Category: Bizarre

Academia, Bizarre, Free Speech, Justice, Society

Mary Willingham’s Reprieve

By Mark Esposito, Weekend Contributor

Mary-Willingham-UNCUniversity of North Carolina  clinical instructor and academic advisor Mary Willingham got a reprieve of sorts last week. UNC Chancellor Carol Folt admitted for the first time to the school’s board of trustees that the university had “failed students for years” by offering bogus classes, forging professors’ names and changing grades to keep athletes eligible. Jettisoning the party line that 2012’s scandal in the African and Afro-American Studies Department which resulted in an indictment against a UNC professor for fraud was merely an isolated instance, Folt said “We also accept the fact that there was a failure in academic oversight for years that permitted this to continue.This, too, was wrong. And it has undermined our integrity and our reputation.”

Ya think?

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Bizarre, Constitutional Law, Free Speech, International, Politics, Society

Ukraine Police Stop Bus Full Of Demonstrators and Beat Them . . . Only To Find Out That They Were Going To A Pro-Government Demonstration

220px-Euromaidan_Kyiv_1-12-13_by_Gnatoush_005Ukrainian riot police appear to be having trouble deciding who to beat up. BBC is reporting that police stopped a bus heading to Kiev and assumed that they were more protesters. So, they did what has become standard operating procedure for Ukrainian police: they proceeded to savagely beat the occupants. It turns out that they were government supporters being bused to support the government in its effort to break away from the West and sign a trade deal that will place the country under the domination of Russia. What is amazing is that, after being beaten by the government, they reportedly proceeded to the rally in favor of the government and all the good things it brings to the people of the Ukraine. Now those are the types of supporters that would have made Stalin proud. In the meantime, the police succeeded in capturing a real protester and reportedly tortured him and left him to die in the cold. He has survived to tell the tale.

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Bizarre, Congress, Criminal law, Media, Politics

High-Ranking Former Congressional Aide Leaves Letter Before Hanging Himself After His Arrest For Possession Of Child Pornography

i83969661._szw270h3500_Washington has been rocked recently by the news of a high-ranking congressional staff, Jesse Ryan Loskarn, was arrested for possession of child pornography. Loskarn was the long-time director of the office of Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn. He recently committed suicide by hanging himself. A letter has now been released where Loskarn explains his demise and his shame. In the letter, he refers to abuse as a child but does not identify the culprit. Psychiatrists have long documented the tendency of victims of child abuse to be drawn to child pornography. I was personally involved with such a case of a man with documented such abuse who downloaded such images — a reaction that a respected psychiatrist testified was extremely common. You may or may not believe the final account of Loshkarn but it is a striking letter from a man clearly struggling with the shame of his action.

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Bizarre, Congress, Society, Torts

North Carolina Hospital Treats Man With Snakebite Serum Found Online for $750 . . . Charges Him $89,227 For 18-Hour Stay

4e660720-2698-4db1-ba61-d8baef403de5_UnTVm-Em-138There are health care nightmares and then there is what happened to Eric Fergusan, 54, in North Carolina. Fergusan was bitten by a snake on the foot while putting out trash last August. He drove himself to the hospital and was given anti-venom medicine that can be purchased online for as low as $750. The bill” $89,227 bill for an 18-hour stay.

Continue reading “North Carolina Hospital Treats Man With Snakebite Serum Found Online for $750 . . . Charges Him $89,227 For 18-Hour Stay” →

Bizarre, Media, Politics, Society

Grimm Reaper: NY Rep Suggests Reporter Tossing To Relieve Tension After State Of The Union

220px-Mike_Grimm200px-Caber_2Rep. Michael Grimm (R., Staten Island) apparently wanted to unwind after the State of the Union with a little good-old-fashioned Reporter tossing from the Capitol Rotunda. A traditional form of exercise, RT (as it is called) is highly aerobic and involves throwing an adult reporter from a stationary position with no more than three paces before the launch. This is much more difficult than tossing the caber in Scottish game because the journalists tend to be odd sized and flexible. They are the second least aerodynamic of profession (after Sumo wrestlers). There is also the problem of congressional ethics rules and criminal assault concerns. However, if Grimm looked in ill-humor, it was nothing like the mood of voters.

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Bizarre, International, Politics

HSBC Bank Customers Told They Must Explain Large Withdrawals To The Satisfaction Of The Bank

250px-HSBC.svgHSBC customers are understandably confused in England after they went to the bank to withdraw their money only to be told that any large withdrawals would require disclosure of why they needed it and the agreement of the bank. That’s right, you need to show the bank why you need your money and the bank has been saying no to customers, according to the report below.

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Bizarre, Courts, Free Speech, International, Society, Torts

Ex-Formula One Boss To Expand Legal Action Over Access To Pictures Of His Sadomasochistic Orgy

220px-Blame_Mosley_bannerWe previously discussed the case of Max Mosley, the ex-Formula One boss, who became infamous on the Internet after the posting of a video showing him in a sadomasochistic orgy. The story broke in the now defunct News of the World tabloid and reported the scene as a five-hour orgy with five prostitutes dressed as Nazi guards — a particularly embarrassing performance given the fact that Mosley’s father, Oswald, was the pre-war leader of Britain’s fascist “blackshirts” and even invited Adolf Hitler to his wedding. Mosley, 73, prevailed in a court action in showing that the party did not have a Nazi theme and that his privacy was violated. Now he is continuing what can only be described as a scorched Earth campaign against everyone who has carried the photos and announced a new lawsuit against Google. In a move that raises concerns over the censorship of the Internet, German court ordered the Internet giant to block photos of him at his sadomasochistic orgy.

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Bizarre, Criminal law

Massachusetts Teacher Charged With Indecent Exposure After Incident With Mailbox

driveway26n-1-webNorfolk County Agricultural High School teacher Marc Mertz has been arrested in a rather bizarre case where he was seen walking around his driveway wearing only a ski cap and googles. What is most interesting about the story is that this is not the first exposure allegations that Mertz has faced.

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Bizarre, International

Italian Manager Blows Hole Through 18th Century Painting With Wine Cork

200px-Champagne_uncorking_photographed_with_a_high_speed_air-gap_flashAn Italian manager, Roberto Cassago, is a tad embarrassed after an accident that would befit Mr. Bean. He is facing repair costs to an 18th Century Italian painting after he blew a hole through the canvas with the cork of a bottle of sparkling wine. Fittingly enough, it was a painting depicting a battle with knights and their chargers but the addition of the cork missile to the battle scene was a historical as well as an artistic invasion.

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Bizarre, Courts, Justice, Lawyering, Politics, Religion, Science, Society

Well, You’re Back In Kansas Now: Sperm Donor Ordered To Pay Child Support

By Mark Esposito, Weekend Contributor

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The Eager To Oblige William Marotta Must Be Wondering If It’s Oz or Kansas

William Marotta is proving Groucho Marx right.  “It isn’t necessary to have relatives in Kansas City* in order to be unhappy, ” Marx quipped in a letter. The classic comedienne may have just been on to something as Marotta has been ordered by a Kansas court to pay support for a child he fathered in Topeka as part of a private artificial insemination contract.

Even though Marotta signed the  contract waiving any legal rights to the child, Shawnee County District Court Judge Mary Mattivi said he must still pay support because the artificial insemination was performed without the involvement of a licensed Kansas physician. The story began– as so many strange ones do  –with an ad on Craig’s List in March 2009 seeking donated sperm. (Wonder if it was in the “free” section?). The authors of the ad were a lesbian couple in Topeka who desperately wanted a child and needed a donor of genetic material.

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Bizarre, Criminal law, Lawyering, Society

Ohio Prosecutor Refuses To Bring Case To Grand Jury After Police Officer Allegedly Watches Porn and Masturbates With Young Boy and Later Flees From Police

vitte_ricky_jrStierwalt0005_ppThere is a disturbing case out of Ohio where an Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper reportedly admitted to sexual encounters with a boy five years ago but will not face any criminal charges. (However, the trooper now denies those allegations). Trooper Ricky Vitte Jr. (left) has a history of domestic violence and admitted that he watched pornography with the boy and then they masturbated. He insists that he was trying to help the boy and was not engaging in the conduct for sexual gratification (at least not direct at the boy). It appears that Vitte will also continue as an officer with the state patrol after Sandusky County prosecutor Tom Stierwalt (right) refused to bring the case to a grand jury.

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Bizarre, Criminal law, International, Society

British Reformers Propose Ban On Pointy Kitchen Knives

300px-Chef's_KnifeWhat will happen to Col. Mustard in the dining room with the kitchen knife? It is not just Clue aficionados that will be effected by a new reform being proposed in England, pointy kitchen knives may soon be a thing of the past. A group associated with West Middlesex University Hospital is proposing a ban in the British Medical Journal on pointy kitchen knives as unnecessary from a culinary standpoint and downright dangerous from a crime standpoint.

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Bizarre, International

Bacon Anyone? Winter Brings Bacon Drying In Chinese Cities

BelQUY6IcAA-7eMI have often commented on how breakfast in China is a still evolving skill, particularly with regard to bacon which seems boiled and rubbery. This picture may explain part of the problem. The image is from Wuhan and shows how Chinese bacon is “air-cured” on balconies in major cities. Given the alarming levels of pollution, the image is doubly unappealing. This makes the sale of fake eggs more appealing than the authentic bacon.

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