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A while back I watched the movie Pursuit of Happiness which tells the story of a father attempting raise his son while trying to move up in the world. They wound up homeless and they wound up turned away from some shelters because the father was ... well... not female.

Interestingly a month or two ago, the California Court of Appeals reached the following conclusion:

We find the gender-based classifications in the challenged statutes that provide programs for victims of domestic violence violate equal protection. We find male victims of domestic violence are similarly situated to female victims for purposes of the statutory programs and no compelling state interest justifies the gender classification. We reform the affected statutes by invalidating the exemption of males and extending the statutory benefits to men, whom the Legislature improperly excluded.

(HT: MND)

Let this post encourage you not to spend so much money on junk this year, but instead send it off to various charities such as Food for the Hungry. With the combined effects of rising food prices and the economic recession, they're likely to face funding shortfalls this year.

Here's a quick look at some of the silly stuff available for purchasing this Christmas:

Leading off is the Gassy Gus flatulence game. Basically you draw food cards and pump up the character's belly until... (you get the idea).

Someone's managed to improve on the classic fruitcake by making it inflatable. It's likely healthier for you to eat, and a lot cheaper to ship.

I don't golf so this is pretty useless to me. However someone's come up with a "uroclub" to be used by players who want to play a round of golf after having had a lot to drink. (Don't try hitting a golfball with this one).

There are quite a few bacon-themed gifts available for the pork addict. However you'd look more than a little bit silly with a bacon wallet (ditto for the other items on the list).

Here's what the head of China's central bank had to say:

Overconsumption and a high reliance on credit is the cause of the U.S. financial crisis. As the largest and most important economy in the world, the U.S. should take the initiative to adjust its policies, raise its savings ratio appropriately and reduce its trade and fiscal deficits.

(From the International Herald Tribune)

Of course, what the U.S. is doing is not saving, but rather spending. Somehow, I don't expecting the skyrocketing U.S. deficit to improve things.