TresSugar

Domestic Violence Linked to Football Losses

TresSugar — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 13:00:27 -0800

Sitting around with the family watching football is a favored Thanksgiving tradition. But new research reveals that football spectating is not always pleasant: losses have a statistical link to a rise in domestic violence. The study, which matched 12 years worth of team records with local domestic violence rates, suggests that a painful loss can trigger moments of anger in fans, causing them to lash out. Here are some of the findings:

When a team favored to win loses, there is an eight percent increase in intimate partner violence in the hometown state (the study only looked at states with one team).
The increase in violence comes in the hours immediately following the loss.
When the loss is against a traditional rival, the spike in violence doubles.
The rate spike also doubles following losses in games with a lot of turnovers and penalties.

But don't call for a ban on football quite yet - the experts reasonably point out that emotional games might just set off violence that would otherwise happen later. So while this information enlightens us about occasions that put women at higher risk of suffering domestic violence, it doesn't exactly tell us more about how to address the root causes. What do you make of it?

Funny Video! Palin Fans Explain Support!

Tres Community — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 12:00:24 -0800

This post was written by spacekatgal in the TrèsSugar community group Citizen 4.0.

Oh Gods, this video is both embarrassing and awesome at the same time. I was laughing so hard! The best part of this video was learning that "you never have to compromise when you're right. That's for people that are wrong." That will come in handy in my marriage.

There's lots of great stuff going on in our community - join it, check it out, share your posts or advice in the great groups and maybe we'll feature it here on TrèsSugar!

Stranger Than Fiction! Man Marries Video Game Character

TresSugar — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 11:00:55 -0800

This past Sunday a man known as "Sal9000" and his fiancé Nene Anegasaki vowed to stay together until death, or a power outage, do them part. You see Sal9000's new wife Nene happens to be a video game character in the addictive Nintendo DS game Love Plus. A priest, live audience, MC, and friends of the happy couple were also present at the event, and the bride's virtual maid of honor even gave a speech. A slideshow recounted how the couple met and teased Sal for being quite the player before he met Nene - he had lots of other video game girlfriends. The whole event was livecasted, and Boing Boing put together the video below so we could all witness this unique wedding.

This story might be the first time I've heard of someone marrying an anime character, but I have read about those who "marry" other inanimate objects. The term "objectum sexuals" describes people who feel attraction, arousal, love, and commitment for objects. One woman even held a ceremony in Paris and married the Eiffel Tower. Talk about nontraditional weddings.

Speed Read! Jennifer Hudson to Perform at State Dinner

TresSugar — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 09:30:19 -0800

Chicago native Jennifer Hudson will perform at the White House's star-studded state dinner tonight. - Washington Post
Google buys ads to explain why an offensive image of Michelle Obama comes up in search results. - Huffington Post
Should we thank Kate Moss for being frank about watching her weight? - Double X
Family returns from out of town to find home has been broken into and
decorated for Christmas. - Lemondrop
Can you write like Sarah Palin? Slate's holding a contest. - Slate
Inside a supermodel's suicide. - Sexy Beast
Octomom Nadya Suleman says she might have more children. Great. - Jezebel
New albums from Rihanna and Lady Gaga are out. - BuzzSugar
Seven lessons we can learn from Hollywood stuntwomen. - Flavorwire

Wikipedia's Army of Volunteer Editors Are Quitting

TresSugar — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 06:00:32 -0800

Volunteers who edit Wikipedia each day are quickly teaching the online encyclopedia that freedom and fun are crucial to the democratization of information. Burdened by complicated restrictions and uninterested in the more mundane topics (the most popular entries have already been written), volunteer editors are leaving Wikipedia faster than new ones are joining.

Wikipedia is under constant pressure to police the accuracy of its information, and that typically means leaving the moderation to millions of engaged users. That approach is fine with me, since I usually use Wikipedia to find out what everyone else knows about something; whether or not the info is true is a secondary consideration. But if less people engage in the content creation and moderation the quality of the information could go down. And that's a problem when these pages embody, and perhaps create, conventional wisdom. It's safer when there are more people who edit the entries, and thus more people who hold the power of truth (or truthiness) in their hands.

Luckily right now there are more than three million people who write, edit, and check the information, guaranteeing some level of oversight. Let's hope Wikipedia figures out how to keep them coming back. Have you ever contributed to Wikipedia?

Berlusconi's Mistress Tells Us More Than We Need to Know

TresSugar — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 13:30:23 -0800

Italians really take their sex scandals to the next level. Today, Patrizia D'Addario, former call girl mistress to Italy's "I'm no saint" prime minister, adds a "lesbian dimension" to her tale of sex, power, and retaliation.

Patrizia has a book coming out and excerpts reveal that she has been the target of threats, robbery, and violence after going public about her affair with Silvio Berlusconi. But that's not stopping her. Describing a party held at Berlusconi's home, Patrizia shares the prime minister's preference for white silk pajamas and women who like other women. To see an excerpt, read more.

Patrizia writes:

"Other girls arrived, including a pair of lesbians, and a few other escorts. . . My first thought was that I'd found myself in a harem. He was on the couch and all of us, 20 girls in all, were at his disposition."

While the presence of lesbians probably seems relatively inconsequential, it might upset Italian citizens who were otherwise willing to dismiss heterosexual escapades. And as the Guardian reports, Berlusconi can say good-bye to a recent break from bad press: "The publication of D'Addario's book will divert public attention back to the affair after a period in which the focus had been on another sex scandal involving the former center-left governor of the region around Rome. Piero Marrazzo resigned after being filmed taking drugs and having sex with a transsexual." Mama mia.

Grab Bag! Kristen Stewart is Queen of the Alt Teens

TresSugar — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 12:30:22 -0800

Kristen Stewart and the history of misfit teen idols. - DoubleX
Pine-Sol hopes that men doing housework turns women on. - Em & Lo
The coolest new vibrator. - Glamour
Four breakup warning signs. - Your Tango
An openly gay Republican has been picked as a GOP gubernatorial candidate's running mate. - Huffington Post
A curious little boy sees a lobster for the first time. Cuteness ensues. - LilSugar

Speed Read! American Music Awards Go Gaga

TresSugar — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 09:30:11 -0800

Didn't catch the AMAs? Here are the top 10 moments from last night's show. - BuzzSugar
Couple arrested for not paying 18 percent gratuity ($16 bucks) added to dinner bill.- Lemondrop
London thinks New York City has lost its edge. - The Frisky
The US Postal Service is canceling its letters to Santa program because one of the "Santas" was a registered sex offender. - Videogum
New Moon brought in $140.7 million this weekend. - PopSugar
Katie Couric is not immune to embarrassing Facebook photos. - Gawker
Michael Jackson's rhinestone-encrusted glove goes for $350,000 at auction. - The Daily Beast
Public support for marijuana legalization is on the rise. - Washington Post

Oh Snap! Her Life's Like a Soap Opera

TresSugar — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 06:00:00 -0800

Afghan actress Trena Amiri films a scene for the soap opera Love and Old Age in Kabul. Trena, who is divorced and rarely sees her three children according to Afghanistan's custody laws, tries to be discreet about her career because many people are critical of her lifestyle.

View 5 Photos ›

Real or Fake? Headlines of the Week

TresSugar — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 08:00:07 -0800

News can get pretty weird. Our Stranger Than Fiction feature covers a lot of it, but there's much more useless information to know. I've gathered some of this week's most bizarre headlines and mixed in some made-up ones. See if you can spot the real from the fake.

Take the quiz