Quit laughing… parallel parking is hard!
Category: Editor’s Choice/Opinion
FAKE: CBS Doctors Boston Fireworks
BOSTON (AP) – TV footage of Boston’s July Fourth fireworks show was spectacular. Some of the shots also were physically impossible.
The CBS national broadcast Monday included shots of colorful explosions over the city landmarks including Fenway Park, the Statehouse, and Quincy Market.
Organizers of the show acknowledged to The Boston Globe for a story that some scenes had been altered: Images of fireworks going off over the Charles River were superimposed over pre-filmed landmarks in other parts of the city.
David Mugar, the Boston-area businessman and philanthropist who is the show’s executive producer, defends the practice. He says the broadcast was entertainment and not news.
David Perry, a Massachusetts native who lives in Ohio, told the Globe he was disappointed because the fireworks are good enough already and don’t need enhancement.
NFL Players Stay Busy: Field Of Dreams 2 (WATCH)
An Iowa corn farmer (Taylor Lautner), hears voices that tell him he should build a football field in his fields; he does, and the National Football League comes…
Aerial View Of Phoenix Sandstorm (WATCH)
Great video of the sandstorm that hit Phoenix on July 5th…
LAWSUIT: Cubicle Made Me Claustrophobic, $150,000 Settlement
LAS VEGAS (AP) – A government worker in Nevada who says her office cubicle made her claustrophobic is going to get a $150,000 settlement.
Commissioners in Nevada’s Clark County have approved the payment to settle a lawsuit by a former University Medical Center data technician.
Jayne Feshold says she was diagnosed with claustrophobia after she was required to work in a small cubicle work space instead of a more open environment.
The Las Vegas Sun reports that Feshold told her employers she had to be assigned to work in an open space under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The hospital countered that she did not have a disability and Feshold was fired.
NY Motorcyclist Dies On Ride Protesting Helmet Law
ONONDAGA, N.Y. (AP) — Police say a motorcyclist participating in a protest ride against helmet laws in upstate New York died after he flipped over the bike’s handlebars and hit his head on the pavement.
The accident happened Saturday afternoon in the town of Onondaga, in central New York nearSyracuse.
State troopers tell The Post-Standard of Syracuse that 55-year-old Philip A. Contos of Parish, N.Y., was driving a 1983 Harley Davidson with a group of bikers who were protesting helmet laws by not wearing helmets.
Troopers say Contos hit his brakes and the motorcycle fishtailed. The bike spun out of control, and Contos toppled over the handlebars. He was pronounced dead at a hospital.
Troopers say Contos would have likely survived if he had been wearing a helmet.
POLL: Americans Asked What Year U.S. Declared Independence
A recent poll asked Americans what year the United States declared its independence.
Easy question, right? Wrong.
The poll found that only 58% of residents knew that the United States declared its independence in 1776. 26% were unsure and 16% mentioned another date.
Younger Americans were the least likely to know, with only 31% of adults younger than 30 knowing that 1776 is the year that the United States broke away from Great Britain.
For Americans 30 to 44, 59% knew the year and 75% of Americans ages 45 to 59 answered correctly.
When it comes to gender, more men (65%), were more likely to respond with 1776 than were women (52%).
And, for the second year, about one in four Americans did not know from which country the United States declared its independence. While 76% correctly cite Great Britain, 19% are unsure, and 5% mention another country.
The poll was conducted by Marist Poll.
Impressive Use of Sheep (WATCH)
Sheepherders have fun with their herd, some LED lights, and time lapse video…
Russia Bans Scientology Literature
MOSCOW (AP) – A Court in a Moscow suburb has banned works by the founder of the Church of Scientology, officials said Thursday.
The Shchyolkovo court ruled that “What is Scientology?” and other books by L. Ron Hubbard “contain calls for extremist activities,” the Prosecutor General’s office said in a statement.
It said that once the court decision comes into force, Scientology books will be put on the federal list of extremist materials banned for release throughout Russia. The court made the ruling following a request by local prosecutors.
A court in the Siberian city of Surgut had earlier made a similar decision, but then overturned it.
Scientology officials said they would protest the decision.
“There have been many legal violations, the case is unfounded and the trial was hasty,” the group’s attorney Sergei Korzikov told The Associated Press. “We could not defend our legal interests.”
The group’s spokesman in Russia, Yuri Maximov, said that Russia is home to “tens of thousands” of Scientology devotees. Russian media have claimed that some powerful businessmen and officials are among Scientology adepts.
Russia’s dominant Orthodox Church has denounced Scientology as a “totalitarian sect,” and in 2007, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Moscow city authorities infringed on the group’s rights by repeatedly refusing to register it.
Hubbard, a science fiction writer, founded the Los Angeles-based Church of Scientology in 1954. It teaches that technology can expand the mind and help solve problems.
The group claims 10 million members around the world, including film stars Tom Cruise and John Travolta.
Belgium, Germany and other European countries have been criticized by the U.S. State Department for labeling Scientology as a cult or sect and enacting laws to restrict its operations and monitor its activities.
WHOOPS: Always check your blindspots… (WATCH)
Some people should go back to driver’s ed.
It’s Harvest Time In Kansas
By Jerry Moran
It’s harvest time in Kansas. And while most Americans associate harvest with autumn leaves and Thanksgiving, Kansans think of hot southern winds that ripen the wheat and signal it’s time to get the combine ready for what they hope will be a good crop. Ever since Kansas’ first settlers converted the prairie from a sea of tall grass into amber waves of grain, families have labored together during the summer months to bring in the harvest.
Harvest is a time when sons and daughters work alongside their parents and grandparents. It’s a time when values are passed down and life lessons are learned – not just those of hard work, but of how to manage disappointment and make the most of success. It’s also a time for family gatherings and giving thanks for the special way of life we lead in Kansas.
It seems that no matter where a son or daughter lives, they find a way to come back home and help their family during harvest. There is more to this pilgrimage than just lending a hand; there is a pride that reminds us of our heritage, and draws families and generations closer together.
The family farm contributes enormously to the values and traditions Kansans hold dear, as well as to the strength and stability of our state and nation’s economy. Every day, millions of Americans enjoy a safe and affordable food supply thanks to our nation’s farmers, but trends show that more young adults are leaving their rural hometowns for jobs in the city. According to the 2007 Census of Agriculture, only 8 percent of all farmers today are age 35 or younger while more than half of U.S. farmers are between the ages of 45 and 65. Additionally, the average Kansas farmer is getting older – increasing in age from 54 to 58 over the last decade.
This trend is concerning and the only way to reverse it is to create opportunities that make it easier for sons and daughters to make the choice to return to follow in their parents’ footsteps. Congress can do its part by removing regulatory obstacles that make it more difficult for families to operate their businesses. A good place to start is the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). From limiting the amount of dust that can be kicked up by a combine, to regulating every mud puddle on a farm and dictating which day ranchers can burn their pastures in the Flint Hills, EPA’s overbearing regulations must be reined in.
For farmers to earn a living and remain competitive, Congress must also develop a comprehensive energy policy that allows for an ample energy supply which is both affordable and reliable. Rising fuel prices increase operating costs for farmers and ranchers – making it more expensive to purchase fertilizer, produce crops and transport them to market.
Creating a friendly environment for the family farm at home must be coupled with opening new foreign markets for agricultural commodities overseas. Delayed approval of pending trade agreements with countries like Colombia, Panama, and South Korea are costing farmers and ranchers real money, and each day that passes we risk losing more of our market share to competing nations. It is past time to create more opportunities for American farms to grow and prosper.
Finally, nothing hinders the transfer of the family farm to the next generation more than the estate tax. It is an unfair, unjust burden on our economy and it punishes Kansans who want to continue their family business. I have long sought a permanent repeal of the estate tax, but have also pursued opportunities to increase the size of estate tax exemption and lower rates. I will continue to look for commonsense ways to decrease the impact of the estate tax so farmers can make long-term plans with more certainty.
Just like the summer wheat harvest, creating an environment of economic certainty will take hard work. To keep the family farm alive however, it is worth every bit of effort. I will continue my efforts to educate my colleagues in Congress about the vital contributions of our nation’s farmers and ranchers, and will work to keep the federal government out of the way so we can preserve that special way of life for future generations of Kansans.
Barking Cat?
Ever heard a cat doing impressions? The cat in the video below can apparently bark like a dog.
The video has been viewed over 1,220,000 times.
Man In Wheelchair Foils Robbery (WATCH)
A man in Vancouver, Canada is being hailed a hero after stopping a would be robbery.
The video below captures footage of Larry Skopnik, who is wheel-chair bound, tackling a man trying to rob a Commercial Drive convenience store.