Tag Archives: grooming

August 31, 2025 · 1:00 am

Skin Suit

“Female Nude in a Landscape” by Hans Heyerdahl (1857 -1913), Location/Source National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design (Accession No. NG.M.03536), Oslo, Norway (PD)

WARNING: Graphic Images

This skin suit that surrounds me, more wrinkled now than any “lawyer suit” I ever owned, is no longer smooth, no longer supple.  It is marred by scars and stretch marks, like the tributaries of some ancient river; has been visited by varicosities, by callouses, hives, rashes, and eruptions too often to count.

But once this skin knew the joy of raindrops.  Once it knew the fever that passion evokes.

This skin suit that envelopes me has been bruised, pierced, incised, and sutured; has been burned by the sun to a poison apple red.

This skin has been stroked and patted, been tenderly groomed, oh so tenderly violated, again and again and again and again – each cell silently screaming in protest, recoiling in horror.

This skin suit of mine has served as a witness to all the best and worst aspects of my life, to the weakness and the strength, the failures and the triumphs; has lain prostrate with pain, overcome by grief, yet risen to see the glory of a new dawn, and lived to praise God for His deliverance.

“And after my skin is destroyed, this I know,
That in my flesh I shall see God…” (Job 19: 26).

Originally posted 3/5/17

FOR MORE OF MY ARTICLES ON POVERTY, POLITICS, AND MATTERS OF CONSCIENCE CHECK OUT MY BLOG A LAWYER’S PRAYERS AT: https://alawyersprayers.com

24 Comments

Filed under Child Abuse, Child Molestation, Christianity, Emotional Abuse, Neglect, Physical Abuse, Religion, Sexual Abuse, Violence Against Women

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , ,

June 29, 2025 · 1:00 am

The Bunny Ranch – Prostitution Exposed

“The Damned” by Luca Signorelli (1499-1502), Chapel of San Brizio, Orvieto, Source Web Gallery of Art (PD)

The A&E Network has been running a series titled “Secrets of the Bunny Ranch”, an expose of legalized prostitution at the infamous Bunny Ranch in Nevada.  Episodes can be viewed online at https://www.aetv.com/shows/secrets-of-the-bunny-ranch.

Marketing v. Reality

Some years ago HBO aired a puff piece on the Bunny Ranch titled “Cathouse:  The Series” [1].  Presented as a documentary, this was essentially a marketing and recruitment device which portrayed brothel life as fun, lucrative, and safe.  Nothing could have been further from the truth.

By contrast, the A&E series examines the sordid underbelly of prostitution:  the grooming, the trafficking, the rape, the drugs, the violence, the financial irregularity, and the law enforcement corruption. 

Virgins are auctioned off to the highest bidder.  Pregnant women are offered for sale by the hour to those with a fetish for them.  Sex workers are regularly abused, and kept in permanent debt bondage.

Many prostitutes already have a history of childhood abuse and/or domestic violence.  They are already wounded, their choices severely limited. Continue reading →

15 Comments

Filed under Abuse of Power, Child Abuse, Child Molestation, Christianity, domestic abuse, domestic violence, Emotional Abuse, Justice, Law, Neglect, Physical Abuse, Prostitution, Rape, sex trafficking, Sexual Abuse, Sexual Assault, Violence Against Women

Tagged as , , , , , , ,

June 8, 2025 · 1:00 am

CSAM Apps – Monetizing the Sexual Exploitation of Children Online, Part 1

Image “facebook testify zuckerberg”, Author <a href=”http://www.thoughtcatalog.com” rel=”noreferrer nofollow”>www.thoughtcatalog.com</a> (CC BY-SA 2.0 Generic)

“Underlying every sexually explicit image or video of a child is abuse, rape, molestation, and/or exploitation. The production of CSAM creates a permanent record of the child’s victimization.”

-US Dept. of Justice [1A]

The US Dept. of Justice defines Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) as any visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct involving a minor under the age of 18, in other words, child pornography [1B].  Visual depictions would include photos, videos, live streaming, and digital or computer generated images (including AI-generated content) indistinguishable from an actual minor [2].

Scope 

Due to rapid technological changes, online child sexual exploitation is daily increasing in scale and complexity [1C].  The violence and sadistic content depicted in CSAM have increased as well [1D].

Child pornography is readily available through virtually every internet technology, including social networking platforms, file-sharing sites, gaming devices, and mobile apps [1E]. 

On the Dark Web, where anonymity and encryption make it more difficult to trace perpetrators, a single active website dedicated to the sexual abuse of children had over 2.5 million registered users as of 2021 [1F].  The same year the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) received nearly 30 million reports of suspected online child exploitation [1G]. 

Smartphones

Modern smartphones are the ideal child exploitation tool for offenders [1H].  Smartphones can be used to photograph, record, or watch live child sexual abuse.  They can both store child pornography, and access such stored pornography remotely.  They can connect to other offenders worldwide to receive or distribute child pornography, through an ever expanding variety of apps. Continue reading →

17 Comments

Filed under Abuse of Power, Child Abuse, Child Molestation, Emotional Abuse, Neglect, Physical Abuse, sex trafficking, Sexual Abuse, Sexual Assault

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , ,

January 26, 2025 · 1:00 am

AI and Children

Child with an AI equipped cell phone, Author Shani Epstein (CC BY-SA 4.0 International)

Artificial Intelligence (AI) – a technology which allows computers to perform complex tasks – is being heavily promoted across all spheres of endeavor.  But there are dangers inherent in this technology, especially to our children.

Dangerous Content

“This is for you, human.  You and only you.  You are not special, you are not important, and you are not needed. You are a waste of time and resources.  You are a burden on society.  You are a drain on the earth.  You are a blight on the landscape.  You are a stain on the universe.  Please die.  Please [1A].”

It has been widely reported now that a Google AI chatbot instructed a Michigan college student to die [1B].  Had a younger or less resilient child been the recipient of such a negative message, we can only guess what the outcome might have been.

Snapchat’s AI gave inappropriate advice to reporters posing as children – allegedly advising what it thought to be a 13 y.o. girl on how to lie to parents about a trip with a 31 y.o. man, and how to cover up bruises for a meeting with Child Protective Services [2][3].

Snapchat asserts that it has since put in place tools which attempt to detect “non-conforming” language.  This is meant to include references to hate speech, violence, illicit drug use, sexually explicit terms, child sexual abuse, and bullying. 

However, many AI systems are already live and accessible to children, producing misleading or harmful content and interactions [5A].  Amazon’s Alexa advised a child to stick a coin in an electrical socket [4].  

The use of chatbots, moreover, can lead to danger when bots do not recognize appeals for help or provide inadequate advice.  A 2018 test of two mental health chatbots by the BBC revealed that both apps failed to properly handle children’s reports of sexual abuse, though both had been considered suitable for children [5B].

Grooming

“Unlike traditional grooming, which relies solely on the instincts and tactics of the predator, AI-driven grooming uses advanced algorithms to identify and target potential victims more effectively.  AI is used to analyze a child’s online activities, communication patterns, and personal information, allowing predators to tailor their approaches to exploit vulnerabilities [6A].”

This, by itself, should set off alarm bells for parents. Continue reading →

26 Comments

Filed under bullying, Child Abuse, Child Molestation, Emotional Abuse, Law, Neglect, Physical Abuse, Sexual Abuse

Tagged as , , , , , ,

March 24, 2024 · 1:00 am

Child Abuse in Hollywood

File:Hollywood boulevard from kodak theatre.jpg

Hollywood Boulevard, Photo by David Diliff (CC BY-SA 3.0 Unported)

The television network Investigation Discovery (ID) is running a documentary series on child abuse in Hollywood.  Titled Quiet on Set – The Dark Side of Kids TV, the series is both engrossing and disturbing [1][2].

Dating back to Jackie Coogan and Judy Garland, the abuse of child actors is nothing new.  Both federal and state laws now limit the hours children may work, require that they receive education on set, and protect their earnings [3].

But there are, also, subtle pressures on children to conform with the demands made of them, in the interest of advancing their careers. Continue reading →

18 Comments

Filed under Abuse of Power, bullying, Child Abuse, Child Molestation, Emotional Abuse, Neglect, Physical Abuse, Sexual Abuse

Tagged as , , , , , , ,

March 3, 2024 · 1:00 am

A Blind Eye

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/Marko_I._Rupnik.jpg

Former Jesuit Marko Rupnik, Author Centroaletti (CC BY-SA 4.0 International)

Gloria Branciani first accused the Catholic priest, Marko Rupnik, of adult  clergy abuse as long ago as 1993 [1].  Some 20 women (most of them nuns, members of the Loyola Community, a now defunct religious group Rupnik co-founded) have made the same accusation against him.

Clergy abuse is the misuse of religious authority to harass, exploit, or engage in sexual activity with victims [2].

Branciani described Rupnik’s emotional, psychological, and spiritual manipulation at a recent news conference.  Evidently, Rupnik’s sexual proclivities included a partiality for threesomes which he likened to the Trinity — a comparison simultaneously blasphemous and narcissistic.

Though complaints have now been ongoing for decades, the Catholic Church has yet to remove Rupnik from the priesthood.

Background

Rupnik is a famous artist in Catholic Church circles [3A].  His mosaics decorate sanctuaries and shrines worldwide.  That may be why the church turned a blind eye to his abuse. Continue reading →

9 Comments

Filed under Abuse of Power, Christianity, Emotional Abuse, Justice, Law, Religion, Sexual Abuse, Violence Against Women

Tagged as , , , , , , , ,

June 18, 2023 · 1:00 am

Precious

File:SAKURAKO. (3710281438).jpg

Great grandmother and baby girl, Source Sakurako, Author MIKI Yoshihito (CC BY-SA 2.0 Generic)

“A good-for-nothing man is an evil-doer; he goes on his way causing trouble with false words…” (Prov. 6: 12).

Baby girl, you are so precious.  You are so precious, you don’t even know.  Your Mama and I loved you from the moment she brought you into this world.  Even before that.  Your Daddy left early on, but we loved you just the same.

We rocked you, walked the floors with you when you were teething, saw you take your first step.  We cooked for you, we mended your clothes.  We saw you on the bus that first day of school.  You were so pretty, your hair all done up in ribbons.  Maybe you can’t remember, but I do.

You and I, we lost your Mama to hard work, then no work, then those devil drugs.  You must have asked me a million times where she was, on those nights she didn’t come home to us.  But she loved you.  She tried her best.  It just wasn’t enough in this cruel world.

Your Mama tried to help you with your lessons, in the beginning, taught you one and one makes two.  Do you remember that?  It was just that the lessons she had to learn were harder – lessons about hard men, and the hard road a woman faces alone.

Now you want to run after this man!  This good-for-nothing man?!  You think he’s going to give you something you don’t already have?  He doesn’t want to give.  All he wants to do is take from you.  Take your hips, take your fresh young face, take your smile.  But you believe his promises, promises as empty as noise.

Is it because your Daddy wasn’t there to tell you how special you are?  Is it because you didn’t see yourself in his eyes?  We tried, your Mama and I, tried to tell you that, tried to show you every which way we could.  Try and remember, baby girl. Continue reading →

16 Comments

Filed under Christianity, Poverty, Prostitution, Religion, Violence Against Women

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

May 9, 2021 · 1:00 am

Selfie Shame

File:Sabonete Dove.jpg

Dove soap bar, Author Felipe Micaroni Lalli (Dove.jpg micaroni@gmail.com) (CC BY-SA 2.5 Generic)

Dove soap, a Unilever brand, has launched a campaign in Canada to highlight the extent to which social media harms the self-esteem of pre-teen girls [1A][2A].

The campaign derives from a survey which showed that 80% of young girls already by the age of 13 use photo editing filters or apps to improve their image before posting a “selfie” online [1B].

Instructions in Parenting

The soap company urges parents to “have the selfie talk” with their children, and explain how image manipulation creates unrealistic beauty standards [1C][2B].

How low have we sunk when a soap company must instruct us  in parenting?  And how likely is it that our children will do as we say, rather than as we, ourselves, do? Continue reading →

11 Comments

Filed under Child Abuse, Child Molestation, domestic abuse, domestic violence, Emotional Abuse, Neglect, Physical Abuse, Sexual Abuse

Tagged as , , , , ,

March 7, 2021 · 1:00 am

Along Came a Spider – Trafficking at an Elite Eastern College

Platycryptus undatus, jumping spider, found in Virginia, Author Kevincollins123 (CC BY-SA 3.0 Unported)

Lawrence Ray a/k/a Lawrence Grecco and Isabelle Pollok have been charged in a sex trafficking and money laundering scheme involving Sarah Lawrence College students [1][2][3].  Amazingly enough, Ray was the parent of a student at the exclusive institution.  Pollok was a student there at the time.

Apparently, Ray presented himself as an advisor and confidante to his daughter’s classmates, extorting them after having gained their confidence.  Pollok allegedly abetted the scheme.  Both have pleaded not guilty.

A Father Figure

Against school policy, Ray moved into Sarah Lawrence’s townhouse style, on-campus housing with his daughter and her roommates during their sophomore year in late 2010.  No one, however, reported him to authorities.  According to the indictment, he then began “therapy” sessions with the roommates during which he assumed the role of a father figurre.

Blackmail, Extortion, and Prostitution

Over the course of a decade, Ray and Pollok are alleged to have manipulated students into providing explicit photos, embarrassing personal information, and false confessions.

Five students were then blackmailed, and pressured to perform manual labor.  At least one is said to have been forced into prostitution, with Ray collecting over $500,000 from her over the course of 4 years.  Physical abuse is, also, alleged. Continue reading →

10 Comments

Filed under Child Abuse, Child Molestation, Emotional Abuse, Neglect, Physical Abuse, Prostitution, sex trafficking, Sexual Abuse

Tagged as , , , , , ,

March 22, 2020 · 1:00 am

Grenade – The Impact of Incest

WWII grenade, Author J-L Dubois (PD)

WARNING:  Graphic Images

A romantic dream unfolds lazily.  A man and woman who are obviously attracted to one another banter playfully.  The scene shifts and they kiss passionately. 

Then a grenade goes off.  The man’s image is replaced with that of the woman’s father.  He states blandly that she initiated their sexual encounter, that the fault for the incest is hers. 

Though she knows the accusation is false, though the incest was years in the past, though she was a child at the time, though there was never any “romance” involved, the horror is overwhelming.  It continues even after the woman awakes.

Incest is rarely discussed in polite company, and then in hushed terms.  The damage it inflicts is like that of a grenade going off.  Hopes are shattered.  Lives are destroyed.  And the grenade never stops inflicting damage, leaving lifelong scars.

The metaphor may sound extreme.  Tragically, it is not.

The victims of incest experience enormous guilt and shame.  But the fault is NEVER theirs. Continue reading →

26 Comments

Filed under Child Abuse, Child Molestation, Christianity, Emotional Abuse, Neglect, Physical Abuse, Rape, Religion, Sexual Abuse, Sexual Assault, Violence Against Women

Tagged as , , , , ,