Robert Pedersen is joining Rob MacKenzie in bicycling from Lansing, MI Capitol to Washington, D.C.

Robert Pedersen is joining Rob MacKenzie in bicycling from Lansing, MI Capitol to Washington, D.C.; in support of EQUAL Parenting and with love to his son and daughter. Summer 2007

"Domestic Violence: the 12 Things You Aren't Suppose to Know" by Thomas B. James.

1. Most victims are male.
2. Violence against men is just as severe as violence against women.
3. Women who abuse are not normally acting in self-defense.
4. Most child abuse victims are male.
5. Violence against males is on the rise.
6. Violence against females is decreasing.
7. Violence by males is decreasing.
8. Violence by females is on the rise.
9. DV against men is the most under-reported crime.
10. It is not impossible for a woman to lie about being a victim of violence.
11. Many DV researchers are gender bigots.
12. Males are the primary targets of gender bias in the American legal system.
***This book will make you think and challenge what you are essentially spoon fed to believe and that is all domestic violence is by men*** When society addresses this serious problem without bigotry and discrimination towards men, it will finally be moving in the direction of stopping this evil.
Angela Pedersen, R.N. - Co-Founder of A Child's Right www.achildsright.net

Stop Abuse for Everyone (SAFE) www.safe4all.org

Stop Abuse for Everyone is an incredible organization that I encourage everyone to join! The membership fee is a reasonable $15 and this membership fee provides you with an enormous amount of resources regarding Domestic Violence. This is a very serious subject matter and what I applaud SAFE for is their public focus of helping BOTH genders as victims of domestic violence. It takes an incredible amount of courage for an organization such as SAFE to go against the grain and they realize that in order to TRULY address this problem the public must understand that BOTH genders commit domestic violence and they do so at almost the same rate. They are not worried about the various women's groups that discriminate against men and REFUSE to address or admit that women also commit domestic violence. NO POLITICS OR POWER STRUGGLES HERE; THEY ONLY CARE ABOUT ENDING THIS MADNESS AND NOT SIMPLY LABELING ALL MEN AS EVIL AGGRESSIVE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE PERPETRATORS. Bravo to SAFE for their courage and refusal to discriminate. Visit their website at www.safe4all.org and their blog at www.safe4all.org/blog. Support this international non-profit organization NOW!

Children's Bill of Rights

Children's Bill of Rights
1. EQUAL time with BOTH fit parents after a divorce or separation.
2. The right to Step-parents that do not interfere with the relationship of the other biological parent.
3. The right to be a kid and enjoy free time for playing.
4. The right to have both biological parents EQUALLY involved in a child's extracurricular activities.
5. The right to time on the phone with both biological parents without the interference of the other biological parent and step-parent.
6. The right to parents that actively listen to the child without finishing their sentences or guiding their comments.
7. The right to ZERO parental alienation.
8. The right to EQUAL time with all sets of grandparents after a divorce or separation.
9. The right to reading time with parents before bed.
10. The right to a loving and nurturing home environment.
11. The right to continuing love and guidance from BOTH parents so that they can receive a balanced education in mind, body and spiritual upbringing.
12. The right to know that their parents decision to divorce or separate is not their responsibility and that they will still be able to live with BOTH parents EQUALLY assuming no interruption with the child's school location.
13. Michigan House Bill 5267 (Shared Parenting Legislation)
14. A government that recognizes the importance of BOTH parents and encourages marriages; not the active destruction of them via Title IV-D welfare programs. http://www.squidoo.com/fatherachildsright

A Child's Right www.achildsright.net

National Coalition of Free Men (NCFM)

If you are a man and are not a member of this group you MUST join now! The National Coalition of Free Men is an incredible non-profit organization that addresses the active discrimination against men in society; i.e. child custody cases after divorce, domestic violence, etc.

Their journal "Transitions" is a bi-monthly journal that is worth the membership price alone. Each journal is packed with useful information and news that all men should concern themselves with. When I read my first issue roughly two years ago it was an eye opening experience to say the least. You begin to notice in the media, TV Shows and in movies the discriminatory stereotypes of men portrayed in these media genres. In movies where there is a father raising children the mother of the children is usually deceased and fathers are portrayed as being unable to do very simple things such as changing diapers.

Another aspect I noticed in TV Shows and movies was that it was essentially accepted (sometimes portrayed as funny) when a female slaps a male in the face. This is OK to society despite the fact that it is clearly domestic violence and should be treated as such. How sad! This is not right no matter what gender you are! It amazes me that some men and women believe that it is OK for a woman to slap and/or hit a man. When this occurs and is ignored or accepted or laughed at it simply extends the vicious cycle of domestic violence in our culture.

PLEASE check out this organization now at www.ncfm.org. 516-82-6378 ncfm@ncfm.org You will not regret becoming a member and the wealth of information gained far outweighs the cost of membership. This organization has actively helped with the EQUAL Parenting Bill in Michigan and this is further proof of how this organization so wisely utilizes it's resources.

STEP DAD? IS THIS IN THE "BEST INTEREST OF THE CHILDREN"?

If you are a divorced father you will most likely have to deal with the Step-Dad at one time or another in your life. Sometimes this can be an experience that is terrific because both see the importance of acting mature for the sake of the child. Even if the child(ren)'s Mom has multiple personalities, a mature and caring Step-Dad can help you as a father in making sure the kids are cared for, loved, coached, and so much more that comes with being a Dad or Step-Dad. Working together in harmony can occur as long as you both do not feel threatened by the other in one fashion or another.

What would you think of a Step-Dad that stated you (the Dad) sending gifts to the other house (the mom's house) was wrong. I should clarify this more...gifts to the kids (NOT the ex-wife). What if psycho step-Dad stated you sending gifts to their house for the kids was "rubbing their nose in it"? How would you respond? For example, lets say you were out of town training for your new job and were away for two weeks. You promised your kids that you would send them something at their "other house" so that they knew how much you missed them and were thinking of them. How is this wrong? This is about the kids and nothing more! How could anyone feel even remotely threatened by this? Perhaps the Step-Dad has "small man syndrome"? Odds are he probably drives the largest Ford or Chevy Pickup truck on the market and collects guns as a hobby. The pickup truck would have to be a diesel because they make more noise (more noise = more manly) and would most likely have the decal of the stupid boy urinating on a Chevy or Ford symbol. He also probably counts the number of guns at night that he owns, has wet dreams about the number of deer he will slaughter during hunting season, and probably has names for each gun...for example, "Lucky" or "Cowboy". Even if they have the previously stated "syndromes" how could anyone honestly not be happy for the children? The connection between children and their biological Dad is extremely important. A Step-Dad is NOT a replacement and this has been proved in numerous research studies and is noted in the famous children's rights book, " The Rights of Children in Separation and Divorce" by Robert Prall. I am open to comments for this posting.

2006 ELECTION AFTERMATH

What an incredible election night to watch unfold! The Democrats won huge across the nation and also in Michigan. The Democrats reclaimed the House in the U.S. House and in Michigan. It is up for debate on whether the Democrats will take the U.S Senate and we may not know for some time until a recount is done in VA. We may not know the true winner until December. The victory I was very pleased to see was with Tim Walberg who will become our U.S. House Representative for District 7 in Michigan. Mr. Walberg strongly supports what common sense and all research supports; which is the best parents is BOTH fit parents. Bill Hall who ran against Mike Cox for Attorney General received over 2% of the vote which I believe is very impressive for a third party candidate and it also shows the true sentiments of Michigan voters towards Cox. If the Democrats would have put forth a stronger candidate than what they did they surely would have beaten Mike Cox. The true tragedy would be the loss of Leslie Mortimer who introduced Michigan House Bill 5267. It remains to be seen whether this loss will "kill" the bill that she so bravely introduced. Her loss is a big loss for Michigan. Her opponents use of a political ad attempting to tie Mortimer to a patient that died on Vioxx was very effective and it is a shame that Michigan voters fell for this garbage. Leslie Mortimer has and always will be a true patriot. Another tragedy was the loss of DeVos over Granholm. Michigan voters must not be the brightest having reelected Granholm to a second term! Michigan at the time of her reelection had the second highest unemployment rate in the country. Yet, Granholm was awarded for this lack of performance? This blows my mind! I was very pleased to see locally that Wenke was reelected. The reelection of Gregory Moore was also a great thing to see. It was TRULY awesome to see Prop 2 pass which essentially bans affirmative action and thus puts both genders and all races on an even playing field. More on Prop 2 later...