R&B star R. Kelly acquitted in child porn case Hard to get a conviction when the girl and her family deny that she is on the fuzzy video.
CHICAGO (AP) - Much was made of whether R. Kelly was the man in the sex tape at the center of his child pornography trial. In the end, the R&B superstar walked away because the jury wasn't convinced the female on the graphic video was the 13-year-old girl who prosecutors said she was.
Posted by: DK70 the scantily clad ||
06/14/2008 00:05 ||
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I have long considered this an "artists privilege" case. That is, back when Italy was the artistic capital of the world, there was a general acceptance that artists were inclined to sexual mischief--that it was just part of their being artists.
Typically, an artist would be having an affair with some married woman when her husband came home, and in the ensuing melee, the artist would kill the husband. While anyone else would be tried for murder, the Italian authorities would permit the artist to flee to some other city state.
The attitude was that people come and go, but art survives us all. And thus, in a way, it was a bit more important.
A federal judge under scrutiny for posting sexually explicit material on his own Web site declared a mistrial Friday in an obscenity trial over which he was presiding.
Judge Alex Kozinski said he would ask that the case be assigned to another judge.
Kozinski is chief judge of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals but was serving as a trial judge in a federal obscenity prosecution of a man who distributed videos showing bestiality and extreme fetishes.
"In light of the public controversy surrounding my involvement in this case, I have concluded that there is a manifest necessity to declare a mistrial," Kozinski wrote in his order.
The material Kozinski had on his Web site included photos of naked women on all fours painted to look like cows and of a man cavorting with a sexually aroused farm animal, according to the Los Angeles Times, which first reported about the images in a Wednesday story. The extreme pornography at the center of the trial depicted extreme fetishes, including bestiality, violence against women and sexual activity involving feces and urine.
The postings on the judge's Web site came to light earlier this week when opening statements were under way. The trial was suspended Wednesday after jurors had already watched some of the videos.
Kozinski on Thursday asked an ethics panel of the 9th Circuit to investigate his own conduct and pledged to cooperate fully. He also asked Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts to assign the inquiry to a panel of judges outside the 9th Circuit's jurisdiction of nine western states.
In the obscenity case, the U.S. Department of Justice is prosecuting Ira Isaacs, 57, on four counts, including importation or transportation of obscene material for sale. He faces a maximum of 20 years in prison and forfeiture of assets if convicted.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/14/2008 00:00 ||
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Disgusting. It is extremely difficult to get rid of a judge. Their pals give them delay after delay, while they file motion after frivilous motion. No member of the public would retain confidence in that pig.
#2
Just imagine what would have happened if he hadn't been discovered. He would have ruled in favor of obscenity and the lefitsts would be celebrating another victory.
#3
Filters block my comments on this story. The two examples cited were more humor than pr0n though. Women painted like cows - sounds like a theme from a college feminism class. The 'aroused' farm animal was (I think) a donkey who ran across a man taking a dump in a field and started chasing him, pants around ankles.
#3
From comments: The collection belonged to former NRA director Bruce Stern. He died last year and the estate was auctioned off by Julia & Co. for millions of dollars.
Posted by: ed ||
06/14/2008 23:04 Comments ||
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Egyptian authorities have banned a 92-year-old man from marrying a 17-year-old girl, the Egyptian al-Akhbar newspaper has reported. The Ministry of Justice invoked a law that says the age gap between spouses should not exceed 25 years.
Egypt brought in the law prohibiting the marriage of elderly men to very young girls during the Gulf oil boom. It was an effort to prevent wealthy men from the Gulf States seeking young poor brides from the Egyptian countryside. Not much is known about the 92-year-old man who tried to marry an Egyptian girl of 17 except that he is an Arab from the Gulf.
An Egyptian justice official said by refusing to endorse their marriage it would now be impossible for the girl to travel abroad with her husband. However, in special cases, the justice ministry does allow foreign men to marry Egyptian women more than 25 years their junior if they deposit a very large sum of money in the name of their wife at the Egyptian National Bank. Both husband and wife also have to report in person to the ministry which checks their marriage is genuine to prevent any kind of trafficking in women.
According to the al-Akhbar newspaper, 173 such marriages were allowed in the past year after the foreign husband deposited a sum equivalent to about $80,000 and was screened.
What happens to the money when he's done with her?
Posted by: Fred ||
06/14/2008 00:00 ||
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And in commemoration of this news story, I bring ye this song:
MAIDS WHEN YOU'RE YOUNG
Traditional (Celtic)
An old man came courting me, hey ding a doorum dah
An old man came courting me, me being young.
An old man came courting me, all for his wife to be,
Maids when you're young never wed an old man.
CHORUS:
For he's got no faloo doo rum, fal diddle oo doo rum,
He's got no faloo doo rum, fal diddle day.
He's got no faloo doo rum, lost his ding doo reeum,
Maids when you're young never wed an old man.
When this old man comes to bed, hey ding a doorum dah
When this old man comes to bed, me being young.
When this old man comes to bed, he lays like a lump of lead,
Maids when you're young never wed an old man.
REPEAT CHORUS
When this old man goes to sleep, hey ding a doorum dah
When this old man goes to sleep, me being young.
When this old man goes to sleep, out of bed I do creep,
Into the arms of a handsome young man.
REPEAT CHORUS
I wish this old man would die, hey ding a doorum dah
I wish this old man would die, me being young.
I wish this old man would die, I'd make the money fly,
Girls for your sakes never wed an old man.
REPEAT CHORUS
A young man is my delight, hey ding a doorum dah
A young man is my delight, me being young.
A young man is my delight, he'll kiss you day and night,
Maids when you're young never wed an old man.
REPEAT CHORUS
Posted by: Alaska Paul back home ||
06/14/2008 3:27 Comments ||
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#2
G'D Egypt is poking its nose into the private affaits of Mankind AGAIN!
I hope am planning to marry several 18-45 year old women myself yet!!
#3
When this old man comes to bed, hey ding a doorum dah
When this old man comes to bed, me being young.
When this old man comes to bed, he lays like a lump of lead,
Maids when you're young never wed an old man.
I do officially protest al-Aska Paul!
>;)
/...and Ima ain't no "lump 'O Lead Yet"!
Ima grateful Old Lump intead!
"there's a lump o' lead in a stiff pencil, baby..."
or,...better....let it go
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/14/2008 21:19 Comments ||
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#7
RD, try this:
"there's a lump o' lead in a stiff pencil, baby..."
or,...better....let it go
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
LOL!
I told Gina that It was my MAN-ly RIGHT to have a couple of young girlz [18+] for back up... but she's been strangely silent since this morning.. like she hasn't called me for our usual git together tonight?
/I wonder... gee-whiz ima mentally tired now... gudnight >:)
(Xinhua) -- Parts of areas in and around Des Moines, the capital of Iowa, were ordered to be evacuated by Friday evening after the state received information about river levels due to flood, a local TV reported.
The evacuations are for parts of Des Moines in what is called the 500-year flood plain, an area near the Des Moines and Raccoon Ribers, according to the report by KCCI TV channel.
The order was released after Army Corp. of Engineers projected lever along the Des Moines River would be close to the top of the levees on Friday.
Des Moines Mayor Frank Cownie said that the river would crest in downtown at 8 p.m. on Friday and continue through midnight. "Very significant areas of our city need to evacuate their homes and businesses immediately," city police chief Judy Bradshaw told the TV.
He also said that policemen had been deployed to notify residents door-to-door in addition to a reverse 911 telephone callas emergency alert tool. However, the evacuation order was still voluntary, said Public Works Director Bill Stowe, adding that it could turn mandatory if it is required by conditions.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/14/2008 00:00 ||
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why doesn't Obama stop the flooding?
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/14/2008 13:18 Comments ||
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Frank, Frank, Frank ...
He could, but it's Bush's fault!
Posted by: Bobby ||
06/14/2008 13:36 Comments ||
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In what is being viewed as a CPI(M) ploy to shift focus from burning issues and gain back confidence of minorities, who had shifted their loyalties during panchayat election, the police on Friday arrested 15 Hindu pilgrims to Ganga Sagar but let go a Muslim mob, mostly CPI(M) supporters, who on Thursday night attacked and burnt down an inn at Ganga Sagar Islands before assaulting local police men.
The crowd armed with sharp-edged weapons attacked the inn --- near Kapil Muni temple --- and beat up pilgrims at around 7 pm, said police sources. A few policemen deployed were also manhandled when they tried to intervene. Tapan Ghosh and Sunder Das, both workers of Hindu Sanghati, were also beaten up. The four-hour ordeal continued till a larger contingent of police force headed by the Kakdwip BDO and SDPO arrived.
The mob was led by Sheikh Ismail, a CPI(M) member and chairman of the local panchayat, police sources conceded but refused to arrest the culprits. "Such was the condition that the pilgrims were trembling and even the BDO was injured," said a source and added finally RAF had to be called in. "The police refused to lodge FIRs against the attackers who burnt down three rooms rented by the RSS for pilgrims," said sources.
"What was more agonising was instead of booking the offenders the police arrested the victims. At least 15 of them were arrested and booked under non-bailable sections, BJP State secretary Rahul Sinha said. Meanwhile, thousands of BJP workers led by Sinha on Friday staged a blockade at Esplanade in Kolkata. Later, 526 of them were arrested and released later. "The Left Front Government has become weak," Sinha said, adding that the CPI(M) is trying to appease the minority community by playing a "partisan game."
Posted by: john frum ||
06/14/2008 07:30 ||
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And 2 weeks ago, UK cops threatened to arrest a group of Christians who sought to spread their faith in a Muslim majority neighborhood. While religious minorities are persecuted in every muslim tyranny, those savages demand - and get - freedom to persecute, whenever they immigrate to Dar-Harb.
Alarmed over the declining birth rate among Christians and the rising population of Muslims in Kerala, the Church in the State has decided to launch a campaign to encourage Christians to have three or more children
The larger family concept is mooted by the Church in the context of the fall in the population growth at a rate of -0.40 per cent a decade. Sources in the Roman Catholic Church said Hindus in the State also should view the situation seriously as their rate of fall of population growth, at 1.55 per cent a decade, was far more critical in the context of a growth in the Muslim population at a rate of 1.75 per cent in ten years.
The Catholic Church has taken a serious note of the situation and would soon launch a campaign right from the level of parishes, the minutest community body. The plan is to reach the message of the urgent need for giving up the small family concept and to ask each and every man and wife to have at least three children.
In Kerala, Hindus constitute 55 per cent of the total population, while Muslims form 24.7 per cent. Christians constitute 19 per cent or less.
The worry of the Church, which had come out in a Christian publication in the form of an article by a high-ranking Church official two years ago, is no more informal. A recent two-day meeting of the Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council (KCBC) at Kochi discussed the issue at length and officially decided to initiate the campaign for "larger Christian family". A KCBC office-bearer said the issue would be discussed again in detail at the next KCBC meet scheduled for August. He said the formal launch of the campaign would be after that but the ground work would start immediately.
"Some work has already been done," he said. Bishop Mathew Anikkuzhikkattil of the vast Idukki Diocese, who was also the chief of the KCBC Family Commission, had put forward the idea of larger Christian families. Church source confirmed that a strategy for implementing the concept in the parish or diocesan level would be formed at the August meet of the council. He added that the concept would be named "respect for life" for this was not only because of the concern for the falling population but also because Christianity is based on life and family.
He also said that ideas like giving special support to families with three or more children in Church-run hospitals and educational institutions would also be considered.
"This is the only way to circumvent a huge threat we are presently facing, just like Hindus, in the case of population. As far as the Christians, especially the Catholics, are concerned, the number of children belonging to the community, which had stood at 40 per cent of our total population 50 years ago, is alarmingly shrinking. At today's rate of population fall, this would shrink to 15 per cent of our total population by 2050. We have to correct the course," he said.
A KCBC official said the demographic studies were showing an alarming trend in Kerala where Muslim families alone were showing increase in children, while the number of kids in both Hindu and Christian families had been falling sharply.
Among the chief seven denominations of the Christian Church in Kerala, Syrian Christians, who constitute 80 per cent of the total Christian population, are the most concerned about this fall in population. "Our men and women had got good education and this had contributed hugely to the shrinkage of the population. We will have to use our means to re-educate them to have more children," said the KCBC official.
Catholics had the right to decide on the number of children according to their economic and health indications, which had undergone a good growth in the peculiar Kerala conditions. Those who were more prosperous and healthy were opting for fewer children.
The official said the Syrian Christian population, which stood at 9.7 per cent of the total Kerala population just a year ago could plummet to a mere eight per cent in another ten years. "The children-per-couple status among us is less than 1.7 while that of the Muslims is above three, he said.
Posted by: john frum ||
06/14/2008 07:29 ||
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Outbreed them or outkill them, or vanish. Darwinism.
Two hundred and thirty-three years ago, the United States Army was established to defend our Nation. From the Revolutionary War to the Global War on Terror, our Soldiers remain Army Strong with a deep commitment to our core values and beliefs.
This 233rd birthday commemorates Americas Army Soldiers, Families and Civilians who are achieving a level of excellence that is truly Army Strong both here and abroad. Their willingness to sacrifice to build a better future for others and to preserve our way of life is without a doubt, the Strength of our Nation.
Check out the link for celebrations around the world and a big Happy Birthday to our army folks here.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
A federal judge under scrutiny for posting sexually explicit material on his own Web site declared a mistrial Friday in an obscenity trial over which he was presiding.
Egyptian authorities have banned a 92-year-old man from marrying a 17-year-old girl, the Egyptian al-Akhbar newspaper has reported. The Ministry of Justice invoked a law that says the age gap between spouses should not exceed 25 years. 
