Abaddon's Weird News of the World!

[classical_hero]

What a dope.

 

[Cutlass]

A snake bite in a north Sacramento neighborhood left the victim seriously hurt, but the injured party isn't whom you'd expect.

Police say a python underwent emergency surgery after a man allegedly bit the creature twice.

Officers were called to Del Paso Heights around 6:30 p.m. Thursday after a passer-by reported that a man was lying on the ground and may have been assaulted, according to Sgt. Andrew Pettit. When they arrived, they found David Senk, 54, still lying there — but police say he wasn't the one who was assaulted.

Another man approached officers and accused Senk of taking two bites out of his 3-foot pet python, Pettit said.

Senk was arrested on suspicion of unlawfully maiming or mutilating a reptile and booked on $10,000 bail.

In a jailhouse interview with KXTL-TV on Friday, Senk said he had no memory of the incident and that he has a drinking problem.

"I did what?" Senk said. "If you find the owner, tell him I'm real sorry. ... I'm willing to help pay for medical expenses."

The snake was turned over to the city's Animal Care Services, where it was recovering Friday after losing several ribs. The female python, about a couple years old, had extensive bite injuries, said Gina Knepp, acting animal care services manager.

"You could see the poor snake's liver, all the way down the side," Knepp said.

The snake's owner has not yet come forward to claim the pet or file a report with animal care officials, Knepp said.

credit: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2011/09/02/national/a155534D00.DTL&tsp=1

 

[Dragonlord]

"Snake bite"...

I've heard about "man bites dog" stories, but "man bites snake"?

 

[Cutlass]

Drunken elk rescued from Swede's apple tree

Published: 7 Sep 11 12:38 CET

A drunken elk desperate for just one more mouthful of fermenting apples lost its balance in the attempt, leaving it stuck in an apple tree in western Sweden.

When Per Johansson of Särö, south of Gothenburg, returned home from work on Tuesday it was dark outside and the rain was coming down hard. Suddenly Johansson heard a bellowing noise from the garden next door.

“I thought at first that someone was having a laugh. Then I went over to take a look and spotted an elk stuck in an apple tree with only one leg left on the ground,” Johansson told The Local.

The unfortunate elk was desperately entangled in the tree’s branches and was kicking ferociously as Johansson approached.

“I thought it looked pretty bad so I called the police who sent out an on-call hunter. But while we were waiting, the neighbours and I started to saw down some of the branches and then the hunter arrived with a saw as well,” said Johansson.

The group tried to make the elk more comfortable but to no avail.

It wasn’t until the fire brigade arrived on the scene and managed to bend the tree to the point where the exhausted elk could slide out of the branches that the animal was finally freed.

According to Johansson, it looked very much like the elk was severely drunk after eating too many fermenting apples.

Drunken elks are common in Sweden during the autumn season when there are plenty of apples lying around on the ground and hanging from branches in Swedish gardens.

While the greedy animal was reaching ever higher to reach the delicious but intoxicating fruit, it most likely stumbled into the tree, getting itself hopelessly entangled in the branches.

And from what Johansson could gather, this particular animal had been on a day-long bender.

“My neighbour recognised it as the animal that almost ran into her car earlier in the day. She was pretty sure the elk was already under the influence,“ said Johansson.

When the inebriated elk was freed, it lay for a while on the ground, seemingly unconscious.

After emergency services had ascertained that the animal was still alive, Johansson was told to keep an eye on it and call the hunter straight away if it seemed to be suffering.

But by the morning the hungover animal had stood up and cautiously moved a few metres away.

After a while it went on its way, although Johansson suspects it is still skulking around the neighbourhood.

“We often see elk stuffing their faces with apples around here but this is the first time we found one perched in a tree,” he told The Local.

http://www.thelocal.se/36002/20110907/

 

[Formaldehyde]

A man with a "support our troops" bumper sticker kills 5, including 3 National Guardsmen in uniform, with an AK47 in an IHOP in Nevada before taking his own life:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/07/us/07shooting.html

LOS ANGELES — A man armed with an AK-47 assault rifle opened fire Tuesday morning on a group of uniformed National Guard members as they ate breakfast at an IHOP restaurant in Carson City, Nev. He hit all five Guard members, killing three of them, and killed another woman and wounded five other people before taking his own life.

The gunman, identified by the police as Eduardo Sencion, 32, began his five-minute shooting rampage around 9 a.m. as people flocked to the restaurant for the breakfast rush.

The Carson City sheriff, Ken Furlong, said the authorities had not yet established a motive. However, he said it appeared that Mr. Sencion did seek out the National Guard members, at least once he was inside the restaurant. Five of the 11 people shot were in uniform, and one of the wounded civilians was caught in the line of fire between Mr. Sencion and the Guardsmen.

“It appears as though his gunfire was primarily focused on those military members,” Sheriff Furlong said. “We do not know whether or not the gunman was aware that there were National Guardsmen in the restaurant, but it appears as though he did. He had to travel through the entire restaurant to get to the back where the Guardsmen were having breakfast.”

Ralph Swagler, the owner of a nearby barbecue restaurant, told The A.P. that he saw the gunman pull up outside the restaurant, where he first shot a man on a motorcycle and then headed inside.

“I wish I had shot at him, but he was going in the IHOP,” Mr. Swagler said. “But when he came at me — when somebody is pointing an automatic weapon at you, you can’t believe the firepower, the kind of rounds coming out of that weapon.”

The State Capitol and Supreme Court buildings were briefly locked down as the authorities feared more violence. But Mr. Freer said the shooting appeared to be an isolated incident.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/09/06/ihop-nevada-shootings.html

Witnesses and authorities described a frantic scene in the bustling business district, in which the shooter pulled into the large complex of retail stores and shops just before 9 a.m. local time in a blue minivan with a yellow "Support Our Troops" sticker on the back. He got out and immediately shot a woman near a motorcycle, a witness said.

As the attack unfolded, Nevada officials worried about the violence being more widespread. They locked down the state capitol and Supreme Court buildings for about 40 minutes, and put extra security in place at state and military buildings in northern Nevada.

"There were concerns at the onset, so we took certain steps to ensure we had the capability to embrace an even larger circumstance," Furlong said. "At this point in time it appears to be isolated to this parking lot."

No indication of terrorist plot

Reno-based FBI special agent Michael West said there was no indication of any terrorist plot.

"He's a gentle, kind man who was very helpful to friends and family," Laub told The Associated Press. "I couldn't venture to guess what would cause him to do something as horrible as this."

In the bankruptcy filing, Sencion listed more than $42,000 US in outstanding debts for a car, several credit cards and some medical expenses. At the time, Sencion reported having $200 spread over three bank accounts and $923 in disability income, mostly from Social Security.

 

[GoodGame]

You can now buy Schweddy Balls


...as an ice cream flavor..



http://www.nydailynews.com/lifestyl...cream_flavor_named_for_nearlyobscene_199.html

Ben & Jerry's confirms 'Schweddy Balls' ice cream flavor named for nearly-obscene 1998 SNL sketch



>Link to video.

 

[carmen510]

Man claims that his wife got raped by an "invisible man"

 

[PlutonianEmpire]

Man claims that his wife got raped by an "invisible man"

That reminded me of that one scene in the movie Hollow Man, where Kevin Bacon became invisible.

Dammit, now I'm gonna have nightmares tonight.

 

[Lord Baal]

That reminded me of that one scene in the movie Hollow Man, where Kevin Bacon became invisible.

Dammit, now I'm gonna have nightmares tonight.

You've got to love the editing in that film. When they decided that the rape scene and its aftermath was too disturbing, they elected to cut the scene of the victim crying afterwards, thus teaching all the fourteen year old boys in the audience that rape has no consequences. Go Hollywood!

 

[jtb1127]

If you don't get caught everything's legal.

 

[Lord Baal]

If you don't get caught everything's legal.

Sure thing, Mr Polanski.

 

[Formaldehyde]

Modern stoneage family appears again ... in Georgia:

Brakeless driver imitates Fred Flintstone, strikes vehicles in Roseville VIDEO

The Warren resident stopped and checked his pickup truck on 11 Mile Road at Bunert in Warren at approximately 5:45 p.m. Wednesday. Instead of calling for a tow truck, he continued to drive and put his feet out the car door to stop, Roseville Deputy Chief James Berlin said.

The man reached northbound Groesbeck Highway, using his feet when necessary. Witnesses said he came to a complete stop at least twice but continued along his journey in the left, northbound lane, reaching speeds of approximately 40 mph.

“This guy’s no rocket scientist,” Berlin said.

“Citizens were calling in (to police) saying this guy is all over the road, using his feet,” Berlin said.

As he approached the intersection of Groesbeck and 13 Mile, the motorist was unable to stop for a red traffic signal and collided with two vehicles.

Undaunted, he continued on, still trying to use his feet to stop his car as he headed north.

A patrol officer pulled alongside as they neared Utica Road and yelled at the man to shift the transmission into park. The pickup’s gears grinded but the pickup didn’t stop. Hoping to avoid a rear-end collision as he approached the red traffic signal, the Warren man tried to squeeze between the vehicle in front of him but struck it and a southbound vehicle.

Questioned by officers, the man said he works as a roofer and had to get to work the next day so that he would not disappoint his customers. The man passed field sobriety tests but claimed he was overly tired, police said.

“He said he was going to fix the brakes when he got home,” Berlin said.

Video on the website...

 

[Formaldehyde]

After watching Christopher Hitchens' speech in the Youtube video thread, I found this ironic article about his medical problems and treatment:

Atheist Christopher Hitchens could be 'saved' by evangelical Christian

Christopher Hitchens, one of the world's best known atheists, is receiving a revolutionary new treatment for his cancer pioneered by an evangelical Christian scientist, he has revealed in an interview with the Telegraph Magazine.

The author of God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything said that he is a "guinea pig" for a new personalised medicine partly developed by Dr Francis Collins, a geneticist with very strong religious views.

The two had often met in the past as adversaries in the debate about whether God exists.

Against the odds they had become friends.

Now Hitchens is one of the few people in the world who has had his entire genetic make up mapped and is receiving a new treatment that targets his own damaged DNA.

"I’m an experiment," Hitchens said.

Dr Collins is a former director of the National Human Genome Research Project and is now the director of America’s National Institutes of Health.

He is the author of a bestselling book, The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief.

"It is a rather wonderful relationship,’ said Hitchens.

"I won’t say he doesn’t pray for me, because I think he probably does; but he doesn’t discuss it with me.

"He agrees that his medical experience does not include anything that could be described as a miracle cure – he’s never come across anything."

 

[GoodGame]

Antelope Bites Man!!!!


Link to video.

Mountain bike racer Evan van der Spuy was peddling along an open path in South Africa when a different kind of competitor came charging out of the wild.

Video footage shows a large antelope rush up and knock the 17-year-old clear off his bike during the weekend race outside Pietermaritzburg.

Teammate Travis Walker, riding behind van der Spuy, is heard yelling out "watch the buck" just seconds before the collision that left van der Spuy sprawled on the grass.

The whole drama was captured on Walker's helmet camera.

He described the "freaky" incident to ABC News.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/world/8358439/wild-buck-bowls-over-biker




Luckily he survived the accident.

Van der Spuy took to Twitter to say that he is in a stable condition and suffered "nothing more than a very stiff neck". He also commended his teammate's camera skills.

"Next time warn the riders about the buck as well and not just the rhino because they do damage just as bad", he tweeted.

Moral: Always wear your safety helmet properly while riding a bicycle!!!

 

[civ_king]

After watching Christopher Hitchens' speech in the Youtube video thread, I found this ironic article about his medical problems and treatment:

Atheist Christopher Hitchens could be 'saved' by evangelical Christian

Remember folks, religion makes people "stoopid" which is why Christopher Hitchens is being treated by a guy who wrote a book about evidence for God

 

[emzie]

Remember folks, religion makes people "stoopid" which is why Christopher Hitchens is being treated by a guy who wrote a book about evidence for God

Is the treatment based upon the man's religious beliefs? No? Don't see the point of the news article.

 

[Formaldehyde]

The point is that religion obviously didn't "poison everything". That if Hitchens does live it will likely be due to the efforts of an evangelical Christian.

 

[classical_hero]

How is that weird news?

 

[Lord Baal]

Ah, but think of how much more intelligent this guy would be if he wasn't giving so much brain-power to his filthy, heathen religion?

 

[Lillefix]

So what happens when a Norwegian with bad English tries to order a 150 gram burger on Mcdonalds(which everyone else knows doesn't exist in Mcdonalds-lingo) in Latvia? Well, I'll tell you. He gets 150 hamburgers. Unfortunately for him it didn't occur to him until it was all to late that the trays and trays of burgers they brought out was for him. It cost him but the equivalent of 141 euros, but he paid with a smile according to himself. And he only ate one...

"It was during a company trip to Latvia that the man was hungry, and went to a McDonald's restaurant in the capital Riga. He ordered a 150-gram burger, pulled the card, and was amazed when the staff began to carry out several trays with burgers for him.

- I asked what this meant. Then they reminded me that I had ordered 150 burgers, says the man, who requested anonymity, told the newspaper altaposten.no .

He is no doubt that he has himself to blame for the misunderstanding. He knows well that there is something called "150 gram burger" at McDonald's - at least now.

- I had never ordered 150 burgers, but can very well understand that they thought that was what I meant when I stammered out the order of elementary school-English, he said.
"Little mistake"

The man says the staff begun to talk among themselves after he had placed his order.

When the misunderstanding was cleared up, however, it was too late to cancel. 1100 kr on the bill.

- You do such little mistakes occasionally, and it's not exactly the first time I've done something like this. But you have to take it with a smile, and tolerate being bullied a bit, says the man, who only ate one of the hamburgers he had been served.

Then he was satisfied."