THIS is TRUE #815: 24 January
This is True
countries, this is the 815th weekly issue of...
THIS is TRUE: 24 January 2010 Copyright http://www.thisistrue.com
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A LITTLE CONFUSION GOES A LONG WAY: An 80-year-old man was turned away
from the Hillsborough County, Fla., Courthouse, after being told he
could not pass through security carrying a pocketknife. Donald Koranek
dropped the knife in his car and got back in line. After taking off his
jacket to run it through an x-ray machine, a screener noticed Koranek
was carrying a pistol on his belt. Deputies seized the loaded weapon
and have referred the case to the State Attorney's Office for possible
prosecution. Koranek didn't forget about the pistol, he just thought it
was OK to take it in because he has a permit. (St. Petersburg Times)
...And that's the scary part.
I DUNNO, WHAT DO YOU WANNA DO? "The men went to the ex-wife's house to
confront her boyfriend," says Evans, Colo., police spokeswoman Rita
Wolf, about what police are calling a home-invasion robbery. Raul
Gaucin-Valenzuela, 33, "was helping his friend" in the planned assault,
but he was stopped cold when he saw children were being babysat in the
house. His own children, aged 8 and 11. "The children recognized their
dad," Wolf said, "even though he was wearing the bandanna." The friend
was David Marcos Reyes, 31, the homeowner's ex-husband, who police say
planned to beat up his ex's new boyfriend. Both invaders have been
arrested. Two other men, who are allegedly involved but stayed outside,
are still being sought. (Greely Tribune) ...Because stunts that stupid
take more than two guys to plan.
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JUST IN TIME FOR VALENTINE'S DAY
Chocolate Season is upon us! Learn more about chocolate
before you give it to a loved on for Valentine's Day.
http://www.ChocolateRoxx.com
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WHY COULDN'T SOMEONE CAPTURE THIS ON VIDEO? Misty Shriver says she went
to the Walmart store in Uniontown, Penn., to meet her ex-boyfriend, who
had just been released from a hospital, to give him money to pay for
medication. She told police that when she offered $10 to Craig Owen
David Jr., 32, he grabbed $50 and took off. He was easy to spot: he was
still wearing his hospital gown. And he was easy to catch: he was
riding a mobility scooter he had taken from the store. He was charged
with robbery and disorderly conduct. (Uniontown Herald Standard) ...But
has been offered his own reality TV series.
READING, WRITING, AND RIDICULOUS 'RITHMETIC: Manitoba, Canada's, New
Democratic Party has urged teachers not to lower student grades when
assignments are turned in late as part of the province's unwritten "no
fail" policy, which is opposed by 76 percent of province adults. Such
reduced grades are not "an accurate indicator of what the student has
learned or achieved," former education minister Peter Bjornson argued
in a letter, which is apparently being supported by other NDP
politicians. "Marks should reflect the student's achievement," Bjornson
continued, "and should not be distorted as a result of work habits,
attitudes or behaviours." (Winnipeg Free Press) ...Those who agree with
the suggestion are invited to vote for their favorite candidate the
morning after election day.
THE PEN IS MIGHTIER THAN THE SWORD; THE CELL PHONE, NOT SO MUCH: "Texting
Leads to Swordfight" -- Beloit (Wisc.) Daily News headline
DID YOU FIND an error? See http://www.thisistrue.com/errata.html
THE LAST TIME I posted a police photo of someone I wrote about in TRUE --
http://ThisIsTrue.com/d-cellpic -- more than 10,000(!!) people went and
looked. It's the most-popular page on TRUE's web site over the past
month by far. You all don't just like reading about nutty people, a lot
of you like to SEE them, too. Don't worry: by and large, they look a
LOT worse than you do on your worst day.
Well, that gave me an idea. We find LOTS of mug shots that I don't want
to clutter up my blog with, and many more than I would ever use in TRUE
in any case. Hence TRUE's latest spinoff site: the Mug Shot Museum,
which went online Monday. The tag for the site is "Weird Photos...
Weird Crimes... Weird People" -- and I'm quite sure you'll agree! I've
set it up in a blog format, complete with the ability for readers to
comment on the entries. (My own first comment: Why do so many people
SMILE in their mug shots? I've even made a category for that....)
The "contextual" ads crack me up. They seem to concentrate a lot on
background checks on people, and self defense. Yeah, both might be a
good idea!
Like many of my other sites, there's a place to sign up if you want
notifications when new mug shots are posted, which will be SEVERAL per
week. There's also an RSS feed for the techie types.
The URL: http://www.MugShotMuseum.com -- and you're most welcome to
share the URL on Twitter, Facebook, Stumble, your blog, or wherever.
MSM is on Twitter itself, too: http://twitter.com/MugShotMuseum
If you'd like to comment on the new site in general, the above is on my
blog: http://thisistrue.com/blog-new_project_the_mug_shot_museum
o o o
SPEAKING OF TWITTER and such:
THIS is TRUE is on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ThisIsTrue
Get Out of Hell Free on Twitter: http://twitter.com/GOOHF
Is Twitter useful, or a time-sink? http://thisistrue.com/d-twitter
TRUE on Facebook: http://www.Facebook.com/ThisIsTrue
GOOHF on Facebook: http://www.Facebook.com/GOOHF
Me personally on Facebook: http://www.Facebook.com/Cassingham (where I
DO accept links from readers, but note that has some duplication
with the TRUE Facebook page.)
o o o
THE REST OF THE STORIES: TSA sends two screeners to the hospital, calls
in hazardous materials experts and the bomb squad, diverts incoming
flights, evacuates the terminal, and conducts "massive investigation"
rather than believe passenger about what's in his luggage -- when a
simple sniff would confirm his story. Security screeners put explosives
in man's luggage as a test, but it gets through ...and the man is
arrested. Cop doesn't believe men when they say the stuff in the baggie
is candy ...and arrest them for drug possession when a simple sniff
would have confirmed their story. Pro baseball player's blood alcohol
level is higher than his batting average. Upgrades start at just $10 so
you don't have to miss half of TRUE! http://thisistrue.com/upgrade.html
AND AMONG THE LATEST postings to Jumbo Joke: Dinner at Chez Snooty.
http://www.JumboJoke.com
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BABY IT'S COLD OUTSIDE!
Time to install a fireplace? Or get accessories for yours?
Learn all about fireplaces so you don't look stupid
to contractors and salesmen.
New Articles Weekly: http://www.FireplaceWonk.com
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POPULAR ON GROXX TODAY: "Stopped Driver Fined for Blowing his Nose in
Traffic". He even had his parking brake on, but was cited for "not
being in proper control of his car." Submit stories and vote on what
submissions are best, register for free at http://Groxx.com
TEN YEARS AGO IN TRUE: Black governor pushes for "separate but equal".
http://thisistrue.com/6996 -- And don't forget http://i.thisistrue.com
for a new story every day on your iPhone, BlackBerry, Android, or other
web-enabled phone!
BONZER WEB SITE OF THE WEEK: http://www.sacred-texts.com -- Sacred Texts.
The largest freely available archive of online books about religion,
mythology, folklore and the esoteric on the Internet. Not just the Big
Three (Christianity, Islam, Judaism), but anything anyone has ever
considered sacred, right down to the human genome -- as long as it's
not copyrighted. The site is dedicated to religious tolerance and
scholarship, doesn't advocate any particular point of view, and is not
sponsored by any religious group.
-- Bonzer Sites archive: http://www.BonzerSites.com
THIS WEEK'S HONORARY UNSUBSCRIBE goes to Frances Buss Buch. Buch was a
pioneer in television, let alone being the first female TV director.
See http://www.HonoraryUnsubscribe.com/frances_buss_buch.html for the
full story.
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TIRED OF BEING TOLD WHERE TO GO? "Get Out of Hell Free" with our popular
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was doomed. http://www.GOOHF.com
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