Advertisement
The
| Login |
Advertisement
Wednesday, July 11, 2012 at 8:28 AM
testicle eating fish in illinois!
When biologists say the pacu fish eats nuts, they may be correct in more ways than one.
The pacu, a toothy fish that can weigh up to 55 pounds, has been spotted in Lake Lou Yaeger in Illinois, KSDK reports.
Responding to a report that a fisherman had reeled in a piranha on June 7, lake superintendent Jim Caldwell brought the fish to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, where it was identified as a pacu. Some reports say another pacu was seen a couple of weeks later.
Caldwell said he is still swimming in the lake nearly every day. Pacus primarily eat nuts, aquatic vegetation and snails, he told KDSK, and pose no real threat to humans.
Residents of Papua New Guinea may beg to differ. There, according to British fisherman Jeremy Wade, the pacu is known as the "ball cutter." In 2011, Wade said locals informed him that two fisherman had died from blood loss after something in the water had bitten off their testicles, according to the Metro.
"The locals told me that this thing was like a human in the water, biting at the testicles of fishermen," Wade said.
Wade determined that the perpetrator was the pacu, which is known for having human-like teeth. The angler did note that such attacks are uncommon, the Daily Mail reports.
Though pacus are native to the Amazon Basin, they were released into Papua New Guinea waters in the 1990s as part of an initiative to boost fisheries.
Biologists say any pacus in the Illinois lake are most likely former aquarium pets, according to the Journal-News.Anyone caught dumping the fish in the lake could face criminal charges.
—000
Wednesday, July 11, 2012 at 2:29 PM
Pauline Potter became the world's heaviest living woman last year, weighing in at a whopping 643 pounds. Now, Potter has her sights set on losing weight, and she's turned to marathon sex sessions to help shed the pounds.
In an interview with the UK's Closer magazine, Potter described how her reignited sex life with ex-husband Alex has helped her lose 98 pounds.
“I can’t move much in bed, but I burn 500 calories a session –- it’s great exercise just jiggling around," Potter told Closer. Potter, who had been consuming 10,000 calories a day, hopes to reach her goal weight of 532 pounds with the help of Alex. The two have sex up to seven times each day.
She makes sure to have some fun, too.
“We love foreplay and massages and, as well as full sex, I pleasure Alex, too," she told the magazine. "My bed is strengthened and, although I can’t buy sexy lingerie, I drape a nice sheet over me.”
After meeting online in 2002, the couple married in 2005 and, when Potter failed to bond with Alex's son, the two split up three years later. The break-up triggered Potter's weight gain. She began consuming copious amounts of high-calorie foods and packed on the pounds.
With all the extra weight on her, Potter became depressed. She contacted the Guinness Book of World Records in hopes that winning the title of "World's Heaviest Woman" would shame her into losing weight.
When Alex got wind of the publicity surrounding Potter, he decided to visit her and the flame was quickly rekindled.
“Within the first day of being back together we had sex six times in 24 hours," Alex told the Sun last November. “Even though one of Pauline’s legs weighs more than I do, we’re able to position her body to make sex enjoyable for both of us."
Alex, who weighs just 140 pounds, does most of the work in the bedroom.
“It’s really dangerous for us to have sex because at any moment the bed could collapse and one or both of us could be seriously injured or even killed from the impact," he told the Sun.
But using sex for weight loss is not an unheard of activity.
"Shagging can make you slimmer, if you do enough of it," Dr. Yvonne Kristin Fulbright, a sex educator, relationship expert, columnist and founder of Sexuality Source Inc., wrote for Fox News in 2008. "It can also help the two of you fall for each other all over again. Requiring no monthly fee — dress code optional – you can 'sexercise' yourself into shape. This is one gym membership you’ll never want to drop."
Dr. Fulbright, who has contributed to The Huffington Post and who earned her Ph.D. in International Community Health Studies at New York University, also writes that a good "sexercise" routine can not only lead to weight loss, but also to improved blood flow, strengthening of the heart, better cholesterol, better sleep, more energy, improved muscle tone and decreased stressed.
While Potter's sex life is speeding at full-throttle, she's also reined in her eating habits. She no longer eats 10,000 calories per day, though she still enjoys the occasional Big Mac.
—000
Wednesday, July 11, 2012 at 4:35 PM
This is why the UFC needs a Super Heavyweight division.
Wednesday, July 18, 2012 at 9:22 AM
Florida police captain charged after teen claims he made her strip
MIRAMAR, Fla. – A South Florida police captain has been arrested on charges that he forced a 15-year-old girl to disrobe so he could check whether she was having sex.
Broward County prosecutors say 46-year-old Miramar police Capt. Juan De Los Rios is facing two counts of lewd and lascivious conduct by an adult against a minor. Each count carries a potential 15-year prison sentence.
Authorities say De Los Rios encountered the girl and a 19-year-old man in the back seat of a car. The two told him they were just talking and not having sex. But prosecutors say De Los Rios told the girl to take off her clothes so he could make sure.
A 28-year veteran, De Los Rios is suspended without pay.
Court records did not list a defense attorney.
—000
Thursday, July 19, 2012 at 4:05 PM
The years of anticipation for Diablo III have brought about a number of marathon play sessions since its release on May 15, but one fan's obsession with the game has proven fatal. An 18-year old Diablo III player in Taiwan was found dead recently after a 40-hour marathon session with the game, reports the Australian Associated Press.
The player, who has only been identified as Chuang, reportedly booked a room at his local Internet café before diving into the game, not stopping for sleep or food the entire time. An employee of the café found him passed out on a table Sunday.
He woke up when approached, but collapsed after a few steps and was rushed to a hospital where he was later pronounced dead. An autopsy is pending, but authorities noted that the long period of sitting still could have created blood clots, which proved fatal.
Sadly, it's not the first game-marathon-related death in Taiwan this year. In February, Chen Rong-yu had a fatal heart attack while playing in an Internet café in Taipei while playing online smash hit, League of Legends. Fellow players, though, didn't notice he had died for another nine hours.
Deaths in Internet cafes are rare, but happen from time to time when players concentrate so intensely on their games, that they ignore factors like the body's need for sleep and food.
Last year, a 30 year-old Chinese gamer died after staying up for three consecutive days, barely eating or drinking anything. And last August, 20 year-old Chris Staniforth suffered a pulmonary embolism after a marathon session on his Xbox.
The deaths underscore the risk of game addiction, which more and more people are becoming worried about as the industry grows.
—000
Thursday, July 19, 2012 at 4:05 PM
just woke up from my nap and am infuriated to find out that fred willard lost his job because he was caught masturbating at a porn theater. wtf does that have to do with anything. he's an old man. jesus
Thursday, July 19, 2012 at 4:16 PM
You're not supposed to masturbate in porn theaters? I thought it was like a compliment.
Thursday, July 19, 2012 at 7:00 PM
where in the world does a porn theater still exist?
Thursday, July 19, 2012 at 7:48 PM
somebody ought to teach old people how to use the internet
Thursday, July 19, 2012 at 11:46 PM
Why are some people defending George Zimmerman? I understand people saying he deserves a fair trial. I get that. But there are people out there that think he did nothing wrong and that he's a good guy. Is it just because they hate black people?
Zimmerman is a piece of shit. I hope someone in jail feels threatened by him and kills him in prison.
—acm
Friday, July 20, 2012 at 3:15 AM
Shooting at Colorado movie theater leaves 14 dead, 50 wounded
Fourteen people are dead and 50 others wounded after a gunman in a suburb outside Denver opened fire during a midnight showing of the Batman movie the "Dark Knight Rises," the police chief said at a press conference.
By Rong-Gong Lin II
July 20, 2012, 2:48 a.m.
Fourteen people are dead and 50 others wounded after a gunman in a suburb outside Denver opened fire during a midnight showing of the Batman movie the "Dark Knight Rises," the police chief said at a press conference.
The suspect is in custody, Aurora police chief Daniel J. Oates told reporters. "This is a horrific event," Aurora police chief Daniel J. Oates said during a press conference carried live by local TV stations.
Oates said 10 people were found dead in the theater, and four died at local hospitals.
Denver's NBC affiliate, 9News, reported that the gunman entered the movie theater minutes after the movie began, released a canister, and witnesses heard a hissing sound and saw smoke. The suspect now in custody was found outside the theater holding a rifle and a handgun.
9News reported that the suspect indicated to police that his apartment building might have explosives, and authorities are evacuating that structure and searching for possible explosives.
Friday, July 20, 2012 at 5:03 AM
Started a thread when I heard, but didn't see that Stella beat me to this.
http://youtu.be/T7sIiqq66rk Something like 30 wounded and 10 dead who were at a midnight Dark Knight screening. With the fires, and the City Park shooting and now this, 2012 has sucked for us.
....
Scratch that, something like 14 killed and 50 wounded.
Colorado :(
Friday, July 20, 2012 at 10:25 AM
"You have the right person," she said. "I need to call the police," she added. "I need to fly out to Colorado."
His mother
I guess she knew he was a sicko. She's not in denial.
—acm
Friday, July 20, 2012 at 12:03 PM
Edited Friday, July 20, 2012 at 12:28 PM
he is most definitely a psychopath.
Friday, July 20, 2012 at 5:01 PM
It's weird. Columbine was in the same county as my high school, and this guy was part of the University of Colorado system (medical campus in Aurora, not in Boulder). I feel like I've been just slightly institutionally removed from two of the most horrific massacres to occur in the United States.
I want to go see Batman in Denver tonight (I wasn't going to see it, but now I'm sure I will, as close to midnight as possible), for the same reason I wanted to go to listen to Jazz at City Park the weekend after the shooting there. We will not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. We will face our fear. We will permit it to pass over us and through us. And when it has gone past we will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only we will remain.
Then I will get beer (from one of Colorado's amazing microbreweries). I will drink my beer. I will permit the beer to pass through me. And when it has gone past, I will turn to the urinal. Where the beer has gone, only a pink cake remains.
Friday, July 20, 2012 at 5:23 PM
i read a book about columbine, so i'm kind of an expert in all things. feel free to ask me questions. thank you.
Friday, July 20, 2012 at 5:49 PM
I want to go see Batman in Denver tonight (I wasn't going to see it, but now I'm sure I will, as close to midnight as possible)
it was all a publicity stunt to get people to go see the new Batman movie, and you bought right into it. I wish.
Friday, July 20, 2012 at 5:54 PM
the guy dyed his hair red and told cops he was "the joker"
Friday, July 20, 2012 at 5:59 PM
really wish his picture wasn't posted because he is "my type" and now i'm forced to feel weird.
Friday, July 20, 2012 at 6:03 PM
Edited Friday, July 20, 2012 at 6:03 PM
i hate to say this, but when i saw his pic, the first thing i thought was that he reminds me of our little anfernee
Friday, July 20, 2012 at 11:02 PM
i read a book about columbine, so i'm kind of an expert in all things. feel free to ask me questions. thank you.
—mandee
Ooh! Mandee, I got one for you. Wasn't there a girl who was put in a wheelchair because of the Colombine shooters? And didn't her mom later kill herself because she couldn't deal with all the shit going on in her family's life?
Am I remembering this correctly?
If so...what a fucking bitch! I would hate my mom forever if she did that to me.
—acm
Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 2:22 AM
Edited Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 2:26 AM
i read a book about columbine, so i'm kind of an expert in all things. feel free to ask me questions. thank you.
Is the book titled Columbine? by Dave Cullen? That's the one I read. Nothing shockingly revealing, except maybe that they were troublemakers and the local police had files on them, not really the social outcasts the media portrayed them to be, and that they were kinda born with the role of psychopaths.
Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 5:24 AM
yeah that's the one.
the local police trying to hide the files they had on eric harris is pretty shocking. eric was the psychopath and dylan was more of a follower. he was hardcore depressed.
i was 11 when all of this happened and i just kind of heard the rumors that these guys were loners/goths and were bullied, so it was pretty interesting to me that this wasn't true.
james holmes is probably pretty similar to eric harris.
Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 5:33 AM
also after viewing more pictures of holmes, i'm no longer attracted to him. good news.
alison - that is true. but the mother was already pretty mentally ill before her daughter was shot.
Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 9:21 PM
Edited Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 9:22 PM
Saw Mulholland Drive at the Esquire Theater last night at midnight. All things considered, it was way fucking creepy.
Sunday, July 22, 2012 at 4:24 PM
gossip gurls: my cousin went to high school with the shooter
Sunday, July 22, 2012 at 6:28 PM
My brother went to UCR around the same time as the shooter. Pretty sure he didn't know him. I would have heard by now.
—acm
Sunday, July 22, 2012 at 10:07 PM
Edited Sunday, July 22, 2012 at 10:08 PM
One of my friends has the last name Harris, and days after the Columbine incident occurred, he went around telling people that Eric Harris was a cousin of his. His mom got very mad at him.
Monday, July 23, 2012 at 8:00 PM
Man Raped To Death By His Six Wives
His fame and financial breakthrough pushed him into having up to six wives. His love for sex equally contributed to his patronage of the most beautiful girls in Ugbugbu Owukpa, Ogbadibo Local government area of Benue State where a man who was identified as Uroko Onoja was allegedly raped to death by his 6 jealous wives in the early hour of Tuesday.
Trouble started on tuesday morning, precisely 3 am when Uroko returned from Ochanja, a popular joint in the small community of Ugbugbu and headed to the room of his youngest wife. The other wives who according to the youngest wife, Odachi had a meeting before Uroko returned home invaded her room with knives and sticks, demanding that their husband have sex with all of them at once. Uroko who resisted their attack was overpowered by the women who ordered that the sex march begin with the youngest wife and to continue in that order to the top.
Our correspondent reported that Uroko stopped breathing when the fifth woman was making her way to the bed. “Suddenly, my husband stopped breathing, and they all ran out, still laughing, but when they saw that I could not resuscitate him, they all ran into the forest.
As at the time this report was filed, 2 of the wives have been arrested.
—000
Monday, July 23, 2012 at 8:02 PM
Man Vanquishes Robot Cop, Droid 'hurled through door'
The ongoing Rise of the Machines to their inevitable dominance over humanity faltered last week, when a police robot tangled with a human being in hand to hand combat - and was handed a severe beating.
The mechanical law officer in question had been sent into a home in Connecticut to deal with an unnamed man, reportedly a former boyfriend of a woman living there, who had arrived and refused to leave.
The obstreperous ex-boyf - who police say had gone to sleep and was rudely awakened by the droid's entrance - dealt with the tin cop harshly, "throwing the robot out the front door", according to the local Republican-American.
Fleshy colleagues of the defeated law-bot, evidently unwilling to tangle mano-a-mano with an opponent who could overpower a cutting-edge enforcement mechanoid, were compelled to use "beanbag" riot projectiles to bring him down. (In fairness to the human cops one should note that the man was reportedly armed with a shotgun.)
Having been successfully beanbagged into submission, the man was subsequently cuffed and conveyed to the local cooler. The tin cop is expected to return to duty after repairs.
—000
Monday, July 23, 2012 at 8:06 PM
Navy: Sub worker set fire so he could leave early
Casey James Fury, 24, said he started the first of two fires after becoming anxious over a texting exchange with his former girlfriend.
PORTLAND — The shipyard worker accused of starting the fire that did $400 million in damage to a Navy nuclear submarine made his first court appearance this afternoon.
Fury initially denied any involvement in the fires, but later admitted setting the small fire June 16 outside the submarine which was quickly extinguished. He said he started that fire after becoming anxious over a texting exchange with his former girlfriend and that he wanted to leave work, the court papers said.
During a polygraph exam, Fury also admitted to setting the May 23 fire by igniting rags in a state room, the court papers say.
Fury had been working to strip paint from the forward area of the submarine just before the fire broke out there, the court papers say. Fury admitted to starting the fire using rags.
The fire burned for 10 hours before shipyard firefighters and fire departments from three states were able to bring it under control. Nobody died but there were minor injuries.
The Navy is in the process of determining whether to repair the submarine or scrap it.
Fury said he was suffering from anxiety the night he set the fire, a condition for which he takes several medications. He also takes medication for depression and insomnia. A few days after the June fire, Fury checked himself in to an in-patient mental health hospital for two days.
If convicted, Fury could face life in prison and be ordered to pay restitution, according to a statement by the U.S. Attorney for the District of Maine, Thomas Delahanty II.
—000
Saturday, July 28, 2012 at 1:19 PM
best headline ever:
Swedish police are looking for a man having sex with sheep. Latest reports say he's still on the lamb
Saturday, July 28, 2012 at 2:04 PM
this explains a lot:
OMG Facts @OMGFacts
The most commonly requested last meal before execution of inmates on Death Row is french fries.
Sunday, July 29, 2012 at 5:29 AM
Obama Is Muslim, the Sun Orbits the Earth, and Other Things 1 in 5 Americans Believes
With all the challenges we face today, somehow the big news this week has been that one out of every five Americans thinks President Obama is a secret Muslim. Apparently, quoting Scripture and attending church for decades just can't compete with having Hussein as your middle name and semi-supporting the so-called "Ground Zero mosque" on constitutional grounds.
I've already explained why this poll result is both ridiculous and irrelevant over at my Belief Beat blog, but I suspect that logic and reason aren't much help here. So, to give this some much-needed context and a bit of levity, here are some more things that a quick Google search reveals about one in five Americans:
* Is excessively sleepy
* Speaks a foreign language at home
* Pees in swimming pools
* Smokes cigarettes
* Thinks that buying lottery tickets constitutes a sound retirement plan
* Lives below the poverty line
* Thinks aliens and witches walk among us
* Prefers a pet to a human on Valentine's Day
* Believes the sun revolves around the earth
* Was undecided about participating in the Census
* No longer uses a land line phone
* Enjoys birdwatching
* Has a disability
* Can't afford medical care
* Thinks the First Amendment gives us too much freedom
And, my personal favorite: one American in five still doesn't use the Internet. So, chances are there are more of you reading this post than there are Americans out there who genuinely believe that Obama is Muslim -- or something like that.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got to get some more sleep before the mothership returns. Adios!
Sunday, July 29, 2012 at 8:15 AM
We don't know if he's a Muslim. We don't know if he's a Christian either. Same goes with me. I could be lying about being a Christian.
Only Obama knows what he truly believes.
—acm
Sunday, July 29, 2012 at 11:04 AM
so by that same logic, we don't know if romney is a mormon or a voodoo priest?
Sunday, July 29, 2012 at 7:53 PM
Bob Dylan is said to be releasing a song about Titanic that's 14 minutes long...
So Tim Heidecker released one that's 15 minutes long.
Monday, July 30, 2012 at 3:08 PM
Man loses hand to alligator, fined $500
Man who lost hand to alligator charged with unlawful feeding
Talk about adding insult to injury: An Everglades tour guide who lost his hand to an alligator last month was arrested over the weekend, charged with unlawful alligator feeding.
Wallace Weatherholt, a 63-year-old airboat captain, was leading a tour on June 12 when the group encountered a 9-foot alligator. Passengers told the Fort Myers News-Press that Weatherholt "hung a fish over the side of the boat and had his hand at the water's surface when the alligator attacked."
Wildlife officials then tracked and killed the alligator, according to the paper. They "retrieved Weatherholt's hand from its stomach, but doctors were unable to reattach it."
Weatherholt was charged with unlawful feeding, a second-degree misdemeanor, on Friday. He posted $1,000 and was released from Collier County Jail.
Feeding alligators is illegal in the state of Florida, where at least 19 people have been cited in the last two years, according to West Palm Beach's WPTV. The charges carry a fine of up to $500 and possible jail time.
http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/man-hand-gator-charged-feeding-151153914.html
—000
Monday, July 30, 2012 at 6:41 PM
Ecstasy Pills Cause Memory Problems
Taking 10 or More Pills a Year Linked to Immediate and Short-Term Memory Problems
July 27, 2012 -- People who use the club drug ecstasy (MDMA) can develop memory problems, a new study shows.
In the study, new ecstasy users who took 10 or more ecstasy pills during their first year showed problems with their immediate and short-term memory.
The researchers say the memory problems may not be immediately apparent. Ecstasy users may not notice the problems until permanent damage has been done. The memory issues are associated with damage of an area of the brain called the hippocampus, which is responsible for memory.
The study compared 23 new users of the drug to 43 people who didn't use any illicit drugs besides cannabis. On average, study participants who used ecstasy took 33 pills over the course of one year.
"Given the specific memory impairments, our findings may raise concerns in regard to MDMA use, even in recreational amounts over a relatively short time period," says study researcher Daniel Wagner, in an email. He is a psychologist at the Klinik fur Psychiatrie und Psychotherapie in Cologne, Germany.
The study is published in the journal Addiction.
"People often take ecstasy in combination with other substances, including alcohol and cocaine. And they often take it at parties, dances, and raves where they may become dehydrated and at risk for all sorts of physiological health problems," says Bruce Goldman, director of substance abuse services at the Zucker Hillside Hospital in Glen Oaks, N.Y.
And that's not all. "Ecstasy makes you feel all lovey-dovey. And this can lead to impaired judgment about sex," he says. In these scenarios, ecstasy puts people at risk for sexually transmitted diseases including HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
Ecstasy is also highly addictive, Goldman says. Research from the National Institute on Drug Abuse showed that 43% of teens and young adults who use ecstasy are addicted. "Use of ecstasy is dangerous even if it's done occasionally."
Harris Stratyner, PhD, agrees. He is the vice president of the New York Clinical Regional Services at Caron Treatment Centers in New York City. He has seen how this drug can destroy lives.
"Ecstasy is an extremely dangerous hallucinogenic drug and we have known that for years," he says. "Even just going to a rave and taking one ecstasy pill puts you at risk for becoming overheated." Severe overheating can damage vital organs or lead to death.
"Using as little as 10 pills of ecstasy a year can have a deleterious effect on short-term memory and may even have a greater effect on all cognitive function," he says.
Monday, July 30, 2012 at 7:59 PM
Matrix director loses his hamdangle, now a SHE
http://www.inquisitr.com/288214/matrix-director-larry-wachowski-now-a-she/
Matrix director Larry Wachowski is now a ‘she’, after undergoing a sex-change operation.
For some time now, the film director has been answering to ‘Lana Wachowksi’, and says she has been “transitioning” from male to female for a number of years. At a Los Angeles movie promo last week, Wachowski showed up in a gray dress and fuchsia dreadlocks, announcing in a German accent: “Hi, I’m Lana.”
It isn’t known whether the Matrix director’s public switching of genders is complete yet, but this was far from Wachowski’s first big public appearance as Lana: she was appearing in public as early as 2004, at events such as the San Diego Comic-Con.
In her most recent showing, Lana popped up in a trailer for her new film, Cloud Atlas. The credits for the sci-fi film, based on a novel by British writer David Mitchell, feature the name ‘Lana Wachowski.’ Yet again, this isn’t the first time Lana has been credited as such: in the 2012 documentary Side by Side, she is interviewed and credited as Lana Wachowski.
Tom Hanks and Halle Berry star in Cloud Atlas, and in a fitting twist, the pair swap names and genders in the production.
Matrix director Larry Wachowski filed for divorce in 2002, after rumors about his sex life culminated in the director being photographed in a Los Angeles S&M club, The Dungeon.
After separating from his wife, the former carpenter snapped up a $2.7 million San Francisco mansion, adding the name ‘Laurencia Wachowski’ to the title deeds of the property.
—000
Monday, July 30, 2012 at 10:07 PM
Never bet on sequels being better than the originals, see what happens.
Saturday, August 4, 2012 at 8:20 AM
Vast international child-porn network uncovered
BOSTON (AP) — The men came from different walks of life on two continents: a children's puppeteer in Florida, a hotel manager in Massachusetts, an emergency medical technician in Kansas, a day care worker in the Netherlands. In all, 43 men have been arrested over the past two years in a horrific, far-flung child porn network that unraveled like a sweater with a single loose thread.
In this case, the thread was a stuffed toy bunny.
The bunny, seen in a photo of a half-naked, distraught 18-month-old boy, was used to painstakingly trace a molester to Amsterdam. From there, investigators made one arrest after another of men accused of sexually abusing children, exchanging explicit photos of the attacks and even chatting online about abducting, cooking and eating youngsters.
Authorities have identified more than 140 young victims so far and say there is no end in sight as they pore through hundreds of thousands of images found on the suspects' computers. They are also trying to determine whether the men who talked about murder and cannibalism actually committed such acts or were just sharing twisted fantasies.
The still-widening investigation has been code-named Holitna, after a river in Alaska with many tributaries.
"They are the worst of the worst," said Bruce Foucart, agent in charge of the U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement agency's Homeland Security Investigations unit in Boston. "This isn't just a child that's nude and someone's taking pictures of him; this is a child that's being raped by an adult, which is horrific."
The case began to unfold when Robert Diduca, a Sheraton hotel manager from Milford, Mass., sent the photo of the Dutch boy to an undercover federal agent in Boston. Diduca, a married father of three who used the screen name "Babytodd," thought he was sending the picture to another man with a sexual interest in babies and toddlers.
Agents forwarded the photo to Interpol, the international police organization, and to several other countries.
An investigator for the Dutch police recognized the stuffed bunny as Miffy, a familiar character in a series of Dutch children's books. She also traced the boy's orange sweater to a small Amsterdam store that had sold only 20 others like it.
The boy's photo was broadcast on a national TV program similar to "America's Most Wanted." Within minutes, friends and relatives called the child's mother.
Robert Mikelsons, a 27-year-old day care worker who baby-sat the boy, was arrested. On his computer were thousands and thousands of images of children being molested and raped, including the boy holding the stuffed bunny.
Photos and online chats found on computers owned by Diduca and Mikelsons led to more than three dozen other suspects in seven countries, including Canada, Britain, Germany, Sweden and Mexico. The oldest victim in the Netherlands was 4, the youngest just 19 days old.
Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz, whose office prosecuted Diduca, said the demand for photos of sexual assaults of young children, including babies and toddlers, has increased sharply in recent years.
"This demand leads to the abuse of children, yet there is this misconception that somehow, viewing child pornography is a victimless crime," said. "It clearly is not."
Diduca pleaded guilty to child porn and sexual exploitation charges and was sentenced to 18 years in prison. His lawyer, Richard Sweeney, said Diduca was sexually abused as a child by a Boy Scout leader. "He gets it, he knows he needs to be punished, he knows what he did is wrong," Sweeney said.
Mikelsons also received an 18-year sentence, followed by indefinite psychiatric commitment, after confessing to sexually abusing more than 80 children.
The horror did not let up after the Mikelsons case.
Read more: http://www.seattlepi.com/news/article/Vast-international-child-porn-network-uncovered-3762426.php#ixzz22ahYlVBp
In May, authorities arrested Michael Arnett of Roeland Park, Kan., after finding pornographic photos he allegedly produced. Agents discovered the pictures when they searched the computer of a Wisconsin man who had been chatting online with Mikelsons.
What they found on Arnett's computer was unlike anything some of the investigators had ever come across: long, graphic, online chats about his desire to abduct, kill and eat children. They said he had also made photos of a naked 2-year-old boy in a roasting pan inside his oven. The child and two other boys Arnett allegedly abused and photographed were later identified and found alive.
In July, authorities arrested four men they say had online discussions with Arnett about kidnapping and eating children. Those arrested included Ronald Brown, a children's puppeteer from Largo, Fla. (A YouTube video shows Brown during an appearance on a Christian TV kids show in the 1980s. In the video, he tells a child puppet that he did the right thing by refusing to look at "dirty pictures" some other youngsters tried to show him.)
In excerpts of an online chat between Arnett and Brown from 2011, the two men appear to be discussing their desire to cook a child for Easter.
"he would make a fine Easter feast," Arnett says.
"yes, his thighs and butt cheeks would be fantastic for Easter," Brown responds.
A lawyer for Arnett would not comment on the allegations. Brown's lawyer did not return calls.
Prosecutors said Brown acknowledged his online conversations but said that it was all a fantasy and that he would never hurt anyone.
"Obviously the discussions regarding their claims of cannibalism are disturbing and a concern to our agency," said ICE spokesman Ross Feinstein. He said agents are following all leads "to make sure these individuals didn't follow through on any of their claims."
To find the young victims, investigators carefully studied thousands of photos, read hours of Internet chats and worked with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. They also employed some forensic wizardry.
After finding a video on Diduca's computer of a bound, 2-year-old boy being raped, investigators enhanced the images of furniture and carpet and determined the attack took place in a motel room in Bakersfield, Calif.
Then they pinpointed the date by way of a TV that was playing in the background in the video, figuring out exactly when a particular episode of "Family Matters" aired along with a certain Pepperidge Farms commercial.
A man from Black Forest, Colo., was arrested and is awaiting trial.
Similarly, in the Arnett case, investigators discovered that a water bottle in one of the photographs carried the name of a swim and scuba center in Overland Park, Kan. With the help of teachers at an elementary school, they identified three children shown in the photographs, including the toddler posed in the roasting pan.
The mother of one of the boys said she initially did not believe the allegations against Arnett, a family friend for about 15 years. She said her son, now 7, and several nephews often spent weekends at Arnett's home four or five years ago.
"Well, when we first got the phone call, we thought there's no way. You guys got the wrong guy," she said. The Associated Press does not identify victims of sexual abuse or their families.
But then investigators showed her photos Arnett had allegedly taken of her son with a shirt and no pants.
"Regret? For sending my son with a sick-minded guy, that's the only regret I have. I had no idea," she said. "It's depressing."
For the agents working on the case, the leads never seem to end.
Last week, they arrested another Massachusetts man after finding child pornography and photos of what appeared to be dead children on his computer. He allegedly had online chats with Arnett and Brown.
More arrests are expected.
"The agents that work for me are extremely driven on this type of investigation," said Bart Cahill, assistant agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston. "They really believe that they are taking out horrific violators and saving kids."
Read more: http://www.seattlepi.com/news/article/Vast-international-child-porn-network-uncovered-3762426.php#ixzz22aggIAKo
Saturday, August 4, 2012 at 8:36 AM
i heard this story on npr this week... what the hell people?
Saturday, August 4, 2012 at 11:20 AM
I'm just amazed the way the tracked some of them down, by a clip of a family matters episode next to a pepperidge farm commercial playing in the background.
Saturday, August 4, 2012 at 11:55 AM
yeah that's pretty awesome. i bet it was someone's job to watch every single episode of family matters.
Sunday, August 5, 2012 at 9:25 PM
FareStart, Seattle Nonprofit, Celebrates 20 Years Of Rehabilitating Homeless People, Addicts Through Cooking
SEATTLE -- A Seattle nonprofit that uses cooking to teach life skills to the homeless and people who have struggled with alcohol and addiction turns 20 this year.
Since its start in 1992, FareStart students have cooked millions of meals for shelters, senior centers and daycares.
The students start by learning how to use kitchen knives, read recipes, make sauces and plan menus. They also meet with counselors and discuss behavior that got them in trouble in the first place.
They advance to preparing meals for shelters and FareStart's own restaurant in downtown Seattle.
After graduating, students get job-placement help and follow-up services to make sure they keep jobs in the food industry.
Monday, August 6, 2012 at 6:01 PM
Edited Monday, August 6, 2012 at 6:02 PM
Tuesday, August 7, 2012 at 2:18 PM
Police look to solve mystery of man found with cache of fake IDs, Boy Scout uniforms, NASA flight suit
Police in Florida are asking for the public's help in the unusual case of Roy Antigua, a 52-year-old man who was found in possession of a cache of fake IDs—including CIA, Coast Guard and hospital badges—medical paraphernalia and a NASA flight suit and space helmet.
"In 20 years, I've never seen anything this elaborate," New Port Richey police Detective Michael Anderson said at a news conference on Monday.
On July 31, police stopped Antigua's black Cadillac Escalade, which had tinted windows, a Department of Homeland Security registration sticker and Coast Guard decals. He was cited for driving with a suspended license. During questioning, Antigua showed police a military ID that turned out to be fake.
A subsequent search of two homes uncovered about 200 suspicious items, New Port Richey Police Chief James Steffens told CNN, including "diplomatic license plates and dozens of fake identification cards from the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Defense, CIA and NASA," as well as "access badges to hospitals around Florida, doctor and nurse scrubs, a respiratory technician badge, police blue lights and access stickers to Coast Guard bases." Antigua also had at least six Boy Scout uniforms.
"The question remains," WTSP-TV said. "Is Roy Antigua a true threat, a possible danger with the approaching Republican National Convention? Did he have devious plans with all the paraphernalia he possessed? Or was he just living a fantasy?"
"He's definitely strange," Steffens said. "But we need to know if he's truly dangerous."
Steffens said that Antigua, dressed in a Coast Guard uniform, approached him in May during a Memorial Day event. "He blended in and even introduced himself," the Steffens said. "We never knew."
He added: "The best case scenario is he just liked to dress up and wear outfits."
According to Fox's Tampa Bay affiliate, local police are working with the Secret Service to determine where Antigua's CIA badge came from.
Antigua—a native of Cuba—is being held in Pasco County Jail for an unrelated probation violation, giving police time to solve the mystery.
"We just want to know what this individual has been involved in," Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco said at the news conference. "Has he been committing crimes? What kind of individual would want to dress up like this? That is why we need the public's help."
—000
Tuesday, August 7, 2012 at 4:36 PM
“Arrested Development” officially starts filming today
Wednesday, August 8, 2012 at 10:03 AM
Wade Michael Page, the shooter in the Sikh temple tragedy in Wisconsin, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head after he was shot in the stomach by a responding officer, Teresa Carlson, the special agent in charge for the FBI in Milwaukee, said today.
Wednesday, August 8, 2012 at 10:06 AM
Randy Travis Arrested for DWI in Texas
Randy Travis has been arrested for an alcohol-related offense – once again. This time, in the nude.
The country singer crashed his car Tuesday night and was arrested at about 11:59 p.m. under suspicion he was driving while intoxicated in Texas.
He is currently in police custody, although no other vehicles were involved. In a follow up report, Travis was completely naked when the cops pulled him over.
Travis, 53, who had minor cuts and bruises, was also held on a "retaliation and obstruction" charge, which is a felony.
A rep for the singer did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
This marks another run-in with the law for Travis, who was arrested in February on a charge of public intoxication after police found him smelling of alcohol and carrying an open bottle of wine in front of a church.
The Dallas/Fort Worth-area resident told police at the time he'd just gotten in a fight with his girlfriend – he split from his wife of 19 years in 2010 – and he later apologized for his drunken behavior.
Wednesday, August 8, 2012 at 7:38 PM
I've got your atheism right here.
Friday, August 10, 2012 at 2:05 PM
May your hair fall out and fingernails grow back in it's place.
Woman's Hair Turns to Black Fingernails, Baffling Her Doctors
By SUSAN DONALDSON JAMES | Good Morning America – 19 hrs ago
Shanyna Isom has consulted every possible specialist, including a doctor in the Netherlands, but she still as no idea what is wrong with her.
The 28-year-old beautician and former University of Memphis law student has developed a condition so severe, fingernails grow from the hair follicles all over her body.
"Black scabs were coming out of her skin," said her mother, Kathy Gary. "The nails would grow so long and come out and regrow themselves. They are hard to touch and stick you."
The disease so far has affected not only her skin, but her bones and her vision. Because Isom is unable to walk without a cane, her mother helps her out of bed each day.
Doctors at Johns Hopkins Medical Center in Baltimore, where Isom is being treated, told her family that she is the only person in the world with this unknown condition.
And now she has $500,000 in unpaid medical bills. Isom has state insurance, but it doesn't cover medical care in Maryland. Her mother lost her job as a medical receptionist because she looks after her daughter at home, so savings have dried up.
Once a month, mother and daughter travel to Baltimore from Memphis to monitor her treatment.
But now, Isom has put all of her energy into creating the S.A.I. Foundation (so named for her initials) to help others with mystery illnesses.
Bank of America has agreed to take donations at any of their branch offices. Friends have organized fundraisers, and her high school has dedicated a football game to her charity.
Despite her debilitating illness, Isom told ABCNews.com, "I don't know whether to smile or cry. I am very blessed."
On her blog, Pray for Shanyna, she laments: "It has taken all of my hair out and has left my body with scabs all over it, plus I have lost about 200 pounds. Two years ago, I was a healthy woman on my own ... had big dreams and goals that I was following until one day my body completely shut down on me."
Isom was a junior studying criminal justice when the mystery illness first occurred in September 2009, according to WLBT in Memphis, which first reported the story.
She went to an emergency room for an asthma attack and was given a large dose of steroids, which doctors suspected caused an allergic reaction.
After returning home, Isom began itching. Doctors prescribed Benadryl, but it got worse.
"It was uncontrollable and we didn't know what it was," said her mother.
Soon, her legs turned black.
"It looked as if she had been in a house fire and gotten burned," said Gary.
Doctors thought she had eczema or a staph infection and prescribed drugs, but it got worse. Meanwhile, all tests came back negative.
"We could not figure out what was going on," said her mother. "She was just breaking out everywhere. Her body was scabbed all over."
At the same time, Shanyna was losing 10 to 15 pounds a week. A bone marrow biopsy turned up nothing.
It was then her Memphis doctor threw up his hands.
"He said she would be like that for the rest of her life," said Gary. "But I couldn't accept that."
Isom and her family persisted, and in August 2011, Shanyna went to Johns Hopkins.
There, doctors determined that she was producing 12 times the number of skin cells in each hair follicle. Instead of growing hair, the follicles were producing human nails.
Doctors think her skin isn't getting enough oxygen -- she is also lacking sufficient amounts of vitamins A, B, C, D and K, according to her mother.
But with treatment, she is improving.
"Her legs aren't covered in black scabs," said her mother. "They are looking better, and her face just looks like she has a real bad sunburn."
25 Medicines and Still No Cure
Today Isom is on 25 medications, but her insurance only pays for five of them. She is awaiting the results of genetic tests that may give doctors clues to what is wrong.
"The doctors are so caring," said Gary. "It's just amazing how much they have done for her. We really didn't think she was going to make it."
Isom said she slipped into a depression, but now feels uplifted by the support of family and friends.
"I know it's a blessing that I can reach out and touch people's hearts," she said.
She remembers the day at Johns Hopkins when she felt sorry for herself, shuffling through the corridors on a walker.
"I saw a little girl, 4 or 5 years old, and she was walking through the same hall and had the biggest smile on her face," said Isom. "She had braces from [her] hip to her feet and had a walker and held her head up so high. I thought, 'If she can, I can. I had a life. This baby is trying to have a life.' ... I fed off her energy."
Isom said she prayed, "I will never be selfish again."
Gary said their ordeal has been a "nightmare ... to see her whole body shut down."
But she gets her strength from her daughter.
"Shanyna is remarkable," said Gary. "She has been able to hold her head high. I keep telling her we are going to make it, through the grace of God."
Friday, August 10, 2012 at 6:53 PM
i saw that article but couldn't post it here cuz i was too busy viyb
Saturday, August 11, 2012 at 11:01 AM
Sunday, August 12, 2012 at 6:26 PM
sometimes i wonder if there's gonna be an earthquake
Monday, August 13, 2012 at 9:57 AM
Accused Walmart Groper, 18, Told Cops He Was Powerless Against An Enticing "Booty"
Meet Aaron Morris.
The 18-year-old Floridian is sitting in a Broward County jail cell due to poor impulse control.
Specifically, Morris is accused of groping a woman’s buttocks outside a dressing room at a Walmart in North Lauderdale. The teenager, pictured in the adjacent mug shot, was arrested shortly after the incident Thursday evening.
During questioning by law enforcement, Morris copped to grabbing the victim’s rear end and provided an explanation, of sorts, for his behavior, according to a sheriff’s report.
“Her booty looked so good,” he noted, “I just couldn’t resist touching it.”
Locked up in lieu of $1000 bail, Morris has been charged with touch or strike/battery, a misdemeanor.
http://www.thesmokinggun.com/buster/booty/illegal-booty-grab-785093
—000
Monday, August 13, 2012 at 6:17 PM
Cheap Junkyard guard dogs, allow man to steal van
http://www.news-journalonline.com/breakingnews/2012/08/man-breaks-into-towing-compound-to-repo-his-van.html
Out of nowhere an armed man in militia garb jumped into motorist's window
http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2012/aug/05/man-jumps-drivers-window-jumps-out-when-deputies-s/?partner=popular
Sicko arrested for masturbating in plain view of neighbors
http://www.nwfdailynews.com/articles/masturbating-51585-arrested-pace.html
Church worker with foot fetish busted after asking to worship girl's sneakers
http://www.tampabay.com/news/courts/criminal/foot-fetish-leads-to-sex-charge-for-st-petersburg-church-worker/1244900
Man discovers stranger tucked up in his bed
http://tyneandwear.sky.com/news/article/32438
Inmates try to escape Brazilian prison by hiding in plastic bags filled with food and paper plates
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2185381/Jailbreak-lunch-break-Inmates-try-escape-Brazilian-prison-hiding-plastic-bags-filled-food-paper-plates.html
Mr Aguilar clinged to a woman's car for several miles through Fresno
http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?section=news/local&id=8765349
Little Vandals Damage Church
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1683042673001?bckey=AQ~~,AAAABvb_goE~,F9_uH99XfPUHLMKRWL15YoMU36m1W3I5&bctid=177576479900
Woman finds naked intruder in her bed
http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2012/08/09/Woman-finds-naked-intruder-in-her-bed/UPI-64881344546921/
X-ray scanner spots a sleeping Norwegian tourist on airport baggage belt
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/9464344/Norwegian-tourist-falls-asleep-on-airport-baggage-belt.html
Newspaper apologises over LOL caption error
http://www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/2012/news/welsh-daily-newspaper-apologises-over-caption-error/
Driver killed by gophers
http://www.katu.com/news/local/165491616.html
—000
Wednesday, August 15, 2012 at 8:04 PM
At least a thousand hidden Mickeys have been reported throughout the parks, and the people who are actually looking for them are nuts. They've written books and devoted websites to the world's least rewarding scavenger hunt.
Seriously.
—acm
Thursday, August 16, 2012 at 8:01 PM
Friday, August 17, 2012 at 2:02 PM
Edited Friday, August 17, 2012 at 2:03 PM
another celeb rahab patient dies!! joey from the real world
—000
Friday, August 17, 2012 at 2:05 PM
Russia's female punk band protesters jailed for two years
(Reuters) - Three women from the Russian punk band Pussy Riot were sentenced to two years in jail on Friday for staging a protest against President Vladimir Putin in a church, a ruling supporters described as his "personal revenge".
The group's backers burst into chants of "Shame" outside the Moscow courthouse and said the case showed Putin was cracking down on dissent in his new six-year term as president. Dozens were detained by police when scuffles broke out.
The United States and the European Union condemned the sentence as disproportionate and asked for it to be reviewed, although state prosecutors had demanded a three-year jail term and the maximum sentence possible was seven years.
But while the women have support abroad, where their case has been taken up by a long list of celebrities including Madonna, Paul McCartney and Sting, opinion polls show few Russians sympathize with them.
"The girls' actions were sacrilegious, blasphemous and broke the church's rules," Judge Marina Syrova told the court as she spent three hours reading the verdict while the women stood watching in handcuffs inside a glass courtroom cage.
She declared all three guilty of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred, saying they had deliberately offended Russian Orthodox believers by storming the altar of Moscow's main cathedral in February to belt out a "punk prayer" deriding Putin.
Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, 22, Marina Alyokhina, 24, and Yekaterina Samutsevich, 30, giggled as the judge read out the sentences one by one, but portrayed themselves as victims of Soviet-style persecution during the trial that began on July 30.
They have already been in jail for about five months, meaning they will serve another 19, and could be released if Putin were to pardon them. The Orthodox Church hinted it would not oppose such a move by appealing, belatedly, for mercy.
Pussy Riot took on two powerful state institutions at once when they burst into Moscow's golden-domed Christ the Saviour Cathedral wearing bright ski masks, tights and short skirts to protest against Putin's close ties with the Church.
The judge said the three women had "committed an act of hooliganism, a gross violation of public order showing obvious disrespect for society." She rejected their argument that they had no intention of offending Russian Orthodox believers.
It became one of Russia's most high-profile trials since the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991 and Putin's critics said it put the 59-year-old Kremlin leader's policies in the dock.
Opponents depicted it as part of a crackdown by the ex-KGB spy against a protest movement that took off over the winter, attracting what witnesses said were crowds of up to 100,000 people in Moscow to oppose his return to power.
"They are in jail because it is Putin's personal revenge," Alexei Navalny, one of the organizers of the protests, said outside the court. "This verdict was written by Vladimir Putin."
A police source told Itar-Tass news agency 50 people had been detained near the court when scuffles broke out. Among them were Sergei Udaltsov, a leftist opposition leader, and Garry Kasparov, a Putin critic and former world chess champion.
But there was no sign of the opposition taking to the streets in anger. Opposition leaders plan a small gathering in Moscow on Sunday, the anniversary of a failed coup shortly before the Soviet Union fell in 1991, but the next big anti-Putin rally is not planned until September 15.
Putin's spokesman did not immediately comment on the verdict but the president's supporters said before the trial that he would have no influence on the court's decision.
Although Pussy Riot have never made a record or had a hit song, foreign singers have led the campaign for the trio's release. Madonna performed in Moscow with "PUSSY RIOT" painted on her back and wearing a ski mask in solidarity.
But a poll of Russians released by the independent Levada research group showed only 6 percent sympathized with the women and 51 percent found nothing good about them or felt irritation or hostility. The rest could not say or were indifferent.
Valentina Ivanova, 60, a retired doctor, said outside the courtroom: "What they did showed disrespect towards everything, and towards believers first of all."
CHURCH CALLS FOR MERCY
Putin, who returned to the presidency for a third term on May 7 after a four-year spell as prime minister, had said the women did "nothing good" but should not be judged too harshly.
The trio's defense lawyers said they would appeal. The Church issued a statement condemning the women's actions but urged the state to show mercy "within the framework of the law".
That appeared to signal that the Church would back a pardon or reduced sentence, although the women would be expected to admit guilt if they sought a pardon.
U.S. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Washington was concerned about the "disproportionate sentences ... and the negative impact on freedom of expression in Russia", and urged Russian authorities "to review this case".
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said the sentence called into question Russia's respect for the "obligations of fair, transparent, and independent legal process".
In protests outside Russia in support of Pussy Riot, a bare-chested feminist activist took a chainsaw to a wooden cross bearing a figure of Christ in Kiev. In Bulgaria, sympathizers put Pussy Riot-style masks on statues at a Soviet Army monument.
Opposition leaders say Putin will not ease up on opponents in his new term. Parliament has already rushed through laws increasing fines for protesters, tightening controls on the Internet, and imposing stricter rules on defamation.
Gay rights suffered a blow in Moscow when an appeals court upheld a ruling rejecting applications from activists to hold a gay rights march each year for the next 100 years. Anti-gay activists later sued Madonna for $10 million in St Petersburg, saying she insulted their feelings by speaking out for gay rights there last week.
Friday, August 17, 2012 at 2:47 PM
they look like sweet, innocent, darlin'-precious-angel children
Friday, August 17, 2012 at 8:55 PM
y'all my dryer is teh dedz0r. sumbuddeh fix it or i will also be teh dedz0r.
Friday, August 17, 2012 at 9:03 PM
i can give you some clothespins and string. isn't that how they do it in ky?
Friday, August 17, 2012 at 9:05 PM
i dunno, i ain't from around here. i prefer doing laundry the old fashioned way--pay someone else to do it.
Sunday, August 19, 2012 at 2:41 AM
more awesome feminists
Femen, Ukrainian topless feminist activist group, chainsaws a memorial crucifix in protest of Pussy Riot’s conviction
Sunday, August 19, 2012 at 6:50 AM
Magnetic therapy can ease depression, doctors say
DES MOINES, Iowa -- Brenda Rykhoek says a new contraption in her psychiatrist's office does more than cause a tingling near her forehead. She says it has helped lift the deep depression that has fogged her life for years.
"I was very, very suicidal," she said. "I had no hope. I was in a very dark place. I would have done anything to get out of there."
Rykhoek, 51, of Pella travels regularly to West Des Moines to sit in a chair and have a technician place a special magnet over an area of her left forehead. The device, which makes a series of tick-tick-tick sounds, sends out magnetic pulses. Proponents believe the pulses encourage cell activity in brain regions that affect mood.
The process, called transcranial magnetic stimulation, was approved by federal regulators in 2008 for treatment of depression. The treatment has skeptics, and few insurers cover it. But supporters point to studies that suggest it can help people whose depression can't be relieved with medication.
How does the process work? Rykhoek's psychiatrist, Charles Wadle, said the short answer is, "We're really not sure."
Wadle said researchers know certain parts of the brain are less active in people who are depressed. The theory behind the new treatment is that magnetism can encourage brain cells in those areas to fire more often, he said.
Wadle said the new process has similarities to electroconvulsive therapy, a long-standing practice that involves running a controlled electrical current through the brain. Patients must be put under anesthesia for that therapy, because it causes seizures. Wadle performed electroconvulsive therapy for many years, and he still considers it "the gold standard" for patients with severe depression. But he noted that the new magnet treatment doesn't require anesthesia, and it is more tightly targeted.
Rykhoek underwent about 15 sessions of electroconvulsive therapy at a hospital in 2010. The sessions erased some of her memories, but they helped ease her depression. "As yucky as they were, they saved my life," she said.
Rykhoek, who works as a surgical nurse, continued to struggle with depression, however. A therapist mentioned to her that Wadle had started using the new machine in January. She decided to try it, even though her insurer declined to pay.
For six weeks, Rykhoek came to the West Des Moines office five times a week and received 37-minute treatments.
"It was really weird at first. Really weird," she said of the feeling of tapping on her forehead and twitching near her eyebrow. "I wasn't sure I'd come back the second day. But I did."
Now she comes about once every six weeks for a maintenance treatment. She's not cured, but she feels better. "I've got more energy, clearer thinking, and hope," she said.
Wadle said he paid about $80,000 for the machine. Patients nationally are charged a total of about $12,000 to $15,000 for the treatment series, Wadle said, though he added that his office works with patients to determine how much they can afford. Rykhoek and her husband agreed to an installment payment plan for the treatments, which cost them about $150 apiece.
Some of the most prominent skepticism has come from Public Citizen, a national consumer advocate watchdog group that has ripped the Food and Drug Administration for giving a green light to the treatment.
In a 2010 paper criticizing the federal approval process, Public Citizen officials said the FDA holds new medical devices to less stringent standards than it uses to judge whether new drugs are effective. Public Citizen held up transcranial magnetic stimulation as an example of a medical device that should not have been approved because its effectiveness was unproven. The paper quoted an advisory panel to the FDA, which concluded that "the clinical effect was perhaps marginal, borderline, questionable, and perhaps a reasonable person could ask whether there was an effect at all."
Dr. Sidney Wolfe, director of Public Citizen's health research, said in an interview that if the machine's manufacturer had been seeking approval for a new pill, it would have needed much more evidence of effectiveness.
In a recently published study involving 307 patients across the country who received the treatment, participating doctors found that depression eased in 58 percent of patients, including 37 percent for whom it was largely gone.
Wolfe remains a skeptic of the treatment, however. He noted that the study didn't use a control group, which would have included patients who received a sham treatment that seemed similar to the new treatment but didn't include a magnetic field. Such research methods are particularly important when studying depression treatments, he said, because many depression cases respond to a placebo effect. In other words, depression often eases by itself or when people believe they are being treated for it, Wolfe said.
A few smaller studies of the treatment have included control groups of depressed patients who received sham versions. Those studies have shown smaller gains than the new study.
Insurers don't cover the treatment
Wolfe said he would recommend that before buying into the treatment, depressed people try several different kinds and doses of medication, plus talk therapy with a counselor or psychologist. "Neither drugs nor this device, even if it worked, would be a substitute for extensive psychotherapy," he said. He added that many insurers have unwisely clamped down on how much counseling they will pay for.
Most health insurers decline to pay for transcranial magnetic stimulation treatment.
Wolfe said he doubted many insurers will start covering the magnet treatment soon.
Dr. Mark George, who helped develop the treatment in the 1990s and defends its worth, hopes Wolfe is wrong about that.
George said the treatment is best used for patients who have tried at least one anti-depressant medication and failed to get better. He said people who have tried and failed on five or more such medications probably should try electroconvulsive therapy instead, because it has more of a track record with such patients. He said he has no financial stake in the company marketing the magnet machines.
Rykhoek, the patient from Pella, read some of the critics' contentions on the Internet, but decided to try the treatment. "There's skepticism with absolutely everything. I just looked for hopefulness," she said.
Rykhoek has been able to cut back on the anti-depressant drugs she takes, and she'd like to wean herself off them over time. If her improved mood lasts just six months, she said, the new treatment will have been worth trying. "I'm hoping it lasts forever."
Sunday, August 19, 2012 at 11:37 AM
I still prefer this kind of Russian political dissent.
Sunday, August 19, 2012 at 8:49 PM
I tried reading about the pussy riot stuff. But what can I say? tldr.
Stella, just out of curiosity, if Americans were drawing a bunch of crude pictures of Mohammed and posting them on line, would you think that is perfectly cool?
—acm
Sunday, August 19, 2012 at 8:59 PM
You notice how around 80 or 90 he stops jiggling them, and by like 250 or so he has a much more gentle approach?
Monday, August 20, 2012 at 11:16 AM
Stella, just out of curiosity, if Americans were drawing a bunch of crude pictures of Mohammed and posting them on line, would you think that is perfectly cool?
Do they have some reason to be doing this? Generally yeah I have no problem with "disrespecting" any religion. If I believed in a leprechaun coming from the sky giving out gold and got mad that people drew crude pics of my special leprechaun and made fun of it, I'd be called crazy, but we grant religious people rights and put people in jail for disrespecting them when their beliefs are no less insane, and immensely more harmful.
Monday, August 20, 2012 at 2:44 PM
^ I generally agree with Hitch on this point (e.g. "mockery of religion is one of the most essential things").
At the same time, I realize there are plenty of people who are kind of culturally stuck in a religion. What I mean is that if they left, and they might entertain that idea often, they would very likely lose most of their family and friends. People like them are collateral damage when you kind of "spray and pray" (no pun intended) mockery at religion. Mockery is best when it's delivered like a marksman.
Monday, August 20, 2012 at 5:40 PM
the breast grabbing video is so not satisfying
Monday, August 20, 2012 at 7:30 PM
i don't respect people who pretend to believe in things (especially things about the essential nature of life) because their parents and friends bully them into it. they may lose their family and friends but why would you want family and friends like that?
Monday, August 20, 2012 at 10:30 PM
I try to respect any religion as long as they aren't harming others. Just look at the Mormons. Their religion is silly. But have you ever met a Mormon? Those people are seriously, really fucking nice. They're ten times nicer than the average Christian I know (me included.)
Stella, I'm glad that you're consistent. I knew a guy that would shit on Christians all the time, and then when Americans started drawing pictures of Mohammed he got super pissed because he had Muslim friends. And I was like...what the fuck? You're a fucking hypocrite. He denied it. What a dick...
—acm
Monday, August 20, 2012 at 10:32 PM
Edited Monday, August 20, 2012 at 10:33 PM
ACM - I'll buy the tree book if you read God Is Not Great and write a summary of your thoughts on each chapter and post them on TLC. I won't even argue with anything you post regarding it.
Monday, August 20, 2012 at 10:51 PM
Hmm...
I'm beginning to get annoyed with organized religion. Not so much Christianity. I used to be turned off by Catholicism when I was a kid. I am so turned off by it now. I think the cathedrals are beautiful and all. I think a lot of Catholics are really decent people. But...priests and nuns and bishops and the pope...Ugh...don't get me started on the pope.
It is not natural to be celibate your whole life! I highly suspect anyone who publicly chooses that lifestyle. It's just not natural!
—acm
Monday, August 20, 2012 at 10:59 PM
Architecturally and artistically, I like a lot of churches too. I'm still an atheist.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012 at 1:30 AM
It's better than nothing?
new friends can be made. lots of people have done it. if people from religions like the amish can leave even though their religions have made them almost totally unable to function in the outside world without it anyone can. it's a standard tactic of all religions/cults to isolate its members from the outside world. i dont think giving in to that is a good excuse.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012 at 5:55 AM
If Takeru Kobayashi can eat 50 hot dogs in 10 minutes, I'd imagine most people wanted to could eat 50 hot dogs in 10 minutes too. That doesn't mean it's easy or it's a good idea for everyone to try. It's why there were so many takers when Daniel Dennett created a forum for "secretly atheist" religious leaders.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012 at 1:04 PM
yeah i don't see how mocking religion hurts people who secretly don't believe in it but are afraid to come out. seems more likely they'd appreciate it.
Sunday, August 26, 2012 at 10:42 PM
Etsy Bans Body-Part Sales. Where Do I Find Them Now?
Adam Popescu· August 24th, 2012
It's right there in fine print: "No human remains or body parts (excluding hair and teeth)."
This month the community sale site Etsy changed its sales policy and banned human skulls, bones, skeletons, organs and bodily fluids. That means, right up until an August 8 policy change, you could have bought and sold all that and more on the site.
Looks like people have to look elsewhere for blood and bones.
But fret not, fetishists. Hair and teeth are still acceptable trade goods on Etsy. Why, exactly?
In a recent blog post, Etsy cited a desire to maintain a safe community. Etsy wouldn't comment for this story, but the posts says the change was made to reflect the perspective of Etsy's shoppers and the company itself. Hmm. Does this mean people weren't buying the human skulls anymore, or maybe there was some kind of legal crackdown we're not aware of. In addition to the body part ban, the site also just cracked down on the sale of crack pipes - good job! Maybe the site's management felt like it was time to cleanse body and soul?
Etsy's staff is contacting violators and explaining the rule changes in an effort to shut down human body part traffickers. The site is also asking members to contact Etsy if they find banned items (which also include firearms and smoking products.)
All the same, Etsy isn't going after purveyors of animal parts, such as a preserved doe deer heart on sale for $75. Yup, a deer heart in a jar for less than a hundred bucks. What a steal!
Monday, August 27, 2012 at 10:12 AM
Fine! I'll just keep my left nut to myself then.
Monday, August 27, 2012 at 10:44 PM
no more telling people to suck your left one.
Tuesday, August 28, 2012 at 12:51 PM
Man Killed While Posing as Bigfoot
Cars strike Montanan hoping to be mistaken for Sasquatch
By Mary Papenfuss, Newser Staff
(Newser) – A Montana man dressed up as what he hoped would be taken for Bigfoot was struck by two cars and killed. Randy Lee Tenley, 44, was wearing a hard-to-see military-type "Ghille" camouflage suit and was standing along a highway near Kalispell as the light was fading when he was struck. He was hit a second time by another car as he lay in the highway.
Friends told police Tenley hoped someone would mistake him for Bigfoot and report a sighting. Alcohol may have been involved in the plan, said investigators. "He was trying to make people think he was Sasquatch so people would call in a Sasquatch sighting," a state trooper told the Daily Inter Lake newspaper. "You can't make this up. I haven't seen or heard of anything like this before. Obviously, his suit made it difficult for people to see him.
—000
Wednesday, August 29, 2012 at 5:50 PM
Tampa, FL (The Weekly Vice) – Ulysses Chapman, a 67-year-old Florida man was jailed Saturday after he allegedly set a woman on fire inside his car and then locked the doors.
According to police, Chapman and 40-year-old Anita Ahmadi were arguing inside his car when Chapman threatened to set her on fire if she didn’t “shut up.”
Chapman was infuriated when Ahmadi failed to heed his warning.
In retaliation, Chapman doused the woman with a five-gallon jug of gasoline and set the woman ablaze. He then locked the doors of the vehicle as he exited, leaving the woman trapped inside to burn.
Ahmadi was rushed to Tampa General Hospital where she was treated for burns to her arms and legs.
Chapman was booked into the Hillsborough County Jail and charged with arson, aggravated battery causing great bodily harm and two counts of cocaine possession. Bond has not been set for the current charges and was revoked from an unrelated case.
Chapman has been arrested 23 times in Hillsborough County on a variety of charges including cocaine possession, marijuana possession, driving on a revoked license, grand theft auto, carrying a concealed weapon, burglary, grand theft, writing a fake check, aggravated battery, aggravated assault, driving on expired tags, contempt of court, assault, possession of burglary tools, domestic violence, possession of drug paraphernalia and habitual violator DWSR.
Most of the charges listed above are repeat offenses.
—000
~
Post a Follow-Up