Story here.

'WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday voted overwhelmingly for Hillary Rodham Clinton to become the next secretary of state, endorsing President-elect Barack Obama's promise to take U.S. foreign policy in a new direction.

The action paves way for a full Senate vote after Obama takes office on Jan. 20. Clinton is not expected to hit any major roadblocks, with Republicans and Democrats alike praising her acumen on the issues.

But concerns about her husband's charitable fundraising overseas remains. Sen. David Vitter of Louisiana, who was among several Republicans who raised the issue at her confirmation hearing earlier this week, cast the lone opposing vote.

Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., said he too remains wary that contributions to the Clinton charity could pose conflicts of interest. But, he added, he wouldn't stand in the way of her appointment at this point and noted that Clinton could become one of the nation's best secretaries of State to date.

Story here. Excerpt:

'A University of Arkansas employee faces charges for recording a teenage girl in the shower even though his girlfriend told police she did it to get him in trouble.
...
Robinson is accused on Oct. 6 of possessing nude images of a 16-year-old girl and using a digital camera to secretly record her while she was taking a shower.
...
He said his longtime girlfriend, Lela Churchwell, took the video herself in an effort to get him in trouble, ...
...
On Nov. 13, Churchwell told police that she had recorded the nude shower footage but told the victim and police that Robinson did it to get him in trouble...

Story here. Excerpt:

'A primary school teacher faces jail for sending lewd texts to a 14-year-old boy after grooming him over the internet game World of Warcraft.

Lynn Walls, 42, who has been sacked from her job, used the interactive computer game to befriend the teenager and get his mobile phone number while playing online.

She then sent the boy, from London, a series of graphic texts in November 2007 which outlined what she intended to do with him if they met.

She was caught out when his father read them.

Today she returned to Newcastle Crown Court to be sentenced after admitting inciting a child under 16 to engage in sexual activity.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'In 2005, the latest statistics offered by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 25,907 men killed themselves, versus 6,730 women. A big part of this discrepancy is that men use much more successful methods of suicide. Each of the four moguls who took their lives did so in a decisive fashion. "Men take far more permanent measures," says Manhattan psychotherapist Jonathan Alpert, who counsels many Wall Streeters and their families. "Women might make gestures that are not as strong, that are more a cry for help or attention."

The financial crisis offers serious and perhaps widespread motivations for male suicidal behavior. "This is just the tip of the iceberg," says Dr. Leslie Seppinni, a Beverly Hills, Calif., clinical psychologist who counsels many millionaires, both male and female.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'Valenstein's research team collected data on 887,859 VA hospital patients being treated for depression from April 1999 to September 2004. They calculated the suicide rate for several 12-week periods, including after the start of treatment with antidepressants, after treatment changes, and upon discharge from a psychiatric hospital.

Article here. Excerpt:

'CHAMBERSBURG -- Adult female college students struggling to juggle an academic career with several other commitments elsewhere can now live on campus at Wilson College through its adult residency program.
...
"Adult women are the fastest-growing college demographic and are projected to be so over the next several years," said Mary Ann Naso, Wilson vice president for enrollment.
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Men are barred from living on campus, as there are no programs for traditional-age male students at Wilson.
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Under the older program, mothers can stay in a two-room suite with their daughters up to their last year of high school, or their sons up to age 11. Unlike the new program, it is for full-time residency only.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'One of the biggest splits occurs in families with a father who has little education or is absent — with sons much less likely than their sisters to go to college, said Claudia Buchmann, an Ohio State University sociologist who spoke at UC Davis in November. The reasons are unclear, though young men from those families may face more pressure to get a job immediately after high school, place a lower priority on education or fail to recognize the potential of a degree to raise their earning power.
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The result, Kimsey said, is a society of women who are increasingly highly educated and white collar and men who are less educated and blue collar.
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Many men who do go to college seem less prepared than their female classmates for the rigors of their coursework, say some UC Davis academic advisers and students. Men tend to procrastinate more in their studies while many women seem driven to excel.'

Story here. Excerpt:

"A female teacher at a top private boys' school has been arrested over allegations of sexual misconduct involving sixth-formers.

Hannah McIntyre, 24, has been suspended from her job at Merchant Taylors school, in Crosby, Merseyside.
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The alleged sexual activity is said to have taken place away from the premises of the £8,000-a-year school, whose former pupils include ex-Archbishop of Canterbury Robert Runcie.

Although sixth-form students are above the age of consent, it is a criminal offence for teachers to engage in sexual activity with them because of their 'relationship of trust'.

Government guidance also warns teachers that 'intimate or sexual relationships between staff and pupils will be regarded as a grave breach of trust'."

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Video report here. Title: "Does New Government Drunk Driving Campaign Unfairly Target Men?"

Article here. Excerpt:

'Having given us class war yesterday with her ‘equality’ proposals the Minister for Women, Harriet Harman, returns today to her signature battleground of the sex war to promote yet another policy that springs from the desire to give men a bashing.

At present, the law provides a defence of provocation to the charge of murder in cases where there is a sudden loss of temper or self-control.

Story here. Excerpt:

'Ottawa police have charged a woman with aggravated assault after her boyfriend fell through a pane of glass at a Herongate-area apartment building Sunday.

Police are disclosing nothing more about the 25-year-old accused or the alleged assault because they say their policy is not to disclose information about domestic-related incidents.

Officers responded to an apartment building on Cedarwood Dr. just after 2 p.m. and found a 34-year-old man with cuts to his neck, face and head.

Police said the injuries were originally life-threatening, but the man's condition subsequently improved.'

"Tiff"?

Story here. Excerpt:

'Ivan Henry already had a criminal history in 1983, a previous conviction for attempted rape. He also had a history of drug and alcohol abuse. According to a court-appointed psychiatrist, he was psychotic and suffered paranoid delusions.
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He has spent the past 26 years in prison for crimes he has always maintained he did not commit.

The record now casts serious doubt on the prosecution's case against him and the process leading to it.
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But "relevant and potentially exculpatory" evidence had surfaced while Henry languished in prison.

He had, in the 1980s and 1990s, tried to initiate 55 proceedings, all on his own. None succeeded.
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The suspect was identified during yesterday's proceedings, but his name cannot be published under court order. He pleaded guilty to three sex offences in 2005 and received a five-year prison sentence. He has since been released.

Story here.

'HOUMA – A Dulac man who spent 18 years in state prison for a rape he didn’t commit has died.

Clyde Charles, 55, died of natural causes Wednesday at his home on Shrimpers Row, according to relatives.

In 1981, Charles was wrongfully convicted of rape and sent to Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola after a woman identified him as her attacker.

Almost two decades after his imprisonment, Charles was exonerated of the crime based on DNA evidence. The same evidence implicated his brother, Marlo Charles,

in the crime. Marlo Charles is serving a life sentence for aggravated rape.

Relatives said he had diabetes, among other health problems, and was receiving dialysis.

A memorial service is scheduled for 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday at the Blaine Clay Lodge No. 14 F.M., 915 Lafayette St., Houma. In lieu of flowers, family asks donations be made to the Innocence Project at innocenceproject.org'

Article here. Excerpt:

'Marriage automatically translates into a legal binding and loss of freedom. No wonder, they are commitment-phobic.

Once again, Mr. H. hits the nail on the head. Read it here. If you read this, even if you are a die-hard 100% feminist, and don't find it very disturbing, then you probably are among the Clinton donors he is talking about. Excerpt: