How Not To Fly (about)

Man Allegedly Has Wife Raped To Pay Debt

[Warren, MI] Smith told police that he lost money playing pool six months ago at the Bottoms Up East lounge. His debt reportedly grew to $5,000, according to police. Andrews said the phony home invasion and rape were intended to pay off some of the debt.

Muslim Woman To Challenge Ban On Veil In Driver's License Photo

[Orlando, FL] Judge Ted Coleman denied a state motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Sultaana Freeman, whose driver's license was revoked when she refused to replace her photograph with one showing her face unveiled. Freeman, 34, is suing to get her license back with a photo that hides most of her face, except her eyes, behind a veil known as a niqab.

Pledge Of Allegiance Ruled Unconstitutional

[San Francisco] Politicians from President Bush to Gov. Gray Davis condemned it, the U.S. Senate quickly and unanimously passed a resolution denouncing it, and the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights urged teachers to defy the court and invite television crews to film their arrests.

Man Vows To Have Ring Returned

[Waukesha, WI] According to the lawsuit:

• Koepsell, of West Bend, and Brounacker, of Milwaukee -- who the suit says once worked as a paralegal or legal assistant -- dated for a period in 1996 and 1997 and discussed the possibility of marriage.
• About Sept. 20, 1997, Koepsell gave her the $11,000 engagement ring.
• Then on Oct. 1, 1997, she presented him with the property agreement, which they both signed after a "romantic, intimate moment" and when he had no legal representative present.
• The property agreement includes the signature of a witness, but the lawsuit says the agreement was "not witnessed as reflected" on the paperwork.
• When the relationship hit the rocks, Koepsell asked Brounacker to return the ring, but she refused, citing the agreement.

Degrees Of Separation

At colleges and universities across the United States, the proportion of bachelor's degrees awarded to women reached a post-war high this year at an estimated 57 percent.

Praying For Rain, South Indian Villagers Marry Off Two Donkeys

[New Delhi, India] The drought-plagued residents of a small village in southern India organized a ceremonial wedding for two donkeys to appease the Hindu god of rain, a news report said Thursday.

Strip Club Removes Ad From Billboard With Patriotic Images

[Newburgh, NY] A strip club owner has painted over a billboard ad that was controversial because it was flanked by well-known images of three firefighters hoisting the American flag at Ground Zero in New York City and Marines raising the flag at Iwo Jima.... State Assemblyman Thomas Kirwan told the Times Herald-Record in Middletown he was relieved. "By doing that, he acknowledged he did something wrong," the Newburgh Republican said.

Jury Zaps Fly In Coffee Lawsuit

[Bentonville, AR] A jury took less than 10 minutes Monday to reject a lawsuit that claimed a woman was harmed by two dead flies she found in a cup of McDonald's coffee.

Just Call Him Sir Mick

Jagger Among Artists To Be Knighted: Jagger, 58, who was the ultimate wild man of rock in the 1960s and 1970s, was one of several artists to win honors announced Saturday.

Data Show Elderly Drivers Pose Risk

No one knows how an 80-year-old man became so confused last month that he drove from Iowa to Indiana without understanding where he was.... "It's very frightening, as you can imagine," said the man's wife, who asked that the family's name not be cited. "We were very fortunate that nothing worse happened."

Surgeons 'Ignored Student's Warning Over Fatal Error'

Two surgeons whose patient died after they took out the wrong kidney ignored a medical student who pointed out their mistake as they operated, a court heard yesterday.... Victoria Fern, a medical student observing, warned Goel that she thought he was making a mistake during the operation after studying the X-rays in the operating theatre....

Leighton Davies QC, prosecuting the surgeons for manslaughter, said: "She told Mr Goel that she thought it was the right kidney that was not functioning and the left one was compensating for it. Mr Goel told her she had got it wrong...." He added: "The negligence was so bad that it fell so far below the standard of care expected from a reasonably competent surgeon."

Poison/Cinderella To Play Engelstad

It'll be an '80s-hair-band extravaganza in Grand Forks [ND] as Ralph Engelstad Arena welcomes one-time glam rock powerhouses Poison and Cinderella for an Aug. 27 concert. Arena officials confirmed Sunday night what had been posted on the bands' Web sites already that they would indeed play the arena.... Poison achieved success in the mid-to-late 1980s with power ballads such as "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" and "Something To Believe In," as well as Top 40 chart climbers "Talk Dirty To Me," and "Nothin' But A Good Time." The band has released nine albums, including its latest "Hollyweird." The band has never played in Grand Forks. Cinderella, too, received acclaim more than a decade ago with a bluesy, hard-driving style that seemed out of place with its hairspray and make-up clad image. They were famous for hits such as "Shake Me," "Nobody's Fool" and "Gypsy Road..."

Tickets go on sale at 9 a.m. June 29 at the Ralph Engelstad Arena box office, all Tickmaster outlets and online at www.ticketmaster.com. Tickets are $25. Floor seating will be general admission; all others will be reserved.

In Costly Cities, Looks Like Money Can Buy You Love

So what do women in San Francisco really want? Forget men with hobbies. Honesty, compassion and sensitivity are nice. But what single females here want even more are men of means, according to a Cornell University biologist who recently took a look at human mating behavior by analyzing daily newspaper personal ads from 23 U.S. cities....

But McGraw says it's not because San Franciscans are shallow. It's just that, when it comes to mating, humans aren't that different from finches. Those in high density areas, especially expensive San Francisco, face pressures from limited resources and look for mates to enhance their own.

Kennedy Cousin Guilty Of Murder

[Norwalk, CT] Kennedy cousin Michael Skakel has been convicted of beating a girl to death 27 years ago, when they were both 15.

• There was no witness to the crime or forensic evidence but several people testified that they had heard Skakel, 41, confess to the crime. One witness quoted him as saying: "I'm going to get away with murder, because I'm a Kennedy."
• Witnesses testified he had a crush on her and was upset because his attractive neighbour seemed more interested in his older brother...

Woman Loses Bin Laden Haircut Case

A Hong Kong woman has lost her case for compensation against a hair salon which she claimed made her look like Osama bin Laden when she wanted a hairstyle like Hollywood actress Julia Roberts. After the judgment was handed down, she refused to leave the Small Claims Tribunal and had to be taken away by ambulance following a stand-off of more than an hour with court staff...

"Do you mean you did not get the Julia Roberts look after the perm?" adjudicator Yuen Chun-kau asked her during the Wednesday hearing.

"Not just that. It was like a broom. Every hair struck out and it looked like an open umbrella which could not be shut. It was horrible. I looked like Osama bin Laden," Chu replied.

Backstreet Boy Testifies On Capitol Hill

He invited members to join him on a flight to see the areas themselves, and Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-New York, said she would accept his offer.

Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Connecticut, defended his invitation to Richardson, whose testimony was criticized by one committee member. "Mr. Richardson is here as more than a well-known celebrity," Lieberman said. "He is knowledgeable on this issue and has in fact worked to protect the environment in his home state. I believe his voice will add to our understanding of the issue."

Mubarak Says Egypt Warned U.S. Of Al-Qaida Plot

[Cairo, Egypt] Egyptian intelligence warned American officials about a week before Sept. 11 that Osama bin Laden's network was in the advance stages of executing a significant operation against an American target, President Hosni Mubarak said in an interview....

Mubarak did not say whether he knew how American counterterrorism officials had reacted to the Egyptian warning, which a senior U.S. intelligence official denied was received.

U.S. Recruits Muslims For Law-Enforcement-Agency Jobs

[Patterson, NJ] There was some skepticism, expected in a city where many Muslims can tell tales of relatives or friends picked up for questioning and not seen for months. But the response from would-be officers and G-Men was surprisingly strong.... Of the more than 300 FBI agents assigned to New Jersey, none speaks Arabic, although the office has a staff translator, a spokeswoman said.