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Nearly a year after Haiti’s devastating earthquake, Sean Penn’s JP Haitian Relief Organization is managing a massive tent city. And now, as several of his relief partners announce they are pulling out, Penn is standing his ground.

Rats and diseases infested Cuban prison cells so badly that some inmates tried to kill themselves and other did themselves harm, according to freed political prisoners who spoke Thursday in Spain. Those who spoke were among 11 political prisoners released this week and flown to Spain to start new lives. At a press conference in Madrid, they painted a squalid picture of the prison conditions they had endured. "The hygiene and health situations in prisons throughout the island of Cuba are not terrible, they are worse than terrible," freed dissident Julio Cesar Galvez said. "We had to live with rats...

Yesterday, the Supreme Court upheld a federal law barring material support for foreign terrorist organizations. And right on time, America’s favorite useful idiot has come out swinging against it. Jimmy Carter is upset because, with this federal law upheld, he won’t be able to pal around with his buddies in Hamas and Hezbollah anymore. Cue the tiny little violin playing: Former President Jimmy Carter has voiced concern that Monday’s Supreme Court ruling on “material support” to terrorist groups may criminalize his “work to promote peace and freedom.” Carter, whose advocacy has entailed contact with groups designated by the U.S. government...

LOS ANGELES – A prosecution spokesman says Sean Penn has reached a plea deal in a case in which he was videotaped kicking a photographer. Penn entered a no contest plea to vandalism through his attorney Wednesday morning. City attorney's spokesman Frank Mateljan (Mah-tell-JIN') says Penn was sentenced to three years of informal probation and ordered to perform 300 hours of community service. Mateljan says those hours can be completed through Penn's earthquake-relief efforts in Haiti.

Actress Maria Conchita Alonso joins Accuracy in Media's "Take AIM" radio show Thursday, April 8, at 11:30 am Eastern, to respond to Sean Penn's support for anti-American Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez. Penn recently implied that journalists in the U.S. should receive prison time for referring to Chavez as a dictator. In a March 3 appearance on HBO's "Real Time," Penn told host Bill Maher, "Truly, there should be a bar by which one goes to prison for these kinds of lies." (We're sure Chavez would agree.) Alonso wrote in "An Open Letter to Sean Penn" posted at NewsBusters.org, "Being born...

Sean Penn's costar in the 1988 cop drama "Colors" has written an impassioned open letter to the actor about recent remarks Penn made praising Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez. Actor Maria Conchita Alonso penned the letter, titled "An Open Letter to Sean Penn," on the website Newsbusters [Newsbusters link]. In it, she expresses her disappointment at Penn's statements made on the March 5 episode of HBO's "Real Time With Bill Maher." On the panel-based talk show, Penn praised the Venezuelan president, saying Chavez had been elected in "14 of the most transparent elections in the globe, and been elected democratically." Conchita...

Editor's Note: The following is an open letter from actress Maria Conchita Alonso, who penned this response to actor Sean Penn's recent remarks on HBO's "Real Time with Bill Maher" in which the left-wing actor defended Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez. Dear Sean, WHY? Even though I have great respect for your artistic talent, I was appalled by a recent television interview where you vigorously showed support for the regime of Hugo Chavez. Therefore, I've decided to set the record straight for you regarding the Chavez regime, supporting my case based not only on my political ideologies, but on proven facts...

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- The arrest of an outspoken government opponent for his critical remarks on a TV talk show drew condemnation on Tuesday from opposition parties and human rights activists who said the case shows freedoms are being eroded in Venezuela. Opposition politician Oswaldo Alvarez Paz was detained by police on Monday and has been charged with conspiracy, spreading false information and publicly inciting violation. A coalition of more than a dozen anti-Chavez parties said in a statement that Alvarez Paz was arrested for a "crime of opinion" in an attempt to silence criticism and encourage a climate of...

Sean Penn Charged In Clash With LA Photographer By REUTERS February 19, 2010 LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Oscar-winner Sean Penn, as infamous for problems with paparazzi as he is famous for acting, has been charged with two crimes after a run-in with a photographer last year and could face jail time if convicted, Los Angeles prosecutors said on Friday. Penn, 49, was charged with misdemeanor battery and vandalism after allegedly kicking a photographer in the leg and breaking his camera last October at an upscale shopping center in the Brentwood area of Los Angeles, the city attorney's office said. The...

Almost every Synagogue I have ever entered has these Hebrew words somewhere in its sanctuary, Dah Lifnei Mi Atah Ohmed, they are usually on top of the Ark which houses the holy scroll of the Torah. It means "Know Before Whom You Stand." It's a signal to remember that where ever you go, you stand before God. It's also a signal that the Synagogue is a Holy Place and you need to be careful what you do, say and bring into this holy building. Yesterday Rabbi Lustig of the Washington Hebrew Congregation, forgot what that Hebrew phrase meant when he...

A Yeas & Nays reporter was publicly berated and threatened to be escorted out by police on Thursday night when the reporter asked actor Sean Penn a controversial question about his humanitarian work in Haiti. Penn, who recently has been criticized for his motivations in helping to rebuilding Haiti, recently told CBS News he hopes his critics "die screaming of rectal cancer." Members of the media were invited to a gala hosted at the Washington Hebrew Congregation and were allowed to ask one question each of the actor in a closed-door news briefing. When the Yeas & Nays reporter asked,...

Today we'll explore the topics of things to live for, to die for, and to kill for; the newtopia percolating on the fringes today, and explore the words of warning from Soviet defector Yuri Bezmenov, as well as Solzhenitsyn's "Godlessness: The First Step to the Gulag". Yeah... light stuff. Plus+ the week in review including the Obama Admin's "Classy Action" of the week (a three-way tie!), the fascism of Sean Penn, and your calls! Live at 3pmE/2pmTX/NoonP Listen live here. Call-in number: 347-327-9710

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is grateful that actor Sean Penn has defended him against his critics within the U.S. media. In an appearance on HBO's "Real Time with Bill Maher" last week, Penn slammed Chavez critics who refer to the socialist leader as a dictator. The Oscar-winning celebrity noted that Chavez has won repeated elections and suggested that media critics who call him a dictator should be jailed.

First Amendment be damned . . . If Oscar-winning actor Sean Penn had his way, any journalist who called Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez a dictator would quickly find himself behind bars. Penn, appearing on HBO's "Real Time with Bill Maher" on Friday, defended Chavez during a segment in which he detailed his work with the JP Haitian Relief Organization, which he co-founded. "Every day, this elected leader is called a dictator here, and we just accept it, and accept it" said Penn, winner of two Best Actor Academy Awards. "And this is mainstream media, who should -- truly, there should...

At the end of a discussion of Haiti on HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher, actor Sean Penn went on a rant in defense of Venezuelan strongman Hugo Chavez, suggesting prison time for American journalists: "every day, this elected leader is called a dictator here, and we just accept it! And accept it. And this is mainstream media, who should – truly, there should be a bar by which one goes to prison for these kinds of lies."

Sean Penn has opened fire on critics of his recent mercy mission to Haiti, stating he hopes they all die of rectal cancer. The controversial "Mystic River" star has been so caught up in the relief effort in earthquake-ravaged Haiti in recent weeks, he hasn't paid attention to what politicians and newsmakers have been saying about him. But, now he's home, the 49-year-old can't believe his actions have upset so many people - and he's disturbed that his critics can't just see the good in what he's trying to do in Haiti, where he helped establish a private relief organization....

This Just In: Hollywood heavy Sean Penn, who dropped out of the Farrelly Brothers’ “Three Stooges” movie during the bust-up of his marriage, is back on board to play middle Stooge Larry, Bobby Farrelly told the Track .

CARACAS, Venezuela – President Hugo Chavez said he met privately with actor Sean Penn on Wednesday, and that the Oscar-winning celebrity may film a movie in Venezuela. Penn may shoot a film based on a novel by Cuban writer Alejo Carpentier, which is set largely in the jungle along Venezuela's southern Orinoco river, Chavez said. He appeared to be referring to Carpentier's 1953 novel, "The Lost Steps," about an American anthropologist and composer's journey into the jungle region. Penn's publicist could not immediately be reached for comment. Chavez added that he discussed politics with Penn, who said he would soon...

HAVANA (AP) - Michael Douglas staged an impromptu walking tour of the Cuban capital's historic district Tuesday, posing for photos with construction workers and surprised residents. His visit came two days after fellow Oscar-winner Sean Penn arrived in Cuba, reportedly seeking an interview with 82-year-old Fidel Castro, who has been little seen since announcing he was suffering from an unspecified illness in July 2006. He stepped down as Cuba's president in February of the following year and was replaced by his brother Raul. Penn traveled to the Isle of Youth, off mainland Cuba on Monday to meet with local artists....

Sean Penn is exercising his journalistic skill, reporting from inside Cuba. The Oscar winner has embarked on a short trip to the island on assignment for Vanity Fair and The Huffington Post. Rumours have circulated that he might interview Fidel Castro. But his rep told E! News that there were no plans to meet up with the ailing former leader. If he were to, it would not be the first such encounter. In 2005, his family held a lengthy meeting with Castro whilst holidaying in Cuba. ... Past overseas assignments for the actor turned journalist include stints in Iraq, Iran...