We have been following a dangerous trend in both the United States and abroad where citizens are arrested for taking pictures of police. Now, the Maryland State Police are accusing an Air National Guardsman named Anthony Graber of violating state surveillance laws after he captured this video of an officer pulling his weapon during a routine traffic stop.
Continue reading ‘Maryland Police Officer Pulls Gun During Traffic Stop And Then Colleagues Arrest Motorcyclist For Filming the Incident’
Archive for April, 2010
Maryland Police Officer Pulls Gun During Traffic Stop And Then Colleagues Arrest Motorcyclist For Filming the Incident
Published 1, April 14, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , Politics , Society 19 CommentsExodus According to Gore: Scientists Publish Report on the Natural Causes of the Ten Plagues of Egypt
Published 1, April 14, 2010 Academics , Bizarre , International , Religion , Science , Society 20 Comments
It is one of the touchstones of faith in the Old Testament: a wrathful God caused the plagues that devastated the ancient city of Pi-Rameses on the Nile Delta and led to the Israelites leaving Egypt. Scientists believe that, rather than divine punishment, Pharaoh Rameses the Second fell victim to global warming.
Continue reading ‘Exodus According to Gore: Scientists Publish Report on the Natural Causes of the Ten Plagues of Egypt’
Store Sued For Causing Burns and Mental Problems After Clerk Pointed Scanner At Twelve-Year-Old Girl’s Face
Published 1, April 14, 2010 Bizarre , Society , Torts 4 Comments
There is an interesting trial starting next week in Erie, Pennsylvania where a judge has denied motions to dismiss a claim that a 12-year-old girl, Dominica Juliano, was burned and given psychological problems after a convenience store clerk aimed a hand-held price scanner at her face.
Losing on the Merits Badge: Scouts and Mormon Church Found Liable in Scout Abuse Case
Published 1, April 14, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , Politics , Religion , Society , Torts 12 Comments
The Boy Scouts lost a major case in Portland, Oregon with jurors awarding $1.4 million after finding Tuesday that the organization was negligent in allowing a Scout leader who was a sex offender after a three week trial.
The Maverick Makes Millions: Palin Makes More Than $12 Million Since July
Published 1, April 14, 2010 Academics , Bizarre , Politics , Society 169 Comments
Those small town values can add up. After quitting her job as Alaska Governor before the end of her term, Sarah Palin has raked in an estimated $12 million since July. Between speaking fees and her new reality show, Palin is becoming one of the wealthiest political figures in the country. In the meantime, questions are being raised about one organization that paid a speaking fee for Palin in California.
Continue reading ‘The Maverick Makes Millions: Palin Makes More Than $12 Million Since July’
Humor Impaired? Gov. Christie Demands Firing of Teacher Union Head Over Joke
Published 1, April 13, 2010 Bizarre , Politics , Society 36 Comments
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is reportedly demanding the firing of Bergen County teachers union head Joe Coppola for a joke.
Continue reading ‘Humor Impaired? Gov. Christie Demands Firing of Teacher Union Head Over Joke’
Law Grad Sentenced Up To Five Years For Casino Fraud
Published 1, April 13, 2010 Academics , Bizarre , Criminal law 7 Comments
Shoumin Chai, 55, had a career many law students only dream of. She graduated with a masters of law from the University of Houston and began working for a New York City law firm with a job that would bring $250,000 a year in maritime law. She was preparing to take the New York bar when, in 1992, Chai’s colleagues took her to Atlantic City and introduced her to gambling. That proved her undoing.
Continue reading ‘Law Grad Sentenced Up To Five Years For Casino Fraud’
The Day The Music Died: Islamists Ban Music on Somali Radio Stations — Replace Music with Sound of Gun Fire
Published 1, April 13, 2010 Bizarre , International , Politics , Religion , Society 15 Comments
The Islamic extremists controlling much of Somali have banned music and jingles from radio stations as an offense to Islam. The replacement for jingles? Recordings of gunfire.
Continue reading ‘The Day The Music Died: Islamists Ban Music on Somali Radio Stations — Replace Music with Sound of Gun Fire’
Hubby needs a treat.
Continue reading ‘When Husbands Attack’
Meet Aaron Ashley: Your Pet’s Alleged Worst Nightmare
Published 1, April 13, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society 3 Comments
This is the picture Smoking Gun released of Aaron Ashley, 27, who was arrested after police raided his pet store and found animals frozen alive in his cooler as well as other disgusting discoveries in West Virginia.
Continue reading ‘Meet Aaron Ashley: Your Pet’s Alleged Worst Nightmare’
The Sleeping Samaritan: Suicidal Man Finds Meaning in Life After Priest Falls Asleep on Suicide Line
Published 1, April 13, 2010 Bizarre , International , Religion 2 Comments
A Swedish priest had a novel way of preventing suicide: the man had to wake him first. A 44-year-old man complained that he was forwarded to a Church of Sweden pastor after he revealed his suicidal thoughts. After five minutes of silence, he asked if the priest was taking notes only to hear tell-tale snoring on the other end.
Continue reading ‘The Sleeping Samaritan: Suicidal Man Finds Meaning in Life After Priest Falls Asleep on Suicide Line’
Video Shows Maryland Police Beating Student After Maryland-Duke Basketball Game
Published 1, April 13, 2010 Criminal law , Politics , Society 115 CommentsA new video appears to support brutality claims against three Prince George’s County police officers shown beating of a Maryland student after the Maryland-Duke basketball game.
Continue reading ‘Video Shows Maryland Police Beating Student After Maryland-Duke Basketball Game’
New Names Emerge On Lengthening “Short List”
Published 1, April 12, 2010 Academics , Constitutional Law , Criminal law , Lawyering , Politics , Society , Supreme Court 26 Comments
White House officials appear to leaking a couple more names as trial balloons for the Supreme Court, including former Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Leah Ward Sears and federal appeals court judge Sidney Thomas of Montana. I will be discussing the current crop of possible nominees on MSNBC Hardball, withstanding more pressing news events.
Continue reading ‘New Names Emerge On Lengthening “Short List”’
Vanishing Dawn: Nominee for OLC Withdrawals
Published 1, April 12, 2010 Bizarre , Congress , Constitutional Law , Criminal law , Politics , Society 12 Comments
Dawn Johnsen, the president’s nominated head for the Office of Legal Counsel, has withdrawn after more than a year of delayed action on her confirmation.
Continue reading ‘Vanishing Dawn: Nominee for OLC Withdrawals’
Mother: Yemeni Child Bride Bound and Raped By Husband Before Bleeding To Death
Published 1, April 12, 2010 Criminal law , International , Politics , Religion , Society 5 Comments
We recently saw another case of abuse of a child bride in the Middle East when Elham Assi, 13, bled to death in Yemen shortly after her arranged marriage. The girl’s mother, Nijma Ahmed, 50, says that when the girl refused her husband, he tied her up and raped her.
Continue reading ‘Mother: Yemeni Child Bride Bound and Raped By Husband Before Bleeding To Death’
This could replace Mozart and whale music for babies.
Continue reading ‘Ultimate Baby Sitter’
Catholic Bishop: It’s The Jews
Published 1, April 12, 2010 Bizarre , International , Religion 25 Comments
A firestorm has erupted over the alleged statement of Giacomo Babini, the emeritus bishop of Grosseto, that the criticism of the Church is due to a “Zionist attack.” While Babini, 81, has been quoted before on the Catholic website Pontifex, he denied making the statements against Jews and homosexuals.
This Too Shall Not Pass: Church Opposes New Law Lifting The Statute of Limitations for Abuse
Published 1, April 12, 2010 Bizarre , Constitutional Law , Criminal law , Politics , Religion , Society , Torts 351 Comments
The Connecticut Catholic bishops have issued a dire warning to the faithful that a proposal to lift the statute of limitations for victims of Church abuse to sue would threaten their very religion, putting “all Church institutions, including your parish, at risk,” .
Accused Child Molester: Five-Year-Old Girl Was The “Aggressor”
Published 1, April 12, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society 23 Comments
Michael McLachlan, 34, in Summerfield, Florida has a curious defense to child molestation: the five-year-old girl was the “aggressor.”
Continue reading ‘Accused Child Molester: Five-Year-Old Girl Was The “Aggressor”’
Westboro and The Need For Congressional Action to Preserve Our Open Courts
Published 1, April 12, 2010 Bizarre , Congress , Courts , Lawyering , Politics , Religion , Society 15 Comments
We previously discussed the Westboro ruling imposing costs on the family of a dead soldier. Here is my column from today on that case and the proposal for legislative reform.
Continue reading ‘Westboro and The Need For Congressional Action to Preserve Our Open Courts’
Perhaps there is hope for Republicans and Democrats after all . . .
Korea Facing Rise in Black Market Abortions
Published 1, April 11, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , International 13 Comments
South Korea is experiencing rash of illegal abortions in the wake of crackdown under law criminalizing abortions. In one case featured below, a woman took a second job to afford an abortion, a procedure that has skyrocketed in price as women turn to the black market.
Continue reading ‘Korea Facing Rise in Black Market Abortions’
Unnatural Selection: Leading Evangelical Theologian Canned After Acknowledging The Scientific Basis for Evolution
Published 1, April 11, 2010 Academics , Bizarre , Politics , Religion , Society 69 Comments
Bruce K. Waltke is considered one of the country’s best known evangelical theologians. His work on the faculty of the Reformed Theological Seminary, however, came to an end when he dared to acknowledge the scientific basis for evolution.
Continue reading ‘Unnatural Selection: Leading Evangelical Theologian Canned After Acknowledging The Scientific Basis for Evolution’
Pope Implicated in Another Church Abuse Case
Published 1, April 11, 2010 Criminal law , International , Politics , Religion , Society 30 Comments
Despite the efforts of the Vatican to deflect criticism away from Pope Benedict XVI on his involvement in child abuse scandals, reports continue to tie him to the past decisions. The most recent is the discovery of a 1985 letter with the signature of then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger resisting the defrocking of the Rev. Stephen Kiesle, a California priest with a long history of sexual molestation of children.
Continue reading ‘Pope Implicated in Another Church Abuse Case’
Given all of the gruesome videos released by the Taliban and Al Qaeda, here is a beheading video worth watching.
Continue reading ‘Video: The Lighter Side of Beheading’
Study: Magnet Used To Guide Iron-Laden Stem Cells to Heart
Published 1, April 10, 2010 Academics , Society 24 Comments
This is very cool. Researchers at the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute have succeeded in inserting micro-sized particles of iron into stem cells and then using a magnet to direct the stem cells into a heart in a possible treatment for heart attacks.
Continue reading ‘Study: Magnet Used To Guide Iron-Laden Stem Cells to Heart’
Sixth Grader Arrested At Request of Parents After Giving Away Mom’s Jewelry
Published 1, April 10, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society 30 Comments
Police in Callaway, Florida arrested a sixth-grade child at the request of his step father after the boy took the mother’s jewelry and gave it away to other kids.
Continue reading ‘Sixth Grader Arrested At Request of Parents After Giving Away Mom’s Jewelry’
Teachers’ Union Under Fire For Joke Prayer
Published 1, April 10, 2010 Academics , Politics , Society 11 CommentsIn New Jersey, the Bergen County Education Association is under attacked for a joke that seemed to pray for the death of Governor Chris Christie.
Continue reading ‘Teachers’ Union Under Fire For Joke Prayer’
From Russia With Nyet Love: Russians Express Outrage After Family Returns Adopted Boy By Putting Him On Plane With Note
Published 1, April 10, 2010 Bizarre , International , Politics , Society 13 Comments
A Tennessee family is at the center of global controversy after Nancy Hansen of Shelbyville put a 7-year-old adopted boy on a plane back to Russia with a note saying that he had mental and emotional issues. The family says it was given the boy without being told that he had problems. There is a move to halt U.S. adoptions after a series of controversies leading to this latest case.
Report: Navigator Was Listening To IPod During Collision By Nuclear Submarine
Published 1, April 10, 2010 Bizarre , International , Military , Society 15 Comments
A report on the collision of the USS Hartford, a nuclear submarine, has found that the navigator was listening to his IPod and studying for an exam at the time of collision with the USS New Orleans.
Continue reading ‘Report: Navigator Was Listening To IPod During Collision By Nuclear Submarine’
John Paul Stevens: The Uncalled Shot
Published 1, April 9, 2010 Academics , Congress , Constitutional Law , Courts , Justice , Lawyering , Media , Politics , Society , Supreme Court 23 Comments
Below is today’s column on the retirement of Associate Justice John Paul Stevens.
Continue reading ‘John Paul Stevens: The Uncalled Shot’
John Paul Stevens Retires
Published 1, April 9, 2010 Constitutional Law , Courts , Society , Supreme Court 4 CommentsToday John Paul Stevens officially announced that he will resign at the end of this term. As I state in today’s column in USA Today, it is the end of an era for liberals. I discussed the issue on this segment of Countdown.
Continue reading ‘John Paul Stevens Retires’
Health Care Casualty? Rep. Bart Stupak To Retire
Published 1, April 9, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society , Torts 53 Comments
Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) who helped engineer the slim margin of passage for the health care legislation is going to retire. The pro-life member became a lightening rod for opposition after securing an agreement from Obama to ban federal funding for abortions.
Continue reading ‘Health Care Casualty? Rep. Bart Stupak To Retire’
Give Me a Pee: Cheerleaders Busted Afer Spiking Team Drinks With Urine
Published 1, April 9, 2010 Academics , Criminal law , Society , Torts 19 Comments
Cheerleaders at the Saginaw High School in Saginaw, Texas (not the cheerleaders shown left) were busted after they allegedly served team members soda mixed with their own urine — telling them that they had added sour candy.
Continue reading ‘Give Me a Pee: Cheerleaders Busted Afer Spiking Team Drinks With Urine’
Atheist Wins Establishment Challenge to Faith-Based Treatment Program
Published 1, April 9, 2010 Constitutional Law , Courts , Politics , Religion , Society 17 Comments
There is an important ruling out of Redding where a federal judge has ruled that California violated the rights of Barry Hazle Jr.,40, by punishing him for refusing to participate in a religious drug treatment program. It is a rare ruling in favor of an atheist under the Establishment Clause.
Continue reading ‘Atheist Wins Establishment Challenge to Faith-Based Treatment Program’
Meet Al Barrette, Alaska’s Bible Preaching Wolf Skinner
Published 1, April 9, 2010 Bizarre , Environment , Politics , Society 5 CommentsAl Barrette is the newest proposed member of the Alaska Board of Game, who is facing opposition after a video shows him skinning wolves while quoting the Bible. Barrette seems to suggest that wolf killing is Biblically ordained after Adam and Eve were thrown out of the Garden of Eden.
Continue reading ‘Meet Al Barrette, Alaska’s Bible Preaching Wolf Skinner’
Muslim Woman Strangled By Burkha in Australia
Published 1, April 9, 2010 Bizarre , International 3 Comments
A young Muslim woman has become a tragic Islamic version of Isadora Duncan, the actress who was strangled by her own scarf in 1927. The young Muslim woman was strangled by her own burkha (or burqa) while driving a go-kart in Port Stephens in Australia.
Continue reading ‘Muslim Woman Strangled By Burkha in Australia’
Mom’s April Fool’s Joke Results in Son Being Arrested
Published 1, April 9, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society 9 Comments
Michael Kelly, 31, has an interesting defense to make to charges of felony speeding and other crimes in North Carolina: he was the victim of the world’s most stupid April Fool’s joke by his mother. Kelly took police on a 120 mile an hour crash after his mother told him that his 9-year-old son was missing. Now her son is looking at serious jail time. Ha, Ha, thump.
Continue reading ‘Mom’s April Fool’s Joke Results in Son Being Arrested’
Yemeni Child Bride Bleeds To Death
Published 1, April 8, 2010 International , Politics , Religion , Society 70 CommentsThere is a new report of an outrage involving a child bride in the Middle East. A 12-year-old Yemeni bride Elham Mahdi Shuee has reportedly died after bleeding caused by sexual intercourse.
Wisconsin District Attorney Threatens to Prosecute Any Schools Teaching Sex Ed
Published 1, April 8, 2010 Bizarre , Constitutional Law , Criminal law , Politics , Society 24 Comments
Juneau County District Attorney Scott Southworth has reportedly threatened to prosecute schools if they comply with new state sex-education educational directives. He has declared that such courses encourage minors to have sex.
Continue reading ‘Wisconsin District Attorney Threatens to Prosecute Any Schools Teaching Sex Ed’
Date and Switch? School Accused of Holding Fake Prom For Lesbian
Published 1, April 8, 2010 Academics , Bizarre , Constitutional Law 31 Comments
Mississippi’s Itawamba Agricultural High School has been roundly condemned for canceling a school prom in order to avoid having lesbian student Constance McMillen appear in a tux with her girlfriend. Now, the school is accused of an astonishing act of duplicity to add to its earlier act of discrimination. McMillen says that she was invited to a prom arranged with officials off school grounds only to find it was just her and seven other revelers, including two learning disabled students. She later says that she learned that the rest of the student body was attending the real prom across town with the knowledge of school officials.
Continue reading ‘Date and Switch? School Accused of Holding Fake Prom For Lesbian’
“The Tree of Life”: Church of the Universe Fights For Recognition of Smoking Pot as a Protected Religious Rite
Published 1, April 8, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , International , Religion , Society 11 Comments
The Ontario Superior Court is hearing an interesting religious claim this week from the Church of the Universe. The Church is claiming the need to smoke marijuana to commune with God.
Pay As You Go: Ryan Air To Install Pay Toilets on Flights
Published 1, April 8, 2010 Bizarre , Society 18 Comments
It’s official. Ryanair confirmed that it is working with Boeing to reduce the bathrooms on its planes to a single bathroom and installing pay toilets on 168 planes.
Continue reading ‘Pay As You Go: Ryan Air To Install Pay Toilets on Flights’
Grade Inflation: Greenspan Insists That He Was Right 70 Percent of the Time
Published 1, April 8, 2010 Academics , Congress , Politics , Society 8 Comments
Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan insisted that he was “right seventy percent” of the time in his tenure leading up to the economic collapse. On most grading scales that would give him about a C — hardly the level of performance you want from an economic policy official.
Continue reading ‘Grade Inflation: Greenspan Insists That He Was Right 70 Percent of the Time’
Report: Fifty Percent of Households Pay No Federal Income Taxes
Published 1, April 8, 2010 Congress , Politics , Society 149 Comments
A recent report shows that 47 percent of U.S. households pay no federal income taxes. The Tax Policy Center found that the percent of non-paying households had risen from 38 percent in 2007 to 47 percent this year.
Continue reading ‘Report: Fifty Percent of Households Pay No Federal Income Taxes’
Don’t Feed The Bears (On Cable): Man Featured on Animal Planet Pleads Guilty To Feeding Wildlife
Published 1, April 7, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , Environment , Society 11 Comments
Charlie Vandergaw has discovered the perils of fame. Vandergaw was featured on Animal Planet in a segment called “Stranger Among Bears.” He has now pleaded guilty to eight counts of intentionally feeding game and given a suspended sentence and large fine.
Court: FCC Lacks Authority To Impose Net Neutrality
Published 1, April 7, 2010 Congress , Constitutional Law , Courts , Media , Politics , Society 7 Comments
The Federal Communications Commission lost a major decision to Comcast when the D.C. Circuit ruled that it does not have the legal authority to slap Net neutrality regulations on Internet providers on Tuesday.
Continue reading ‘Court: FCC Lacks Authority To Impose Net Neutrality’
Lin Yu Chun is being touted as the Asian Susan Boyle after blowing away the competition at the Taiwanese singing competition Super Star Avenue with his rendition of Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You.”
West Virginia Mine Involved in Deadly Blast is a Massey Subsidiary
Published 1, April 7, 2010 Bizarre , Constitutional Law , Criminal law , Society , Supreme Court 128 Comments
The West Virginia coal mine that exploded this week and killed 25 workers has a less than pleasing legal back story. Upper Big Branch mine, operated by the Performance Coal Company, is a subsidiary of Massey Energy. That should ring a bell for lawyers and academics as the company owned by Don Blankenship, who was at the heart of the recent Supreme Court ruling in Caperton v. Massey — a case involving Blakenship’s alleged control of the West Virginia bench through massive campaign contributions.
Continue reading ‘West Virginia Mine Involved in Deadly Blast is a Massey Subsidiary’
Six Teens Charged After Bullied Girl Hangs Herself
Published 1, April 7, 2010 Academics , Criminal law , Politics , Society 60 Comments
Three Massachusetts teenagers have pleaded not guilty in the bullying of a 15-year-old girl who committed suicide after what prosecutors call months of threats and harassment. Sean Mulveyhill, 17, (shown here) with the victim Phoebe Prince is one of those charged and reportedly had a brief relationship with Prince before turning against her. Also charged are Kayla Narey, 17, and Austin Renaud, 18. They are among six teens (also including Ashley Longe, Flannery Mullins and Sharon Chanon Velazquez) charged in the bullying of Prince that led to her hanging herself on Jan. 14.
Continue reading ‘Six Teens Charged After Bullied Girl Hangs Herself’
An Uneasy Feeling: Obama’s Short List Reportedly Includes Two Controversial Possible Nominees
Published 1, April 6, 2010 Academics , Constitutional Law , Courts , Criminal law , Politics , Society , Supreme Court 72 Comments
Many civil libertarians and liberals were critical of President Barack Obama’s selection of Sonia Sotomayor to replace David Souter. Sotomayor voted with conservatives on the Second Circuit in key police abuse and free speech cases. (here and here and here and here. At the time, many of us opined that Obama would not dare appoint such a nominee to replace liberal icon John Paul Stevens. If the three candidates leaked by the White House on the short list is any indication, there is a two out of three chance that he will do precisely that.
Continue reading ‘An Uneasy Feeling: Obama’s Short List Reportedly Includes Two Controversial Possible Nominees’
Dead Weight: Women Try to Check in Corpse on Flight to Berlin
Published 1, April 6, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , International 7 Comments
Police in in the Liverpool John Lennon Airport have arrested two women aged 41 and 66 for the crime of trying to sneak the body of a dead relative on a flight to Berlin. They face the relatively low charge of failing to give notification of death.
Continue reading ‘Dead Weight: Women Try to Check in Corpse on Flight to Berlin’
“Attenzione Prostitute”: Italian Road Signs Causes Driver Confusion
Published 1, April 6, 2010 Bizarre , International 14 Comments
If the sign encouraging you to laugh out loud at drowning people was a bit confusing (here), it is the model of clarity when compared to this Italian street sign.
Continue reading ‘“Attenzione Prostitute”: Italian Road Signs Causes Driver Confusion’
An Outfit to Die For: Woman Shoots Cousin After She Arrived in Casual Clothes for Easter
Published 1, April 6, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society 8 Comments
Evelyn Burgess, 42, in Columbus, Ohio appears to enforce a strict dress code for Easter dinner. Police say that Burgess shot her cousin, Danielle Pickens, 19, (shown left) in the head when she showed up for Easter dinner in a T-shirt and jeans.
The government may want to reconsider the design of this particular sign.
Wikileaks Releases Alleged Video Showing Killing of Civilians and Reporter — In Contradiction of U.S. Accounts
Published 1, April 6, 2010 International , Media , Military , Society 49 CommentsWikileaks has released what it claims to be a video contradicting U.S. accounts of an attack that killed a Reuters photographer and 11 other people in Iraq in July 2007. Wikileaks says that it received the tape from a whistleblower in the military.
Continue reading ‘Wikileaks Releases Alleged Video Showing Killing of Civilians and Reporter — In Contradiction of U.S. Accounts’
Vatican’s Second in Command Implicated in Abuse Scandal
Published 1, April 6, 2010 International , Politics , Religion , Society 11 Comments
Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone has been named as the person most responsible for allowing a serial child molester to remain as a priest in Wisconsin. He has been named as the party who blocked the defrocking of Reverend Lawrence Murphy.
Continue reading ‘Vatican’s Second in Command Implicated in Abuse Scandal’
Karzai Threatens to Join Taliban and Accuses the United States of “Massive Fraud”
Published 1, April 6, 2010 Bizarre , International , Military , Society 19 Comments
Afghan President Hamid Karzai continued his attacks on the United States and the West — not long after his high-profile event embracing Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, here. Despite demands for explanations of earlier criticism of the U.S., he ramped up the attacks by telling leaders that he would consider joining the Taliban against the U.S., which he accused of “massive fraud” in the country.
Continue reading ‘Karzai Threatens to Join Taliban and Accuses the United States of “Massive Fraud”’
Murderer Arrested After 38 Years On the Lam — Running a Wedding Chapel
Published 1, April 5, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society 9 Comments
Police have been looking for Frank Dryman for 38 years — a hitchhiker accused of murdering a man who picked him up during a blizzard. They found him last week running a wedding chapel in Arizona.
Continue reading ‘Murderer Arrested After 38 Years On the Lam — Running a Wedding Chapel’
Scientists Announce Find Believed To Be Missing Link
Published 1, April 5, 2010 Academics , International , Science , Society 33 Comments
Scientists have found what may be the long-sought “missing link” — a new species of hominid that was a bridge between ape and man. This week they are expected to unveil a two-million-year-old skeleton of a child. As always, we must warn that creationists like Sarah Palin and others believe that such scientists are miscalculating by around 2 million years since the Earth is only around 5000 years old.
Continue reading ‘Scientists Announce Find Believed To Be Missing Link’
The Unhappiest Place on Earth: Paris Disney Experiences Rash of Suicides Among Complaints Over Working Conditions
Published 1, April 5, 2010 Bizarre , International , Politics , Society 8 Comments
Disneyland Paris is facing a possible strike over work conditions after three employees committed suicide since the first of the year.
Continue reading ‘The Unhappiest Place on Earth: Paris Disney Experiences Rash of Suicides Among Complaints Over Working Conditions’
Monumental Failure? Senegal Trades Land to North Korea For Massive Statute Designed By President — Jesse Jackson Applauds Result
Published 1, April 5, 2010 Bizarre , International , Politics , Society 11 Comments
Senegal and North Korea have two things in common. One is abject poverty. The other is that they are now neighbors. North Korea, which is gradually starving an entire nation out of existence, bought a piece of Senegal in exchange for funding the construction of a massive statue designed by President Abdoulaye Wade. While others have condemned the exchange (and the use of over $20 million for such an extravagance), Jesse Jackson appeared at the ceremony to praise President Wade, stating “This renaissance statue is a powerful idea from a powerful mind.”
Continue reading ‘Monumental Failure? Senegal Trades Land to North Korea For Massive Statute Designed By President — Jesse Jackson Applauds Result’
Fifteen-Year-Old Girl Dies in Exorcism Rite
Published 1, April 5, 2010 Bizarre , International , Religion , Society 7 Comments
A local priest reportedly succeeded in stopping the convulsions of Sangeeta Persaud, who he accused for being filled with the devil in Guyana. The 15-year-old girl died as the priest, family, and friends worked to rid her of demonic possession.
Continue reading ‘Fifteen-Year-Old Girl Dies in Exorcism Rite’
Cause and Effect: Protest Organizer Objects to Men Staring At Topless Demonstration
Published 1, April 5, 2010 Bizarre , Society 14 Comments
A group of women in Portland staged an interesting protest — walking topless to fight the double standard applied to male and female nudity. It is the reaction of the organizer to the men who followed the protest that is notable.
Continue reading ‘Cause and Effect: Protest Organizer Objects to Men Staring At Topless Demonstration’
Doing the Bunny Cop: Police Cease Use of Easter Bunny for Sting
Published 1, April 5, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society 4 Comments
The police department of South Glendale California has stopped their use of a man dressed in a bunny outfit to ticket drivers failing to yield to pedestrians. Glendale Police Officer Tom Broadway ended his performance as a street bunny after complaints from a city council member on the expense and necessity of the operation.
Continue reading ‘Doing the Bunny Cop: Police Cease Use of Easter Bunny for Sting’
Easter Bunny Delivers Goods in Annual Leporidae Largess
Published 1, April 4, 2010 Environment , Society 17 Comments
A very tired Easter Bunny once again made good on his deliveries around the world.
Continue reading ‘Easter Bunny Delivers Goods in Annual Leporidae Largess’
Diving for Divinity: Church Gives Away Cars and Other Prizes to Anyone Who Shows Up for Easter Mass
Published 1, April 4, 2010 Bizarre , Religion , Society 15 Comments
Pastor Bil Cornelius knows how to draw the faithful to Easter mass. The head of a megachurch in Corpus Christi, Texas, is planning to give away $2 million in cars and prizes in a sectarian version of “The Price is Right.”
Chavez Cracks Down on Judges and Journalists
Published 1, April 4, 2010 Courts , International , Media , Politics , Society 6 Comments
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez continues his steady move toward totalitarian rule with his crackdown on critics, the media, and now judges. After Judge MarÃa Lourdes Afiuni issued a ruling that Chávez did not like, Chavez attacked her on television and had her arrested and thrown into jail.
Continue reading ‘Chavez Cracks Down on Judges and Journalists’
Justice Stevens Declares That He Will Resign During Obama’s Term
Published 1, April 4, 2010 Courts , Politics , Religion , Supreme Court , Uncategorized 93 CommentsSupreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens has stated that he “will surely” retire while President Barack Obama is still in office — leaving open only whether he will retire this year or wait later in Obama’s term.
Continue reading ‘Justice Stevens Declares That He Will Resign During Obama’s Term’
A happy Easter to all of our Christian bloggers and readers. I am sitting here at midnight after the arrival of the Easter Bunny, who left four baskets brimming with candy for the kids. I must confess to having yielded to temptation with regard to the chocolate covered peanut butter cups.
Owner of New Mexico Company Arrested After Human Head and Torso Found in Container
Published 1, April 3, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society , Torts 10 Comments
And you thought the Giraffe in the trash in New Mexico was bad, here. Bio Care owner Paul Montano was arrested after a human head and torso were inside the red biohazard tub that was shipped from his New Mexico business.
After that discovery, six more heads and torsos were reportedly found — allegedly dismembered with a chain saw or another cutting device and sent by the Albuquerque company Bio Care Southwest.
It now appears that families who donated their loved ones for medical research may not have received the actual ashes of their relatives.
This obviously raises both criminal and tort liability questions in the mishandling of human body parts.
For the full story, click here.
Delivering at Cape Fear: Doctors Try to Induce Labor and Then Perform Caesarian Section on Woman . . . Only To Find She Is Not Pregnant
Published 1, April 3, 2010 Bizarre , Society , Torts 14 Comments
Doctors and interns at Cape Fear Valley Medical Center were having trouble inducing labor on a patient. They found out why when they switched to a Caesarian section only to find no baby in the woman’s womb.
Continue reading ‘Delivering at Cape Fear: Doctors Try to Induce Labor and Then Perform Caesarian Section on Woman . . . Only To Find She Is Not Pregnant’
“The Beef Jerky Got Me”: Man Avoids Jail With Weighty Argument
Published 1, April 3, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , International , Society 4 Comments
George Jolicur in England has succeeded in avoiding jail by emphasizing not the weight of the evidence but the weight of the culprit. Jolicur is listed as weighing “42 stone” — for yanks, a stone is 14 pounds. That would make Jolicur 588 pounds.
Continue reading ‘“The Beef Jerky Got Me”: Man Avoids Jail With Weighty Argument’
Archbishop: Secularism is the Cause of Nazism, Stalinism, Mass Murder, and Abortion
Published 1, April 3, 2010 Bizarre , International , Politics , Religion , Society 25 Comments
Both American (here) and foreign politicians (here) have recently blamed atheists and secularists for everything from plagues to plaque. Christian (here) and Jewish (here) have joined in the growing chorus that secularists are a threat to the future of our species. Bishop Anthony Fisher of Parramatta has added his own bizarre list of ills from secularism, blaming it for Nazism, Stalinism, mass murder and abortion in his Easter message.
Continue reading ‘Archbishop: Secularism is the Cause of Nazism, Stalinism, Mass Murder, and Abortion’
Stuck on Jesus: Filipinos Celebrate Good Friday With Crucifixions and Floggings
Published 1, April 3, 2010 Bizarre , International , Politics , Religion , Society 7 Comments
The annual Easter tradition of the Philippines has begun with devout Cahtolics nailing themselves to crosses and allowing themselves to be flogged as part of Good Friday.
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Wisconsin Judge Strikes Down State Law Banning Hormone Therapy For Transgender Inmate
Published 1, April 2, 2010 Constitutional Law , Courts , Politics , Society 7 Comments
U.S. District Judge Charles Clevert has handed down a fascinating decision striking down a Wisconsin law banning hormone therapy for transgender inmates.
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I just saw this video and would love to know the back story but all of the comments appear to be in Russia. It is being billed as a ballet dancer who decides to go out with a splash . . . and a dance.
Continue reading ‘When Ballet Dancers Quit . . .’
Heal Thyself: Florida Doctor Tells Obama Supporters To Seek Medical Assistance Elsewhere
Published 1, April 2, 2010 Bizarre , Congress , Politics , Society , Torts 448 Comments
Dr. Jack Cassell, 56, a Mount Dora urologist and a registered Republican, left a message for Obama supporters on his door: heal thyself or at least find a doctor elsewhere.
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Planting Flowers: Ohio Man Flees Police By Jumping Fence Into Prison
Published 1, April 2, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society 5 Comments
Ricky Flowers, 20, discovered the meaning of the adage of jumping from the frying pan into the fire. The Ohio man took police on a high-speed chase and then jumped over a wall . . . only to find himself in a prison.
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Not So Fast: Army Secretary Tells Gays That They Can Come Out of Closet and Then Orders Them Back In
Published 1, April 2, 2010 Bizarre , Military , Politics , Society 7 Comments
It will be interesting if any gay soldiers came out of the closet after Army Secretary John McHugh told soldiers that the ‘don’t ask, don’t tell” policy was suspended. Yesterday, he ordered them back into the closet saying he “misspoke” and that the policy would still be enforced. That would make for a fascinating entrapment case for any soldiers that spoke out upon McHugh’s earlier assurance.
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Devil in the Old Gray Lady: Vatican Exorcist Spots Devil Doing Copy for the New York Times
Published 1, April 2, 2010 Bizarre , Politics , Religion , Society 19 Comments
Leading Vatican exorcist Father Gabriele Amorth has come out with the startling revelation that the Devil is driving the news coverage on child abuse and specifically was the co-author of the recent articles implicating the Pope in the New York Times.
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Vatican Invokes Diplomatic Immunity to Bar Questioning of Pope On Abuse Scandal
Published 1, April 1, 2010 Constitutional Law , Criminal law , International , Politics , Religion , Society 32 Comments Giuseppe dalla Torre, head of the Vatican’s tribunal, has reportedly declared that efforts to question Pope Benedict on the widening abuse scandal would be refused on the grounds of diplomatic immunity.
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Catholic League President Insists Scandal Involves Homosexuals Not Children
Published 1, April 1, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , Politics , Religion , Society 21 CommentsBill Donohue, the controversial head of the Catholic League, was recently denounced for appearing to suggest that the parents were at fault in some way in cases of child abuse against the church. Now, he has argued that coverage of claims in Wisonsin referring to “child abuse” are wrong since “the vast majority of the victims [were] post-pubescent.”
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Taser Tots: Officers Suspended After Tasering Ten-Year-Old Child
Published 1, April 1, 2010 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society 19 Comments
Two Martinsville, Indiana police officers have been suspended after they were accused of using a Taser to subdue a 10-year-old at Tender Teddies Day Care.
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ACLU Turns Down Donation From Humanist Organization
Published 1, April 1, 2010 Bizarre , Constitutional Law , Politics , Religion , Society 16 Comments
In a bizarre and disturbing move, the American Civil Liberties Union of Mississippi has rejected a $20,000 gift made by the American Humanist Association to underwrite an alternate prom in the recent case involving a lesbian student in Mississippi. The American Humanist Association promotes “good without God” and was viewed by the ACLU as too controversial as a perceived atheist organization.
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Lawyer: Saudi Arabia Scheduled Beheading of Television Host for Friday
Published 1, April 1, 2010 Bizarre , International , Politics , Religion , Society 15 Comments
We have been following the latest Sharia outrage in the death sentence given to a television show host who was accused of sorcery for discussing people’s future on Lebanese television. Ali Hussain Sibat was arrested while visiting Saudi Arabia and his lawyer has reported that he is scheduled to be beheaded on Friday absent some reprieve or reversal.
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Father Ordered to Pay Westboro Baptist Church’s Legal Costs
Published 1, April 1, 2010 Bizarre , Constitutional Law , Politics , Religion , Society 77 CommentsIn an action that has outraged many citizens, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has ordered the family of Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder to pay the legal costs of the extremist Westboro Baptist Church, which picketed Snyder’s funeral and celebrated his death.
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