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Kara Menini

Jessica Ahlquist appears on CNN

“Teen atheist” awarded $40k scholarship

 Jessica Ahlquist, from Cranston, Road Island, took her high school to court last year because of a prayer banner that had been hung in the building since the 1960s. After having come to the conclusion that God does not exist, 16-year-old atheist Jessica Ahlquist decided that the prayer flag hung in her school violates the Constitution’s First Amendment of the separation of church and state and sued her school to remove “school prayer.” 

Jessica Ahlquist won her fight on Jan.11 when a U.S. District Judge ordered the removal of the banner. Since then, Ahlquist has been the target of hate and ignorance around the country. As is popular in the modern world, many protestors of the removal have taken to the internet to express their anger. According to MailOnline, “One woman posted her reaction to Miss Ahlquist’s efforts over Twitter writing, ‘I hope there’s lots of banners in Hell when you’re rotting in there you atheist f***.’”

Jessica Ahlquist appeared on CNN this morning to discuss her journey from a believer to being the face of atheism. Ahlquist explained to Soledad O’Brien that she realized God didn’t exist after praying for a sick family member.  She felt her prayers weren’t being answered and also realized there were other people in the world who needed God’s help more than her family, and they too weren’t getting answers either. “It just, kind of, brought all these questions to mind, and in the end, I decided he must not exist,” Jessica Ahlquist said on CNN. 

Even though she has been in the media for a while because of the court case, she says she hasn’t gotten used to death threats and being told how bad she is- but says she is able to cope with it now. Jessica Ahlquist also discussed how Rhode Island state representative Peter Palumbo called her an “evil little thing.”  Ahlquist told O’Brien, “I feel it’s immature and inappropriate for a state representative, who represents me also, by the way, to be calling me something as petty as an evil little thing.” Jessica Ahlquist and a friend have decided to turn that title into a positive thing by selling T-shirts with the phrase, “Evil Little Thing” in order to raise funds for her college education. 

A national atheist group, the American Humanist Association, has showed its support by raising more than $40,000 for Jessica Ahlquist because she stood up against her critics “with class and style.”

Jason Campbell calls off wedding

Former Redskins QB denies rumors that wedding was cancelled at the last minute

Jason Campbell, former quarterback for the Washington Redskins, and fiancée Jenny Montes, are rumored to have called off their wedding mere hours before the ceremony was scheduled to begin in the Dominican Republic.

Jason Campbell and Jenny Montes had planned to tie the knot this past Saturday in the Dominican Republic in front of 162 guests at an exclusive resort, reports the Washington Post. The bride-to-be had been tweeting down the days until the ceremony so it came as a huge surprise to the guests, who had already flown to the resort, when they were informed that the wedding had been called off without further explanation. Jason Campbell, in a phone conversation with the Washington Post, “declined to go into details but said the two came to a decision to ‘put things off’ after discussing it for a couple of weeks.” Campbell was quoted as saying, “I love her enough not to leave her at the altar. I love her enough to talk to her before it gets that far.” 

However, Jason Campbell has denied that they called off the wedding at the last minute.  “That stuff is just crazy. Jenny’s a good person and I’m a good person. I don’t even know why people would put all those lies out there,” he told the Washington Post. Even though Campbell said he and his fiancée were at the resort because they, “just made a vacation out of it,” it still seems accurate that all the guests had also flown in. 

Jason Campbell has been dealing with issues in his career after he broke his collar bone and was benched for the remainder of the season. This injury seems to be one cause for the cancellation, “It’s just the fact that I have a lot going on right now with recovering from injury.  There’s just so much going on in both our lives right now,” he said according to the Washington Post. 

The couple took down the website for their wedding on Tuesday and has not given more information as to whether the ceremony cancellation was simply a postponement or if the wedding is permanently called off. Jason Campbell told the Washington Post, “We’re not trying to force anything right now.”

Nightline gets exclusive look inside Apple factory

Reporter Bill Weir first ever inside Foxconn facility in China

Nightline featured Apple’s elusive factory in Chengdu, China last night that showcased how the world’s most beloved Apple products are made. The Foxconn facilities employ nearly 3,000 workers a day, most of who have moved from their rural villages in hopes of working for a decent wage. Nightline featured not only the spotless atmosphere of the factory floors, but also the cafeteria and the dorms that are each shared by at least six employees. According to PCMag.com, Nightline’s visit “happened in conjunction with the Fair Labor Association’s (FLA) audit of Foxconn facilities.”

Nightline’s Bill Weir, as he says before he steps into the factory, is the first reporter in the world who has ever been allowed to see inside the Chinese factories. Before entering, he must put on a static-proof suit and must go through several “air showers, because one speck of dust could ruin an entire line.” Weir walks into a spotless room with an assembly line of young Chinese men and women who are responsible for making every iProduct almost completely by hand. Nightline’s Bill Weir is given a tour by a top Foxconn executive who gives him information about the processes: it takes 141 steps to make an iPhone and five days and 325 hands to make an iPad. Nightline’s exclusive report also learns that each employee works a 12-hour shift at $1.78 an hour and is given two hour-long lunch breaks. The Nightline camera shows employees quickly eating their lunches, which cost about $.70, and heading to their work stations to catch a quick nap. The executive with Weir explains they are napping because of Chinese tradition, not exhaustion. 

Nightline reported that although many employees complained about the low wages, working at Foxconn is a better alternative than staying in the rural villages where they grew up because of the scarcity of jobs. PCMag.com reported that despite the low wages and long hours, “they [workers] lined up by the thousands at dawn in order to snag a job at Foxconn. And Foxconn will hire about 80 percent of the 3,000 people waiting at the gates.” 

Apparently, the number of suicides at Foxconn has provoked interest in the working conditions. The executive who gave the tour to Nightline told Weir that the number of suicides at the factory, nine within three months in 2010, is actually lower than the nation average. However, according to PCMag.com, Apple’s CEO Tim Cook traveled to the factory to “evaluate the situation.” Apparently, “Wages were raised, a counseling center was opened, and nets were placed around the dorms to stop jumpers.” 

During the report, Weir interviews a factory worker, who had never seen a working iPad before, and shows her pictures of his kids on his own iPad. Weir asked her what she wants people who buy Apple products to know about her, and she replies, “I want them to know me. I want them to know we put a lot of effort in this product so when they use this please use it with care”

Brady Quinn apologizes for Tim Tebow comments

GQ article quotes Brady Quinn as undermining Tim Tebows success

Brady Quinn has apologized for his comments about Tim Tebow that were put in a GQ article this past week. Quinn apologized via Twitter explaining his “disappointment with the writer” for taking his comments out of context. 

Brady Quinn’s comments were featured in a GQ article by Michael Silver on Tebowmania, “The Year of Magical Stinking: An Oral History of Tebow Time.”  The article was written on the miracle of Tim Tebow’s success despite his terrible passing game through quotations from NFL professionals like analysts from ESPN and the NFL Network, various current NFL players and team managers as well as different coaches.  Brady Quinn’s first comment gives way to how he felt about being leapfrogged by Tebow when former Denver QB was hurt.  “I felt like the fans had a lot to do with that. Just ’cause they were chanting his name. There was a big calling for him. No, I didn’t have any billboards. That would have been nice.” Brady Quinn also seems to undermine Tebows talent by saying, about the team, “we’eve had a lot of, I guess, luck, to put it simply.” 

The article also addresses Tebow’s “over the top Christianity” and how it has made some other players feel. Brady Quinn was quoted that he felt Tebow wasn’t very humble about his religion because of the way he flaunts it in front of the camera.  “If you look at it as a whole, there’s a lot of things that just don’t seem very humble to me. When I get that opportunity, I’ll continue to lead not necessarily by trying to get in front of the camera and praying but by praying with my teammates, you know?” However, Brady Quinn wasn’t the only one who felt the need to question Tebow’s ways of praise; Nick Barnett, linebacker for the Buffalo Bills, was also quoted in the article as saying, “I think it does rub some of the guys the wrong way. For a lot of Christians, using football as a measuring stick of how good God is—it’s not necessarily what you’re supposed to be doing.”   

Though Brady Quinn blames the writer for taking his comments out of context, it does seem that he is being singled-out. As exemplified by Barnett’s comment, it’s any wonder why Quinn is the only one being chastised. Shawne Merriman, also a Buffalo Bill’s linebacker said in the article, “His teammates are making him look a lot better than he is,” and Terrell Suggs of the Baltimore Ravens said, “It’s just crazy that we’re calling him a phenomenon when basically he’s mediocre.”  

Brady Quinn has apologized via his Twitter, saying that his comments in the article “are in NO WAY reflective of my opinion of Tim.” Brady Quinn added, “I apologize to anyone who feels I was trying to take anything away from our Team’s or Tim’s success this season.”

Whitney Houston's Funeral to Stream Live

Singers family opted out of public memorial, will stream service online instead

Whitney Houston’s funeral will be held at the church that set off her career, New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, New Jersey.  The family has decided against holding a public memorial but opted instead to stream the invite-only ceremony live on the internet.  Celebrities like Aretha Franklin and Stevie Wonder will sing at the service, while more big names are expected to attend the service.  Houston’s eulogy will be lead by the same man who married Houston and Bobby Brown in 1991, Pastor Marvin Winans.  Contrary to reports, the family has denied that Bobby Brown is being kept from the funeral and is expected to be there with his and Houston’s daughter, Bobbi Christina. 

Whitney Houston’s official funeral is set to start tomorrow, however, E! Online has reported that Houston’s closest friends and family have chosen, “to pay their initial respects to the singer tonight, away from the glare of the cameras.”

According to ABC, there are speculations as to what celebrities will attend the service including Bill Cosby and Oprah Winfrey.  There are many confirmed attendees including Revs. Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton, Antonio “L.A.” Reid and Chaka Khan.  Siblings Brandy and Ray J. will also be attending; Ray J has been connected with Whitney Houston recently and it has been rumored that they were in a relationship at the time of her death. 

Mel Gibson has also been rumored as being an invite to Whitney Houston’s funeral.  According to TMZ, “the family extended the invite because Mel tried to help the singer during a very dark period in her life.”  Apparently, Gibson “quietly intervened” when Houston was at her worst in her constant battle with drugs and alcohol. Mel Gibson “spent a lot of time with her, trying to help her break the addiction cycle.”  TMZ reports, however, that Gibson will not be attending the funeral because of “family plans”. 

New Jersey’s Governor, Chris Christie, has had to defend his decision to hang flags at the states government buildings at half-staff tomorrow in honor of the Newark born singer.  According to the Washington Post, Gov. Christie used his Twitter to back up his decision from critics and during a press conference when he announced the plan, he stated, “Obviously, Whitney Houston was an important part of the cultural fabric of this state…I think she belongs in the same category from a musical perspective in New Jersey history with folk like Frank Sinatra, Count Basie and Bruce Springsteen.  She was a cultural icon in this state.”

Michael Jordan turns 49

Unhappy birthday for NBA legend

Michael Jordan turns 49 today, though he doesn’t have much else to celebrate this year.  The NBA legend owns the Charlotte Bobcats who, this year, are 3-26 and Jordan recently lost a lawsuit against the Midwestern based grocery chain, Jewel-Osco, who used his infamous number “23” in an “ad-like magazine layout.”

Michael Jordan was recently spotted at a Bobcats game against the Chicago Bulls sitting next to his fiancée, Yvette Prieto.  According to CBS, Jordan has stayed quiet as the pile of losses slowly mounts.  The Bobcats have lost 16 games in a row, giving the team one of the worst winning percentages in NBA history: .103.

In 2009, Jewel-Osco published an “ad-like layout” in Sports Illustrated congratulating Michael Jordon on his Basketball Hall of Fame induction.  The ad included a pair of basketball shoes with the number “23”, Jordan’s jersey number, and the Jewel-Osco logo underneath.  On Thursday, a judge ruled the ad was constitutionally protected free speech.  According to The Huffington Post, U.S. District Judge Gary Feinerman said, “The page does not propose any kind of commercial transaction, as readers would be at a loss to explain what they have been invited to buy.”

Michael Jordan’s attorney disagreed with the ruling, according to The Huffington Post because, “several witnesses admitted the layout was intended to promote Jewel-Osco’s goods and services.  ‘That,’ he said, ‘is an admission that the ad was commercial speech.’”

“Celebrities such as Jordon meticulously guard their images, and others have successfully sued companies for appearing to employ praise as a way to slip in references to a public figure into an advertisement,” The Huffington Post reports.  Kim Kardashian last summer sued the Gap for using a model that “looked like her” and sought $20 million in damages.

Foster Friess Apologizes for Joke

Rick Santorum refuses to apologize for supporter

Foster Friess, a wealthy donor for the super PAC that is backing Rick Santorum, stunned MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell on Thursday with an off-colored joke regarding the heated debate of contraception.  In the interview, Friess said, “Back in my days, they used Bayer aspirin for contraceptives.  The gals put it between their knees, and it wasn’t that costly.”  The joke implies that women would hold the pill between their legs so that they wouldn’t be able to open them; a dry joke about abstinence.  The Huffington Post reported Mitchell’s response, “’Excuse me, I’m just trying to catch my breath from that, Mr. Freiss, frankly,’ she said incredulously.” 

Foster Friess wrote a statement on his website, according to CBS, that said, “The joke bombed…many didn’t recognize it as a joke but thought it was my prescription for today’s birth control practices.”  Those who didn’t “recognize” the joke include women’s groups who were outraged by the joke.

Rick Santorum is being targeted for his donor’s remarks, but instead of caving into apologizing for his supporter, has accused the media of a double-standard.  In a response to CBS host Charlie Rose, Santorum said, “In fact, with President Obama, what you did was you went out and defended him against someone who sat in a church for 20 years, and defended him, that he can’t possibly believe what he listened to for 20 years.  That’s a double-standard, this is what you’re pulling off, and I’m going to call you on it,” WVGazette.com reports. 

“I’m not responsible for any comment that anybody who supports me makes and my record stands for itself,” Santorum said.  Foster Friess also wrote on his website that Rick Santorum, “publicly stated he would not bad contraception; he has said if he were a member of a state legislature which introduced such a bill, he would vote against it; and he has incurred the wrath of his more conservative friends for voting to fund contraception to fight AIDS in Africa.” 

Foster Friess concluded the apology on his website, “To those who applauded my comments and remembered the joke, thanks for you encouragement.  To those who thought I was callously encouraging that as a prescription for today, I kindly ask your forgiveness.”

Pat Buchanan Dropped from MSNBC

Conservative commentator departing from network after four month suspension

Pat Buchanan, a conservative commentator at MSNBC since 2002, is being let go following a four month suspension due to the publication of his last book, Suicide of a Superpower: Will America Survive to 2025?

Pat Buchanan, according to the NY Times, had been hired at MSNBC when the news channel, “called itself ‘fiercely independent’ and had no clear political tilt.”  Within the past decade, however, the news channel has certainly tilted towards the left, leaving Pat Buchanan as somewhat of an outsider.  Problems hadn’t aroused until the publication of Buchanan’s book; he even forged, “an unlikely chemistry with talk show host Rachel Maddow despite disagreeing on most issues,” according to CBS.  For the two decades before his contract started with MSNBC, Pat Buchanan had hosted CNN’s show “Cross Fire.”

Pat Buchanan’s book, with chapter titles like, “The Death of Christian American” and “The End of White America”, has been considered insensitive, homophobic, racist and anti-Semetic by critics.  NY Times quoted Buchanan’s rebuttal to the accusations, “Consider what it is these people are saying.  They are saying that a respected publisher, St. Martin’s, colluded with me to produce a racist, homophobic, anti-Semitic book, and CNN, Fox News, C-SPAN, Fox Business News, and the 150 radio shows on which I appeared failed to detect its evil and helped to promote a moral atrocity.”  In short, Liberals see the book, and Pat Buchanan, as insensitive where Republicans see the book as eye-opening. 

According to reports, the President of MSNBC, Phil Griffin, was quoted last month as saying that he didn’t agree that Buchanan’s book “should be part of the national dialogue, much less part of the dialogue on MSNBC.” A spokesman for the network was quoted, “After 10 years, we’ve parted ways with Pat Buchanan.  We wish him well.”

Pat Buchanan’s farewell words weren’t as short. 

On Thursday, Pat Buchanan wrote a column which included some choice words about his departure, “In the 10 years I have been at MSNBC, the network has taken heat for what I have written, and faithfully honored our contract.  Yet my four months’ absence from MSNBC and now my departure represent an undeniable victory for the blacklisters.”  He added, “I know these blacklisters.  They operate behind closed doors, with phone calls, mailed threats and off-the-record meetings.  They work in the dark because, as Al Smith said, nothing un-American can live in the sunlight.” 

During his four month suspension, Pat Buchanan made many media appearances, mostly with Fox News or its affiliates, and the NY Times reported that, “Several Fox News hosts and commentators publicly defended Mr. Buchanan in January, sparking some speculation that Fox could sign him as a commentator at some point.”

Colbert Report Cancelled

Speculations arise when Colbert Report will be back on air

The Colbert Report has been inexplicably, yet temporarily, cancelled due to what sources are saying as a family emergency.  Ticket holders in line to see Wednesday night’s fake-news show hosted by Stephan Colbert were disappointed as the taping was suspended, “due to unforeseen circumstances,” but a Comedy Central spokesman added that, “the show will air repeat episodes on Wednesday, February 15, and Thursday, February 16.”  Wednesday nights show had scheduled Claire Danes as the guest.  

The Colbert Report, according to Fox News, has never cancelled an episode in the seven years it has been running, and in the midst of this years Republican primaries, it seems the worst time for a suspension.  Fox News reports the show, “achieves its highest ratings during election seasons.  Colbert has been especially active this political cycle even starting his own super PAC.”

Buddy TV reports that the Colbert Report, “suggest that the halt was due to ‘an emergency in [Stephan] Colberts family,’” HuffPo adds that the comedian’s mother, Lorna, is seriously ill.” 

Stephan Colbert, according to Fox News, usually updates his own social media accounts but has not updated his Twitter since Tuesday.  However, upon further investigation, College News has discovered that Stephan Colbert’s personal Twitter account, @StehpenColbert, has been suspended.

Although Comedy Central had announced the decision to air re-runs on Wednesday and Thursday, there haven’t been any further reports on when the show is due to start production again.

Nicki Minaj turns heads at Grammys

Performance offends Catholic community

Nicki Minaj has always pushed the limits in her image and in her music ,and the Grammys, indeed, were full of surprises.  But, Nicki Minaj’s performance this Sunday, on and off the stage, went beyond the realm of surprise and crossed over into creepy and confusing territory.

Nicki Minaj walked the red carpet in an equally red satin robe that was custom-made by Atelier Versace.  The robe looked like an haute-couture adaptation of a robe worn by cardinals, embellished with black beads around the hood and the front of the robe was decorated, in the same beading, with Versace’s Medusa logo.  The boundaries of Nicki Minaj’s outfit didn’t stop at the robe, as she was accompanied by an older Caucasian man dressed as the pope.  Nicki Minaj is pictured with an expressionless face while clung to his arm in almost every shot.  She was apparently channeling her alter ego “Roman Zolanski.”

Nicki Minaj took this alter ego on stage with her as she debuted a song from her new album, “Roman Reloaded,” and her performance took, as Fox News stated, “religious symbolism to a whole new level of weirdness.”  The performance began with a pre-taped skit where Minaj is applying pink lipstick, while singing, “I Feel Pretty” to show her level of insanity. As a priest walks in, she hisses and runs up the wall and speaks to him from the corner of the ceiling.  The onstage performance starts with Minaj’s hands tied-up above her head with backup dancers surrounding the rest of the stage.  In between verses, Nicki Minaj groans, mumbles and yells things like, “Stop it please, get out of my head!”  The performance ends in what seems to be an exorcism of sorts, complete with levitation as she ends the song floating in the air. 

Of course, Nicki Minaj’s performance has enraged the Catholic community.  According to the Washington Post, Bill Donohue of the Catholic League made a statement:

“None of this was by accident, and all of it was approved by The Recording Academy, which put on the Grammys. Whether [Nicki] Minaj is possessed is surely an open question, but what is not in doubt is the irresponsibility of the Recording Academy. Never would they allow an artist to insult Judaism or Islam. It’s bad enough that Catholics have to fight for their rights vis-à-vis a hostile administration in Washington without also having to fend off attacks in the entertainment industry.” 

There are speculations all over as to whether Nicki Minaj was, in fact, poking fun at Catholicism or if it is simply a persona to gain publicity for her latest album.