With 1.7m more women than men convention went by the board: for the first time women's advertisements outnumbered those placed by men.

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Yet the way the Republicans went after it, by intimidating the three-member board or by providing the excuse it was looking for, gave Americans the first TV view of strong-arm tactics in what was supposed to be a showcase of democracy in action.

CNN: Mob Scene in Miami

Recently, a panel of bigwigs set up by the Conference Board went farther and urged that the two top jobs generally be split.

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Led by chairwoman Laura McAllister, the gender balance of Sport Wales' board went from eight men and one woman to five women and nine men in 2012.

BBC: Legislation possible for 40% women on public boards

This couple did not meet until their mid-30s, and by the time they went for treatment on the NHS, at 40 the patient was deemed too old to qualify by her local health board.

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Instead WellPoint went along with what turned out to be extremely bad p.r. strategy by the industry to pretend they were on board with reform even though they opposed the core tenets of the legislation.

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