moonbuggy

‘The draw of fame – even of the slightly sketchy Internet variety – can be strong.

The promise of a payoff – in this case, hopes of a boatload of hits for a YouTube video – can lead rational people to make questionable decisions, such as, say, setting your backyard on fire.

That’s what happened when two 18-year-old Moon Township residents soaked the backyard of one of them – along with his shoes and socks – with gasoline and set it aflame early Saturday.

Moon police said Kory Brinza of 108 Bertley Ridge Drive and Joshua Morrow of 264 Moon-Clinton Road hatched a plan around 4 a.m. Saturday to set the fire around Brinza, while Morrow filmed the event on Brinza’s new cell phone. They then planned to upload the video to YouTube.com, an Internet site that hosts millions of homemade clips of every variety.

That’s what was supposed to happen; what actually occurred, Brinza said, was this: Once Brinza soaked much of his yard with gasoline, Morrow lit a match and a fire that engulfed much of the yard – not to mention Brinza’s lower legs – roared to life.’

‘A woman is accused of dropping mothballs into a vat of soup at an Austin grocery store deli.

Lea Suzan Sechler, 44, faces a felony charge of tampering with a consumer product. She was released on bail after her arrest Thursday.

Sechler had been a regular customer at the Randall’s supermarket where at least three times customers and employees noticed the soup had the scent of mothballs.

Randalls Food Markets said no illnesses related to the tainted soup were reported.

The second time the soup smelled like mothballs, a manager sent the batch for testing. It tested positive for dichlorobenzene, a primary ingredient in many mothballs and a chemical that can contribute to a range of ailments.’

‘A mysterious blonde paid a visit to a petrol station shop in the small eastern German town of Doemitz on Sunday — wearing nothing but a pair of golden stilettos and a thin gold bracelet.

The tall, slender woman strolled into the shop in the town of Doemitz on the warm afternoon and bought cigarettes, petrol station employee Ines Swoboda told Reuters on Monday.

“I wasn’t surprised because she’s come in naked before — she’s a very nice woman,” Swoboda said, adding none of the other customers was bothered. The woman could have faced charges of creating a public disturbance if anyone had complained.’

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‘A grandad has just discovered he has been living with a broken neck for 59 YEARS.

John Richards, 74, did not know he had fractured vertebrae when he fell from a tree while stealing apples as a 16-year-old in 1948.

He was treated at the time for a broken wrist but doctors missed the other life-threatening break.

John, who felt no specific pain in his neck, got on with an active life working on a farm, and playing football and cricket.

He even BOXED for 15 years at a gym with no idea that one “wrong” blow could kill him.

The break was only spotted when John went for a routine check-up with his GP last month.’

‘Two years ago, Russell Tavares was a clean-cut 25-year-old entrusted with “very high clearance” in missile and fire control in the U.S. Navy, officials say.

Now he’s the subject of a bizarre, tragic story — one that McLennan County investigators say would be a fitting plot for a television crime drama about short tempers, long-distance vendettas and the Internet’s ability to bring various personalities into conflict.

Tavares was involved in an Internet chat room squabble with John Anderson, a 59-year-old Elm Mott resident. Anderson said he called Tavares “a nerd.”

Tavares’ response: He took a leave of absence from the Navy. Drove from Virginia to Waco. Set fire to Anderson’s trailer home.’

‘A Florida man was taken to Community Medical Center early Monday after he attempted to cut off his penis, authorities said.

Officers were dispatched about 4:45 a.m. to 437 Taylor Ave., in the city’s Hill Section, after reports of a man who cut himself. When they arrived James Powell, 20, of Miami, was standing in the kitchen, holding a towel over his penis, Scranton police Capt. Carl Graziano said.

“Officers observed a large amount of blood on the kitchen floor and on the counter where the knife was located,” Capt. Graziano said. “They asked the male what happened and he said he tried to cut his penis off.”’

‘Drunk but intent on driving, Jesenia Vega fought off her boyfriend as she left a Centereach block party and got into her car, Suffolk police said.

“You’re going to get arrested,” Louis Wiederer, 26, of Westbury, warned his girlfriend, a witness heard them arguing late Saturday. “You can’t drive like that!”

“Leave me alone!” she said.

With that, Vega, 27, of Carle Place, put her key in the ignition and drove off – as Wiederer hung onto an open window. She continued north, dragging him on the pavement, then underneath her car, before coming to a stop three blocks later, police and witnesses said.

Jay Steiner, 60, a retired nurse, who lives near the scene, rushed to the man’s aid.

“Oh, my God,” Steiner recalled Vega telling him. “Don’t tell me I just killed my fiance.”‘

‘A man heading towards an aviation show crashed landed on a Wisconsin highway outside of Fon Du Lac. A car caught this amazing footage of the plane approaching the highway.’

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‘A former heavyweight boxing champion was shot after asking three men to stop smoking in a wine bar.

James Oyebola, 47, was having a drink in the garden area of the venue when a dispute erupted over the new smoking ban.

One of the men pulled out a gun and fired at point-blank range into his face and leg.

Mr Oyebola, a father of two, was critically ill last night on a life support machine. His partner of 15 years and their children are keeping a vigil at his bedside.’

‘After three years on the ADHD drug Ritalin, kids are about an inch shorter and 4.4 pounds lighter than their peers, a major U.S. study shows.

The symptoms of childhood ADHD — attention deficit hyperactivity disorder — usually get dramatically better soon after kids start taking stimulant drugs. But this benefit may come with a cost, says James Swanson, PhD, director of the Child Development Center at the University of California, Irvine.

“Yes, there is a growth suppression effect with stimulant ADHD medications,” Swanson tells WebMD. “It is going to occur at the age of treatment, and over three years it will accumulate.”‘

‘Jason Shenfeld’s parents noticed their 26-year-old son was acting nervous, locking his bedroom door every time he left.

He wouldn’t give his mother his complete set of bedsheets to wash. When his father went in to retrieve them Friday night, he saw why: Shoved into Shenfeld’s bedroom closet, stuffed among sheets and clothing, was 18-year-old Amanda Buckley’s body.

Shenfeld told his father that the teen overdosed on drugs and he panicked, a Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office report states. Then he fled.

Investigators found duct tape in Buckley’s hair, bruises on her body and evidence of rape, according to the report. They also found a garbage bag filled with duct tape and rope.

An autopsy Saturday revealed that the college-bound softball star was strangled, beaten in the head and sexually abused.’

‘Authorities say a diver was killed after lightning struck his oxygen tank in Deerfield Beach.

Fire rescue officials say the victim had been diving with three others off a boat yesterday. When he surfaced, lighting struck his tank. He was about 30 feet from the boat.’

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‘Russia is sending a mini-submarine to explore the ocean floor below the North Pole and find evidence to support its claims to Arctic territory.

Two parliamentarians, including veteran explorer Artur Chilingarov, are part of a team planning to dive 4,200m (14,000 ft) below the Arctic Ocean on Sunday. [..]

Moscow argued before a UN commission in 2001 that waters off its northern coast were in fact an extension of its maritime territory.

The claim was based on the argument that an underwater feature, known as the Lomonosov Ridge, was an extension of its continental territory. [..]

The team aboard the mini-submarine Mir is expected to carry out scientific experiments and measurements on the sea bed.’

Followup to Russia lays claim to the North Pole.

‘A Dutch association of shops that sell “magic mushrooms” on Monday called for a self-imposed ban on the sale of the hallucinogenic fungi to minors.

The move comes during an ongoing debate in the Netherlands about the safety of the magic mushrooms after a number of incidents involving tourists who had taken them.

A majority in Dutch parliament said it was in favour of a total ban but in June Health Minister Ab Klink said he just wants an age limit because a total ban was not legally possible. [..]

In the Netherlands the sale of dried magic mushrooms is banned but fresh ones are allowed because they can also be found naturally in some Dutch woods.’

‘An intoxicated, visually impaired man entered the wrong northeast Harris County home early today and suffered minor wounds after the frightened homeowner fired a shotgun, officials said.

“It was not his residence,” said Lt. Michael Young of the Harris County Precinct 4 constable’s office. “The homeowner requested that this person leave and the interloper refused, insisting it was his house.”

When the confused man advanced on the homeowner, the homeowner fired a round of bird shot that grazed the man on his face and head, Young said.

The man, whose family told deputies he has been involved in similar incidents before, was taken by ambulance to a hospital, where he remained this morning, Young said. The man lives nearby, he said.’

‘Scientists managed to create an ultrastrong material that has many of the characteristics of the plexiglas, used to make bulletproof glass. The strange thing about this material is the fact that it’s made of a 50-atom-thick layer of gold particles.

Seen under a microscope, the new material, developed by scientists at the University of Chicago and Argonne National Laboratory looks like a transparent sheet of closely packed gold nanoparticles separated by organic spacers, placed atop a silicon chip. It consists of gold particles separated by organic “bumpers” to keep them from coming into direct contact.

“It’s an amazing little marvel,” said Heinrich Jaeger, Professor in Physics at the University of Chicago. “This is not a very fragile layer, but rather a robust, resilient membrane.” Some of the properties of this sheet are remarkable, like the fact that it maintains its structural integrity at relatively high temperatures, even when poked with ultrafine tips of metal.’

‘Most Harry Potter fanatics have read the new book by now so these spoilers should be old news. However by the looks on their faces it was not old news to these people waiting to buy the book on Friday night.’

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‘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.”‘

‘”The FBI is here,”Mom tells me over the phone. Immediately I can see my mom with her back to a couple of Matrix-like figures in black suits and opaque sunglasses, her hand covering the mouthpiece like Grace Kelly in Dial M for Murder. This must be a joke, I think. But it’s not, because Mom isn’t that funny.

“The who?” I say.

“Two FBI agents. They say you’re not in trouble, they just want to talk. They want to come to the store.”

I work in a small, independent bookstore, and since it’s a slow Tuesday afternoon, I figure, “Sure.” Someone I know must have gotten some government work, I think; hadn’t my consultant friend spoken recently of getting rolled onto some government job? Background check, I think, interviewing acquaintances … No big deal, right? Then, of course, I make a big deal about it in front of my co-workers.’

‘Scientists have genetically modified goats to make a drug in their milk that protects against deadly nerve agents such as sarin and VX.

These poisons are known collectively as organophosphates – a group of chemicals that also includes some pesticides used in farming.

So far, the GM goats have made almost 15kg of a drug which binds to and neutralises organophosphate molecules. [..]

The drug, called recombinant butyrylcholinesterase, could be used as a protective “prophylactic” drug and also to treat people after exposure to nerve gas.’

‘A habanero pepper rates at between 200-300k scoville units which means they are really friggin hot. This dude took a big bit of one and the heat from the pepper really kick his ass.’

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‘A panicky man left a blazing trail behind him as he dashed around the countryside looking for a hose to put out his burning hay wagon, authorities said. [..]

The malfunctioning brakes apparently set the hay on fire, Hart fire Chief Ken Klotz said. The man was unable to unhook the trailer as the fire grew.

“The wind caught it, and I guess it singed the hat right off his head,” Klotz told the Ludington Daily News. “He panicked and just floor-boarded it to get to an open area.”

The man said he was looking for a house with a hose to put out the fire, but traveled about five miles through the rural countryside before stopping, Klotz said.

“The whole thing was on fire — the back of his pickup truck and the trailer,” Klotz said. “One guy saw him driving by and said he saw 30-foot flames coming out of the hay as he was going down the road.”‘

‘To take part in its annual exercises with the United States Air Force here last month, Japan practiced dropping 500-pound live bombs on Farallon de Medinilla, a tiny island in the western Pacific’s turquoise waters more than 150 miles north of here.

The pilots described dropping a live bomb for the first time — shouting “shack!” to signal a direct hit — and seeing the fireball from aloft.

“The level of tension was just different,” said Capt. Tetsuya Nagata, 35, stepping down from his cockpit onto the sunbaked tarmac.

The exercise would have been unremarkable for almost any other military, but it was highly significant for Japan, a country still restrained by a Constitution that renounces war and allows forces only for its defense. Dropping live bombs on land had long been considered too offensive, so much so that Japan does not have a single live-bombing range.’

‘Lindsay Lohan allegedly amused herself in rehab by wandering around naked to shock male patients and staff.

The Mean Girls star – who recently spent 45 days in Malibu’s Promises Centre to be treated for alcoholism – was reportedly overheard bragging about her nude exploits at Allegra Versace’s birthday party.

A source told National Enquirer magazine: “Lindsay was howling with laughter as she told all her friends, including Bruce Willis’ daughter Rumer. They were all giggling too and their eyes were popping out.

“Lindsay said, ‘I drove them all mad wandering around completely naked. They kept telling me to quit, but it was so much fun to tease all those boys. I just couldn’t stop it!’.”‘

‘While trying to set a prank on his girlfriend this guy slips, hits his head and knocks himself out cold. Apparently his girlfriend found him 10 minutes later with a 3 inch gash on his head and had to rush him to the ER.’

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‘A woman in Seffner is accused of attacking her roommates with a hammer and a turkey.

Police say Jackie Baird was arguing with her two roommates Monday morning when she threw the turkey, hitting one of the roommates in the face. She then reportedly chased the two with a hammer.

No one was injured.’

‘Charges against a man accused of raping and repeatedly molesting a 7-year-old girl have been dropped because the court took too long to find an interpreter fluent in his native West African language.

Montgomery County Circuit Judge Katherine D. Savage dismissed the nearly three-year-old case against Mahamu Kanneh last week, saying the delays had violated the Liberian immigrant’s right to a speedy trial.

“This is one of the most difficult decisions I’ve had to make in a long time,” Savage said from the bench Tuesday. She said she was mindful of “the gravity of this case and the community’s concern about offenses of this type.” [..]

Prosecutors at first maintained Kanneh could understand the proceedings without translation into his native Vai, a tribal language that linguists estimate is spoken by about 100,000 people mostly in Liberia and Sierra Leone.’