Teen fad of vampire-inspired biting can be dangerous

JoNel Aleccia writes: “Bizarre teen trends have been horrifying parents for generations, but health officials are warning that a vampire-inspired biting fad could be dangerous, not to mention disgusting.

Teenagers obsessed with the “Twilight” vampire saga, or those simply fascinated with fangs, reportedly have been biting each other -- hard – and then licking or sucking the blood.

“These are kids who think they are real vampires,” said Dr. Orly Avitzur, the medical advisor to Consumers Union, the agency that publishes Consumer Reports magazine.

Avitzur said conversations with teens and sessions spent trolling vampire-related teen Web sites convinced her that the trend was taking hold. Indeed, groups like “I drink blood,” a category at www.experienceproject.com, and “I want to be a vampire” at the site www.43things.com are filled with apparent posts from young people with a yearning for blood.”

Image source

Colbert testifies before grim-looking subcommittee

If you haven’t had the opportunity to see Stephan Colbert’s testimony before a House subcommittee, you can see it here (video below).

The subcommittee chairman invited the Comedy Central personality to testify at the hearing, which addressed the possibility of offering illegal immigrant farm workers a path to citizenship.

Colbert’s “expertise” in the arena of immigration and farm labor stems from a July 2010 episode of his TV show “The Colbert Report,” during which he joined subcommittee chairwoman Rep. Zoe Lofgren to spend a day doing the work of an agriculture laborer.

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Take a minute, and check this video out. I nearly spilled my morning cup of coffee due to sudden bursts of laughter. A good way to start a day.

I have one question. Is this a joke? If so, our lawmakers are a bunch of sourpusses! Or, was Colbert’s comedy a complete surprise to our lawmakers who thought he might be serious for once?

Rep. John Conyers, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, initially requested that Colbert leave the hearing room before his testimony, arguing that his presence had achieved its purpose by bringing attention to the hearing's subject matter.

Colbert, however, was invited by the committee and gave his testimony “in character.”

The most dangerous city in the world (even for sharks)

Stokes Young says:Richard Engel, NBC News chief foreign correspondent, had an in-depth video report from Mogadishu in May, calling it "the most dangerous city in the world." I guess that's also true for sharks. Sadly, it’s still true for Somalis.

Vintage Ads Part II: polictically incorrect and hilarious

 

Growing up in the fifties I remember seeing ads like these and thinking nothing of it.

After all, it was the age of Donna Reed and “Leave it to Beaver.” Most of the ad people were men and the results are pretty obvious when you look at these examples.

If women want a barometer to see how far they’ve come in this country all they have to do his review these ads and others like them.

Montana woman fends off bear attack with zucchini

(AP) Police say a Montana woman fended off a bear attack with an unlikely weapon — a zucchini.

Missoula County Sheriff's Lt. Rich Maricelli says a 200-pound black bear attacked one of the woman's dogs just after midnight Wednesday on the back porch of her home about 15 miles west of Missoula.

When the woman, whom police did not name, tried to separate the animals, the bear bit her in the leg.

Maricelli says the woman reached for the nearest object at hand on the porch's railing — a large zucchini that she had harvested from her garden.

The woman flung the vegetable at the bear, striking it and forcing it to flee.

Maricelli says the woman did not need medical attention. Wildlife officials were trying to locate the bear on Thursday.

Vintage collection of cigarette ads is revealing and fun

   

What’s with this “Reach for a Lucky instead of a sweet” stuff? You have to hand it to Betty Grable (right), she could sell the sweat off a horses ass! Getting the boys to buy Chesterfields must have been a cinch. And, I admit failing to find the connection behind running over huddles while a fat guy chases you, and being “Toasted.”

You recognize this pretty lady (left) don’t you? It’s Lucille Ball pimping Philip Morris during the 1950s.

How about your dentist recommending that you smoke Viceroys so that he can have a steady customer getting their teeth cleaned? I always thought they had a cool looking pack. How low could these ads go? How about babies pushing Marlboro long before the “Marlboro Man” of advertising legend?

Look how cool this campus co-ed is when she sees a handsome man holding a smoldering cigarette in his hand. Actually, she’s probably recoiling from the stench! That’s all for now folks!

Latest Poll: Californians Want to Legalize Marijuana

Chris Good is a staff editor at TheAtlantic.com, and he argues that Prop 19 is slowly making inroads with California voters. If you ask me, I haven’t seen a poll yet that doesn’t have problems with the methodology used.

At this point, it’s anyone’s guess, as far as I’m concerned. I’m waiting for the campaign to start getting ugly (they all do at some point):

Excerpt;   

“Polling has gone back and forth on whether or not Californians actually want to legalize marijuana, but the latest numbers show legalization's prospects looking up.”

AND…

“So here's where polling on marijuana legalization stands: the poll with the largest sample sizes, the only poll to use live interviews, showed legalization trailing earlier this summer. Public Policy Polling's automated survey, with a smaller sample size, shows it ahead. PPP has had a decent track record in predicting primary races this year, even though the broader community of pollsters and journalists tends to be skeptical of automated polls.”

Full article here.

Why are dogs committing suicide by jumping off the Overtoun Bridge?

The Overtoun Bridge is an arch bridge located near Milton, Scotland, over the Overtoun Burn. A burn is a term used to describe a type of stream which is smaller than a river.

Milton is a village in West Dunbartonshire, which is just on the outskirts of Dumbarton. The Overtoun Bridge has gained public attention because of the unusually large number of dogs that have allegedly leaped to their deaths off the bridge.

It is not known exactly when or why dogs began to leap from the bridge, but news stories and studies have indicated that these deaths might have begun during the 1950s or 1960s, at the rate of about one dog a month. 
The long leap from the bridge onto the waterfalls of the Overtoun Estate
almost always results in immediate death.

Inexplicably, some dogs have actually survived, recuperated, and then returned to the site to jump again. These dogs are known to the locals of Dumbarton as "second timers." The dogs have mostly jumped from one side of the bridge, during clear weather,and have mostly been breeds with long noses. No explanation has yet been
found.

source for story and photo

Hey! Did you hear? the Great Recession is over!

David Fitzsimmons, Arizona Star / Politicalcartoons.com

Captains granddaughter says the Titanic was sunk by a basic steering error

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’ve always been fascinated by the story of the Titanic. This news comes as a revelation. The theory all along has been the captain didn’t have time to react when the giant iceberg was first spotted by a lookout.

Granddaughter of ship officer says truth hidden to protect his reputation

“The Titanic hit an iceberg in 1912 because of a basic steering error, and only sank as fast as it did because an official persuaded the captain to continue sailing, an author said in an interview published Wednesday.

Louise Patten, a writer and granddaughter of Titanic second officer Charles Lightoller, said the truth about what happened nearly 100 years ago had been hidden for fear of tarnishing the reputation of her grandfather, who later became a war hero.”

How the Titanic tore apart

Based on newly made 3-D maps of the shipwreck site, experts say that the Titanic’s breakup was messier than previously thought.

Largest union in California endorses pot legalization

A ballot measure that would legalize marijuana in California won the support Tuesday of the largest union in the state.

The 700,000-member Service Employees International Union California has 15 locals representing workers in health care, building services and state and local government.

The possibility of members operating phone banks, walking precincts and raising money makes the union a political powerhouse in the state and a strong ally for the Proposition 19 campaign.