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25 Aug 2011 22:44

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U.S.: Rape victim forced to apologize to rapist

  • One nightmare after another: In 2008, a seventh grade special-ed student in Missouri told school administrators that she’d been raped by one of her classmates. Rather than fulfilling its legal obligation to report the incident to authorities, the school accused the girl of lying, made her write and hand-deliver an apology to her accused rapist, expelled her for the rest of the year, and referred her to juvenile authorities for filing a “false report.” When she returned to school in 2010, the same boy raped her again. School administrators once again brushed the girl aside, but a medical examination backed up her allegations, and the boy pled guilty in juvenile court. Now, the Republic School District, along with four specifically-named members of the administration, is being sued. There really are no words for something like this. source

10 Aug 2011 15:00

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Offbeat, U.S.: How imprisoned polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs will keep his influence

  • cause Warren Jeffs is the leader of a polygamist sect of the Mormon church who was recently sentenced to life in prison for child sex abuse. Not only was he married to underage girls, but many others in the complex he ran were clearly pregnant. However, this was all part of his religion, he claimed — and everyone there has been pretty much brainwashed to believe the same.
  • effect Life in prison won’t separate those in Jeffs’ cult from him. Since he’s been in jail, his followers have continued to believe that he is a prophet and he’s continued to lead church services over the phone. “Now we can really begin to focus on liberating these people and freeing their minds from the mental shackles that Warren Jeffs has put on them,” said Elissa Wall, a former member of the church. source

13 May 2011 03:00

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U.S.: And now, in the “questions we never needed answered” department…

14 Dec 2010 10:16

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World: Julian Assange makes first statement since being jailed last week

  • My convictions are unfaltering. I remain true to the ideals I have expressed. This circumstance shall not shake them. If anything, this process has increased my determination that they are true and correct.
  • Julian Assange • In a statement to his mother Christine while incarcerated in a British prison – his first since being jailed last week. There’s a lot of Assange news today: First, Assange is offering to wear a tracking device in hopes that will allow him to stay free and continue his work with Wikileaks. Second, he apparently has gotten none of his mail (including numerous fan letters) since being imprisoned – except a note telling him that his copy of “Time” was destroyed because his face was on the cover.  Finally, his mom, Christine, has some not-nice things to say about the Australian government. “There’s Julia Gillard opening for Oprah …  and my Julian is sitting here in prison,” she says. “Is it more important to suck up to the Yanks than to look after your own people?” Are you sure that wasn’t Tilda Swinton, Christine? source

08 Dec 2010 23:15

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Politics: Glenn Beck: Surprisingly good at explaining Julian Assange sex case

  • Glenn Beck has made a lot of wacko clips in his day, but this may be one of his most entertaining ever. In it, our boy explains in great detail what Julian Assange did to encourage his arrest on sex charges in Sweden. Beck’s main point in this clip? While he doesn’t like what Assange represents, something smells kinda funny to him. source

07 Dec 2010 21:38

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World: Sweden: Worst possible place for Julian Assange to have random sex

  • 53 rapes reported in Sweden for every 100,000 inhabitants source
  • history Sweden has some of the broadest, furthest-reaching sexual assault laws of any country in the world, partly due to a history that favors womens’ rights.
  • result Sexual assault cases are reported in Sweden more than anywhere in the European Union – and the culture encourages high degrees of equality in gender roles.
  • reaction “Sometimes we lawyers joke that soon you have to have a written permission before you can have sex,” said Bengt Hesselberg, a Swedish lawyer. LOL, funny guy.

07 Dec 2010 08:38

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World: Julian Assange’s extradition for sex crimes not ensured, BTW

  • 21 days for a British court to decide whether to extradite him source
  • » And if they do decide to extradite him: His lawyer, Mark Stephens, says that Assange plans to fight against it. The extradition process is designed as an easy transfer between Britain and Sweden, by the way.
 

15 Jul 2010 10:36

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World: The Vatican takes two steps forward, twelve centuries back

  • good Trying to get a leap on a major PR crisis, the Vatican is stiffening punishments and speeding up its handling of sex-abuse cases.
  • bad They also, however, put the attempted ordination of female priest into the same category as sex-abuse crimes. WTF? source