British couples who travel abroad for IVF treatment and buy other women’s eggs are engaging in a form of prostitution, a fertility conference was told yesterday.
In an attack on the “fertility tourism” industry, Naomi Pfeffer warned that increasing numbers of “vulnerable women in developed countries” were being exploited by Westerners who were desperate to conceive.
Professor Pfeffer, who researches controversial developments in medicine, told the Motherhood in the 21st Century Conference at University College London: “The exchange relationship is analogous to that of a client and a prostitute. It’s a unique situation because it’s the only instance in which a woman exploits another woman’s body.”
Her comments, likely to reignite the debate on the ban on paying for eggs and sperm in Britain, were backed up by Lord Winston, the fertility expert and broadcaster. He told The Times: “She’s right, basically. It’s a form of exploitation.”
A recent study revealed that hundreds of British couples were travelling to Europe for IVF treatment every month. University College London researchers have estimated that at least 20,000 to 25,000 cross-border fertility treatments are being carried out on the Continent each year.
Donors, Czech women , Romanian women, Russian women and Ukrainian women, are paid hundreds of pounds for their eggs. Professor Pfeffer said that these foreign women were often vulnerable, desperate and willing to take health risks to make sizeable sums of money.
She said: “Most of these women are in developing economies where access to healthcare is limited by their ability to pay. They are often vulnerable women and it’s a very unequal economic relationship.
“These women are being encouraged to take real risks with their health through ovarian stimulation and egg retrieval. It commodifies women’s bodies and treats their reproductive capacities as a service.”
Egg donors typically undergo a donation cycle of three to six weeks, during which time they take contraceptive pills to control their natural fertility cycle. Usually during the first week the donor sniffs a hormonal nasal spray, which is followed by two to four weeks of self-administered hormonal injections to stimulate egg production. The egg-harvesting procedure takes about 30 minutes and is carried out under a light anaesthetic. A needle is guided by ultrasound through the vaginal wall to retrieve follicles containing eggs from both ovaries.
Professor Pfeffer said that even using the term “donation” in relation to the exchange of eggs was inappropriate. “It sounds as though it’s a gift. But these women are not doing it for altruistic reasons — they are doing it for money. We shouldn’t talk about them as egg donors.”
Furthermore, she said, it raised questions for the child who was conceived. “What can you tell a child when half their genetic make-up came from a woman in Ukraine? A woman who was so poor that she was prepared to enter [into egg exchange]? What does that child think of its social mother, a woman who was prepared to exploit another woman?”
She said that British parents should face up to the consequences of their actions. “They should know that they are using vulnerable women. These women who are buying eggs have to appreciate that the eggs don’t appear from a stork or from under a gooseberry bush.”
A private IVF cycle costs at least £4,000 in Britain but is half the price in parts of South and Eastern Europe. A recent survey showed that two thirds of Britons engaging in fertility treatment in Europe were aged over 40 because they did not qualify for free treatment on the NHS.
Professor Winston said that British doctors were fuelling fertility tourism by referring their patients to European clinics for IVF treatment because the industry was less regulated. “That is not a way for us to be behaving,” he told the conference. Several other experts agreed that the increasing popularity of the fertility tourism industry needed to be urgently addressed.
Professor Sammy Lee, one of the country’s leading experts on fertility, said that there needed to be a debate on the British ban on buying eggs and sperm.
“This issue needs to be addressed,” he said. “One of the reasons people are going to Europe is that it is so hard to get eggs in Britain. It’s going to happen more because people are looking for areas where the law and guidelines are less strict, where they can pay donors and donors are more available.”
In July the fertility watchdog, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, said that the longstanding British ban should be reconsidered to try to reduce the number of people going abroad for treatment.
Many British doctors refer patients abroad if they do not want to join the NHS's three-year waiting list for donor eggs. Prime destinations include Russia, Czech Republic, Romania, Belarus and Ukraine because donors are paid. In fertility tourism, two thirds of women are estimated to be above 40. They do not qualify for free treatment on the NHS. Researchers estimate that 20,000-25,000 cross-border fertility treatments are carried out on the Continent each year.
source
Oct 27, 2009
Oct 25, 2009
russian singles in Seattle
there are a few ways to meet russian singles in the Emerald City. Seattle and Washington state have an abundance of cheap and free things to do to make friends with people from Russia and may be to find a russian single woman for dating and marriage.
Go to a church. There are a few russian Orthodox churches in the area, google for Russian Orthodox church in Seattle and you will have the exact location, do not worry if you are not orthodox christian, they will let anyone visit the service and meet people.
If you're not religious, then go on craigslist. They give you two different paths. If you are searching for a girlfriend or boyfriend then they have a section for that. If you are just looking for friends they have a "strictly platonic" site. They also have a Seattle community site where you can type in keywords for different hobbies that you may enjoy doing. Once you find other like minded russian singles who enjoy a similar hobby as you then you can e-mail the poster to figure out when and where they meet.
The other options is go online to http://www.luckylovers.net which is considered a major russian dating site and has members russian and american singles from all over the world, do a search for russian singles in Seattle and may be you will find someone you like!
Be bold, and don't be afraid to put yourself out there. Good luck!
Go to a church. There are a few russian Orthodox churches in the area, google for Russian Orthodox church in Seattle and you will have the exact location, do not worry if you are not orthodox christian, they will let anyone visit the service and meet people.
If you're not religious, then go on craigslist. They give you two different paths. If you are searching for a girlfriend or boyfriend then they have a section for that. If you are just looking for friends they have a "strictly platonic" site. They also have a Seattle community site where you can type in keywords for different hobbies that you may enjoy doing. Once you find other like minded russian singles who enjoy a similar hobby as you then you can e-mail the poster to figure out when and where they meet.
The other options is go online to http://www.luckylovers.net which is considered a major russian dating site and has members russian and american singles from all over the world, do a search for russian singles in Seattle and may be you will find someone you like!
Be bold, and don't be afraid to put yourself out there. Good luck!
Oct 21, 2009
where to find singles
When looking for a soulmate, you need to decide what exactly you want to find. If you are searching someone to share your interests, your possibilities are endless. If you are a golfer, join a golf club. If you bowl, go down to the bowling alley. If you are a traveler, buy an RV or go on a cruise.
If you are looking just for a buddy to ran with, it is one thing, but if you want to share you life with someone, then you are looking for a personality type as well. You are looking for a kind, caring, generous, considerate, and loving person. These qualities are way more significant than sharing a hobby.
A great place to see a person’s true personality is to watch them while they do something they are passionate about. You will see them at their most joyous, their most generous, and their most energetic. You will also see them when they are the most open to possibilities – and that is where you come in. If you can make that introduction while they are at a “happy place” in their life – the pool, the golf course, the bowling alley – they may be more open to the possibility of a relationship.
So, the best place to find the person you’re looking for is to find them when and where they are happy. And, if that place is where you are happy, too, the sky will be your limit.
If you are looking just for a buddy to ran with, it is one thing, but if you want to share you life with someone, then you are looking for a personality type as well. You are looking for a kind, caring, generous, considerate, and loving person. These qualities are way more significant than sharing a hobby.
A great place to see a person’s true personality is to watch them while they do something they are passionate about. You will see them at their most joyous, their most generous, and their most energetic. You will also see them when they are the most open to possibilities – and that is where you come in. If you can make that introduction while they are at a “happy place” in their life – the pool, the golf course, the bowling alley – they may be more open to the possibility of a relationship.
So, the best place to find the person you’re looking for is to find them when and where they are happy. And, if that place is where you are happy, too, the sky will be your limit.
Oct 17, 2009
World Etiquette
In Europe, do not address people by there first names. Mr. and Mrs. are more commonly used.
Shaking hands is an important business ritual throughout Europe and Britain.
In most countries a handshake should be gentle. A firm handshake can show aggression.
In Asia, instead of a handshake a person will bow from the waist, and the person with the lower status bows more deeply.
In Italy and Russia, close friends will often greet each other with a kiss.
In Europe, men traditionally walk to the left of the ladies. They generally enter a restaurant ahead of the lady - to lead the way to the table.
In some countries, people feel comfortable standing closer to each other, when they are talking. It would be rude to back away. In other countries, like China and Japan, they want more distance between people.
In Holland, they always use utensils. Many Dutch even eat bread with a knife and fork!
In Sweden, you keep your voice down. Swedes are quiet people.
Americans like to whistle, when they are applauding, but in Europe it is known as a type of booing.
In Russia, whistling by women is unladylike.
In some parts of the Middle East, shaking your head “no” means “yes” and nodding your head “yes” means “no”.
In a number of countries, keep eye contact with the speaker is rude. They show respect by not looking straight at the person talking.
Shaking hands is an important business ritual throughout Europe and Britain.
In most countries a handshake should be gentle. A firm handshake can show aggression.
In Asia, instead of a handshake a person will bow from the waist, and the person with the lower status bows more deeply.
In Italy and Russia, close friends will often greet each other with a kiss.
In Europe, men traditionally walk to the left of the ladies. They generally enter a restaurant ahead of the lady - to lead the way to the table.
In some countries, people feel comfortable standing closer to each other, when they are talking. It would be rude to back away. In other countries, like China and Japan, they want more distance between people.
In Holland, they always use utensils. Many Dutch even eat bread with a knife and fork!
In Sweden, you keep your voice down. Swedes are quiet people.
Americans like to whistle, when they are applauding, but in Europe it is known as a type of booing.
In Russia, whistling by women is unladylike.
In some parts of the Middle East, shaking your head “no” means “yes” and nodding your head “yes” means “no”.
In a number of countries, keep eye contact with the speaker is rude. They show respect by not looking straight at the person talking.
Oct 14, 2009
greetings from Switzerland
"... Saying the truth I was very pessimistic to the stories of my friends who were telling happy love stories of people who’ve met on the internet. I just couldn’t apply such situation to myself. It was something very unbelievable to me, the stories about net scamming looked rather more realistic and then I’m an engineer and I have been always very realistic person. And love that was born due to the talks in the net was like another happy tale for me. Great but far from reality. See now how wrong I was then in my prejudices.
Two years ago I had really dark line in my life, it was all so bad that I thought that my life runs to the end, and everything is over, nothing to live for, no hopes and no desires. That was the time right after my wife died in the car accident. I existed (one can not call this living) for almost two years, when I found dating site lucky lovers and joined to them firstly because of their forum – it was pretty interesting to see so many educated women from the countries I (we?) always considered the third world. Seems I was even a bit addicted to the site at that moment, but at least these guys made me to believe into tomorrow.
Before that I had my work to keep me living and now I am having pretty many friends from the countries I have never been. There are a lot of girls from FSU countries. I like that really, because the world has shown me his other side, other people, other thoughts, other believes but the same wish to love and to be loved.
Oksana was from Zaporojie, Ukraine and I am from Switzerland. Those days she was 34 years old woman and the mother of a great child. Ok, I’ll jump to the happy end right now, yes, I’m happy to tell you, that now I’m a step-father of our son Anatoly and we are waiting for our own child.
Even now, we just can’t believe that this all really happened to us. We found each other; we filled our lives with each other and this all in spite of that rather big distance and that boring paper work. But yes, we have passed through this all.
My wife’s death taught me to live every day like the last one, so now we are living our dream and we care and give our love to each other every day, every minute. We live for each other and for our children without thinking about the past and the future. We believe that our love is special and we were chosen to get this gift.
And finishing my story, we both would like to wish you all to find your true love, love which is appointed to you. Enjoy everyday you live. Orel and Oksana...."
Oct 11, 2009
Oct 10, 2009
Fastest Growing Internet Population
Russia Has Fastest Growing Internet Population in Europe
European Internet Audience Surpasses 226 Million Unique Visitors
Nordic Internet Audiences Most Active in Region
comScore, Inc. a leader in measuring the digital world, today released the results of a study into the online habits of European Internet audiences, based on data collected through the comScore World Metrix audience measurement service.
Internet Usage in Russia Jumps 23 Percent during Past Year
The European region recorded its largest ever Internet audience in September with a 5-percent year over year growth, reaching 226.7 million unique visitors age 15 or older. Russia had the fastest growing online audience this period, increasing 23 percent to 14.6 million unique visitors, followed by Spain, which grew 18 percent to 14.5 million unique visitors, and Ireland, which grew 16 percent to 1.5 million.
| Fastest Growing European Internet Audiences* September 2007 vs. September 2006 Total European Unique Visitors (000) Age 15+, Home & Work Locations** Source: comScore World Metrix | |||
| Country | Total Unique Visitors (000) | ||
| Sep 2006 | Sep 2007 | % Change | |
| Total European Internet Audience | 216,197 | 226,712 | 5% |
| Russia | 11,944 | 14,633 | 23% |
| Spain | 12,281 | 14,490 | 18% |
| Ireland | 1,258 | 1,453 | 16% |
| France | 23,980 | 27,260 | 14% |
| Belgium | 4,436 | 4,924 | 11% |
| Switzerland | 3,490 | 3,860 | 11% |
| Denmark | 2,926 | 3,208 | 10% |
| Sweden | 5,050 | 5,482 | 9% |
| United Kingdom | 29,589 | 32,179 | 9% |
| Austria | 3,538 | 3,834 | 8% |
| Finland | 2,706 | 2,889 | 7% |
| Norway | 2,521 | 2,698 | 7% |
| Germany | 32,085 | 33,174 | 3% |
| Netherlands | 10,825 | 11,109 | 3% |
| Italy | 17,389 | 17,638 | 1% |
| Portugal | 3,801 | 3,785 | 0% |
* Rankings based on the 16 individually reportable European countries in comScore World Metrix. Total European Internet audience figures are comprehensive and include visitation from countries that are not individually reportable.
** Excludes traffic from public computers such as Internet cafes or access from mobile phones or PDAs.
The country with the largest online audience was Germany with 33.2 million unique visitors, followed closely by the U.K. with 32.2 million. Together, they represented 29 percent of the total European online audience. Europe’s third largest online country, France, was also its fourth fastest growing, having enjoyed a 14-percent gain and reaching 27.3 million unique visitors in September.
Netherlands Has Highest Internet Penetration in Europe
Internet adoption was highest in the Netherlands, where 82 percent of the country’s population age 15 or older was online in September. After the Netherlands, adoption rates were highest in the Nordic region, where the Internet was accessed by 73 percent of the total population of Sweden, 72 percent of Denmark and Norway, and 66 percent of the Finnish population.
| European Internet Usage September 2007 Total European Unique Visitors (000)* Age 15+, Home & Work Locations** Source: comScore World Metrix | |||
| Country | % of Population Age 15+ Online*** | Average Hours per Visitor | Average Pages per Visitor |
| Total European Internet Audience | 37% | 24.3 | 2,609 |
| Netherlands | 82% | 26.3 | 3,051 |
| Sweden | 73% | 30.1 | 3,844 |
| Denmark | 72% | 20.2 | 2,827 |
| Norway | 72% | 25.0 | 2,913 |
| Finland | 66% | 24.7 | 3,266 |
| Switzerland | 61% | 22.0 | 2,439 |
| United Kingdom | 60% | 33.0 | 3,252 |
| Belgium | 57% | 19.8 | 2,289 |
| Austria | 55% | 16.7 | 1,997 |
| France | 53% | 23.5 | 2,433 |
| Germany | 47% | 24.6 | 2,866 |
| Ireland | 45% | 17.5 | 1,702 |
| Portugal | 43% | 22.6 | 2,336 |
| Spain | 42% | 28.5 | 2,389 |
| Italy | 35% | 21.1 | 2,046 |
| Russia | 12% | 13.7 | 1,742 |
* Rankings based on the 16 individually reportable European countries in comScore World Metrix. Total European Internet audience figures are comprehensive and include visitation from countries that are not individually reportable.** Excludes traffic from public computers such as Internet cafes or access from mobile phones or PDAs.
*** Geographic population breakdowns supplied by U.S. Census Bureau, 2007
The Nordic region also produced some of the most active online audiences in all of Europe. On average, Internet users in Sweden viewed more pages than any other European country - 3,844 pages per visitor. The country also spent the second longest average period of time on the Internet in September at 30.1 hours per visitor. Finland’s online audience viewed the second most number of pages, averaging 3,266 pages per visitor.
The U.K. Internet audience spent the most time online at an average of 33.0 hours for the month. It also viewed the highest number of pages outside of the Nordic region, averaging 3,252 pages per visitor per month, slightly ahead of the Netherlands with 3,051.
“Many countries in Europe are still demonstrating robust growth in Internet usage,” said Bob Ivins, comScore EVP of International Markets. “And given the relatively low Internet penetration in several major European countries, there is plenty of upside in the European market. Russia, with only 12 percent of its population online, appears poised for substantial growth.”
Oct 7, 2009
russian christian women
Russian Christian singles become popular in America - they still embody that image of ideal wife and mum. Russian traditional Christian culture is family and children oriented, kids are not given to overnight kindergartens, not left with some relatives in a different city. Russian traditional Christian woman wives put their families first and above all.
for those who are looking to find a good russian christian woman, it might get a bit frustrating to find the right place to meet them, you sure can go to a Russian Christian (Russian Orthodox) church in your country, in America, for example there are Russian Christian churches almost in every major city, but the problem is that those women are mostly married, in relationship and only a few russian single women who are on work or student visa.
So you go online and cruise internet in search of your perfect Russian woman, I did a quick test run and that was a surprise, I have seen a lot of search results on google referring to Russian Christian Dating or Russian Christian women marriage, but when I open those websites, I see - women in bikini, half naked women and the the text on the main page of those sites stating that they feature Sexy Christian Russian and Ukrainian women and girls available for dating, friendship, serious relations and marriage with Western men.
Will good russian christian woman pose in bikini?
A conservative russian Christian woman will only wear her bikini bathing suit at family swim functions or public beach or pool. She will not pose a sexy hot model on some mail order brides site.
Seems, like there is no way to find and meet a good Christian woman from Russia somewhere online? Not entirely true, there are hundreds if not thousands of Russian Christian women who are looking for love, romance and marriage with eligible Christian western men online, they mostly join respectable russian dating site like LuckyLovers, the one that does not sell women, does not require women to provide at least one full front bikini photo, does not feature sexy half naked girls on the main page. On a dating site like that, you will sure meet Russian Non Christian women and Russian Christian women, it till be your part to find the right one for you.
for those who are looking to find a good russian christian woman, it might get a bit frustrating to find the right place to meet them, you sure can go to a Russian Christian (Russian Orthodox) church in your country, in America, for example there are Russian Christian churches almost in every major city, but the problem is that those women are mostly married, in relationship and only a few russian single women who are on work or student visa.
So you go online and cruise internet in search of your perfect Russian woman, I did a quick test run and that was a surprise, I have seen a lot of search results on google referring to Russian Christian Dating or Russian Christian women marriage, but when I open those websites, I see - women in bikini, half naked women and the the text on the main page of those sites stating that they feature Sexy Christian Russian and Ukrainian women and girls available for dating, friendship, serious relations and marriage with Western men.
Will good russian christian woman pose in bikini?
A conservative russian Christian woman will only wear her bikini bathing suit at family swim functions or public beach or pool. She will not pose a sexy hot model on some mail order brides site.
Seems, like there is no way to find and meet a good Christian woman from Russia somewhere online? Not entirely true, there are hundreds if not thousands of Russian Christian women who are looking for love, romance and marriage with eligible Christian western men online, they mostly join respectable russian dating site like LuckyLovers, the one that does not sell women, does not require women to provide at least one full front bikini photo, does not feature sexy half naked girls on the main page. On a dating site like that, you will sure meet Russian Non Christian women and Russian Christian women, it till be your part to find the right one for you.
Oct 3, 2009
foreign women
There are so much obvious bias against having “foreign” wives in the internet, for having such wives would necessarily imply (or at least, that’s what they seem to believe) that the girls/women are interested in only money. While this sounds rather unnerving, we may perhaps be overreacting. If a girl falls for a man’s charms, it can be argued that she isn’t really interested in the man; rather, she is simply impressed by his charms (an outward behavior, if you will) which simply may be a charade after all. Similarly, if a girl loves a man for his good looks, one can again argue that she isn’t really impressed by the man; rather, it’s just his looks (an outward appearance) that attracts her toward him.
In other words, if a woman falls in love with a man because she is attracted by some X, Y or Z characteristic of his, one can argue that she likes precisely that X, Y or Z characteristic and not the man per se. What is more, I would argue that all women look for men who have some minimum financial resources backing them. Looks, charms, sociability, etc. come later even though they are very important factors in the final decision that a woman makes vis-a-vis marriage. So, assuming all the above, what is so “repugnant” about having a Russian wife (or any foreign wife, for that matter) if money is the predominant factor. The only difference is that the money factor in this case is clearly “out in the open” whereas under normal circumstances, it tends to be “hidden” behind the veneer of other factors that we think are socially more acceptable to talk about.
Heck, one can even argue that if A (a man) knows beforehand that a prospective wife (from Russia) is certainly interested in the amount of money he makes per year, say, then he has a much better understanding of the situation. He can at least make an informed decision because he has more information, so to speak. On the other hand, if A is not sure if some prospective wife (from America) cares about how much he earns per year and thinks that it is his charm or good looks that is the more important factor, then who knows, he is perhaps being taken for a ride!
A lot of people keep “money” separate from all the rest of the factors that they think women consider when marrying guys. Money should be kept in the same basket as good looks, charm, sociability, etc.
In other words, if a woman falls in love with a man because she is attracted by some X, Y or Z characteristic of his, one can argue that she likes precisely that X, Y or Z characteristic and not the man per se. What is more, I would argue that all women look for men who have some minimum financial resources backing them. Looks, charms, sociability, etc. come later even though they are very important factors in the final decision that a woman makes vis-a-vis marriage. So, assuming all the above, what is so “repugnant” about having a Russian wife (or any foreign wife, for that matter) if money is the predominant factor. The only difference is that the money factor in this case is clearly “out in the open” whereas under normal circumstances, it tends to be “hidden” behind the veneer of other factors that we think are socially more acceptable to talk about.
Heck, one can even argue that if A (a man) knows beforehand that a prospective wife (from Russia) is certainly interested in the amount of money he makes per year, say, then he has a much better understanding of the situation. He can at least make an informed decision because he has more information, so to speak. On the other hand, if A is not sure if some prospective wife (from America) cares about how much he earns per year and thinks that it is his charm or good looks that is the more important factor, then who knows, he is perhaps being taken for a ride!
A lot of people keep “money” separate from all the rest of the factors that they think women consider when marrying guys. Money should be kept in the same basket as good looks, charm, sociability, etc.
Sep 28, 2009
Ukraine woman marriage to a man from Ireland
It was a terrible day, I mean the weather was awful, it had been raining for the whole day, and you know something alike was in my soul, I felt myself terribly sad and this rain made everything even worse. So I logged in this dating site and started checking profiles of men. In a minute after I had logged in, I found a letter in my mailbox from a stranger with an interesting nickname ‘Johny.Boa’. He has written something like - he saw my photo, and he lost his sleep because of me … haa it was really cute and these were actually the words I need at the moment. I can not say that I was not used to the compliments, but I really need this little one on this day, so I`ve opened his profile and found out that he was a very handsome boy too. Definitely I liked him. What is more in his own words field there was written my username and some more soo pleasant trifles. I replied and after my reply we started chatting online. These chats were rather long, very interesting and even sometimes sad, I mean we were both so far away and there was no hope for us to meet each other in the nearest future.
I liked this guy very much, he I like him now as well)). I forgot to tell that I am from Ukraine and he is from Ireland. But even understanding all this, we started speaking using the phone and the time passed so slow from chat to chat, from mail to mail. We waited and waited and once heard each other voices and every time it was all so amazing. But still distance between our countries was the biggest problem, John did not have the possibility to leave his country at least for half a year and I was not sure whether they let me go to Ireland to visit him, you all know this problems with visas for Ukrainians.
We felt something to each other. It was rather strange feeling, very strange, a feeling that aroused inside of me to that close and at the same time imaginary man. But finally we decided to meet for real, we had to meet and to stay together or to stay friends.
Our meeting was in Kyiv. John refused one proposal at his work and came to Ukraine, he came to build our love, our relations, he was the one who had lost something for that. But it wasn’t a mistake. Finally he has not lost anything but found everything – these are his words, not mine)). We were deeply in love. Both of us, and that meeting proved it.
I still couldn’t imagine that I found my love on the dating site, but it happened. I was single and he was too and now we are a couple, really great couple they say.
So after his first visit there were meetings in Ukraine and in Poland and I also visited him in his country last summer. We got married this winter, a few days after Ukrainian Christmas.
John B.Taylor, Tania Taylor (Ireland)
Sep 21, 2009
catholic singles in Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia
Latvia - The Roman Catholic Church of Latvia is part of the worldwide Roman Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope and curia in Rome. There are around 390,000 Catholics — around 17% of the total population.
Estonia - The Catholic population of Estonia is small, approximating 6,000 adherents. There are no dioceses. Instead, the country forms an apostolic administration.
Lithuania - is the most Catholic of all the Baltic states: there are almost three million Catholics, around 80% of the total population. The country is divided into eight dioceses including two archdioceses and military ordinariate. In 2007 there were 779 Roman Catholic priests and 677 parishes. Lithuania is the northernmost predominantly Roman Catholic country in the world.
LuckyLovers site features over 600 single women Catholics from Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia.
Estonia - The Catholic population of Estonia is small, approximating 6,000 adherents. There are no dioceses. Instead, the country forms an apostolic administration.
Lithuania - is the most Catholic of all the Baltic states: there are almost three million Catholics, around 80% of the total population. The country is divided into eight dioceses including two archdioceses and military ordinariate. In 2007 there were 779 Roman Catholic priests and 677 parishes. Lithuania is the northernmost predominantly Roman Catholic country in the world.
LuckyLovers site features over 600 single women Catholics from Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia.
Sep 20, 2009
catholic singles in Belarus
The Roman Catholic Church in Belarus is part of the worldwide Roman Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope and curia in Rome. The first Latin Rite diocese in Belarus was established in Turaŭ between 1008 and 1013.
Roman Catholicism was a traditionally dominant religion of Belarusian nobility (the szlachta) and of a large part of the population of West Belarus.
Nowadays there are about 1.7 million Catholics in the country - around 17% of the total population. Most of these belong to the Latin Rite dioceses. A minority are of Byzantine Rite, forming the particular Belarusian Greek Catholic Church, which is in union with the Holy See and follows the Byzantine Slavonic ritual.
Many Latin-Rite Catholics belong to the Polish minority in Belarus. The Greek Catholics are mostly ethnic Belarussians, with some Ukrainians.
Belarus Catholic Singles Dating
Catholic Match singles site features no single Catholic women from Belarus.
LuckyLovers dating site shows personal ads of 624 single Catholic Belarus women.
Sep 19, 2009
catholic singles in Ukraine
The Catholic Church in Ukraine is part of the worldwide Roman Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope and curia in Rome. Present Archbishop is Mieczysław Mokrzycki (ordained on 29 September 2007 by Pope Benedict XVI).
There are about four million Catholics in the country — about 8% of the total population. Roman Catholic church in Ukraine, by 2007 information, has 905 communities, 88 monasteries, 656 monks and nuns, 527 priests, 713 churches (74 churches are being built), 39 missions, 8 educational institutions, 551 Sunday schools, 14 periodical editions.
The faithful of Ukraine follow several rites — the Ukrainian Rite, the Latin Rite and the Ruthenian Rite.
Ukrainian Catholic Singles Dating
Catholic Match singles dating website features only 23 single women Catholics from Ukraine.
And agian slightly better news from LuckyLovers dating site - they have more then 800 single Catholic ukrainian women.
Sep 18, 2009
catholic singles in Russia
how many Catholics are there really in Russia? It seems that nobody really knows nor is motivated to investigate. The only figures available are from the early 1990's. These official estimates used by the Catholic Church hold that there are 300,000 Catholics of the Latin Rite in Western Russia, 60,000 to 100,000 (35,000 foreigners) in Moscow.
The only way of determining a real number of Catholics in Russia must be based upon the numbers of faithful who frequent Holy Mass where ever and whenever it is celebrated. Thus, in Western Russia there would only seem to be about 10,000 Catholics who frequent Church on a regular basis (Moscow 3000 - 4000, St. Petersburg 2000, Kalingradskaja region 2000 - 3000, The Volga region and Urals 600 - 800, The North Caucuses 500 - 600, Central and Northern Russia - less than 500). On the major feasts of Christmas and Easter, the numbers of those coming to Church doubles.
Comparing to the number of people who belong to Orthodoxy, there is less then 0.5% of Catholics in Russia.
Catholic Match singles site considered to be the top place to meet single Roman Catholic singles for dating, friendship and marriage, it has thousands of Catholic singles from all over the world, BUT only 25 single women Catholics from Russia.
Better news from LuckyLovers major russian dating site - they have more then 500 single Catholic russian women.
Sep 16, 2009
wife from Baku, Azerbaijan and husband from UK
a girl from Baku, Azerbaijan found her soulmate in UK
Brian and I met six months ago through a dating site. All that time we chatted on line before Brian flew to Baku to meet me face to face for the first time.
We had the best 3 weeks ever and it was amazing how well we got along, having never met each other before. When Brian went back to the United Kingdom I cried my eyes out and that is when I understood I couldn’t be apart from him. That was terrible time of my life I was so depressed, he was so far and nobody knew what will be next. Luckily Brian felt the same way and within a week of arriving home he asked me to marry him. That was wonderful moment of my life, though my mom was crying: Everything with you is not as it should be. How it possible to ask for marriage through phone?
The ring was sent and we both watched it going across the Europe to get to me finally. I gave up my work and came to Britain to visit, meet my new family and see where my new home would be. Brian’s family was great and I decided that I would probably get along well with them (the best thing that he was living not with them…lol). So I flew back to Baku and we started planning a wedding and all that pleasant stuff. After all those stupid formalities and hardships with getting my visa I finally moved to his place. The most striking experience was when I packed all my life only into 2 suitcases (before that even when going on holidays I took much more stuff with me.
Definitely there were many difficulties ( a lot amount of money was spent on my bringing to Britain and all our efforts to turn his lonely flat into family nest were pretty costly), but I would never forget these moments when we were in the restaurant and with every burst of a Champaign everybody applauded. That was so funny, as you know Champaign is pretty cheap in the FSU, but a kind of posh in the West, and my mom and brother brought a lot of bottles to our wedding. So in spite of everything we even had a posh wedding…lol.
And now when all bad moments are away and I feel myself so happy, I could not have chosen a better husband, we are very happy and even though I have some bad moments of homesickness, I realize that I would miss Brian more than I miss anything in Baku. Brian and Ayka.
Sep 12, 2009
things to do in Russia
there is a lot to do and to see in Russia, you can find info anywhere online about sights and museums, beautiful churches, women of course, drinking, eating, night clubs and etc etc etc..
what is a must for you to try when you are in Russia is to go to Banya - Russian steam bath or russian sauna or sweat loadge
Banya buildings can be quite large with a number of different bathing areas or simple wooden cabins like the traditional Finnish cottage saunas.
Russian banyas usually have three rooms: a steam room, a washing room, and an entrance room. The entrance room, called a predbannik (предбанник) or pre-bath, has pegs to hang clothing upon and benches to rest on. The washing room has a hot water tap, which uses water heated by the steam room stove, and a vessel or tap for cold water to mix water of a comfortable temperature for washing. The heater has three compartments: a fire box that is fed from the entrance room, the rock chamber, which has a small hole to throw the water into and a water tank at the top. The top of the water tank is usually closed to prevent vapour from infiltrating the banya, and water to be thrown on the rocks should be taken from the tank as this will make better steam than if cold water were used. If an electric heater is used, the firebox is omitted. Most Russians believe the wood-burning stove is a better banya heater. Water from a bucket by the stove is poured over the heated rocks in the stove. There are wooden benches across the room from the stove. People enter the steam room when the stove is hot, but before water is poured on the rocks. Getting a good sweat on before using water is preferred to using steam right away, as the sweat is thought to protect and condition the skin from the steam.
In "black banyas" (по-чёрному), the smoke escapes through a hole in the ceiling while "white" banyas (по-белому) have pipes to vent the smoke. The escaping smoke in the former style darkens the banya's interior wood, hence the 'black' name. Both styles are characterized by boulder stones, clay balls, and cauldrons for the hot water, and stone stoves with a tank to heat the water. The firewood is usually birch. A black banya is much more rudimentary, and is generally considered to be less desirable than the "white" banya described above.
Chapkas, or felt hats, are used to protect the hair, and pads to sit on as the hot, dry wood can be very uncomfortable for bare skin. The chapka also allows the user to tolerate higher temperatures without feeling lightheaded or faint. Chapkas, padjopniks (mats), and felt mitts are commonly sold in sets in shops in Russia, along with aromatherapy scents specially made for inclusion into the steam water. After the first good sweat is induced, it is customary to cool off in the breeze outdoors, or splash around in cold water or in a lake or river. The banya is re-entered, and small amounts of water are splashed on the rocks. If too much water is used at once, the steam will be cool with a clammy feel; a small amount of water on sufficiently hot rocks will evaporate quickly, producing a quickly dispersed steam consisting of small vapour particles. Waving the venik causes convective heat. The second sweat is commonly the first time venik would be used, but it is not uncommon to wait until the third session. After each sweat, cooling off is repeated, and patrons may take this break to drink beer, tea or other beverages, play games or relax in good company in an antechamber to the steam room.
Commercial banyas often have only a steam room, or a steam room and a dry room, depending on local custom, or the money the owner of the banya was willing to spend.
Going into the steam room is alternated with showers or baths of cold water, as well as standing in the breeze to cool off outside. In the parilka, people often hit themselves or others with bunches of dried branches and leaves from white birch or other suitable trees (called venik, веник) in order to improve the circulation. In summer, fresh branches are used. They have a short useful life and smell of cut grass. In winter, branches that have been dried and then moistened in hot water are used. It is important that the bushes have leaves, so they don't hurt when used. In the winter dark, people may roll in the snow with no clothes on, or may run to cold lakes where holes have been cut into the ice for post-banya bathing purposes.
Another kind of banya, called a "pokhodnaya banya" (походная баня, hiking banya), is popular among the Russian military, mountaineers, and other people who travel for extended periods in harsh environments. It consists of a steambath set up in a tent. Hiking banyas are usually made near a riverbank where many big, round stones are available. The stones are made into a big circular pile, 1 - 4 meters in diameter and 0.5 - 1 meters in height, so that there is space left on the ground to make a fire inside of the pile. Firewood is burned for a few hours in this improvised stove, until the stones on the surface of the pile become so hot that water poured on them turns into steam. Around the pile, a space is tarped to form a small tent. The banya is ready when it becomes very hot inside and there is a lot of steam. Bathers can then cool off in an ice-cold mountain river.!
what is a must for you to try when you are in Russia is to go to Banya - Russian steam bath or russian sauna or sweat loadge
Banya buildings can be quite large with a number of different bathing areas or simple wooden cabins like the traditional Finnish cottage saunas.
Russian banyas usually have three rooms: a steam room, a washing room, and an entrance room. The entrance room, called a predbannik (предбанник) or pre-bath, has pegs to hang clothing upon and benches to rest on. The washing room has a hot water tap, which uses water heated by the steam room stove, and a vessel or tap for cold water to mix water of a comfortable temperature for washing. The heater has three compartments: a fire box that is fed from the entrance room, the rock chamber, which has a small hole to throw the water into and a water tank at the top. The top of the water tank is usually closed to prevent vapour from infiltrating the banya, and water to be thrown on the rocks should be taken from the tank as this will make better steam than if cold water were used. If an electric heater is used, the firebox is omitted. Most Russians believe the wood-burning stove is a better banya heater. Water from a bucket by the stove is poured over the heated rocks in the stove. There are wooden benches across the room from the stove. People enter the steam room when the stove is hot, but before water is poured on the rocks. Getting a good sweat on before using water is preferred to using steam right away, as the sweat is thought to protect and condition the skin from the steam.
In "black banyas" (по-чёрному), the smoke escapes through a hole in the ceiling while "white" banyas (по-белому) have pipes to vent the smoke. The escaping smoke in the former style darkens the banya's interior wood, hence the 'black' name. Both styles are characterized by boulder stones, clay balls, and cauldrons for the hot water, and stone stoves with a tank to heat the water. The firewood is usually birch. A black banya is much more rudimentary, and is generally considered to be less desirable than the "white" banya described above.
Chapkas, or felt hats, are used to protect the hair, and pads to sit on as the hot, dry wood can be very uncomfortable for bare skin. The chapka also allows the user to tolerate higher temperatures without feeling lightheaded or faint. Chapkas, padjopniks (mats), and felt mitts are commonly sold in sets in shops in Russia, along with aromatherapy scents specially made for inclusion into the steam water. After the first good sweat is induced, it is customary to cool off in the breeze outdoors, or splash around in cold water or in a lake or river. The banya is re-entered, and small amounts of water are splashed on the rocks. If too much water is used at once, the steam will be cool with a clammy feel; a small amount of water on sufficiently hot rocks will evaporate quickly, producing a quickly dispersed steam consisting of small vapour particles. Waving the venik causes convective heat. The second sweat is commonly the first time venik would be used, but it is not uncommon to wait until the third session. After each sweat, cooling off is repeated, and patrons may take this break to drink beer, tea or other beverages, play games or relax in good company in an antechamber to the steam room.
Commercial banyas often have only a steam room, or a steam room and a dry room, depending on local custom, or the money the owner of the banya was willing to spend.
Going into the steam room is alternated with showers or baths of cold water, as well as standing in the breeze to cool off outside. In the parilka, people often hit themselves or others with bunches of dried branches and leaves from white birch or other suitable trees (called venik, веник) in order to improve the circulation. In summer, fresh branches are used. They have a short useful life and smell of cut grass. In winter, branches that have been dried and then moistened in hot water are used. It is important that the bushes have leaves, so they don't hurt when used. In the winter dark, people may roll in the snow with no clothes on, or may run to cold lakes where holes have been cut into the ice for post-banya bathing purposes.
Another kind of banya, called a "pokhodnaya banya" (походная баня, hiking banya), is popular among the Russian military, mountaineers, and other people who travel for extended periods in harsh environments. It consists of a steambath set up in a tent. Hiking banyas are usually made near a riverbank where many big, round stones are available. The stones are made into a big circular pile, 1 - 4 meters in diameter and 0.5 - 1 meters in height, so that there is space left on the ground to make a fire inside of the pile. Firewood is burned for a few hours in this improvised stove, until the stones on the surface of the pile become so hot that water poured on them turns into steam. Around the pile, a space is tarped to form a small tent. The banya is ready when it becomes very hot inside and there is a lot of steam. Bathers can then cool off in an ice-cold mountain river.!
Sep 8, 2009
The Russian Language
“The Russian language is great and mighty” – wrote Lev Tolstoy (Leo Tolstoy). That is the first thing that comes into the head of a Russian when they talk about their native language.
The Russian language belongs to the Indo-European language family. It is included to Slavonic group. It has many relative languages. Ukrainian, Belarusian, Bulgarian, Polish, Serbian are among them. These languages have much in common. Russians easily understand Belarusian and Ukrainian and also conversely. The others are harder to understand. Though they are connected with pronunciation and accent in some way. If you were to write down phrases, for example, in Bulgarian then it will be possible to see more in common with its Russian equivalent.
The feature of Russian is that it uses Cyrillic. So the Russian alphabet consists of 33 letters. It contains 10 vowels and 23 consonants. Alot when compared with the Latin alphabet which has only 6 vowels, by the amount of vowels makes Russian language melodious. The rules of reading are quiet simple because all the letters are usually read. There are only few exceptions from the reading rules. Probably the hard sign and the soft sign are the most unusual letters in the alphabet. They don’t carry any sound themselves but they define the pronunciation of the letter standing before them in the word.
Foreigners have alot of difficulties with suffixes. There are so many of them in Russian that to learn all the words this way is just impossible. Frankly speaking, you must feel it. There is no other way to define where and what suffix is better to use. So if you are not absolutely sure in your language knowledge you’d better not to experiment with it or you could get to an awkward situation. By using the same word with a different suffix you can sometimes make a compliment and sometimes offend.
Maybe the changing word order in sentences will surprise those who learn Russian. Though who knows, maybe it will even simplify the language learning. Quiet often the meaning doesn’t change in this situation. Anyway in Russia there is the word order considered to be standard. It requires first using of subject and second using of predicate and other members of the sentence. Any other order is called a return one. But it can’t be considered as a mistake. Besides, not any words in a sentence can be removed. Removing some of them also requires removing the words connected with them.
Also in Russian schools, they pay alot attention to punctuation. It is very complicated. Even Russians make lots of mistakes. There are many rules for punctuation mark arrangement. To learn all of them is practically impossible. Besides there are many exceptions. Often you are lead by intonation. And sometimes only intuition can help you. In classical literature you can also meet the so called author marks. These are marks not much coordinated with existing rules. But they are used by author to make a special impression on the reader and to place the accents necessary for that.
In the Russian language there are only 3 tenses. They are past, present and future tenses. Maybe that makes it a little easier to learn.
Of course Russian has its official form. It’s considered to be the right one. It is called The Russian Literature Language. You will hear it if you watch Russian news. The dictionaries of The Russian Literature Language are compounded. The most famous of them are Dal’s and Ozgegov’s dictionaries. Also there are many dialects of the language.
If to speak about officially right accent then it’s considered to be Moscow accent. Its main peculiarity is pronunciation of not stressed vowels. In Moscow and in the area surrounding it they pronounce “A” instead of unstressed letter “O”. And in the northern regions unstressed “O” is pronounced like an “O”.
English has had a big influence on Russian lately. Professions, business-lexicon, firm names, technical novelties – everything is given English names. Sometimes already existing word are changed by its English analogs. Here it’s very fashionable. Some people think that using of such words is more prestigious. English names often raise sales of firms.
Sometimes that leads to funny things. Some people use words like the adjective “chitabelny”. If anyone said that the material is chitabelny it means that it is quiet friend and understandable for reading, written in accessible language. That adjective is created in an absolutely unnatural way. More precisely by integration of Russian verb “chitat” which means “to read” in English, but the suffix “-abel-” coming from the English “-able” has nothing in common with Russian. So how do you define now if the origin of the word is English or Russian? It's would be interesting to know how philologists would answer that question.
And don’t forget that when you address a person in Russian you can use pronouns “Ti” or “Vi” (meaning 'you'). The choice of the noun is usually defined by the status of a person you talk to. If you don’t know a person much, he is older than you, you communicate with him formally or just want to show him your respect then you’d better address to him with “Vi”. And if you are speaking to your friend or a child then it’s OK to use “Ti”.
The Russian language belongs to the Indo-European language family. It is included to Slavonic group. It has many relative languages. Ukrainian, Belarusian, Bulgarian, Polish, Serbian are among them. These languages have much in common. Russians easily understand Belarusian and Ukrainian and also conversely. The others are harder to understand. Though they are connected with pronunciation and accent in some way. If you were to write down phrases, for example, in Bulgarian then it will be possible to see more in common with its Russian equivalent.
The feature of Russian is that it uses Cyrillic. So the Russian alphabet consists of 33 letters. It contains 10 vowels and 23 consonants. Alot when compared with the Latin alphabet which has only 6 vowels, by the amount of vowels makes Russian language melodious. The rules of reading are quiet simple because all the letters are usually read. There are only few exceptions from the reading rules. Probably the hard sign and the soft sign are the most unusual letters in the alphabet. They don’t carry any sound themselves but they define the pronunciation of the letter standing before them in the word.
Foreigners have alot of difficulties with suffixes. There are so many of them in Russian that to learn all the words this way is just impossible. Frankly speaking, you must feel it. There is no other way to define where and what suffix is better to use. So if you are not absolutely sure in your language knowledge you’d better not to experiment with it or you could get to an awkward situation. By using the same word with a different suffix you can sometimes make a compliment and sometimes offend.
Maybe the changing word order in sentences will surprise those who learn Russian. Though who knows, maybe it will even simplify the language learning. Quiet often the meaning doesn’t change in this situation. Anyway in Russia there is the word order considered to be standard. It requires first using of subject and second using of predicate and other members of the sentence. Any other order is called a return one. But it can’t be considered as a mistake. Besides, not any words in a sentence can be removed. Removing some of them also requires removing the words connected with them.
Also in Russian schools, they pay alot attention to punctuation. It is very complicated. Even Russians make lots of mistakes. There are many rules for punctuation mark arrangement. To learn all of them is practically impossible. Besides there are many exceptions. Often you are lead by intonation. And sometimes only intuition can help you. In classical literature you can also meet the so called author marks. These are marks not much coordinated with existing rules. But they are used by author to make a special impression on the reader and to place the accents necessary for that.
In the Russian language there are only 3 tenses. They are past, present and future tenses. Maybe that makes it a little easier to learn.
Of course Russian has its official form. It’s considered to be the right one. It is called The Russian Literature Language. You will hear it if you watch Russian news. The dictionaries of The Russian Literature Language are compounded. The most famous of them are Dal’s and Ozgegov’s dictionaries. Also there are many dialects of the language.
If to speak about officially right accent then it’s considered to be Moscow accent. Its main peculiarity is pronunciation of not stressed vowels. In Moscow and in the area surrounding it they pronounce “A” instead of unstressed letter “O”. And in the northern regions unstressed “O” is pronounced like an “O”.
English has had a big influence on Russian lately. Professions, business-lexicon, firm names, technical novelties – everything is given English names. Sometimes already existing word are changed by its English analogs. Here it’s very fashionable. Some people think that using of such words is more prestigious. English names often raise sales of firms.
Sometimes that leads to funny things. Some people use words like the adjective “chitabelny”. If anyone said that the material is chitabelny it means that it is quiet friend and understandable for reading, written in accessible language. That adjective is created in an absolutely unnatural way. More precisely by integration of Russian verb “chitat” which means “to read” in English, but the suffix “-abel-” coming from the English “-able” has nothing in common with Russian. So how do you define now if the origin of the word is English or Russian? It's would be interesting to know how philologists would answer that question.
And don’t forget that when you address a person in Russian you can use pronouns “Ti” or “Vi” (meaning 'you'). The choice of the noun is usually defined by the status of a person you talk to. If you don’t know a person much, he is older than you, you communicate with him formally or just want to show him your respect then you’d better address to him with “Vi”. And if you are speaking to your friend or a child then it’s OK to use “Ti”.
Sep 3, 2009
marriage fraud
More than 80 arrested in Florida following marriage fraud roundup
ORLANDO, Fla. - More than eighty individuals involved in various marriage fraud conspiracies throughout Florida were arrested this week following a joint investigation by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Florida, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
The results of the operation, dubbed "Knot so Fast," were announced here today at a joint news conference hosted by United States Attorney Robert E. O'Neill; Robert W. Weber, Special Agent in Charge of the ICE Office of Investigations in Tampa; and Kathy Redman, District Director of U.S. CIS in Tampa.
ICE special agents made arrests in Orlando, Jacksonville, Tampa, Sarasota, Cocoa Beach and Ft. Myers. Those arrested included individuals who arranged the sham marriages; American citizens who accepted bribes, and foreign nationals who, in some cases paid up to $10,000, to obtain a benefit by committing fraud.
The vast majority of those arrested face criminal charges; however, there are some that face administrative immigration charges to include possible deportation.
Some of these marriages were arranged by individuals who would "coach" those committing the fraud on how to make their marriage appear legitimate. They had wedding dresses on hand, fake cakes, and preset staging for pictures.
U.S. Attorney O'Neill stated, "Sham marriages are a threat to Homeland Security. They subvert our immigration laws and our efforts to ensure proper and legal identification of those who enter and remain in our country. Those individuals who take illegal shortcuts to citizenship, or assist in that activity, will be investigated and prosecuted."
"Benefit fraud poses a significant vulnerability that must not go unchallenged," said Special Agent in Charge Weber. "Operation Knot so Fast should send the clear message that ICE and its law enforcement partners will not tolerate the exploitation of our country's immigration system. Whether you are marrying one person under false pretenses or various people, or facilitating the fraud, know this: you will be found, arrested and held accountable for your actions."
"Marriage fraud will not be tolerated. It is a direct attack to the national security of the United Sates," said Director Redman. "The process of detection of marriage fraud begins the moment an application is submitted to our agency and later when a couple comes to our offices for a marriage interview. So, beware. The job of our adjudicators is not just to grant or not an immigration benefit. It is also, and most definitely, keeping our country secure."
These investigations were part of the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS's) Document and Benefit Fraud Task Forces (DBFTFs). The task forces were created in March 2006, to target, seize illicit proceeds of and dismantle the criminal organizations that threaten national security and public safety and address the vulnerabilities that currently exist in the immigration process. Through DBFTFs, ICE partners with other agencies such as the Department of Labor, the Social Security Administration, U.S. Postal Service, USCIS, the Department of State and various state and local law enforcement agencies. These task forces focus their efforts on detecting, deterring and disrupting both benefit fraud and document fraud.
Over the past four years, the number of document and benefit fraud investigations launched by ICE has increased from 2,334 in Fiscal Year (FY) 2004 to 3,591 in FY 2005, to 5,222 for FY 2006 and first half of FY 2007. Corresponding criminal indictments in these cases have increased from 767 to 875 to 1,595, while arrests have risen from 1,300 to 1,391 to 2010 and convictions have increased from 559 to 992 to 1,609.
These cases were investigated by ICE and USCIS. The following Assistant United States Attorneys are handling the prosecution of these cases: Tanya Davis Wilson, Daniel C. Irick, Carlos Perez, Dale Campion, Tysen Duva, Vincent Citro, Eduardo Toro-Font, Nicole M. Andrejko, Dan Irick, Bishop Ravenel, and Jesus Casas.
U.S. Attorney O'Neill thanked the following agencies for their assistance: ICE's Office of Detention and Removal; the U.S. Marshals Service; FBI; Daytona Beach Police; Volusia County Sherriff's Office, Brevard County Sheriff's Office; Orange County Police; Osceola County Police; Seminole County Sheriff's Office; Lake County Sheriff's Office; Kissimmee Police; Department of State Diplomatic Security; Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS); Jacksonville Sheriff's Office (JSO) and the United States Secret Service (USSS).
An indictment or complaint is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of the federal criminal laws, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until proven guilty.
ORLANDO, Fla. - More than eighty individuals involved in various marriage fraud conspiracies throughout Florida were arrested this week following a joint investigation by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Florida, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
The results of the operation, dubbed "Knot so Fast," were announced here today at a joint news conference hosted by United States Attorney Robert E. O'Neill; Robert W. Weber, Special Agent in Charge of the ICE Office of Investigations in Tampa; and Kathy Redman, District Director of U.S. CIS in Tampa.
ICE special agents made arrests in Orlando, Jacksonville, Tampa, Sarasota, Cocoa Beach and Ft. Myers. Those arrested included individuals who arranged the sham marriages; American citizens who accepted bribes, and foreign nationals who, in some cases paid up to $10,000, to obtain a benefit by committing fraud.
The vast majority of those arrested face criminal charges; however, there are some that face administrative immigration charges to include possible deportation.
Some of these marriages were arranged by individuals who would "coach" those committing the fraud on how to make their marriage appear legitimate. They had wedding dresses on hand, fake cakes, and preset staging for pictures.
U.S. Attorney O'Neill stated, "Sham marriages are a threat to Homeland Security. They subvert our immigration laws and our efforts to ensure proper and legal identification of those who enter and remain in our country. Those individuals who take illegal shortcuts to citizenship, or assist in that activity, will be investigated and prosecuted."
"Benefit fraud poses a significant vulnerability that must not go unchallenged," said Special Agent in Charge Weber. "Operation Knot so Fast should send the clear message that ICE and its law enforcement partners will not tolerate the exploitation of our country's immigration system. Whether you are marrying one person under false pretenses or various people, or facilitating the fraud, know this: you will be found, arrested and held accountable for your actions."
"Marriage fraud will not be tolerated. It is a direct attack to the national security of the United Sates," said Director Redman. "The process of detection of marriage fraud begins the moment an application is submitted to our agency and later when a couple comes to our offices for a marriage interview. So, beware. The job of our adjudicators is not just to grant or not an immigration benefit. It is also, and most definitely, keeping our country secure."
These investigations were part of the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS's) Document and Benefit Fraud Task Forces (DBFTFs). The task forces were created in March 2006, to target, seize illicit proceeds of and dismantle the criminal organizations that threaten national security and public safety and address the vulnerabilities that currently exist in the immigration process. Through DBFTFs, ICE partners with other agencies such as the Department of Labor, the Social Security Administration, U.S. Postal Service, USCIS, the Department of State and various state and local law enforcement agencies. These task forces focus their efforts on detecting, deterring and disrupting both benefit fraud and document fraud.
Over the past four years, the number of document and benefit fraud investigations launched by ICE has increased from 2,334 in Fiscal Year (FY) 2004 to 3,591 in FY 2005, to 5,222 for FY 2006 and first half of FY 2007. Corresponding criminal indictments in these cases have increased from 767 to 875 to 1,595, while arrests have risen from 1,300 to 1,391 to 2010 and convictions have increased from 559 to 992 to 1,609.
These cases were investigated by ICE and USCIS. The following Assistant United States Attorneys are handling the prosecution of these cases: Tanya Davis Wilson, Daniel C. Irick, Carlos Perez, Dale Campion, Tysen Duva, Vincent Citro, Eduardo Toro-Font, Nicole M. Andrejko, Dan Irick, Bishop Ravenel, and Jesus Casas.
U.S. Attorney O'Neill thanked the following agencies for their assistance: ICE's Office of Detention and Removal; the U.S. Marshals Service; FBI; Daytona Beach Police; Volusia County Sherriff's Office, Brevard County Sheriff's Office; Orange County Police; Osceola County Police; Seminole County Sheriff's Office; Lake County Sheriff's Office; Kissimmee Police; Department of State Diplomatic Security; Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS); Jacksonville Sheriff's Office (JSO) and the United States Secret Service (USSS).
An indictment or complaint is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of the federal criminal laws, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until proven guilty.
Sep 1, 2009
Russian beautiful girls
Russian beautiful girls : Russian Beauties is the second volume of photographs, Russian photographer A. Truew again enchants us with his sensitive sexy photos of innocent Russian girls. Connoisseurs who appreciate photographs by Grigori Galitsin or David Hamilton will surely enjoy these Russian beauties. Take your eyes and your imagination on a wonderful voyage and accompany lovely girls, many of whom pose here for the first time. It's practically a miracle to discover that such a romantic and natural world of eroticism still exists in today's often hectic and seldom innocent world.
available at Amazon
available at Amazon
Aug 28, 2009
2.95 million Americans are claiming Russian ancestry
According to the 1990 US. Census, 2.95 million Americans are claiming Russian ancestry, but a more realistic view suggests that there are only 750,000 Americans of ethnic Russian descent, which means that they were either born in Russia or have at least one parent or grandparent of ethnic Russian heritage.
* 44 percent of this number reside in the Northeast, (40-50,000 Russians in Boston area)
* 16 percent in the Midwest
* 18 percent in the South
* 22 percent in the West Areas
Interesting fact: Only 242,000 people have command of Russian.
This indicates the degree to which assimilation has progressed, which usually takes its toll in the third generation Russian immigrant communities in the USA are generally clustered around major Eastern Orthodox or Russian churches, like in Alaska, or in and around major US cities like New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Detroit, and Boston where newly arrived immigrants have a better chance of getting a job.
* 44 percent of this number reside in the Northeast, (40-50,000 Russians in Boston area)
* 16 percent in the Midwest
* 18 percent in the South
* 22 percent in the West Areas
Interesting fact: Only 242,000 people have command of Russian.
This indicates the degree to which assimilation has progressed, which usually takes its toll in the third generation Russian immigrant communities in the USA are generally clustered around major Eastern Orthodox or Russian churches, like in Alaska, or in and around major US cities like New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Detroit, and Boston where newly arrived immigrants have a better chance of getting a job.
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