While the level of protection afforded Saudi Arabia in Washington is hardly a secret, the level of that support was on display this month when officials pushed the Obama Administration to release long-withheld pages from the 9-11 report, as we previously discussed. Those pages reportedly implicate Saudi Arabia in the 9-11 attacks. Saudi Arabia response with an express threat to sell off hundreds of billions of dollars of assets if Congress were to pass a bill allowing the Kingdom to be held liable for the attacks. One would think that the response would be outrage at the threat. After all, the bill would only allow citizens to sue and a bipartisan group of Senators have joined to support the 9-11 families. Saudi Arabia could still defend itself (and according to its government, vindicate itself) in a court of law. Of course, the United States has a real court system as opposed to the government controlled, Sharia “courts” used in the Kingdom to mete out medieval justice.
Category: Bizarre
We have another shocking case involving a passenger who was removed from a flight because his presence made other passengers nervous.
The student, Khairuldeen Makhzoomi, a senior at the University of California, Berkeley, was merely speaking in Arabic to his uncle in Iraq and recounting an exciting speech that he attended by United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon. After his call, he was told that he was making passengers nervous by speaking in Arabic and removed from the flight.
Continue reading “Berkeley Student Removed From Plane After Speaking Arabic”
I am of course wearing my Hawks jersey in anticipation of game 3 against the Blues today (I will be hiding upstairs while my wife throws a baby shower for one of our kid’s elementary teachers). However, I love the controversy in St. Louis where residents are a bit put out when they bought their coffee at their local Dunkin’ Donuts only to be given cups decorated with the Blackhawks logo and “The official coffee of the Chicago Blackhawks.” It is divine intervention and an omen for all to contemplate.
There is an interesting lawsuit against a US sperm bank Xytex and its Ontario distributor, Outreach Health. At the center of the case is Donor 9623, James Christian Aggeles of Georgia, who claimed an IQ of 160, an undergraduate degree in neuroscience and a master’s degree in artificial intelligence. He also claimed that he was pursuing a PhD in neuroscience engineering. In reality, he was a formal mental patient with a felony conviction. His sperm was used to conceive at least 36 children in Canada, the US and Britain. The result is a $12 million lawsuit against the companies.
We have previously discussed how people seem incapable of resisting selfies even at the scenes of disasters or while driving (before accidents) or during environmental tragedies but some selfie are not just inappropriate but incriminating. That is the case with Wayne Huntsman who was sentenced to 20 years in prison Friday after pleading guilty to starting the King Fire in 2014, which burned a dozen homes and nearly 100,000 acres in the central Sierra Nevada. The key evidence was the selfie taken above at the origin of the fire.
Continue reading “Selfie Leads To A Conviction For Arson in California’s King Fire”
I have previously written about the increasing monitoring and discipline of teachers for conduct in their private lives. A new case this week highlights this trend. A Mexican elementary teacher has been fired after she was seen on a video twerking in a dance contest in Cabo San Lucas. The 24-year-old identified only as “Miss Clarissa” on the film won the top prize of $260 but then lost her job. The teacher won the contest to the beat of Daddy Yankee’s “Rompe.”
Continue reading “Risqué Rompe: Teacher Fired After Winning Dance Contest While On Vacation”
There are bad exhibit demonstrations and then there is the demonstration recently in Karachi’s Anti-Terrorism Court when a judge asked a police constable if he knew how grenades worked. The constable showed him by pulling the pin out of the grenade. You can guess what happened next.
There is an interesting decision out of the Missouri Supreme Court where lawyer Joel Eisenstein has been suspended with leave to file for reinstatement in six months. Eisenstein used information obtained by his divorce client by guessing his wife’s email password, including confidential information given by his wife’s lawyer. It is equally incredible to see how Eisenstein was found out.
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s WiFi. Dubai’s Islamic Affairs & Charitable Activities Department has issue a fatwa or religious edict that using WiFi from your neighbor without permission is unIslamic. The common practice is a sinful act of stealing according to the Islamic experts, even if the neighbor has not locked out other users.
Continue reading “WiFatwa: Islamic Regulators In Dubai Issue Fatwa Against Using Neighbor’s WiFi”
The Indiana State Police has fired a controversial trooper who had been sued twice in the past 18 months for allegedly preaching to citizens after traffic stops. Senior Trooper Brian Hamilton, 40, was a 14-year veteran of the agency.
Continue reading “Indiana Trooper Fired After Continuing To Question Drivers About Their Faith”
With the Blackhawks heading into the playoffs for their eighth constitutive season, I am again in pigs heaven (though a bit nervous about starting with Duncan Keith in a roller coaster season after his thuggish conduct and well-deserved suspension). Yet, the post-regular season Blackhawks period before we play the Blues will not be without hockey action to watch. Fan John Cooke is suing the team after being crushed by a falling drunken fan at United Center on May 23rd. While widely ridiculed in Chicago, I think that the lawsuit raises some valid issues of negligence and could present an interesting case for issues like proximate cause. Judging from the complaint (which is admittedly one-sided), the “At Your Service” security contractor may be the ultimate misnomer for fans.
Continue reading “Blackhawks Sued After Loud Drunk Falls Two Rows And Crushes Another Fan”
In another case of alleged negligence by beach security or police, Lindsey Gordon, 24, is suing the Grand Isle police after being run over by a police vehicle while sunbathing on the beach. We have previously discussed this all-too-common type of accident.
Continue reading “Sunbathing Woman Run Over By Police Truck In Grand Isle”
A toy dog named Sam has been sent into the Earth’s atmosphere by schoolchildren in Lancashire, England. The videotape of Sam’s wild ride is below. He returned safely and the world’s coolest stuffed toy.
By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
Samuel Hoffer did not exactly get the position he was hoping for when he applied to be a Wildlife Enforcement Officer with the Muckleshoot Tribe. He is now facing charges for alleged Vehicular Homicide after a background interview was reportedly highlighted by his admission to a deadly drunk driving incident occurring in 2012.
This is the latest in a series of articles, HERE, and HERE, where applicants make career and freedom limiting moves by applying for law enforcement jobs and are subsequently jailed for providing incriminating evidence.
We now have another case of déjà vu all over again.
Continue reading “Interview Of Applicant For Wildlife Officer Position Leads To Vehicular Homicide Charge”
I have previously criticized the nonprofit People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) for its over-the-top commercials. While (as many here know) I am a big animal rights advocate, PETA often goes for sensational and shocking publicity that undermines the cause, in my view. One such example is the latest message from PETA to mothers that “eating chicken can make your kid’s dick small.” The video ends with, “Worried about the size of your kid’s pecker, moms-to-be? Don’t eat chicken!” Given the currently debate over the size of Donald Trump, PETA appears to be pitching the same basis for refusing to eat poultry.