Paging Mr. Kenny!

Group Finds Toad the Size of a Small Dog

With a body the size of a football and weighing nearly 2 pounds, the toad is among the largest specimens ever captured in Australia, according to Frogwatch coordinator Graeme Sawyer.

... Frogwatch, which is dedicated to wiping out a toxic toad species that has killed countless Australian animals, picked up the 15-inch-long cane toad during a raid on a pond outside the northern city of Darwin late Monday.

Cane toads were imported from South America during the 1930s in a failed attempt to control beetles on Australia's northern sugar cane plantations. The poisonous toads have proven fatal to Australia's delicate ecosystems, killing millions of native animals from snakes to the small crocodiles that eat them.

As part of its so-called "Toad Buster" project, Frogwatch conducts regular raids on local water holes, blinding the toads with bright lights then scooping them up by the dozen.

"We kill them with carbon dioxide gas, stockpile them in a big freezer and then put them through a liquid fertilizer process" that renders the toads nontoxic, Sawyer said.

"It turns out to be sensational fertilizer," he added.

Do these crocodiles make me look fat?

Woman Has Crocodiles Strapped to Body

A woman with three crocodiles strapped to her waist was stopped at the Gaza-Egypt border crossing after guards noticed that she looked "strangely fat," officials said Monday.

The woman's shape raised suspicions at the Rafah terminal in southern Gaza, and a body search by a female border guard turned up the animals, each about 20 inches long, concealed underneath her loose robe, according to Maria Telleria, spokeswoman for the European observers who run the crossing.

"The woman looked strangely fat. Even though she was veiled and covered, even with so many clothes on there was something strange," Telleria said.

The incident, which took place on Thursday, sparked panic at the crossing.

"The policewoman screamed and ran out of the room, and then women began screaming and panicking when they heard," Telleria said. But when the hysteria died down, she said, "everybody was admiring a woman who is able to tie crocodiles to her body."

I'm nuts for Knut!

"Knut Day" in Berlin as polar bear cub goes public

Germany's youngest celebrity, Knut the polar bear cub, made his much-anticipated public debut at Berlin Zoo on Friday and appeared unfazed by the media scrum surrounding his first excursion.

The three-and-a-half-month old white cub padded gingerly round his new enclosure to the gasps and sighs of onlookers.

Fortified by a breakfast of porridge, the puppy-sized cub sniffed the grass and rolled in the dust before delighting the crowds by splashing in a pond.

"I want to take him home," said Daniel Wolff, five, whose mother had bought him a specially made "Knut" cuddly polar bear toy on sale on a stand outside the enclosure.

More cute photos here

Just Manny Being Manny!

Manny breaks silence, but it takes a grilling

Only moments before Ramírez walked into the Red Sox clubhouse, David Ortiz's booming laugh had filtered through the air, the big man nearly keeling over with merriment. The television, turned all the way up, had shown a segment of ESPN's "Pardon the Interruption" devoted to a curious story that had been making the rounds all day. A grill had turned up on eBay with a bizarre message and a series of seven photographs, among which were two of Ramírez standing next to the silver piece of heavy-duty cooking equipment.

"Hi, I'm Manny Ramirez," reads the ad, listed under the seller "mannyramirez1524," a member since March 18. "I bought this AMAZING grill for about $4,000 and I used it once . . . But I never have the time to use it because I am always on the road. I would love to sell it and you will get an autographed ball signed by me =) Enjoy it, Manny Ramirez."

So in the interests of journalistic integrity (and with an extreme curiosity), a reporter approached Ramírez. (OK, it was this reporter.)

Is the grill yours? Is the ad true?

He said it wasn't. He agreed about a week ago to help out a neighbor in Weston, Fla., by advertising the grill as his own to drive up the price.

Cutest thing ever!!!

More cuteness: http://www.cuteoverload.com

Polar cub update - w/ new cute pic!

Berlin gripped by fate of polar bear cub Knut

Berlin Zoo rallied to the defense of Knut, a three-month-old polar bear cub, Tuesday, rejecting demands that the animal be allowed to die after being abandoned by its mother.

The fate of "cuddly Knut" has gripped the German capital since his birth in December. Rejected by his mother Tosca, the cub was adopted by a zookeeper who moved into the animal's enclosure to care for him round the clock.

Some animal rights campaigners think this will humanize the bear too much and want the zoo to stop saving young animals.

"Hand-rearing a polar bear is not appropriate and is a serious violation of animal rights," Bild newspaper quoted animal rights campaigner Frank Albrecht as saying.

"In fact, the cub should have been killed," he added.

... Knut has become an unofficial Berlin city mascot and has even had his picture taken by photographer Annie Leibovitz as part of a new climate change campaign.

How ironic, he's the poster-bear for environmentalist whackos and they still want him killed! This really shows the true colors of these "animal rights" activists! It's better for the cub to be dead than to have his "animal rights" violated?!

Just a reminder of the types of people we are fighting in Iraq

Iraq insurgents used children in car bombing: general

Insurgents in Iraq detonated an explosives-rigged vehicle with two children in the back seat after US soldiers let it through a Baghdad checkpoint over the weekend, a senior US military official said Tuesday.

The vehicle was stopped at the checkpoint but was allowed through when soldiers saw the children in the back, said Major General Michael Barbero of the Pentagon's Joint Staff.

"Children in the back seat lowered suspicion. We let it move through. They parked the vehicle, and the adults ran out and detonated it with the children in the back," Barbero said.

What was it Michael Moore called them? Freedom fighters? Minute Men?

I see black helicopters

Climate scientist sees cover-up

A NASA scientist who said the Bush administration muzzled him because of his belief in global warming yesterday acknowledged to Congress that he'd done more than 1,400 on-the-job interviews in recent years.

... But Mr. Issa noted that Mr. Hansen conducted 15 interviews in the month after accusing the Bush administration of censorship.

...Mr. Deutsch, who was 23 at the time, said Mr. Hansen was prohibited from doing the interview because of his prior refusal to notify NASA officials when he was granting interviews, not for political reasons.

Citing what he called his "constitutional right" to give interviews, Mr. Hansen admitted violating NASA's press policy but defended his actions.

...Mr. Hansen refused to denounce earlier comments he made referring to the White House as a "propaganda office," and saying, "It seems more like Nazi Germany or the Soviet Union than the United States."

"I was referring to the constraints of speaking to the media," Mr. Hansen said, when asked about his comments.

... Mr. Hansen received a $250,000 grant from the Heinz foundation, which is controlled by Teresa Heinz Kerry, wife of Sen. John Kerry, Massachusetts Democrat. Mr. Hansen was a vocal supporter of Mr. Kerry's 2004 presidential campaign.

...Chairman Henry A. Waxman, California Democrat, accused Republicans of "smearing" the witness after Rep. Mark Souder, Indiana Republican, asked Mr. Hansen about the Heinz foundation grant.

Talk about destroying the villiage to save it . . . so sad!

'We want this baby polar bear dead' say animal rights lobby

At three months old, however, the playful 19lb bundle of fur is at the centre of an impassioned debate over whether he should live or die.

Animal rights activists argue that he should be given a lethal injection rather than brought up suffering the humiliation of being treated as a domestic pet.

"The zoo must kill the bear," said spokesman Frank Albrecht. "Feeding by hand is not species-appropriate but a gross violation of animal protection laws."

When Knut was born in December, his mother ignored him and his brother, who died. Zoo officials intervened, choosing to raise the cub themselves.

But Albrecht and other activists fret that it is inappropriate for a predator, known for its fierceness and ability to fend for itself in the wild, to be snuggled, bottle-fed and made into a commodity by zookeepers.

They argue that current treatment of the cub is inhumane and could cause him future difficulties interacting with fellow polar bears. "They cannot domesticate a wild animal," added Ruediger Schmiedel, head of the Foundation for Bears.

The Ambassador's New Clothes

Israel recalls 'naked ambassador'

Israel has recalled its ambassador to El Salvador after he was found drunk and naked apart from bondage gear.

Reports say he was able to identify himself to police only after a rubber ball had been removed from his mouth.

The incident, which happened two weeks ago, has renewed calls for a radical overhaul of the way Israel appoints and promotes its diplomats.

Edwards out-crazies the crazy

John Edwards is being so ridiculous about this Fox News debate thing, that even Dennis Kucinich, the craziest Democrat candidate of them all, is taking him to task!

“If you want to be the President of the United States, you can’t be afraid to deal with people with whom you disagree politically,” Kucinich said. “No one is further removed from Fox’s political philosophy than I am, but fear should not dictate decisions that affect hundreds of millions of Americans and billions of others around the world who are starving for real leadership.”

Imagine if Republicans refused to talk to networks because of their liberal bias, they'd never talk to ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, etc, etc.

More outrage on the illegal immigration front:

Gang crackdown raises touchy issue

A spot check by federal agents has identified 59 street gang members in Southern California jails who are illegal immigrants subject to deportation, sparking a debate about the role of border enforcement in the region's battle against violent gangs.

The initial identification of deportable gang members came during a first-of-its-kind screening of a portion of jail inmates last month.
...
The focus on immigration status comes as the city of Los Angeles is calling on federal agencies to help it crack down in response to last year's 15.7% increase in gang crime.
...
The Washington, D.C.-based group has sued the LAPD to overturn Special Order 40, the rule that prohibits officers from asking about immigration status, arguing that the department is required to enforce all laws.

The policy has been loosened slightly, allowing gang officers to ask about the immigration status of suspects only when they recognize them as having been previously deported.

As recently as last week, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa rejected the argument that eliminating Special Order 40 would help in the battle against gangs.
...
The mayor said it is the federal government's job to enforce immigration laws.


How screwed up is the system when this is the first time federal agents have checked jails for illegal immigrants?

How messed up are our laws when police officers are not allowed to investigate the immigration status of criminals and gang members?

And how ridiculous is it that LA wants federal help in combating its gang problem, but won't help the feds combat our illegal alien problem, both of which are intricately linked?!

No wonder illegal immigrations is such a huge mess, they've made it illegal to enforce the law!

What will they think of next?

Love-making gets green light from adult stores

For those who like to make love to the soundtrack of the global warming documentary An Inconvenient Truth, Greenpeace has released a list of strategies for "getting it on for the good of the planet," suggesting "you can be a bomb in bed without nuking the planet."

...
Other ways of "greenwashing" the bedroom, as outlined by TreeHugger and Greenpeace, include turning out the lights, not buying PVC or vinyl accoutrements, ensuring S&M paddles are made from sustainably harvested timber, using organic massage oils, showering together, using bamboo bed sheets (they come from a rapidly renewable resource and are said to be "super sexy"), and wearing lingerie made with renewable fibres such as hemp (Enamore), bamboo (Butta) and other organic goodness (GreenKnickers, Buenostyle, Peau Ethique).

Jesus $aves

Man Tries to Cash $50K Check From God

Kevin Russell found out it's not easy trying to cash a check from God. The 21-year-old man was arrested Monday after he tried to cash a check for $50,000 at the Chase Bank in Hobart that was signed "King Savior, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Servant," Hobart police Detective Jeff White said.
...
Police were called to the bank after Russell tried to cash the check, which was written on an invalid Bank One check with no imprint, White said. Russell had several other checks with him that were signed the same way but made out in different dollar amounts, including one for $100,000.
...
"I've heard about God giving out eternal life, but this is the first time I've heard of him giving out cash," White said.