A lot of people have a tendency to see Kesha as this "trashy party girl" from her songs about copious amounts of drinking and having sex, and maybe it's because of this image that what's happening to her is not being taken seriously or being talked about by enough people.

Kesha has been legally battling her producer Lukasz Gottwald (Dr. Luke), who she's been signed with since she was 18 years old. Last September Kesha sued Dr. Luke for alleged "sexual, physical, verbal and emotional abuse," and also asked the court to break her contract with him. The lawsuit alleges that Dr. Luke repeatedly drugged her, raped her at least twice, and emotionally abused her to the point of causing her eating disorder, for which she checked into a rehab facility in Lemont, Illinois. Rolling Stone reports two specific claims: one claim includes Dr. Luke making her snort something before they boarded a plane and sexually assaulting her while she was incapacitated. The other claim was that she was given "sober pills," which she later found out were a date rape drug, and after taking them woke up the next morning in Luke's bed naked, sore and confused. Since Dr. Luke is an extremely successful producer, having been responsible for hits from pop stars like Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus and Katy Perry, he's using his big, fancy lawyers to try and fight back. Luke filed a countersuit for defamation.

There's been so little news coverage on this horrible injustice, but could that be because a lot of people still see Kesha as the trashy party girl? If that's the case, then those people need to first realize that this kind of abuse is as serious for a "party girl" as it would be for anyone else, and second, listen to this little bit about Kesha that might make you think of her differently. Kesha scored a 1500 on her SAT, has an IQ of 140 (which technically makes her a genius), was named the Humane Society of the United States' first global ambassador for animal rights, is an ordained minister, was strong enough to go to rehab for her eating disorder and fight and overcome it, and is obviously an extremely talented singer and songwriter. Not to mention how strong she's been even through everything she is battling with this lawsuit and the years of alleged abuse at the hands of Dr. Luke. Surviving any kind of abusive relationship is extremely difficult, and Kesha's coming out the other side stronger than ever. In fact, to show off to the world just how strong she is, at New York Fashion Week she wore a dress with the words "You Will Never Own Me" on the front -- a brilliantly constructed jab at Dr. Luke.

Police in Florida are complaining that the Obama Administration is recalling military-style tanks that many have complained made American city streets look like foreign war zones during unrest in places like Ferguson, Missouri last year.

Volusia County Sheriff Ben Johnson said losing an M113 — an armored personnel carrier — will result in some of his officers going on "suicide missions," the Orlando Sentinel reports.

"People will die because of this decision," Johnson told the paper.


Volusia County still has another tank, an MRAP — Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle. But the difference is the M113 has tracks instead of wheels that allow it to travel in terrains wheels won't go.

"The idea that our president will take this stuff away from us, the M113 (armored personnel carrier), puts not only our deputies in harm's way but the citizens in harm's way," Johnson fumed to the News-Journal. "It's obvious from some of the decisions he's made that he really doesn't care a whole lot about law enforcement officers."

The federal government's program of selling excess military hardware to local police departments at deep discounts has faced growing criticism. Volusia County's M113, for example, was purchased 11 years ago for $1,500, the News-Journal reports. A total of 126 similar tanks have been recalled.

When the news broke that National Geographic was sold to Rupert Murdoch, fans of the magazine gasped.

A magazine known for its photo essays paired with reports often based on scientific research being under the control of an outspoken climate change denier worried them.

As a photojournalist, it is to difficult for me to imagine that the sale of National Geographic to Murdoch won't contribute to the decline of photojournalism, because it is one of the few publications left whose brand is connected to original, visually-oriented content.

The United States is in decline. While not all major shocks to the system will be devastating, when the right one comes along, the outcome may be dramatic.

Not all explosives are the same. We all know you have to be careful with dynamite. Best to handle it gently and not smoke while you're around it. Semtex is different. You can drop it. You can throw it. You can put it in the fire. Nothing will happen. Nothing until you put the right detonator in it, that is. To me, the US - and most of the supposedly free West - increasingly looks like a truck being systematically filled with Semtex.

But it's easy to counter cries of alarm with the fact that the truck is stable - because it's true: you can hurl more boxes into the back without any real danger. Absent the right detonator, it is no more dangerous than a truckload of mayonnaise. But add the right detonator and you're just one click away from complete devastation.

A family torn apart by the Second World War has been reunited after a saga that crossed four continents.

Retired council worker Maria Nawara had nearly given up hope of tracing Polish relatives after 13 years of spending her holidays trawling through records across Europe.

But then the Red Cross found her long-lost aunt Stanislawa, by now 92, in Toronto, Canada.

A Santiago to Copiapo plane with 137 passengers onboard had to turn back to the airport in the Chilean capital after one of its engines fell apart as it prepared to take-off. A passenger filmed the horrifying scene from a seat above the wing.

Parts of the plane, which was carrying 137 passengers, started to rip apart as the plane gained altitude, according to Chile's Tele 13, which also says the parts looked flimsy from the outset and the protective casing on the engine broke off very soon after take-off.

Rallies supporting Russia's operation in Syria have been held Sunday in European and Middle Eastern states, including Berlin, Lebanon, Hungary and Serbia.

Members of Germany's Syrian community gathered outside the Russian embassy in Berlin on Sunday to express their gratitude to the Russian people for Moscow's support in the Syrian war against terrorism.

"We gathered here today in front of the Russian embassy because Russia is part of a coalition, which is fighting for peace in Syria, against war and terrorism everywhere in the world... We want to thank all Russians and President Vladimir Putin for their participation in the fight against terrorism and fascism in the Middle East," Radi Skandav, one of the participants of Sunday's rally, told RIA Novosti.

Russia's Sukhoi Su-25, Su-24M and Su-34 attack aircraft, with the support of Su-30 jets, have been conducting precision airstrikes against ISIL targets in Syria since September 30, following a request from Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Embattled fast food giant McDonald's is making headlines yet again. The company has just launched its much advertised all-day breakfast program, but as that campaign rolls out, franchise owners are voicing their concerns over what may be the company's dying days.

As we covered at Anti-Media in June, the McDonald's franchise has been shrinking for the first time in the company's over 40 year history:

"McDonald's announced in April that it would be closing 700 'underperforming' locations, but because of the company's sheer size — it has 14,300 locations in the United States alone — this was not necessarily a reduction in the size of the company, especially because it continues to open locations around the world. It still has more than double the locations of Burger King, its closest competitor."

A raging fire broke out at a 10,000 sq m warehouse in St. Petersburg on Saturday afternoon, fanned by powerful winds. There have been no casualties, and meteorologists say the fumes from the flame pose no health risk.

Following a call shortly after 16:00 local time (13:00 GMT) from an industrial park on the outskirts of the city, a helicopter, 40 vehicles, and 240 firefighters were dispatched to neutralize the blaze, which was ranked 5 on a 5-point scale.

A good cop is a cop who is good at his job, right? So let's review what a cop's job is, and what a cop's job is not. A cop's job is to enforce the law, no matter how unjust, using force to punish anyone caught disobeying. A cop's job is not to protect and serve. The Supreme Court admitted in Castle Rock v. Gonzales that the police are under no legal obligation to protect anyone. That phrase, "To Protect and Serve," written on the side of their vehicles? Just a PR slogan.

Their actual job description is to enforce laws; not to prevent harm, but to make sure that anyone caught disobeying arbitrary legislation written by corrupt politicians is punished by any means necessary, whether by something as "mild" as the threat of violence, all the way up to and including execution on sight with absolute impunity. And there is now a growing trend in which cops are going above and beyond the call of "duty," and preemptively harassing, attacking, and executing innocent people before they even get a chance to break any kind of law. Bravo officers, you get a paid vacation for your efforts!