During her long history of writing for most of Australia’s newspapers and magazines, many articles written by Bettina highlighted critical social issues of the time. Here’s a selection of columns and features that John Howard would have called, ‘barbeque stoppers’ – stories that set the tongues wagging.
Here is Bettina’s most significant recent article:
Silent victims
Domestic violence is not a gender issue – both women and men are actively involved in most violence in the home.
These are some of Bettina’s favourites:
Busted: the politics of cleavage and a glance
Everywhere you look, women are stepping out dressed provocatively but bristling if the wrong man shows he enjoys the display. And men – well, they are in a total state of confusion. Read full story
Bettina suggests you look at this video clip before reading the article.
Of marriage and men: stereotypes that ignore half the story
Welcome to the world of modern marriage – a world where men’s needs, wants and desires don’t always feature highly on the agenda. Women’s lives and marriages have been transformed, but now many men are wondering if they may be the ones being offered a dud deal. Read full story
Lust for Life
We hear constantly about men in trouble over sex. Men in trouble for not keeping their trousers zipped, for groping and harassing women, men caught out looking at pornography, or gazing at women in the wrong way. But what we never hear about is men’s restraint, the remarkable stoicism of current generations of heterosexual men who cop it sweet, despite their immense frustrations. Read full story
The Vagina Dialogues
There are huge numbers of women searching the country for help with ”things that go wrong down there”. That’s the phrase women sometimes use to refer to problems in the vagina and vulva which cause so many of them extreme pain and embarrassment. Now, finally, the medical profession is waking up to their plight. Read full story
Why Successful women lose the dating game
Today’s unmarried twentysomething women have given men an ultimatum: I’ll marry when I’m ready, take it or leave it. This is, of course, their right. But ultimatums are a risky thing, because there is always a possibility the other side will decide to leave it. Read full story
And baby makes two
Now we have a majority of young women deciding that fathers are incidental to the task of raising children. This raises interesting questions about attitudes in future generations – particularly the many young boys who will be brought up by the new generations of single mothers. One wonders if a boy raised in such circumstances can grow to understand and aspire to the role of family man, valued for his contribution to his children. Read full story
Whatever happened to the hymen?
Historically the hymen has been the palpable anatomical marker for virginity and as such has carried enormous social and emotional value. But now the hymen is on the way out – both physically and culturally. Read full story
Castles in the air
John Gottman, an American psychologist, recently published a study that tracked 130 newlyweds, observing how the couples interacted and then following them up for six years. The outcome was a surprise: “Men should forget all that psycho-babble about active listening and validation. If you want your marriage to last for a long time… just do what your wife says. Go ahead, give in to her… The marriages that did work all had one thing in common the husband was willing to give in to the wife.” Read full story
Love, Lust and Betrayal
In celebrating the virtues of this modern age, who could have imagined the chaos resulting from our new shameless society – the loss of the social sanctions that had placed some constraints on the indulgence of personal desires. Perhaps the most startling evidence of this shift came, in this morality tale, when the husband told his pregnant mistress he was staying in the marriage and preferred her not to have the child. Read full story
Here’s a collection of articles covering a range of different topics
Sex
- Smoking and sex – why smoking hits men below the belt
- Unfair treatment for prostate cancer victims
- The story of OH! – the vagina makes a come-back
- Where’s our pink Viagra – help for women with low desire
- Cheating on the kids – children and parental affairs
- A kiss is just a kiss – oral sex early on young people’s agenda
- Double standards for Mummy Porn – why her porn is good and his bad
- The sex starved wives – and the men who have the headaches
Online Dating
- Sex Therapist Seeking Love: I found myself 57 and single, after a 20-year marriage. I certainly wasn’t looking for the love of my life – just some cheerful male company. Internet dating came up with the goods, leading to great friendships and a sizzling romance or two. Read full story
- Never mind Sally, Harry hasn’t met anyone. “All the men are broke!” the older divorced women complain, as they nervously protect their nest eggs. Read full story
- Right Click for Love. This gentle, cheerful man had been struggling unsuccessfully with online dating for over two years when I first started working with him. One look at his profile and you could see why. Read full story
Divorce
- Unhappily ever after – is divorce better for kids than a bad marriage?
- Family law – three part series on how family law failed children and their fathers
Women
- Mother and work – the cost to children of mother’s professional success
- Baby, its time – why cohabitation means some women miss out on having children
- Walkaway Wives – now its older women who are on the move
- Why women earn less than men – discrimination is only part of the story
Men
- Sperm warfare – the dangers of unknown dads
- Whose sperm is it, anyway? – men deceived into fatherhood
- Children of a lesser dad – the rise of the sperm father
- Marginal men – low income, unwanted men
Marriage and Family
- Unwise counsel – when marriage counselling is bad for your marriage
- The new wimp mother-in-law – why she lives on eggshells
- Do children make us happy?
LAM
- Holding their breath – sufferers of a rare lung disease
Euthanasia