TresSugar

City Officials Fail to Prevent Porn Star Invasion

TresSugar — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 01:00:00 -0700

The Exxxotica Expo opened today in Edison, NJ, for the second year in a row, meaning that blushing city officials failed in their attempt to prevent the porn convention from coming to town.

The city, hell-bent on keeping local fans from meeting their favorite porn stars, passed an ordinance that prohibited sexually oriented products at gatherings within 1,000 feet of a school, church, hospital, or playground. Only problem? The convention is being held more than 1,000 feet from any of those sites. Score one for the porn stars.

The city's focus on the annual convention borders on an obsession. It's become a major issue in the town's mayoral race, and one candidate produced ads that say: "Mayor Candidate Says YES to PORNO!" The candidate under fire for not getting on board the anti-porn convention train responded by saying, "No, it's not something that I would personally approve of. By the same token, I don't think we should be foisting our personal values upon everyone else, unless they're harmful.”

Do you agree, or would you be bothered if a porn convention came to town?

Top 5 Most Dangerous Cities List Puts New Orleans at No. 1

CitizenSugar — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 11:30:45 -0800

With a murder every 40 hours, New Orleans crime rate is hard to beat. The latest City Crime Rankings looked at reported incidents of six major crimes to determine the most dangerous dwellings in the US. With a population of only 250,000 that changed drastically after Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans came out on top.

Rounding out the list, the top-five cities with the highest crime rate include:

New Orleans, LA
Camden, NJ
Detroit, MI
St. Louis, MO
Oakland, CA

The FBI warns that ranking cities head-to-head fails to paint a realistic picture. In addition, local mayors and law enforcement officials maintain that such a superficial ranking irresponsibly misuses crime data by ignoring complex factors. Do you think rankings of the most dangerous cities help hold law enforcement accountable or are they counterproductive?

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New Jersey Law to Require Organ Donor Decision, Education

LibertySugar — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 11:00:37 -0700

Ever thought of being an organ donor? Well pretty soon New Jersey drivers will be forced to confront that question - a new law will require drivers to say yes or no to organ donation.

Under the "New Jersey Hero Act" those who say no will have to review information about it, and check a box that says: "I have reviewed the importance of organ donation.” Individuals who can't decide may designate someone else to decide for them (that's a lot of pressure!). Hoping to dispel myths, the law also includes mandatory organ donation education in New Jersey high schools, and colleges will have to provide information at campus health centers.

Currently 24.5 percent (1.75 million) of New Jersey drivers authorize organ donation. To find out how many people need transplants, and how this law could go even further, read more.

Estimates show that 99,000 Americans (3,050 in New Jersey) need organ donations, and 85,000 Americans have died since 1995 while waiting.

Some may think this law, the first of its kind in the US, guilt-trips residents into consenting to organ donation; but, I can imagine a law that goes even further - what if donation was automatic, unless otherwise objected to? One could argue that by requiring the expressed prior consent of the deceased, we condemn others to unnecessary death. Even so, this new New Jersey law that requires some decision seems to blend education, responsibility, and respect for everyone involved.

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Americans Drive Much, Much Less - and Roads Are Suffering

CitizenSugar — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 15:45:38 -0700

Well, you know what they say, you can't win for losing. "They" would be my mom, and I just realized that doesn't actually make sense. But! In the world of gas, doing good is coming back to haunt us. The steep gas prices and/or environmental concern led to 1.4 billion fewer highway miles driven by Americans in April this year than the same time last year, so says the Department of Transportation.

It's the sixth consecutive monthly drop in miles driven and is more than three times larger than the drop from March 2007 to March of this year, which was 400 million fewer highway miles. Yay for us conserving and all that, right? Not if you want nice roads and no traffic when you do drive. Less driving = less gas purchased = fewer taxes on gasoline, which go to fund the federal Highway Trust Fund that gets 18.4 cents per gallon from gasoline, and is used to improve the roads. Sigh. To see tiny cars come out of a vending machine, read more.

Transportation Secretary Mary Peters also said sales of midsize SUV fell 38 percent last month compared with last year. The love of tiny autos did lead to the creation of these amazing Smart Car vending machines, so there's that.

And when you do buy gas, you might want to bring your own measuring cup. In New Jersey, 350 gas stations have received tickets for cheating customers out of the full amount of gas they purchased.

Do we need to come up with an alternate way to pay for roads? Or are we just heading away from cars altogether?

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Teen in New Jersey Torches Fellow Student's Turban

CitizenSugar — Thu, 15 May 2008 06:00:59 -0700

A high school senior was in court yesterday on charges of arson and criminal mischief after he was charged with setting fire to a fellow student's turban.

Authorities say Garrett Green set a 16-year-old junior's turban alight with a cigarette lighter during a fire drill last week. The Sikh student suffered patches of burnt hair but was not seriously hurt.

The culturally insensitive act came with some big consequences. In addition to legal proceedings, school officials are banning the high school senior from campus and won't be allowed to attend prom or graduation at the school just east of Trenton. The district will give the 18-year-old home schooling instead.

The turban-wearing student was a Sikh. Sikhism calls for long hair on men who commonly wear turbans. Is this just an isolated incident of schoolyard mischief or dangerous religious intolerance? Though Turkey has banned and then reallowed the wearing of headscarves in schools, should schools have a more neutral dress code? Are articles like turbans detrimental to a learning environment?

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Should Wives of Scandal Stand by Their Men?

LibertySugar — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 15:52:51 -0700

Whether their husbands are denying illicit affairs or asking for forgiveness, the wives of politicians wrapped up in scandals always seem to stand - literally - by their men.

Today, while I was watching New York Governor Eliot Spitzer briefly apologize to his family and the public for his involvement in a prostitution ring, I couldn't help but imagine his wife's humiliation. It always strikes me as cruel to make a woman who's been betrayed by infidelity, stand next to her husband for the sake of making him look better. Perhaps they're too in shock to protest serving as a political tool? Or maybe they're just used to it, and take it as part of life in the public eye.

Cindy McCain did it after the Times's musings about her husband's ties to a lobbyist recently, and Larry Craig's wife stood by after her husband's bathroom run-in last summer. In 2004, New Jersey Governor James McGreevey announced his resignation and love affair with a male aide. His wife stood by his side. I don't know if it's just me, but in cases like these I can't help but feel mortified for the silent partner made to stand by, basking in her husband's shame.

What's your reaction? Can you imagine doing it?

Seven Year Old Caught With Crack Cocaine. Are You Shocked?

CitizenSugar — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 12:00:28 -0800

In Trenton, NJ, yesterday police said a 7-year-old boy brought 2.5 ounces of crack cocaine to school.

The boy and his 10-year-old sister both attend Parker Elementary School. The children are now in the care of the Office of the Division of Youth and Family Services. The parents, along with two of the children's uncles were arrested immediately.

Will You Watch The Real Housewives of New Jersey?

TresSugar — Tue, 12 May 2009 14:30:00 -0700

The Manzo family is thick as thieves and poised to become reality TV stars when the Real Housewives of New Jersey airs tonight. They're also the first family-based set, plus one outsider for good measure, to star in the Bravo housewives franchise.

The group, whose members know each better than the previous casts, has a tough, Sopranoesque feel to it. In fact, some appear to have actual mob ties.

Based on the previews, the women will offer a different variety of topics for viewers' enjoyment. If you tune in, you'll witness intricate family drama, a 45-year-old woman chasing youth and love (OK, that's not new), and you'll hear a lot about "bubbies," aka breasts.

The show premieres tonight at 11 p.m. EST. Will you tune in?

Do Tell: Were Your Parents Open About Their Sex Lives?

TresSugar — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 07:00:00 -0700

Most people I know get creeped out by the idea of their parents having sex (you probably thought "eeeeew" after reading that sentence). But some of the more freewheeling parents out there don't bother hiding their sexuality from their children.

Earlier this week on the Real Housewives of New Jersey, single mom Danielle spoke candidly about her love life with her young daughters. The girls informed their mother that her much younger boyfriend was just using her for her "goodies." Danielle told her girls she hopes they'll save their goodies for their husbands, since she doesn't want them to go through the same thing she has.

Some parents go even further than just talking about their sex lives with their children. In an interview this week, actor Shia LaBeouf says his sense of humor came from "seeing my parents have sex, smoke weed, my mom being naked."

Did you have parents like that, or did your parents lead you to believe they were asexual?

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Have You Ever Ended a Relationship Because of Your Family?

TresSugar — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 11:00:00 -0700

If you've been watching the Real Housewives of New Jersey, you might feel bad for housewife Jacqueline. Her sister-in-law Dina is no fan of Jacqueline's friend Danielle, a seemingly harmless but lost single mom with younger boyfriends and a sordid, perhaps criminal, past. And Danielle is no fan of Dina's.

I can tell Jacqueline doesn't want to abandon her friend, who has few people she can trust, but she also doesn't want to be on her sister-in-law's bad side. On last night's episode, Jacqueline revealed her temporary solution: she's imposing a no trash-talking-my-family rule while she's in Danielle's company. Still, I think it won't be long before Jacqueline has to give up her friendship with Danielle if she doesn't want to risk a riff in the family.

Have you ever had to implement the blood-is-thicker-than-water rule and end a relationship - romantic or platonic - because of your family's objections?

Photos courtesy of Bravo