Europe

Nine ‘Women Clerics' Defy Vatican.  [Vatican City] Nine Roman Catholic women have been unofficially ordained as priests and deacons in NorthAmerica, risking excommunication by the Vatican.
Making Babies for France. [France ] France's women have always enjoyed a reputation for bold and seductive elegance, and for intelligence, but now they have added to that evidence of a new willingness to combine work and motherhood, and a currently unparalleled ability to do so.
Politicus: What a Merkel Victory Would Mean to Europe.  [Germany] How much, in terms of change, does it mean to Europe and its friends if Angela Merkel as expected beats Gerhard Schröder in September elections and becomes Germany's new chancellor?
Berlin Readies Giant Brothel for 2006 World Cup.  [Germany] A German company is looking to cash in on an expected boom in the sex trade during next year's soccer World Cup with a 60-room brothel a walk away from Berlin's Olympic Stadium, German media reported on Friday.  Named after the virgin huntress of Greek mythology, the "Artemis" complex is due to open for business in September with whirlpool, sauna, cinema, buffet restaurant and a staff of 100 prostitutes, mass circulation daily Bild reported.  "This is no flash rip-off joint where clients are taken for a ride," a spokesman for the Artemis GmbH investment company behind the project, told the newspaper.  Prostitution is legal in Germany in designated areas. Dortmund, one of 11 other cities to host World Cup matches, has said it will install drive-in wooden "sex garages" in time for the tournament in a bid to keep the trade off the streets.
Across Europe, A Broad Assault by Abortion Foes.  [Poland] Encouraged by the Roman Catholic Church, enabled by the election of conservative governments in many countries and financed in part by anti-abortion groups in the United States, the movement has made powerful inroads in countries where a full array of women's health services were once taken for granted.
The Workplace: A Place for Women in Boardrooms.  [Britain] The definition of sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on sex.  But is there such a thing as good sexism?  The question came to mind after speaking with Christopher Clarke, the president of a headhunting company who says he believes that women make better executives, a view he has shared with audiences in Australia, Singapore, South America, the United States and his native country, Britain.  Clarke cites studies showing that women are better at performing many things at once, or multitasking, and that they have more sophisticated emotional intelligence, like being able to recognize another person's feelings more accurately than men.  "There's a lot of evidence that says that women are superior in evaluating people, in managing their ego, in calming aggression in others," Clarke said in an interview.  "These are precisely the characteristics you need in a modern corporation."
HIV Schoolgirl, 15, Gives Birth.  [Wales] A 15-year-old schoolgirl who only found she had HIV when she became pregnant has given birth at a hospital in Swansea, it has emerged.  The girl, who has not been named, had no idea she had the disease until she was screened at an ante-natal clinic.  Campaigners said the case highlighted a growing HIV problem among heterosexuals in Wales, especially the young.  Swansea's Singleton Hospital, in common with many throughout the UK, routinely offers the test to all pregnant women who give birth there.

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