WEIRD NEWS

Let's Post This Video of Me Breaking the Law on Facebook

In Maine, state police arrested and charged 19-year-old Kristoffer Welch after he decided to go joy riding in a cornfield causing about $5,000 damage with his truck. Odd thing is he might have gotten away with it, except that he decided to post a video of himself doing donuts in the cornfield on Facebook. After police heard about the video, they asked farmers in those areas to check on their fields in case of damage. A little while later a farmer off Sandy River Road in Starks called police saying his fields had been significantly damaged. Police went to the field and confirmed it was the same one in the video and estimated damage at around $5,000. Working with the Franklin County Sheriff's Office, police conducted interviews and found and arrested who now sits in County Jail. Biggest takeaway: They've got corn fields in Maine??? (Sun Journal)

Freedom of Speech. Even Naughty Speech.

Remember this is America - and you've got the right to free speech - even naughty speech. In an effort to remind folks of this little fact, The Berkley Public Library in Michigan has decided to make a point and is now displaying its available collection of the "Fifty Shades" DVDs right out in the open. Library director Matt Church told reporters that that the movies had vanished "a total of four times." The staff conducted a search and discovered that the films had been apparently deliberately hidden - we can only assume because someone didn't approve of them. Those weren't the only missing movies that turned up: "Jerusalem," a documentary about the Middle Eastern city, and "Eyes Wide Shut," an erotic drama starring Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman, were also found after being apparently concealed, according to Church. Church said the library is using the disappearances as a learning opportunity noting, "We're trying to use this as a public education opportunity. You're not going to agree with everything but we need to satisfy all interests and tastes." (FOX News)

How Do You Not Understand What 911 is For?

In Hamilton, Ontario, police say a very irate man called to report an allegedly cold burger and fries he had delivered from McDonalds. It seems our friend first took his complaint to the nearby McDonald's location, where the order originated. A dispute then erupted over who was to blame - the restaurant's staff or the driver for the Uber Eats delivery service. Out of frustration, he finally called 911. Police spokesperson Jackie Penman said, "He was extremely upset. There was a communication between the officers and the individual. They brought him to an understanding that it wasn't a police matter." She added that the fast food fiasco serves as a reminder to the public that 911 is for emergencies, and not a means to lodge meal-related complaints. She noted, "911 isn't a customer service or general information line. The system is certainly meant for life and death emergencies. A cold hamburger and fries certainly does not constitute that." No charges were brought against the man, but he was warned that improper use of 911 could result in charges of public mischief. (CTV News)

But What if There IS a Loch Ness Monster

Okay - we've all seen the picture and heard the legend. But what if there actually is a Loch Ness Monster? Believe it or not, Scottish authorities actually have a "Nessie Plan" if the fabled creature is ever actually discovered. This year's interest has been piqued by scientists gathering DNA from the loch, and Scotland's first minister saying she believes there is a monster. Authorities said they would "dust off" the plan if Nessie was discovered. The code of practice was drawn up to offer protection to new species found in the loch, including a monster. It stipulates that a DNA sample should be taken from any new creature, and then it should be released back into the loch. The story of the monster can be traced back 1,500 years when Irish missionary St. Columba is said to have encountered a beast in the River Ness in 565AD. Later, in the 1930s, The Inverness Courier reported the first modern sighting of Nessie. Last month, an international team of scientists gathered environmental DNA from Loch Ness for analysis. The study expects to confirm what species live in the loch, but also potentially animals not previously recorded in its waters, and even a biological explanation for the monster myth. (BBC)

Karma Lions

In a case of extreme poetic justice, a few rhino poachers were recently eaten by lions in a South African game reserve. A ranger at the Sibuya Game Reserve in the Eastern Cape discovered remains of at least two, possibly three people near a pride of lions. An ax and three pairs of shoes and gloves were later found nearby. "We thought they must have been rhino poachers but the ax confirmed it," the preserve owner says. "They use the rifle to shoot the animal and the ax to remove the horn." The poachers had broken into the preserve illegally. There are a lot of Facebook comments talking about karma and warnings. Nobody seems to be too upset about the fate of the poachers. (Reuters)

Karma Police

Richard Spencer, like the rest of his white supremacist buddies, has long advocated the expulsion of unwanted migrants. Now he knows what it feels like to be one. Spencer was supposed to be a guest speaker at a conference for young white supremacists in Sweden. Christoffer Dulny, another white supremacist and member of the "alt-right" movement, wrote on Twitter, Spencer was slated to be a "secret guest" at the conference but now won't be able to make it. That's because a British anti-racism group called Hope Not Hate caught wind of Spencer's plans and alerted European customs officials. So Mr. Spencer was turned away cold at a European airport and denied further travel as an unwanted migrant. Somehow Dulny saw this as incredibly unfair and unjust and tweeted: "The global anarcho-tyranny lives and thrives."(Think Progress)

Do As I Say, Not As I Do?

Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump's private club in Palm Beach, Florida, that he calls the Winter White House, has asked the government for permission to hire 40 temporary foreign workers as waiters and waitresses, according to records posted by the Department of Labor. The workers are being sought under the controversial H-2 visa program, which permits US employers to hire guest workers under temporary visas if no qualified US workers want the jobs. Trump, of course, has been a strong proponent of US companies hiring fewer foreign workers and adding more American employees. But in the case of Mar-a-Lago, he has defended the use of temporary foreign workers by saying that it is "very, very hard to get help" during the Florida tourist season. No one from the club or the Trump Organization would respond to requests for comments. A spokesperson from the White House referred inquiries to the Trump Organization and Department of Labor. Since Trump launched his presidential campaign in June 2015, businesses owned by him or bearing his name have sought to hire more than 480 foreign guest workers, including more than 240 for Mar-a-Lago. Quick question: When is it NOT tourist season in Florida? (BuzzFeed)

What the What?

You know that Texas has extremely lax laws on weapons. Ninja swords, daggers and machetes are all allowed in public-so are AR-15 assault rifles, shotguns and pistols. But apparently a pink plastic keychain shaped like a cat could lead to a year in jail and a $4,000 fine. This particular item is sold as a self-defense key chain and looks like the head of a cat with two sharp, pointed ears sticking up. Unfortunately, it falls under the Lone Star State's bizarre ban on "brass knuckles." State law makes possession of them a Class A misdemeanor, which comes with stiff possible penalties. A staff attorney with the Texas District and County Attorneys said, "It's a prohibited weapon. These are always and everywhere prohibited." The oddity of the situation is, of course, about money-the keychains cost about $10 and don't have a huge lobby behind them so there's nobody fighting to make ‘em street legal. (Fort Worth Star-Telegram)

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