Archive for the 'General Commentary' Category

Weird News From Germany

September 29th, 2009 by Leonard Birdsong


Years ago Birdsong was stationed in Germany as a State Department officer. Here are a few recent weird stories from Germany.  Ja voll.

Germany: The world’s biggest underwear thief is now locked up.  German police uncovered 1,000 pair of underpants after they caught a 46-year old man swiping three more.  He claimed he acquired them in car-trunk sales and over the Internet.

There is a whole lot more to this story that Birdsong just does not want to know…

Germany: A jealous husband in Germany  hired assassins who four times botched hit jobs on his wife.  The first attempt  failed when the target never showed; the second when a group of school children disrupted the killer;  a third came when a neighbor sauntered by; and finally when the woman managed to escape the attack.

Hit and miss assassins… It’s cheaper to keep her.

Germany: A German drunkard stumbled into an open drain and got stuck in the hole because of his

Weird Florida News Stories

September 17th, 2009 by Leonard Birdsong


Florida is a wonderful place to live.  Birdsong loves it here.  Here are a few weird news stories from Florida for your reading enjoyment.

Orlando, FL: A man entered a Greenacres Restaurant in mid-July, 2009, and asked for change for a $10 bill.  When the cashier asked to see the bill, the man reportedly began screaming, “I want change!”  Police said the man then grabbed about $40 from a tip box, picked up the cash register and ran out.  The officer who arrested him — still carrying the register while running down the street — had just come from reviewing surveillance footage at a nearby convenience store, where lottery tickets had been stolen a day earlier.  By chance, the officer identified the man as the thief  from the footage.

Actually, running with a cash register can be more dangerous than running with scissors…

Winter Park, FL: The family of Charles Gaal Jr., 90, is suing a Winter Park dentist who allegedly dropped tools down Gaal’s throat, including an implant screwdriver and a mini-wrench.  Unfortunately, Gaal never fully recovered and he died in 2007.

OOOPPS……

Orlando, FL:  A Connecticut man  arrested for exposing himself to a 14 year old girl at a Walt Disney World water park, swears it was because 

Weird Criminal Law Stories 86

September 15th, 2009 by Leonard Birdsong


Bismarck, ND: Police responding to a domestic disturbance arrived at Stacey Anvarinia’s home to find the mother breast feeding her 6 week old baby in front of them.  And she was drunk, they said!  Officers arrested the woman who later pleaded guilty to child neglect and faces up to five years in prison.

Now her case has touched off  a debate among moms about breast feeding, alcohol — and privacy.

Twitter Alert!

August 24th, 2009 by Leonard Birdsong


Twitter is online crooks’ new tool according to a recent news report.

Cybercriminals are rapidly using Twitter — the popular Web-messaging service — to direct users to Web sites that sell pornography and fake drugs and trigger promotions for fake anti-virus subscriptions.  Anyone can sign up anonymously for a Twitter account and begin pushing unfiltered messages.

Weird Criminal Law Stories 78

August 19th, 2009 by Leonard Birdsong


Vancouver, B.C.: A fast nude got himself some fast food.  Police in Vancouver are on the lookout for a thief who snatched a customer’s order of french fries while running naked past a Wendy’s drive-through window.  Stunned employees, apparently looking elsewhere did not see his face.

What other part of his anatomy could they have been staring at?

 Chicago, IL: A Chicago man was busted for robbing a bank after he tried to deposit some of the dye-stained cash