WTF?--- News hot off the press that makes you say--- WTF?

[Stramash]

JAKARTA (AFP) - A chain-smoking Indonesian toddler has cut back to 15 cigarettes a day thanks to "therapy focused on playing", a child welfare official said Tuesday.

Two-year-old Ardi Rizal shocked the world when a video of him smoking a cigarette appeared on the Internet last month and drew attention to Indonesia's failure to regulate the tobacco industry.

Six months after his father gave him his first cigarette, the overweight boy from Sumatra island was smoking 40 a day and threw violent tantrums if his addiction was not satisfied.

Child welfare officials called in to try to wean the toddler off cigarettes said that when they played with him he did not smoke as much.

http://au.news.yahoo.com/a/-/world/7366076/indonesias-smoking-toddler-cuts-back-to-15-a-day/

Words fail me!!!!

knew you Aussies were behind the times but this story already in this thread AND has been posted as a journal.

C'mon Dave, think you should cut down on the beer. :wink:

He was on 40 ciggies in the first journal now he cut back to 15 this was just an update!!!! and no I shall not cut back on the beer!!!!

Think maybe I should though as I did not notice it was an update. Doh!!

For my sins I will shout on any team playing Angleland in the World Cup as sincere penance...

:wink:

[funky_house]

JAKARTA (AFP) - A chain-smoking Indonesian toddler has cut back to 15 cigarettes a day thanks to "therapy focused on playing", a child welfare official said Tuesday.

Two-year-old Ardi Rizal shocked the world when a video of him smoking a cigarette appeared on the Internet last month and drew attention to Indonesia's failure to regulate the tobacco industry.

Six months after his father gave him his first cigarette, the overweight boy from Sumatra island was smoking 40 a day and threw violent tantrums if his addiction was not satisfied.

Child welfare officials called in to try to wean the toddler off cigarettes said that when they played with him he did not smoke as much.

http://au.news.yahoo.com/a/-/world/7366076/indonesias-smoking-toddler-cuts-back-to-15-a-day/

Words fail me!!!!

knew you Aussies were behind the times but this story already in this thread AND has been posted as a journal.

C'mon Dave, think you should cut down on the beer. :wink:

He was on 40 ciggies in the first journal now he cut back to 15 this was just an update!!!! and no I shall not cut back on the beer!!!!

Think maybe I should though as I did not notice it was an update. Doh!!

For my sins I will shout on any team playing Angleland in the World Cup as sincere penance...

:wink:

Prime Minister David Cameron will fly the flag of St George above his residence at 10 Downing Street in support of England's World Cup campaign.

Normally, the Union Jack, which represents all of the United Kingdom, is flown over Downing Street.

But with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland failing to qualify for the tournament, Cameron allowed the flag to be changed.

[Stramash]

Prime Minister David Cameron will fly the flag of St George above his residence at 10 Downing Street in support of England's World Cup campaign.

Normally, the Union Jack, which represents all of the United Kingdom, is flown over Downing Street.

But with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland failing to qualify for the tournament, Cameron allowed the flag to be changed.

So, a c*nt is putting the flag representing a Turkish/Palestinian soldier up so he and all his buggery loving public school chums can look good?

fail.

2nd round coming home, Rooney earlier than that after his red card against USA

ABE

[funky_house]

Prime Minister David Cameron will fly the flag of St George above his residence at 10 Downing Street in support of England's World Cup campaign.

Normally, the Union Jack, which represents all of the United Kingdom, is flown over Downing Street.

But with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland failing to qualify for the tournament, Cameron allowed the flag to be changed.

So, a c*nt is putting the flag representing a Turkish/Palestinian soldier up so he and all his buggery loving public school chums can look good?

fail.

2nd round coming home, Rooney earlier than that after his red card against USA

ABE

Reel 'em in. :-)

[Stramash]

Prime Minister David Cameron will fly the flag of St George above his residence at 10 Downing Street in support of England's World Cup campaign.

Normally, the Union Jack, which represents all of the United Kingdom, is flown over Downing Street.

But with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland failing to qualify for the tournament, Cameron allowed the flag to be changed.

So, a c*nt is putting the flag representing a Turkish/Palestinian soldier up so he and all his buggery loving public school chums can look good?

fail.

2nd round coming home, Rooney earlier than that after his red card against USA

ABE

Reel 'em in. :-)

To be honest, it's more of a case of I don't think it would be very fair on England and English fans if they did win the World Cup.

After all, you haven't finished talking about the last one yet...

:wink:

[funky_house]

Prime Minister David Cameron will fly the flag of St George above his residence at 10 Downing Street in support of England's World Cup campaign.

Normally, the Union Jack, which represents all of the United Kingdom, is flown over Downing Street.

But with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland failing to qualify for the tournament, Cameron allowed the flag to be changed.

So, a c*nt is putting the flag representing a Turkish/Palestinian soldier up so he and all his buggery loving public school chums can look good?

fail.

2nd round coming home, Rooney earlier than that after his red card against USA

ABE

Reel 'em in. :-)

To be honest, it's more of a case of I don't think it would be very fair on England and English fans if they did win the World Cup.

After all, you haven't finished talking about the last one yet...

:wink:

Well my money is on Argentina. :cheers:

[Teddy]

ABE

:wink:

[drlovelife8]

Prime Minister David Cameron will fly the flag of St George above his residence at 10 Downing Street in support of England's World Cup campaign.

Normally, the Union Jack, which represents all of the United Kingdom, is flown over Downing Street.

But with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland failing to qualify for the tournament, Cameron allowed the flag to be changed.

So, a c*nt is putting the flag representing a Turkish/Palestinian soldier up so he and all his buggery loving public school chums can look good?

fail.

2nd round coming home, Rooney earlier than that after his red card against USA

ABE

don't be so ******* racialist lol kidding.

I think it is awesome. A St Georges flag, how long before some Muslims decide it has offended them in some way. lol.

[CiaranM]

I think it is awesome. A St Georges flag, how long before some Muslims decide it has offended them in some way. lol.

i believe the main reason ppl take offence with the St George's cross was because it was hijacked by the NF and other right wing nutters in the 70's !!!

[drlovelife8]

I think it is awesome. A St Georges flag, how long before some Muslims decide it has offended them in some way. lol.

i believe the main reason ppl take offence with the St George's cross was because it was hijacked by the NF and other right wing nutters in the 70's !!!

Indeed you are correct. A tiny and completely without creditability group of people used it for nationalist purposes (as do all nationalist orgs in their own country with there own flag). This happened 30 to 40 years ago. Avery small number of people still use it for that today. So it makes total sense for British people of a certain religion to say it is facist to fly i t.

PC gone f**ked.......... Again.

Fly the falg. Just as they do here.

Say "if you don't like it why don't you **** off back to your own country" Just as they do here.

I love Thai attitude. No ****, I ******* love it.

[beej]

Geert Wilders' anti-Islam Freedom Party won 24 seats, its best-ever finish.

Enjoy.

[DJTX]

And Americans thought they invented baseball :shock:

London, England (CNN) -- An extract from an 18th-century diary containing the oldest known reference to baseball is among the items on display in a new exhibition in London exploring the English origins and cricketing connections of America's national sport.

While baseball was once claimed to have been invented in the U.S. in the mid-19th century, recent findings suggest a sport of the same name may have evolved decades earlier alongside cricket, crossing the Atlantic with English settlers to the American colonies.

One notable discovery found in a shed in a village in Surrey, southern England, in 2008 was a handwritten 18th-century diary belonging to a local lawyer, William Bray...

[drlovelife8]

Geert Wilders' anti-Islam Freedom Party won 24 seats, its best-ever finish.

Enjoy.

I popped a bottle of champers when I read that Wilders' sensible anti-negative ideology party had done so well.

Maybe the tolerant Dutch are finally waking up to this plague and others will follow suit.

[Teddy]

A British chemistry professor has calculated that if the World Cup trophy was really solid gold it would be too heavy for footballers to lift.

Martyn Poliakoff of Nottingham University estimates that a solid gold trophy of its size - 36cm (14 in) high - would weigh at least 70kg (154lb).

He concludes that the trophy, or at least part of it, must be hollow.

Fifa insisted that the metal part of the current trophy, which dates back to 1974, was "solid gold".

It told the BBC News website the prize weighed 6.175kg, including 4.9kg of "solid 18-carat gold" and two layers of the semi-precious stone malachite.

Nobody wins the coveted trophy outright as Fifa retains possession between tournaments, awarding a gold-plated replica to each World Cup champion.

Dense metal

Making his case on the university's Periodic Table of Videos website, Professor Poliakoff said a genuinely solid gold cup of this height would be "as much as the weight of quite a large adult".

Continue reading the main story

I don't think that it would be light enough for people to wave above their heads

Martyn Poliakoff

chemistry professor

"Gold is very heavy, it's one of the densest metals that there is," he said.

"According to my calculations, if it was solid all the way through, it would have somewhere between 70 and 80kg of gold in it."

The professor suggested the term "solid gold" might mean "the metal part is gold all the way through - it isn't that there is a thin layer of gold and the rest is steel, for example".

"However, I think - and I have no means of knowing - that perhaps the ball at the top, which is the world, is probably hollow... because I don't think that it would be light enough for people to wave above their heads, and also it would be a big waste of gold."

The professor added that he was "not very interested in football".

"I was a teenager when England won the World Cup in 1966," he said.

"I didn't watch the game then and I haven't watched a World Cup match since then, but perhaps I will watch something this year."

There's always one!

[English_Bob]

http://www.phuketgazette.net/news/detail.asp?id=8822

WELCOME TO THAILAND: Mobile ATM units set up at the landing dock at Phuket Deep Sea Port await visiting US sailors. Tuk-tuk drivers waiting outside typically charge a minimum 2,000 baht for the trip to Patong.

PHUKET: The future of Phuket as a rest and relaxation destination for US Navy ships is in jeopardy following a blockade of the access road at Phuket Deep Sea Port by taxi drivers demanding sailors use their service instead of a free transport service provided by the US military.

Details of what transpired last night have yet to be fully confirmed, but sources told the Gazette this morning that the blockade lasted several hours and was only broken up around midnight following negotiations between the drivers and police, local government and military negotiators.

The stranded sailors were aboard US Navy vessels USS Curts, USS Vandegrift as well as the US Coast Guard cutter Mellon. The vessels will be in Phuket from June 12 to 20, with a staggered arrival and departure schedule.

Top local officials were immediately notified of the blockade, which lasted from about 9pm until midnight.

The protesters, which included a number of unregistered ‘black plate’ taxi drivers, set up the blockade when they noticed sailors inside the Deep Sea Port security gate boarding passenger vans bound for Patong.

The drivers were apparently angry that the sailors were boarding passenger vans provided for them free of charge by Glenn Defense Marine, a private firm based in Bangkok that has a contract with the US Navy to provide support services for visiting US Navy ships.

In the past, the sailors were taken to Patong in large air-conditioned coaches.

The appearance of the passenger vans in their place infuriated the tuk-tuk drivers, who thought their ‘turf’ was being infringed upon. A false rumor circulated among the taxi drivers that the sailors were paying 200 baht a head to board the vans, which in fact were provided free-of-charge, just as the buses were in the past.

Part of the problem may have arisen because the new port manager had failed to notify the tuk-tuk drivers in advance of the change, the source said.

A source in the Royal Thai Navy responsible for security at Phuket Deep Sea Port had a somewhat different version of events. He told the Gazette under condition of anonymity that as many as 500 tuk-tuks, black plate taxis and vans, all desperate for low-season fares, converged at the Deep Sea Port at the same time to try and collect passengers numbering only about 300.

The blockade was more of a traffic jam than an organized blockade, he said.

Preechavude ‘Prab’ Keesin, president of the newly formed Patong Taxi Federation (PTF), said that members of his association were not among the drivers involved in the alleged protest.

“Our members wouldn’t do such a thing,†he said.

A source in the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization confirmed that ‘local taxi drivers’ did in fact blockade the access road until about midnight, at which time the dispute was settled by negotiation.

Chairat Khumban, secretary of Wichit Mayor Kreetar Saetan, said the blockade was ended after the drivers agreed with military, police and Wichit Municipality negotiators to go back to an old agreement allowing the local taxis access to low-ranking US military personnel while only officers could take advantage of the free van service provided by an outside contractor.

A high-ranking US Navy officer attending a welcome dinner put on by the Phuket branch of the US Navy League in Patong last night was reportedly furious at the security breach when informed by telephone.

His crew had been on active duty in the Persian Gulf and hadn’t been ashore for 97 days, he said.

The Phuket visit was a last-minute change from the originally scheduled visit to Singapore.

“We would obviously never have a problem like this in Singapore,†the officer was quoted as saying.

Phuket City Police this morning said the duty officer at the time did not visit the protest site and that no criminal charges have been filed in connection with the incident.

A source told the Gazette the incident could place Phuket’s role as an R&R and resupply site for the US military in serious jeopardy and that it would probably take a few weeks to find out the true damage of the incident.

The blockade could be taken as a major security breach because the drivers were allowed to block US military personnel at their designated point of entry into the country and inside the established security perimeter, he said.

Resupply of American warships, including some of the world’s largest aircraft carriers, is an important industry for Phuket.

“People think the only benefit to the local economy is the money sailors spend on nightlife, but that is only the tip of the iceberg. When the USS Ronald Reagan was here they loaded 14 containers of supplies. It is a huge business and it would be a shame if we were to lose it because of the greed of a small group of taxi drivers,†he said.

[DJTX]

http://www.phuketgazette.net/news/detail.asp?id=8822

WELCOME TO THAILAND: Mobile ATM units set up at the landing dock at Phuket Deep Sea Port await visiting US sailors. Tuk-tuk drivers waiting outside typically charge a minimum 2,000 baht for the trip to Patong.

PHUKET: The future of Phuket as a rest and relaxation destination for US Navy ships is in jeopardy following a blockade of the access road at Phuket Deep Sea Port by taxi drivers demanding sailors use their service instead of a free transport service provided by the US military.

Details of what transpired last night have yet to be fully confirmed, but sources told the Gazette this morning that the blockade lasted several hours and was only broken up around midnight following negotiations between the drivers and police, local government and military negotiators.

The stranded sailors were aboard US Navy vessels USS Curts, USS Vandegrift as well as the US Coast Guard cutter Mellon. The vessels will be in Phuket from June 12 to 20, with a staggered arrival and departure schedule.

Top local officials were immediately notified of the blockade, which lasted from about 9pm until midnight.

The protesters, which included a number of unregistered ‘black plate’ taxi drivers, set up the blockade when they noticed sailors inside the Deep Sea Port security gate boarding passenger vans bound for Patong.

The drivers were apparently angry that the sailors were boarding passenger vans provided for them free of charge by Glenn Defense Marine, a private firm based in Bangkok that has a contract with the US Navy to provide support services for visiting US Navy ships.

In the past, the sailors were taken to Patong in large air-conditioned coaches.

The appearance of the passenger vans in their place infuriated the tuk-tuk drivers, who thought their ‘turf’ was being infringed upon. A false rumor circulated among the taxi drivers that the sailors were paying 200 baht a head to board the vans, which in fact were provided free-of-charge, just as the buses were in the past.

Part of the problem may have arisen because the new port manager had failed to notify the tuk-tuk drivers in advance of the change, the source said.

A source in the Royal Thai Navy responsible for security at Phuket Deep Sea Port had a somewhat different version of events. He told the Gazette under condition of anonymity that as many as 500 tuk-tuks, black plate taxis and vans, all desperate for low-season fares, converged at the Deep Sea Port at the same time to try and collect passengers numbering only about 300.

The blockade was more of a traffic jam than an organized blockade, he said.

Preechavude ‘Prab’ Keesin, president of the newly formed Patong Taxi Federation (PTF), said that members of his association were not among the drivers involved in the alleged protest.

“Our members wouldn’t do such a thing,†he said.

A source in the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization confirmed that ‘local taxi drivers’ did in fact blockade the access road until about midnight, at which time the dispute was settled by negotiation.

Chairat Khumban, secretary of Wichit Mayor Kreetar Saetan, said the blockade was ended after the drivers agreed with military, police and Wichit Municipality negotiators to go back to an old agreement allowing the local taxis access to low-ranking US military personnel while only officers could take advantage of the free van service provided by an outside contractor.

A high-ranking US Navy officer attending a welcome dinner put on by the Phuket branch of the US Navy League in Patong last night was reportedly furious at the security breach when informed by telephone.

His crew had been on active duty in the Persian Gulf and hadn’t been ashore for 97 days, he said.

The Phuket visit was a last-minute change from the originally scheduled visit to Singapore.

“We would obviously never have a problem like this in Singapore,†the officer was quoted as saying.

Phuket City Police this morning said the duty officer at the time did not visit the protest site and that no criminal charges have been filed in connection with the incident.

A source told the Gazette the incident could place Phuket’s role as an R&R and resupply site for the US military in serious jeopardy and that it would probably take a few weeks to find out the true damage of the incident.

The blockade could be taken as a major security breach because the drivers were allowed to block US military personnel at their designated point of entry into the country and inside the established security perimeter, he said.

Resupply of American warships, including some of the world’s largest aircraft carriers, is an important industry for Phuket.

“People think the only benefit to the local economy is the money sailors spend on nightlife, but that is only the tip of the iceberg. When the USS Ronald Reagan was here they loaded 14 containers of supplies. It is a huge business and it would be a shame if we were to lose it because of the greed of a small group of taxi drivers,†he said.

To me the WTF part is that a US Coast Guard ship in in Phuket. Guess the US coast as expanded since the last time I took geography.

[drlovelife8]

http://www.phuketgazette.net/news/detail.asp?id=8822

WELCOME TO THAILAND: Mobile ATM units set up at the landing dock at Phuket Deep Sea Port await visiting US sailors. Tuk-tuk drivers waiting outside typically charge a minimum 2,000 baht for the trip to Patong.

PHUKET: The future of Phuket as a rest and relaxation destination for US Navy ships is in jeopardy following a blockade of the access road at Phuket Deep Sea Port by taxi drivers demanding sailors use their service instead of a free transport service provided by the US military.

Details of what transpired last night have yet to be fully confirmed, but sources told the Gazette this morning that the blockade lasted several hours and was only broken up around midnight following negotiations between the drivers and police, local government and military negotiators.

The stranded sailors were aboard US Navy vessels USS Curts, USS Vandegrift as well as the US Coast Guard cutter Mellon. The vessels will be in Phuket from June 12 to 20, with a staggered arrival and departure schedule.

Top local officials were immediately notified of the blockade, which lasted from about 9pm until midnight.

The protesters, which included a number of unregistered ‘black plate’ taxi drivers, set up the blockade when they noticed sailors inside the Deep Sea Port security gate boarding passenger vans bound for Patong.

The drivers were apparently angry that the sailors were boarding passenger vans provided for them free of charge by Glenn Defense Marine, a private firm based in Bangkok that has a contract with the US Navy to provide support services for visiting US Navy ships.

In the past, the sailors were taken to Patong in large air-conditioned coaches.

The appearance of the passenger vans in their place infuriated the tuk-tuk drivers, who thought their ‘turf’ was being infringed upon. A false rumor circulated among the taxi drivers that the sailors were paying 200 baht a head to board the vans, which in fact were provided free-of-charge, just as the buses were in the past.

Part of the problem may have arisen because the new port manager had failed to notify the tuk-tuk drivers in advance of the change, the source said.

A source in the Royal Thai Navy responsible for security at Phuket Deep Sea Port had a somewhat different version of events. He told the Gazette under condition of anonymity that as many as 500 tuk-tuks, black plate taxis and vans, all desperate for low-season fares, converged at the Deep Sea Port at the same time to try and collect passengers numbering only about 300.

The blockade was more of a traffic jam than an organized blockade, he said.

Preechavude ‘Prab’ Keesin, president of the newly formed Patong Taxi Federation (PTF), said that members of his association were not among the drivers involved in the alleged protest.

“Our members wouldn’t do such a thing,†he said.

A source in the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization confirmed that ‘local taxi drivers’ did in fact blockade the access road until about midnight, at which time the dispute was settled by negotiation.

Chairat Khumban, secretary of Wichit Mayor Kreetar Saetan, said the blockade was ended after the drivers agreed with military, police and Wichit Municipality negotiators to go back to an old agreement allowing the local taxis access to low-ranking US military personnel while only officers could take advantage of the free van service provided by an outside contractor.

A high-ranking US Navy officer attending a welcome dinner put on by the Phuket branch of the US Navy League in Patong last night was reportedly furious at the security breach when informed by telephone.

His crew had been on active duty in the Persian Gulf and hadn’t been ashore for 97 days, he said.

The Phuket visit was a last-minute change from the originally scheduled visit to Singapore.

“We would obviously never have a problem like this in Singapore,†the officer was quoted as saying.

Phuket City Police this morning said the duty officer at the time did not visit the protest site and that no criminal charges have been filed in connection with the incident.

A source told the Gazette the incident could place Phuket’s role as an R&R and resupply site for the US military in serious jeopardy and that it would probably take a few weeks to find out the true damage of the incident.

The blockade could be taken as a major security breach because the drivers were allowed to block US military personnel at their designated point of entry into the country and inside the established security perimeter, he said.

Resupply of American warships, including some of the world’s largest aircraft carriers, is an important industry for Phuket.

“People think the only benefit to the local economy is the money sailors spend on nightlife, but that is only the tip of the iceberg. When the USS Ronald Reagan was here they loaded 14 containers of supplies. It is a huge business and it would be a shame if we were to lose it because of the greed of a small group of taxi drivers,†he said.

To me the WTF part is that a US Coast Guard ship in in Phuket. Guess the US coast as expanded since the last time I took geography.

Whenever I read about USA R&R in Thailand I imagine this army of street tough soldiers marching down the beach ready to go buck wild all night on drink, drugs and sex and then I also imagine the guys from the armed forces too waiting to battle all night with the aforementioned girls.

[DJTX]

http://www.phuketgazette.net/news/detail.asp?id=8822

WELCOME TO THAILAND: Mobile ATM units set up at the landing dock at Phuket Deep Sea Port await visiting US sailors. Tuk-tuk drivers waiting outside typically charge a minimum 2,000 baht for the trip to Patong.

PHUKET: The future of Phuket as a rest and relaxation destination for US Navy ships is in jeopardy following a blockade of the access road at Phuket Deep Sea Port by taxi drivers demanding sailors use their service instead of a free transport service provided by the US military.

Details of what transpired last night have yet to be fully confirmed, but sources told the Gazette this morning that the blockade lasted several hours and was only broken up around midnight following negotiations between the drivers and police, local government and military negotiators.

The stranded sailors were aboard US Navy vessels USS Curts, USS Vandegrift as well as the US Coast Guard cutter Mellon. The vessels will be in Phuket from June 12 to 20, with a staggered arrival and departure schedule.

Top local officials were immediately notified of the blockade, which lasted from about 9pm until midnight.

The protesters, which included a number of unregistered ‘black plate’ taxi drivers, set up the blockade when they noticed sailors inside the Deep Sea Port security gate boarding passenger vans bound for Patong.

The drivers were apparently angry that the sailors were boarding passenger vans provided for them free of charge by Glenn Defense Marine, a private firm based in Bangkok that has a contract with the US Navy to provide support services for visiting US Navy ships.

In the past, the sailors were taken to Patong in large air-conditioned coaches.

The appearance of the passenger vans in their place infuriated the tuk-tuk drivers, who thought their ‘turf’ was being infringed upon. A false rumor circulated among the taxi drivers that the sailors were paying 200 baht a head to board the vans, which in fact were provided free-of-charge, just as the buses were in the past.

Part of the problem may have arisen because the new port manager had failed to notify the tuk-tuk drivers in advance of the change, the source said.

A source in the Royal Thai Navy responsible for security at Phuket Deep Sea Port had a somewhat different version of events. He told the Gazette under condition of anonymity that as many as 500 tuk-tuks, black plate taxis and vans, all desperate for low-season fares, converged at the Deep Sea Port at the same time to try and collect passengers numbering only about 300.

The blockade was more of a traffic jam than an organized blockade, he said.

Preechavude ‘Prab’ Keesin, president of the newly formed Patong Taxi Federation (PTF), said that members of his association were not among the drivers involved in the alleged protest.

“Our members wouldn’t do such a thing,†he said.

A source in the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization confirmed that ‘local taxi drivers’ did in fact blockade the access road until about midnight, at which time the dispute was settled by negotiation.

Chairat Khumban, secretary of Wichit Mayor Kreetar Saetan, said the blockade was ended after the drivers agreed with military, police and Wichit Municipality negotiators to go back to an old agreement allowing the local taxis access to low-ranking US military personnel while only officers could take advantage of the free van service provided by an outside contractor.

A high-ranking US Navy officer attending a welcome dinner put on by the Phuket branch of the US Navy League in Patong last night was reportedly furious at the security breach when informed by telephone.

His crew had been on active duty in the Persian Gulf and hadn’t been ashore for 97 days, he said.

The Phuket visit was a last-minute change from the originally scheduled visit to Singapore.

“We would obviously never have a problem like this in Singapore,†the officer was quoted as saying.

Phuket City Police this morning said the duty officer at the time did not visit the protest site and that no criminal charges have been filed in connection with the incident.

A source told the Gazette the incident could place Phuket’s role as an R&R and resupply site for the US military in serious jeopardy and that it would probably take a few weeks to find out the true damage of the incident.

The blockade could be taken as a major security breach because the drivers were allowed to block US military personnel at their designated point of entry into the country and inside the established security perimeter, he said.

Resupply of American warships, including some of the world’s largest aircraft carriers, is an important industry for Phuket.

“People think the only benefit to the local economy is the money sailors spend on nightlife, but that is only the tip of the iceberg. When the USS Ronald Reagan was here they loaded 14 containers of supplies. It is a huge business and it would be a shame if we were to lose it because of the greed of a small group of taxi drivers,†he said.

To me the WTF part is that a US Coast Guard ship in in Phuket. Guess the US coast as expanded since the last time I took geography.

Whenever I read about USA R&R in Thailand I imagine this army of street tough soldiers marching down the beach ready to go buck wild all night on drink, drugs and sex and then I also imagine the guys from the armed forces too waiting to battle all night with the aforementioned girls.

Yeah, military life is h*ll

[PiAnt]

Act of God!

MONROE, Ohio – A six-story statue of Jesus Christ was struck by lightning and burned to the ground, leaving only a blackened steel skeleton and pieces of foam that were scooped up by curious onlookers Tuesday.

The "King of Kings" statue, one of southwest Ohio's most familiar landmarks, had stood since 2004 at the evangelical Solid Rock Church along Interstate 75 in Monroe, just north of Cincinnati.

The lightning strike set the statue ablaze around 11:15 p.m. Monday, Monroe police dispatchers said.

The sculpture, about 62 feet tall and 40 feet wide at the base, showed Jesus from the torso up and was nicknamed Touchdown Jesus because of the way the arms were raised, similar to a referee signaling a touchdown. It was made of plastic foam and fiberglass over a steel frame, which is all that remained Tuesday.

The nickname is the same used for a famous mural of the resurrected Jesus that overlooks the Notre Dame football stadium.

The fire spread from the statue to an adjacent amphitheater but was confined to the attic area, and no one was injured, police Chief Mark Neu said.

Estimated damage from the fire was set at $700,000 — $300,000 for the statue and $400,000 for the amphitheater, Fire Capt. Richard Mascarella said Tuesday.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol was at the scene Tuesday to prevent traffic jams and potential accidents from motorists stopping along the highway to take photographs.

The patrol began issuing citations about 4 p.m. Tuesday to motorists for stopping on the side of the highway, dispatcher Adam Brown said. The number of gawkers coupled with construction had slowed I-75 traffic in the area to a crawl, the state Highway Patrol said.

Some people were scooping up pieces of the statue's foam from the nearby pond to take home with them, said church co-pastor Darlene Bishop.

"This meant a lot to a lot of people," she said.

Keith Lewis, of nearby Middletown, arrived at the church around 7 a.m. Tuesday to photograph the remains for his wife. Lewis said he had viewed the statue as both an oddity and an inspiration.

Cassie Browning, a church member from Dayton, said she was driving home when she saw smoke and noticed the statue was missing.

Travelers on I-75 often were startled to come upon the huge statue by the roadside, but many said America needs more symbols like it. So many people stopped at the church campus that church officials had to build a walkway to accommodate them.

Bishop said the statue will be rebuilt.

"It will be back, but this time we are going to try for something fireproof," she said.

The 4,000-member, nondenominational church was founded by Bishop and her husband, former horse trader Lawrence Bishop.

Lawrence Bishop said in 2004 he was trying to help people, not impress them, with the statue. He said his wife proposed the Jesus figure as a beacon of hope and salvation.

[English_Bob]

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5ihXzibRq4-9bmfK9ti92SrpMZ4AA

LOS ANGELES — An American construction worker arrested in Pakistan on suspicion of trying to hunt down and kill terror mastermind Osama bin Laden is "not crazy," his brother told CNN Tuesday.

Gary Brooks Faulkner, 50, was detained Monday in the remote mountains of Chitral, once a rumored hiding place of bin Laden, near Afghanistan's Nuristan province, armed with a pistol, dagger, sword and night-vision equipment.

The bearded would-be hitman -- quickly dubbed "the American Ninja" -- in US press reports Tuesday, was believed to be hunting down Al-Qaeda figurehead bin Laden, the subject of a 25-million-dollar bounty offered by the United States.

However Scott Faulkner said Tuesday that his sibling -- who suffers from kidney problems and high blood pressure -- was motivated by patriotism rather than the prospect of a multimillion-dollar payout.

"My brother is not crazy," Scott Faulkner told CNN. "He is highly intelligent and loves his country and has not forgotten what Osama has done to this country."

Scott Faulkner said his brother, an independent contractor who has lived in Colorado since 1968, was angered by the September 11, 2001 attacks and "taunts" by bin Laden against Christianity.

"When 9/11 happened, as a Christian we took that very personally, as did most of the country," Scott Faulkner said.

I think we should give him the benefit of the doubt.... until it's proven that he really is crazy.

OK... he's crazy.

[drlovelife8]

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5ihXzibRq4-9bmfK9ti92SrpMZ4AA

LOS ANGELES — An American construction worker arrested in Pakistan on suspicion of trying to hunt down and kill terror mastermind Osama bin Laden is "not crazy," his brother told CNN Tuesday.

Gary Brooks Faulkner, 50, was detained Monday in the remote mountains of Chitral, once a rumored hiding place of bin Laden, near Afghanistan's Nuristan province, armed with a pistol, dagger, sword and night-vision equipment.

The bearded would-be hitman -- quickly dubbed "the American Ninja" -- in US press reports Tuesday, was believed to be hunting down Al-Qaeda figurehead bin Laden, the subject of a 25-million-dollar bounty offered by the United States.

However Scott Faulkner said Tuesday that his sibling -- who suffers from kidney problems and high blood pressure -- was motivated by patriotism rather than the prospect of a multimillion-dollar payout.

"My brother is not crazy," Scott Faulkner told CNN. "He is highly intelligent and loves his country and has not forgotten what Osama has done to this country."

Scott Faulkner said his brother, an independent contractor who has lived in Colorado since 1968, was angered by the September 11, 2001 attacks and "taunts" by bin Laden against Christianity.

"When 9/11 happened, as a Christian we took that very personally, as did most of the country," Scott Faulkner said.

I think we should give him the benefit of the doubt.... until it's proven that he really is crazy.

OK... he's crazy.

Isn't that Eagle?

[drlovelife8]

Act of God!

MONROE, Ohio – A six-story statue of Jesus Christ was struck by lightning and burned to the ground, leaving only a blackened steel skeleton and pieces of foam that were scooped up by curious onlookers Tuesday.

The "King of Kings" statue, one of southwest Ohio's most familiar landmarks, had stood since 2004 at the evangelical Solid Rock Church along Interstate 75 in Monroe, just north of Cincinnati.

The lightning strike set the statue ablaze around 11:15 p.m. Monday, Monroe police dispatchers said.

The sculpture, about 62 feet tall and 40 feet wide at the base, showed Jesus from the torso up and was nicknamed Touchdown Jesus because of the way the arms were raised, similar to a referee signaling a touchdown. It was made of plastic foam and fiberglass over a steel frame, which is all that remained Tuesday.

The nickname is the same used for a famous mural of the resurrected Jesus that overlooks the Notre Dame football stadium.

The fire spread from the statue to an adjacent amphitheater but was confined to the attic area, and no one was injured, police Chief Mark Neu said.

Estimated damage from the fire was set at $700,000 — $300,000 for the statue and $400,000 for the amphitheater, Fire Capt. Richard Mascarella said Tuesday.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol was at the scene Tuesday to prevent traffic jams and potential accidents from motorists stopping along the highway to take photographs.

The patrol began issuing citations about 4 p.m. Tuesday to motorists for stopping on the side of the highway, dispatcher Adam Brown said. The number of gawkers coupled with construction had slowed I-75 traffic in the area to a crawl, the state Highway Patrol said.

Some people were scooping up pieces of the statue's foam from the nearby pond to take home with them, said church co-pastor Darlene Bishop.

"This meant a lot to a lot of people," she said.

Keith Lewis, of nearby Middletown, arrived at the church around 7 a.m. Tuesday to photograph the remains for his wife. Lewis said he had viewed the statue as both an oddity and an inspiration.

Cassie Browning, a church member from Dayton, said she was driving home when she saw smoke and noticed the statue was missing.

Travelers on I-75 often were startled to come upon the huge statue by the roadside, but many said America needs more symbols like it. So many people stopped at the church campus that church officials had to build a walkway to accommodate them.

Bishop said the statue will be rebuilt.

"It will be back, but this time we are going to try for something fireproof," she said.

The 4,000-member, nondenominational church was founded by Bishop and her husband, former horse trader Lawrence Bishop.

Lawrence Bishop said in 2004 he was trying to help people, not impress them, with the statue. He said his wife proposed the Jesus figure as a beacon of hope and salvation.

Don't piss of the one true God.................... Thor.

[LakeGeneve]

Act of God!

MONROE, Ohio – A six-story statue of Jesus Christ was struck by lightning and burned to the ground, leaving only a blackened steel skeleton and pieces of foam that were scooped up by curious onlookers Tuesday.

The "King of Kings" statue, one of southwest Ohio's most familiar landmarks, had stood since 2004 at the evangelical Solid Rock Church along Interstate 75 in Monroe, just north of Cincinnati.

The lightning strike set the statue ablaze around 11:15 p.m. Monday, Monroe police dispatchers said.

The sculpture, about 62 feet tall and 40 feet wide at the base, showed Jesus from the torso up and was nicknamed Touchdown Jesus because of the way the arms were raised, similar to a referee signaling a touchdown. It was made of plastic foam and fiberglass over a steel frame, which is all that remained Tuesday.

The nickname is the same used for a famous mural of the resurrected Jesus that overlooks the Notre Dame football stadium.

The fire spread from the statue to an adjacent amphitheater but was confined to the attic area, and no one was injured, police Chief Mark Neu said.

Estimated damage from the fire was set at $700,000 — $300,000 for the statue and $400,000 for the amphitheater, Fire Capt. Richard Mascarella said Tuesday.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol was at the scene Tuesday to prevent traffic jams and potential accidents from motorists stopping along the highway to take photographs.

The patrol began issuing citations about 4 p.m. Tuesday to motorists for stopping on the side of the highway, dispatcher Adam Brown said. The number of gawkers coupled with construction had slowed I-75 traffic in the area to a crawl, the state Highway Patrol said.

Some people were scooping up pieces of the statue's foam from the nearby pond to take home with them, said church co-pastor Darlene Bishop.

"This meant a lot to a lot of people," she said.

Keith Lewis, of nearby Middletown, arrived at the church around 7 a.m. Tuesday to photograph the remains for his wife. Lewis said he had viewed the statue as both an oddity and an inspiration.

Cassie Browning, a church member from Dayton, said she was driving home when she saw smoke and noticed the statue was missing.

Travelers on I-75 often were startled to come upon the huge statue by the roadside, but many said America needs more symbols like it. So many people stopped at the church campus that church officials had to build a walkway to accommodate them.

Bishop said the statue will be rebuilt.

"It will be back, but this time we are going to try for something fireproof," she said.

The 4,000-member, nondenominational church was founded by Bishop and her husband, former horse trader Lawrence Bishop.

Lawrence Bishop said in 2004 he was trying to help people, not impress them, with the statue. He said his wife proposed the Jesus figure as a beacon of hope and salvation.

Don't piss of the one true God.................... Thor.

Is that a pic of Thor farting?

[LakeGeneve]

http://www.phuketgazette.net/news/detail.asp?id=8822

WELCOME TO THAILAND: Mobile ATM units set up at the landing dock at Phuket Deep Sea Port await visiting US sailors. Tuk-tuk drivers waiting outside typically charge a minimum 2,000 baht for the trip to Patong.

PHUKET: The future of Phuket as a rest and relaxation destination for US Navy ships is in jeopardy following a blockade of the access road at Phuket Deep Sea Port by taxi drivers demanding sailors use their service instead of a free transport service provided by the US military.

Details of what transpired last night have yet to be fully confirmed, but sources told the Gazette this morning that the blockade lasted several hours and was only broken up around midnight following negotiations between the drivers and police, local government and military negotiators.

The stranded sailors were aboard US Navy vessels USS Curts, USS Vandegrift as well as the US Coast Guard cutter Mellon. The vessels will be in Phuket from June 12 to 20, with a staggered arrival and departure schedule.

Top local officials were immediately notified of the blockade, which lasted from about 9pm until midnight.

The protesters, which included a number of unregistered ‘black plate’ taxi drivers, set up the blockade when they noticed sailors inside the Deep Sea Port security gate boarding passenger vans bound for Patong.

The drivers were apparently angry that the sailors were boarding passenger vans provided for them free of charge by Glenn Defense Marine, a private firm based in Bangkok that has a contract with the US Navy to provide support services for visiting US Navy ships.

In the past, the sailors were taken to Patong in large air-conditioned coaches.

The appearance of the passenger vans in their place infuriated the tuk-tuk drivers, who thought their ‘turf’ was being infringed upon. A false rumor circulated among the taxi drivers that the sailors were paying 200 baht a head to board the vans, which in fact were provided free-of-charge, just as the buses were in the past.

Part of the problem may have arisen because the new port manager had failed to notify the tuk-tuk drivers in advance of the change, the source said.

A source in the Royal Thai Navy responsible for security at Phuket Deep Sea Port had a somewhat different version of events. He told the Gazette under condition of anonymity that as many as 500 tuk-tuks, black plate taxis and vans, all desperate for low-season fares, converged at the Deep Sea Port at the same time to try and collect passengers numbering only about 300.

The blockade was more of a traffic jam than an organized blockade, he said.

Preechavude ‘Prab’ Keesin, president of the newly formed Patong Taxi Federation (PTF), said that members of his association were not among the drivers involved in the alleged protest.

“Our members wouldn’t do such a thing,†he said.

A source in the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization confirmed that ‘local taxi drivers’ did in fact blockade the access road until about midnight, at which time the dispute was settled by negotiation.

Chairat Khumban, secretary of Wichit Mayor Kreetar Saetan, said the blockade was ended after the drivers agreed with military, police and Wichit Municipality negotiators to go back to an old agreement allowing the local taxis access to low-ranking US military personnel while only officers could take advantage of the free van service provided by an outside contractor.

A high-ranking US Navy officer attending a welcome dinner put on by the Phuket branch of the US Navy League in Patong last night was reportedly furious at the security breach when informed by telephone.

His crew had been on active duty in the Persian Gulf and hadn’t been ashore for 97 days, he said.

The Phuket visit was a last-minute change from the originally scheduled visit to Singapore.

“We would obviously never have a problem like this in Singapore,†the officer was quoted as saying.

Phuket City Police this morning said the duty officer at the time did not visit the protest site and that no criminal charges have been filed in connection with the incident.

A source told the Gazette the incident could place Phuket’s role as an R&R and resupply site for the US military in serious jeopardy and that it would probably take a few weeks to find out the true damage of the incident.

The blockade could be taken as a major security breach because the drivers were allowed to block US military personnel at their designated point of entry into the country and inside the established security perimeter, he said.

Resupply of American warships, including some of the world’s largest aircraft carriers, is an important industry for Phuket.

“People think the only benefit to the local economy is the money sailors spend on nightlife, but that is only the tip of the iceberg. When the USS Ronald Reagan was here they loaded 14 containers of supplies. It is a huge business and it would be a shame if we were to lose it because of the greed of a small group of taxi drivers,†he said.

To me the WTF part is that a US Coast Guard ship in in Phuket. Guess the US coast as expanded since the last time I took geography.

Whenever I read about USA R&R in Thailand I imagine this army of street tough soldiers marching down the beach ready to go buck wild all night on drink, drugs and sex and then I also imagine the guys from the armed forces too waiting to battle all night with the aforementioned girls.

Yeah, military life is h*ll

The sooner someone has the balls to get rid of those Phuket taxi thugs a more brighter future Phuket will have.

[LakeGeneve]

Granny pimps teen grandaughters to locals including girls teacher for booze! :shock: :shock: :shock:

Grandma accused of being a pimp 16/06/2010 Bangkok Post

PHICHIT : A woman has been arrested after being accused of forcing her two teenaged grandchildren into prostitution - sometimes with the children's teacher - to fund her beer and rice whisky habit.

Nong Kularb (not her real name), 14, and her 13-year-old sister have lived with their grandmother, Pimwa Sri-on, 57, in tambon Tha Lor of Muang district since their parents divorced and went to work in Bangkok.

Ms Pimwa, an alcoholic, is accused of forcing the girls to sell their bodies in the village, often for rice whisky or beers. One of the customers was the girls' school teacher, said Oranuch Chaicha, of the provincial Social Development and Human Security Office. She said the grandmother would take Nong Kularb, a Matthayom2 student, to the customers on her bicycle.

After the business was done, they were paid between 100 and 200 baht. Sometimes, the grandmother would take whisky or beers in lieu of money. Ms Oranuch said the customers were people from the same community including Nong Kularb's teacher.

Unable to endure the physical abuse and seeing her sister face the same cruelty, Nong Kularb approached her supervising teacher for help. The teacher alerted the social development office.

Ms Oranuch said the girl told her supervising teacher she had been "chaperoned" by her grandmother when she sold herself to strangers for money or alcoholic drinks.

Nong Kularb and her sister have learned that those closest to them can hurt them the most. Ms Oranuch said Ms Pimwa usually would take the girls out to be "offered" in the village when she ran out of rice or felt like having a drink.

Charges will be laid against the grandmother on procuring and human trafficking charges. More than 10 men accused of involvement in procuring the teenagers, including the teacher, will be charged with having sex with minors, she said.

Nong Kularb and her sister are under the care of the provincial social development office where they are receiving physical and psychological rehabilitation.