Women With Troubles - November 2013

Here is a compilation of women with troubles reported in news stories during November 2013. Each name is linked to an Interested-Participant blog entry displaying details.

For a more comprehensive listing, check the Women With Troubles category link.

(AR) Angela Driggers, 43,
neighbor - Arrested for failing to register as a sex offender,

(CT) Morgan V. Frawley, 25,
teacher and church youth leader - Accused of sex with boy, 15,

(FL) Maria Daley, 42,
caregiver - Accused of stealing $162K from blind woman,

(FL) Tracy Domante, 47,
teacher - Pinched for drugs,

(FL) Vonice Charelle Green, 43,
neighbor - Guilty of manslaughter for killing boyfriend. Sentencing December 11,

(FL) Kristen Amanda Groc, 28,
teacher - Accused of DUI,

(FL) Paula Howard, 50,
neighbor - Accused of forcing three daughters into prostitution,

(FL) Michelle Lucus, 46,
neighbor - Accused of sexual battery of boy under 12,

(FL) Shannon Marie Maddox, 42,
teacher - Accused of sex with boy, 15,

(FL) Iris Spears, 45,
fitness coach - Accused of sex with boy, 16,

(FL) Temika Thomas, 27,
neighbor - Accused of forcing boy, 6, to perform oral sex on her,

(FL) Stephanie Thompson, 25,
psychic - Arrested for grand theft and organized fraud,

(GA) Rachel Gossett, 25,
neighbor - Accused of having drunken sex in parking lot,

(GA) Lisa Terry, 47,
teacher - Gets probation in Atlanta Schools cheating scandal,

(IA) Tonda Rane Hansen, 37,
neighbor - Accused of sex with two 14-year-old boys,

(IL) Amber Kraus, 30,
teacher - Accused of sex with student,

(IL) Nicole Starman, 30,
neighbor - Accused of sex with boy, 14,

(IN) Mary Robbins, 29,
neighbor - Accused of running naked and yelling through motel hallways,

(IN) Amber Renea Williamson, 32,
neighbor - Accused of sex with boy, 15,

(KS) Amber Stroda, 28,
teacher - Gets 30 days jail for sex with several students,

(LA) Brittiny Altazin, 28,
neighbor - Accused of unauthorized use of employer's credit card,

(LA) Paula Latiolais, 48,
teacher - Accused of sex with male student, ten years ago,

(LA) Nerelyn Soreta,
teacher - Accused of battery on a wheelchair-bound special-needs student,

(ME) Katelyn Ross, 27,
teacher - Gets alternative sentencing for DUI with vehicle accident,

(MI) Kristie E. Flores, 31,
neighbor - Accused of sex with girl under 13,

(MI) Leah Michele Jaglowski, 33,
neighbor - Allowed son, 9, to drive family car,

(MS) Erica Folmer, 23,
neighbor - Accused of aggravated child abuse,

(NC) Alexandria Shanae Bennett, 24,
teacher - Accused of taking indecent liberties with male student,

(NC) April Marie Schaefer,
teacher - Accused of indecent liberties with girl, 13,

(ND) Naunie Ryan Michalicek, 38,
neighbor - Accused of luring and corruption of minor,

(NE) Kimberly Babbitt, 19,
neighbor - Guilty of bank robbery. Sentencing in January 2014,

(NY) Amanda Isles, 27,
teacher - Accused of sex with boy, 14,

(NY) April L. Roods, 39,
teacher - Arrested for arriving at school intoxicated,

(OH) Lori Clancey, 45,
neighbor - Accused of prostitution,

(OH) Pam Fisher, 38,
neighbor - Guilty of sex abuse of boy, 13. Sentencing in January 2014,

(OH) Julie Hautzenroeder, 36,
teacher - Convicted of sex with boy, 16. Sentencing in December,

(OH) Alexandra Lemley, 28,
teacher - Guilty in illegal drugs case,

(OK) Christen Allen, 31,
neighbor - Accused of concealing stolen cattle,

(OK) Kathy L. Boen, 41,
teacher - Accused of DUI and child endangerment,

(OK) Brenda Chockpoyah,
neighbor - Accused of drug possession and child endangerment,

(OK) April Beth Cohenour,
teacher - Accused of assault and battery on students,

(PA) Nicole E. Kurowski, 27,
teacher - Accused of sex with male student, 17,

(SC) Courtney Ruth Martin, 26,
teacher - Accused of inappropriate behavior with student,

(TN) Elizabeth Leigh Garner, 42,
former NFL cheerleader - Gets probation for sexual battery of boy, 12,

(TX) Patricia Rush, 40,
teacher - Guilty of injury to child. Sentencing in January 2014,

(UT) Lisa Brea Griffiths, 33,
neighbor - Accused of sex with two boys, ages 13 and 14,

(VA) Lorita M. Aiken, 26,
neighbor - Accused of trying to poison her two children,

(WA) Karen Ann Pauly , 49,
psychologist - Loses license due to allegations of sex with patient,

(WI) Toni L. Braaten, 23,
neighbor - Accused of sex assault of boy, 16,

(WV) Amy Yvonne Mayhugh, 40,
neighbor - Accused of murder-for-hire plot,

* * *

(Russia) Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, 23,
rock band member - Sent to Siberia for complaining.

Thanks to the tipsters.

Religion and social health

Sigh!! Once again it seems that I have to point out an elephant in  the room.  Elephant detection seems to have become one of my more frequent contributions to public debate lately.  I pointed out another one just yesterday.

There is a paper here by a Gregory S. Paul which claims that religion is bad for "societal health".  It is a 2005 paper but a reader has asked for my comments on it so I thought I might devote a few lines to it here.

The key finding is that the USA is more religious than other first world countries but has high levels of social dysfunction (crime etc.).  The elephant is that the paper treats the U.S. population as an homogeneous whole, which it is not.  The high  levels of crime in the USA largely reflect the doings of America's large African-origin population.  Look at whites alone and the case falls apart (see e.g. here).

There is a more thorough dissection of the paper here

Posted by John J. Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.).

Virginia Woman Accused of Trying to Poison Her Kids

(Virginia Beach, Virginia) A 26-year-old local mom, Lorita M. Aiken, has been accused of trying to poison her two children, ages 4 and 5.

Aiken faces two counts of alteration of food, drink or drugs and two counts of attempted murder.

Virginia Beach Police spokesperson said Aiken and her two children had received medical attention and were recovering from their injuries after what they called a "suspected poisoning incident." Sgt. Adam Bernstein says investigators believe Aiken tried to poison the children by putting prescription drugs in their food.

"We still don't know exactly why," explained Bernstein. "But, the mother put some sort of prescription medication inside the children's food, resulting in them having to go to the hospital."

Aiken was booked into custody at the Virginia Beach Correctional Facility with no bond.

Beer Names Allegedly Offend Women

(Lévis, Quebec) A local micro-brewery is receiving complaints from women's groups because of the names of its beers.

With names like “The Hooker” and “La Tite Pute” — the Little Slut – Le Corsaire’s seasonal beers are not a favourite with women's rights groups.

Le Corsaire doesn't limit its unconventional approach to names. On its menu, "La Tite Pute" is described as "an easy girlfriend, light and fruity." Another seasonal beer, the "Vicieuse," is supposedly "an orgy in your mouth."

The brewery's menu also includes a beer called "The Parrot," which comes with a label depicting a nude woman in a bird cage.

The head of Quebec's Council on the Status of Women, Julie Miville-Dechêne, said the names are unacceptable.

"The name La Tite Pute disgusts me," Miville-Dechêne said.

“[Prostitution] exploits women. There isn’t a lot of choice involved, there is a lot of exploitation, a lot of violence. It’s not something we should be laughing about,” Miville-Dechêne said.

Sadly, there are pockets of society that scour businesses and institutions seemingly with the primary purpose of lodging complaints. In this case, there are accusations of exploitation and violence toward women -- because of the labels on bottles of beer. I think it's a stretch.

Swedish Pedophile Allowed to Adopt

(Stockholm, Sweden)

A Swedish man convicted for molesting a five-year-old girl in his neighbourhood has been given the green light to adopt a child of his own, as Swedish authorities said they did not fear he would relapse into criminal behaviour.

The man, who is in his 60s, has been found guilty of more than 90 crimes, mostly different types of fraud. The regional Helsingborgs Dagblad (HD) newspaper reported on Friday that the man was also convicted of molesting his neighbour's then five-year-old daughter in 2004, and was also suspected of raping a young teenage girl.

The man will now be able to adopt, after a review by the municipality's social affairs committee (socialnämnd) found that his risk of relapse was considered low, with all but one of ten members of the committee voting yes to the man's application to adopt. HD noted, however, that the public servants and the politically appointed board members were not given access to the documents giving details about his alleged sex crime.

Furthermore, the newspaper noted, the claim that the older man, who is known to chat with young girls on the internet, did not risk a criminal relapse was not in any way explained in the tribunal's statement. There were no supporting documents to back up the assessment.

Frankly, I don't think pedophilia is curable.

Florida Woman Accused of Sex Assault of Child

(Broward County, Florida) A 27-year-old local woman, Temika Thomas, has been accused of forcing a young boy to perform oral sex on her.

Thomas faces counts of sexual assault and sexual battery.

According to the report, Thomas on Monday forced the 6-year-old boy to perform the sex act on her.

During her first-appearance court hearing Wednesday, a Broward County judge ordered she be held without bond.

Heh. Strangely, I recall having great difficulty getting my youngsters to simply eat vegetables.

Levity aside, just knowing stuff like the above actually happens is sickening.

Virginity for Sale, Again - Update

(Santa Catarina, Brazil) Contrary to the previous report, Brazilian beauty Catarina Migliorini did not close the deal in her virginity auction last year. Instead, Migliorini "rebuffed the unexpected gentleman who showed up to claim it."

Not to be deterred, Catarina Migliorini has offered her precious tulip in a second virginity auction.




* * * * *
Virginity Sold for $780,000
[Previous 10/25/12 post]

Catarina Migliorini
(Santa Catarina, Brazil) A 20-year-old local student, Catarina Migliorini, has reportedly sold her virginity for $780,000 in an online auction.

The auction closed this morning [10/24], and the physical education student - who said she will use the cash to build homes for poverty-stricken families - was the subject of 15 bids.

Catarina's move sparked outrage across the globe, with many claiming she was little more than a prostitute.

Migliorini said she is not a prostitute since she's only selling her body one time. A Japanese bidder named Natsu claimed Migliorini's maidenhood.

Concurrently, it's revealed in the same report that a male named Alexander has sold his virginity to a Brazilian woman for $3,000. Both Migliorini and Alexander were part of a film documentary called Virgins Wanted.

Armed Islamists Arrested in Moscow

(Moscow, Russia)

A group of radical Islamists have been arrested in Moscow with bombs, hand grenades and guns seized, Russian police say.

They claim the 15 arrested are members of an Islamist group called At-Takfir Wal-Hijra.

Police say the arrests were made during early-morning raids at flats in the east of the Russian capital.

Officials said three homemade bombs, detonators and fuses for making more devices were also found.

With the Russians hosting the Olympic Winter Games in two months, they appear to have become extra diligent watching the Islamists.

Muslim Protest of Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

(New York City)

A group of Egyptians sympathetic to former President Mohmamed Morsi are gearing up to stage a demonstration along the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade route in New York City, according to organizers.

Several hundred members of the Muslim Brotherhood are expected to gather and protest.

Frankly, to me it's not clear what exactly the Muslim Brotherhood will be protesting.

Florida Caregiver Accused of Stealing $162K



Maria Daley
(Port St. Lucie, Florida)

A caregiver was arrested, accused of stealing $162,000 from a legally blind 88-year-old woman.

Police say 42-year-old Maria Daley was arrested Friday after the woman's son discovered the theft. Investigators say the woman hired Daley as a caregiver, intending to give her $200 a week.

The woman told detectives that Daley forged checks and kep the money for herself.

Daley was booked into custody and released on $50,000 bail.

Meteorologist's poll finds no consensus on climate change & those with liberal political views far more likely to believe in man-made global warming

Meteorologists’ views about global warming:  A survey of American Meteorological Society professional members

Meteorologists and other atmospheric science experts are playing important roles in helping society respond to climate change. Members of this professional community are not unanimous in their views of climate change, and there has been tension among members of the American Meteorological Society (AMS) who hold different views on the topic.

In January 2012, the AMS surveyed its members via email and found 52 percent believe global warming is happening and is mostly human-caused, while 48 percent do not. The survey also found that scientists with professed liberal political views were far more likely to believe global warming is human-caused than others.

Authors of the survey recommended that the AMS should “acknowledge and explore the uncomfortable fact that political ideology influences the climate change views of meteorology professionals; refute the idea that those who do hold non-majority views just need to be “educated” about climate change; [and] continue to deal with the conflict among members of the meteorology community.”

SOURCE.

A detailed discussion of the survey results can be found here.

Posted by John J. Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.).

Russian Blogger Jailed

(Rostov-on-Don, Russia)

A court in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don has sentenced a local journalist to 18 months in jail for insulting a local judge in his blog.

Sergei Reznik was found guilty on November 26 of "publicly insulting" the chairwoman of the Rostov Oblast Arbitration Court on his LiveJournal blog. The court also found Reznik guilty of paying a 2,000-ruble ($45) bribe to a mechanic to clear his car in a technical inspection.

Furthermore, the court declared Reznik's claims that he received threatening phone calls a false complaint, and agreed with prosecutors that he had arranged the calls himself.

Reznik initially filed two police complaints of receiving threats of physical violence over the phone. But the local branch of the Investigative Committee instead began proceedings against him, accusing him of "wishing to draw public and media attention to his personality" and "seeking to raise his professional rating."

Heh.

China Escalates Island Dispute with Japan - Update

Senkaku Islands
(Washington, D.C.)

Two U.S. military aircraft flew unannounced near a chain of islands claimed by both Japan and China, and through a newly established air defense zone China claims it controls.

“Last night, eastern time, there was a military training sortie in the vicinity of the Senkaku Islands,” Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Tom Crosson said Tuesday. “This was a long-planned training sortie.”

There was no reaction from China, Crosson said.

The Wall Street Journal reported that the aircraft were B-52 bombers, but Pentagon officials would not confirm that.

China said aircraft in the area must identify and follow Chinese air traffic instructions.

The U.S. responded by saying, "Up yours!" I've paraphrased.

* * * * *
China Escalates Island Dispute with Japan
[Previous 11/24/13 post]
(East China Sea)

A simmering territorial and maritime dispute in Asia erupted at the weekend as Washington warned Beijing it would back Japan militarily in any confrontation arising from China's latest unilateral assertion of its claims.

The Obama administration weighed in after China moved to in effect "rope off" the seas and skies around the disputed Japanese-administered Senkaku islands in the east China Sea.

In a tough statement reflecting the surprise and alarm felt in Washington and Tokyo at China's perceived sudden escalation of the dispute, Chuck Hagel, defence secretary, said the US was "deeply concerned" at the development, in which China appears to be trying to control who can enter and leave the area.

The imposition of the zone was a "destabilising attempt to alter the status quo in the region", Hagel said. "This unilateral action increases the risk of misunderstanding and miscalculations ... We are in close consultation with our allies and partners in the region, including Japan. We remain steadfast in our commitments."

Hagel reminded Beijing that the remote Senkaku islands, known as Diaoyu in China, are covered by the 1952 US-Japan security treaty, under which the US is committed to fighting alongside Japan to repel any "common danger".

Washington's swift intervention showed just how easily a little local difficulty in the volatile east Asian region could potentially trigger a superpower clash.

Presumably, next comes shooting.

Florida Teacher Accused of Sex with Minor

(Pensacola, Florida) A 42-year-old teacher formerly with the Escambia County Department of Alternative Education, Shannon Marie Maddox, has been accused of engaging in sex with a 15-year-old boy.

Maddox faces a charge of unlawful sexual activity with a minor.

Maddox admitted to the act Aug. 29 while speaking to Sheriff’s investigators about an unrelated incident. On Sept. 11, the alleged victim also admitted to investigators that he had intercourse with Maddox at her home.

At the time, Maddox was employed at the Drug and Alcohol Adolescent Residential Treatment Center in Pensacola, a program for youth between the ages of 12-17 who are at risk to drug and alcohol abuse.

Maddox was booked into custody at the Escambia County Jail and subsequently released on bond.

Florida Teacher Popped for DUI

(Pasco County, Florida) A 28-year-old teacher at Marlowe Elementary, Kristen Amanda Groc, has been arrested for driving under the influence.

Groc faces one count of driving under the influence and two counts of DUI with property damage. She was collared after she drove into a couple road signs.

A trooper spoke to Groc as she sat in the back of a sheriff’s cruiser. The trooper described Groc as having slurred speech, bloodshot and watery eyes, and smelling of alcohol, an arrest report said.

Groc was made to perform several field sobriety tests and did “poorly” on each exercise, the trooper said. She was also asked to supply a breath sample for a blood-alcohol content reading but refused twice.

Groc was booked into custody at the Land O’ Lakes Jail and released on $1,000 bail.

Louisiana Teacher Accused of Molesting Student

(Lafayette, Louisiana) A 48-year-old teacher formerly at Catholic High School, Paula Latiolais, has been accused of molesting one of her 15-year-old male students 10 years ago.

Phillip LeBourgeois, now 25, said he was a minor attending Catholic High School when he was abused by his former teacher, Paula Latiolais.

“I wanted to come forward and reveal my identity today to let other individuals who have or who are being victimized know that it is OK to come forward and contact authorities,” LeBourgeois said.

Iberia Parish sheriff’s deputies arrested Latiolais, 48, following an investigation into an allegation that she molested one of her 15-year-old students about 10 years ago, Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Capt. Ryan Turner said in a news release. Investigators said the “sexual encounters” continued over a period of years, Turner said.

Latiolais was booked into custody at the Iberia Parish Jail on Friday and subsequently released on $35,000 bail.

Taliban Kidnaps Health Workers

Health Worker Vaccinates Child
(Peshawar, Pakistan)

Militants in northwestern Pakistan have kidnapped 11 teachers involved in a polio vaccination campaign.

Local official Khyali Gul said on November 23 that the teachers were taken from the private Hira Public School in the Bara area of the Khyber tribal agency close to Pakistan's northwestern border with Afghanistan.

He said the gunmen kidnapped the teachers immediately after they had administered polio vaccines.

Reportedly, the Taliban braintrusts believe health workers are spies.

New World Chess Champ

Magnus Carlsen
(Chennai, India)

Indian media Saturday said a new world order had dawned after local favourite Viswanathan Anand was outplayed by Norwegian prodigy Magnus Carlsen in the battle for the world chess title.

Carlsen, the 22-year-old reigning world number one, won three games and forced a seventh draw on Friday to achieve the victory mark of 6.5 points in Anand's home city of Chennai, the capital of southern Tamil Nadu state.

Congratulations to Mr. Carlsen! It's been 38 years since the last Westerner, Bobby Fisher in 1975, held the chess title.

What they signed up for



Commentary

Posted by John J. Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.).

Florida Teacher Pinched for Drug Possession

(Tampa, Florida) A 47-year-old teacher at Seffner Elementary School, Tracy Domante, has been arrested for possessing drugs and child neglect.

Tampa Police conducted a search warrant at Domante's home located off Barcelona Street and found a large amount of drugs including marijuana.

Domante faces numerous drug possession charges as well as intent to sell and child neglect.

Domante was booked and released on $11,000 bond.

Thanksgiving and Hanukkah Coincidentally

Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights and Feast of Dedication, starts on Thanksgiving this year.

Hanukkah always falls on the same date on the Hebrew Calendar – it’s the 25th day of the month of Kislev. But, because the Jewish calendar is both solar and lunar (whereas our standard calendar is just solar), the dates on both calendars don’t correspond directly. So, the Jewish holidays move around a bit on the secular calendar.

Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Hanukkah.

Posted by Note Taker

APPLY HERE FOR OBAMACARE IF YOU CAN

Site here.  Click "Apply".

p.s. Let me know if you make it.

Posted by John J. Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.).

Arkansas Woman Fails to Register as Sex Offender

(Sebastian County, Arkansas) A 43-year-old Fort Smith woman, Angela Driggers, has been arrested for failing to register as a sex offender.

Driggers moved to a new residence and failed to notify authorities, contrary to her sentencing requirements.

Driggers was convicted of sexual assault fourth degree out of Van Buren in 2002. Driggers was assessed as Level III offender. Level III is defined as a high probability to re-offend.

Driggers has had three arrests since 2005 for failing to comply with her sentencing requirements.

Driggers was booked into custody with bond set at $20,000.

New Japanese Island

(Tokyo, Japan)

A volcanic eruption has created a new island in the sea about 620 miles south of Tokyo.

The new islet, which is about 200 metres (660 feet) in diameter, has risen just off the coast of Nishinoshima, a small, uninhabited island in the Ogasawara chain, which is also known as the Bonin Islands, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

The estimated 30 islands in the chain running 620 miles (1,000km) south of Tokyo, lie on the seismically active Pacific Plate known as the "Ring of Fire".

The coastguard issued advice on Wednesday warning of heavy black smoke from the eruption. Television footage on Thursday showed heavy smoke, ash and rocks exploding from the crater, as steam billowed into the sky.

A volcanologist with the coastguard, Hiroshi Ito, told the FNN news network that it was possible the new island might be eroded away: "But it also could remain permanently."

Heh.

Chinese Counterfeit Inspection Marks

(Anchorage, Alaska)

Anchorage customs officers have seized a shipment of holiday lights from China that carried a fake safety inspection mark, meaning they could have been dangerous to American consumers.

Officers inspected the shipment of boxes, each about the size of an egg carton, at Anchorage's FedEx sorting facility Nov. 12, customs officials said.

The "UL" stamps on 1,900 boxes that indicated the lights were certified by the Underwriters Laboratory turned out to be counterfeit, said Jeff Lisius, assistant area port director in Alaska for U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Counterfeit products from China? I'm shocked!

The Myth Of JFK

Derek Hunter

The life of JFK is, perhaps, the most documented life ever lived. People alive in his time, whether they voted for him or not, or even whether they were old enough to vote for him or not, have a romanticized vision of him and his life that simply doesn’t comport with the reality of objective observation and knowledge gained over time.

Not everyone, certainly, shares this view, but it cuts a wide swath through all demographics and has the stamina of 50 years behind it.

This is where you lose me.

President Kennedy remains popular with journalists and historians, but was not a popular president with the American people at the time. His re-election in 1964 was not certain. It was, in fact, a long shot at the time of his murder.

His presidency was, for the most part, a non-event. The Bay of Pigs was a fiasco, the Cuban Missile Crisis brought us to the brink of nuclear war, cost us missiles in Turkey and doomed Cuba to the underside of the Fidel Castro’s boot to this day.

On civil rights, something for which President Kennedy receives much credit and praise, he did little more than pay lip service to the concept. My friend and a host of the C4 Show on WBAL right before my show, Clarence Mitchell IV, whose grandfather was Clarence Mitchell Jr., the chief lobbyist for the NAACP during the Kennedy years, tells me, “My grandfather always said President Kennedy, at the insistence of his brother Bobby, was not a champion of civil rights, that he was actually an obstacle. He kept things slow because he wanted the support of southern Democrats. It wasn’t about right and wrong with them, it was about what would get them the most votes.”

President Kennedy is given credit for the Civil Rights Act of 1964, but he had little to do with it aside from having spoken on the subject a few times. In fact, C4 tells me that in August of 1963 there was a “big meeting” of civil rights leaders at the White House with the Kennedy brothers because there was talk that they might not endorse JFK’s reelection. They were promised what politicians always promise voting blocs they’re stringing along – action after the election. Tragedy intervened, so we’ll never know what he might have done, but we do know what he did do and that wasn’t much at all.

In fact, it seems nearly every positive development of that era is somehow credited to JFK – even those he had little to nothing to do with. It’s just been credited to him, or imposed on him, as part of the myth-making surrounding “Camelot.”

President Kennedy was a great orator and a master at public relations. He also had a press corps that adored him, thus insulating him from reality in the annals of history. (Sounds vaguely familiar, doesn’t it?)

The “Camelot” legend was myth, constructed to obscure the reality of a despicable man elected through fraud and an unholy alliance with the mafia in Chicago. The real John F. Kennedy was a womanizing misogynist, a spoiled brat who ran for the U.S. Senate for lack of anything else to do and to feed his controlling father’s ego. Just eight years and very few accomplishments later, he sought the presidency for much the same reason.

He was a reckless man, sleeping with interns, girlfriends of mafia bosses, Russian spies and seemingly anyone else willing. He took his job seriously enough, but in perhaps the most blatant act of corruption since Teapot Dome, appointed his own brother Attorney General of the United States. Kennedys are loyal to Kennedys first; there is no second. The idea that Robert Kennedy could be trusted to, if called for, investigate possible corrupt actions of President Kennedy is laughable.

After his tragic assassination, the Kennedy myth-making started and hasn’t stopped. It started with the coaching of 3-year-old John F. Kennedy Jr. to salute his father’s coffin for the cameras as the procession passed, and it continues to this day. Even his gravesite is a testament to that myth.

President Kennedy is buried at Arlington National Cemetery, and rightfully so. He did serve our country with honor in World War II. But real estate at Arlington is at a premium, with our heroes buried in close proximity to each other to accommodate all who deserve it. Yet the JFK gravesite sits alone in a large otherwise-vacant plot. I don’t begrudge him the eternal flame – though that seems a bit much. But his wife is buried next to him in spite of remarrying, and his brother, Robert, is buried in the special "Kennedy only section" of the cemetery too.

This “devout Catholic” family exemplifies hypocrisy on every level – from their bootlegging beginnings to their philandering lifestyle, there is very little about their legend that stands up to even the most cursory of scrutiny. Despite this fact, hours of television time, gallons of ink and gigabytes of web-space will be dedicated to how extraordinary JFK was, how they all were.

It’s simply not true.

There’s something to be said for being an inspiration, and JFK was – though far more after his death than when he was alive. But there’s more to be said in favor of reality.

It’s conventional wisdom to say the nation lost its innocence 50 years ago at the hands of a left-wing assassin in Dallas, and in some ways that’s true. But given the continuing naïveté surrounding the presidency of John F. Kennedy and the entire Kennedy clan, it’s clear there’s still a lot of innocence, willful as it may be, around today.

SOURCE

Posted by John J. Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.).

Psychologist Accused of Sex with Patient

(Longview, Washington)

Longview psychologist Karen Ann Pauly has surrendered her license after state health officials accused her of having a sex with a patient, who allegedly gave Pauly $15,000, access to his debit card and prepaid cell phones so they could communicate without his wife knowing about the relationship, the state Department of Health reported Thursday.

According to the allegations, Pauly also supplied the patient with alcohol even though she knew it was not in his best interest, the state alleges.

Pauly surrendered her license rather than contest the state’s allegations, department spokeswoman Sharon Moysiuk said. Pauly, 49, had been licensed to practice psychology in Washington for 10 years, according to state records.

Reportedly, Pauly is now going to pursue a career in the health and fitness field.

McDonald's Delivers

(Osnabrück, Germany)

The prayers of the hungover have finally come true - at least for the happy heavy drinkers of the west German city of Osnabrück, where one McDonald’s restaurant has road-tested the country's first McDonald's delivery service.

There is no charge for the delivery service, called McHome.

Iowa Woman Accused of 2-Boy Nasty

(Waterloo, Iowa) A 37-year-old local woman, Tonda Rane Hansen, has been accused of engaging in sex with two 14-year-old boys.

Hansen was arrested to face counts of enticing a minor and third-degree sexual abuse.

Parents of one of the 14-year-old boys first became suspicious in September when seeing sexual messages between him and Hansen on the boy’s iPad.

Investigators determined she met the teen near his home in August and drove him to a location for sex.

During the investigation, officers found similar allegations involving a second 14 year old.

Hansen was booked and subsequently released from the Black Hawk County Jail.

Mississippi Mom Accused of Child Abuse

(Pascagoula, Mississippi) A 23-year-old local mom, Erica Folmer, has been accused of physically assaulting her three-month-old daughter, resulting in critical injuries.

Folmer faces a charge of aggravated child abuse.

Pascagoula police launched an investigation Saturday after receiving a report from Singing River Hospital's emergency room about an infant brought to them for treatment who had suffered injuries consistent with physical abuse. The infant's grandmother had apparently brought the child to the hospital for treatment, Pascagoula police Sgt. Calvin Hutchins said.

Police later determined the infant's mother, Erica Folmer, 23, of Pascagoula, was responsible for the injuries. She did not go to the hospital with the infant. Police went to Folmer's home and found her sitting in a car outside of her Pascagoula apartment complex. She was taken into custody without incident, Hutchins said.

Folmer was booked into custody with bond set at $1 million.

Georgia Teacher Guilty in Test-Cheating Scandal

(Atlanta, Georgia)

A former elementary school teacher on Wednesday became the first defendant in the Atlanta Public Schools test-cheating scandal to plead guilty.

Lisa Terry entered her plea before Fulton County Superior Court Judge Jerry Baxter, who sentenced her to 12 months on probation. Terry pleaded guilty to obstruction, a misdemeanor.

In exchange, prosecutors dismissed racketeering and theft by taking charges against her.

In a letter, 47-year-old Lisa Terry expressed sincere apologies for her actions, saying she succumbed to the constant pressure from school administrators to cheat.

DC Walmart More Selective than Harvard

The District of Columbia's first Walmart store has received over 23,000 job applications for only 600 jobs, Business Insider reported on Tuesday. That means that one out of every 38 applicants will be offered a position with the store, or about 2.6 percent. Harvard University, one of the most selective colleges in the United States, has an acceptance rate of 6.1 percent.

DC's first Walmart almost didn't happen. The D.C. Council had proposed a "living wage" bill that would require a minimum wage of $12.50 per hour for all "large" retailers with annual corporate sales that exceed $1 billion. This would have effectively shut out Walmart from the city. The bill was vetoed by D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray and minimum wage in the city remains at $8.50.

While Walmart is maligned by critics, many fail to realize that for many associates, Walmart is the only place they would be able to actually be employed. Having a job—any job—is better than having no job, which 23,000 DC residents were quick to realize. While your average D.C. Council member may sneer at the thought of working at a Walmart, it may in fact be the best option for someone with a very limited skill set. The vast majority of Walmart associates aren't exactly turning down jobs left and right to work at Walmart.

While it's a sad reminder of how disastrous employment statistics are today to see over 23,000 people apply for 600 jobs, it's fortunate overall that these jobs were even able to come to DC in the first place.

SOURCE

Posted by John J. Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.).

Dubai Frame

Dubai Frame
(Dubai, UAE)

The Dubai Municipality announced on Wednesday that it will start construction-work on the iconic Dubai Frame project adjacent to the Stargate theme park in Zabeel Park next month. The Director-General of the Dubai Municipality, Hussain Nasser Lootah, said: “We have opened tenders and will be giving the assignment to the apt contractor according to our plan.”

The implementation of the Dh120 million project, a window-shaped structure that will give panoramic views of old and new Dubai from a 150 feet-high glass bridge, was ordered in July 2012 with a plan to complete it by this year end.

The latest completion date is the end of 2014.

Florida Jury Recommends Death for Dontae Morris

(Tampa, Florida)

It took jurors less than an hour Tuesday to unanimously recommend that three-time convicted murderer Dontae Morris be executed for killing Tampa police officers Jeffrey Kocab and David Curtis.

"The fact that they came back 12-0 speaks volumes about the viciousness of Dontae Morris' crimes," said Tampa Police Chief Jane Castor after the verdict was announced. "He didn't just kill two police officers. He killed others in the community. If there is an instance where the death penalty is applicable, then this is it. The jury said that loud and clear."

Morris, who also was convicted in March of killing another man, Rodney Jones, faces two more trials on charges he murdered Derek Anderson and Harold Wright.

Circuit Judge William Fuente will determine the final judgment. A hearing is scheduled for January 10.

Nebraska Teen Bank Robber

(Omaha, Nebraska) A 19-year-old local female, Kimberly Babbitt, has been found guilty of bank robbery.

In accordance with a plea agreement, Babbitt pleaded no contest to robbery.

Dodge County Attorney Oliver Glass told the court that on Sept. 28 Babbitt entered Fremont National Bank at 801 E. 23rd St., pushed her way to the front of a line of customers and handed the bank teller a note demanding money.

Glass said the teller told police Babbitt said “no tricks” and shushed the teller. Once the teller turned her money over to Babbitt, Babbitt repeated the act with a second teller.

Babbitt left the bank with about $2,000 in cash.

The FBI assisted Fremont Police in identifying and locating Babbitt.

Babbitt was booked into custody with bond set at $500,000. Sentencing is scheduled for January 13, 2014.

Obamacare "Success Story" is Actually Unable to Afford Insurance

On October 21st, President Obama spoke about Jessica Sanford, a woman in Washington state who had previously been unable to buy insurance and was able to buy an affordable, decent plan using Washington's health insurance exchange (Washington Healthplanfinder).

Except she wasn't.

Shortly after being told she was eligible for a subsidy to purchase a "gold" plan for $198 a month, she was informed that there was an error on the website in calculating her tax credit amount, and that her plan actually cost $280 a month. That was also a mistake—it turns out Sanford, who is self-employed single mother, was not actually eligible for any subsidy and has to pay the full cost of the plan. Sanford, who makes around $50,000 a year, is unable to afford the plan and will instead pay the $95 penalty.

Sanford's son has attention deficit disorder and has medications that cost $250 per month, and Sanford has been uninsured for the past 15 years. While she had thought that the Affordable Care Act was going to help her and her son, it in fact made their situation worse.

I feel for this woman. She was lied to by multiple parties, and simply wanted to get insurance for herself and her son. It is not her fault that she was deceived, and now she's being fined for being unable to afford something. This is absolutely ridiculous and a total embarrassment for the Obama administration.

 SOURCE

Posted by John J. Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.).

Oklahoma Woman Arrested for Drugs

(Elgin, Oklahoma) Local police responded to a domestic dispute call and arrested Brenda Chockpoyah for drug possession.

Chockpoyah faces counts of possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia and child endangerment.

When deputies arrived, they found two women arguing, both claiming the other had been "smoking dope." It didn't take long for deputies to find evidence of illegal drug use.

After a short walk through, deputies were able to spot drug paraphernalia inside the home. Even worse, three young children were there. Deputies say both women then consented to further search of the home, leading to one of their arrests.

Deputies arrested Brenda Chockpoyah after a drug dog alerted deputies to drugs inside her garage and a purse inside her bedroom.

Chockpoyah was booked into custody with bond set at $5,000.

Alcoholic Street Cleaners

(Amsterdam, The Netherlands)

At nine o'clock in the morning in a garden shed behind a house in Amsterdam, a handful of alcoholics are getting ready to clean the surrounding streets, beer and cigarette in hand.

For a day's work, the men receive 10 euros (around $13), a half-packet of rolling tobacco and, most importantly, five cans of beer: two to start the day, two at lunch and one for after work.

"This group of chronic alcoholics was causing a nuisance in Amsterdam's Oosterpark: fights, noise, disagreeable comments to women," said Gerrie Holterman, who heads the Rainbow Foundation project, financed by the Dutch state and donations.

"The aim is to keep them occupied, to get them doing something so they no longer cause trouble at the park," she told AFP.

Apparently the scheme works.

JFK Assassination Record Release

More.

Oklahoma Teacher Booked for DUI

(Broken Arrow, Oklahoma) A 41-year-old second-grade teacher at Cooper Elementary School, Kathy L. Boen, has been accused of driving drunk with a young, unrestrained child in the back seat.

Boen faces counts of DUI, felony child endangerment and not using child restraints.

Broken Arrow Police received a tip from a driver who saw Boen driving erratically and followed her red Ford Thunderbird, according to an arrest report. Boen was reportedly driving into oncoming traffic and off the edge of the road.

A BAPD officer pulled the 41-year-old woman over in the 2200 block of West Quantico after seeing her make a U-turn in front of traffic.

"I also observed a small female child, unrestrained in the rear seat of the vehicle and obviously well under the age requirement of child safety restraints to be used," Officer R. Baird said in his report.

Boen had difficulty finding her driver's license, smelled strongly of alcohol and "could not finish a simple sentence," Baird said.

Boen was booked into custody at the Broken Arrow City Jail where she registered 0.30 on the breathalyzer.

Education Secretary Disses "White Suburban Moms"

Education Secretary Arne Duncan
(Washington, D.C.)

Education Secretary Arne Duncan has ignited a storm of protest by noting opposition from "white suburban moms" to one of his prized educational initiatives.

In a meeting with state education chiefs Friday, Duncan said some opposition to the Common Core State Standards -- a controversial effort to standardize education -- has come from parents displeased that test results have exposed local weaknesses.

Duncan said he found it "fascinating" that opponents include "white suburban moms who -- all of a sudden -- (discovered that) their child isn't as bright as they thought they were, and their school isn't quite as good as they thought they were."

Duncan apologzied (sic) Monday afternoon for the remark.

Typically, experienced politicians are careful and measured in their public remarks, however, words from the values and biases vault can slip out.

Presumably, Secretary Duncan believes, in his soul, that "white suburban moms" are idiots.

The genetics of politics

People on both the Left and the Right are usually quite firm in their view that their political choices are reasonable and the product of thought.  But what if they are not?  It would tend to explain the vast gulf in views betweeen the Left and the Right in America today.  And I have for some years been pointing out the various studies that have found that there is a substantial element of genetic inheritance behind our political preferences.  We are to a degree born to be Leftists or Rightists.

This sits comfortably with just about no-one so it behooves us to check and recheck the research concerned.  That has recently been done, looking at many of the bodies of data that enable us to research the matter.  The result is a remarkable degree of agreement that genetics IS a major factor influencing our political opinions.  The abstract of the paper concerned is given below.

The paper also tried to identify specific genes behind the effect but was unsuccessful.  Investigations of that sort are still at an early stage.  The paper also did not try to ascertain if there were any personality variables that mediated the genetic connection.  My deduction is that the correlation indicates that Leftists are just born miserable.  All the research certainly shows that conservatives are happier.

The paper below was concerened with detailed political questions  such as abortion, gay marriage etc.  It did not deal with actual vote at election time.  Is Democrat or Republican loyalty inherited too?  We do have some data on that from elsewhere which points to a somewhat qualified conclusion.  Hatemi et al (2007) found that vote was substantially inherited but only because many of the things influencing vote were inherited -- church attendance, specific attitudes etc.  Vote does not have its own set of genes behind it.

REFERENCE: Hatemi (2007) "The Genetics of Voting: An Australian Twin Study" Behav. Genet., 37:435–448

Genetic Influences on Political Ideologies: Genome - Wide Findings on Three Populations, and a Mega - Twin Analysis of 19 Measures of Political Ideologies from Five Western Democracies

Forthcoming in Behavior Genetics – Lindon Eaves Festschrift

By Peter K. Hatemi et al.

 Abstract:

 Almost forty years ago evidence from large studies of adult twins and their relatives suggested that between 30 - 60% of the variance in Liberal and Conservative attitudes can be explained by genetic influences. However, these findings have not been widely accepted or incorporated into the dominant paradigms that explain the etiology of political ideology. This has been attributed in part to measurement and sample limitations as well the inability to identify specific genetic markers related to political ideology

Here we present results from original analys es of a combined sample of over 12,000 twins pairs, ascertained from nine different studies conducted in five western democracies (Australia, Hungary, Denmark, Sweden, and the U.S.A.), sampled over the course of four decades. We provide definitive evidence that heritability plays a role in the formation of political ideology, regardless of how ideology is measured, the time period or population sampled. The only exception s are questions that explicitly use the phrase “Left - Right”.

We then present results from one of the first genome - wide association studies on political ideology using data from three samples : a 1990 Australian sample involving 6,894 individuals from 3,516 families; a 2008 Australian sample of 1,160 related individua ls from 635 families and a 2010 Swedish sample involving 3,334 individuals from 2,607 families . Several polymorphisms related to olfaction reached genome - wide significance in the 2008 Australian sample, but did not replicate across samples and remained suggestive in the meta - analysis. The combined evidence suggests that political ideology constitutes a fundamental aspect of one’s genetically informed psychological disposition, but as Fisher proposed long ago, genetic influences on complex traits will be composed of thousands of markers of very small effects

SOURCE

Posted by John J. Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.).

Stadium Design Controversy



Proposed Al-Wakrah Stadium
(Qatar)

Before now, the majority of discussions surrounding Qatar's successful bid to host the 2022 World Cup have been surrounding the heat. There's even been talk of switching the summer tournament to winter months.

However, now that a virtual rendering of the first new purpose-built stadium has been released, the debate is not about whether the fully air conditioned pitch will solve the heat problem.

Rather a number of commentators and tweeters have pointed to the fact that the proposed Al-Wakrah stadium looks very much like a vagina.

Yes, the conservative country has designed what many believe appears to be a giant ode to women's private parts.

Reportedly, the design of the stadium is intended to emulate the sails on a dhow, a fishing and pearl-diving boat.

Greenpeace Activists Jailed in Russia - Update

(Moscow, Russia)

A Russian court ruled Monday to grant bail to three people out of the Greenpeace group that was detained in September for mounting a protest against oil drilling in the Arctic Sea.

A judge at Kalininsky District Court in St. Petersburg set the bail for freelance photographer Denis Sinyakov, who was on an assignment to cover the Greenpeace protest in the Arctic, and Yekaterina Zaspa, who was ship doctor for the environmental organization’s Arctic Sunrise icebreaker, at 2 million rubles ($61,500) per person. Activist Andrei Allakhverdov was also granted bail, Greenpeace tweeted late Monday.

So three from the Arctic 30 will be released when the court receives the bail amount.

* * * * *
Greenpeace Activists Jailed in Russia
[Previous 11/6/13 post]
(Moscow, Russia)

Greenpeace activists took to the Moscow River in a motorboat on Wednesday in support of the Arctic Sunrise's multinational crew, whose detention in Russia was discussed on the same day at a maritime tribunal in Germany.

The activists sailed past the Kremlin holding yellow flags which read, "Free the Arctic 30," referring to the 30 crew members who are being held in Murmansk after being charged with hooliganism for staging a protest at the Russian-owned Prirazlomnaya oil platform in September.

"We ask all of those who care to join the movement in defense of the detainees, and together with us demand their quick release," Greenpeace said Wednesday in a statement.

The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, based in the German city of Hamburg, on Wednesday considered the Netherland's request for the crew of the Arctic Sunrise, which sails under the Dutch flag, to be released. The Dutch Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans said that he expects a ruling to be delivered on Nov. 21, Interfax reported.

In cases of national sovereignty, Russia reportedly doesn't recognize the 1982 U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea.

When the translator has more sense than the politicians

A United Nations interpreter translating the proceedings of the General Assembly on Thursday was caught – not realizing her microphone was still piping her voice into the chamber – expressing her dismay that the world body is so focused on condemning Israel while ignoring every other country in the world.

Following votes at the General Assembly’s Fourth Committee which includes all 193 UN member states, nine resolutions were adopted condemning Israel. Not one resolution was adopted targeting any other country, not even Syria where more than 100,000 have been killed in just two-and-a-half years.

The unnamed interpreter, unaware she was still being heard both by delegates and online via a live webcast, said, “I mean, I think when you have five statements, not five, like a total of ten resolutions on Israel and Palestine, there’s gotta be something, c’est un peu trop, non? [It’s a bit much, no?] I mean I know… There’s other really bad sh** happening, but no one says anything, about the other stuff.”

After the translator spoke, the delegate chairing the meeting could be seen trying to suppress his laughter. This as other delegates laughed audibly after hearing the interpreter’s candid opinion about their work, including her use of an expletive.

Once she realized what was happening, the translator said, “apologies” after which the Secretary of the meeting commented, “I understand there was a problem with interpretation?”  The translator could then be heard saying “The interpreter apologizes.”

UN Watch, a non-governmental organization which monitors events at the United Nations, first caught the gaffe and posted a recording of it on YouTube.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday played the clip of the interpreter’s candid assessment at the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem. Should her job be threatened, Netanyahu said she would have a place to work in Israel, Ynet reported.

“I would like to tell this translator that she has a job waiting for her in the State of Israel. There are moments that tear the hypocrisy off the unending attacks against us and this brave translator did so,” he said according to a translation of the text posted by the Prime Minister’s Office website.

SOURCE

Posted by John J. Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.).

Messaging Next Door to the Ex-Wife



(Bloomfield Hills, Michigan)

Nothing quite communicates the wrath of a scorned lover like the middle finger. But in Bloomfield Hills, this middle finger is loud and proud - in the form of a near 12-foot high statue one man erected next door to his ex-wife.

Alan Markovitz recently moved into the home where the statue was erected, which happens to be next to the home where his ex-wife now lives with her new lover, whom she reportedly had an affair with while being married to Markovitz.

Heh.

Ohio Prostitution Bust

(Boardman Township, Ohio) A 45-year-old Cleveland woman, Lori Clancey, has been arrested in a prostitution sting.

Clancey faces a charge of soliciting.

Working undercover, an officer called a number he found in an online ad, and set up a meeting with Clancey at a Market Street motel.

Police monitored the encounter using a transmitter and audio and video recorder.

According to the report, when an offer was made to exchange sex for money, other officers moved in and arrested Clancey.

Clancey was booked into custody at the Mahoning County Jail.

Florida Psychic Accused of Grand Theft, Didn't See It Coming

(Boca Raton, Florida) A 25-year-old local woman, Stephanie Thompson, who claims to have psychic powers, has been arrested for grand theft and organized fraud.

The alleged victim, according to police, was told by Thompson that she had a curse on her and it could be removed by giving her $2,000.

Thompson, according investigators, then told the woman she would have to have more money to remove a curse on it.

The alleged victim said she was told she would get the money back once Thompson meditated over it and 'it was clear.'

Investigators say that the client was told not to say anything to anyone and that she should withdraw money in small amounts so she would not raise suspicion.

According to a probable cause affidavit, Thompson told the women that she could get the same cancer that her mother had if she did not hand over the money.

Police say that over a series of weeks Thompson took a total of $109,000 from the alleged victim.

Thompson was booked into custody at the Palm Beach County Jail.

Who needs a degree? You never meet a poor plumber

Comment from Britain

I got some stick on Twitter the other day when I said I couldn’t see the point of a degree in media studies.

Obviously, if you’re spending three years of your life examining the history of British soaps or highs and lows of radio comedy, it might come as a shock to be told that knowing all about Tony Hancock or the birth of breakfast telly doesn’t guarantee you a job.

The truth is, Labour’s big push to attract more youngsters than ever to sign up for a university education has resulted in too many worthless degree courses, dreamt up by academic establishments anxious to fill their coffers.

Since the recession, some have been cancelled, but it’s about time education experts spoke out about the current system which sees young men and women saddled with thousands of pounds’ worth of debt and no guarantee of a job that matches their aspirations or their area of study.

The sooner technical colleges take students from 14 and offer practical courses in areas where we are desperate for home-grown expertise, such as plumbing, building construction, electrical engineering and all aspects of the hospitality industry from catering to front of house staff, the better.

Far from thinking these are second-division jobs, these are the careers of the future. Show me a poor plumber — there certainly aren’t any in Central London.

Now, the heads of private and independent schools — the places where pupils would be channelled towards the best universities — are saying that employment, rather than further education, can be better for pupils.

The head of the Girls’ School Association is giving a speech this week claiming that there will be a shift ‘away from university as an automatic first choice’.

Hilary French thinks pupils should be looking at employer training and apprenticeships, instead of running up £27,000 worth of debt.

The Chairman of the Independent Schools Council, Barnaby Lenon, agrees — he says that of the 200,000 undergraduates studying communications, marketing, art and design and business, many would be more employable if they had opted for work-based training schemes.

At the moment, the Government has increased funding for apprenticeships, but there are still far too few — 75 per cent of the 520,000 places starting this year went to people aged 25 or older. There were only 61,000 new apprenticeships for young people, compared to 570,000 in Germany.

Education charity The Sutton Trust says we need to invest in 300,000 new apprenticeships for young people every single year.

We must prioritise investing in the young by giving employers who offer training tax breaks instead of handing out benefits when they can’t get a job because they are unqualified or have useless degrees.

Time to give honours to plumbers and builders — maybe that would reverse the snobbery about the value of a degree.

SOURCE

Posted by John J. Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.).

India Buys Aircraft Carrier

Aircraft Carrier Admiral Gorshkov
Report:

India has heightened its rivalry with China by taking possession of its third aircraft carrier, a refurbished Soviet-era vessel.

The £1.4bn ($2.3bn) aircraft carrier, handed over on Saturday at a north Russian shipyard, will help India to counterbalance the expansion of the Chinese navy.

The 45,000-tonne ship, built in the final years of the Soviet Union and named the Admiral Gorshkov, will be escorted by warships to India on a two-month voyage from Russia's northern coast. It has been renamed INS Vikramaditya.

A recent upgrade means the carrier, originally designed to carry Yak-38 vertical take-off aircraft, has been re-equipped to carry Mig-29K fighter jets. It can carry up to 30 aircraft and will have a crew of around 2,000.[…]

The INS Vikramaditya was commissioned into the Indian navy at the Sevmash shipyard in Severodvinsk, on the White Sea, in a ceremony attended by the Russian deputy prime minister, Dmitry Rogozin, and Indian defence minister, AK Antony.

Previous reporting indicates that China is becoming more belligerent and threatening neighbors in the South China Sea so expanded military precautions/preparations by India are not surprising.

Tennessee Ex-Cheerleader Gets No Jail for Fondling Boy, 12 - Update

(Murfreesboro, Tennessee) Former NFL cheerleader Elizabeth Leigh Garner pleaded no contest last month to sexual battery and solicitation of a minor for child rape.

As a result, Garner was sentenced to 18 months probation for following a 12-year-old boy into a bathroom, fondling his penis and offering him oral sex.

Garner was also directed to stay away from her victim along with his family and to submit to drug testing.

* * * * *
Tennessee Ex-Cheerleader Accused of Fondling Boy, 12
[Previous 3/30/13 post]



Elizabeth Leigh Garner
(Murfreesboro, Tennessee) Former NFL cheerleader for the Tennessee Titans, Elizabeth Leigh Garner, 42, has been accused of sexually assaulting a 12-year-old boy.

Garner has been indicted on charges of sexual battery and solicitation of a minor. She was booked and released on $30,000.

Murfreesboro police said while visiting a friend’s home she followed a 12-year-old boy into the bathroom, fondled him, and then tried to seduce him.

The police report stated that Garner told sex crimes detectives, “that she was drunk that evening and that she got the boy confused with a man that was also at the residence.”

Apparently Garner was really sloshed if she mistook a 12-year-old boy for a grown man.

Texas Teacher Pleads Guilty to Injury to Child - Updated

(McLennan County, Texas)

Former Hallsburg teacher Patricia Rush, previously charged with having an improper sexual relationship with a student, pleaded guilty Friday to an injury to a child charge.

The plea bargain with the attorney general’s office will not require Rush to register as a sex offender and calls for her to receive deferred probation for eight years. If Rush, 40, successfully completes deferred probation, she will not have a conviction on her record.

Rush pleaded guilty to recklessly causing non-specified “mental injury” to the boy.

In exchange for her guilty plea, the attorney general’s office will dismiss eight counts remaining against Rush.

Sentencing by 19th State District Judge Ralph Strother is scheduled for January 13, 2014.

* * * * *
Texas Teacher Indicted on Multiple Sex Charges - Updated
[Previous 2/23/11 post]
(McLennan County, Texas) Former Hallsburg ISD teacher Patricia Rush, 38, has been indicted by a McLennan County grand jury on multiple counts of aggravated sexual assault, improper relationship between educator and student/sexual contact, indecency with a child, improper relationship between educator and student/deviate sexual intercourse.

Rush was arrested in November 2007 on a warrant charging improper relationship between educator and student, which is a second-degree felony, but she was never indicted and in December 2009, the charges against her were dropped.

The case, however, remained opened and prosecutors said then that charges could be refiled.

And that is what has now happened.

* * * * *
Texas Teacher Accused of Being Improper with Boy
[Previous 11/3/07 post bumped]
(McLennan County, Texas) A 34-year-old former teacher for the Hallsburg Independent School District, Patricia Rush, was arrested this week for allegedly having an improper relationship with a 13-year-old boy.

Rush has been charged with felony 2nd-degree improper relationship between an educator and student.

The affidavit released Friday says authorities started an investigation after a woman, who was not named, contacted the Sheriff's Office and told an investigator that her son had been spending a lot of time with Rush and said she was concerned that the boy and Rush were "having a sexual relationship."

Investigators interviewed Rush, who told them she "loves him in her heart," the affidavit said.

She said "she has had fantasies about having sex with the victim," and said she had held hands with and had hugged the student, the affidavit says.

Abel Reyna, Rush's attorney, countered by stating that the charges resulted from an allegation and that "she loved the then-13-year-old boy as a friend, not in any romantic sense."

Until this year, Rush was on the faculty in Hallsburg as a certified elementary school and physical education teacher. Hallsburg is a small community outside Waco.

Rush was booked and released on $20,000 bond.