Thanks. You have perfectly summed up how I feel which has a really nice feeling. As a 25 year old virgin all of my friends are either having sex or very religious and neither group are terribly sympathetic!

I don't think that's necessarily fair. I've known my "best friend" since we were babies and our friendship has weathered and supported me living on three continents, her marriage, me giving up my career to go back to grad school, her transition to becoming a full time artist, and a whole host of family disasters, bad…

I feel exactly the same! Kind of embarrassed, irritated when it makes people assume I'm somehow unprogressive or a prude, and slightly impatient/curious.

Exactly! It's great for kids... and I have to admit to still finding myself singing that song.

I've heard people complain that Winifred Banks is a sort of straw feminist but all I know is that my sister and I LOVED her when we were little and would spend hours trailing around the house with toilet paper draped around our shoulders singing that song.

Me too! My elementary school only had 16 students in our year and it was lovely. We all joined in pretty much everything and no one fell through the cracks because the teachers knew all the students and the student's parents really well.

I loved Fantasia! My sister and I probably watched it every time we went over to our grandparent's house.

*high five*

Well Canadian women have died fighting on the front lines of Afghanistan in support of the offensive there. When was the last time America won a war?

I'm Canadian too! Maybe the Americans think we dope all our ladies with bear testosterone? (I mean we totally do, but that's an entirely different issue.)

Pretty much! Thanks for fielding this one!

You are ignoring the countries that already have women serving on the front lines. Unless you feel that the military women of Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Israel, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Australia and Sweden are all doing shoddy and cowardly work as they serve.

Not really.... at least not in the UK where Moran is from. You could be poor and upper class or make a lot of money and still be working class. It has a lot to do with family, culture, education, etc.

Exactly this! I'm a Canadian, but the same seems to apply here as well. I am always so confused when Americans say that making a specific amount of money can make you middle class, or that losing money can make your working class. It's a lot more complicated than that. (Plus, we have hoosers!)

Yes!! Every time!

Without arguing for the literary merit of Picoult (because no, just no) I think that it is clear that women and other minorities get sidelined when it comes to press exposure, marketing, reviews, and literary awards. Cover design is just one example of this; you can look at how many reviewers are men, or how many of…

I think that's true for lots of us. Exercise (for me) has been the biggest factor in deciding whether I cope with my depression/anxiety or whether I go under. Incidentally my first major bout with it coincided with my being injured and having to stop competing. I no longer think that is entirely coincidence!

I was just popping in here to say that! Victorians: not as repressed as we like to believe.

Yep! It's not nearly so monolithic as the press would have us think. I'm not sure about a big movement, I grew up in the United Church of Canada... the general council supports gay marriage (and sent a petition to the Canadian Government) but they pretty much leave the decision up to the individual congregations. …

Can we please stop pretending that all Christian people everywhere are against gay marriage? I know that I grew up in a church that actively campaigned to perform gay marriages before they became legal.