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Photo: Bob Shell

Posted on May 16, 2012 by Bob Shell

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……….Nothing new to report on my case. But I really don’t expect to get a ruling from the court until around the middle of the year. Courts move at their own speed, and the general rule seems to be the longer the better, because that means they are actually considering everything. My case generated a massive amount of paperwork, and the court must go through all of it to consider my claims.

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I got a letter the other day from one of the models who worked with me on the bondage book back in 2003-04. She said she got to wondering about what had happened to me and did a Google search and found out where I am. Like every model I ever worked with, she knows that I am not guilty. I told her about TWS and suggested that she post here about what it was like to work with me, so maybe she will.

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One lawyer I know made the point that the cops and prosecution had from June 2003 until my trial in August of 2007 to search for any model I worked with who would say anything negative about me. They couldn’t find anyone. If I really had been the serial molestor they portrayed me as being, they ought to have been able to find at least one of my earlier victims, but they found no one. That should have meant something to the jury. I don’t think they really thought things through and simply voted with a knee-jerk reaction.

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I also don’t think the jury understood how sentencing works. Not one of the sentences they gave me was very long, and I believe they assumed that all of them would run concurrently. Indeed, running sentences concurrently is the norm. But in Virginia the judge makes that decision, not the jury, and the jury can’t even be told that they have the option to recommend concurrent sentences. My judge ignored the VA sentencing guidelines and ran my sentences consecutively. The guidelines called for 1 1/2 to 3 years. But the Virginia guidelines are merely recommendations, they carry no force, and judges routinely ignore them. I don’t know why they even bother to have guidelines.

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If the jury in a state of Virginia case asks the judge if sentences will be run concurrently or consecutively, the judge will tell them that it is none of their concern! The jury is not allowed to know!! But the law requires that jurors be fully informed prior to their deliberations. None of this makes any sense, since a jury can intend a light sentence and a judge can arbitrarily convert it into a very long sentence. The more research I do on this, the less sense it makes.

About The Author: Bob Shell is a professional photographer, author and former editor in chief of Shutterbug Magazine. He is currently serving a 35 year sentence at Pocahontas State Correctional Center, Pocahontas, Virginia for involuntary manslaughter for the death of one of his models, Marion Franklin. He is currently working on his appeal.
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Editor’s Note: To read more letters from prison by Bob Shell, go to the search bar at the top of the page: enter name and click the green icon. To learn more about the case log on to www.BobShellTruth.com.

Barlow Holley

Posted on May 12, 2012 by Barlow Holley

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……….I despise imposing my own subjective idea of this photographic message upon you the viewer and wish to leave its meaning as open-ended as possible. That being said, one could reasonably say that this image is of a more humorous rather than serious nature in comparison to some of the other exhibits in The Philo Project series. To me, this picture hints at a variety of themes: a parody of the concept of “erotic art” through the absurd juxtaposition of a formal space and stodgy musical instrument with near complete nudity, a glimpse of the sitter with see-through vision, or merely the whimsical appreciation of the human form in the position of musical performance. Is erotic art a nominal practice more than other genres of art, does erotic art require reference to physical acts or parts to be erotic, what is erotic art’s place in the hierarchy of artistic content, assuming that such an ordering exists? These are just a handful of my personal musings.

To Be Continued……….

Love

Posted on May 10, 2012 BY A.H. Scott

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……….It’s ironic that some of those who are most vocal against same sex marriage are those who have dinosaur bones in their own closets. Archbishop Timothy Dolan, here in NYC, said that ‘it’s a sad day for the children’. WTF?!!!! Now, I know I’m probably going to feel a little pitchfork in my butt for saying that. But, c’mon, Catholic Church. You above all other institutions want to talk about sin. Look inward instead of outward for what sin truly is. And, then there’s Mitt Romney who says “I believe marriage is between one man and one woman”. And, when I heard him say that, I was waiting for him to add ..”I believe marriage is between one man and one woman….and one woman….and another woman. WTF? That’s the history of Romney’s own ancestors of multiple wives. And, of course, Newt (Mr. Married Again and Again) Gingrich. And, all the other hypocrites down the line speak morality for themselves only. So, those who have all these rights already (and never have to enter a court to validate them) are always bitchin and moanin about the destruction of the institution of marriage, if gay men and lesbian woman get married would live by the words they love to always spout; show some Christian compassion and brotherhood and – LET LOVE RULE..!!”

Copyright 2012

About The Author: Editor’s Note: To read more of A.H. Scott, go to the search bar at the top of the page: enter name and click green icon.

Emily

Posted on April 27, 2012 by Avi Chanales

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……….Former Rutgers student Dharun Ravi sat in trial awaiting his sentence regarding his alleged hate crime against his former gay roommate, Tyler Clementi. The resurfacing of this news story almost a year and a half after Tyler’s suicide forced the world to re-confront the harsh reality of gay teen suicides. Tyler’s suicide in October 2011 marked the fifth suicide in just a short three-week period and prompted a nationwide awareness effort regarding the serious danger of gay teen suicide.

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Emily

Three weeks ago, my friend Emily, also sat in a room awaiting her sentence. After 21 years of hiding her identity, Emily courageously came out in a public speech in front of the entire Orthodox Jewish community at Penn. She bravely spoke of her struggles growing up gay in a traditionalist community, but the main portion of her speech focused on her struggles with suicide. For the Orthodox community, gay teen suicide was no longer a news story; it was personal.

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Emily

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Lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth are four times more likely to attempt suicide than their heterosexual peers. The Suicide Prevention Resource Center estimated that between 30 to 40% of LGB youth have attempted suicide. A major factor influencing suicidal ideations is internalized homophobia that leads to self-loathing and deep internal conflicts about their sexual orientation.

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Emily described her constant questioning of her own self-worth. She described days that were so overwhelmed with depression that she could barely find the energy or motivation to do anything. She would just sit, numb and immobilized.

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For many gay youth, it is their religious beliefs that add to their internal conflicts. Emily described times when she simultaneously hated God but also felt like He was the only person she could turn to.

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Emily

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In response to the suicides of teenagers who were bullied because they were gay, author Dan Savage and his husband Terry Miller founded the “Its Gets Better Project”, to inspire hope in teens struggling with their sexual identity. Emily embodies this mission. Her courage, poise, and optimism instills hope not only in those still struggling with their sexual identities, but to everyone she encounters. The faith she instills? That one day we might actually live in a world that sees sexual orientation as irrelevant.

About the Author: Avi Chanales is a Candidate for Bachelor of Arts degree in Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Pennsylvania. Class of 2012

Jennie

Posted on April 19, 2012 by Jennie Shapira

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MISPLACEMENT

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……….For me, eroticism tickles the uncomfortable; it’s the delicate play of contrasting themes, acting perversely to make the viewer experience the combative feelings of ease and unease. It’s the product of a dichotomy between overt sexuality and something that both pushes you back and draws you in. What defines erotic as erotic is precisely this interaction. The concept of seeing only enough to force you to fill in the rest plays strongly with my views of eroticism, allowing a not-fully nude image to sometimes be more sexually driven than one where everything is purely raw.

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Jennie

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As a deeper conversation with the viewer, the creation of a scene which beckons for an accompanying narrative causes the interaction to deepen. In the end, it doesn’t matter if the story is the same as the stories imagined by all the others, nor the story imagined by the subject at the time of creation, as long as it is one that spawns a desire to know the character and know how the depicted situation managed to occur.

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Jennie

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In order to embody these themes and appropriately have them relate to the ‘philo’ environment located at UPenn’s College Hall, I imagined one half of the dynamic play to involve the concept of purity and intellectual soundness. The Philomathean Halls are gilded with knowledge, so a fair counter would be one that’s slightly disturbing and somewhat scandalous, which would eject itself from the ‘ivy-bubble’ as much as possible. To show eroticism, I plan to pose myself in an uncomfortable, tied-up fashion, as if just left in this building, for non-specific torture to ensue. Such would invoke much internal conversation, a discomfort with the image, and a great contrast with the neat, orderly, olden feel of the library.

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Jennie

To Be Continued………..

Ryan Feit: Cuba

Posted on April 9, 2012 by Ryan Feit

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……….Make no mistake, times are hard in Cuba. Cuba has been frozen in time for the last 50 years. As a result, Cubans have struggled through countless bouts of famine, rations, and crises. The economy collapsed with the fall of the Soviet Union and has been in a downward spiral ever since.

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The older Cubans believe the Socialist propaganda they read in the papers. They seem completely unaware that the world has evolved since 1960. They argue about world events from decades ago and assume that mobile phones and the Internet are simply science fiction.

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Ryan Feit: Cuba

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The architecture is timelessly breathtaking and is evidence of its storied history. However, the houses and apartments have been washed away by time, exposing the real Cuba.

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Yet despite the relentless challenges, the people endure. Music carries the Cuban people just as it has for decades. Havana moves to a collective Salsa beat which puts a smile on the face of even the poorest Cuban.

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Cuba: Ryan Feit

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And they work with what they have. You won’t hear a single complaint that once again it’s a pulled pork sandwich for lunch and rice and beans for dinner.

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Ryan Feit: Cuba

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But the younger generation is excited for the future. They stand up tall, realizing they posses something special. They know that the time is getting close now and they are ready to reveal themselves to the world.

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Ryan Feit: Cuba

Photos by Ryan Feit: Copyright 2012

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About The Author: Ryan Feit is enrolled in the MBA program: Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania.

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Editor’s Note: To read more articles by Ryan Feit, go to the search bar at the top of the page: enter name and click green icon.

Sonrya Sanjaraya

Posted on April 5, 2012 by Sonrya Sanjaraya
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…..When asked recently what was the inspiration by this art work: Just a woman always used by men for her beauty. A woman who would have been loved, but also a woman who loved playing this seduction game with her body, her sexiness, her feminine desires. I created a magic witch – which made men come to her but who didn’t find the way to keep one with her forever.

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Self-Portrait 2012

The link between the drawing and this recent self-portrait represents this ongoing search, the cool balance to use the females power over man, and find how to capture more than desires and smiles: find how to be the magic one.
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About The Author: To read more articles by Sonrya Sanjaraya, go to the search bar at the top of the page: enter name and click the green icon.

Neffie's Legs

Posted on March 25, 2012 by Nefertari Williams

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……….My window is inches from my bed and I can see my neighbor who is at least 30 years my senior – sweeping her driveway which seems effortless for her. Before my cardiac issues I could run circles around all of my neighbors while we were out doing our yard work. Now as I lay here staring at my neighbor, I can’t help but wish that I had some of her energy.

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Some of us have gradually developed our cardiac issues maybe by slow plaque buildup or an inherited genetic disorder, and some of us had a sudden onset. In either case whatever physical condition you were in before your cardiac issue; you may find yourself longing to be there again. The difference is when I had more energy I never took a minute to smell the roses. These days I find myself thankful for every moment. I take notice of things that I so easily took for granted in days past. Problems that used to seems impossible – I now pick apart just to try and find the lesson to be learned.

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Although I find myself battling depression like many others with cardiac issues, instead of those days being the norm they are now slowly becoming the exception.With that being said: we are a group of survivors and we should see the success in just that alone. There are going to be days when the “Why me” bug tries to whisper in my ear, especially if the angina or the swelling is attacking.

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However when these times come, I like to remind myself of how far I’ve come and I usually smile. That smile is my fuel and it is contagious. If I am out and I see someone smiling for no “apparent” reason – I find myself thinking maybe they are a survivor too!

Editor’s Note: To learn more about Nefertari Williams and her fight against heart disease, go to the search bar at the top of the page: enter name and click green icon.

R.I.P.

Posted on March 24, 2012

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Editor’s Note: To learn more about Mikel Elam’s work, go to the search bar at the top of the page: enter name and click green icon.