- A friend congratulating media "agony aunt" and journalist Anna Raeburn, on the birth of her son.

Raeburn comments: "It was one of the nicest things anyone has ever said to me." How touching.

What are we supposed to make of attitudes like these? First is the fantastically sexist sub-text - not uncommon among middle-aged feminists - that "decent" men are few and far between (scratch their definition of "decent", of course, and it may not be such a mystery, but that's another story). Second is the stunning, gobsmacking narcissism in the notion - to which she has given her clear approval - that the mere act of the "right kind" of woman (or couple) giving birth to a male will produce the "right kind" of man.

It gives a whole new meaning to the prayer "Blessed is the fruit of thy womb". Amen.

Look, here's an idea: perhaps feminists should simply abandon politics, concentrate on breeding the "New Decent Man" instead, and give the rest of us a long-overdue break from having to listen to any more of this tiresome nonsense. We won't mind, honest.

And tiresome it is. Raeburn goes on to assure us - from her vast knowledge of human psychology, no doubt - that "Lots of men say they love women. What they mean to say is they lust after them, they're afraid of them, they loathe them."

So there you have it. In a nutshell, so to speak. How we are meant to define "lots" of men, and whether this, or something comparable, also applies to "lots" of women - as any unbiased, non-sexist view of human nature must surely consider - is left unsaid. But your guess is probably as spot-on as mine.

I was about to write that these attitudes are positively Victorian, but that would be grossly unfair. To Victorians, I mean.

Raeburn also tells us that she worries about her son constantly, "simply because he's male and I think being a man is such a pain in the arse."

Quite. And if she ever wonders about the source of that pain, she won't have to look very far.

Source: The Sunday Times Magazine, "Relative Values", 19 October 1997.