MasterZChicago
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National Coalition for Sexual Freedom -- Media Update
January 27, 2006
www.ncsfreedom.org
[email protected]
1. Dominatrix closing includes dress-up: Prosecutor wears mask, collar
during closing
2. Dominatrix defense alleges coercion
3. Porn feeds human trafficking
4. Bondage group looks to become official
5. City to scrutinize legality of sex parties
6. Thoughts for Another Day
7. Residents Want Action Against Club
8. Woman Says City Can't Stop Her Bondage Business
Dominatrix closing includes dress-up: Prosecutor wears mask, collar during
closing
by Karen Eschbacher
The Patriot Ledger (Boston)
January 27, 2006
DEDHAM - In a dramatic closing argument today, prosecutor Robert Nelson
acted out what he said were the final moments of Michael Lord's life.
Nelson said Barbara McLaughlin-Asher, a 56-year-old Quincy woman, was
responible for Lord's death during a bondage session.
"She placed a hood the head openings for his eyes, nose and mouth and
placed it over his head," Nelson said, putting a hood over his own head.
"She placed a collar and placed it around his neck," Nelson said as he
attached a collar to his own neck.
"She led him into this room on a leash, she attached him to a rack,"
Nelson said.
Nelson then stood against a chalk board in Norfolk Superior Court and
extended his arms out as if he were attached to a rack.
Asher's lawyer ripped the prosecution's during her closing arguments.
"No body. No blood. No DNA. No evidence," said attorney Stephanie
Page.
Asher is accused of manslaughter in the death of Lord, who allegedly
suffered a heart attack during an sadomasochistic session.
[continued]
To read this entire article, go to:
http://www.patriotledger.com/articles/2006/01/27/news/news01.txt
To respond, write to: the author at [email protected] or the
editors at [email protected]
Dominatrix defense alleges coercion: Says confession illegally obtained
by Peter Schworm
The Boston Globe
January 27, 2006
DEDHAM -- A paid defense witness testified yesterday that investigators
used ''high-end psychologically coercive tactics" to coax a Quincy
dominatrix to allegedly confess to manslaughter in the death of a client
during a bondage session.
Barbara Asher, 56, is on trial for the death of Michael Lord of New
Hampton, N.H., who prosecutors allege died of a heart attack while in
Asher's apartment.
Richard Ofshe, a social psychologist who has studied police interrogation
techniques, testified that police coerced Asher using a combination of
threats and false promises.
''Such tactics can lead a person who is upset, who is not thinking
straight, to leap at what seems to be a life preserver and say 'I did it,'
" Ofshe testified. ''It doesn't matter if you committed the crime or not."
Prosecutors said Ofshe's opinions were speculative. They say Asher and her
boyfriend dismembered the victim's body and dumped the remains behind a
restaurant in Maine. The remains have not been found.
Asher's confession, the centerpiece of the prosecutors' case, was
allegedly made to police a month after Lord's disappearance but was not
recorded.
[continued]
To read this entire article, go to:
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2006/01/27/dominatrix_defense_alleges_coercion/
To respond, write to: the author at [email protected] or the
editors at [email protected]
Porn feeds human trafficking
by Daniel Weiss (guest commentary, affiliated with Focus on the Family)
The Denver Post
January 27, 2006
Last week, President Bush signed the Trafficking Victims Protection
Reauthorization Act of 2005, mandating the U.S. government and military
expend greater efforts to combat the illegal practice of buying and
selling human beings.
This global tragedy hinges on the notion that human beings are commodities
to be bought, sold, used and discarded. If the president is truly serious
about ending the global sex trade, he would do well to start at home by
cleaning up one of its primary drivers: the explosive growth of illegal
hardcore pornography.
Hardcore pornography, or material depicting actual sex acts, promotes the
idea that human beings can be sexually used and abused without
consequences. If we tolerate pornographic material that encourages people
to indulge their darkest sexual fantasies, we cannot act surprised when
millions do so in real life as well.
Although the Supreme Court has determined that hardcore pornography, or
obscenity, has no First Amendment protection, Justice Department
enforcement efforts over the past five years total only 40 obscenity
prosecutions of persons or entities, most of whom worked alone and ran
their businesses out of garages.
In the absence of meaningful enforcement, thousands of large-scale porn
purveyors continue to churn out "entertainment" products featuring
depictions of rape, bondage, group sex and pseudo-child pornography.
[continued]
To read this entire article, go to:
http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_3441140
To respond, write to:[email protected]
Bondage group looks to become official
by Alia Orra
The Independent Collegian (University of Toledo)
January 26, 2006
In the farthest corner of a sixth-floor stable of cubicles in University
Hall, a running conversation on the virtues of whips, ropes and nipple
clamps is filling an otherwise dull workspace.
Explaining the basics of such equipment may tend to elicit school-girl
laughter or vulgar intensity, but Sean Shannon is exhibiting neither.
The graduate student speaks of bondage, domination, submission and
sadomasochism as one speaks of English literature (in which she's
well-versed) or the History Channel: with considerable restraint.
Shannon is in the later stages of organizing an official university group
to be called UT Un/Gagged, one that socially and politically advocates for
practitioners of BDSM sex.
The bondage safety demonstration that Shannon has given on campus in the
past is perhaps one of the only things that will make the transition from
bedroom to university.
"This isn't a group where people are going to be titillated," Shannon
said. "This isn't going to be a big sex group. It's going to be
educational and social."
Other colleges, such as Columbia and New York University, have established
similar groups formed around a shared interest in BDSM.
[continued]
To read this article, go to:
http://www.independentcollegian.com/media/paper678/news/2006/01/26/News/Bondage.Group.Looks.To.Become.Official-1505597.shtml?norewri
te&sourcedomain=www.independentcollegian.com
To respond, write to: [email protected]
City to scrutinize legality of sex parties
by Mike Goodwin
The Times Union (Albany, NY)
January 26, 2006
SCHENECTADY -- Bob Alexson said the law is on his side if anyone tries to
outlaw racy sex parties at his bed and breakfast.
Alexson, a longtime landlord who studied municipal codes and other
ordinances as a volunteer firefighter, said he is convinced his Union
Street Bed & Breakfast meets all city zoning laws and is operated legally.
He said a judge recently acquitted him of unrelated code violations and
expects the city will be cautious if it contemplates legal action.
"They know I cross my i's and dot my t's," Alexson said Wednesday.
Assistant Corporation Counsel L. John Van Norden spent Wednesday examining
city ordinances and other legislation to determine whether the city has
any control over the erotic adventures inside the B&B.
Mayor Brian U. Stratton said the business does not belong in a residential
neighborhood.
"It's right in the middle of a beautiful part of the city, but really it
shouldn't be anywhere," he said. "It's not what we want to have here, but
we'll look into it and see what options there might be to address the
situation."
Alexson has owned the inn since March 2001, but it didn't draw scrutiny
until neighbor Dana Swalla, an engineer from nearby Phoenix Avenue,
circulated petitions among neighbors this week, hoping to enlist them in
efforts to close the place. Swalla said she was angered by loud parties at
the house.
Alexson acknowledges being a swinger and regularly hosting weekend sex
parties at the inn that draw more than 30 people. Single men pay $40;
couples, $30. Single women get in free. Alexson said he serves no alcohol
to his guests. The fee covers the cost of homemade pizza and potato chips,
cleanup and the lost revenue from the three bedrooms set aside for
partygoers.
[continued]
To read this entire article, go to:
http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=443723&category=REGION&newsdate=1/26/2006
To respond, write to: the author at [email protected] or
the editors at [email protected]
Thoughts for Another Day
by Miriam Datskovsky (opinion)
The Columbia Spectator (Columbia University)
January 23, 2006
In high school I lived, breathed, and swore monogamy. I had a serious
boyfriend; I never dreamt of cheating on him. That's not to say I didn't
fantasize about other guys. I had a rather lengthy mental list of
boys-I-would-hook-up-with-if-I-were-single. I imagined myself in another,
more single, life - a happy slut. But short of a very drunken, pizza and
puke involved New Year's senior year (oh God) I never breathed a word
about my secret desires. Quite the opposite, in fact. If a boy so much as
brushed against my hand, I threw rocks at him. Because one day when I was
14, my father picked me up from school and told me had an affair, had
cheated on my mother, and might divorce her. Translation: one day when I
was 14, my father forever warped my understanding of monogamy.
Monogamy, or the lack thereof - otherwise known as polyamory,
non-monogamy, and my personal favorite, the "open relationship" - is the
hot issue of the day. (Fucking Facebook needs to get rid of that option.
It just complicates things. No, really, Mark Zuckerberg. I adore Facebook.
But the whole "open relationship" category needs to bounce.) So naturally
the whole world is confused. Redbook strongly believes "being open and
honest means acting responsibly and maturely, not like a self-indulgent
kid who wants to have his cake and eat it too!" New York lauds the "new
monogamy ... as a sign of the times and our evolution." Betty Dodson, "the
mother of masturbation," just possibly the queen of sex, and my latest
personal hero - and undoubtedly in the public eye - has been happily
involved in an open relationship for the last five-plus years.
And yet a husband-and-wife duo writing about their open marriage in two
best-selling books on relationships must hide their identities in order to
protect their professional and social reputations. The literary world is
heatedly debating the world's most famous open marriage, that of Jean-Paul
Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir: Hazel Rowley, Beauvoir expert and author of
Tjte-`-tjte, a recent book chronicling the Sartre-Beauvoir relationship,
believes that the Sartre and Beauvoir's "pact" allowed Beauvoir to be what
Rowley describes as the truly independent woman. But a similar New Yorker
article questions whether "the pact was just the traditional sexist
arrangement - in which the man sleeps around and the woman nobly "accepts"
the situation... Beauvoir was formidable, but she was not made of ice.
Though her affairs, for the most part, were love affairs, it is plain from
almost every page she wrote that she would have given them all up if she
could have Sartre for herself alone."
[continued]
To read this entire article, go to:
http://www.columbiaspectator.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2006/01/23/43d4808c6553e
To respond, go to: link at bottom of article
Residents Want Action Against Club
by staff writer
WiscNews.com (Wisconsin)
January 21, 2006
New Haven - Residents of New Haven asked the town board what it will do to
close a sex club there, and the board members said they were working to do
so, but no action has been taken.
The board had on its agenda a discussion with Michael Bennin of the
Wetspot and his attorney, but neither the attorney nor Bennin showed up at
the meeting Thursday night. The Wetspot opened in the fall and is
described as a private club for those who enjoy the "swinging lifestyle"
the exchange of sexual partners.
Not having representatives of the club at the meeting did not stop the 26
residents at the meeting questioning board members about what was being
done.
Town Chairman Robert Krause said the clubs move in where there is no
zoning. "The thing is everyone is afraid of these guys."
The clubs and their attorneys try to intimidate officials with threats of
lawsuits, which was done at the board's December meeting when the club was
first discussed by the board, he said.
At that meeting, the board heard that a lawsuit trying to close the club
could cost up to $600,000 and the town would have to pay the costs if it
lost.
"We can't afford not to," an audience member said in response to Krause's
comments.
Kenneth Crothers, another audience member, said no one in the town was for
the club, and the board should not "lay down and play dead too quickly."
He suggested that taxpayers might be willing to pay to get rid of the
club.
Joan Beyers, wife of Board Supervisor Myron Beyers, suggested a petition
be circulated showing support for closing the club. She also suggested
forming a citizen's organization and taking down license plate numbers of
the club's patrons then publishing them. Others in the audience said that
might be illegal.
[continued]
To read this entire article, go to:
http://www.wiscnews.com/archives/read.php?ref=wde:2006:01:21:69629:News
To respond, go to: "Speak Up" link on webpage
Woman Says City Can't Stop Her Bondage Business
by staff writer
WRTV-TV 6 (Indianapolis)
January 20, 2006
INDIANAPOLIS -- A woman who runs a bondage and discipline business in her
home filed a legal response Friday to a city lawsuit against the
enterprise, arguing the city has no right to close it.
The city in November filed a lawsuit against Melyssa Donaghy, asking a
court to close her home business in the 4100 block of Central Avenue,
saying it violates zoning regulations.
The city argued that the business deals with "sexual torture" and
masochistic activities. The lawsuit alleges that Donaghy, also known as
"Miss Ann," operates a dungeon in the home's basement and charges men
hundreds of dollars to dress like women and be subjected to bondage and
acts of degradation.
Donaghy on Friday went to court to respond to the lawsuit. She said that
her business is non-sexual and that she isn't violating zoning laws.
"People in my neighborhood know what I do. They obviously have no problem
with it," Donaghy told reporters. "I continue to work. Many of the people
in the neighborhood are my friends and regularly attend parties in my
home. Until the mayor needed a photo op, there was really no issue."
In December, Mayor Bart Peterson held a news conference in which he
outlined the city's attempts to close Donaghy's business and other
establishments. Donaghy attended that event and tried to ask questions
along with reporters, but Peterson refused to answer her, except to say
that the press conference was for the news media.
[continued]
To read this entire article, go to:
http://www.theindychannel.com/news/6285413/detail.html
To respond, go to:
http://www.theindychannel.com/rtv6/112069/detail.html
HOW TO WRITE A LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Feedback letters are an effective way to convey a positive image of
alternate sexual practices such as SM, swinging, or polyamory. You can
help to correct negative social myths and misconceptions about these types
of practices. These letters help achieve the advocacy goals of the NCSF.
Generally, for a letter to be published, it's important to include your
name (or first initial, last name), city and daytime phone (for
verification only). For more information, see:
http://www.ncsfreedom.org/media/writelettertoeditor.htm
Please alert us to positive, negative or neutral stories about SM,
swinging and polyamory at [email protected]
###
A project of NCSF and ITCR: The Foundation of NCSF
National Coalition for Sexual Freedom (NCSF) is a national organization
committed to altering the political, legal, and social environment in the
U.S. in order to guarantee equal rights for consenting adults who practice
forms of alternative sexual expression. NCSF is primarily focused on the
rights of consenting adults in the SM-leather-fetish, swing, and polyamory
communities, who often face discrimination because of their sexual
expression.
National Coalition for Sexual Freedom
822 Guilford Avenue, Box 127
Baltimore, MD 21202-3707
410-539-4824
[email protected]
www.ncsfreedom.org
POSTED BY:
Master Z
SINSations In Leather
Event Director & Chairman
http://www.sinsationsinleather.com/
Kinky Kollege
Event Director & Chairman
http://www.kinkykollege.com/
2005 Holiday Fetish Fair
Event Director & Chairman
http://www.sinsfetishfair.com/
Master Z's BDSM Resource Guide
http://www.masterzchicago.com/
Master Z's Bio
http://www.masterzchicago.com/bio1.html
Leather SINS Social Club, NFP (NCSF CP)
Co-Founder & President
http://leathersins.com/
National Coalition for Sexual Freedom
Coalition Partner Representative
http://www.ncsfreedom.org/
_____________________________
Master Z
Master Z's BDSM Resource Guide
http://www.masterzchicago.com
Master Z's Bio
http://www.masterzchicago.com/bio1.html
National Coalition for Sexual Freedom
Coalition Partner Representative
http://www.ncsfreedom.org
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