Sex | Accuser Credibility Questions Shake IMF Sex Case

NEW YORK (AP) - Prosecutors have serious questions about the credibility of a hotel housekeeper who has accused former International Monetary Fund leader Dominique Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault, and he is expected to have his strict bail conditions reduced today, according to people familiar with the case.

Investigators have come to believe that the woman lied about some of her activities in the hours around the alleged attack and about her own background, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press on Thursday. The official is familiar with the case but spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss matters not yet made public in court.

Prosecutors think she lied about details on her application for asylum in the U.S., including saying she had been raped in her native Guinea, the official told the AP.

"She actually recounted the entire story to prosecutors and later said it was false," the official said.

Prosecutors haven't necessarily reached a new conclusion about the allegations against Strauss-Kahn and have not decided whether to downgrade the charges, the official said.

A court hearing is set Friday for the 62-year-old Strauss-Kahn, who is accused of crimes including attempted rape has been under armed guard in a Manhattan town house after posting a total of $6 million in cash bail and bond. He denies the allegations.

Another person familiar with the case but not authorized to speak publicly about it said earlier Thursday that Strauss-Kahn may get his bail and house arrest arrangement eased at Friday's hearing but would not elaborate. Strauss-Kahn lawyer William W. Taylor would say only that the hearing was to review the bail plan. The Manhattan district attorney's office declined to comment.

A third person who spoke on condition of anonymity told the AP that prosecutors have raised issues about the accuser's credibility in the case against Strauss-Kahn, but also would not elaborate.

The New York Police Department, which investigated the case, declined to comment. The woman's lawyer did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment.

"There will be serious issues raised by the district attorney's office and us concerning the credibility of the complaining witness," Benjamin Brafman, a lawyer for Strauss-Kahn, told The Wall Street Journal.

The maid told police that Strauss-Kahn chased her down a hallway in his $3,000-a-night suite in New York's Sofitel hotel, tried to pull down her pantyhose and forced her to perform oral sex before she broke free.

If the case collapses, it could once again shake up the race for the French presidency. Strauss-Kahn, a prominent Socialist, had been seen as a leading potential challenger to conservative President Nicolas Sarkozy in next year's elections - until the New York hotel allegations embarrassed Strauss-Kahn's party and led to his resignation from the IMF.

"Those who know Dominique Strauss-Kahn will not be surprised by this evolution of events," one of his French lawyers, Leon Lef Forster, told the AP in Paris. "What he was accused of has no relation to his personality. It was something that was not credible."

New doubts about Strauss-Kahn's accuser would also revive speculation of a conspiracy against Strauss-Kahn aimed at torpedoing his presidential chances. Within days of his arrest, a poll suggested that a majority of French think Strauss-Kahn - who long had a reputation as a womanizer and was nicknamed "the great seducer" - was the victim of a plot.

Socialist Party chief Martine Aubry announced her own presidential bid this week, after having long been expected to throw her weight behind a Strauss-Kahn candidacy. French politician Michele Sabban said Friday that the Socialists should suspend the presidential primary calendar because of the new developments.

The New York Times first reported on its website that investigators uncovered major inconsistences in the woman's account of her background, citing two law enforcement officials. The Times also reported that senior prosecutors and Strauss-Kahn's lawyers are discussing whether to dismiss the felony charges, including attempted rape.

Prosecutors had argued against his release in May, citing the violent nature of the alleged offenses and saying his wealth and international connections would make it easy for him to flee.

"The proof against him is substantial. It is continuing to grow every day as the investigation continues," Assistant District Attorney John "Artie" McConnell told the judge. "We have a man who, by his own conduct in this case, has shown a propensity for impulsive criminal conduct."

In early hearings, prosecutors underscored that they thought the evidence against Strauss-Kahn was formidable. And it appeared so at first, the law enforcement official told the AP.

"In the beginning, it was a strong case. There was a victim and several witnesses and forensic evidence that supported the victim's claim," the official said.

The woman was in Strauss-Kahn's room only briefly before the alleged attack, his semen was found on her uniform, and she quickly reported the alleged assault and told a consistent story about it to investigators and prosecutors, the official said.

Prosecutors have said in court that Strauss-Kahn appeared on surveillance tapes to be in a hurry as he left the hotel, though his lawyers have said he was merely rushing to lunch.

Strauss-Kahn was in New York on a personal trip when the maid made her accusations. During initial bail hearings, prosecutors noted that he was arrested on a Paris-bound plane at Kennedy Airport, and that they could not compel his return from France if he fled.

His lawyers have underscored that it was a long-planned flight and have said he wants to return to court to clear his name.

Defense lawyers have said that the hotel encounter wasn't forcible, and that they have unreleased information that could "gravely undermine the credibility" of the housekeeper. The defense was using private investigators to aggressively check out the victim's background and her story, but the Times reported that it was investigators for the prosecution who uncovered discrepancies.

Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly has said the detectives investigating the case found the maid's story believable.

The woman's lawyer has said she is prepared to testify despite a "smear campaign" against her. The Associated Press generally does not identify accusers in sex crime cases unless they agree to it.

Strauss-Kahn was held without bail for nearly a week after his May arrest. His lawyers ultimately persuaded a judge to release him by agreeing to extensive - and expensive - conditions, including an ankle monitor, surveillance cameras and armed guards. He can leave for only for court, weekly religious services and visits to doctors and his lawyers, and prosecutors must be notified at least six hours before he goes anywhere.

The security measures were estimated to cost him about $200,000 a month, on top of the $50,000-a-month rent on a town house in trendy TriBeCa. He settled there after a hasty and fraught house hunt: A plan to rent an apartment in a tony building on Manhattan's Upper East Side fell through after residents complained about the hubbub created by reporters, police and gawkers.

Under New York law, judges base bail decisions on factors including defendants' characters, financial resources and criminal records, as well as the strength of the case against them - all intended to help gauge how likely they are to flee if released.

Defendants and prosecutors can raise the issue of bail at any point in a case. It's common, if asking a judge to revisit a bail decision, to argue that new information or new proposed conditions change how one or more of the factors should be viewed.

Jennifer Peltz can be reached at .

Associated Press writers Colleen Long in New York City and Angela Charlton in Paris contributed to this report.

Porn | Bellevue Child Porn Purveyor: I'm An Addict

Police launched an investigation into Gordon Gazaway, 53, after a young man he'd met on Craigslist came forward to say Gazaway was looking to have sex with boys whose ages were in "single digits."

A subsequent investigation by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations division uncovered 1,700 images showing children being raped, urinated on and posed for the camera. Pleading guilty earlier this year, Gazaway admitted to sharing the photos online.

For his part, Gazaway, formerly employed by a Microsoft contractor, told the court he was addicted to pornography, but has changed his ways with the help of his church, his counselors and his new wife.

"I am working through issues with my therapist," Gazaway told the court, asking that he be sentenced to one year in prison. He went on to call his arrest "a sobering moment that made me realize the depths that I had fallen."

Police first investigated Gazaway in August 2005 after Redmond police came to believe Gazaway had downloaded child pornography on his home computer. That investigation fizzled out after police were unable to find him.

Gazaway again drew the attention of law enforcement in February 2009, when Gazaway responded to a Craigslist advertisement posted by someone describing himself as a "young" 18-year-old interested in older men.

"My kink is for younger guys " the younger the better," Gazaway responded to the advertisement. "So how young of young 18 r u really? Have you any younger brothers? Or others you might have played with in the past?"

The young man eventually asked Gazaway how young would be too young for him. Gazaway responded that he could go "very low, maybe single digits."

Gazaway went on to say that he'd "played with" a sleeping 7-year-old girl once, and that the girl "tasted very sweet." Shaken by the exchange, the 18-year-old contacted the police.

An associate of Gazaway later told investigators Gazaway "viewed 'liking children' as a sexual preference and tried to treat it as if it were normal," Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Woods told the court.

Investigators later learned Gazaway had paid to access a child pornography website, where he watched two men rape a child younger than 10, saw men urinating on a young girl and various other images of abuse.

Agents searched Gazaway's residence on Aug. 13, 2009, seizing computers containing more than 1,700 images of child pornography. Also seized were a series of photographs he'd taken showing scantily clad children; the boy and girl were later identified as an acquaintance's children.

Writing the court, Woods described the images as horrific and contended the children pictured will continue to suffer because the photos continue to circulate.

"The children in these images have suffered harm that cannot be quantified," Woods told the court. "They not only underwent the terrible abuse depicted in the images, but they have had to live with the fact that the depictions of their abuse are widely shared across the Internet by individuals for their sexual gratification.

"Law enforcement, despite its best efforts, likely will never be able to completely stop the circulation of these images, but rather can only stem the tide."

Through his attorney, Gazaway contended he was subject to "treatable mental health issues" that prompted the "voyeurism and addition to pornography, and asked that he be sentenced to one year in prison.

In a letter to the court, Gazaway said he has turned to his church for support while also participating in counseling.

"My conduct for which I have been charged was wrong. I take full responsibility," Gazaway told the court. "It has caused substantial distress for my family and cost me a job I really enjoyed."

Gazaway went on to note that he married following his arrest. At no point in the abridged letter, presented in a brief filed by his attorney, does Gazaway apologize to the child victims pictured in the pornography.

Gazaway's attorney went on to claim the non-pornographic photos his client had taken of children " including one photo of a girl's crotch " were simply evidence of his "voyeuristic character." He went on to deny that Gazaway was interested in molesting children.

"The psychological evaluations and polygraph examinations confirm that Mr. Gazaway has never had any sexual contact with any minors," defense attorney Russell Aoki told the court. "He is a voyeur. His addiction is to pornography."

Sentencing Gazaway on Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Marsha Pechman went further than prosecutors asked, sentencing Gazaway to five years in federal prison. Prosecutors had requested a sentence three months short of the full term.

Upon his release from prison, Gazaway will be subject to 15 years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $23,000 in restitution to an identified child victim whose image was recovered by Homeland Security Investigations agents on Gazaway's computer.

Check the Seattle 911 crime blog for more Seattle crime news . Visit seattlepi.com 's home page for more Seattle news.

Levi Pulkkinen can be reached at 206-448-8348 or levipulkkinen@seattlepi.com . Follow Levi on Twitter at twitter.com/levipulk .

Making Love | Love Life On Shaky Ground After Quakes

The love life of many Christchurch people has become another casualty of the earthquakes which have rocked the city since September, says a Christchurch sex therapist and counsellor.

Helen Mounsey said she was dealing with many clients who had lost their sex drive or had a lower libido because of the trauma of the earthquakes.

Loss of homes, jobs and security, the needs of frightened children and sleepless nights, were all making it hard for couples even to find time to be alone together, she told The New Zealand Herald.

"We are all looking to return to normal. And that means we are wanting connection. We need safety first, and we need safety with our partner."

It was not necessarily just women whose libidos had taken a hammering in the barrage of quakes, Ms Mounsey said.

Many of her patients were upset their partner was not seeking them sexually.

"People are uncertain, so both parties are going to feel uncertain and preoccupied about their future and their lives and their homes. They are going to perhaps have conflict about decisions that they are making."

She said they would sleep less and be tired and broken sleep raised the irritability level and lowered tolerance levels.

Hot Sex | ChitChatter: Heidi Klum On Sex, Her Hot Black Husband, And How She Doesn't Know How To Read Good

Heidi Klum is on the cover of the latest issue of Glamour magazine where she discusses sex, dating, hubby Seal, and how she's "bad at reading":

GLAMOUR: I read that you actually asked Seal out first.

HEIDI KLUM: Yeah, I did. We were sitting in the lobby at the Mercer Hotel [in New York], and he came in from the gym. I was very attracted to him immediately. And I said, "Where you going? You should just stay here with us." He said, "I'm sweating"I have to go take a shower." And I'm like, "Good, take a shower and come back." And he did.

GLAMOUR: In relationships, were you usually the aggressor?

HEIDI KLUM: I'm not someone who plays hard to get. This whole thing about "Oh, let's exchange numbers" and then people wait four or five days before they call you? I don't see the point. If you feel something, why would you let that pass? You only live once.

GLAMOUR: Is there anything that you're bad at?

HEIDI KLUM: There are many things! I'm bad at baking. I'm bad at letting go of things. I'm probably bad at reading.

GLAMOUR: Bad at reading?

HEIDI KLUM: Yeah! Sometimes I'm like, "What is this word?" And I start stuttering, and Leni [Klum's oldest daughter] is like, "Mommy, you don't know what that means?" And I'm like, "No, do you know what this means?" And she says, "No, but you should know. You're the mommy."

GLAMOUR: What's the one piece of lingerie you think every woman should own?

HEIDI KLUM: There's nothing wrong with a nice garter belt. I'm not saying you have to put a pole up in your bedroom and start swinging off the rafters. But I love that sometimes! My husband and I just had a "sexy week" in London. I'd put on a super-short skirt with a garter belt on underneath so that when I'd sit, he could see it. It's fun to sauce it up a little bit.

GLAMOUR: When do you find Seal the hottest?

HEIDI KLUM: Always. He's even hot when he's sleeping. He's a beautiful man. He's kind, he's a gentleman, and I watched him last night onstage, and he still rocks it. I'm like, "Yeah, that's my man!"

Read the interview in its entirety at Glamour.com

Sex | R.I. Same-sex Marriage Bill Goes To Governor

(CNN) -- Less than a week after New York became the nation's sixth state to legalize same-sex marriage, Rhode Island state lawmakers on Wednesday voted in favor of a bill that permits civil unions between gay and lesbian couples.

The measure, which passed the state Senate by a count of 21-16, is widely seen as a compromise intended to provide same-sex couples with added rights and benefits, while also preventing an expanded legal definition of marriage.

Gov. Lincoln Chafee, an independent, is expected to sign the bill into law, according to his spokesman, Michael Trainor.

If signed, the law would take effect on July 1, making Rhode Island the fifth state in the union to allow civil unions between same-sex couples.

Such unions are currently permitted in New Jersey and Illinois, and will be allowed in Delaware and Hawaii beginning January 1, 2012.

Three West Coast states -- California, Oregon and Washington -- plus Nevada, also allow for "comprehensive domestic partnerships," largely considered an equivalent to their civil union counterparts.

Despite robust opposition to the measure, Rhode Island's Senate Judiciary Committee approved the bill by a vote of 7-4, sending it to the Democrat-controlled Senate floor where lawmakers voted in its favor, according to Senate spokesman, Greg Pare.

The legislation, which passed overwhelmingly in the state's lower house on May 19, affords same-sex couples a host of new state tax breaks, health-care benefits and greater ease of inheritance.

But it also drew sharp criticism from religious leaders and opposition groups who say it will lead to court-ordered action that would eventually legalize same-sex marriage.

Similar legal action in Connecticut and Massachusetts resulted in those states adopting same-sex marriage laws, noted Christopher Plante, executive director of the National Organization for Marriage's Rhode Island chapter.

Chafee -- who is supportive of potential legislation that legalizes same-sex marriage -- says civil unions are "a step in the right direction," according to Trainor.

Meanwhile, gay rights activists -- like Marriage Equality Rhode Island -- say that while they support the civil union bill, they would prefer legislation that permits same-sex couples to wed.

The group urged Chafee not to sign the measure if it includes a House amendment that permits groups with religious affiliations to refuse certain legal rights provided to civil unions.

For instance, a hospital with a religious affiliation could refuse a civil union partner from being involved in the emergency medical care decisions of their spouse if it chose to do so, said Ray Sullivan, a spokesman for the activist group.

Chafee is "very aware of the concerns that have been expressed," Trainor said, but will likely sign the bill into law, which passed the Senate with the controversial amendment included.

House spokesman Larry Berman called the issue a "red herring," pursued by the state's more radical activists.

The exemption, he said, is meant to provide religious protections against potential litigation.

"It's a small exception," Berman said, when compared to the slew of new rights and benefits same-sex couples would enjoy should the measure be signed into law.

Currently, Rhode Island and Maine are the only states in New England that do not permit same-sex marriage.

Last week, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo a signed a bill that legalizes same-sex marriage, more than doubling the number of Americans living in states that permit such unions.

The measure will take effect on July 24, providing gay and lesbian couples with new rights that include employer health benefits, easier inheritance and a host of state tax breaks.

Federal recognition, however, was not a part of Friday's vote, leaving benefits like Social Security and ease of immigration largely out of reach for same-sex couples.

The controversial bill passed New York's Republican-controlled Senate before reaching Cuomo's desk, in an extended legislative session that left many skeptical over whether lawmakers would bring the measure to a vote.

Iowa and the District of Columbia also allow gay and lesbian couples to wed.

Porn | Porn Star Says Representative Weiner Asked Her To Lie

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A porn star said on Wednesday that embattled Representative Anthony Weiner asked her to lie about their e-mail relationship in the hope that an Internet sex scandal surrounding him would die down.

Ginger Lee, who is also a stripper, said her exchanges with the Democratic lawmaker from New York began with political discussions of abortion rights and healthcare but Weiner kept trying to sexualize the conversation. She said she never reciprocated his lewd messages.

Weiner denied for more than a week that he sent a close-up photo of himself in boxer briefs to a woman in Seattle on May 28, claiming his Twitter account had been hacked. But on June 6 he tearfully admitted he had lied and that he had inappropriate exchanges with six women, some after he was married.

As bipartisan calls grow for Weiner to resign, he has instead been granted a two-week leave of absence so he can get professional treatment at an undisclosed facility.

"He asked me to lie about our communication," Lee told a news conference in New York, flanked by celebrity attorney Gloria Allred . "I knew I couldn't lie for him but I didn't want to be the one who kicked him under the bus."

"I think that Anthony Weiner should resign because he lied. He lied to the public and the press for more than a week," she said. "If he lied about this, I can't have much faith in him about anything else."

Allred said Lee had about 100 e-mails that she had exchanged with Weiner since March, when he initially contacted her on Twitter after she posted a supportive blog about him.

Allred said that while most of the e-mails were not sexual, Weiner had referred to his "package" in some exchanges, such as "I have wardrobe demands too, I need to highlight my package" and "You aren't giving my package due credit."

Lee said no photos were exchanged.

When the scandal broke, she sought Weiner's advice on how to deal with the media. The pair continued to communicate and on June 2 he phoned her, advising that if they both stayed quiet the scandal would die down.

"Once it got to the point that he lied on national television I knew that anything I said after that would either have to be a lie or an admission. I didn't want to do either," Lee said.

House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi has requested an ethics probe to determine what, if any, House rules Weiner may have broken. The probe could take months, even up to a year.

Allred said Lee is prepared to provide her communications with Weiner to any ethics investigation and would also testify if called.

(Editing by Mark Egan and Doina Chiacu)

Porn | Union Gap Man Gets Prison For Child Porn

A Union Gap man charged with possession of child pornography after a rental company repossessed his laptop was sentenced Wednesday to one year and a day in prison.

Larry Vernon Anderson, 53, also was placed on 18 months of probation and must register as a sex offender for 10 years for his plea in Yakima County Superior Court to a single count of possessing child porn.

The case dated to 2006, when employees of Rent-A-Center told police they found child porn on a rented laptop that had been recently repossessed from Anderson.

According to charging documents, the employees told police they were deleting files from the computer when they stumbled across child porn in a folder named "Larry's Files."

The case was dismissed by county prosecutors who expected it would be handled in U.S. District Court, where penalties for child porn are tougher. Federal prosecutors declined to take the case, so it was refiled in state court.

Anderson had been free on bail in the meantime, but was taken into custody Wednesday to begin serving his sentence.

Anderson had no criminal record, and the standard range he faced under state sentencing guidelines for possessing child porn was between one year and a day to 14 months.

Porn | Child Porn Often Is A Gateway

A St. Joseph man was sentenced Monday to seven years in federal prison. His crime: Possessing more than 600 images and videos of child pornography.

Every day, in small towns and big cities across the country, federal investigators are catching offenders with hundreds and sometimes thousands of images of children in sexually explicit poses or engaging in sexual behavior.

As the number of offenders grows, so does the length of the sentences they are ordered to serve.

Some may question whether the simple possession of such images warrants such long sentences. Advocates for long sentences point to the fact that the simple act of looking at child pornography perpetuates the criminal exploitation of children. After all, someone out there is making the images to meet the seemingly insatiable demand of the consumers of child porn.

Child porn purveyors often become more involved offenders -- either by producing images with victims they know or by using images to "groom" children they assault.

Two recent cases come to mind.

Last week, an ex-scoutmaster from Burnsville who had already been convicted of repeatedly abusing a former Eagle Scout pleaded guilty to sexually molesting three other scouts in his troop. Investigators found 161 images and 64 videos of child porn on a computer in a townhouse owned by Peter Stibal II -- the same townhouse where he abused some of his victims.

In April, a former DEA employee -- Scott James Whitcomb -- pleaded guilty in federal court to producing child pornography. He produced sexually explicit videos and images of three boys he had befriended.

According to state court charges against Whitcomb, he also showed the boys child pornography. Experts say such "grooming" is meant to show victims that child porn is OK.

Long sentences, even for possession of child porn, sends a clear message that it's not.

James Walsh 612-673-7428

Sexy Chicks | 'Mission: Impossible IV- Ghost Protocol' Trailer

Oh man. OH. MAN. Just totally got a boner watching the trailer for Mission: Impossible IV- Ghost Protocol . It looks incredible.

Jeremy Renner is taking over the Jason Bourne franchise
J.J. Abrams news (cause he helped write it)
Tom Cruise news

Say what you will about Tom Cruise, the guy kicks a lot of ass in his movies. He's a great action hero (he actually does a lot of his own stunts), I think it's because he's so short and there's always some truth behind the whole Napoleon complex. Plus, he fights aliens on a daily basis. You know, because of Scientology. It's about aliens, right? I don't know. I stopped watching Battlefield Earth in the first few minutes.

Awesome people you will see in this trailer: Tom Wilkinson, Josh Holloway, Simon Pegg, and Jeremy Renner. Plus a chick that looks like Zo Saldana and/or Thandie Newton. Simon Pegg is looking buff, which mama likes. Oh and if you're into chicks punching each other it's got that too. The trailer boasts some pretty sick action scenes and sexy ladies, which is exactly what I want for a holiday movie (it opens December 16th). I think that's because action scenes and sexy ladies reminds me of the Christmas' of old.

Still, I wish whenever they would say "Ghost Protocol" they say 'G-g-g-ghost!" like in Scooby Doo .

Do yourself a favor and watch this in full screen.

Porn | Porn Conviction Has Missouri Link

A 43-year-old Stockton, Calif., man pleaded guilty last week in a Sacramento U.S. District Court to child pornography charges as a result of a 2008 Boone County Sheriff's Department Cyber Crimes Task Force investigation involving a 15-year-old Tipton girl.

John M. Krivokapich is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 8 and faces up to 20 years in prison, according to a task force news release. He admitted in court to the possession of thousands of videos and pictures of child pornography he had been downloading from an Internet file-sharing network since April 2004.

Police discovered Krivokapich's videos and pictures after a Tipton teen told her mother Krivokapich offered "free tickets" to visit him in California, the news release said. The teen and suspect had been communicating by email and telephone. Over several weeks, their conversations became explicit, with Krivokapich describing sexual acts he wanted to perform on the girl.

The victim's mother called police, and Stockton police searched Krivokapich's residence, finding child pornography.

The FBI, Stockton Police Department and Boone County Sheriff's Department assisted in the investigation.

Teen Sex | Burnaby Mounties Investigating Teen Sex Assault At Public Pool, SkyTrain Stabbing

Burnaby RCMP are investigating a report of a teenage boy who was sexually assaulted by a man at a public swimming pool this week.

The incident occurred Sunday after the man, estimated to be in his 40s or 50s, struck up a conversation with the teen, then touched the boy inappropriately.

The suspect is described as a dark-skinned man with an accent who is between 45 and 55.

He has a medium build, large nose, grey hair with a bald spot on top of his head, a very hairy chest and a thin grey moustache.

At the time of the assault the man was wearing red swim trucks, police said.

Burnaby Mounties are also investigating an unrelated stabbing Saturday night at the Holdom SkyTrain station, where a man and women were arguing and the man stabbed a passerby who laughed as he went by the couple.

The passerby initially thought he had been punched by the arguing man because he felt a pain in his side.

But when he met a friend on the train platform, he realized he was bleeding and had been stabbed.

He was later treated in hospital and released.

The stabbing suspect is described as a man in his 20s who is five-foot-five (165 cm) who was wearing "gangster type clothing," police said.

Anyone with information about either incident is asked to call Burnaby RCMP at (604) 294-7922.

Meanwhile, Burnaby RCMP said today that investigators still are seeking to speak to several people who are believed to have witnessed a serious assault about 11 p.m. May 11 outside the House of Wings restaurant at Highgate Mall, located at Kingsway and Hall Avenue.

The victim remains in critical condition in hospital.

The Burnaby RCMP Serious Crime Unit believes there still are witnesses to the aggravated assault who have not yet spoken to investigators, who urge the witnesses to come forward.

nhall@vancouversun.com

Porn | Child Porn Probationer Found Collecting Again

A Mount Joy man has been charged with sexual abuse of children for having child pornography, borough police said Tuesday.

David Scott Rice, 30, of 206 W. Main St., Apt. 3, Mount Joy, had 224 photographs, 99 videos and six zip files of child pornography on a laptop computer, borough police Chief John O'Connell Jr. said.

Rice was taken into custody on a probation violation on May 4 and was committed to Lancaster County Prison, the chief said.

After a 70-hour investigation, borough police Detective Donald Rusnak charged Rice last week with 105 felony counts of sexual abuse of children, O'Connell said. Some of the counts include multiple pieces of child pornography.

The criminal complaint is 45 pages long, he said.

Rice was arraigned Tuesday by District Judge William Reuter, who set bail at $50,000. Rice was unable to post bond and remains in Lancaster County Prison.

Rice was serving probation because he pleaded guilty in 2009 to possessing child pornography, newspaper records show.

At that time, he told Judge Joseph Madenspacher that possessing the pornography on his computer was a "bad habit" that got out of control.

Images from his computer then showed photographs of very young children, about 5 or 6 years old, the newspaper reported.

Rice was required in 2009 to abide by the conditions of the sex offender's program and register with state police for 10 years.

rrobinson@lnpnews.com

Hot Sex | Bachmann Strives To Make A Mighty Leap

The hot new question in the Republican primary is whether Rep. Michele Bachmann , a three-term congresswoman who has rapidly leapfrogged from legislative back-bencher to tea party superstar, now can make the jump from the U.S. House to the White House - a gap that hasn't been cleared since 1880.

Mrs. Bachmann 's path to the Republican nomination is complex. She has yet to earn a signature legislative achievement on Capitol Hill, and it's unclear whether she can develop the sort of crossover appeal needed to build the kind of coalition that could win primaries and then a general election against President Obama .

"It will be a long shot for Michele Bachmann ," said Fred Malek , a prominent fundraiser who now serves as the Republican Governors Association 's finance chairman.

"She is certainly articulating a clear and powerful set of views, and I find her to be an attractive candidate, but by the same token, I don't believe she has had the chance to get the record of accomplishment yet that some of these governors have who've run states, had to balance budgets and had to bring people together and manage large enterprises," he said, alluding to the candidacies of the three former governors in the race: Mitt Romney of Massachusetts, Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota and Jon Huntsman of Utah. Texas Gov. Rick Perry also is considering a bid.

Still, Mrs. Bachmann 's performance in the New Hampshire debate this month and the ensuing polls give her supporters and handicappers some reason to think she might have the skills and momentum to become the next James Garfield , the last House member to move directly into the presidency.

The Senate , where Mr. Obama served less than one term, traditionally has been seen as a loftier platform for presidential aspirations than the House , but observers say Mrs. Bachmann should not be underestimated.

"I think it's difficult, but I think she could get nominated," said former Rep. Thomas M. Davis III of Virginia, who ran the National Republican Congressional Committee for the 2000 and 2002 elections. "Voters are very unhappy with the federal government, and Michele represents their voice to a great extent. Now, whether she can transform from being the voice of the right and the disenfranchised to a more mainstream candidate to compete against Obama - that is a more difficult transition."

He added, "They laughed at Ronald Reagan too, but he was able to convince people that he was a safe place to go to vote if you were unhappy with the status quo."

When Mrs. Bachmann , 55, officially joins the presidential field with an announcement Monday in Iowa, the state where she was born, she immediately will stand out: She is the only female candidate in the race.

The married mother of five, onetime foster parent to 23 children and former tax lawyer also has shown an ability to raise large sums of money. In her re-election bid last year, she raised nearly $14 million, most through small donations. It is a must-have political skill in a field that includes deep-pocket candidates who can tap into their personal fortunes if they so choose and who have lined up support from some of the big money bundlers who raised millions of dollars for Sen. John McCain's 2008 bid.

But Mrs. Bachmann 's strength is likely to be her ability to stay on message, delivering the fiery anti-government rhetoric that hits home with voters who are angry with what they perceive as the overreach of the Obama administration.

So far, her message is resonating in Iowa, where a poll from the Des Moines Register shows her running neck and neck with Mr. Romney .

In many ways, Mrs. Bachmann is tailor-made for the Hawkeye State. Born in Waterloo, she is a Christian who opposes abortion and same-sex marriage - stances that mesh with many of the evangelical voters who have a big hand in the caucuses that kick off the nomination process.

"She does well with the fiscal conservatives, she does well with social conservatives and she helps bind the tea party to us," said Kevin McLaughlin, the GOP chairman in Polk County, Iowa. "I think that she is attractive to independents. She may be attractive to minorities, but especially to women. Out here, I don't think women are threatened by her. I think they are engaged by her."

Her path to victory is trickier in New Hampshire, where the GOP electorate tends to be fiscally conservative and more moderate-minded on social issues.

Story Continues

Porn | Harvey Man Sentenced To 50 Years For Child Porn

A 44-year-old Harvey man was sentenced to 50 years in prisonafter pleading guilty to videotaping a sex act with a 9-year-oldboy in his mobile home last year, officials said.

James Arrigoni , a registered sex offender with a history ofsexual assault against children, pleaded guilty to one count ofaggravated child pornography and was sentenced to 50 years inprison on that count. He also entered a guilty please to one countof aggravated criminal sexual abuse and received a 10-year sentenceon that count.

The sentences are to be served concurrently, according to theCook County state's attorneys office.

According to prosecutors, in March 2010, Harvey detectives wereinvestigating an unrelated sexual assault when they were toldArrigoni had the 9-year-old boy visiting his mobile home alone.

The victim and his mother lived in the same mobile homepark.

Investigators obtained a search warrant and recovered a DVDrecorded by Arrigoni showing him and the boy in a sex act. The boywas identified by his mother on the video.

Arrigoni was arrested and admitted to police he was involved insex acts with the boy.

Arrigoni, a registered sex offender, pleaded guilty in 1992 tocriminal sexual assault involving a 13-year-old boy and wassentenced to 30 years in prison.

Sex | Equal Rights Amendment Seen As Back Door To Same-sex Marriage

The Democrat-driven Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) revival may be a back door means of legalizing same-sex marriage, some legal experts say. The amendment passed both houses of Congress in 1973, but failed to be ratified by the necessary 38 states ; it has been reintroduced each year since.

"It's a real simple argument," said long-time ERA opponent Phyllis Schlafly . "ERA would make all federal and state laws sex neutral. If two men show up and say we want a marriage license and [the person] says ‘you're both men, I'm not giving it to you,' that would be discriminatory."

Schlafly said ERA would only apply to laws that are currently not sex-neutral such as marriage and the draft. But it would have no bearing on those such as employment laws, because they are already sex neutral.

Shari Rendall , the Director of Legislation and Public Policy at Concerned Women for America (CWA), agrees with Schafly, adding that she thinks ERA is just a front for a feminist agenda.

"[ERA] is not so much about rights as committing a feminist agenda, an attempt to create a gender neutral community," Rendall said. One of those feminist agenda items, Rendall said, was the legalization of same-sex marriage.

Opponents argue that, under ERA, equality would not be denied on "account of sex" and therefore it would be illegal to ban two citizens of the same sex from getting married. Although it wouldn't explicitly allow gay marriage , ERA would prevent it from being excluded because there would no longer be a separate legal definition for "man" and for "woman."

Though no part of the amendment alludes to anything regarding sexual orientation , if the amendment passes, state or local bans on same-sex marriage could be held as unconstitutional in court , opponents say. (Abercrombie Fitch faces another diversity lawsuit)

"If they can't get their agenda through the legislative system, they'll go to the courts," Rendall said. "You see that even in court decisions it has been said that banning same sex marriage would be unconstitutional in light of ERA."

Rendall said many feminist organizations and supporters of the ERA tend to downplay this aspect or even outwardly deny a relation. She added that feminist groups aren't always forthcoming with potential side effects of their initiatives like this because they don't always have full support for the entire scope of their projects.

"People generally aren't there," Rendall said. "If you look at where the votes are in the states that have same-sex marriage on the ballot - they haven't won. Even in California where they had same-sex marriage on the ballot [as a ballot initiative], it didn't pass."

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Babes | New Gift Shop Opens Doors

A yearly Christmas crafts sale at her Orland home led a Glenn County woman and her friend to open a gift and antiques store in Willows.

Berry Babes Farm Goods opened June 1 and hosts a grand opening today at its Wood Street location.

Heather Alexander and Cari Berlin said they've been doing Christmas sales for five years outside Alexander's house in Orland's Lake District, and the sale has grown with time.

"We have a customer base and thought Willows would be a good location," Alexander said.

The inventory includes Berry Babes jams and jellies made by Alexander and her mother, Sharon Barker, and a variety of other salad dressings, marinades and sauces created by Northern California companies.

Olives, lotions, soaps, candles, candy and other products also are available, the women said.

They also are featuring locally made bird houses and children's clothing created by teachers in the area like Eric Hansen of Willows whose barn wood creations are popular.

Also on sale are antiques of all types such as glassware, kitchen collectibles, furniture, vintage pictures, knickknacks and more.

"We have both been antique collectors all of our lives," Alexander explained. "Our houses are full of them."

Berlin added she tries to recycle or re-purpose as many objects as she can which is why antiques and vintage items make good gifts.

Her interests focus on kitchen goods like the 1920 Roper stove in the store that once sat in her Willows house, she said.

"I will be sad when it goes," Berlin said.

Milk glass, tin and enamel ware are Alexander's favorites, she said, although most kitchen collectibles are fun.

"We are hoping the out-of-town crowd will come from Thunderhill and hunting," Alexander said, to buy gifts and "take some of our local stuff home."

So far, public response has been positive to the store, she said.

Buyers from Elk Creek and surrounding communities are coming by instead of going to Chico and seem to like it.

It does gift wrapping and the women can assist people in creating a gift basket for most occasions.

"We will still have our annual Christmas sale on the Saturday before Thanksgiving," Alexander said, so the 200 people on her mailing list will have a new place to come.

The store also is on Facebook and has pictures of its merchandise on that site, Berlin said.

Contact Rick Longley at 934-6800 or rlongley@tcnpress.com .

Porn | East Meadow School Teacher Sentenced On Child Porn Charges

An East Meadow resident and former private school teacher was sentenced recently to probation after pleading guilty on child porn charges.

John Spring, 59, of East Meadow, was sentenced May 11 tothree years of probation including 180 days of electronic monitoring for sex offenders, which mandates that computer monitoring software be installed on the offender's computer, according to Chris Munzing, a spokesperson for Nassau County DA Kathleen Rice.

"He [Spring] pleaded guilty to one count of sexual performance by a child and that satisfied the entire indictment," Munzing said.

Spring, who had taught seventh and eighth grade science at Trinity Lutheran School in Hicksville since 1974, was arrested in August 2009 by Nassau County Police and federal agents and was charged with 12 counts of possession of a sexual performance by a child. He could have faced up to four years in prison.

In August 2007, Spring's "unusual behavior" at the pool in Eisenhower Park caught the attention of an agent from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency, who lived nearby and was swimming at the pool. Authorities said the agent observed Spring, who was not dressed in swim attire, follow young boys into the locker room.

After the unidentified ICE agent questioned a lifeguard at the pool, who confirmed Spring's routine visits and consistent "suspicious" observations of young boys, the agency launched a probe.

A spokesperson for ICE said the agency routinely investigates child pornography cases and that it often prioritizes "exploitation investigations involving subjects in positions of trust over their minor victims."

According to the Nassau DA's office, in November 2007 federal agents approached Spring at his home in East Meadow, where he told agents of his attraction to teenage boys and indicated that his home computer might contain images of a sexual nature.

The agents subsequently recovered 39 sexual images of underage boys from Spring's personal computer. Following a review of the images by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children for any previously identified children, the case was referred to local authorities in early 2009 when no matches were found.

Spring's attorney of record, Bruce Barket of Garden City, did not return repeated calls for comment. However, shortly after his client's arrest in 2009, Barket was skeptical of Spring's comments to federal agents.

"I doubt that my client said to anybody on the face of the Earth that he had a sexual interest in children," Barket told Newsday . "This is the first I've heard of the whole aquatic center [episode]."

Spring resigned from Trinity Lutheran School in December 2007, just after investigators asked to examine his work computer for pornography. None was found.

Officials at Trinity Lutheran School declined to comment on the case.

Porn | Child Killer Remains Jailed For Child Porn

LIVERPOOL, England, June 27 (UPI) -- A 28-year-old British man convicted of killing a toddler 18 years ago was refused parole Monday for a subsequent child pornography conviction.

Jon Venables was 10 years old when he and his friend, Robert Thompson , also 10, were convicted in 1993 of the torture and murder of 2-year-old James Patrick Bulger. They served eight years before being released in 2001 on lifelong probation, given new identities and moved to separate secret locations under witness protection-style conditions.

In June 2010, Venables, 27, was sentenced to two years in prison for downloading child pornography and halfway through his stay his petition for parole was rejected, The Sun reported.

"Venables is a very dangerous individual and it's a huge relief to hear that he will not be getting out any time soon," Bulger's mother, Denise Fergus, said.

"He' a very cunning individual and God knows how many other crimes he might commit, and how many other people might suffer, if they did let him out," she said.

Sex | 10 Acne Myths Revealed

Throughout the years, there have been plenty of myths about acne as well as acne treatments. Here are some of the most common myths about acne.

1.Acne only happens to teenagers

Many acne cases affect adults. As a matter of fact, more adults see a dermatologist about acne problems than teenagers. The teenage years are when most people first fall prey to acne.

2.Acne clears up when you take birth control pills

Not necessarily. Some women report that their acne got worse after they started on birth control pills and some state that their acne got better and cleared up. Each woman is different with this regard. While birth control pills regulate the hormone levels, they do not necessarily clear up acne.

3.Acne break out worse when you are pregnant

Not true. Some women who are plagued with acne all of their lives find their skin clears up upon pregnancy. This is thought to be due to the estrogen that is being generated. However, not all women who are pregnant get clear skin. And some women do report that they actually broke out for the first time when they got pregnant.

4.Acne is brought on by stress

While stress can play havoc within every part of your body and can make your acne worse, stress itself does not bring on acne. Acne is usually brought on by a hormone fluctuation. It is very common, in women, to get a pimple when they menstruate, even as they become older adults. Stress alone will not bring on acne.

5.Acne is brought on by chocolate

Chocolate is supposed to calm you down. At least, dark chocolate is supposed to have a calming effect While chocolate is high in sugar and fats, it does not bring on acne. The old myth of telling people who are breaking out to stay away from chocolate because it cause acne is just that - a myth.

6.Acne is brought on by not being clean

This is a myth in that most people who have acne wash their face repeatedly. Oily skin will not be washed away with soap and water and neither will acne. This is a hurtful myth for those who suffer from acne as it implies that they are somehow at fault for being unclean. It is not true.

7.Sex clears up acne

This is an old line used by many teenaged boys about acne. There is no indication that sex either clears up acne or allows someone to break out.

8.The sun will make acne worse

Contrary to that opinion, which was stated even by medical doctors in the 1980s, the sun is very likely to make the acne clear up. This is why many dermatologists use light therapy for their acne patients. Although dermatologists are fully aware of the harmful rays of the and the risk of skin cancer, the light therapy boxes that they use control the exposure enough to clear up the skin, without over exposing the skin.

9.Steam your face to get rid of acne

Facial steamers used to open up the pores and cleanse the skin. They do not get rid of acne. Even facial steamers that used medicated creams to rid someone of acne were of no use.

10.Toothpaste will clear up acne

A popular new myth is that toothpaste will clear up acne. Not true. Toothpaste will tingle and has properties that will dry the skin out, but the acne will not clear up any faster using toothpaste on your skin as it will on its own.

Sex | I Was Wrong About Same-sex Marriage

Editor's note: David Frum writes a weekly column for CNN.com. A special assistant to President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2002, he is the author of six books, including "Comeback: Conservatism That Can Win Again," and is the editor of FrumForum .

Washington (CNN) -- I was a strong opponent of same-sex marriage. Fourteen years ago, Andrew Sullivan and I forcefully debated the issue at length online (at a time when online debate was a brand new thing).

Yet I find myself strangely untroubled by New York state's vote to authorize same-sex marriage -- a vote that probably signals that most of "blue" states will follow within the next 10 years.

I don't think I'm alone in my reaction either. Most conservatives have reacted with calm -- if not outright approval -- to New York's dramatic decision.

The short answer is that the case against same-sex marriage has been tested against reality. The case has not passed its test.

Since 1997, same-sex marriage has evolved from talk to fact.

If people like me had been right, we should have seen the American family become radically more unstable over the subsequent decade and a half.

Instead -- while American family stability has continued to deteriorate -- it has deteriorated much more slowly than it did in the 1970s and 1980s before same-sex marriage was ever seriously thought of.

By the numbers, in fact, the 2000s were the least bad decade for American family stability since the fabled 1950s. And when you take a closer look at the American family, the facts have become even tougher for the anti-gay marriage position.

Middle-class families have become somewhat more stable than they used to be. For example: College-educated women who got married in the 1990s were much less likely to get divorced than equally educated women who got married in the 1970s.

What's new and different in the past 20 years is the collapse of the Hispanic immigrant family. First-generation Latino immigrants maintain traditional families: conservative values, low divorce rates, high fertility and -- despite low incomes -- mothers surprisingly often at home with the children.

But the second-generation Latino family looks very different. In the new country, old norms collapse. Nearly half of all children born to Hispanic mothers are now born out of wedlock .

Whatever is driving this negative trend, it seems more than implausible to connect it to same-sex marriage. How would it even work that a 15-year-old girl in Van Nuys, California, becomes more likely to have a baby because two men in Des Moines, Iowa, can marry?

Maybe somebody can believe the connection, but I cannot.

I remain as worried as ever about the decline in family stability among poorer Americans. But as for same-sex marriage, my attitude follows the trajectory described nearly 150 years ago by the English writer Anthony Trollope in his novel "Phineas Finn."

Two of his characters are discussing a proposed reform that has just been defeated in Parliament. The author of the reform is understandably dejected. His friend consoles him by pointing to the future:

"Many who before regarded legislation on the subject as chimerical, will now fancy that it is only dangerous, or perhaps not more than difficult. And so in time it will come to be looked on as among the things possible, then among the things probable; -- and so at last it will be ranged in the list of those few measures which the country requires as being absolutely needed. That is the way in which public opinion is made."

By coincidence, I am writing these words on the morning of my own 23rd wedding anniversary. Of all the blessings life has to offer, none equals a happy marriage. If proportionally fewer Americans enjoy that blessing today than did 40 years ago, we're going to have to look for the explanation somewhere other than the Legislature in Albany.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of David Frum.

Porn | The World According To Paris: Paris Hilton Pissed Off By Porn Allegations

« Dancing With the Stars: Cheryl Burke Talks About Her New Shoe Line Debuting Next Week Home

June 27, 2011 01:12 PM by Lisa Princ

We recently heard that Paris Hilton may be pregnant on The World According To Paris on Oxygen . Now, we have exclusive information that Paris Hilton will be battling porn allegations and she is NOT happy about it! Read on for more…

We recently heard that we would be getting some baby drama on The World According To Paris on Oxygen and now the network has given us the exclusive that Paris Hilton is going to be the subject of porn rumors on an upcoming episode. But how will Paris handle it? Can you say pissed off!

When Paris Hilton discovers that she is being falsely rumored to be involved with Digital Playground, a hardcore porn site, she is in disbelief. Pissed off about this news swirling the web, Paris has no one to blame but her assistant, Lexie Dreyfus, who also works in the porn industry.

Paris firmly believes that due to Lexie's connection to the porn industry she is now the subject of these ridiculous rumors. Of course, this could have nothing to do with the fact that Paris Hilton has been rumored to be in porn in the past or her sex tape scandals, could it?

So what exactly will Paris Hilton do about the rumors? Maybe she will fire Lexie? You'll have to tune in to find out! What do you think about these porn rumors? Comment and let us know your thoughts!

Want more? Follow our tweets on Twitter and like us on Facebook! For other great reality TV news, please feel free to check out Sir Links A Lot: Reality TV News and then come and discuss the show on our reality TV message boards .

Visit our sister site SheKnows for more breaking news about celebrities and entertainment !

Photo Credit: Oxygen

Topics: Oxygen Reality TV Shows , The World According To Paris

« Dancing With the Stars: Cheryl Burke Talks About Her New Shoe Line Debuting Next Week Home

Making Love | My Partner Is Happy Making Love Just Six Times A Year " And I'm Due To Marry ...

My partner and I have been living together for nearly four years. We used to be more creative in bed and have sex three or four times a week, until that diminished to once every two months. He says he's not as sex driven as I am. Also he doesn't want to make love during the day and whenever I try, he pushes me away, which has led to my self-esteem deteriorating. We got engaged last summer, and the idea of having sex only six times a year or less for the rest of my life terrifies me! How do I get him more interested?

Many people feel undue pressure to achieve a "normal" sexual frequency (there's no such thing). There are many reasons why a man's libido might dwindle. Some are temporary, perhaps due to work, stressor fatigue. Sometimes there are underlying problems such as depression, or physical ailments " and even side-effects of certain medications.

But sex is clearly important to you and you need to address this issue before you marry. Have a gentle, playful, and non-blaming conversation with him (eg"Iadore you and really enjoy making love, but I'm wondering what you think about trying to have fun in bed more often?") You may need to ask if he'll seek help with you to enhance your erotic connection.

But love-making commonly requires planning to ensure it actually happens in your busy lives. Forget "spontaneity" " after all, if you're going on a trip you plan the location, accommodation andwhat you'll wear " so why notprepare for lovemaking?

Pamela Stephenson Connolly is a clinical psychologist and psychotherapist who specialises in treating sexual disorders.

Send your problem to private.lives@guardian.co.uk

Teen Sex | Knox County Couple Arrested In Teen Sex Recording, Authorities Say It Went On ...

Paul Anthony Johnson and his wife Kathy Denise Johnson were initially arrested on charges of sexual exploitation of two teens. But after the arrests, police searched the couple's home in the Mascot community and found many recordings involving other teens, according to The Knoxville News Sentinel.

At a bond hearing last week, Sword said the recording went on for a number of years. Defense lawyer Joshua Hedrick indicated the police search that turned up the recordings will be challenged as flawed.

___

Information from: The Knoxville News Sentinel,

Porn | Why My Plan To Use Porn Work To Pay For A Virtual Mob Failed

I don't think I'm cut out for management.

After days spent tackling low-paying jobs such as writing titles for porn clips on Amazon Mechanical Turk, I thought I was ready to move up. I was ready to have the Turkers - as they call themselves - work for me.

It turns out getting someone to do you your job for you isn't for the lazy, however, even in this age of cheap digital outsourcing.

Mechanical Turk, of course, is a sort of online marketplace for digital day labor. For a few cents, or a few bucks, you can become a ‘requester' and hire one of the site's 500,000 workers to do digital tasks that require a bit of human judgement, such as photo recognition or comment moderation (see" Amazon Turk Will Hook You Up With Porn Jobs That Pay Pennies" ).

Artificial artificial Intelligence, as Amazon calls it. Forty-percent of these people have college degrees. Most of them do it for fun. Talk to them and they'll tell you they're basically monetizing their leisure time.

The problem: when it came to tapping into all this intelligence, I wasn't too intelligent. My initial plan was to use the service to steal readers from my colleagues (see " Paying Turkers To Steal Readers, Write My Articles, Do My Reporting, And Fix My Liver "). But when I tried to hire Turkers to post comments to my colleague's stories, pointing them at my own, I got… nothing.

Turkers were taking notice, however. On a community bulletin board called Turker Nation, the Turkers were talking. They criticized my work history: "105 HITS and has a 90% approval rate," one commenter scoffed. They called me cheap: "So not only is he a smacktard, he's a low-baller as well." They called me out on violating Amazon's terms of service: "If anyone reported your HITs they'd be taken down and your requester account could be suspended," one wrote (and, in fact, two HITs soliciting comments on other Forbes blogs were removed for violating Amazon's policies).

Ouch .

I needed help. Fortunately, my experience outsourcing on Turk hadn't been a total disaster. I had succeeded in getting Turkers to write articles for me for $1(see "A Turker's Take On Where Apple And Intel Are Going With Thunderbolt"), and for just $4.25 I had hired a Turk to recommend a course of treatment after a blood test hinted at liver problems(see " Rising Cost Of Health Care: Upping What I'll Pay To Fix My Liver "). Moreover, while my digital mob had failed to materialize, several Turks had agreed to comment on my article. Their advice: ask Turkers for advice on how to be a better Turker.

In a recursive sort of way, the suggestion made sense. Who knows more about managing a Turk than a Turk? So after unsuccessfully reaching out to the embassy of the Republic of Turkey , I took the advice of Forbes commenter "toobusytowork," and posted a request to Amazon Turk itself asking for tips. At 20 cents per tip with a 15 cent bonus for comments to my story itself it was cheaper than hiring a management consultant.

I also turned to Amazon. The online retailer is eager to help businesses work with its legion of Turks. Many of them will use the service's software application programming interfaces, or 'hooks,' to build Turk into their own business processes.

For example online shoe retailer Zappos, before it was acquired by Amazon, used the service to select the best reviews for its shoes, edit out information about price (which can quickly go out of date), and put the most relevant stuff in front of shoppers.

Others, such as transcription service Castingwords use the outsourcing service as the basis for their own outsourcing services.

While Amazon Turk has been in ‘beta' for five years, Amazon continues to refine the service. Earlier this week, Amazon unveiled a list of " Master Turkers ," who have tackled thousands of tasks in specialties such as photo moderation and categorization. Consider the fact I'm not on that list an endorsement.

While I'm not a Master Turker, however, I am getting paid. Most requesters were automating the process of approving my work, so while most jobs weren't approved immediately, all I had to do was sit tight for a few days and the money will roll in (thanks TMI 9!). So far I've been paid $17.75 for completing 111 tasks - money I needed to hire Turkers of my own.

To make sure I got the most for that $17.75 I cornered Amazon Turk product manager John Hoskins at a conference . While he looked a little uncomfortable when I explained to him that I had been working as a Turker writing titles for porn films while using the service to try to outsource some my own work, his presentation to a room full of about 100 would-be Turk bosses was very helpful.

First, make jobs consistent, so Turkers can tackle hundreds of small tasks in an hour. Keep jobs small - Turkers don't have to risk a big chunk of their time on an uncertain project, they like to spread that risk around; and make it fun - "if your task is fun, you can get away with paying less," Hoskins says.

Humans aren't computers. Pyschology is important. So tap into each Turk's competitive instincts. Accomplishing a task - any task - any task raises a Turker's qualification rate and unlocks more the opportunity to do more work. For example, when I asked Turkers to do a small task for me, for free (type the word 'hello' - hey, I get lonely sometimes) I was inundated with responses.

Competition only amplifies that dynamic. So when one Amazon Turk requester offered a $200 prize for the best answer to a question, Turkers stopped working for the pennies being offered for a response to a question and began competing for that prize, Hoskins says. As a result, some of the Turkers began offering virtual dissertations.

While Turkers are competitive, they're also cooperative. They'll point each other towards good requesters, Hoskins explains, and they'll help you become a better requester. If you let them.

So maybe I shouldn't take their criticism too personally. Hoskins's remarks gave me the courage I needed to sort through the responses I'd been getting when I posted a request offering to pay Turks for tips (it's not checkbook journalism, it's outsourcing!). To my relief they were uniformly constructive.

Among the tips:

Declutter: define the tasks you want done in as few words as possible. Keep the steps, or action points, a Turker must complete to a minimum. Leave extraneous details out;

Make sure your request works: try doing the job yourself, troubleshoot the task with a small group before opening it up to large numbers of Turkers;

Pay fast: you can automate payment so that everyone who responds to a request is paid - eventually; but requesters who pay within 12 hours of submission tell a Turker that they can continue working with the client without risking rejections that will lower their qualification score.

Don't be a petty tyrant: experienced Turkers look for requesters who don't issue too many rejections. Pettifoggery will cause workers to avoid you.

I'm not going to post all the tips I got here. That's partly because I'm lazy, partly because some of the tips echoed suggestions made by other Turkers, and partly because I'm going to hold back some of the best advice so I can exploit it myself. After all, I paid for it.

Here's a tip of my own, however: if you've got an interesting, well-thought out task for the Turks, don't hesitate to use this service. Just follow the rules - the Turkers themselves will enforce them - and avoid using worker A356ODAVC86ZYSfor anything you want to keep confidential.

Until then, I'm going to try a more lucrative role in this new kind of labor market - one that, if you're especially lucky, may even bring me to your doorstep. Ding-dong.

Details to come.

Porn | JK Teacher Who Shot Porn Clip Held

A college teacher, who shot a video clip of his student in a compromising position with him, landed in a police lock-up at Kishtwar on Saturday night.

Identifying the accused as Tariq Qyoom Tak (30), the police said that he has been working as a teacher at the Islamia Faridiya Education and Research Institute, a private college at Kishtwar.

Tak was arrested at Vailo in Kokernag area of Anantnag district, where he had fled after the video clip recorded by him got leaked.

The girl, a BA first-year student in the same institution, hails from Chatru. The matter is under investigation, the police said, adding that they will soon record the statement of the girl.

During a night-long raid conducted at Tak's residence under the supervision of Assistant Commissioner (Revenue) R K Shevan and DySP (Headquarters) Abrar Chowdhary, the police reportedly seized three video clips featuring Tak and the student. Though they have seized all the electronic and print material available at Tak's residence, sources said the police suspect he may have shot video clips of more girls.

Sources said some more arrests were likely as the police suspect the involvement of a racket of shooting porn videos.

Tak also appears to be in the business of selling fake degrees of various deemed universities.

The police have seized from his house photocopies of diplomas and degrees purported to have been issued by various deemed universities across the country, sources said, adding that earlier, his services with another institution were terminated on charges of his alleged objectionable behaviour with female students.

... contd.

Hot Sex | Marriage: Stopping People From Fighting With Strangers

by LIBN Staff
Published: June 24, 2011
Tags: Andrew Cuomo , poll , Same-sex marriage

Same-sex marriage has been the hot debate in Albany.

Some, like Gov. Andrew Cuomo , say the time is now to legalize it in New York, while others cite marriage as an institution strictly between a man and woman. (Too much Catholic schooling? We won't speculate.)

This week's LIBN.com poll found an overwhelming amount " 71 percent " of support legalizing same-sex marriage, while 29 percent of voters felt New York shouldn't officially recognize marriages between two men or two women.

One commenter in favor of same-sex marriages, with the handle Pandadoll, said, "Marriage is manmade and really not all that important."

Making Love | All You Need Is (virtual) Love

by John Adams Friday, June 24, 2011
4:04 PM

I KNOW I dream but I can never remember what I dream about. In the second or so between sleeping and wakefulness the subject of my nocturnal mental wanderings slips away into the mists of time.

So the predicted future of sleep won't affect me much I reckon.

Interactive dreaming, virtual love making and sleep studying are, apparently set to transform how we will be sleeping in the future, according to a new report.

A study conducted on behalf of a hotel chain investigated the impact of new technology on sleep.

This concludes that within the next two decades the hotel room will be so technologically advanced that it will almost be alive.

It is said that cutting edge technology will monitor customers' energy levels, physical well-being, emotions and mood to help ensure they achieve a good night's sleep.

The virtual love making intrigued me, purely on an academic level of course.

It is thought that such a thing will be possible by 2030, allowing individuals to connect with their partner while away from home.

Couples will be able to link peripheral nervous systems via active skin electronics for enhanced love making. This, it is promised, will enable both individuals to experience each other's feelings and emotions.

But with this new technology comes the opportunity for duplicity.

By wearing active lenses to change the image delivered to their retinas, individuals will be able to adjust how their partner looks while making love. And, here's the trickery, only they will be aware what is going on visually as their lover will not be able to tell what they are looking at.

Another thing, active contact lenses worn under the eyelids (sounds uncomfortable) will allow sleepers in the future to watch TV, movies or check emails as they fall asleep.

I'll pass on all this, thank you very much. All I ever want to do is naturally nod off and have a good night's sleep.

Another poll which caught my eye this week has chocolate topping the poll for the thing that makes most people smile. Not surprising, really, it is lovely stuff.

It just beat "seeing a loved one" as the best smile-maker.

Yellow was the colour which made most people smile.

Getting back to food, yet another poll reveals that fish and chips are in the top spot of a list of the 50 things we love most about Britain.

The cup of tea was in second place followed by Yorkshire puddings, strawberries and cream, the Sunday roast, the English breakfast, Cheddar cheese and bacon sandwiches.

The only non-food items to make the top 10 were Buckingham Palace and The Queen.

The next 10 were dominated by best loved landmarks including Big Ben, Stonehenge, the Tower of London and the Lake District. But the Beatles were in there at No 12. They were the only musicians to make the list, and Dr Who was the only TV show.

I know doctors claim to be overworked, and a headline in a national newspaper the other day seemed to justify their claim. This read: "Ten million cannot get to see GP in two days."

Sex | Pressure Mounts On Hearts To Ditch Sex Pest

PRESSURE is growing on Hearts Football Club to reverse its decision not to sack a convicted sex offender.

Two children's charities and the mother of one of predator Craig Thomson's victims yesterday spoke over the club's decision to retain the player following his conviction for targeting young girls on the internet.

The 20-year-old right-back from Bonnyrigg was placed on the sex offenders' register for five years and fined £4000 earlier this month, after admitting lewd, libidinous and indecent behaviour.

The Scotland Under-21 internationalist targeted two young girls with indecent comments and naked photographs.

Although Thomson did not fly out with the rest of the squad to a pre-season training camp in Italy at the weekend, Hearts had earlier confirmed that he can resume his career following an internal investigation and an apology from the player.

The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children urged the club to keep him away from children during official duties. Thomson has previously represented his club at an event with Barnardo's.

A spokeswoman said: "If Hearts continue to employ the player, they must make sure they manage the child protection risks of doing so.

"It will be important to make sure they do not put the player in a position where he would have contact with children."

Kate Higgins, policy manager of Children 1st, said on radio: "We believe that Hearts football club needs to look again at this situation. Not taking action to protect children from the risk of sexual harm is unacceptable.

"Allowing convicted sex offenders to continue working where they will have direct and indirect contact with children is wrong."

It came as the mother of one of Thomson's victims, who was aged 12 when the offences took place, claimed that he had been let off by the club who were not taking it seriously.

She told a Sunday newspaper: "The only thing that will teach him a lesson is if he goes. Football is all he cares about.

"Hearts are a family club and if he continues in football, he is obviously going to be around children.

"But who would take their kids to a game when they know he is on the pitch?"

The Herald contacted several firms and charities with links to the club yesterday, including Umbro, Wonga.com, an online betting firm, league sponsors Clydesdale Bank, Erskine veterans' charity and Barnardo's. They either declined to comment or were unavailable.

The Scottish Premier League appears unable to become involved in the debate. An insider said: "The reality is [that] the decision on which players to sign and which players to release is a matter for the clubs themselves. The code of conduct is at club level."

In a statement released on Friday, Hearts said: "The club believes that there is no reason for Craig Thomson not to continue his career as a professional footballer and he will resume training with immediate effect.

"In reaching this decision, the club accepted that there are sufficient mitigating circumstances that provide significant assurance that the player's conduct, no matter how distasteful, was the result of a grave error of judgment due to naivety and possible wrong outside influence rather than anything more sinister and it will not be repeated.

"The club views this matter very seriously and does not condone the behaviour of the player.

"Appropriate action to prevent any further development of unlawful activities has been taken."

Sex | Lisa's Laws: Same-sex Marriage Laws, State By State

To be honest, I've completely lost track of which state has which marriage laws.

Here in New York, as I write, same-sex marriage remains; it just doesn't happen here. Even though, in 2004, a slew of same-sex couples got married in New Paltz, their unions were, well, later, well, de-recognized.

Right now only five states - Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont - boast marriage equality. Then there are a few where civil unions or domestic partnerships are recognized. Sometimes the same-sex couple gets all the rights afforded to one-man/one-woman relationships, sometimes not.

Still more have laws against same-sex marriage, and some - Montana and North Dakota among them - have constitutional bans.

And the funnest part of all this is that no state is obligated to recognize a marriage, or civil union, or domestic partnership performed in another. So if you got married in Vermont and then drove cross-country on your honeymoon, you'd be married then not married then married and not married then maybe "in a partnership" countless times before you hit the coast. (But I suggest you bypass Utah. It's not particularly friendly. You can, though, marry your first cousin but only if you're over 55 and can prove yourself to be "incapable of reproduction." You can also get married if you're as young as 15. So it's not as if Utah doesn't believe in romance. They just insist that it be man-woman romance.)

Meanwhile, it seems that the whole matter of same-sex marriage will remain up to individual states, at least for the time being. President Obama, who ended Don't Ask Don't Tell, hasn't really taken on gay marriage. This is too bad, given the complicated hodgepodge of laws and statutes and confusion the current system has created. It seems in desperate need of improvement, and as it is, denies a good number of Americans the equal benefits and protections enjoyed by married couples, from hospital visitation rights to insurance protections.

It's also a system in which prejudice and discrimination can enjoy a bit of license, even at times when compassion should be the only response.

Consider John Millican and his partner, Terrance James, of Arkansas, which has a law banning same-sex marriages, and in November 2004 passed a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.

John died June 11 of spinal meningitis, and Terrence, who made the decision to end life support, was the only one with him when he died. It was Terrence who submitted John's obituary to the Batesville Daily Guard, their local paper.

But when the obit was published Terrence's name was left out. Others - John's dead parents and his siblings - were included among the survivors, but not the man with whom he had shared his life and home for a decade.

The paper explained the omission.

"It's not a gay thing," the newspaper's general manager, Pat Jones, told a reporter. The obits are free, and, according to the paper's policy only legally recognized spouses get their names in. No unmarried couples like John and Terrence, the manager explained. Or pets.

Lisa@lisaslaws.com

Teen Sex | Judge In Teen Sex Assault Case Will Let Defense See Videos

~li~ Reprints

Cell phone videos should be given to the attorney of a 17-year-old being tried as an adult, Judge William Alexa ruled Friday.

Although the Porter County Prosecutor's office had allowed Public Defender Robert Harper to view the videos in the prosecutor's office, Harper wants an expert to slow them down.

There are about 60 videos taken from the phones of defendant April L. Kuchta of Valparaiso and others at a April 9-10 teen party, where Kuchta allegedly handcuffed a 17-year-old boy and sexually assaulted him

Only 46 to 57 videos pertain to the incident, Judge William Alexa said Friday.

"After viewing them, there is some reason to believe that slowing them down could be of some use to the defense," Alexa said.

The judge noted that in one, it appears Kuchta asked the victim whether he was crying.

Alexa also admonished that although nothing on the tapes would qualify as child pornography, Harper could not release them to anyone else because of privacy concerns.

The tapes also include photos of the alleged victim and of the inside and outside of Kuchta's home, the judge said.

Alexa will rule Friday, June 24 on turning over Valparaiso High School records on whether the victim has any sort of disability and to what extent.

According to Harper's motion, "the alleged victim apparently is in regular classes in Valparaiso High School and has been accepted at Valparaiso University and has received a scholarship as a result of his achievements in music."

Alexa also granted motions that Harper made Friday. In one, the defense will get copies of an arrest report, police reports and records of any criminal actions filed in juvenile court against the victim. Harper's motion states the boy is on juvenile probation after attacking another student at Valparaiso High School.

And the defense will also get copies of transcripts from the three juvenile hearings for Kutcha's 15-year-old sister, who has been sentenced indefinitely to the Indiana Girls School.

Teen Sex | SoCal Ex-deputy Pleads Not Guilty To Teen Sex

A former San Bernardino County sheriff's deputy has pleaded not guilty to charges that he had illegal sex with a 16-year-old girl who was in a departmental Explorer program.

Nathan Gastineau of Redlands entered pleas Tuesday to six counts of lewd acts on a minor and unlawful sexual intercourse. Prosecutors contend that he had a relationship with the girl while he was coordinating the sheriff's Explorer program at the Highland station.

Another man, Jason Anguiano of Rialto, also is charged with having illegal sex with the teen. He's not a sheriff's deputy and will be arraigned later this month.

Both men are free on bail.

Lesbians | Why Are College-educated Gays And Lesbians Choosing To Stay In The Closet At Work?

It may "get better" but many gays and lesbians are choosing to stay in the closet " at least at work.

A new study by the Center for Work-Life Policy has found that 48% of college-educated gay Americans choose to keep their sexual orientation a secret in the workplace.

It's not the corporate policies that keep workers from coming out at work " it's the attitudes of their co-workers.

According to the study, 37% of straight women and 52% of straight men say that they prefer gay people keep their personal lives to themselves, and 29 states do not prohibit employers from discriminating against LGBT workers.

Despite the fact that nearly 90% of Fortune 500 strictly prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and 57% of those companies extend benefits and protections to gay couples, workers still choose to keep their private lives completely private.

"It's not just the policies, but also how well they're communicated," study co-author Karen Sumberg told The Lookout . "What we found is that people aren't always sure that they have these policies or what it means, both gay and straight."

It may be up to senior management to set the tone for the workplace, which is a problem when higher ranking members of the office choose not to reveal their sexual orientation.

Playing it straight during the day, while being out outside of work often leads to a feeling of living a "double life," according to the workers profiled it the study. Workers feel unable to discuss their weekend plans, their families or details of their domestic life, causing them to feel dissatisfaction about not being able to bring their "whole selves" to their jobs.

Sexy Chicks | Spoiler Chat: Who Wants Summer TV Scoop?

Got your sunscreen and your sandals packed? Good, then you're half ready to enjoy summer. The other half of the fun comes from the telly-vision, of course, and we're superexcited by this season of TV, which includes perennial faves like White Collar , Burn Notice and Royal Pains , not to mention ABC Family's juicy-looking lineup of sexy new series.

Read on for scoop on USA's lineup of day-saving heroes, plus what's to come on Sons of Anarchy , True Blood , Dexter,Mad Men , The Office and more!

MORE: Are You Ready for Summer TV? Find Out What's Worth Watching

Melanie: I love girl power shows like Charlie's Angels . Is it going to be good? Do you know anything about it yet?
Charlie's Angels star Annie Ilonzeh told us at the GBK MTV Movie Awards Gifting Lounge we can look forward to the girls "jumping off a boat into some freezing cold water in Miami-really doing our own stunts which is awesome in itself-dodging bullets or bad guys, being able to shoot real guns, and big explosions! But the three of us diving into freezing cold water from a big boat that's blowing, and not knowing what's underneath us, while a guy shoots a machine gun from a helicopter above-that was probably the most memorable scene from the pilot." Wowza!

nathalia004: Anything on TrueBlood ?
We're talking to the amazing Jessica Tuck (anybody else remember her as Megan on One Life To Live ?) later this week about how her character Nan Flanagan shapes the season, so if you've got True Blood questions/desires/demands, post 'em in the comments below!

Hailey in Salt Lake City, Utah: Rookie Blue is my summer obsession! Scoop?
You're in luck, because we're talking to the star, Missy Peregrym , this week. Give us some questions you need us to ask, and we will forever be grateful.

chi_fu_k: WHITE COLLAR SCOOP PLEASE!
We do appreciate the enthusiasm and you're in luck! In the beginning of every new relationship questions are asked, but when you're dating kissing a "reformed" criminal there might be a twist. Neal ( Matt Bomer ) asks Sara ( Hilarie Burton ) to confirm his alibi during the big Nazi plunder heist. Ahh, young love. Now in real life these should be red flags to send you running the other way, but in TV land just add it to the list of Neal Caffrey's endearing qualities.

Chifu K: White Collar scoop please?
Producers are now casting for someone to play Peter's ( Tim DeKay ) main FBI mentor, Agent Kramer, the head of the Art Crimes Unit. Kramer's described as being simultaneously "a bad-ass and your favorite uncle," and so we think Sam Waterston should play him. Got a better idea? Hit the comments.

Nancy : Got anything on Covert Affairs ?
When is the worst time to try and run from assassins trying to kill you? The answer is, when you are already nursing a wound from a previous life-threatening injury. In Tuesday's season premiere, look for Annie ( Piper Perabo ) to grab an interesting and unexpected hospital tool to protect her and the ailing Ben ( Eion Bailey ) from armed attackers.

Amber: Royal Pains ?
When the new season premieres, we'll find that Hank is flirting with a beautiful long-distance runner, Evan and Paige are deep into a beautiful relationship with each other (awww...), and sadly, Boris Buester von Jurgens-Ratenicz is really, really, really sick.

Penelope: Love me some Burn Notice . Spill me some news!
Grant Show is perfectly cast in the new season as operative with close ties to the Agency, who works closely with Michael Weston ( Jeffrey Donovan ) on a case. That said, the premiere is something of a wild chase for Michael. He's got a lead on what happened to his spy career, and he runs hard after it, but...

amomich: Got any Sons ofAnarchy spoilers?
Season four is the touchy-feely season of Sons of Anarchy ! OK, not really-it's still wall-to-wall gruesome deaths-but there will be some lady-friendly topics like breastfeeding (Tara's baby is on the boob, yay!) and organic gardening (Gemma is in cahoots with local landowners who want to keep Charming green and undeveloped).

Kendall : True Blood !
Season four hasn't even begun, but we already have scoop for the finale and season five! Producers are looking for someone to play Patrick Devins, an army buddy of Terry Bellefleur's ( Todd Lowe ) who understands what he went through and was saved by Terry not once, but twice. He'll appear in more than half of the episodes next season, so let's start guessing his supernatural orientation right now…is he a chupacabra, a hodag or something cooler?

dextergrblog: Do you have any news about Dexter season six?
Dexter's target in episode three is probably gonna be a dude named Bill Kinney who's the local jackhole at his retirement village. The 70something blue-collar guy is "the kind of person you avoid running in to." We don't want to prejudge anybody, but if he's the villain we think he is, well…#killdexterkill

aleximogen: anything Parks and Rec ?? (But mainly Ben Leslie ) Thanks!
Adam Scott and Amy Poehler together on one of our favorite comedies is a dream come true for us. And Adam tells us that the cliffhanger at the end of the season finale will definitely be explored next season. "There has always been that conflict of Ben and Leslie having a relationship," he says. "But it's against the rules and they could lose their jobs because of it. So that sort of brings them to this problem." Here's hoping that problem is solved quickly because these two need to get married in TV life sooner rather than later.

Elizabeth : Will Lydia have to get another new partner on Southland ?
How does one get over their partner sleeping with their son? We asked Regina King if Josie ( Jenny Gago ) can ever get past their little spat:"Ithink so. I hope so. The cool thing about both of these characters is they're grown women. And maybe right now Josie's hurt, of course, but I think they'll be woman enough to have talked about it and get past it." We hope so because these tough chicks really are the perfect partners.

kakuyper: Got any good Rookie Blue scoop? Season two can't come soon enough!
It is a very long wait for the June 23 premiere, isn't it? We'll be meeting a new detective, Jo Rosati ( Camille Sullivan ) who is smart and sympathetic, and happens to be the ex-girlfriend and partner of Luke Callaghan ( Eric Johnson ). Astute TV viewers can guess where this is going; we predict work and relationship complications ahead. Love it!

RB_Phan: Can you tell me if the boxing sparring scene in this Rookie Blue promo is in the premiere ep?
It is not in the premiere episode. Looks like you are going to have to wait a little longer for some Andy ( Missy Peregrym ) beating up Swarek ( Ben Bass ) scenes, but hopefully the moments of concern and longing looks will tide you over.

Joey in Kan.: I know this gets asked a lot, but any word on whether January Jones ' pregnancy will be written into Mad Men 's next season?
It's fair to ask that question often, because it's a damn good one. In fact, we posed that inquiry to the woman herself, who claims she doesn't know anything "yet." But maybe soon? "The writers, I think, just went back into the room, we start shooting in July," January tells us. "My guess is as good as any. I have no idea. It'll be interesting."

Karen: Anything on Parenthood ?
Peter Kraus and Monica Potter were nice enough to share what creator Jason Katmis told them. And it involves a possible time jump. "When we finished last season Jason said we were either going to start right where we finished or jump ahead," Peter says. His onscreen wife adds: "I think we will be pregnant for a little bit, [but] I am not sure if we will have the baby or not. We do not know." Text us when you do, OK guys?

le_dorsa: Anything about the second season of Pretty Little Liars , please?
The boys are back in town! Caleb returns to declare his love to Hanna-who responds by sending him packing, again! Nasty Noel Kahn is up to his old tricks at Rosewood-but his blackmail will be foiled if Aria continues to snub Fitz. The only guy not getting the cold shoulder is Toby, whose forbidden romance with Spencer is hot, hot, hot.

Annabelle: What happened to Ian on Pretty Little Liars ?
Good question. Did Alison's murderer rise from the dead (he was in a church , after all), or did his killer spirit him away? Although the Liars are convinced they saw Ian's corpse, someone is sending his wife text messages with secrets only Ian could know. Shay Mitchell promised our Marc Malkin yesterday at the MTV Movie Awards that "we'll find out what happened to Ian"-just not in the first episode.

Misty: My sister is hearing impaired and I'm concerned about how Switched at Birth will represent the deaf community. Do they take it seriously?
Absolutely. Deaf community legend and Academy Award-nominated actress Marlee Matlin is involved for one thing! Plus, star Katie LeClerc has hearing loss as a consequence of Ménière's disease, and her character Daphne's hearing loss is a consequence of infant meningitis. (No doubt the mom characters of the switched-at-birth daughters will have a lot to discuss when it comes to the case and consequences of Daphne's deafness!) Last but not least, producers are continually casting for new characters who are fluent in American Sign Language and have at least some experience with the deaf community. Rest assured that the reality of modern American deafness is at the heart of Switched at Birth !

Khloe in Las Vegas, Nev.: What can you tell us about Switched at Birth ?
If the whole "switched at birth" concept wasn't enough drama for you to take , Lea Thompson promises us "lots of different emotions and entanglements" beyond just the whole, you know, wrong kid thing. Expect the bulk of the tension to come from Lea's character Kathryn seriously butting heads with the other mom Regina, played by Constance Marie . Oh, and High School Musical 's Lucas Gabriel is there for some odd and confusing chemistry with…someone. That's all we can say right now. But we'll chat about it more after you watch the premiere tonight!

Felicia in Indianapolis, Ind . : The Nine Lives of Chloe King looks interesting. Should I check it out this summer?
Pretty people, charming lead girl discovering new powers, slightly darker than the other ABC family shows. Does that formula equal entertainment for you? Then all signs point to yes! We especially adore Skyler Samuels as the cat lady, and there are some unexpected twists here and there to break the show out of the usual teenage drama mold. Like the fact that Chloe gets pushed off a tall building 30 seconds into the premiere.

Pam in Los Angeles, Calif.: How's my boy Benjamin Stone in Nine Lives of Chloe King ? I love him!
In a word, creepy . Homeboy's first interaction with Chloe involves smelling her. Of course, his motives are not exactly of the stalker persuasion, so you'll have to watch the June 14 premiere to get the whole story.

-Reporting by Jenna Mullins ( @jbomb11 ), Christina Dowling ( @fatherdowling ), Drusilla Moorhouse ( @drumoorhouse ) Jennifer Arrow ( @jenniferarrow ) MarcusMulick

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