Strangely, the most striking difference to me is how much more articulate Nixon was. Even though both were prepared speeches and we don't have to listen to Bush's stumbling over words, Nixon sounds educated and Bush doesn't.

Once the man can carry the fetus to viability and birth, he should be given a say. The technology to transplant the fetus from woman to man likely isn't all that far off and at that point, if the man is willing to take the pregnancy, he should be allowed to.

Until then it is akin (but with a more onerous burden) to saying "you do all the work, I'll take all the profit."

Oh wait, that IS Republican policy, isn't it...

I'd started reading this article without noting the author and wondered why it was so badly written. So I looked and all was clear. I had hoped she was gone forever, this conservative pretending to be a liberal, just tell me it won't be often please? I'll be checking the author before reading from now on so I won't waste my time on her mindless, often self-contradicting drivel.

I'm going to miss your writing enough as it is, you don't have to threaten me with having Camile Paglia write about sports. Please say it ain't so! I'll agree with all your columns until spring if you keep her away! Heck, I'll even read the dry as dirt baseball articles (you're the only one I can stand to read when it comes to baseball).

You threaten to call the cops, but don't. You bring in other people as ineffective as yourself. You don't bother to look at the carpet to see if it is ok before you buy it, despite the carpet sitting outside when you find it. You never go back with other people to assist you. You accepted a check from someone that was giving you a hard time with a return. You bought them flowers...

You got exactly what you deserve and essentially what you were asking for. Ever heard the phrase "let the buyer beware"? He knew he didn't have to give you squat the moment you threatened to call the cops and backed down. I look forward to your next piece where you tell us about how you went back to the same store and bought another carpet to give him another chance. Spend some more this time! I'm sure he doesn't meet a sucker like you every day.

When Debbie Klett says "It seems like there's a lot more weird stuff going on in society than there used to be" she shows she has no idea how society "used to be" and no interest in finding out. It is a vague statement made by someone afraid of change. She latched on to the tv-sanitized images of an era before her birth and decided with no evidence, that this is the way things should be. She gives one vague, anecdotal story of something weird and then admits she doesn't know if it used to happen in her idealized era or not! How is this the basis for choosing a way of life?

In addition, the article and some letter writers mention that men should be partners in the home; equal partnets in raising the kids and cleaning up and cooking, etc... I agree wholeheartedly, they should. But why should women get a free pass here? Then men are supporting the family and contributing equally at home while the woman contributes nothing financially. I'm not saying men shouldn't participate at home, I'm saying that when I look for a partner, I'm looking for a partner in all aspects of my life. I'm not looking for someone to raise my kids and clean my house, I'm looking for my equal with whom I can share everything.

I too don't understand the "yack" reference. I'd think you'd be pleased there's an additional form of contraception available to Chineese women...

It is sad that a group claiming to be "for the family" is pushing so hard to help people be bad parents. The only people that would benefit from this purging of anything adult from the TV are parents that just want to sit the kids in front of the tv and ignore them. They don't want to know what the kids are watching and don't want to interact with the kids enough to supervise them. What are these people doing with children in the first place?

At first I was delighted to see an article on this topic, then I saw who wrote it. I didn't even bother to read it. I'm still hoping you'll publish something about this by someone that can write, think and analyze. It doesn't have to be a sportswriter, it just needs to be by someone that doesn't just write to see her name in print.

Ms. Holler

I believe you may be misreading what the intent of the sarcasm was. I don't think it was meant that it was shocking because it was Kansas. I think it meant it was no surprise whatsoever that some people would cancel memberships because of this and that the gym owners should have forseen this. Maybe I'm the one reading it wrong, but that's how I took it. You do seem awfully defensive about Kansas. Maybe my reading of this needs to evolve more.