"Baby Daddy" rises with the surrogacy trend

Tina Fey's fictional, single-parent, baby-proofing days may be over after her release of "Baby Mama" earlier this year, but the parental adventure is just beginning for many people who decided to conceive via surrogacy.

An interesting fact in the growing trend of surrogacy is that many parents are single, and some are actually men.

According to CNN, two surrogacy agencies have seen a significant growth in the number of single men wanting to have children.

This is absolutely amazing. Men are finally starting to be respected as caregivers.

As a feminist, I believe equality is the ultimate goal. But it seems that as women have gain momentum in becoming "providers," men have made very little progress in the area of "care giving."

Women can now bring home the bacon, but men still can't use a skillet.

Men have begun to take a more proactive role within families, helping partners (both gay and straight) raise children. But single parents experience the biggest hardships. Unfortunately, the only single parents we ever seem to hear about are single women.

But single men are doing the exact same thing as single women when it comes to parenting. Both must generate a steady revenue to support their family; foster a safe and nurturing environment for the growth and development of their prodigy; and both have to deal with the social stigma that come with being single parent.

The root of the problem for both men and women who are single parents lies in the fact that they are single. Single-ness is an unspoken unacceptability within our society. Because, for whatever reason, we believe that we can't love ourselves enough to lead a productive and healthy life.

So we look for another to support us and we pity those who have not found someone. But what about children?

These men and women - these single parents - aren't really single or alone. They have families, children who love and support them. And if love and support is the only thing needed to form a wholly functional family, I'd say these parents are doing a pretty good job.

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Single men turning to surrogates

By Ronni Berke - CNN Senior Producer

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Jeff Walker says from as far back as he can remember, he always wanted to be a father.

"It was always something I knew, from the time I was a child." Just like his 3-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, who says she wants to be a mommy someday, Jeff says, "I knew I wanted to be a daddy."

Walker, a Manhattan music executive, says he and his partner had talked about adopting a baby years ago. But after three emotionally draining, failed attempts at adoption, they decided to turn to surrogacy. They contacted Circle Surrogacy, a Boston agency that specializes in gay clients. Their child was conceived with a donor egg, and then the embryo implanted in the surrogate, or carrier.

After Elizabeth was born, Walker and his partner separated. He then made a critical decision -- to become a dad again, single, and by choice.

"I realized my family, my two-dad family was going to look different than I thought it was going to look," he said. Without a partner, he would face even steeper challenges raising Elizabeth and a sibling alone. Walker says he gave the decision a lot of thought.

"That was the only part that was really controversial, because I do think there are a lot of challenges that single parents face, but at the same time I felt I was capable of handling those challenges," he said.

His second daughter, Alexandra, was born two years ago to the same surrogate, implanted with an egg from a different donor.

Walker, 45, is one of a growing number of single men -- both gay and straight -- who are opting to become fathers alone, with the help of gestational surrogacy.

Surrogacy experts say because the practice is not regulated, many surrogacy arrangements are handled privately by individuals. Precise figures are hard to come by, but experts say there's no doubt the United States is experiencing a surrogacy baby boom.

Celebrities like Ricky Martin and Clay Aiken announced this year they had had babies with the help of surrogates and the the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology, representing scores of reproductive clinics, reports that the number of gestational surrogate births in the country quadrupled between 1996 and 2006.

Surrogacy experts say gestational surrogacy has increased steadily since the advent of in vitro fertilization in the early 1980s, because it provides an extra layer of emotional and legal protection for the client. The egg donor usually does not even know the client, and unlike the legally contentious "Baby M" case from the 1980s, the surrogate is not giving birth to her genetic child.

"It rises as an issue far less frequently with gestational surrogacy, because women never see it as their child to begin with," said John Weltman, president of Circle Surrogacy.

His agency, which expects more than 70 babies to be born in 2009, has seen a 50 percent growth in the number of single male clients over the past year.

Walker and other men are willing to pay well over $100,000 to have a baby through surrogacy -- the final cost depending on the number of IVF treatments necessary and how much is paid by insurance.

Circle is not the only major surrogacy provider experiencing a single-dad surge. At Growing Generations, a Los Angeles, California, agency that facilitates about 100 births a year, the number of single men seeking surrogates has doubled in the past three years, spokeswoman Erica Bowers said.

Although most of their single male clients are gay, surrogacy providers say a smaller but growing number are straight. Steven Harris, a New York malpractice and personal-injury attorney, says he gave up trying to get married when he realized his primary motive was to start a family.

Harris, 54, says he knew he made the right decision after 21-month old Ben was born.

"I thought getting married was the only way to go, because I did want a family. But having Ben, I feel complete now," Harris says.

Original Article:

http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/12/23/single.men.parenting/index.html

Score one more racism point for the South

I am a Southerner, whether I like it or not.

I was born in the South, raised in the South, attend school in the South and will probably stay in the South for a while.

Despite my frequent gripes about the narrow-minded bigots and unintelligent rednecks I occasionally encounter, I really think it is an amazing place to live. It feels like home.

But living inside the South and looking at it from the outside are two very different things.

INSIDE: warm, friendly, down-to-earth and helpful.

OUTSIDE: bigoted, unintelligent, dirty and backwards.

Anytime I encounter someone outside of the South, the conversation usually begins as follows:

Them: "Oh wow, what a cute accent you have. You're not from around here are you?"

Me: "No, I'm from Tennessee."

*At this point, there is usually a reference to Nashville (and country music), Jack Daniels or Orange.*

Me: "Yes, I live outside of Nashville; No, I don't like country music; No, I've never been to the distillery; No, I don't go to UTK or watch their football games."

And this is usually where the conversation comes to a screeching halt - due to the fact that I am not, what they consider, a "Southerner."

I don't want to sound hypocritical, so I should probably denote that not all non-Southerners think like this. There are probably about as many non-Southerners who think we are dirty mouth-breathers as there are Southerners who think Northerners are uppity carpetbaggers.

Regardless, assumptions run amok through both cultures. So when something like what happened in High Point, North Carolina (see story below) makes the news, it comes as no shock that another point is scored in favor of the Southern stereotype.

First and foremost, any racial slurs or gestures are absolutely unacceptable in any manner and in any part of the country. However, because this happened in a southern state, the implications of the message are far more severe.

It's bad enough that we're looked at as having a foundation of racism thanks to slavery and resistance to the Civil Rights Movement (in various areas of the South). But times are changing, attitudes are improving, and the people who originally held degrading and oppressive thoughts are steadily dying out, leaving behind a generation of more accepting and open-minded individuals - with the exception of a few.

Honestly, I don't think that the South has any more racists-minded residents than any other region in our country. Once again, the stereotype just lends itself to the assumption that we do. I've definitely run into a few people who assume we all run around barefooted and sleep with a shotgun under our pillow.

If anything, one of the most predominate qualities of the Southern culture is the concept of respect and honor.

I just wish that people, like the two teens from High Point, had enough respect for the honor and dignity of our region.

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2 charged after Klan-like hoods found outside school

By J. Brian Ewing, Staff Writer (News and Record)

HIGH POINT - Two teens were charged with hanging four Klan-like hoods around the campus of High Point Central this morning.

David Lee Hughes, 16, and Mitchell James Dawkins, 16, were both charged with placing an exhibit with the intention of intimidating and misdemeanor larceny.

Police Capt. Tony Hamrick said the hoods are made of white vinyl and had holes cut in them. They were actually traffic cones turned inside out. The cones had recently been stolen, and other traffic cones were found in a vehicle near the school, according to a news release.

Three of the hoods were hung near the bus parking lot at the school, and the fourth was hung from the school's flagpole.

The hoods were found about 5:30 a.m. today by a school custodian.

No nooses were found, Hamrick said, despite earlier reports from school system officials stating there were.

Hamrick said there have been no recent race-related issues at the school that he is aware of. The incident does not represent the atmosphere at the school, he said.

"This is an irresponsible prank we take seriously," he said.

Two officers will remain on the campus for the remainder of the school day.

Hughes and Dawkins, who are both white, were released to the custody of their parents.

ORIGINAL STORY:

http://www.news-record.com/content/2008/12/15/article/2_in_custody_after_klan_like_hoods_found_outside_school

Military recruiters double as Uncle Sam's punching bags

Right next to Hobby Lobby, off of Old Fort Parkway, sits the Murfreesboro military recruitment offices - or as I call it, "piranha row."

I have never liked military recruiters. My father was in the military and since the day I was born, I've apparently been on their "must have" list.

By the age of 12, I was receiving US Army paraphernalia - bags, visors, Frisbees, sunglasses.

When I was 14, I joined my high school's JROTC program. This was mostly out of respect for my father, who was, at the time, the executive officer of the program.

I may not like the military, but I will respect the fact that my father served our country and the military has provided him and my family a stable living for the better part of my life.

When I was 15, a sophomore, the Army recruiter came to visit.

I, along with my fellow classmates, were told to come to school in dress uniform and give up our lunch periods to stand with the Army recruiter to talk with our fellow, non-JROTC peers.

We were supposed to sell the army life, despite the fact that we hadn't lived it. I just found it a useful excuse not to be forced to find a seat in our already over-crowded cafeteria.

After my sophomore year, I quit the JROTC program and devoted myself to the school paper. The "liberal" media was, and still is, the best way I have found to serve our citizens, because a well-informed community makes for a stronger country.

But even though I ditched JROTC and refused to sign-up or respond to any postcards, letters or e-mails I have (and still do on occasion) receive, I still held somewhat of a grudge against the recruiters that went after me and my high school friends with promises of money, fame, glory and candy.

After reading the article posted below, I feel sorry for military recruiters. With two wars, the majority of the world against us, the switching of executive administrations and the ever-mounting pressure felt by our armed forces, I'm honestly shocked that the suicide count isn't higher.

It makes me wonder how many attempted suicides aren't known to the public.

It makes me think about the lies the military executives tell recruiters.

It makes me question whether these people we ask to protect us feel like they are treated with any scrap of dignity - particularly by their superiors.

It makes me sad that our country has gotten to this point.

It's shameful.

___

By: The Associated Press

Sgt. 1st Class Patrick Henderson, a strapping Iraq combat veteran, spent the last, miserable months of his life as an Army recruiter, cold-calling dozens of people a day from his strip-mall office and sitting in strangers' living rooms, trying to sign up their sons and daughters for an unpopular war.

He put in 13-hour days, six days a week, often encountering abuse from young people or their parents. When he and other recruiters would gripe about the pressure to meet their quotas, their superiors would snarl that they ought to be grateful they were not in Iraq, according to his widow.

Less than a year into the job, Henderson — afflicted by flashbacks and sleeplessness after his tour of battle in Iraq — went into his backyard shed, slid the chain lock in place, and hanged himself with a dog chain.

He became, at age 35, the fourth member of the Army's Houston Recruiting Battalion to commit suicide in the past three years — something Henderson's widow and others blame on the psychological scars of combat, combined with the pressure-cooker job of trying to sell the war.

"Over there in Iraq, you're doing this high-intensive job you are recognized for. Then, you come back here, and one month you're a hero, one month you're a loser because you didn't put anyone in," said Staff Sgt. Amanda Henderson, herself an Iraq veteran and a former recruiter in the battalion.

The Army has 38 recruiting battalions in the United States. Patrick Henderson's is the only one to report more than one suicide in the past six years.

The Army began an investigation after being prodded by Amanda Henderson and Texas Sen. John Cornyn. Cornyn, a Republican on the Armed Services Committee, said he will press for Senate hearings.

"We need to get to the bottom of this as soon as we can," he said.
The all-volunteer military is under heavy pressure to sign up recruits and retain soldiers while it wages two wars.

Douglas Smith, a spokesman for the Army Recruiting Command, acknowledged that recruiting is a demanding job but said counseling and other support are available.

"I don't have an answer to why these suicides in Houston Recruiting Battalion occurred, but perhaps the investigation that is under way may shed some light on that question," he said.
In all, 15 of the Army's 8,400 recruiters have committed suicide since 2003. During that period, more than 540 of the Army's half-million active-duty soldiers killed themselves.

The 266-member Houston battalion covers a huge swath of East Texas, from Houston to the Arkansas line. Henderson committed suicide Sept. 20. Another battalion member, Staff Sgt. Larry Flores Jr., hanged himself in August at age 26; Sgt. Nils "Aron" Andersson, 25, shot himself to death in March 2007; and in 2005, a captain at battalion headquarters took his life, though the military has not disclosed any details. All served combat tours before their recruiting assignments.

Charlotte Porter, Andersson's mother, said her son — who served two tours in Iraq with the 82nd Airborne and earned a Bronze Star — couldn't lie to recruits about the war and felt an enormous burden to ensure they could become the kind of soldiers he would want watching his back.

"He wasn't a complainer. He just said it really sucked," said his 51-year-old mother, who is from Eugene, Ore. "He felt like a failure."

___

On the Net:

Complete Original Article: http://www.comcast.net/articles/news-national/20081222/Recruiter.Suicides/

Army Recruiting Command: http://www.usarec.army.mil/

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Obama is the new President - Westboro is scared

I would be lying if I said that I wasn't excited about Barack Obama being our 44th President of the United States of America.

It's an understandable occurrence that not everyone is thrilled with the president elect. Not everybody has to be happy about it.

And just because I like Obama, doesn't mean I support everything he believes. I definitely do not subscribe to the thought pattern that this guy will crap rainbows and bleed miracles.

But then there are the people who are going to go to the extremes - like the Westboro Baptist Church. These people are certifiable, but at least they are equal opportunity haters. Like Obama, they hated George W. Bush, Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, victims of Katrina, teenagers killed in car accidents, soldiers who die overseas and the occasional state or two.

No kidding, these people claim to hate Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Kooky right?

Their Web site - godhatesfags.com - gets a pretty fair share of hits. I personally frequent their site to keep tabs on whether they will be paying a visit to Tennessee. At the very least, it would make for a great news story.

But I digress. They recently posted a "news release" about president-elect Barack and notes how he is the "Antichrist." Personally, if these people ever truly wanted to see the Antichrist, all they would have to do is look in a mirror.

The following is their "news release." Enjoy.

BARACK OBAMA IS ANTICHRIST

GOD IS PUNISHING AMERICA BY MAKING HIM
PRESIDENT TO FURTHER CURSE THIS EVIL NATION

Antichrist fit Obama like a glove; to wit: The Man of Sin, the Beast, the Son of Perdition, That Wicked One (i.e., That Lawless One), who wrests, or twists, the Scripture to his own destruction. 2 Pet. 3:16.

By his own pronouncements, and by the events as they have miraculously developed on the ground, presidential candidate - Sen. Barack Obama - is the Antichrist. The word Antichrist means "he that openly withstands Christ, being diametrically opposed to Christ."

Sodomite America deserves Antichrist as her president.

This evil, black Nimrod is on record as supporting same-sex marriage and the wholesale murder of babies; and, his basic theology is pure Arminian heresy, consisting of two Satanic lies:

1) God loves everybody; and,

2) Man has a free will.

He has shredded every part of the Bible which proves him and his sycophants - (i.e., his worshipers) - to be lying murderers and blaspheming hypocrites.

All the Bible aliases for "But the word of the Lord endureth forever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you." 1 Pet. 1:25.

"Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man; but holy men of Gods pake as they were loved by the Holy Ghost." 2 Pet. 1:20,21.

Thus Antichrist Obama has committed blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, Mat . 12:31,32. And Antichrist Obama is bound for Hell for his sins against the Holy Ghost, "cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone." Rev. 19:20.

Amen.

Problem: If this is such an "evil nation," why are the Westboro followers still here?

Answer: If they went anywhere else in this world, they would probably be killed.

Problem: When did Obama openly withstand Christ? It's not like he's declared Mortal Kombat against God.

Answer: Obama is a Christian - just not a WESTBORO Christian. Which means he's really not a Christian to the Westborians.

(Side note: I always find it amusing when Christians hate other Christians. It's like the deaf hating the deaf for being deaf. Now THAT'S hypocrisy at its best Westboro.)

Problem: There is no scripture presented to support the notion that Obama is the Antichrist.

Answer: The Westboro Baptist Church consists of inbred, knuckle-dragging, mouth-breathing, narrow-minded, unhappy-with-their-own-pathetic-existences hillbillies led by a senile, perverted, closeted homosexual named Fred Phelps. Sun rise, sun set.

Obama isn't perfect, but McCain was farther from. I know that everyone can't wait to see what Obama will do, but I really don't expect him to do a lot. Mostly I'm just curious to see how he helps our country's current situations.

In fact, I don't even expect him to get to do or "change" anything that he really wants to in his four years. All I really expect of Obama is for him to work his hardest to clean up the mess we are currently in.

War, economic chaos, social injustice, primitive educational standards. If he can just begin to heal any of these things, I will consider his time in office a success.

So congratulations Barack Obama, 44th President of the United States of America. I wish you the best of luck in leading and representing me, my family, my friends, my country.

And please don't screw up. I really can't stand when the Westborians think they have the right to gloat.

Judgment shouldn't be marginalized

This past Saturday, a few friends and I attended the Family Worship Center's presentation of "Judgment: Death Row" in Murfreesboro.

The presentation was a variation of a traditional Hell House - a haunted house with a Christian theme designed to lead viewers to a relationship with Jesus in order to save their eternal souls from the fires of hell.

The concept for the original Hell House was "Scaremare" and was pioneered by Jerry Falwell in the 1970s. Scaremare still runs to this day.

Since its development, multiple churches, usually denoting themselves as fundamentalists, have emulated this Halloween pastime, including Trinity Church of Cedar Hill, Texas - whose hellish production was documented by director George Ratliff in the movie Hell House.

It was very obvious that the Family Worship Center spent top dollar on its faithful interpretation of salvation through the intricacy of its set, the man-power it took to run the production and the oh-so-subtle advertisement spots on Comcast.

But even with a decently- sized budget, the overall message delivered by the church left much to be desired - specifically accountability.

The play is set up to take the audience through the lives of several death row inmates, including murderers, rapists and child abusers. It displays scenes of drug use, domestic abuse, suicide, assault, molestation, drinking and death.

Each prisoner has a different backstory.

One was molested as a child. This led him to become addicted to pornography and eventually kidnap, rape and kill children.

Another was unprepared for the burden of motherhood, what with her addiction to an unnamed drug demon. Her baby wouldn't stop crying so she shook it to death.

The crimes of the inmates can go on and on, but the one running commonality among them was their lack of faith in the Family Worship Center's opinion of God.

I say the Family Worship Center's opinion of God because not every sect of Christianity believes exactly what this specific church does. However, through its hell house presentation, the FWC made perfectly clear what will and will not get you into its Heaven.

Suicide and the rejection of God is an automatic admission ticket to become Satan's little errand boy.

The only way to get into Heaven - or have your name recorded in the "Book of Life" - was to ask Jesus to forgive you of all your Earthly sins. But unawareness with the Christian faith was not covered. If you are not aware of the concept of Christianity, do you also go to Hell?

The biggest problem with their version of ultimate forgiveness was there is no accountability for Earthly actions.

For example, the aforementioned child-shaking mother asked the religious figure present at her lethal injection if God could forgive her. He replied the mandatory "yes," because really, let's face it, he doesn't know for sure. She then asked Jesus to forgive her, they injected her with a dose of deadly narcotics, and she dies but then awakens moments later - in Heaven.

Every other non-murderous individual should be outraged at this. This woman is allotted the same reward for living a terrible life that a person who works very hard to remain virtuous gets.

It is true that forgiveness is not fair. But forgiveness should not come without retribution. People should be made to be accountable for their actions and not receive a free ride to a blissful eternity.

In a technical sense, Person A and Person B are both given the same opportunity - life.

Person A spends his life obeying laws, caring for others and trying his hardest to be an overall good person.

Person B, given the same opportunity of life, squanders his life selfishly, harming other people.

Both people ask Jesus to forgive their sins. According to the FWC, both will get into Heaven.

Person A should be pissed. Luckily for him, he gets to spend eternity enjoying being pissed off.

The fact of the matter is the Family Worship Center has no idea what the requirements are for entry into either Heaven or Hell. Like many other sects of Christianity and other religions, they think they know, but they don't.

And that, above all else, is the concept that terrifies us as humans. The answer to all the "big" questions is very simple - we don't know.

The FWC would like to think that, after we die, we go to either Heaven or Hell. They like to think that the requirement for entry into Heaven is to "confess Christ openly, follow Christ in baptism, be faithful in going to a Bible-believing church, read the Bible, pray daily, give your time, talent and tithes, and be a witness for Christ."

Those are all very nice goals and decent standards to live by. But once again, these are just theories - not guarantees.

Yes, the answer is scary. We will all die one day. Not knowing what will happen to us after we die is absolutely petrifying.

But it isn't a bad thing. We have the fear, so we should use it. The only thing we can do is blindly prepare for what lies after life.

So we help out others in need, love our fellow humans, whether we agree with them or not, and try to maintain a progressive, safe world for ourselves and our posterity. Doing these things is not always easy, and many people mess up. But it's okay because, after all, we are only human.

The FWC message that left much to be desired was that we need to stay out of Hell.

Swing and a miss.

What their message should have been is that we should be good people because it is the right thing to do.

Andy Harper is a senior journalism major

Originally posted on 10/27/08 at www.mtsusidelines.com

Children's safety should be focus, not polygamy

For the past couple of months, I have been following the case at the Yearning for Zion Ranch in Eldorado, Texas religiously – slight pun intended. My fascination with the Fundamental Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints or the FLDS began years ago when I learned about Warren Jeffs, the leader and self-proclaimed profit of the court.

When Jeffs was finally apprehended in August of 2006, I nearly threw a party to celebrate. And it felt like Christmas when Utah courts sentenced Jeffs for 10 years to life for his numerous crimes, including accomplice to rape, incest and molestation.

There are few people on the face of this planet that I would attribute as purely evil –Warren Jeffs in one of them.

But the recent events with the YFZ Ranch have left me somewhat disturbed. I hate the unspeakable horrors the children, girls and boys, face as a part of the FLDS – rape, underage marriage, excommunication and abandonment. But it is equally despicable to see a mother’s anguish at having her child forcefully taken away from her.

In a nutshell, the series of events began in March, after Texas Child Protective Services received a phone call from a 16-year-old girl claiming to have been sexually abused at the ranch. The phone call resulted in a raid of the compound on April 3.

The raid itself resulted in Child Protective Services removing over 500 women and children from the ranch over the next five days. On April 17, a Texas court ruled that the children would remain in state custody and were to be split between 16 various foster home and CPS facilities.

On May 22, an appellate court overturned the original decision, claiming that CPS had no right to remove the children from their homes. Seven days later, the Texas Supreme Court concurred with the appellate decision and ordered that all the children be returned.

“The child custody issues and other court proceedings do not impact the ongoing criminal investigation,” said Jerry Strickland, a spokesman for the Texas attorney general’s office in the Los Angeles Times. “The evidence collected from the polygamist compound and reviewed by investigators will dictate the direction of this investigation.”

Thank goodness the Texas CPS doesn’t give up so easily. The most frequently used argument about the entire situation is that this is somehow an attack on religious freedom or polygamy.

Seriously, who cares if someone chooses to be a polygamist for religious reasons? If having multiple spouses and a pack of children is your passion, then more power to you. If a person can keep all of his wives or her husbands happy and safe; if all the children are developing in a healthy, stable environment, then there is no reason that family should be judged because their views on familiar structure are different from the mainstream.

The problem isn’t polygamy.

The problem is girls being forced into marriage and sexual relations at 14-years-old.

The problem is young men being disowned or run out of their communities because they are “competition” for the older men, who require more wives.

The problem is women being raped for the cause of procreation because some dirty, old man named Warren Jeffs declared that his libido-driven, middle-aged male followers need to sleep with a different woman every night.

The problem has escalated out of control.

“Let’s say you’re a 6-month-old girl, no evidence whatsoever of any abuse,” said Mark Shurtleff, a Utah Attorney General, to the Salt Lake City Deseret News. “They’re simply saying, ‘You, in this culture, may grow up to be a child bride when you’re 14. Therefore we’re going to remove you now when you’re 6 months old.’ Or, ‘You’re a 6-month-old boy; 25, 30 years, 40 years from now you’re going to be a predator, so we’re going to take you away now.’”

Shurtleff disagreed with the removal of the women and children on a very good principle – thought crime. Despite the constant unease of a 1984-esc society, thankfully thoughts, at least in the United States, are not a crime.

However, premeditation and thought are two very different things. If the investigation turns up any evidence to suggest premeditated rape, as in the arrangement of a 12-year-old to a 22-year-old, the perpetrators better immediately end up behind bars.

This might result in another chaotic attempt to rescue women and children from the FLDS, a venture that, once again, might be fruitless.

So the real question, the fact that has left me disturbed, is this: is it better to save a child’s future based on circumstantial evidence of what might happen or honor the rights of the parents charged with the safety of that child?

Mark Shurtleff says no. Texas Child Protective Services says yes. Once again, the country is divided over the welfare of its youngest citizens – excuse the jab at the abortion issue.

The only conceivable possibility for solving the problem is to follow the red-taped, bureaucratic trail of case-by-case examination, investigation, prosecution and resolve. But by the time that happens, Warren Jeffs will have probably been released from his lifetime sentence and marrying his next child-bride.

'The Paper' does not do journalism justice

"Journalists are the most important part of the world."

At least we are according to Amanda Lorber, editor in chief of the Cypress Bay High School newspaper The Circuit. Amanda and her staff are the new focus of MTV's "The Paper," a reality show about life in a newsroom.

There's only one problem: it isn't a newsroom; it's a high school class. No self-respecting newspaper would allow any external media to chronicle the unimportant, uninteresting and irrelevant events that transpire within their work area.

Journalists exist to relay the news. Obviously, dramatic antics will pop up every now and again, but these scenarios exist in any working environment. The only important and noteworthy thing about a newspaper and its staff is the final product placed on the stands.

With this in mind, The Circuit staff forgot one of the most basic rules of our industry - we are not the story. Journalists don't exist to be the stars of a reality show; we exist to deliver strong, factual, entertaining and interesting news to our audience.

It's already difficult enough to be a doctor or lawyer with shows like "Grey's Anatomy" and "Law and Order." People develop a disillusioned view of these careers and expect every ER doctor to be sleeping with a nurse and every lawyer to have high profile murder cases.

Hopefully, the general audience for these shows can tell the difference between reality and fantasy, but it still warps the perceptions of these career fields. We begin to expect certain actions and events from doctors, nurses, police officers and even journalists. Because of this, industries that should be held in high respect are reduced to primetime soaps.

The unfortunate staff of The Circuit has entered itself into the worst genre of television possible, because everyone loses in a reality show.

Most of these journalistic-hopefuls screwed their careers in the very first episode. After their last issue under the "old" editor in chief, the staff celebrated with a house party that included a game involving ping-pong balls, red plastic cups and a mysterious unseen liquid. Two of the show's characters, Trevor Ballard and Giana Pacinelli, sneaked upstairs for some "alone" time.
Not to say high school students are required to be "innocent," but Web sites like Facebook and MySpace already cause future employees trouble. The first episode of this show is basically like "Minors Gone Wild."

True, these high school staffers could have been drinking water or sparkling cider. Trever and his girlfriend Giana could have just gone upstairs to talk or snuggle. But I doubt future employers will view their actions as such.

The second screw from this reality show comes in the form of character assassination.
Amanda is a self-righteous, obnoxious know-it-all who sends her staff into rage at the sound of her voice. She's about as well-equipped to lead a publication as a first-year med student is to perform heart surgery. Amanda may know the mechanics, but she lacks the grace to direct her nurses and the finesse to keep the patient alive.

The managing editor is anything but. Alex Angert is a sheepish, two-faced mediator between the big, bad editor and his unhappy peers. Instead of plotting to overthrow a leader who cannot be fired by the staff, he should be concentrating on assisting Amanda in making the newspaper the best possible publication. Although, with Amanda's obvious control issues, it's unlikely she'll actually let Alex do his job.

Trevor and Giana apparently didn't get enough "alone" time during the house party, because the only time you see either of them in the season preview, they are groping each other like bunnies in spring.

Adam Brock is a lot less striking than his name implies. The first time this overdramatic queen of advertising throws a tantrum in a real newsroom, he'll be fired. Being passed up for editor in chief is a major let down, but for Adam to drop to his knees and cry in agony, in the middle of a hallway surrounded by his coworkers extinguished any respect his peers had for him.

Scratch that; throwing papers down during production and yelling, "You don't see what they do, why can't you see what I see?" and storming out of the room in a huff of his own awesomeness looks to be the final nail in a coffin designated for Adam's professionalism.

If anything, Rhonda Weiss is the only victim in this poorly-acted melodrama. Rhonda, the adviser for The Circuit, plays the role of the overstressed mother-figure bent on pleasing everyone. Too bad her children are unruly and unappeasable, too caught up in their own ambitions, wants and needs to find a place of compromise, ethics and integrity.

These potential future pillars of the journalism industry have shamed the very job they wanted to immortalize. And worse, they have dragged their own good names through the mud, and a good name is one of the most prized processions a journalist can own.

To be fair, these high school students could be amazing people. They could be responsible, talented, journalistically attuned, career-ambitious individuals, but at the end of the season, none of those qualities matter. Because in the end, no newspaper wants to use a byline tattered with a mixture of mud and shame.

Andy Harper is a senior journalism major.

Posted: 4/21/08 on www.mtsusidelines.com

CHECK OUT GAWKER.COM FOR A RESPONSE TO THE ABOVE COLUMN!
http://gawker.com/382169/high-school-journalists-are-so-immature-says-college-journalist

Why hate responsible sex?

Last week, Trojan brand condoms started a new "evolve" campaign, which features a commercial of pigs in a bar trying to pick-up women, but to no avail.

Only when one of the pigs visits the restrooms and purchases a Trojan condom, does he transform into a good-looking, 20-something and is able to catch the eye of a cute, martini-sipping blonde.

The commercial is pure genius, metaphorically speaking. Any man without the sense to properly equip himself for a safe, happy and healthy sex life is nothing more than a sloppy, sexually irresponsible pig.

Trojan does not use their name, only their picture logo, and the commercial phrase that appears at the end of the one-minute slot reads, "Evolve. Use a condom every time."

Two major media corporations have refused to run this advertisement: Fox and CBS. The companies rejected the advertisement, although previous Trojan ads have appeared on both.

According to The New York Times, both CBS and Fox declined comment, however, both wrote letters to Trojan informing the condom manufacturer of the decision to decline running the ad and provided a vague explanation.

"While we understand and appreciate the humor of this creative, we do not find it appropriate for our network even with late-night-only restrictions," wrote CBS.

"Contraceptive advertising must stress health-related uses rather than the prevention of pregnancy," wrote Fox.

Something to note about both television companies: both air ads promoting products for erectile dysfunction.

Wouldn't it be better to put the safety on the gun before loading the bullets? Rather, wouldn't it be better to ensure protection before target practice?

Proper condom use, first and foremost, should be the responsibility of a male. This is not to say women shouldn't know about proper condom usage, but women have other concerns.

A condom is one of the very few forms of "male" contraception: the basic principle being, 'roll it over and ride on in.' Women, however, have to deal with birth control, diaphragms and spermicide.

Men: when was the last time you had to inject yourself with a drug to alter the chemical balance of your body in order to have a safe, sexual experience? Taking responsibility for both the safety of yourself and your partner does not make a lesser man, but a better person.

It seems the real problem the broadcast companies have is the lack of metaphorical comprehension and the inability to look past men being portrayed "literally" as pigs.

In our society, music, movies and the Internet cater to a populous with a right-now, face-value attitude. So it makes perfect since that channels like CBS and Fox, which show graphic violence and strong sexual content, would stifle creative commercials which address the less pleasurable side of sexual health issues.

God forbid we consider using proper protection during a hot, steamy reality television show. Who has time for a condom? Not the drunk, horny teenagers.

Carol Carrozza, vice president of marketing for Ansell Healthcare, the company that produces LifeStyle condoms, was quoted in The New York Times article as saying, "We always find it funny that you can use sex to sell jewelry and cars, but you can't use sex to sell condoms."

The issue of disease prevention, as Fox pointed out, becomes null and void if the cause is not noted, the cause being unsafe sexual practices, which mean the necessity of referring to sex.

Anyone offended by references to sex in condom commercial are missing the point. A company wouldn't advertise an energy drink without referring to the wonderful things one could accomplish if consuming their product.

A condom commercial without sex is like an Allstate commercial without car accidents. Neither concentrates solely on the actions, rather both the Trojan and Allstate primary message is they can offer you a reasonable amount of insurance.

The New York Times article also contained research statistics by the Trojan company. Apparently, only one in four sexual acts involve a condom.

These results may or may not take into account other contraception usage or the nature of the sexual relationship. However, the old proverb still remains: it's better to be safe than sorry.

Of the statistic, Jim Daniels, vice president for marketing at Trojan, said, "That's dramatically below usage rates in other developed countries. Our goal is to dramatically increase usage."

With a 75 percent corner on the condom market, Trojan, with the new "Evolve" campaign, is more interested in increasing condom use than marketing their brand. While no one can deny that the company wants consumers using their product, it is still a notable noble effort on Trojan's part to safely equip society.

With that, Trojan deserves some well earned "cheers" for their new campaign.

Fox and CBS get the "jeers" for being close-minded and oppressive of an informative and entertaining ad.

Perhaps, one day, condoms and contraceptives will no longer be a topic of controversy, or at the least embarrassment. Maybe one day - when pigs fly.

Posted: 6/27/07 on www.mtsusidelines.com

Women should decide; men should support

"Well aren't you glad your mother didn't have an abortion?"

"I suppose, but it isn't like I would be complaining if she did."

The above dialogue was held between a die-hard "Pro-Lifer" and myself. An interesting fact about the speaker - it was a male.

In our democratic society, men and women are allowed and encouraged to use the right of free speech and religious beliefs without the fear of prosecution.

As intelligent individuals, we are allotted the abilities to form our own beliefs about subjects. The issue isn't about having an opinion, but rather forcing an opinion in a battle where the instigator only has a three-legged dog.

This is not a discussion on the "rights" and "wrongs" of abortion. Abortion is currently classified as a legal, medical procedure but is held as morally and ethically wrong by certain groups and persons.

The discussion is why is it acceptable, even viewed as correct, for a man to tell a woman how to manage her body? It's like taking a car to a mechanic and telling them how to fix the problem.

Reversing roles, would a man rather have a woman picket and protest in favor of required vasectomies or support his decision to have or not have a medical procedure performed?

The problem exists when men are the forefront of the "Pro-Life" movement. The fact remains that men are unable to conceive; therefore we are unable to properly empathize with a woman's reproductive biology.

Comparing social subjects, can a heterosexual person identify with the issues faced by the Gay-Lesbian-Bisexual-Transgender community? Absolutely not, because a heterosexual person does not feel discriminated against for their sexuality.

Can a straight person be a supporter and advocate for the GLBT community? Absolutely.

Again, it isn't about having opinions, but about recognizing one's place within a social issue. Men would do well to remember that it is a woman's body entangled within a complicated web of religion and politics.

Sadly for The Center for Bio-Ethical Reform, this is not the case.

Of the seven directors for the CBR, four are men, including the executive director, the Midwest regional director, the southeast regional director and the northern California director.

I wonder when the last time any of them were pregnant and had to make a decision not just based on faith, but on what would be most beneficial to their physical well-being.

The only other argument to be made is in the case of a man voicing an opinion about his fetus. A man should have his opinion taken into serious consideration in the case of a fetus he helped produce.

The opinion, however, should remain just that. The decision rests entirely with the woman, unless science develops a miraculous way for men to bare children.

As a side note, the discussion of children and abortion in a consenting relationship between a man and a woman is a private matter. A relationship is private and, in theory, both partners respect each other's opinions enough to compromise their sexual lifestyle

However, this goes to the age-old argument of contraception. If the man wanted children, why isn't he with a woman who wants the same? If a man doesn't want children, why isn't he using protection? Accidents and unexpected circumstances arise, but for the most part prevention of children is tremendously easier in our modern day of medicine.

"You can have a rule-making opinion about abortion when you are able to experience morning sickness, swollen feet and breasts, aching back pain and the overwhelming responsibility of carrying a living creature within you for 10 months," sage advice that every mother should bestow on her son.

These are the bodies of women, the bodies of our mothers, sisters, aunts, friends and the only gender capable of perpetuating our species.

Men are not pro-life, nor pro-choice. Men should be pro-woman and support her decision, whatever it may be.

Posted: 9/17/07 on www.mtsusidelines.com

A time for beginnings

Now is the time for a beginning to this blog.

I'm not quite sure what to do first. It seems this will be an extension of my opinion writing and the column in the Middle Tennessee State University's newspaper Sidelines called "Yeah, Whatever."

To give a good idea of my soon to be plethora of readers (at least I hope), I've decided to post a few of the past columns I've done for the college paper.

They aren't my best, but it's a start. And like everything else, a beginning is in order.

Enjoy.