Dutch Municipalities “go local” in the mail-order bride business
The Northern Dutch villages of Dongeradeel and Dantumadiel have introduced a shocking new initiative to cut spending on welfare payments; their aim is for jobless women to meet and “be kept” by rich men. The local governments make a special payment of 1,400 euros to each eligible jobless woman. This money is not for education or career services, it is to be spent exclusively for a makeover. The restyled women are then registered with a local matchmaking agency, Mens en Relatie.
Local officials look to save 400,000 euros annually, by marrying off 70 jobless women. Prostitution is famously legal here in the Netherlands, but this is an outrage! If local governments want women to prostitute themselves, they would be better off investing in these women to set up legal businesses in the sex trade. Then the women could get off of welfare and become financially independent at the same time.
The percentage of Dutch women who are financially independent is dismal, according to the Dutch Central Bureau of Statistics, less than half of Dutch women earn over 10,000 Euros annually. While the outside world often views the Dutch as progressive in their social policies; take a closer look at Dutch Villages and Dutch households, and you will find the conservative, old-fashioned reality is starkly different. This bizarre policy is simply a new way to keep women where Dutch Society deems appropriate, at home and off the career track.
If “Operation Makeover” doesn’t work, maybe the local governments will sweeten the pot with a dowry?
Here’s a link to the Dutch article on de Telegraf.nl
Here’s a link to the article on DutchNews.nl
Filed under In the news, Social Issues, Women | Comments (3)
Ladies, Please step away from the schoolyard!
Moms, do you drop off and pick up your kids from school every day? Whether you are a proud Stay at Home Mom or a Working Mom that takes extreme measures to juggle your schedule for pick up duty, here’s my urgent plea for you to stop! It is not because of guilt that I make this request. My own son is picked up from school by our babysitter almost EVERY DAY, but I do not feel guilty.
Moms, I truly understand that you have the best intentions, but please stop corrupting my son. He is only six. There is still hope for him to grow up believing that both men and women have really important work to do in their professional lives; that being Mommies and Daddies is a really big and special part of life, but there are other interesting aspects too; that Mommies and Daddies share in the responsibilities and joys of parenting; that parents get to choose how they divide these joys and responsibilities; that there is no default woman’s work.
Filed under Just Life, Unsolicited Advice, Women | Comments (3)
Ladies, Who wants to be a millionaire? 100% Self-made
Self made? Oh, that sounds like a lot of work, doesn’t it? No, I’m not asking who wants to marry a Millionaire, although there seems to be no shortage of women lining up for the opportunity on the Millionaire Matchmaker TV show!
This Quote magazine cover with the 100% SELFMADE headline really grabbed my attention. Sure the diamond encrusted Hermes saw, Louis Vuitton screwdrivers, Cartier wrench and not so subtle Tiffany Blue background might have had something to do with it? Convincing myself this feature would be worth the extra effort to read (decipher) in Dutch, I eagerly bought the magazine and started flipping through page after page of entrepreneurial men, yes almost only men!
Wanna guess how many women made it on to this Dutch list of 100 who have earned 6 million or more without inheriting a family fortune?
Well, you have to go all the way back on page 78 to the bottom half of the list, to eventually stumble upon a profile of a women. Finally we can all be proud? No, wait a minute, she is a model. Sadly only four women out of the 100 millionaires and 3 are models! The fourth is weight loss mogul, Sonja Bakker.
Hmmm Ladies, we have work to do. Don’t even think about picking up this magazine in search of eligible bachelors! Get out their and plant your own money tree!
In Awe of Jacqueline Novogratz – Social Entrepreneurship in Action
Never have I flipped to glance at the back cover of a book as many times as I did while reading Jacqueline Novogratz ‘s, The Blue Sweater. Why? I couldn’t help but stare in disbelief that all of these experiences, incidents, wisdom and action belong to just one woman. This one smiling, blue-eyed, refined looking woman. She may look like a mere mortal, but she is one amazing, tough, smart woman who is changing the world in a big way!
In The Blue Sweater, Bridging The Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World by Jacqueline Novogratz, Founder & CEO of The Acumen Fund, Jacqueline shares her journey from the start of her career in International Banking through decades of development work, much of it in Africa; specifically in Rwanda. I bought this book on Seth Godin’s recommendation last year, and although I loaned it to a student to read first; the book only now jumped out of the “nice to read someday” stack and I urge you to read it too!
Jacqueline Novogratz may not be a household name (yet) but mark my words, she soon will be! The Acumen Fund’s revolutionary concept combines the best of the Philanthropy model and the best of the Venture Capital model to identify and invest in high potential entrepreneurs serving the poorest people in the world.
Jacqueline’s unique perspective and approach are the result of working in the field in Africa and in organizations such as The World Bank and the Rockefeller Foundation, combined with skills she honed in the corporate world and in Stanford’s MBA program. This book, like Jacqueline herself, crosses over and interconnects the non-profit and for profit sectors, accountability and the bottom line with dignity and humanity, poverty and privilege. Jacqueline and the Acumen fund push innovation; not to serve the elite, but to drive down production costs to make life changing products and services accessible to the poor.
The Blue Sweater is not a typical “How to” business book. Instead it is an inspiring story of one woman tackling the most pervasive problem of poverty and igniting people and corporations to make a real difference in the world. The Acumen Fund has already funded over 30 thriving enterprises helping 36 million people. This is the ultimate example of social entrepreneurship and innovation in action!
Click here to see Jacqueline tell the story of the Blue Sweater. Check out the Acumen Fund Blog
To order the book, click here, (a few cents will go to the wbii).
To borrow my copy of the book, just ask:-)
