Forum: News & Topical Issues
Five sex questions with Bling Dawg - "Mi rather shi use a toy than give another man" ...BADANG!!!
Is it right for a man to beat a woman (no matter what the circumstances???)
Is it right for a man to beat a woman??
or for a woman to beat a man??
(no matter what the circumstances???)
Key prosecution witness Lisa Van Allen testified yesterday (June 2) at R. Kelly's child pornography case that she had videotaped, three-way sex twice with R. Kelly and an underage girl.
Van Allen explained that after she met R. Kelly in late 1997, they filmed each other with the alleged victim on two separate occasions - once in 1999, and once in 2000. Prosecutors made it a point to explain that neither tape was the one shown to the jury at the trail, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
Van Allen went on to say that before last week, she had never seen the video shown to jurors, which allegedly depicts R. Kelly having sex with the alleged victim - who was 13 at the time; when she did see it, however, she identified the people in it as the Grammy-award winning singer and the alleged victim.
"They both looked exactly the same way," said Van Allen, who estimated the year of the video's filming as 1998. She also said she recognized the room.
Reports from the New York Post elaborated on Van Allen's testimony; one occasion she described was following an awards ceremony at which R. Kelly had been honored. According to Van Allen's testimony, she, R. Kelly and the alleged victim were filmed having sex on a black futon set up on his private basketball court.
"He took up his camera and we took off our clothes and we all had sex again," said Van Allen.She then broke into tears and said, "I didn't want to do it," she said. "[Kelly] stopped everything and we left."
Commissioner of Police "QUITS" What is happening to JA????
Admiral jumps ship - Top cop Lewin quits
published: Tuesday | June 3, 2008
Rear Admiral Hardley Lewin, seen here in army uniform, yesterday resigned as police commissioner. Lewin, who became Jamaica's top cop in December 2007, has faced widespread criticism from within the constabulary. - file
Rear Admiral Hardley Lewin has reportedly tendered his resignation as commissioner of police after just 168 days in the job, a senior government official confirmed last night.
The official said the resignation was on "general terms".
Last night, Lewin would not confirm whether he had stepped down.
"Be careful what you hear," was all Lewin was prepared to say when The Gleaner confronted him last night at the Police Officers' Club, St Andrew.
Later, he told The Gleaner by telephone, "I am not getting into any discussion about anything."
Last night, the chairman of the Police Service Commission, Noel Hylton, said he would not comment on the issue before a meeting with other members of the commission today.
On Sunday, Prime Minister Bruce Golding hinted that there were significant challenges in the police force. He told supporters at a Jamaica Labour Party Area Council One meeting in Pembroke Hall, St Andrew, that some members of the force were not performing optimally because they were not happy with the new commissioner and some of his initiatives.
Increasing pressure
The Golding administration has been under increasing pressure to present a crime plan to arrest the spiralling murder rate.
The latest demand was made by the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica last week.
Since taking office on December 17, Lewin has faced a runaway crime rate, with more than 800 Jamaicans killed.
The month of May was particularly punishing, as more than 190 persons were murdered.
This is worse than any month in the record-breaking year of 2005 where 1,674 persons were killed.
In his first press conference after assuming the post of top cop, Lewin said he would embark on a shutdown of stations seen as inadequate and ineffective.
Over 25 cops arrested
Lewin also talked tough on reining in corruption in the force. One of his main intentions was to raise the fear of detection in the force in his first year. This aspect saw some success with more than 25 policemen arrested on corruption charges.
Meanwhile, the Opposition last night expressed its willingness to participate in a resumption of the Vale Royal talks, which the Government requested be convened as a matter of urgency.
It also recommended that the Government place priority on curbing crime.
"The forthcoming talks should be solely dedicated to finding some common ground on this issue and that every effort be made to harness the goodwill of all Jamaicans in attacking this monster," chairman of the People's National Party, Robert Pickersgill said.
As chief of staff of the Jamaica Defence Force (October 2005)
"Tivoli Gardens represents the mother of all garrisons. The garrison machinery is well oiled, super effective and must be the envy of all others.
"Garrisons of whatsoever persuasion, JLP, PNP or no P, were little monsters that were created, possibly for reasons of political survival and defence of the faith. Little monsters grow into big monsters and spawn many little monsters which too grow up to become big monsters. In time, we can be overwhelmed and consumed by the consequences of our own creations.
As commissioner of police
On whether he feels pressured by the Government's pronouncements that it intends to reduce crime by 40 per cent over five years:
"Absolutely not! Part of the problem we have in this country is that we set low targets for ourselves and then fail to achieve them. I don't have a problem with the bar being raised. We can always look, at the end of the period, and then make a proper assessment of why we did not make a particular target. I'm not afraid of it!"
On guns over brains
"Whether it's a civilian with a licensed firearm or whatever, you give a man a gun and his brain stops functioning because he now has that power."
On closing police stations
"You have police stations all over the place and most of them don't make one good station. We're going to shut some down."
On cleaning up the JCF
"When one mentions the word 'police', I am sure that one of the first things that comes to mind is the word 'corruption'. My first act on my first day was to sign and promulgate the anti-corruption plan for the Jamaica Constabulary Force."
On crime
"We have to accept some truths. If we could just manage that, I think we are well on our way. Let me make it clear, it is going to get somewhat worse before it starts to get better."
Barack Obama sealed the Democratic presidential nomination yesterday, a historic step towards his once-improbable goal of becoming the first black United States president. Meanwhile, a defeated Hillary Rodham Clinton manoeuvred for the vice-presidential spot on his ticket.
Obama's victory sets up a five-month campaign against Republican John McCain, a race between a 46-year-old opponent of the Iraq War and a 71-year-old former Vietnam prisoner of war and staunch supporter of the current US military mission.
They will vie to succeed President George W. Bush, whose popularity ratings continue to plunge.
Obama, a first-term Illinois senator, beat Clinton, the former first lady, in a 17-month marathon for the Democratic nomination.
Unexpected
But Clinton's declaration of an interest in becoming his running mate was unexpected.
"I am open to it" if it would help the party's prospects in November, Clinton said yesterday of the union which could shore up support among Hispanics for Obama.
Up to press time, Obama's campaign had made no response to Clinton's comments.
Do you think the sofwares download section should be private.
-- Edited by vybz10107 at 09:33, 2008-06-04
MTV star Xzibit from "Pimp my ride"lost his newborn son
Rapper and MTV star Xzibit just suffered a tragic loss, the death of his newborn son.
Xzibit posted the following on hisMySpace blog:
AS you all know, I shared with you the announcement of my newborn son Xavier Kingston Joiner on may 15th and also informed you that he was born prematurely. well this week was extremly difficult for him because his lungs were not strong enough to handle regular oxygen on his own. Xavier passed away this morning at 3:30am and I must tell you this, It is unatural for a parent to bury a child. I am telling you this because of the same reason I tell you when im having great times, life is too short to be fake. Hold on to your kids if you have them, protect them and show them you love them everyday you wake up and see them, dont take a second you get to hug them teach them and care for them for granted. You can have all the material wealth in the universe but it is NOTHING compared to having your family. I am thankful for all of my blessings and im not one to question God's perfect plan, so I leave you with great love and thanks for the love that was sent earlier on my pervious blog to my son. Of course I need to take some time and handle my loss, STAY FOCUSED PEOPLE. Its not promised to any of us.
R.I.P Xavier May 15th 2008- May 26th 2008
Lil Wayne-Weezy F Baby The Greatest Rapper Alive!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A man who was found guilty of chopping his girlfriend over a $3,500 cellphone was fined $10,000 when he appeared in the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate's Court.
Clinton Burke, the accused man, pleaded guilty to unlawful wounding when the matter was mentioned on Wednesday.
The court learnt that on May 8, the accused put down his phone at home and when he could not find it, he and the complainant became involved in an argument. During the argument, Burke, allegedly, used a machete to hit the complainant all over her body causing cuts to her hand and her head.
However, Burke said that during the argument the complainant asked her daughter for a machete and she brought a piece of board shaped like a bat. He said the complainant hit him with the board and a struggle developed and during the struggle she was cut.
The complainant denied this and said he had hit her with the machete. After listening to both sides, Senior Resident Magistrate Glen Brown fined the accused $10,000 or three months.
21 May 2008 | by Abena, Freelance Writer
New York, dem a talk say mi get fired like Ms. Kitty from Nationwide, but nutten no go so, the way Kriq and Claude Mills love me, dem ah offer me shares inna this. Weh oonu feel like? Mi caan tek a break, mi entitled to it, oonu ah gwaan like mi live ah one876 office, mi have other business interests fi attend to as well. No badda get mi cross and angry inna this, yu know, just read the Wednesday Tea and stop gimme problems.
BEENIE AND BARBEE BREAK UP?
BeenieMan_Barbee.jpgPeople have been asking what is the deal? Why Barbee is no longer flying to Jamaica and Beenie is being seen with her less and less in New York? Beenie lose interest already? Or ah the ends of the new browning inna Jamaica him a feature? Email me and mek me know what a gwaan.
KITTY LEAVES NATIONWIDE
So Ms. Kitty has left Nationwide. She resigned on Monday, so she nuh leave inna under one dark cloud like how some people ah claim say, she leave under her own power, and mi hear say she have big tings in store fi har. Claude Mills called her fi ask is true and she tell him, you will soon hear everything. How she so hype? Anyway, Ms. Kitty, gwaan do yu ting.
MAD MICHELLE BUSS FIGHT AT PASSION SUNDAYS
Which girl and Mad Michelle pap a fight over Passion Sundays this week? Mi not even get fi see wah really a gwaan because mi caan bother wid the war ting when mi go out anymore. It frightening, mi ah get old, mi nuh find dem ting de exciting. But mi a wonder wah she a fight over? Toddler? Him get hot from him get the #1 and him start get him regular airplay yu see?
Craig Dennis Earthstrong Next Friday
Well, the whole ah the artiste dem a look forward to Craig Dennis birthday
Celebration on Friday, May 30 at 60 Chisholm Avenue, Kingston 13. Yu dun know, the Empire will be there in full force.
SUGE KNIGHT KNOCKED OUT BY BARBER?
What a way the barber de pon youtube a boast say him knock out Suge Knight? Him no realize who him a ramp wid, yu nuh see Suge not even report the incident, so yu know wah that mean.
THE PEOPLE WAAN FI KNOW
How come Bassy from TOK and Beenie Man ah par straight from wah day ya? Mi see dem inna the club last night.
Which big female disc jockey fly go foreign the other day fi a certain rasta artiste birthday?
Why Harry Toddlers babymother and Mad Michelle caan just get along? Dem nuh know say the ting haffi share.
Who is the new browning inna Bounty Killer life?
Hospital employee arrested for performing sex act on patient
MIAMI - A Mount Sinai Medical Center employee was arrested Wednesday after he confessed to performing a sex act on a male patient waking up from anesthesia after surgery.
Gonzalez was immediately fired following the April 30 incident where the patient said Gonzalez wheeled him from a recovery room to his standard room, helped him out of bed and "began to perform oral sex" on him, according to a police report obtained by The Miami Herald.
Although the 31-year-old patient was coming off anesthesia, he told detectives he was aware of the act and could ID the suspect.
The patient told a nurse and later called Miami Beach police, according to the report.
""Even an isolated incident is unacceptable. We worked very closely with the Miami Beach Police on this matter, and will continue to assist the authorities until a proper resolution is achieved," spokeswoman Pamela Gadinsky said in a statement.
Gonzalez was being held at a Miami-Dade County jail. It was not clear if he had legal representation. A message could not be left at a listing for a Pedro Gonzalez in Hialeah.
The youngest American Idol winner Jordin Sparks is now on vocal rest due to throat injury.
American Idol champ Jordin Sparks has been ordered not to sing after suffering a vocal cord hemorrhage that doctors say could cause permanent damage to her voice. The injury forces the 18-year-old singer to drop off the Alicia Keys tour until at least May, her record label said.
According Jive Records, Sparks has been going nonstop over the past two years and now shes going through the normal course of learning how to manage and care for her voice.its been said that this could cause permanent damage to her beautiful voice. Hopefully she fully recovers because shes one of the few who really has talent.
| Commissioner retracts |  |  |
| Tuesday, 03 June 2008 | |
 Prime Minister Bruce Golding Tuesday afternoon confirmed that Commissioner of Police Rear Admiral Hardley Lewin had withdrawn his letter of resignation and would continue in the post.Addressing the widely publicised issue in the House of Representatives, Prime Minister Golding said the Commissioner's change of heart came after discussions involving Admiral Lewin, members of the Police Service Commission and himself. No support Much has been said over the last 24 hours about whether Commissioner Lewin has the full backing of the political administration and members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force, and whether this was a factor in his resignation. Mr. Golding sought to put that matter to rest. "The Commissioner has been reassured that he has the full backing of the government and the Police Services Commission. He needs to be assured as well that he has the full support of the members of the police force and the support of well thinking people of Jamaica," he said. Commissioner Lewin was appointed in December with much expression of public support.  Resources being mobilized But the lack of adequate resources and legislative support have been cited as two of the factors that continue to inhibit the country's crime- fighting efforts. Prime Minister Golding promised improvements in these two areas. "The resources of the c****ined security forces are being fully mobilized to wage vigorous and sustained initiative to restore safety to our streets and communities, to apprehend criminals, to dismantle criminal gangs and recover illegal guns." Mr. Golding said the Attorney General has been instructed to fast-track the preparation of the necessary legislation. Regarding the Strategic Review of the organisation of the Jamaica Constabulary Force, Mr. Golding told the House that this was now the subject of intensive discussions and will be shared shortly with the parliamentary opposition. Lewin must continue Several local human rights groups have welcomed the decision of Rear Admiral Lewin to withdraw his resignation. In a joint statement issued Tuesday, the local chapter of Amnesty International, the Independent Jamaican Council for Human Rights and Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ) said they support the Commissioner in his decision to reconsider his resignation. JFJ's Executive Director Dr. Carolyn Gomes told RJR News that Commissioner Lewin is the right man for the job at this time as he shares the organisation's principles on human rights. Supports human rights efforts  "We believe he (agrees with us) that human rights is not an obstacle to peace and security but rather the tool for the preservation of peace and security.We're convinced that he (the Commissioner) and several members of the police force understand that respecting human rights is more effective policing," she said. Dr. Gomes said the human rights groups understand how this plague of violence has affected the country but they also understand that getting control will not be an overnight sensation. "We have to avoid the tendency to employ policing methods which have resulted in the alienation of the police from the people," she said. Dr. Gomes commended the government for its decision to return the resignation, adding that JFJ is confident that Commissioner Lewin has the ability to implement the crime strategy needed to stem the current crisis. Powerful lobby for Commish Dr. Gomes also dismissed claims that JFJ and other powerful groups lobbied the government and were instrumental in the Commissioner withdrawing his resignation. "We have not had any dialogue with the Prime Minister, the Commissioner and the Minister of Security. We had no dialogue with anyone beyond the human rights groups and the media this morning before hearing about the (Commissioner's) decision to withdraw the resignation. We were as much in the dark and have had as little input as the rest of the society," she said. Improved relationship Chairman of the Police Officers Association (POA) Superintendent Michael James has stated that the relationship involving the senior officers and the Police Commissioner had been improving. There have been numerous reports that Commissioner Lewin and his senior officers were not seeing eye to eye. According to RJR News sources, the Commissioner's style and utterances have not gone down well with members of the senior rank. It is believed that the deep divide has led many within the Force to withdraw their support for the Commissioner. Resignation & retraction sends the wrong signal But two political commentators said the Police Commissioner's decision to withdraw his resignation raises more questions than answers for both the Commissioner and the current Golding Administration. Political Analyst Dr. Paul Ashley said the move could send the wrong signal about Commissioner Lewin's commitment to the post. "It must have been very serious and fundamental consideration's that prompted the man in the middle of the war on crime to resign.' Can you imagine, if as Chief of the Jamaica Defence Force and we were subject to an external attack that he resigned in the middle of that?," said Dr. Ashley. He said for Mr. Lewin to resign in the middle of the Force's war on crime was a very serious and calculated step to take. What are the guarantees?  Dr. Ashley said the challenges which forced the Commissioner to resign could not have been addressed so quickly. He also asked whether the country could be faced with a similar situation in the near future. "I'm a bit puzzled as to what could have changed in less than 24 hours and I'm prompted to ask the question whether he guaranteed a set of circumstances that will not cause him to be perpetually handing in his resignation." Political Commentator Shalman Scott agreed. He added that the Commissioner will have to make a commitment to address some of the problems which led to his resignation. "The fundamental problems that even the Commissioner himself conceded to exist which has to do with the interpersonal relationship between himself and the force that he leads ... that problem remains. What is also obvious is that the Commissioner is having a problem making the transition from the military type of management to which he is accustomed to a paramilitary/civilian type of management," said Mr. Scott. |
Mr. McNeil's body was found hanging at his house about 6:30pm.
He would have celebrated his birthday later this month.
He was a gardener at a hotel in Drapers.
Mr. McNeil failed to show up in the morning and his bicycle was seen parked in front of his one bedroom house which he occupies with his son.
Residents went in search of him and found him dead when they opened the door.
His sister Beverley said Mr. McNeil had told his son that he was going to kill him and himself.
| Fashion ova School TEEN EDITORIAL |
Tuesday, May 20, 2008 |
"Inna wi nowadays clothes, inna wi nowadays shoes, nowadays bag any one wi can choose". That is the mantra of many TEENagers as it relates to how they "dress" to go to school.
Have you ever stopped for just a minute to observe the way some teenagers are attired for school? Well, if it weren't for their uniforms you probably wouldn't be able to tell that they were going to a place of higher education.
The excitement that surrounds the hairstyles, the name brand shoes as well as the well-manicured nails is almost appalling. Unfortunately we can't say this same level of excitement is expressed as far as the school's curriculum is concerned.
It is evident that the excitement and creativity of dancehall fashion is slowly creeping into the dress codes for school children. School uniforms are being transformed into cheerleading and pimp outfits. Many TEEN girls look the same way when they are going to school as they do when they are going to a party or a dancehall session. Penciled in eyebrows, fake eyelashes, hair extensions, uniform skirts way above their knees, large coloured hand bags, finger nails well polished to match their uniforms and last but not least the oh so fashionable hair do's (rum ram, mohawks and worst of all the bed room hair wrap). These are just a few of the styles that are being sported by TEEN girls in schools today.
Gone are the days, it seems, when TEENaged girls carried themselves in a dignified and ladylike manner.There seems to be a great misconception as to what encompasses being a 'lady', a misconception that needs to be corrected, and soon.
Don't think for one minute that the boys are to be left out of the newly discovered fashion trends. Some young men make regular trips to the tailor's shop to make adjustments to their school pants transforming them into skinny pants (aka tight-foot pants) and it seems to TEENage that many of their parents are jewellers because they wear some of the biggest earings that we have ever laid eyes upon.
Elvis Presley must be turning in his grave at the sight of his signature sideburns being reinvented among our local males with the use of shoe polish.
The young men have even taken the transformation process as far as to adding a piece of material to their uniform shirts to make pullovers.
TEENage thinks that it is imperative that the schools where these rules are being broken should play a more active role in dismantling some of the notions that these students possess. Students should be sanctioned when they blatantly disregard the school rules when it comes to their attire.
No one is saying that TEENs shouldn't take pride in their attire, but some of them are definitely overdoing it. Do they think these "school fashion trends" make them look hot? Well, TEENage thinks it shows a lack of self-confidence and low self-esteem.
To make matters even worse many of the students who follow these trends will get into trouble with their school officials because they dress contrary to the school's dress code.
Dressing for school is what sets the stage for how people dress in the working world and if these TEENs continue as they are now then they could be at a great disadvantage when the time comes for them to enter the professional world.
Many professional organisations have strict dress codes in the same way that schools also have uniform regulations and so learning to respect one's uniform as outlined by the school will make the transition into the working world much easier.
Since it is never too early to start planning for one's future TEENs today need to learn to distinguish between dressing professionally and dressing casually, and schools should play their part in ensuring that their students learn this lesson.
Dear Pastor,
I am a 23-year-old male. My concern is that my penis has a curve to the left. I have never had sex before and what I want to know is: Will it affect me in sexual intercourse? And is it normal in the first place? If not, can it be corrected and how?
A.B., Jamaica
Dear A.B.,
You have Peyronie's disease. It is not known what causes Peyronie disease. Doctors say that it can happen after an injury. "In early stages of the disease there is usually pain associated with having an erection. Sometimes that pain begins before the actual curvature starts, so that it can act as an early indicator." Sometimes the bend is slight and does not affect intercourse, but at other times it prevents the man from having intercourse. The good news is that the curve may disappear on its own. Surgery may help, but there is no guarantee that it may cure the disease.
I suggest therefore that you consult a medical practitioner.
23 Year Old Virgin!!!!!! 
-- Edited by Garrick at 13:53, 2008-05-20
| Problems with my husband Rights |
| Margarette Macaulay Monday, May 26, 2008 |
Dear Mrs Macaulay,
I met a divorced man in March 2001 while he was vacationing in Jamaica. We exchanged phone numbers and began dating almost immediately. He was building a two storey house in Jamaica, during that time. He said he wanted help to oversee the construction. I offered to help and he started sending funds to me to buy materials and engage the services of tradesmen.
In May 2002 I resigned my job to concentrate fully on his business. I also used my personal funds (I have documentary evidence) to help. In July 2003 we became officially engaged. During this time I continued the work on the house. In December 2004 we got married. We kept the visits up both ways in the years following. As of April 2008, the last time he left, we haven't spoken. I don't know where I stand with him. The house is almost complete and I want to know what I am I entitled to. He has a registered title with his sons as joint tenants. What am I entitled to in case of a divorce? Can he legally put me out of the house?
Wow! I hope, in addition to writing to me for information about your possible property rights, that you have also made plans to talk to your husband for both of you to try to save your marriage. This surely should be the matter of priority for both of you and in instances when both parties are upset and angry (you said you both said some hurtful words to each other), one of you has to make the first move and open discussions. The sooner this is done the better, because leaving a festering wound to continue to fester, without any form of treatment, only makes the wound worse and more difficult to cure. Now as to your property interests and rights. It is unfortunate that your did not seek advice before you offered to help him with his construction. You did so, then gave up your job in order to do this full time, of your own volition. You left your home and went to stay in the unfinished premises at his request. In other words you became the "watch-woman" or security guard for his property. You said he told you to finish the ground floor and move there in order to save funds. You did not state whose funds would thereby be saved, but I conclude they were his funds.
Then, madam, without his having asked for a loan from you or even for your financial assistance, you used you personal funds "to help". You did all this without any discussion or arrangement, for him to reward you for your time and work and for him to pay back to you your personal funds which you expended or would have to expend on the construction, nor did he promise to give you an interest in the premises because of your services and contribution to its development.
The property is not solely his. He does not wholly own it. It is held jointly with his sons. Therefore, he could not have given you an interest in the property anyway, without the consent of his co-joint owners, his sons. Did they also know what you were doing about and for the construction? Did your husband ever say anything which led you to believe that he solely and wholly owned the property and that you would benefit from your efforts in assisting him to complete the construction? I think I can answer that in the negative. You would not have failed to say so in your letter to me, if he had done so. So you did all you did of your own free will.
The best you can hope for in the circumstances, is that he repays you what you spent of your own funds on the property with interest and a fair sum for the services your rendered in supervising the construction as you related. If he refuses to do so amicably, then you would have to make a claim in court and seek to show that he (and possibly his sons) caused you to act to your detriment and to suffer the losses you did and that it be ordered that he refund all your expenditures and loses with interest thereon to the date of payment.
You would, of course, be entitled as his wife to maintenance contributions from him.
But, my dear, please try first to save your marriage before going on the road to divorce. Why are you thinking of divorce before trying to mend the friction caused by your arguments during which both of you were at fault and caused each other to be hurt and upset? You know even the law requires on a divorce application, that the petitioner shows that the parties tried counselling to save the marriage before proceeding to legal termination of the marriage. In the time since the arguments in April, you both have had time to assess the value of the marriage. Only when you talk to each other about what happened and show and express remorse will you both know what the marriage means to the other and decide if it is worth saving. Surely you both cannot throw the whole thing away after those arguments, without doing something or seeking help from a marriage counsellor first.
So, please deal with this aspect first and maybe, in the course of such counselling, you should bring up the fact that you feel very insecure about having expended your monies without any security that any refund would be made to you. I am sure that situation you are in because of your actions would cause you to feel bitterness if your husband has not and does not show any gratitude to you for it. This will put a strain on your relationship, so please deal with it in counselling before you go to the issue of claiming and dividing property. One thing though, for goodness sake, I enjoin you all, please spend some money and get some legal advice before you act in the manner related by this wife when you are in or commencing a relationship or even if it is supposedly only between friends, business partners or acquaintances. Any investment of time, money and skills is a valuable asset and can affect property interests and entitlements.
is an attorney-at-law and a women's and children's rights advocate. Send questions and comments via email to allwoman@jamaicaobserver.com or fax to 968-2025. We regret we cannot supply personal answers.
6-foot-tall girl banned from playing basketball with boys
http://www.yahoo.com/s/887762
-- Edited by alligcold at 21:25, 2008-05-24
Aiken County (WLTX) -- Aiken County deputies say a 67-year-old man sexually assaulted a teenage girl, forced others to pose nude, and gave alcoholic beverages to other victims.
Investigators say 67-year-old Earl J. Lucas of Mockingbird Lane in Aiken committed the crimes sometime between March and October 2006.
He was arrested Wednesday at his home and charged with criminal sexual conduct with a minor in the second degree, two counts of lewd act upon a minor, and 10 counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
Investigators say the victims ranged in age from 13 to 16 years old.
Deputies say Lucas took pictures of three victims during 2006. They say the 67-year-old provided alcoholic beverages to the others in order to coerce them to remove their clothes so he could take nude pictures of them.
Lucas is being held at the Aiken County jail.
| How about 'take a boo'! |
Tuesday, May 20, 2008 |
R&B princess Rihanna has released a new single off her album entitled Good Girl Gone Bad. But the video for this single has not given RiRi the grand impact she was hoping for.
The video started out with the songstress in a melancholy and reflective mood, clad in black with gold accessories. Then there are a series of flashes following scenes of Rihanna and the 'supposed' boyfriend.
The first minute of the video basically sums up the entire video, as there are just back and forth flashes of actions and emotions between Rihanna and her ex-beau.
Other than Rihanna putting on a red jacket with matching lipstick and then driving on the road with the 'poor' guy following behind pleading for forgiveness, the highest point in the video is when she set his clothing afire right on the glass dining table.
Then guess what? When you think something is sure to happen, the video ends, and there is no 'to be continued sign', it just ends.
This is just another case of a good song overshadowed by a bad video. The scenes are dull and draggy, although RiRi does try to put forward some facial expressions depicting anger. However, sometimes it seemed as if the expressions were a bit awkward.
Also, the plot of the video does not present anything that we have not seen before. Try putting some of Beyonce's Irreplaceable with a little bit of Unfaithful, and Hate That I Love You together and what do you get: Take A Bow.
TEENage only gives Rihanna a grade for effort:
| My mother won't approve of my cop boyfriend ASK RB |
Monday, May 26, 2008 |
Dear RB,
I am 18 years old and I have been in a relationship with a 29-year-old policeman for over a year now. He treats me very well and encourages me a lot. The problem is that I don't think my mother will agree to this relationship because of the age difference. I care about him a lot. What must I do?
- Too young
Dear Too young,
It is very unnerving when a person asks me a question the way you have. You know that what you are doing is unacceptable and you know how people will react and you insist on going forward. Then you ask a third person what you should do!
Well, here goes. You are having an inappropriate sexual relationship with a man who is much older than you are. You know that you should not be in such a relationship, and you have convinced yourself that you are in love. Please get over this and separate yourself from this man. He is not your best choice for a boyfriend. This is clear to you and to him. You know why? Because you have both been keeping this a secret from everyone! If either of you thought that this was OK, you would tell people!
Please, please get out of this before it is too late.
I love my boss
Dear RB,
I'm in love with my boss at work and I don't know how to approach the situation. He's not married or anything (there have been rumours that he likes men, but I don't believe them) but I just don't know where to start with him. I'm his personal assistant so I travel everywhere he goes, and I'm hopelessly in love with him. How do I get him interested without ruining our relationship?
- Potential Mate
Dear Potential Mate,
You have an easy problem. Two things. First, if there are rumours that this guy is gay, then deal with the rumours. Note that if this man is gay and at all inclined to hiding his preferences behind a "marriage", then you want to be as far away from this marriage as is possible. For your own well-being, find out. This can't be too hard. But please do not tell yourself that you, and only you, know the truth. You know that this is not true.
Second, please be reminded that you cannot be having sex with your boss. I do not care how much you think you like him. So, let's say that you find out that the guy is really straight and you still want a relationship with him, then you need to get a new job. It will get extremely messy otherwise. As his assistant, you have a tough enough list of tasks to see to.
Balancing a personal relationship that is invisible to your colleagues and clients is impossible.
Need no-frills advice about relationships, sex or just about anything else? Send questions to RB Samuels c/o all woman, 42 Beechwood Ave Kgn 5; via email to allwoman@jamaicaobserver.com or fax 968-2025. We're sorry, but RB cannot provide personal responses.
-- Edited by ANDRE_DESIGNZ at 10:48, 2008-05-26
Are Jamaicans developing a growing appetite for child porn?
| Are Jamaicans developing a growing appetite for child porn? Some psychologists seem to think so |
JAMAICANS are developing a taste for seeing children having sex - including the children themselves, according to local psychologists.
"It (child pornography) is as addictive as anything else that provides some amount of pleasure - like your lotto and food," said psychologist Sidney McGill, operator of the Family and Counselling Centre. "There are some persons who enjoy looking at a young body, which exudes health - the shiny eyes, the naiveté, etc. Those are some of the traits, I think, that add to the sexual excitement - even where the person (viewing) is not a paedophile."
Montego Bay-based psychologist Dr Pearnel Bell attested to the excitement experienced by the viewers of such material.
"It is like a movie. There is a thrill out of seeing themselves on tape. For those doing the filming, the debased behaviour it is to get a high out of it. It is for their entertainment," she said.
Meanwhile, some critics believe the growing appetite for child pornography is being, in equal parts, fed and fuelled by the media.
"Children have been 'fooling around' sexually for centuries. What is happening now though is that you have far more media available for children below the age of 18," sociologist Dr Orville Taylor told the Sunday Observer.
Bell, for her part, noted that Jamaica's problem with pedophiles (adults having sex with children) was increasingly being brought to light.
"Paedophilia is a huge issue in Jamaica, but it is one of those issues that has really never got centre stage ...the number of young people who - even I see - have been molested by adults is tremendous. Half of it has not been reported, and we have young people who have lived with this molestation and abuse for years," she said. "What is new is the fact that now we have access to the media through videotaping and cellphone. And it has become a craze, with YouTube and all of that kind of thing. People are seeing it as an invention, and they get some sort of high from doing it (having sex with children and filming it). It is a maladapted behaviour."
Taylor, meanwhile, the increased demand and availability of child porn was drawing out the paedophiles.
"A person who is a paedophile is an abnormal kind of creature and I use the term without reservation - just like a rapist and a murderer even. They are persons who have something wrong with them. They are absolute freaks," he said. "So where the opportunity presents itself, then the worms will come from out of the woodwork. I don't know whether it is an increase in the total number of paedophiles or whether it is that they now have more opportunity to do it."
It was two years ago that one of the more popular child pornography cases came to light when a video, featuring a group of boys sexually assaulting a young schoolgirl under the supervision of a church deacon, was brought to the public's attention. Since then, there has been a string of cases involving the circulation of mostly school age children having sex with each other or with adults.
Concerns over sex in schools, its filming and subsequent distribution whether via the Internet or through the use of cellphones have prompted the outcry of the Office of the Children's Advocate, which has called for immediate action on the issue. The first order of business is to be the Child Pornography Act, which is to make it illegal to produce, possess or circulate child pornography.
But Bell, Taylor and McGill are calling for further action to stem the tide of child pornography.
The spread of sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV/AIDS, increased teenage pregnancies and the worsening decay of the society's moral fabric is, they say, the price of failing to act.
Chief among the measures that need to be implemented, Bell said, is the enforcement of values through stringent censorship.
McGill also cited the need for a national coalition that would see each responsible adult taking more of an interest in children and their welfare.
They all agreed that the media will have to be censored, particularly as regards the airing of certain types of musical content.
Beyond that, Taylor said that the Internet will have to be policed locally.
"It is going to be very difficult. You are going to have to start policing the Internet. You start having very stringent penalties for sex offences - including the very act of possessing a forwarded e-mail from somebody about some girl (caught on tape in a sex act) and who sends it to 50 other people. If you send it to somebody at the Child Development Agency, then that is different," he said.
Further, he said parents will have to be held responsible for what their children get involved in.
Woman Given Up for Dead at Hospital, But Wakes Up
Charleston, WV (WCHS) - A West Virginia woman, Val Thomas, was about as dead as you can get and being taken off life support. Today, she's sitting up in bed and talking.
Awake and praising her Lord and savior Jesus for breathing new life into her.
"Her toes were hardened and her toes were curling back," says Tim Thomas, her son.
Death came for Val at 1:30 in the morning last Saturday. Her heart stopped at home. Paramedics managed to revive her but she didn't look right.
"There was no life in my mother at her house," Tim says.
Family members scrambled into action. They began praying and asking God for a miracle. "It was probably close to 20 minutes that she had been with no oxygen and no pulse," says Daniel Pence, her nephew.
Doctors put her on a special machine which induces hypothermia. "Even after we induced hypothermia on her, her heart stopped again," says Dr. Kevin Eggleston.
In fact, Val's heart stopped a third time, making her odds of recovery almost nothing. "It was really no signs of neurological function," Eggleston says.
But loved ones didn't give up. They prayed in Ernest Holding onto hope and even had praise and worship right in the waiting room.
"I didn't know what to do, I had such a peace with us all praying in there," Tim says.
Tim told the doctors to take her off life support and everyone said goodbye, but a hold up about organ donations kept Val on the ventilator a little while longer.
"To God just show me something.. I know there's some thing here.. just show me and I didn't see it," Tim says.
Once the doctors did everything that they could and the family members had made every decision they felt they needed to, using scriptures for guidance. They finally turned Val over to Jesus. That's when they believe their miracle began."
Starting 10 minutes after they stopped the respirator, when the nurses removed the tubing.
"She moved her arm, we thought it was reflexes and then I went to take the tube out a second time and she began to cough and her eyes began to flutter," says Eggleston.
Even the doctors are baffled. Now, Val's talking a lot.
"I feel very blessed, I know God has something in store for me," Val says. "He has a purpose, I don't know what that is but I'm sure he'll tell me."
In the meantime her family's faith has grown tremendously and they're all very thankful.
"I just give all the praise to God and I'm so thankful that he's taken care of me," says Val.
Now friends say the R&B duo are planning to record a track together - with some help from 20-year-old Rihanna's mentor Jay-Z.
A source tells Star! Magazine, "Rihanna is impressed with Chris' voice. It was a natural step for her to say, 'Let's do a duet.' She's asking Jay-Z to look around for a beat for the two of them, something sexy and snazzy."
A man, who allegedly punched his two-year-old daughter to death, was remanded yesterday after a failed bail application in the Montego Bay Resident Magistrate's Court in St James.
Rohan Cole, a 37-year-old truck driver of Washington Gardens in Kingston and Lottery in St James, is scheduled to return to court on June 3.
The court heard, by way of the post-mortem report, that Sedricka Cole died as a result of blunt trauma to the abdomen, which caused *lo** loss and damage to the intestines. The injuries are said to be consistent with a forceful punch to the stomach.
However, defence attorney Earnest Davis argued the report was contradictory, as there was a section where the doctor stated that he could not say what the cause of death was.
Evidence weak
Davis also said his client had always been living in Kingston and had turned himself in after he heard the police were looking for him. He pleaded for bail, stating the evidence against Cole was "weak".
However, the court was informed that Cole was from Kingston but had been living in Montego Bay, since December 2007, after losing his job.
Allegations are that on April 12, Sedricka's mother fled and left her in Cole's care in Lottery to go to a party. The mother returned home the following morning and found the child lying face down in her own vomit.
It is said that the mother observed redness around the child's navel. When she questioned the accused about what was wrong with the child, he allegedly told her that he had punched her.
Further allegations are that the mother took Sedricka to the hospital where the toddler was admitted. The court heard that on April 13, Sedricka told the mother that Cole hit her in the belly. The child died the following day.
Cole was held in Half-Way Tree two days later.| 10 things every woman should know how to do |
Monday, May 26, 2008 |
THERE'S a reason your mother insisted that you learn the right way to cook rice and peas; the way to remove ink stains from a garment and the way to mend a broken hem on a skirt - she knew that there are things every woman should be able to do; there are essentials to ensuring her survival, her independence with or without the help of others. Here are 10 of the many things every woman should be able to do. Read, and brush up on the ones you aren't so good at!
1. Perform CPR, or at least be able to effectively dislodge a foreign object from someone's airway. This comes in really handy especially when she becomes a mother.
2. Drive both a stick shift and an automatic. There's no excuse for not learning how, even if you plan to drive an automatic all your life. Emergencies happen, be prepared.
3. Sew on a button and fix broken hem on a skirt.
4. Change a tyre and jump start a car; check oil and radiator fluid levels and now when to fill them. She should know the basic workings of her car and should be able to tell when a mechanic is playing her for a fool.
5. Read a map (and not only a shopping mall directional one).
6. Swim well enough to save herself if she falls in water and there's no one around to help.
7. Iron male trousers and iron linen.
8. Speak at least one foreign language well enough to ask for directions, say please and thanks and order a meal.
9. Do basic repairs around the house - like changing a tap washer, fixing a door hinge and installing a washing machine.
10. Cook an entire (edible) meal from scratch - from appetiser to dessert, and not including instant mashed potatoes.
Well-wishers who attended a funeral at a church in Portland last Saturday were shocked when the husband of the deceased woman, a minister of religion, removed her body from the casket and started praying for her resurrection.
Some persons, who claimed to have witnessed the incident, alleged that the minister who has appeared on cable, ordered non-believers out of the church during the funeral, before he attempted to perform the miraculous act.
The witnesses said the minister then removed his wife's body from the coffin and started praying fervently for life to be restored to it. And, although the first few rounds of prayer seemed to have failed, the clergyman's faith was not discouraged as he continued making his supplication with more passion.
It was at this point, residents claim, that the police had to be called in, but even they were reportedly met with stiff opposition from the distraught widower, who, according to many, was overcome with emotion and caught up in the act of bringing his wife back to life.
When The Star contacted the police regarding the incident, two officers confirmed the episode but were reluctant to go on record.
Since the incident took place last week, there have been mixed reactions from persons in the parish. Some have said that the pastor was not acting rationally when he tried to raise his wife from the dead. On the other hand, many are labelling him as a renegade preacher because of his action.
Several attempts to speak to the pastor were unsucessful.
The real reason Usher's mom was absent at his wedding...BADANG!!!
A COUPLE accused of trying to sell their seven-day-old baby online for 5000 could face charges
A COUPLE accused of trying to sell their seven-day-old baby online for 5000 could face charges.
A woman browsing the classifieds website Craigslist on Friday called police after she saw the ad.
"A new baby girl, seven days old, healthy and very cute," read the ad.
"Cant afford and unexpected. Looking for a good home. Please call ASAP."
Within hours of her call, officers tracked the number of a stolen mobile listed in the ad to an apartment in downtown Vancouver, Canada.
When officers arrived, they found four adults inside, including the 26-year-old father and the 23-year-old mother breastfeeding the baby.
Hoax
"Of course, the first thing out of their mouth is, they said it was just a hoax," Constable Tim Fanning said.
The babys parents were arrested and released, and the baby was removed from the home.
Police did not reveal the parents names.
A spokeswoman for Craigslist would not answer questions about the case, but said the site takes steps to ensure users are not breaking the law.
"Misuse of Craigslist for illegal purposes is absolutely unacceptable to us, and we will work together with law enforcement until the perpetrators have been brought to justice," Susan Best, a spokeswoman for the San Francisco-based site, said in an e-mail.
Police in Germany arrested a couple over the weekend after a seven-month-old boy was listed for auction on eBay.
The mother told police the ad, which listed the baby for sale for a euro, was a joke, but the baby is now in the care of youth services as police investigate the possibility of human trafficking.
THE stepdad of a three-year-old girl who died after she was knocked off a mini-motorbike was charged over her death yest
THE stepdad of a three-year-old girl who died after she was knocked off a mini-motorbike was charged over her death yesterday.
Little Abbie Perrin was being taken for a ride on a footpath by George Franklin when a 4x4 truck pulled out of a garage in front.
The tot, of Louth, Lincs, died in hospital.
Franklin, 22, appears before Boston JPs today accused of causing death by dangerous driving.
It is illegal to ride the mini-motorbikes on pavements.
RUTHLESS gangs are snatching orphaned babies from Chinas earthquake zone and selling them for Ł100.
RUTHLESS gangs are snatching orphaned babies from Chinas earthquake zone and selling them for Ł100.
The callous crooks are scouring hospitals and shelters in the worst-affected areas of devastated Sichuan province.
Targeted ... baby pulled
from quake
Police in Jiangyou city arrested one gang of five women who stole four tiny girls and a boy all under a year old.
And 36 other cases of kidnapped tots and children have been reported in the same city.
The gang of women admitted intending to sell the babies for Ł100 to rogue traders, who in turn would have sold them at a fat profit to childless couples desperate for kids.
Asleep
Chinas controversial one-baby rules introduced in 1979 to curb a population explosion allow couples to have a single child.
Boys are usually favoured to keep the family line going.
The womens gang was caught when a suspicious hotel boss told cops they had checked in with babies who were all soundly asleep.
When police raided their rooms they found baby formula and sleeping pills used to sedate the tots.
Senior policeman Zhao Yonggang described them as despicable and utterly shameless.
He told The Sun: They will be punished severely. They could get life and even the death penalty cannot be ruled out.
The saved babies are being kept in a safe house in Jiangyou.
Police are using DNA testing to try to match them to relatives who survived the quake, which is feared to have killed 90,000 a fortnight ago.
Aftershocks demolished 420,000 houses and injured dozens in Sichuan yesterday.
AT least 20 people have been killed by flash floods caused by torrential rain in Chinas southern Guizhou province.MAN GOES TO ARKANSAS WEDDING ... AND SHOOTS THE BRIDE AND GROOM
May 27, 2008. LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - An apparent stranger shot the bride, groom and two other people at an outdoor wedding in rural Arkansas, then was arrested after being chased by outraged guests, a sheriff's official said Sunday.
The wedding was just ending Saturday when the suspect approached with a 9 mm pistol and opened fire, Pope County sheriff's Lt. Aaron DuVall said. No one else was hurt.
About 50 people, including children, had attended the ceremony along Piney Creek north of Dover at a spot the lieutenant said was popular for picnicking and swimming. Dover is 64 miles northwest of Little Rock.
The suspect "was not associated with the wedding at all," DuVall said. "No one knew him."
Police arrested Patrick Paul Duvall, 29, after a he was chased into a Russellville restaurant parking lot, said the sheriff's lieutenant, who is not related to the suspect.
DuVall declined to identify the four people who were injured, but he said the bride, groom and a third victim remained in the hospital Sunday. One victim was treated and released.
Without the victims' names, it wasn't possible to get information from hospitals on the patients' conditions.
Deputies say Duvall will remain in the Pope County jail at least until a bond hearing Wednesday morning. Jailers said Duvall an attorney had visited Duvall, but they declined to release the attorney's name.
The sheriff's lieutenant said Duvall faces four felony counts of first-degree battery and a felony charge of vehicle theft after the shooting.
A telephone number listed in Duvall's name in Russellville could not be found Sunday night.
OOOOO HOW SAD
A MUM left a note saying look after my girl before leaping off a cliff
A MUM left a note saying "look after my girl" before leaping off a cliff to her death in front of the eight-year-old.
Tansy Langton asked a ranger where the highest point was before jumping.
She put a note with contact details in daughter Olivias pocket. Then, leaving the girl 30ft away on the path, she edged herself off the cliff on her backside.
Plunge ... the cliffs where she died
Olivia was found wandering distraught near the 120ft drop on Dorsets Jura**ic Coast by a walker and a police officer. In a tragic twist, rescuers were just 900 yards away trying to save a climber who was also killed falling off the cliff.
An inquest yesterday heard how Tansy, 50, had been depressed before visiting Anvil Point near Swanage.
Witness Darren Bellamy, who had been watching the climbers rescue through binoculars, said: "I became aware of another person shuffling towards the edge of the cliff. She started to slide down the gra**, turned and put her hands out and then looked to have gone into the air."
PC Mari Montgomery told the Bournemouth hearing she was on patrol when she spotted Olivia on January 22.
The girl handed her the note which had contact details for her grandfather and brother. Another note at Tansys Bournemouth home asked that someone look after Olivia - now believed to be living with other members of her family.
Climber Ivan Lissin, 22, hit his head as he fell 30ft into the sea and died the next day. Coroner Sheriff Payne recorded a verdict of suicide on Miss Langton and misadenture on Mr Lissin, of Oxford.
-- Edited by littlemisslinkz at 04:13, 2008-05-29
-- Edited by littlemisslinkz at 04:36, 2008-05-29
My Mediazone peeps will be exempt from the gate cost... Suh dun know... Pengo, Stainless, Dj Headz and the entire family gwan hol it down..
Click for more details
-- Edited by Rakeem at 13:00, 2008-03-17
HOT HEADBetta U Jus Cool If SomeOne Pass An Touch U Or Sutn Jus Mek It Gwann DOn't War Dem Man......Like 3day A Man A Cuss Bout How A "LADY" A Touch Him
(The First Thing I Thought Is If He's Gay)
But Him Coulda Jus Say Excuse Bwoy PPl JUS DARK
My WORD TO U IS FORGIVE AN FORGET.........
-- Edited by dimmit at 23:28, 2008-06-02
MANDEVILLE, Manchester - A 15-year-old student, Shanika Clarke, of Holmwood Technical High School was confirmed dead yesterday and 13 others were injured - three of them seriously - when a minibus packed with school children collided with a truck on New Green Road in Mandeville.
According to the police, the accident occurred shortly before 8:00 am and involved a White Ford Count Flat Bed truck, owned and driven by Franklin Campbell of Waltham Park Road in Kingston 11, and a White Toyota mini-bus, owned and driven by 24-year-old Delroy Wood of George's Valley in Manchester .
 |
| A man rummages through an overturned minibus on the New Green Main Road yesterday. Fifteen year-old Holmwood Technical student, Shanika Clarke, of Georges Valley died and 13 other persons were injured after the bus collided with a Ford truck. A motorcyclist who was rushing to find out if any of his relatives were involved in the accident was also seriously injured after his motorcycle collided with a car near the Mandeville Hospital. The motorcycle was torn in two from the impact. (Photo: Montclair Williams) |
News of the accident disrupted classes at Holmwood Technical, but guidance counsellors were reportedly on hand to help students deal with the trauma.
"We have been really devastated by this accident," said principal of Holmwood Technical, Paul Bailey. "The school was in shock," he told the Observer.
Bailey said personnel from neighbouring Knox College as well as from the Ministry of Education's Regional Office in Mandeville had visited Holmwood to provide support.
Wood, the bus driver, said he tried to avoid the collision by swerving to the left but he was hit and his vehicle spun and then overturned. He said there were 16 persons in the bus, including the conductor and himself. All his passengers were students.
CEO of the Mandeville Hospital Paulette Elliott said she thought the institution was able to manage the emergency. "I think under the circumstances we coped very well, although there was a shortage of stretchers and other pieces of equipment.
"We had to quickly move those patients out into the corridor and make space for the emergencies that were coming in fast and furious," said Elliott, who commended his team of doctors, nurses and all the support staff who worked assiduously yesterday morning to attend to the emergencies as they arose."
Amid the busy Memorial Day weekend boat traffic on the Miami River, sharp-eyed Customs and Border Protection marine agents spotted one cruising vessel whose name -- High On the Hog -- they had reason to recognize.
As they stopped and searched the 42-foot Sea Ray near the 12th Avenue Bridge, one of the two crew members jumped in the river and swam away. When the agents looked below deck, they knew why: 30 people were crammed in there, all would-be illegal immigrants. Right off downtown Miami in the middle of a Saturday afternoon.
Even more surprising: All but two were Jamaican, and 17 of those had previously been deported from the United States for having criminal records, agency officials said Wednesday. The other two passengers were from the Dominican Republic.
The first crewman got away. The other, identified only as a Cuban national residing in the United States, was arrested on suspicion of migrant smuggling, said Customs and Border Protection Special Agent Zachary Mann, an agency spokesman. The passengers were being held for questioning by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and are subject to deportation.
Beyond conceding that it was unusual to discover so many Jamaicans attempting illegal entry at once, especially so many previous deportees, Mann was mum on other details, citing an ongoing investigation. The agency did not announce the interdiction for five days.
''It's a significant find,'' Mann said.
It was not entirely coincidental, however. Mann said they picked out the High on the Hog because of an ongoing investigation but he would not elaborate.
''We saw the name and wanted to take a closer look,'' Mann said.
The interdiction comes amid a far-ranging U.S. crackdown in South Florida on the smuggling of illegal aliens from the Caribbean, predominantly from Cuba. Just last week, federal prosecutors charged 26 South Florida suspects with conspiring to smuggle in 225 Cuban migrants in 12 different boat trips. In the preceding month, indictments were also unveiled against 41 other men suspected of smuggling in some 400 Cubans in 20 separate operations.
Saturday's operation may be a lesser-known variation on the usual pattern.
Mann said he did not know where the boat picked up its passengers. But Bahamian immigration authorities have said they suspect Jamaicans deported from the United States are using the islands as a stepping stone for illegal re-entry into the country.
In January, U.S. immigration authorities deported a notorious Jamaican gang leader who had re-entered the country after being kicked out in 2006. Re-entry after deportation is a felony.
Saturday's brazen attempt to smuggle people down the river in broad daylight is not unprecedented. Smugglers sometimes use the cover of busy boating holidays to attempt entry, Mann said, thinking federal officers are not working.
Such attempts, once more common, have been relatively rare in recent years, however. The last to be discovered may have been in 1998, when a decrepit wooden boat disgorged 150 Haitian immigrants on a weekday afternoon on the river near downtown Miami.
In the early 1990s, following the ouster of Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, there were a number of interceptions:
In November 1992, about 70 Haitians jumped from a freighter at the old Dupont Plaza hotel on the Miami River downtown and fled in waiting vans. A month later, 117 Haitians were found crammed into the hold of a 70-foot freighter that ran aground off the Port of Miami.
A month after that, the Coast Guard stopped a freighter carrying 351 Haitians at the Port of Miami.
Last week, in a place called Gun Barrel, Texas, a 63-year old woman was abducted from her home near midnight by a violent convicted sex offender who allegedly beat her with the barrel of a gun, dragged her into the woods and presented her with a nightmarish trio of choices, she told ABC News.
He told her he could strangle her, shoot her or toss her down a concrete well in the woods, she said. Before she could choose, she felt herself tumbling headlong into a dank, underground well that opened like a cistern at its base 20 feet beneath the ground.
The woman spent 16 hours in putrid water at the bottom of the well before her frantic family pieced together the fragmented clues to her disappearance and tracked her to the watery, underground prison.
Kerala temple underwear ruling Kerala temple underwear ruling
Nearly 200 staff at a Hindu temple in southern India have won the right to wear underwear to work.
The human rights commission in Kerala state has ordered Sabarimala temple to withdraw a dress code that barred staff from wearing underwear.
The dress code was imposed 10 years ago after several cases of theft.
Sabarimala is the second busiest temple in southern India after Tirupati, visited by nearly 50 million people during the special pilgrimage season.
Cash and jewellery
It also receives a huge amount of donations in the form of cash and gold, silver and diamond jewellery.
The state human rights decision followed after an anonymous complaint about the issue.
The staff working in the strong room of the temple, where the cash and jewellery are kept, are not allowed to wear anything except a sarong-like lower garment called "mundu".
The commission has now asked the government to take necessary steps to ensure that the staff are allowed to wear their underwear and modern facilities are put in place to prevent thefts.
 The temple attracts thousands of male devotees [Pic: Anil Warrier] |
Last year, the temple received cash and gifts worth 800m rupees ($18.7m).
The staff say manual handling of such an enormous amount of cash and jewellery is not possible.
There are about 60 staff on duty in the strong room at a time.
Observers say the temple needs modern facilities such as x-ray machines to screen people for security as well as better sanitation facilities.
Sabarimala is one of the most popular pilgrimage destinations in Kerala, located in the Sahyadri Mountains (Western Ghats).
Pilgrims have to trek for about three hours to reach the main temple from the base camp at Pampa near the river. There are few toilets, no waste management or treatment facilities.
The state's Water Resources minister NK Premachandran recently expressed concern over the level of pollution in the Pampa river saying it posed a great threat to public health.
The government is planning to set up a trust to manage the affairs of the temple.dj Naz a tek it to dem!!!!!!!
BARBEE
TAMY CHYN
For six weeks his popular hit single 'Wine Gal' has held the number one position on the Hype TV Top 20 singles chart, on RE TV Dancehall Top 20 it is holding its third week at No. 1 and on Richie B's Dancehall Top 20 singles chart even though it has shifted had claimed the No. 1 title for three weeks.
The versatile entertainer has since shot a medley video for 'Gimme Likkle' and' Wine Gal' that premiered recently on TVJ's Entertainment Report. Base on the feedback, the reviews are tremendous for the deejay.
In addition, two of Beenie Man's singles that have not yet been released, 'Gimme Likkle'and 'Yuh Know Fi Wine' and are being played pre-release, are already getting crazy hype in the dancehalls and from the huge response of forwards they are generating, there is no doubt they are heading for the number one slots on all major dancehall charts.
Beenie Man is very active in the studios laying tracks for several singles expected to be released throughout the year also look out for his new album that is set to release soon which is on a major recording label that is not yet titled.
The music industry can continue to look forward to hearing a lot more positive things in regards to his illustrious career.
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