Lighten Up, This Is No Big Deal

Chicago teen faces expulsion after derogatory rankings

(NEWSER) - A classy young man at a high school in suburban Chicago faces expulsion after publicly ranking the looks and sexual promiscuity of the girls in his school in great detail and, of course, posting it on Facebook. After that, he printed out the list and distributed it in fliers around the school, reports the Chicago Sun-Times . It included nicknames such as "The Designated Drunk" and "The Amazing Bisexual," separate ratings of faces and body parts, and derogatory references to race and ethnicity. More»

Coulter, NOW weigh in on one-night-stand piece

(NEWSER) - Christine O’Donnell’s campaign has slammed Gawker for its one-night stand story , reports Politico —and so has her opponent, Chris Coons, as well as the National Organization for Women. Some reactions:

• It’s “just another example of the sexism and slander that female candidates are forced to deal with,” wrote an O’Donnell rep on Facebook, linking the story to “Coons goons” who “have proven yet again to have no sense of common decency.”

Drinker dies in massive Nantes booze binge

(NEWSER) - France is cracking down on massive drinkathons organized via Facebook following the death of one young imbiber. Mobs have gathered for the mass outddoor drink-ups—dubbed an apéro gêant in France—in places such as Rennes, Breast and Montpelier. Some 10,000 partied last week in Nantes where a 21-year-old drinker fell to his death from a bridge, and 57 people were hospitalized. Officials have posted web pleas to the "internautes" for responsible behavior, which seem to have had some effect. Mere hundreds gathered over the weekend for the latest booze fete. More»

And yes, there's a Sarah Palin character

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama's 2008 campaign is the subject of Hope!, a musical set to premiere Jan. 17 in Frankfurt. The production features musical-theater versions of the major players: Michelle, Hillary—looking quite young—John McCain and even Sarah Palin, who sings a solo surrounded by scantily clad dancers. Writer and composer Randall Hutchins, who is American, tells Der Spiegel he got the idea for the production "right at the start of Obama's electoral campaign. I found the atmosphere exciting and that was my inspiration." More»

Boyfriend vows to have daughter 'on her back by 11'

(NEWSER) - Toyota has dumped an Australian teen night-on-the-town online ad dripping with sexual innuendo and smacking of date rape and incest following a storm of angry complaints. The ad, created by an independent filmmaker, features a young man who arrives at the door of a home to tell the father of his date that he's "taking her virginity out" and promises to "have her on her back by 11." The father, ostensibly talking about the boyfriend's car, mentions that "she can take a good pounding either way." More»