine. Many are highlighted largely to reiterate that the alarming statistical trends on the chaotic state of "Marriage" and "Family"--outlined in "A Mere Glimpse"--will continue unabated without a fundamental grasp and purposeful dissemination of TRUTH on the issues.

Key to a good marriage? Share housework San Jose Mercury News- AP, By David Crary, June 30, 2007
—The percentage of Americans who consider children "very important" to a successful marriage has dropped sharply since 1990, and more now cite the sharing of household chores as pivotal, according to a sweeping new survey. The Pew Research Center survey on marriage and parenting found that children had fallen to eighth out of nine on a list of factors that people associate with successful marriages—well behind "sharing household chores," "good housing," "adequate income," a "happy sexual relationship" and "faithfulness." In a 1990 World Values Survey, children ranked third in importance among the same items, with 65 percent saying children were very important to a good marriage. Just 41 percent said so in the new Pew survey. Chore-sharing was cited as very important by 62 percent of respondents, up from 47 percent in 1990. The survey also found that, by a margin of nearly 3-to-1, Americans say the main purpose of marriage is the "mutual happiness and fulfillment" of adults rather than the "bearing and raising of children.". . .

RELATED ARTICLE: The artful dodge of housework Christian Science Monitor, By Marilyn Gardner, July 5, 2005

RELATED ARTICLE: Marriage and Parenting: Drifting Apart   Pew Research Center, July 2, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: "Desperate Feminist Wives": Does the Quest for Marital Equality Doom Marital Happiness?   FindLaw.com- By Joanna Grossman and Linda McClain, Apr 4, 2006

RELATED ARTICLE:  Desperate Feminist Wives: Why wanting equality makes women unhappy   Slate.com- By Meghan O'Rourke, Mar 6, 2006

RELATED ARTICLE: What Makes Wives Happy?   WebMD, By Salynn Boyles, Mar 1, 2006

RELATED STUDY: What's Love got to do with it? Equality, Equity, Commitment, and Women's Marital Quality By W. Bradford Wilcox, University of Virginia, Steven L. Nock, University of Virginia

Shirley Bassey - The return of the Diamond Dame The Daily Mail-UK, By Alison Boshoff, June 29, 2007
. . . . Dame Shirley Bassey, now 70 years old, wowed the crowd with her 45-minute performance at last weekend's rain-lashed festival. Supported by an orchestra of 23, who were dressed in improbably perfect black tie, she presented a crowd-pleasing set: Goldfinger, Diamonds Are Forever, The Lady Is A Tramp and Big Spender - twice. . . . Dame Shirley says she likes Monaco because she is able to walk home at 3am in her furs and diamonds without fearing that she will be mugged. There is no whiff of a new man on the scene, and hasn't been since a brief yet headlong romance with debonair film and theatre producer Greg Smith in 2003. She said in an interview: "I'm not lonely. I don't miss cuddles. I'm not a tactile person - I never have been, even as a child. "When things go wrong, I don't need someone to comfort me. I want to be on my own. I sometimes miss the romantic bit of a relationship. But I don't miss the involvement. My bad times with men have gone. It's the men in my life who have given me the problems."Few would argue with that assessment: her first husband Kenneth Hume was homosexual and allowed her to have an open marriage, during which time she fell pregnant. . . . . . Dame Shirley has had three children. The eldest, Sharon, was born when she was only 16 (Bassey has never revealed who the father was) and was raised for the first nine years of her life by one of Shirley's sisters, believing that her mother was really her aunt. . . .

Shirley Bassey - The return of the Diamond Dame

Massive March in Puerto Rico Protests Plan to Permit Homosexual Civil Unions

Massive March in Puerto Rico Protests Plan to Permit Homosexual Civil Unions LifeSiteNews.com, June 29, 2007
Two weeks ago 20,000 Puerto Ricans took to the streets in San Juan to protest legislation seeking to permit homosexual civil unions. Coalicion de la Familia, the island's largest pro-family organization, organized the march and rally and invited US pro-family activist David Parker to speak to the crowd. In April, 2005, David Parker of Massachusetts was arrested and brought to jail after protesting the refusal of school officials to notify him when homosexuality or transgenderism was to be discused with his son in kindergarten. The incident made national news in America, and the continued refusal of Lexington, MA school officials to allow parental notification has brought on a federal civil rights lawsuit from the Parkers and another family. . . Parker warned the citizens that elevating homosexual behavior to a status equivalent to marriage would bring a flood of homosexual books, lessons, and other indoctrination into the schools - as has happened in Massachusetts. "You must have zero tolerance for this," said Parker, "or they will be marketing sodomy to your children. . .

New Details Emerging on Life of Pro Wrestler Chris Benoit Before Murder-Suicide Voice of America, By Ray MacDonald, June 29, 2007
In the days before killing his family and committing suicide, professional wrestler Chris Benoit reportedly argued with his wife over the care of their mentally retarded seven-year-old son. World Wrestling Entertainment attorney Jerry McDevitt said "I think it's fair to say that the subject of caring for the child was part of what made their relationship complicated and difficult, and it's something they were both constantly struggling with." McDevitt said the WWE learned from the Benoits' friends and relatives that the couple were struggling with where to send the boy after his recent graduation from kindergarten. He said Benoit's wife Nancy, while not urging him to quit wrestling, wanted him to spend more time at home with their son Daniel. . . .

New Details Emerging on Life of Pro Wrestler Chris Benoit Before Murder-Suicide

Movie Review: License to Wed. From Warner Bros.

Movie Review: License to Wed Variety magazine, By Brian Lowry, June 29, 2007
Unleashing Robin Williams in the least flattering possible manner, "License to Wed" squanders the modest chemistry between its appealing central couple -- Mandy Moore and "The Office's" John Krasinski -- uniting its elements in an astonishingly flat romantic comedy, filled with perplexing choices. Tossed into the summer season, pic is at best a relatively harmless way to enjoy air conditioning for those who admire Williams' ability to riff, even at his most irritating; otherwise, Warner Bros. should see its theatrical stay quickly annulled. . . Sadie (Moore) and Ben (Krasinski) meet cute at Starbucks, court and get engaged, all in the first 10 minutes. Giddily happy, they immediately consent when her blue-blood family insists the ceremony be performed by Rev. Frank (Williams), who forces the pair to fulfill an expedited "marriage preparation course" before marrying. What transpires after that, alas, is a series of unfunny scenes that, as directed by Ken Kwapis ("The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants"), tend to drag on interminably. Inexplicably flanked at all times by an equally annoying young boy (Josh Flitter) who he's mentoring, Rev. Frank seemingly does everything he can to torpedo Sadie and Ben's relationship -- demanding they forgo sex, insisting (in perhaps the most inane sequence) they care for life-like robot babies and planting a bug in their apartment. . . .

WATCH THE TRAILER: LICENSE TO WED

RELATED REVIEW: License to wed Hollywood Reporter, By Kirk Honeycutt, July 2, 2007

Stork due at house of Usher New York Daily News, By Rush & Molloy, June 28, 2007
Usher will be changing diapers by Christmas. The Grammy winner and his fiancee, Tameka Foster, have confirmed to us exclusively that they're expecting a bundle of joy. "We are extremely excited at this point in our lives, planning our wedding and the joy that comes with expecting our first child together," they told us. . . . Just last week, responding to pregnancy reports on Essence.com, Foster answered with a not-so-cryptic, "I do plan to have children with Usher." But will producing an Usher heir bring Foster closer to the star's mother, Jonetta Patton?. . . .

RELATED ARTICLE: Usher Speaks Out on the Rumors About His Relationship People magazine, By Tiffany McGee, July 12, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: Usher's Fiancee Tameka Foster Speaks Out on the Rumors, Romance and the Rock: Tameka's Turn - PART I Essence.com, By Keyna N. Byrd, June 21, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: Usher, Stylist Girlfriend Are Engaged People magazine, February 23, 2007

Church blasts premarital sex proposal USA Today, June 28, 2007
— The Omaha Archdiocese has severed ties with a Jesuit university's family center after two researchers urged the church to allow unmarried couples to live together and have sex and children as long as they are engaged. The Creighton University researchers' essay, published in the June issue of U.S. Catholic magazine, said that more unmarried Catholic couples are living together today, and that they doubt the claim that the couples are living in sin. "It would appear closer to the truth that they are growing, perhaps slowly but nonetheless surely, into grace," Michael Lawler and Gail Risch wrote. The essay prompted a letter to the editor from Omaha Archbishop Elden Curtiss. . . . "The teaching of the Catholic Church about fornication is clear and unambiguous; it is always objectively a serious sin," Curtiss wrote. . . A spokeswoman for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said the proposal was an appalling attempt to gain the benefits of marriage without getting married. . . .

John Edwards, wife Elizabeth split on gay marriage issue

Edwards, wife split on gay marriage USA Today, June 26, 2007
— There's a split in John Edwards' household over gay marriage, but he says his difference of opinion with wife Elizabeth hasn't created any awkward moments. "It's not the only thing we disagree about," the Democratic presidential candidate quipped Monday on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. "She actually says what she thinks," Edwards said. Elizabeth Edwards kicked off San Francisco's annual gay pride parade Sunday by declaring her support for legalizing gay marriage. "I don't know why someone else's marriage has anything to do with me," she said. The former North Carolina senator, with his wife at his side on Leno's couch, said he was unaware of her position on gay marriage and was surprised to learn about it while reading the newspaper. . .

RELATED ARTICLE: What about the morality of homosexual behavior? Townhall.com, By Janice Shaw Crouse, March 20, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: Dodd asks: What if your child were gay? USA Today, By Philip Elliott- AP Writer, April 24, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: Clinton, Obama: Homosexuality Not 'Immoral' CNS NEWS.com, By Randy Hall, March 16, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: Rudy OK with Pro-Gay Marriage Tag RADAR Online- Fresh Intelligence, March 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: Conservatives Rally Around General Pace CNS NEWS, By Nathan Burchfiel, March 15, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: Moral absolutes: Judeo-Christian values: Part XI TownHall.com, By Dennis Prager, May 3, 2005

CNN's Nancy Grace expecting twins Celebrity Baby Blog, Posted by Sarah, June 26, 2007
CNN anchorwoman and lawyer Nancy Grace, 48, has announced that she is four months pregnant -- with twins. The babies are due in January. "I kept [the pregnancy] quiet because I wanted to make sure all would be healthy. I've worn loose-fitting clothes and I guess [audiences] just thought I was getting heavier!" Nancy declined to reveal if she used fertility treatments, but said, "You tell women out there that there is hope." Of being an older mom, Nancy reveals, "I always said I wanted a family. I grew up in happy, loving family [and] I wanted it too. But until now I just thought it wasn't meant to be for me. And as part of God's mysterious plan, I'm given this wonderful blessing late in life -- and I could not be happier." However, she isn't feeling so hot. . . .

RELATED ARTICLE: Nancy's Secret Wedding...And She's Having Twins New York Post, By Michael Starr, June 26, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: Tenfold increase in IVF for over-40s The Daily Mail-UK, By Daniel Martin, June 6, 2007

Paris Hilton Leaves Jail After Serving Sentence for Driving on Suspended License

Paris Hilton Leaves Jail After Serving Sentence for Driving on Suspended License FOX News- AP, June 26, 2007
— Paris Hilton left jail Tuesday after a bizarre, three-week stay in which the hotel heiress was briefly released to her Hollywood Hills home, then sent screaming and crying back to a county lockup. The 26-year-old celebutante walked out of the all-women's jail in Lynwood to an enormous horde of cameras and reporters after midnight. She had checked into the jail, largely avoiding the spotlight, late June 3 after a surprise appearance at the MTV Movie Awards. . . .

RELATED ARTICLE: Parenting Issues: "Mom, It's Not Right" Huffington Post, By Jamie Lee Curtis, June 10, 2007

Parenting Issues: Tennessee Mother Makes Daughter Stand on Street Corner Wearing Sign Listing Bad Behavior FOX News- AP, June 25, 2007
— A Tennessee mother fed up with her daughter's misbehavior took an unusual tack in for latest punishment, making her stand on a busy street corner with an attention-getting sign. Tashara Wilkins, 13, held a sign Sunday reading, "I don't obey my parents, I'm a liar. I steal from my mom. I have a bad attitude." "All other resources haven't worked, so I'm making her be publicly humiliated today," mother Cherie Wilkins told WMC-TV in Memphis. "I hope this works for her. I love my child. ... I could be beating her to death, but I'm not." She said her daughter's bad attitude Sunday morning led to the public display. Tashara said having to wear her offenses was eye-opening. . . .

RELATED ARTICLE: Is Spanking a Religious Duty? ABC News, May 3, 2005

When marriage became a 'hate crime' Jewish World Review, By George Will, June 25, 2007
Marriage is the foundation of the natural family and sustains family values. That sentence is inflammatory, perhaps even a hate crime. . . At least it is in Oakland, Calif. That city's government says those words italicized here constitute something akin to hate speech, and can be proscribed from the government's open e-mail system and employee bulletin board. . . . Some African-American Christian women working for Oakland's government organized the Good News Employee Association (GNEA), which they announced with a flier describing their group as "a forum for people of Faith to express their views on the contemporary issues of the day. With respect for the Natural Family, Marriage and Family Values." The flier was distributed after other employees' groups, including those advocating gay rights, had advertised their political views and activities on the city's e-mail system and bulletin board. When the GNEA asked for equal opportunity to communicate by that system and that board, they were denied. Furthermore, the flier they posted was taken down and destroyed by city officials, who declared it "homophobic" and disruptive. The city government said the flier was "determined" to promote harassment based on sexual orientation. The city warned that the flier and communications like it could result in disciplinary action "up to and including termination.". . . . The flier supposedly violated the city regulation prohibiting "discrimination and/or harassment based on sexual orientation." The only cited disruption was one lesbian's complaint that the flier made her feel "targeted" and "excluded." So anyone has the power to be a censor just by saying someone's speech has hurt his or her feelings. . .

Prince William & Kate Middleton 'reunited'?

William and Kate ‘reunited' The Times Online- UK, By Alan Hamilton, June 25, 2007
Nobody will be more pleased than Woolworths at a Sunday newspaper report that Prince William and Kate Middleton have been seeing each other again. So convinced was the chainstore that the second in line to the throne and the accessories buyer for the Jigsaw fashion store were a permanent item that it commissioned a range of more than 20 commemorative wedding souvenirs including mugs, plates and a special edition mobile phone. Disaster struck the souvenir industry in April when it was disclosed that the couple had ended a relationship forged when they were young undergraduates at St Andrews University. Now, according to a somewhat breathless report in The Mail On Sunday, the couple were reunited at an Army party at Bovington, Dorset, danced intimately, and vanished early to the Prince’s private quarters. . . It’s such a nightmare because she knows that if they do get back together, there’ll be no turning back. There will have to be an engagement and then marriage.” . . .

RELATED ARTICLE: Is William trying to woo back Kate? The Daily Mail-UK, By Rebecca English, June 24, 2007

Tiger's Tiny Tot: First Photos of Baby Sam NY Post.com, June 25, 2007
-- Tiger Woods and wife, Elin, introduced their first child, Sam Alexis, to the world today. The couple posted images on Tiger’s web site of the doting dad clutching the tiny infant as well as the happy three-some together. Woods released a statement accompanying the images that his wife and daughter are healthy and resting. "This is truly a special time in our lives," Woods wrote. "We look forward to introducing Sam to our family and friends over the next few weeks." . . . .

RELATED ARTICLE: Tiger Woods Calls Fatherhood 'A Dream Come True' People magazine, By Susan Mandel, July 3, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: Tiger Woods's Baby Revealed! People magazine, By Stephen M. Silverman, June 25, 2007

RELATED PHOTOS: Photo gallery of Sam Alexis Woods Golf.com

RELATED SITE: TigerWoods.com

Tiger Woods, pictured with wife Elin Nordegren and new arrival, Baby Sam Alexis. Photo Credit: Gretchen Dow Mashkuri/WireImage

'Crazy Love' documentary details infamous 1950s New York City crime of Burt Pugach against a woman, Linda, who later became his wife

Movie Review: Crazy Love Monsters and Critics.com, UK By Ron Wilkinson Jun 24, 2007
Simply stated, some documentaries write themselves. The love story of Burt and Linda Pugach is such a tale; a story of such compelling humanity that all the documentarist has to do is assemble the archival footage and interview the subjects and a hit is born. The documentary takes on a life of its own as the subjects reveal themselves on the screen and prove, again, that the truth is definitely stranger than fiction. . . . . So from Burt’s point of view, paying someone to disfigure Linda’s face was the only chance he had. But until you hear the interviews with Burt and Linda forty years after the fact, you will not believe the story; how Burt did his 14 years in Attica and won early release by sending Linda money that he earned by overturning fellow inmates’ convictions (at least three convicted murderers were released as a result of Burt’s legal work in prison), and how he proposed to Linda on TV as she sat in her home listening to the program, blinded by the lye Burt’s paid thug threw in her eyes. They have been happily married for several decades now---you have to hear it in the words of Burt and Linda to believe it. Only in America. . . .

RELATED SITE: CRAZY LOVE DOCUMENTARY

The hardest job in the world
It may look like the ultimate cushy number, but the life of the celebrity wife is not for the faint hearted TimesOnline-UK, By Wendy Holden, June 24, 2007
. . . . Their existence seems blissful: they are golden geishas who don’t have to work, whose time is spent shopping or flying around the world. However, the evidence is that marrying a rich and powerful husband comes with its own high price tag. . . . It is perhaps surprising, in the age of self-help manuals on every conceivable subject, that there exists no handbook on being the perfect wife to a rich, high-powered and possibly famous husband. But the information required probably wouldn’t fill a book. There are few rules for the perfect power wife (PPW) to remember. The first and most important is: indulge your husband in all things, always. Particularly in his right to be, however powerful he is professionally, a helpless baby at home. . . . So determined was Lancaster on this score that she went out for dinner with Stewart the same night she gave birth. “Looking back I don’t know how I managed to walk from the car,” she said. “It must just have been the postbirth euphoria.” No, just observance of the first PPW rule. . . .

The hardest job in the world: It may look like the ultimate cushy number, but the life of the celebrity wife is not for the faint hearted

Greg Norman, 52, filed for divorce from wife Laura in June 2006, citiing the marriage as 'irretrievably broken.' He has since been linked to Chris Evert, who has also divorced her husband, Andy Mill.

Great wife Shark bites off $100m The Age- Austrailia, By Reid Sexton, June 24, 2007
GREG NORMAN'S wife, Laura, will get an estimated $100 million after the couple's bitter divorce battle was mostly settled. The Australian golfer, who according to BRW magazine is worth about $325 million, was in Australia when the agreement was reached in Florida. A smiling Mrs Norman confirmed a settlement had been reached. "It's over," she said outside the courtroom on Friday, Florida time. "We signed a settlement agreement, but we also signed a confidentiality agreement and I can't talk about it." Norman, 52, filed for divorce from his wife last June saying the marriage was "irretrievably broken". He has since been involved with former tennis star Chris Evert, who accompanied him to Australia last week to inspect golf courses he is designing. . . .

RELATED ARTICLE: Chris Evert's Ex Wishes Her, Greg Norman 'Happiness' People magazine, By Jeff Truesdell, January 3, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: Chris and Greg admit they're a team This is London- ShowBiz News, January 1, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: Save your energy and sanity: just stay faithful The Observer-UK, By Cristina Odone, August 20, 2006

RELATED ARTICLE: Couples first, lawyers last The Independent-UK, May 28, 2006

RELATED ARTICLE: Wealthy? Don't get married, lawyers say Times Online- Law, By Alex Spence, May 24, 2006

RELATED ARTICLE: The Big Question: Has divorce become too expensive for the rich? The Independent Online- Legal- UK- By Maxine Frith, May 19, 2006

Why we love to ... cheat Sunday Herald-UK, By Peter Ross, June 24, 2007
21st-century couples are kissing goodbye to monogamy. So is one partner not enough? MONOGAMY IS a notion to which Britain, among other nations, has remained faithful for a very long time. Anthropologists estimate that around four million years ago the brains of our hominid ancestors began to hum and throb with romantic feelings distinct from the primitive sexual urge; they formed couples in which to raise their offspring and this became the new model for a successful and happy life. . . . . In the early years of the 21st century, however, it's arguable that monogamy has outlived its usefulness, has in fact become dysfunctional, and that western society is developing a sort of 900-year-itch. Could - and should - we embrace a model that isn't based around two people forsaking all others, but encompasses the idea of sexual freedom? . . . . ."I'm drawn to the French refusal to be shocked by adultery, and to their belief that an affair doesn't automatically mean that the marriage is over, or that it's been a lie," says Druckerman. "The French haven't mastered adultery. It's always messy. But I'm intrigued by the French approach because it's so different from that of my own culture. The idea that confrontation isn't the best response to an infidelity is a bit of a relief, given the agony that's brought on by the American approach.". . . .

RELATED ARTICLE: Q & A: Double Take: I'm Not Over His Cheating. Short Marriage Troubled By Pre-Wedding Straying Local10.com, June 19, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: Traveling jobs mask infidelity Ashbury Park Press, By Gary Stoller, June 18, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: Is Open Marriage the Modern Couple's Answer to Infidelity? AlterNet, By Joslyn Matthews, Sirens Magazine, June 14, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: Adultery Is Killing the American Family The Conservative Voice, By Nathan Tabor, Sept 22, 2005

RELATED SITE: Surviving Infidelity.com

Spice is right: Scary sez DNA test IDs Eddie Murphy as her baby's dad New York Daily News, June 23, 2007
Eddie Murphy's hefty child-support bill is about to get ...scarier. A DNA test shows the divorced father of seven is also the dad of Melanie (Scary Spice) Brown's 2-month-old daughter, Brown's rep Liza Anderson told the Daily News yesterday. Murphy could not be reached for comment, and a rep for the "Shrek" star punted: "We don't comment on Eddie's personal life." Brown, 32, dated Murphy last year, but when the former Spice Girls singer became pregnant, he publicly expressed doubts he was the daddy. . .

RELATED ARTICLE: Mel B: DNA Proves Eddie Murphy Fathered Her Baby People magazine, By Stephen M. Silverman, June 22, 2007

Spice is right: Scary says DNA test ID's Eddie Murphy as her baby's dad

Little civility in the US on gay marriage debate Belfast Telegraph- UK, By Alf McCreary, June 23, 2007
. . . . In my opinion, civil partnerships between people of the same sex are necessary to protect the legal and human rights of each individual. However, I also support the view of the churches that marriage is a union only between a man and a woman, and I firmly believe that there is no such thing as a 'gay marriage'. During my lifetime the words 'homosexual' and 'lesbian' have retained their clear meaning to describe people of one-sex orientation, and I regret that the word 'gay' has been hijacked by a determined and vociferous group of people from that community. As I write this, however, I am aware that members of this lobby will accuse me of being homophobic, which I am not. Nevertheless, I object to the fact that people who do not agree with the term 'gay marriages' are branded as being narrow-minded and conservative. The situation has now arisen where many so-called liberals are distinctly illiberal in their outlook, to the point where people who oppose their views are often wary of speaking their minds. . . .

RELATED ARTICLE: Episcopalians risk split from fellowship by rejecting overseas demands CNN.com, June 22, 2007

RELATED ARTICLES & SPECIAL REPORTS: Uncovering America: Fighting For Acceptance. A focus on the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered community CNN.com

Civil union denial spurs bias claim in Ocean Grove, New Jersey: Same-sex couple ceremony nixed

Civil union denial spurs bias claim in Ocean Grove
Same-sex couple ceremony nixed Asbury Park Press- NJ, By Bill Bowman, June 21, 2007
- A same-sex couple has filed a civil rights complaint against the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association, claiming it discriminated against them by denying their request to hold their civil union ceremony in the boardwalk pavilion. The complaint is the first filed over a disputed public accommodation since civil unions were recognized in the state earlier this year, said Frank Vespa-Papaleo, chairman of the state Division on Civil Rights. Harriet Bernstein and Luisa Paster of Broadway in Ocean Grove contend they were refused permission in March to hold their ceremony, scheduled Sept. 30. The Camp Meeting Association is a Methodist ministry that owns all the land and boardwalk in the oceanfront enclave that is now part of Neptune. . . . . The association faces a variety of potential penalties if judged to have violated the couple's civil rights, including a fine of up to $10,000 for the first offense. . . .

Summer Wedding Wear: A Decoder's Guide Forbes.com, By Hitha Prabhakar, June 20, 2007
Never before have brides invested so much time and effort stage-managing their own weddings, including, most especially, what their guests are wearing. "The way I see it, you only get married once. I wanted it really nice, and I wanted to make sure everyone was clear on how they should look, as well," says Zora Mullholland, a 25-year-old bride in Dublin, Ireland, of planning her 2008 wedding. "I wanted it very upscale." Mullholland is so concerned about the sartorial state of her guests that she will include detailed instructions in her invitations explaining what exactly she means by "black tie." She will stipulate that women wearing short dresses should also wear stockings and heels. She will instruct men to wear tuxedos. . . . Unfortunately, for today's wedding guests, few brides are as clear or direct. Khrista Vagnozzi, senior editor of bridal Web site TheKnot.com, says couples striving to be clever are coming up with phrases such as "yacht chic," "garden chic," "city formal" and "beach formal" to describe how they want guests to dress. Such phrases leave many guests confused. . . .

RELATED ARTICLE: In Pictures: Summer Wedding Wear: A Decoder's Guide Forbes.com

RELATED ARTICLE: One Perfect Day: The Selling of the American Wedding AlterNet, By Emily Wilson, June 15, 2007

JOKE OF THE DAY: The Lighter Side
Dear Wife:
I'm writing you this letter to tell you that I'm leaving you forever. I've been a good man to you for seven years and I have nothing to show for it. These last two weeks have been hell. Your boss called to tell me that you quit your job today and that was the last straw. Last week, you came home and didn't even notice that I had a new haircut, had cooked your favorite meal and even wore a brand new pair of silk boxers. You ate in two minutes, and went straight to sleep after watching all of your soaps. You don't tell me you love me anymore; you don't want sex or anything that connects us as husband and wife. Either you're cheating on me or you don't love me anymore; whatever the case, I'm gone.
Your EX-Husband
P.S. Don't try to find me. Your SISTER and I are moving away to West Virginia together! Have a great life!

Dear Ex-Husband:
Nothing has made my day more than receiving your letter. It's true that you and I have been married for seven years, although a good man is a far cry from what you've been. I watch my soaps so much because they drown out your constant whining and griping. Too bad that doesn't work. I DID notice when you got a hair cut last week, but the first thing that came to mind was 'You look just like a girl!' Since my mother raised me not to say anything if you can't say something nice, I didn't comment. And when you cooked my favorite meal, you must have gotten me confused with MY SISTER, because I stopped eating pork seven years ago. About those new silk boxers: I turned away from you because the $49.99 price tag was still on them, and I prayed that it was a coincidence that my sister had just borrowed fifty dollars from me that morning. After all of this, I still loved you and felt that we could work it out. So when I hit the lotto for ten million dollars, I quit my job and bought us two tickets to Jamaica. But when I got home you were gone. Everything happens for a reason, I guess. I hope you have the fulfilling life you always wanted. My lawyer said that the letter you wrote ensures you won't get a dime from me. So take care.
Signed,
Your Ex-Wife, Rich As Hell and Free!
P.S. I don't know if I ever told you this, but my sister Carla was born Carl. I hope that's not a problem.

Yes, that politician from Massachusetts IS a polygamist!
News Bloggers-AOL, Posted by Mo Rocca, June 20, 2007
I'm referring, of course, to former Congressman Joseph Kennedy II, the eldest son of Robert Kennedy. Okay, he's not exactly a polygamist. His marriage to first wife Sheila Rauch ended in divorce in 1991. Then the marriage was annulled, or invalidated, shortly thereafter by the Catholic Church. The annulment was granted in secret, unbeknownst to the Episcopalian Rauch, who only found out in 1996, three years after Kennedy had married his former aide, Beth Kelly. Rauch was ticked off and appealed for a reversal of the annulment. She believes, not unreasonably, that a failed marriage needs to be acknowledged - not conveniently erased from memory. Now Time Magazine reports that she has gotten what she wanted. . . .

Joe Kennedy's marriage annulment from first wife Sheila Rauch overturned by the Vatican

N.Y. State Assembly Approves Gay Marriage Bill

N.Y. State Assembly Approves Gay Marriage Bill 1010 WINS, June 19, 2007
-- Legislation to legalize same-sex marriage in New York, sponsored by the openly gay brother of entertainer Rosie O'Donnell and supported by Gov. Eliot Spitzer, was approved 85-61 by the state Assembly Tuesday after an often emotional three-hour debate. Despite the victory for supporters of the legislation, the bill is not expected to be acted on any time soon in the Republican-led state Senate. In opening the Assembly debate, Manhattan Democrat Daniel O'Donnell told his colleagues that civil union, a process permitted in neighboring Vermont, wasn't good enough. "It will not provide equality for people like me," he said. But Assemblyman Brian Kolb, taking note of "the nuns who taught me in grammar school" and his marriage in the Catholic Church, said he could not support the move. . . Democrat Dov Hikind, an Orthodox Jew from Brooklyn, warned the measure could lead to other proposals he found objectionable. "Maybe we should include incest in the bill and sort of deal with the whole package at one time," said Hikind. . . .

Poll shows split support for same-sex marriages WSTM-TV- NBC 3, June 19, 2007
-- As New York considers whether to legalize gay marriage, a new Cornell University poll shows many New Yorkers still have trouble accepting the idea. The Empire State Poll asked 800 New Yorkers whether they would favor or oppose a close relative marrying someone of the same sex and found statewide that 52 percent of respondents said they would be against it. That sentiment was equally prevalent both upstate and downstate. . . . . A separate poll out Tuesday from the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute found 35 percent of registered voters supported gay marriage while another 35 percent supported civil unions but not same-sex marriage. Twenty-two percent of voters said there should be no legal recognition of same-sex unions. . . .
NJ State panel studying civil unions' success
Group to look at how well the idea is working Star- Ledger, By Robert Schwaneberg, June 19, 2007
A state commission convened yesterday to study whether civil unions in New Jersey really do provide all the benefits of marriage. A total of 1,092 same-sex couples have applied to form civil unions in New Jersey since a new law allowed them four months ago, the New Jersey Civil Union Review Commission was told yesterday. During a brief organizational meeting in Trenton, the commission elected J. Frank Vespa-Papaleo, the state's director of civil rights, as its chairman. He said the commission was formed to answer seven questions about civil unions, ranging from whether they are working to their recognition by other states to how they affect children and the state's finances. It also must determine whether same-sex couples need additional legal protections and whether an existing law on domestic partnerships should be repealed. . . .

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Inside the mind of the paedophile - and the wife standing by him The Daily Mail, June 19, 2007
NOTE: Many will find this article deeply disturbing. But as a paedophile ring is smashed, one man jailed for child porn offences gives a brutally honest insight into his warped desires... and his wife reveals why she's standing by him.

Bill Henkel and his wife Sharon sit close together on a sofa in their bright, immaculate detached home in a quiet corner of eastern England. They are active members of their local church. They sing in old age homes and Henkel, 47, likes to help the elderly of the parish with D.I.Y. jobs. On the surface, there is nothing remarkable about the couple. The same could be said of their home. Observant visitors, however, might note the absence of any computers - a clue to the fact that this is no ordinary marriage. In June 2003, Henkel was caught downloading child pornography at work. He was prosecuted, sentenced to 15 months' imprisonment in March last year and released at the halfway point in October. In the wake of the smashing of Britain's largest internet paedophile ring, reported in yesterday's Mail, Bill's account of his desires and his battle to control them makes compelling reading. It offers a chilling insight into the mind of a paedophile. . . .

Bill Henkel and his wife Sharon: Inside the mind of the paedophile - and the wife standing by him

Q & A: Double Take: I'm Not Over His Cheating. Short Marriage Troubled By Pre-Wedding Straying Local10.com, June 19, 2007
Q: Dear Double Take,
My husband and I have been married for two months after being in an eight-year relationship. Two months before our wedding, he admitted to me that he had a one-night stand with a woman two years ago. He said that he could not marry me unless he told me the truth about it. Upon hearing this from him, I was devastated. I've always trusted my now husband, and I never would have expected this from him. I had never accused him of cheating throughout all of the years we dated, nor have I ever had any reason to suspect that he would. At first, I told him that the wedding was off and that I could not marry him knowing what he had done. But after a very short separation, I thought that I could forgive him and we could move on with our wedding plans. . . . None of my family or friends know about what happened, so this has all been bottled up inside of me. How can I get over what he did, and how can I stop him from accusing me of cheating? I don't want to be miserable the rest of my married life! Marriage is supposed to be about trust, and right now, I feel like there is none. . . .

Women absorb up to 5lbs of damaging chemicals a year thanks to beauty products

Health & Beauty Issues: Women absorb up to 5lbs of damaging chemicals a year thanks to beauty products The Daily Mail- UK, By Fiona Macrae, June 19, 2007
It takes cleanser, moisturiser, make-up and a favourite lipstick to ensure the average woman is ready to face the world. But a daily routine like this leaves her with more than a polished appearance. She also absorbs almost 5lb of chemicals through her skin every year. Some of the man-made compounds have been linked to cancer, while others may irritate the skin or even cause it to age prematurely. Biochemist Richard Bence warned that the chemicals found in everyday beauty products could be doing untold damage. Mr Bence, who has spent three years studying the ingredients in cosmetics and toiletries, said: "There is a growing amount of research questioning the ingredients found in conventional beauty products. . . . Among the chief chemical suspects are parabens - preservatives widely used in skin and hair products, including soap, shampoo, deodorant and baby lotion. Capable of stopping bacterial growth, parabens are also thought to mimic the effects of the female sex hormone oestrogen, which is known to help tumours grow. . . . Other potential irritants include benzyl alcohols, which are used to scent and preserve perfume, makeup and hair dyes. . .

RELATED ARTICLE: The baby boomers who are in worse health than their parents The Daily Mail- UK, By Peta Bee, June 19, 2007