Several years ago, on International Men’s Day, Canberra’s ABC radio station rang me up and wanted to do an interview in Drive Time. I was happy to do it, until I found out my interviewer was a lady. Not that I have anything against the ladies, but ABC women (and many of the men) are noted for their bias against the male of the species. However, I am always up for ...

Robert Falzon, a good friend of mine in the men’s movement, asked me to contribute a chapter to his new book called Raising Fathers: Fathering from the Frontline — 12 Men’s Stories. Here is an excerpt from my contribution. It was a fine weather Sunday in this small resort town. The café was full of people having their lunch. No one seemed to recall seeing the young man with blonde hair ...

I can still hear the sound of the prison doors clanking shut as we wheeled the last road case into Kalgoorlie Gaol. It was an eerie sound, and one we were not used to. Our family band was due to give a free concert to the inmates. I will never forget that gaol. It was the first gaol we ever played at as a family. It was also the first time ...

Crystal’s mother and father had broken up a few months ago and had moved from the family home, each going their own way. The family home was put up for sale. One night, the neighbours were woken by a loud noise that sounded like an explosion. They looked out their windows to see a massive fire which quickly engulfed the house. Arson squad detectives said it appeared that an accelerant had ...

Many years ago, I was awoken by the incessant ringing of my wife’s mobile phone. It was 12.30 am, so we knew something was wrong. The message was frightening. Steve Stylianou, a good friend and father of three, had collapsed with a suspected heart attack and was rushed to hospital. The request was simple – just pray! We mumbled our prayers as you do when you have been woken from a ...

Some time ago, I wrote an article called “Ten Reasons for Eating Together” for the Dads4Kids weekly newsletter to inspire fathers and encourage families. The week after the story went out to 5,000 fathers, I spoke to my wife about the newsletter. I said, “You know, a lot of men are going to start eating more with their families after last week’s newsletter — 10 Reasons for Eating Together, but not ...

The first words the caller said after I picked up the phone were, “I wanted to kill him!” “Kill who?” I stammered. “Kill my father,” he said emphatically. Before I tell you what happened next, let me tell you his answer when I asked the question as to why he felt like killing his father. Andrew (not his real name) was the son of a travelling showman. ‘Showies’ travel around the ...

I received an early morning phone call from a producer on 5AA radio station in Adelaide, wanting an interview with someone from Dads4Kids. They wanted a comment on the famous Adelaide Football coach who had been murdered by his son. I hesitantly said ‘yes’, and then quickly started a Google search to find out more about the horrific crime. It seems that there had been some form of confrontation in the ...

Every Sunday morning, without fail, for the last 13 years, fathers across Australia have received the weekly newsletter to inspire fathers and encourage families. For many dads our weekly newsletter and our TV ads are an absolute joy but this week the joy is two days late. The reason: a combination of both overwork (lack of help) and electrical problems. Ron Hellyer who has faithfully edited the newsletter, found the pictures ...

We start the school year knowing that Australia’s educational standards are dropping and yet Australians, on a median basis, are the wealthiest people group in the world. Is more money spent on education the answer, or is something else the missing part of the educational puzzle? Educational experts in Australia have argued in favour of billions of dollars of extra government funding to be spent on education to help Australia return ...

‘Good Dads Great Dads – Footsteps Worth Following’ is the name of a fantastic book by Mal White.  The forward says it all: “I dedicate this book to my three sons; Jordan, Jesse and Josiah. You have taught me how wonderful it is to be a dad.” The ‘In Memory’ part really got to me: “To my dad, I wish with all my heart you did not die so young. (55 ...

I know many men who feel uncomfortable with the attention that they get on Father’s Day. I guess for many years as a father, I was one of those. I was very hesitant to celebrate Father’s Day. Many years ago I had the same negative attitude to Christmas Day, because of all the crass commercialism. I changed, you can too. As a man once said, “When you eat the chicken, make ...

You may wonder why I am so committed to encouraging you to be the best father you can be for your children.  I could say that it’s the mountains of sociological studies that show a direct link between fatherlessness and dozens of social problems.  Sociologists from all over the globe, through empirical studies, link increased rates of crime, health problems, suicide, child abuse, sexual violence, drug abuse, mental health and lower ...

This is an exciting time in the restoration of fatherhood in Australia. To quote Bill Biddle, manager of film distribution for Koorong: “Interest in Absent is exploding across Australia”. Many venues booked are preparing for overflow areas with extra screens as interest gets stronger. The Facebook page is up to 461 likes and Koorong, the national distributor of the Absent movie, received over 900 click-throughs on the Absent logo of one ...

In the Absent movie, which will soon be touring Australia, 13-29 June 2013, John Eldredge, author of ‘Wild at Heart’ says, “If you take snapshots of western culture right now the prognosis is not good”. David Blankenhorn has stated in ‘Fatherless America’ written in 1996, “Fatherlessness is the most harmful demographic trend of this generation”. Dave Kopel, in his article called ‘Fatherlessness: The Root Cause’ says: As Pat Moynihan wrote in ...

Well here it is, Saturday morning, and Warwick rang me for my article and I had nothing prepared. I was wandering around a shopping centre not particularly looking for anything, just in a bit of a daze. You see, sometimes things just get the better of me, and sometimes I just switch off. An interview I had recorded with Southern Cross Ten State Focus was just aired today, which was just ...

Below are just a few of the emails that I have been swamped with since sending out the notice of public hearings for Wednesday and Thursday, today. Many are from women. ALL are of disgust. Where is the representation from men’s groups, you ask? Easy — they obviously didn’t want you there. DIDS received this notice today, and it was forwarded from a friend, not from the Attorney-General’s Department. The hearings ...

I was travelling through Queensland a few weeks ago opening new Dads in Distress groups, and was convening a meeting that was being held in the back of a new church that had been established in an industrial estate. It was a new meeting and so we didn’t know what to expect, how many would turn up or what would happen. As I sat there at the back of this huge ...

Letter to the Prime Minister from The Lone Fathers Association of Australia Part Two The best interests of the child With a legal presumption of equal shared physical custody, a clear message would be sent by the Australian community to the divorce industry that a child is a human being with an inalienable right to equal parenting (including parenting time) by both its parents and a right to not have a ...