TWW'S CRAZY NEWS STORIES

[rainstorm]

go horsey!!

[TexasStooge]

Me-Ouch: Cat Survives 80-Foot Fall

SUMMERVILLE, S.C. (AP) - Piper the cat may have used up a life or two but was unharmed after falling nearly 80 feet from a tree.

She had been in the tree for eight days when a rescuer started up to save her Monday. But a scared Piper crept away until the limb underneath her snapped.

She fell 80 feet, twisting and turning in the air before slamming onto the ground. It looked like a catastrophe, but Piper wasn't even dazed, scampering off before her owner Rodney Colvin could catch her.

Piper was found a few minutes later under a vehicle. Her owner said she had no broken bones and was only a little dehydrated.

[TexasStooge]

California Man Claims Record Bass Catch

CARLSBAD, Calif. (AP) - A Southern California man has a fish tale which, if true, could give him one of angling's most cherished records. Mac Weakley said he caught a 25.1-pound largemouth bass on Monday at Dixon Lake in San Diego County.

After weighing it on a hand-held digital scale, he released it.

Weakley plans to pursue the record, even though the fish was foul-hooked, meaning the hook lodged in the fish's body, not its mouth. He said it wasn't snagged intentionally.

Jason Schratwieser of the International Game Fish Association said the group would consider the fish as a world record.

The biggest bass on record weighed 22 pounds, 4 ounces. It was caught in 1932 by George W. Perry at Georgia's Montgomery Lake.

[TexasStooge]

Steer wanders into Houston fire station

HOUSTON, Texas (WFAA ABC 8/KHOU CBS 11) - Firefighters at Houston’s Station 23 had the chance to run with a bull early Tuesday morning when an unexpected visitor dropped by.

A longhorn steer wandered into the fire station at Lawndale and Broadway about 2:30 a.m., firefighters said.

The longhorn was able to enter through the station’s open garage door, and began walking around inside the garage.

The firefighters corralled it into a trailer, and it was transported to the Harris County Sheriff's livestock facility in the Houston suburb of Humble.

No injures were reported.

As of mid-afternoon Tuesday, no one had come forward to claim the lost steer.

[TexasStooge]

Wily coyote caught in New York's Central Park

By Ellen Freilich

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A coyote that came to New York to dine on duck in Central Park was caught on Wednesday after leading police and park rangers on a two-day chase.

The coyote, a year-old, tawny-colored male, which is thought to have made its way to the city from the countryside to the north, was tracked down near 79th Street inside the 843-acre (341-hectare) park, officials said.

"He's a very adventurous coyote to travel to midtown Manhattan," Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe told reporters.

He said the animal was cornered in the southeast section of the park early on Wednesday before escaping over an 8-foot fence and crossing some water to make its way north.

"This is the wildest of the wild animals we've seen here," Benepe said, noting that the last time a coyote was captured in the park was in 1999.

"It was a very quiet coyote, not howling at the moon and not looking to be noticed," Benepe said, adding that it was apparently drawn to the nature sanctuary where there was less human scent.

Local television stations showed footage of police and park rangers running through the park in pursuit of the animal, which has been hunting ducks and other birds, leaving piles of feathers in its wake.

"Our thought is that it came in from Westchester County and then came south through the Bronx before getting to the park," parks spokeswoman Carli Smith said. "They're not a threat," Smith said. "They typically avoid human interaction."

The animal was first spotted on Sunday and was seen again on Tuesday, when emergency services and park authorities launched a full-scale search. It was spotted on a baseball field near a nature sanctuary on Wednesday.

Actor Dick Hughes, who was walking in the park on Wednesday, said the coyote was a "nice touch of nature."

"The last thing I'm worried about in New York is a coyote. I wonder if the coyote is worried about us," Hughes said. "It's New York. Check it's papers and let it go."

Benepe said the coyote was being kept in a cage while it recovers from the tranquilizer darts used to capture it, and it was expected to be taken back to the country.

"The important thing is to get the coyote out of harm's way and into a more natural habitat," Benepe said.

The landscaped park at the heart of Manhattan includes reservoirs, a zoo and wilderness areas, offering plenty of cover for a coyote.

Jonathan Ellers, director of a wildlife theater program at Central Park Zoo, expressed admiration for the coyote.

"I'm all for him. He's an urban fellow and pretty darned resourceful," said Ellers, who was walking in the park.

"For his own good, it would probably be better for him to go back to the country. But if he wants to visit, in my opinion, he's welcome."

(Additional reporting by Claudia Parsons)

[TexasStooge]

Dancer sues show for dismissal over bra size

MIAMI, Fla. (Reuters) - A Miami-based dancer is suing the owners and producers of the Broadway musical "Movin' Out" for more than $100 million in damages on grounds that she was emotionally abused and fired after her breasts grew too large for her costumes.

Alice Alyse was a top dancer in the touring company of the show, which features Billy Joel's music and Twyla Tharp's choreography. Alyse says she was dismissed from the cast of the show last month after her breasts grew from cup size C to D while she was recovering from an injury.

Michael Hartman, a spokesman for the producers, said they had no comment. A spokesman for Joel, who is not a defendant in the case, could not be reached for immediate comment.

Alyse, who is in her 20s, said the change of cup size occurred naturally as her body matured. Ruling out any big weight gain, she said she kept fit while recovering from a toe injury suffered when she was dropped by a fellow dancer from six feet in the air.

"I was thin, I was a size zero, but my breasts had gotten bigger," Alyse told a news conference on Tuesday. "When I tried on my costumes they fit everywhere except in the breast area."

Her suit, which names Tharp among the defendants, lists a whole catalog of charges including wrongful termination, breach of contract, defamation, sexual harassment and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

It was filed on Monday in Miami-Dade Circuit Court. Alyse's lawyer, Larry Klayman, said the "main perpetrator" of the alleged abuse heaped on the young dancer was Eric Sprosty, a stage manager. Klayman said Sprosty flew into a rage after learning of Alyse's changing breast size.

"She was in fear of bodily injury," Klayman said.

He said the more than $100 million suit was "based on actual and compensatory damages" in the case, but he also said "Movin' Out" was "a very lucrative show" and a "cash cow for Broadway."

The show, which won Tonys awards for choreography

and orchestrations, ended its Broadway run in December after 1,300 performances.

"In the ballet world, obviously, people are small-breasted," Klayman said in answer to a question about the maturing shape of Alyse, who is a trained ballerina.

[TexasStooge]

Woman survives fall from 11th floor

MOSCOW, Russia (Reuters) - A Russian woman fell 35 metres (114 ft) from the eleventh floor of her apartment building and survived, Russia's Channel One television reported Tuesday.

The 21-year-old woman, who was not named, is in hospital being treated for concussion, bruises and a displaced spine. Doctors say she should make a full recovery.

"I have been working for 36 years and this is the first time we have had a patient who has been brought into the hospital after falling from the eleventh floor," Dr. Viktor Razin told the television station.

Doctors said a thick covering of snow broke the woman's fall, and her body was relaxed because she was not fully conscious at the moment of impact. The incident happened in the Ural Mountains region of Bashkortostan.

[TexasStooge]

Thousands of German WW2 corpses in Czech factory

USTI NAD LABEM, Czech Republic (Reuters) - Thousands of corpses of German soldiers killed in World War Two are being kept in boxes in a northern Czech factory due to a lack of funds, officials said Tuesday.

The exhumed bodies have been kept for three years in the rundown factory 90km (54 miles) north of Prague on the border with eastern Germany and are now guarded by police who are waiting for the bodies to be moved.

A Reuters photographer at the site said the remains -- an estimated 4,000 sets in total -- lie in small black boxes as they wait for a new burial site.

The German wartime graves association led a project in the mid-1990s to exhume the remains, which include soldiers who fought across eastern Europe in the war, with plans to bury them in a Prague cemetery until a lack of funds halted the plan.

"We are very sorry, but our People's Association for Care for Wartime Graves has run out of money, so I cannot say what will be done with the remains," Sebastian Gerhardt, a spokesman for the German embassy in Prague was quoted as saying in the daily Mlada Fronta Dnes.

He was not immediately available to comment on the report.

A police spokeswoman said an investigation was ongoing into how the remains ended up at the factory, a former pipe fittings plant.

City officials said talks between the German and Czech foreign ministries were planned for this week to find a solution to the affair.

The Czech Republic, which was invaded by Germany in 1939 just ahead of World War Two, already has some 10 military cemeteries where German war dead are buried.

[TexasStooge]

Court acquits in Nevada rock carvings theft

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (Reuters) - Two men who stole Native American rock carvings from a Nevada mountainside dodged punishment when a U.S. appeals court ruled Tuesday prosecutors did not properly document the value of the carvings.

A jury found John Ligon and Carroll Mizell guilty of excavating the carvings, known as petroglyphs, from the mountain in Reno, but they sought acquittal because the prosecution did not present evidence of the petroglyphs' value.

A district court denied their motion, but the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco said Tuesday the men should be acquitted as the government never presented a report estimating the retail value of the petroglyphs at

$800-$900.

"It is clear that Ligon and Mizell stole the petroglyphs. It is equally clear that the petroglyphs had a market value." William Fletcher wrote for a three-judge panel.

"But the government did not introduce that report into evidence, or indeed anything else that might have served as evidence of 'value'," he wrote. "We therefore are constrained to reverse the district court's denial."

[TexasStooge]

Villagers admire each other's potatoes

PILLAPI, Bolivia (Reuters) - Small and pink, black and bumpy, even gray and shriveled -- the potato took center stage Tuesday as Bolivian peasants admired each other's prize produce at an Andean harvest festival.

Hundreds of villagers dressed in traditional ceremonial dress of bright red ponchos and shawls gathered in the highland village of Pillapi to show off 32 varieties of potato, swap tips, dance and share a typical potato picnic.

Lino Condori, mayor of the Tiwanaku municipality where Pillapi is located, said "the potato that the conquerors took to Europe is the most important product in our region."

He was referring to Spain, which colonized the Andean highlands in the 16th century and took one of their discoveries -- potatoes -- back to Europe.

Local authorities are hoping the festival will eventually become a tourist attraction.

[TexasStooge]

Pet owners lavish new tricks on old dogs

By Elaine Lies

TOKYO, Japan (Reuters) - Chieko Ushiyama visits a doctor every two weeks, spending a minimum $200 a month on medical care.

The treatment is not for Ushiyama herself but for Pepe, her 12-year-old Shih Tzu, who has heart disease.

The number of aged dogs in Japan has risen sharply until half the country's canines are now elderly -- surpassing even the well-known graying of the nation's human population.

The trend has led to a spate of new products and services for which owners are more than willing to pay.

"Pepe is one of the family, so of course I'll take care of him until the end," said Ushiyama, who is 56.

"But the medicine and trips to the hospital cost money, and there's the worry about him. So things can be hard."

Ushiyama and dog owners like her now have many options for care. There are diapers for incontinent dogs, spas and hot springs, special food, and even "wheelchairs" -- a framework of wheels for dogs whose back legs can no longer bear their weight.

"Just the way services are evolving to take care of aging humans, many of the same things are developing, or will, to take care of aging animals," said Eriko Kanazawa, a senior researcher at Yano Research Institute in Tokyo.

"The amount of money people spend on their pets is increasing and more people want to be with their pets until the very end."

Although there are few firm figures, an average household with one dog spends as much as 120,000 yen ($1,020) a year on their pet, according to the Pet Food Manufacturers Association.

Elderly guide dogs can even live out their final days in one of two homes for the aged once they are too feeble to work, though such care facilities have yet to be built for pets.

In the past, Japanese saw their dogs mainly as guards, with many tied forlornly outside, whatever the weather.

GROWING OLD TOGETHER

But a falling birthrate, human longevity and changing family structure mean more people are now living on their own -- and taking dogs into their homes as part of the family.

"In the past, three generations lived together in the same house, but this is rare," said Munenori Ito, a veterinarian in western Tokyo. "So now more people have pets, to bring back a warm feeling to the house."

Japan's 127 million people in 2005 owned an estimated 13 million dogs as of last year.

"As people age, the number of dogs increases," said Katsuo Mochizuki, at the Pet Food Manufacturers Association. "The largest number of dog owners in Japan are in their 50s and 60s."

More than half these dogs are seven years old or older, which vets consider aged. Animals of 15 years aren't rare and some live to venerable ages like 17 -- centenarians in human terms.

Often, both dogs and their owners are elderly.

"I've known some aged couples who care for their dog like a child," said 58-year-old Yukiko Ando, whose Alaskan Malamute, Bianca, died two years ago at the age of 13.

"But eventually they get to the point where they wonder who will go first, themselves or the dog."

One of the main reasons dogs live longer is better food. Pet store shelves are full of specialized food aimed at the needs of small dogs, large dogs, overweight dogs -- and, of course, elderly dogs, whose food makes up half the overall market.

Better veterinary care is also extending longevity. Many dogs -- like their owners -- now get regular checkups.

"Animals are just like people -- as they age, they have kidney problems, heart problems, liver problems," said Ito, the veterinarian, who over the course of his 15-year career has seen the number of animals with such ailments grow.

Elderly dogs can require more elaborate care, meaning costs mount at a time when owners are often least able to afford them.

This has led to the development of pet insurance, which can cost as much as 49,000 yen a year for the largest dogs.

Ando, who nursed two dogs through their final illnesses at ages 13 and 12, now has another who is five. "When you spend a decade with a dog, you grow older together," she said.

"And if the dog walks more slowly -- well, I walk more slowly too."

[TexasStooge]

Have a beer on Australia? No thanks, says Canada

CANBERRA, Australia (Reuters) - First it was banned by Britain for its use of the word "bloody" and now Canada has vetoed a scene in a controversial Australian tourism campaign where a character lures visitors by saying "We've poured you a beer!"

Just days after Britain's television advertising regulator lifted its ban on the ad, which centers on the slightly risque phrase "bloody hell," Australian Tourism Minister Fran Bailey said Canadian regulators had now lost their sense of humor.

"Buying a mate a beer is about as Australian as you can get. But the Canadian regulator has banned the shot because implied unbranded alcohol consumption (a part-empty beer glass) is unacceptable," Bailey said in a statement.

While Canada doesn't appear to have a problem with the word "bloody," it has also prevented the ad from being broadcast during two family programs because of the word "hell."

The ads begin with characters saying: "We've poured you a beer and we've had the camels shampooed, we've saved you a spot on the beach ... and we've got the sharks out of the pool."

They end with a bikini-clad woman on a beach asking "so where the bloody hell are you?"

The furor over the British TV ban provided an unexpected windfall of free publicity for Tourism Australia, which said it had created "an on-line traffic jam" around the A$180 million ($129 million) campaign.

Bailey hopes the "astonishing" Canadian decision to ban part of the ad would earn Australia more free publicity.

"What this decision shows is that Canada lags behind Americans, Brits and even Germans in the sense of humor stakes," Bailey said.

The campaign is already running in the United States and New Zealand as well as Britain and will also target China, Japan, India and Germany. The full advertisement can be seen at http://www.wherethebloodyhellareyou.com.
_____________________________________________________________

Wow! It seems the "Bloody" ads got the media's attention. This kinda reminds me of that Dr. Okun character from "Independence Day"

Woman on Ad: So where the bloody hell are you?

(Imitating Dr. Okun) They don't let us out much.

[TexasStooge]

Driver found almost under 18-wheeler truck

DALLAS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - A driver is in critical condition after crashing into a parked 18-wheeler on Alliance Gateway, east of Alta Vista westbound.

The driver of the Buick Roadmaster was going about 70 mph at the time of the accident and almost drove right under the truck.

Traffic has been delayed in the area.

The accident took place on Thursday afternoon.

[TexasStooge]

Robert Clive's pet tortoise dies at 250 years

KOLKATA, India (Reuters) - A giant aldabra tortoise thought to be around 250 years old has died in the Kolkata zoo of liver failure, Indian authorities said on Thursday.

The tortoise had been the pet of Robert Clive, the famous British military officer in colonial India around the middle of the 18th century, a local minister in West Bengal state said.

Local authorities say the tortoise, named "Addwaitya" meaning the "The One and Only" in Bengali, was the oldest tortoise in the world but they have not presented scientific proof to back up their claim.

"Historical records show he was a pet of British general Robert Clive of the East India Company and had spent several years in his sprawling estate before he was brought to the zoo about 130 years ago," West Bengal Forest Minister Jogesh Barman said.

"We have documents to prove that he was more than 150 years old, but we have pieced together other evidence like statements from authentic sources and it seems that he is more than 250 years old," he said.

The minister said details about Addwaitya's early life showed that British sailors had brought him from the Seychelles islands and presented him to Clive, who was rising fast in the East India Company's military hierarchy.

On Thursday, the tortoise's enclosure wore a deserted look.

"This is a sad day for us. We will miss him very much," a zoo keeper said.

Wild Aldabra tortoises are found in the Aldabra island in the Indian Ocean Seychelles islands. They average about 120 kg (265 pounds). It is believed that tortoises are the longest lived of all animals, with life spans often surpassing 100 years.

[TexasStooge]

Australia's finest red-faced over prince snaps

MELBOURNE, Australia (Reuters) - Australian police were embarrassed on Thursday after having to discipline an officer assigned to guard Prince Edward for taking unauthorised photographs of the his hotel suite.

Police said an officer assigned to a security detail for dignitaries at the Commonwealth Games had been seen during a routine security sweep taking photographs of the suite the prince will occupy until Monday.

The photographs were confiscated and destroyed.

"The member involved was stood down from Games duties and returned to normal duties," a police spokesman said.

Victoria state police commissioner Christine Nixon said another snap-happy female officer had also been disciplined for getting too close to Edward's mother, the Queen, during her visit to open the Games last week.

"In both those cases, I think they are an error of judgement, and both those people are back in their own work and I think that's probably sufficient to deal with those matters," Nixon told reporters.

The current Commonwealth Games, held every four years, are being contested by 71 teams from across the grouping of the former colonies.

[TexasStooge]

Fitness drive proves fatal for cop

BANGKOK (Reuters) - A fitness drive ordered by Thai police chiefs proved too much for one traffic cop, who collapsed and died after running 600 metres, newspapers reported on Thursday.

Senior Sergeant-Major Insom Kamla, 50, died of heart failure after keeling over in front of fellow officers only a third of the way into a fitness test at a running track in the northern city of Chiang Mai, the Nation newspaper said.

Insom's wife said her husband was generally in good health, although his sister disclosed he was overweight and suffered from high blood pressure and gout.

Thailand's brown-uniformed traffic police have long been noted for their ability to eat above their ability to direct traffic.

A report last year suggested nearly half of Bangkok's finest had high cholesterol levels, leading to a two-week "Fight for 40 inches" campaign to slim down pear-shaped patrolmen in the capital.

Since he died on duty, Insom could be considered for a posthumous promotion, the Nation said.

[TexasStooge]

Break the law and live by a beach

By James Kilner

BASTOY PRISON, Norway (Reuters) - The Web site reads like an advertisement for a holiday home.

"Is Bastoy the place for you?" it asks next to photographs of a sunset sparkling off the tranquil waters of the Oslo fjord and horses pulling sleighs over packed snow.

This wooded island could be -- if you are a rapist, a murderer, a drug trafficker or have accepted a large bribe.

"We try to take a cross-section of the country's prison population, not just the nice criminals," said Oyvind Alnaes, governor of the minimum security prison on Bastoy Island about 75 km (46 miles) south of the Norwegian capital.

Inmates have included Norway's most notorious serial killer, Arnfinn Nesset, convicted of murdering 22 elderly people when he was manager of a nursing home in the 1970s. He was freed for good behaviour after serving two-thirds of a 21-year sentence.

"A lot of people in Norway say that we treat them (the prisoners) too well because they should be punished. But this is the biggest mistake we have been making since the 1600s. Taking this line makes people bad," Alnaes said.

"You have to believe people are born good."

The 2.6 square km (1.0 sq mile) Bastoy island offers its 115 "residents" cross-country skiing, tennis and horse-riding, but before the inmates can slope off to practise their serve or head to the beach for a swim, there is work to do on the farm.

"We want to become the first ecological prison in the world," Alnaes said. "It's about giving the inmates responsibility (and) trust, and teaching them respect."

Alnaes, who wears jeans and t-shirts to work and is known to the inmates as Oyvind, says this model of open prison is the future. In 1997, he gave Bastoy Prison a new slogan: "An arena of the development of responsibility".

ESCAPE

Looking after the island's environment, he says, will nurture this sense of responsibility in the prisoners.

"Ecological thinking is about taking responsibility for nature, the future and how your grandchildren grow up," he said.

Only a handful of cars are used by prison staff on the island and along with the ferry, their engines will be converted to biofuel. The prison's six horses do most of the work, pulling carts driven by the prisoners, waste from the prison is used to generate power while oil heaters are being converted to wood.

The governor's development of responsibility goes further.

"The usual thing is that prisons are all about security," he said. "On the island, inmates work with knives and saws and axes. They need to do the work. And if an inmates increases his responsibility, you have to give him trust."

Norway has one of the lowest incarceration rates in the world but the justice system does receive some criticism, notably for lengthy pre-trial detentions and cramped holding cells at police stations.

Rather than watching and guarding, the 69 prison employees at Bastoy work alongside the inmates until it is time to go home and from 3 p.m. every day only five remain on the island.

The onus is on the prisoners not to escape

There have been few attempts, when friends have come over in a boat during the night to pick up a prisoner, but Alnaes says making a break for it is not a smart move.

"The prisoners understand that there is nowhere to go if they do escape. What is the alternative? Spend your life on the run or serve your time at Bastoy? And one attempted escape means you lose your right to stay here."

Prisoners have to apply for a place at Bastoy and applicants are vetted to filter out those who could cause the most trouble.

"That is the only place you can watch cable T.V. (in prison)," a short grey-haired man said, pointing to a stone building that houses the prison library.

BEACH LIFE

He watched as a dark-haired youth walked down a path towards one of the prisoners' brightly painted wooden houses. "He killed somebody, that guy. Not sure who, or why, though."

The speaker was Haavald Schjerven, a former U.N. department chief convicted in 2002 of taking $550,000 (315,000 pounds) in bribes.

"It's OK here," he said. "It gives you time to think and reflect and, of course, I enjoy the horse-riding."

Schjerven showed Reuters around the wood-panelled house he shares with seven other criminals, pointing out the floor heating in the shared bathroom.

Norway releases prisoners early if they serve their sentences without trouble, and for the last part of their internment, they are allowed weekend breaks with friends and family.

Schjerven had just returned from a trip to Oslo where he discussed a business plan with a friend.

"It's much calmer here, we have a great sea view and it's only 150 metres to the beach."

One of the island's beaches is open to the public and is crowded in the summer with day-trippers. It is the only part of the island the prisoners are banned from.

There is no fence to keep curious visitors out but signs warn people against wandering around the island -- nonetheless day-trippers entering the prison are a bigger problem than inmates escaping, governor Alnaes said.

[TexasStooge]

Smoking shown to increase risk of impotence

By Patricia Reaney

LONDON, England (Reuters) - Forget the Marlboro man -- new research shows that smoking, often marketed as a symbol of virility, increases the risk of impotence.

"Men who smoke are up to 40 percent more likely to suffer from impotence than those who don't," said Dr Christopher Millett, of Imperial College London, who worked on the research.

He added that the more cigarettes smoked, the greater the risk of suffering from a sexual performance problem. But even men who smoked less than 20 cigarettes a day, had a 24 percent raised risk of impotence.

"It is not just older men who suffer from impotence, younger men are also affected as well," Millett added in an interview.

The findings, reported on Thursday in the journal Tobacco Control, are based on a survey of 8,000 men in Australia aged between 16 and 59 who took part in a study of health and relationships.

Almost one in 10 reported an impotence problem lasting more than a month during the previous year.

About a quarter were smokers and more than 6 percent said they got through over 20 cigarettes a day.

Men who smoked more than a pack or more a day were 39 percent more likely to report sexual problems, according to the study.

"For decades, cigarettes were marketed as symbol of virility, as in the macho Marlboro Man ads," said Deborah Arnott, of the anti-smoking group ASH (Action on Smoking and Health).

"Yet the reality is that smoking is a primary cause of impotence which may also be an early indicator of coronary heart disease," she added in a statement.

Research has shown that smoking is a leading cause of preventable death. It increases the risk of heart attack and stroke, respiratory problems, lung and other types of cancer.

Millett said if young men want to avoid the embarrassment and distress of impotence they should not smoke.

"By highlighting this link between smoking and erectile problems, we may be able to motivate these men to quit," he added.

[TexasStooge]

Texas arresting people in bars for being drunk

SAN ANTONIO, Texas (Reuters) - Texas has begun sending undercover agents into bars to arrest drinkers for being drunk, a spokeswoman for the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission said on Wednesday.

The first sting operation was conducted recently in a Dallas suburb where agents infiltrated 36 bars and arrested 30 people for public intoxication, said the commission's Carolyn Beck.

Being in a bar does not exempt one from the state laws against public drunkenness, Beck said.

The goal, she said, was to detain drunks before they leave a bar and go do something dangerous like drive a car.

"We feel that the only way we're going to get at the drunk driving problem and the problem of people hurting each other while drunk is by crackdowns like this," she said.

"There are a lot of dangerous and stupid things people do when they're intoxicated, other than get behind the wheel of a car," Beck said. "People walk out into traffic and get run over, people jump off of balconies trying to reach a swimming pool and miss."

She said the sting operations would continue throughout the state.

[TexasStooge]

Ozone hits sperm count as well as lungs

LONDON, England (Reuters) - Smog is not just bad for the lungs. It can hit a man's sperm count too, a Californian study revealed on Wednesday.

The University of Southern California looked at the sperm counts of 48 men who donated at least 10 times in two years to a Los Angeles sperm bank.

Using air pollution measurements from the area where each man lived, Rebecca Sokol's team estimated how much pollutant they were exposed to in the days leading up to each donation.

The team, from the University's Keck School of Medicine, found that ozone formed in smoggy air was the only pollutant that appeared to be linked to decreased sperm production. Carbon monoxide seemed to have no effect.

Ozone cannot reach the testicles directly but Sokol, whose findings were published in The New Scientist magazine, said it may cause an inflammatory response or produce toxic substances in the blood that damage sperm.