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Radio Viseu Cidade Viriato

quinta-feira, 15 de janeiro de 2009

Adolf Hitler taken from parents

adolf

Three siblings whose names have Nazi connotations - and whose family made headlines after a bakery refused to put one of the children's names on a cake - have been placed in the custody of the state.

Holland Township Police Sgt. John Harris said social workers removed three-year-old Adolf Hitler Campbell and his younger sisters, JoyceLynn Aryan Nation Campbell and Honszlynn Hinler Jeannie Campbell from their home, the Express-Times of Easton, Pennsylvania, reported.

Harris says family services did not tell police the reason the children were removed. Agency spokeswoman Kate Bernyk says it does not comment on specific cases.

The children and their parents, Heath and Deborah Campbell, received attention last month when a supermarket bakery refused to put Adolf Hitler Campbell's name on a birthday cake.

Jesus trades daughter for beer, meat and cash

Booze
Beer: do not trade your daughter's hand in marriage for it

A father called Jesus has been arrested for arranging to have his 14-year-old daughter marry a neighbour, in return for $16,000, lots of beer and some meat.

Police said they learned of the deal after Marcelino de Jesus Martinez, 36, asked them for help getting back his daughter after payment wasn't made.

Martinez was arrested on Sunday. He faces charges of procuring a child under age 16 for lewd and lascivious acts, statutory rape and cruelty to a child by endangering health, police in California said.

Police also arrested the intended groom, 18-year-old Margarito de Jesus Galindo, on suspicion of statutory rape, but prosecutors have not yet decided whether to charge him.

Martinez is a member of an indigenous Mexican Trique community. Greenfield police Chief Joe Grebmeier said the case highlights an issue confronting local authorities in that arranged marriages with girls as young as 12 are not uncommon among the Trique.

He hesitated to say that the girl was being sold into marriage, as the money was intended as a dowry and the beer and meat were for the wedding.

But he added that the arrangement violates California law, where the age of consent for marriage is 18, or 16 with parental approval.

'This is not a traditional trafficking case because there is no force or coercion in this,' Grebmeier said. 'We're aware of the cultural issues here, but state law trumps cultural sensitivity.'

Grebmeier is planning to meet with leaders in the Trique community to talk about how some cultural practices might conflict with California law.

'Initially, when everyone was talking to us, we learned a lot because they had no realization that it's against the law - an arranged marriage for money with a minor,' Grebmeier said.

Members of the indigenous community protested the news reports and public discussion of the case, saying they were painted in a very negative light.

'No one put a 'for sale' sign on this girl, and that's how it sounds,' said Rufino Dominguez, head of the Greenfield office of the Binational Center for the Development of the Indigenous Communities.

He added that the community did not normally approve of money being offered as a part of the marriage deal.

Police learned of the deal in mid-December, when Martinez reported his daughter as a runaway.

Further investigation found the girl had not fled but moved in with Galindo as part of the marriage arrangement. Grebmeier said the girl was a willing party to the deal.

Martinez would face at least a year in prison if convicted.

You can't fire me, I'm drunk

binge drinking drunk
It's just another day in the office for stock binge drink guy

Peru's top court has ruled that workers cannot be fired for being drunk on the job.

But the decision has been criticised by the Government for setting a dangerous precedent.

The Constitutional Tribunal ordered that Pablo Cayo be given his job back as a janitor for the municipality of Chorrillos, which fired him for being intoxicated at work.

Stray bullet smashes toilet bowl to bits

toilet
The toilet was smashed to bits by a stray bullet

There's excuses and there's excuses - and here's one of the most bizarre we've heard for a long time.

A toilet was left shattered after a man's gun fell out of its holster while he was pulling up his pants.

He told police in Utah that the gun fired when it hit the floor and the bullet smashed the bowl to bits.

As to what else could have caused such destruction, we can't for the life of us think.

quarta-feira, 14 de janeiro de 2009

Noticias de Portugal

Inov-Art e Inov Mundus

  • Estágios no estrangeiro reforçam inserção de jovens no mundo do trabalho

PM apresenta programas Inov-Art e Inov Mundus
O Primeiro-Ministro presidiu à apresentação dos programas Inov-Art e Inov Mundus, em Lisboa, em 9 de Janeiro. Estes programas destinam-se a «dar mais oportunidades aos jovens no domínio da cultura e para que afirmem internacionalmente o nome de Portugal», declarou José Sócrates, que recordou também que a primeira medida aprovada pelo Governo, em 2005, foi o programa de estágios profissionais Inov Jovem o qual, juntamente com outros criados posteriormente, já permitiu a colocação de milhares de jovens em estágios e empregos em empresas nacionais e estrangeiras. «Com estes dois programas damos um bom contributo para a melhoria da política externa, para a melhoria da política cultural e para que Portugal seja um país de oportunidades para os jovens», acrescentou. Mais...


  • Eliminada intervenção presencial dos cidadãos no recenseamento militar

Jovens em navio da Marinha no Dia de Defesa Nacional
O Conselho de Ministros de 8 de Janeiro aprovou um Decreto-Lei que simplifica, desmaterializa e desburocratiza o recenseamento militar. Após a eliminação da obrigatoriedade dos cidadãos se apresentarem ao recenseamento militar durante o mês de Janeiro, do ano em que completam 18 anos de idade, este diploma vem, agora, simplificar o processo, eliminando a intervenção do cidadão no momento do recenseamento, obtendo-se, simultaneamente, maior eficácia e redução de custos. A recolha de informação necessária ao recenseamento militar e à sua actualização, passa a processar-se entre os Ministérios da Justiça e da Defesa Nacional, poupando os cidadãos a uma deslocação presencial obrigatória. Esta alteração visa, ainda, universalizar o recenseamento militar, procedendo-se de forma gradual à extensão do dever de comparência ao Dia da Defesa Nacional às cidadãs portuguesas.


  • Combate ao cancro do colo do útero

Imagem de jovens em idade de vacinação contra o colo do útero
O Conselho de Ministros de 30 de Dezembro aprovou a aquisição de 400 000 vacinas destinadas a prevenir o cancro do colo do útero - responsável por 300 mortes anuais de mulheres em Portugal. A vacina contra o vírus do papiloma humano foi iniciada em 2008, tendo Portugal sido o segundo país europeu a incluir esta vacina no Plano Nacional de Vacinação. Em 2008 foram vacinadas as meninas que fizeram 12 anos, sendo o objectivo para 2009 vacinar todas as que completem 13 e 17 anos, de forma a cobrir toda a população feminina jovem - uma vez que a eficácia da vacina é reduzida a partir do início da vida sexual. A Ministra da Saúde, Ana Jorge, referiu que vai também «ser alargado a todo o País o programa de rastreio do cancro do colo do útero, que é a medida mais eficaz em relação aos grupos não abrangidos pela vacina».


  • Integração de todos os trabalhadores por conta de outrem na segurança social pública

Vieira da Silva, Ministro do Trabalho e da Solidariedade Social
O Conselho de Ministros de 23 de Dezembro aprovou, na generalidade para consultas, um Decreto-Lei que determina que os trabalhadores que venham a ser contratados pelas instituições bancárias serão abrangidos pelo regime geral de segurança social. Assim, no cumprimento da actual Lei de Bases da Segurança Social, o Governo, os sindicatos e os bancos, estabelecem que a antiga Caixa dos Bancários passa a garantir os seus serviços apenas aos actuais inscritos, que manterão todos os seus direitos. Põe-se também cobro à situação de existirem bancários inscritos na segurança social com protecção perante todas as eventualidades, enquanto outros eram apenas protegidos perante algumas, sendo as outras garantidas pelo empregador, o que criava desigualdades de tratamento entre trabalhadores e entre bancos. Com esta diploma completa-se a integração de todos os trabalhadores por conta de outrem no sistema público de segurança social.


  • Desigualdades diminuíram entre 2005 e 2007

PM e Governo na Assembleia da República
O Primeiro-Ministro afirmou que as desigualdades sociais diminuíram em Portugal entre 2005 e 2007, no debate quinzenal na Assembleia da República, a 17 de Dezembro. Nas respostas às perguntas dos deputados, subordinadas ao tema das políticas económicas e do emprego, José Sócrates referiu os dados do Instituto Nacional de Estatística (INE), que apontam para uma diminuição das desigualdades em 2007: em 2004 e 2005 «os 20% mais ricos ganhavam 6,9 vezes mais do que os 20% mais pobres», citou, acrescentando que em 2007, os 20% mais ricos ganhavam apenas 6,5 vezes mais do que os 20% mais pobres. «Há muita gente, que disse que as desigualdades estavam a aumentar, que tem de morder a língua», ironizou. O PM anunciou também o aumento do capital social da Caixa Geral de Depósitos em mil milhões de euros, uma vez que «nunca como agora o País precisou tanto do banco público».


  • Colocação de professores alargada de três para quatro anos

Imagem de professor
O Conselho de Ministros de 17 de Dezembro aprovou, na generalidade, um diploma que alarga de três para quatro anos o período de colocação dos professores e promove a sua integração, dos quadros de zona pedagógica, nos quadros de agrupamento de escolas ou escolas não agrupadas, mediante um concurso interno, visando o reforço da estabilidade do corpo docente. Aprovou também o regime transitório de avaliação dos docentes do pré-escolar, básico e secundário, para vigorar até ao final do 1.º ciclo de avaliação, em 31 de Dezembro de 2009, que corrige alguns pontos do modelo de avaliação, nomeadamente, a existência de avaliadores de áreas disciplinares diferentes dos avaliados, a burocracia dos procedimentos previstos e a sobrecarga de trabalho inerente ao processo de avaliação. Um terceiro decreto, regulamenta os termos e as condições da atribuição do suplemento remuneratório dos directores, subdirectores e adjuntos das escolas e agrupamentos, bem como de outros directores, no quadro do novo regime de autonomia, administração e gestão das escolas.



Nappies created for birds

bird nappy
Bird-brained idea? The FlightSuit

Do you like to give your parrot the freedom of the house but hate cleaning up when it gets caught short?

If so, put your pet in a nappy and let it fly by the seat of its pants.

The FlightSuit allows birds to 'enjoy more out-of-cage time without the mess, inconvenience, and embarrassment of soiling your clothing or furnishings', according to US makers Flight-Quarters.

The unusual underwear comes in 14 sizes to suit the smallest parrotlet to the largest macaw.

But some bird lovers are furious that 'highly intelligent' parrots could be made to wear 'undignified' nappies, according to one website.

Cops held over brothel brawl

Prison Bars

If you're an elite police officer, it's probably not a good idea to get arrested for having a fight in a brothel.

But that's what happened to three top Frankfurt police officerscops, who have been detained by police and are under investigation for assault following a brawl in a brothel, according to a Frankfurt police spokesman.

Confirming a report in Bild newspaper, the spokesman said the three officers of the elite SEK anti-terrorism unit had been transferred to another department pending the outcome of the investigation by the state prosecutors' office.

The three off-duty officers, aged 30, 32 and 35, were in a red-light district of Germany's financial capital after an office party.

They got into a dispute with the brothel's bouncers that turned violent. Police arriving detained their colleagues.

Man trades daughter for beer, meat and cash

Booze
Beer: do not trade your daughter's hand in marriage for it

A man has been arrested in California for arranging for his 14-year-old daughter to marry a neighbor in exchange for $16,000, 100 cases of beer and several cases of meat.

Police in Greenfield, a farming community on California's central coast, said they learned of the deal after Marcelino de Jesus Martinez, 36, asked them for help getting back his daughter after payment wasn't made.

Martinez was arrested on Sunday. He faces felony charges of procuring a child under age 16 for lewd and lascivious acts, statutory rape and cruelty to a child by endangering health.

Police also arrested the intended groom, 18-year-old Margarito de Jesus Galindo, on suspicion of statutory rape, but prosecutors have not yet decided whether to charge him.

Martinez is a member of an indigenous Mexican Trique community. Greenfield police Chief Joe Grebmeier said the case highlights an issue confronting local authorities in that arranged marriages with girls as young as 12 are not uncommon among the Trique.

He hesitated to say that the girl was being sold into marriage, as the money was intended as a dowry and the beer and meat were for the wedding.

But he added that the arrangement violates California law, where the age of consent for marriage is 18, or 16 with parental approval.

'This is not a traditional trafficking case because there is no force or coercion in this,' Grebmeier said. 'We're aware of the cultural issues here, but state law trumps cultural sensitivity.'

Grebmeier is planning to meet with leaders in the Trique community to talk about how some cultural practices might conflict with California law.

'Initially, when everyone was talking to us, we learned a lot because they had no realization that it's against the law - an arranged marriage for money with a minor,' Grebmeier said.

Members of the indigenous community protested the news reports and public discussion of the case, saying they were painted in a very negative light.

'No one put a 'for sale' sign on this girl, and that's how it sounds,' said Rufino Dominguez, head of the Greenfield office of the Binational Center for the Development of the Indigenous Communities.

He added that the community did not normally approve of money being offered as a part of the marriage deal.

Police learned of the deal in mid-December, when Martinez reported his daughter as a runaway.

Further investigation found the girl had not fled but moved in with Galindo as part of the marriage arrangement. Grebmeier said the girl was a willing party to the deal.

Martinez would face at least a year in prison if convicted.

terça-feira, 13 de janeiro de 2009

New Zealand baby named Zealand-New

Newborn baby child
A baby: there's a reason we don't call them things like Congo Of Republic Democratic or Ireland Northern And Britain Great Of Kingdom United

A baby girl born in New Zealand is the latest child to be lumbered with a name that will haunt her in later life, after her parents decided to call her Zealand-New.

The girl's name was the suggestion of her grandmother, Sharron Te Moni, who explained: 'I was fiddling around and it was something different to say it back to front.'

Zealand-New – or, to give her her full name, is Zealand-New Sharron Phyllis Atareta Davoren – was born in the Bay of Plenty area on New Zealand's North Island.

The girl's mother, Tomicina Davoren, admitted: 'It is unusual to name your child that. You hear New Zealand every day, but not as someone's name.'

Zealand-New joins Davoren's three other children, who are named Rlexuz Toara Chantz Te Moni, Mikaere Morgan Te Moni and Korizma-Lake Vonnita Manaaki Te Moni, according to the Bay Of Plenty Times.

107-year-old woman finally ready for marriage

Wedding

A 107-year-old Chinese woman who was afraid to marry when she was young has decided that now is the time to look for her first husband.

She sasy that she hopes to find a fellow centenarian, so they will have something to talk about, a Chinese newspaper reported.

Wang Guiying is worried she is becoming a burden to her aging nieces and nephews since she broke her leg when she was 102 and had to stop doing household chores

I'm already 107 and I still haven't got married,' the Chongqing Commercial Times quoted her saying. 'What will happen if I don't hurry up and find a husband?'

Born the child of a salt merchant in southern Guizhou province, Wang was always fearful of getting married after seeing how badly her uncles treated their wives.

'All the married people around there lived like that. Getting married was too frightening,' she said of an era when Chinese women had few rights and low social standing.

Many also had their feet bound in an excruciating process aimed at making them look more dainty and marriageable.

After Wang's father, mother and older sister died, she still shied away from marriage. Instead she moved to the countryside and survived as a farmer until she was 74 years old, the report said.

Her nephew in the booming city of Chongqing then took Wang in, but she is worried he and her other nephews and nieces are too old to take care of her now. Even the youngest is 60.

'My nephews and nieces are getting older and their children are already tied up with their own families and I am becoming more and more of a burden,' she said.

Local officials have said they are happy to help Wang search for a 100-year old groom, and suggested her family get in touch with old people's homes to find candidates, the paper said.

segunda-feira, 12 de janeiro de 2009

Robber waits in queue to hold up bank

Dollars

A robber may have tipped off his intentions when he stood in a queue at a bank wearing a ski mask before staging a holdup.

Police in the US state of Ohio said Feliks Goldshtein of Highland Heights was arrested following a brief car chase.

Police say the teller asked the man to take off the mask before being served.

The man displayed what turned out to be a toy gun and demanded money from the teller. He made off with an undisclosed amount.

Police Captain Rick Myers said it's unusual for a masked robber to wait in a queue at a bank.

The 24-year-old man has been charged with aggravated robbery and failure to comply with a police order.

Busty TV presenter fined over phone violence

Adela Romania
Presenter Adela Lupse goes bonkers during the television programme

A TV station has been fined £1,000 after the presenter on a live phone in quiz show threw a fit after no viewers called in.

Busty presenter Adela Lupse started screaming at the camera, smashed the phone on the ground and then jumped up and down on it before grinding the phone under her foot.

WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW

At the same time she screamed repeatedly at the camera "I want the phone to ring now. Now. Call me now."

Angry TV bosses fired her after the outburst on Romanian TV station National TV.

But Lupse, who has been the show's presenter for three years, said: "Maybe I was a bit over the top but I wanted to get people to call - there is a lot of pressure to get people to call in with the correct answer. It was a bad day."

But Romanian TV watchdog the National Audiovisual Council of Romania failed to see the funny side and fined the station £1,089 for the outburst that showed "unjustified violence".

It also ruled that the show be slapped with an X rating and only broadcast after 10pm when children are in bed.

WATCH THE VIDEO HERE:


sexta-feira, 9 de janeiro de 2009

Squirrel-flavoured crisps go on sale in UK

Squirrel

Crisps that taste of chilli and chocolate, onion bhaji and even Cajun squirrel will be unleashed on the public today as part of a Walkers competition to find a new flavour.

Walkers launched its Do Us A Flavour campaign last July, challenging members of the public to think up a unique flavour of crisp.

Fish and chips, crispy duck and hoi sin, and builder's breakfast have also made the finals of the public search.

Chef Heston Blumenthal and a judging panel picked the top six entries from more than one million, and Walkers turned the ideas into reality.

The crisps can be bought from all supermarkets from today until May, either individually or in a special multipack containing all six flavours.

Blumenthal said: "The complexities of flavour fascinate me and to watch the British public get so excited about taste has been absolutely inspiring.

"We've had an incredible response and sifting through the entries has been quite incredible. I can't wait to see which on the public choose as their winner!"

Votes cast on the Walkers website between now and May 1 will decide which flavour stays permanently on sale, and the creator will win £50,000, on top of the £10,000 that each finalist has already received.

One per cent of profits from all future sales will also be handed to the winner. The crisp manufacturer revealed that, if sales should reach that of its BBQ flavour for example, the winner would receive around £57,000 a year.

Chilli and chocolate is the brainchild of Catherine Veitch, from High Wycombe, who entered the competition with her friend Sian Smith from Oxfordshire.

The pair, who work in educational publishing, took more than 500 pictures as part of their entry Ms Veitch said: "Chilli and chocolate might sound like a crazy idea for a crisp, but the combination is actually scrumptious. Spicy heat with a cocoa kick!"

Fish and chips creator Jane Hallam, 45, does not eat fish because she is a strict vegetarian, but can eat her own crisps because they do not contain any fish.

The social worker, who lives in Sheffield, chose fish and chips because it is a popular comfort food. She submitted a picture of a queue of people outside a fish and chip shop in Whitby as part of her entry.

She said: "Fish and chips is one of the most famous national dishes, so I felt sure that it would be something that could be enjoyed by everyone."

Onion bhaji is 53-year-old Carole Wood's entry, and the civil servant from Durham said she fancies her chances of winning.

The mother-of-two chose the unusual flavour because it is a family favourite and she has kept the Walkers steak and onion pack that prompted her entry as a good luck token.

Mrs Wood said: "Onion bhaji has a delicious, mildly spicy taste and will taste great as a crisp."

Crispy duck and hoi sin sauce is the invention of Vicky Howard, from Northwich in Cheshire.

The 21-year-old, who draws maps for a living, made a crisp packet to accompany her entry by scanning a packet into her computer and replacing the traditional image with one of a duck made from crisps.

She said: "Crispy duck and hoi sin has been a long-time coming - it's a favourite Chinese dish, so hopefully it will be everyone's favourite crisp too."

Builder's breakfast is the brainchild of Emma Rushin from Belper in Derbyshire. The 27-year-old midwife, who has two children, combined bacon, buttered toast, eggs and tomato sauce to create her flavour.

She said "The combination is mouth-watering and I know it will be a hit with the British public." Meanwhile Cajun squirrel is the wacky flavour created by Martyn Wright, 26, the only man to have made the final six.

The online marketer, who lives in Hednesford, Staffordshire, was inspired to enter when he saw squirrel on a restaurant menu and he believes the public will be so intrigued that they will have to buy a pack.

He said: "This gentle Cajun flavouring will be delicious for the public and although the idea might sound bizarre, it really works. No squirrels were harmed in the making of these crisps!"

Six-year-old expelled for bringing a gun to school

Gun
The gun was the cause of the sagging pants

A six-year-old who was sent to the principal's office for sagging pants was found to be carrying a loaded gun and quickly expelled.

The school administrator was pulling the boy's pants up when he found a pistol in his pocket.

The boy said he found the gun in his father's car and wanted to show it off to his friends.

They boy's father, 34 year old Michael Lewis, was arrested possession of a firearm by a felon and having stolen property after finding that the .45 caliber gun had been stolen

The school said it had a "zero tolerance policy" on weapons but didn't release a baggy pants statement.

quinta-feira, 8 de janeiro de 2009

Arrested woman fakes giving birth

Pregnant woman
You must be at least this pregnant to fake labour pains

A woman in America has discovered the hard way that faking going into labour doesn't help you escape arrest for shoplifting.

The woman was arrested in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, after police were called to a mall over a report of a woman stealing a keychain. They also found pain medication without a prescription in her purse, and so also arrested her on drug charges.

But while being arrested, the woman complained of birth pains and said she was going into labour. She was taken to a local hospital by ambulance.

But when doctors examined her at the hospital, they found that she wasn't going into labour at all. In fact, in what might have a been a slight flaw in her otherwise perfect scheme, it turned out she wasn't even pregnant.

Not only did she remain under arrest, but she's now facing a bill for the ambulance ride and hospital visit.

6-year-old crashes car trying to get to school

Car crash
What a car crash might look like

A 6-year-old Virginia boy who missed his school bus proved unexpectedly keen on getting to school - so much so that he took the family car and tried to drive to school.

Unsurprisingly, he crashed it.

State police say the boy suffered only minor injuries, and authorities drove him to school after he was evaluated at a local hospital. Sgt. Tom Cunningham says the boy arrived shortly after lunch.

The crash happened around 7:40 a.m. Monday on Route 360 in Virginia, about 60 miles east of the state capital Richmond.

Police say that after missing the bus, the boy - who hasn't been named - took the keys to his family's 2005 Ford Taurus while his mother was asleep, and drove 10 miles toward school.

He ran off the road several times before finally hitting an embankment and utility pole about a mile and a half from school. So he almost made it.

Police say he wasn't wearing a safety belt.

quarta-feira, 7 de janeiro de 2009

Did you pack this yourself, sir?

Luggage featuring embossed images of a gun, knife or axe is likely to spark alerts at airports, security experts warned yesterday.

Gun suitcase

The cases, sold online for up to £98, were described as bringing 'a touch of black humour and novelty to an object which is usually rather boring' by retailer kidslovedesign.com.

But aviation security expert Bruce Schneier warned: 'They're not in good taste... It's a funny joke, but remember that there are no jokes when it comes to airport security.'

Wackiest home insurance claims revealed

Gun
A man accidentally shot his TV set while cleaning an antique gun.

Well, it's one way to turn off your TV... permanently. A man accidentally shot his set while cleaning an antique gun.

The case tops the list of wackiest home insurance claims received by Lloyds TSB last year.

Other quirky cases include the shameless policyholder who claimed for a new bed because he had worn out his old one by having too much sex.

One claimant whose home was burgled supplied the receipts for a collection of sex toys that had gone missing.

Another claimed for loss of his glasses – after a magpie flew in through the bedroom window and pinched them from a bedside cabinet.

And there were many claims for damage to electronics such as players and mobiles from people who admitted putting them in the dishwasher to clean.

Others had been operating their device in the bath and then wondered why it wouldn't work after falling in.

Phil Loney, of Lloyds, said: 'I never cease to be intrigued by the variety of claims we receive. It's impossible to predict what's around the corner.'

The burglars who only ate stale sarnies

Sandwich
The burglars who only ate stale sarnies

Three 'buttie burglars' have paid a high price for grabbing out-of-date sandwiches for a free feast.

The trio – who worked in a nearby electrical store – believed they had permission to take the snacks from the shopping centre café after it closed.

But when the food – worth a total of £26 – went missing, the police were called in, CCTV film studied and the three culprits charged with burglary.

The theft happened at the Middleton Grange mall in Hartlepool.

The café had no shopfront and its counter was accessible to the three, who worked late at BrightHouse electrics.

The trio admitted taking the items in November but believed they had the 'right to do so', Clare Donaldson, prosecuting, told Hartlepool magistrates court.

Mitigating, Dave Smith said colleagues at BrightHouse had told the three it was all right to take out-of-date stock from the café.

'While burglary is a big word and is not a pleasant word to hear or read on somebody's record, this is about as bottom end as a burglary can be without falling off the scale,' he said.

Alex Bell, 35, Emma Berry, 18, both of Hartlepool, and Jeffrey Marchant, 39, of Middlesbrough, admitted burglary and were given 12-month conditional discharges and ordered to pay £8.66 compensation and £90 costs each.

All had no previous convictions. Marchant may now have to quit his role as a school governor, the court heard.

Burglar stole 'Jungle Jane' blow up dolls for alleyway sex session

sex doll

A burglar broke into three adult shops, had sex with blow up dolls named "Jungle Jane" and then dumped his plastic conquests in a nearby alley.

"It's totally bizarre. It's a real concern that someone like that is out on the street," said one of the owners of the adult sex shops in Cairns in northern Queensland state.

"He has been taking the dolls out the back and blowing them up and using the dolls and leaving them in the alley," the owner, who gave the name of Vogue, told the Cairns Post newspaper.

Police told the Cairns Post that scientific officers had taken DNA samples, fingerprints and pictures of the crime scene.

Schoolboy defeats hedgehog ban

Hedgehog
A hedgehog: no longer banned in Lawrence

A schoolboy in Kansas has emerged victorious in his battle to change the law of his city - so that could have a pet hedgehog.

11-year-old Judson King triumphed after campaigning against local laws that banned the animals from the city of Lawrence.

Inspired by a love of Sonic the Hedgehog, and determined to own a real-life version, King spent three years researching how to change the law before presenting his case to city commissioners.

The commissioners were impressed by his prepared speech, and the dossier he had prepared with information about hedgehogs.

And, despite some initial concerns that hedgehogs - which are not native to North America - might harbour foot-and-mouth disease, the commissioners could find no reason to continue banning hedgehogs from the city limits.

'I think he ought to run for City Commission in April,' said impressed City Commissioner Sue Hack said after King's presentation.

At the same meeting, a proposed ban on chickens in the city was turned down.

Preliminary approval for lifting the hedgehog ban was given on December 2, and the prohibition was officially lifted on December 30. By that time, Judson had already reaped the reward for his efforts - he was given a hedgehog called Little Luke for Christmas.

Doctors get to bottom of hairspray X -Ray

It's a medical mystery that surgeons never got to the bottom of in a hospital casualty room - how a woman patient ended up with a can of hairspray up her backside.

Mirela Gradinaru, 37, turned up at the clinic in Arad, western Romania, in agony begging doctors to help her.

hairspray x ray
Doctors had to remove the giant can of hairspray

But she refused to say just how the can came to be there even after a successful, delicate operation to remove the aerosol.

Doctor Mirandolina Prisca explained: "We had X-rays done to localise the object and then we carried out the operation. The patient was fine after it."

"This was a massive can of hairspray"

"She was very embarrassed. She was clearly in a lot of pain, however it got there.

"This was not just a little can of deodorant, this was a massive can of hairspray," said one hospital worker.

terça-feira, 6 de janeiro de 2009

Wheelchair criminal flees on foot

Wheelchair

Police say a woman who begged from a wheelchair was caught running from a crime scene on foot in Monterrey, Mexico.

Police spokeswoman Sidlayin Robles says 30-year-old Ana Victoria Perez fled on foot after she and her husband allegedly threw a stone through the front window of a furniture store.

Perez was a regular fixture along a main Monterrey road, asking for change from motorists as she sat in a wheelchair pushed by her husband.

Robles said Monday that the couple apparently planned to rob the furniture store but were scared off by a security guard. They have been charged with vandalism.

Police arrested the couple when they returned for the wheelchair.

Bush shoe-chucking becomes an art form

An art gallery in America joined the hot trend of throwing shoes at George Bush, as they opened a new exhibit with a paint-splattered fundraiser that featured a 'shoe throw' at an image of the departing President.

Bush shoe throwing art
91-year-old Marjorie Mather reacts with joy after hitting a picture of President Bush with a paint-covered shoe

Eric Navickas, a City Councilor in Ashland, Oregon, who opened the MAda Shell Gallery by slathering a layer of red paint on the soles of sneakers, boots and sandals. People then took turns to fire the footwear at an 8-foot image of Bush.

Each shot cost $1 at Friday's opening, with the funds to go toward future gallery exhibits.

Godard said the exhibit is a 'statement of solidarity' with Muntadhar al-Zeidi, the Iraqi journalist who was arrested after hurling two shoes at Bush in protest during a Baghdad news conference last month.

One contributor was 91-year-old Marjorie Mather.

'Wow, I didn't know that was going to be so much fun,' she said after smacking a shoe into the picture of Bush.

Woman who set husband's testicles on fire charged with murder

Fire
Goodness, gracious

A woman has been charged with murder after allegedly setting her husband's genitals on fire because she thought he was having an affair.

Prosecutors told the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Monday that 44-year-old Rajini Narayan confessed to neighbors that she set her husband on fire on December 8, 2008, after she saw him hug another woman.

She was initially charged with endangering life and arson but the charges were upgraded to murder after her 47-year-old husband, Satish Narayan, died from his injuries last week.

Prosecutor Lucy Boord said Narayan told neighbors she was a "jealous wife" but she hadn't meant to kill him when she doused the sleeping man's genitals with an alcohol-based solvent and then set him on fire.

Boord quoted Narayan allegedly saying: "I just wanted to burn his penis so it belongs to me and no one else ... I didn't mean this to happen."

The husband jumped out of bed and knocked over the bottle of alcohol, causing the fire to spread and resulting in 1 million Australian dollars ($715 million) of damage to their town house and an adjacent property, the Adelaide Advertiser reported.

Narayan was remanded in custody for psychological assessment and will reappear in court Friday. She has been charged with murder, arson and three counts of endangering life, as the couple's three children were at home during the incident.

segunda-feira, 5 de janeiro de 2009

Balloon priest wins Darwin Award for stupidity

priest balloons

There he goes: Di Carli, the balloon priest

A daredevil Catholic priest who was killed after floating out to sea suspended by 1,000 helium-filled party balloons has been honoured for his idiocy.

Reverend Adelir Antonio di Carli had been trying to break a record for the longest time in-flight with party balloons when he disappeared.

Three months later his body was discovered off the south-eastern coast of Brazil.

But now he has won the 2008 Darwin Awards which commemorates people who die in a stupid fashion.

priest balloons
Di Carli: blowing in the wind

Rev di Carli planned to use the money raised in his attempt to break the 19-hour record to fund a "spiritual" rest-stop for truckers in Paranagua, home to Brazil's largest grain port.

Second place went to Italian Ivece Plattner, 68, who got trapped in between a level crossing in his beloved Porsche.

It took Plattner a while to realise he was stuck, according to witnesses. Finally, he jumped from the car and started to run - towards the oncoming train, waving his arms in an attempt to save his car.

The attempt was successful. The car received less damage than its owner.

Burglar scared off by man dressed as Thor

thor
Torvald Alexander, the Norse god of thunder!

A builder scared off a house-breaker by running at him dressed as the Norse god Thor.

The terrified intruder leapt from a first floor window to escape Torvald Alexander, who was dressed as the Norse god of thunder in a red cape and silver helmet and breastplate.

Mr Alexander had just returned from a New Year's Eve fancy dress party when he discovered the man in his home in Inverleith, Edinburgh.

He said he acted instinctively to chase the intruder away, and believed his costume may have added impact.

Mr Alexander, 39, said: "We were both startled but then the instant reaction was that I ran at him and he just jumped straight out of the window.

"I think I would be quite scared if someone looking almost like a gladiator ran at them.

"He might have thought the property was empty.

"He probably would not have expected to meet a strong builder, especially dressed in tinfoil and silver."

The house-breaker did not steal anything but left behind his shoes and the garden fork he used to break in.

He landed on a pitched roof outside the window which broke his fall, and made his escape. Mr Alexander, whose name has Norwegian roots, was inspired to dress as Thor by the Marvel comics series.

He made his costume himself, using large quantities of tinfoil.

The Norse believed that Thor rode through the heavens during thunderstorms on his chariot, which was pulled by two goats.

Lightning flashed whenever he threw his hammer Mjollnir, which magically returned to him. He was usually depicted as a big, powerful man with eyes of lightning and a red beard.

Mr Alexander, who runs building firm Alexander & Summers, said he will report the incident to police.

Lothian and Borders Police said they have not yet received a report.


sábado, 3 de janeiro de 2009

Thank you from Wikipedia founder, Jimmy Wales


Thank you from Wikipedia founder, Jimmy Wales

Jimmy Wales
Dear Reader,


Since July 1, more than 125,000 of you have donated $4 million. In addition, we've received major gifts and foundation support totaling $2 million. This combined revenue will cover our operating expenses for the current fiscal year, ending June 30, 2009.

Your donation makes you a key supporter of the free culture movement, and pays for:

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Any donations beyond our $6 million goal are put in a reserve fund, which will help us to offset operating costs beyond the current fiscal year. Your continued support will also serve as a much-needed financial safety net if economic conditions continue to worsen globally.

You have proven that Wikipedia matters to you, and that you support our mission: to bring free knowledge to the planet, free of charge and free of advertising. You've helped make and keep Wikipedia available for the whole world.

I deeply appreciate your support.

Thank you,

Jimmy Wales

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