Brickbats
Roosevelt Sims was experiencing diabetic shock, but an Amtrak crew thought he was drunk. They put him off the train in the middle of a national forest in Arizona, two miles from the nearest road. He was found several days later, dehydrated and disoriented, about two miles from where the train left him. Amtrak officials say the workers were just following the company's policy.
David Burch can't get the grass to grow at his new home in White Cloud, Michigan. He planted some grass seeds, and when they didn't grow a judge jailed him for violating city ordinances requiring a green yard. Burch spent one weekend in jail, and the judge threatened him with another.
Daniel Horne was on his way home from a night out with friends in Wales when their car broke down. They decided to walk to the nearest town for help, but someone thought they were dumping the car and called the police. The police cruiser responding to the call jumped the curb, knocking Horne down and crushing his foot beneath one of the wheels. After finding out the group had committed no crime, the police allowed Horne to be driven to a local hospital. Then a cop gave Horne an £80 fine for denting the police car.
They might not have the Taliban licked, but Afghanistan's rulers already have set their eyes on another target: smokers. The regime has banned smoking in schools, hospitals, and government offices, and officials say they plan to expand the ban to restaurants and hotels.
School officials in Orange County, Florida, recently refused to release students to parents waiting outside until 9 p.m. Thunderstorms were blanketing the area, and the school system has a policy of refusing to allow children to go outside until at least 30 minutes after the last lightning flash or thunderclap.
After Francisco Linares built a home in Rolling Hills Estates, California, he asked the city to repair a nearby fence. City officials told him it was on his property and was therefore his responsibility. So he fixed it. Officials then changed their minds and said the fence was indeed on city property. They also declared that he had built a retaining wall higher than permitted, among other code violations. He now faces potential jail time.
Revathi Massosai, a Malaysian woman, was born to Muslim converts but was raised by a Hindu grandmother and married a Hindu man. So she decided to change her religious registration from Muslim to Hindu. When she went to court to do this, the authorities seized her and took her to an Islamic rehabilitation center where she was held for six months. The "rehabilitation" consisted of forcing her to say Muslim prayers, wear a head scarf, and eat beef.
Police in Pasadena, California, have charged 14 strippers with excessive nudity.