Weird News Thread ....

[chort1313]

Gunpowder accident injures Colonia man


Published in the Home News Tribune 1/02/04
By MARY ANN BOURBEAU
STAFF WRITER
WOODBRIDGE: A 28-year-old Colonia resident was badly burned as he ignited gunpowder on his lawn early yesterday.

Police said Paul Ciesla dug a pit in front of his Continental Avenue home at about 1:30 a.m. and filled it with gunpowder. He then leaned over the pit and proceeded to light the substance with a lighter. It blew up in his face, knocking him back on the ground and setting him on fire.

The Colonia and Avenel First Aid squads responded to the scene, along with paramedics from Rahway. Ciesla was taken to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital at Rahway and was later transported to the burn unit at St. Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston. His condition was not available yesterday.

Police said Ciesla received second- and third-degree burns to the upper half of his body, with burns on his face, hands, arms and chest. The Colonia Fire Marshal and Fire Inspector are investigating the incident.

[Advertisement]

[chort1313]

After Norm and Darlene Scott's Montana farm burned in 1996,
they collected $75,000 from Mountain West Farm Bureau
insurance but weren't satisfied and demanded more, finally getting
another $52,500 in 1999. However, they wanted still more money
and sued the company, claiming it was dealing with them in bad
faith. In November 2003, a jury in Helena not only rejected the
claim for more money but found that it was the Scotts who had
started the fire (a finding that probably never would have been
made had the Scotts quietly accepted the first $127,500). (The
statute of limitations prevents criminal charges against them, but the
insurance company will sue to get its money back.)

[chort1313]

James Perry, with four DUI arrests in Florida, feared rejection if
he tried to get a driver's license in his new home state of
Connecticut and so pretended to be Robert Kowalski (the name of
his neighbor in Florida), but a routine computer check revealed
"Robert Kowalski" to be a Michigan sex offender, unregistered in
Connecticut (Clinton, Conn., September). And Mr. Chance Copp,
15, who was on probation for arson and who feared testing positive
for marijuana, submitted the urine of a relative, instead, only to find
out later that that urine tested positive for cocaine (Chillicothe,
Ohio, November).

[the fugative]

Chuck Shepherd: News of The Weird
Chuck Shepherd
Published January 8, 2004
In December, the 200 employees at SAS Shoemakers in Pittsfield, Mass., and the 270 workers at Stine Seed Co. in Adel, Iowa, were each given Christmas bonuses of $1,000 for every year of service to the company. In other bonus news, Tower Automotive of Traverse City, Mich., gave employees $15 Thanksgiving grocery gift cards, but then withheld $5.51 of that as federal and state income tax, and Air Canada gave coupons to 100 of its best-performing customer-service personnel, redeemable at restaurants owned by its in-flight food service contractor, worth $5.

• In December, Putnam County, N.Y., adopted a law to further the aims of the federal Americans With Disabilities Act by permitting shoppers in wheelchairs to bring their service monkeys into stores to fetch items from shelves. (Legislator Sam Oliverio said he didn't know of any service monkeys in use but wanted to be ready.) In July, a ranch owner in San Diego County, Calif., was found not guilty of cruelty for disposing of 30,000 live, "nonproductive" hens by dumping them into a wood chipper, pointing out in defense that it was basically a "standard industry practice" endorsed by a member of the animal welfare committee of the American Veterinary Medical Association.

Bright ideas

• Toronto police arrested Walter Nowakowski, 35, in November on several pornography counts as well as theft of services after an officer spotted him driving the wrong way on a one-way street at 5 a.m. According to police, Nowakowski was pantsless, with a laptop computer running in the front seat, as he drove slowly down streets in search of wireless Internet signals that he could use to download pornography.

• In October, in the ongoing trial of 22 members of the South African white separatist movement Boeremag, a police informant testified that the group's plans included enlisting 8,000 rebels to stage a coup, seize military bases, assassinate ex-president Nelson Mandela, and force all the country's blacks to march across the border to Zimbabwe. (there are 35 million blacks in South Africa).

Oops!

• In October at the UPMC Presbyterian hospital in Oakland, Pa., a 35-year-old man having a kidney transplanted from his mother awoke prematurely from his anesthesia and bolted upright, which caused the just-sewn-in kidney to thrust up with such force that it ripped an artery and protruded from his abdomen. The kidney could no longer be used and was removed the next day.

• Motorcyclist Steve Dass withdrew 72 $100 bills in October to take to his mother to pay for her new furniture, but he apparently forgot to zip up his jacket pocket, and all the money blew out along Hwy. 4 in Pittsburg, Calif. (A few finders returned the money.) In Kalispell, Mont., in November, two men turned in a sack containing $14,600 they found in a bank parking lot; it was a pickup from Wal-Mart that had been dropped by Security Armored Express (which earlier this year was named as the best armored carrier in the country by Wal-Mart executives).

• Pro football punter Chris Hanson played only one-third of the season this year because of a self-inflicted leg injury. His Jacksonville Jaguars coach had put a log and an ax in the locker room as a motivational symbol that the team needed to work hard in order to succeed. Hanson took a swing at the log, missed, and banged his leg so badly that he needed emergency surgery.

• A two-week series of five customer holdups in front of ATMs in Cambridge, Mass., came to an end in November with the arrest of Richard McCabe, 38. In four of the five robberies, bank security cameras photographed the perpetrator, and McCabe was apparently so disliked by so many that when police released the photos, more than 100 people called up to rat him out. Said a detective, "Many . . . people knew him personally from dealing with him in the past."

Recent names in the news

• Delegates of French "villages of lyric or burlesque names" formed an association in October as sort of a promotional and support group made necessary because so many visitors laugh at the towns' names. Among them are villages whose names, translated into English, are "beautiful mad," "cuckold hill," "filthy pig," "my bottom" and "eat onions."

• Texas' anti-marital-aid law, previously mentioned in News of the Weird, remains in force. In November, the county attorney in Burleson, Texas, filed a misdemeanor charge against Joanne Webb for selling two vibrators, which are illegal if they are intended for "stimulation." Although many adult stores in Texas keep the police away by posting signs calling the inventory merely "novelties," an officer in Burleson said Webb's are certainly "obscene" because he can tell that just by looking. Mere possession of vibrators is not illegal unless a person has six or more. Webb sells the vibrators by staging sales parties ("Passion Parties") in private homes.

Alternate universe

• In December, Vice President Cheney led a "hunting" party to the Rolling Rock Club in Ligonier, Pa., to shoot pheasants, which had been specially bred to be killed by the club's members and guests. Cheney reportedly bagged 70 ringneck pheasants plus some captive mallard ducks, and his party killed 417 of the approximately 500 pheasants released. A Humane Society executive deplored the shoot, suggesting that clay-target shooting would be just as challenging: "This wasn't a hunting ground. It was an open-air abattoir."

• Also in the news in the past month: A man implicated in the 1992 crime that moved activists to push for California's "three strikes" law was arrested for theft, which would be his third strike (Fresno). A 4-foot-high, half-ton snowball fell on an 11-year-old boy on a school playground, pinning him until several teachers lifted it off (St. Catharines, Ontario). To ease pressure on the judicial system, the Netherlands government announced it would no longer prosecute airport drug smugglers with less than three kilos of cocaine.

[Jolie Rouge]

Hillary Clinton Regrets Gandhi Joke

http://cnn.netscape.cnn.com/news/sto...41.htm&sc=1153


ST. LOUIS (AP) - Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton apologized for joking that Mahatma Gandhi used to run a gas station in St. Louis, saying it was ``a lame attempt at humor.''

The New York Democrat made the remark at a fund-raiser Saturday. During an event here for Senate candidate Nancy Farmer, Clinton introduced a quote from Gandhi by saying, ``He ran a gas station down in St. Louis.''

After laughter from many in the crowd of at least 200 subsided, the former first lady continued, ``No, Mahatma Gandhi was a great leader of the 20th century.'' In a nod to Farmer's underdog status against Republican Sen. Kit Bond, Clinton quoted the Indian independence leader as saying: ``First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.''

The director of a U.S. center devoted to Gandhi's teachings said the remarks amounted to stereotyping and were insensitive.


After being approached by The Associated Press to clarify the remarks, Clinton suggested in a statement late Monday that she never meant to fuel the stereotype - often used as a comedic punch line - that certain ethnic groups run America's gas stations.


On Tuesday, she told reporters in Albuquerque, N.M.: ``It was a lame attempt at humor and I am very sorry that it might have been interpreted in a way that causes stress to anyone. I have the highest regard for Mahatma Gandhi and have been a longtime admirer of his life.''


Michelle Naef, administrator of the M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence, a Memphis, Tenn.-based organization founded in 1991 by a Gandhi grandson, credited Clinton and her husband, former President Clinton, with long having ``supported the Gandhi message.'' But she said Saturday's remarks ``could be incredibly harmful.''


``I don't think she was, in any way, trying to demean Mahatma Gandhi,'' Naef said. ``To be generous to her, I would say it was a poor attempt at humor. Perhaps I'm overly sensitive, but I find it offensive when people use stereotypes in that way.''


Safir Ahmed, a spokesman for Farmer, said no one should be upset about ``just a little flip remark.''


``As an Indian-American myself, I was not offended by what Senator Clinton said,'' Ahmed said. ``It (the quote) was clearly something Senator Clinton loved, and she referred to Mahatma Gandhi as one of the greatest leaders.


``I don't understand why anyone would take any offense or remotely think Senator Clinton harbors anything against Indian-Americans.''


Senate Republicans criticized Farmer for not apologizing herself.


``Nancy Farmer should apologize for the remarks that were made at her fund-raiser,'' said Dan Allen, spokesman for Senate Republicans' campaign arm, the National Republican Senatorial Committee.




On the Net:

M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence : www.gandhiinstitute.org



01/06/04 20:05

[Jolie Rouge]

Coroner: Diana Not Pregnant at Death
By ROBERT BARR

http://cnn.netscape.cnn.com/ns/news/...63.htm&sc=1103

LONDON (AP) - Princess Diana was not pregnant when she died, a former royal coroner says, apparently ruling out one of the rumors which has swirled around her death in a car crash six years ago.

Dr. John Burton, who was the royal coroner at the time, said he was present at a post-mortem examination after her body was returned from Paris, The Times newspaper reported in Wednesday's editions.

``I was actually present when she was examined. She wasn't pregnant. I know she wasn't pregnant,'' the newspaper quoted him as saying.

Burton spoke on the same day that the present royal coroner, Michael Burgess, opened formal inquests into the deaths of Diana, 36, and her boyfriend, Dodi Fayed, 42. They died when their chauffeur-driven car crashed in an underpass in Paris on Aug. 31, 1997.


A French judge laid responsibility for the crash on the driver, Henri Paul, who was found to have been intoxicated and driving at high speed. He was also killed.


Burgess announced Tuesday that he had asked police to look into theories that the princess was the victim of a conspiracy, variously attributed to the royal family and intelligence agencies.


``I'm aware that there is speculation that these deaths were not the result of a sad but relatively straightforward road traffic accident in Paris,'' Burgess said.


``I have asked the Metropolitan Police Commissioner (Sir John Stevens) to make inquiries. The results of these inquiries will help me to decide whether such matters will fall within the scope of the investigation carried out at the inquests,'' he said.


Fayed's father, Mohammed Al Fayed, has claimed that Diana may have been pregnant when she died. He has also accused Prince Philip, the husband of Queen Elizabeth II, of masterminding a conspiracy.


The Daily Mirror newspaper on Tuesday published a letter apparently written by Diana to her butler, in which she claimed that her ex-husband, Prince Charles, was plotting to kill her in an auto accident.


The Daily Mirror itself described the idea as ``utterly preposterous to many people'' and said there was no evidence to support the claim.


Burgess adjourned both inquests at least until early next year, to give him time to collect evidence, read the French police reports and to give British police time to complete their investigations.



01/07/04 03:46

[Jolie Rouge]

'Spongebob' Toy Balloon Flies 800 Miles

http://cnn.netscape.cnn.com/news/sto...86.htm&sc=1120


ROSENBERG, Texas (AP) - A Spongebob Squarepants balloon with a holiday wish attached traveled hundreds of miles from Central Mexico to southeast Texas, where a landowner found it in some bushes.

``I could see it moving in the breeze off in the distance, and I couldn't make it out,'' Shirley Kennelly of Richmond told The Herald Coaster in Rosenberg.

Kennelly was just returning from a hunting trip Sunday when he saw the balloon. Attached was a a green envelope with the words ``Para Los 3 Reyes. Magos,'' meaning ``For the Three Magic Kings,'' in the left corner.

Inside the balloon was a piece of paper with photocopied pictures of toys the sender wanted for Epiphany, or Three Kings Day, which is celebrated in many Hispanic cultures on the 12th day after Christmas each year.


The Christmas season continues in Mexico through Epiphany. Children throughout Mexico wake up Jan. 6 to find toys and gifts left by the Reyes Magos, or Magi.


The balloon was sent from Xalapa, Veracruz, on Jan. 2. Although dated 2003, the excellent condition of the envelope and balloon, which still had helium, led Kennelly to believe the sender ``just wasn't used to writing '2004,' yet.''


In the center of the envelope were the words: ``De: Yanina M. Lopez. Lajoa con mucho cario,'' naming the sender and sending her wishes of, ``For you, with much affection.''


Fort Bend County Office of Emergency Management Staff Meteorologist Ron Stagno said it's possible the balloon made the 700- to 800-mile journey to Fort Bend County in two days.


``The balloon probably got up top about 10,000 feet or so,'' he said. ``At that height, traveling about 40 miles per hour, it was transported northeast to the upper Texas Coast.''


Rosenberg is about 30 miles southwest of Houston.



01/09/04 14:08

[chort1313]

Reported by Roxanne Lerma

JANUARY 7, 2004 - An unthinkable crime happened in the city of Alton. Officers say a man was in a rage and cut off part of his penis. He then walked over a mile for help.

Virgilio Maldonado found the body part.

He says as soon as he set foot on his job site, off of 6 Mile Line and Conway, he spotted a long trail of blood leading inside.

"It was a shock when we found the bloody machete and the man's penis next to it on a bag of concrete."

At first Maldonado couldn't or didn't want to believe what he had found.

"I thought maybe it was people hunting and that it was part of a rabbit. Then my son saw it and said no...that it was part of a man," he said.

Around the same time, Oscar Hernandez stumbled into the Alton Police Department pleading for help. Paramedics rushed him to the hospital bleeding heavily from his groin.

It wasn't until a half hour later that officers realized that Hernandez had cut himself - when doctors contacted them saying they were in dire need of the missing piece.

They launched a search, but luckily, Maldonado was already flagging down a patrolman to report the bizarre find.

"We told the police what we had discovered and he placed it in a bag with some ice."

A day later, Maldonado says he still can't believe Hernandez survived after severing his genitals.

"I thought maybe this was a jealous rage or a wife upset. I never thought that a man could do this to himself at least not one in his right mind."

Police now say Hernandez was not in his right mind. They claim he is mentally unstable and may have been off of his medication at the time.

He is now in stable condition at a McAllen hospital. Doctors were successfully able to re-attach the organ.

[Jolie Rouge]

OW !

[Jolie Rouge]

Friend Plays the Ultimate Practical Joke

When Chris Kirk, 33, went out of town last weekend and let his good buddy Luke Trerice, 26, stay in his Olympia, Washington apartment. Mistake. Trerice covered everything--and we mean everything--in the place in aluminum foil, reports The Associated Press. Everything except one book that was titled, "Cruel Tricks For Dear Friends." by Penn Jillette.

And what a cruel trick it was.

Still, you have to give Trerice credit. He covered items in foil, including the coffeemaker, in such a way they could still be used without unwrapping them. "He's known for large-scale strangeness," Kirk explained to the local newspaper, The Olympian. The stunt required about 4,000 square feet of aluminum foil at a cost of $100. Trerice said he thought of the idea on New Year's Eve. "It was just a spur of the moment thing," he told The Olympian. "I really don't even consider it art. I consider it a psychology project." And his friend? "He seems to be upbeat, so I consider this a success," Trerice pronounced.

Consider for one minute what "everything" means. The toilet paper was unrolled, wrapped in foil, and then re-rolled. Every CD and book were covered, but in such a way that the CD cases and books could be opened and shut. Every coin was covered in foil. And for an added touch, Trerice sprinkled Hershey's Kisses around the apartment. "The toilet was hard. The molding around the doorways took a very long time," Trerice admitted. The biggest question of all? Will Trerice be allowed to stay in the apartment again? "I don't know," said Kirk. "We'll see."


{{I know what I want for my birthday !}}

[Jolie Rouge]

The Grossest School 'Show & Tell' Ever

This falls into the category: What was he thinking?

Dr. Michael Horowitz, a neurosurgeon whose child attends Fairview Elementary School in the upscale community of Fox Chapel, Pa., brought a human cadaver arm to the school as visual aid for a f
fifth-grade discussion about the 1875 Thomas Eakins painting "The Gross Clinic."

The Associated Press notes that the painting shows a medical school's doctor removing diseased bone from a patient's thigh, which a 19th century art critic graphically described as "a picture that even strong men find it difficult to look at long, if they can look at it at all."

Apparently the cadaver arm was just as bad for the kids at Fairview Elementary, especially when Dr. Horowitz opened up the arm and showed the students the nerves and other parts. One fainted and several felt ill. Parents complained. School officials are investigating. And Dr. Horowitz is confused. Apparently, he's brought body parts to show and tell before, including ears, eyes, and a brain, and no one ever bothered about it until now.


f you dare, click on the link below for a site that has images of the painting, "The Gross Clinic."
http://www.artchive.com/artchive/E/e...linic.jpg.html