How Not To Fly (about)

Couple Injured In Ice Cream Truck Turf War

[New York City] The assaulted couple, Luis Marrero, 64, and Juana Marrero, 63, were both in critical condition at Lincoln Hospital Medical Center Monday night after Saturday's attack, police said....

Fernando Esparza, 51, and Librada Veron, 49, both of Barretto Street in the Hunts Point section of the Bronx, were arrested and charged with attempted murder, first-degree assault, second-degree assault and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon...

"It's been going on for many years. They just pull up behind our trucks and sell the ice cream for cheaper and all the kids run there," [the victims' son-in-law] said. "You're not supposed to have the same route. Everyone in this business respects everyone."

News Transcript: Defense Department Operational Briefing

CNN'S BARBARA STARR: The president made some remarks in a humorous fashion [at the Radio-Television Correspondents Dinner Tuesday night], and he showed some pictures there which most of us there saw. And he made some jokes about the hunt for the weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. And he said, quoting from the transcript, showing a picture, "Those weapons of mass destruction have got to be here somewhere." And then there was, in fact, laughter and applause from the audience. And then he showed another picture: "No, no weapons over there." Laughter and applause. Another picture: "Maybe under here." Laughter.

So my question, really, truly in all seriousness, is -- both for the president, with respect, and for the news media -- is it appropriate to make a joke -- seriously, sirs -- about the hunt for weapons of mass destruction, when both of you, of course, were involved in the difficult issue of sending troops to war for that hunt?...

SEC. RUMSFELD: I think you have to -- to know what I would think, I would have had to be there.

Kerry Gets Boost From Surprising Sources

In the past week, GOP Sens. John McCain (Ariz.) and Chuck Hagel (Neb.) have broken ranks and defended Kerry against President Bush's assertion that the Massachusetts senator is weak on national defense....

Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) and other congressional conservatives are accusing Bush of driving up deficits, a top Kerry campaign message, and misleading the country about the cost of the new Medicare law, another Kerry target....

Before hitting the slopes of Idaho for a vacation, Kerry appeared defensive and somewhat error-prone, several Democrats said, pointing to his comment that he voted for the $87 billion for Iraq before voting against it. The Bush campaign promptly included Kerry's comment in an ad to help make the point that the Democratic nominee is too indecisive to lead the nation at a time of war and terrorist threats.

Parents Angered By Book About Gay Princes

[Wilmington, NC] Michael Hartsell said he and his wife, Tonya, couldn't believe it when Prince Bertie, the leading character in "King & King," waves off a bevy of eligible princes before falling for Prince Lee. The book ends with the princes marrying and sharing a kiss....

The Hartsells said they are keeping the book until they get assurances it won't be circulated. But [Freeman Elementary librarian Barbara] Hawley said all county schools have a committee that reviews books after their appropriateness is questioned, and the Hartsells must make a written complaint and return the book for review.

The Hartsells said they intend to file such a complaint and are considering transferring their daughter.

Colourful Nail Caps For Scratching Cats Snapped Up In Japan

[Tokyo] Japanese cat owners are snapping up colourful claw caps that can stop their pets scratching furniture or merely decorate a pampered puss's nails....

Since then around 4,000 Soft Claw cap kits have been sold in Japan, most of them this month after a major economic paper reported on the product, Soft Claws Japan president Tamio Matsumura said.

"We had been targeting sales of 40,000 for a whole year, but orders are likely to far exceed that..."

Medicare Drug Costs Ordered Withheld

When the House of Representatives passed the controversial benefit by five votes last November, the White House was embracing an estimate by the Congressional Budget Office that it would cost $395 billion in the first 10 years. But for months the administration's own analysts in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services had concluded repeatedly that the drug benefit could cost upward of $100 billion more than that.

Withholding the higher cost projections was important because the White House was facing a revolt from 13 conservative House Republicans who had vowed to vote against the bill if it cost more than $400 billion....

Richard Foster, the chief actuary for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which produced the $551 billion estimate, told colleagues last June that he would be fired if he revealed numbers relating to the higher estimate to lawmakers.

A Child's Kiss, And A Brutal Beating

Nicole... has been in a coma since Feb. 28, when she was beaten and suffered severe head injuries, police said, after she was kissed on the lips on a dare by a boy at the birthday party...

Court papers say that after the boy kissed Nicole, [party host] Monique Baldwin instructed the boy's 14-year-old girlfriend and her 13-year-old daughter to "handle your business...."

"It's heinous," said Baltimore police Detective Donny Moses. "In no way, shape or form did this 12-year-old girl deserve to be hit, let alone be beaten nearly to death, and the people who did this should be in jail."

Civil Rights Group Seeks Kerry Apology

The head of a civil rights and legal services advocacy group wants Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry to apologize for saying he wouldn't be upset if he could be known as the second black president [Toni Morrison referred to Bill clinton as the first].

"John Kerry is not a black man -- he is a privileged white man who has no idea what it is in this country to be a poor white in this country, let alone a black man," said Paula Diane Harris, founder of the Andrew Young National Center for Social Change.

Woman Uses Sex Act As Manslaughter Defense

[Middletown, CT] Superior Court Judge Robert L. Holzberg ruled Tuesday that Specyalski can proceed with the defense, despite objections by the prosecutor....

Assistant State's Attorney Maureen Platt said the defense is flawed.

"His pants could have been down because he was mooning a car he was drag racing," Platt said. "His pants could have been down because he was urinating out of a window. His pants could have been down because he wasn't feeling well."

Man Accused Of Circumcising Daughter, 2, Says He Is Being Framed

[Atlanta, GA] An Ethiopian immigrant accused of circumcising his daughter with a pair of scissors when she was 2 years old denied the charge Wednesday and said he is being framed by his ex-wife....

Female circumcision, which may involve the removal of the clitoris or all the external genitalia, is a traditional procedure in some African cultures but it has been condemned by the United Nations.

Ohio Woman Gives Birth To Six Babies In One Minute

[Akron, OH] "The speed at which the babies came out was overwhelming...." the baby's grinning father, Keith Hanselman, told reporters.

Hydrogen Peroxide Is Found On Mars

Dr. R. Todd Clancy, who headed the research, in an interview described it as the first detection of hydrogen peroxide in the Martian atmosphere, and a landmark in understanding that thin shroud of gases.