Teacher Lisa Glide Gets No Jail in Sex Case - Updated

(New Brunswick, New Jersey) Earlier today, former high school drama teacher Lisa Glide was sentenced to probation for engaging in sex with a male student.

Prosecutors had requested a jail term of up to 364 days for 35-year-old Lisa Glide of Howell. But at Monday's sentencing hearing Superior Court Judge Frederick DeVesa said jail time would not serve any useful purpose.

DeVesa noted testimony that Glide was suffering from cancer and depression when the affair with the 17-year-old Old Bridge High School student took place.

I tend to disagree with Judge DeVesa. Jail time serves the purposes of emphasizing the seriousness of the crime, acting as a deterrent to other potential offenders, and dissuading excitable critics from saying the judge is a complete wussy on crime.

In addition to five years of probation, Glide is barred from teaching in New Jersey.

* * * * *
Teacher Lisa Glide Guilty in Sex Case - Updated
[Previous 6/2/09 post]
(Middlesex County, New Jersey) Old Bridge High School drama teacher Lisa Glide pleaded guilty before Judge Frederick DeVesa in Superior Court, New Brunswick, earlier today to an endangerment charge stemming from engaging in sex with a 17-year-old male student.

In court, Glide admitted that she had sexual intercourse twice with the boy between Feb. and May 31, 2008 off school premises.

Christie Bevacqua, assistant Middlesex County prosecutor, said the victim wanted to be spared having to testify in court.

"He was fine with this plea agreement,'' she said.

Glide will be ordered to surrender her teaching certificate and she potentially faces 364 days in jail.

Sentencing has been scheduled for August 10. Glide is currently free on $100,000 bail.

* * * * *
NJ Teacher Arrested for Sex with Male Student
[Previous 12/4/08 post]
(Middlesex County, New Jersey) A 35-year-old drama teacher at Old Bridge High School, Lisa Glide, was arrested yesterday for allegedly engaging in sex with a 17-year-old male student.

According to Middlesex County Prosecutor Bruce Kaplan, Glide faces charges of sexual assault and child endangerment.

The prosecutor's office began an investigation into Glide on Nov. 25 after receiving information about the sexual relationship, Kaplan said. Investigators determined Glide began having a sex with the 17-year-old boy in February, when he was still a student at the school, Kaplan said.

Glide was booked into custody at the Middlesex County Adult Correction Center.

Muslims Eating Mermaids

A truth seeker ponders the acceptability of Muslims consuming mermaids.

Unfortunately, Islamic scholars largely disagree about the consumption of mermaids. Some believe that mermaids are in the same category as dogs and pigs and therefore it's forbidden to eat them. Others believe that it's halaal to eat mermaids provided that they are properly butchered.

Availability is seasonal. Consult your waiter.

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Green Power vs. Endangered Species Act

It's schadenfreude for me when leftists tangle with leftists. In this case, it's the utopian animal-lovers mixing it up with the alternative-energy idealists.

Green power, green jobs, renewable energy collide with the Endangered Species Act in a proposed wind farm in Southwest Washington. The project calling for between 48-60 megawatts of power is proposed for 3,359 acres of Washington Department of Natural Resources land northwest of Naselle, Washington. The site, named Radar Ridge, would help utilities in Pacific, Grays Harbor, Clallam and Mason counties meet the requirements of Initiative 397. I-397 mandates that a designated portion of a utility’s power comes from renewable energy sources.

Enter the Marbled Murrelet. The proposed wind farm is in the path Murrelets could use between its feeding grounds in the ocean and nesting areas inland. The Marbled Murrelet has been listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act since 1992.

It's worth noting that the wind farm vs. birds scenario is not new. It's been played out numerous times in various locations. Typically, the resolution is for the electric company not to operate the wind farm during bird migrations. It allows for a population of the birds to be protected but, unfortunately, the electric company has to accept the loss of generating capacity during that period.

In any event, since the political left (read: Democrats) largely consists of a diverse collection of special interest groups who have personal definitions of utopia, in-house conflicts will likely continue. Frankly, I'm looking forward to the day the legalize-marijuana crowd is engaged by anti-smoking activists.

"Wicked Thoughts" has moved house

From the Wicked Thoughts mirror site:

OK. I have had enough of Google/blogspot. They have had my blogspot blog blocked for a week now and still have not told me why. So I am transferring operations to Wordpress. Whether they will be any better remains to be seen of course but this is the new site: Wicked Thoughts. Be sure to keep a bookmark to this mirror site, however, in case Wordpress go strange on me too.

One annoyance is that all my archives (past posts) are blocked at the moment too. I have therefore posted the July archive on this site. See below. All of my posts for this month are up on the new site so go there now and have a look.

The postings for July are here. I keep copies of everything I post so I may post archives for previous months in due course too.

Posted by John Ray.

Aussie Town Bans Bottled Water

(Bundanoon, Australia) Residents voted Saturday night to become the first location in the world to ban bottled water.

The ban became a popular measure after it was announced that a beverage company, Norlex Holdings, planned on sucking water from an aquifer beneath Bundanoon and transporting it 120 miles to Sydney for bottling.

“Norlex wanted to truck millions of litres of water out of the bore here, stick it in bottles and bring it back to sell to us,” said [local business-owner] Mr Kingston. “It became a big issue in this town.”

Understandably, environmental activists are giddy.

Become Popular, Buy Twitter Followers

Yes, you can purchase followers for your Twitter page from a site called uSocial.net. News to me.

Furthermore, in a press release I received in email, it's contended that 25,000 Twitter followers were purchased for Michael Jackson.

“I can't admit that we dealt with Michael Jackson directly, though we were in touch with someone in his family recently who tasked us with conducting a Twitter campaign on an account relating to him.” Said uSocial.net CEO Leon Hill. “It was exciting to say the very least to conduct work with such a big name.”

uSocial say that 25,000 followers were bought to be delivered to Jackson’s account and they’re still working on fulfilling the order.

“For obvious reasons we'll be dealing with his family from here on in, though it would have been great to conduct services for Michael Jackson in a different time, under different circumstances.” Said Hill.

The service being delivered to Jackson’s account has caused a lot of controversy over the last few months as many users debate the ethics of being able to purchase followers, though not as much as the company itself has received since its launch.

In December uSocial received a Cease & Desist notice from Digg.com regarding its paid social bookmarking services which the company ignored, and recently they also received threats of legal action from some of Australia’s largest names in radio, Kyle Sandilands and the Austereo network.

Despite all this, it seems the company are still battling on at full steam, with no sign of slowing down or shutting up shop.

Seems like a for-profit community organizing effort, eh?

Drunken Breast-Feeder Rearrested - Updated

(Grand Forks, North Dakota) Stacey Anvarinia left court after her sentencing Friday and was able to get herself arrested again before the day was over.

Grand Forks Police say 26-year-old Stacey Anvarinia was arrested Friday night after someone who lives in her apartment building accused her of slashing the tires of his truck.

At her sentencing earlier in the day, Anvarinia vowed to work hard to get her daughter back. It's not clear how tire-slashing fits into the scheme.

Tip: Kevin Spivey

* * * * *
Woman Sentenced in Drunken Breast-Feeding Case - Updated
[Previous 8/9/09 post bumped]
(Grand Forks, North Dakota) In June, local mother Stacey Anvarinia pleaded guilty to felony child neglect stemming from an incident where she breast fed her six-week-old baby while drunk.

Yesterday, Anvarinia was sentenced by Judge Sonja Clapp.

Clapp sentenced Anvarinia to 18 months in jail but suspended all but six months and said Anvarinia could get credit for chemical dependency treatment. After an evaluation, she is to report to authorities Aug. 31 to determine whether she can serve her sentence at home with electronic monitoring.

Anvarinia apologized for her behavior and admitted that she was wrong. Her sentence will include three years of probation.

* * * * *
Breast-Feeding While Drunk
[Previous 6/25/09 post]
(Grand Forks, North Dakota) A 26-year-old local mother, Stacey Anvarinia, pleaded guilty Tuesday to a felony charge of child neglect stemming from an incident in which she was found breast-feeding her six-week-old baby while extremely drunk.

Police discovered the offense in the early morning of February 13 when responding to an unrelated call.

Anvarinia is scheduled to be sentenced on August 6.

To Protect and Serve

(Niagara Falls, New York) A local BOLO for three youths likely was ineffective in identifying and apprehending those responsible for the theft of two racks of ribs from the patio barbecue of a Ninth Street woman.

Police said that a woman was cooking on the patio of her home between 12:30 and 1 p. m. and left momentarily -- enough time for three teens to make off with the ribs, valued at $10.

It's not known whether they were pork or beef ribs but it's speculated that they were irresistible. Also, it's rumored that watermelon, fried chicken and fruit punch were stolen in a previous unrelated incident.

Do you still want a Smart Car?

Before



After



It's that grey bit between the two trucks -- after a smash in Jefferson Parish, La. (near New Orleans )


Posted by John Ray.

Girls in Bikinis Protest No Hot Water




Source

Idiots Shoot Ducklings

(Saskatoon, Saskatchewan) Three men have been arrested for gunning down ducklings. That act alone makes them criminal suspects and arguably evil but not necessarily idiots. They became idiots by documenting their crimes on video.

Now every animal-lover in North America has their number, so to speak.

Three Saskatoon-area residents were arrested Saturday morning and face charges under both federal and provincial wildlife protection laws in connection with a duck-shooting video.

The four-minute video emerged earlier this week on YouTube and showed three men giggling while gunning down ducklings from a parked car.

Posting the video on Youtube led to an "unprecedented public reaction" and, consequently, their identification and arrest.

The three stupid hosers will appear in court on Monday for formal charges which, I predict, will be serious, numerous and well-deserved. I also predict that anti-hunting activists will attempt to portray these three dumb asses as typical of the hunting community.

Human Rights Tribunal Dismisses Muslims' Salami Complaint

(Coquitlam, British Columbia) A Muslim couple, William and Micheline Issa, filed a complaint with the BC Human Rights Tribunal claiming that the Real Canadian Superstore mistakenly sold them salami containing pork.

As an aside, someone will have to explain to me why this tiff has anything to do with human rights and why anyone, other than the Muslims themselves, should be policing what they eat.

Getting back, the store offered to settle with the Issas by paying them $5,000 for injury to dignity, feelings and self-respect, and giving another $5,000 to a charity of the couple's choice.

Citing the settlement as reasonable, the Human Rights Tribunal dismissed the complaint.

Interestingly, this case establishes a (legal?) precedent whereby grocery stores are responsible for assuring that their customers don't buy anything that's contrary to religious beliefs. I contend that this represents an unreasonable imposition on free trade.

I also suggest that it's outrageous for the grocery store to pay $10,000 because the couple bought some pork salami by mistake.

Comment on National Health Care

A British Member of Parliament, Daniel Hannan, was asked why the Brits don't scrap their troublesome National Health System. He answered,

"... because it has become such a huge system ... We have 1.4 million people employed by a national health -- the third biggest employer in the world after the red army in China and the Indian national railways. Most of those 1.4 million people are administrators. That the managers outnumber the doctors -- is the electoral bloc that makes it almost impossible to get rid of --"

People on the dole will always vote for the dole. "Don't bite the hand that feeds you" to repeat a cliché. It's welfare state politics and I contend it's the goal of Democrat politicians.

National health care is the asphalt on the road to serfdom.

At the Terminal




Source

Cloud Ships Stall Global Warming

Putting your thinking caps on, readers, is recommended before immersing yourself in this latest solution to global warming. It may help contain some grey matter in the event that your brain explodes.

A wind-powered fleet of 1,900 ships would criss-cross the oceans, sucking up sea water and spraying it from the top of tall funnels to create vast white clouds.

These clouds would reflect a tiny proportion, between 1 and 2 per cent, of the sunlight that would otherwise warm the ocean. This would be enough to cancel out the greenhouse effect caused by carbon dioxide emissions. The ships would be unmanned and directed by satellite to locations with the best conditions for increasing cloud cover. They would mainly operate in the Pacific, far enough from land to avoid interfering with rainfall.

The idea has been circulating for a decade but until now has merely been one of many climate engineering pipedreams. A study commissioned by the Copenhagen Consensus Centre, a think-tank that advises governments on how to spend aid money, found that the fleet would cost $9 billion (£5.3 billion) to test and launch within 25 years. This is a fraction of the $250 billion that the world’s leading nations are considering spending each year to cut CO2 emissions.

The Royal Society is expected to announce next month that cloud-forming ships are one of the most promising ideas.

Excuse me for being contrary, but I suggest this idea, as described, is ludicrous.

But, it's worthy of comment. It is given that the schemers want to build 1,900 wind-powered robotic ships with wind-powered pumps to elevate gargantuan quantities of seawater to the top of tall funnels -- within 25 years and all for $9 billion.

Doing the math, $9 billion divided by 1,900 equals somewhat less than $5 million per ship which is phenomenally cheap for an ocean-going vessel and the ships must be maintenance-free. If seafaring crews need to periodically visit the 1,900 cloud-producing ships to replace bearings or grease gears on wind-powered seawater pumps, the cost of the entire endeavor would skyrocket.

The world would run out of cash long before any noticeable impact was achieved, much less than the laughable 1 to 2 percent projected, in the Earth's total cloud cover.

And, still, it's only speculated that the scheme will work. Frankly, I don't believe that mankind has the capacity to prevent the Sun from warming the oceans, which is the basis of the scheme.

Regarding wind power in general, don't be mistaken. I believe wind power is a feasible and economical energy source in certain applications. However, I contend that wind power will never be used to operate 1,900 unmanned marine vessels pumping seawater to tall heights. The cost is too great and the benefit is too vague.

With respect to effectiveness, wind power will continue to be strongest as a political plaster used to trowel over the pesky details of outrageously questionable projects.

It's conservatives who do hate speech and hate-crimes, right?

No Obama supporter would call a black man, a n*gger, would he? Not unless the black man was a conservative, of course.

"Americans for Limited Government President Bill Wilson today condemned the brutal beating of activist Kenneth Gladney in South St. Louis County, MO, at a town hall event sponsored by Congressman Russ Caranhan (D-MO) by SEIU members who Wilson said "appears to have been sent out purposely to intimidate the crowd and instigate violence."

According to Kenneth Gladney's attorney, David B. Brown, "Kenneth was attacked on the evening of August 6, 2009 at Rep. Russ Carnahan's town hall meeting in South St. Louis County. I was at the town hall meeting as well and witnessed the events leading up to the attack of Kenneth. Kenneth was approached by an SEIU representative as Kenneth was handing out 'Don't Tread on Me' flags to other conservatives."

The statement continued, "The SEIU representative demanded to know why a black man was handing out these flags. The SEIU member used a racial slur against Kenneth, then punched him in the face. Kenneth fell to the ground. Another SEIU member yelled racial epithets at Kenneth as he kicked him in the head and back. Kenneth was also brutally attacked by one other male SEIU member and an unidentified woman."

According to the statement, "The three men were clearly SEIU members, as they were wearing T-shirts with the SEIU logo."

More HERE. Another account of the matter here

Violence against a black man on account of his political speech? Well, the Ku Klux Klan WERE Democrats, so I guess not much has changed. But I wonder why this has not hit the headlines of the New York Times? It's mentioned on one of their blogs but not elsewhere. Now if a REPUBLICAN had attacked the guy .....


Posted by John Ray.

City Accused of Discrimination, Agrees to Hire Whites

(Gary, Indiana) Six white medics sued the city of Gary for discrimination stemming from an episode where black people with lower test scores were hired instead of the whites. The white medics won the case -- uh, well, they sorta, kinda won.

In a consent decree issued Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Justice and Gary officials agreed to divide more than $25,000 between Nathan Bogner, Christopher Ferrand and Tina Bruks.

Those three and Richard Hurst and Timothy Sierazy must also be offered jobs within a year in positions that would provide the seniority and other benefits they would have earned if hired in October 2006. A sixth complainant is not included in the settlement. [...]

In the 10-page decree, the city denies it discriminated against the medics when it hired six blacks who, except for one, ranked lower on the eligibility list prepared by former Emergency Medical Services director Angelo Bruno.

Bruno, who followed the fire department's testing standards and criteria to develop a hiring list, was demoted after Clay named a new chief, then retired. He died last year.

When the controversy surfaced, Fire Chief Jeff Ward said he was not obligated to honor the list prepared by a prior administration. He denied the six were rejected because of race, claiming the issue was residency, although all six had indicated on their applications they would move to the city if hired.

Despite the denial and the circuitous explanation, the city of Gary clearly discriminated based on race, in my opinion.

"My Cat Downloaded Porn"

(Martin County, Florida) A 48-year-old Jensen Beach man, Keith R. Griffin, has been arrested for possessing child pornography on his computer. Presumably a believer in the dog-ate-my-homework argument, Griffin says his cat did it.

Griffin told detectives he would leave his computer on and his cat would jump on the keyboard.

When he returned, there would be strange material downloaded, the release states.

Maybe he'll be asked to explain why the cat didn't download cat porn rather than child porn.

Griffin was booked into custody at the Martin County Jail with bail set at $250,000. Picture of the kitty here.

Tip: Charley Nestor

Florida Woman Arrested for Sex with Minor

(Manatee County, Florida) A 46-year-old local woman, Zoraya Narvaez, was arrested by Manatee County Sheriff's deputies for allegedly engaging in sex with a minor, the 17-year-old son of a friend.

Narvaez faces a charge of unlawful sexual acts with a minor.

The boy told detectives he tried to end the relationship with Narvaez when his parents found out, but she would not stop pursuing him. His parents filed a protective order against Narvaez, the report said.

Narvaez claimed to be pregnant with the boy’s baby as well, a deputy reported.

The boy said he had sex with Narvaez in her car and at the doctor's office.

Missouri Teacher Resigns on Assault Charge

(St. Louis, Missouri) A 25-year-old social studies teacher at St. Margaret of Scotland School, Bridget Matarazzi, has been accused of assaulting a wheelchair-bound usher during an evening of drunkenness at Busch Stadium last Saturday night.

Matarazzi has been charged with third-degree assault. In a statement from the Archdiocese of St. Louis, Matarazzi has resigned her teaching position.

It's not known whether the usher was harmed during the alleged incident.

Advice for the Lonely

Try hypnosis to get a date and round the bases.

Be advised that mileage may vary.

Woman Set Fire to Man's Package

(Heraklion, Crete) A 26-year-old Greek woman, Marina Fanouraki, has been accused of setting fire to the genitals of a 20-year-old British man, Stuart Feltham. She faces charges of bodily injury and endangering private property.

Miss Fanouraki surrendered to the police while Mr. Feltham was taken to a private clinic for treatment of second-degree burns.

Fanouraki claims that a drunk Feltham dropped his trousers in a crowded bar and "forcefully fondled" her.

After asking him to stop harassing her, she told police, she poured Sambuca, an aniseed liqueur, on him.

This again allegedly failed to stop his advances, so she seized a lighter and set fire to the alcohol, local press reports said.

It's currently unconfirmed but sources say that travel insurance does cover treatment for flaming plums.

Presumably agreeing that Miss Fanouraki acted in self-defense, the magistrate and prosecutor released her pending trial. Meanwhile, Miss Fanouraki has become a local celebrity with a crowd applauding and shouting "bravo, bravo" as she was whisked away from the police station.

The incident comes as an embarrassment amid the increased attempts by the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office to quell the number of drink-and-sex related crimes that are plaguing European resorts dominated by British youth.

Reportedly, a great majority of tourists and residents on Crete believe that Miss Fanouraki was defending her honor.

No sources have displayed a photo of Miss Fanouraki yet. However, several women named Marina Fanouraki have Facebook pages. Interestingly, they all look similar.

Alabama School Clerk Accused of Contributing to Delinquency

(Moulton, Alabama) A 37-year-old former clerk at East Lawrence High School, Rebecca Leigh Nichols, was arrested yesterday for allegedly contributing to the delinquency of a 16-year-old male student by giving him drugs and alcohol.

She's also accused of having a sexual relationship with the victim.

Police say they haven't filed sex charges linked to the relationship because the boy is 16, and he claims he initiated the contact. The arrest comes after the boy's mother filed a complaint with police.

Rebecca Nichols is estranged from her husband, the principal of East Lawrence High School, Ricky Nichols. A divorce is in process.

Rebecca Nichols was booked and released on $500 bond.

Are climate skeptics psychologically maladjusted?

Psychologists are overwhelmingly Leftist. I know. I have a doctorate in psychology and used to teach it and have had many articles published in the academic journals of psychology. And psychologists have been trying to prove that conservatives are mentally inadequate in some way since at least 1950 -- with a singular lack of success if you insist on normal scientific standards of proof. See here, for instance. So it was only a matter of time before they attempted to tar climate skeptics with the same brush. The article below seems to be an attempt in that direction


Psychological barriers like uncertainty, mistrust and denial keep most Americans from acting to fight climate change, a task force of the American Psychological Association said on Wednesday.

Policymakers, scientists and marketers should look at these factors to figure out what might prod people take action, the task force reported at the association's annual convention in Toronto.

While most Americans -- 75 percent to 80 percent in a Pew Research Center poll -- said climate change is an important issue, it still ranked last in a list of 20 compelling issues such as the economy or terrorism, the task force said.

Despite warnings from scientists that humans need to make changes now if they want to avoid the worst effects of climate change, "people don't feel a sense of urgency," the association said in a statement.

Numerous psychological barriers are to blame, the task force found, including: uncertainty over climate change, mistrust of the messages about risk from scientists or government officials, denial that climate change is occurring or that it is related to human activity.

Other factors include undervaluing the risk. Even though an international study showed many people believe environmental conditions will worsen in 25 years, that could lead some to conclude that they don't have to make changes now.

Some people believe anything they do would make little difference and they therefore choose to do nothing.

Habit is the most important obstacle to pro-environment behavior, the task force found.

But habits can be changed, especially if changing saves money and people are quickly made aware of it. People are more likely to use energy-efficient appliances if they get immediate energy-use feedback, the task force said.

It identified other areas where psychology can help limit the effects of climate change, such as developing environmental regulations, economic incentives, better energy-efficient technology and communication methods.

SOURCE


Posted by John Ray.

Chinese Airport CEO Executed for Corruption

(Jinan, China) The former chief executive of the state-owned Capital Airports Holding Company, Li Peiying, 60, was executed earlier today for taking bribes and embezzlement.

Li was convicted of accepting bribes worth $3.9 million and embezzling 82.5 million yuan.

The method of execution for white-collar criminals wasn't reported.

Indonesian Tribe Learns Korean Writing System

(Sulawesi, Indonesia) An illiterate tribe in a remote part of Indonesia has decided to enter the modern world by adopting a written communications system. They chose to use the Korean alphabet, Hangeul, as their official language.

"A tribe in the city of Bauer and Bauer in Sulawesi has selected Hangeul as the official alphabet to transcribe its native language that has no writing system," the Hunminjeongeum Research Institute said in a statement. "The tribe with a population of 60,000 was on the verge of losing its language due to a lack of tool to hand it down to its descendants."

According to the institute, since last month, dozens of children in the tribe have learned, on a regular basis, how to write, read, and pronounce the Korean alphabet based on a textbook provided by the institute. Another 140 high school students in the city have recently followed suit, it added. [...]

Linguists here hailed the decision, raising hopes that this will lead to Korean becoming an international language like English.

"It will be a meaningful case in history if the Indonesian tribe succeed in maintaining its aboriginal language with the help of Hangeul," said Prof. Kim Joo-won of Seoul National University who has initiated the landmark project.

It's interesting that the Indonesian government didn't step in and encourage the use of the Indonesian or English languages, both of which are officially recognized.

Sex at the Altar

(Ikeja, Nigeria) A local couple, 30-year-old Tolu Akintepe and his wife, 28-year-old Bunmi, were caught engaging in sex at the altar of their Pentecostal church, reportedly to put spirit and adventure into the staleness of their four-year marriage.

Pastor Gbenga Akhiomu demanded they pay £100 damages for desecrating the altar.

He also wanted them to clean the altar and pray for forgiveness.

In the associated court case, Judge Ifeanyinwa Okenwa ordered the payment of £100 compensation and instructed the Akintepes to be more respectful of religious institutions.

NC Woman Arrested for Child Sex Crimes

(Jacksonville, North Carolina) A 39-year-old local woman, Leslie Denise Nichols, was arrested by Jacksonville Police officers last week for allegedly forcing a 9-year-old child to commit sex acts. Nichols reportedly is a civilian employee at Camp Lejeune Marine Corps Base.

Nichols faces charges of first-degree sex offense, five counts of indecent liberties with a minor, and five counts of child abuse by sexual act.

Nichols is accused in warrants of directing a 9-year-old child to penetrate her digitally and with an “electronic stimulus device.” She also forced the child to practice oral sex on her, according to warrants on file at the Onslow County Courthouse.

The JPD would not comment on the ongoing case. Capt. David Teeter said given the “sensitive nature” of the case and its open status, he could not provide any information beyond what is available in Nichols’ arrest warrants.

Nichols was booked into custody at the Onslow County jail with bond set at $300,000. A court appearance is scheduled for August 20.

English Teacher Cleared of Sex Allegation - Updated

(Daytona Beach, Florida) An administrative law judge has ruled that teacher Seneka Arrington, 24, is cleared of any impropriety regarding allegations made by a 14-year-old boy who had a crush on her.

"It appears that (the boy) had a crush on a young, inexperienced teacher; embroidered what he believed to be preferential treatment by that teacher; and encouraged his friends to believe that the relationship went far beyond what it really was," Judge Lisa Shearer Nelson wrote.

"The school then 'investigated' what even its officials classified as an unsubstantiated rumor and discharged a teacher for no cause," Nelson wrote in a recommended order that was recently adopted by the Florida Education Practices Commission.

Although Arrington was fired subsequent to the allegation, school officials stated that she was terminated for poor performance and not for the sex accusation.

* * * * *
English Teacher Accused of Sex with Boy
[Previous 10/13/06 post]
[Link: http://interested-participant.blogspot.com/2006/10/english-teacher-accused-of-sex-with.html]
(Daytona Beach, Florida) A 22-year-old 9th-grade English teacher at Matanzas High School in Flagler County, Seneka Arrington, has been accused of engaging in a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old boy.

Arrington has been terminated from her teaching position since she was still on probation as a new employee. She has not been charged with a crime, however, the Daytona Beach Police Department has opened an investigation.

Tip: Jason Cann

Hot Cars Boost Testosterone

(Montreal, Canada) According to a study of endocrine responses to external stimuli, researchers found that a man's libido automatically becomes turbocharged with elevated testosterone when he climbs into a hot car.

"The infusion of this incredibly potent social status signal was so great . . . that the endocrinological response was substantial irrespective of whether they had an audience or not," says study co-author Gad Saad, associate professor of marketing at Concordia University in Montreal.

Male college students, whose median age was 24.7, spent an hour driving a $150,000 Porsche — 30 minutes downtown, surrounded by countless spectators, and 30 minutes on a highway with few observers. They experienced the same conditions driving a "dilapidated" Toyota Camry with 300,000 kilometres on it.

According to researchers, endowing the men with a vehicle few people could afford tripped an endocrinological response — measured using saliva samples — mimicking the one elicited during competition for female mates. The older car had an inverse effect, though not significantly.

"There's no culture that has ever been uncovered, or will ever be uncovered — unless evolutionary forces change our human nature — where women are more likely to drive Ferraris than men," says Saad, Concordia's research chair in Evolutionary Behavioural Sciences and Darwinian Consumption.

Since the researchers conducted the macho spit test to find a direct correlation between physical well-being of a man and the vehicle he drives, it appears that there now is a scientific basis for deducting a brand new sports car as a medical/health/erectile dysfunction treatment. IRS take note.

Furthermore, those men who limp around in old beaters now have an explanation for their droopy demeanor. "Sorry, Honey. I just don't feel the urge. Scientists say it's because of my car."

Ending with an aside, what in the world is Darwinian Consumption? Survival of the fittest shoppers? Uh -- never mind.

Some political statements should be reported to the White House??

The following appears on the White House blog:

There is a lot of disinformation about health insurance reform out there, spanning from control of personal finances to end of life care. These rumors often travel just below the surface via chain emails or through casual conversation. Since we can’t keep track of all of them here at the White House, we’re asking for your help. If you get an email or see something on the web about health insurance reform that seems fishy, send it to flag@whitehouse.gov

The Left are always claiming that certain things will have a "chilling" effect on free speech but this strikes me as a real-life example of it. If you email criticisms of Obamacare, you go on an official list of some kind. Lists vary, of course, but anybody who has lived under the former socialist governments of Eastern Europe will tell you that being on a socialist government's list can be very bad news.

Taranto covers the matter at some length and I like the following comment from him:

At the very least, it is obnoxious to imply that all opposition to ObamaCare is based on “disinformation.” This show of contempt for opposing views ought to make skeptics even more skeptical. And it is creepy for an agent of the government to ask citizens to inform on their neighbors.

There certainly is a whiff of old Eastern Europe about it all.

There are several quite sane, sober and factual articles about the "end of life" provisions of the draft health bill on SOCIALIZED MEDICINE. There is certainly much more than a "rumor" to it.

See here for the bromide that the White House has issued as a response to criticisms such as the above.

Posted by John Ray.

Cold Cash Congressman William Jefferson Convicted

(Alexandria, Virginia) Former Democrat Rep. William J. Jefferson of Louisiana was convicted today on 11 federal corruption charges by a jury that deliberated for five days.

Jefferson was acquitted on criminal counts related to theft, obstruction and a bribery charge tied to the $90,000 found in his freezer.

Jefferson, who lost a re-election bid last year after serving nine terms, was convicted instead of 11 corruption-related counts, taking bribes in exchange for helping American businesspeople involved in oil, sugar and telecommunications ventures gain access to West African countries. Jefferson tried to conceal the bribes through shell companies and sham consulting agreements, prosecutors said. [...]

But ironically, it's the cold, hard cash that people likely will remember best. Prosecutors said Jefferson took the freezer cash from an FBI informant and planned to use the money to bribe the then-vice president of Nigeria to help secure a telecommunications contract.

The evidence was not convincing regarding the $90,000 in freezer cash so the jury acquitted Jefferson on that count. Nevertheless, the former congressman will likely always be remembered for the cold cash.

A sentencing date is TBD. Jefferson reportedly faces substantial prison time.

Companion post at The Jawa Report.

School Bomb Plotter Guilty

(Florence, South Carolina) In April 2009, Chesterfield High School senior Ryan Schallenberger was arrested for allegedly plotting to blow up his school.

Earlier today, 19-year-old Schallenberger pleaded guilty to federal charges in accordance with a plea agreement which sends him to 10 years of mental health treatment at a federal facility.

U.S. District Court Judge Bryan Harwell accepted Schallenberger plea, but will not impose a sentence until after a pre-sentencing report has been completed.

Schallenberger was arrested April 19, 2008, after his parents intercepted a package addressed to him containing 20 pounds of ammonium nitrate shipped to him from a gun enthusiast in Kentucky.

Schallenberger kept a journal which outlined his plot to blow up the school.

Investigators who confiscated the journal also found drawings of Chesterfield High School and an audio tape clearly meant to be found after the boy’s death, [Assistant U.S. Attorney] Parham said.

Schallenberger referred to his plot as “Columbine 2” and had a multi-step plan that included chaining the doors of the high school to keep students from escaping while he took a firearm and began “killing with purpose all I chose,” according to the journal.

Six months before his arrest, Schallenberger expressed how anxious he was to kill in his journal.

“If I could, I would kill nearly all of mankind, executing anyone I deem unfit,” he said.

Here's hoping that we don't hear this guy's name in the news anytime in the future.

Teacher Gets Jail for Same-Sex Relations with Student - Updated

(San Jose, California) First the teacher made friends with the student and, then, she kissed her. Passionate kisses came and later a sexual relationship. Today, the teacher was sentenced to six months in the county jail.

Rita Brum, 24, was also given three years' formal probation for her illicit relationship with a female student she met while working as a first-year teacher at Mount Pleasant High School in East San Jose. On June 11, Brum pleaded no contest to one count of sexual penetration of a person under 18 and accepted a court offer of six months in jail on June 11.

Her attorney Edward N. Ajlouny said Brum has taken "full responsibility" for the relationship and believes the young woman received a just punishment.

"From the beginning, she did take responsibility," Ajlouny said. "She was the adult. She is remorseful for what happened. It was a fair sentence."

It's not clear whether Brum will be required to attend sex offender counseling or register as a sex offender.

* * * * *
California Teacher Accused of Same-Sex Relations with Student
[Previous 3/12/09 post]
(San Jose, California) A 24-year-old physical education teacher and coach at Mt. Pleasant High School, Rita Brum, faces arraignment today for allegedly having an illicit sexual relationship with a 17-year-old female student.

Brum was arrested on February 26th and released on bail.

Her attorney Edward N. Ajlouny said Brum plans to take "full responsibility" for the relationship. Ajlouny said he hopes to get the "best plea deal possible" for his client.

"Rita is a very good person who made a mistake," Ajlouny said. "She had some issues in her past that may have led her to make this choice. We're only hoping that we can avoid significant jail time. She's taken responsibility and she is trying to improve herself and get clarity so this won't happen again."

I believe the thinking is understandable. I've personally known of individuals who, because of issues, have desired to mix it up with a high school girl.

According to police reports, Brum met the 17-year-old girl, a student at Mt. Pleasant High, early in the school year.

In the following months, their relationship grew as they spent time together on and off campus.

It wasn't until Brum invited the girl to her house to watch a Sharks hockey game in early December that they began kissing. The girl told police it was a "long passionate kiss" and she was "freaked out" after, because it was a teacher.

The girl told police she and Brum kissed on campus a couple of times and eventually began a sexual relationship.

Afterward, the girl's mother found a love letter and confronted Brum. Officers were called to the confrontation and became alerted to the alleged sex.

Housekeeping

Be advised that I just deleted a series of comments I consider to be inappropriate for this blog.

As a general guide, I try to keep the blog posts at the PG-level. Comments are allowed wider latitude but not to the extent I've seen recently.

With the exception of spammers, I customarily don't block specific URLs from commenting. The issue, however, has been put on the table.

"Pioneering" Gay Deputy Cuffed for Sex Crimes

(Fort Lauderdale, Florida) A trumpeted gay activist who is also a Broward County Sheriff's deputy, Jonathan Bleiweiss, 29, was arrested Monday for the alleged sexual assault of illegals while in uniform and on the job.

Court documents released Tuesday portray Bleiweiss, 29, as a manipulative sex offender who preyed on illegal immigrants too scared to contact authorities. He would act like a jilted lover when the men would not return his calls or text messages, according to those records, based on victims' accounts.

Bleiweiss, arrested Monday, faces 14 charges, among them three counts of sexual battery by a person in authority, four counts of battery and one count of stalking. He's accused of intimidating at least eight men in his Oakland Park patrol district into performing sex acts with him during traffic stops.

Bleiweiss is somewhat of a celebrity within the South Florida gay crowd but the gay community distances itself from the deputy's alleged illegal sexual behavior.

In Oakland Park, leaders in both the city and gay communities say the actions the deputy is accused of may foster distrust for law enforcement.

"It affects our community at large, and it affects our gay community, too," said former Oakland Park mayor and commissioner Larry Gierer, who is gay. "It really can make the whole force look bad."

In January, Sgt. John Nash nominated Bleiweiss for Employee of the Year in the Oakland Park district. In his nomination letter, Nash included a long list of Bleisweiss' heroics, including making well over 100 arrests in the city.

Bleiweiss worked in the St. Petersburg Police Department before starting his current position in Broward County.

Tip: slwlion

No Jail for NYC Teacher Guilty of Rape - Updated

(Queens, New York) Yesterday, social studies teacher Melissa Weber, 28, pleaded guilty to second-degree rape of a 14-year-old male student and was sentenced to time served and probation.

A tearful Weber admitted to engaging in seven sexual episodes with the boy in a school classroom between 3PM and 6PM.

"She said she was remorseful," said Weber's lawyer, Donald Vogelman, who blamed his client's behavior on a dysfunctional upbringing. "She accepted responsibility for what she did."

The family agreed to the plea deal because they didn't want the teenager to have to testify in a lengthy court case, prosecutors said.

In addition to probation, Weber must surrender her teaching credentials and register as a sex offender. She is also barred from accessing social networking sites frequented by minors.

Frankly, I believe that some jail time is warranted when a teacher is convicted of raping a student in a classroom on multiple occasions. In addition to being criminal, Weber's behavior showed a disregard for the child, a disregard for the school and a disregard for the profession of teaching.

* * * * *
NYC Teacher Accused of Rape
[Previous 5/29/09 post]
(Queens, New York) A 27-year-old social studies teacher at MS/IS 8, Melissa Weber, has been accused of statutory rape of a 14-year-old boy. Reportedly, Weber had sex with the student in a school classroom on seven separate occasions between April 13 and May 14.

According to Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown, the boy's mother was tipped to the alleged sexual relationship by sources at the school.

The mother obtained the teacher's telephone number and then checked her son's cell phone and allegedly found hundreds of contacts between the teacher and her son over the last two months. The boy's parents then called police.

According to investigators, one of the last texts from the teacher stated, "Erase your phone."

Weber faces seven counts of second-degree rape, fourteen counts of third-degree sexual abuse and one count of endangering the welfare of a child.

[Update] Fixed wrong pic. Thanks to commenter B2r.

Google censorship again

This time they have blocked the popular humor blog Wicked Thoughts. All is not lost, however, as the Mirror site is still updating regularly. I have no idea what the blocking is all about or if it will be permanent so do publicize the link to the mirror site.


Posted by John Ray.

Colorado Teacher Gets No Jail in Sex Case

(Denver, Colorado) In November 2008, English teacher Melissa Snow, 27, was arrested for the alleged sexual assault of a male student. She was booked, released on bond, and the school system placed her on administrative leave.

Yesterday, Melissa Snow was sentenced to eight years of probation. Snow had pleaded guilty to felony attempted sexual assault earlier this year.

Snow had been an English teacher at Sheridan High School since 2005, according to the school district.

Under the terms of the probation, Snow will not be able to have contact with anyone under the age of 18 unless approved by her probation officer.

She also must keep a full-time job, complete a victim empathy course and register as a sex offender, according to the District Attorney's office.

The age of her victim was not released.

Illegals Starved to Death at Sea

(Islamabad, Pakistan) A human smuggling operation was stalled when a ship experienced mechanical problems in the Arabian Sea.

At least seven Pakistanis and an Iranian sailor starved to death and their bodies were thrown out to sea during a failed mission to smuggle illegal migrants to the Gulf, an official said Tuesday.

Four survivors managed to reach the town of Dera Ghazi Khan in Pakistan’s central Punjab province.

“The four survivors told us that eight of the 12 died because of starvation and their bodies were thrown out to sea. This is a case of human trafficking,” Hassan Iqbal, the top local administration official, said. One of the dead was an Iranian sailor, he said.

The Pakistani would-be illegal migrants were going to the Gulf from Iran, where they crossed by land from Pakistan, but their boat was stuck for 10 days at sea because of a technical fault, he said. The survivors were rescued by fishermen, he added. “Those who died were thrown overboard. It was not possible for the fishermen to carry them,” Iqbal said.

Typically, 10 days is the lower-level threshold of time required to starve to death and applies to people who have compromised physical conditioning. Trekking across the daunting terrain of Pakistan and Iran probably left the victims quite weak.

Drink Whisky to Avoid Swine Flu

(Moscow, Russia) Even the swine flu can't stop Russian soccer fans from traveling to support their team.

Russian soccer fans have been told to drink whisky on their trip to Wales for next month's World Cup qualifier to ward off the H1N1 swine flu virus, the head of the country's supporter association (VOB) said on Monday.

"We urge our fans to drink a lot of Welsh whisky as a form of disinfection," VOB head Alexander Shprygin toldReuters .

"That should cure all symptoms of the disease."

Russia's Health Ministry has issued a public warning against traveling to Britain because of the spread of the H1N1 virus but Shprygin said he expected at least several hundred fans would go to Wales for the September 9 qualifier in Cardiff.

It's not known whether a medical basis exists to support drinking whisky to "cure all symptoms" of H1N1 infections. However, it is known that enough whisky will dispel any concern about health.

Save the Rainforest - Pee in the Shower

(Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) The Brazilian environmental group SOS Mata Atlantica has launched a public campaign to encourage the population to save water. The environmentalists are telling everyone to "Pee in the Shower! Save the Atlantic rainforest." Check out the video shown on television.




It's not clear how peeing in the shower saves the rainforest. Nevertheless, it's easier than the recommendation to "Pinch One in the Rainforest" which, presumably, would be more beneficial to the trees than peeing in the shower.

By the way, the video has a King Kong lookalike taking a whiz on top of a skyscraper. Any reader knowing what that's all about, please advise.

Circus Clown Auditions

(San Francisco, California) Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus is auditioning for clowns to tour with the circus under contract.

White House Attacks Drudge

The White House has launched a web attack against the Drudge Report for a video of Obama speaking about private health insurance.

The White House is arguably putting spin on the obvious. Attacking Drudge is damage control.

Illegal Alien Playing Field

In the news this past week has been the story of three American hikers being apprehended by authorities for illegally entering Iran. It appears that they are going to be prosecuted for espionage -- or some other trumped-up charges.

Back in March 2009, two American journalists were apprehended by border police for illegally entering North Korea. The journalists, Euna Lee and Laura Ling, were tried, convicted and sentenced to 12 years of hard labor. Their story has been headlines for almost four months and today it's reported that Bill Clinton has gone to North Korea to negotiate for their release.

In summary, five Americans since March have illegally entered foreign countries and they now face serious penalties behind cold prison bars. It's been covered as front-page, top-story news worldwide.

Meanwhile, since March over 100,000 foreign nationals are estimated to have illegally entered the United States without apprehension and without one prominent headline. It's unknown how many illegals have to enter the U.S. before the story gets continuous front-page, worldwide exposure.

A Modest Proposal: how to solve the CO2 crisis‏


With apologies to Jonathan Swift. Sent in by a reader

The use of oil, gas or coal wastes valuable resources, pollutes the atmosphere and tears up mother earth. Burning wood pollutes the earth and removes valuable trees needed to sequester CO2 and clean the atmosphere. Nuclear power generation with its safety, nuclear waste, and proliferation issues are unacceptable risks under any circumstances. Evil river-killing power generating dams kill fish and other wildlife and ruin our scenic rivers. Ethanol production causes food prices to rise, children to starve and rain forests to be cut down. Wind turbines kill birds, also many areas have zoning laws prohibiting such tall structures and powerful leftists like the Kennedy's not to mention your neighbors do not want them blocking their views. Solar panels would be great except they need horrible chemicals to make them work. A chemist friend once told me (in the 1980's) some of those chemicals could easily kill an entire city. So what is left? Animal power? PETA and other animal rights groups would not allow the use of animals for generating power. So here is my Modest Proposal.

Here in the USA a major problem has flared up with over active and/or obese children. Instead of using drugs to combat this problem I suggest installing treadmills and stationary exercise bikes in all schools and universities. These should be hooked up to power generators. The idea could be expanded to include office workers, bored housewives, internet web surfers, couch potatoes watching TV , Congress, people in nursing homes and even hospitals. Instead of protesters marching to protest they could go to designated protest sites and walk on treadmills.

This idea could be expanded. Instead of fighting wars armies could workout on treadmills and exercise bikes and the army that generated the most power would be declared the winner. This is also a solution to the high unemployment rates in some countries. Instead of government paid assistance the unemployed would be paid to generate electricity. It would also cut down on the population explosion because people, especially teens and unwed mothers on assistance, would be too tired at night to be interested in anything but sleep. With the billions of people in this world think of the tremendous amount of power that could be generated!

Now that I have solved the energy crisis without polluting where is my Nobel Prize.


Posted by John Ray.

This is a confused one

A Muslim school says it was defamed when the ACLU said it was a Muslim school. I kid you not.

"An Inver Grove Heights charter school accused of crossing the line between religion and public education is fighting back against the American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota.

Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy (TiZA) says the ACLU, which sued the academy in January, defamed the school and hurt its ability to hire qualified teachers, according to counterclaims filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis.

In its suit, the ACLU alleged that the public school promotes the Muslim religion, violating the Constitution's First Amendment.

The K-8 school has denied the allegations and said in court documents that Charles Samuelson, executive director of the Minnesota ACLU, injured the school's reputation by saying publicly that TiZA is "a theocratic school ... as plain as the substantial nose on my face."

The ACLU's lawsuit and statements led to threats against the school's staff, and the lawsuit and resulting negative attention hurt the school's learning environment and caused several students to withdraw from the school, TiZA said in a statement Tuesday. At least 10 prospective TiZA teachers withdrew their applications in the middle of the hiring process, leaving the school with several open positions, the statement said.

Source

Truth hurts, I guess.

Posted by John Ray.

Idaho Woman Gets Prison for Sex with Boy, 12 - Updated

(Boise, Idaho) A sobbing Esmeralda Ahumada, 21, appeared in court today and received a sentence of up to seven years in prison for felony injury to a child. However, the judge allowed for her possible release on probation next year.

Third District Judge Renae Hoff retained jurisdiction and will revisit the case after Ahumada has had about six months of treatment in the Department of Corrections mental health unit in Pocatello.

If Hoff receives a favorable report, she could consider the defense recommendation that Ahumada receive probation and community-based treatment for her mental health, drug and sex abuse issues. If the report is unfavorable, Ahumada would likely be required to serve at least three years in prison.

Ahumada said she was sorry for engaging in sex with the 12-year-old boy. Defense attorney Lance Fusting explained that Ahumada had suffered a lifetime of abuse. The boy is in counseling with many issues troubling him.

* * * * *
Idaho Woman Guilty of Lewd Conduct with Boy, 12
[Previous 5/1/09 post]
(Boise, Idaho) A 20-year-old area woman, Esmeralda Ahumada, has admitted to engaging in naughtiness with a 12-year-old boy. The victim is the reported son of Ahumada's roommate.

Ahumada pleaded guilty to lewd conduct with a child this week.

According to court records, Ahumada admitted having sex with the 12-year-old, beginning while his mother was hospitalized this past October. The boy’s mother later found out about the abuse and told her counselor, who reported it to child protection authorities.

Sentencing has been scheduled for July 10. Ahumada faces a possible 10 years in prison.

Uranium Truck Crashes in West Virginia

(Summers County, West Virginia) Shortly after midnight Sunday morning, a tractor-trailer carrying uranium hexafluoride (UF6) overturned on Interstate-64, prompting evacuation of the town of Sandstone and surrounding areas.

A news release from the West Virginia State Police says the driver of a pickup truck headed west on I-64 was drunk when he ran off the road and struck a guardrail, causing his truck to roll over through the median, landing in the shoulder of the east bound lanes.

The driver of the tractor trailer was headed east and locked up his brakes to avoid the debris from the pickup truck that was left in the road. The tractor trailer then veered to the right and hit a rock embankment, overturned and caught fire.

The tractor trailer was carrying a corrosive material that has been determined to be radioactive.

Just before 3:30 a.m., HAZMAT crews reached the scene and determined that the container holding the material was not damaged and none of the material leaked. The crews also tested the air around the wreck and found no contamination.

The key point of this report is that the uranium slurry, a mid-stage product in the enrichment process, was adequately protected by the design of its container.

Know a man by the company he keeps

Obama supports "Jewish conspiracy" theorists:

"[Obama] sent his no. 2 woman at the White House, Valerie Jarrett, to speak at the racist hate-fest staged over the Fourth of July weekend by the Islamic Society of North America, an unindicted co-conspirator in a case involving the funding of the Hamas terror group. At the ISNA conference, pure hate speech and Islamic anti-Semitism were promoted, and the Obama administration was there.

Imam Warith Deen Umar spoke about his books, Jews for Salaam: The Straight Path to Global Peace, and Judaiology. Umar, the former head of New York prisons' Muslim chaplain program, repeatedly described Jewish conspiracies to control the world: "Why do this small number of people," he asked, "have control of the world? ...There's some people in the world says no Holocaust even happened. Some of their leaders say no Holocaust even happened. Well it did happen. These people were punished. They were punished for a reason, because they were serially disobedient to Allah."

Source

Posted by John Ray.

Oklahoma Women Arrested for Teen Sex Ring

(Beggs, Oklahoma) Two local women, Mindy Carder, 30, and Ashley Sprague, 21, have been arrested for allegedly operating a sex ring for as many as 10 teenage boys. Carder and Sprague reportedly confessed to getting high, seducing the boys and furnishing them with marijuana and alcohol.


 
Mindy Carder - Ashley Sprague
Both women face charges of statutory rape and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

It all started with a father who brought his 14-year-old son to the police station last week.

"We've learned that he was having a sexual relationship with a 30-year-old woman here in Beggs,'" said Beggs Police Chief James Poulin.

Police say it turns out it wasn't just one woman or just one boy.

"To me it's the same thing as prostitution. It was a big sex ring going on there and these kids knew, ‘hey we can go have sex, get drugs, we can drink and smoke there without our parents even knowing,'" said Beggs Police Chief James Poulin.

Carder and Sprague were booked into custody at the Okmulgee County Jail with bond amounts set at $76,000 and $25,000, respectively.

Birth Certificate



The document is hard to read here but it states that a male child named Barack Hussein Obama was born at Coast General Hospital, Mombasa, Kenya, on August 4, 1961.

The document displays the signature and seal of the Deputy Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages for the Coast Province of Kenya, Joshua Simon ODUYA.

If the document is accurate, it contradicts the contents of Obama's Hawaiian birth document(s).

More here.

Officer Suspended for Name-Calling

(Boston, Massachusetts) A 36-year-old officer with the Boston Police Department, Justin Barrett, has been suspended for writing a racially-charged email in which he reportedly called Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. a "jungle monkey." Barrett sent the email to colleagues in the National Guard.

Barrett, a 36-year-old who has been on the job for two years, was stripped of his gun and badge yesterday and faces a termination hearing in the next week, said police spokeswoman Elaine Driscoll.

Boston Mayor Menino is pissed at Barrett, even though he hasn't seen the subject email and a hearing hasn't been conducted. Menino said, "He's gone, g-o-n-e. I don't care, it's like cancer, you don't keep those cancers around."

Why bother with a hearing? The mayor makes it sound like a done deal.

Chucking "Green" Smart Cars into Canals



(Amsterdam, Netherlands) Dutch media indicate that environmentally-friendly "smart" cars, tiny two-seaters, are being picked up by roving bands of "pranksters" and tossed into the city's canals.

According to the Dutch-language Telegraff, five of the smart cars have been thrown in the water in the past two weeks. Authorities fear the practice will spread to other locations.

Amsterdam police speculate that the youths perpetrating this vandalism may be doing it as a bet, and evidence from one of the cases indicates that a lone vandal is capable of flipping the car.

The police indicated that evidence from another scene clearly shows 4 vandals lifting the car clear off its wheels, carrying it 20 feet, and dumping it into a lake. Because of this, the city does not believe that installing higher guard rails will deter all "Smart Smijten."

While American SMART car owners don't have to contend with the deep canals that urban-drellers in Europe do, it is still possible that Smart Tipping could spread in a more literal sense. Since none of the vandals have been caught, it's not clear if the vandals are targeting that specific marque for its ease of vandalism, or for their disdain for the ideal behind the machine.

Interestingly, the car-chuckers are called pranksters whereas if they set the cars on fire, they would be called unemployed, disenfranchised youths protesting their poverty-stricken lives.

The Smart Smijten practice has been compared to the 1960s stunts of picking up and moving Volkwagen Beetles but there's a difference. As I recall, the Volkwagens floated. Smart cars don't and "any car that spends the night sleeping with the fishes at the bottom of a canal is very likely a total loss."

Nevertheless, I suggest that the problem of "pranksters" taking Smart cars would be prevented by providing the light-weight vehicles with beefy bicycle chains and locking them to fence posts or street lights. You're welcome.

Companion post at The Jawa Report.

Robots Help Treat Illness, Robot-Maker Says

(Valencia, Spain) An estimated 6,000 participants attended the world's largest annual gathering of techno-geeks, wrapping up today in Valencia. A feature of the event, called Campus Party, has been the introduction of new robotics specifically designed to aid in the treatment of human illnesses.

Robots are reported to help people with Alzheimer's, autism, dementia and psychiatric disturbances. One example is a companion robot which imitates Michael Jackson while recognizing voices and faces and reading emails and online newspapers.

Standing 58 centimetres (23 inches) tall and with a plastic shell for a body, a humanoid robot called Nao drew a crowd at the Campus Party in Valencia as it danced to Jackson’s “Billie Jean” with a black hat on its head.

“I am thrilled to be at the Campus Party!” it said in a mechanical voice in English.

Plans are to start selling Nao in 2011 for $4,000 to $5,000.

Other examples include a "chef" robot that can beat eggs and cut ham and a cuddly, white furry seal pup robot named Paro that sleeps, awakens and ostensibly reminds the cognitively-impaired that animals have rights and the planet needs to be saved from global warming.

It's worth noting that the illness-treatment robots displayed at Campus Party should not be confused with action figures used in treatments such as Fusilli Jerry, a cure for hemorrhoids. Heh.

Seriously, though, the implications of actual medical use for the, arguably, toy robots are ominous. Think about it, with a doctor's note the $5,000 robot could be a deductible medical expenditure and insurance companies could be forced to provide toy robot coverage. Also, if ObamaCare becomes law, the taxpayer may end up buying the expensive gadgets for anyone who has ever forgotten a phone number.

Taiwan Under Threat

(Taipei, Taiwan) With the ever-present threat of mainland China invading, it's paramount that the Taiwanese military be battle-ready. However, based on this report, there's room for improvement.

TAIWAN'S military has punished 17 servicemen over an obscene video involving two male sergeants while on duty, in a scandal that has sparked public outrage.

A cable news channel earlier this month aired a video showing two soldiers clad in camouflage uniforms apparently engaged in oral sex while around 40 other servicemen looked on and laughed.

"The defence ministry has disciplined 13 members of the reserve brigade and sent another four to prosecutors for involvement in public obscenity and spreading an obscene image," it said.

Those facing prosecution included the duo allegedly engaged in the act and another sergeant who taped the scene, as well as the captain of their squad, the ministry said.

The 13 were disciplined for "failing to prevent a major incident from happening to damage the military honour", it said.

I suggest that the existence of blatant cluster sex represents more of a problem than simply besmirching military honor.

Democrat deception on free health care for illegals

Congressmen lie. Congressmen deceive. Congressmen think the voters in their District are either idiots or too apathetic to notice.

Today's vote on health care for illegal aliens is such a perfect example. The vote was a farce that will be used by many Congressmen to defend themselves against charges that they promote illegal immigration, when in fact their action today just encouraged more of it.

Many Congressmen were stung by the intense phone calls and other outrage from their constituents after they successfully voted on Thursday to kill the "Deal amendment" that would have required verification to keep illegal aliens from getting any new federal health care.

So, they came back today to introduce another amendment that said illegal aliens couldn't get the health care.

HOWEVER . .. . . . the amendment today provided for no verification. And actually reaffirmed other decisions of the last three years to include illegal aliens in various taxpayer-supported benefits.

Our allies in the committee pointed out the deception but the amendment passed on a voice vote.

Expect this to happen: When you criticize any of the Members who voted against the Deal Amendment, you can expect that they will point to this amendment today that they really did oppose rewards for illegal immigration.

SOURCE

Posted by John Ray.

A revealing beer summit photo



Who's helping whom? ..... Obama couldn't care less.

"Sergeant Crowley, the sole class act in this trio, helps the handicapped Professor Gates down the stairs, while Barack Obama, heedless of the infirmities of his friend and fellow victim of self-defined racial profiling, strides ahead on his own." So who is showing compassion here for a minority? It's the cop. The cop is helping Skippy Gates down the steps, and Obama is walking two steps ahead ignoring him.

America did previously have a President who was a gentleman:



GWB helps an old political foe, Democrat Senator Robert Byrd. Obama did not even think of helping his friend. Character will out.

Full commentary here


Posted by John Ray.

World Breastfeeding Week

This week, August 1-7, 2009, is World Breastfeeding Week. The theme is:

Breastfeeding: A Vital Emergency Response
Are you ready?

Apparently, there are events planned around the world by UNICEF and other organizations promoting breastfeeding. More here.

Emails Lead to Child Sex Conviction and Jail - Updated

(Mercer, Pennsylvania) This week, 20-year-old Ashley Irene Moore was sentenced by Common Pleas President Judge Francis J. Fornelli to 6-24 months in jail.

Mrs. Moore’s husband, Tucker Moore, defended her in court. He said they were only married two years ago and he shipped out for the military soon after. They have twin children, and he has been emotionally unavailable for all but two months of their lives. [...]

“She’s just a great mom and a great wife,” he told Fornelli, and asked him not to make an example of her.

Fornelli said he could think of nothing more awful than being overseas, finding out a spouse has been unfaithful, and learning it was with a 14-year-old. He further scolded the woman for doing that to her husband, but mid-scold, she interrupted him.

“He cheated, so I went out and cheated,” she said. Mrs. Moore told Fornelli she got into his e-mails and found out her husband had an affair while overseas. Her attorney, Dana Flick, said he had reason to believe she was correct.

Judge Fornelli told Moore, who is pregnant, that she would be paroled to have her child out of jail, provided she behaves, of course.

Pic courtesy of here.

* * * * *
Emails to Hubby Result in Child Sex Charges
[Previous 8/15/08 post]
(Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) The 19-year-old wife of a U.S. Army soldier, Ashley Moore, faces criminal charges for allegedly engaging in sex with a 14-year-old boy. The husband, PFC Tucker Moore, was stationed in South Korea when Ashley sent him emails admitting that she had engaged in sex with the boy.

Moore contacted police in Grove City, about 50 miles north of Pittsburgh, in May. He forwarded two e-mails from his wife which "basically state" she was sorry for sleeping with a 14-year-old, according to a police affidavit.

Police said she also admitted the affair when they interviewed her. The boy told police they dated two to three months.

She was ordered Wednesday to stand trial on charges of statutory sexual assault, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and corruption of minors.

Tucker Moore said in a telephone interview that he was upset when he contacted police three months ago.

According to Mercer County District Attorney Robert Kochems, sex with a 14-year-old by a person four or more years older is a crime in Pennsylvania.

Tolerance: Alabama or NYC?

Alabama Bans Wine With Naked Nymph On Label



We read:

"Alabama doesn't want any images of naked flying nymphs hanging off bicycles on the labels of wine bottles sold in the state and that's just the way it is. Might give people the wrong idea. Who knows what folks might start trying on bicycles?

So the state's liquor control board has banned a California wine called Cycles Gladiator because its label uses an Art Nouveau image that once graced the posters of a turn-of-the-century French bicycle manufacturer. So "Fat Bastard" wine is OK but if you think you're going to sell a wine with an artful nude on the label in Alabama, you're just whistling Dixie.

As for Hahn Family Wines in Soledad, Calif., the state's move has been a marketing godsend.

Source

So have a laugh at those Alabama hicks. The sophisticates of NYC would never sink that low, would they? See below.




Book banning: That's the sophisticated NYC-style tolerance

They are about as tolerant as Joe Stalin, who said that "There is complete freedom of speech in Russia as long as you agree with me".

"Like many outlets of the CVS Caremark pharmacy chain, the store in Chelsea at Eighth Avenue and 24th Street has a book rack stocked with texts distributed by a Virginia-based company called Choice Books. These books are the inspirational type, many of them Christian-themed.

Leafing recently through titles like “Emergency Prayers” and “500 Questions & Answers from the Bible,” two Chelsea women were appalled by passages that called homosexuality a “cancer,” sinful and “detestable” to God. The women alerted Chelsea Now, a local newspaper, describing the passages as “hate speech” from which children had to be shielded.

Chelsea Now agreed in an editorial. In short order, CVS removed the two books from its stores throughout the city. “We are committed to building an environment of inclusion and acceptance that values diversity across all areas of our business,” a company spokesman, Michael DeAngelis, said in an e-mail message to me...

Source

Christianity falls outside "diversity", apparently. We can't be TOO diverse, now, can we? The Left walk in lockstep like the Prussian soldiers of old. They would not know the meaning of diversity or tolerance. They use their brains only to defend their orthodoxies.


Posted by John Ray.

Texas Teacher Gets Probation for Improper Relationship - Updated

(Orange, Texas) With tears streaming down her face, former Bridge City High School teacher Megan Sparks, 26, was sentenced yesterday by 128th District Court Judge Patrick Clark to five years of probation for engaging in an improper relationship with an 18-year-old student.

"He was an adult, she was an adult, and normally it would not be an offense except for the relationship as educator/student" said Orange County District Attorney John Kimbrough.

In addition to probation, Sparks must pay a $1,000 fine and have her teaching license revoked in the state of Texas.

By the way, my speculation on this case was accurate.

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Texas Teacher Guilty of Naughtiness with Student
[Previous 7/10/09 post]
(Orange, Texas) In April 2008, a 26-year-old teacher at Bridge City High School, Megan Michelle Sparks, was accused of engaging in an improper relationship with a student. Sparks subsequently resigned her teaching position.

Yesterday, Sparks pleaded guilty before Judge Pat Clark in 128th District Court to charges of improper relationship between an educator and a student.

A pre-sentence evaluation has been ordered. Sentencing has been scheduled for July 31 when Sparks faces anything from probation to 10 years in prison.

I suggest that Sparks will get probation.