A 13 year old boy has been charged with drink driving on the New South Wales north coast. He was also charged with driving without a license.
I bet his parents would be proud!
Oh hang on, there was a 30 year old man in the car who was charged with aiding and abetting a drink driver and permitting an unlicensed driver. Dad, I bet.
I had to have a laugh at the latest turn in the Schapelle Corby story this week.
A clinical counsellor using the alias "Sue" said yesterday she was dating a baggage handler at Brisbane airport in October 2004, the month Corby was arrested. He allegedly told her that a fellow worker came to work with a large bag of marijuana, and that when a supervisor came towards them, the guy panicked and stuffed the marijuana inside a bag behind him.
Her lawyer claims this is important new evidence, and is highly credible.
"I think it shows there’s reasonable doubt, which indicates that there should be a judicial review immediately into her case.”
Oh yeah, so 7 years after the event, a witness comes forward and files a statutory declaration that her former boyfriend told her this happened, and we’re supposed to believe, “sure, we knew it all along, those damn baggage handlers did it”.
This claim about baggage handlers has been tried several times in Corby’s defence. Funny how we’ve never heard of such things happening to anyone else before or since. Funny how the bag of marijuana just happened to be in a vacuum sealed bag which neatly fit into her bag. Funny how members of her family have drug connections. Even her former lawyer admitted he made up his baggage handler claims in an attempt to create some doubt about her involvement with the drugs.
The Corby case crops up regularly, mostly because I think some of the players suffer attention deficit disorder, in that when they aren’t getting attention, they throw something out there to get themselves back in the spotlight.
But this latest evidence is just so flimsy. It’s hearsay. The straws they are clutching at have their own straws that they are clutching at.
I can’t see why there is all the fuss over whether the US was justified in killing Osama bin Laden as opposed to taking him prisoner.
Had they taken him prisoner, he would have been an ongoing cause celebre for extremists and it is not hard to imagine hostages being taken or other terrorist acts aimed at securing his release.
By killing him, this goes away. The US takes a bit of criticism for a short period then it becomes old news.
Should the US be going around assassinating enemies? Mostly I’d say no, but some people are such evil swine that I think that on balance there is a net benefit in them being removed from the world. Osama bin Laden was one of these people. He deserved what he got from the Americans.
They got him at last. He was not missed today and will not be missed in the future.
There’s some real charmers at the Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA) here in Canberra. This week’s scandal in the Australian Defence Force (ADF) concerns a female cadet who found out that the fellow cadet she had sex with last week thought it jolly good fun to film it on his webcam and Skype it to some of his mates in another room. Not only that, they took some still photos and later passed them around more of their mates.
So, not satisfied with bragging to the boys about scoring a root, he decides they need to have a video of the happy event. Why? I’m guessing its so they can savour him in action later on while they’ve all whacking off around the campfire or something.
The girl says she found out about what happened when she was contacted by Defence investigators who were alerted by another cadet. She said.
"It was like my whole world came crashing down around me,"
"They had to read the statements that the boys had to make and I actually threw up. I had to be asked to be excused from the interview because it made me physically ill."
The handling of the aftermath of the incident by the ADFA and ADF authorities has attracted plenty of criticism, including from Defence Minister Stephen Smith. He has said of it:
"I can’t think of a greater betrayal of trust of a colleague in the workplace than the suggestions that have been made,"
"Once that trust has been destroyed then it is very difficult, if not impossible, for the person who has broken that trust to remain as a Defence Force personnel member."
Then he really hooked into them, over revelations that the Academy held a separate hearing into other minor disciplinary matters involving the girl, the day after the other matters came to light. No pulling punches here, he said:
"On her own admission she is in a deeply distressed state. It is either in the realm of inappropriate, insensitive or completely stupid to hold such a hearing on a day like today.
Then things got even better, or worse, depending on your perspective. Apparently some of her fellow cadets have decided to “punish” her for speaking out, by coating her bedroom door with shaving cream, and reportedly she has been on the receiving end of whispers of “slut” among other things. Lovely! And these people are going to be given guns and trained to kill people.
But while her ostracism by fellow cadets is bad enough, there have also been reports that she was ordered to apologise publicly to her fellow cadets for going public and humiliating them – although there have been subsequent denials of this by ADF officials.
And then the Minister has been criticised for making statements critical of the ADF and its handling of the incident. Such comments, from the Defence lobby, largely retired military officers, say plenty about the ignorance of the ADF in understanding they have a serious problem.
I think its all fairly simple really. The girl screwed up, and should be dealt with for fraternisation which is against ADF and ADFA rules. Minor offence in the scheme of things, punishment a few days in the naughty corner. The male cadets, however, have committed an unconscionable breach of trust, and in doing so demonstrated beyond doubt their unsuitability to ever be officers in the ADF. The only punishment for them is to be expelled from ADFA and discharged from the service. No ifs, no buts, what they did is so far across whatever line anyone cares to draw about acceptable behaviour there is no way they can be excused.
I’ll wait and see what happens. My suspicion is that the incident basically destroys the woman’s career. There is enough corporate memory in the Defence organisation that a significant number of its members will always bear against her that she was the Skype video girl and couldn’t take it, then dobbed on her mates and caused them to lose their careers. I expect her position in the services is pretty much untenable.
I’m also interested to see whether the ADF comes to a realisation that incidents like this are not one-offs and isolated cases, but systemic ones. I’ll believe they are serious about reform and tackling the issues when I see a bunch of middle to senior ranking officers being sacked over things that people under their command do. A large dose of personal accountability might drive home to these guys that the treatment of women is something they need to take seriously, not pay lip service to.
Adnan Rusanovski, 30, from Melbourne, got off to a great start on his wedding day, by beating his wife up in the back of the bridal car. A Melbourne court yesterday heard he unleashed an ”impulsive burst of extraordinary and horrible aggression” at his totally blameless wife who was left ”black and blue and covered in blood”. He also assaulted his best man.
Apparently this came about because Rusanovski had a bad case of nerves, which he decided to calm with alcohol – lots of it. The court was told he was nervous and visibly upset and told best man Murat Abazi that ”I can’t do this straight”. So the pair of them knocked off a bottle of whisky. After the bridal party – which included five cousins, a niece and nephew – boarded their stretch limousine, Rusanovski drank a bottle of champagne on the way to getting their photographs taken. This was not a success, as he was aggressive and unable to stand properly. Then it was off for more photographs, where he was abusive to the groomsman who tried to calm him down. Then off to the reception, on the way to which he began spilling drinks.
He then grabbed his wife, Ferdie, struck her in the face – the first of about 30 punches she received – and put her in a headlock as Mr Abazi tried to stop him. After the car stopped, Rusanovski scuffled with Mr Abazi on the side of the road before he returned to the car and resumed assaulting his wife, biting her on the cheek and choking her.
This all happened in front of the bridal party. Rusanovski was arrested at the reception centre while his wife was taken to hospital with numerous injuries to her head, face, neck and an arm. I take it the reception was not the celebration it was intended to be.
He has pleaded guilty to assaulting his wife, and will be sentenced later. The reasons for the attack, advanced in court by his barrister were that anxiety ”pushed him into an elevated mood” while drinking alcohol, which ”predisposed him” to be aggressive and act in a ”weird and impulsive way”. Weird is an understatement, for sure.
Now in some news I’m sure will surprise no-one, the couple are now separated, pending a divorce.
This certainly had that effect on me.
Do not mess with Maria Topp, who lives in Newcastle in England. Ask her boyfriend (I assume now former boyfriend) Martin Douglas.
Must have been some argument they had.
She bit his testicles off.
She is due to appear in court next month charged with assault causing grievous bodily harm. He has had surgery to reattach his nuts.
As a service to readers, here is a photo of the lovely Maria. Be warned.
Andrew Quay Wee Meng, 25, pleaded guilty in the Brisbane Magistrates Court today to one count of animal cruelty on March 1.
He had been eating a sandwich in Brisbane’s South Bank Parklands when an ibis "snuck up from behind" and jumped onto his table. He threw his food down, wrestled the bird to the ground and stomped on it five times. The court was told the bird’s wing was shattered and a blow to its neck caused it such difficulty in breathing that it had to be put down.
His lawyer claimed in his defence that he lashed out because he was frightened of birds, having once been attacked by a large crow. However, he did accept that his attack on the bird was excessive and was remorseful for what he did.
Magistrate John Costello said onlookers would have been "appalled" by the attack, but said Quay Wee Meng’s youth, guilty plea and lack of criminal history meant he would not receive a jail sentence. Fair enough – I have no problems with that. Mr Costello ordered Quay Wee Meng to perform of 120 hours community service, and that he do so with the RSPCA wherever possible. Again, fair enough, although I do wonder how the volunteers and staff at the RSPCA feel about having an animal murderer working with them.
This is the bit I don’t get. The magistrate also agreed not to record a conviction after being told it would adversely affect Quay Wee Meng’s chances of employment. Err, am I dumb in thinking that committing crimes is supposed to have negative consequences for you in life, part of the reason for which is to deter you from doing the crime? Boo hoo, the guy might have had trouble getting a job as a lawyer … too bad so sad in my opinion, should have thought of that before beating the shit out of the bird.
The government in the African country of Malawi knows where its priorities lie.
The parliament there is debating a law that would criminalise farting in public.
Government minister George Chaponda says that under the amended law farting will be considered a minor offence. He said that if Malawians cannot control their farting:
"they should go to the toilet instead of farting in public."
"Nature can be controlled… it becomes a nuisance if people fart anywhere."
He blames democracy for the outbreak of public farting.
"It was not there during the time of dictatorship because people were afraid of the consequences. Now because of multipartism or freedom, people would like to fart anywhere”.
The evil swine! Such rebels.
Malawi has apparently had a law against public farting since 1929. It says:
"Any person who voluntarily vitiates the atmosphere in any place so as to make it noxious to the health of persons in general dwelling or carrying on business in the neighbourhood or passing along a public way, shall be guilty of a misdemeanour."
Nobody in Malawi has been arrested nor convicted for farting under the old law, as police did not enforce it. Either they couldn’t be bothered, were deaf and had no sense of smell, or there was a convenient dog to blame whenever anyone dropped their guts.
By the way, did you know a fart is the heaviest thing in the world? Because once you drop one you can never pick it back up.
Oops, I just vitiated the atmosphere. Pardon me.
Carolee Bildsten, 57, of Illinois in the US, arrested after allegedly attacking a police officer with a sex toy claimed to have been acting in self-defence.
She had allegedly charged toward an officer with a “clear, rigid feminine pleasure device” when the officer went to Ms Bildsten’s apartment after she was accused of skipping out on a restaurant tab.
“Clear, rigid feminine pleasure device” – ha ha, what a euphemism!.
And I love this explanation she gave for why she attacked the police officer:
“I got scared. And the only thing in my sock drawer besides my socks and my cash was a dildo,”