January 21, 2010
Celebrated American writer, Edgar Allan Poe, has been honored in a most unusual way for 60 years. Every January 19th (Poe’s birthday) a person, known only as Poe Toaster, would arrive in the early morning hours dressed in black with his/her face covered and leave 3 roses and half a bottle of cognac on his grave. In 1993, a note was left stating that “the torch will be passed.” It is believed that children of the original Toaster have filled the role. That is a belief supported by the fact that each year the Toaster would make a signature gesture before leaving. However, this year, the Toaster never arrived, leading some to wonder if s/he has met their own demise. One of Poe’s most famous poems is The Raven.
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January 20, 2010
One day before the anniversary of President Obama’s swearing in he and the Democrats were dealt a major blow to the governmental stronghold they possessed. In a special election to fill the senate seat left open by the late Ted Kennedy, underdog Republican Scott Brown, won the seat. It is the first time in thirty years that Massachusetts has had a Republican Senator. This comes amidst news that Obama’s approval rating is the second lowest of any president post WWII entering his second year. That is a big drop from one year ago at his inauguration where he was close to 70% approval.
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January 19, 2010
Monroe, Ohio takes community policing very seriously. So when a set of parents at their wits end called for assistance, the police department was happy to oblige. The parents (who have not been mentioned by name) called the non-emergency number to ask if an officer was available to come speak to their 6-year old son. Apparently, the boy – for some time now – has been very resistant to going to school in the mornings. The parents figured if a policeman told the boy that his mother would be in big trouble if he refused to go to school, it might change his behavior. Officer Mike Doughman took the call and it worked like a charm – the boy has merrily gone off to school every day since. Meanwhile, with all the media attention this story received, Officer Doughman has become quite the celebrity!
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January 18, 2010
A woman in Columbia, Missouri woke up at 5:45 am and heard noises in her basement. Walking through her kitchen, she noticed that several cabinets were opened. After turning on a light, she noticed a stranger trying to hide behind the water heater. The person then walked past her and disappeared into the dark. The homeowner called the police, and while they searched for clues, they discovered a cell phone in the backyard. They traced the phone to its owner, John Lovell, and arrested him on suspicion of first-degree burglary and stealing.
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January 17, 2010
Sal Esposito does not want to serve the jury duty he was summoned to. Not because he does not want to serve his country, but because he does not speak the language. In fact, Sal does not speak at all because he is a feline. When the cat was summoned, Guy and Anna Esposito, Sal’s owners, tried to explain to the court why Sal would not be appearing. However, the court would not accept that “excuse.” The source of the confusion seems to be that on the last census, the Espositos listed Sal under pets and scratched out dog and wrote in cat. Failure to appear for jury duty can result in fines and/or jail time.
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January 16, 2010
Norway brought in the New Year with a very unusual proclamation. The country’s Prime Minister, Jens Stoltenberg, announced that criminal foreigners that are jailed for over a year will qualify for welfare. If they commit a more severe crime and are jailed for more than 3 years they have the right to a government pension and a health plan. These laws will be enforced even if the criminal came to Norway illegally. So…The worse the crime, the greater the reward!
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January 15, 2010
In Poland, the government became suspicious when a woman who reported to them that she was unemployed, was found spending 13 million złoty over five years. That is approximately 4.6 million U.S. Dollars. While she may not have had a traditional 9 to 5, she was working the late shift on the street. As a prostitute she earned roughly 13.7 million złoty and when she was caught by the authorities, she was fined 2.3 million złoty or $820,000 for tax evasion.
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January 14, 2010
Disgraced former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich has put his foot in his mouth once again. His latest faux pas occurs in the upcoming issue of Esquire Magazine where he is quoted as saying, “I’m blacker than Barack Obama. I shined shoes. I grew up in a five-room apartment. My father had a little laundromat in a black community not far from where we lived.” He later apologized calling the statements, “Stupid, stupid, stupid.” However, when asked if he would deliver that apology to the president himself he told reporters “I’d be happy to but, you know, I don’t have the phone number.” Blagojevich was impeached and removed from office amid allegations of corruption that include selling the senate seat left open by Obama. His trial is set to begin in June.
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January 13, 2010
NBC and their affiliates have been struggling with ratings since they experimented with a prime time talk show starring Jay Leno. Not only have ratings for that show been poor, it has not served as a good lead-in to local 11pm news broadcasts. That in turn may be one of the reasons that The Tonight Show, hosted by Conan O’Brien, has seen a decline in viewership over previous years. On January 11, 2010, it was announced that Leno’s show has been canceled. It was proposed that Leno host a 30 minute show after the late news and the Tonight Show begin at 12:05am. In a public posting, O’Brien, stated that this is not an acceptable solution because it “will seriously damage what I consider to be the greatest franchise in the history of broadcasting.”
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January 12, 2010
On January 11, 2010 retired baseball slugger Mark McGwire admitted to steroid use while an active player with Major League Baseball. As a rookie with the Oakland Athletics, McGwire was named the American League Rookie of the Year and broke a league record of most home runs by a rookie with 49. He came to fame as one of the “Bash Brothers” in the late 1980’s post season appearances. In 1997 he was traded to the Saint Louis Cardinals. It was in 1998 that McGwire and Sammy Sosa found themselves competing to break Roger Maris’ record of most home runs in a season. The nation was captivated as each player tallied dinger after dinger with McGwire emerging as the victor with 70 home runs compared to Sosa’s 66 and Maris’ record of 61. While McGwire’s home run record was broken in later seasons, he holds the distinction of the highest RBI-per-hit tally in all of baseball. Alleged steroid use has been a cloud over McGwire, most notably when he was subpoenaed in 2005 before a Congressional Hearing. When asked specific questions about steroid use, McGwire’s standard response was “I’m not here to talk about the past. . .” These allegations have potentially affected his induction into baseball’s Hall of Fame. McGwire became eligible in 2007, but has not received the needed level of votes for election.
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