Twitter has announced they will begin deleting tweets at the request of certain countries.  This has caused an uproar from free speech advocates.  In reality, it simply brings Twitter in line with other major social media sites whose content interacts with the borders and laws of other countries who may not view free expression the same way we do here in the United States.

Note that in my title I used the phrase, “Free Expression” instead of “free speech” or “freedom of speech.”  I did this because there is a major difference in application.  Whether Twitter does or does not censor content in this country is  not a First Amendment  issue.  The First Amendment only applies to goverment restrictions on speech. Twitter is a private company and can restrict speech in any way it sees fit.   It is frankly surprising that Twitter has taken so long to recognize that speech does not occur in social media in a “free expression vacuum”

Prior to this announcement and after, Twitter will continue to be the most liberal platform in terms of free expression. It has virtually no restrictions on speech in it’s Terms of Service. Users are  allowed to be as racist, hateful and to a degree threatening as they like as long as the tweet does not constitute a “true threat” as defined by Twitter.

Conspicuously missing are the rules against certain types of “hate speech” that you see on Facebook, YouTube and other major sites even under the most vague definition of such content.  This has lead to a wild west atmosphere of ethnic, racial and pretty much any type of vile speech that can be imagined allowable as long as no U.S. laws are being broken and no true threat is made.  The problem Twitter  faces is that what is legal and allowable here may not be allowable if the tweet originated from another country that has hate speech laws in effect.  The must now strike a balance between growth in these countries and free expression. This is not a new dilemma.

eBay and Yahoo banned the buying and selling of Nazi memorabilia world wide even though it is not illegal in the United States but illegal in several countries in Europe.   For the last few years Facebook has blocked Holocaust Denial and other content in countries which such expression is illegal even though it is not illegal in this country under First Amendment principles

This was not a morality move nor a judgment on the nature of hate speech or other expression that may be illegal in other countries.  Twitter did not care about that before the decision and does not care now.  Twitter  simply wants worldwide growth and for it’s executives to stay out of foreign courts.   In order to accomplish that they have to take world wide morality and legal standards into account.  This move was inevitable and necessary to achieve that.  Welcome to the “Free Expression Establishment.”

Until the other day, I had no idea who Demi Lovato was.  Being 51 years old with no children, she is simply not on my generational radar.  We do however, both have something substantial in common.  We both suffer from the eating disorder Bulimia.  Most people have a sense of what Bulima is about.  You stuff your face and then puke it up minutes after.  Some people also use Laxatives. Most however, have no concept of the destructive nature of the disease.  The reason is that very few people come out publicly with their struggles.

It is terrible for Demi or any person to go through such as daily destructive self-image battle but if there is an upside, when someone  in the media eye, like Demi, has the courage to go public with her struggles, it puts the spotlight on a disease that is often suffered in shame and silence, much like I dealt with it when I was her age.   In reading an interview she gave on the subject,  she said something that resonated with me.

“ don’t think there’s going to be a day when I don’t think about food or my body,

That is the truest, most revealing and concise statement of the disease that anyone could make.  Bulimia  is a daily war with food and body self image.

I went through a three year brutal battle with active bulimia while a student at Penn State University.   If you think that it is a disease under-reported by men in the 21st century  try being a 18 year old male bulimia sufferer on a college campus of Forty-Thousand in 1981.

Treatment for an eating disorder is for the most part not going to be anything a male 18 year old freshman college student contemplates. I was not about to ask for medical or other help.  I did not even tell my family.  I would not have even known what to tell them. I had no idea what Bulimia was. The binge-purge cycle was simply a “normal” part of my life like getting up and going to bed  I went through daily emotional battles within myself.  There is the overwhelming feeling of shame.  I would have rather told my family I wanted a sex change than I was throwing up after every meal.  You have no context for understanding what you are going through.  You believe that once  you are thin enough to have reached your goal all your social problems will be solved.  Unfortunately the mirror tells you that you are never thin enough.

There is no doubt that in the hot-bod, infinite image explosion,  G-Q generation we live in, men have become more  aggressive in trying to emulate the male model types they see in various types of media.  I never saw it that way.  In the pre-MTV and Directv world of my college days, you were simply not exposed to those types of images to any significant degree.  I equated being thinner with being more accepted and popular.  I was not comparing myself to television and other media images.  I was comparing myself to the people I saw around me on a daily basis.  My perception going through high school was that there were no fat popular kids.  I  was not a model.  I was just your average fat kid trying to fit in and wanting to be popular like the thin kids seemed to be.  I wanted that life.  I wanted any life but mine.  In order to help my weight along I decided to get into long distance running.  I eventually worked my way up to running  10 -20 miles a day, 7 days a week.  I would run 10 in the morning and the same in the evening. I was always training for one marathon or another. When the day was over I scarf down a 2lb bag of peanut M&Ms.  I would then head straight to my next best friend, the toilet, to puke it all up.  This behavior was repeated with pizza, fast food etc. There were days that between not eating, puking after I ate and running long distances I was too dehydrated and weak to even get out of bed.  No matter how much weight I lost or how thin I became I always saw the same person in the mirror.  It was some beastly kid who still needed to drop a few lbs that had no friends.

In the span of one year I went from 230 lbs to 165 lbs at 6’2.  As appealing as that may seem to some, it was a brutal, almost deadly ride that I would not wish on my worst enemy. In my mind being thinner  was the only possible route to social acceptance.  I was not trying to reach some unattainable model goal, I was simply trying to fit in.  The problem is that regardless of why you think you need to either starve yourself or binge and purge the reflection in the mirror never ever changes until you are dead.  About 10 percent of those suffering from Bulimia will ultimately die from the disease.

While the manifestation of the disease is many years behind me, as Demi stated, the issues of self image are a daily battle that never goes away.  You simply learn constructive ways to channel them. Sometimes they are not so constructive.  My self-image battle has also involved exercise anorexia, drug and steroid addiction.  It is a daily, life-long struggle for balance.  A perfect example is that even today,  I have difficulty looking at myself naked in the mirror and accurately evaluating what I see. Good for Demi for raising awareness of the struggle.

CBS Chicgo sports columnist and sports radio host Dan Bernstein took  hatred  to an extreme when stated in an opinion piece  that he hoped cancer stricken former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno would die soon.

This commentary came within the context of his criticism of a public letter put together by over 340 former Penn State football players showing support for Paterno in the wake of brutal criticism for his actions or lack of them in the Jerry Sandusky scandal.  With regards to  specifics of his criticism, I actually agree with Bernstein on several points.  Making the letter public  was ill conceived, inappropriate and was not for the benefit of Paterno but for the ego of  players who signed.  A self centered, arrogant move.

Bernstein should have left it at that.  In addition to criticizing the letter, he  went on to state specifically in his column that he hoped Paterno, who is battling lung cancer  would die soon.   He did not stop there.  He then  had a “Celebration Of Paterno’s Cancer” segment on the Boers And Bernstein radio show.  In the same breath, he also plugged  the One Step At A Time Camp organization which  provides programs for children with cancer.  Dan Bernstein is on the Board Of Directors.  Seem disturbingly ironic?

What’s the bottom line in all this?   Dan Bernstein used a public forum to spew hatred and mock cancer victims. He owes some public forum apologies.  He does NOT owe apologies to  Joe Paterno or offended Penn Staters.   He owes public apologies to the millions of  sick and dying people he mocked.  Those who are battling cancer. Those who are on the front lines looking for a cure.  Those who spend their lives  trying to make life easier for those afflicted.

You may not like or even despise Joe Paterno.  You may believe, in a detached context that what Bernstein said was justified. This is not about Joe Paterno or Penn State.   Listen to Bernsteins actual words and the hatred he worked so hard to take viral. Then consider the bigger picture of  the 11,958,000 million currently afflicted with cancer. Maybe it’s someone you know or love.  Maybe it’s your child like the children helped by the One Step At A Time or similar organization. See how you feel then.  Maybe you will agree that a public apology is in order.  Here are the links to his show.  I urge you to listen.

Boers And Bernstein Hour 3 Minutes  6-8

Boers And Bernstein Hour 3  Minutes 29-31

* A special thanks to certain fellow Penn Staters who provided me the digital clips of the show.

Anyone who lives in the North Texas area is aware of the tragic loss of life that took place in Grapevine, Texas on Christmas day.  Azizolah “Bob” Yazdanpanah, who is reportedly Muslim,  dressed as Santa Claus,  fatally shot six family members on Christmas Day before killing himself.  A terrible tragedy.  My heart goes out to the Yazdanpanah family and all affected by this senseless act of violence.

Upon opening up my Facebook news-feed yesterday, there were numerous references to the shooting.  One of the story-lines that seemed to be taking on a life of it’s own were people posting that this was an “honor killing”.  I was surprised as nothing had been reported as such. The police had issued a statement that day stating that no motive had been developed.  Many of the Facebookers grabbing on to the honor killing angle also accused our local media of engaging in a “coverup” of that fact.

Where did this honor killing story come from?  How did it go from a tragic event still being investigated to a stereotyped event devoid of factual basis meant to degrade and dehumanize the family and the tragedy because they were Muslim?  It was clear from the posts that the predominate response  was catering to the stereotype with an “it figures.” type response.  “It figures” because stereotypes tell us that all Muslim husbands are abusive and when a Muslim father is unhappy with who his daughter is dating he kills her right?  So where did this “honor killing angle” come from?   The story appeared to have  originated with these  fringe”sources”:

Jihad Watch:  A far right blog that spends  much of it’s time proving that all Muslims are evil people. The blog claims to have interviews with friends/classmates of one of the victims. They talk about how strict the father was and how upset he was at his daughter’s dating situation.  The blog is  vague on whether the author did the interviews or got them from another source.  I can find no mainstream reference to any of the alleged quotes from classmates.  In fact, the Fort Worth Star Telegram, the closest major newspaper vicinity wise, did in fact interview friends of the victims, one of whom stated that this was not an honor killing:

“This was not an honor killing,” Jessica Toumani, a friend of the Zarei family’s, said in a statement e-mailed to the Star-Telegram.”We are not sure of much at this point, but we are sure that is not a viable theory. Aziz was never religious, nor were any of the victims. They left Iran to escape the Islamic regime, which is why most Iranians left.”

Atlas Shrugged:  This lady who runs this blog,  Pamela Gellar is one of the biggest hate mongering, Islamaphobic, bigots on this planet.  I won’t give her any link love.   She grabbed onto the  Jihad Watch story and put her own Anti-Muslim spin on it.

The International Business Times:   If you read their story, they cite Jihad Watch as their source on the honor killing angle.

I confronted one Facebook poster who maintained that the tragedy was an Honor killing.  He cited the IBT story.  When I pointed out that the police had not released a motive and that the story was citing blogs and not legitimate reporting sources he then stated that he had also heard a local Dallas news station report it as an honor killing.  I contacted the reporter he named. She stated that no such report had ever been broadcast as the police had not stated a motive.  When I confronted the person with her denial, he reverted to his first source insisting that it was a legitimate original source for the story.  It of course is not but it was enough for him because it validated his fears and stereotypes well as  allowing  him to spread the canard to validate everyone else’s.

Before writing this blog, I Googled the search term “Grapevine Honor Killing” There were 118, 000 potential hits.  Of course, not all will be relevant to the story but it seems clear that as of the writing of this blog, the Honor Killing theory has spread  from three fringe sources, two of which make it their business to stir up anti-Muslim hatred to pretty much the entire far right-wing Islamaphobic Bogosphere, Facebook and Twitter.

That, my friends, is how hate goes viral.

The Confederacy is rising again in Texas.  At least in the form of specialty license plates.  The Texas division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans has filed a lawsuit in Texas federal court arguing that the Department of Motor Vehicles violated its it’s First Amendment rights  by refusing to issue a license plate featuring a Confederate flag.  As a point of clarification, vanity plates are plates in which you pick the license plate symbols.   Specialty plates are plates the state issues with various organizations.   For instance, here in Texas, we now have a Dallas Mavericks specialty plate.  The Sons Of Confederate Veterans would be a Specialty Plate.  If my license plate read “CUBES”, that would be a vanity plate.

When I think of the Confederate flag I think of rednecks, racism and NASCAR not necessarily in that order.  Before you hang me from the nearest Texas Motor Speedway light-pole,  I have admittedly not watched many NASCAR races.  In the one race I did attend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, there were many confederate flags draped from RV’s in the parking lot with the occupants engaging in activities that would simply be drunkenly boorish in any other venue but adding in the Confederate flag screamed redneck.  I don’t think I am going out on a limb in opning that some of them would not know the Battle Of  Fort Sumter from Bunker Hill.

NASCAR aside, this is a case in which the Sons will probably prevail or the DMV will relent and issue the plate before it gets that far. Regardless of the varied meanings the flag embodies and that the state actually owns the plates, it can not engage in viewpoint discrimination.  Nine other states have approved Sons Of Confederate Veterans’ specialty plates, several only after being sued.  There are other issues that could come in to play such as the fact that the plates are actually the property of the state and therefore  constitute a non-public forum or whether the plates constitute  goverment speech as compared to private speech.  This could change the standard of review more in favor of the state.  I however, don’t see those issues affecting the constitutionality of the Sons Of Confederate Veterans plates.

As Jeff Foxworthy would say:  “You might be a redneck if…”   Having confederate flag plate would certainly make my list.  If it does not make yours and you want one in Texas you will have to wait a bit before branding yourself one to the motoring public.   Never fear however,  you will get to  do it.  It’s your constitutional right to be a redneck.

Should Penn State have declined a bowl invitation to play in the Ticket City Bowl  against the Houston Cougars  in Dallas on January 2?  The pro opinion is pretty much the same rhetoric that has been spouted since the Jerry Sandusky scandal broke.  People are rightly outraged at the failure to act by those who are accountable  and the specter of a institutional coverup. Many believe that the the declining of a bowl invitation is a “just punishment” to those who have failed to act and surely covered up these awful events. Some believe it will deter similar future conduct. There are those who  believe it is simply the “moral” thing to do.

Let’s keep our eye on the ball.  Who are we punishing and for what reason?  What future conduct are we trying to deter and for what reason? Whose  morality are we trying to satisfy?  We all agree that the conduct Sandusky is accused of is sickening and heinous.  If convicted, the legal and “moral” thing is that he live out his life behind prison walls. That’s the easy one.  The failure to act by Grahm Spanier, Joe Paterno and others is troubling.  Those who did not act have either been held or are in the process of being held accountable.  Despite the trend towards inserting our own facts to satisfy our immediate blood lust, the bottom line is that there is still many questions unanswered of who knew what and what they did with the information.  These questions will be answered as the wheels of justice slowly turn.

How does this extend to young adults who had absolutely nothing to do with the scandal?  What legal, deterrent or moral high ground is established by punishing these kids by denying them one of their dreams.   Are we deluding ourselves into thinking that this is something the alleged victims want?  That prohibiting innocent kids from playing in a bowl game will somehow alleviate their  pain to any degree?  Is the goal of punishing those who had no involvement in the scandal meant to accomplish something positive or is it simply punishment for punishments sake. Generalized hatred so intense and all consuming.  Hatred for hatred’s sake.

Let’s keep our eye on the ball.  This is not about kids and coaches having nothing to do with any of this playing in a bowl game.  Let them enjoy the moment they worked so hard for.  If you think that the alleged victims would not be in agreement with this, you are deluding yourself with your own “moral’ righteous anger.  No need to create  innocent villains and victims out of hatred.  There is enough of that in this world already.

Sandusky tells NBC’s Bob Costas, “I love to be around them, but no, I’m not sexually attracted to young boys.  I love young people.” However, Sandusky admitted that he showered with, hugged and touched the children, but in a non –sexual manner?  Costas: “Are you a pedophile?”  Sandusky: “No.  I probably shouldn’t have showered with the boys.” That seemed to be his only regret.  We’ve all heard the interview, and most likely more than one time.

It is traumatic and disturbing when sexual offenses, committed by anyone, especially those in positions of power and trust, become a part of our reality.  As a Licensed Sex Offender Treatment Provider, I work daily with sexual offenders and victims, and yet I truly grieve for the victims and families in the wake of this Penn. State scandal.  Numerous individuals were disconnected from reality in this case, and connected in a conspiracy to keep this child sex abuse scandal a secret.  I wouldn’t have believed it, but after reading the Grand Jury report, and viewing the Sandusky interview with Bob Costas, which may go down as his last recorded words, I see a disturbing story of rape and misuse of power.

The nation listened, in a collective pause, to hear anything that might be “his” truth. THE truth! We received no answer.  I heard absolute denial, no admission of guilt, no clarity of thought, no apology, and perhaps no soul.  For me, he seems to possess little understanding of anything he’s done.  I heard a feeble, dead with denial, voice. It was very unsettling and left me feeling like I was listening to John Wayne Gacey answer for his deeds, in a John Wayne body and voice.  How does this happen? A beloved, elderly coach, in the heart of middle-America, responded in an interview , and as Costas said, “If you were unfamiliar with the name Sandusky, sadly he will now be remembered as a criminal, and a monster.”  We’re not speaking of a 23 yr old, or a 43 yr old, but an older individual that through many years has perpetrated horrific acts on innocent victims; which include those that caught him, saw it happen, heard it, did report it, didn’t report it.    Who advised him to participate in this interview? Was he medicated, and is he on suicide watch?  All of these questions were all over the morning news programs; it’s the lead in every show.

Here are some major points that the general public needs to know:

Epidemiological research notes that 1% to 3% of men are sexually attracted to children.  Men who molest children rationalize their actions, often to a point of denial. We all listened to that first hand, when we as a nation held a cumulative breath, waiting for his answer, he denied it all.  Sadly, many offenders, I’ve worked with, characterized the relationship as a “mentoring” relationship: “Second Mile Gone Wild.”  If you listen to the interview, you can hear all of this in the thread of the interview.

Pedophiles do not fit neatly into “creepy” profiles.  They can fill any role in society, particularly a leadership role with children.  We have seen similar stories with the Catholic Church, The Boy Scouts of America, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, Orphanage staff and the like.

Approximately 70% of the victims, in child sex abuse cases, know the offender.  Serial child molesters seek vulnerable children and employ means to cultivate relationships with them. Children usually are not picked at random. They are screened by systematic desensitization techniques (many are detailed in the Grand Jury report).  Because of Penn State’s credibility, parents were willing to allow staff to have unrestricted access to their kids.

What might happen now?

Sandusky may be near the point of suicide. When listening to his interview, I heard “dead with denial”, possibly nothing to live for. He has legal representation, but the collective of the testimony that will mount against him will certainly render a guilty verdict at some level. I have worked with many pedophilic felons that were “executives” prior to their conviction. This group is especially prone to suicidal ideation, intent, and plan at this stage of the legal process. Sandusky may be portrayed by the media as an older, “broken down” individual.  He may play the “I was sexually abused as a child” defense which would be a useful strategy to keep punishment in a lower range.

Additionally, I wonder if there was ever any child pornography viewed on Penn State computers or any computer of Sandusky’s. Moreover, the boy that was at the Alamo Bowl, in San Antonio, might itself result in a separate criminal investigation.  Transporting a child across state lines for the purpose of sexual exploitation may be something to examine further.  These possibilities could result in a federal investigation.  A federal sex offense case almost assures a conviction and prison time.

Child Witnesses Recant?

This was brought up in the interview loosely. When there are multiple solid testimonies, it is very difficult to recant.  Unlike the McMartin Day Care case, these victims are independent cases with no other proximal ties, thus maximizing the credibility of the testimony. Again, the number of boys involved here will likely make recanting a non-issue.

Happy Valley to Neverland…

I hesitate to reference Michael Jackson’s Neverland, especially in lieu of the recent trial that’s coming to an end. The names “Neverland” and “Happy Valley” feel almost eerie to say, especially now in light of this scandal, not to mention the title of his book, “Touch”.  It is now a place where deep dark secrets are kept, where Gerald Sandusky was allowed to prey on innocent kids, at everyone’s expense. It is a place where innocent lives were tarnished and forever changed. There are no winners here.

Did you know…

Sandusky started “The Second Mile” in State College, Pennsylvania, in 1977.  It began as a group foster home for helping troubled boys.  Through “The Second Mile”, he had access to hundreds of boys, many of whom were vulnerable, due to their social situations. He took total advantage of his position, and no one cared.  Sandusky retired from “The Second Mile” in 2010.

Clinical information regarding the “mind of a perpetrator”:

Grooming:

The term is used to classify sex offending behavior that begins with flirting. Efforts, no doubt, were made to get the victim interested in Sandusky. In his case, that might’ve involved gifts, attention, followed by light touch, which progressed to more touch.  All of these elements come together to get the victim to comply, and create the perfect storm. Sadly, threats and intimidation may also be used to achieve compliance, all at the victim’s expense. The next step… the offense cycle begins: thoughts, fantasies, and all things leading to the deviant act. Needy children are the perfect target for abuse.

Clinically speaking, after acting out, the perpetrator might feel positive, happy, negative, unhappy, or some of both. Feelings and arousal can keep the offense cycle going, indefinitely. Some offenders that experience satisfaction, go right back to the acting out stage. Feeling guilty or upset could even lead to reoffending, very similar to having a hangover, but drinking more to feel better. I’ll spare you the rest of the hard-core details. It’s not an easy read, nor easy to write. It is particularly difficult to address, and sadly for that reason perhaps it wasn’t.

That’s it for now folks. We watch and we wait.

Bruce Cameron, M.S., LPC-S, LSOTP is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Licensed Sex Offender Treatment Provider in the Dallas Fort Worth area. He has worked with adult and juvenile Sexual Offenders since 1990 in a variety of state, federal and other institutional capacities. Website: www.cameronlpc.com

This is from a Penn State message board.  I usually do not just repost but this really grabbed me as a Penn State alumni. I hope Beth Painter does not mind the repost. Thank you Beth and WE ARE! PENN STATE!

“We know you don’t understand. Generally, we don’t try to explain. Unless you are a Buckeye or Fighting Irish, you probably don’t get how an institution embeds itself in a student’s life. And that is fine.

But right now, we want you to know this:
…
We are distraught and truly sickened by this horror perpetrated on young victims by one who represented the Blue and White, and perpetuated by others at the University. We aren’t blind followers who drink Blue Kool-Aid. We grieve for and with the victims and their families. We pray for them to find healing and peace and a way to live a good life.

We know that while many people had responsibility, the most visible one almost always goes down first. We are not disputing the need for this to happen.

We are not “defending” anything. We are simply crushed and heartbroken. This is not the Penn State we love, the Penn State that is part of our being.

What you know of Joe Paterno probably comes from television or magazine articles.

We know the man who has lived in the same McKee St house for decades. We have chatted with him as he walked to practice. We have eaten ice cream with him at the Creamery. We have studied in the new library wing his money helped build. We have visited the sports museum and spiritual center he also helped build. We have seen him cheering on other Penn State athletes. We know he loves Penn State as much as we do.

Some of our friends, brothers, husbands, sons have been privileged to put on the Blue and White uniform and listen to 100,000 fans in Beaver Stadium. We know how hard they have worked, how much time they have devoted, how many of them have been part of an excellent scholar/athlete legacy…and how much they love this man and this program.

We aren’t stupid or naive. We know Joe Paterno has culpability. We know he could have made different choices – he admitted that. We don’t think he is God or always perfect or saintly. But he is the greatest college football coach ever, and he is PSU family, and we don’t want his exit to be like this.

WE ARE…not closing our eyes, ignoring reports, pretending this isn’t a wretched occurrence.
WE ARE…angry that innocents would be violated under our care.
WE ARE…in support of appropriate punishment for every person involved.
WE ARE…demanding change to a system that would allow this.
WE ARE…not concerned if you do not understand our love and devotion.
WE ARE…PENN STATE proud and we will rise again.

~Beth Painter

As a human being, my heart goes out to all the boys and families involved in the Jerry Sandusky scandal.  As a 1983 Penn State alumni, I am currently ashamed and embarrassed to call myself such.  Not because of the despicable acts Sandusky is accused of.  There are evil people everywhere.   I am ashamed at the failure of those in a special position of trust and responsibility to our children to ignore that responsibility almost to the point of willful blindness, allowing Sandusky’s predatory behavior to continue for years.

Everyone in the reporting chain right up to President Graham Spanier had the opportunity to put at stop to Sandusky early on and chose to look the other way.  The buck stopped with them and they turned and ran.  Legal responsibility is for the situation. Moral responsibility is for life.   Athletic Director Tim Curley, Joe Paterno and President Graham Spanier might feel good standing behind legal responsibility but there is no question they ignored their moral responsibility letting down every student, teacher and parent at Penn State.  They have breached a trust that leaves us all feeling vulnerable wondering whether our children are really safe. They have disgraced my home state of The Commonwealth Of Pennsylvania.   Penn State is a state related school.  It gets yearly appropriations. As as university it is answerable. Tim Curley is answerable.  Joe Paterno is answerable. Graham Spanier is answerable.  They all must step down to restore the faith of parents and everyone in the Penn State community that Penn State can keep our children safe. We must restore credibility and accountability in those who are entrusted to keep them safe.  I for one will never give the school I love and cheer for every Saturday another dime until that happens.  If you are an alumni I urge you to consider doing likewise.

As for Jerry Sandusky, let there be no mistake.  While he is entitled to the presumption of innocence in court, he get’s no such benefit in the court of public opinion. That’s whey they are called opinions. My opinion is that he is a sexual predator who will hopefully never see the light of day outside of  prison walls when the courtroom jury comes back.  My hope is that these boys take Penn State to the cleaners to punish this egregious breach of the public trust from the top down.  My hope is that one day, I can once again call myself a proud Penn State alumni.

Given that it looks like the NBA lockout is heating up and there will be either an attempt at decertification or a disclaimer of interest, I have gathered the most interesting and relevant legal documents from the litigation currently pending in Federal Court For The Southern District Of New York if you have interest for your reading pleasure.  As long as the litigation is ongoing or there is further litigation filed, I will post selected pleadings here.

I saw something today on twitter that made me sick to my stomach.  It came from a Dallas, Texas plaintiff’s firm that started following me.  I am simply going to post the tweets. They speak for themselves. I will let others chime in on whether any advertising or state bar ethics rules of been violated.  The tweets are attributed to the Twitter account of Frenkel & Frenkel otherwise known as @dallaslaw. They are  apparently targeting/spamming people who tweet about their accidents.   This is the majority of their stream.  Some “Follow Fridays” and a few news articles are throw in now and then.  They make no pretense of what they are using twitter for.   Of course the “tips’ link back to “blog.    Here is a sample:

Hey @_anicole so sorry to hear about your accident–here are some legal tips that might be helpful!: http://ow.ly/5yQ78

I don’t know if a full day of showers will cleanse the stink I feel from the legal profession at this moment.

**UPDATE  – I received the below email from Mark Frenkel once again illustrating that law firms who know nothing about social media and outsource their ethics with shitty social media companies do so at their own peril. Click on the email to enlarge it.

I have seen and heard a lot of  Holocaust Denial.  I am not sure why I am shocked every time I am hit with it.  Many times people do not realize that I am Jewish and they simply blurt it out.  Other times, they are proud of the fact that have a different “spin” to history much in the way deniers idolize the likes of their “Denial Guru” David Irving.

I recently posted an article on my Google+ page about Germany’s renewed effort to pursue Nazi War criminals.  A person by the name of Jerri Cook commented as follows:

Fair comment.  Whether I agree or disagree,  there are many who agree with her.  It is certainly a debatable issue.  A gentlemen chimed in with a contrary view.  I chimed in actually defending Jerri’s right to express her view.  Then Jerri let us know what it was really about with this comment:

In denying that the Holocaust was a genocide, Jerri has engaged in a form of  Holocaust Denial.  The denial is ironic in the face of history. The term “genocide” did not even exist until 1944 when it was coined specifically to describe the Nazi policies of systematic murder.  I am not sure what “I don’t believe the spin” means but it certainly implies the questioning aspects of the Holocaust.  What is the definition of genocide?  It means:

“any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such: killing members of the group; causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.”

Who is Jerri? Why do I even care?  I had never heard of her or had any social media contact  prior to her comment.  Jerri’s LinkedIn profile lists her as a “Experienced Editor, Writer, Blogger, Social Media Specialist, Digital Media Specialist, Online Crisis Manager “  She is the editor of Countryside Publications.  She also lists herself as a law student at “Concord Law School” which is an online only law school.

Why am I being the “big bad bully” and calling out little Jerri?  It’s not like I am going to bring down the world of  the ignorant and angry.  Unfortunately, there are far too many.  I am doing it because to battle Holocaust Denial and eventually defeat it as a virulent form of antisemitism, it must be brought out of the dark, seamy corners of the internet.  I doubt Jerri  is sharing her views on the Holocaust at mainstream functions and the company Christmas party.  Now, to the extent I can play a part in the process, she will have to.  To the extent that my little blog has any voice, Jerri can no longer hide her dirty little secret.  She is a Holocaust Denier.  She is not alone. Who’s next.

The National Basketball Player’s Association (NBPA) theme song for the 2011-12 player lockout should be  “Oops I Said It Again”.  It seems that a week can’t  go by without a member of the rank and file opening his mouth and putting a dagger into the heart of the the union’s “Hold The Line” stance,  lessening any chance of a season this year.  It appears no lessons on who should speak and who shouldn’t were learned from the 98-99 lockout.

Let’s start with the most recent statement by Chicago Bulls star point guard, Derrick Rose.  In putting all the blame for the lockout on the owners he stated:

“Everyone Knows It’s Not Our(The Players) Fault.” 

I am assuming “everyone” means the judgmental general public.  That’s not quite up there with “I’ve Got My Family To Feed”  but “Everyone”?   There is certainly a percentage of the public that sides with the players.  At what percentage does “everyone” kick in?  90-10?   70-30?   The decidedly non-scientific polls**  I have seen indicate that if we are going to throw the term “everyone” around so loosely it would be more accurate to say that “everyone” sides with the owners.  That is of course not true either but setting aside the large percentage of the public that simply want “everyone” to “shut up and play”,  the public at this moment,  seems to be leaning towards ownership.  What does that tell me with regards to Derrick Rose’s statement?  It tells me  that there is a “detached arrogance” among the NBA “elite” players involved in the process.   They are out of touch with the public perception and my guess is that the same applies to their interaction with their union brethren in the NBA rank and file.  How do I come to that conclusion? Let’s go to example 2.

The  “NBPA  recently held a regional meeting in Los Angeles.  It was first reported that only 20 players showed.  Hardly  a booming endorsement of the player unity claimed by Derek Fisher.  It seemed more a statement of union apathy.  Fisher must have been mad at this figure being reported because it was changed shortly after the original report  to thirty. It went from “almost no one cared” to “hardly anyone cared”.  There is no spin.  It speaks for itself.  People who are engaged in the process show up. They ask questions.  Those who are not, become part of “almost no one cared”.   You don’t have to have a psychology degree to figure that out.   Another ill timed “oops we said it again” reality dagger was when Washington Wizards center JaVale McGee left the meeting and told reporters:

“There’s definitely some guys in there saying that they’re ready to fold, But the majority are ready to stand strong.”

“READY TO FOLD”  The daggers don’t go much deeper into the heart of NBPA spin than that.  Derrick Fisher of course did his best at damage control but his spin stuck the dagger in even deeper by being logically inept.  He attempted to imply that no one should be listening to McGee because he was not present for the entire meeting.  The logical fallacy of that is that most of  the NBA rank and file was not in the room for any of the meeting.  The public could interpret Fisher’s spin as saying “we don’t care about the people not in the room.”  Even more brutal, his own rank and file could come to the same conclusion.  We know that’s not true but perception is reality.   While  insanely stupid to say publicly,  McGee gave Fisher honest input more valuable than any social media “stand united” campaign.   He told Fisher that  instead of a few guys tweeting from an NBPA cue card, Fisher should be very concerned about the guys “not in the room”   They are the majority who will decide ratification.  The guys “not in the room”  are talking to each and clearly not talking to Derek Fisher.  Whose  fault is that?

Fisher also had his “I did it again” moment” when he stated that he was “disappointed” with the meeting turnout. He must have realized how bad that sounded and denied he said it because the quote mysteriously disappeared from a later version of the ESPN.com reporting on the meeting.

We also have this reported occurrence: “On Friday, a role player for a middling team got a surprise phone call, from just about the biggest name in the sport — somebody who had never called him before. The message: Hold firm at 53. We’re not caving. Hang in there…”

I am trying to figure out how making that public  is a positive for the union.  Was this part of a 3 hour conversation on the issues so this player who the “biggest name in the sports”  whom the role player had never spoken to before knows why to hold the line?  What I took out of it is the player got the equivalent of a “robocall” from someone he has never had personal interaction with and who never took any interest in his life before the call.  When you got those recording calls from election candidates acting like they were your next door neighbor were you  swayed or annoyed?  I was annoyed.

Enter Stage left Clippers guard Eric Gordon.  Keep in mind that this is a AFTER the Los Angles meeting  fiasco and was meant to be spin control.  Apparently thinking he was saying the right thing in response to whether the rank and file would fold  he stated:

“It’s hard to say, but I don’t think the players are going to give up so easily,””

What I heard was “its hard to say“.   Is it “hard to say” or does he think they “won’t fold “so easily”?   It can’t be both.   We won’t even get into what the qualifier “easily” means.  Hardly a ringing endorsement for “holding the line”.

That is not to say that there are not articulate players who are saying all the right things.  The problem with that is we expect it and toss it aside mentally. It’s the gaffes and contrarian remarks everyone remembers.

Stayed tuned for the next chapter of  “Oops We Said It Again”.

**LA Times poll.  Bleacher Report poll.

It that time  of the year again!  With Christmas around the corner, It is time for my new WTF Skymall Gift List 2011!

Anyone who has flown almost any commercial airlines more than a few times is intimately familiar with Skymall magazine. It is required browsing for any airline travel warrior.

It is a magazine off  hopeful Shark Tank idea, gadgets, oddities, collectible and future garage sale items that are supposed to make our lives easier, more enjoyable or simply give you an excuse to open up an EBay account. When do we reach the reach the upper limits of our 3o Thousand feet boredom and finally read Skymall cover to cover? Here are a few reasons:

When you are stuck on a flight with no Wi-Fi;

When you have read American Way Magazine cover to cover… three times;

When you don’t  understand Spanish so you can’t read NEXOS;

When someone else has  already  done the crossword puzzle;

When you  have mooched and read the Wall Street Journal, US Magazine and National Enquirer  from the passenger in the seat next to you;

When the baby next to you is screaming uncontrollably and you need a distraction with the only things left to read being the barf bag and the card that reminds you of what won’t save your life if your plane goes down.

When you need a distraction from your trouble breathing due to the 500 lb guy squeezing you into 3 square feet of your seat.

When all of the above has happens you finally pull Skymall out of the seat-back pocket.

The effect of Skymall magazine on the enjoyability of a flight is not to be taken lightly. Have my fellow frequent-flyers not also experienced that irritated knot in the stomach and let out an exasperated sigh when you excitedly pull out the Skymall mag and see that it is the same issue that you read on the last flight? How many times can we look at a Rosetta Stone ad and try to convince ourselves that it would be useful to learn Pashto.

I have on many a flight gone through every item in the magazine analyzing its cost-benefit to society and simply wondering who would be stupid enough to actually buy a Indoor Dog Restroom. Is there really an impulse buy at 30k feet?

So with X-mas coming up fast and needing to make a list and check it twice, what better place to start than Skymall and its 240 plus pages of very cool to very weird gadgets and gifts for the traveler who has everything and the gift recipient who will say thanks but will really be thinking WTF!

1. The “Cat Toilet Training System

Look at the face on this cat.  It screaming, “I’m Taking a sh*t! Shut the door!”  Does it also teach the cat how to flush?  The upside of this is that it will be good coffee table talk when your guest goes to take a dump and wonders if you have a rat problem.  God forbid poor kitty loses her balance and does a cat-o-nine-tails into the Toilet Kitty Hell.  As soon as PETA gets wind of this the “shits” really going ot hit the fan.

2. The “SIT FIT“  Ridiculous “Infomercial” type exercise gadgets are low hanging fruit for the WTF list.   The image is a well dressed lady in high heals sweating herself up at her desk while she’s closing a million dollar deal.  Or the guy putting some sweat stains on his Fruit Of The Looms. This is also an ab-toner?  I might as well cancel my gym membership, forget the marathon training and fool myself into thinking this thing works while I eat that pizza slice at my desk.  One word of advice.  While you are making those foot movements and sweating it up beneath your desk, keep your hands in plain view or people will think your  “working yourself up” a little higher on your body.

3.  The Underwater Cell Phone System(1,790.00) It advertises as follows:

With the Alpha UWCP, talk with someone 15,000 miles away while diving a tropical reef or in your pool! This complete and sophisticated communication diving system can do it.

I still can not figure this out. Is this in case you get drunk and go overboard on a cruise ship? What’s more, do you really need an underwater phone to make a call from your swimming pool? Spend 50 bucks on a waterproof case instead! Maybe this is a big seller in the treasure hunter profession. At almost $1800.00 we may not see this in many garage sales but I have no doubt one will turn up inside a shark one day.

4. Toppik Hair Building Fibers Being follically challenged and having often thought of coughing up the big bucks for the Bosley Clinic, this item caught my attention. I frankly thought that this stuff went the way of the “As Seen On TV” Ronco Veg-o-matic and Ginsu knives. It advertises:

Many A-list celebrities use Toppik to enhance their image, on screen and off. Hollywood stars trust Toppik. It’s undetectable, even in close ups and stays on through wind, rain and perspiration.

Even more interesting to me than whether it works are these mysterious “A-List” celebs. I want to know what celebrities will admit to spray painting their heads. TMZ should get on this immediately. Conspicuously missing was a disclaimer that Toppic should not be used by people who are color-blind. I smell a lawsuit…

5-Old Yankee Stadium Seat. (799.00) A used seat from the old Yankee Stadium. Unless Babe Ruth or some other Yankee legend sat in it or autographed it, this is a WTF item. It is however is certainly more reasonable than a seat a the new Yankee Stadium. My advice is to pay the 799.00 for this seat, put it in front of your big screen and MLB package. You can then laugh at the suckers who coughed up tens of thousands of dollars to sit in something that they will be able to buy for about 800.00 in the 2040 Skymall Holiday edition. 

6.  “Brew Your Joe While You Go”  Where could you possibly be in such hurry to get to that you can’t make your coffee first or pass by one of the Gazillion Starbucks or even 7-11′s(which has damn good coffee)  that infest our nation.  If your going for cost per cup, stick with the swill from  your office coffee pot. Probably tastes no worse and  you don’t look an idiot carrying this thing around.  This is not even a  future garage sale.  Within months you will be watering your plants with it.

7-Remote Controlled Tarantula. Any adult that buys this for himself has repressed violent tendencies. If he is buying it for his kid, what message is this supposed to send? Terrorize your fellow children with big disgusting bugs? Nice. I am so weirded out by spiders that just picture of this gives me the willies. This faux spider would not last five minutes in my house. Survival reflex would take over and it would be squashed into 1000 bits of circuits and switches

7-Oil Extractor(69.95) They advertise this like it is the common thing to do to crawl under your own car and change your own oil. The ad states:

“This is How Mercedes Factory trained techs change oil”

Well isn’t that why we don’t crawl under our own cars and let them do it ? A Mercedes owner that changes his/her own oil?  That is a WTF in itself.

8-Wireless Toilet Seat.  “Some Men Have A Hard Time Remembering To Put The Toilet Seat Down” Now we need wireless assistance for this?  Is this what our collective manhood has devolved into?  Give this to your “significant guy”  for Christmas and you are guaranteed  a vacuum cleaner and an affair in return not necessarily in that order.  It takes 30 seconds to go up and down.  In “I gotta go” time, that’s an eternity.  My advice is to partner with the makers of the  Cat Toilet Training System.   Kitty needs some help.

9-Basho The Sumo Wrestler (95.00). “Basho crouches in his mawashi (Sumo belt) in these intricate sculpts with wide stances. This Toscano-exclusive heavyweight is cast in quality designer resin for display in home or garden.”

If you are looking for an easy way out of your marriage simply give Basho to your wife for Christmas or place him a center piece on the dinner table right after she has told you she feels like she needs to lose a few pounds… On the other hand, I only glanced at him for a second and immediately renewed my gym membership. At 95 bucks it beats the hell out of lipo.

10-Electronic Listening Device. (59.95) “Powerful enough to capture distant sounds from 300 feet away. Zoom in and see what you’re hearing. Sounds and images impossible for the human ears and eyes to pick up now seem as if you’re only a couple of feet away. This secret surveillance device is perfect for when you really need to know what’s going on.”

The perfect gift for the soon to be divorcing couple so they can spy on each other. If your spouse or significant other suddenly turns up with this gadget and tells you it is to pick up “bird sounds” you should be suspicious. Do you really want to be with someone who has those kind of voyeuristic tendencies? This would be a much bigger seller as a “his and hers” so you can spy on each other.

11-Head Spa Massager. I am not really sure what to say about this.  From the photo it appears that you can either massage your head, audition for alien guest spot on Star Trek, remove Spock’s brain, or prepare for the invasion of Troy.  A great combination of options at 49.95.

Last but not least.  Are you still wondering who would be stupid enough to buy the Indoor Dog Restroom?   Wonder no more.  It was me.  Yes I was suckered into the Skymall impulse world of future garage sale items.  Was my dog happy to do her business on her new AstroTurf?  The answer was yes but it was not the business I expected.

What they don’t tell you is that for this to work you have to have your dog piss in a cup and pour it on the turf so she gets the scent.   I dutifully  followed the instructions. I poured her “business” on the fake grass.  My dog  walked right over to it, looked up at me and took a dump on the AstroTurf.  I am still trying to fumigate my apartment.  WTF!!