Is Your Computer Selling You for Sex?

Pageantry Magazine shares the happy ending of a California teen’s whose dream came true this summer in Atlantis, Bahamas as she was crowned Miss Teen USA 2013, and in doing so brought justice to a criminal who has exploited dozens of young American women. Cassidy Wolf brought the act of “sextortion” to authorities’ attention after her computer webcam had been allegedly hijacked by a 19 year-old computer science major from California.

Jared James Abrahams surrendered on Thursday to the FBI on Thursday for exploiting up to 30-40 young women by taking naked pictures changing clothes in their rooms through their webcams. With some of these young women, Abrahams would demand erotic sexual acts from his victims by threatening potential blackmail with their naked pictures. After appearing in court late Thursday afternoon, and confessed hijacking up to 150 electronic devices. He was released “on intensive pretrial supervision and home detention with electronic monitoring” , and a bond agreement of $50,000.

In an interview with the Today Show one month ago, the New Miss Teen USA described the horror of the moment she first discovered she had been cyber-stalked by the California college student. Shortly prior to competing in the Teen USA competition, she received an email from an anonymous sender with attached naked pictures of herself that had been taken in her room. She did not know how they had been taken, or who had taken them. When interviewed by the Today Show, Cassidy still did not know who her predator was or where he was.

Cassidy continues to speak out to women victimized by this exploitative act, emphasizing that women who are experiencing any form of abuse need to speak out about their situation and tell someone. She recognizes that while this may be a scary thing to do, it must be done to protect victimized women now and women in the future.

In an ever-increasing age of electronic and digital technology, it is important for internet users to recognize new precautions and preventative measures that must be taken to ensure safety amidst this new technological age. Ways to avoid Cassidy’s situation are simple things that many teenagers and college students might not think of, including not opening pop-up advertisements and keeping your laptop screen closed while not using the computer.

Just because it is not directly rape, sextortion is still considered sexual abuse as it is used to extort sexual favors by the victim. If you or anyone you know has experienced any form of harassment electronically or digitally, it is important to get authorities involved in order to prevent the predator from taking the situation further.

For further information on the arrest of Cassidy’s predator, check out http://www.pageantrymagazine.com/news/newsline.html.

 

 

Teal Lights, Teal Tuxes, and Tealtinis!

The National Ovarian Cancer Coalition hosted the 2013 “Teal Lights” event at Venue One in downtown Chicago to bring awareness and raise money to fight the silent symptoms of Ovarian Cancer! As a member of the Ovarian Cancer Symptom Awareness Planning Committee, I was able to join their efforts by emceeing the live auction and greeting guests at the door to enjoy a night of teal lights, teal outfits, and teal-tinis while listening to survivors and professionals educate the audience. Only one week left of Ovarian Cancer Awareness month! Let’s keep fighting this silent killer!

Not All Beer Bellies Are Caused By Beer.

Many Wheaton College students fall subject to a hearty pancake breakfast in saga at some point, if not regularly, each semester. Many students might expect that a meal filled with the carbohydrate-packed pancakes and sugar-filled syrup topped with a milky cappuccino wouldn’t be the best way to jumpstart the day, but many don’t know that this meal could potentially cause one to show up to morning classes intoxicated.

Now you might be wondering how it is possible to break covenant without ingesting any form of alcohol? A case study of a 61 year-old Texas man shows that it is in fact possible to do so, as he was recently diagnosed with a disease called “Auto-Brewery Syndrome.” Yes, even a Sunday morning bagel breakfast caused this man to stumble through the doors of church tipsy, making him unable to focus during the church service.

The man from Texas was one day rushed to the hospital when his blood alcohol content reached .37 percent, nearly five times the limit required to drive in the state of Texas, after consuming no alcohol. A team from Panola Collage in Carthage Texas monitored his blood alcohol content over the course of 24 hours during which he consumed a high-carbohydrate diet, and concluded the culprit to be an overabundance of brewers yeast in his gut. An antibiotic regimen from five years earlier stripped his intestine of good bacteria, allowing for an infection of Saccharomyces Cerevisiae yeast to fester. When he ate or drank a sufficient amount of starch, this yeast would ferment it to ethanol, literally brewing beer in his own gut.

For those of you who enjoy an occasional beer while off covenant, a self-sufficient brewery might not sound like such an awful idea. However, before investigating into further detail, you should know that it is actually a serious disease with severe implications, as it is damaging to its victims’ intestines and digestive tracts. Though this disease is very rare, it does in fact exist and should be recognized. Next time you or a loved one is feeling a little tipsy without the ingestion of alcohol, seeing a doctor might be a good option.

The 2013 Walk for the Goose was a success!

It’s official! The happenings with month’s cause, Ovarian Cancer Symptom Awareness, kicked off this weekend at the 2013 5K Walk for the Goose in St. Charles, Illinois! Medical and Veterinary Professionals, families of Ovarian Cancer’s victims, and OCSA advocates joined together early on Saturday morning to walk with their dogs on the Great Western Trail as apart of the One Health Initiative.

The walk took part in memory of 20 year old Katelyn Klepitsch, a recent victim of small cell Ovarian Cancer (1993-2013), as well as Susan Roman, who passed from Ovarian Cancer in March of 2012. Their families shared moving testimonies, incredibly motivational to those attending to promote awareness of this awful disease, fatal to 85% of its victims.

I had the opportunity to interview medical experts, veterinary professionals, OCSA sponsors, and families of Ovarian Cancers victims before emceeing the event! I was also honored to complete the walk with my dear friend, Wheaton College colleague, and fellow OCSA planning committee member, Meghan Ferry, whose mother is a stage 3 survivor of Ovarian Cancer! Hope to see you at the next event!

 

Syria Crisis Triggers 9/11 Memories

 

(Anna Morris)

https://soundcloud.com/alyssa-paulsen21/morris-interview?utm_source=soundcloud&utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=email

Washington DC native Anna Morris was uniquely impacted by the terrorist attacks on the day that remains in the memories of all Americans, September 11, 2001. That day was a significant turning point in Anna’s life, because the start of a war meant the deployment of her father, a colonel in the US army, as well as her two sisters who were serving in the US Air Force at the time.

            September 11, 2013 is a monumental day in the life of many military families amidst the current conflict in Syria, as it brings up hard things from America’s past. The thought of entering another war immediately after the wars with Afghanistan and Iraq is a sensitive topic to many of these families, as they fear intervention with Syria will result in repeated deployment of troops to the Middle East.

Morris discusses what a Christian perspective on Syria should be in spite of the difficulty it may bring from a military standpoint. She explains not only how Christians should be responding to the crisis in Syria, but how we should be praying for our brothers and sisters in Christ over there as well. Many of the Syrians experiencing the brunt of the crisis are fellow believers, and as Christians we should approach the situation from a perspective that keeps their best interest in mind as well. However, as American citizens, we also have the responsibility of supporting what is best for our country. Through prayer and critical thought, we need to come to a consensus as believers to choose which side to support. Even Morris states that this is not an easy task, considering the situation is so deep and sensitive in many hearts.

 

Fight Ovarian with Fashion!

NOCC has been chosen as the official ovarian cancer charity partner by She Beads! 50% of all proceeds from their Ovarian Cancer Awareness bracelet will be donated when you purchase one online (click on link below).

 http://www.sbstore.com/product-details/Ovarian%20Health%20Awareness

 

•  Bracelets sell for $24, and $12 of each bracelet will be donated to NOCC-IL
•  Bracelets are gender friendly
• Items are guaranteed for a lifetime
• 100% Made in America

We Can’t Stop? We Need to Stop.

Miley Cyrus, one of the pop industry’s leading global artists, responded to her 2013 VMA performance critics by stating that “she was glad she could make history”, despite the negative response of the entertainment world. Cyrus’s performance of her new highly controversial hit “We Can’t Stop” is unfortunately an icon of the modern mentality of American youth. Our inability to recognize the fault behind accepting phrases such as “we won’t stop”, “we run things”, and “we don’t take nothing from nobody”, is indicative of the narcissistic attitude that has encapsulated our frame of mind as a culture. Narcissism is defined to be the excessive interest in oneself or ones physical appearance, and is confirmed when one cannot recognize his or her own self-obsession.

Currently the average Instagram user has posted 160 selfies each, many of which are flexing their muscles in the mirror, posing in a bikini on the beach, and puckering their lips to show off freshly done makeup. In reality, no one other than the user who posted the selfie really cares! Five of the most common worries among teens include social interaction, school, future, money, and relationships with the opposite sex, all of which are concerns about self. Americans have let a root of narcissism creep in, but we are only hurting ourselves in doing so. With an increase of self-focus comes a decrease of satisfaction as one survey reported that only 30% of Americans consider themselves to be generally happy in life. We can fight this phenomenon of self-obsession by letting go of concern with appearance, and refocusing our mindset on what we can contribute to others. Famous philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson quoted, “It is one of the most beautiful compensations of life, that no man can sincerely try to help another without helping himself.” Let’s start concerning ourselves with what we do with our lives, versus what we look like when doing it.

From Shrubs to Perfume

Esther was one of the most prominent women of the Bible and a hero to the Jews. The woman has her own book for goodness sake! She was known throughout the land for not only her outer beauty as the chosen Queen of Persia, but also for her self-sacrificial spirit, as she risked her own life to save her people from slaughter. What was it about Esther that won not only the favor of King Xerxes, but also the other residents of the royal palace?

Esther was born void of any royal blood…in fact, she was raised as a humble orphan initially called Hadassah until she entered the royal palace as Queen. Why is the name Hadassah so significant to her story? The name “Hadassah” actually means “myrtle”, an evergreen shrub bred to grow violet flowers for perfume. From humble beginnings, a myrtle is raised up from the ground to become a treasured possession, valued at a high price for its beautiful fragrance.

Esther won King Xerxes’ favor not because she possessed outstanding credentials or a superior social status, but because she carried God’s favor and presence with her. Through Esther’s humility, obedience, and trust toward God, His plan allowed her to become and do something much more beautiful than she could have in her own strength or abilities. Sometimes our greatest weaknesses and insecurities are the areas in which God works through us the most, because they are the areas in which we are most submitted to Him. Circumstances that force us to our knees in prayer and fasting, such as when Esther had to go before King Xerxes to save the Jews, are the times that God’s strength exudes the most through our lives.

 

It is ” for such a time as this” (Esther 4:14) that God may allow the circumstances that He does.

 

Hidden Beauty

A twelve year old girl looks in the mirror, disheartened, dissatisfied, disappointed as she pinches the extra skin on her sides and sucks in her stomach. She stands on her toes to feel taller and puckers her lips to make her face thinner. Soft strokes of her mother’s makeup brush slowly cover her rosy, childish complexion. She pulls her eyelashes with a mascara stick, and hides the insecurity in her eyes behind thick eyeliner…

In a society where girls see advertisements that tell them to grow into women faster, be thinner, be sexier, and be hotter, we lose sight of who the beautiful people in our world really are. Several dictionary definitions define beauty to be qualities that are pleasing to others. Therefore, beauty can be defined by the audience we are trying to please. In a pursuit of beauty, we should not try to merely please ourselves, but instead recognize true beauty as an intentional contribution to the well-being of others.

This blog is designed to discover the true beauty that is hidden in our culture. It will not only to bring attention to individuals who bring beauty to our world through who they are on the inside and what they bring to others, but also to bring awareness to the issues that handicap the ambitions and abilities of young people today including eating disorders, abuse, bullying, steroid use, etc. Opportunities to access your inner beauty will also be posted on this site as well by bringing awareness to organizations that need YOUR help to grow!

Stay tuned to read life-changing stories about beautiful people that might just impact the way you view yourself and the people around you!

(Haitian Orphanage, 2012)