Fundamentally, it’s about public masturbation.

‘He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone’

Christian fundamentalists are well known to preach against ‘unholy’ acts; gay and premarital sex, self-gratification, etc. so it is fairly amusing when NewsSpeak is passed this story regarding a well-known ‘Bible-Basher’ Rev. Grant Storms. Storms has for numerous years campaigned against the ‘Southern Decadence’ festival which is held in New Orleans. This is mainly a gay festival and Storms views it as sexually pervasive and immoral. After this little incident, he may want to change his target.
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The Rev. Grant Storms, the Christian fundamentalist known for his bullhorn protests of the Southern Decadence festival in the French Quarter, was arrested on a charge of masturbating at a Metairie park Friday afternoon.

Storms, 53, of 2304 Green Acres Road in Metairie, was taken into custody at Lafreniere Park after two women reported seeing him masturbating in the driver's seat of his van, which was parked near the carousel and playground, a Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office report said.

The first woman told deputies she was taking her children to the playground and parked next to the van at about noon. As she was walking around her own vehicle, she noticed the van windows were down and the occupant was "looking at the playground area that contained children playing, with his zipper down...," the report said. The woman noted that he was masturbating and quickly ushered her children out of her car.

She told a second woman, who walked to the van and also spotted the man masturbating, the report said. The second witness told deputies that the driver saw her and tried to conceal the zipper area of his pants with his hand.

The two women flagged down a park employee who notified the Sheriff's Office. The employee detained the man, later identified as Storms, until deputies arrived.

Storms told deputies he was having lunch at the park when he decided to urinate using a bottle instead of the restroom, the report said.

Deputies booked him with obscenity. Bond was set at $5,000, but he was released from the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center in Gretna on Sunday because of jail crowding.

Storms could not be reached for comment on Monday.

A self-styled "Christian patriot," Storms led a small West Bank congregation called The Reformer Church and for 10 years hosted "The Reformer Radio Show" on WSHO. Storms has railed against the Roman Catholic church, calling it "satanic" and "demonic."

He is especially known for arming followers with bullhorns, Bibles and picket signs to protest Southern Decadence, the three-day gay festival held in the French Quarter during Labor Day weekend. Storms grabbed national attention in 2003 with his failed attempts to shut down what Southern Decadence organizer Chuck Robinson called a peaceful festival that celebrates gay and alternative lifestyles.

"He's done everything through the years to disturb that and try to make it into something nasty that it's not," Robinson said. "If the Rev. Storms is caught doing that in our city, it is ludicrous and heinous that he would have the nerve to complain about any kind of sexuality."

The amplified antics of Storms and his followers prompted the New Orleans City Council to adopt ordinances banning the use of megaphones and other such devices in the French Quarter, though the law requires a certain decibel meter reading before it can be enforced.

Earl Bernhardt, co-owner of The Tropical Isles and two other Bourbon Street clubs, got a temporary restraining order against Storms during Southern Decadence 2004, then went bullhorn to bullhorn with him when that didn't work.

"He's, in my opinion, just repulsive," Bernhardt said Monday. "I'm not surprised at all that he got caught doing that. Serves him right. He'll be out of our hair down here."

GONE WITH THE WIND

There is no need for Newspeak to add any commentary here, the story speaks for itself. Taken form the AP.
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A US man has appeared in court accused of stabbing a friend to death at a party because people were making fun of his flatulence.

Marc Higgins pleaded not guilty to murder and attacking three others at the house party in New Britain, Connecticut.

Police say the 21-year-old was "very drunk" at the party last month and was ridiculed because of flatulence.

One woman even slapped him because of it.

At that point he stormed out of the party and returned about 45 minutes later with three knives and started stabbing people indiscriminately.

Matthew Walton died of his wounds. Three others were injured.

Higgins told police he was angry and wanted to show that people should not make fun of him.

Kid Councillor.

There is nothing like a Politician to cause discontent amongst the British public, especially with the whole ‘expense’ saga that exposed a self-severing and out-dated parliament. The political landscape saw voters shifting to independent candidates, who tried to demonstrate that they could usher in a whole new era.

One such figure is Tom Bledsoe, now the youngest elected politician in the land. Newsspeak wishes you the best of luck old, sorry, young chap.

Taken from the PA Newswire.
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A sixth-former thought to be the youngest elected politician in Britain has been sworn into office with a warning about his use of internet social networking sites.

Independent Tom Bletsoe, 18, of St Ives, Cambridgeshire, was told that any inappropriate comments on Facebook and Twitter might breach St Ives Town Council's conduct code.

Council clerk Alison Melnyczuk issued the warning as Mr Bletsoe - who was 18 years and 52 days when he won a by-election earlier this month - officially joined St Ives council by signing a register and collecting an official tie and badge.

"I've never given a councillor that warning before," said Mrs Melnyczuk. "I did it because Facebook and Twitter are such a big thing now and I thought he should be aware."

Mr Bletsoe, who attended the ceremony at St Ives town hall with his father Robin, 64, said he did not think that the warning was aimed at him because of his youth.

He added: "I just think they know that I use Twitter and Facebook a lot."

Mr Bletsoe, who has yet to vote in a general election, said he had no strong party political feelings but wanted to make a contribution.

"People should not vote for parties. They should vote for people," he added. "If there were a general election tomorrow I would not vote Lib Dem or Conservative or Labour."

But Mr Bletsoe, who has ambitions to be an actor or teacher, said he thought national and local politicians who over-claimed expenses had been "greedy" and "ridiculous".

Mrs Melnyczuk said councillors could claim expenses in certain circumstances, but Mr Bletsoe said he intended to claim nothing.

"I would like to think that at the end of the financial year I've claimed nothing," he said. "I'll walk to meetings. I only live five minutes away."

I can't believe it's...murder

This story regarding an unconventional murder weapon reminds NewsSpeak of Roald Dahl’s ‘Lamb to the Slaughter’ story. The murderers hatched a clever plot; however, they soon came unstuck.
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A Sicilian couple thought they had the perfect weapon to get rid of her ex-husband -- a slab of butter which would melt after they asphyxiated him, the Corriere della Sera newspaper reported Saturday.

But a post-mortem found remains of the butter in the airways of Calogero Lo Cocco and the pair were unmasked, the paper said.

On Wednesday Lo Cocco, 40, had gone back to the marital home he had not visited since his divorce, where his ex-wife lived with her new boyfriend at Campobello di Licata near Agrigente in southern Sicily.

Advertisement: Story continues below They had set upon him and suffocated him with the butter, before claiming he had arrived drunk and attacked them, forcing them to tie him up, when he had suddenly collapsed and died.

© 2011 AFP

This story took place in a rural Alabama Courtroom and could be viewed as yet another ‘Gun-Ho’ situation where law officers are all too quick to respond with firepower. Another interesting element is the fact there seems to be alterative views as to what happened. NewsSpeak is going with the Court’s take on things. Taken form the AP.
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A judge pulled a gun on a crutch-swinging defendant who went berserk in a crowded rural courtroom after being found guilty of harassment.

A police officer shot and wounded the man, who had a plaster cast on his leg, after he lunged at Judge Carlton Teel and tried to grab the weapon, authorities in Goodwater, Alabama, said.

But some witnesses disputed the account, saying the man never threatened the judge.

Struck by at least one bullet, the man, identified by witnesses as Bryant Ford, was taken by helicopter to the hospital at the University of Alabama in Birmingham, where he was said to be in a good condition.

"The guy came over the bench at him trying to get it," said lawyer Keith Warren, who was in court representing another person. "He just literally got in the judge's face, then backed off and started swinging the crutch at the judge."

But some of the 40 or so people who were in the court in Goodwater, about 60 miles north of Montgomery, disagreed, saying they did not see the man attack the judge, who was sitting behind a tall desk, or attempt to grab a gun.

Sara Williams said she was sitting in the front row when the man, whom she knew, became agitated after the judge fined him about £500, waving one of his crutches in the air.

"The police were hollering for him to get down" when an officer opened fire, she said.

Ms Williams said she yelled: "Don't shoot him no more!" just before the officer fired again.

Later she and more than a dozen people stood across the road from City Hall chanting: "We want justice."

But Mr Warren said: "This gentleman forced the police officer to shoot him. There was no reason for the guy to become as irate as he got. He went nuts."

Anyone who claimed the man did not attack the judge was either unable to see or was telling an "outright lie", he added.

Court records showed that Ford, 25, was due in court on a harassment charge filed by a neighbour who claimed he swore at her in December after accusing her of talking to police about him. Judge Teel heard the case without a jury and the trial lasted less than five minutes.

Judge Teel's brother Frank, a lawyer in nearby Rockford, said district court proceedings were held once a month at Goodwater City Hall for people who could not get to the county seat.

"I've not talked to him, but I'm told he was OK," Mr Teel said of his brother. The judge's aide suffered powder burns, he said.

Berlusconi's Blood Boils

NewsSpeak follows the exploits of Silvio Berlusconi closely; not only is he the Italian Premier, he is also the third richest man in Italy and his business empire dominates the media landscape.

As NewsSpeak readers will know, Berlusconi has an extensive record of criminal allegations which include mafia connections, tax fraud and corruption, yet due to laws passed by his parliamentary majority, some of the charges have been dropped by the courts. The latest scandal to hit the aging Premier centres on an investigation that claims he paid a 17-old-year prostitute for sex, a crime under Italian law. Berlusconi of courses claims it is a liberal plot to bring him down and constantly attacks the liberal establishment.

The following story taken directly from the AP, is a good example of a man who is really starting to feel the pressure and is taking a no-holds-barred approach.

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A furious Silvio Berlusconi has called into a TV talk show about the prostitution investigation that has targeted him, shouting, trading insults with the host and calling the program a "brothel."

The outburst stirred strong reactions Tuesday. The Italian premier's supporters said Berlusconi had a right to defend himself, while his critics called the comments a display of aggression by an increasingly desperate man.

Berlusconi is not new to calling live TV shows to complain about coverage or vent frustration. But his comments Monday night were harsher than usual.
"I've been watching a disgusting show, conducted in a despicable, vile and repugnant way," Berlusconi said.

The talk show host, well-known left-leaning journalist Gad Lerner, invited Berlusconi to tone down his comments and at one point called him a "lout" when Berlusconi made a swipe against the female guests on the show.

"Why don't you go before the magistrates instead of insulting people?" Lerner asked the premier.

Berlusconi has refused to heed a summons by Milan prosecutors, who have placed him under investigation on suspicion he paid for sex with a 17-year-old girl and used his office to cover it up.

The 74-year-old premier has denied wrongdoing, saying he never paid for sex. He has insisted _ as he has in the face of previous legal woes _ that he is the victim of politically driven magistrates who want to oust him from power.

"The reality that has been represented here is the opposite of the truth and I feel insulted," Berlusconi said during the show. "I know what I'm saying, you don't," he told the host. He urged a political ally in the studio to leave this "incredible TV brothel."

The show was on La7, a private station that is one of the few national channels over which Berlusconi, a media tycoon, has no control. He owns Mediaset, the country's largest private broadcaster, and as premier indirectly controls the state-run RAI.

Berlusconi has come under mounting criticism from the Catholic church, and some have called for his resignation in the face of a scandal they say is hurting Italy's image.

He insists parties at his villas are elegant and dignified soirees and not the bacchanalia described by Italian newspapers, which for days have been filled with descriptions of dancing topless girls and orgies. The newspapers have printed what they say are transcripts of prosecutor-ordered wiretaps of conversations amid participants at the parties.

The premier's lawyers have put together their defense documents and left them with Milan prosecutors.

The lawyers have not publicly commented on what the documents say, but Corriere della Sera, the newspaper that broke the news of the probe days ago, said they include testimony from several witnesses denying the allegations. According to Corriere, the witnesses give an altogether different description of Berlusconi's parties, saying that after dinner, guests move into one of two rooms: a disco, or a cinema that shows movies, excerpts of political events or speeches and football matches of AC Milan, the team owned by Berlusconi.

A parliamentary committee that has to decide whether to give prosecutors special permission to search some of Berlusconi's properties was set to start discussing the case Tuesday. A decision is not expected for a few days.

Explosive climax!

Firstly, NewsSpeak would like to wish all it's readers a 'Happy Christmas and New Year' and NewsSpeak aims to update this blog more often in 2011.

Carrying on with the Christmas theme, NewsSpeak would like to draw your attention to this explosive story taken from CBS Local. It involves a jilted lover from Minnesota who devised a cunning, albeit dangerous plan to take revenge on an ex-girlfriend.

Prepared to be shocked yet amused with this bomb of a story.

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A Waseca man is accused of planting an explosive device inside a sex toy intended for one of his ex-girlfriends.

According to the criminal complaint, 37-year-old Terry Allen Lester has been charged with felony courts of creating an explosive device and making terroristic threats.

The incident was reported on New Year's Day. Authorities said Lester had been staying with the apparent intended victim and another woman.

He had been forced to leave the apartment by the landlord but left behind bags, one of which contained a container marked 'Christmas Gifts'.

Lester allegedly mentioned to one of the two roommates his intentions, so they reported their suspicions about the bags to police.

The criminal complaint says police found a sex toy inside the package that had been modified with gun poweder and buck shot, which were connected to a trigger inside the battery port.

Authorities say Lester planned on giving the sex toy to one of three women he had previously been involved with where the reationship ended poorly. Materials were found suggesting he intended to make two other similar devices.

Lester told friends that ''he would pull the trigger and it would blow them up'.

Police say the device was missing a key starting element, but it still could have exploded.

''Any time you mix electronics, gun powder and BBs, we need to make sure it is rendered safe and doesn't harm anyone,'' said Capt. Kris Markeson.

The bizarre plot has startled those who live in Waseca.

Lester has been a long-time customer at Lindner's Liquor.

''I am in total shock. I could not believe it when I read it for sure. He has always been nice when he has come into the store'', Owner Tae Borne said.

Lester told police the bomb wasn't his. He has been taken into custody and faces up to 10 years in jail, if convicted.

Do a little dance, make a little love…get down to Prison tonight.

Most News Speak readers will be familiar with the Disco infused songs 'That's the Way (I like it)' 'Get Down Tonight' and Shake your Booty' by the US group KC and the Sunshine Band, though News Speak wonders how many were aware of Bassist Richard Finch's arrest in March 2010 for getting down with teenage boys. The highly acclaimed music producer has now been given a prison sentence and News Speak is sure that the term 'Boogie Man' will take on a whole new meaning in the slammer.

Click here to read.

Plain anger for 'Dancing with the stars'.

Celebrities, politics and Reality TV - what a mix! This combination can evoke many emotion and each person has their own views.

NewsSpeak belongs to the train of thought that there are too many reality shows on our screens, yet understands it is a very populist choice.

Most of us who dislike such shows have the choice of switching over to the other side; others who enjoy this type of television can channel their joy or displeasure through various means. Some like to take this to the extreme. Some people get so wind-up that they do what NewsSpeak believes many of us would like to do; pull out a gun and fire off some rounds into the TV set.

Enjoy the following story; it features TV, guns, a famous daugther of a leading Tea-Party figure, the Police and all set in small-town America.

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Steven N. Cowan takes dancing very seriously.

The 66-year old Wisconsin man was arrested after he allegedly became so angrey watching Bristol Palin on 'Dancing with the Stars' that he fired off his shotgun at his television, leading to a 15-hour standoff with state police.

According to the criminal complaint, posted by The Smoking Gun, Cowan and his wife, Janice, were watching the show Monday evening when Cowan jumped and swore as the former vice-presidential candidate's daughter shimmied across the stage.

He said something to the effect of 'the ----ing politics'.

The complaint added, 'Steven was upset that a political figure's daughter was dancing on this particular show when Steven did not think she was a good dancer'.

Cowan, who lives in the small town of Vermont, then went upstairs for 20 minutes and returned with a signle-shot shotgun, which he loaded and fired into the television. His wife told cops that her husband had been drinking but she did not think he was drunk.

Scared, his wife fled the house and called 911. Police remained outside the home until 11 a.m Tuesday when he surrendered without incident, sheriff's spokeswoman Elise Schaffer told the Wisconsin State Journal.

The complaint said Cowan had been stressed out because of his financial situation and was currently receiving treatment for mental health issues.

It is unclear if Cowan is aware that Palin advanced to the next week's inals of the competition on Tuseday night.

http://www.nydailynews.com/index.html

FaceBook Paedophile Case

Online social sites play an increasing part in our daily lives and the likes of Facebook are constantly changing the online environment in a positive way. However, some users experience issues that can cause ‘distress’ and users face such problems as hacking.

Here are two stories from Australia which demonstrate the effect of cyber staking and the ‘distress’ it can cause to minors. The first part highlights the fear that a Mother has for her children being staked online by a potential paedophile. Not a massive news story in itself, however, when you read both stories, it puts ‘online scares’ into perspective.
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PART ONE - 'A Mother's worst nightmare'

A Sydney mother-of-three, her daughter and daughter's friends have been subjected to a two-week ordeal at the hands of a Facebook stalker and they have been unable to get the social networking company to intervene.

The mother, who wished to remain anonymous due to a police investigation, said she, her 12-year old daughter and her daughter's friend had been stalked, harassed and sent pornographic images.

"Our daughters are so scared," the mother said.

The abuse began last month when someone hacked into the daughter's Facebook profile. Since then, the stalker has used the account to try to lure the adolescent's friends to divulge information about her.

The person has had online chats with people and knows where the family live, the mother said. The stalker has also used the 12-year-old's account to post vulgar and threatening messages on the mother's profile.

"f----ng give me your daughters they love me and i love them, you know you cant keep me away from them forever! i am going to be with them they are the mother of my children (sic)," reads one message posted by the hacked account on her profile.
"i will find ur girls (sic)," reads another.

While out at a work conference, the mother said she received a call from her daughter who was being looked after by a babysitter.

"My daughter rings me in tears, saying: 'He knows what street I live in mum, friends told me,'" the mother said.



She said this was because the stalker was talking to her friends.
"She was in tears, saying: 'I’m scared, they say he’s going to get me and stuff,'" the mother recalls her daughter telling her.



Having heard this, she raced home. Ever since then, she has not been able to leave her daughter alone.

The mother said she found out about the matter after her daughter was asked by school friends about things said on the site that seemed odd.

"We tried reporting [the account] on Facebook," she said.

"We got all her friends to report it on Facebook. Facebook won't reply. They don't want to contact us. They don't want to know about it, basically. You cannot ring Facebook."

Initially neither the mother nor the daughter could see what was occurring as the stalker was using Facebook's chat function to carry out their fact-finding mission using the daughter's account.

Facebook's chat function, by default, does not save a transcript of what has been written for users to check when they next log in.

The mother said that she did not know how the stalker gained access to her daughter's account.
Facebook does not have an Australian office, but a Sydney public relations firm that works for it directed this website to its usage policy, which states that users should be 13 years or older.

In a statement, it said: "Facebook co-operates with Australian law-enforcement agencies to help ensure that Facebook remains a safe place for our users to connect with friends and family.
"We have a dedicated resource for the Australian [Attorney-General's Deparment] and AFP [Australian Federal Police] to contact, as well as a 24-hour hotline to enable them to reach the company directly for help in cases of emergency, as well as for assistance in investigations and prosecutions," it said.

"Nothing is more important to Facebook than the safety of the people who use our site. On Facebook there are a variety of measures people can use to protect themselves from unwanted contact and we strongly encourage their use."

After trying and failing to shut down the profile, the mother contacted police.
She said they told her they could shut down the account, but two hours later informed her that would not be possible.

"They said Facebook won't co-operate with the police," she said.
NSW Police declined to comment on a continuing investigation, other than to say that they had "commenced inquiries".

They urged young people to be extra vigilant when using social networking sites.
Facebook has been criticised in the past for failing to address the privacy and safety concerns held by its 500 million users.

This website revealed last week that Facebook management failed to reveal the activity of an international child pornography syndicate operating on the site and ignored admissions by one of the ring's Australian members.

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PART TWO - 'Facebook stalker a 12-year-old girl'

A mother's fear that her 12-year-old daughter was being stalked by a paedophile on Facebook sparked an in-depth, almost month-long investigation involving the Australian Federal Police.
But police have been left dumbfounded by the discovery that the person who harassed and sent pornographic images to the girl via the site was another 12-year-old girl.

Earlier this month this website reported that a Sydney mother of three, her daughter and daughter’s friends had been subjected to a two-week ordeal at the hands of a Facebook stalker, but had been unable to get the social networking company to act.

The mother reported the matter to police.

The case was dropped this week by police after finding the stalker was another girl.