Nine-year-old Lenny Boberg was suspended from school after performing a Michael Jackson dance routine during a fundraiser -- groin reaches and all. (Image source: Winona Daily News)
Image source: Winona Daily News
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‘Clearly Inappropriate’: Boy Suspended Over Michael Jackson Crotch-Grabbing Dance
(Photo: BadParking.wordpress.com)
Comparison of how men and women performed on various parking factors.
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Study Says Women Better at Parking Than Men: Let the Discussion Begin
-By Warner Todd Huston Superintendent Todd Carlson of Shawano High School in Shawano, Wisconsin is sorry a student observed his First Amendment rights and had his article published in the school newspaper that denounces homosexuals adopting children. And so Superintendent Carlson is making amends by punishing this Christian kid for being so darn Christian. Superintendent Carlson
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Wisconsin School Punishes Christian Kid for Being a… Christian Kid
This is a controversial appointment. The college’s announcement is here: ” LBCC Announces New VP of Academic Affairs .” But see the Long Beach Press-Telegram , ” New Long Beach college official resigned from previous job over controversial songs “: LONG BEACH — Long Beach City College has hired a new vice president who resigned from his position as president of a Modesto junior college last year over controversial song lyrics that appeared on his personal website. Gaither Loewenstein will assume duties as LBCC’s vice president of academic affairs on March 1, according to a statement from LBCC President Eloy Oakley. Loewenstein, who also is a singer-songwriter, resigned from his position as president of Modesto College in May after some of his provocative folk song lyrics became public knowledge, according to the Modesto Bee, which reported the story last year. Loewenstein’s music website, which has since been taken down, provided samples of more than 100 songs written during his 30 years as a musician. His stage name is Gaither Drake. His lyrics range from traditional subjects, such as love and marriage, to more controversial topics including homosexuality, drug use, sexual infatuation and heavy drinking. In a song entitled “Dear Amtrak,” in which Loewenstein complains about a train trip to Portland, he writes, “Your railroad is the (expletive deleted) – they got better service on the way to Auschwitz.” In another song entitled “Dysfunctional Family Christmas,” he includes the line, “We’ll go broke and snort some coke as the holiday grows near.” In the song entitled, “My Best Friends,” Loewenstein sings about how all of his female friends are lesbians. He includes the verse, “Don’t you know that my best friends are lesbians, it’s true. And if I didn’t have a (expletive deleted), than I’d probably be one too.” His self-published debut album was released in 2000. His music is available on Myspace.com and iTunes. Loewenstein told the Modesto Bee last year that he understood why people would be offended by some of the lyrics and said the lyrics were inappropriate for someone in his position. “I think that as long as you are flying below the radar in lower level administrative positions, you are free to pursue your private hobbies and endeavors,” he said. “But once you are named president of a college, there is a responsibility not just to yourself but the college.” Loewenstein’s getting hammered in the comments at the link . For example, from Monica Blumenfield : It’s despicable our local community college hires an idiot who says Jews on the train to Auschwitz were given good service. Has he forgotten those trains sent millions of Jews to their deaths? Get rid of him, or does Supt. Oakley and the rest of LBCC Boards support Lowenstein’s anti-Semitic views? No, they don’t support his views — or at least there’s no evidence of that. The buzz among the faculty, however, is that Dr. Loewenstein was hired as a hatchet man for Eloy Oakley. Modesto cut whole departments under Dr. Loewenstein’s leadership, including the journalism program. See: ” Modesto College Cuts Journalism – 2011 “: Modesto Junior College administration’s drastic cuts to several popular programs, including the elimination of the entire mass communications department, are at best driven by hopeless ignorance and at worst designed to silence student voices at the school. In late February, MJC President Gaither Loewenstein proposed cutting the mass communications department, along with the faculty adviser to student government, as a solution to the college’s projected $8 million deficit for 2011-12 fiscal year. Despite opposition from the entire college community and an offer from faculty to take pay cuts
Fashion icon Tim Gunn — best known as a mentor to designers on the reality program “Project Runway” and as host of “Tim Gunn’s Guide to Style” — candidly revealed to guests on ABC’s “The Revolution” that he has been celibate for nearly three decades. “I haven’t had sex in 29 years,” the designer confessed. ”Do I feel like less of a person for it? No. Not even remotely.” Gunn, who served as associate dean of Parsons The New School for Design for over a decade, revealed this delicate aspect of his life in what he described as a spirit of honesty and solidarity with others who may be experiencing similar life-circumstances. “I’m a perfectly happy, fulfilled individual,” he added. “And I have feelings. It’s not as though I’m some barren forest.” Gunn explained that the reason for his longtime celibacy stems from having been deeply wounded by a past relationship. Wrought with emotion, Gunn said, “It’s very personal.” “I was in a very intense relationship for a long time. And my partner ended it, saying that, quite frankly, he was impatient with my sexual performance.” Gunn, revered by many for exuding both class and dignity in his various endeavors, added that his troubled relationship occurred during a time when the AIDS epidemic was just beginning and that he was concerned for his health. “I’m happy to be healthy and alive, quite frankly,” he said to a resounding round of applause. He added that there is no “mandate” stating he will remain chaste for the rest of his life and is open to a relationship, but that regardless of the outcome, feels complete as a person. In a world — and for Gunn especially, an industry — hyper-focused on sex and sexualization, many will find his choice and integrity commendable. The very personal interview follows below: (h/t: Yahoo )
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Fashion Icon Tim Gunn: ‘I Haven’t Had Sex in 29 Years‘ and ’I’m a Perfectly Happy, Fulfilled Individual’
Courtney Cox on ABC's Cougar Town (ABC Video)
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Negative Connotation Leads Utah School District to Veto ‘Cougar’ Mascot Name
It may seem that a different politician tarnishes his career almost every other week thanks to social media, but rarely do you hear about schools punishing students for opinions made on their personal Facebook pages. Syracuse University’s School of Education has now effectively expelled a graduate student from its teaching program after he expressed resentment in his Facebook status for a community leader’s complaint that student teachers were coming from Syracuse rather than historically black colleges. The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) reports: “On July 20, 2011, Werenczak was student teaching with Danforth Middle School when he was introduced to a member of the city’s Concerned Citizens Action Program (CCAP). Shortly afterward, in the presence of Werenczak and one other white student teacher, the CCAP member, who is black, said that he thought that the city schools should hire more teachers from historically black colleges. Werenczak later discussed the remark on Facebook , saying, ‘Just making sure we’re okay with racism. It’s not enough I’m … tutoring in the worst school in the city, I suppose I oughta be black or stay in my own side of town.’ Werenczak further wrote that ‘it kind of offends me that I’m basically volunteering the summer at Danforth, getting up at 630, with no AC, to help tutor kids and that’s not enough.’ While Werenczak was summoned to a meeting with administrators shortly before the school year began, he was not charged with any infraction of Syracuse’s rules and never received a disciplinary hearing. On September 7, however, Social Studies Education Coordinator Jeffery A. Mangram sent Werenczak a letter stating that the School of Education (SOE) was effectively expelling Werenczak because he had ‘posted on [his] Facebook page comments the SOE finds unprofessional, offensive, and insensitive not only to the Danforth School but also to the SOE and Syracuse University.’” For his actions, Werenczak would be expelled, had the option to voluntarily withdraw, or could gain a chance of “ad-admittance” by taking part in a special course of diversity training, attend counseling for “anger management,” and write a “a reflective paper that demonstrates the progress and growth you have made in relation to issues regarding cultural diversity as well as your own personal growth.” To stay in school, Werenczak complied with all three conditions by December 14. However, FIRE reports that on January 3 the School of Education(SOE) had not even yet formed a committee to review the case. On January 4, Werenczak was warned that if he took action to push SOE to act, it would “further delay the process.” “FIRE wrote Syracuse University Chancellor Nancy Cantor on January 10, pointing out that SOE’s action ‘profoundly violates Syracuse’s express promises of freedom of speech.’ Syracuse promises in its Student Handbook that ‘[s]tudents have the right to express themselves freely on any subject’ and that ‘Syracuse University … welcomes and encourages the expression of dissent.’ Syracuse has failed to respond, leaving Werenczak’s future in limbo.” The nonprofit educational foundation notes that this is not the first time Syracuse has punished a student for online speech: “In the fall of 2010, Syracuse University College of Law student Len Audaer was threatened with expulsion and faced a months-long investigation for his role in a fake-news parody blog about life in law school. In January 2011, FIRE named Syracuse one of the worst universities in the nation for free speech in The Huffington Post . Syracuse dropped all charges against Audaer in February 2011.” Syracuse responded in January 2011 to the article by FIRE in regards to the fake-news blog parody and the Huffington Post list. “The content of the website was not as harmless and carefree as some public commentators have suggested,” writes Syracuse University Vice Chancellor Eric F. Spina. “In fact, the blog contained false, mean spirited attacks, by name, against uninvolved, innocent, private individuals. ” “Syracuse University places a high value on free speech and due process, but also places a high value on the rights of all of its students to study and learn in an environment free from harassment, intimidation and ridicule,” Spina concluded. Between what happened at the law school last year and Werenczak’s current case, FIRE Vice President of Programs Adam Kissel does not take much stock in the university’s assurances. “Syracuse’s promises of free speech and due process are rapidly becoming some of the biggest jokes in higher education,” said Kissel. “I can see why Werenczak might be disturbed about his job prospects after hearing a remark that implicated his race. But it’s impossible to see how any reasonable person in the School of Education could use such a mild, off-campus expression of offense to destroy a student’s career.”
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Syracuse May Expel Student for Complaining on Facebook About Community Leader’s Controversial Race Comment
17-year-old Jamie Love will return to class after he says school officials kicked him out for dressing like a girl. (Image source: STV News)
Jamie's mother Alison said she supports her son and is very happy he can return to school. (Image source: Daily Record)
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Cross-Dressing Scottish Teen Will Return to Class After He Says School Expelled Him for Dressing Like a Girl
