“Contemporary societies have their problems — there’s no question about it. But few would go so far as to say that we live in a global dystopia. Yet many of the changes that have unfolded over the years — developments that many of us would consider to be good things — would horrify our ancestors. Here are the many ways our world would appear completely dystopian to a visitor from the past. In this article, we focus a lot on specific examples of changes in the societies of North America, but comparable changes have occurred in many parts of the world.” w/ photos

“Secret Defence documents have revealed an extraordinary litany of reasons why it fears letting women fight in frontline combat roles – including increased sexual harassment, litigation, deaths and battlefield pregnancies. The concerns include ‘almost certain’ personal privacy problems while working with men, males trying to protect females in war zones and women being considered not ‘credible’ in combat. Serving female Defence personnel will be able to apply for new frontline combat roles within three months. But females outside the Army, Navy and Air Force will have to wait another three years before they can sign up. The Australian Defence Force implementation plan to open the remaining 7 per cent of combat roles to women also reveals some equipment and facilities will have to be tweaked for new female recruits.” w/ photo