Lowdark

i actually just finished readin an online media report about this. Apparently, the first riot was sparked during an initially peaceful protest over a police shooting in Tottenham (there aparently will be a hearing over police conduct regarding the man's death, but it may not be for a month or two). Violence broke out and it's spread across the entire country, quite possibly with the aid of social media. A lot of it seems to be wanton violence and looting. The police have made over 230 arrests but their jail cells are already full. Fortunately, there haven't been any deaths but there is one man in his 60's whose in critical condition because he tried to put out a fire that was started during a riot and he was attacked by a gang of rioters for his trouble. It's almost like Vancouver a few months ago, but across an entire country.

Watch an action movie where you really hate the villain but who gets his in the end. Then watch a comedy that'll have you laughing until you cry. The first satisfies your need for revenge (and most of us feel that when we've been wronged so deeply) and the second offers a positive emotional release. There is no therapy like laughter. Eat a bucket of ice cream and then later go for a really good run, the kind that'll tire you out so that you'll sleep well and let yourself sleep in. It won't solve your problems, but will ease them and give your mind some distance to gain perspective.

Unfortunately I don't have anything to bring to the buffet, but Happy Birthday! Hope you had a good one and enjoyed.

I've been a fan of a lot of Canadian acts. Early Tea Party comes to mind. Lately, I've been listening to some Art of Dying out of Vancouver. Canada produces a lot of excellent indie and alternative rock, stuff we'd probably never hear if it weren't for the internet.

Nice post. Researchers in Europe may have also found a way to treat HIV/AIDS with stem cells (they're urging caution while they do more tests) and several years ago, it was discovered that a small percentage of Eastern Europeans had evolved a gene that gave them an increased resistance to viruses like HIV (like the Bubonic Plague, for instance). It will be amazing to see what the next few years bring.

Sincerest condolences.

Best of luck in the future. Don't be shy about returning.

There are a few things about the article that make me pause. First, is an article or an Editorial? Because if it's an article, it's awfully bias. There is no balance, but plenty of personal opinion is injected by the writer. And obvisously, not a lot of background research was done into the former madame's past. isn't that suppossed to be journalistic prudence? And secondly, 500 women? That seems a little logistically difficult. Maybe I'm just naieve. The information on this women's past, where she was banned from certain forums, broke the rules and used CL, now defunct, to recruit-is that available anywhere? Because it would make a very tidy letter to any news outlet devoting serious attention to this tour. And I sometimes suspect that there are a number of media types on this board, so . . . How does she account for the women on CERB for instance, who, drug free, intelleigent and classy, choose and enjoy their profession? Did she not encounter any women like this in her 500 employees (assuming that number's valid)? Or were thay all the stereotypical social pariahs feeding their addictions? I will also be intersted to see what sort of media attention Sun Media offers the tour, since those papers make a good chunk of change from selling classified ads to SPs, MAs and other erotic services, as well as advertising to SCs. And Alexandra is right on the money. It is only obsolete social hypocrisy that is focusing on prostitution as the problem behind the abhorrent practice of human trafficking. How often has Fox News, for instance, done stories on the millions of migrant workers in the U.S. working for pennies a day with no protection before being shipped home unceremoniously? How often has the CBC? Aren't these worthy stories of human trafficking? Just some thoughts.

Thnaks Luxie. That was a breath of refreshing air and probably what a lot of people needed.

Some of negativity that has appeared in this thread probably boils down to some members (men and women alike) feeling disrespected and under appreciated. It has always been my belief that the women here should be treated with the highest level of respect and dignity. When things like "a menu" are discussed, it's easy to see how it encourages the perception that women are merely a package of options and preferences. I mean, how would we guys feel if the ladies here made it a policy to only see men who do certain things or who met their own personal physical criteria? Trust me, I'm not saying that's how some of the guys think, but I think we can agree that it isn't a stretch to see how some ladies can get that impression. Everyone should should keep in mind that while we all embrace free speech, words are the most powerful things we wield and we would all be well advised to think the ones we choose through carefully. Remember, everyone here is someone's child, possibly someone's parent and are all thinking, caring, fearing, fragile human beings. If we can't play nice here, where can we? With Respects;

Well, you'd haver to figure that if he got politicians to part with a billion dollars, he had to have some pretty compelling evidence. I'd trust in that.

Thanks. I'll be interested in reading that. And thank you Nathalie, I might look the book up. I read an article when there was a lot of media attention surrounding the stirking down of the current prostitution laws that the chief of police here in Ottawa "bristled" at the idea SPs would hesitate to call the police if needed. He claimed to protect everyone equally. But how long did it take the police in Vancouver to begin caring about the disappearances of Robert Picton's victims in B.C.? Picton seemed to have free reign to hunt as he pleased while the police simply shrugged their shoulders because of who his victims were. I remember following the events in B.C. when it was just a sort of a media novelty and nobody had even heard of Robert Picton. There was a quote from a family member of one of the missing who said that if had been fifty or so white school girls who had disappeared they would've had the army out. And I have to ask myself, is it just the Vancouver police who would have been indifferent?

In the end the difference could be the choice of those we know and those we don't. You know this boy, you know his name and his face, maybe even his dreams and his ambitions and his fears. He is a genuine human being to you. There are tens of millions of people around the world who also need help, whether they be stricken by drought or disease or poverty or war. But as callous as it sounds, they are simply a number to most of us because we could never comprehend 100 million names and faces. We can give money to the United Way and the Red Cross every month, but we never see the faces of those that recieve the help that money provides. But when we help an individual, when we see the smile that lights there face of the laugh that interupts the sadness or hear a sincere thank-you, it means more to us. In the end, the choice is do we help those whose pain we can see as well as those whose suffering we can't.

All the best to her!

Happy Birthday! Hope it's a good one!

Best of Luck to her in the future.

Any links or references on that topic off the top of your head? I'd be interested in reading them.

I would hope that the majority of the police are dependable, honest people who are out to make a difference. But this latest incident (among a string of them) and what I have read on POWER's site, one would have to suspect that the untrustworthy elements of the police are larger than we might hope. This bears further watching.

Happy Birthday Malika. Hope you have a good one and all the very best!

I've often wondered-how would he feel if his daughter wound up in a similar relationship or if she became a notch in the headboard of some celebrity who was famous for his libido and lengthy list of "conquests?"

Very well said Alexandra.

You have been justifiably dissected enough that I don't think anyone needs to add to it further, so I won't. But you need to ask yourself, do you think that publically trampling on her memory and her dignity, no matter what you thought of her as a person or an artist, was a decent thing to do? The mistake many of us have made (myself included) was in trying to compare the loss of Miss Whinehouse and the mass murder of those in Norway, only because they both captured the world's attention and they happened so close together. And the simple fact of the matter is that a murderous gunman's act of evil does not reduce the loss of Amy Whinehouse any more than her death should reduce the enormity of what happened in Norway. There is no way to reconcile or compare these two events, period. Perhaps there are lessons that can be learned and definitely grief to be suffered, but the best the living can do now is light a solemn candle in memory of all the lives lost.

Priceless. This is soomething Bugs bunny would approve of. If people won't learn through common sense, public humiliation will usually do the trick.

While I have sympathy for Miss Winehouse's friends and especially her family (who went to great lengths to get her the help she needed), the reason my heart breaks at the tragedy of the murders in Norway is because, as has been mentioned before, so many of them were children. The children murdered on Utoeya island were gunned down by an evil man while many ran for their lives, terrified and wishing for their parents during their last, frightened moments. All the dead in Norway lost their lives to a monster wearing human clothing; Amy Winehouse lost her life to the demon she created but couldn't control. Hopefully Amy's death may sway somehone in the future to reconsider a bad decision that could lead to their own self destruction, but there is no possible way to balance the scales in Norway. There is no way to punish the crime or learn as a result. Make no mistake, no one should be happy Miss Winehouse died and we should all mourn the loss of a promising life, but myself, I cannot help but feel deeper loss, deeper anger and rage, at the mostly young lives taken so ruthlessly in Norway.

Sincerest and Deepest Condolences.