I agree, 'covering up' does smack of religious patriarchy. But again, for me, the issue is whether it is right to use the law to impose my 'liberal' values on people who don't share them. To criminalise the burka in the name of equality is like burning down the trees to prevent a forest fire. To live in a free society is to tolerate other peoples choices even when you genuinely don't agree with them.

Withdrawal from caffeine can be intense! Like any drug, caffeine withdrawal is best done slowly to avoid the side effects. Keep going though you'll feel the benefits in the medium/long term. The research was in the journal Psychiatry Research but I don't have the link anymore I'm sorry.

Blog's of course, attract a wide range of contributors. I only edit out spam and inflammatory comments so all replies are most welcome ... especially those that disagree with me. James I would be happy to pick up on your ideas once you've read the book. You might also find me more sympathetic to your position than I have indicated so far. How we co create masculinities is an important issue/debate and the danger of a 'scientific' narrative is it robs us of choice and imposes a 'technical rationality' which is too crude to capture the human condition. I do think it's interesting though!

Hi James Of course there are different ways to be a man. Biology does not inhibit diversity it supports endless creativity and understanding it does not restrict who we can be it sets us free. You keep erecting then demolishing straw men. Perhaps you should read Louann's book. She is neither a misogynist or a patriarch and it is misleading and unfair to suggest that those who study gender differences are. Of course misogynists and patriarchs will misrepresent anything to support their world view ... as do of course feminists.

Hi James, Thanks for your comment. I did not put in my post that "men are unfeeling" so I can't "buy into the line" that they are. Of course advances in brain sciences are radically challenging what it means to be human. As a man's psychotherapist I have a choice whether to engage with these developments and try and make sense of them for my clients or ignore them and continue to rely on theories that developed as long ago as the turn of the twentieth century. Learning about differences does not have to be "depressing and frightening" any more than it implies we "just have to live with it". Of course men desperately need to develop feeling skills to enhance their lives. All the biology does is explain why boys aren't as good as girls at feeling skills and why there is a need to do so.

I think the more secure we are as children, the more secure is the base to move on in later life. This is why I think looked after children can find the transition to adulthood so difficult. A secure bond through childhood is not there. As for whether it is more traumatic for boys, I think boys do face a great deal of difficulty separating from the family and making it in the real world. I'm going to post on this soon so I won't give too much away.

I think your right. we need more information about menstruation targeted at blokes. Love your site btm. Phil

Hey James, I've taken myself off for the bank holiday weekend to do some serious blogging so getting your comment was a real lift! Thanks for reading and taking the time to give me a bit of good feedback. Good luck with Men@Work. Let me know if I can be any help. Best wishes, Phil.

Thanks to everybody for contributing so far. I just want to bring you back to how this post started. It started with a question: Homosexuality can't be cured ... but can we accept it? Clearly there are those for whom homosexuality is a sin against God and conclude that it should be discouraged for those reasons. As some of the contributors point out, a gay hating God is not the only interpretation of the Bible. Fortunately I am a therapist not a theologian and this is a blog about men's well-being not religion as such. I am still of the view that homosexuality cannot be cured, at least within a secular context (even within a theological context 'with prayer' it is dubious). The question then turns to can we accept it. Clearly some people cannot. They think that gay men are condemned to a unhappy and unhealthy life. Clearly this is nonsense. The unrelenting source of the unhappiness in gay men is the intolerance, prejudice and discrimination they experience. This is something we can all do something about. We can stop it. As for the political religiously extreme right, well they have their own agenda. 'Holding the line' on homosexuality is paramount if they are to resist the trend for open and free thinking societies to become more liberal. 'Freedom', or so it seems, is reserved for their views, and their desire to 'impose' them on everybody else.