Timothy Trammell, 36, was arrested on several charges in Jonesville, S.C., after a sheriff’s deputy spotted him spray-painting a car that wasn’t his. According to the deputy’s report, Trammell had just finished angrily painting “C-h-e-e-t-e-r” [sic] on a car belonging to a woman who was identified in a TV report as his girlfriend.
Google Sees The Future
Google recently filed a U.S. Patent Office application for a device in liquid form that is said to improve sight when it is injected directly into the eyeball. It solidifies into a lens replacement for the eye that is also an instrument that has its own radio and wireless power supply. The idea, according to inventor Andrew Jason Conrad, is to better focus light onto the retina. The patent process does not assure that the device will ever be made available. But it might indicate that Google’s parent Alphabet company is concerned that other inventors might be doing similar work.
Dueling Bulldozers
As China’s real-estate construction boom fades, tempers have flared. According to a local government officer in Hebei province, two companies’ officials who were angling for the same contract dueled each other with the bulldozers they were driving. The incident was captured on video. The losing driver ran away after his bulldozer was turned over.
The Entrepreneurial Spirit
— Some believe new parents can ruin their baby daughter’s chances of success by giving her a “weak name,” such as Polly. There are several services that recommend “powerful” names, such as Elizabeth. A Swiss agency whose primary job is to name product brands now offers parents suggestions on their offspring’s “brand” for fees beginning at $29,000. Parents in South Korea and India traditionally seek baby-naming recommendations from priests, who review religious texts and astrology in exchange for modest offerings. — Entrepreneur.com reported on the surprising success of “Ship Your Enemies Glitter.” For $10, the start-up company sends an envelope full of glitter. When the envelope is opened, the glitter scatters, irritating or enraging the recipient. The concept was an overnight sensation. But it quickly petered out. Then a businessman offered $85,000 for the start-up’s two major assets: (1) a list of customers who might pay for similar pranks and (2) an opportunity to reach new customers discovering the original glitter product. The $85,000 purchaser is reporting sales “in the high six figures.”
Compelling Explanations
— Peter Jensen of Athol, Idaho, filed a lawsuit against the state transportation department after his driving privileges were revoked because his car had no license plate. For the inconvenience, he believes he deserves $5.6 million in gold and silver. His argument is that there is nothing about “license plates” in the Ten Commandments. — Scout Hodge, 20, who was angry at his mother, was charged with arson in Austin, Texas, for setting fire to her rug. He told police he did it as a “political” statement and to prove he isn’t a “loser.”
Least Competent Cops
Motorist Rebecca Musarra was stopped for speeding in October, 2015, by state troopers in New Jersey. She handed over her license and registration, but declined to answer the troopers’ “Do you know why we stopped you?” questions. Annoyed at her silence, troopers Matthew Stazzone and Demetric Gosa, who were recorded by police dashboard video, threatened with increasing aggressiveness to arrest her for “obstruction.” Musarra pointed out that — as nearly every American knows — she has the right to remain silent. The troopers nonetheless arrested her. As they did, they recited that she has the “right to remain silent.” After nearly two hours at the station, a supervisor offered a weak apology and released her. Musarra, an attorney, has filed a federal lawsuit.
Cliches Come To Life
— The British broadcast censor Ofcom declined to punish a January edition of The Jeremy Kyle Show on which a guest used a “well-known swear word” because the speaker has a Scottish accent, and, Ofcom said, probably no more than two or three people understood what he was saying. — The body of Peter (“Petey Crack”) Martinez, 28, who had a long rap sheet, washed up on a beach in Brooklyn on May 2. His feet were encased in a bucket of hardened cement. It was the first time veteran New York detectives could ever recall seeing actual “cement shoes.”
Chutzpah!
— New York City police rounded up 39 people suspected of being part of a massive credit-card-scamming operation targeted at customers of high-end retailers such as Saks Fifth Avenue. Members of the operation are affiliated with the rap group Pop Out Boyz, which makes reference to the scams in its songs. One rap, “For a Scammer,” features the words “I’m cracking cards ‘cause I’m a scammer.”
Want Some Netflix With Your Liver?
Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign announced they had recently transmitted high-speed digital data through slabs of pork loin and beef liver. The signal cleared the muscle and gristle so cleanly that it enabled streaming of high-definition video. Researchers said they were able to watch Netflix. The research is crucial. It will contribute to the development of technology that allows a patient to swallow a transmitter and physicians to monitor the inner workings of the body and externally control implanted devices, such as defibrillators.
Can’t Possibly Be True
Religious leaders associated with the “quiverfull” ministry announced intentions for a November retreat this year in Wichita, Kansas, at which parents will meet to plan “arranged” Christian marriages for their prepubescent daughters to maximize the future couples’ childbearing potential. Quiverfull activist Vaughn Ohlman has written that female fertility is optimal during females’ teenage years — especially just after age 12 — and drops off in their 20s. The local district attorney said such marriages are legal as long as all parties consent. But Ohlman has maintained that the Bible doesn’t require the bride’s consent if her father has given his.
Latest Religious Messages
An unidentified Israeli man petitioned the Haifa Magistrate’s Court recently for a restraining order against God, stating that God has exhibited “a seriously negative attitude toward him.” The judge rejected the petition.
Parental Values
In Beijing, an elderly couple secured a court order forcing their 36-year-old daughter to move out after she had refused for years to do so. The couple admitted to the Beijing Morning Post that they might have pampered her over the years. Even after they lent her $23,000 to buy a house, she stayed with them.
Texas School Blues
— Houston’s KHOU-TV revealed in May that the French teacher at the Houston school district’s Energy Institute High School doesn’t speak French. She did take one year of French in high school. — The Sheldon school district near Houston admitted in May that a 7-year-old student at Sheldon Elementary had written her “please excuse Rosabella early” note and was allowed to go home instead of attending her after-school program. — School police at Christa McAuliffe Middle School in Houston threatened to arrest a 13-year-old girl during the last school year. They were unaware that the $2 bill the girl tried to use in the cafeteria was valid U.S. currency.
Evidence Of Stupidity
In a report on the Anti-Terrorism Court in Karachi, The Daily Pakistan newspaper stated that a judge in Courtroom III asked a constable if he knew how a grenade entered into evidence worked. Rather than assume that an explanation was requested, the constable pulled the pin to demonstrate. The resulting explosion injured the constable, a court clerk and another police officer. The constable is said to be facing severe discipline as soon as he recovers.
Police Reports
In April, police in Brighton, Ontario, responded to what was reported by neighbors as a domestic dispute. Neighbors heard someone shouting, “I hope you die!” Police found nothing but a man “arguing” with his pet parrot, who the man said was “beaking off” at him. No arrests were made.
Updates
In Oslo district court, Norway’s most notorious terrorist, Anders Behring Breivik (who killed 77 students in 2011) prevailed in his complaint about his treatment in prison. He was awarded $41,000. The prison was found to have violated Breivik’s human rights by restricting his outside contacts and excessively restraining and strip-searching him. He also complained of poor food choices.
Comments are closed.