The Dream Quest of Unknown Me

There is an article in today's New York Times called "Women's Rights Laws and African Custom Clash" by Sharon LaFraniere. Apparently in many parts of Africa they've passed laws to better the lives of women but unfortunately there are leaders like Patekile Holomisa, president of the Congress of Traditional Leaders, who say "We will uphold our traditions and customs," and others who say the legislation is "an attack on ancient tribal culture and family values" so that in many places these laws are simply ignored so to "shield African values against the corrosive effects of Western civilization" which in this case means no virginity tests or no female genital cutting and equal rights for women. There are 3 words/phrases that really tick me off. Tradition and family values top the list. Simply because something is a tradition does not necesarily mean it is a good thing and family values usually means re-inforcing the father is the head of the family set up. Change is coming far too slowly for many women on our planet.

My third peeve is collectibles--most of us have already enough stuff in our lives to need things specifically manufatured for us to collect.