Article here. Excerpt:

'You might think that a university whose students were victims of the most notorious fraudulent rape claim in recent history, and whose professors -- 88 of them -- signed an ad implicitly presuming guilt, and whose president came close to doing the same would have learned some lessons.

The facts are otherwise. They also suggest that Duke University's ugly abuse in 2006 and 2007 of its now-exonerated lacrosse players -- white males accused by a black stripper and hounded by a mob hewing to political correctness -- reflects a disregard of due process and a bias against white males that infect much of academia.

In September, far from taking pains to protect its students from false rape charges, Duke adopted a revised "sexual misconduct" policy that makes a mockery of due process and may well foster more false rape charges by rigging the disciplinary rules against the accused.

Story here. Excerpt:

'RIO DE JANEIRO — A U.S. man caught in a tug-of-war with his late ex-wife's relatives for custody of his son got a boost from Brazil's top prosecutor in a dispute that is testing an international child abduction treaty and heating up into a political tussle.

Attorney General Luis Inacio Adams filed an appeal with the Supreme Court late Friday challenging a decision by one of its justices suspending an order that David Goldman's son, Sean, be turned over to him.

Citing the Hague Convention on International Child Abduction, Adams warned in a briefing posted on the court's Web site that "failing to follow that accord will lead to the imposition of sanctions and damage the reputation of Brazil before the international community."
...
University of Brasilia political scientist David Fleischer said the case — along with Brazil's refusal to extradite Cesare Battisti, a fugitive ex-militant who is wanted in Italy for murder but remains in Brazil despite an extradition treaty between the two nations — is harming the South American country's reputation.

Folks,

I thought I'd share this short film I saw on YouTube. It is creating quite a stir, extremely depressing and disturbing.

In a nutshell, a young bodybuilder mentally abused by a domineering passive-aggressive mother, struggling for independence and self-worth. Can be upsetting, so please be warned.

Story here. Excerpt:

'FAIRFAX, Va. - As Erick Williamson sees it, being naked is liberating, and if passers-by get an eyeful while he's standing in front of a picture window, that's not his problem.

A Fairfax County judge saw it a little differently Friday, convicting Williamson of indecent exposure in a case that has raised questions about what's OK when you're in your own home.

Two women said they saw much more of Williamson than they cared to in October, even though he never left the confines of his home. He received neither jail time nor a fine but is appealing anyway, saying a larger principle is at stake.

"I think that being tried and found guilty of something like this is outrageous," Williamson said after he was convicted and sentenced. "I feel like I'm living in a fishbowl."

Williamson testified that he never intended to expose himself and was simply exercising "personal freedom" as he spent several hours naked in his Springfield home packing up belongings.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'She appears at the curb, waiting to cross. No, she's not the love of your life. She's more like the heat of the moment. It's fortunate that your wife isn't there, otherwise you'd be in deep trouble as you take in the stranger's hips and breasts, and the way her waist scoops in to accentuate both. Time is enhanced; there's a pleasing buzz connecting your temples.

Your reaction is automatic, reflexive, and quite possibly the most powerful one you'll have this day. It temporarily blots out your long-range commitments — that 10-year marriage, that kid in second grade, that responsibility to keep eyes forward at traffic lights. You've surrendered control; you're captivated by the pleasure in the vision.

"You dog!" you may whisper under your breath, embarrassed by what you're envisioning as you sit there in your family van. But it might be more correct to say, "You dopamine fiend!" As a neuroscientist of 25 years, I know that your brain is command central for everything sexual.
...

Video story here. Caption:

'Autism on the Rise
Fri Dec 18, 12:31AM PT ...
CDC study shows the disease is more common than previously believed.'

Article here

Story here. Excerpt:

'A man behind bars for nearly four years for a gang rape that did not happen has been cleared after his accuser admitted she lied to make her friends feel sorry for her.

William McCaffrey hugged his lawyer after the same New York judge who had sentenced him to 20 years in prison threw out the case and apologised on Thursday.

"I've been waiting for this for a long time," the softly spoken McCaffrey, 32, said outside a Manhattan court.

"I'm just glad it's over."

New DNA tests played a part, but his exoneration hinged largely on his accuser recanting - a rarity after rape convictions, the head of a national prosecutors' group said.

State Supreme Court Justice Richard Carruthers called the case "a catastrophe" for both the criminal justice system and Mr McCaffrey, who was in jail from his arrest in 2005 to his release on $5000 bail in September.'

Story here.

'CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Tennessee investigators say a 4-year-old boy was found roaming his neighborhood in the night, drinking beer and wearing a little girl's dress taken from under a neighbor's Christmas tree.

The child's mother, 21-year-old April Wright, tells WTVC-TV the boy "wants to go to jail because that's where his daddy is." Wright says she and the boy's father are going though a divorce.

The boy, found outside his house in Chatanooga on Tuesday, was taken to a hospital and treated for alcohol consumption.

Hamilton County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Janice Atkinson says the incident is being investigated but the department declined to release the report.'

The boy's mother says she met with child protective services and was told she will get to keep custody of her son.'

Story here. Excerpt:

'Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (CNN) -- Brazil's high court has halted the return of a 9-year-old boy to the United States, his American father told CNN.

Thursday's ruling comes one day after a lower court unanimously upheld a decision last June by the 16th Federal Court in Rio de Janeiro, which ordered Sean Goldman returned to his home with his father, David Goldman, in New Jersey. That decision was made in accordance with the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of Child Abductions.

"It is very, very discouraging," David Goldman told CNN's Wolf Blitzer. "I'm very disappointed. This ruling ... has nothing to do with the merits of the case."

It was unclear whether the high court's ruling is a permanent order or if Sean Goldman is being ordered to stay during the appeals process.'

Story here. Look everyone, another wrongly-convicted man (and hey, a black one at that!) is exonerated from a rape charge! Quel surprise! Excerpt:

'BARTOW, Fla. - James Bain used a cell phone for the first time Thursday, calling his elderly mother to tell her he had been freed after 35 years behind bars for a crime he did not commit.

Mobile devices didn't exist in 1974, the year he was sentenced to life in prison for kidnapping a 9-year-old boy and raping him in a nearby field.

Neither did the sophisticated DNA testing that officials more recently used to determine he could not have been the rapist.
...
The jury rejected Bain's story that he was home watching TV with his twin sister when the crime was committed, an alibi she repeated at a news conference last week. He was 19 when he was sentenced.

Florida last year passed a law that automatically grants former inmates found innocent $50,000 for each year they spent in prison. No legislative approval is needed. That means Bain is entitled to $1.75 million.'

An American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) task force is considering recommending circumcision for all baby boys – and Dr. Susan Blank, who chairs the task force, has described arguments in favor of circumcision based on controversial African studies as "very compelling."

Make sure they hear our side of the debate! Circumcising babies is wrong – ethically, morally, and medically.

Tell Dr. Blank that the AAP should NOT recommend infant circumcision.

Already taken action? Tell your friends, or share the campaign on social networks. And if you can, please make a donation to help us spread the word even further!

Article here. Excerpt:

'It seems crazy the amount of media attention Tiger Woods' alleged infidelity has received, especially when you consider the fact that Tiger is not alone in his indiscretions. Prevalence aside, it's always a major blow to the person who has been deceived. Tiger's wife is undoubtedly in this boat, as are millions of his fans left shocked by his behavior. The Woods scandal has occupied dinner table conversations around the country, and has once again forced us to re-evaluate the state of marriage today. Why do people cheat? What can you do to prevent it? And how can you move on if it happens to you? We spoke with M. Gary Neuman, rabbi, marriage counselor and author of The Truth About Cheating, who through his research gave insight on how to keep a healthy marriage.

Story here. Excerpt:

'Cincinnati Bengals Wide receiver, Chris Henry, is no stranger to trouble. He has been arrested several times and suspended from the NFL since he was drafted in 2005. In an effort to get his life back in order, Henry attempted to turn a new cheek, but his life at home was not that great.

A source close to the situation has exclusively told Bossip that Henry’s fiancée, Loleini Tonga has a history of domestic violence and a severe drinking problem. The source states, “I knew the next time Chris would get in trouble it would be because of that girl. She drinks all the time, they get into fights, and she has even bragged about getting into disputes with former boyfriends.”

Chris was injured after falling out the back of Tonga’s pickup truck after a heated argument. He was found on the side of the road with fatal injuries to his head. Currently homicide detectives are looking into the case. Henry and Tonga currently have two children together, and one child a piece from previous relationships.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'It had been a stressful night for the 18-year-old mother of two, who organized a party for a dozen and then saw 40 show up. Her mom didn't make it, and she was left to run Pin the Tail on the Donkey by herself.

Her outburst was the default reaction of a teenager raised in a home where violence was the accepted way of dealing with frustration. And her struggle represents the challenge of teaching a youngster how to manage the stress of motherhood and break the intergenerational cycle of violence.

Thomas is working to alter her aggressive tendencies, and help at the party came in the form of Cynthia Brown, her counselor in a parenting program.

"Shantell," Brown said, "maybe we can think about a better way to say that?"

Thomas dropped the knife to hip level and relaxed her shoulders. "OK, OK, back up, everyone," she said, her voice still tense. "Back up!"