Israeli troops in the West Bank arrested more than 30 senior Hamas members Thursday, the army said, including a Cabinet minister, legislators and mayors.
The Palestinian president condemned the arrests, saying they would hinder his efforts to restore a truce with Israel, and Washington expressed concern about the detentions. Hamas threatened to retaliate with attacks inside the Jewish state.
The arrests reflected an Israeli decision to target the Hamas political leadership — but not necessarily with the lethal airstrikes it has staged over the past week on targets linked to the Hamas military arm.
Israeli aircraft staged attacks during the day and into the night, mainly on Hamas training bases and command posts. A huge plume of black smoke rose over Gaza City after an afternoon attack, but there were no serious injuries, Palestinian medics said.
Full Story: YAHOO NEWS
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Connecticut man teaches toddler not to bite by biting him all over
A city man was in custody Wednesday after police said he bit his 3-year-old nephew all over his body to teach the boy not to bite anyone.
Hector Pulido, 40, of North Summerfield Avenue, was charged with third-degree assault and risk of injury to a minor.
Superior Court Judge Michael Maronich ordered Pulido held in lieu of $100,000 bond. The case was continued to next Thursday.
The allegations came to light when police were called to a day-care center on Fairfield Avenue Tuesday to investigate a complaint of child abuse. The day-care staff showed officers that the boy had adult bite marks on his chest, abdomen, shoulder, back, thigh, leg and buttocks, police said.
Full Story: CONN POST . COM
Hector Pulido, 40, of North Summerfield Avenue, was charged with third-degree assault and risk of injury to a minor.
Superior Court Judge Michael Maronich ordered Pulido held in lieu of $100,000 bond. The case was continued to next Thursday.
The allegations came to light when police were called to a day-care center on Fairfield Avenue Tuesday to investigate a complaint of child abuse. The day-care staff showed officers that the boy had adult bite marks on his chest, abdomen, shoulder, back, thigh, leg and buttocks, police said.
Full Story: CONN POST . COM
Beer Train Derails, Dousing Denver Yard
A string of runaway rail cars spilled beer in downtown Denver Wednesday after they crashed into a parked locomotive and derailed.
No one was hurt, and the railroad's mainline operations were not affected, said Steve Forsberg, a spokesman for BNSF Railway, based in Fort Worth, Texas.
Forsberg said a switch engine was assembling a train around 4:30 a.m. when the crew lost control of the 34 cars, which rolled downhill into the stationary locomotive.
Full Story: MY WAY
No one was hurt, and the railroad's mainline operations were not affected, said Steve Forsberg, a spokesman for BNSF Railway, based in Fort Worth, Texas.
Forsberg said a switch engine was assembling a train around 4:30 a.m. when the crew lost control of the 34 cars, which rolled downhill into the stationary locomotive.
Full Story: MY WAY
Ex-Justice Aide Criticizes Gonzales While Admitting to Basing Hires on Politics
A former senior aide to Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales leveled serious new accusations against him and his deputy yesterday, describing an "uncomfortable" attempt by Gonzales to discuss the firings of U.S. attorneys as Congress and the Justice Department were intensifying their investigations of the issue.
Full Story: Washington Post
Full Story: Washington Post
Man Gets 5 Years for Blowing Up Toilet
A man once called one of the Internet's most notorious pirates of music and movies was sentenced Wednesday to five years in prison for plowing up a portable toilet, prosecutors said.
Bruce Forest, 50, was charged last year with a series of toilet explosions in 2005 and 2006. But under a plea agreement, Forest admitted only to blowing up one toilet in Weston in February 2006. No one was injured in any of the blasts.
His defense attorney and his wife said the incident was completely out of character for Forest. They said he had been addicted to painkillers initially taken for migraine headaches caused by a severe fall about 10 years ago. A prescribed drug intended to wean him off the painkillers caused psychotic episodes, they said.
Forest was an Internet pirate in the late 1990s, said J.D. Lasica, a San Francisco writer who dubbed Forest "Prince of the Darknet" in his 2005 book "Darknet: Hollywood's War Against the Digital Generation."
Full Story: MY WAY
Bruce Forest, 50, was charged last year with a series of toilet explosions in 2005 and 2006. But under a plea agreement, Forest admitted only to blowing up one toilet in Weston in February 2006. No one was injured in any of the blasts.
His defense attorney and his wife said the incident was completely out of character for Forest. They said he had been addicted to painkillers initially taken for migraine headaches caused by a severe fall about 10 years ago. A prescribed drug intended to wean him off the painkillers caused psychotic episodes, they said.
Forest was an Internet pirate in the late 1990s, said J.D. Lasica, a San Francisco writer who dubbed Forest "Prince of the Darknet" in his 2005 book "Darknet: Hollywood's War Against the Digital Generation."
Full Story: MY WAY
Modern day slavery scandal rocks New York
A millionaire couple accused of keeping two Indonesian women as slaves in their luxurious New York home for years - viciously inflicting abuse for perceived offences - have been indicted on federal slavery charges.
Varsha Mahender Sabhnani, 35, and her husband, Mahender Murlidhar Sabhnani, 51, who operate a worldwide perfume business out of their home in Long Island, New York, with factories in Singapore and Bahrain, were arrested last week after one of their servants was found wandering outside a doughnut shop.
Naturalised US citizens from India, they had their passports confiscated when they were arrested.
The indictment, handed up last night, charges the couple with two counts of forced labour and two counts of harbouring illegal residents. The Sabhnanis will be arraigned on the indictment on Thrusday.
A magistrate judge in the US District Court in Central Islip set bail last week at $US3.5 million ($4.28 million). Friends and relatives of the couple indicated they would be willing to post bail on their behalf, but as of this morning, the pair remained in custody.
Full Story: SMH . COM . AU
Varsha Mahender Sabhnani, 35, and her husband, Mahender Murlidhar Sabhnani, 51, who operate a worldwide perfume business out of their home in Long Island, New York, with factories in Singapore and Bahrain, were arrested last week after one of their servants was found wandering outside a doughnut shop.
Naturalised US citizens from India, they had their passports confiscated when they were arrested.
The indictment, handed up last night, charges the couple with two counts of forced labour and two counts of harbouring illegal residents. The Sabhnanis will be arraigned on the indictment on Thrusday.
A magistrate judge in the US District Court in Central Islip set bail last week at $US3.5 million ($4.28 million). Friends and relatives of the couple indicated they would be willing to post bail on their behalf, but as of this morning, the pair remained in custody.
Full Story: SMH . COM . AU
New mayor is first to go through sex change
WHEN Jenny Bailey becomes Mayor of Cambridge tomorrow she will pass a new milestone in the city's history by becoming the first transgender person to take the office.
Jenny was born a boy, but went through a sex change operation to become a woman when she was in her 30s. And her partner, former councillor Jennifer Liddle - who will spend the year by Jenny's side as Mayoress - has also gone through the same process.
Jenny and Jennifer met while undergoing hormone replacement therapy. They now live together, work together and have served on Cambridge City Council together, as well as bringing up Jenny's two boys by her ex-wife.
The couple will be the world's first transgender mayor and mayoress, as Cambridge holds celebrations marking 800 years of the role.
Full Story: CEN NEWS
Jenny was born a boy, but went through a sex change operation to become a woman when she was in her 30s. And her partner, former councillor Jennifer Liddle - who will spend the year by Jenny's side as Mayoress - has also gone through the same process.
Jenny and Jennifer met while undergoing hormone replacement therapy. They now live together, work together and have served on Cambridge City Council together, as well as bringing up Jenny's two boys by her ex-wife.
The couple will be the world's first transgender mayor and mayoress, as Cambridge holds celebrations marking 800 years of the role.
Full Story: CEN NEWS
Cheney's lesbian daughter gives birth
US Vice President Dick Cheney's lesbian daughter Mary has given birth to a boy, Samuel David Cheney, his office said.
The boy, the vice president's sixth grandchild, weighed eight pounds, six ounces (3.8 kilograms), the office said in the caption to an official photograph released to the news media.
Mary Cheney, 38, had announced in December that she was starting a family with her partner of 15 years, Heather Poe. She has not discussed publicly how the child was conceived.
Full Story: SMH . COM . AU
The boy, the vice president's sixth grandchild, weighed eight pounds, six ounces (3.8 kilograms), the office said in the caption to an official photograph released to the news media.
Mary Cheney, 38, had announced in December that she was starting a family with her partner of 15 years, Heather Poe. She has not discussed publicly how the child was conceived.
Full Story: SMH . COM . AU
Man drives golf cart off cliff
A 65-year-old Irvine man was killed in front of three friends Tuesday morning when he rode his golf cart over a 75-foot-high cliff and crashed down onto Old Highway 395, authorities said.
The crash happened at 10 a.m. at the Pala Mesa Resort golf course north of Highway 76, said California Highway Patrol Officer Tom Kerns. Authorities got the first 911 calls just four minutes later.
"It's a sheer drop of 75 feet with rock outcroppings, a sheer rock face," Kerns said. "He rode down on the golf cart most of the way until it overturned near the bottom part."
North County Fire Protection District spokesman John Buchanan said that firefighters tried to administer lifesaving efforts, but the man was ultimately pronounced dead at the scene. No one else was hurt.
The medical examiner's officer said the man was identified as Edwin Payne, who is survived by his wife, Clara Payne, he said.
Kerns said the horrific scene happened in front of Payne's former co-workers. Payne had joined the group of three men, who were in town for an industry conference. All worked in the real estate industry.
Full Story: NC TIMES.COM
The crash happened at 10 a.m. at the Pala Mesa Resort golf course north of Highway 76, said California Highway Patrol Officer Tom Kerns. Authorities got the first 911 calls just four minutes later.
"It's a sheer drop of 75 feet with rock outcroppings, a sheer rock face," Kerns said. "He rode down on the golf cart most of the way until it overturned near the bottom part."
North County Fire Protection District spokesman John Buchanan said that firefighters tried to administer lifesaving efforts, but the man was ultimately pronounced dead at the scene. No one else was hurt.
The medical examiner's officer said the man was identified as Edwin Payne, who is survived by his wife, Clara Payne, he said.
Kerns said the horrific scene happened in front of Payne's former co-workers. Payne had joined the group of three men, who were in town for an industry conference. All worked in the real estate industry.
Full Story: NC TIMES.COM
Car plunges 50 feet over post office railing
A white Mercedes plunged more than 50 feet from an elevated traffic ramp at Columbia’s main post office on Assembly Street this morning, killing the driver.
Witnesses said the car was traveling backward at a high rate of speed when it went through metal fencing at about 10:15 a.m., said Columbia police Sgt. Florence McCants.
The driver was 84-year-old Columbia resident Helen Zalantis, according to Richland County coroner Gary Watts. She was the sole occupant of the car, a 1995 white E300 Mercedes, McCants said.
Full Story: THE STATE . COM
Witnesses said the car was traveling backward at a high rate of speed when it went through metal fencing at about 10:15 a.m., said Columbia police Sgt. Florence McCants.
The driver was 84-year-old Columbia resident Helen Zalantis, according to Richland County coroner Gary Watts. She was the sole occupant of the car, a 1995 white E300 Mercedes, McCants said.
Full Story: THE STATE . COM
Creation Wins!
Judy Doerr, the science teacher for middle school students at Pawleys Island Christian Academy (PICA), says she is very pleased with this year’s science fair projects...........
Brian Benson, an eighth-grade student who won first place in the Life Science/Biology category for his project “Creation Wins!!!,” says he disproved part of the theory of evolution. Using a rolled-up paper towel suspended between two glasses of water with Epsom Salts, the paper towel formed stalactites. He states that the theory that they take millions of years to develop is incorrect.
"Scientists say it takes millions of years to form stalactites,” Benson said. “However, in only a couple of hours, I have formed stalactites just by using paper towel and Epsom Salts.”
Full Story: GEORGETOWN TIMES
Brian Benson, an eighth-grade student who won first place in the Life Science/Biology category for his project “Creation Wins!!!,” says he disproved part of the theory of evolution. Using a rolled-up paper towel suspended between two glasses of water with Epsom Salts, the paper towel formed stalactites. He states that the theory that they take millions of years to develop is incorrect.
"Scientists say it takes millions of years to form stalactites,” Benson said. “However, in only a couple of hours, I have formed stalactites just by using paper towel and Epsom Salts.”
Full Story: GEORGETOWN TIMES
Creation rules over evolution at museum
Canada's first permanent creation museum --set to open in Alberta next month -- will use fossil displays to support the Bible's explanation of creation.
The controversial Big Valley Creation Science Museum, located east of Innisfail, is billed as an alternative to the world view presented by the Royal Tyrell Museum in Drumheller and will open on June 5.
Owner Harry Nibourg said in a press release that the museum provides compelling evidence for creation and refutes any unguided, "natural" processes such as evolution.
He said the museum's "fossils and the flood" display, which teams a giant model of Noah's ark with museum-quality fossils, is evidence the biblical flood actually happened.
Full Story: CALGARY HERALD
The controversial Big Valley Creation Science Museum, located east of Innisfail, is billed as an alternative to the world view presented by the Royal Tyrell Museum in Drumheller and will open on June 5.
Owner Harry Nibourg said in a press release that the museum provides compelling evidence for creation and refutes any unguided, "natural" processes such as evolution.
He said the museum's "fossils and the flood" display, which teams a giant model of Noah's ark with museum-quality fossils, is evidence the biblical flood actually happened.
Full Story: CALGARY HERALD
School principal makes 9-year-olds write essays about oral sex
A Quebec elementary school principal who had four students write about oral sex as punishment after they taunted one of their peers has been heavily criticized for her conflict resolutions skills.
Full Story: FROM THE GROUND UP
Full Story: FROM THE GROUND UP
Monday, May 14, 2007
Advertising Equals Graffiti
New York City has these special video billboards at the top of subway stops playing silent movies for Lexus, Chanel, and NBC play on them. It's kinda beautiful, and kinda annoying.
Full Story: consumerist.com
Full Story: consumerist.com
Faster: DirecTV may try broadband on power lines
NEW YORK - Satellite television provider DirecTV Group Inc. may test delivering high-speed Internet service through power lines in a major U.S. city in the next year, its chief executive said on Monday.
DirecTV and others are talking to companies that specialize in providing broadband through the electrical grid, Chief Executive Chase Carey said at the Reuters Global Technology, Media and Telecoms Summit in New York.
"We're not the only ones talking to them," Carey said, in response to a question on whether DirecTV would consider a test in a major city. "I think you'll see some meaningful tests in this arena."
DirecTV would like to test delivering Internet access on power lines in a "top 50 city where you're covering at least half the city."
While DirecTV and fellow satellite TV operator EchoStar Communications Corp. have managed to keep increasing their subscriber base in the face of stiff competition from cable operators, Wall Street analysts have long questioned what broadband strategy the satellite operators will employ to counter competitive pressures.
"We think it would be a good thing to have a third, a fourth or a fifth entrant in broadband and if we can be helpful in pushing that forward and if there's an opportunity for us to intelligently invest in doing so, we would," said Carey.
Full Story: REUTERS
DirecTV and others are talking to companies that specialize in providing broadband through the electrical grid, Chief Executive Chase Carey said at the Reuters Global Technology, Media and Telecoms Summit in New York.
"We're not the only ones talking to them," Carey said, in response to a question on whether DirecTV would consider a test in a major city. "I think you'll see some meaningful tests in this arena."
DirecTV would like to test delivering Internet access on power lines in a "top 50 city where you're covering at least half the city."
While DirecTV and fellow satellite TV operator EchoStar Communications Corp. have managed to keep increasing their subscriber base in the face of stiff competition from cable operators, Wall Street analysts have long questioned what broadband strategy the satellite operators will employ to counter competitive pressures.
"We think it would be a good thing to have a third, a fourth or a fifth entrant in broadband and if we can be helpful in pushing that forward and if there's an opportunity for us to intelligently invest in doing so, we would," said Carey.
Full Story: REUTERS
Faculty Battle: Tenet vs. Feith
On Douglas Feith's first day as a visiting professor at Georgetown last year, he dropped in on another new professor down the hall. George Tenet, the former director of central intelligence, was friendly and welcoming, Feith recalled. Feith, who as the No. 3 at the Pentagon had served in the Bush administration with Tenet, suggested they get together for lunch.
Not long afterward, Tenet moved his office, four floors down. He told friends he wanted to be as far away as possible from Feith.
The tale of the two professors is shaping up as a reproduction in miniature of the Bush administration's titanic struggle over Iraq.
The two men, who played key roles in building President Bush's case for war, had spent countless hours together in meetings in 2002-2004, poring over intelligence and hammering out policy. Feith recalls the relationship as amicable, even if they often disagreed.
No longer. Tenet and Feith are teaching rival versions of recent history and taking their disagreements public. Each is teaching a class that reflects his own worldview and experience in institutions -- the Defense Department and the CIA -- that saw the world in starkly different terms. Both classes concentrate on al-Qaeda and the events preceding Sept. 11, 2001, as well as on Iraq.
Full Story: WASHINGTON POST
Not long afterward, Tenet moved his office, four floors down. He told friends he wanted to be as far away as possible from Feith.
The tale of the two professors is shaping up as a reproduction in miniature of the Bush administration's titanic struggle over Iraq.
The two men, who played key roles in building President Bush's case for war, had spent countless hours together in meetings in 2002-2004, poring over intelligence and hammering out policy. Feith recalls the relationship as amicable, even if they often disagreed.
No longer. Tenet and Feith are teaching rival versions of recent history and taking their disagreements public. Each is teaching a class that reflects his own worldview and experience in institutions -- the Defense Department and the CIA -- that saw the world in starkly different terms. Both classes concentrate on al-Qaeda and the events preceding Sept. 11, 2001, as well as on Iraq.
Full Story: WASHINGTON POST
Vegas run by gays and Jews, says magician
Swedish magician Joe Labero has provoked a strong reaction with suggestions that Las Vegas is controlled by "Jewish business syndicates, American dollar millionaires and homosexual booking agents".
The magic master's comments were made in an interview with rail company SJ's on-board magazine Kupé
As a prelude to his controversial thesis, Labero explained that he has long been close to getting his own show in Las Vegas.
"But at the end of the day it seems to be impossible - unless you are a homosexual, a Jew or an American.
"I don't mean to sound prejudiced of course, I'm just cynical. A blond Swedish Viking will have a hard time breaking through the hierarchies that control Vegas, where power rests in the hands of Jewish business syndicates, American dollar millionaires and homosexual booking agents.
"But I will get there, sooner of later," Labero told the magazine.
Joe Labero is the stage name of Lars Bengt Roland Johansson.
Sören Andersson, chairman of the Swedish Federation for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Rights (RFSL) took exception to the illusionist's remarks."
I think it's rather nasty to say things like this. The implication is that everybody who is not ether Jewish or homosexual is being discriminated against," he told The Local. "
It is reminiscent of the world-famous Jewish conspiracy, now extended to also include gays. But these are two groups that have typically been the victims of discrimination."
Putting the blame on specific groups says more about Joe Labero than anybody else," he added.
Full Story: THE LOCAL
The magic master's comments were made in an interview with rail company SJ's on-board magazine Kupé
As a prelude to his controversial thesis, Labero explained that he has long been close to getting his own show in Las Vegas.
"But at the end of the day it seems to be impossible - unless you are a homosexual, a Jew or an American.
"I don't mean to sound prejudiced of course, I'm just cynical. A blond Swedish Viking will have a hard time breaking through the hierarchies that control Vegas, where power rests in the hands of Jewish business syndicates, American dollar millionaires and homosexual booking agents.
"But I will get there, sooner of later," Labero told the magazine.
Joe Labero is the stage name of Lars Bengt Roland Johansson.
Sören Andersson, chairman of the Swedish Federation for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Rights (RFSL) took exception to the illusionist's remarks."
I think it's rather nasty to say things like this. The implication is that everybody who is not ether Jewish or homosexual is being discriminated against," he told The Local. "
It is reminiscent of the world-famous Jewish conspiracy, now extended to also include gays. But these are two groups that have typically been the victims of discrimination."
Putting the blame on specific groups says more about Joe Labero than anybody else," he added.
Full Story: THE LOCAL
A baffling Texas Supreme Court ruling could make juries irrelevant
soft drink business in East Texas was a relatively friendly affair when Jerry Dudley started out 40 years ago. Family-owned companies bottled colas and fruit drinks, and sold them to local grocers or mom-and-pop convenience stores. There was competition, but it wasn’t cutthroat.
There weren’t international conglomerates trying to muscle you out of the market, and maybe drive you out of business.
But in the early 1990s, that all began to change. Dudley, president and general manager of Harmar Bottling Co. in Paris, Texas, began seeing his soft drinks nudged from prime shelf space—even out of stores entirely—to make way for a competitor’s products. He watched local bottlers disappear one by one, losing the struggle to stay in business.
It got so bad that Harmar and some of his fellow independent bottlers banded together and sued the heavyweights of carbonated beverages—Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. and Coca-Cola Inc., Pepsico Inc. and Pepsi’s bottler, Delta Beverage Group—claiming that in their zeal to dominate the region’s soft drink market, the corporate titans had broken Texas law by engaging in predatory, anticompetitive business practices.
Pepsi settled before trial. Coke—with its never-say-die litigation strategy—fought the suit. In 2000, after a six-week trial, a jury in Daingerfield, Texas, found Coca-Cola Enterprises—a bottling company 40 percent-owned by Coca-Cola—guilty of breaking state antitrust laws.
Although a far cry from the $100 million they were hoping for, Harmar and the other regional bottlers won a $15.6 million judgment. Almost seven years later, they have yet to see a dime.
In late 2006, after sitting on the case for nearly two years, the Texas Supreme Court finally ruled on Coke’s appeal of the suit. By a 5-4 vote, the state’s highest civil court threw out the verdict.
Reversing a multimillion dollar judgment is not out of character for a court packed with conservative judges, six of them appointed by Gov. Rick Perry before winning pro forma elections. But the legal reasoning that the slim majority used to justify its ruling was so alarming—and sets such an unappetizing precedent—that it has spawned incredulity in Texas legal circles.
In effect, the court reviewed the evidence and decided the jury was wrong. It was a remarkable reach beyond the court’s usual exercise of power.
Ordinarily, appeals courts give great deference to a jury’s conclusions. Jurors, after all, are the ones who hear the witnesses, review evidence, and deliberate the case. A court usually has a compelling reason when it decides to disregard the jury’s conclusions.
What that reason might be is not clear in this case. More than a few scholars argue that the state Supreme Court doesn’t have a sound legal principle with which to justify its decision. Worse, they fear it opens the door for other Texas courts to begin arbitrarily tossing aside jury verdicts with which they disagree. If the high court continues on this course, they say, the constitutional right to a civil jury trial could be in jeopardy.
Dudley and the bottlers have asked the court to reconsider its decision, because they’d still like to get their money. Law professors from across the state have joined that request, arguing there is now much more at stake then who sells the most diet sodas in East Texas.
“It’s elitism versus egalitarianism,” says Nelson Roach, who represented Harmar Bottling during trial. “It’s whether or not you believe that ordinary people have the capability to collectively judge the facts of the case. There is a movement that has been very hostile to the rights of juries to make decisions, and this case is part and parcel of it.”
Full Story: THE TEXAS OBSERVER
There weren’t international conglomerates trying to muscle you out of the market, and maybe drive you out of business.
But in the early 1990s, that all began to change. Dudley, president and general manager of Harmar Bottling Co. in Paris, Texas, began seeing his soft drinks nudged from prime shelf space—even out of stores entirely—to make way for a competitor’s products. He watched local bottlers disappear one by one, losing the struggle to stay in business.
It got so bad that Harmar and some of his fellow independent bottlers banded together and sued the heavyweights of carbonated beverages—Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. and Coca-Cola Inc., Pepsico Inc. and Pepsi’s bottler, Delta Beverage Group—claiming that in their zeal to dominate the region’s soft drink market, the corporate titans had broken Texas law by engaging in predatory, anticompetitive business practices.
Pepsi settled before trial. Coke—with its never-say-die litigation strategy—fought the suit. In 2000, after a six-week trial, a jury in Daingerfield, Texas, found Coca-Cola Enterprises—a bottling company 40 percent-owned by Coca-Cola—guilty of breaking state antitrust laws.
Although a far cry from the $100 million they were hoping for, Harmar and the other regional bottlers won a $15.6 million judgment. Almost seven years later, they have yet to see a dime.
In late 2006, after sitting on the case for nearly two years, the Texas Supreme Court finally ruled on Coke’s appeal of the suit. By a 5-4 vote, the state’s highest civil court threw out the verdict.
Reversing a multimillion dollar judgment is not out of character for a court packed with conservative judges, six of them appointed by Gov. Rick Perry before winning pro forma elections. But the legal reasoning that the slim majority used to justify its ruling was so alarming—and sets such an unappetizing precedent—that it has spawned incredulity in Texas legal circles.
In effect, the court reviewed the evidence and decided the jury was wrong. It was a remarkable reach beyond the court’s usual exercise of power.
Ordinarily, appeals courts give great deference to a jury’s conclusions. Jurors, after all, are the ones who hear the witnesses, review evidence, and deliberate the case. A court usually has a compelling reason when it decides to disregard the jury’s conclusions.
What that reason might be is not clear in this case. More than a few scholars argue that the state Supreme Court doesn’t have a sound legal principle with which to justify its decision. Worse, they fear it opens the door for other Texas courts to begin arbitrarily tossing aside jury verdicts with which they disagree. If the high court continues on this course, they say, the constitutional right to a civil jury trial could be in jeopardy.
Dudley and the bottlers have asked the court to reconsider its decision, because they’d still like to get their money. Law professors from across the state have joined that request, arguing there is now much more at stake then who sells the most diet sodas in East Texas.
“It’s elitism versus egalitarianism,” says Nelson Roach, who represented Harmar Bottling during trial. “It’s whether or not you believe that ordinary people have the capability to collectively judge the facts of the case. There is a movement that has been very hostile to the rights of juries to make decisions, and this case is part and parcel of it.”
Full Story: THE TEXAS OBSERVER
BBC denies 'death threat' in Scientology row
The BBC has hit back at accusations that it orchestrated a demonstration against Scientologists during which a "terrorist death threat" was allegedly made.
It comes as a bitter row develops between the Corporation and Scientologists over a highly critical Panorama documentary about the religion, in which a veteran reporter lost his temper and screamed for 30 seconds at a Church member.
The BBC has seriously reprimanded John Sweeney for the outburst, which the journalist has admitted was "wrong and stupid".
The church posted the clip of Mr Sweeney's rant on the self-broadcasting website YouTube, and has now distributed 100,000 copies of a DVD it made of the BBC crew filming the documentary.
It released the DVD to MPs, peers and religious leaders in an offensive to counter allegations made against Scientologists in the Panorama film. The BBC documentary will be aired on BBC1 tomorrow.
Today Sandy Smith, the Panorama editor, hit back at claims that the BBC had orchestrated a demonstration against the Scientologists while filming the documentary.
He said: "Their DVD contains two grossly defamatory claims about us - one, that we staged a demonstration against Scientology and two, that a terrorist death threat was made.
"It is absolutely outrageous to suggest that the BBC would organise a demonstration - why would we?"
Full Story: TELEGRAPH.CO.UK
Video: John Sweeney's rant at Scientologists (posted by Scientologists)
Video: Scientologist storms out after 'sinister cult' remark (posted by BBC)
BBC: John Sweeney defends his documentary
It comes as a bitter row develops between the Corporation and Scientologists over a highly critical Panorama documentary about the religion, in which a veteran reporter lost his temper and screamed for 30 seconds at a Church member.
The BBC has seriously reprimanded John Sweeney for the outburst, which the journalist has admitted was "wrong and stupid".
The church posted the clip of Mr Sweeney's rant on the self-broadcasting website YouTube, and has now distributed 100,000 copies of a DVD it made of the BBC crew filming the documentary.
It released the DVD to MPs, peers and religious leaders in an offensive to counter allegations made against Scientologists in the Panorama film. The BBC documentary will be aired on BBC1 tomorrow.
Today Sandy Smith, the Panorama editor, hit back at claims that the BBC had orchestrated a demonstration against the Scientologists while filming the documentary.
He said: "Their DVD contains two grossly defamatory claims about us - one, that we staged a demonstration against Scientology and two, that a terrorist death threat was made.
"It is absolutely outrageous to suggest that the BBC would organise a demonstration - why would we?"
Full Story: TELEGRAPH.CO.UK
Video: John Sweeney's rant at Scientologists (posted by Scientologists)
Video: Scientologist storms out after 'sinister cult' remark (posted by BBC)
BBC: John Sweeney defends his documentary
Music piracy crackdown nets college kids
At first, Sarah Barg thought the e-mail was a scam. Some group called theRecording Industry Association of America was accusing the University of Nebraska-Lincoln sophomore of illegally downloading 381 songs using the school's computer network and a program called Ares.
The letter said she might be sued but offered her the chance to settle out of court.
Barg couldn't imagine anyone expected her to pay $3,000 — $7.87 per song — for some 1980s ballads and Spice Girls tunes she downloaded for laughs in her dorm room. Besides, the 20-year-old had friends who had downloaded thousands of songs without repercussion.
"Obviously I knew it was illegal, but no one got in trouble for it," Barg said.
But Barg's perspective changed quickly that Thursday in March, when she called student legal services and found out the e-mail was no joke and that she had a pricey decision to make.
Barg is one of 61 students at UNL and hundreds at more than 60 college campuses across the country who have received letters from the recording industry group, threatening a lawsuit if they don't settle out of court.
"Any student on any campus in the country who is illegally downloading music may receive one of these letters in the coming months," said Jenni Engebretsen, an RIAA spokeswoman.
Barg's parents paid the $3,000 settlement. Without their help, "I don't know what I would have done. I'm only 20 years old," she said.
At least 500 university students nationwide have paid settlements to avoid being sued, Engebretsen said. Students who don't take the offer face lawsuits — and minimum damages of $750 for each copyrighted recording shared if they lose.
Full Story: YAHOO NEWS
The letter said she might be sued but offered her the chance to settle out of court.
Barg couldn't imagine anyone expected her to pay $3,000 — $7.87 per song — for some 1980s ballads and Spice Girls tunes she downloaded for laughs in her dorm room. Besides, the 20-year-old had friends who had downloaded thousands of songs without repercussion.
"Obviously I knew it was illegal, but no one got in trouble for it," Barg said.
But Barg's perspective changed quickly that Thursday in March, when she called student legal services and found out the e-mail was no joke and that she had a pricey decision to make.
Barg is one of 61 students at UNL and hundreds at more than 60 college campuses across the country who have received letters from the recording industry group, threatening a lawsuit if they don't settle out of court.
"Any student on any campus in the country who is illegally downloading music may receive one of these letters in the coming months," said Jenni Engebretsen, an RIAA spokeswoman.
Barg's parents paid the $3,000 settlement. Without their help, "I don't know what I would have done. I'm only 20 years old," she said.
At least 500 university students nationwide have paid settlements to avoid being sued, Engebretsen said. Students who don't take the offer face lawsuits — and minimum damages of $750 for each copyrighted recording shared if they lose.
Full Story: YAHOO NEWS
Missing money mystery
In a whodunit of Texas-sized proportions, millions of dollars belonging to South Texas real estate investors seem to have vanished from the companies entrusted to hold real estate sales profits until they could be re-invested.
Adding to the shroud of suspicion is a cryptic recording greeting callers to any of the subsidiaries of The 1031 Tax Group.
The message tells callers a number of senior executives and other employees have left with no warning and that the reduced staff is doing its best to sort out the mess.
In all, around $20 million has gone missing from San Antonio-area investors, said attorney Marvin Pipkin, who has a client who deposited money with a company called National Exchange Services QI Ltd., the San Antonio subsidiary for The 1031 Tax Group.
Other attorneys guessed the amount missing was more like $11 million — although no one yet knows the exact figure.
"There are a number of San Antonio investors who are trying to figuring out where the money went," Pipkin said. "There's an awful lot of money that was placed (with National Exchange Services)."
And that's just San Antonio.
The 1031 Tax Group owns at least five other similar companies in different parts of the country, including Denver. All seem to be affected, and all had the same recorded message Friday.
Full Story: MySA.Com
Adding to the shroud of suspicion is a cryptic recording greeting callers to any of the subsidiaries of The 1031 Tax Group.
The message tells callers a number of senior executives and other employees have left with no warning and that the reduced staff is doing its best to sort out the mess.
In all, around $20 million has gone missing from San Antonio-area investors, said attorney Marvin Pipkin, who has a client who deposited money with a company called National Exchange Services QI Ltd., the San Antonio subsidiary for The 1031 Tax Group.
Other attorneys guessed the amount missing was more like $11 million — although no one yet knows the exact figure.
"There are a number of San Antonio investors who are trying to figuring out where the money went," Pipkin said. "There's an awful lot of money that was placed (with National Exchange Services)."
And that's just San Antonio.
The 1031 Tax Group owns at least five other similar companies in different parts of the country, including Denver. All seem to be affected, and all had the same recorded message Friday.
Full Story: MySA.Com
Teacher-Student Lesbian Affair? Police Bust Teacher
A physical education teacher has been charged with sexual assault for engaging in an apparently consensual relationship with a 17-year-old female student she taught and coached at a southern New Jersey high school.
Erica Umosella, a 28-year-old faculty member at Kingsway Regional High School, was arrested Tuesday. She is charged with three sex-related offenses, including first-degree aggravated sexual assault, according to Bernie Weisenfeld, spokesman for the Gloucester County Prosecutor's office.
Prosecutors said that the relationship between the teacher and student played out over the past month in Umosella's apartment in Glassboro, N.J. They did not believe that any sexual behavior took place on campus and said that no other students appeared to be involved.
Police said they were led to Umosella after Ave Altersitz, the superintendent of the Kingsway Regional School District, gave police an anonymous letter she had received about the affair late Tuesday night. The letter was also sent to school principal Thomas Coleman. Altersitz and Coleman met Wednesday with a police officer who works in the school before turning the information over to law enforcement officials.
Altersitz said there was no indication of who sent the letter that brought the relationship the authorities' attention.
Full Story: ABC NEWS
Read All 85 Comments and Post Your Own
Erica Umosella, a 28-year-old faculty member at Kingsway Regional High School, was arrested Tuesday. She is charged with three sex-related offenses, including first-degree aggravated sexual assault, according to Bernie Weisenfeld, spokesman for the Gloucester County Prosecutor's office.
Prosecutors said that the relationship between the teacher and student played out over the past month in Umosella's apartment in Glassboro, N.J. They did not believe that any sexual behavior took place on campus and said that no other students appeared to be involved.
Police said they were led to Umosella after Ave Altersitz, the superintendent of the Kingsway Regional School District, gave police an anonymous letter she had received about the affair late Tuesday night. The letter was also sent to school principal Thomas Coleman. Altersitz and Coleman met Wednesday with a police officer who works in the school before turning the information over to law enforcement officials.
Altersitz said there was no indication of who sent the letter that brought the relationship the authorities' attention.
Full Story: ABC NEWS
Read All 85 Comments and Post Your Own
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Road Trip: America’s Most Paved Places
Along with being the nation's capital, Washington D.C. leads the country when it comes to pavement: It has the least amount of open space between roads of any U.S. county.
By contrast, the study finds that Keweenaw County in Michigan offers the most room between the roads of all U.S. counties.
Counties with the least space:
Washington, D.C
Saint Louis City, Missouri
Kings County (Brooklyn)
Counties with the most space:
Keweenaw County, Michigan
Saint Bernard Parish, Louisiana
Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana
With more than 4 million miles of roads in the United States, the farthest you can venture from a road is 22 miles (unless you’re wandering around Alaska or the swamps of Louisiana). The only place you can be 22 miles away from road in the contiguous states is a spot in the southeast corner of Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming
Full Story: LIVE SCIENCE
Video: See Denver's Road Expansion
Cities Cover More of Earth than Realized
Image: World's Tallest Road Bridge
By contrast, the study finds that Keweenaw County in Michigan offers the most room between the roads of all U.S. counties.
Counties with the least space:
Washington, D.C
Saint Louis City, Missouri
Kings County (Brooklyn)
Counties with the most space:
Keweenaw County, Michigan
Saint Bernard Parish, Louisiana
Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana
With more than 4 million miles of roads in the United States, the farthest you can venture from a road is 22 miles (unless you’re wandering around Alaska or the swamps of Louisiana). The only place you can be 22 miles away from road in the contiguous states is a spot in the southeast corner of Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming
Full Story: LIVE SCIENCE
Video: See Denver's Road Expansion
Cities Cover More of Earth than Realized
Image: World's Tallest Road Bridge
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