Update on the Arrested "Nudist"

A judge has ordered Florida radio station owner F. Douglas Wilhite to be released on his own recognizance, after concluding that the man was arrested on a "frivolous" anonymous tip. This article once again refers to this man as a "nudist".

Worst Case Scenario

Image via Wikipedia

I've been doing a lot of thinking about the storm surrounding Jasmine Trail Nudist Resort in North Carolina, and I have a lot of questions. You can refresh your memory by reading my takes here and here, and the news reports here and here.

Why hasn't Johnny Clevinger been charged with manufacturing child pornography?

What was the nature of the complaints which called police to the Clevinger home a dozen times, and who were the complaintants?

In the "hundreds of photos" found of other children, were they nudes? If so, did Clevinger take these photos, or are they from books and magazines?

The reports say that Clevinger was planning on making a visit to Jasmine Trail, but that he was arrested before he could go. Was Clevinger a member, and had he visited there in the past? Did he visit other nudist or naturist venues?

Why did Jasmine Trail remove all nude photos of both adults and children from their website? Were they advised by an attorney, or by AANR, or did they just panic?

Why was Clevinger's bond increased from $50,000 to $250,000?

Why is Jasmine Trail the subject of an investigation if there have been absolutely no complaints?

Since there have been no complaints, why does Department of Social Services director Bob Johnson say that parents who take their children to Jasmine Trail should be charged with neglect and that it would be "a very easy case to prove?"

Since there have been no complaints, why is District Attorney Scott Thomas planning on asking lawmakers to place age restrictions on nudist resorts?

One possible answer to all these questions comes to mind.

The DA and police were probably frustrated with the numerous complaints against Clevinger, which were likely over nude photos which didn't rise to the level of real child pornography, which is probably why he was never arrested before now, and why he has not been charged with kiddie porn.

Instead, the DA decided to charge Clevinger with "taking indecent liberties with a minor and first degree sexual exploitation of a minor", focusing more on the man's behavior rather than on the photos themselves.

Knowing that this would be more difficult to prove in court, the DA decided to ratchet up his investigation to include Jasmine Trail Nudist Campground, even calling in the FBI in order to lend a sense of urgency to his crusade.

If he can convince the public that naturism is a sexual behavior, and that naturist parents are guilty of neglect, and that nude photos on a resort's website are exploitative, then that strengthens his case against Clevinger, who is described as a naturist parent.

To me, this appears to be a classic witch hunt, in concert with a local television station which has provided sensationalism and a bias against naturism designed to rouse the rabble to stand behind this DA who promises to protect the children of North Carolina.

He's also planning on consulting with the Attorney General and lawmakers to write new legislation against naturists. This guy is covering all the bases, hoping at least something will stick so he can use it against Clevinger.

This is all my opinion, of course, but it seems to make some sense. Take note that the stories never refer to Clevinger as a pedophile, child molester or a pornographer - instead, words like "inappropriate", "indecent liberties", "exploitation", and "intent" are thrown around.

Worst case scenario is that this district attorney succeeds in hanging Clevinger for having non-sexual nude photos of a child (or children) by taking down Jasmine Trail and legislating nudism in the process. While Mark Foley failed in demonizing nudist resorts in Florida, this DA could succeed because he's creating a climate of anti-nudism - witness the recent online unscientific poll which found that nearly 70% of respondents support age restrictions at nudist venues. The poll proves nothing since it could have been bombed by a mobilized effort to skew the results, but anyone watching the TV station or reading their website will now believe that the vast majority of people want children out of nudism altogether.

The first shots in the public relations war over this particular case have been fired, all from one side. Do nudist and naturist organizations have the mettle and means to fight back? Time will tell.

Ohio Prosecutor Wants to Send a Message by Destroying Lives of Children

Ohio prosecutor Jessica Little wants to send a "message" to four teens charges with felonies over a nude photograph transmitted by cell phone.

"They haven't got the message yet that sexting, nude pictures of a minor, they don't know how dangerous that water is," Little said.

She said she hoped to make an example of the 16-year-old girl, two 14-year-old boys and the adult, who, if convicted, could possibly be classified as sex offenders.

According to victim's advocate Denise Neal, these children would have to report for 25 years. Somebody please step in and help these children fight this crackpot prosecutor.

Naturally, Little is a Republican, and has a MySpace page here, and can be emailed at jessgun@aol.com. Apparently in order to save the children you need to destroy them first.

The Sunday Newds 1/18/09

• Plans for installing surveillance cameras on a nude beach in Australia have been scrapped in favor of an increased police presence to deter sexual behavior.
• An Irish woman recalls the "lady with a stick" who used unorthodox means to enforce dress codes in a church.

  My skirt had obviously risen just above my knees as I was sitting down. Our friend chastised me verbally for my immodesty in church. I tried to move away but she moved over after me and whacked my legs with her stick. My son took grave exception to this and bawled so I had to leave. I missed the whole event.

• The Birmingham Museum of Art is presenting Body Image: American Art and the Human Form through May 9, 2009.

  "The human body has been an important subject for artistic expression from prehistoric times," says Graham Boettcher, PhD, William Cary Hulsey Curator of American Art at the Birmingham Museum of Art. "The most fundamental training for any artist long consisted of the study of anatomy and life drawing."

• Pittsburgh Steelers defensive end Brett Keisel would gladly trade full frontal nudity for another Super Bowl ring, no questions asked.
• Strapped Los Angeles homeowners are opening their doors to movies, commercials and porn shoots to pay the mortgage. Amazingly, according to the IRS, if the shooting lasts less than 15 days it's tax free, so the government is subsidizing porn.
• A US couple has been released from a Brazilian jail pending trial. They have been accused of sexually abusing children at a "nudist colony".
• Oscar de la Renta says that Hillary Clinton is "prudish about the type of clothes she likes to wear."
• "Art jamming" is a group painting session in Ireland where an instructor brings all the needed materials to a home or place of business so people can exercise their creativity in familiar settings. The "art jam" can be arranged for private parties, corporate events and festivals, and for "hen parties" a nude male can be provided as a subject.

Tags: nudism, naturism, nudist, nudists, naturist, naturists, nudity, nudes, bare, au naturel, nude, naked

The Weekend Newds 11/15/08

• In addition to dropping the anti-nudity proposal, the Seattle parks commissioners asked parks officials to explore the possibility of creating a clothing-optional beach in the city.
• An Australian writer observes that people seem to be baring more skin these days.

  L'Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival director Karen Webster says fashion trends move in cycles rather than straight lines. The recent flourishing of flesh is not necessarily leading to maximum exposure — or, heavens forbid, rip-roaring nudity. To the contrary, a counter trend is emerging that could again see people dressing up rather than down, she says.

• A Polish priest has been convicted of wilful exposure for sunbathing nude or nearly nude in a Melbourne public park.

  Magistrate Janet Wahlquist found that Father Pawlowski was indeed naked in the park and that most people would find it obscene that a grown man was sunbaking naked in a park where children might play.
  
  She fined him $400 and recorded a conviction.

• A provocative dance theatre show in Toronto has "16 performers putting on and taking off their clothes like going through a continually revolving door".
• Australia has passed a new set of protocols for artists who work with nude children.

  Council CEO Kathy Keele says the protocols are designed to strike a balance between protecting children and upholding the right to freedom of expression.
  
  "If you're working with anyone under the age of 15 and they're to be fully or partly naked, you would have to send us the permission of the parents or guardian, stating that you have explained the context of the work to the parents and the child, and that they understand the nature and the intended outcome of the work," she said.
  
  "They [must] commit to direct supervision of the child while the child is naked."

  Artists are claiming that the new guidelines are unworkable.

  Tamara Winikoff, executive director of the National Association for the Visual Arts, said that requiring artists working with all children under 15 years to get parental permission was restrictive.
  
  "That's problematic, particularly for people like documentary photographers who work in the street," Ms Winikoff said. "At the moment there are no restrictions on taking crowd photographs or photographs of people in the street without their permission … This would impose a very, very unreasonable restriction."

Tags: nudism, naturism, nudist, nudists, naturist, naturists, nudity, nudes, bare, au naturel, nude, naked

The Daily Newds 11/12/08

• Eight Ohio teens are facing child pornography charges for exchanging nude photos of classmates, but in New Hampshire police only issued warnings when nude photos surfaced at Salem High School. .
  

  "This is not a Salem High School issue; this is an issue of the times," said Principal William Hagen. "This isn't just happening on cell phones; it's happening in MySpace accounts and Facebook accounts."

• A 15 year-old Ohio girl, accused of sending nude photos of herself to classmates, will not be labeled a sex offender, but she will become a felon under a plea agreement.
• The sexting phenomenon has hit the Scranton-Wilkes Barre area.

  According to District Attorney George Skumanick Jr., the youths could be charged with sexual abuse of children or criminal use of a communication facility.Both charges are felonies.

• The "erotic review" magazine C-Spot is Jessica Tang's creation.

  “It is a means for students to combine the intellectual, academic, and creative with the erotic,” Tang said. “We are working to build C-Spot up to a be a seriously recognized and professional publication” by “handling our content with care, sophistication, and responsibility, and rendering them through the unique view of bright, young Columbia students.”

• A nude portrait of 64 year-old Irish writer and feminist Nell McCafferty has one writer struggling with the stark reality of the image as contrasted with society's centuries old perception of human beauty.
• Iowa's Supreme Court will review a lower court's decision that an all-nude dance club is protected under the law as "theatre" art.
• The Milwaukee Gay Arts Center and the ACLU have sued the city in federal court, claiming that the 2005 closing of a production of Naked Boys Singing was a First Amendment violation.
• An Australian nudist resort is bringing back "anything goes" hedonism because family-friendly nudism isn't bringing in the bucks.
• Most people over the age of 12 never heard of Adrienne Bailon before her nude photos hit the Internet. It's a familiar story: Disney star takes nude photos of herself, the photos are stolen and distributed, star is mortified and apologizes, then star gets recording and movie deals. Does anyone really fall for this crap anymore?
• "Naked Idealism" seems to embrace most nudist philosophies except for the actual nude part.
• The art show "A Revealing Beyond Nudity" is being held in a gay bar in Alaska. The show is "not about the nudity," the artist said. "It's about what's behind it."
• The Sunshine Coast Regional Council has rejected all proposed sites for Queensland's first legal clothing-optional beach.

Tags: nudism, naturism, nudist, nudists, naturist, naturists, nudity, nudes, bare, au naturel, nude, naked

Something's Fishy

OK, Im not a doctor, and I'm not a detective, but this story that broke today doesn't ring true to me.

In brief, a 20 year-old campaign worker from Texas reported that she was robbed of $60 at a Pennsylvania ATM machine, and when the 6 foot 4 inch dark-skinned male saw that she had a McCain bumper sticker on her car, he beat her and carved a "B" into her cheek to teach her a lesson.

Why am I suspicious? Several reasons. First of all, the "B" is backwards as if carved when looking in the mirror. Second, there is absolutely no swelling or redness in her black eye (bottom photo). Compare to the person with an actual black eye (top photo). Third, there were no witnesses. Fourth, there is no surveillance video or ATM imagery, but this could surface as the investigation proceeds. Fifth, even though the woman was apparently punched, kicked and maimed with a potentially filthy knife, she refused medical treatment.

Please note that I'm not saying that this is not a real incident, and that this woman is not a true victim. All I am saying is that the story just doesn't add up yet and should not be exploited by either political party until the full facts are known.

Updates: TMZ reports that police have serious questions about the authenticity of the attack. Michelle Malkin even says the story "smells weird". And The Smoking Gun reports that the alleged victim was blogging before and after the attack.

Update: As you know by now, the entire incident was a hoax.