Diaphanitas

"Suicidium in Interretibus"
"A Suicide on the Internets"

Uh:

Florida Teen Abraham Biggs Live-Streams His Suicide On Internet

MIAMI — A college student committed suicide by taking a drug overdose in front of a live webcam as some computer users egged him on, others tried to talk him out of it, and another messaged OMG in horror when it became clear it was no joke. Some watchers contacted the Web site to notify police, but by the time officers entered Abraham Biggs' home _ a scene also captured on the Internet _ it was too late.

Well, that sucks.

"Connecticuta et Conubium Homosexualium"
"Connecticut and Gay Marriage"

EEK!

Conn. court overturns same-sex marriage ban

HARTFORD, Connecticut - Connecticut's Supreme Court ruled Friday that same-sex couples have the right to marry, making that state the third behind Massachusetts and California to legalize such unions.

Jolly good! Jolly good show!

LWotP: tribadoides -es "eeky."

"Fatuus Puerulus"
"Dumb Little Boy"

This really makes me angry:

Boy fed zoo reptiles to crocodile

A seven-year-old boy has been filmed going on the rampage at a popular zoo in Australia, killing rare reptiles and feeding live ones to a crocodile.

Augh.

They are considering suing the parents as the boy is too young to be prosecuted.

Thanks for giving me another reason not to have children.

I wouldn't want to be that kid's parents right now.

( Verbum )

"Res Plures de Familia Romanov"
"More Stuff about the Romanov Family"

Russia says remains of last czar's son identified

Good, good!

Greatest Russian? Czar Nicholas leads vote

Pretty interesting! It's interesting that Lenin and Stalin are also so high on the list.

"Tribus Insulatus Amazonianus?"
"An Isolated Amazon Tribe?"

That's right:

Isolated tribe spotted in Brazil

One of South America's few remaining uncontacted indigenous tribes has been spotted and photographed on the border between Brazil and Peru.

Wow, look at the photos:

( !!! )

That really is fascinating. I wonder what's going to happen with them.

LWotP: tribus -us m. "tribe."

"Lusor, Magister Civium?"
"Gamer, Mayor?"

Yeah:

19 year-old gamer becomes mayor of Oklahoma town

Like any red-blooded American teenager, John Tyler Hammons digs rock music, fast cars, video games and...fiscal planning?

Apparently so. The AP reports that the University of Oklahoma freshman trounced 70 year-old Hershel McBride to become the mayor of Muskogee, Oklahoma, making it the first city in the nation to be governed by a self-admitted gamer.

Hilarious!

LWotP: magister civium "mayor."

"In Sina Communistica, Mamma TE Nutrit!"
"In Communist China, Breast Feeds YOU"

Yeah, apparently:

Officer breast-feeds quake orphans

JIANGYOU, China (CNN) -- A Chinese police officer is being hailed as a hero after taking it upon herself to breast-feed several infants who were separated from their mothers or orphaned by China's devastating earthquake.

Officer Jiang Xiaojuan, 29, the mother of a 6-month-old boy, responded to the call of duty and the instincts of motherhood when the magnitude-7.9 quake struck on May 12.

I looked around at Google and found something disturbing. Some sickos have been saying something that doesn't surprise me: Something to the effect that this earthquake is God's way of punishing the evil-Atheist-Commie Chinese for their crimes against the Tibets. Uh huh.

"Ecce Gothicida..."
"Look at the Goth-Killer..."

Oh dear:

Boy convicted of Goth park murder

A 15-year-old boy has been found guilty of murder after he kicked a woman to death because she was a Goth.

Guilty? Good.

LWotP: gothicida -ae com. [gothicus + caedere] "goth-killer"

"Anus: Non Operatio Cruris, sed Anus Novus..."
"An Old Women: Not a Leg Operation, but a New Anus..."

Horrible:

Woman Goes for Leg Operation, Gets New Anus Instead

A German retiree is taking a hospital to court after she went in for a leg operation and got a new anus instead, the Daily Telegraph is reporting.

Well, they really screwed her up. Let's hope she can fix this.

LWotP: operatio -onis f. "operation."

"Nulli Amplexus Minutarum Trium?"
"No Three-Second Hugs?"

This is too weird:

School Bans Hugs Over 2 Seconds

School Bans Hugs Over 2 Seconds
Students Don't Embrace 'Public Display Of Affection' Policy

MESA, Ariz. -- A school policy banning student hugging prompted dozens of east Valley students to protest with a giant group hug across the street from campus.

Only two seconds? I think that's a bit extreme.

Look at the picture in that article. EEK?

LWotP: amplexus -us m. "hug."

"Terrens: Aqua Dots"
"Scary: Aqua Dots"

Bizarre:

Beads' coating metabolizes into 'date rape' drug

What was touted as one of the hottest new toys this Christmas is being pulled off store shelves because of fears it could poison children.

I don't think I've ever heard of those things before.

Marketed in Australia as Bindeez, it was withdrawn there this week when three children needed hospital treatment after swallowing beads.

Oh dear, that is making me think of Bindi Sue Irwin...

LWotP: aqua -ae f. "water."

"Conceptio cum Solummodo Feminis?"
"All-Female Conception?"

Roses Ablaze posted this link in the Genvid/DIES GAUDII forums:

The prospect of all-female conception

Women might soon be able to produce sperm in a development that could allow lesbian couples to have their own biological daughters, according to a pioneering study published today.

Sounds EEKy to me!

LWotP: conceptio -onis f. "conceptio."

"Mures in Aeroplano!"
"Mice on a Plane!"

Oddness:

Passengers fly into a panic over stowaway mice

DUBAI - The screams were louder than the roar of the engines when more than 100 passengers on board a Saudi plane fought off an invasion by 80 stowaways: mice.

Perhaps they needed snakes to take care of the problem.

Perhaps not.

LWotP: mus -uris com. "mouse."

"Professor Dividere Cifra Potest?"
"A Professor Can Divide by 0?"

Oddness:

( Professor Dividere Cifra Potest? )

"Donum Natalicium et Puer Qui Prehensus Est"
"The Christmas Present and the Boy Who Has Been Arrested"

Weirdness:

S.C. Mom Has Son Arrested for Playing With Present Before Christmas

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- A fed-up mother had her 12-year-old son arrested for allegedly rummaging through his great-grandmother's things and playing with his Christmas present early.

The mother called police Sunday after learning her son had disobeyed orders and repeatedly taken a Game Boy from its hiding place at his great-grandmother's house next door and played it. He was arrested on petty larceny charges, taken to the police station in handcuffs and held until his mother picked him up after church.

"My grandmother went out of her way to lay away a toy and paid on this thing for months," said the boy's mother, Brandi Ervin. "It was only to teach my son a lesson. He's been going through life doing things ... and getting away with it."

Wow, I wonder if it's true...

LWotP: donum natalicium "Christmas present."

"Filia Praesidentis et Fur..."
"The President's Daughter and a Thief..."

Unusual:

US agents 'fail Bush's daughter'

One of the twin daughters of President George W Bush has had her handbag stolen in Argentina despite protection by US Secret Service agents.

The robbery was unnoticed by secret service? I don't find that shocking at all.

LWotP: filia -ae f. "daughter."

"Vis et Religio Iediana"
"The Force and the Jedi Religion"

Unusual:

Pair Use The Force For Jedi Religion

Two self-styled Jedi Knights are stepping up an intergalactic campaign for formal recognition. Umada and Yunyun, also known as John Wilkinson and Charlotte Law, want the UN to acknowledge "The Force" is worthy of being called a religion. The couple claim to be part of the UK's fourth largest religious group, after 400,000 people recorded their faith as "Jedi" in the 2001 Census.

Well, why not?

LWotP: vis -is f. "force."

"Ostentus Veteranorum: Albi et Colorati"
"Veteran Display: Whites and Colored"

Weird:

Ga. Display Lists Vets' Names by Race

BUTLER, Ga. (AP) -- A display in a central Georgia community divides the names of 800 local veterans into two lists, marked in large type: "Whites" and "Colored."

The display has been in the lobby of the Taylor County courthouse since 1944, honoring servicemembers who fought in World War II. The two lists are mounted side by side behind glass in two large frames.

Heh heh, "Colored."

That reminds me of the "Halfbreed" that can be found on the birth certificates for some of my deceased relatives who were Native American.

LWotP: veteranus -i m./veterana -ae f. "veteran."

"Arbor Occidendus Annae"
"Anne's Tree to Be Cut Down"

Unfortunate:

Anne Frank's tree to be cut down

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands - The ancient chestnut tree that comforted Anne Frank while she was in hiding during the Nazi occupation of Holland must be cut down, the Amsterdam city council said Tuesday.

The diseased tree in the courtyard behind the canal-side warehouse where the Frank family took refuge for more than two years has been attacked by an aggressive fungus and a moth, called the horse chestnut leaf miner. Experts estimate the tree's age at 150-170 years.

LWotP: arbor -oris f. "tree."

"Innocentiam Liberorum Destruit"
"It destroys the Innocence of Children"

Yeah:

( Innocentiam Liberorum Destruit )

"Studentes et Ludicra-Sclopeta"
"Students and Toy Guns"

Unusual:

( Studentes et Ludicra-Sclopeta )

Stupidity:

Man bites panda after panda bites man

BEIJING (Reuters) - An intoxicated Chinese man who tried to give a panda a hug at Beijing Zoo found himself biting it in self defence after his clumsy attempt at affection was savagely rejected, local media reported on Thursday.

Trying to give the critter a hug wasn't a good idea at all.

LWotP: mordere "to bite."

I didn't expect this:

Steve Irwin killed in stingray attack

Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin has been killed in a stingray attack near Cairns on Australia's far north coast.

I'm not really surprised that an animal killed him, but it's a shame that got killed by an animal that doesn't usually attack like that.

LWotP:
occīdere "to kill";
occidere "to die";
pastinaca -ae f. "stingray."

Weirdness:

Turk takes Islam-inspired swimwear to pious bathers

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - An unusual type of swimwear is standing out on Turkish beaches this summer -- Islam-inspired swimsuits -- which buck the trend of the past 100 years for swimsuits to get smaller.

I find that silly.

LWotP: Islamismus -i m. "Islam."

Arabic on a Plane?

Arabic T-shirt sparks airport row

An architect of Iraqi descent has said he was forced to remove a T-shirt that bore the words "We will not be silent" before boarding a flight at New York.

EEK! EEK! It has Arabic on teh shirt!

LWotP: Arabicus -a -um "Arabic."

Something I found today:

World's oldest person dies at age 116

QUITO, Ecuador (Reuters) - The world's oldest person, a 116-year-old Ecuadorean woman who drank donkey milk for health, died on Sunday less than a month before her birthday, her relatives told local newspapers on Monday.

It is a shame that she died, but she had a long life!

Quiescas in pace, Maria (not Toni).

LWotP: vetus -eris "old."

Weird:

Senior citizens find nurtured "weed" is pot

PHOENIX (Reuters) - Arizona seniors had no idea what the flourishing plant they nurtured in their driveway was until a passing deputy told them it was marijuana.

They nurtured a weed! And it was five feet tall!

LWotP: senior -um com. "senior citizen."

New information about Pluto:

Scientists decide Pluto’s no longer a planet

PRAGUE, Czech Republic - Leading astronomers declared Thursday that Pluto is no longer a planet under historic new guidelines that downsize the solar system from nine planets to eight.

But it's good that the IAU didn't do the "classical planet" thing.

The IAU therefore resolves that "planets" and other bodies in our Solar System be defined into three distinct categories in the following way:

(1) A "planet"1 is a celestial body that (a) is in orbit around the Sun, (b) has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a hydrostatic equilibrium (nearly round) shape, and (c) has cleared the neighbourhood around its orbit.

(2) A "dwarf planet" is a celestial body that (a) is in orbit around the Sun, (b) has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a hydrostatic equilibrium (nearly round) shape2 , (c) has not cleared the neighbourhood around its orbit, and (d) is not a satellite.

(3) All other objects3 except satellites orbiting the Sun shall be referred to collectively as "Small Solar-System Bodies".

1The eight planets are: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.
2An IAU process will be established to assign borderline objects into either dwarf planet and other categories.
3These currently include most of the Solar System asteroids, most Trans-Neptunian Objects (TNOs), comets, and other small bodies.

So, Pluto is just a special kind of planet... a "dwarf planet."

What does this mean for Sailor Pluto (Setsuna)? Her planet is no longer considered a major planet, but that doesn't mean that she cannot still be a sailor soldier representing Pluto.

• There is no "an individual can be a sailor soldier only if she represents a planet" rule. (The moon is not a planet according to the IAU, and there is at least one sailor soldier representing it. Eventually, there are two.)
  
  
• Sailor soldiers can represent hoshi (or hoshiboshi), which means, in this case, "celestial bodies," and that includes planets and moons.
  
  
• In the BSSM continuities, Pluto is one of the planets in the solar system.
  
  
• In real life, Pluto is not one of the major eight planets, but that does not necessarily mean it's not a planet of any sort.

LWotP: Pluto -onis m. "Pluto."

This is scary:

Austrian girl 'found' after years

Austrian officials are using DNA tests to see whether a young woman they found is the schoolgirl whose disappearance sparked a huge manhunt eight years ago.

The woman says she is Natasha Kampusch, who vanished in 1998 on her way to school at the age of 10.

Relatives of the missing girl say they are confident the young woman is who she says she is.

The woman says she was abducted and held captive in a garage by a man who reportedly killed himself on Wednesday.

It's good that she's finally free!

LWotP: repertus -a -um "found."

Oddness:

Scientist: Dolphins are stupid

Dolphins may have big brains, but a South African-based scientist says laboratory rats and even goldfish can outwit them.

How strange! We should wait and see what other scientists have to say about it.

LWotP: sollers -rtis "smart."

Unusual:

FDA approves viruses as food additive

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A mix of bacteria-killing viruses can be safely sprayed on cold cuts, hot dogs and sausages to combat common microbes that kill hundreds of people a year, federal health officials said Friday in granting the first-ever approval of viruses as a food additive.

Pay attention to this part:

The preparation of bacteriophages -- the name is Greek for "bacteria-eater" -- attacks only strains of the Listeria bacterium and not human or plant cells, the FDA said.

In other words, teh virusesii will not kill us ALL!

LWotP: virus -i n. "virus."

Weirdness:

Passport photograph of girl's bare shoulders rejected 'as it may offend'

A five-year-old girl's passport application was rejected because her photograph showed her bare shoulders.

Hannah Edwards's mother, Jane, was told that the exposed skin might be considered offensive in a Muslim country.

The photograph was taken at a photo-booth at a local post office for a family trip to the south of France.

Because of the way the camera was set up, the picture came out showing Hannah's shoulders.

Why not take a look at the "contentious passport photo" there?

We need to hide this from the Pedobear.

LWotP: commeatus diploma "passport."

Catlord found this:

Texas School District Bans Cleavage

(CBS) ARLINGTON, Texas With a new school year about to begin, some female students in one Texas school district may have to rethink their wardrobes.

Teen fashions often leave parents a little disgruntled. Arlington Independent School District parent Frances Henson said, “I'm thinking that our daughters are growing up a little bit too fast these days.”

Arlington School Board members agree with parents and this summer, they adopted an unusual amendment to the student dress code.

The new dress code reads, in part, “The display of cleavage is unacceptable. Low cut blouses, tops, sweaters, etc. with plunging necklines are not allowed."

Oh noes! Teh bewbies will corrupt us all!

LWotP: discidium mammarum "cleavage."

Some... thing:

Don’t kill Harry Potter, authors urge Rowling

( Noli Caedere Harrium Potterum! )

Odd:

Dog destroys £40,000 Elvis teddy

A £40,000 teddy which used to belong to Elvis Presley was among scores of toy bears destroyed when a dog meant to guard them went on the rampage.

Dogs gone wild?

LWotP: destruere "to destroy."

Odd:

Iran bans 'pizza,' orders up 'elastic loaf'

TEHRAN, Iran -- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has ordered government and cultural bodies to use modified Persian words to replace foreign words that have crept into the language, such as ''pizzas'' which will now be known as ''elastic loaves,'' state media reported Saturday.

I like pizza much better. Mm, pizza!

LWotP: pitta -ae f. "pizza."

Uh oh:

Fallen Soldier Gets a Bronze Star but No Pagan Star

At the Veterans Memorial Cemetery in the small town of Fernley, Nev., there is a wall of brass plaques for local heroes. But one space is blank. There is no memorial for Sgt. Patrick D. Stewart.

That's because Stewart was a Wiccan, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has refused to allow a symbol of the Wicca religion -- a five-pointed star within a circle, called a pentacle -- to be inscribed on U.S. military memorials or grave markers.

The guy won't get the pentacle? That upsets me!

LWotP: pentaculum -i n. "pentacle."

I found this today:

Website sells sex toys but only to believers

NEW YORK — Condoms. Lube. Vibrating panties. All are part of Joy Wilson's mission to better serve the Christian community.

From her home in Ventura, Calif., the 35-year-old mother of two runs http://www.book22.com, where she sells sex toys for married Christian couples.

and

Still, Wilson said she prayed to Jesus over each new addition and refused to include products that encouraged the involvement of a third party or anal sex. Her collection of dildos does not include any that have been moulded from a real penis.

That is a bit too weird for me!

LWotP: ludicrum sexus "sex toy."

This doesn't make me very happy:

2 top courts rule against gay marriage

ALBANY, N.Y. - The highest courts in two states dealt gay rights advocates dual setbacks Thursday, rejecting same-sex couples' bid to win marriage rights in New York and reinstating a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage in Georgia.

I doubt the EEKy guys and girls there are very pleased.

LWotP: Neo-Eboracensis -is "of/from New York."

Icky!

( Caput Corporis Est Fumisugium Rerum Narcoticarum? )

Unusual:

Muslim-only Alton Towers

BRITAIN’S biggest fun park has sparked a race row — with a MUSLIMS-ONLY day.

Up to 28,000 are expected at Alton Towers on September 17 when there will be no music, booze or gambling.

There will be no music, booze, or gambling? What kind of "fun" park is it going to be? ;)

LWotP: horti -orum m. "park."

Too weird for me:

Witchcraft ban ends in Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe has lifted a ban on the practice of witchcraft, repealing legislation dating back to colonial rule.

From July the government acknowledges that supernatural powers exist - but prohibits the use of magic to cause someone harm.

It's about time.

LWotP: Zimbabuia -ae f. "Zimbabwe."

Silliness:

Officials criticize 'Hooters for Neuters'

LOS ANGELES - Several city officials on Tuesday sharply criticized a planned bikini contest to raise money for spaying pets, saying the "Hooters for Neuters" event was degrading to women.

Hosted by the Hooters restaurant chain, the July 13 fundraiser will donate money to the spay and neuter programs at Los Angeles Animal Services.

"Are we going backward here?" said City Controller Laura Chick. "We are a city with all kinds of progressive programs that empower women and end discrimination in the workplace, and now we're being connected with a Hooters bikini contest. It isn't right."

Hooters for Neuters! What a silly name!

It's a shame that there aren't any nice pictures in that article...

Hey, have you notice that no one ever attacks male bodybuilding contests for being degrading to men?

LWotP: certamen -minis n. "contest."

Unusual:

Warren Buffett gives away his fortune

FORTUNE EXCLUSIVE: The world's second richest man - who's now worth $44 billion - tells editor-at-large Carol Loomis he will start giving away 85% of his wealth in July - most of it to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Wow, that's a lot of money!

LWotP: miliardum -i n. "billion."

EEK?

Peter Pan rights holder objects to Wendy graphic novel

A London hospital that holds the copyright to Peter Pan is objecting to a graphic novel that portrays the character Wendy exploring her sexuality.

The work, The Lost Girls, is by British writer Alan Moore, co-creator of the V for Vendetta comic book.

It follows the sexual adventures of three famous characters: Wendy, Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz and Alice from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

Little girls? Ick! I'd rather see older Dorothy and Ozma doing EEKy things!

( Imago Excellens cum Dorothea Ozmaque )

LWotP: puellula -ae f. "little girl."

Sad:

Charles Darwin's tortoise dies

THE world's oldest animal in captivity has died on the Sunshine Coast at the ripe old age of 176.

Giant Galapagos tortoise Harriet has died of a suspected heart attack.
She was a star attraction at Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo since the 1980s and even features in the Guinness Book of Records for her longevity.

Her history is as colourful as the hibiscus flowers she lovingly munched on.

It is believed Harriet was one of three animals naturalist Charles Darwin brought back from his trip to the Galapagos Islands in 1835 and which led to his theories of evolution and natural selection.

She lived a long time, eh?

LWotP: testudo terrestris "tortoise."

Unusual:

Dog makes cell phone call to save owner's life

ORLANDO, Fla. - A 17-pound beagle named Belle is more than man’s best friend. She’s a lifesaver.

Belle was in Washington, D.C., on Monday to receive an award for biting onto owner Kevin Weaver’s cell phone to call 911 after the diabetic man had a seizure and collapsed.

What a cute and clever critter!

LWotP: telephonema -atis n. "telephone call."

Disturbing:

Pentagon lists homosexuality as disorder

WASHINGTON - A Pentagon document classifies homosexuality as a mental disorder, decades after mental health experts abandoned that position.

Homosexuality is as much a disorder as being red-headed.

LWotP: perturbatio -onis f. "disorder."

Weird:

Piglet keeps Pooh off air

TURKEY'S public television TRT, controlled by the Islamist-rooted government, has barred the popular Walt Disney cartoon Winnie the Pooh from air because it has a piglet as one of its main heroes, the Turkish press reported today.

Oh dd-deary-deary dear!

LWotP: syophobia -ae f. "fear of pigs."

A female teacher is in trouble again, but this time, the relationship was with a female student:

Teacher Arrested For Sexual Assault

A Malvern High School teacher was arrested Tuesday morning for sexual assault for allegedly having a sexual relationship with a student.

Heather Carter, 30, of Alexander is accused of having the sexual relationship with a 17-year-old female student. Police say they contacted Carter's attorney and she turned herself in Tuesday morning.

EEK?

LWotP: magistra -ae f. "teacher."