3 ex-Penn State officials set to go before judge — It was late at night on Feb. 27, 2001, and Penn State’s then-president, Graham Spanier, one of academia’s most prominent administrators, typed a brief email to two other top administrators as they debated how to respond to a thorny situation. He was, he wrote, supportive of the athletic director’s proposed approach. “The only downside for us is if the message isn’t `heard’ and acted upon, and we then become vulnerable for not having reported it,” Spanier wrote.
The broken dialogue on men’s rights — Never mind the “war on women:” According to growing numbers of bloggers, activists, and authors — some of them women — it’s males in modern Western society who are under siege and whose rights need defending. Is this the next frontier for gender justice, or a woman-hating backlash? Men’s advocacy raises important and worthy issues that often draw unfair ridicule. Unfortunately, it is also prone to toxic rhetoric that subverts its valid points and alienates potential supporters.
Celebrated War Veteran and NFL Cheerleader, Megan Welter, Arrested Amid Internet Fame — Megan Welter, the Iraq war vet turned pro-football cheerleader whose inspiring story went viral this week has been arrested on assault charges in Scottsdale, Arizona. Now Welter, who was lauded for her service as a platoon leader and for acing her auditions for the Arizona Cardinals cheerleading squad when she returned home, is at the center of a sordid domestic dispute. And Welter’s mugshot, in which she looks disheveled and drained, has quickly replaced the glammed-up action shot of her cheering in red hot pants and cropped top.
Don’t Be That Feminist! — Attending the opera in Ottawa a few months ago, I had the kind of experience that once galvanized women to speak out against the sexist put-downs that passed for humor in an earlier era. This time, however, the putative humor was at the expense of men. “Please silence anything in your possession that may be annoying to those around you,” said our host, an affable radio personality with Canada’s public broadcaster, “That includes cell phones, other electronic devices, your husband …”
Don’t excuse female predators of children — Any parent can relate to the fear of a sexual predator lurking in the shadows near a playground, looking for the next victim. And while bad-intentioned strangers sometimes really do lurk in the shadows, the reality is that more than 90 percent of sexual-abuse victims know their perpetrator in some way. Not only are perpetrators typically known by their victims, they usually hold a position of authority and trust over the unsuspecting child.
How pedophile slipped through system, abused more boys — For most of two decades, convicted pedophile Christopher Miller conducted real-life lessons in how to avoid paying for your crimes. He was accused of molesting two young boys in Southern California over extended periods of time. He was arrested three times for possessing child porn. But he spent less than five years in custody after three convictions, resuming his behavior after each release. By 2009, he had become Contra Costa County’s problem.
Lawyer blasts teacher’s sentence: ‘They are boys and she is a woman’ — A former Redlands high school teacher convicted of having sex with three of her students got off easy because she is a woman, an attorney for one of the victims said. Laura Elizabeth Whitehurst, 28, pleaded guilty to engaging in sex acts with three boys and was sentenced to one year in jail this week. She had a baby with one of the boys this summer. She admitted guilt to four counts of unlawful sexual intercourse and two of oral copulation of a person under 18. “This is a very short sentence for such crimes,” said attorney Heather Cullen, whose firm represents the family of the boy who fathered a child with Whitehurst.
Military sexual assault survivors face broken VA treatment system — Former Navy Petty Officer Third Class Brian Lewis had a clear answer when asked what he thought about the current Veterans’ Health Administration system for treating survivors of military sexual trauma: “I cannot in good conscience recommend VA to a survivor of military sexual assault at this time,” he told the House Committee on Veterans Affairs. Lewis and veterans of all branches of the United States military described to the committee Friday their nightmarish experiences of trying to get treatment for military sexual trauma, and while government representatives agreed changes need to be made, progress is likely to be slow.
Religious order priest admitted abusing 100 boys; new files add to LA clergy abuse picture — In therapy sessions, the priest confessed the shocking details he’d kept hidden for years: He had molested more than 100 boys, including his 5-year-old brother. He had sex with male prostitutes, and frequented gay strip clubs. The admissions of the Rev. Ruben Martinez are included among nearly 2,000 pages of secret files unsealed Wednesday that were kept on priests, brothers and nuns who belonged to religious orders but were accused of child molestation while working within the Los Angeles archdiocese.
Teenage boy tried to put sexual abuse out of his mind, court is told — A TEENAGE has told how he put up with being sexually abused by wealthy Stephen Read because the businessman took him shooting – a sport he loved. The boy told Gloucester Crown Court yesterday, Thursday, that his parents could not have afforded to pay for him to do the expensive hobby so he carried on being taken shooting by Read and tried to put the abuse out of his mind. “I wouldn’t have done any shooting otherwise and I loved it,” he said.
Toy Soldiers 