Harry Potter Padma Patil

Harry Potter actress Afshan Azad -- who plays student Padma Patil in the wizard flicks -- was threatened with death by her father and brother.

Abdul Azad, 54, and his son Ashraf, 28, appeared in court Tuesday to face charges that they threatened to kill the 22-year-old actress, according to the BBC. Ashraf was also accused of assaulting his sister and charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm.


The attack allegedly happened May 21 in their Manchester home. The next hearing is July 12.

Afshan will appear in the final films of the saga, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, to be released in two parts.


This is a sad story to hear. I am sure this stems from the fact that in some families, it is believed that the men "own" their daughters/sisters and can use them at will to better the position of the males in the family.

April 20th is Equal Pay Day

According to new data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, women continue to earn, on average, just 77 cents on the dollar to their male counterparts. With women now making up half the workforce and more and more families dependent on a woman's paycheck to make ends meet, pay equity is more important than ever.


To find out more check out the AAUW page.

Why it costs more to be a woman

Why it costs more to be a woman is an article by MP Dunleavey over at MSN Money

From beauty products:

For example, Barbasol Soothing Aloe shaving cream, 11 ounces, sells for $1.69. Barbasol Pure Silk shaving cream for women, 9.5 ounces, sells for $2.49.

As a Barbasol rep explained, "80% of women like to shave in the shower," so the product needs a rust-resistant aluminum-bottom can. The company also adds more fragrance. These things cost more.


To mortages:

A 2006 study (.pdf download) by the Consumer Federation of America indicated that women were 32% more likely than men of similar income to carry subprime mortgages. Those subprime interest rates topped 7.66% when the average prime mortgage rate was 5.87%. On a $100,000 loan, that's nearly $120 a month more -- about $43,000 more over 30 years. Women were 41% more likely to end up with high-cost subprime loans, at rates above 9.66%.


The article was very interesting. I think the quickest thing to do is check out the labels when at the store to stop some of the beauty product scams. Yet, we need to be talking the the legislatures about the mortgages scams.

Book Review: Sarah the Duchess of York My Story

Sarah the Duchess of York My Story is an excellent book about how low self-esteem can make you lose yourself and set you on a path of self destruction. Even though this book came out in 1996, it still resonates today. Sarah Ferguson really gets deep in this book. She talks about how she stressed to do more for others to avoid looking at herself. She also talks about how being a people pleaser caused her to push her feelings down until the stress and depression all most pushed her over the edge. I feel many modern women can relate to her even if you don't get sucked into a high profile marriage.

Women Veterans

Back from combat, women struggle for acceptance is an article describing the lack of support our women veterans are receiving at home by their neighbors and their government. Below I offer my tips what are some of the things you as a neighbor can do to make it better.

1. If you never have been in the military, please understand that it tough job mind, body, and soul no matter if you severed state side or aboard. Every job in the military from Navy Seal to cook to secretary has the potential to become life threaten if your installation is attacked. This is why all soldiers no matter what job they will do are trained in combat.

2. Not every women near a military installation is there to support her "man" a lot of those women are actually soldiers.

3. Families please accept all your loved one's solider buddies male and female. Even though we known our loved ones. Their solider buddies know them in a way we never can and we shouldn't break up those bonds due to jealousy.

4. Let your women veteran know about VA CENTER FOR WOMEN VETERANS

HPV and Men

Here is a great article about the issue.

Here is the gist.

Definition of HPV.

1. There are proposals to get the HPV vaccine for men currently submitted to the FDA.
2. Men who get HPV in their throat have more complications if they develop HPV-associated oral carcinoma.
3. Since HPV is an STD, if we prevent it in men, the infection rate of women would go down also.

Reproductive Freedom

Now that women are coming out of the woodwork claiming to be Michael Jackson's Baby Mama, will it be necessary to prove maternity at the same rate that Maury Povich prove paternity via DNA test.

I believe in order to have true equal rights. Women have to be able to become just as negligent with their eggs as men to with their sperm. If not, we have to force men to be just as responsible for their spawn as the womb who carried it in the womb for 9 months.

BEAU: I GOT A 'WIFE' BEATING

Can a woman really beat a man as hard as a man can beat a woman?

Kelly Bensimon of the Real Housewives of NY allegedly clocked her fiance Nick Stefanov. He is quoted as saying the following:

"If I had done it to her, I would have been put in jail immediately," Stefanov told his friend.
"My injuries are worse than Rihanna's - and Chris Brown was charged with two felonies."

My question is there a double standard when it comes to domestic violence? In the struggle for equality do women need to start getting charged for the abuse they inflict in domestic violence?