Brickbats
? Remember midnight basketball? It was supposed to keep gang members from fighting by keeping them busy with wholesome pastimes. Well, Syracuse, New York, schools have barred midnight basketball from using their gyms after a gunfight among teenagers broke out during a tournament.
? Rep. Mark Souder (R-Ind.) said of the raid on Waco, "The only law that [the FBI] clearly established [David Koresh] broke that I can see so far is he had sex with consenting minors. Do you send tanks and government troops into the large sections of Kentucky and Tennessee and other places where such things occur?" After people in those two states complained, an aide to Souder said the congressman "shouldn't have narrowed it down to Kentucky and Tennessee." That's right. How can you talk about sex with minors and not mention Arkansas and Mississippi?
? In Zimbabwe, the government has ordered the organizers of southern Africa's largest book fair to remove a gay-literature exhibit. The government, which regularly seizes gay literature, has accused organizers of trying to force homosexual values on the country.
? In Hyde Park, New York, a move to make the city seal a profile of Franklin Roosevelt has run into opposition. Seems some people are upset that FDR is portrayed with his famous cigarette holder clinched between his teeth.
? To be compassionate, Italy passed a law in 1993 forbidding the imprisonment of those infected with HIV. This has turned out to be a boon for a few thousand career criminals. One gang of HIV-infected bank robbers has been arrested numerous times only to be freed within hours of each capture. They are suspected of taking at least $155,000 in their thefts.
? Do a good deed, go to jail. That's the fate of Peggy Bargon. She gave a gift of an Indian dream catcher to First Lady Hillary Clinton. A dream catcher is a talisman made of feathers, which are supposed to trap bad dreams but let good ones through. Bargon used feathers from bald eagles, snowy owls, robins, and bluejays. She killed no animals for the gift, using only feathers collected from zoos and on the ground. No matter. It's still illegal to use the feathers. Fish and Wildlife heard about the gift, and now Bargon faces a year in the pokey.
? More on the good deeds front. When Joy Glassman's son decided he wanted to be a firefighter, she did what any mother would do. She tried to help him advance in his career. Glassman allegedly set five fires in Northern California for her son's company to put out. Now, the woman is facing arson charges. Her son did not know of her alleged activity, but he has resigned his position with the fire department.
? Never accuse G. Gordon Liddy of not being a humanitarian. The radio talk show host put together a fundraiser for victims of the Oklahoma City bombing. The source of the funds? A calendar featuring well-appointed young women wearing only skimpy lingerie and high-powered firearms. Its title: Packed and Stacked.
? KTOZ-AM is a 500-watt radio station in Springfield, Missouri, that plays jazz. So you know it doesn't make any money. That's OK with the people who work there. They volunteer their time because they love the music, and all have real jobs. But the Labor Department apparently doesn't have the music in it. It says an ostensibly for-profit business can't be run by volunteers. It has fined the owners $20,000, plus penalties, and told them to start paying minimum wage.
? The Far Eastern Economic Review reports that China plans to move 15,000 troops into Hong Kong when it takes over in 1997. A government spokesman says that's balderdash. The Chinese aren't going to move in more than 9,000 troops.
? The views on the nation's scenic highways are beautiful, but they may not be natural. Seems that for many years the Forest Service has leaned on transportation officials to paint rocks on parts of some highways. When rocks are newly exposed because of landslides or construction, it takes them years to age. Rather than wait, the government has artificially aged them.
