WTF?--- News hot off the press that makes you say--- WTF?

[admin]

A Different Kind of Thai Sex Bar

Written by Mark Fenn

FRIDAY, 19 OCTOBER 2007

At the Can Do bar in northern Thailand the sex workers are the owners

Bar manager Ruchaneekon U-para, or Lek, middle.

When the words “bar” and “sex” are put together in Thailand, one doesn’t usually think about progressive labor relations or stuff like profit sharing. But in at least one small corner of the country’s huge sex industry, a few women are trying to get a better deal for themselves out of giving pleasure for money.

At the small Can Do bar in the northern city of Chiang Mai, sex workers are using their brains as well as their bodies in an experiment aimed at tackling exploitation. The bar is owned and managed by a collective of women from the Empower Foundation, a support group for sex workers known for its “sex positive” stance on prostitution.

The country’s first so called experitainment bar aims to provide working girls with a safe and fair working environment.

The bar, which complies fully with Thai labor laws, has just celebrated its first birthday and is proving successful on both “a political and an economic level,” said Liz Hilton, who works with Empower. The bar has won acceptance, Hilton says, for providing decent working conditions for the women who work there.

“The women who came up with the idea and started putting it together had been working for many years and never had good conditions,” she said.

Now that has changed. Bar manager Ruchaneekon U-para, or Lek, says she is happy in the job because of the “freedom and good money” it offers her. The 36-year-old, who has two daughters, has been a prostitute for five years.

Before sex work, she said, she worked long hours in a beauty salon for a small salary. Working in bars has given her the freedom to do other things, and the money to pay for her daughters’ schooling, although she hasn’t always enjoyed such comfortable working conditions.

Estimates of how many prostitutes there are in Thailand range from around 150,000 to a whopping two million, out of a population of 65 million. The figures are difficult to calculate because many prostitutes work part-time or only occasionally, and move around the country. However, few dispute that prostitution is big business, or that with it come social evils such as trafficking in women and children. Go-go bars and hostess bars catering mainly to Western men are only the tip of the iceberg, but are the most visible part of the industry to foreigners.

The majority of women working in these bars face unfair and, in some cases, degrading conditions, with long hours and few days off. Often, they must persuade customers to buy them a certain number of “lady’s drinks” to make money for the bar, or meet a quota of “bar fines” paid by customers wanting to take the women to bed. They may be pressured to sleep with customers, and if they don’t, their salaries may be cut.

But in a country where a waitress may make between 4,000 and 6,000 baht a month and a prostitute can make that amount in two or three nights, there is no shortage of women attracted to the sex industry. Many have limited educations and few other opportunities.

The Empower Foundation as its name suggests – aims to educate sex workers and it treats their jobs with dignity. The Can Do bar is one of many projects it runs in different parts of the country. It opened last year after around 50 sex workers – including migrants from neighbouring countries such as Burma, Laos and Cambodia contributed to a community fund. They each bought a share in the bar for between 1,000 baht and 50,000 baht, together raising a total of one million baht, or around $31,000.

This was used to rent and renovate a three-story building which houses the bar downstairs. On upper floors are a meeting room and an information room for staff and visitors, with books and reports on prostitution and safe sex in Thai and English. There is also a classroom where migrant workers and those from the region’s hill tribes can study Thai.

The bar employs three permanent, full-time members of staff, including Lek. Other sex workers – whether shareholders or not can also register as staff and join the government’s social security scheme.

Hilton says workers in bars and other entertainment places are not usually covered by Thai labour laws, which are strictly enforced at Can Do.

The staff members work a maximum of eight hours a night, with a one-hour break, and have one day off a week — in other bars women get only two days off a month as a rule. They are also entitled to paid sick leave and 10 paid holidays a year, plus 13 public holidays.

If the women working in the bar wish to leave with a customer, that is considered a private arrangement between them, with safe sex strongly encouraged and free condoms and lubricant provided by the bar.

Unlike in virtually every other bar, the women are encouraged not to drink alcohol. “We need to save our bodies for when we go out with customers,” says Lek, matter-of-factly. “When we are drinking, we cannot service customers.”

Workers, including ladies who do part-time shifts, receive a commission of 30 baht on each drink bought for them.

Lek says between five and 10 women usually work at the bar each night, dancing, singing karaoke and talking to customers. The number of visitors fluctuates – in the tourist season, the bar is often very busy. During the low season, however, it receives fewer visitors and only opens on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

Not surprising Hilton says the bar is popular with staff from NGOs, who come to study how it works and the conditions it offers its workers. The walls are covered with messages of support from visitors. “I love you more than I can pay,” reads one.

Sai Pilachan, 24, and Arya Ma-yut, 22 work together at Can Do. Sai, a founding member of the bar, says she enjoys working there because it is fun, it gives her freedom, and it supports the workers when they are sick.

Sai has been a sex worker for about four years, and says the job allows her to support her family. They have no problem with what she does for a living, she says, but they don’t talk about it much. Sai, whose first language is Akha, the hill tribe the sisters belong to, also works as a volunteer Thai teacher, helping foreign and hill-tribe workers at the bar. Her sister Arya says she also enjoys working there as it’s “sanuk” (fun).

Lek says she and the other women are proud to be sex workers, and proud to work in the bar. “We don’t care what people say,” she said. “This is my life. We are not shy. We don’t care.”

[funky_house]

A court in eastern Pakistan has extended the police custody of two brothers charged with cannibalism, officials say.

Arif Ali and Farman Ali were arrested earlier in the week. Police say they caught them making a meal of a corpse they had recently stolen from a grave.

The brothers' alleged cannibalism was discovered after the body of a newly deceased woman was found to be missing from her grave in the city of Sargodha. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-12989074

[koolbreez]

A Different Kind of Thai Sex Bar

Written by Mark Fenn

FRIDAY, 19 OCTOBER 2007

At the Can Do bar in northern Thailand the sex workers are the owners

Bar manager Ruchaneekon U-para, or Lek, middle.

When the words bar and sex are put together in Thailand, one doesnt usually think about progressive labor relations or stuff like profit sharing. But in at least one small corner of the countrys huge sex industry, a few women are trying to get a better deal for themselves out of giving pleasure for money.

At the small Can Do bar in the northern city of Chiang Mai, sex workers are using their brains as well as their bodies in an experiment aimed at tackling exploitation. The bar is owned and managed by a collective of women from the Empower Foundation, a support group for sex workers known for its sex positive stance on prostitution.

The countrys first so called experitainment bar aims to provide working girls with a safe and fair working environment.

The bar, which complies fully with Thai labor laws, has just celebrated its first birthday and is proving successful on both a political and an economic level, said Liz Hilton, who works with Empower. The bar has won acceptance, Hilton says, for providing decent working conditions for the women who work there.

The women who came up with the idea and started putting it together had been working for many years and never had good conditions, she said.

Now that has changed. Bar manager Ruchaneekon U-para, or Lek, says she is happy in the job because of the freedom and good money it offers her. The 36-year-old, who has two daughters, has been a prostitute for five years.

Before sex work, she said, she worked long hours in a beauty salon for a small salary. Working in bars has given her the freedom to do other things, and the money to pay for her daughters schooling, although she hasnt always enjoyed such comfortable working conditions.

Estimates of how many prostitutes there are in Thailand range from around 150,000 to a whopping two million, out of a population of 65 million. The figures are difficult to calculate because many prostitutes work part-time or only occasionally, and move around the country. However, few dispute that prostitution is big business, or that with it come social evils such as trafficking in women and children. Go-go bars and hostess bars catering mainly to Western men are only the tip of the iceberg, but are the most visible part of the industry to foreigners.

The majority of women working in these bars face unfair and, in some cases, degrading conditions, with long hours and few days off. Often, they must persuade customers to buy them a certain number of ladys drinks to make money for the bar, or meet a quota of bar fines paid by customers wanting to take the women to bed. They may be pressured to sleep with customers, and if they dont, their salaries may be cut.

But in a country where a waitress may make between 4,000 and 6,000 baht a month and a prostitute can make that amount in two or three nights, there is no shortage of women attracted to the sex industry. Many have limited educations and few other opportunities.

The Empower Foundation as its name suggests aims to educate sex workers and it treats their jobs with dignity. The Can Do bar is one of many projects it runs in different parts of the country. It opened last year after around 50 sex workers including migrants from neighbouring countries such as Burma, Laos and Cambodia contributed to a community fund. They each bought a share in the bar for between 1,000 baht and 50,000 baht, together raising a total of one million baht, or around $31,000.

This was used to rent and renovate a three-story building which houses the bar downstairs. On upper floors are a meeting room and an information room for staff and visitors, with books and reports on prostitution and safe sex in Thai and English. There is also a classroom where migrant workers and those from the regions hill tribes can study Thai.

The bar employs three permanent, full-time members of staff, including Lek. Other sex workers whether shareholders or not can also register as staff and join the governments social security scheme.

Hilton says workers in bars and other entertainment places are not usually covered by Thai labour laws, which are strictly enforced at Can Do.

The staff members work a maximum of eight hours a night, with a one-hour break, and have one day off a week in other bars women get only two days off a month as a rule. They are also entitled to paid sick leave and 10 paid holidays a year, plus 13 public holidays.

If the women working in the bar wish to leave with a customer, that is considered a private arrangement between them, with safe sex strongly encouraged and free condoms and lubricant provided by the bar.

Unlike in virtually every other bar, the women are encouraged not to drink alcohol. We need to save our bodies for when we go out with customers, says Lek, matter-of-factly. When we are drinking, we cannot service customers.

Workers, including ladies who do part-time shifts, receive a commission of 30 baht on each drink bought for them.

Lek says between five and 10 women usually work at the bar each night, dancing, singing karaoke and talking to customers. The number of visitors fluctuates in the tourist season, the bar is often very busy. During the low season, however, it receives fewer visitors and only opens on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

Not surprising Hilton says the bar is popular with staff from NGOs, who come to study how it works and the conditions it offers its workers. The walls are covered with messages of support from visitors. I love you more than I can pay, reads one.

Sai Pilachan, 24, and Arya Ma-yut, 22 work together at Can Do. Sai, a founding member of the bar, says she enjoys working there because it is fun, it gives her freedom, and it supports the workers when they are sick.

Sai has been a sex worker for about four years, and says the job allows her to support her family. They have no problem with what she does for a living, she says, but they dont talk about it much. Sai, whose first language is Akha, the hill tribe the sisters belong to, also works as a volunteer Thai teacher, helping foreign and hill-tribe workers at the bar. Her sister Arya says she also enjoys working there as its sanuk (fun).

Lek says she and the other women are proud to be sex workers, and proud to work in the bar. We dont care what people say, she said. This is my life. We are not shy. We dont care.

So after almost 4 years from when that article was written are they still in business, and how successful was the venture? It'd be nicer if there was a follow up to such an old article.

[admin]

So after almost 4 years from when that article was written are they still in business, and how successful was the venture? It'd be nicer if there was a follow up to such an old article.

Maybe we should go to Chaing Mai and find out. TF Event?

[admin]

[Admin_2]

http://www.pattayadailynews.com/en/2011/03/22/first-american-to-receive-a-complete-face-transplant/

[GoodKarma]

[koolbreez]

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has cancelled a controversial titanium mine project in the country's southwest because of environmental concerns, the government said Friday.

The premier announced the ban on the much-criticised project during a weekly cabinet meeting, the government said in a statement, despite earlier granting a private company a 20,400-hectare (50,400-acre) concession for surface mining in the densely forested Cardamom Mountains.

"Due to concerns about the impact on the environment and biodiversity as well as the living standards of the people... Hun Sen has banned the exploitation of a titanium mine in Koh Kong province," it said.

Wildlife Alliance, a conservation group that campaigned for months against the proposed mine, said it was "thrilled" with the decision.

"We were under the impression the battle was lost," communications officer John Maloy told AFP.

"We are very pleased that the prime minister has weighed the environmental impact."

He said the mine would have been located "directly in the middle of an elephant corridor" and a nearby eco-tourism village "stood to be ruined by the project".

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sounds more like someone didn't get their agreed upon bribe money. Like there was ever a concern in Cambodia for the environment, or people.....hahahahahahaha. This is truly a WTF.

[Stramash]

French Muslim women encouraged to try Groucho Marx glasses

Following a national ban on full face veils, French Muslim women still looking to conceal their faces should consider the use of Grouch Marx style glasses and false noses, French authorities have said.

France’s lower house overwhelmingly voted to ban wearing the Islamic full veil in public, with politicians claiming it is a victory for French values of “democracy and trying not to run away from things we’re scared of all the time.”

A government spokesperson explained, “I want people to realise that it is the full veil we are banning, not the practise of disguising your face. If they want to use something else, then that is fine.”

Suggestions have been put forward pointing out that Groucho Marx style glasses and nose combo is perfectly legal in France, and also has the added benefit of being both a disguise, and hideously unattractive to most males, even the French ones.

“I want to make it clear that we have no problem with Muslim women wearing fake glasses and a plastic nose with a moustache attached.”

“It might even brighten up the day of a passing stranger. Particularly if they have a big cigar with which to wave at people as they pass, and they use a funny walk.”

Sex object

The purpose of the veil is to hide the modesty of the woman, and to prevent them being seen as a sex object by the men around them.

Opponents of the new rules have suggested that using a Groucho mask might actually make the situation worse, not better.

Francois Merdtete, 38, told us, “I’m a Frenchman in the truest sense of the word, and I find moustaches and bushy eyebrows extremely attractive on a woman, so I’m really not sure how this suggestion will be in keeping with the Muslim faith.”

(nt.com)

[Teila]

Not exactly news, but saw it & was like "woah"

Daily Mail: Now tat's scary

[GoodKarma]

Not exactly news, but saw it & was like "woah"

Daily Mail: Now tat's scary

I agree ditto the like"woah"

I wonder. How does she eat with those teeth..? just curious

[GoodKarma]

Well of Death (AKA Maut ka Kuaa)

[Stramash]

Llamas move fish to cooler waters in Lake District

A rare species of fish has been moved to higher ground to try to protect it from rising water temperatures.

Llamas were used to transport the endangered vendace 500m up mountain paths to a tarn in the Lake District.

Vendace, the UK's rarest freshwater fish, normally live in a lake environment.

But the Environment Agency said the species needed to be protected from the warming effects of climate change and its impact on rivers and lakes.

This project aims to establish a vendace "refuge".

Derwentwater, Cumbria, is now thought to be the only site in England and Wales where the fish exist.

The Environment Agency said the 25,000 fish were transported by llamas because the mountain paths were inaccessible by car, and it helped reduce the carbon footprint.

The llamas, from local charity Llama Karma Kafe, transported the newly hatched fish to Sprinkling Tarn, near Seathwaite Fell.

Fisheries officers on foot then helped transfer the fish to the cool waters of the tarn.

Andy Gowans, Fisheries Technical Specialist for the Environment Agency, said: "By introducing these vendace into Sprinkling Tarn, where water temperatures will be lower, it will provide an additional element of safeguarding for this endangered species.

"The fish will be closely monitored, in the hope that a self-sustaining population will be established."

Environment Agency Chairman, Lord Chris Smith, said: "Climate change is the biggest environmental challenge facing the world today.

"In addition to the anticipated warming of lakes and rivers, we may also see an increase in the occurrence of extreme weather events such as floods, droughts and heatwaves.

"All of these could have an impact on much of the native wildlife in England, especially aquatic species such as the rare and specialised vendace, so we are taking action now to conserve the existing populations."

The Environment Agency said it was also keeping a close eye on species such as salmon and trout, which were particularly vulnerable to increasing temperatures.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-13042511

[Teddy]

Chink in the Armour/Army?? (sorry, couldn't resist)

A Chinese man is in custody in Los Angeles after having allegedly duped unwitting Chinese immigrants into signing up to a fake US army unit.

Authorities have charged Yupeng Deng with theft by false pretences, manufacturing deceptive government documents and counterfeit of an official government seal.

Deng issued his new model army with us combat fatigues, flags and fake military IDs and led parades through his local neighbourhood in LA.

It emerged the 51-year-old charged more than 100 fellow Chinese nationals $300 (£184) to join his imaginary army unit in the hope of them obtaining US citizenship.

Deng reportedly had a mocked up US recruitment office complete with US army insignia to lure in victims and called his unit the 'Military Special Forces Reserve Unit' (MSFR).

The 'Military Special Forces Reserve Unit' Office

Deng was known to his loyal troops as the 'supreme commander'.

His alleged scam was uncovered after members of his MSFR unit were stopped by local police who spotted their fake IDs.

District attorney Michael Yglecias said: "They seemed to be wearing military fatigues and produced what they believed was legitimate military ID documents".

Investigators later learned that Deng's troops were being told that their IDs could be used to avoid getting tickets and to receive some benefits and discounts.

Deng charged a joining fee and annual membership for his elite unit

Deng is being held on bail and faces up to eight years in prison if convicted.

heres the link

[koolbreez]

Feds Go 'All In' Against Online Poker Sites

By Matt Egan

Published April 15, 2011 Reuters

In a dramatic move sure to send shockwaves through the surging Internet poker world, U.S. officials shut down and seized the domain names for the three largest U.S. online poker companies on Friday.

The indictment unsealed Friday alleges industry leaders PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker continued to operate their businesses inside the U.S. in the face of new laws banning Internet poker and largely by deceiving financial institutions.

The takedown marks the first widespread charges targeting Internet poker by federal officials and is likely to impact billions of dollars of gaming revenue. The indictment seeks at least $3 billion in civil money laundering penalties and forfeiture from the poker companies and defendants.

Preet Bharara, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, unsealed an indictment Friday afternoon charging 11 defendants, including the founders of PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker, with bank fraud, money laundering and illegal gambling offenses.

At the same time, the U.S. seized five Internet domain names used to host the poker games and filed a civil money laundering and a civil complaint against the companies, their assets and the assets of several of their payment processors. Restraining orders were also issued against more than 75 bank accounts used by the poker companies and their payment processes.

“These defendants concocted an elaborate criminal fraud scheme, alternately tricking some U.S. banks and effectively bribing others to assure the continued flow of billions in illegal gambling profits,” Bharara said in a statement. “Foreign firms that choose to operate in the United States are not free to flout the laws they don’t like simply because they can’t bear to be parted from their profits."

In tandem with the soaring popularity of Internet gaming and televised Texas Hold’em poker, Internet poker has skyrocketed in recent years despite the ambiguity surrounding its legality in the U.S.

However, visitors on Friday to absolutepoker.com, the homepage of Absolute Poker, are greeted with logos of the Department of Justice and Federal Bureau of Investigation and a statement saying the domain name has been seized by the FBI.

The statement on the site warns that taking part in an illegal gambling business is a federal crime. “It is also a federal crime to knowingly accept, in connection with the participation of another person in unlawful Internet gambling, credit, electronic fund transfers, or checks," the warning said.

According to the indictment, the offshore poker companies continued to operate in the U.S. despite the enactment of a 2006 law that made it a federal crime to “knowingly accept” most forms of payment “in connection with the participation of another person in unlawful Internet gambling.”

The U.S. alleges the poker companies used fraudulent methods to circumvent federal law and trick U.S. banks and credit card issuers unwilling to process their payments.

For example, the indictment says the companies arranged for the money received from U.S. gamblers to be “disguised” as payments to hundreds of nonexistent online merchants purportedly selling other items like jewelry and golf balls.

The indictment lists five founders of the poker companies: Isai Scheinberg and Paul Tate of PokerStars, Raymond Bitar and Nelson Burtnick of Full Tilt Poker and Scott Tom and Brent Beckley of Absolute Poker.

“These defendants, knowing full well that their business with U.S. customers and U.S. banks was illegal, tried to stack the deck,” said Janice Fedarcyk, assistant director-in-charge at the FBI. “The defendants bet the house that they could continue their scheme, and they lost."

The U.S. also charged “highly compensated payment processors,” including Ryan Lang, Ira Rubin, Bradley Franzen and Chad Elie.

According to the indictment, these individuals obtained accounts at U.S. banks for the poker companies by lying about the nature of the transactions and covering up those lies by creating phoney corporations and Web sites.

Edited April 16, 2011 by koolbreez

[Stramash]

frikkin' idiots;

Postal Service in Statue of Liberty stamp photo mix-up

The US Postal Service regrets issuing a stamp featuring a photo of a Las Vegas casino's replica Statue of Liberty rather than the original in New York harbour, a spokesman has said.

But the postal service printed three billion of the first-class stamps and will continue to sell them, he said.

And the agency would have selected the photograph anyway, he said.

A stamp collector discovered the mix-up after noting discrepancies between the stamp image and the copper original.

The mix-up was first reported by Linn's Stamp News, a publication for philatelists.

It points out that the photo used on the stamp shows a rectangular patch on the crown that is present on the 14-year-old statue at the New York-New York Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, but not on the 305ft (93m) copper statue in New York.

In addition, the facial features on the Las Vegas replica are more sharply defined than on the original.

The image was taken from a stock photography service, the New York Times reported.

Designed by French sculptor Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi and French engineer Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, the statue - entitled Statue of Liberty Enlightening the World - was given to the US by the French and dedicated in 1886.

Now surely, if you are going to print 3 BILLION stamps, you would at least commission a photographer to take the shot rather than use a stock service?

[admin]

Topless teenage dancers get dressing down for 'distorting Songkran values'

Bangrak District Office director Surakiat Limcharern yesterday lodged a complaint with police over topless female Songkran revellers whose sexy dancing near Silom Road was recorded and posted on the Internet.

"It hurts the image of Thailand, in particular Silom," he said. "It distorts Songkran culture too."

Surakiat said the topless dances took place on Naradhivas Ratchanakharin Road.

"Close examination showed the topless revellers were young, so young that it dismissed my initial assumption that they might have been workers in the redlight zone of Patpong," Surakiat said.

Lodging his complaint at the Yannawa Police Station, Surakiat urged police to track down the teenagers who have carried out obscene acts in public places.

National Police Commissioner General Wichien Pojphosri vowed action against both the topless revellers and their cheering crowds. Culture Minister Nipit Intarasombat, meanwhile, wanted action taken against those lending loudspeakers and stereo systems for the topless dancing.

"Apart from being fined, the topless girls should be required to do some

cultural work. For example, they should be made to read books about the Songkran Festival for young students to listen to as part of the punishment," Nipit said.

Video clips showing the topless Songkran revellers were posted on the Internet on Saturday, provoking a public outcry.

Culture Watch Centre director Ladda Tangsupachai yesterday disclosed that Nipit also instructed her to officially ask the National Police Office and the ICT Ministry to ban the video clips on the Internet.

Family Network board member Wanchai Boonpracha said he felt bad that some young revellers had strayed so far during the Thai New Year celebrations.

"If such things go on, foreign tourists will finally think that Songkran is just about the water fights. They will not see Songkran as a beautiful culture," he said.

He urged authorities to seriously enforce laws to prevent inappropriate acts in the future.

In Phichit, two transvestites were fined yesterday for exposing their breasts during the Songkran celebrations.

"I am so sorry for doing so. I was under the influence of alcohol. Next year, I will wear a decent Thai costume to celebrate Songkran," one said.

In Chon Buri, Pattaya City's councillor Rattanachai Suttidechanai said all entertainment venues were told not to stage pornographic shows.

"We are developing Pattaya as a world-class destination. The world is watching us," he said.

Water splashing in Pattaya City will be officially permitted from today to tomorrow.

The Nation

Reason for submitting under WTF?!?! Silom had moral values before the topless dancers?

[Stramash]

A man has been spotted doing his ironing on the closed side of the motorway.

Drivers were left stunned as they saw him walk onto the road, put up his board, and get going.

He didn't have to dodge cars as the southbound stretch has been deserted for days.

Part of the M1 between junctions 1 and 4 has been closed off since Friday after a fire broke out at a scrapyard in the Mill Hill area of north London.

According to the official website, extreme ironing is "the latest danger sport that combines the thrills of an extreme outdoor activity with the satisfaction of a well-pressed shirt."

video here;

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/4/20110418/toddly-m1-extreme-ironing-cc3a409.html

[Stramash]

nice follow up to the blog about the UK woman sleeping with her 18 year old son;

Man who had baby with 11-year-old stepdaughter and later married her walks free

• Dad spared jail as "he's unlikely to repeat action"
  
• Judge rules girl, 11, was the sexual aggressor
  
• So-called victim sighed with relief over ruling
  

A FATHER has been given an 18-month, wholly suspended jail sentence for a single carnal act with his future bride - which resulted in the conception of their daughter - almost 15 years ago.

Brisbane District Court Judge David Reid was last week told what made the couple's union a criminal act was the fact that at the time the future groom was aged 42 and the soon to be mother was his 11-year-old step-daughter.

As revealed by The Courier Mail yesterday, the convicted child sex offender, who is now raising the 14-year-old child who was the fruit of the illegal act, was facing a seven-year stint when he was originally charged by police in 1995.

But he fled interstate after being twice given bail and jailed for several months and was able to elude police for 14 years, 18 months and three-days.

During that time he returned to Brisbane undetected by authorities and married the girl, who by then had turned 18.

They produced a second child - a son - in 2005.

In a sentence imposed this morning that will see the man walk free from court, Judge Reid said: "The facts of this case are most unusual and unlikely to ever be repeated.''

"(Your daughter born as a result of this offence) describes you as awesome dad and (says she) is lucky to have you.''

Judge Reid said as appalling as the facts in the case were there was no evidence the man "groomed'' the girl for sex and that the child had been the sexual aggressor during the one-off encounter.

He said impressionable young girls rightly needed to be protected from predatory older men and that deterrence was an important consideration in cases of this nature.

The man, now aged 58 and who until his recapture in March resided on Brisbane's northside and cannot be named to protect his victim, pleaded guilty on Friday to an act of unlawful carnal knowledge with a girl in his care under 12 during the September 1995 school holidays.

Prosecutor Rebecca Britnell said the man was in a relationship with the child's mother and they produced a son - the girl's half brother about a year before the sexual assault.

Ms Britnell said the man had been asleep naked in his bed when the 11-year-old came into his bedroom, disrobed and they had sex.

The court was told the man told the girl the one-off incident - which he told police was the result of her being the "sexual aggressor" - was wrong and could never happen again.

However, when the girl revealed she was pregnant the pair fled interstate and remained in hiding until her disappearance and her mum's appeal for her safe return became a national media event.

Ms Britnell said the girl, by then 30 weeks pregnant, telephoned her mother shortly after and arrived at Brisbane's Roma Street Travel Centre in April 1996.

She said the girl made a statement to police, the man was charged, bailed by a magistrate, breached it by seeing the girl, was jailed for three months, again bailed and then fled.

The court was told the man remained on the run until police learned of his whereabouts in Brisbane on March 8 this year.

Police contacted the man, gave him 24-hours to sort out his affairs and he surrendered the following day and has been in custody since.

It was also revealed the man returned to Brisbane, rekindled his relationship with the girl and they married, produced a son, separated in 2007 and remain good friends.

The so-called victim, who has supported the man since being charged, today sighed in relief when Judge Reid announced her former husband would not be returning to jail.

[funky_house]

ooooooohh!!

Mother Maria Topp denies biting off boyfriend's testicles

Mother of four Maria Topp, who is accused of biting off her boyfriend's testicles. has denied grievous bodily harm in a court hearing today.

Maria Topps leaves Newcastle Crown Court after a brief hearing to deny a charge of grievous bodily harm

The 43-year-old allegedly savaged Martin Douglas at his Newcastle flat on February 18 at 4am.

Mr Douglas required emergency hospital treatment for the injuries caused.

The mum, from Aycliffe Place, Wrekenton, Gateshead, appeared at Newcastle Crown Court to deny the charge at a brief hearing.

She appeared with dyed blonde hair in a bob and wearing a sparkly white jumper.

Swas granted bail until her two or three-day trial, which will be fixed later.

In 2005, a woman who admitted to ripping her ex-boyfriend's testicle off with her bare hands after he refused to sleep with her was jailed for two and a half years.

Read more: http://www.metro.co.uk/news/861537-mother-maria-topp-denies-biting-off-boyfriends-testicles#ixzz1KCAE81p3

Read more: http://www.metro.co.uk/news/861537-mother-maria-topp-denies-biting-off-boyfriends-testicles#ixzz1KCA11V7N

[StevieJR]

King of Cambodia snubs Wills and Kate's wedding

Read more: http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/news/3541193/King-of-Cambodia-snubs-Prince-William-and-Kate-Middleton-wedding.html#ixzz1KC9PRTka

That's because he is watching it in Big Mango at the TF event.

Edited April 22, 2011 by StevieJR

[Teddy]

For a second I thought the link said scottish hun. lol.

[Stramash]

For a second I thought the link said scottish hun. lol.

no, just the poster.

[GoodKarma]

53 year old man posing as a student charged for solo sex act

School bus driver finds "evidence of a solo sex act" in seat where 53-year-old man pretending to be student was sitting.

P.S. He fooled bus driver with ingenious disguise consisting of carrying a backpack. WTF?

A 53-year-old Minneapolis man was charged Thursday with committing a sex act on board a school bus while children were there last month.

Michael Charles Friedrichs was carrying a backpack and posing as a student when he got onto the bus at 42nd Street and Longfellow Avenue S. about 7 a.m. March 17, according to police spokesman Sgt. William Palmer.

When Friedrichs left the bus, the driver, who had been on the job for less than a month, became suspicious. When he checked the area where the man had been sitting, he found slashed seats and evidence of a solo sex act, so the driver called radio dispatch to report the incident, police said at the time.

The bus was on a regular route, headed for Seward Montessori School. The Minneapolis School District notified parents about the incident shortly after it happened.

Friedrichs, who was arrested Wednesday, is charged with criminal sexual conduct in the fifth degree, a gross misdemeanor, Palmer said.

read more:

The Small Town of Moneygall prepares for US President Obama's visit

President Obama's great, great, great grandfather came from Moneygall and the president plans to set foot in his ancestral home during his two-day visit to Ireland

The village is so small it has no bank, no cash point, no coffee shop and a population of less than 300 people read more:

[Teddy]

New York cabbie picks up $5,000 fare to California

New York taxi driver Mohammed Alam has picked up the fare of a lifetime - $5,000 (£3,000) to drive across the US to Los Angeles.

Investment banker John Belitsky said he and friend Dan Wuebben wanted to do something "magical".

They decided on a cab ride to LA and struck the deal with Mr Alam after finding him at LaGuardia Airport.

The 2,448-mile trip took six days and included a stop in Las Vegas where the friends won $2,000.

Mr Belitsky, of Leonia, New Jersey, and Mr Wuebben, of Queens, New York, haven't yet said how they intend to get back to the East Coast.

But Mr Alam says a friend will help him make the drive back home.

The epic trip has been documented by Mr Belitsky on his Twitter page.

On 22 April, after their winning streak in Las Vegas, he tweeted: "Woke up Alam to a shower of $100 bills at sunrise."

New York news blog NYU Local estimated that the trip would have cost $17,000 (£10,000) if the meter had been running for the whole trip.