The ABC show 20/20 recently treated its viewers to an all-out condescending pity-party for the women it calls 'crazy cat ladies.' The segment hosted by Elizabeth Vargas, with an accompanying article online, was so over-the-top that it was almost a parody of itself.

The article begins this way:

One hundred and fifty-three years ago, in a quarry in the Neander Valley in Germany, quarry-workers stumbled on a strange skeleton. Local experts called it the skeleton of some diseased person, or maybe the bones of some foreign soldier (a Cossack?) who died on the spot in the Napoleonic War...

Remember the days of travel agencies, with brightly decorated offices and exotic posters of far off places? It was the only way to book a trip. Yet, in a few short years, the entire field has been replaced by Expedia, Orbitz and other sites for individuals to find the best...

This time we'll look at one of the most controversial and misunderstood treatments for osteoporosis -- hormone replacement therapy. We'll also answer the question as to whether being obese can actually reduce your risk of osteoporosis.

Bioidentical Hormones for Women

Prior to the publication of the Women's Health Initiative (WHI)...

Lou Dobbs resigned from CNN on Wednesday night, and rumor has it that the immigration-obsessed nightly news anchor will be following the Glenn Beck plan: if your shtick appeals to the fringe, why not head for a network with no qualms about stoking some far right-wing rage and cashing...

These are letters from readers of Dear Isafold, my advice column at eyjan.is (The Island), which is one of the most popular websites in Iceland. Send questions to isafold@eyjan.is.

Dear Isa

The journal from my trip to the Greek Islands many years ago reads a little like Cheech and Chong's, How I Spent My Summer Vacation. Day after day, it went a little something like this:

"Woke up. Went to the cafe for breakfast. Ate...

As we end the year, and Thanksgiving approaches this is a good time for taking stock. Who has made a difference in your life? Have you been able to make a difference in someone else's life? And who are you to be making a difference in anyone's life?

Thanksgiving is...

I've been hooked on Netflix streaming for the past few weeks. It's served me as a useful post-book revision wind down, but not so useful in granting a good night's sleep. I've plowed through loads of my queue and started exploring indie documentaries. My latest obsession is the BBC special,...

When Elham Seyed Javad heard that five Muslim girls were ejected from a tae kwon do tournament in Montreal for wearing hijabs, she felt sick to her stomach. "I was in shock because I play a lot of sports myself - especially soccer - and to have to stop playing...

It is a sad awareness that is becoming the zeitgeist of our time. It is being spoken in scientific, environmental, spiritual, academic, and even governmental circles. We humans may not make it much longer. The possibility of our species' demise (along with the demise of many of the higher life...

These days, it seems like everyone's talking about swine flu. You can't pick up a newspaper or turn on the TV without seeing a story about it, but parents are still struggling with some pretty big questions-- whether or not they should give their kids the vaccine, whether or not...

They were doomed from the start.

Three months before they got married, my father called my mother from his Upper East Side Manhattan apartment, just to say hello.

"Whatcha having for dinner, Cy?" she asked.
"A roast--" he responded. "It's in the oven."
"Who's coming?" she asked,...

Medicine in the US falls under one of three scopes of practice.

1. Emergency medicine is a specialty of medicine that focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of acute illnesses and injuries that require immediate medical attention. While not usually providing long-term or continuing care, emergency medicine physicians diagnose a...

In a shocking display of honesty or hubris (both?), the immensely likable Robert Verdi recently said, "A lot of women say 'I should've been alive when Ruben was because I'm Rubenesque.' So times have changed. There are different cultural norms and values and beauty identities, and the fact...

Many of you are likely thinking "ho hum, who cares." Read on and I guarantee the next time you go for an X-ray, CT scan, etc., you will think about saying "thank you" to the radiologic technologist who is helping to acquire your image.

Every profession and public issue on...

If you think age and wisdom doesn't shift perception and priorities, think again.

I remember first hearing the following phrase when I was in my early twenties: "Women give sex to get love. Men give love to get sex." Back then I didn't agree or disagree with this concept....