Pinay ex-nanny sues Sharon Stone for abuse

LOS ANGELES, United States of America (UPDATED) - A Filipina former nanny of Sharon Stone is suing the US film star for wrongful dismissal and harassment, including by allegedly making derogatory remarks about her ethnicity and religion.

But the star's publicist slammed the lawsuit as "absurd," claiming the ex-nanny was simply trying to "cash in" on Stone.

In legal papers filed in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Erlinda Elemen claims the actress equated being Filipino with being stupid, and ordered her not to speak in front of her children so they would not "talk like you."

The "Basic Instinct" star also banned Elemen, who was dismissed last year, from reading the Bible in Stone's home, even though she lived with her to look after the actress's three children, and frequently traveled with them.

From August 2010, Elemen "was repeatedly subjected to repeated derogatory comments and slurs by (Stone) related to her Filipino ethnicity and heritage," said the 17-page lawsuit.

"These statements included ... comments about Plaintiff's Filipino accent (ie Plaintiff was instructed to refrain from speaking to the children because Defendant did not want them to 'talk like you'), comments about Filipino food, and comments which equated being Filipino with being stupid," it added.

In addition, Stone "was repeatedly verbally dismissive of Plaintiff's deeply held religious beliefs, criticized Plaintiff for frequently attending church, and, on one occasion, forbade Plaintiff from reading the Bible..."

Elemen, who was hired in October 2006 and was promoted to head live-in nanny two years later, was dismissed in February 2011, after Stone learned she was paid overtime when traveling with the children and on holiday days.

Stone told her nanny that she had no right to overtime pay, and "accused Plaintiff of 'stealing' from her by taking the ... overtime pay, told Plaintiff that it was 'illegal' .. to have taken the pay, and asked for the money back."

The lawsuit asks for an unspecified amount for unpaid wages, damages and penalties, and is seeking trial by jury.

Stone's say

But a statement released by Stone's publicist dismissed the legal action.

"This is an absurd lawsuit that has been filed by a disgruntled ex-employee who is obviously looking to get money any way she can," it said.

"After she was terminated approximately one and a half years ago, she filed claims for alleged disability and workers compensation. Now, she is obviously looking for another opportunity to cash in.

"This is a frivolous lawsuit for absurd claims that are made up and fabricated. Sharon Stone will be completely vindicated in court."

Last year the actress was ordered to pay $232,000 in compensation to a worker who injured his knee after slipping and falling in her back yard in 2006. - Agence France-Presse

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Spirit Pen, the Official Black Out Child Abuse.

PRLog (Press Release) - Mar 22, 2012 -
Spirit Roller Pen would like to once again clarify that it is no longer a sponsor of What A Fan. As the owner of the trademarks “Spirit Pen” and “Black Out Child Abuse” Spirit Pen would also like to make it know that the use of it’s logos and trademarks by What A Fan is not approved at this time. There is a facebook page in use by What A Fan that isnot authorized and uses the logo without permission. We are working to resolve this issue, but no partnership remains between Spirit Pen and What A Fan.

"We hope we can work something out with What A Fan and get by this speed-bump. We had a good relationship with What A Fan in the past and hope we can resolve this issue without hard feelings. We would also like to verify as the owners of the "Black Out Child Abuse" trademark that Liz Gorman is the company spokeswoman. Liz is a great asset and is working hard to bring awareness to this cause and the "Pink Out, Roll Out the Cure" for brest cancer awareness as well as a few other causes led by Spirit Pen.", said Spirit Pen's Director of Operations. “Liz is a great example to young people and her community involvement should be an inspiration to all.”

 If you would like more information on the “Black Out Child Abuse” campaign please go to the Authentic Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/BlackOutChildAbuse

 "The focus of Spirit Pen in it's Black Out Child Abuse campaign remains and will always be about bringing awareness to the cause. It is the intention of Spirit Pen to control the integrity of the name and assure your efforts are directed in the right direction. Thank you for your support."

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'More abuse': Warning of more waste in war spending

WASHINGTON — The U.S. has lost billions of dollars to waste and fraud in Iraq and Afghanistan and stands to repeat that in future wars without big changes in how the government awards and manages contracts for battlefield support and reconstruction projects, independent investigators said Wednesday.

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The Wartime Contracting Commission urged Congress and the Obama administration to quickly put in place its recommendations to overhaul the contracting process and increase accountability. The commission even suggested that the joint House-Senate debt reduction committee take a close look at the proposals.

"What you're asking for is more of the same," said Dov Zakheim, a commission member and the Pentagon comptroller during President George W. Bush's first term. "More waste. More fraud. More abuse."

The bipartisan commission, created by Congress in 2008, estimated that at least $31 billion and as much as $60 billion has been lost in Iraq and Afghanistan over the past decade due to lax oversight of contractors, poor planning, inadequate competition and corruption. "I personally believe that the number is much, much closer to $60 billion," Zakheim said.

Yet new legislation incorporating the changes could prove difficult with Republicans and Democrats divided over the best way to reduce the deficit.

Several of the proposals would require new spending, the commission acknowledged, and that would be a hard sell in an election year when reducing the size of government is a priority for many. Other proposals would cost little or simply require money to be shifted from one account to another, the panel said.

"If these recommendations are not implemented, there ought to be a Hall of Shame," said Michael Thibault, co-chairman of the commission. "There's an opportunity at hand."

The commission's 15 recommendations include creating an inspector general to monitor war zone contracting and operations, appointing a senior government official to improve planning and coordination among federal agencies, reducing the use of private security companies, and carefully monitoring contractor performance.

Rep. John Tierney, the top Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform national security subcommittee, said Wednesday that the commission's findings are "alarming." Tierney said he plans to introduce legislation next week to create the inspector general's post.

Sen. Claire McCaskill, a Democrat and chairwoman of the Senate's contracting oversight subcommittee, said she plans to prepare legislation based upon the commission's recommendations.

The commission's report said contracting waste in Afghanistan and Iraq could grow as U.S. support for reconstruction projects and programs wanes. That would leave the countries to bear the long-term costs of sustaining the schools, medical clinics, barracks, roads and power plants already built with American money.

'It is disgusting'
Overall, the commission said spending on contracts and grants to support U.S. operations is expected to exceed $206 billion by the end of the 2011 budget year. Based on its investigation, the commission said contracting waste in Afghanistan ranged from 10 percent to 20 percent of the $206 billion total. Fraud during the same period ran between 5 percent and 9 percent of the total, the report said. Fraud includes bribery, kickbacks, bid rigging and defective products, according to the commission.

"It is disgusting to think that nearly a third of the billions and billions we spent on contracting was wasted or used for fraud," McCaskill said.

Styled after the Truman Committee, which examined World War II spending six decades ago, the commission had broad authority to examine military support contracts, reconstruction projects and private security companies. But the law creating the commission set this September as the end of its work, even as contractors continue their heavy support of U.S. operations in the war zones.

Security, transportation, food preparation and delivery, and much more are now handled by the private sector. At the same time, the officials responsible for monitoring contractor performance have been overwhelmed by increasing reliance on private companies.

"We are far more reliant on contractors than we ever were," said commission member Charles Tiefer, a professor of government contracting at the University of Baltimore Law School. "We always bought munitions from them. But we didn't used to buy much in the way of services from them."

The commission cited numerous examples of waste, including a $360 million U.S.-financed agricultural development program in Afghanistan. The effort began as a $60 million project in 2009 to distribute vouchers for wheat seed and fertilizer in drought-stricken areas of northern Afghanistan. The program expanded into the south and east. Soon the U.S. was spending a $1 million a day on the program, creating an environment ripe for waste and abuse, the commission said.

"Paying villagers for what they used to do voluntarily destroyed local initiatives and diverted project goods into Pakistan for resale," the commission said.

The Afghan insurgency's second largest funding source after the illegal drug trade is the diversion of money from U.S.-backed construction projects and transportation contracts, according to the commission. But the report does not say how much money has been funneled to the insurgency. The money typically is lost when insurgents and warlords threaten Afghan subcontractors with violence unless they pay for protection, according to the report.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Vatican recalls Ireland envoy after abuse rebuke

VATICAN CITY — The Vatican has recalled its ambassador in Ireland following severe criticism by the Irish parliament of the church's role in covering up child sex abuse, a spokesman said on Monday.

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The move follows last week's unprecedented rebuke of the Holy See by the Irish parliament in the wake of a report which accused church authorities of covering up the sexual abuse of children by priests as recently as 2009.

Deputy Vatican spokesman Father Ciro Benedettini said Archbishop Giuseppe Leanza, the Apostolic Nuncio of Ireland, had been recalled from Dublin for consultations.

The highly unusual step by the Vatican reflects the heightened tensions over the issue following a wave of criticism in Ireland over its role in the child abuse scandal.

Ireland said it was not surprised by the move and was awaiting a Vatican response to accusations the church played a role in covering up child abuse.

The recall "is a matter for the Holy See," Foreign Minister Eamon Gilmore said in a statement. "It is to be expected that the Vatican would wish to consult in depth with the Nuncio on its response."

Last week the Irish parliament passed a motion deploring the Vatican's role in "undermining child protection frameworks" following publication of a damning report on the diocese of Cloyne in county Cork.

The Cloyne report said Irish clerics concealed from the authorities the sexual abuse of children by priests as recently as 2009 after the Vatican appeared to disparage Irish child protection guidelines in a letter to Irish Bishops.

Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny made a speech condemning the Holy See in which he said that the "rape and torture of children were downplayed or managed, to uphold instead the primacy of the institution, its power, standing and reputation."

A series of revelations of rape and beatings by members of religious orders and the priesthood in the past have shattered the dominant role of the Catholic Church in Ireland.

Anger shifted from local bishops to Rome after it emerged that a letter from the Vatican to the Irish Bishops in 1997 appeared to play down the Irish guidelines on reporting sex abuse by referring to them as "study guidelines".

The Vatican has denied that the letter was an invitation to disregard Irish laws.

Copyright 2011 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

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