Thursday, August 20, 2015


News Clips For The Day


JOHN OLIVER -- OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL EXEMPTION – THREE ARTICLES -- WEALTH AS A RESULT OF FAITH


http://www.cbsnews.com/news/john-oliver-pressures-irs-for-televangelists-crackdown-last-week-tonight/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sKPb8HdAy-4
Published on Aug 20, 2015

A segment on HBO’s "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver" is putting new pressure on the IRS to crack down on televangelists. Some may be enriching themselves through questionable appeals to the faithful. The "Last Week Tonight" clip has already been viewed more than four million times on YouTube. Jeff Glor takes a closer look at how these preachers justify their wealth.



John Oliver pressures IRS for televangelist crackdown
CBS NEWS
August 20, 2015

Televangelist.jpg -- A woman prays, Sunday, Sept. 26, 2010, at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church near Atlanta. JOHN AMIS, AP

A segment on HBO's "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver" is putting new pressure on the IRS to crack down on televangelists, reports CBS News correspondent Jeff Glor.

Many of these ministers preach what is called the "prosperity gospel" -- that God intended for Christians to be healthy and wealthy. Many church leaders find those beliefs heretical, but that hasn't stopped believers from donating millions every year.

According to the prosperity gospel, God lifts the faithful out of poverty and cures them of disease.

True believers prove their faith by seeding -- giving money to preachers -- which God will then reward with a bountiful harvest later on.

Televangelists reach about 5 million viewers, Trinity Foundation president Ole Anthony said. His group investigates religious fraud. He thinks people are being duped.

"They keep trying to send more money, more money, more money so they can get healed," Anthony said.

Anthony said these preachers have flourished in part because the IRS has turned a blind eye to their tax-exempt churches.

The IRS uses 14 criteria for defining a church, including having ordained ministers, a recognized creed and holding regular services. But the agency will not evaluate church doctrine as long as they are "truly and sincerely held" and "not illegal."

"A few years ago, the IRS named Scientology a church. Since that happened, anybody can call themselves a church," Anthony said.

According to the Government Accountability Office, the IRS suspended church audits completely from 2009 to 2013 and conducted just three from 2013 to 2014.

To prove a point, Oliver created his own church and registered it with the IRS. He called it "Our Lady of Perpetual Exemption."

The "Last Week Tonight" clip has already been viewed more than 4 million times on YouTube.

"You are always going to find abuses and excesses in the non-profit community, and even in the church world," Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Erik Stanley said.

He said churches are constitutionally tax exempt because of the free exercise of religion.

"There is no surer way to destroy that free exercise of religion than to begin to tax it," Stanley said.

He said the church community does a good job of policing itself, but Anthony thinks more can be done about hucksters.

"My God, they should at least say that fraud is illegal in the name of God," Anthony said.

"CBS This Morning" reached out to the IRS for comment but the agency declined to provide any. "CBS This Morning" also reached out to the ministers mentioned by Oliver and those that appear in this story, but did not receive any responses.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinity_Foundation_(Dallas)

Trinity Foundation (Dallas)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Trinity Foundation is a watchdog ministry founded by Ole Anthony in 1972 and based in Dallas, Texas (USA).

According to the foundation's website, the organization started with the purpose of conducting demographic research on televangelism and other religious television programming. During a series of scandals in the 1980s and 1990s, The Trinity Foundation established itself as a watchdog group which provided information about fraud and abuse by religious groups.

Investigating televangelists[edit]

Trinity Foundation's investigative work into the fundraising tactics of big-money televangelists first came to national attention in 1991 following a Primetime Live hidden-camera look at televangelist Robert Tilton. The foundation was instrumental in providing evidence for the many state and federal investigations of Tilton in the years that followed.

Trinity has primarily investigated televangelists such as Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland, Joyce Meyer, Paula White, Peter Popoff, Robert Tilton, W.V. Grant, pastor Edwin Barry Young, and the Trinity Broadcasting Network. Much of its information comes from disgruntled former employees, moles working for ministries who secretly (and under constant threat of termination and lawsuit) provide information to Trinity, and dumpster diving for information. (Under American law, items placed in the trash are considered abandoned and thus can be legally obtained by anyone.)

The Trinity Foundation has an extensive video library of televangelists. They routinely take notes of the televangelists broadcasts. The notes go back at least ten years for most shows that air on religious networks. This information is used to aid reporters who are investigating televangelists. The head investigator at The Trinity Foundation is Pete Evans, who is a private investigator.

Regarding Hinn, Trinity claims to have evidence showing that Hinn's ministry does not qualify as a church under Internal Revenue Service guidelines, as reported by The Dallas Morning News in July 2005. Specifically, Trinity claims that Hinn's ministry does not hold regular public worship services at its facility, as access is strictly limited to employees with access badges.

Trinity has also investigated the St. Matthew's Churches/Church By Mail, Inc., a "seed-faith ministry" of James Eugene "Gene" Ewing which targets the poorest zip codes in America with religious mailings.

Senate Finance Committee investigation[edit]

The foundation was directly involved in Sen. Charles Grassley's Senate Finance Committee investigation of abuses by a number of televangelist ministries. Beginning in 2005, after being asked to help by the committee’s general counsel, the foundation submitted over the next six years 38 separate reports on abuses by religious not-for-profit organizations, which were incorporated into the committee’s final report.

The foundation recently criticized Sen. Grassley for turning to the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) for suggested solutions instead of acting on tough legislative proposals from his staff for policing abuses by religious organizations. The foundation claimed the ECFA's recommendations were too lax and were compromised by close ties to the very ministries they were proposing to oversee.

Other programs[edit]

The Christian community of around 50 members that grew from Bible studies formed under the umbrella of the foundation over the years established itself in 2010 as Community on Columbia, an independent church congregation separate from the foundation's oversight, but still in friendly cooperation and agreement with its mission. The church took over the longstanding ministry of helping the homeless that the foundation began.

The foundation also published The Wittenburg Door, a magazine of Christian satire, from 1996 to 2008.

Other controversy[edit]

Some former members of the group have been critical of it and Anthony. There have been accusation of abuse and cultism.[1]





http://www.inquisitr.com/2345157/robert-tilton-inspires-john-oliver-to-found-our-lady-of-perpetual-exemption/

Posted in: Entertainment
Posted: August 18, 2015

Robert Tilton Inspires John Oliver To Found Our Lady Of Perpetual Exemption


This past Sunday, John Oliver, host of HBO’s Last Week Tonight, delivered an in-depth look into the practices of televangelists like Robert Tilton and Kenneth Copeland.

Oliver discussed the predatory nature of so-called “seed faith” and preachers like Tilton who sermonize that “wealth is a sign of God’s favor and that donations will result in wealth coming back to you.” Oliver had taken particular exception with Tilton – and he hatched a plan.

Beginning in January, Oliver began a correspondence with Robert Tilton that started with a small donation. Over 8 months the comedian received a total of 36 letters back from Tilton, each asking for for more money. Oliver displays the letters, prayer oils and cloths, and the outline of Tilton’s foot, designed to bilk gullible congregants, received from Tilton across his desk. In total, Oliver sent Tilton $319 over the eight-month period.

Oliver states that Tilton is, “a pen pal who’s in deep with a loan shark.”

Watch the entire clip about Tilton and egregious televangelist practices here, please note some language is NSFW.

Read more at http://www.inquisitr.com/2345157/robert-tilton-inspires-john-oliver-to-found-our-lady-of-perpetual-exemption/#BFV1fPS0HdWzklKq.99



http://oralroberts.com/teaching/seed-faith/

Richard Roberts - Oral Roberts Ministries
Seed-Faith

Everything in life starts with a seed—including the things we receive by faith. In Genesis 8:22, God says, “While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest . . . shall not cease.” The eternal law of seedtime and harvest, planting and reaping, giving and receiving will not change as long as the earth remains. Jesus compared faith to a seed being planted to get a result: “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you” (Matthew 17:20).

When we put our faith in God’s hands like a seed we plant, we are giving God something to work with, and He will send the miracle we need. No matter how small our faith seems to be, it will meet needs and solve problems that appear as impossible to move as mountains. This is because each act of faith is a seed planted and will be multiplied many times.

The Seed-Faith principle that we find in the Bible contains three keys:
1.Recognize that God is our Source.
Philippians 4:19 says, “My God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” God will supply all our needs according to His riches, His love for us, His power to help us, and His wisdom to guide us. He may use many different instruments—a job, gifts, doctors, friends, family—to meet our need. But He alone is the Source, and He alone cannot fail.
2.Give first, so that it may be given unto us.
Luke 6:38 says, “Give, and it shall be given unto you.” We must first plant a seed of faith so that God can multiply it back to meet our need. Jesus is talking about giving in the deepest sense of the word—the giving of ourselves to God. This includes anything we can give—love, time, patience, forgiveness, finances, prayer, whatever we have. Our giving reflects our trust in God and our thankfulness. It links us to God’s inexhaustible resources for our every need. There is no way we can give to God without receiving something back from Him, multiplied!
3.Expect a miracle.
Mark 11:24 says, “Whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” The moment we ask God for something—the moment we do our part and plant our seed of faith—we should believe God that the answer is on its way. It is important to expect our miracle so we can recognize it and reach forth to take it when it comes. And it’s also important to remember that God controls the time and method He will use to give back to us. We must keep trusting God and expecting our miracle, no matter how long it takes to reach us.

So, give God something to work with. No matter how little you think you have, sow it in joy and faith, knowing in your heart that you are sowing seed so you may reap miracles. Then start expecting all kinds of miracles! Remember, God always sends the right answer at the right time, in the right way. His timing and methods are always exactly right for our lives!




Trinity Foundation -- "Trinity Foundation's investigative work into the fundraising tactics of big-money televangelists first came to national attention in 1991 following a Primetime Live hidden-camera look at televangelist Robert Tilton. The foundation was instrumental in providing evidence for the many state and federal investigations of Tilton in the years that followed. …. The Trinity Foundation has an extensive video library of televangelists. They routinely take notes of the televangelists broadcasts. The notes go back at least ten years for most shows that air on religious networks. This information is used to aid reporters who are investigating televangelists. The head investigator at The Trinity Foundation is Pete Evans, who is a private investigator. …. Specifically, Trinity claims that Hinn's ministry does not hold regular public worship services at its facility, as access is strictly limited to employees with access badges. Trinity has also investigated the St. Matthew's Churches/Church By Mail, Inc., a "seed-faith ministry" of James Eugene "Gene" Ewing which targets the poorest zip codes in America with religious mailings. …. The foundation was directly involved in Sen. Charles Grassley's Senate Finance Committee investigation of abuses by a number of televangelist ministries. Beginning in 2005, after being asked to help by the committee’s general counsel, the foundation submitted over the next six years 38 separate reports on abuses by religious not-for-profit organizations, which were incorporated into the committee’s final report. The foundation recently criticized Sen. Grassley for turning to the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) for suggested solutions instead of acting on tough legislative proposals from his staff for policing abuses by religious organizations. The foundation claimed the ECFA's recommendations were too lax and were compromised by close ties to the very ministries they were proposing to oversee.”


CBS -- “A segment on HBO's "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver" is putting new pressure on the IRS to crack down on televangelists, reports CBS News correspondent Jeff Glor. Many of these ministers preach what is called the "prosperity gospel" -- that God intended for Christians to be healthy and wealthy. Many church leaders find those beliefs heretical, but that hasn't stopped believers from donating millions every year. According to the prosperity gospel, God lifts the faithful out of poverty and cures them of disease. …. True believers prove their faith by seeding -- giving money to preachers -- which God will then reward with a bountiful harvest later on. Televangelists reach about 5 million viewers, Trinity Foundation president Ole Anthony said. His group investigates religious fraud. He thinks people are being duped. "They keep trying to send more money, more money, more money so they can get healed," Anthony said. Anthony said these preachers have flourished in part because the IRS has turned a blind eye to their tax-exempt churches. The IRS uses 14 criteria for defining a church, including having ordained ministers, a recognized creed and holding regular services. But the agency will not evaluate church doctrine as long as they are "truly and sincerely held" and "not illegal." …. "You are always going to find abuses and excesses in the non-profit community, and even in the church world," Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Erik Stanley said. He said churches are constitutionally tax exempt because of the free exercise of religion. "There is no surer way to destroy that free exercise of religion than to begin to tax it," Stanley said. …. "CBS This Morning" reached out to the IRS for comment but the agency declined to provide any. "CBS This Morning" also reached out to the ministers mentioned by Oliver and those that appear in this story, but did not receive any responses.”

I believe a case could be made that the IRS and therefore the US government are actively subsidizing the initiation of overt moves from some parts of the Christian Church to change our Constitution, with the purpose of allowing the installation of Christianity as the official religion. That is one of the primary ways that our governmental form has been superior to the Islamic nations of the Middle East. Whenever any religion is given a preference by the government it can soon become the only religion allowed. That is unacceptable. We need to start taxing churches and all other charities right away. They are mainly subsidizing the Neo-Nazi Right that is becoming frighteningly powerful in this country.

They make enough money as it is, and too often don’t really do the charity work they claim to do. A number of charities have been questioned for their time and money spent on politics rather than helping the poor or whatever their stated goal is. The statement under the heading of Trinity Foundation above -- concerning Sen. Grassley’s virtual abandonment of the very investigation he headed, when he turned it over to a Christian religious organization to police the matter rather than enacting hard-hitting laws against the rampant charlatanism that exists today-- is shocking, but not surprising. I know, I’ve said that same phrase several other times, in these daily blogs, but that is how I have come to feel in my 70th year of life. “The more things change, the more they remain the same!” See this website: http://communityoncolumbia.org/ -- an organization with the goal of purifying the Christian Church of the greedy people who are ripping the public off with their money rants and lack of real charity work. For more good information, read that website. Thanks.


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http://www.cbsnews.com/news/report-north-and-south-korea-exchange-fire/

Report: North and South Korea exchange fire
CBS/AP
August 20, 2015

Photograph -- Visitors look over North-South Korea industrial complex in Kaesong, North Korea, through binoculars at Dora Observation Post in demilitarized zone (DMZ) near border village of Panmunjom, in Paju, South Korea, on April 9, 2013. WON DAE-HYUN/AP
Play VIDEO -- North Korea's new act of aggression: A time change

SEOUL, South Korea -- South Korea fired dozens of shells Thursday at rival North Korea after the North lobbed a single rocket at a South Korean town near the world's most heavily armed border, the South's Defense Ministry said.

The North was backing up an earlier threat to attack South Korean border loudspeakers that, after a lull of 11 years, have started broadcasting anti-Pyongyang propaganda. The broadcasts are in response to Seoul's accusation that the North planted land mines on the South Korean side of the Demilitarized Zone that maimed two South Korean soldiers earlier this month.

The ministry said in a statement that its artillery shells landed at the site where North Korea had fired its rocket. There were no other details from the military and no reports of injuries.

"Our military has stepped up monitoring and is closely watching North Korean military movements" the Reuters news agency reported the South Korean defence [sic] ministry as saying.

North Korea didn't respond militarily to South Korea's artillery barrage Thursday, but its army later warned in a message that it will take further military action within 48 hours if South Korea doesn't pull down the loudspeakers, according to South Korea's Defense Ministry.

Authoritarian North Korea, which has also restarted its own propaganda broadcasts, is extremely sensitive to any criticism of the government run by leader Kim Jong Un, whose family has ruled since the North was founded in 1948. Pyongyang worries that the broadcasts could weaken Kim's grip on absolute power, analysts say.

The artillery exchange also comes during another point of tensions between the Koreas: annual U.S.-South Korean military drills that North Korea calls an invasion rehearsal. Seoul and Washington say the drills are defensive in nature.

South Korean President Park Geun-hye convened an emergency National Security Council meeting and ordered South Korea's military to "resolutely" deal with any provocation by North Korea.

About 80 residents in the South Korean town where the shell fell, Yeoncheon, were evacuated to underground bunkers, and authorities urged other residents to evacuate, a Yeoncheon official said, requesting anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak to the media.

In the nearby border city of Paju, residents were asked to stay home. On Ganghwa Island, residents in villages near a site where South Korea operates one of its loudspeakers were also evacuated, according to island officials.

South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported that a total of about 2,000 residents along the border were evacuated.

Pyongyang has claimed that Seoul fabricated its evidence on the land mines and demanded video proof.

While the Koreas regularly exchange hostile rhetoric, it is also not unusual for fighting to occasionally erupt. Last October, North Korean troops opened fire at areas in Yeoncheon, after South Korean activists launched balloons there that carried propaganda leaflets across the border. South Korea returned fire, but no casualties were reported. Later in October, border guards from the two Koreas again exchanged gunfire along the border, without any casualties.

Before that, the Koreas tangled in a deadly artillery exchange in 2010, when North Korean artillery strikes on a South Korean border island killed four South Koreans. Earlier in 2010, an alleged North Korean torpedo attack killed 46 South Korean sailors.

North Korea's army said recently in a statement that the South Korean propaganda broadcasts were a declaration of war and that if they were not immediately stopped "an all-out military action of justice" would ensue.

South Korea has said the two soldiers wounded from the mine explosions were on a routine patrol in the southern part of the DMZ that separates the two Koreas. One soldier lost both legs and the other one leg.

The Koreas' mine-strewn DMZ is a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War, which ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty, leaving the Korean Peninsula still technically in a state of war.




“The North was backing up an earlier threat to attack South Korean border loudspeakers that, after a lull of 11 years, have started broadcasting anti-Pyongyang propaganda. The broadcasts are in response to Seoul's accusation that the North planted land mines on the South Korean side of the Demilitarized Zone that maimed two South Korean soldiers earlier this month. The ministry said in a statement that its artillery shells landed at the site where North Korea had fired its rocket. There were no other details from the military and no reports of injuries. …. North Korea didn't respond militarily to South Korea's artillery barrage Thursday, but its army later warned in a message that it will take further military action within 48 hours if South Korea doesn't pull down the loudspeakers, according to South Korea's Defense Ministry. Authoritarian North Korea, which has also restarted its own propaganda broadcasts, is extremely sensitive to any criticism of the government run by leader Kim Jong Un, whose family has ruled since the North was founded in 1948. Pyongyang worries that the broadcasts could weaken Kim's grip on absolute power, analysts say. The artillery exchange also comes during another point of tensions between the Koreas: annual U.S.-South Korean military drills that North Korea calls an invasion rehearsal. Seoul and Washington say the drills are defensive in nature.”

An armistice, but not a treaty, may be the problem, but from what I have seen of Kim’s actions, nothing would improve their relationship. The fact that we are from time to time involved in exercises there probably doesn’t help, either, but perhaps a US military presence does something to restrain him. South Korea and Japan have both in the last six months or so been at odds with China, also, as China has acted in an undemocratic way with Taiwan – limited their choices on electable candidates for office. There is a move, possibly because of economic stresses worldwide, to become aggressive against neighbors in the East. In Western Europe there has been an upsurge of Neo-Nazi sentiment, as in the US. I pray that we are not on the verge of our third and probably final world war with nukes unsheathed.





http://www.cbsnews.com/news/former-st-pauls-prep-school-student-says-faculty-knew-senior-salute-sex-tradition/

Former student says faculty knew about sex tradition
CBS NEWS
August 20, 2015

Play VIDEO -- Prep school rape trial exposes alleged secret sex tradition


A former student of the St. Paul's School tells CBS News the faculty was aware of the "Senior Salute" ritual, in which senior boys tried to meet up with younger female students, reports CBS News correspondent Anna Werner.

"It's generally more cute than malicious. And the person approached can always say 'No,"' the recent graduate said.

She said she knows the teenage girl who has accused 19-year-old Owen Labrie of rape at the elite New Hampshire prep school, as well as the defendant.

She said the school was aware of the tradition and terms associated with it, such as "scoring" -- or hooking up -- and "the score web" -- a wall where participants would write their names.

"I remember a few times specifically when the words 'Senior Salute' were brought up and faculty definitely addressed it," she said.

The alleged victim told jurors Wednesday about the rape that allegedly occurred after she agreed to meet Labrie for what she thought would be some innocent fun. She was 15 years old at the time.

"I thought, 'OK, I might get to see a cool place, and maybe we'll kiss,' but that's all," she said.

The alleged victim told jurors that Labrie invited her to a remote part of a building on campus, then threw himself upon her.

"I was feeling violated. I felt like I had no control," she said. "I felt like I couldn't say no."

But she said she did tell him 'No' that night.

The trial has cast a spotlight on the culture at the elite New England boarding school. Labrie told police he approached her as part of the underground tradition known as the "Senior Salute." Labrie's attorney, Jay Carney, asked the accuser about that tradition.

"In agreeing to a Senior Salute, you and Owen were going to a private place, right?" Carney asked.

"Yes," the accuser responded.

Carney said his client and his accuser both engaged in consensual acts.

"It's important jurors know all about the Senior Salute and the fact that it's been a tradition for so long at St. Paul's School that it would be entirely unfair to put the blame on a single student for engaging in it.

"I know the school has already started reflecting on its own culture," victim's advocate Laura Dunn said.

She leads an organization that helps fight sexual violence and is a spokesperson for the alleged victim's family.

"He's not a pawn in circumstances. He was very much a leader at that school," Dunn said. "He had an agenda. He knew what he was doing; he had a plan."

The 16-year-old alleged victim also testified Wednesday that school advisers told her they were aware of the Senior Salute ritual and were "working as hard as they could to stop it."



http://www.boston.com/news/local/new-hampshire/2015/08/20/defense-says-paul-prep-school-rape-accuser-sent-mixed-messages/sVLAhNvCnUkF1FGbAk6TbJ/story.html

Prep school accuser leaves courtroom in tears
By Allison Manning @allymanning
Boston.com Staff | 08.20.15

A prep school girl who accuses a senior of raping her left the courtroom in tears Tuesday after a defense attorney accused her of giving mixed messages: laughter when they were together, and “hahahas” in messages following the encounter.

J.W. Carney spent about 90 minutes questioning the girl, who says she agreed to meet Owen Labrie and went willingly with him to a secluded room in a building on the campus of St. Paul’s School on May 30, 2014. She was 15 years old at the time; Labrie was two days away from graduating.

The rendezvous was part of a longstanding game called Senior Salute, in which graduating seniors tried to hook up with as many people as possible before they left campus. Prosecutors say Labrie and his friends were in a contest to see how many girls they could “slay.”

The girl, who Boston.com is not naming, told Labrie he could “count” their encounter toward his numbers.

Labrie maintains the hookup was consensual, and that they never had penetrative sex. The girl says it was rape, even if she didn’t kick or scream or otherwise make it clear that she wasn’t okay with it.

But, Carney said in his questioning today, how was Labrie supposed to know that? During the encounter, the girl laughed and lifted her hips up to help get her shorts off, she told detectives and the court. She now says she was laughing nervously, not happily, and was just trying to be polite.

Carney pointed to the transcript of her interview with Concord police, where she said: “Owen couldn’t know that I was uncomfortable because I was laughing…I was trying to be cool.”

The messages after the encounter were similarly shielded, Carney said, with the girl calling Labrie an angel and writing “hahaha” in messages. How could Labrie know what she really meant, Carney asked.

“Given the fact that he didn’t understand me saying, ‘no,’ maybe he couldn’t understand that, if he’s just thick,” she said. She then apologized for “letting [her] anger come through.”

The back-and-forth got contentious, with Carney at one point asking for the judge to instruct the girl to answer yes or no to his questions. The judge said the girl could explain herself.

She broke down once, when Carney asked why she was saying she was “cloudy” the day before she met up with Labrie.

“I was raped and violated,” she said. “Of course. I was traumatized.”

Labrie couldn’t have known what the girl really meant in her messages, Carney said, because she wasn’t telling him. She agreed, saying she was hiding behind a computer screen.

So in those messages to Labrie, Carney asked, she wasn’t telling the truth. Was she lying? he asked.

“That’s not lying,” she said. “That’s called protecting or covering or being defensive.”

“If it’s necessary to protect yourself by telling a lie, that justifies it?” Carney asked.

“No, it does not,” she said.

Carney said he was done, and the girl left the courtroom in tears.




CBS -- “She said she knows the teenage girl who has accused 19-year-old Owen Labrie of rape at the elite New Hampshire prep school, as well as the defendant. She said the school was aware of the tradition and terms associated with it, such as "scoring" -- or hooking up -- and "the score web" -- a wall where participants would write their names. …. "I remember a few times specifically when the words 'Senior Salute' were brought up and faculty definitely addressed it," she said. The alleged victim told jurors Wednesday about the rape that allegedly occurred after she agreed to meet Labrie for what she thought would be some innocent fun. She was 15 years old at the time. "I thought, 'OK, I might get to see a cool place, and maybe we'll kiss,' but that's all," she said. …. "I know the school has already started reflecting on its own culture," victim's advocate Laura Dunn said. She leads an organization that helps fight sexual violence and is a spokesperson for the alleged victim's family. "He's not a pawn in circumstances. He was very much a leader at that school," Dunn said. "He had an agenda. He knew what he was doing; he had a plan." …. The 16-year-old alleged victim also testified Wednesday that school advisers told her they were aware of the Senior Salute ritual and were "working as hard as they could to stop it."

This sounds like it is an organized situation, with some kind of known means of communication. How else would the faculty know about it? If the school knows about it and has for a long time, what are they doing to stop it? “Everything they can” according to the article, but “not much” seems to be the real answer. The school needs to be held responsible. I think the girl should sue the school as well as the parents of the young man. She was a girl – 15 years old – while he was a “young man,” and this should be “statutory rape,” I would think. If it doesn’t conform to the statutory rape laws, she should at least be forgiven by the court for giving mixed signals about what she really wanted to do. She was so young that she shouldn’t have been in the situation of dating someone that much older. Did her parents give her permission for that? What about school rules? As you can tell, this article upsets me. I wouldn’t send my kid to one of these prestigious schools with this kind of thing going on.





http://www.cbsnews.com/news/maker-of-female-sex-pill-gets-bought-for-1-billion/

Maker of female sex pill gets bought for $1 billion
CBS/AP
August 20, 2015

Play VIDEO -- Sprout CEO on FDA's approval of women's sex drug Addyi

Valeant Pharmaceuticals (VRX) will pay about $1 billion to buy Sprout Pharmaceuticals, the maker of the first prescription drug designed to boost sexual desire in women.

The deal Thursday comes one day after regulators approved the pill. The Food and Drug Administration's decision earlier this week to approve the drug, called flibanserin, came after months of lobbying and debate over the drug's effectiveness and side effects.

The drug's manufacturer, Sprout Pharmaceuticals, plans to market it under the brand name Addyi. It's expected to hit the U.S. market in mid-October. The deal to buy the company should close in this quarter.

The FDA had rejected the drug twice before, in 2010 and 2013, but in June an FDA advisory panel voted to recommend approval on the condition that the drug's manufacturer develops a plan to limit safety risks. Flibanserin can cause low blood pressure, nausea, drowsiness and dizziness, especially when combined with alcohol.

"No drug comes without side effects. I think that's very important. Addyi is no different than countless other drugs," Sprout CEO Cindy Whitehead told CBS This Morning on Wednesday.

Addyi could find a lucrative pool of potential patients. Given the drug will cost between $30 to $75 a month, Sprout could end up raking in more than $120 million annually, if one assumes that half of the 10 percent of U.S. women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder, or HSDD, sign on and pay at least the lower end of the prescription cost.

Despite Addyi's commercial potential, sales are expected to be affected by a strong warning label attached to it and an FDA-imposed safety plan for prescribing. The warning will alert doctors and patients to the risks of dangerously low blood pressure and fainting, especially when the pill is combined with alcohol.

Under the safety plan, doctors will only be able to prescribe Addyi after completing an online certification process that requires counseling patients about the drug's risks. Pharmacists also will need certification and be required to remind patients not to drink alcohol while taking the drug.

Valeant, a Canadian drugmaker, will pay about $500 million at closing for Sprout and then make another milestone-based payment of around $500 million in the first quarter of next year.




“The deal Thursday comes one day after regulators approved the pill. The Food and Drug Administration's decision earlier this week to approve the drug, called flibanserin, came after months of lobbying and debate over the drug's effectiveness and side effects. The drug's manufacturer, Sprout Pharmaceuticals, plans to market it under the brand name Addyi. It's expected to hit the U.S. market in mid-October. The deal to buy the company should close in this quarter. The FDA had rejected the drug twice before, in 2010 and 2013, but in June an FDA advisory panel voted to recommend approval on the condition that the drug's manufacturer develops a plan to limit safety risks. Flibanserin can cause low blood pressure, nausea, drowsiness and dizziness, especially when combined with alcohol. …. Addyi could find a lucrative pool of potential patients. Given the drug will cost between $30 to $75 a month, Sprout could end up raking in more than $120 million annually, if one assumes that half of the 10 percent of U.S. women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder, or HSDD, sign on and pay at least the lower end of the prescription cost. Despite Addyi's commercial potential, sales are expected to be affected by a strong warning label attached to it and an FDA-imposed safety plan for prescribing. The warning will alert doctors and patients to the risks of dangerously low blood pressure and fainting, especially when the pill is combined with alcohol. …. Valeant, a Canadian drugmaker, will pay about $500 million at closing for Sprout and then make another milestone-based payment of around $500 million in the first quarter of next year.”

Women have long had problems with their level of desire, especially if the men they married or live with haven’t been told about gently arousing the woman’s instincts. Fathers are supposed to tell their sons about that, but maybe in the US they don’t know either. Many men don’t know squat about being a lover to a woman. Maybe they’re used to raping women rather than warming them up. We should require that men read the Kama Sutra before marrying or making love to a woman. Needless to say, I’m really glad to see a drug like this come on the market, and I hope it doesn’t cause side effects that make it too dangerous to use.





http://www.cbsnews.com/news/4-5-million-worth-spanish-gold-coins-discovered-300th-anniversary-1715-shipwreck/

$4.5-million treasure discovered off Florida coast
CBS NEWS
August 19, 2015

Play VIDEO -- Florida family of explorers discovers treasure from 1715 shipwreck


Exactly 300 years to the day after a hurricane destroyed 11 Spanish ships off the coast of Florida, a salvage company made an incredible discovery worth $4.5 million.

Brent Brisben, 1715 Fleet Queens Jewels CEO, said the July 30 find was "magical" and "surreal."

"Not only to have these incredible artifacts come up with their great value, but to have it actually happen on the 300th anniversary is really something I can't articulate," Brisben said Wednesday on "CBS This Morning."

Brisben's team recovered 350 sunken gold coins including nine Royals, artifacts he said haven't been found since 1998.

"These Royals are perfect specimens of coinage of the time and they were made on royal order for the king of Spain to be mostly given out as [a] presentation piece," Brisben said.

The story begins in the 18th century. Eleven Spanish ships were destroyed in a hurricane off the coast of Florida as they sailed from Cuba to Spain. The Royals discovered, valued at $300,000 each, were made for the King of Spain, Phillip V.

Treasures from the wreck were first identified nearly 250 years later by Kip Wagner, a man who later formed a salvage team to search for the shipwrecks.

Brisben and his team - Jonah Martinez, Bill Bartlett and Dan Beckingham - made their discovery in just six feet of water, something Brisben said is not so uncommon for these types of treasure hunts.

"We work extremely close to shore, which is surprising to most people," he said. "These shipwrecks were pushed by the hurricane into the outer edge of the reef and then they were utterly destroyed by the wave action, so pieces of these ships have floated for miles all the way into the beach up into the dunes."

For beachgoers who stumble upon treasure, it's "finder's keepers," Brisben said, but out in the water, the only legal way to uncover history is through his organization.

Brisben's company currently owns the exclusive salvage rights to the remains of the 1715 shipwrecks and serves as custodian for the U.S District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

"At the end of the year, the state of Florida will come and review what we found, assert an interest into certain artifacts for purposes of displaying in their museum," Brisben said. "And once we work that deal out, the federal court adjudicates legal title to either my organization or the state of Florida."

crew-img-credit-1715-fleet-queens-jewels-llc.jpg
Dan Beckingham, left, Jonah Martinez, William Bartlett and Brent Brisben 1715 FLEET - QUEENS JEWELS, LLC
And for eager treasure-hunting enthusiasts, Brisben is happy to let them give it a shot.

"I'm inundated, particularly after a story like this with people wanting to do it and so we vet them, but yeah, I try to give people the opportunity to live the dream," Brisben said.

Other treasures have been found recently. Earlier this summer, the Schmitt family, a subcontractor of Brisben's company, discovered $1 million worth of artifacts.

Since 2010, Brisben said he his company has found close to $6.5 million worth of artifacts and estimates there is another $400 million waiting to be discovered.




“Exactly 300 years to the day after a hurricane destroyed 11 Spanish ships off the coast of Florida, a salvage company made an incredible discovery worth $4.5 million. Brent Brisben, 1715 Fleet Queens Jewels CEO, said the July 30 find was "magical" and "surreal." "Not only to have these incredible artifacts come up with their great value, but to have it actually happen on the 300th anniversary is really something I can't articulate," Brisben said Wednesday on "CBS This Morning." …. "These Royals are perfect specimens of coinage of the time and they were made on royal order for the king of Spain to be mostly given out as [a] presentation piece," Brisben said. The story begins in the 18th century. Eleven Spanish ships were destroyed in a hurricane off the coast of Florida as they sailed from Cuba to Spain. The Royals discovered, valued at $300,000 each, were made for the King of Spain, Phillip V. …. Brisben and his team - Jonah Martinez, Bill Bartlett and Dan Beckingham - made their discovery in just six feet of water, something Brisben said is not so uncommon for these types of treasure hunts. "We work extremely close to shore, which is surprising to most people," he said. "These shipwrecks were pushed by the hurricane into the outer edge of the reef and then they were utterly destroyed by the wave action, so pieces of these ships have floated for miles all the way into the beach up into the dunes." …. Brisben's company currently owns the exclusive salvage rights to the remains of the 1715 shipwrecks and serves as custodian for the U.S District Court for the Southern District of Florida. "At the end of the year, the state of Florida will come and review what we found, assert an interest into certain artifacts for purposes of displaying in their museum," Brisben said. "And once we work that deal out, the federal court adjudicates legal title to either my organization or the state of Florida." …. "I'm inundated, particularly after a story like this with people wanting to do it and so we vet them, but yeah, I try to give people the opportunity to live the dream," Brisben said. Other treasures have been found recently. Earlier this summer, the Schmitt family, a subcontractor of Brisben's company, discovered $1 million worth of artifacts.”

Florida can be a really exciting place to live. Between the pythons in the Everglades and treasure in the dunes, we do make the news here. Millions of dollars’ worth of lost treasure found in one spot. It does remind me of the old TV series with Lloyd Bridges, “Sea Hunt.” I never missed that when I was young. My mother hated it – she complained about the constant bubbling sound of his diving gear. Of course when Gunsmoke came on she complained about having to see Matt Dillon’s butt filling the screen in the first scene. I loved that one, too. I’ve always liked shows that had something exciting going on. Mother and I didn’t see eye to eye on many things.





http://www.cbsnews.com/news/hillary-clintons-communications-problem-may-go-beyond-email/

Hillary Clinton's communications problem may go beyond email
By JAN CRAWFORD CBS NEWS
August 19, 2015

Play VIDEO -- Can Hillary Clinton weather the email controversy?
Play VIDEO -- Hillary Clinton defends private email server


WASHINGTON -- Hillary Clinton continues to be dogged by questions about her use of a private e-mail account while she was secretary of state.

CBS News identified two e-mails on her server Wednesday which the intelligence community says contained classified information.

The messages were uncovered during an investigation of the 2012 attack in Benghazi, Libya, that killed U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and three others.

The first email, from April 2011, was forwarded to Clinton by aide Huma Abedin. It cited intelligence reports from the U.S. Africa Command on Libyan troop strength and movements.

The second, forwarded by aide Jacob Sullivan in November 2012, outlined reports of possible arrests in connection with the Benghazi attack.

The emails are among the some 30,000 Clinton turned over to the State Department from her private server. On Monday, the State Department said it had flagged 305 emails, out of the 20 percent it has reviewed, as potentially containing classified information.

Clinton has insisted there was no classified information on her server.

"But whether it was a personal account or a government account, I did not send classified material and I did not receive any material that was marked or designated classified, which is the way you know whether something is," Clinton said Tuesday.

But it is not just Clinton's private server that may have contained classified information. The State Department filed court papers Wednesday afternoon saying it "does not believe that any personal computing device was issued by the Department" to Clinton.

"Anytime you're bringing your own equipment and using it for work purposes, it's not as secure as something that's actually issued by the company," CNET senior editor Dan Ackerman explained. "Because they take those laptops, for example, and they pre-configure them, they put their own software on them, tracking software, update software, and they distribute them."

That raises the question, how secure were her personal devices, like her BlackBerry, since they weren't issued by the State Department?

As for the server, Clinton's attorney confirmed it was wiped clean of all data before she turned it over to the FBI. But the FBI is hopeful that some material maybe recovered -- or a backup server located.




“The first email, from April 2011, was forwarded to Clinton by aide Huma Abedin. It cited intelligence reports from the U.S. Africa Command on Libyan troop strength and movements. The second, forwarded by aide Jacob Sullivan in November 2012, outlined reports of possible arrests in connection with the Benghazi attack. The emails are among the some 30,000 Clinton turned over to the State Department from her private server. On Monday, the State Department said it had flagged 305 emails, out of the 20 percent it has reviewed, as potentially containing classified information. …. But it is not just Clinton's private server that may have contained classified information. The State Department filed court papers Wednesday afternoon saying it "does not believe that any personal computing device was issued by the Department" to Clinton. "Anytime you're bringing your own equipment and using it for work purposes, it's not as secure as something that's actually issued by the company," CNET senior editor Dan Ackerman explained. "Because they take those laptops, for example, and they pre-configure them, they put their own software on them, tracking software, update software, and they distribute them." …. As for the server, Clinton's attorney confirmed it was wiped clean of all data before she turned it over to the FBI. But the FBI is hopeful that some material maybe recovered -- or a backup server located.”

I’m sure the Republican pit bulls won’t turn loose of Hillary’s leg this easily. They can keep up the drumbeat all the way through to November 2016 from here, I’m sure. It’s almost the end of August already. Poor Hillary. I would rather have Sanders be the candidate anyway, but I’ll bet the DNC will NOT support Sanders. Supporting a Socialist takes courage, even though that is exactly what we need in this country, without the totalitarian government that Russia and China have, of course. If Biden is the candidate I will happily vote for him. He’s made some affable gaffs, but that’s okay. He’s a bright and honorable man, I believe, and for the most part a full Democrat by my definition. I await the next news articles on the subject.