Fascinating reading all the responses to Warwick's excellent article. I'm disappointed that people who are new to the forum are considered to be 'lesser beings' by some of the forums older members.

As I heard one poster say (roughly) "it is called Online Opinion, so what is the problem with us giving our opinions?"

I am a father of 3 young kids (2,4 & 6) and I can honestly say that I've learned from my kids too. Mostly to slow down and smell the roses.

I'm gradually coming to terms with the fact that kids don't care what you're doing together, they just care that you are together! No great amount of money needs to be spent, no indulgent purchase needs to be made, just the simple spending of time.

On Saturday morning while my wife was home teaching piano, I put the 2 younger kids on my bike (I have a buggy that drags along behind) and my 6 year old boy tagged along on his bike. We cycled for about an hour along a bike path near our house and then stopped at a playground.

As I sat at the playground watching them climb and swing, I was reminded of the fact that I am the richest man in the world.

Kids need a mum and they need a dad. Glad to be that to mine. Malcolm.

Snide, Martin? Hardly.

What's it to you anyway? Perhaps all the dads out there are just showing off the new socks they got on Fathers Day.

SUZEONLINE. You say you wern't aware we were discussing infanticide, yet what is infanticide or child murder if not child abuse in its most extreme form.YOU actually brought the subject up in your very first post on this thread [on page 2] when you told about a father in WA who killed his children WTF, can't you even remember what you wrote. YOU brought the subject up and of course you only mentioned a FATHER doing it, IMHO you are no better than those on the facebook site i mentioned in this regard. I also saw little or nothing in the article regarding same sex relationships yet this thread certainly has been hijacked to a large extent by this subject.
Do you think i don't know that more women than men are affected by DV, do you think i don't know that more fathers than mothers are guilty of child sexual abuse. The difference is that while i can admit these facts, the feminists can never admit facts such as more mothers commit child murder, abuse and neglect than fathers, if you refuse to see this then IMO you are no better than they are.
Yes we should be working together to address the problem of child abuse and neglect but as is always the case with these feminasties its their way or no way. There is a name for this its called bigotry. The statistics i mentioned are from the australian bureau of crime and the child protection dept of WA from a sample of 2 million people, but of course as previously stated people like you only pick out the stats that suit you and ignore the ones that don't.

'I'm disappointed that people who are new to the forum are considered to be 'lesser beings' by some of the forums older members.
'

Yep, most new posters realise that pretty quick. Rule No.1. Don't disagree with the 'established' users. Ha, established. Established in what you may ask. Piss funny.

Not "lesser beings", cmpmal. Just very obvious when a notorious homophobic godbotherer publishes an article that pushes a particular view of fatherhood, and suddenly 13 new users register in order to support it in comments.

Also dishonest if you all claim that this is simply coincidence - mind you, almost all of you have simply avoided my questions.

Howler - I only regard you as a "lesser" commenter because you've made it plain that your main interest in participating here is to annoy others.

CJ writes

'Just very obvious when a notorious homophobic godbotherer publishes an article that pushes a particular view of fatherhood, '

And to think he has the nerve to call others nasty and intolerant. You have to laugh or cry. And what a hide Warwick has to suggest that children need a mum and dad at home to give them the best opportunity in life. Thankfully many fathers and mothers are prepared to make the sacrifices in life to see their kids get the best opportunity. Gaol is full of men whose fathers were more interested in sex, booze and immorality and themselves. I sympathise greatly with those who failed in their marriage but find it abhorrent that those who have failed continue to knock those who have done what is best for their kids.