Life can get kind of lonely for a military recruiter sitting around in an office in a shopping center all day. So the good ladies of the anti-war group Code Pink are planning a nice Valentine's Day visit to the Army recruiting office in Bend.
Two local Code Pink members, Joy Newhart and Thiel Larson, passed out fliers during Bend Winterfest last weekend and plan to do it again from 4 to 5 pm outside the recruiting office next to ShopKo on Third Street. The fliers say "Make Out, Not War" on the front, and on the other side list what Code Pink says are eight ways the military misrepresents the facts to prospective recruits. The fliers are "very informative, and everyone we gave them to (mostly young people) was very appreciative of the information," said Larson. "
This type of information is crucial for our young people. ... They are being courted by the military at a very vulnerable age." Thursday's demonstration will be part of a nationwide Valentine's Day event planned by Code Pink, according to Larson.
"No doubt we will start out in front of the recruiting office and then have to move to the street sidewalk if there are complaints," she said.
Snared in the Tangled Web of Crime
Classified, but hardly on the DL.Craigslist might be a good place to sell placemats, plywood or puppies, but when it comes to selling pot the old-fashioned, low-tech approach is probably better. Or at least less risky.
According to police, 24-year-old Steven Zahorsky of Stamford, CT placed an ad on Craigslist offering a half-ounce of "A-plus" marijuana for $220 or the same amount of "B-plus" weed for $160.
Claiming to be a member of a painting crew that wanted to buy some pot during a work break, Stamford police set up a rendezvous with Zahorsky at a rest area off Interstate 95. When Zahorsky showed up and allegedly sold three-quarters of an ounce of marijuana to an undercover cop for $320, he was busted.
Zahorsky is free on $10,000 bail pending a court appearance to face a number of drug charges.
Riding High, Wide and Naked
Let's face it: What with the long lines, the interminable delays, the cramped seats, the lousy food - or no food - and the lost luggage, isn't air travel these days miserable enough without having to endure the added discomfort of clothing?
Fortunately, although there's no remedy in sight for the first five problems, the German travel agency OssiUrlaub is trying to do something about the last one.
OssiUrlaub is now booking seats for a trial run of a clothing-optional flight on July 5 from the eastern German town of Erfurt to Usedom, a popular resort on the Baltic Sea. Passengers will have to remain clothed until they board and dress again before they disembark, but they will be able to enjoy being airborne sans attire.
Travel agency manager Enrico Hess apologized for the high price of the trip -- $735 - but explained it was necessary because the small plane the agency chartered can carry only 55 passengers.
If you're interested you'd better book your seat early, but be forewarned: Neither the travel agency nor the airline will tolerate any hanky-panky. "I don't want people to get the wrong idea," Hess said. "It's not that we're starting a swinger club in mid-air or something like that. We're a perfectly normal holiday company."
Obligatory Sex-Related Item
Upfront thought we'd heard every possible excuse for sexual misconduct, but this was a new one on us: A Canadian man has been acquitted of sexual assault charges because he suffers from "sexsomnia" - involuntarily having sex while asleep.
Seems Jan Luedecke of Toronto was at a croquet party in July 2003 at which he consumed a dozen beers and four mixed drinks. (That must have been one hell of a croquet party.) He then fell asleep (not surprisingly) on a couch on which a woman also was sleeping.
When the woman woke up she found her skirt had been pulled up and her underwear removed and Luedecke was on top of her, trying to have sex. Luedecke claims to have no recollection of what happened, although somehow he was wearing a condom.
At Luedecke's 2005 trial a University of Toronto expert testified that he suffered from sexsomnia, which - believe it or not - is a medically recognized sleep disorder. The judge acquitted him on the grounds of "non-insane automatism," and the Ontario Court of Appeal upheld the verdict last week.
Luedecke's lawyer dismissed fears that the ruling might open the "floodgates" for similar cases, noting that his client was the only person to successfully use sexsomnia as a defense since
1999. "If this is a flood, I think the levees are safe," he said.
