How cool is that?

Iceland is gender equality paradise.

An article in today's Zeit online (in German) gives German readers a taste of gender equality, and Iceland holds the top spot according to the latest Global Gender Gap Report.

Germans will find little consolation in making the 11th place, because they come behind countries like Lesotho and the Philippines. Ah, those developing countries we look down upon.

That should hurt.

Of course, you can go on an on about how small Iceland is with its population of 300 000, or you can rub in their failure as yet another small banking island that nearly sunk in the most recent fuck-up of the century.

But it won't help.

The one point you gotta love in the thinking of Iceland's legislature when they put gender equality legislation on the agenda ten years ago is this: women having children creates uncertainty for employers - the solution is to make male behavior equally uncertain.

Pure, unadulterated genius.

Employers can no longer make the simple equation that women take a baby break and men won't.

Oh, and regarding the German efforts, we did a little bit of research. Yes, we know, we don't do research, and we promise not to do it again.

Here is the finding: Germans have been whining about too few babies and too few opportunities for their women for a frigging half century.

Check the old papers yourself if you don't believe us.

What have they done about it, I mean, really done?

Window dressing, courtesy of a bunch of old guys.

Stop whining, you old guys, stop praying for the advancement of women, get off your nicely ironed behinds, and do something for your women and children.