Motherhood is part of the reason there's a pay gap, of course. TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber says women are "paying an unacceptable penalty simply for having children." And guess what? It's hard to have a kid without the involvement of a man at some point. Men want women who make less, then the women suffer financially when they become mothers.

In a recent issue of Star, the celeb tabloid put together a list of couples where the breadwinning lady is the one bringing in more dough: Gwen and Gavin, Katherine Heigl and Josh Kelly, Drew Barrymore and Justin Long, Julia Roberts and Danny Moder, Courteney Cox and David Arquette, Madonna and Guy Ritchie, Halle Berry and Gabriel Aubrey, Christina Aguilera and Jordan Bratman. But when we posted a story called "Dudes Don't Mind If A Lady Brings Home The Bacon," one commenter wrote, "Am I the ONLY one who would feel weird earning more than my boyfriend?" Around here? In an informal poll of the ladies working for this site? Yes.

In this day and age, what sense does it make? What about your worth? Let's say you make less than your man and then you get promoted. Would you turn down the cash to keep things less "weird"? Does having a larger salary make a man "manlier"? What if he lost his job? Or suddenly had a medical issue insurance wouldn't cover? What if he dies and the will is contested and you're left raising his kid(s)? Isn't modern marriage a partnership, where each party does the best he or she can? And if that means the woman brings in more money, shouldn't that be fucking awesome?

Blue Eyes And Low Salary Make Perfect Woman [Telegraph]
Motherhood 'Affects Women's Pay' [BBC News]
TUC Attacks Motherhood Penalty In The Workplace, Women Get Paid 16% Less Than Men On Avg — Report [Guardian]

Earlier: Dudes Don't Mind If A Lady Brings Home The Bacon

All the same, the results of the survey illustrate a society where the dual-income household has become the norm. 35% of men and 40% of women said that the key benefit of having a working spouse is that it alleviates the pressure of being the sole breadwinner. Of the 25% of men surveyed whose wives did not work, 40% of them wished their old lady would get a job. MSNBC added, "Of the approximately 75 percent of men whose wives did work, only 5 percent wished she was at home." Coontz says most men don't want to come home to a wife who hasn't been intellectually stimulated. They're irritated by "a wife who was frequently either bored or boring."

The only real divide that remains, according to MSNBC, is in domestic chores. Over 40% of women say they do more than their fair share of housework, and 29% of men agree. Even with women contributing more to the household income, about 50% of couples say they fight over money at least once a month. Sigh. In some ways, the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Sea Change' Seen In Spouse's Financial Roles[MSNBC]
Love (And Money) Story Of Our Time [MSNBC]