Interesting Current Events

[VinReaper]

Originally Posted by hawkeyethearcher

i watched this on tv today. they had a close up of the plane when it landed. everything was fine. the pilot did a wheely all the way tell he was slow enough and had to put the front down. it was pretty neat to watch since everyone was ok

Yeah I saw that as well. Incredible!

VR

[VinReaper]

Bizarre News Story!

Death Threat Elmo!!!



http://www.tbo.com/video/xml/MGBBBA7WXCF.html


VR

[VinReaper]

Horse racing bet makes man birthday millionaire
Tue Feb 26, 2008 11:43am EST

LONDON (Reuters) - A British man celebrated his 60th birthday in unexpected style at the weekend when a 50 pence ($1) bet on the horses turned him into an instant millionaire.

Fred Craggs, from Yorkshire in northern England, was not even aware of his win when he walked into a branch of the William Hill betting agency to see how he had done with his accumulator bet.

When he was informed of his good fortune he was said to have turned rather pale and muttered that he had better go home to tell his wife.

His coup was selecting eight winners running at various courses around the country -- starting with one called "Isn't That Lucky" and finishing with "A Dream Come True" -- at odds of 2,000,000 to one.

"This is the most amazing bet ever placed since betting shops were made legal in 1961," William Hill spokesman Graham Sharpe said on Monday.

(Reporting by Jeremy Lovell; editing by Richard Balmforth)

[VinReaper]

A price to pay for saying "I don't"
Mon Feb 25, 2008 10:53am EST

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexican brides and grooms who get cold feet before walking down the aisle will have to pay their significant other for the inconvenience, if a proposal by a local congressman is adopted.

In Mexico, weddings are big social events where large amounts of money are spent before the big day on gowns, tuxedos, catering and music bands and churches are even reserved years in advance.

Weddings of over 500, or even 1,000 guests, are frequently splashed across newspapers' social pages. According to Mexican tradition, the bride's family absorbs most of the expenses.

Jose Antonio Zepeda, a city deputy for President Felipe Calderon's conservative National Action Party, wants to introduce the idea of compensation for backing out of a wedding as part of changes to the capital's civil code.

"He or she who refuses to live up to a marriage commitment will pay for the expenses that the other party made in connection with the planned matrimony," Zepeda's proposal says.

Zepeda also wants lawmakers to give legal status to prenuptial agreements for those on their way to the altar in hopes it will make divorce settlements easier if the couple splits later on.

"We are looking to avoid emotional distress, cut divorce expenses and shorten the time that courts spend solving them," Zepeda told Reuters on Friday. The prenuptial agreement will be optional.

Divorce rates are on the rise in Mexico, which has a predominantly Catholic population of over 107 million. Currently, three out of 10 couples in Mexico City divorce, compared with just one in 10 in the 1970s, the congressman said.

Zepeda's proposal is expected to be voted by Mexico City's congress in March or April. If passed, it will only apply to heterosexual couples in the capital, which legalized gay unions in 2006.

(Reporting by Cyntia Barrera Diaz, editing by Jackie Frank)

[Ink]

our county auditor, got busted for tax fraud among other things yesterday

[hawkeyethearcher]

incase you are wondering what your tax dollars are going towards

AP - A killer who sued to have a sex change claims her body is becoming more masculine again because she's being denied treatment in prison as she awaits a ruling in her bid for the surgery. Michelle Kosilek, formerly known as Robert, said that for months she has not been allowed to have court-approved hair-removal treatment or access to a specialist to discuss her testosterone levels.

[VinReaper]

Originally Posted by hawkeyethearcher

incase you are wondering what your tax dollars are going towards

AP - A killer who sued to have a sex change claims her body is becoming more masculine again because she's being denied treatment in prison as she awaits a ruling in her bid for the surgery. Michelle Kosilek, formerly known as Robert, said that for months she has not been allowed to have court-approved hair-removal treatment or access to a specialist to discuss her testosterone levels.

What is this world coming to? Are they kidding even entertaining stuff like that. If you commit a crime you should lose your rights. They aren't taken away from you when you commit a crime as heinous as murder, you forfeit them.

VR

[VinReaper]

Snake eats family dog as kids watch

* Story Highlights
* 16-foot scrub python stalked family's pet for days, expert says
* Kids, ages 5 and 7, see their dog eaten by snake
* Snake digesting dog in zoo, will be released into wild

BRISBANE, Australia (AP) -- A 16-foot python stalked a family dog for days before swallowing the pet whole in front of horrified children in the Australian tropics, animal experts said Wednesday.

The boy and girl, aged 5 and 7, watched as the scrub python devoured their silky terrier-Chihuahua crossbreed Monday at their home near Kuranda in Queensland state.

Stuart Douglas, owner of the Australian Venom Zoo in Kuranda, said scrub pythons typically eat wild animals such as wallabies, a smaller relative of the kangaroo, but sometimes turn to pets in urban areas.

"It actively stalked the dog for a number of days," Douglas said.

"The family that owned the dog had actually seen it in the dog's bed, which was a sign it was out to get it," he added.

"They should have called me then, but (the snake) got away and three or four days later, I was called and went around and removed it" after the dog had been killed, Douglas said.

By the time Douglas arrived, all that could be seen of the dog was its hind legs and tail.

The zoo manager, Todd Rose, said pythons squeeze their prey to death before swallowing it whole. The 5-year-old dog would have been suffocated within minutes. VideoWatch snake handler show off dog-eating python »

"The lady who was there threw some plastic chairs at the snake, but you've got to remember that this is about 50 kilograms (110 pounds) of aggressive muscle," Rose said.

Removing the half-swallowed dog could have harmed or even killed the python, Rose said, because dogs have sharp teeth and claws that could do the snake internal damage if it were wrenched out.

The snake was still digesting the dog at the zoo Wednesday. It will soon be moved to the bush, Douglas said.

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

VR

[VinReaper]

The robbers chose the wrong night to burst into the club where the Southern Cross Cruiser Club have their monthly meeting.


Hapless robbers target biker meeting

* Story Highlights
* Two masked, machete-wielding robbers burst into club and empty cash registers
* 50 bikers meeting in adjacent room hear commotion and intervene
* One would-be robber ends up hogtied; the other in hospital
* Police arrest men and charge both with attempted armed robbery

By CNN's Saeed Ahmed

(CNN) -- Two masked and machete-wielding men who barged into a club in Sydney, Australia, couldn't have picked a worse night for their robbery -- a monthly meeting of bikers.

About 50 burly bikers fought back with tables and chairs -- pretty much anything that wasn't bolted down. One would-be robber was tied up; the other in the hospital.

Police arrested both.

"These guys were absolutely dumb as bricks," Jerry Vancornewal, leader of the bikers, told CNN Thursday. "I can't believe they saw all the bikes parked up front and they were so stupid that they walked past in."

Vancornewal and his buddies were at the Regents Park Sporting and Community Club in Sydney when the two men wearing ski masks stormed in Wednesday night. They yelled at patrons to drop to the floor as they emptied cash registers at the bar.

Hearing the commotion from an adjacent room, Vancornewal and his pals with the Southern Cross Cruiser motorcycle club stomped through to the bar area to intervene.

"They (the robbers) thought they had the upper advantage with their knives and their machetes," Jim Webb, night supervisor of the club, told CNN. "They didn't expect to run into a bunch of guys carrying chairs and tables."

One of the would-be robbers crashed through a plate-glass door and jumped off a balcony.

"All he had to do was push the button and it automatically opened," Webb quipped.

New South Wales police said they arrested the 20-year-old man a short distance away.

The second man made a break for it through the club's service entrance, but the bikers tackled him near a neighbor's fence.

"We just grabbed him, crash-tackled him to the ground, hogtied him with electrical wire and left him for the cops," Vancornewal said.

Police confirmed in a statement that club patrons subdued the second man until officers arrived, but did not provide additional details. The suspect turned out to be a 16-year-old boy.

Both would-be robbers were charged with attempted armed robbery and "face disguised with intent to commit indictable offense," police said.

A third person, who was waiting in a getaway car, took off when the bikers threw pieces of furniture at him, Webb said. Police have not located him.

The Regents Park Sporting and Community Club is a place where locals come to enjoy drinks and take part in various games: cricket, soccer, lawn bowling. The biking enthusiasts meet there once a month to plan rides and other club activities.

In the last year or so, criminals have struck the club about 10 times, Webb said. And Wednesday night's incident, while unusual, wasn't the most memorable.

"We have these old bingo players and they are really serious about their games," Webb explained. "They do not like to be interrupted."

When robbers barged in one evening and announced that they were holding up the place, the players turned around and testily told them to be quiet.

"They were making it difficult for the players to hear the numbers being called," Webb said.

VR

[VinReaper]

Newborn survives fall through train toilet

* Story Highlights
* Newborn baby falls through the toilet on a moving train after being prematurely born
* Baby survives for 2 hours on the tracks before being found
* Toilets on Indian trains usually open directly onto track
* Baby has still not been named, was 10 weeks premature and weighed 3.22 pounds

AHMADABAD, India (AP) -- A newborn baby girl fell through the toilet in a moving train and onto the tracks moments after her mother prematurely gave birth, surviving nearly two hours before being found, relatives said Thursday.

The child's mother, who uses the single name Bhuri, was traveling with relatives on an overnight train when she went to the bathroom shortly before midnight Tuesday and unexpectedly gave birth to a baby girl, said Arjun Kumar, her brother-in-law.

"Later, she fell unconscious and the baby fell through the toilet," he continued. "Two stations later, we knocked at the door."

Bhuri opened the door, soaked in blood.

"When we asked her about what happened, she said the baby had fallen through onto the tracks," Kumar said.

Toilets on Indian trains usually have holes that open directly onto the tracks, and there were no indications Thursday that authorities doubted Bhuri's story or planned to investigate the incident.

Kumar said that after finding Bhuri, relatives pulled the train's emergency brake and told railway officials what had happened. A search was quickly organized, and guards at one of the stations the train had passed soon found the baby.

"She was on the rail track for almost 1½ to two hours," said Dr. Gautam Jain, a pediatrician at Rajasthan Hospital in Ahmadabad, in the western state of Gujarat, where the baby and mother were taken.

The child, who has not yet been named, was eight to 10 weeks premature and weighed only 3.22 pounds, Jain said. She had a low heart rate and body temperature.

"We do not expect such children to survive," Jain said.

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

New meaning to,"Throwing the baby out with the bathwater."

VR