iWon News:
"Thailand's film chiefs have told the makers of the next Rambo sequel due to start filming in the southeast nation early next year to avoid excessive violence for fear of corrupting youth or damaging the environment.
'We have warned them that any violence has to be reasonable because we care about young people,' said Wanasiri Morakul, a director at the Thailand Film Office.
In the planned movie, 'Rambo IV: In the Serpent's Eye,' the renegade Vietnam veteran played by Sylvester Stallone comes out of retirement in Bangkok to track down missionary aid workers who disappear in the jungles of military-ruled Myanmar."
For SpongeBob, 3-year-old sacrifices freedom (at least temporarily) - USATODAY.com:
"A toddler who went fishing for a stuffed cartoon character in a vending machine wound up sharing space with the toy inside the game's plastic cubicle.
Three-year-old Robert Moore tried to scoop out a stuffed replica of SpongeBob SquarePants with the vending machine's plastic crane on Saturday, but had no luck on his first attempt.
While his grandmother, Fredricka Bierdemann, turned her back to get another dollar for a second try, Robert took off his coat and squeezed through an opening in the machine. He landed in the stuffed animal cube."
iWon News:
"A new fast food is making its debut at U.S. fairs this fall -- fried Coke.
Abel Gonzales, 36, a computer analyst from Dallas, tried about 15 different varieties before coming up with his perfect recipe -- a batter mix made with Coca-Cola syrup, a drizzle of strawberry syrup, and some strawberries.
Balls of the batter are then deep-fried, ending up like ping-pong ball sized doughnuts which are then served in a cup, topped with Coca-Cola syrup, whipped cream, cinnamon sugar and a cherry on the top.
'It tastes great,' said Sue Gooding, a spokeswoman for the State Fair of Texas where Gonzales' fried Coke made its debut this fall. 'It was a huge success.'"
iWon News:
"Researchers are struggling to understand a rare medical condition where sufferers unknowingly demand, or actually have, sex while asleep, New Scientist magazine reported on Wednesday.
Research into sexsomnia -- making sexual advances toward another person while asleep -- has been hampered as sufferers are so embarrassed by the problem they tend not to own up to it, while doctors do not ask about it.
As yet there is no cure for the condition, which often leads to difficulties in relationships.
'It really bothers me that I can't control it,' Lisa Mahoney told the magazine. 'It scares me because I don't think it has anything to do with the partner. I don't want this foolish condition to hurt us in the long run.'"
Canada troops battle 10-foot Afghan marijuana plants - CNN.com:
"Canadian troops fighting Taliban militants in Afghanistan have stumbled across an unexpected and potent enemy -- almost impenetrable forests of marijuana plants 10 feet tall.
General Rick Hillier, chief of the Canadian defense staff, said Thursday that Taliban fighters were using the forests as cover. In response, the crew of at least one armored car had camouflaged their vehicle with marijuana.
'The challenge is that marijuana plants absorb energy, heat very readily. It's very difficult to penetrate with thermal devices. ... And as a result you really have to be careful that the Taliban don't dodge in and out of those marijuana forests,' he said in a speech in Ottawa, Canada."
iWon News:
"A Canadian city under pressure for alleged sexual harassment within its fire department has ordered firefighters to wear only boxer-style underwear.
Richmond, British Columbia will spend C$16,000 ($14,200) to buy six pairs of underwear for each firefighter in a bid to make firehalls in the suburb of Vancouver more gender neutral, a newspaper reported on Tuesday.
'We supply firefighters with various pieces of gear such as gloves, now it's underwear,' city official Ted Townsend told the Vancouver Sun, saying it was part of the 'integration of the sexes in the workplace.'"
Milosevic, dead since March, gets vote call - Yahoo! News:
"The late Serb strongman
Slobodan Milosevic, who died in detention at the Hague tribunal earlier this year, has been called to vote at a referendum next weekend, Serbian media said Monday.
The invite, published in Press daily, has instructions on the location and opening times of Milosevic's polling station. He died on March 11, shortly before the expected end of a lengthy trial for war crimes during the Yugoslav wars of the 1990s.
The referendum on Oct 28-29 asks Serbs to endorse a constitution stressing that
Kosovo, where Milosevic tried to put down a separatist rebellion with a brutal military campaign, is an inalienable part of Serbia."
iWon News:
"A 59-year-old German man who has spent the last 34 years in jail has turned down offers to be let out, an official said Saturday.
'He rejected an offer to leave in 1992,' Thomas Melzer, a spokesman for the Brandenburg state justice ministry, told Bild newspaper. 'We can't do anything if someone sentenced to life in prison doesn't want to leave.'
The man, identified only as Gerold H, was convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment in 1972 when the area was part of communist East Germany."
Nose jobs, tummy tucks the rage - Yahoo! News:
"Image-conscious Indians have been flocking to cosmetic surgery clinics across the capital for new noses, tummy tucks and larger breasts in the run-up to the country's biggest Hindu festival, Diwali.
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Plastic surgeons say they have seen a 20-to-40 percent rise in the number of clients in the month leading up to the October 21 festival of lights, seen as the Hindu equivalent of Christmas.
As offices and homes across New Delhi, a bustling metropolis of 14 million people, are decorated with lights, shops offer discounts on sequined saris and gold jewelry, other Indians are looking for the ultimate makeover."
Park visitor finds 5.47-carat diamond - CNN.com:
"A Wisconsin man visiting a state park took home the ultimate souvenir: a 5.47-carat canary diamond.
Bob Wehle of Ripon, Wisconsin, found the diamond at the Crater of Diamonds State Park in Murfreesboro October 14. The park is the world's only publicly operated diamond site where visitors are allowed to search and keep any gems they find.
Wehle's 5.47-carat diamond is bright yellow and has no visible flaws, said Tom Stolarz, park superintendent. It is the second-largest gem unearthed this year at the park.
'At first glance, it makes you think of lemon drop candy,' Stolarz said."
California woman reports finger in sandwich - USATODAY.com:
"Health officials are investigating a woman's claim that she found part of a human finger in a Subway sandwich — an allegation reminiscent of the chili bowl finger hoax at a Wendy's restaurant last year.
Two health inspectors visited the Subway restaurant Thursday in Chowchilla after the woman reported finding what appeared to be a half-inch piece of a finger a day earlier, said Jill Yaeger, director of the Madera County Environmental Health Department.
The inspectors did not find any evidence that a restaurant worker had lost part of a finger, and they found no violations of food handling procedures there, Yaeger said. The purported human digit was sent to a laboratory for testing, and the incident was reported to police.
The Subway manager, Anita Munoz, said she was in the restaurant when the woman returned with what she claimed looked like a finger."
iWon News:
"An Australian prisoner who went on a crash diet so he could squeeze his way out of jail escaped to show authorities that he could go straight on the outside, a court heard Friday.
Robert Cole, 37, fasted and used laxatives to lose some 30 pounds before he squeezed through a hole he had chiseled with a butter knife to escape from a hospital in a Sydney maximum security prison in January.
Weighing just 123 pounds, Cole squeezed through the hole he had made between brickwork and a window frame, scaled a razor-wire fence, walked along a prison wall and then jumped to freedom. He was recaptured three days later."
iWon News - TV Bounty Hunter Grabs a Legal Victory:
"The Dog remains unleashed - for now. Attorneys for TV reality star Duane 'Dog' Chapman on Friday said the Mexican federal court has granted them an order that halts the criminal case against Chapman until further evidence and witness testimony are gathered.
U.S. Marshals arrested Chapman here on Sept. 14 along with his son Leland and another associate after Mexico issued a warrant because of his capture of fugitive convicted rapist Andrew Luster, the Max Factor heir, on June 18, 2003, in Puerto Vallarta. Bounty hunting is considered a crime in Mexico.
Chapman was released on $300,000 bail after spending a night in a federal detention center. He and his crew have been facing extradition to Mexico since then."
iWon News:
"A Spanish woman staged fake kidnappings of her son four times and got his father to pay her more than a million euros ($1.26 million) in ransom money, newspaper El Mundo reported Friday.
Police in the southern Spanish city of Seville arrested the woman and five accomplices, including the 15-year-old son who cooperated in the deception by calling his father on the telephone and begging him to pay up.
The father paid ransoms after the first three fake abductions without realizing the involvement of his son's mother, from whom he had separated. He became suspicious the fourth time and hired a private detective, El Mundo reported."
Crow's feet? Turkey neck? Be a 'youth' in Kenya - CNN.com:
"If you believe you are only as young as you feel, maybe you should be living in Kenya.
A government minister has proposed changing the legal definition of youth to anyone aged from 15 to 50 -- a two-decade jump from the current ceiling of 30 years.
If passed by parliament, that would put youths within five years of Kenya's official retirement age of 55.
Youth Affairs Minister Muhammad Kuti was quoted in local media as saying the government plans to change the law so more people can access a 1 billion shilling ($14 million) youth fund established this year."
USATODAY.com - Born free: Bubba the lobster back in sea:
"A 7-year-old girl who wanted to set free a grocery store lobster has gotten her wish.
Myranda Hutchinson won the nearly 8-pound lobster last month during an anniversary celebration at a bigg's grocery store in Cincinnati.
'I nicknamed him Bubba because he was so big,' said Dave Brandon, the store's seafood salesman.
After winning Bubba, Myranda's family called and e-mailed zoos and aquariums, but none wanted to take in the crustacean."
iWon News:
"Bidders, at least one them costumed, paid top dollar for Star Trek items on Thursday at the start of Christie's auction of memorabilia from the seminal television and movie franchise.
A model of the Starship Enterprise E was bought by an online bidder for $132,000 including commission, more than 10 times its $8,000 to $12,000 pre-sale estimate.
Another item, a 30-square-inch (193-square-centimeter) Borg cube model used in 'Star Trek: First Contact,' sold for $96,000 to a telephone bidder. Its estimated value was between $1,000 and $1,500."
iWon News:
"A German lawyer hopes to drum up more business by pursuing state compensation claims for people who believe they were abducted by aliens.
'There's quite obviously demand for legal advice here,' Jens Lorek told Reuters by telephone on Thursday. 'The trouble is, people are afraid of making fools of themselves in court.'
Lorek, a lawyer based in the eastern city of Dresden who specializes in social and labor law, said he hoped to expand his client base by taking on the unusual work.
He has yet to win any abduction claims, but says there are plenty of potential clients, noting that extra-terrestrial watchdogs report scores of alien assaults every year."
From
Pantagraph.com -
Humane Society seeks dismissal of Katrina lawsuitThe Humane Society of Central Illinois has asked a judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed by a Hurricane Katrina victim who wants the organization to return her dog.
New Orleans resident Deborah Marks says she had to leave her golden retriever mix, Goldie, so she could find medication for her diabetic aunt during the aftermath of Katrina.
City officials kept Marks from going back to the city. Goldie was later rescued, flown to Bloomington by the Humane Society and adopted to a local family.
In a motion to dismiss Marks’ civil lawsuit, the Humane Society says it no longer has possession of Goldie and argues it should not have to divulge who adopted the dog.
And this -
From
Los Angeles Times:
Woman Sues Over Dog Lost in KatrinaA New Orleans woman who lost her dog during Hurricane Katrina is suing the suburban Philadelphia family that adopted it and two kennels that processed the animal.
Sheila Combs said in the lawsuit that she wants Rocket, her 10-year-old son's pet, returned home. The suit also seeks unspecified damages.
The suit, filed Friday in Bucks County Court, names as defendants Lynne and Joseph Welsh, who adopted the dog, and kennels Holiday House Pet Resort and Molly's Country Kennels. The suit alleges the kennels "wrongfully adopted out" Rocket after the dog was sent to Pennsylvania following its hurricane rescue.
USATODAY.com - Illegal immigrants sue Wendy's for not enrolling them in citizenship program:
"A group of illegal immigrants who worked for Wendy's International Inc. is suing the restaurant chain because the company fired them after discovering it had missed a deadline for joining a federal program that would have helped them attain legal status.
The lawsuit, filed Friday in state district court in Houston, is a companion to a similar class-action suit filed last month in Dallas against Dublin, Ohio-based Wendy's, its subsidiary Cafe Express and the Houston-based business law firm Boyar & Miller.
The immigrants, who worked for Cafe Express, are seeking unspecified damages.
Between the two lawsuits, 40 illegal immigrants say they were fired after the company recently found that Boyar & Miller, the law firm Wendy's had hired, never filed paperwork for a 2001 legalization program that allowed immigrants with employer sponsorship or an American spouse to apply for citizenship."
CNN.com - Controversial tree gets police protection - Oct 3, 2006:
"Indonesian police have slapped a cordon around a huge landmark banyan tree in the capital after members of a Muslim youth group attacked it to prove it had no special mystical powers.
The governor of Jakarta filed a complaint with police after youths hacked and damaged the 100-year-old banyan, on a traffic island in the capital, in a bid to dispel rumours the tree harbored special powers.
'The city government tried hard not to cut the tree when we built a new bus lane. It is more than 100 years old and it is important for the environment,' said Susi Marsitawati of Jakarta's park agency."
iWon News:
"Every weeknight millions of Colombians tune in to watch a smash television series about the indignities suffered by a teen-age girl willing to do anything to get her breasts enlarged.
Tired of being poor and going to school with no good jobs in sight after graduation, Catalina decides to do what her friends have done and get breast implants in order to snag a gangster boyfriend who can take care of her.
She tries to prostitute herself to get money for the operation but, in a kind of Colombian Catch 22, has trouble winning clients due to her small cup size.
The show, based on a true story, is both loved and hated for displaying the culture of easy money here in the world's biggest cocaine-exporting country."
CNN.com - Frequent-flier cashes in miles for space trip - Sep 28, 2006:
"The closest that Alan Watts came to experiencing outer space was on a theme park ride -- now the British businessman has traded his multitude of frequent-flier miles for a real journey 75 miles (120 kilometers) above Earth, he said Thursday.
Watts has racked up 2 million flyer miles and plans to travel on the world's first commercial tourism flights to space, Virgin Atlantic Airways spokeswoman Katie Francis said.
He will be among the first 1,000 people to travel on a space tourism program in 2009 with Virgin Galactic, an offshoot of British entrepreneur Richard Branson's Virgin Atlantic. Flights cost $200,000 (about 100,000 pounds, euro155,000)."
iWon News:
"A Brazilian law designed to ensure fair elections has kept police from arresting a 23-year-old law student who confessed to hiring hitmen to kill his mother.
Adriano Saddi Lima Oliveira told police he paid 40,000 reais ($18,433) to hitmen who killed his mother Marisa, a real estate tycoon, several months ago, a police investigator told local TV. Oliveira told police his mother was squandering his inheritance going out with her boyfriend.
Police wanted to arrest him but were unable to do so because of a law that prohibits anybody from being arrested five days before and two days after an election, unless they are caught in the act of committing a crime."
