Whistleblower offers insights into human trafficking

[caption id="attachment_20015" align="alignleft" width="300"] Human trafficking around the world[/caption]

Michell Spoden----Sex trafficking occurs when people are forced or coerced into the commercial sex trade against their will or because of lack of financial freedom and opportunities. Kathryn Bolkovac is a true hero that had the courage to stand up for what she believed in by exposing corruption and sexual abuse she witnessed.   Helping raise awareness and create solutions for the human trafficking issue is no light endeavor.   It is the type of character in an individual for whom many likely have much respect.

1. What is your name, age, nationality and occupation?  (if you have more than one title please list it here) Kathryn Bolkovac-American-Consultant


2. Please tell our viewers why you chose to become a police officer?

My journey to becoming a police officer was a non-traditional one. I had already experienced a lot of life as an employee in various industries including the insurance industry and hotel management sector; I married at an early age  and was a divorced mother of three before becoming a police officer… being a police officer was not something I always dreamt about becoming. I had always been interested in justice and law topics so when the opportunity came along, I decided to give it a try. I think it is important for police officers to have diverse life experiences that allow them to better relate to the community and needs of people. Law enforcement agencies are and must obviously be prepared to take quasi-military actions in times of crisis; however the basic human service element is the core of policing.

            When do you think this epidemic started on an international level?

This phenomenon of Human Trafficking is nothing new; one just needs to read a bit of history or the bible for that matter with regard to slavery. Coining the term of Human Trafficking is what is new. Human Trafficking has been facilitated internationally and across borders based on very simple things. : Innocence- Ignorance –Apathy--Potential Market and--The desire to live a better life.  Then all you need is the greed of the corrupt individual, group, corporation, or tyrannical government to take advantage of the situation and impose power and control techniques.

     What would you tell the people out there that want to make a difference to do?

1)       Be the Eyes, Ears, Voices, & Advocates, in a non-judgmental and supportive way

2)         Research, Read, ask Questions and  Report to Law Enforcement or Hotlines any suspicions you may have with regard to the potential of criminal activity, child abuse, or what appears to be prostitution.

3)         Get Involved-Volunteer-Participate in Community Groups

4)         Contact your legislators and inquire about what is being done to stop the demand with regard to the accountability of “Johns”, the solicitation of prostitutes and the purchase of pornographic materials. What do you want as a community and or society?

5)         Contact your law enforcement officials, ask about what kind of funding allowances are budgeted or available to better train law enforcement with regard to the identification and investigation of human trafficking. Is it being addressed in or police academies in a meaningful way that enables law enforcement officer to collaborate with prosecutors and judges for successful prosecution. Are we open to reaching out to get advice from experts who have been working on these issues for decades?

7)         Contact prosecutorial officials ask them what training they are undertaking to better prosecute human trafficking cases, and the interpretation of anti-trafficking laws.

8)         Encourage you school administrators to seek outside professionals, and trainings in the identification of HT, and to implement student trainings, regarding use of social media, sexting, craigslist, etc.

9)         Know your neighbors; learn about the country and culture from which they may have originated.  Could they have been subjected to serious atrocities, might they be in fear of law enforcement, and what support to they have as a member of the community.

Do you think the media needs to do more to expose this sort of thing?

Responsible and accurate media reports are always a great asset.

What sort of policies should be in place to keep government authorities accountable?

This is a difficult question as globally we work in different regulatory systems around the world. The United Nations is incapable of enforcing treaties that have been agreed to or ratified, they have their own problems with regard to accountability and protecting whistleblower’s,  and rely on political agenda’s with regard to decision making. Many things are being implemented and reviewed at the international levels and in grass root organizations; these include more oversight, codes of conduct, penalties and standards for prosecution. Policies are only as good as the people or person who is responsible for enforcing and or interpreting the policy. Policies are guidelines, not law. Some form of Universal Jurisdiction for law enforcement and prosecution may be an option in the future however this has many constitutional hurdles and must not be entered into lightly from the perspective of U.S. law. We must be flexible and creative in this respect.

       This is typical of the sex offender and my question to you is; what can you tell victims today about how they should care for themselves in the midst of current survival or aftermath of sexual abuse through rape and sex trafficking?

With regard to aftercare form any trauma. Do not do it alone. Seek outside and professional help. Always talk to people you are not alone.

1. What is your motto and why?

I do not have a motto, life circumstances change to often to live by a single motto.

1. What are some of your future goals?

Too many too mention, but continuing my advocacy work and speaking about the ways to proactively combat the root cause of human trafficking is at the top of the list.

The factual account of what I experienced is documented in my book entitled:

The Whistleblower, Sex Trafficking, Military Contractors, and One Woman's Fight for Justice"

If you  have not read it it may give you more insight and direction as to where things are today and how you can help.

What is your skill set? 

The book is a separate project and goes deeper into what happened in Bosnia and details the spider web of mismanagement and corruption that allows this activity to continue today. It will take you through my trial against the private U.S. Government contractor DynCorp, in the UK and bring you up to date on where things are today. It may also give you some insight into how your own area of expertise may be used to support legislative efforts for law changes.

I try to encourage the average person to contact their local law enforcement agencies and inquire about what is being done in their own state or local community to educate officers on this subject.

Please check the websites of the Human Trafficking Pro-bono Legal Center,   POGO (Project on Government Oversight), GAP (Government Accountability Project) , Heartland Alliance, International Justice Mission, Human Rights Watch, The Polaris Project, or other non-profits to learn more. I hope you will continue to spread the word of the book and film. 

Web Site: http://www.bolkovac.com/

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This article was written by Michell Spoden, writer and advocate.  Michell Spoden is a regular contributor to this Journal and has done interviews with outstanding and unique people all over the world. She is the author of Stricken Yet Crowned and is also pursuing a transitional housing project for woman with an agricultural aspect. She has a degree in Business Science Administration and is finishing her bachelor’s in Project Management.

Rare interview with master guitarist, James Burton, Elvis Presley's sidekick

James Burton

This is a major, and rare, interview, with James Burton. He has been a principal guitarist for Elvis Presley, Emmylou Harris, Ricky Nelson, Frank Sinatra, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnnie Ray and others. This is a don't miss opportunity, the first and only time this interview has been provided for the public.

Burton was not one of the "Memphis Mafia," or at least not one of the members who were closely associated with Elvis and may have participated in the drinking, gambling, women and drugs that often enter into the world of music.  This guitarist is a family man with the same wife he had when he worked with Elvis.  He is one of the people in the sense that despite his fame, he is delightfully accessible.

In front of the Music Hall of Fame in Shreveport, a statue of James Burton stands across one of Elvis. Burton's office is across the street in a modest building that offers the same down home style evidenced by this simple and simply wonderful musician.

Enjoy the experience of listening to Burton speak of his music experiences as he did in a live two-hour interview.  It was a heart-warming experience for this reporter to learn directly from someone who literally was at the right hand of Elvis Presley, but lacks the arrogance of many people who hang onto the memories in a way that brings them fame in a self-centered fashion.  Burton is the very definition of generous in manner, personality and character, and the interview where this character is displayed follows.








What should decide your food choice? – An interview with Dr. BrianWansink

Sergeant Michael Volkin — I was fortunate enough to interview Dr. Brian Wansink, lead author to over 100 academic articles and books, including his best-seller Mindless Eating. Dr. Wansink spent a lifetime studying the reason for the decisions people make when they eat. Whether you are someone who is interested in losing weight, or even a nutrition expert, you will find this interview interesting and eye-opening.

Sergeant Volkin: Your book mindless eating has opened many people’s eyes into what food they put in their mouth. Which of our senses provides the biggest bias on what foods we choose to eat?

Dr. Wansink: Well, all of our senses affect the way we eat, but our eyes affect our eating decisions the most. In one study involving chicken wings, a group of students were invited to an all-you-can-eat Buffalo Wing feast. The students were free to serve themselves from an open buffet of chicken wings and were able to go back for more during the game. There were bowls at each table to hold the wing bones. During the course of the game, waitresses collected the bowls and replaced them with empty bowls – but only at half of the tables. At the other tables, the bowls containing the finished wings were not picked up.

After the game, me and my team weighed the discarded bones from each table. The students who didn't have the leftover bones as a reminder of how much they had already eaten, ate more - an average of seven wings per person; versus five wings per person of the other group. Although a 2 wing difference (at 100 calories each) doesn’t sound like much; that translates to 200 additional calories per day which equals a weight gain of 20 pounds per year.

Sergeant Volkin: One of your findings suggests that nationality plays a role in our food psychology. For example, the French know they are done with their food when they feel full. When asking Chicago residents, your results show they are done when their plate is empty. Do you think this mindset is the reason for the obesity epidemic in America?

Dr. Wansink: There are many reasons for the obesity epidemic but that reason is only a very small part. In my opinion, the greater contribution to the obesity epidemic in this country is the affordability and availability of food.

Sergeant Volkin: Let’s talk about children. Obviously marketing has got very sophisticated over the years and it is harder than ever to get kids to eat their fruit and vegetables. You did a study and found that by adding fruit to the end of a lunch line, it increases fruit sales by 70%. Same with vegetables, you can increase sales by 25% just by giving vegetables catchy names. So let’s use the example of a typical mom with a couple of children. This mom is cooking her children dinner, what can she do in her home to get her kids more excited about fruits and vegetables?

Dr. Wansink: It is estimated that 70% of all fruits and vegetables consumed in the home are consumed during dinner. However, only 23% of dinner meals served in the home have a vegetable or fruit option. So always be sure to serve a vegetables or fruit at dinner. Another tip you can do to increase your child’s consumption of fruit and vegetables it to have a bowl of fruit or a vegetable tray within 2 feet of where your child will walk in the house. This will give your child easy access to healthy finger food.

Sergeant Volkin: You’ve made the difficult transition of taking your research and applying it practically to school lunch rooms throughout the country. Can you tell me a bit about the initiatives you are undertaking and where my readers can go for more information?

Dr. Wansink: MindlessEating.org is my main website but smarterlunchrooms.org is an initiative I have with schools across the country. In my new book that will be released in April, called Slim by Design: Mindless Eating Solutions for Everyday Life, I will introduce groundbreaking solutions for designing our most common spaces like schools, restaurants, grocery stores, home kitchens, and more.

Sergeant Volkin: You have found that we all consume more food from big packages, whatever the product is. Is it safe to say you do not have a Costco or BJ’s Wholesale membership card? 

Dr. Wansink: I have actually been a member of a wholesale club for years. Just because you buy in bulk doesn’t mean you need to eat in bulk. Let’s say you buy a big bag of pretzels at one of these warehouse stores. I suggest portioning out the pretzels in baggies. This method has proven to effectively reduce the amount of food you consume. Now let’s suppose you buy a bag of chips at one of these warehouse stores but the chips are already in individual bags. My suggestion is to just take a few bags and put them in your pantry, then take the rest and store them in a place where you don’t normally store food (e.g. your garage or basement). This method reduces the chance of you grabbing more bags than you want for a quick snack.

Sergeant Volkin: In a recent interview with the calorie lab, you stated, “Most of us don’t overeat because we’re hungry. We overeat because of family and friends, packages and plates, names and numbers, labels and lights, colors and candles, shapes and smells, distractions and distances, cupboards and containers.” For someone who hasn’t read your books or your dozens of articles and studies, what one tip can you give them as a takeaway to this interview that will help them instantly make smarter eating decisions?

Dr. Wansink: My tip is people need to be aware of mindless eating, not mindful eating. There are many ways people make mistakes eating, from party binging to mindless snacking. Be conscious of the way you eat; then come up with one easy thing you can do to remedy that mistake. Much of the time the correct action is just being conscious that you are making the mistake.

Sergeant Volkin: Dr. Wansink thank you so much for your time today and congratulations on the success of your books. I am looking forward to the release of Slim by Design: Mindless Eating Solutions for Everyday Life

Dr. Wansink: Thank you for your time and your service Sergeant Volkin

About the Interviewer

This interview was conducted by Sergeant Michael Volkin, best-selling author of military basic training books and inventor of Strength Stack 52, a unique way to transform bodyweight exercises into fun and competitive workouts.