Ronnie.

One of the first lessons that I learned as an actor, is to never judge the character you are playing.

No matter how ridiculous or absurd or heinous his actions, thoughts or mannerisms might be, to cast judgement on your character would be counter-productive to your pursuit in bringing truth and understanding to his objective.

Photo credit: blog.movieset.com

So when I was given the role of "Ronnie" in a scene from the movie Little Children, my ability to follow the aforementioned tenet was immediately put to the test.

Scene from the movie "Little Children" - Ronnie's Date.

In the movie, Ronnie (played by actor Jackie Earle Haley) is a registered sex offender and a pedophile. He was recently released from prison after serving a sentence for indecent exposure. And after moving-in with his mother and becoming the neighbourhood pariah, Ronnie now faces the daunting task of trying to become a "good boy".

Which in the end, produces disastrous results.

Prior to getting this scene study, the only thing that I knew about pedophiles was that they liked to have sex with children, and that they're probably the most viled and despised people within our society. Even amongst other criminals within a correctional facility, they are reportedly kept in segregation for their own protection!

Photo credit: http://www.sealeta.com/

And given the fact that children are viewed as being innocent and in need of our constant protection, it's little wonder that news reports about pedophiles invoke such a highly-charged emotional response from the general public. Let's face it! We want them put away for life, or in some cases, even worse!

But what is pedophilia? What causes it? And more importantly, what (if anything) can be used to treat it? Or is it something that can even be treated?

According to an article published in the medical journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings, pedophilia is a clinical diagnosis usually made by a psychiatrist or psychologist. The article states that a pedophile is, "an individual who fantasizes about, is sexually aroused by, or experiences sexual urges toward prepubescent children (generally less than 13 years of age) for a period of at least 6 months."

Now the article (which can be viewed HERE), is written BY physicians FOR physicians. So even though it contained a lot of medical terminology and references to various studies, I did manage to learn the following about pedophiles and pedophilia:

Not all pedophiles act on their urges and/or fantasies. In fact, some of them experience either interpersonal problems and/or great emotional distress because of this. But, the ones that are identified either by the police and/or the medical community, generally act upon their sexual fantasies because they don't find it distressing enough to seek treatment on their own.

Pedophilia is usually long-term. While some pedophiles reported that their attraction to children started around puberty, others developed this sexual attraction later in life (e.g. 40-70 years of age).

Pedophiles can be both men and women, and they can develop a preference for a specific age-range and/or sex. They can either be exclusively attracted to children or, attracted to adults as well as children.

Getting an accurate count on the number of pedophiles in our society is difficult because few of them seek voluntary treatment, and most of the available data are from people "who have become involved with the legal system." No one knows for sure how many pedophiles are out there who have never been caught and/or who only fantasize but never act upon their urges.

Some pedophiles justify their actions by saying that it had "an educational value" to it and/or that the child had somehow encouraged it.

According to the US Department of Justice, the 5 common psychological defense patterns in pedophiles are:

1) Denial (e.g. "Is it wrong to give a child a hug?")

2) Minimization (e.g. "It only happened once")

3) Justification (e.g. "I am a boy lover, not a child molester")

4) Fabrication (activities were for research studies)

5) Attack (character attacks on the child, police, prosecutors, etc.)

Now as for the big question "What makes a pedophile?", the article states that:

"Pedophilia, especially the exclusive type, may be best thought of as its own category of sexual orientation, not something that is superimposed on an existing heterosexual or homosexual identity."

So if this is true, are pedophiles born that way? And if so, can they be converted into "normal" people through treatment?

Although there are numerous theories that are being studied, the authors of this article make it clear that:

"No treatment for pedophilia is effective unless the pedophile is willing to engage in the treatment."

And according to the findings of a couple of studies, the urges can be managed BUT, the core attraction doesn't change.

As I sit here thinking about what to type next, I find myself feeling grateful for the fact that I've never experienced the pain that comes from being a victim of child abuse or in the case of Ronnie, the torment of having to fight against something that feels so right but yet, is so wrong.

I hope that one day, medical science discovers a "cure" for pedophilia; otherwise, you might get people resorting to this type of a desperate measure:

Scene from the movie "Little Children" - Ronnie takes matters into his own hands.

Eat shit and...

So there I was, sitting on the bus, coming into White Rock Centre when all of a sudden I see this big construction sign flashing the words:

"Boil water advisory in effect. Call..."

So I go home and check the news.  And sure enough, my city is under a boil water advisory.

We sometimes see news stories about E. coli outbreaks in certain foods and/or water supplies, but what exactly are E.coli?

Photo credit: http://www.ecoliblog.com/

Well, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, E. coli (Escherichia coli) are a "large and diverse group of bacteria". Now contrary to popular belief, not all types of E. coli bacteria are harmful to humans. In fact, E. coli can be found in healthy humans and animals.

And according to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), E. coli bacteria are used as "markers for water contamination." Apparently, its' presence in drinking water doesn't necessarily mean that it's harmful to humans, but it does indicate that the water is contaminated.

Don't worry. They think it's confusing too!

But whenever you hear about news stories regarding outbreaks of E. coli infections chances are, they're referring to a type of E. coli called: E. coli O157. 

Photo credit: Dennis Kunkel

This type of bacteria causes disease by producing a toxin called, Shiga toxin (STEC). And this is where things can get really shitty (both figuratively AND literally!). According to the CDC, STEC lives in the guts of animals such as cattle, sheep, deer and elk. And humans tend to get infected by ingesting (ugh!) tiny amounts of animal and/or human feces.

Photo credit: gamesprays.com

Yummy.

Now, unless you're into a certain type of...um..."fetish", the most common ways in which we ingest this crap (Sorry, I couldn't help myself!) is by eating contaminated food, drinking raw milk, contaminated water, and even unpasteurized apple cider. But what might surprise you is that we can also become infected with STEC by eating undercooked hamburgers and/or contaminated lettuce.

Photo credit: foodpoisonjournal.com

Now it's probably safe to say that most people know about the importance of frequent hand-washing and proper food preparation techniques (e.g., cooking meats to proper internal temperature) as ways to prevent getting a nasty case of the "runs" (or worse!).

But what about dealing with contaminated drinking water?

I was surprised to find out that the drinking water in my city isn't treated. In fact, according to Epcor (our local water utilities company), our drinking water comes directly from a groundwater source called the "Sunnyside Uplands aquifer."

Photo credit: Environment Canada

According to the encyclopedia of earth, an aquifer is comprised of layers of sand, porous and non-porous rock that's located underground. When water travels from higher to lower elevations, it moves through the soil until it reaches the area of maximum water saturation. Now contrary to popular belief, an aquifer is not an underground lake. The water is actually held between rock particles, and this water is known as, ground water.

Now there's talk amongst the locals about treating (chlorinating) our drinking water. Having grown-up in a large city that treats its drinking water, I just assumed that all one needed to do is dump as much chlorine (and any other disinfectant!) into the water supply and "Presto!", you have clean drinking water!

But after checking-out the website for the EPA (United States Environmental Protection Agency), it's not as simple as that. In fact, it's a very delicate balancing act that carries with it some possible health risks.

According to the EPA, certain types of microbial pathogens (e.g., Cryptosporidium) are highly resistant to traditional disinfection practices. And disinfectants can react with naturally-occurring materials in the water to create by-products that can be harmful to humans!

So much for my previous assumption!

Although I can't say that I'm crazy about playing "Russian Roulette" with my digestive system whenever I take a drink of water, this incident has taught me some pretty interesting facts about our water supply and the importance of never taking our clean drinking water for granted.

Photo credit: jacobonipools.com

Now pass me the bleach, will ya? 

Dial and Smile.

DIAL AND SMILE

I am that voice that you hear on the line

A faceless "friend" with your "best interest" in mind

With my eye on the prize and a voice dripping with honey

I slowly make my way to your wallet full of money.

I pitch and I prod from my corner office pod

A temporary worker who is in need of job

The smiles of encouragement have long since faded

Like the faces of those who in the end, didn't make it.

The drone of the voices rise and fall

Indicating that, finally, someone is home

Will you be the one who will finally say, "Yes!"?

Or will you waste my time with the same old b.s.?

"No, I'm not interested.", just doesn't sit well

Among those of us who are working in hell

Strapped to the machine with our ball and chain

We count down the minutes til we're free again.

Like a fisherman struggling with the catch of the day

We persuade and we pitch and we promise away

You get some, you lose some, but in the end, we cannot fail

So we keep casting that line, hoping to snag that sale.

"Show us the magic!", our bosses would say

As they sit on their asses and do nothing all day

Surveying their colony of slaves bought for cheap

Smug in their assurances that their jobs are for keeps

So we keep dialing and smiling in pursuit of that sale

Hoping to hang-on to our temporary cells

Because even though our jobs really suck

We'll put-up with anything for the almighty buck.

(Well, almost anything.)

JAMES RHA

The red-eyed tree frog (and I thought I had it tough!).

Imagine that when you were born, instead of the warmth and protection of the maternity ward, you were left to fend for yourself in a rain forest full of predators who viewed you simply as - the next meal.

Welcome to the world of the Agalychnis callidryas; otherwise known as:

The red-eyed tree frog.

In an on-line article about this fascinating creature, author Jennifer S. Holland from the National Geographic described the perilous journey of these tropical frogs during their mating season in Central America.  

According to Holland's article, the female frog searches for prime locations (located over water) where her fertilized eggs can be left to hatch. And this is where the drama of life and death takes a whole new twist!

Whether it's snakes, wasps, or some other creature hell-bent on feeding its appetite, these sacs of eggs make for an easy target. In fact, these two predators alone, decimate up to HALF of the total number of fertilized eggs!

But just like any good drama, these determined little amphibians are not about to go down without a fight!

In her article, Holland describes how the eggs can hatch "within seconds" (prematurely up to two days) when they're attacked. And according to research conducted by Boston University biologist Karen Warkentin and her colleagues, the eggs can differentiate between a predator, a gust of wind, or a rain shower through the vibrations in the egg jelly.

But in an astonishing discovery that has mystified the researchers, not only can the eggs differentiate between the various types of "disturbances", but they can also tailor their responses to fit them as well!

According to Warkentin, when a snake bites into the eggs, "all the embryos try to wiggle free". When a wasp attacks (more precision), only the neighboring eggs begin to hatch, and when a rainstorm hits, it "triggers nothing at all".

Absolutely amazing!

If you'd like to read the entire article, click HERE.

And for more amazing facts about the world we live in, visit:

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/

(Boy! And I thought I had it tough!).


Photo credit: Christian Ziegler.