No Translation Necessary

This is a short video of a nice remote control plane. Even though it's in German, I really don't think a translation is necessary.



This is always funny as long as it's happening to someone else.

Posted By: gdanea - Mon Nov 16, 2009 - Comments (1)
Category: Stupidity

Overs and Outs

Posted By: Paul - Mon Nov 16, 2009 - Comments (3)
Category: Humor, Television, 1960s

News of the Weird / Pro Edition (11-16-2009)

News of the Weird/Pro Edition
November 16, 2009
(curious and/or absurd news from November 7-14)

Weekly Gold

If you were a California lifer, why wouldn't you want to be on Death Row? The condemned get individual cells, better telephone access, nicer contact-visit arrangements, more personal-property privileges — and in fact, the state budget for each is $138,000 a year (compared to $49,000 a year for all other inmates). California now has 685 on death row but has only executed 13 in the last 32 years (versus 71 who have died of causes other than execution). (As reported here two weeks ago [NOTW/Pro, 11-2-2009], one just-convicted murderer is so anxious to get there that he volunteered confessions to two more murders that no one knew about.) Los Angeles Times

More Inconsistencies About U.S. Health Insurance: (1) A Harvard Medical School study revealed that, of all the Americans who passed away last year without health insurance, 2,200 were military veterans who had served their country but did not qualify for free veterans' benefits. (2) An analyst for the pet marketing industry told the Washington Times that "hundreds" of companies now offer supplementary pet health insurance for their employees. More than a million people pay about $400 a year for coverage. (3) As part of the new labor pact agreed to by Pennsylvania Gov. Rendell to keep the trains and buses operating in Philadelphia: If the Rx is for one Viagra a day, workers' insurance will pay for one Viagra a day, no longer just the stingy "10 per month" allowance. New American Media (Pacific News Service) /// Washington Times /// Daily Finance [link from Salon.com]

Chicago firefighter-turned-arsonist Jeffrey "Matches" Boyle (so nicknamed by Chicago Tribune columnist John Kass), who was sentenced to six years in prison in 2006 (served less than two) after pleading guilty to setting eight fires, was officially approved for his $50,000/year pension from the Chicago Fire Dept. Cook County Judge LeRoy Martin Jr. (euphemistically referred to as a "veteran" of "Chicago politics") concluded that Matches was off the clock when he set the fires. Chicago Tribune

The animal kingdom's most underrated intellect is . . the pig. With the completion of the pig genome, scientists who study that kind of thing remark on human-pig similarities: We're both quick learners, slow to forget things, have similar hearts, similar teeth, metabolize drugs the same way, stare at ourselves in the mirror (though for the pig, it appears to be curiosity more than vanity). Said one biologist, "I look at the pig as a great animal model for human lifestyle diseases. Pigs like to lie around, they like to drink if given a chance [and] smoke and watch TV." New York Times

A New Jersey judge overruled the police chief in the town of Manville and said prospective hunter James Cap, 46, was indeed qualified for a firearms license. Cap had last hunted while in his teens, but then had his neck broken in a high school football game and has been a quadriplegic for 30 years. His gun will be wheelchair-mounted, fired by Cap's blowing into a tube. Associated Press via Philly.com



More in extended >>

Posted By: Chuck - Mon Nov 16, 2009 - Comments (2)
Category:

Oh Deer!

"It is better to have loved and lost..." ...well, maybe not. At least not for the 180 pound buck Mark Brye of Viroqua, Wisconsin found lying dead on his lawn in early November. In the deer breeding season bucks will defend their territory by fighting other bucks who enter it. These fights can be quite violent and sometimes deadly. Apparently the buck decided that the 640 pound cement elk lawn ornament in Mark's yard was trespassing on his turf and went to battle. This was obvious due to the heavy statue being knocked over as well as the deer having a shattered skull. He fought the elk and the elk won. Now the buck is in Mark's freezer and Mark is thinking of replacing the elk's broken antlers with the buck's 7 point rack. That's if Mark can get a few guys together to set the lawn statue upright.
http://lacrossetribune.com/news/local/article_9ee5d1bc-cdbc-11de-a418-001cc4c002e0.html

Posted By: Alex - Sun Nov 15, 2009 - Comments (4)
Category:

The Sedlec Ossuary

The Sedlec Ossuary is one of the weirdest places on earth. Also known as the Church of Bones or Bone Church it dates to the 15th century. The reason for the vast amount of bones there dates back much farther. In 1278 the abbot of the Sedlec Cistercian Monastery was sent to Jerusalem and when he returned he brought a jar of soil from the holy land. After that people from all over wanted to be buried in Sedlec because the cemetery had been consecrated with the holy soil. Then when the church was built the cemetery was expanded and the church basement was made into an ossuary. The bones stayed there until 1870 when Frantisek Rint, a wood carver, was appointed to put the bones in order. The way this 'putting in order' was done is what makes the church so unique and strange. To read more and link to more pictures go here:
http://www.sedlecossuary.com/

Posted By: Alex - Sun Nov 15, 2009 - Comments (2)
Category:

A Familiar Fix

[From Harper's Young People Illustrated Weekly for May 21, 1889.]

Haven't we all been in this situation at one time or another?

Posted By: Paul - Sun Nov 15, 2009 - Comments (4)
Category: Art, Public Humiliation, Dogs, Nineteenth Century

Jumeau Dolls

Apparently, Jumeau Dolls are very collectible. But I'm not sure I could share my home with the "Screamer" model.

Posted By: Paul - Sun Nov 15, 2009 - Comments (5)
Category: Horror, Toys

Walmart Doesn’t Have These

It was covered here on WU that Walmart is now carrying caskets for sale on line. The selection available is perfectly acceptable, if a little generic in appearance. Now, for those with a few extra dollars and the desire to give their recently departed loved one a more personalized resting place, there is a great site to check out.
http://www.americancasketstore.com/ArtCaskets.html

Posted By: Alex - Sun Nov 15, 2009 - Comments (3)
Category:

Budgie Smugglers

Apparently, 200 people were trying to break a world record in Sydney, Australia. Something to do with the largest swimwear parade. They are ALL wearing speedos. There are women involved too but the clip shows mostly men! So, enjoy ladies.(and a few of the guys too!)
It wasn't encoded so you'll have to hit the link folks.
http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,,26341217-5012980,00.html
Budgie Smugglers! Really, that's what they call them 'down under'.(how appropriate is THAT phrase?)

Posted By: Alex - Sat Nov 14, 2009 - Comments (6)
Category:

Thanksgivings of Yore

You still have enough time in the next two weeks to rearrange your life so that your holiday mirrors the Eisenhowerian perfection on display here

Posted By: Paul - Sat Nov 14, 2009 - Comments (4)
Category: Family, Holidays, Television, 1950s