“Italy’s Second Sex Is Pissed,” headlined The Daily Femme, which reported that 73,500 Italian women have signed a petition demanding a change in the way the Italian government (and culture) treats women, and thousands of Italians staged a public protest against the treatment of women in their country. High on their list of grievances: yet another sex scandal for Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. On Tuesday, less than two weeks after the protest, Italian prosecutors said they will request a trial against Premier Berlusconi over accusations he paid for sex with a 17-year-old girl and then used his influence to intervene on her behalf when she was arrested for stealing.
You don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone. That’s especially true in the House of Representatives, where John Boehner and the GOP majority–along with some particularly despicable Democrats–are launching an all-out attack on the rights and freedom of U.S. women with three pieces of legislation that would limit abortion access. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi is sounding the alarm: “It’s the most comprehensive and radical assault on women’s health in our lifetime. It’s that bad.”
The Catholic Church has approved a new iPhone app for the sacrament of reconciliation. The $1.99 app–called “Confession”–is meant to help guide Catholics through confession and to entice lapsed followers back into the fold. As a lapsed follower myself, it feels good to know they want me back. Maybe if they come out with a wiki-catechism I’ll sign up as an editor.
Speaking of lapsed followers, at Hay Ladies! Andrea Grimes tells the story of how she went from being a vehemently anti-abortion Republican to being the editor of “a lefty, pinko-assed feminist blog.”
The new film Top Secret Rosies: The Female Computers of World War II pays tribute to 100 women who worked as computers during WWII, reports Gizmodo. The film shows how their work, done in secret and without recognition, not only helped win the Second World War but also helped usher in the computer age that changed the world.
In one of the most treacherous reporting assignments imaginable, Amanda Hess has bravely covered the Conservative Political Action Conference. Get the inside story on women at the conference, including Phyllis Schlafly (still!), the “plans and goals” of the “pro-life movement” and what else she learned in her first day at CPAC.
Above, left to right: 1. President George W. Bush toasts Premier Silvio Berlusconi, photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, 2. screenshot of the “Confession” iPhone app, 3. Rep. Michelle Bachmann at CPAC, photo courtesy of Flickr user Gage Skidmore, 4. Premier Berlusconi sporting a white bandana, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, 5. Protest sign at March for Life, photo courtesy of Flickr user AnyaLogic
