moonbuggy

‘U.S. stocks had a tough week with the Dow Jones Industrial Average suffering its worst one-week point drop in five years, but a group of meditators promise their good vibrations will send the index past 17,000 within a year.

A group called the Invincible America Assembly made that claim and more Friday, insisting they have America’s prosperity under control and their positive vibes will bring fewer hurricanes and better U.S.-North Korean relations.

Through group transcendental meditation the assembly — which has 1,800 people meditating daily in Iowa since it was formed in July 2006 — releases harmonious waves which benefit all aspects of U.S. life, spokesman Bob Roth told Reuters. [..]

The group takes credit for, among other things: the Dow Jones Industrial Average reaching a record high of 14,022 last week, unemployment rates falling to a six-year low at 4.5 percent, and North Korea shutting down its nuclear reactor.’

‘1. Dumb as a limestone brick: Indiana’s misguided bid for tourists

The great idea: Turn a small Midwestern town into a tourist mecca for lovers of limestone block.

The great big problem: Limestone block is not as big a draw as you might think.

Cost to taxpayers: $700,000

Despite being the undisputed “Limestone Capital of the World,” Bedford, Indiana, always had a hard time figuring out how to parlay its claim to fame into a thriving tourism industry. That is, until Bedford Chamber of Commerce member Merle Edington came up with a brilliant plan.

In the late 1970s, Edington proposed that Bedford build a Disney-style theme park. But, instead of cartoon characters, the park’s main attraction would be limestone, featuring a 95-foot-high replica of the Great Pyramid of Cheops built out of (you guessed it) local limestone blocks.

And, on the off chance that a scale model of one world wonder wouldn’t be exciting enough, Edington added plans for an 800-foot-long replica of the Great Wall of China.

While the power of limestone over the vacationing public is debatable, Edington convinced the Commerce Department’s Economic Development Administration to believe in his dream — to the tune of $700,000.

Unfortunately, those funds dried up quickly, thanks to Wisconsin senator William Proxmire (famous for his “Golden Fleece Awards” ridiculing government waste), who called attention to the project. The town was left deep in debt, unable to even pay Edington’s salary. Today, the abandoned project is little more than a giant rock pile.’

‘An oral surgeon who temporarily implanted fake boar tusks in his assistant’s mouth as a practical joke and got sued for it has gotten the state’s high court to back up his gag.

Dr. Robert Woo of Auburn had put in the phony tusks while the woman was under anesthesia for a different procedure. He took them out before she awoke, but he first shot photos that eventually made it around the office.

The employee, Tina Alberts, felt so humiliated when she saw the pictures that she quit and sued her boss.

Woo’s insurance company, Fireman’s Fund, refused to cover the claim, saying the practical joke was intentional and not a normal business activity his insurance policy covered, so Woo settled out of court. He agreed to pay Alberts $250,000, then he sued his insurers.’

‘A woman whose purse was stolen and the thief who took it inadvertently stood next to each other at a Prescott bookstore – she to complain about the unauthorized use of her credit card, he to get some cash.

The 59-year-old victim went to Hastings Books and Music on Tuesday to tell the store that someone had stolen her purse and used her credit card to buy $200 in DVDs.

Minutes later, while the woman was standing there, a man came up to the counter and tried to return eight DVDs in exchange for cash. The two didn’t recognized each other, and the woman even politely made room for the man when he walked up.

When the manager came to handle both transactions, she connected the dots.’

‘Druken yobs are roaming towns and cities like “an occupying army”, MPs claimed yesterday.

But ministers have no idea whether the £3.4billion a year spent tackling yobs is effective.

Anti-social behaviour is turning many places into no-go areas, with a small number of families causing “misery and despair” to their communities, the Commons Public Accounts Committee said. [..]

He said: “No civilised country should have to put up with what can seem like an occupying army loose in the streets.”‘

‘For decades, college kids have used stolen milk crates as the basic building blocks of coffee tables and dorm room shelves.

Now, a new breed of crate rustler is cashing in by swiping thousands of the containers from loading docks and selling them to shady recyclers.

The containers are chopped into bits and shipped to booming factories in China to be made into a variety of products, from pipes to flower pots.

Facing an estimated $80 million in annual losses from the thefts, dairies across the country are moving to stop the plastic pilfering. In California, companies are even hiring private detectives and staging sting operations.’

‘An elderly woman who was mugged for 11 cents said she hopes her attacker learned a lesson, NBC 5 reported. [..]

“He got right in my face and said very quietly, ‘Give me your wallet. I have a gun and I will shoot you,'” Rose said. “I felt sick. I was disappointed in me and in him.”

Rose said she thought he was kidding, but gave him everything she had: 11 cents.

“I said, ‘What would your mother think of you?’ He didn’t reply,” Rose said.’

‘Debbie Hulleman’s pet dog Pepper likes to chew things. She’s gnawed on lipstick canisters, shampoo bottles, ball point pens, toothpaste, and now the list includes nearly $750 in cash — gobbled right down.

“This is probably the worst,” Ms. Hulleman said yesterday, recalling the nasty chore of recovering the money from vomit and — you guessed it — dog piles left in the yard. [..]

Pepper got into a purse belonging to a friend of her mother’s and chewed the cash from an envelope. [..]

“It wasn’t that bad. I soaked it and strained it and rinsed it. I just kept rinsing it and rinsing it. I had rubber gloves on of course,” she said. “Everyone said, ‘I can’t believe you did that.’ Well, for $400, yeah, I would do that.”‘

‘Purdue Pharma L.P., the maker of OxyContin, and three of its executives were ordered Friday to pay a $634.5 million fine for misleading the public about the painkiller’s risk of addiction. [..]

Designed to be swallowed whole and digested over 12 hours, the pills can produce a heroin-like high if crushed and then swallowed, snorted or injected.

From 1996 to 2001, the number of oxycodone-related deaths nationwide increased fivefold while the annual number of OxyContin prescriptions increased nearly 20-fold, according to a report by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. In 2002, the DEA said the drug caused 146 deaths and contributed to another 318.’

‘Jock Doubleday, director of the California non-profit corporation Natural Woman, Natural Man, Inc., has offered $75,000 to the first medical doctor or pharmaceutical company CEO who publicly drinks a mixture of standard vaccine additives.

The additives would be the same as those contained in the vaccines recommended for a 6-year-old according to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines, and the dose would be body-weight calibrated. It would include, but not be limited to:

* Thimerosal (a mercury derivative)
* Ethylene glycol (antifreeze)
* Phenol (a disinfectant dye)
* Aluminum
* Benzethonium chloride (a disinfectant)
* Formaldehyde (a preservative and disinfectant)

On August 1, 2007, if no one has taken the challenge, the offer will be increased to $90,000 and will increase at a rate of $5,000 per month until someone accepts.’

‘She sits on the lookout in a lawn chair on their front porch, her forehead glossy with sweat, Bible next to her left foot, wind chimes clinking at her back. Her husband of 24 years is by her side, German shepherd at his knee, handgun tucked beneath the belt on his jeans.

High in these humid hills, Ed and Elaine Brown have been holed up in their home for six months, refusing to serve a five-year prison sentence for tax evasion. They all but dared law officials to come and get them. This, they say, is a fight they’re ready to die for. [..]

“There’s no more America,” Ed says. “It’s already gone.”

“I’ll die fighting, rather than live in slavery,” Elaine says. “I’ll tell you that.” [..]

“There’s two freight trains going just like this toward each other,” Ed says. “So you better take a side, buddy, because when they hit, it’s going to be hellacious.

“And,” he says, “it all could start right here.”‘

‘Police are trying to trace the owner of 65,400 euros (£44,000) mistakenly sent to a 16-year-old boy who bought a Playstation Two for £95 on eBay.

The cash arrived in a box at the house in Aylsham, Norfolk, with the games console, but minus two games.

Police are holding the money under the Proceeds of Crime Act while the matter is investigated.

An eBay spokesman said the parcel’s contents were “somewhat unusual” and it would help police with their inquiries. [..]

But, if the money remains unclaimed the family could potentially apply for it to be returned to them under the Police Property Act.’

‘The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles reached a settlement agreement Saturday with more than 500 people who allege they were sexually abused by clergy, the main plaintiff’s attorney told The Associated Press.

Attorneys for the archdiocese, the nation’s largest, and the plaintiffs will release a joint statement Sunday morning and hold a news conference Monday, said plaintiff’s attorney Ray Boucher.

The deal is valued at $660 million, according to a source who spoke on condition of anonymity because the settlement had not been officially announced.’

‘Francisco Rodriguez owes more than $10,000 in back child support payments in a paternity case involving a 15-year-old girl who, according to DNA results and the girl’s mother, is not his daughter. [..]

He now has DNA results that show the 15-year-old girl wasn’t fathered by him. He even has an affidavit from the girl’s mother — a former girlfriend from 1990 — saying he’s “not the father” and asking that Rodriguez no longer be required to pay child support.

Yet the state of Florida is continuing to push him to pay $305 a month to support the girl, as well as the more than $10,000 already owed. He spent a night in jail because of his delinquent payments. [..]

Rodriguez and his family continue to wait for answers.

“It’s hard when your daughter needs sneakers and you have to pay $305 or your husband goes to jail,” said Rodriguez’s wife, Michele. “It’s just unfair.”‘

‘So… What happens when you mail a letter to someone, but instead of putting a 39 cent stamp from the post office, you just tape on some loose change adding up to 39 cents?’

‘Parking spaces in New York cost as much as $225,000 and could soon be going higher still, putting the cost for the prime spots above the price tag of the typical U.S. home price.

Manhattan real estate agent Tom Postilio said there is a waiting list of seven or eight people hoping to pay $225,000 for one of five private parking spaces that has been approved in the basement of 246 West 17th Street, a 34-unit condo development scheduled for completion next January.

The developer of that building is seeking permission to add another four spots, and Postilio said the addition spots are likely to cost even more than the current price, although he could not give an exact price.’

‘A woman has been banned from going into the sea around the British coastline after trying to drown herself more than 50 times.

Amy Beth Dallamura’s suicide attempts over the past five years have cost emergency services up to £1million.

The 44-year-old has tried to kill herself by jumping off piers and jetties and wading into the ocean.

Police, lifeboats, coastguards and the RAF’s air and sea rescue helicopters have all been involved in rescuing her. [..]

The former golf professional was stopped by police from going into the sea on June 21.

Later that day she was winched from a cliff face after again trying to go into the sea.

On June 23, she had to be airlifted to hospital after going into the sea and being pulled out of the water. Two days later she phoned police threatening to kill herself in the sea. She was found on rocks suffering from hypothermia.’

‘Envelopes containing 10,000 yen ($82) bills and well-wishing notes have been discovered in municipal toilets across Japan, media reports said, baffling civil servants and triggering a nationwide hunt.

Local media have estimated that over two million yen ($16,400) worth of bills were found at men’s rooms in city halls in at least 15 prefectures (states) in recent weeks.

Each package of 10,000-yen bills, some wrapped in traditional Japanese washi paper, was accompanied by handwritten letters that read “Please make use of this money for your self-enrichment,” and “One per person,” according to reports.’

‘Thieves have stolen nearly $US300 million ($347m) from a bank in Baghdad, police and a bank official said today, in what is probably one of the biggest thefts in Iraq since the 2003 war to topple Saddam Hussein.

Police said the thieves were three guards who worked at the private Dar Es Salaam bank in Baghdad’s Karrada district.

They said that when bank employees arrived for work yesterday they found the front door open and the money gone.

The guards, who normally slept at the bank, had also disappeared, they said.’

‘Two people are expected to be charged Wednesday in connection with the bizarre 2003 case in which a pizza deliveryman died after a collar bomb attached to him exploded, CNN has learned.

Brian Wells died August 28, 2003, in Erie, Pennsylvania, after he claimed gunmen grabbed him, locked the bomb around his neck and ordered him to rob a bank. Police detained him after the robbery, and the device exploded as he waited on the pavement. A bomb squad was en route to the scene but did not arrive in time.’

The Smoking Gun has more.

‘An Indian man “mortgaged” his baby son to pay for his wife’s cremation after she died giving birth, reports said today.

Bipin Gagarai of the southeast state of Orissa said he “mortgaged” his son for 1,200 rupees ($31) because he did not have enough money to pay for the funeral.

“As he had no money to transport the body to his village and undertake funeral expenses, he handed over the baby to a childless couple who paid him 1,200 rupees,” the Press Trust of India (PTI) reported.

But district official Shivaji Bhuyan said Mr Gagarai had promised he would reclaim the infant once he had earned enough money to pay back the debt.’

‘Ireland’s top bookmaker, Paddy Power PLC, paid out more than $13,500 on Friday to people who bet that Al Gore would be arrested. Trouble was, the company neglected to specify which one.

The former U.S. vice president and global-warming activist was rated as a 14-to-1 outsider in a list of American celebrities likely to be arrested next. On Wednesday _ the day after the betting went live on Paddy Power’s Web site _ Gore’s 24-year-old son, Al Gore III, was arrested and charged with illegally possessing marijuana and prescription drugs.

Paddy Power said it was paying out winnings to about 50 people, because it had failed to identify which Gore it meant. “We got a good stoning,” the Dublin-based company said in a statement.’

‘Unable to scrounge together the $165 he needed to repay a loan to buy sheep, Nazir Ahmad made good on his debt by selling his 16-year-old daughter to marry the lender’s son.

“He gave me nine sheep,” Ahmad said, describing his family’s woes since taking the loan. “Because of nine sheep, I gave away my daughter.”

Seated beside him in the cramped compound, his daughter Malia’s eyes filled with tears. She used a black scarf to wipe them away.

Despite advances in women’s rights and at least one tribe’s move to outlaw the practice, girls are traded like currency in Afghanistan and forced marriages are common. Antiquated tribal laws authorize the practice known as “bad” in the Afghan language Dari — and girls are used to settle disputes ranging from debts to murder.’

‘Investigators say James Coldwell, 49, robbed the Citizens Bank at 1550 Elm St. while clad in clothing adorned with tree branches held on by duct tape.

Coldwell was charged with one count of robbery after answering questions at the police station, Capt. Dick Tracy said.

Video surveillance of the Saturday morning robbery showed a thin white man leaving the bank in a shroud of tree branches, all duct-taped to his shirt and head. His short, dark hair and mustache were clearly visible between the leaves.
Bank

Tracy said police were tipped off by several anonymous callers after the footage appeared on a nightly news broadcasts.’

(1.1meg Flash video)

see it here »

‘They might seem like modern-day Robin Hoods, but they’re really just cyber-robbers.

Some fraudsters have become generous — with other people’s money, donating to charities with stolen credit cards to verify the numbers are valid before selling them, the security firm Symantec Corp. said Friday on its blog.

Unverified cards fetch up to $6 while verified cards can bring up to $18, said Javier Santoyo, a manager at Symantec. “Even the bad guys want to verify the other bad guys.”

The verification method has become popular because the monitoring software at credit-card companies may not question donations to charities, according the Symantec blog. Santoyo said the schemers usually donate less than $10.’

‘Continued leaps in agricultural technology ensured more production per acre. The result was likewise predictable: the same old food surpluses and low prices. My late parents, who owned the farm I now live on in central California, used to sigh that the planet was reaching 6 billion mouths and so things someday “would have to turn around for farmers.”

Now they apparently have. Food prices are climbing at rates approaching 10 percent per year. But why the sudden change?

There have been a number of relatively recent radical changes in the United States and the world that, taken together, provide the answer [..]’

My dead body is worth $4340. Hooray, I’m rich.

‘Microsoft said on Thursday it expects to spend more than $US1 billion to repair widespread hardware problems in its Xbox 360 video game console after a large number of them broke down.

Microsoft said it would extend the warranty on the Xbox 360 to three years after too many of the consoles succumbed to “general hardware failure,” but the company provided few other details about the extent of the problems.

“We don’t think we’ve been getting the job done,” said Robbie Bach, president of Microsoft’s entertainment and devices division, which also makes the Zune digital music player. “In the past few months, we have been having to make Xbox 360 console repairs at a rate too high for our liking.”‘

‘A pair of pre-teen sisters are accused of kidnapping an infant in Enid on Thursday, police said.

The 10-year-old and 12-year-old girl allegedly broke into a neighbor’s home Thursday morning about 5:30 a.m., taking a 1-year-old baby while his mother, Sheila Wells, slept, police said. A ransom note was left. According to police, they were accused of kidnapping for extortion and first-degree burglary.

Officers said the girls not only took the baby boy, Brandon Wells, from a crib in which he was sleeping, they also took assorted baby items, $20 in cash and left a ransom note telling the mother of the baby that “if you want to see your son again, then you won’t call police and report him missing, and you will leave $200,000 on the sofa tonight, and we will return your son back safe.”

Police said the note was signed “the kidnappers.”‘

‘Dear Co-Workers and Managers,

As many of you probably know, today is my last day. But before I leave, I wanted to take this opportunity to let you know what a great and distinct pleasure it has been to type “Today is my last day.”

For nearly as long as I’ve worked here, I’ve hoped that I might one day leave this company. And now that this dream has become a reality, please know that I could not have reached this goal without your unending lack of support. Words cannot express my gratitude for the words of gratitude you did not express. [..]’