No one really knows enough to be a pessimist.
~ Norman Cousins.
~ Norman Cousins.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Thursday, December 18, 2008
London's open-backed buses to return
London's mayor says he is making good on his promise to return London's iconic open-backed Routemaster bus to the British capital.
The traditional Routemaster had an open platform at the back, enabling passengers to get on and off quickly.
It was phased out three years ago in favor of boxy-looking double-deckers deemed safer and more accessible.
But the Routemaster was widely loved and Mayor Boris Johnson said Friday that winning open-backed designs for its successor have been chosen.
He says the new buses could be in service by 2011.
Johnson's opponents say there is no point in bringing back buses that were only recently withdrawn for being impractical.
"Nostalgia doesn't get people to work on time," London Assembly member Val Shawcross said.
(There's a party-pooper in every crowd)
The traditional Routemaster had an open platform at the back, enabling passengers to get on and off quickly.
It was phased out three years ago in favor of boxy-looking double-deckers deemed safer and more accessible.
But the Routemaster was widely loved and Mayor Boris Johnson said Friday that winning open-backed designs for its successor have been chosen.
He says the new buses could be in service by 2011.
Johnson's opponents say there is no point in bringing back buses that were only recently withdrawn for being impractical.
"Nostalgia doesn't get people to work on time," London Assembly member Val Shawcross said.
(There's a party-pooper in every crowd)
Hot gold lands Michigan postal worker in hot water
A Detroit-area postal worker has been charged with stealing gold from the mail after he tried to pawn his treasure to the shop that had shipped it.
The postal worker sold the gold on November 7th to G&S Brokers pawn shop for $320. Authorities told The Detroit News that jeweler James Zelinske recognized the gold because he had melted and mailed it to a business in Ann Arbor.
Zelinske had insured the parcel of gold for $1,000.
The postal worker has been charged with embezzling mail from the Mount Clemens post office. He appeared Thursday in federal court in Detroit.The Worst Ballot Challenge Of All
From the "Why is this idiot even breathing" Department:
With today's meeting of the Minnesota state canvassing board, it's become painfully clear that Norm Coleman's big problem is that his ballot challenges are made up almost entirely of brazenly frivolous attempts to get votes for Al Franken thrown out.
With today's meeting of the Minnesota state canvassing board, it's become painfully clear that Norm Coleman's big problem is that his ballot challenges are made up almost entirely of brazenly frivolous attempts to get votes for Al Franken thrown out.
But now we're at the point where all those challenges are resolved - in other words, he can't hide behind these tricks anymore.
This one might be the worst of all. The Coleman campaign tried to get a vote for Franken thrown out because the voter had written on the ballot. What'd they write?
Thank you for counting my vote!
Is there anything more that needs to be said?
It goes in cycles
The readers of Carolina Naturally are from every corner of the globe, but they tend to follow a few patterns.
Today and for the last few days readers east of the Mississippi in the USA have dominated the numbers domestically, whereas just a few weeks ago it was the state of California that had the big numbers.
World-wide readers follow patterns as well with the battle between Scandinavia and Far East Asia for the big numbers almost a slugfest some days, however Europe and Southwest Asia aren't slacking off either.
What is really encouraging is the increasing numbers from Sub-Saharan Africa, the numbers have always been strong in North Africa.
Today and for the last few days readers east of the Mississippi in the USA have dominated the numbers domestically, whereas just a few weeks ago it was the state of California that had the big numbers.
World-wide readers follow patterns as well with the battle between Scandinavia and Far East Asia for the big numbers almost a slugfest some days, however Europe and Southwest Asia aren't slacking off either.
What is really encouraging is the increasing numbers from Sub-Saharan Africa, the numbers have always been strong in North Africa.
If you'd like to smell like Burger King ...
Looking to beef up your mojo this holiday season?
Burger King Corp. may have just the thing. The home of the Whopper has launched a new men's body spray called "Flame." The company describes the spray as "the scent of seduction with a hint of flame-broiled meat."
The fragrance is on sale at New York City retailer Ricky's NYC in stores and online for a limited time for $3.99.
Burger King is marketing the product through a Web site featuring a photo of its King character reclining fireside and naked but for an animal fur strategically placed to not offend.
The marketing ploy is the latest in a string of viral ad campaigns by the company. Burger King is also in the midst of its Whopper Virgins campaign that features an taste test with fast-food "virgins" pitting the Whopper against McDonald's Corp.'s Big Mac.
*****
Has anyone else seen the way passed ridiculous sign as ways back? Obviously the folks at Burger King missed it!
69 rabbits discovered in 1-bedroom apartment
It's Christmastime, not Easter, but the DuPage County Animal Care and Control Center in Wheaton, Illinois, has some rabbits available for adoption - 69 of them, to be exact. All of them were found recently in a one-bedroom apartment.
Officials said the domesticated Dutch rabbits that were discovered during a recent eviction, and the female tenant told animal control workers her financial situation had overwhelmed her.
Authorities would not identify the woman nor the location of her apartment.
Center executive director Kerry Vinkler called it a typical pet-hoarding situation, but she said all the rabbits but one were in good shape when they were found.
Vinkler estimates the oldest rabbits to be about 18 months old and said Dutch rabbits have a life span of eight to 12 years.
Want a retired space shuttle? They're up for grabs
NASA's soon-to-be-retired space shuttles are up for grabs.
The space agency said Wednesday it's looking for ideas on where and how best to display its space shuttles once they stop flying in a few years.
It's put out a call to schools, science museums and "other appropriate organizations" that might be interested in showcasing one of the three remaining shuttles.
Beware: NASA estimates it will cost about $42 million to get each shuttle ready and get it where it needs to go, and the final tab could end up much more.
The estimate includes $6 million to ferry the spaceship atop a modified jumbo jet to the closest major airport.
But the price could skyrocket depending on how far the display site is from the airport.
Only indoor, climate-controlled displays will be considered.
"The orbiters will not be disassembled for transportation or storage," NASA insists in its nine-page request for information.
One space shuttle appears headed to the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum in Washington.
The remaining two would be placed in storage at Kennedy Space Center until their final homes are decided.
If a space shuttle is too pricey, NASA is offering some of its shuttle main engines for anywhere between $400,000 and $800,000, not counting shipping costs.
The space shuttles, so you know, will not come with any main engines.
NASA plans to retire Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavor by Sept. 30, 2010, in keeping with the shrub's calling for a return by astronauts to the moon by 2020.
A transition team set up by President Barack Obama is reviewing all the options, however, including the possibility of keeping the shuttles flying beyond 2010.If that happens, then all space shuttle deals are off.
The space agency said Wednesday it's looking for ideas on where and how best to display its space shuttles once they stop flying in a few years.
It's put out a call to schools, science museums and "other appropriate organizations" that might be interested in showcasing one of the three remaining shuttles.
Beware: NASA estimates it will cost about $42 million to get each shuttle ready and get it where it needs to go, and the final tab could end up much more.
The estimate includes $6 million to ferry the spaceship atop a modified jumbo jet to the closest major airport.
But the price could skyrocket depending on how far the display site is from the airport.
Only indoor, climate-controlled displays will be considered.
"The orbiters will not be disassembled for transportation or storage," NASA insists in its nine-page request for information.
One space shuttle appears headed to the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum in Washington.
The remaining two would be placed in storage at Kennedy Space Center until their final homes are decided.
If a space shuttle is too pricey, NASA is offering some of its shuttle main engines for anywhere between $400,000 and $800,000, not counting shipping costs.
The space shuttles, so you know, will not come with any main engines.
NASA plans to retire Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavor by Sept. 30, 2010, in keeping with the shrub's calling for a return by astronauts to the moon by 2020.
A transition team set up by President Barack Obama is reviewing all the options, however, including the possibility of keeping the shuttles flying beyond 2010.If that happens, then all space shuttle deals are off.
Another Isolated Incident
And if you thought it was only in China where the guilty convict the innocent take a gander at this:
From The Agitator:
From The Agitator:
Another Isolated Incident
But not a drug raid. A prostitution raid.
It was a little before 8 at night when the breaker went out at Emily Milburn’s home in Galveston. She was busy preparing her children for school the next day, so she asked her 12-year-old daughter, Dymond, to pop outside and turn the switch back on.
As Dymond headed toward the breaker, a blue van drove up and three men jumped out rushing toward her. One of them grabbed her saying, “You’re a prostitute. You’re coming with me.”
Dymond grabbed onto a tree and started screaming, “Daddy, Daddy, Daddy.” One of the men covered her mouth. Two of the men beat her about the face and throat.
As it turned out, the three men were plain-clothed Galveston police officers who had been called to the area regarding three white prostitutes soliciting a white man and a black drug dealer.
All this is according to a lawsuit filed in Galveston federal court by Milburn against the officers. The lawsuit alleges that the officers thought Dymond, an African-American, was a hooker due to the “tight shorts” she was wearing, despite not fitting the racial description of any of the female suspects. The police went to the wrong house, two blocks away from the area of the reported illegal activity…
So you’d think that after the police figured out they had the wrong house, they’d apologize, and possibly even compensate the girl and her family. According to the lawsuit, you’d be wrong:
After the incident, Dymond was hospitalized and suffered black eyes as well as throat and ear drum injuries.
Three weeks later, according to the lawsuit, police went to Dymond’s school, where she was an honor student, and arrested her for assaulting a public servant. Griffin says the allegations stem from when Dymond fought back against the three men who were trying to take her from her home. The case went to trial, but the judge declared it a mistrial on the first day, says Griffin. The new trial is set for February.
I have a call into the Galveston district attorney and with Dymond Milburn’s lawyer. We’re going on a press account of one side of a lawsuit, here. So it’s possible—and I would hope—that there are some important details missing.
Otherwise, a police mistake leads to an innocent 12-year-old getting violently snatched up and roughed up by a group of plainclothes cops jumping out of a van . . . and they charge her for resisting?
*****
Makes you proud doesn't it ... to live in a country where the gestapo can attack and brutalize a child and then prosecute the child for the bruises her face caused on their fists!
Makes you proud doesn't it ... to live in a country where the gestapo can attack and brutalize a child and then prosecute the child for the bruises her face caused on their fists!
Doctor finds foot growing in brain of infant
A pediatric brain surgeon Colorado Springs, Colorado was operating on a 3-day-old baby and found a foot growing in his brain.
"The foot literally popped out of the brain," Grabb told TheDenverChannel Wednesday.The appendage threatened the newborn's life.
When [Dr. Paul] Grabb performed the life-saving surgery at Memorial Hospital for Children in Colorado Springs, he was in for another surprise: he also found what appeared to be parts of an intestine in the folds of the infant's tiny brain, in addition to another developing foot, hand and thigh.
And I Quote
"This is a farewell kiss, dog."
~ currently the most famous man in the world, Iraqi television journalist
Muthathar al Zaidi, after throwing his shoes at the shrub.
Muthathar al Zaidi, after throwing his shoes at the shrub.
Marijuana “epidemic” shows Japan’s drug allergy
From Reuters:
First a sumo wrestler, then an actor, now students at elite universities and a tennis player — the list of people caught using marijuana has sparked fears of reefer madness in Japan.
More than 2,000 people were arrested on dope charges between January and October this year, a 19 percent increase on the same period last year, according to the National Police Agency.
“(The) increase in marijuana abusers, as well as tightening regulations, are both factors that pushed up the number of arrests,” Shingo Katsuno, vice president and an expert on Japan’s drug issues at Hyogo University of Teacher Education, told Reuters in a telephone interview.
“Japan is now highly interested in the issue because it is spreading in places like colleges, where it hardly existed before,” he added.
Read more from Marijuana “epidemic” shows Japan’s drug allergy
The guilty convict the innocent in China
A Chinese lawyer who defended residents forcibly evicted from their homes to make way for development was sentenced to two years in prison for obstructing official duties, her husband said.
Ni Yulan, 47, was arrested in April for allegedly assaulting a worker who along with police was trying to demolish her family's house in an old neighborhood in central Beijing, her husband Dong Jiqin said.
New York-based Human Rights Watch said it was Ni who was assaulted when one of the workers hit her on the head with a brick.
Dong said his wife was sentenced to two years in prison at a 2 1/2-hour, closed-door trial.
Getting hit in the head by a brick and sent to jail for 'assaulting' the brick! And the Chinese wonder why they are laughed at worldwide!
Ni Yulan, 47, was arrested in April for allegedly assaulting a worker who along with police was trying to demolish her family's house in an old neighborhood in central Beijing, her husband Dong Jiqin said.
New York-based Human Rights Watch said it was Ni who was assaulted when one of the workers hit her on the head with a brick.
Dong said his wife was sentenced to two years in prison at a 2 1/2-hour, closed-door trial.
*****
Getting hit in the head by a brick and sent to jail for 'assaulting' the brick! And the Chinese wonder why they are laughed at worldwide!
That's a lot
The San Ysidro border station is now the busiest on earth.
It looked fairly busy even in 1925 with 4 or 5 lanes of cars lined.
Today, it has 24 lanes of northbound traffic for those traveling from Tijuana to San Diego and another 6 southbound lanes for those going the other way.
Every day up to 50,000 vehicles pass through this gate, plus another 25,000 people on foot, and that's just into the United States ...
It looked fairly busy even in 1925 with 4 or 5 lanes of cars lined.
Today, it has 24 lanes of northbound traffic for those traveling from Tijuana to San Diego and another 6 southbound lanes for those going the other way.
Every day up to 50,000 vehicles pass through this gate, plus another 25,000 people on foot, and that's just into the United States ...
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Iowa town's roads well seasoned
Slush has never smelled so spicy.
City crews in the Des Moines suburb of Ankeny are using garlic salt to melt snow and ice on streets from Tuesday's storm. The salt was donated by Tone Brothers Inc., a top spice producer headquartered in Ankeny.
Public Works Administrator Al Olson said the company donated 18,000 pounds of garlic salt to use on its 400 miles of roads.
Olson doesn't have details, but he said the salt would have ended up in the landfill, so the company donated it. A telephone call Wednesday to Tone Brothers wasn't immediately returned.
Olson said the city mixed the garlic salt with regular road salt and it works fine. He said some road workers say it makes them hungry, but Olson doesn't recommend it to spice up lunch or dinner.
Fast-food worker laughs, tells robber to get a job
That's one way to put it ...
A San Antonio fast-food restaurant cashier laughed at a robbery suspect and told him to get a job if he wanted money during a failed holdup on Tuesday evening.
A San Antonio fast-food restaurant cashier laughed at a robbery suspect and told him to get a job if he wanted money during a failed holdup on Tuesday evening.
Police said the suspect approached the worker and demanded money, but the cashier laughed and apparently didn't realize the man was trying to hold up the place.
The suspect then allegedly pulled out a box cutter and demanded the cashier's wallet. The employee complied, but had no money in his billfold.
The suspect fled, but was caught by police who responded to the robbery call.
San Antonio police said the suspect is expected to be charged with aggravated robbery.
Santa gets parking ticket while delivering toys
It had to be in New York City, you know ...
Santa Claus has added a New York City traffic agent to his naughty list after she gave him a ticket while delivering gifts to children.
Chip Cafiero says he'll fight the $115 ticket he received in Brooklyn on Black Friday when he was dressed as Santa.
The 60-year-old retired schoolteacher was riding a horse-drawn carriage and handing out toys and candy canes. An SUV carrying the toys and protecting the horse from traffic was double parked next to him.
Santa says he yelled "Ho! Ho! Ho!" to get the traffic agent's attention because the SUV wasn't blocking traffic. But in his words, "This grinch just went ahead and fined me."
Local politician Martin Golden calls the parking ticket "ridiculous."
Police won't comment on it.
NFL record-setter Slingin' Sammy Baugh dies at 94
People never forgot Slingin' Sammy Baugh.
Every day as many as four letters arrived at the West Texas ranch the pioneering quarterback called home.
Baugh, whose use of the forward pass took him to the Hall of Fame after a career with the Washington Redskins, died Wednesday night. He was 94.
Baugh, hampered by numerous health issues, died at Fisher County Hospital in Rotan.
Sammy Baugh was the last surviving member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame's inaugural class of 1963.
After starring at TCU, "Slingin' Sammy" played with the Redskins from 1937 to 1952, leading them to the NFL title in his rookie season and again in 1942.
Baugh was the best all-around player in an era when versatility was essential. In 1943, he led the league in passing, punting and interceptions. In one game, he threw four touchdowns and also intercepted four passes. He threw six touchdowns passes in a game twice. His 51.4-yard punting average in 1940 remains the NFL record.
Science News
From Treehugger.com:
Faced with the stark truth that the numbers of U.S. students pursuing careers in science are dwindling rapidly, the EPA and the City College of New York have announced a joint effort to encourage and produce environmental scientists of diverse backgrounds to pursue their dreams in the field of environmental science and potentially wind up working for the EPA.Of course, there’s always the reality that a career at the EPA may not fit the economic aspirations of such driven individuals, but there’s certainly cause for hope that the program through CCNY just may help fill the void at the EPA.
Article continues: EPA and CCNY in Joint Venture to Produce Environmental Scientists
Daily Horoscope
The daily horoscope for the day says;
Find a way around the congestion as much as possible.
Boy, they're good! (At stating the obvious - it is the holidaze, after all)
Find a way around the congestion as much as possible.
Boy, they're good! (At stating the obvious - it is the holidaze, after all)
Our readers
Some of Carolina Naturally readers today hailed from:
Burgos, Spain; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Liverpool, England
Dahlangea, Georgia; Corvallis, Oregon; and Palos Hills, Illinois
Burgos, Spain; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Liverpool, England
Dahlangea, Georgia; Corvallis, Oregon; and Palos Hills, Illinois
Happiness is a warm gun
A rare version of The Beatles song from the The Beatles (aka the White Album)
There is no "I" in TEAM
True, the is no "I" in TEAM. But those who are forever going on about it conveniently leave out the portion following the comma and instead insert a period as if the phrase ending there.
The entire phrase:
And the ME is the one spouting the partial phrase extolling others to work to benefit the ME.
The entire phrase:
There is no "I" in TEAM, but there is a ME!
And the ME is the one spouting the partial phrase extolling others to work to benefit the ME.
This date, from Henry David Thoreau's journal
December 17, 1851
"The pitch pine woods on the right of the Corner road. A piercing cold afternoon, wading in the snow. R. Rice was going to Sudbury to put his bees into the cellar for fear they would freeze. He had a small hive; not enough to keep each other warm. The pitch pines hold the snow well. It lies now in balls on their plumes and in streaks on their branches, their low branches rising at a small angle and meeting each other. A certain dim religious light comes through this roof of pine leaves and snow. It is a somber twilight, yet in some places the sun streams in, producing the strongest contrasts of light and shade."
Winter solstice is fast approaching
Winter solstice is fast approaching.
Time to take out that Yule log and light the first fire of the year.
Time to take out that Yule log and light the first fire of the year.
Iraqi official says he's quitting over shoe-tosser
Iraq's parliament speaker announced his resignation Wednesday after a parliamentary session descended into chaos as lawmakers argued about whether to free a journalist who threw his shoes at the shrub.
After arguments erupted among lawmakers over the fate of the journalist Muntadhar al-Zeidi, the speaker, Mahmoud al-Mashhadani said: "I have no honor leading this parliament and I announce my resignation." He did not offer a position on whether al-Zeidi should be freed.
So, the saga continues ...
The shrub got less than what he deserves, but history will not let it remain that way - he will get 'what's coming to him' ... everyone does ... and in his case I don't think it will be a bed of rose petals - the thorns maybe, but definitely not the petals.
After arguments erupted among lawmakers over the fate of the journalist Muntadhar al-Zeidi, the speaker, Mahmoud al-Mashhadani said: "I have no honor leading this parliament and I announce my resignation." He did not offer a position on whether al-Zeidi should be freed.
*****
So, the saga continues ...
The shrub got less than what he deserves, but history will not let it remain that way - he will get 'what's coming to him' ... everyone does ... and in his case I don't think it will be a bed of rose petals - the thorns maybe, but definitely not the petals.
Most people understand their pets
Sixty-seven percent of pet owners say they understand their animals' woofs, meows or other sounds.
That's curious ... I thought everybody understood their pets!?
Those thirty-three percent who don't understand their pets must not be listening.
One hundred percent of pets understand us ... some simply ignore what we're saying.
That's curious ... I thought everybody understood their pets!?
Those thirty-three percent who don't understand their pets must not be listening.
*****
One hundred percent of pets understand us ... some simply ignore what we're saying.
Thank U
Alanis Morissette
Damn, has it been ten years all ready?! This was the big hit in the last two months of 1998.
Gambling tycoon gives up $300M
A co-founder of an Internet gambling company and one of the world's richest people pleaded guilty Tuesday to violating the federal wire act and agreed to forfeit $300 million as part of a cooperation deal.
A smiling Anurag Dikshit, of the British colony of Gibraltar, entered the plea in U.S. District Court in Manhattan to charges that he used the Internet to transmit interstate and foreign wagering information.
The charge carries a potential prison term of up to two years.
The 37-year-old citizen of India is the co-founder of PartyGaming, a Gibraltar online gambling company that offered casino and poker games and catered to a U.S. audience.
Dikshit signed a cooperation agreement and prosecutors indicated they may eventually submit a letter to the judge asking for leniency.
Dikshit and defense lawyer Mark Pomerantz declined to comment.
Prosecutors said in a release that Dikshit developed a proprietary software platform and directed the company's computer operations from 1998 through October 2006, when he also was PartyGaming's principal shareholder.
Bail was set at $15 million, but Dikshit was not required to post any cash or property, prompting Judge Jed S. Rakoff to ask what incentive Dikshit had to attend future court dates.
But prosecutors and Pomerantz agreed that Dikshit had demonstrated his desire to cooperate, in part by already paying $100 million to the U.S. Treasury and pledging to pay another $100 million within three months and the last $100 million installment by Sept. 30.
"Mr. Dikshit decided to come to the United States to enter the plea under his own volition. He's been interviewed in Europe.
We believe Mr. Dikshit is dedicated to following through," Pomerantz said.
Forbes magazine estimated Dikshit's worth last year at $1.6 billion, making him the 618th richest person in the world.
And here you thought the courts were concerned with justice didn't you? This story proves it is not ... it is all about the Benjamins - always has been and always will be.
The judge will be proven correct on this too, Dikshit will go home and not make another appearance in a courtroom ... with a net worth of 1.6B, 300M is pocket change.
A smiling Anurag Dikshit, of the British colony of Gibraltar, entered the plea in U.S. District Court in Manhattan to charges that he used the Internet to transmit interstate and foreign wagering information.
The charge carries a potential prison term of up to two years.
The 37-year-old citizen of India is the co-founder of PartyGaming, a Gibraltar online gambling company that offered casino and poker games and catered to a U.S. audience.
Dikshit signed a cooperation agreement and prosecutors indicated they may eventually submit a letter to the judge asking for leniency.
Dikshit and defense lawyer Mark Pomerantz declined to comment.
Prosecutors said in a release that Dikshit developed a proprietary software platform and directed the company's computer operations from 1998 through October 2006, when he also was PartyGaming's principal shareholder.
Bail was set at $15 million, but Dikshit was not required to post any cash or property, prompting Judge Jed S. Rakoff to ask what incentive Dikshit had to attend future court dates.
But prosecutors and Pomerantz agreed that Dikshit had demonstrated his desire to cooperate, in part by already paying $100 million to the U.S. Treasury and pledging to pay another $100 million within three months and the last $100 million installment by Sept. 30.
"Mr. Dikshit decided to come to the United States to enter the plea under his own volition. He's been interviewed in Europe.
We believe Mr. Dikshit is dedicated to following through," Pomerantz said.
Forbes magazine estimated Dikshit's worth last year at $1.6 billion, making him the 618th richest person in the world.
*****
And here you thought the courts were concerned with justice didn't you? This story proves it is not ... it is all about the Benjamins - always has been and always will be.
The judge will be proven correct on this too, Dikshit will go home and not make another appearance in a courtroom ... with a net worth of 1.6B, 300M is pocket change.
Ayn Rand's Message to the GOP Candidates
This is from 1961 and can be said verbatim today - the repugs haven't learned a damned thing.
Science News
Many strange new animals found in Southeast Asia
Scientists have discovered an average of two new species a week in Southeast Asia's Greater Mekong River region. Unusual animals found in this incredibly rich and diverse habitat include Desmoxytes purpurosea, a pink millipede that spews cyanide to defend itself, and Heteropoda maxima, a spider that may be the world's largest with a 12 inch legspan. Find out more on National Geographic's slideshow of the animals, and at the World Wildlife Fund Synthetic beach with temperature-controlled sand
Plans to build a beach with refrigerated sand at the new Palazza Versace hotel in Dubai are moving ahead:
1) A substructure of pipes will circulate coolant under the sand to keep guests' feet from getting burned.
2) Giant fans are also proposed to generate an "ocean breeze."
From the Times Online:
1) A substructure of pipes will circulate coolant under the sand to keep guests' feet from getting burned.
2) Giant fans are also proposed to generate an "ocean breeze."
From the Times Online:
Soheil Abedian, founder and president of Palazzo Versace, said he believed it is possible to design a refrigerated beach and make it sustainable. “We will suck the heat out of the sand to keep it cool enough to lie on,” he said. “This is the kind of luxury that top people want...”
Versace's plans have shocked environmentalists. Rachel Noble, the campaigns officer at Tourism Concern, which promotes sustainable tourism, said that the carbon generated by such projects would contribute to climate change, whose worst effects would be felt by the poor.
“Dubai is like a bubble world where the things that are worrying the rest of the world, like climate change, are simply ignored so that people can continue their destructive lifestyles,” she said.
Muppets of Burlesque in L.A.
From LA Weekly:
Vixen Violette as Fozzie Bear stepped on stage wearing a brown, terrycloth hoop dress and matching knee-high boots, dancing to Elvis Presley's "Teddy Bear"; Scarlett Letter as Sam the Eagle took to a podium to rant about the topic of nudity ("Outrageous!"); Anastasia Von Teaserhausen as the Swedish Chef hand-crafted a giant hamburger consisting of the various meats and cheeses that made up her skirt (plus the heads of lettuce she wore as a bra); Red Snapper did her best Elton John to "Crocodile Rock" and was attacked by a giant stuffed crocodile; a corseted and velvet gloved Vixen Magdalene gothed things up a bit with her Dr. Steel Show; Isabella Star as Miss Piggy auditioned to be an Opera star; Lux La Croix as Rizzo the Rat kicked off her heels, got gangster and bumped her tail to Dr. Dre's "Rat Tat Tat"; Jewel of Denial rocked out and stripped down to Emmet Otter's Riverbottom Nightmare Band; and Dizzy Von Damn! as Gonzo the Great closed out the night with excellent pasty twirling technique and a Muppet version of Frank Sinatra's "I Did It My Way."
Man decked the halls with stolen Santas
A suspicious surplus of Christmas spirit led to the arrest of a man in Southern California. Westminster police say officers responded to a disturbance call at the house of 48-year-old Vuong Pham, where they found rooms overflowing with wicker reindeer, plastic snowmen and inflatable Santas.
For weeks people in Pham's Orange County neighborhood had reported a steady disappearance of lights, figures and faux trees from their front yards.
Police say they connected the thefts to Pham after looking through his house and arrested him Monday on suspicion of grand theft and possession of stolen property.
Officer Cameron Knauerhaze says it took three trucks to take all the Christmas contraband to the station. Police weren't clear on the motive.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Two $1 million tickets sold at same Indiana store
Two winning Hoosier Lottery tickets worth $1 million each were sold within a couple days of each other at the same central Indiana convenience store. John Hensley and his fiancee, Vanessa Mitchell, claimed the Cash Blizzard scratch-off prize on Tuesday, but the winner in Saturday's Hoosier Lotto drawing has not come forward, lottery spokesman Andrew Reed said.
"In the 18 years I've been with the Hoosier Lottery, I can't remember another time that we've had two $1 million winners from the same (retailer) in the same weekend," Reed said.
Both tickets were bought at the Dairyland convenience store on Main Street in Plainfield, a western suburb of Indianapolis.
Lottery officials confirmed Tuesday that the $1 million Hoosier Lotto ticket, likely bought on Thursday, Friday or Saturday, matched the winning numbers drawn Saturday night - 2, 14, 31, 32, 35 and 48. The $1 million winning Cash Blizzard scratch-off ticket was sold Saturday, Reed said.
Hensley, who works at a Plainfield distribution center, said he accepted an annual payout of $36,000 for 20 years, or about $720,000 after taxes, on the $1 million prize.
"It is a lot of money, but not so much that you can stop working," he told The Indianapolis Star.
More lottery tickets, however, are not in Hensley's future.
"I'll never play again unless somebody else is buying the tickets," he said. "The reason to play is that you might hit life-changing money. I don't really have that reason to play anymore. I won't push it."
Cops arrest woman after drive-through burger order
It was a Big N' Tasty burger and one trip to jail to go for a woman suspected of DWI in St. Paul. Police said a 26-year-old woman pulled into a McDonald's drive-thru with squad car lights flashing and sirens blaring behind her. The woman had time to eat a couple of fries before police caught up to her and arrested her on suspicion of drunken driving Sunday.
The woman said says she saw the cruiser at the McDonald's, heard an officer honking the horn and figured she was getting pulled over because her driver's license was revoked. She told the St. Paul Pioneer Press in a jail interview: "I thought they were fixing to mess with me. ... I was fixing to get something to eat."
The woman said she couldn't get out of the drive-through because cars were behind and in front of her.
She's contesting the accuracy of a breath test she took.
Armed burglars demand man's eggbeater
It really must have been a special item. According to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, two men entered a man's home early Sunday and demanded his eggbeater. One suspect was holding a pistol while the other brandished a knife to the resident's neck.
Police caught the men outside the home and they are being held in Orient Road Jail. One suspect also faces a charge of aggravated assault.
Police found the eggbeater in the man's left pocket.
Man plays same lottery number 11 times, wins $1.1M
A Hampton man has won the Virginia Lottery's Cash 5 top prize of $100,000, and won it, and won it. Lottery officials said the man won $1.1 million after playing the same numbers on 11 tickets for the same drawing. Each winning ticket gives the man $100,000.
Lottery officials haven't identified the man, who was scheduled to claim his winnings Tuesday afternoon at the lottery service center in Hampton.
Small earthquake rattles South Carolina coast
No damage or injuries were reported this morning in a minor earthquake near Charleston.
The quake was reported at 7:42 a.m., according to the National Earthquake Information Center at the Colorado-based U.S. Geological Survey. The center of the quake was about 10 miles east-southeast of Summerville, S.C., a Charleston suburb.
The quake was in the same area as the 1886 Charleston earthquake which killed more than 100 people and did $103 million damage (at today's prices).
Residents of the Charleston area reported feeling the earthquake this morning, but there were no reports of damage.
Daily Funny
A true story from the MountIsa in Queensland.
Recently a routine Police patrol car parked outside a local neighborhood pub.
Late in the evening the officer noticed a man leaving the bar so intoxicated that he could barely walk.
The man stumbled around the car park for a few minutes, with the officer quietly observing. After what seemed an eternity and trying his keys on five vehicles. The man managed to find his car, which he fell into.
He was there for a few minutes as a number of other patrons left the bar and drove off. Finally he started the car, switched the wipers on and off (it was a fine dry night). Then flicked the indicators on, then off, tooted the horn and then switched on the lights.
He moved the vehicle forward a few cm, reversed a little and then remained stationary for a few more minutes as some more vehicles left. At last he pulled out of the car park and started to drive slowly down the road.
The Police officer, having patiently waited all this time, now started up the patrol car, put on the flashing lights, promptly pulled the man over and carried out a random breathalyser test.
To his amazement the breathalyser indicated no evidence of the man's intoxication.
The Police officer said "I'll have to ask you to accompany me to the Police station - this breathalyser equipment must be broken."
"I doubt it," said the man, "tonight I'm the designated decoy"
Recently a routine Police patrol car parked outside a local neighborhood pub.
Late in the evening the officer noticed a man leaving the bar so intoxicated that he could barely walk.
The man stumbled around the car park for a few minutes, with the officer quietly observing. After what seemed an eternity and trying his keys on five vehicles. The man managed to find his car, which he fell into.
He was there for a few minutes as a number of other patrons left the bar and drove off. Finally he started the car, switched the wipers on and off (it was a fine dry night). Then flicked the indicators on, then off, tooted the horn and then switched on the lights.
He moved the vehicle forward a few cm, reversed a little and then remained stationary for a few more minutes as some more vehicles left. At last he pulled out of the car park and started to drive slowly down the road.
The Police officer, having patiently waited all this time, now started up the patrol car, put on the flashing lights, promptly pulled the man over and carried out a random breathalyser test.
To his amazement the breathalyser indicated no evidence of the man's intoxication.
The Police officer said "I'll have to ask you to accompany me to the Police station - this breathalyser equipment must be broken."
"I doubt it," said the man, "tonight I'm the designated decoy"
Question and Answer
Q. How does a Brazilian woman turn a man into a millionaire?
A. She first meets him when he is a billionaire
A. She first meets him when he is a billionaire
Store won't put child's name on cake
Heath and Deborah Campbell of Greenwich, Pennsylvania are angry that the ShopRite supermarket refused to spell out their 3-year-old son's name in frosting on his birthday cake.
His name is Adolph Hitler Campbell. Poor kid. An area Wal-Mart later agreed to decorate the cake. Others who read the story in a local paper were apparently upset with Heath Campbell about choosing that name for his child. That made him even angrier.
From the Associated Press:
"There's a new president and he says it's time for a change; well, then it's time for a change," the 35-year-old continued. "They need to accept a name. A name's a name. The kid isn't going to grow up and do what (Hitler) did...."
Heath Campbell said he named his son after Adolf Hitler because he liked the name and because "no one else in the world would have that name." He sounded surprised by all the controversy the dispute had generated...
He said he was raised not to avoid people of other races but not to mix with them socially or romantically. But he said he would try to raise his children differently.
Truths in Life
There is only a certain number of truths in Life and this is one of them ...
... If you want to live like a republican - Vote Democrat!
... If you want to live like a republican - Vote Democrat!
Best in Bathroom Reading
10. Archie comics
Simple, straightforward and escapist literature for the not too serious bathroom sessions.
9. Through Different Eyes
An excellent book of Poetry that allows you to see the world 'through different eyes'.
8. TV Guide
Take a highlighter in there with you and plan your entire TV schedule in one sitting.
7. Chicken Soup for the Soul
A book with lots of short stories about overcoming life's obstacles and challenges.
6. Daily newspaper
If you have time to read the newspaper, then it could be a great source of information. Unfortunately, many of us just cannot find the time to check out the day's headlines. Solution: just leave it in the think-tank and you'll end up reading it.
5.The Ultimate Bathroom Reader
The title says it all.
4. Business Magazines
OK, it's pretty obvious that big business does this so why not you.
3. Dictionary / Encyclopedia
If you want to increase your brain power this is it.
2. Playboy
Don't deny it. Even the ladies keep this one in their bathrooms.
1. Guinness Book of World Records
If you think this is a joke try one of those 'serious' bathroom sessions without it.
Simple, straightforward and escapist literature for the not too serious bathroom sessions.
9. Through Different Eyes
An excellent book of Poetry that allows you to see the world 'through different eyes'.
8. TV Guide
Take a highlighter in there with you and plan your entire TV schedule in one sitting.
7. Chicken Soup for the Soul
A book with lots of short stories about overcoming life's obstacles and challenges.
6. Daily newspaper
If you have time to read the newspaper, then it could be a great source of information. Unfortunately, many of us just cannot find the time to check out the day's headlines. Solution: just leave it in the think-tank and you'll end up reading it.
5.The Ultimate Bathroom Reader
The title says it all.
4. Business Magazines
OK, it's pretty obvious that big business does this so why not you.
3. Dictionary / Encyclopedia
If you want to increase your brain power this is it.
2. Playboy
Don't deny it. Even the ladies keep this one in their bathrooms.
1. Guinness Book of World Records
If you think this is a joke try one of those 'serious' bathroom sessions without it.
Greatest Rock Guitar Solos
Check out the rest of the list of the greatest rock guitar solos here.1. Comfortably Numb - David Gilmour (Pink Floyd)
2. Stairway To Heaven - Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin)
3. All Along The Watchtower - Jimi Hendrix
Got any old shoes ...
Got a pair of old shoes laying about the house? Want to be shed of them?
As a sign of your "respect and admiration", please feel free to send your old shoes to;
George W. Bush Presidential Library
c/o SMU
6425 Boaz Lane
Dallas TX 75205
Australia OKs Facebook for serving lien notice
From the "This is wrong and dangerous" Department:
You've been served.
A court in Australia has approved the use of Facebook, a popular social networking Web site, to notify a couple that they lost their home after defaulting on a loan.
The Australian Capital Territory Supreme Court last Friday approved lawyer Mark McCormack's application to use Facebook to serve the legally binding documents after several failed attempts to contact the couple at the house and by e-mail.
Australian courts have given permission in the past for people to be served via e-mail and text messages when it was not possible to serve them in person.
McCormack, a lawyer for the lender the couple borrowed from, said that by the time he got the documents approved by the court late Tuesday for transmission, Facebook profiles for the couple had disappeared from public view.
The page was apparently either closed or secured for privacy, following publicity about the court order.
"It's somewhat novel, however we do see it as a valid method of bringing the matter to the attention of the defendant," McCormack said.
Despite the setback, McCormack said the Facebook attempt would help his client's case that all reasonable steps had been taken to serve the couple.
A court is expected to settle the matter as early as next week.
A Queensland state District Court judge ruled in April against documents being served by Facebook because the option of contacting a person via a post office box had not yet been exhausted.
In the latest ruling, Master David Harper insisted that the documents be attached to a private e-mail sent via Facebook that could not be seen by others visiting the pages.
McCormack said he and a colleague found the woman's Facebook page using personal details that she had given the lender including her birth date and e-mail address.
The man was listed on her page as a friend.
Prior to Tuesday, neither had imposed security options that deny strangers access to their pages.
McCormack said he did not bother searching for the couple through any other social networking sites.
"It's one of those occasions where you feel most at home with what you know and I myself have a Facebook account," McCormack said.
This is so wrong on so many levels. And open to misuse and outright abuse by those seeking to harass, threaten and intimidate someone and claim they are just 'notifying' them of legal proceedings.
There are already flagrant violators of the 'Do Not Call' rule here in the USA claiming to have a 'prior relationship' with the person they are harassing with incessant phone calls to solicit something ... imagine the crap they'd be pulling if this egregious error by the Australian courts made was allowed here.
You've been served.
A court in Australia has approved the use of Facebook, a popular social networking Web site, to notify a couple that they lost their home after defaulting on a loan.
The Australian Capital Territory Supreme Court last Friday approved lawyer Mark McCormack's application to use Facebook to serve the legally binding documents after several failed attempts to contact the couple at the house and by e-mail.
Australian courts have given permission in the past for people to be served via e-mail and text messages when it was not possible to serve them in person.
McCormack, a lawyer for the lender the couple borrowed from, said that by the time he got the documents approved by the court late Tuesday for transmission, Facebook profiles for the couple had disappeared from public view.
The page was apparently either closed or secured for privacy, following publicity about the court order.
"It's somewhat novel, however we do see it as a valid method of bringing the matter to the attention of the defendant," McCormack said.
Despite the setback, McCormack said the Facebook attempt would help his client's case that all reasonable steps had been taken to serve the couple.
A court is expected to settle the matter as early as next week.
A Queensland state District Court judge ruled in April against documents being served by Facebook because the option of contacting a person via a post office box had not yet been exhausted.
In the latest ruling, Master David Harper insisted that the documents be attached to a private e-mail sent via Facebook that could not be seen by others visiting the pages.
McCormack said he and a colleague found the woman's Facebook page using personal details that she had given the lender including her birth date and e-mail address.
The man was listed on her page as a friend.
Prior to Tuesday, neither had imposed security options that deny strangers access to their pages.
McCormack said he did not bother searching for the couple through any other social networking sites.
"It's one of those occasions where you feel most at home with what you know and I myself have a Facebook account," McCormack said.
*****
This is so wrong on so many levels. And open to misuse and outright abuse by those seeking to harass, threaten and intimidate someone and claim they are just 'notifying' them of legal proceedings.
There are already flagrant violators of the 'Do Not Call' rule here in the USA claiming to have a 'prior relationship' with the person they are harassing with incessant phone calls to solicit something ... imagine the crap they'd be pulling if this egregious error by the Australian courts made was allowed here.
100 arrested in raids to thwart Mafia regrouping
Italian police backed by helicopters arrested almost 100 suspected mobsters Tuesday and thwarted a plan by the hobbled Sicilian Mafia to reconstitute itself and form a new ruling commission to set strategy, authorities said.
Carabinieri police in Palermo said the operation there and in other Sicilian cities was one of the largest in recent years and gave investigators a picture of the new highest echelons of the Mafia.
It also prevented possible bloodshed as bosses vied to control the commission.
The raids involved 1,200 police officers and helicopters.
They targeted the bosses of local families and lower-level mobsters intent on setting up the commission, which was to make Cosa Nostra's important decisions such as possible attacks, police said.Salvatore
"Toto" Riina, the boss of bosses, famously headed such a commission, known as the "cupola," until his arrest in 1993.
The commission decided to carry out a strategy of all-out attack against the state that culminated with the back-to-back slayings of top anti-Mafia fighters Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino in 1992.
The Mafia's hierarchy has been trying to overcome disarray in its ranks since Riina's successor, Bernardo Provenzano, was arrested in April 2006 and Provenzano's closest aides two months later.
"If that operation ... brought Cosa Nostra down to its knees, this prevented it from getting up again," Pietro Grasso, the national anti-Mafia prosecutor, said Tuesday.
The operation - called Perseus, after the Greek mythological hero who beheaded Medusa - "severed all the strategically important heads of a new ruling structure that had to deliberate, as it once did, on all serious acts," Grasso said.
The current attempt to restore the commission was masterminded by a suspected mobster, Matteo Messina Denaro, who is among a handful of people vying to replace Provenzano, police said.
Messina Denaro is seen by investigators as a top candidate for the job after his main competitors were arrested.
He remains at large.
Charges for those arrested Tuesday include Mafia association, extortion, arms and drug trafficking, the Carabinieri said in a statement.
Carabinieri police in Palermo said the operation there and in other Sicilian cities was one of the largest in recent years and gave investigators a picture of the new highest echelons of the Mafia.
It also prevented possible bloodshed as bosses vied to control the commission.
The raids involved 1,200 police officers and helicopters.
They targeted the bosses of local families and lower-level mobsters intent on setting up the commission, which was to make Cosa Nostra's important decisions such as possible attacks, police said.Salvatore
"Toto" Riina, the boss of bosses, famously headed such a commission, known as the "cupola," until his arrest in 1993.
The commission decided to carry out a strategy of all-out attack against the state that culminated with the back-to-back slayings of top anti-Mafia fighters Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino in 1992.
The Mafia's hierarchy has been trying to overcome disarray in its ranks since Riina's successor, Bernardo Provenzano, was arrested in April 2006 and Provenzano's closest aides two months later.
"If that operation ... brought Cosa Nostra down to its knees, this prevented it from getting up again," Pietro Grasso, the national anti-Mafia prosecutor, said Tuesday.
The operation - called Perseus, after the Greek mythological hero who beheaded Medusa - "severed all the strategically important heads of a new ruling structure that had to deliberate, as it once did, on all serious acts," Grasso said.
The current attempt to restore the commission was masterminded by a suspected mobster, Matteo Messina Denaro, who is among a handful of people vying to replace Provenzano, police said.
Messina Denaro is seen by investigators as a top candidate for the job after his main competitors were arrested.
He remains at large.
Charges for those arrested Tuesday include Mafia association, extortion, arms and drug trafficking, the Carabinieri said in a statement.
Man accused of stealing fridge with urine samples
Gainesville, Florida authorities say a man was arrested for stealing a small refrigerator from a probation office used to store urine samples, including his own.
The Alachua County Sheriff's Office said a 26-year-old man stole the fridge after testing positive for drug use. Police said he went to the office Sunday, shot out a window to get inside and removed the locked refrigerator.
Probation officers gave investigators a list of names of those whose drug samples were stored in the stolen fridge. Investigators tracked down the suspect at his home where they found shards of glass with blood on them.
The fridge is still missing, but the man was being held at the Alachua County jail. He's charged with arson, destroying evidence, burglary and larceny.
Boy, 4, breaks into Texas store, plays with toys
From the "WTF!" Department:
Police called to a variety store by a burglar alarm overnight found a toddler inside, playing with the toys. Police said store surveillance video showed the unidentified boy trying to open one of the front doors to a Family Dollar store in Beaumont, Texas about 3 a.m. Monday, only to find it locked. But the second door was unlocked and the child went inside.
That triggered the silent alarm.
Detective Randy Stevens said the child apparently unlocked a door at his nearby home, got out, then crossed a multi-lane street to reach the store.
A canvass of the neighborhood turned up a family member searching for the child.
CPS spokeswoman Shari Pulliam said Child Protective Services claimed oversight of a 4-year-old boy during a review of the incident. The boy will be allowed to stay with other relatives, not the parents, during the CPS review period.
Emer the errant emu found safe after a month trip
Emer the errant emu is home after roaming free across northern Rhode Island for a month. The fugitive was profiled on television broadcasts. Authorities, area residents and owner Pamela Hood had tried to capture him. Yet he managed to outlast tranquilizer darts, traffic, freezing temperatures and hunger.
Finally on Saturday a Burrillville woman spotted Emer sauntering up her driveway. She walked the 6-foot-tall, 130-pound bird into a horse stall. Four-year-old Emer was 16 miles away from home.
His trek began after a pig nuzzled open the gate on Hood's livestock enclosure.
Emer took off the same night his mate laid an egg. It falls to male emus to sit on eggs for incubation. With its father back, the egg has a better chance of hatching.
*****
He just wanted a last fling before he was saddled with motherhood is all.
Arkansas woman says dog saved her life
An Arkansas woman said her dog Miley saved her life when she persisted in waking her from a carbon monoxide stupor. Stacie Pitts, 30, said her 1-year-old pet was sleeping next to her and woke her up in the early morning hours of Dec. 7. Pitts said she had a headache and went back to sleep, but Miley persisted and woke her up again. Pitts said she was overcome with nausea and realized then that something was wrong.
"I couldn't hold anything down. I ran to the bathroom throwing up," Pitts said. "And I wasn't throwing anything up but chemicals. It tasted like medicine in the back of my throat."
Her fiance, Richard Childers, woke up with a headache and woke up Pitts' 6-year-old stepdaughter.
"It took a while (for Richard) to wake her up. And when she woke, she had a headache," Pitts said.
Childers then called an ambulance, which took Pitts to Summit Medical Center while Childers and the child, who had also thrown up, followed in his vehicle.
At the hospital, Pitts said, doctors found that Pitts had a carbon monoxide level of 25, Childers tested at 20-22 and Pitts' stepdaughter's level was 17. The poison permanently scarred Pitts' lungs.
"My doctor said I was just inches away from the deadly point. I was not comatose, but I couldn't open my eyes," she said.
The family was treated for carbon monoxide poisoning and released from the hospital.
"If it wasn't for her (Miley) waking me up and making me feel the sickness, I would have went to sleep and never woke up," Pitts said.
Arkansas Oklahoma Gas inspected the home and found a leaky home heating unit that Pitts said was "rusted and about to fall through the floor." Pitts said the home was not equipped with a carbon monoxide detector, but her landlord has since installed one and plans to put in a new heater.
N.Y. Giants ask fan to cover up skimpy outfit
The New York Giants need another sack - to cover a flamboyant fan who wears skimpy outfits.
Sondra Fortunato went to Giants Stadium last week wearing a Santa Claus outfit, a tiara, fishnet stockings, a bathing suit bottom and high-heeled boots.
She also had a suitcase and two 11-by-17 signs reading "Go Giants" and "Have a No Guns Christmas," referring to the team's wide receiver shooting himself in the leg.
She insists nothing naughty was showing even though she's "well-endowed." As the middle-aged woman puts it, "You couldn't even see my underwear."
The Giants apparently saw it another way.
Security escorted her out, saying signs and baggage weren't allowed and telling her to cover up because there were children present. She figures other women "got jealous and complained."
*****
They are going to regret having her 'cover up' next Sunday when she was their best chance at distracting the Carolina Panthers from beating them on their home field.
Would not have worked, but she was their best hope!
Monday, December 15, 2008
Goat born with the number 10 written in its fur
From the English Russian: “This Russian animal was born numbered. It’s still is and the owners search for some good sports player who uses the number “10″ to sell the goat to him.”
Discriminating readers read Carolina Naturally
Readers in ...
Australia, Malaysia, Italy, France, Russia, England, Belgium, Kuwait. Canada, Portugal, Japan, Peru, Sweden, New Zealand and the Netherlands ... have all visited Carolina Naturally today.
Australia, Malaysia, Italy, France, Russia, England, Belgium, Kuwait. Canada, Portugal, Japan, Peru, Sweden, New Zealand and the Netherlands ... have all visited Carolina Naturally today.
Sheboygan staged shootout turns a bit too real
A staged shootout got a little too real when two people were shot with a gun mistakenly loaded with birdshot. The Sheboygan County Sheriff's Capt. Dave Adams said the shooting happened about 11 a.m. Sunday during a train robbery re-enactment held as part of the weekend Santa Steam Train event.
Adams said participants were acting out a shootout between the train robbers and police when a gun sprayed 46 shotgun pellets into the arm, leg and abdomen of 49-year-old re-enactor Thomas E. Rumpff of Sheboygan.
Two pellets struck a 14-year-old spectator. One embedded in his index finger, and another bounced off his knee.
Adams said both were treated at a hospital for non-life-threatening injuries.
Man shot dead in Gaston hospital
In Local News:
An off-duty Gaston County police officer working as a security guard at Gaston Memorial Hospital fatally shot a man late Sunday after the suspect pointed a gun at another person in the hospital waiting room, Gaston County police say.
Authorities say Keyjuantas Devance Tims, 29, of Gastonia, was shot and wounded about 11 p.m. by Officer W.E. Howell, who was working private security when he received word that a man had a gun in the waiting room.
Tims died later.
Howell said that as he walked into the waiting room, he warned Tims several times to put his hands on a nearby counter, police say. He said as he approached Tims, the suspect allegedly drew a gun and aimed it at another person, police say.
Howell then pulled his service gun and shot Tims, police say.
Tims was treated at Gaston Memorial and then transferred to Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, where he died overnight.
A check of court records for Tims shows a lengthy list of arrests and includes convictions on charges of marijuana and drug paraphernalia possession, carrying a concealed weapon, speeding and resisting public officer charges.
Howell has been placed on paid administrative leave, and the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation is joining Gaston County police in investigating the incident. That is customary in cases involving police shootings.
Laura Hargett of McAdenville witnessed the shooting.
She had brought her husband to the hospital for kidney stone treatment about 10 p.m. Sunday and was watching television in the waiting room when she saw two men coming through the front entrance.
About that time, she said, Howell walked into the waiting room through another door and warned Tims several times to "put his hands on the counter."
She said Tims started backing up, and then moved toward the officer.
"I saw a flash," said Hargett, 61. "And then the gun went off again." She said Howell kicked something across the floor that she later learned was a gun.
"In my eyes, the officer did what he should have done," she said. Hargett said she tried to keep calm. "I didn't want to shock somebody and (have) them turn on me."Change is not necessary
For all the repugs out there:
It is not necessary to change. Survival is not mandatory.
~ W. Edwards Demming.
It is not necessary to change. Survival is not mandatory.
~ W. Edwards Demming.
Science News
Ancient armored amphibian had world's oddest bite
From Reuters:
From Reuters:A peculiar amphibian that was clad in bony armor prowled warm lakes 210 million years ago, catching fish and other tasty snacks with one of the most unusual bites in the history of life on Earth.
The creature called Gerrothorax pulcherrimus, which lived alongside some of the early dinosaurs, opened its mouth not by dropping its lower jaw, as other vertebrate animals do.
Instead, it lifted back the top of its head in a way that looked a lot like lifting the lid of a toilet seat.
"It's weird. It's the ugliest animal in the world," Harvard University's Farish Jenkins, one of the scientists who describe the mechanics of its bite in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, said in a telephone interview on Friday.
"You almost can't imagine holding your jaws still and lifting your head back to take a bite," Jenkins said.
"There are some vertebrates that will lift their heads slightly or the upper jaws (when they bite). Some salamanders do it slightly. Some fish do it slightly. But no animal is known to have done it this extensively," Jenkins added.
The scientists think Gerrothorax lurked at the bottom of a lake, then with a sudden movement of the skull created a mouth gape that entrapped any fish unfortunate enough to swim by.
Gerrothorax measured about 3 feet (1 meter) long and was stoutly protected by bony body armor reminiscent of chain mail. It had a very flat body and very flat head, short, stubby limbs and well-developed gills, Jenkins added.
Its jaws were lined with sharp teeth. And the roof of its mouth was studded with large fangs to keep any slippery fish from escaping its chomp.
With a special adaptation of the joint between its skull and first neck vertebra, Gerrothorax could raise its head relative to its lower jaw by as much as 50 degrees, giving it the wide gape necessary to swallow its prey.
Gerrothorax is one of a group of odd amphibians called plagiosaurs with no modern descendants that vanished along with numerous other species 200 million years ago in a mass extinction at the end of the Triassic Period. Its fossils were found in the Fleming Fjord Formation of east Greenland.
"That the same species is found in Greenland as well as Western Europe and Scandinavia suggests that their unique structure was hugely successful," Anne Warren of La Trobe University in Melbourne, Australia, another of the scientists, said in a statement.
It was armored for good reason. It lived alongside massive, crocodile-like reptiles called phytosaurs and larger, predatory amphibians. Other fossils show dinosaurs, flying reptiles called pterosaurs and early mammals lived alongside it.
Only in Vegas
Atheist Seeks Same Access to Altar as Fake Liberaces, Elvises
“In a city launched by shotgun weddings and quickie divorces, which offers the chance to be wed by faux Liberaces, King Tuts and Grim Reapers, there remains at least one nuptial taboo: you can’t be married by an atheist. Michael Jacobson, a 64-year-old retiree who calls himself a lifelong atheist, tried this year to get a license to perform weddings. Clark County rejected his application because he had no ties to a congregation, as state law requires. So Jacobson and attorneys from two national secular groups — the American Humanist Association and the Center for Inquiry — are trying to change things. If they can’t persuade the state Legislature to rework the law, they plan to sue.
Jacobson, who spends most afternoons reading online or dining at a nearby buffet, is an admittedly reluctant plaintiff. But he’s willing to fight on principle, recalling one time he couldn’t: In the 1960s, the Army demanded that his dogtags note his religion. He reluctantly chose Judaism, which reflected his ancestry if not his beliefs.
“One of the things I like to do is stand up and say I’m a non-believer, so you know you’re not alone,” he said recently. For years Mel Lipman, a friend of Jacobson’s and the American Humanist Association president, had presided over non-religious weddings in Las Vegas. But he belonged to the Humanist Society, a secular branch of the Humanist Association whose tax status as a religious group satisfied the clerk’s requirements.
When Lipman and his wife moved to Florida this spring, Jacobson decided to become the Las Vegas atheist celebrant. “But I’m not going to do it by saying I belong to a religious organization,” he said. “That’s a sham because atheists are not religious.”
Captain Nemo of the cocaine trade
Darkside maker Enrique Portocarrero of Colombia is alleged to have designed and built up to 20 fiberglass submarines for transporting cocaine.
"He had a marvelous criminal vision," Colombian navy Capt. Luis German Borrero said. "He introduced innovations such as a bow that produced very little wake, a conning tower that rises only a foot above the water and a valve system that enables the crew to scuttle the sub in 10 minutes. He is very ingenious."...
Portocarrero was living well. Police, who reported finding $200,000 hidden in the spare tire of his car, say he had invested his reputed $1-million-per-vessel fees in the purchase of five shrimp boats.
Administrative Security officials allege that Portocarrero helped invent "semi-submersibles," as the narco-vessels are called, because they don't dive and resurface like true submarines, but cruise just below the surface.
Portocarrero's craft are difficult for counter-narcotics officials to detect on the open seas because their tiny wake creates a negligible radar "footprint." Also, authorities say, the exhaust is released through tubing below the surface, frustrating patrol aircraft's heat-sensing equipment.
Petition to "Get a Secretary of Real Food appointed" in Obama Administration
Bonnie Powell, who covers the ethics and politics of food over at Ethicurean, says:
Obama still hasn't named a Secretary of Agriculture, which is one of the most important appointments in the Cabinet, overseeing a $94 billion budget that directly affects not just farmers, but public health, the environment, animal welfare, and so much more. For years this post has been held by shills for "Big Farma" and pandered to those corporations like Cargill, Smithfield, Monsanto, and Archer Daniels Midland with massive lobbying clout. As Nicholas Kristof wrote in his NY Times column "Obama's Secretary of Food?", appointing a reformer to head the USDA would send a "powerful signal" that U.S. food policy was finally about to become more palatable.Kristof linked to a petition at fooddemocracynow.org that asks Obama's transition team to consider six candidates — all experienced, viable names of people who are ready and willing to serve — for Secretary of Agriculture who could potentially mend our broken food system. Already, after only six days, 36,000 people have signed the petition, including Michael Pollan, Alice Waters, and Bill Niman, and the Obama transition team appears to be paying attention. But for some reason, the current names still being floated in the media are not those of reformers at all.
Dave Murphy, a sixth-generation Iowan and the petition's organizer, said that he thinks if we can get the number of signers to 100,000 over the next few days, the pressure to choose someone from the sustainable agriculture and food community — not Big Farma – would be too immense to ignore.
Please consider signing the petition, blogging it, and/or forwarding this message to your personal networks and any list-servers you are on.
Visit fooddemocracynow.org now to sign.
Petition to make clean water a human right
The Article 31 petition is trying to get the UN to add a new article to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, one that recognizes a fundamental right to water. It comes from the people who made the amazing documentary on water rights, Flow.
In 1948, the 30 articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights were ratified by all the nations of the world. These 30 articles guaranteed a broad sweep of human rights across many human endeavors, from Life to Liberty to Freedom of Thought.Now, sixty years later, recognizing that over a billion people across the planet lack access to clean and potable water and that millions die each year as a result, it is imperative to add one more article to this historic declaration, the Right to Water.
We, the undersigned, respectfully call upon the United Nations to add a 31st article to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, establishing access to clean and potable water as a fundamental human right.
We believe the world will be a better place when the Right To Water is acknowledged by all nations as a fundamental human right, and that this addition to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights represents a major step toward the goal of water for all.
Please join us. Water is a right, not a privilege.
Free Gubmint Money
FREE GOVERNMENT MONEY!
I am going to get my share!
Every year the government is required to give away free money to citizens and residents of the United States. Over $50 billion dollars is given away each year to individuals and businesses in the form of free grants. This free money can be used for almost any purpose - including to buy a house, start a business, pay for college, buy equipment, pay salaries, buy school supplies, get out of debt, buy clothing, pay for child camp, pay for music, art or education lessons, paying off your medical bills, pay for gas for your car, and anything else you desire.
Most Corrupt State
Its largest city is legendary for machine-style politics and its elected leaders have been under investigation for years, but by one measure, Illinois is not even close to the nation's most-corrupt state.
North Dakota, it turns out, may hold that distinction instead.
Read the rest here.
The Human Face of Eviction
This is a crime!
In the third quarter of 2008, more than 700,000 Americans faced foreclosure -- a new and troubling record. While mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac announced last month they would temporarily halt foreclosures and evictions from Thanksgiving to Jan. 9, the moratorium is likely to affect only a small percentage of homeowners. On a cold December morning, ANP witnessed an increasingly common, but rarely documented, tragedy: someone being evicted from his home.
Eviction Day: Foreclosure Crisis Forces Man From Home
In the third quarter of 2008, more than 700,000 Americans faced foreclosure -- a new and troubling record. While mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac announced last month they would temporarily halt foreclosures and evictions from Thanksgiving to Jan. 9, the moratorium is likely to affect only a small percentage of homeowners. On a cold December morning, ANP witnessed an increasingly common, but rarely documented, tragedy: someone being evicted from his home.
Just in case you missed it ...
Have you noticed?
Corporate Media have been desperately trying to shoehorn Barack Obama into the ethical problems of Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, even though there’s not a shred (or hint of a shred) of evidence that he was in any way involved.
And the wing-nut shrill shills are still trying to foist the lie that we have a "Liberal Media" in this country!? The Corporate media are about as Liberal as the wing-nuts who own them are!
Corporate Media have been desperately trying to shoehorn Barack Obama into the ethical problems of Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, even though there’s not a shred (or hint of a shred) of evidence that he was in any way involved.
And the wing-nut shrill shills are still trying to foist the lie that we have a "Liberal Media" in this country!? The Corporate media are about as Liberal as the wing-nuts who own them are!
New Readers
Carolina Naturally would like to welcome our newest readers in our 152nd country - Namibia!
Christians, Why Do You Celebrate Christmas?
This video poses a very GOOD question!
Why do Christians use the trappings of a pagan festival to celebrate the birth of Jesus when the Bible commands believers to avoid such things?
Daily Funny
A man staggered into a hospital with a concussion, multiple bruises, two black eyes, and a five iron wrapped tightly around his throat.
Naturally, the Doctor asked him, 'What happened to YOU?'
'Well, I was having a quiet round of golf with my wife, when at a difficult hole, we both sliced our golf balls into a field of cattle.
We went to look for them and while I was looking around I noticed one of the cows had something white at its rear end.'
'I walked over, lifted its tail, and sure enough, there was a golf ball with my wife's monogram on it - stuck right in the middle of the cow's arse
Still holding the cow's tail up, I yelled to my wife, 'Hey, this looks like yours!''
'I don't remember much after that'
Naturally, the Doctor asked him, 'What happened to YOU?'
'Well, I was having a quiet round of golf with my wife, when at a difficult hole, we both sliced our golf balls into a field of cattle.
We went to look for them and while I was looking around I noticed one of the cows had something white at its rear end.'
'I walked over, lifted its tail, and sure enough, there was a golf ball with my wife's monogram on it - stuck right in the middle of the cow's arse
Still holding the cow's tail up, I yelled to my wife, 'Hey, this looks like yours!''
'I don't remember much after that'
And I Quote
On account of being a democracy and run by the people, we are the only nation in the world that has to keep a government four years, no matter what it does.
~ Will Rogers
~ Will Rogers
Bush, Iraq, Obama, Afghanistan, and journalistic shoes
Here is a good summary of recent events:
Someone has finally treated George W. Bush with the respect he deserves.
The treatment: two shoes thrown at his head. The someone: a certain Muntadar al-Zaidi, opinionated journalist of refined aim, if rather unsophisticated expression. "This is a farewell kiss! … Dog, dog!" he bellowed at Bush as he hurled the symbolic footwear, one after another.
"Throwing a shoe at someone," reports the Washington Post in a story I hope will trigger a 30-day stampede of American shoe-throwing, "is considered the worst possible insult in Iraq and is meant to show extreme disrespect and contempt."
I can't imagine a more fitting dénouement for Bush, for Iraqis, for us. But just as one miserable chapter of American interventionism inches -- maybe -- toward a close, another is ominously in the making.
Read the rest of P. M. Carpenter's piece here.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
And I Quote
In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies,
but the silence of our friends.
~ Martin Luther King Jr.
but the silence of our friends.
~ Martin Luther King Jr.
Naked Jen's Delicious Revenge on Brangelina!
Looking hot is the best revenge!
That's clearly the strategy that Jennifer Aniston has finally settled on after watching Angelina bewitch her ex-husband Brad...and the rest of the world.
And thank you, Jen. Going into battle unabashedly nude with a body toned to perfection
Read the rest here.
Cheetahs on brink of extinction
Cheetahs are fast, but can they outrun extinction? According to a new report released by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), the speedy feline, which can reach speeds of up to 120 kilometers per hour, or 75 mph (making it the world's fastest land animal), is at risk of becoming the latest extinct species, The Independent's Ian Johnston reports. The report blames the cheetah's downfall on the usual suspects: habitat loss and degradation, urban development and hunting. Current populations levels stand at 10 percent of their historic highs.
Read the rest at Treehugger.com
Dividing the spoils
There was a huge nut tree by the cemetery fence. One day two boys filled up a bucketful of nuts and sat down by the tree, out of sight, and began dividing the nuts.
"One for you, one for me. One for you, one for me," said one boy.
The bucket was so full, several rolled out towards the fence.
Cycling down the road by the cemetery was a third boy. As he passed, he thought he heard voices from inside the cemetery. He slowed down to investigate.
Sure enough, he heard, "One for you, one for me. One for you."
He knew what it was. "Oh my!!" he shuddered, "It`s Satan and St. Peter dividing the souls at the cemetery!"
He cycled down the road and found an old man with a cane, hobbling along.
"Come quick!" he said, "You won`t believe what I heard. Satan and St. Peter are down at the cemetery dividing the souls."
The man said, "Shoo, you brat! Can`t you see I`m finding it hard to walk as it is!"
After several pleas, the man hobbled to the cemetery and heard, "One for you, one for me. One for you, one..."
The old man whispered, "Boy, you`ve been tellin` the truth! Let`s see if we can see the Devil himself."
Shivering with fear, they edged toward the fence, still unable to see anything, but they heard, "One for you, one for me. One for you, one for me, and one last one for you. That`s all. Let`s go get those nuts by the fence, and we`ll be done."
They say the old guy made it to town 10 minutes before the boy!
"One for you, one for me. One for you, one for me," said one boy.
The bucket was so full, several rolled out towards the fence.
Cycling down the road by the cemetery was a third boy. As he passed, he thought he heard voices from inside the cemetery. He slowed down to investigate.
Sure enough, he heard, "One for you, one for me. One for you."
He knew what it was. "Oh my!!" he shuddered, "It`s Satan and St. Peter dividing the souls at the cemetery!"
He cycled down the road and found an old man with a cane, hobbling along.
"Come quick!" he said, "You won`t believe what I heard. Satan and St. Peter are down at the cemetery dividing the souls."
The man said, "Shoo, you brat! Can`t you see I`m finding it hard to walk as it is!"
After several pleas, the man hobbled to the cemetery and heard, "One for you, one for me. One for you, one..."
The old man whispered, "Boy, you`ve been tellin` the truth! Let`s see if we can see the Devil himself."
Shivering with fear, they edged toward the fence, still unable to see anything, but they heard, "One for you, one for me. One for you, one for me, and one last one for you. That`s all. Let`s go get those nuts by the fence, and we`ll be done."
They say the old guy made it to town 10 minutes before the boy!
You heard right?
After his death, Osama bin Laden went to paradise. He was greeted by George Washington, who slapped him across the face and yelled angrily, "How dare you attack the nation I helped conceive!"
Then Patrick Henry punched Osama in the nose and James Madison kicked him in the groin.
Bin Laden was subjected to similar beatings from John Randolph, James Monroe, Thomas Jefferson and 66 other early Americans. As he writhed in pain on the ground, an angel appeared.
Bin Laden groaned, "This is not what I was promised!"
The angel replied, "I told you there would be 72 Virginians waiting for you! What did you think I said?"
Then Patrick Henry punched Osama in the nose and James Madison kicked him in the groin.
Bin Laden was subjected to similar beatings from John Randolph, James Monroe, Thomas Jefferson and 66 other early Americans. As he writhed in pain on the ground, an angel appeared.
Bin Laden groaned, "This is not what I was promised!"
The angel replied, "I told you there would be 72 Virginians waiting for you! What did you think I said?"
A moral tale
An attractive blond from Dublin arrived at the casino and bet twenty-thousand dollars on a single roll of the dice.
She said, "I hope you don't mind, but I feel much luckier when I'm completely nude". With that, she stripped from the neck down, rolled the dice and yelled," Come on, baby, Mama needs new clothes!"
As the dice came to a stop, she jumped up and down and squealed... "YES, YES, I WON, I WON!" She hugged each of the dealers and then picked up her winnings and her clothes and quickly departed. The dealers stared at each other dumbfounded
Finally, one of them asked, "What did she roll?" The other answered, "I don't know -.....I thought you were watching."
MORAL OF THE STORY
Not all Irish are stupid.
She said, "I hope you don't mind, but I feel much luckier when I'm completely nude". With that, she stripped from the neck down, rolled the dice and yelled," Come on, baby, Mama needs new clothes!"
As the dice came to a stop, she jumped up and down and squealed... "YES, YES, I WON, I WON!" She hugged each of the dealers and then picked up her winnings and her clothes and quickly departed. The dealers stared at each other dumbfounded
Finally, one of them asked, "What did she roll?" The other answered, "I don't know -.....I thought you were watching."
MORAL OF THE STORY
Not all Irish are stupid.
Late-night California mayor must leave City Hall by 11
Fed up with the nocturnal work habits of its mayor, South El Monte city council has approved a curfew limiting how late she can work at City Hall.
South El Monte council members say they have safety and liability concerns for Mayor Blanca Figueroa, who frequently works until the wee hours of the morning. She must now leave the building by 11 p.m.
The mayor - a self-described night owl - calls the restriction petty. She says she needs to stay late because her daytime schedule is filled with meetings and her inbox is overflowing with letters from residents affected by the worsening economy.
South El Monte is a city of 21,000 about 14 miles east of downtown Los Angeles. Council members approved the curfew Wednesday.
Panthers win
The Carolina Panthers won for the second time in six days by beating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last Monday night and beating the Denver Broncos just a few minutes ago.
At 11 - 3 the Panthers need only to win their remaining two games to be the number one seed in the NFC for the playoffs.
At 11 - 3 the Panthers need only to win their remaining two games to be the number one seed in the NFC for the playoffs.
Consumer civilization collapses.
Sociologists will tell you that the most powerful impetus to change is not a new discovery.
It's when you learn what you already knew.
What Americans already knew at some level was that the credit-card-driven, debt-ridden, pay-later economy wasn't sustainable.
Not economically.
Not environmentally.
Well, most Americans knew in any case.
It's when you learn what you already knew.
What Americans already knew at some level was that the credit-card-driven, debt-ridden, pay-later economy wasn't sustainable.
Not economically.
Not environmentally.
Well, most Americans knew in any case.
Man throws shoes at Bush in Iraq
The shrub had two shoes thrown at him Sunday during a news conference in the Iraqi prime minister's office in Baghdad.
The man who threw the shoes, apparently a journalist, shouted an Arabic phrase, which reportedly translated as, "This is a farewell kiss, dog,"
The shrub ducked and narrowly missed being struck by the first shoe, and the man threw a second shoe, which also came close to hitting the moron.
"All I can report is it is a size 10," the shrub said jokingly.
The shrub unexpectedly flew to Iraq Sunday to pay a farewell visit and discuss a recently signed security agreement, officials said.
Check out the video.
The Iraq trip is the shrub's fourth, and likely final, visit to the country that will define his legacy as the usurper.
Welcome new readers
Carolina Naturally would like to welcome our newest readers from our 151st country: Cambodia!
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