Gina_Silva's Blog

The thing about live television, once it's out there you can't take it back.  I've worked in several newsrooms and I've seen firsthand the kind of meltdowns people have on news sets.  It can get really ugly when something goes wrong on TV.  Some people react by yelling obscenities and insulting their coworkers. Even if it doesn't make it on live tv---someone is always rolling tape on that "little mishap" and you can bet it'll end up on the internet. NO, thank goodness I've never been abusive when I've lost my cool! My meltdowns have usually been caused by my own dumb mistakes so, I just scold myself!
But for your viewing pleasure, here's a link to a number of meltdowns by well known anchors and reporters.
http://gawker.com/390156/ten-angry-on+camera-meltdowns

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No, I don't have any. But I do have lots of earrings. Yet, I've never been stopped at the airport and asked to take them off before I board a flight. Why should I? Earrings are not dangerous. Or are they?

Well, it seems as though some airport security workers think "rings" on another body part could pose a danger in the skies. True story. A woman with nipple rings was recently stopped at an airport and ordered to take them out before proceeding to her flight.

She claims the workers gave her a pair of pliers to take them out. Pliers?!!! That sounds really painful. The rings had apparently been in her nipples for many years. Do you really need pliers to take them out? Those of you with nipple rings please explain. And while you're at it, what is the deal with nipple rings? Ok, I'm digressing.

Back to story. The woman has now hired high profile attorney Gloria Allred to help her bring attention to this incident. Allred is demanding a public apology and a review of the Transportation Security Administration's policy (TSA). She says she wants "to ensure that no other person is forced to suffer the same fate." If the Transportation Security Administration doesn't apologize, then Allred says she'll consider a lawsuit.

A TSA spokesman admits they don't have a specific policy to address nipple rings or any other jewelry and they don't have all the information on this case. BTW, on the celebrity side, Nicole Richie who also has or had nipple rings was stopped at an airport and was forced to have her breasts inspected. No pliers needed in her case.

What do you think? Did security workers go too far? What's been your experience with airport security?

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A ring of accused mortgage scammers is now behind bars!  The group is accused of defrauding it's customers out of millions. My colleague Tim Harrell and I spent so much time investigating this group and we spent time with the victims. People who lost thousands of dollars and in many cases lost their homes because of the actions of "Lifetime Financial". Clients say they were offered low rates; they would sign on the dotted line then the employees would hike up those rates without letting them know. In other cases, clients who had decided not to go with the company, say their signatures were forged and with those fake signatures they suddenly found themselves with the most outrageous loans. (We saw some of those signatures...they certainly appeared to be different to the real owners signatures)

The group led by Eric Pony from Tarzana Ca., allegedly took out all of the equity and left the homeowners with huge loans/monthly payments they simply couldn't afford. Too many people lost their homes. One victim was a 75-year old man who'd had his house most of his life. Now homeless. What is he going to do???

State Attorney General, Jerry Brown says, "As the mortgage crisis worsens, a growing number of fly-by-night companies are employing utterly brazen tactics to push homeowners into illegal and unconscionable loans."

He's absolutely right. I've received so many calls from people saying they've been scammed in similar situations by different mortgage companies.

While San Bernardino and Los Angeles DA investigators say they're making it a priority to stop these mortgage lending predators, it's nearly impossible to catch all of them. So, please be careful out there. TRUST NO ONE! Do your homework and check out these companies thoroughly before you go into business with them. If you've been scammed here's a number to call:

1800-952-5225.

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So much has been written about NY Governor Eliot Spitzer. I just came across this article by Bill Maher which I think some of you might enjoy or really, really hate. It's an Interesting take. What do you think?

BILL MAHER:
I'm going to throw the remote through the TV if one more news twink says something on the order of "When we come back, we'll look into what drives a successful man like Eliot Spitzer to risk it all..."

Oh yes, let's convene a panel of experts for that. Let me help you: because he wants to get his nut off! Stop with all the analysis! It never ends, I hear all these people talking about how powerful people think they can get away with anything, so it's a thrill, or that it's for this psychological reason or this one -- please, he wanted to C__ WITH SOMEONE! Stop over thinking this: people need sex, and married people generally aren't getting it. Studies show (OK, I'm making that up, but it's true nonetheless) that people married 20 years only have sex on Valentine's Day, their anniversary, and their birthdays. You can hate me as the messenger, but it's true -- how can anyone be expected to still want to score with someone you've been having sex with for a score? Mr. Spitzer simply wanted what humans desire, to feel that sensational sensation when you're hot for someone, to touch and hug and bump and grind -- this is really not that complicated! If you're ascribing more to it than that, it's probably really more about your own fear that your spouse wants to do the same thing.

Or is doing it. Married people are often starved for sex, touch, affection, not to mention the kinky stuff that wifey definitely won't do. So if you find yourself at such a place in life -- and this is most certainly wives as well -- where you're dieing like this, you can do one of three things: get divorced, cheat, or continue to live a life with little or no passion, sex, etc. It's easy to point fingers, but how about some recognition that society's rules are so at odds with human nature that there are actually no good options for an Eliot Spitzer, and the ZILLIONS OF PEOPLE JUST LIKE HIM, many of who are tut-tut-ing today. I guess a guy is a hero who sticks it out and leads a life of quiet desperation. I'm not so sure it's heroic to make him.

 Back in college my boyfriend innocently asked, "Wouldn't you like to live back in the 50's and 60's when life was simpler?"  I remember looking at him in utter amazement.  Why would I want to go back to a time when blacks were being lynched just because of the color of their skin?  Why would I want to go back to a time when businesses proudly displayed signs on the windows saying "No mexicans and dogs allowed"  Why? Nothing reinforced my fears more than the movie "Mississippi Burning", which was based on the true story of three civil rights students killed in 1964.  

 I told my boyfriend, "No, thank you. I like the way things are now."  

  It's now 2008 and things have changed a lot since I made that statement.  Now, the two groups who were once persecuted by racists and could have united to fight that kind of hate are out killing each other. Sometimes for no other reason than the color of their skin.

   Last week, five children and three adults were shot as they waited for the bus.  The gunman? A black man who witnesses say fired about 15 rounds from a semi-automatic handgun. 

    On Sunday, Jamiel Shaw, a black high school athlete with a promising future was shot and killed by a group of latino gang members.  On Tuesday, a 6 year old African American boy was shot in the head as he was inside a vehicle with other children and his mom.  The suspects? Two young latino men who flashed gang signs. 

  The boy is 6 years old!!!  Is there anything sacred with these hateful gangs?  A homicide detective tells me the racial war between latino and black gangs in many Los Angeles neighborhoods has been going on for years.   But they're not just killing each other. They are out killing innocent people who aren't in gangs.  People who in their eyes happen to have the wrong skin color.  Isn't that ironic? 

  Despite this madness, there are plenty of people working hard to find solutions to this problem.   Just last week, I went to Cleveland High School for a  "Black-Brown love" assembly.   Students used the power of words to talk about ending the horrible violence plaguing so many black and latino neighborhoods.  One female student read a short poem she had written. Here's a part of it.

     "We should be a generation of peace.  

      But all the hate just won't cease 

      and all the murder won't decrease. 

      And....we give another statistic to police

     when we could be bringing the world peace....."

I couldn't agree more.  How do we stop this insanity?

When people use that phrase they're usually kidding. Not Reverend Bob Larson. He calls himself "The Real Exorcist" a man with the power to cast out Demons. For the last 30 years, Larson has traveled the world claiming to deliver people from evil. Just recently, he came to Pasadena where he exorcised a number of people. (Check out the pictures)

Larson claims that most people who cheat, lie and murder have demon spirits inside them. When he told me that, Richard Ramirez immediately came to mind. Remember him? The Night Stalker who terrorized Los Angeles in 1984 and 1985. His eyes certainly look scary...nothing but evil.

But really, blaming every bad action on the devil? What about personal responsibility? And..... is this guy for real or just a con artist?

Whether or not you believe in Larson or his exorcisms,

one thing's for sure, his sessions are definitely NOT BORING!

You can check it out for yourself on Monday at 10pm.

On a side note, when we came back from the shoot and tried to ingest the video into our avid system, the clips came out to a total number of 666 and then the system crashed. Our system often crashes, so that's not so weird...but the number 666??That's WEIRD!

So, do you guys believe in demon possessions?

5 to 10 credit cards is what most people carry in their wallets. The results can be disastrous, with many people drowning in debt. It doesn't matter, the credit card offers just keep coming in the mail.

Have you ever wondered which customer is preferred by creditors? Is it the consumer making good money or the the person struggling financially?

On Monday night, I've got a report on how creditors operate. With the help of James Scurlock, author of "Maxed Out", we explore the world of charge cards. Research indicates the worse off you are, the more creditors come after you. It may sound strange, but if you think about it, it really does make sense. Financial institutions make most of their money on high interest rates, late payment penalties and people making only the minimum payments. If you only pay the minimum, you'll never get out of debt.

Financial institutions say they lend responsibly and do not target specific people. What do you think? Is it really the creditors that are at fault or the consumers who need to be more responsible with their spending?

BTW, creditors are now tossing around a new idea. A credit card that allows them to take money out of your pension plan if you don't pay the bill. Crazy? You bet, but I'm sure some people will sign up for it if it's ever offered.
Gina

By know, nearly everyone has heard about the racy pictures of American Ido Antonella Barba. The photos show Barba in numerous sexually suggestive poses. In some, she's topless with her girlfriends, drinking while underage and flipping off the camera. Apparently, they're no big deal to American Idol producers. Rewind to A.I season 2. Contestant Frenchie Davis was kicked off the show after her topless photos surfaced on the internet in 2003. What's going on? Rosie O'donnell calls it racist. Frenchie is black. Antonella is not. But is it racism or does it have to do with the weight difference? Antonella is tall and skinny while Frenchie is tall and overweight. One guy said to me, "Gina, we don't want to see a fat chick in racy pictures. That's for the hot chicks!" Is that it? Seems unfair to me but what do you think? Gina

I went back to college this week and discovered that old fashion dating is out.
College students tell me it's all about "hooking up" and having "friends with benefits".
Men and women are skipping courting each other & they're jumping straight into the sack--no strings attached. The college girls I spoke with, tell me they are totally cool with these arrangements.

But are they really??? Not if you ask Dr. Miriam Grossman, a psychiatrist at UCLA. She says women are often left hurt and confused after a sexual hook up. According to Grossman, when women have sex, they release a hormone that promotes bonding/feelings of attachment. She says that's why women have such a difficult time after sexual hookups.

So why do women continue to engage in such risky behavior? Well, Grossman says political correctness is to blame for so many women acting promiscuously. The PC message being that women are equal to men and therefore, can sleep around just like men. But Grossman says women are NOT EQUAL to men.

What do you think? Is political correctness to blame for so many sexual hook ups? Are women more vulnerable than men when it comes to sex?
And what about guys....why don't they get attached? Or do they?

Click here to check out my special report on sexual hookups.

Gina