truesee's Blog

 

Andy Bloxham
Daily Mail

1:45PM BST 24 Aug 2009

Knickers: police have arrested a town's mayor after underwear was stolen.

Ian Stafford, 58, was arrested after women in the area called police to report knickers repeatedly disappearing from their homes.

One woman was so peturbed she installed a hidden camera in her bedroom, which recorded a semi-naked man rifling through her drawers and putting on her underwear before performing a sex act.

Investigations later revealed a collection of knickers, allegedly matching those reported stolen, at the home of the mayor.

He was arrested on suspicion of burglary and bailed.

Mr Stafford, who works as a handyman and gardner, has now resigned from his post in Preesall near Fleetwood,Lancs.

A fellow councillor has taken over the chain of office.

A spokesman for the town council confirmed that as a result of Mr Stafford's arrest he had stood down.

A spokesman for Lancashire Police said an investigation into stolen underwear had taken place in Preesall and a suspect was currently on police bail after being questioned.

Ian Stafford, mayor of Preesall,

near Blackpool, has been charged

with stealing womens underwear

10 Easy Paths to Self Destruction

Rocker Tommy Lee once said we're not here for a long time, we're here for a good time. Amen, Tommy. Many of us follow his lead every day by shunning the most basic principle of Darwinian evolution?trying to survive?with food, toxins and reckless lifestyles. If you'd like to get in on the act, we present our easiest catalysts to self-destruction. Heather Whipps

  http://www.livescience.com/health/top_10_self_destruction.html

Girl, 10, handcuffed and locked in a cell for six hours


Sophie Freeman

Daily Mail
Last updated at 11:42 AM on 24th August 2009

The father of a 10-year-old girl who was arrested, handcuffed and locked in a cell for almost six hours has criticised police for being 'heavy-handed'.

Shannon Blake was apprehended by police and taken to a police station in the back of  a van after she slapped a man who shouted at her in a park.

She then went through the ordeal of having a mug shot and finger-prints taken before she was locked in a tiny cell with just a bucket for a toilet.

Imprisoned: 10 year old Shannon Blake, seen here with her father Michael, was arrested and put in an adult police cell for six hours

Her father, Michael Blake, claims he wasn't even told she had been arrested until two hours later - and was then refused access to see her.

The 55-year-old lorry driver, from Tiverton, Devon, believes his daughter - who was given a formal reprimand for assault - should have been brought home instead.

He said: 'It seems absolutely ridiculous, she was treated like a criminal. I never received any information about it until more than two hours later.

'They locked her in a cell with a bucket if she wanted to use the toilet.

'They took her shoes away and the strings of her trousers.

'They finger-printed her and took her photo and then gave her a sandwich and half a cup of cold tea.

'It's absolutely appalling they can treat a 10-year-old in that way - what they did was really heavy-handed.

'What are they doing putting cuffs on a young girl? They should have just brought her home to me and I would have dealt with it.'

Shannon was arrested at 3pm on Tuesday after she slapped a man following an argument concerning his dog at a park in Tiverton, Devon.

Michael claims Shannon, who has never been in trouble before, attempted to stroke the unnamed man's pet but was shocked when he shouted at her.

Mr Blake said: 'Shannon had been playing in the BMX park when she went to stroke this man's dog.

'He shouted at her so she slapped him and gave him a push. My daughter has never been in trouble before. She's a bit of a tomboy but that's it.'

But police say they received a 999 call from a member of the public claiming that up to 20 youths were attacking a man who had been walking his dog.

Shannon was arrested with two boys aged 16 and 15 and taken to Heavitree Road Police Station in Exeter, Devon.

Mr Blake claims he was not informed his daughter had been arrested until  5.15pm and when he arrived at the station was not allowed to see her.

Shannon was eventually returned home at 8.45pm after spending almost six hours in the hands of police and received a formal reprimand.

A Devon and Cornwall police spokesman said officers handcuffed Shannon after an assessment of the situation.

'We had a call from a member of the public that a man who had been walking his dog had been attacked by a gang of up to 20 youths,' said Alan Mobbs.

'An initial report was that one of the youths had a stick in his hands.

'Handcuffing a 10-year-old is never done as a matter of routine. A decision was made by the officer at the scene, based on the girl's demeanour, likelihood of escape and likelihood of injuring someone else.

'The officer that made the decision considered it serious enough to use the handcuffs.

Mr Mobbs said Shannon was detained in an adult cell because there was no other secure accommodation for her.

'If there's the right sort of accommodation available (a young person) would be detained in a cell specifically for juveniles, closer to custody staff. It was busy so she had to go in a cell.

'You put drunks and people making a noise to the back of the custody blocks. You put juveniles near custody staff so they can be supervised closely.'

But Mr Mobbs said that, despite being further away from custody staff, Shannon had 'regular checks'. He added that Mr Blake was not told about his daughter's detention straight away due to the sheer volume of cases the police station was dealing with that day.

'It's not something we delay on but with a busy custody centre, sometimes it takes a while to get hold of the relevant people.'

Following her arrest, Shannon was reprimanded for an assault and a 15-year-old boy was also reprimanded for a public order offence.

A 16-year-old boy was charged under Section 5 of the Public Order Act, for allegedly using threatening or insulting words or behaviour. He was bailed until September 2.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1208622/Girl-10-handcuffed-locked-cell-hours.html#ixzz0P6P1t0Mm

America's Best Public Restrooms

The 2009 winner of the award for the best public restrooms in America is presented in the photos below. These incredible public potties can be found at the Shoji Tabuchi Theatre in Branson, MO. Cintas Corporation, which provides restroom hygiene products and services, is the sponsor of the best public restroom award and has been presenting these awards annually for the last eight years.

LINK TO PHOTOS:

http://inthespotlite.blogspot.com/2009/08/americas-best-public-restrooms.html

Homeless Man Leaves Behind Surprise: $4 Million

July 27, 2009

LISTEN TO STORY:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=111091624&sc=nl&cc=es-20090823

Every day on NPR, listeners hear funding credits — or, in other words, very short, simple commercials.

A few weeks ago, a new one made it to air: "Support for NPR comes from the estate of Richard Leroy Walters, whose life was enriched by NPR, and whose bequest seeks to encourage others to discover public radio."

NPR's Robert Siegel wondered who Walters was. So Siegel Googled him.

An article in the online newsletter of a Catholic mission in Phoenix revealed that Walters died two years ago at the age of 76. He left an estate worth about $4 million. Along with the money he left for NPR, Walters also left money for the mission.

But something distinguished Walters from any number of solvent, well-to-do Americans with seven-figure estates: He was homeless.

Walters was a retired engineer from AlliedSignal Corp.; an honors graduate of Purdue with a master's degree; and a Marine. Walters never married, didn't have children and was estranged from his brother. But he wasn't friendless.

Rita Belle, a registered nurse, met Walters at a senior center 13 years ago.

"He always came in with a little backpack on and a cap on," Belle tells Siegel. "And always kind of looked at me, but [was] very reserved. And I'm very outgoing and outspoken. So I said to him, 'Hey, you got a minute can we sit down to visit?' And we'd have coffee there at the senior center."

Belle and Walters became friends. Belle stayed with Walters when he was ill. She became his nurse and ultimately the executor of his estate — as well as one of the beneficiaries — despite fundamental differences between them.

"He was an atheist and I'm a very profound practicing Catholic, and I'd never met an atheist," Belle says. "And that just blew my mind that somebody could not believe in the Lord."

Belle volunteers at the mission in Phoenix, which like NPR and several other nonprofits got about $400,000 from Walters.

Belle knew him as a very well-informed man who could fix her air conditioning — someone she just assumed had a place to live. Then he told her that he had no home. She heard that he slept on the grounds of the senior center. He told her he ate at the hospital and used a telephone there or at the center.

"And I'm sure that's when he was making his trades and so on," Belle says. "He was involved in investing; we talked investments a lot." Belle says Walters even did his own income taxes.

When Walters retired, he evidently retired from the world of material comforts. He didn't have a car.

"He just gave up all of the material things that we think we have to have," Belle says. "You know, I don't know how we gauge happiness. What's happy for you might not be happy for me. I never heard him complain."

Evidently, among his few possessions was a radio. Hence those announcements listeners hear now and again on NPR stations.

Richard Walters, a homeless man who lived in Phoenix, died two years ago. 

He left behind a surprise: a $4 million estate.

Cheater's Porsche on the market

ANDREW PARKER

The Sun

A WIFE who caught her hubby romping with the babysitter in his Porsche is taking revenge by selling the car online at a knockdown price.

She has also put the love rat's prized wine collection in the boot.

The unnamed woman put the car on classified ads site Gumtree yesterday with a furious explanation why the 911, which cost around $70,000 brand new, was going for $2,000. She wrote:

Last week, I caught my husband having it off with our babysitter in our Porsche (actually, MY Porsche as I bloody paid for it). So I'm selling his beloved car. See how the p***k likes that!

I'd been to my mum's but came back early 'cos we had a fallout.

The children were in bed. My husband wasn't. I heard something in the garage.

'I thought it was a rat. It was a blooming rat alright - my husband with our babysitter. She's barely 17! I treated her like my own daughter. He told me it didn't mean anything. It sounds crazy but I would have preferred it if had meant something. Why risk 15 years of marriage for anything less?'

The scorned wife, from Solihull, West Midlands, goes on to explain it wasn't the first time she had caught him cheating.

But she says she took him back each time, thinking he had changed.

The wife added: "Every single time, like the hopeful naive cow that I was, I gave him another chance. Deep down, I knew he wouldn't change.

"But I went along with it for the kids, for the sanctity of a marriage, for 'what will the neighbours think?'

"Well, no more. The penny's finally dropped."

She finishes by promising a "hot surprise" for the "babysitter-turned-slut", revealing: "I rubbed pepper sauce over every condom wrapper I could find in the house. That should give them a night to remember."

Link to story and videos:

http://inthespotlite.blogspot.com/2009/08/minneapolis-police-caught-beating.html

Police: Man Wearing Speedo Burglarized Cars

Man Caught By Police Dog, Officers Say

WFSB

Winkers: the jeans that wink at you

Friday, August 21, 2009

The Daily Telegraph

Meet the jeans that wink as you walk.

Winkers jeans

The amusingly named Winkers, whose buttock-eyes appear to wink coquettishly at anybody following the wearer, are the invention of William A. Jones, a retired father of five and grandfather of seven who lives in Everett, Washington.

Jones says that the idea came to him when, naturally, he was checking out a woman as she walked past him. Nice.

 

He says he was sure that her jeans-clad bottom winked at him as she strolled by. A little more thought, and the idea of jeans with eyes in the buttock-folds was born.

 

Winkers jeans

 

Jones experimented with his daughter's jeans and discovered he could indeed make the jeans wink, and came up with the name Winkers.

His range isn't limited to just eyes, though - the range also features ducks that seem to quack, an owl that blinks, and a lion in a jungle scene.

Note for stalkers: they're not actually winking at you. This is not a sign.

Bad beef jerky led irate customer to rob Cleveland party store, police say

Mark Puente

Plain Dealer Reporter

August 21, 2009 20:38PM

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

William Kaempffer

Register Staff

NEW HAVEN — A Wal-Mart employee who had been reprimanded for poor job performance grabbed an aluminum baseball bat early Tuesday and repeatedly hit an assistant manager, police said.

The attack happened in the store’s toy section at about 12:20 a.m., and George Freibott, the assistant manager, was hit a dozen times with the bat. A female employee also was hit during the fray, police said.

Freibott, 29, of Seymour, suffered “serious injuries” in the assault, police said. He was treated in the emergency room at Yale-New Haven Hospital and was discharged later in the morning.

Police, meanwhile, were searching for the suspect, identified as Barry Griffin, 26, of New Haven, who fled the store before police arrived.

Court records show he had a 2007 conviction for third-degree assault and received a suspended sentence. He has a pending assault case in Superior Court in Meriden, according to a judicial database.

The injured assistant manager told police Griffin had been reprimanded for “poor work.”

Freibott could not be reached for comment.

Michelle Bradford, a corporate spokeswoman for Wal-Mart, referred questions about the incident to authorities.

“We are cooperating with the police, and we hope our assistant manager has a speedy recovery,” she said, declining further comment.

The Wal-Mart is at 315 Foxon Blvd. An employee told police Griffin appeared to be in good spirits earlier during the shift, but his mood turned.

According to police, the incident was captured on the store’s security system. It shows Griffin grabbing a bat from a display rack in the sporting goods section, finding Freibott in the toy area of the store, and then hitting him.

The Young Controller: six-year-old boy lands dream rail job at museum

 

By David Barrett
Published: 11:30AM BST 22 Aug 2009

 

Six-year-old Sam Pointon has been given his dream job as a director of a Railway museum. Photo: KIPPA MATTHEWS

Sam Pointon sent a handwritten letter headed "Application for director" asking for an interview at the centre, in York.

The letter listed his credentials for the role, including his expertise on his train set and the fact that he had been on "lots of trains including Eurostar and some trains in France".

"I am only six but I think I can do this job," wrote Sam.

"I have an electrick (sic) train track. I am good on my train track. I can control two trains at once."

Staff were so impressed they appointed Sam an honorary "Director of Fun" and invited him and his family to a VIP day at the museum, which is home to 280 locomotives including the Mallard and the Flying Scotsman.

Sam, from Leicester, said: "It is the best job in the world. I love it. My favourite is the steam engine, I like it when the wheels go round."

His mother Lorraine said: "Like any little boy of his age he is train-mad.

"He thinks now he has got this job he won't have to go to school. We had to tell him he still has to go to school."

Mrs Pointon said the family were on holiday when husband Robin noticed an advert in a newspaper announcing the retirement of museum director Andrew Scott.

"We started teasing Sam saying it would be his dream job," she said.

"When we got back from holiday he started to write a letter and we ended up posting it. The next thing we know we are invited to the museum and Sam is director of fun.

"We were invited back yesterday and had a great day at the museum. It was Sam's third trip there, but I think we might be going again soon."

The retiring director Andrew Scott said Sam's letter of application was a real delight to read.

"It's always fantastic to see such young children with a real passion for trains, just like I had when I was a boy," he said.

 

 

 

Friday, August 21, 2009

Popcorn Helps Prevent Cancer: Study

Ironic, isn't it? While studies have shown popcorn fumes cause lung cancer, a new study shows that popcorn, which has high levels of antioxidants called polyphenols. Polyphenols reduce the risk of  heart, cancer and other diseases.

It's not just popcorn though. Other unlikely candidate foods also are high in polyphenols. According to The University of Scranton

(PA) study by Joe Vinson, a professor of chemistry, almost all whole-grain breakfast cereals and many common, grain-basedsnacks contain substantial amounts.

However, while popcorn is good for you, how many of you eat it without added butter, or even caramel or other sugary coatings? Raise your hands, please. Aha, not that many.

While the researchers said that popcorn can be healthy, they also added that consumers need to make sure the positive qualities of popcorn are not diminished by negative qualities of additives.

These were all whole grain foods, however, that showed the high polyphenol amounts. For example, wheat cereals had the most, followed by corn, oats and rice cereals. Fans of chocolate, cocoa or cinnamon can also take heart: researchers also found that cereals with added cinnamon or cocoa also had high rates of antioxidants

due to the polyphenols in cinnamon and cocoa.