Update (Jan. 19, 2010) - Taylor finally allowed back in to class. See how this incidence of gender bias was resolved:
http://mesquiteblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/01/taylor-pugh-hair-in-french-bra.html

Update (Jan. 13, 2010) - School district sends letter warning of stricter in-school punishment if hair not dealt with.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/DN-hairfolo_13met.ART.State.Edition1.4bc6f6b.html

ORIGINAL BLOG POST:
Taylor Pugh, a four-year-old student at Floyd Elementary School, has been spending every school day isolated from his friends and classmates because of the length of his hair. His sandy brown locks are longer than district policy allows and his original punishment was off-campus suspension. He was denied his education because of long hair.

Now, the district has modified the punishment to in-school suspension. He spends all day with a teacher's aid in a room by themselves. His parents have said he doesn't want to cut his hair and they don't plan to force the issue. The school district claims his long hair is not condusive to a constructive learning environment.

According to Dad, Delton Pugh, he "picks his battles" and believes the school district is absolutely wrong to enforce their 40-year-old policy. In an effort to compromise, the school district has told Taylor's parents that he can keep his long hair as long as it is put into cornrows and kept tight above his ears. His parents have no intention of braiding his hair. They will continue to fight.

This scenario presents a lot of issues. School boards have the right to determine to behavior and appearance codes for their schools as a means of creating a safe and productive learning environment. Similarly, parents have the right to choose their child's appearance as long as it does not interfere with the educational opportunities of other students. So who is right when it comes to Taylor? Perhaps most importantly, this is a classic example of gender bias. The Mesquite School District dress code only stipulates that boys must keep their hair short. Girls do not share this requirement. It is this distinction that, I believe, illustrates the unfair policy of the district. If the length of a girl's hair does not impinge on the learning environment, why does a boy's?

These are pictures from the district website. Clearly, girls can learn with long hair. Perhaps they think boys aren't capable of such feats.

What do you think? Should the district change its policy or should Mom and Dad put education before style and cut Taylor's hair? What would you do?

Original article: http://wcco.com/watercooler/taylor.pugh.hair.2.1420680.html

Most Dads go to work. The traditional male role of sole income provider is slowly but surely sharing a place in society with a co-earning parent, but that is nothing new. It has been occurring since the 1940's when American society asked women to take up the mantles of men who had gone off to fight a war. Academia has studied this trend more and more deeply over the previous decades looking beyond the simple question of why and turning to an examination of its impact on the family, and men specifically.

According to a new study published in the Journal of Family Psychology, Dads are ignored far more often than Moms when returning home from work. It seems a strange dichotomy to me that this fact neither surprised nor seriously bothered me. Human behavior is fairly predictable and if one thing is predictable, its the short attention span of a child. They aren't particularly inclined to tell the same story a second time. If Mom arrives home first, she get the juicy news. After that, the child is thinking, "I already told Mom so go ask her." They broke their news and now its time for something else. Kind of like guys and the power tool section at Lowe's. Moving from one tool to another and never really needing to back track.

The study showed that 59% of Mommies got a warm greeting when coming home. Only 44% of Dads received something similar. Forty-eight percent of Moms got news of the day and stories about things that occurred. Only 29% of Dads received something similar.

Dads - if you're not the first to get home, don't despair. You may not get the same greeting, but you can certainly get the same bond with your kids. Make sure you spend evening hours with them. Help with homework, play board games, finish a puzzle, shoot some hoops or play football (American or European versions work equally well). While doing all of this interaction, talk to them about their day. Share parts of your day (if it isn't terribly boring to a kid). They will feel like a million bucks if you're always available to listen. Also, talk to your wife about structuring the kids' time so they aren't engrossed in War and Peace at the time you arrive home. If they are less preoccupied, you have a better shot of getting that warm welcome. Admit it, when a smiling kid gives you a great "hi Dad!" greeting, you feel pretty damn good.

Source article: http://blogs.wsj.com/juggle/2010/01/05/hi-kids-im-home-study-says-children-ignore-dads-more-than-moms/

Update: The first legal male prostitute in Nevada has been revealed! "Markus" is already comparing himself to Rosa Parks. You must read this to believe it:
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20100122/D9DCPLTG1.html

(Original blog post - Jan. 7, 2010)
Good news Dads! If you are currently unemployed or just searching for a more interesting career, Nevada may be the place for you. Have fun...

Shady Lady Ranch gets government approval to offer male prostitutes
http://www.lvrj.com/news/brothel-to-get-the-bucks-80777187.html

Let's get my opinion out of the way at the opening bell: I don't spank my son and have no intention to do so. I do not believe it is necessary. Naturally, my wife and I have some friends who do accept spanking as a disciplinary measure while other friends do not. We all have friends in one camp or the other. And, both fortunately and unfortunately, spanking has become a hot button issue over the past 10-20 years for a variety of reasons.

Spanking was a topic I hadn't thought much about recently, but I recently received a suggestion from a ProActiveDads supporter (thanks Jill) who was curious what Dads thought about the subject. Her husband shares her opinion that spanking is unacceptable, but she mentioned that he was probably the only man she knew who had that view. Okay, so...what do Dads think about spanking?

While not technically spanking, I've had the impulse in recent weeks to slap my son's hand. He has discovered a couple of plugs in his room and loves to pull them out of the socket. Despite the warnings we parents receive on a regular basis about the dangers of exposed sockets and kids becoming crispy critters, I'm not a paranoid parent about my son getting electrocuted. But he's too young to respect the dangers of playing with electricity and he has the very real danger of pulling the items off the shelf as he pulls the cords. Getting a one-year-old to understand the dangers of anything in a way other than experience can be challenging. But electric shock and falling objects are two things I'd like to help him avoid.

Do I smack his hand? Will that teach him the lesson? Will it teach him other lessons? Since receiving Jill's suggestion, I've been doing a great deal of research. As I mentioned earlier, this topic is a hot button. Its controversial. Most folks seem to be a bit extreme on one side or the other. The notion of "spare the rod, spoil the child" seems to be most popular with folks who were spanked themselves and they "turned out okay". Even the Bible says that corporal punishment is acceptable, so who are we mere mortals to deny such rules? They see it as an effective method of imparting parental authority, teaching a lesson, and keeping children safe. Those against corporal punishment can also be amongst those who were spanked as a child, perhaps excessively so. Spanking opponents like the famous Dr. Sears are of the mindset that spanking "demonstrates that it's all right for people to hit people, and especially for big people to hit little people, and stronger people to hit weaker people".

Surprisingly, I found quite a few studies suggesting that spanking has many benefits including better performance in school and future career. As a rebuttal to these findings, another academic was quoted as saying, "I suspect that these parents don’t have much of a repertoire of parenting strategies, or maybe those children have behavior problems so the parents are more inclined to smack them". We posted a news article back in August 2009 about disabled students being spanked more often and I suspect it stems greatly from the frustration and exhaustion experienced by those parents and care takers who are at their wit's end. But that never excuses such behavior.

But enough of my rambling. Let's see what our fellow Dads think of spanking. Is it like ice cream with different flavors for different folks? Please add your comment below. For ease of summarizing, you may want to begin your comment with "FOR:" or "AGAINST:" and we can quickly see how the discussion is shaping up. Let us know why you are for or against spanking.

Most parents have read The Rainbow Fish, by Marcus Pfister. The story of a  fish with irridescent scales who refuses to share with the other children. Well, that's what the PR folks at the publishing company want you to believe. I'm going to give you a new perspective that will show you the real lesson of the book and it probably isn't something you want taught to your kids!

As parents, we are responsible for the morals and traditions handed down to our children. We have a duty to review what they read, what they watch, and what they hear to ensure it has a message we are open to sharing with our kids. With that in mind, imagine the following scenario:

Your child is about seven years old and has made you proud. She is polite, intelligent, beautiful, and a role model for other children. You have given her an heirloom that is passed down through the generations to all children in the family. Its a beautiful heirloom that most kids would love to have themselves. But it is unique to your family. A mark of your lineage, so to speak, and it has been entrusted to your daughter.

Now imagine that despite the amazing qualities of your daughter, she is having trouble finding friends at a new school. For some reason, it just isn't working out yet. The other children are asking your daugther for the heirloom you gave to her. They want it for themselves. At first, your daughter says she can't part with it. It was a gift from her parents and she is responsible for it. They other children get mad and still won't be her friend. In an act of desperation, your daugther goes to the principal and asks for advice. The principal says, "friends are important and you want to be cool. If you have to bribe the kids to be your friend, that's okay. Being popular is important." So she goes back out to the playground and starts handing out pieces of your family heirloom as a way to make friends.

When your daughter comes home, you -the parent- have learned the following things:

1. Your daughter loved the day at school!
2. Her principal isn't fit to lead a parade, let alone children.
3. Your family heirloom was bartered on a playground.
4. Your daughter still doesn't have any real friends.
5. You need to start looking for a new school.
6. Oh, and she also traded her home made sandwich for cavity-causing candy.

The next time you think about reading "The Rainbow Fish" to your kids, remember its real lesson: Being popular is more important than your family and you should do anything to be one of the cool kids.