Category Archives: The Serious Side
Sometimes things just need to be said
Sasha Grey, Porn Star, Reads To Elementary School, Parents Outraged
Sasha Grey, Porn Star, Reads To Elementary School, Parents Outraged
UPDATE: In a victory for education, Grey has released a statement asserting her dedication to continuing her academic endeavors.
“I committed to this program with the understanding that people would have their own opinions about what I have done, who I am and what I represent,” she says (via TMZ). “I am an actor. I am an artist. I am a daughter. I am a sister. I am a partner. I have a past that some people may not agree with, but it does not define who I am… I believe in the future of our children, and I will remain an active supporter and participant in education-focused initiatives.”
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PREVIOUSLY: How would you feel if an adult film star read to your seven year old child? Believe it or not, some parents in California are pretty angry that it happened in their kids’ classroom.
Porn legend Sasha Grey was a guest reader at Emerson Elementary School in Compton, California earlier this month, joining first and third grade students in their Read Across America day. Grey certainly enjoyed the experience, tweeting, “Spent the am with Read Across America Compton, reading to the sweetest 1st & 3rd grade students @ Emerson Elementary!”
The problem, TMZ reports, is that parents aren’t happy — and that school officials, instead of addressing the issue, are claiming it never happened. Of course, it’d be silly for Grey to tweet about it if it hadn’t happened, and more importantly, TMZ has a photo of the event (as they always seem to do).
To be fair to Grey, she is a recently retired porn star, having recently called it quits. She is now a published author, actress in more mainstream flicks (with a part in the Thomas Jane, Rob Lowe and Jeremy Piven film, “I Melt With You”), Peta activist and fan of Occupy Wall Street.
via Sasha Grey, Porn Star, Reads To Elementary School, Parents Outraged.
Personally I find this amusing. seems to me those who are up in arms need to get real. this woman firstly is a RETIRED Porn star, she is giving something to the community.
As for the school instead of denying it should have stood its ground. Considering their are Photos of her reading to the class.
One senario may be they dont watch porn so had no idea, so does that mean those up in arms over this do? Maybe thats how they recognised her.
The main point is she was dressed appropriately and read age appropriate material. Get real people I’m sure her past was not up for discussion.
Ruben Rosario: Amid the Penn State outrage, victims have been forgotten – TwinCities.com
Ruben Rosario: Amid the Penn State outrage, victims have been forgotten
But first, a quick summary for the uninformed.
According to a grand jury presentment, Mike McQueary, then a graduate assistant of the college football team and now an assistant coach, saw Jerry Sandusky, a longtime former assistant coach and PSU booster, sodomize a 10-year-old boy in a school shower in 2002. He informed legendary coach Joe Paterno, who acknowledged this week he was told that the incident involved fondling of a sexual nature. Paterno alerted Tim Curley, the athletics director. The end result is that none of these three men called child protection or the law.
Nine years passed until this week, when a grand jury indicted Sandusky, who ran a foundation for disadvantaged kids, on 40 counts of sexual abuse involving eight child victims over a period of 15 years.
Sandusky was probed by police in 1998 for allegations he sexually molested another boy in a shower. But the district prosecutor declined to press charges. That prosecutor mysteriously disappeared without a trace in 2005, adding more intrigue to the burgeoning scandal.
The grand jury also indicted Curley and another administrator for perjury and failing to report the incident to police. Both men resigned and were placed on administrative leave. The board of trustees canned Paterno and the school’s president Wednesday evening. Nothing has happened to McQueary, who testified
before the grand jury. But he will not be on the sidelines Saturday for the team’s final home game of the season because of fears for his safety.
via Ruben Rosario: Amid the Penn State outrage, victims have been forgotten – TwinCities.com.
Penn State Scandal: Jerry Sandusky Rumored To Have ‘Pimped’ Boys To Donors: REPORT
Penn State Scandal: Jerry Sandusky Rumored To Have ‘Pimped’ Boys To Donors: REPORT
The Huffington Post Chris Greenberg
In the frenzied hours after the Penn State Board of Trustees announced that Joe Paterno was being relieved of his duties as football coach effective immediately, students in State College took to the streets in support of the former coach while college football analysts around the country sought to place his fall from grace in perspective.
Several hours earlier, Paterno had issued an independent statement, revealing his own intention to retire after the season. Clearly, the Board of Trustees felt Paterno needed to go sooner for his complicity in — or, at least, his indifference toward — the heinous sexual assaults allegedly committed by former Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky.
With Paterno’s career having come to a sudden, inglorious conclusion and Beaver Canyon overrun with students, some whom flipped two television news trucks, it seemed that Penn State had reached its nadir.
Perhaps not.
Shockingly, there are reports that even more depraved details about the sexual crimes allegedly committed by Sandusky will be revealed in the coming days. As the quasi-riots shook the Penn State campus late Wednesday evening and early Thursday morning, SportsByBrooks began tweeting ominous messages about allegations that have yet to become public.
via Penn State Scandal: Jerry Sandusky Rumored To Have ‘Pimped’ Boys To Donors: REPORT.
Living with Aspergers Syndrome
I tend to browse through other blogs, I read a great blog the other night Titled My baby will make you uncomfortable and I might laugh. This blog brought back some memories for me. My middle son was exactly the same. he would give strangers and even family members a blank look. Taking his photo was a nightmare he would never smile. He was a chatty chap with family members but you could not get a word out of him around strangers. He would cling to me or hide behind me if strangers were around.Truth be known he rarely smiles even now. In his early years I often wondered what made him tick, as this behavior continued through to playgroup I decided it was time to get some professional advice
After talking to the Doctor he agreed there may be something going on he first sugested Autism. I was then refered to a child psychologist who gave me the following checklist and asked if my son showed any of the following behaviors.
- Social awkwardness / no friends
- Obsessions / focused on one subject
- Lack of eye contact
- Sensitivity to noise / touch / feel of clothing
- Slow to begin talking
- Odd speech / extreme logic / very proper speech
- Anger / aggression / hitting others
- Craves Routine
- Appears lost / in own world
- Flapping hands
- Communication problems or motor skills problems
- Stimming behavior
Well I went through this list and checked of the following behaviours, Social awkwardness, Slow to begin talking, very proper speech, Craves ROUTINE!, Appears lost / in own world, motor skills problems. There were also things not on the list Migraine headaches, unable to handle changes in routines, thought most people hated him, and clumsyness, some of which was put down to poor vision.
After passing all this information back to the therapist she spent a day with him and ran him through a few tests and came back to me with the diagnosis of Mild Aspergers Syndrome. I was stunned as all I knew of this was it was akin to Autism. Well I just had to know more, so after some serious research and chats with the psychologist we went to an occupational therapist who worked on refining his motor skills, now they were not off by much and after 6 months he was equal to his peers with his motor skills.
While all that was happening, at home we worked on a fairly strict routine and tried to make any changes known well in advance. Weeks before school started we had him up early and went through what would be his morning routine. This helped a lot when it was time for him to go to school. We discussed school at length and contacted the school prior to find out their routine and incorporated it into family life. This may seem extreme but I must say it made the transition to school a whole lot easier. Letting the school know of his problem made it easier on the school and by keeping them informed we were able to keep him in main stream schooling.
He was fixated on the military, anything to do with the Army, Navy or Airforce worked great, we got a lot of positive reinforcement from a packet of soldiers. When he completed tasks on his own we would reward him with a much wanted soldier, it was inexpensive and worked great. In no time he could be given a task and could go and do it.
As time went on he became more flexible. He could accept slight changes to his routine, the migraines lessened and he was doing well at school. He loved to play practical jokes on all of us this gave him great joy and he would laugh at our demise. We grew to expect the unexpected from him. He was extremely literal and locgical at times so returning the prank did not go down well. Most times he took it personally not as the joke it was intended.
He has grown a lot over the years, as kids do, but I’m not talking about his size. I’m talking about his self esteem and his ability to accept change in his routine. Mostly he takes it in his stride. Sometimes there is an issue but talking it out and explaining the situation usually solves that problem. He has grown into a wonderful young man who can tell a great joke but dont play a joke on him that still doesnt go down too well. In general he has a few close friends and is now dating. He still tends to take things personally but he can function on his own on a day to day basis. He can’t wait to get his first job and is a very responsible young man.
On his last visit to the child psychologist she spent some time with him and came back and said he has developed extremely well. She said there may be some issues along they way but over all he will cope really well in the adult world. I tend to agree.
Aspergers sounds scary but really its not that bad, its not all doom and gloom. Some simple changes that don’t really effect the family can make a world of difference to a child with this. Some things can be a challenge but with my son the need to get everything right was very powerful. We worked with that need, gave him the routine that he needed and went step by step from there.
Now dont get me wrong it did have challenges, take sport, now that could be called off for bad weather and of course came the end of the season. Both were trying times for him and us but with love and guidance and some modifications to his routine he got through it, as did the rest of us.
83-Year-Old Male Prostitute Arrested
Im lost for words, yet i have some unanswered questions over this news item I came across.
Detectives in Centerville, Iowa, began the investigation into the activities of 83 year old pensioner Ben Clifford Dawson following a complaint the received from a woman who was in debt to him.
According to police they received a complaint about his unusual repayment scheme and launched the investigation. During the investigations into Dawson’s enterprises a female victim alleged that the octogenarian had offered to perform sex acts in lieu of payment for a loan.
Dawson faces two charges of aggravated misdemeanor charges, one of prostitution and one of intent to commit sexual abuse. He was released from the Appanoose County Jail after he posted a bail bond of $2,000.
Asylum seekers boat sinks.
In a previous blog Titled Gillard Government continues to pursue Migration Act changes I said the following when talking about the immigration bill for asylum seekers
This whole mess is not just a policy it’s about people. People that are looking for our help and are willing to risk their lives to get it. There has to be a better way. If we process them closer to where they come from stands to reason they would go there instead of coming here. We could then process them there. I think over all lives may be saved. As these people are coming through people smugglers there is no record of how many leave and how many arrive but my thoughts are a lot just don’t get here.
Well the latest tragedy of this is a boat of asylum seekers sinking off the coast off the west coast of Java early yesterday. Federal Government ministers have confirmed this morning that at least six people – including one child – are dead, while 20 are missing.
A local police chief said.
“They were leaving from Cilacap and their ship sank around the island of Nusakambangan. They left Cilacap at 2am (local time) and about 3am their ship leaked. At 5am, their ship already sank and was found by local fishermen,”
So where does the blame for this tragedy lie? The Gillard Government and the Federal Opposition have been accused of having blood on their hands, but Mr Bowen and Home Affairs Minister Brendan O’Connor lay the blame for the deaths squarely at the feet of the people smugglers. Now while the government and the opposition are being careful not to blame each other it has to be said that if they reached an agreement instead of being bloody-minded and opportunistic, this may not have happened.
Home Affairs Minister Brendan O’Connor
This is not a day for argument, Today it’s about firstly determining the facts and the circumstances around this vessel.
Well I would have thought the circumstances were clear. 70 Iranian asylum seekers sold everything they had to come to Australia for a better life. The Iranians paid $US7000 and flew straight to Jakarta after bribing immigration officers at the airport $US500 for a visa.
Now it seems Some had knowledge about the asylum seeker debate in Australia and decided to come after the Malaysia refugee swap deal was scuttled. Well Mr O’Connor said,
“This is a tragedy, something that the government foretold. We said that if we don’t put in place the most effective deterrent we would see an incline in the incidence of irregular maritime arrivals and we will most likely an incline in maritime fatalities,”
So far its all becoming reality and not just words. Mr O’Connor also said that all the advice given to the government was that the best solution was the agreement struck between Australia and Malaysia.
Kamran, a student from the Kurram Valley on the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan, said another boat taking asylum seekers from Malaysia to Batam, off Sumatra Island, had sunk less than two weeks ago. Kamran paid $US5500 to get to Australia via Malaysia. If this is the case then the Malaysian deal would have worked, they could have been processed in Malaysia as proposed by the governments original bill. the bill that Tony Abbott was dead against. At least last night the government and the opposition finally managed to find some common ground by supporting a bill clarifying that it is still an offence for people smugglers to facilitate the arrival of asylum seekers in Australia, even if those people are legitimate refugees. However the greens did not support it.
Its time for the fighting to stop and time to put in place a policy where these people are processed offshore deterring them from the perilous boat journey and putting the people smugglers out of business, or at the very least save some lives. With the onshore processing more will come, more boats will sink on the journey and more lives will be lost. This needs to be addressed now. Australian authorities intercepted another boatload of asylum seekers north of Christmas Island yesterday so there is an increase of boats coming. Tony Abbott needs to put on his big boy pants and work this out with Julia Gillard now before more lives are lost.
When Enough is Enough. No to Sharia law in Australia.
This may be old news but in light of what is happening in the US, I still believe Julia Gillard got it right when the government moved quickly in May to block calls for sharia law to be introduced in Australia.
In its submission to the parliamentary inquiry into the government’s new multiculturalism policy, The Australian Federation of Islamic Councils (AFIC) has called for Muslims to be granted “legal pluralism”. It argued that a mild brand of sharia should be allowed in family law and divorces, promising it would fit in with Australian values.
I have to agree with Attorney-General Robert McClelland who said there was no “place for sharia law in Australian society” and that the government strongly rejected any proposal for its introduction. He went further by saying,
“As our citizenship pledge makes clear, coming to Australia means obeying Australian laws and upholding Australian values, If there is any inconsistency between cultural values and the rule of law then Australian law wins out, People who migrate to Australia do so because of the fact that we have a free, open and tolerant society where men and woman are equal before the law irrespective of race, religious or cultural background.”
There are Two pledges one that mentions god one that does not but both say the same thing.
I pledge my loyalty to Australia and its people, whose democratic beliefs I share, whose rights and liberties I respect, and whose laws I will uphold and obey.
In reality if we Australians migrated to any country we would have to live with their laws, Why do Radical Muslims come here and expect us to change laws to suit them. Yes i have singled out Muslims, and thats because they are the only ones who have come here making demands that we change for them.
In an interview with The Australian, the organisation’s president, Ikebal Adam Patel, who wrote the submission, nominated family law and specifically divorce as an area where moderate interpretations of sharia could co-exist within the Australian legal system. Some Muslims believe Islamic law is immutable, regardless of history, time, culture and location. The AFIC argues this is not the case and sharia can be applied in a way that fits in to Australia and is not extreme. The submission says,
“This means most of the regulations in Islamic law may be amended, changed, altered, and adapted to social change … Islamic law is changeable according to the requirements of different places and times, and therefore suits the values shared by Australian people,”
Sharia confers unilateral divorce rights on men, while women who initiate divorce are stripped of their property and financial entitlements.
In an interview, Mr Patel said:
“I’m saying that instead of letting the extremists within Islam take over the agenda, we are saying there is a path whereby it will work for all the communities in a moderate way. It is important for someone who is Muslim or a practising Jew that aspects of our religion which can be incorporated within the greater legal system are introduced. This is about personal issues about family, and won’t affect any other Australian,”
AFIC says criticisms of AFIC, as the peak body of Islamic organisations in Australia, “strongly supports that multiculturalism should lead to legal pluralism . . . and twin tolerations”. as being biased against women and treating them as second-class citizens are wrong. “It is important for Muslims to seriously consider this criticism,” the submission says. ”But it is also important for the Australian government to respect the rights of Muslim women who want to keep and maintain the way they dress, eat and interact with others, as long as such behaviour does not inflict harm to others.
AFIC, as the peak body of Islamic organisations in Australia, “strongly supports that multiculturalism should lead to legal pluralism . . . and twin tolerations”.
Well Mr Patel let me say this, there is nothing stopping women dressing as they please here if they want to wear traditional clothing, eat and interact with others that’s up to them but they don’t need Sharia Law to do so.
As a multicultural nation we have accepted many nationalities here and we have many different religions within our population. This is just an example of how arrogant some Muslims can be, another example is in the United states where muslims attending a private Roman Catholic University are offended at their Religious Symbolism. Well why go there?
It boils down to this Mr Patel, if you don’t like it don’t stay, Dont push your agenda onto us, If we as a nation allow Sharia law into our laws and culture well it is my opinion that it will just be time before extremists come along demanding a stronger form of sharia. What will be next? Stoning? Lashing? amputation? I don’t think so.
Our Laws work just fine, By becoming citizens and taking the pledge Immigrants have agreed to live by the laws of this country. Maybe some don’t belong here if they can’t live with our laws.
It’s about time those muslims who have come here for a better life stand up against these radicals, let it be known not all muslims are radicals. Show everyone there are more peace-loving muslims than there are Radicals
WHAT IS SHARIA LAW
Sharia law is “the path that must be followed by a Muslim”.
It brings together elements from the Koran and the Hadith, plus judges’ rulings from Islam’s first centuries. It was fixed by about the 10th century, and contains detailed instructions for practically every aspect of life.
In the West, it is most famous for its penal code: the prescribed punishments for sexual offences, which include stoning; for theft, which include amputation; and for apostasy, for which the punishment is death.
Much more important for most Muslims, however, are the parts of sharia that relate to the status of women, to contracts and to family law.
These include provisions that allow men several wives and that enshrine, in law, the inferiority of women.
Women can be divorced merely by their husbands reciting “I divorce you” three times; their testimony is worth less than that of men; and they cannot marry a non-Muslim man – although it is permissible for a Muslim man to marry a non-Muslim woman.
Within Sharia law, there are a group of “Haram” offenses which carry severe punishments. These include pre-marital sexual intercourse, sex by divorced persons, post-marital sex, adultery, false accusation of unlawful intercourse, drinking alcohol, theft, and highway robbery. Haram sexual offenses can carry a sentence of stoning to death or severe flogging. I fail to see how these laws would work with our laws. They have no regard for Human rights or the rights of women.
How you live your life, regardless of your religon, sexual preference, way of dress is your business, If you want to have a drink after work well go ahead that too is your choice. but in this country men and women are considered equal, a woman is not inferior to her husband.
Muslims came here because they wanted a better life, for themselves and their children and future generations. They took a pledge when they became citizens to uphold the Laws of Australia. Sharia Law is not Australian law, and hopefully never will be. If you want to live in a country that supports sharia law then all means go and do so, dont expect us to change our laws for you. I am sure you wouldnt change sharia laws for us.
http://coffeenchat.wordpress.com/2011/10/27/american-muslims-why-americans-are-confused/
http://coffeenchat.wordpress.com/2011/10/29/american-muslim-confusion-perfect-example/
Three more Australian soldiers shot dead in Afghanistan + Poll
Once again we have the news of 3 more brave aussies killed and seven more injured in Afghanistan.
Reports have not named the three but say that a corporal, captain and lance corporal were members of the Mentoring Task Force in southern Afghanistan. Of the three, the corporal and lance corporal were on their first deployment to Afghanistan while the captain was on a second tour.The corporal and the captain had earlier this year taken part in flood and cyclone relief operations in Queensland. Of the wounded, one soldier was being treated for life threatening wounds, four had serious wounds, and the other two had minor wounds. An Afghan interpreter was also killed.
News of the Australian deaths came as a suicide car bomber in the capital Kabul struck a US-run NATO bus travelling through the south-west of the city, killing at least 17 people, including 13 US soldiers. It is not known at this stage if both are connected.
The biggest question right now is should we bring our people home. My personal feeling on this is YES. If one rebel can infiltrate the Afghanistan Army how many more have. It is concerning because where else have these rebels infiltrated, just going along day by day waiting to strike.
How high a price are we willing to pay?
The Australian forces in Afghanistan have suffered 32 fatalities. 207 soldiers have been wounded.
United States deaths, more than 1,450 have died in hostile action and 14,611 have been wounded in action in Afghanistan.
British forces have suffered 383 fatalities and 1,802 wounded in action, another 3,472 have suffered from disease or non-battle injuries.
This list goes on in fact there have been a total of 2,716 Coalition deaths in Afghanistan.
There is no war against terror that we can possibly win that will eradicate the extremist views and actions. Last week President Hamid Karzai said in an interview, Afghanistan would support Pakistan in case of military conflict between Pakistan and the United States. So tell me again why we are there. Its time these people stood up and took some resopnsibility and trained their own people. Its time to bring our people home.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard said it was a bitter day for Australia, and acknowledged that public support for Australia’s mission in Afghanistan could be further damaged by the incident. She urged Australians not to judge the progress of the mission on one incident alone.
One incident alone, well I dont know how it can be called one incident when this is the second time this year an ANA soldier has targeted a member of the ADF. Lance Corporal Andrew Jones was shot dead by a rogue ANA soldier. That to me raises some serious questions. Questions i think our governments need to be able to answer if they want to justify our troops being there.
How do we know we are training the right people when the ANA dont even know who they have on their side?
Fears of infiltration within the Afghan army ranks have risen as Western backers fund and train a huge expansion of the fledgling national force ahead of the withdrawal of all foreign combat forces scheduled for 2014.
The ADF has launched an investigation to determine whether the gunman, from the ANA’s 6th Kandak unit, was a Taliban or terrorist infiltrator, or whether there was another motivation for the attack. Little is yet known about the shooter but it is believed he had been in the force for some time and was not a new recruit. well to me that raises a lot of concerns.
No matter what the motivation behind the attacks the fact remains a rebel has been a member of the ANA for some time undetected. Striking out when he saw fit killing our men. No one can know how the families of these men feel. Yes they volunteered to defend us, but at no time did they sign up to be sitting ducks. How many more rebels are in the ANA? The longer we stay there the greater the odds of this happening again. Lets get our people out now!!!
Sympathies, prayers and thoughts to family, friends and colleagues.
Lest We Forget.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-10-29/three-australian-soldiers-killed-in-afghanistan/3608612
http://news.yahoo.com/3-australian-soldiers-killed-afghanistan-220152308.html
http://www.news.com.au/national/aussie-troops-shot-dead-in-afghanistan/story-e6frfkvr-1226180499845
Spot of fun with a Dash of Serious 