Tragic Internet Deception

A very, sad story today has touched my emotions and peaked my anger. Please, guide your children but, don't live for them.

Web Hoax Victim's Family Seeks Reforms
Tuesday, November 20th, 2007 at 7:21am ST. CHARLES, Mo.

An Internet hoax that ended with the suicide of a 13-year-old has led to calls from her family for better protections against online harassment, though any solution may run afoul of the First Amendment.

Megan Meier, 13, hanged herself Oct. 16, 2006, just minutes after receiving mean messages on the social networking Web site MySpace. She died the next day.

Megan's parents learned about six weeks after her death that their daughter, who thought she was communicating online with a 16-year-old boy, was being deceived. The boy was created by a mother down the street who wanted to know what Megan was saying about her own daughter, who had had a falling out with Megan.

Lt. Craig McGuire of the St. Charles County Sheriff's Department said authorities could not find a crime to charge anyone with in Megan's case.

"How do you legislate bad behavior?" he asked.

Megan's family wants reforms that would make it illegal for adults to misrepresent themselves to children online and make it illegal to harass or bully online.

Aldermen in Dardenne Prairie, the Meiers' hometown of about 7,000 residents about 35 miles from St. Louis, have proposed a new ordinance related to child endangerment and Internet harassment. And Republican Rep. Cynthia Davis, a state lawmaker who represents the area, said she is trying to see if existing Missouri laws can be improved.

But, she noted, any legal reforms must protect freedom of speech rights. And federal reform might be more appropriate since someone from outside the state could interact with Missouri children online, she said.

Even so, it's hard to know what would work as a response to Megan's situation, Davis said. "This girl was not threatened on the Internet. Somebody said some things that were extremely horrid," she said.

What happened to Megan isn't just awful, it ought to be criminal, her mother, Tina Meier, said Monday.

"You cannot, absolutely cannot, as an adult, pose as a 16-year-old boy on a computer and play games with someone," Meier, 37, told The Associated Press.

"If there's not a law out there to punish someone for that, that's despicable," she said.

Tina Meier, who acknowledges she let her daughter open a MySpace account before she was 14 as the Web site requires, said she monitored her daughter's activities, logging on for her daughter and using software that was designed to capture Megan's communications online.

MySpace did not comment specifically on Meier's case, but an employee said the site does have information about keeping teens safe online, with guidelines for what people can do if they feel they are being bullied.

Meier said more needs to be done to protect children.

"We want the law to change so this doesn't happen again," she said.

My question is this - what is an adult doing on MySpace playing games like this. Perhaps her mental and/or emotional development is equivalent to these early-teen children she is playing mental games with. I guess some adults never grow up. Some parents don't know the difference between supervising their children's activity during their growing years and meddling or living their lives for them, or even sometimes through them. This woman now has to live with the consequences of her actions and with her arrested mental development I hope she can handle it.

In the end, my prayers go out to the Meier family.

^

Men Accused of Murder-By-Snake Plot

AP Photo/

Two men who allegedly tried to use rattlesnakes as deadly weapons to collect on a debt have been charged with conspiracy to commit murder, authorities said.

The Lakewood men were allegedly trying to kill Matthew Sowash, owner of Amateur Poker Tour in Wheat Ridge, because he owed them $60,000, Jim Shires of the Jefferson County Sheriff's office said. Arrest affidavits say Sowash's company stages Texas Hold'em-style poker games in Denver area bars.

Herbert Paul Beck, 56, was arrested Thursday in Raton, N.M., and Christopher Lee Steelman, 34, was arrested Wednesday in Lakewood.

Bail for each suspect was set at $500,000 on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder, conspiracy to commit kidnapping and extortion.

Investigators said Steelman told them the two men discussed ways to kill Sowash and Beck suggested rattlesnakes. Beck allegedly told investigators he invested $36,000 in the company last December, and with interest was due $60,000.

The plan was to build a wooden box to hold the snakes and "the lid was to be built to allow Sowash's legs to be put inside but not pulled out."

"The final and most disturbing method to Steelman was Beck wanting to kidnap Sowash's children and use them as leverage to get the money from Sowash," according to the affidavits.

Sowash contacted the Colorado Bureau of Investigation after getting threatening e-mails.

Both defendants have extensive arrest records. Shires didn't know if they had lawyers to speak for them.

Here It Comes

Here it comes folks! Today's smokers are outlaws because of the liberal lunatics. But hey, this kind of socialism was fine with many of us, especially the already non-smoking crowd. I've been warning people that the lunatics would never stop. They would always have to have a 'cause' and someday their 'cause' might be near and dear to YOU and Your freedoms. Obesity may be the next big crusade. I say if being in the same environment with a smoker is bad for you then being in the same environment with an obese person must, also, be bad for you. Simply look at the study below (published by the BBC) and draw your own conclusions. I know the Liberal Lunatics have already drawn theirs.

Obesity 'contagious', experts say

The study looked at data collected over 32 years

Having a friend, sibling or spouse who is overweight raises a person's risk of being obese too, US researchers say.

They said data on more than 12,000 people suggested the risk was increased by 57% if a friend was obese, by 40% if a sibling was and 37% if a spouse was.

They argued this showed social factors, such as the body sizes of other people, were important in developing obesity.

Experts said the New England Journal of Medicine study was not conclusive as other hidden factors could be to blame.

People come to think that it is OK to be bigger since those around them are bigger Professor Nicholas Christakis

Researchers at Harvard Medical School and the University of California, in San Diego, looked at data collected over 32 years as part of a heart study.

Participants gave personal information, including their body mass index, and the names of friends who could be contacted.

'Causal relationship'

The authors were able to map social connections including both friends and family members.

The effects were generally larger between people of the same sex.

And their analysis suggested that the links could not be solely attributed to similarities in lifestyle and environment, for example the impact of friends existed even where friends lived in different regions.

The statistics may be meaningful, but in real life this is not very helpful to people who are overweight Professor Andrew Hill

Author Professor Nicholas Christakis said: "It's not that obese or non-obese people simply find other similar people to hang out with.

"Rather, there is a direct, causal relationship. What appears to be happening is that a person becoming obese most likely causes a change of norms about what counts as an appropriate body size.

"People come to think that it is OK to be bigger since those around them are bigger, and this sensibility spreads."

Moral support

Dr Richard Suzman, director of the National Institute of Aging's Behavioral and Social Research Programme, said the finding could have important implications.

He said: "This seminal study breaks important new ground in showing how social networks may amplify other factors and help account for the dramatic increase in obesity across the [US] population."

Dr Ian Campbell, medical director of charity Weight Concern, said it was no surprise that people who are obese tended to be friends with others who were obese, but that the fact that the link was more important between friends than siblings was "very interesting".

He said this suggested that social factors were even more important than physical ones in obesity.

He added that, on the positive side, if overweight people had friends who were obese, they could offer moral support to help each other lose weight.

'Speculation'

But Professor Andrew Hill, of the University of Leeds, said it was purely speculation to suggest that people's body images change because their friends become obese.

And he said it was important not to forget things which are known as key factors in obesity, such as diet and exercise.

"The statistics may be meaningful, but in real life this is not very helpful to people who are overweight.

"We don't have an understanding of what is really causing the relationship - it might be very complicated."

Smoker's are being driven into their homes. More and more public areas are becoming off limits to smokers. Soon, the loonies will make it illegal to even smoke in one's own castle. Coming is the day when proposals will be made to ban obese people from public places. Sure, the beginning drives will be small. They will probably be unnoticed. Then the movement will grow!

There will be other 'causes' to come. Some you will like. Maybe some will scare you. When it hits HOME it will scare you.

Maybe it's nothing. Maybe freedoms and liberties are overrated.

Rich Deny Public Access To Public Lands

There are some rich snobs that are never satisfied. They want it all! They want everything.

Here's a quote from today's Associated Press -

"Before getting to some of the world's most beautiful beaches, it helps to know a few things about the law _ and the locals. While California's Coastal Act of 1976 ensures beach access, the rich and famous who want to keep the state's dramatic coast exclusive have been posting bogus "no parking" and "private beach" signs here and elsewhere.

They've done it so effectively in Malibu for so long that unfortunate beachgoers occasionally get ticketed."

In my hometown, my niece was once threatened with a hefty fine for leaving a garage sale sign up too long on a public intersection. I can go along with this regulation but, now let's contrast these two situations. We have a relatively minor offense with a substantial fine (to her budget) and almost guaranteed enforcement. In California the well-to-do are placing signs which clearly effect our rights! Illegal signs fabricating ownership of public lands and there are no fines imposed because there is no enforcement. Reminder - these are public lands they are posting.

Now, imagine you have waited all year for a little vacation from work. You have scrimped, saved, and stretched your budget because you are not one of the elite living on exclusive coastline property. You pack your luggage and family into whatever transportation you intend to use and head down America's great highway. You travel up to 4,000 miles with smiles and visions of the great sunsets and beauties you are finally going to experience. You have an idea what it might look like because you've salivated at all the beautiful photos, for the past couple of years, in the travel magazines. Now it's your turn to see it in person. To feel the salt air against your face and the sand between your toes. You've seen the pictures and saw some sites on TV but, until you feel it and taste it you have not experienced it. Ah, hours if not days later, you finally arrive.

CLOSED - PRIVATE BEACH

Sorry kids. Maybe mommy and daddy will take you to the, ah, . . . the mall. I know, I know!

Bad enough the financially elite should own most of the prime real estate in our country but, their greed pushes them to control even the property they don't own. What a travesty. Now, I'm a conservative and strongly believe in reaping the benefits of your labor but not at someone else's expense. Take what you've earned but, dammit don't take what's mine.

Political Correctness Produces Fear

Michael Griffin, NASA's top guy is not afraid of global warming. You can see that plainly in the AP article below. What else can we see in this article. I can see fear. If you are not always 'politically correct' and if you dare oppose the liberal lunatic agenda you better beware. Griffin made some brave but abrasive statements about global warming and the fear mongers promoting the same. He was called "totally clueless" and was placed into their little basket of dangerous offenders. Shamefully, the White House blushes and slowly backs away from Griffin and his comments.

NASA Chief Not Worried About Climate
Thursday, May 31st, 2007 at 10:40am WASHINGTON

The head of NASA drew criticism from scientists when he said he was not sure global warming was a problem and added that it would be "arrogant" to assume the world's climate should not change in the future.

"I have no doubt that global _ that a trend of global warming exists," NASA Administrator Michael Griffin said in a taped interview that aired Thursday on National Public Radio. "I am not sure that it is fair to say that is a problem we must wrestle with."

"I guess I would ask which human beings, where and when, are to be accorded the privilege of deciding that this particular climate that we have right here today, right now, is the best climate for all other human beings. I think that's a rather arrogant position for people to take," Griffin said.

Jerry Mahlman, a former top scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration who is now at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, said Griffin's remarks showed he was either "totally clueless" or "a deep anti-global warming ideologue."

James Hansen, a top NASA climate scientist, said Griffin's comments showed "arrogance and ignorance," because millions of people will likely be harmed by global warming in the future.

White House science adviser Jack Marburger said he was not disturbed by Griffin's remarks, but distanced them from President Bush, who on Thursday announced an international global warming proposal.

"It's pretty obvious that the NASA administrator was speaking about his own personal views and by no means representing or attempting to represent the administration's views or broader policy," Marburger told The Associated Press. "He's got a very wry sense of humor and is very outspoken."

NASA spokesman David Mould said the radio interviewer was trying to push Griffin into saying something about global warming. NASA's position is that it provides scientific data on the issue, but policy makers are the ones who decide, he said.

Come on people, if we stand for nothing - we will fall for anything. Political Correctness is ruining our society. Global warming is natural and has always been around. It always will be. Let's stand up like Griffin and not slouch, as some who live in fear do.

Some in Minnesota Back Higher Gas Tax

Well, communist-leaning Minnesota is at it again. Minnesota lawmakers are trying to invoke a new gas tax. What timing. The price of gasoline is soaring higher than ever before and they want to add to the problem. I thought our elected leaders were placed in their positions to solve problems. Some states which don't lean so much to the left are actually supplying relief to their drivers. Texas and Connecticut, for example, are proposing tax holidays for their summer months. Minnesota has proven again, however, that it just loves taxing it's residents.

Governor Pawlenty has vetoed the evil plan but, an override is still possible. With the current gas tax being at 22 cents/gallon, this legislation would bring it to 27 cents or higher. Thanks guys.

Federal Government Slacking

Everyone hears me spout about less government and less regulations. I preach this all the time. What about the laws that are already on the books, though? I say if the law is in place - enforce it. Now if you don't like the law, change it or eliminate it, but if the law is on the books then we must go by them. Otherwise, why have a legal system at all? Everyone should, also, know my stand on illegal immigrants, by now.

Now here is an article describing a town's problems concerning it's passing of an ordinance regarding the prohibition of renting to illegals. Good for them, but civil liberties advocates want to ban the ban. Again, illegals are illegal (I know that's a tough concept). If a town wants to prevent them from moving into their community they are only doing what the federal government is failing to do, ie enforcing the laws that are on the books. If the federal government were doing it's job this would not even be a local issue.

Groups: Block Texas Town's Immigrant Ban
Tuesday, May 15th, 2007 at 11:23am DALLAS

Latino activists and civil liberties advocates asked a federal judge Tuesday to block a voter-approved ordinance that prohibits landlords from renting apartments to most illegal immigrants in the Dallas suburb of Farmers Branch.

The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund and the American Civil Liberties Union, which have already sued the city, requested the temporary restraining order in U.S. District Court.

The ordinance, scheduled to take effect next Tuesday, requires apartment managers to verify that renters are U.S. citizens or legal immigrants before leasing to them, with some exceptions. Violators face fines of up to $500.

"It is unfortunate that the residents of Farmers Branch have chosen to implement a law which is not only bad policy, but is likely also unconstitutional," said Lisa Graybill, legal director for the ACLU of Texas. "Now the issue will have to be resolved in federal court."

City council members first approved the ban in November without discussion, then revised it in January to include exemptions for minors, seniors and some mixed-status families. On Saturday, residents voted to approve the ban with 68 percent of voters in favor, according to unofficial results.

Councilman Tim O'Hare, the ordinance's lead proponent, contends the city's economy and quality of life will improve if illegal immigrants are kept out. O'Hare declined to comment Tuesday.

Since 1970, Farmers Branch has changed from a small, predominantly white bedroom community with a declining population to a city of almost 28,000 people, about 37 percent of them Hispanic, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Farmers Branch already faces four lawsuits brought by civil rights groups, residents, property owners and businesses, who say the ordinance discriminates and puts landlords in the precarious position of acting as federal immigration officers. Their attorneys argue the ordinance attempts to regulate immigration, a duty that is exclusively the federal government's.

Nationwide, more than 90 local governments have proposed, passed or rejected laws prohibiting landlords from leasing to illegal immigrants, penalizing businesses that employ them or training police to enforce immigration laws.

Someone tell me how this ordinance is unconstitutional. I have no problem with protecting the rights of our citizens regardless of their race, religious affiliation, sex, age, and so on. I do not feel illegals are afforded the same rights. If you what the rights that American's hold so dear then become an American. Until then - shut up.

My Predictions Proving Accurate Again

Minnesota's House and Senate have now both passed the new state-wide smoking ban. The oppressive bill simply waits for Governor Pawlenty's signature and he is expected to give it approval. Much has been said over the years on smoking bans, both pro and con, but I want to point out some lesser know ideas in this debate.

Let me begin by stating my predictions are already coming to light. For a long time now I have been telling people to watch out for their rights. Many of the non-smokers I know have taken an I-don't-care attitude whenever smoker's rights have become threatened. I always remind them to have a little more interest and not ignore the issue simply because it appears not to effect them directly. I always said that these Liberal Lunatics are power hungry. That these oppressive people will not stop at smoking legislation. That these busy-body communists must always have an agenda. I have stated and continue to preach the fact that these control freaks will never stop at the demise of smoking. They will continue on with new liberty restricting, fanatical programs. The smoking ban may not affect you but, what happens when they are busting your door down? Today their focus is on smoking. Tomorrow they will turn to something you care about.


How about you hunters and gun-toters. Will your rights be more seriously challenged? Do you love to fish? Hey, animals have rights, too! What about you gardeners and plant lovers. Will you be restricted from putting certain plants in your own yard in the future. Do you like short skirts? They are offensive to some. I think high-heels shoes are dangerous. Let's ban them. Tattoos and piercings offend me. They got to go. Do you feel you know how to raise your own children properly. Ha. Let's let the schools, government, or your friendly neighborhood corrections alliance group handle these mundane chores. I feel brightly colored cars sometimes blind me when I'm driving. Let's outlaw them. Here's one, be warned - I hate pets. All animals belong in the wild. You animal lovers look out. Why should I have to put up with shit in my yard, or neighborhood, for that matter? Why do I have to listen to that annoying barking? What about all them attacks I read about, in the papers. I fear for my safety whenever a dog, make that beast, is around. Let's not even get into the cat (yuk) discussion. The point is this list could, and will, go on and on. It won't be long until something you care about is in jeopardy! Be ready for your day!

Ah, back to my accurate prognostication. As I've said, I predicted further erosions of rights when the loonies feel their current dockets have been sufficiently met. Well, in todays Duluth News Tribune, DFL Rep. Tom Huntley bodly states, " . . . he is ready to move on to another health issue — obesity." Ha, the ink is not even dry yet. In fact, the governor hasn't even signed the bill yet, though we know he will. They must always have their soapbox and/or agenda and as one right is sufficiently eliminated it's time to move on and work toward abolishing another right! And let's waste no time in doing so. Are they in your backyard yet?

OK, fatties ( is that OK to say?) they are coming for you. At one time I would never have thought to assist the communist liberal lunatics but, I am now currently tempted. So put down your triple-dipped, sugar laced, fat-inducing, mile-high, mega-sized, bon-bon flavored, mid-morning, fat-fried, super-deluxe ice cream treat for just a moment, if you can. Pull your mega-sized, treat stained gut out of the way, wipe the frosting from your triple-chin and read on. You big people disgust me! Why should I have to look at your fat asses when I'm trying to dine in my pleasant smoke-free environment. If my visual rights are not enough for you let's take another tact. What are you doing to our health care system? I learned this strategy from the anti-smokers and I feel your lard asses are a drain on our countries financial well-being. How about that? Obesity increases the risk of many diseases and health conditions, including the following:

• Hypertension
• Dyslipidemia (for example, high total cholesterol or high levels of triglycerides)
• Type 2 diabetes
• Coronary heart disease
• Stroke
• Gallbladder disease
• Osteoarthritis
• Sleep apnea and respiratory problems
• Some cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon) - oops, there's that cancer word again!

Why should I have to pay higher medical premiums simply because some excessive people can't control themselves? According to a study of national costs attributed to both overweight (BMI 25–29.9) and obesity (BMI greater than 30), medical expenses accounted for 9.1 percent of total U.S. medical expenditures in 1998 and may have reached as high as $78.5 billion ($92.6 billion in 2002 dollars) (Finkelstein, Fiebelkorn, and Wang, 2003). Granted this is on older study and I'm quite certain current estimates would be much higher. You getting the picture yet? Have I made my point?

You gays who feel you need equal rights - look out! I think you are a major cause of aides. Now that can't be good for our health care system, either. What a financial drain. Why am I paying financially for your right to be a freak? And your hate crime crap! You are trying to get more rights than everyone not equal rights. Oh no, here comes a law suit, another financial drain on our country. We better eliminate the courts!

Remember, I have my rights, too! Whatever your passion it will one day be in my, or somebody's, sights! And never, never forget - I'm gunning for your cats and dogs! By the way, what does your dog weigh? Just wondering.

Terrorism Is Being Stopped

Looks like we foiled some terrorists once again.

MOUNT LAUREL, N.J. - Six nationals of the former Yugoslavia were arrested early Tuesday on charges they plotted to attack the Fort Dix Army base and "kill as many soldiers as possible," federal authorities said.

The six were scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Camden later Tuesday to face charges of conspiracy to kill U.S. servicemen, said Michael Drewniak, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in New Jersey. Five of them lived in Cherry Hill, he said.

A law enforcement official, speaking on condition of anonymity because documents in the case remain sealed, said the men were arrested as part of a joint federal and local investigation.

The officials said the attack was stopped in the planning stages.

By GEOFF MULVIHILL, Associated Press Writer

Harry Reid You Got To Go

Harry Reid has got to go. We don't need any anti-Americans in office. The great blogger Sunni Kay says it all, way better than I could, on her site. Please check it out -

Rantings, Ramblings, and Other Miscellaneous Stuff: Harry Reid

Illegals - Don't Rally!

A collaboration of writers have penned a story for AP yesterday entitled, "Immigration Rallies Planned Nationwide". When I first started reading the article I was ok with it. I feel all citizens have the right to protest. Then I was reminded of last years demonstrations when reading, " . . . some illegal immigrants wore T-shirts saying "I'm illegal. So what?" This is what really bothers me. In my opinion these illegals have no right to protest. If legal immigrants want to demonstrate, or otherwise use the system, to fight on behalf of others, I am ok with this. Citizens have this right, illegals do not.
To be fair, the article states that, "many immigrants are now afraid to speak out in public." This is reportedly because of the raids on illegals in recent months. This is fine with me. Stay home illegals. Not that you're at a legal home! If you like America so well, let the American system work for you, don't debase her more than you have.

Global Warming On Mars

Mars Melt Hints at Solar, Not Human, Cause for Warming, Scientist Says

Climate change hits Mars

Mars is being hit by rapid climate change and it is happening so fast that the red planet could lose its southern ice cap, writes Jonathan Leake.

Scientists from Nasa say that Mars has warmed by about 0.5C since the 1970s. This is similar to the warming experienced on Earth over approximately the same period.

Since there is no known life on Mars it suggests rapid changes in planetary climates could be natural phenomena.

The mechanism at work on Mars appears, however, to be different from that on Earth. One of the researchers, Lori Fenton, believes variations in radiation and temperature across the surface of the Red Planet are generating strong winds.

In a paper published in the journal Nature, she suggests that such winds can stir up giant dust storms, trapping heat and raising the planet’s temperature.

Fenton’s team unearthed heat maps of the Martian surface from Nasa’s Viking mission in the 1970s and compared them with maps gathered more than two decades later by Mars Global

Surveyor. They found there had been widespread changes, with some areas becoming darker.

When a surface darkens it absorbs more heat, eventually radiating that heat back to warm the thin Martian atmosphere: lighter surfaces have the opposite effect. The temperature differences between the two are thought to be stirring up more winds, and dust, creating a cycle that is warming the planet.

from The Sunday Times 29 April 2007

And Tibor R. Machan writes in The Orange Grove, "Well, I don't know about you, but it is my very strong impression that Mars is not teeming with gasoline-powered traffic just now. Exactly what the folks up there are using for fuel I do not know but I have heard on good authority that none of what they use is causing the warming of the planet. Indeed, I have heard rumors that there is no one up there using any fuel combustion for anything, not a soul. The warming seems to be happening quite without the influence of Martians, let alone Earthlings."

"Bloomberg News reports, "At a time when people are concerned about warming of the Earth, the Mars report shows one way that planets can grow hotter."

John Johnson Jr. of Times writes,"It turns out you don't need belching smokestacks and city-choking traffic to heat up a planet. Changes in surface reflectivity may also do the trick, according to research published Thursday in the journal Nature.

The research team, composed of scientists from NASA's Ames Research Center in Northern California and the U.S. Geological Survey, compared images of Mars taken by the Viking missions in the 1970s to pictures taken a quarter century later by Mars Global Surveyor."

I say who does man think he is? Is man so vain that he thinks he controls the Universe? God controls it all. Man's ego has gotten vastly out of control. Human vanity is what pushes the advancement of "Global Warming Fear Induction" and it's laudable. We are not even specks in this universe yet so many think we have such control. Baffling!

Pocket Surprise

Have you ever been surprised when putting on your jacket or pants, that perhaps you haven't worn in a while, by finding money in the pocket? Maybe a twenty or maybe a couple of ones. It happens to me once in a while and it's always a welcome event. It's a good way to start your day and I wish it would happen more often. A Florida boy seems to have gotten a similar surprise, today.

Boy, 7, Finds Crack Cocaine in Pocket
Thursday, April 19th, 2007 at 2:46am TAMPA, Fla.

A first-grader searching his jacket pocket for money found a bag of crack cocaine worth $8,900, authorities said Wednesday.

The 7-year-old boy found the bag Tuesday at Forest Hills Elementary School. It contained 89 grams of crack, said Tampa police spokeswoman Lisa Parashis.

The boy had been reaching in his jacket when he felt the bag, "got scared and told his teacher," Parashis said.

Authorities were interviewing the boy and his relatives.

Thankfully I've never had to go through an interview prosscess when I find my 'surprise'!

Don't Slouch?

Wow. First the experts tell me that Pluto is no longer a planet and now they tell me my mother was wrong!

For years my mother reminded my siblings and I to sit up straight. We heard this from our teachers, too. This was supposed to be good for our bones and I received many scoldings over this. To this day I am constantly having to remind myself to correct my posture, especially while sitting at my desk. Now it seems my mother was a liar.

A new study done by researchers at Woodend Hospital in Aberdeen, Scotland has shown that a more laid back posture (ha, mom) is actually better for us. The best posture, they say, is actually at a 135-degree angle and not the bolt-upright position that I have learned to loath. This would be somewhat of a sprawl which is halfway between being upright and prone. It seems that despite my repeated attempts to follow mothers advice I was sitting correctly more often than not, all along. Researchers concluded that the 135-degree position, I most often defaulted to, put the least amount of strain on the discs, muscles, and tendons.

Using the correct posture is still important. It is only our belief in what the 'correct posture' is that has changed. "Sitting in a sound anatomic position is essential, since the strain put on the spine and its associated ligaments over time can lead to pain, deformity and chronic illness," said WaseemAmir Bashir, lead author of the study.

Bashir isn't alone in these beliefs. Other experts and doctors agree. Gunnar Andersson, the chairman of orthopedics at Rush University in Chicago discovered 30 years ago that a 135-degree angle was optimal. Other ergonomics specialists from office furniture makers such as Herman Miller and Steelcase, also agree. They've been incorporating reclining positions into their products for years.

It simply comes back to listening to your own body. If it doesn't feel comfortable, it's probably not good for you. Personally, I am elated with these findings and feel that there should be a recliner behind every desk. Now if the experts would just tell me my mother was wrong about my vegetables.

Letter To Kerry

Following is a letter written by a Marine in response to senator Kerry's latest 'foot-n-mouth'. It was sent to me by someone with whom I share a special bond - we both have relatives who were injured by the same IED in Iraq.

This was written by my husband, Sgt. Aaron —-, who is currently deployed to Iraq, in response to a recent comment made by Senator John Kerry. ~ Michelle

Yesterday John Kerry said, “You know education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework, and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well, and if you don’t, you get stuck in Iraq”

So I wrote him a letter:

I am a Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps. I am currently on my second tour in Iraq, a tour which I volunteered for. I speak Arabic and Spanish and I plan to tackle Persian Farsi soon. I have a Bachelors and an Associates Degree and between deployments I am pursuing an M.B.A. In college I was a member of several academic honor societies, including the Golden Key Honor Society. I am not unique among the enlisted troops. Many of my enlisted colleagues include lawyers, teachers, mechanics, engineers, musicians and artists just to name a few. You say that your comments were directed towards the President and not us. If we were stupid, Senator Kerry, we might have believed you.

I am not a victim of President Bush. I proudly serve him because he is my Commander and Chief. If it was you who was President, I would serve you just as faithfully. I serve America, Senator Kerry, and I am also providing a service to the good people of Iraq. I have not terrorized them in the middle of the night, raped them or murdered them as you have accused me of before. I am doing my part to help them rebuild. My role is a simple one, but important. You see, Senator Kerry, like it or not, we came here and removed a tyrant (who terrorized Iraqis in the middle of the night, and raped them and murdered them). And we have a responsibility to see to it that another one doesn’t take his place. The people of Iraq are recovering from an abusive relationship with a terrible government and it’s going to take some time to help them recover from that. We can’t treat this conflict like a microwave dinner and throw a temper tantrum because we feel like it’s taking too long.

Senator Kerry, you don’t have to agree with this war. You don’t have to say nice things about those of us who choose to make sacrifices for the rights of every American rather than sit back and simply feel entitled to it. But please, Senator Kerry, if you’re going to call me a stupid murdering rapist, stick by what you say. Don’t tell me that I misunderstood or that you would never insult a veteran because you’re one too. Having been there and done that does not give you a free pass to insult me.

My suggestion for you, Senator Kerry, is to remember that your speeches are recorded, and broadcast to us simpletons over here. You may want to write down what you want to say before you say it, maybe have somebody look at it before you say it and tell you what others might hear. Remember that we can’t read your mind, if there are any misinterpretations in what you say, it’s because you didn’t communicate clearly.

Good luck to you Senator Kerry, if nothing else it’s always entertaining to watch you try and climb out of the holes that you constantly dig for yourself.

Sincerely,
Somebody who is watching his daughter grow up in photographs so that you can have the right to say whatever you want about him.

Bank of America Abuses Legitimate Customer

In Clark Howard's newsletter he tells a tale of customer abuse by Bank of America. It seems, Matthew Shinnick went to Bank of America to verify the validity of a check he received from someone who bought two bikes from him. The bank said that the check was valid and Mr. Shinnick cashed the check.

The bank then called the police and Mr. Shinnick was arrested. It turns out that the check was fraudulent. The unwitting customer had no idea that his buyer presented him with a bad check. After all, the very reason he went to the bank in the first place was to check it's validity. Our shocked Mr. Shinnick got a night in jail and $14,000 in legal fees for his efforts.

Feeling the event was caused by the banks error, Matthew pleaded with the bank to cover his legal fees. The bank has refused to pay. Clark Howard even offered to pay one half of the fees if the bank would pay the other half. Bank of America still refused.

Clark Howard is now proposing Bank of America customers close their accounts, since the bank clearly does not care about its customers.

The Brian Saaristo Celebration Day

Here is a little more information on Brian Saaristo's fundraiser

It’s Coming! The Brian Saaristo Celebration Day, October 7th at the Cromwell Park Pavilion. (This is a Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Matching Funds Event.) A Pancake Breakfast will be served from 7 AM - 1 PM followed by BINGO at 1 PM. In addition there will be a silent auction from 11 AM - 3 PM and a very special musical tribute at Noon. If you would like to donate a prize for the auction, contact Carolyn Krogh at 644-3670. If you can’t participate in this event, but want to send a contribution to the benefit, please make your check payable to Brian Saaristo and mail it to the Northview Bank, POI Box 68, Cromwell, MN 55726. You may have also noticed all the yellow ribbons popping up all over Cromwell and Wright to show your support for Brian’s courage. If you’d like one for your mailbox or front yard, please call Jeanne Weimer at 644-3953 in Cromwell or stop by the Groth Lumber Yard in Wright and ask Dennis for your ribbon/s.

As you may have noticed, there was a big article about Brian and his family in the Sunday Edition of the Duluth News Tribune. This article answers a lot of the questions people have been asking about Brian and his progress. He wants to get back home to Wright as soon as possible and it looks like he may even make it for the special celebration in his honor. If not, our thoughts and prayers are with him as he continues to heal and learn to walk with his new feet.

from the Wright News

Also, found

Saturday, Oct. 7, the communities of Cromwell and Wright will host a fundraiser for the Brian Saaristo family. A pancake breakfast from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. will be followed by Bingo from 1-3 p.m. Also, during the hours of 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. there will be a silent auction. All of these events will be held at the Cromwell Park Pavilion. If you have prizes or auction items you would like to donate, please contact Carolyn Krogh at 644-3670. If you have food items you would like to donate, please contact Barbara Dahl at 644-3691 or Peggy Olson at 644-3746. For those of you who will be out of town or wish to send a cash donation, an account has been established at the Northview Bank of Cromwell. Make your funds payable to Brian Saaristo and they will be posted to the proper account. Soon you will be seeing yellow! There will be yellow ribbon bows for you to indicate your support. If you’d like to get a yellow bow, please contact Dennis Johnson in Wright at 357-3808 or Jeanne Weimer in Cromwell at 644-3953. Thank you, in advance for your support.

A Hero Survives Iraqi IED

I have shamelessly republished the lead article from the September 24th Duluth News Tribune in it's entirety. It is a report of a recovering Iraqi casualty, the study of an American soldier, and the telling of couragous hero. This is the account of my cousin, who faced the danger and gave of himself when he didn't have to!

This information is more up-to-date than when I first posted on Brian's ordeal.

Kirkuk, Iraq, on July 2.

Justin Hayworth/News Tribune

Brian fields calls about what forms he needs to fill out to be released from the military.
He lost both feet when an improvised explosive device hit the Humvee
he and four others were riding in while patrolling the streets of Kirkuk, Iraq, on July 2.

'I gave what I can give'

A Cloquet soldier and his family live in a hotel room as he recovers from losing his feet in Iraq

BY JANNA GOERDT

NEWS TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

Multimedia: Audio Slide Show

• Brush with greatness
• Hell on wheels
• Breakfast benefit
• Making new feet
• View from a window

Room 3J28E at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., is small.

It might once have been an office, but patients today call it the leg room.

Inside, more than a dozen prosthetic legs lean against the walls and each other. Brian Saaristo's legs are stored under the sink.

They are shorter than the others because Saaristo, of rural Cloquet, still has his own knees. His feet are somewhere in Iraq.

On July 2, Sgt. Saaristo of the 101st Airborne Division joined the 468 U.S. soldiers who have become amputees while on active duty in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"I consider myself lucky," Saaristo said.

He still has his sight, most of his hearing and, above all, his life.

He and his family have coped with the injury with equal parts grit and humor. When asked if he misses his feet, Saaristo paused.

"I don't know. We didn't talk much," he eventually said with a hint of a smile. "But it would be wrong to say I don't miss them. It was easier to get around with feet."

His loss has extracted a price from everyone.

Saaristo's wife, Cheryl, and two children, Leah, 9, and Brian Jr., 5, have for now given up their home in Wright, about 25 miles west of Cloquet, where there was room to run and play. The family has lived together in tiny hotel rooms in Washington during Saaristo's recovery.

"This has brought us closer," Cheryl Saaristo said. "We're very fortunate to have each other, to have this time together, and to have Brian."

She was shocked at the number of amputee soldiers at the hospital -- men and women whose arms and legs were taken by bombs, bullets and improvised explosive devices like the one that took her husband's feet.

"What you see happening on TV is real," Cheryl said. "Those IEDs, this is what they do."

'I KNEW I LOST THEM'

The day had grown long, and everyone in the Humvee was tired. Saaristo and four other soldiers were headed back to their base, the first in a convoy on a busy road in Kirkuk.

They rode in an unarmored vehicle. Saaristo's unit had recently ordered four kits to "up-armor" their Humvees, but only one had arrived. Theirs had not been fortified.

Driver Nick Paupore's left leg was propped up off the floor, his right leg pressed low on the gas pedal. Saaristo was sitting behind him.

He remembers vividly what happened next.

There was a dreadful bang and the cab filled with smoke. Everything turned brown as the windshield glaze melted. Saaristo tried to open his door, which was was jammed shut, then felt rough hands as someone dragged him out of the vehicle. And then the pain, distant at first but growing stronger. His right leg was gone below the knee and his left had been splintered. It would later be amputated.

"I knew I had lost them," Saaristo said. "As long as I was still alive, that was all I was concerned about."

Saaristo, 43, had fought to be in that Humvee. The military was reluctant to accept him for active duty because of his age, so Saaristo worked with Rep. Jim Oberstar to re-enlist.

After the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Saaristo felt called to serve the country. He had been having dreams about serving again -- and nightmares in which the rest of his unit was leaving for the war and he couldn't find his uniform.

He missed the camaraderie of the military. He knew he would go to Iraq.

And part of it was what was best for the family. The Saaristos both held steady, good-paying jobs in Cloquet, but the 12-hour shifts meant that Leah and Brian Jr. were constantly in child care. The family was never together. If Brian went active-duty again, Cheryl could stay home with the children.

On that Sunday, 10 months after he arrived in Iraq, Saaristo was fighting to keep from bleeding to death. Paupore was the only other soldier seriously injured -- he lost his right leg above the knee.

Despite his own injuries, Saaristo kept barking orders: Stay calm. Remember your training. Check on Nick. Get me to a hospital. He was conscious as another soldier applied tourniquets to his lower legs, but he had no pain medication because no one could find a vein in his shocked body.

Saaristo soon slipped into gray and didn't wake again until he was in Washington.

'I LOVE YOU'

"When I first saw him, he was all wrapped up, with sponges and drains taped at the bottom of his legs," Cheryl Saaristo remembers. Brian Saaristo's first memories are of watching his wife walk into the hospital room. He couldn't speak, so he turned to sign language.

"Brian lifted his hands, and it took him half an hour to bend the fingers of one hand like this," Cheryl Saaristo said, demonstrating the sign for "I love you." It was the same motion they used to flash each other at work.

It was important to Cheryl that Leah and Brian Jr. know their father was still alive, though Brian Saaristo hadn't wanted them to see.

"I snuck them in," she said. "They had to see him."

The Saaristos want Leah and Brian Jr. to feel comfortable with Brian's injury -- and they seem to have succeeded. Both children have helped with Brian's treatment and recovery.

"You can touch his legs," Brian Jr. offers a visitor, patting the stretchy bandages covering his father's shins.

One night after school, Leah put down her homework and sat at the foot of her father's bed. She slid her hands forward, palms up, until they rested beneath Saaristo's abbreviated legs, then lifted each leg in turn, measuring their weight and width with her hands.

"Is this one bigger?" she asked, holding Saaristo's right leg. He nodded.

Sarristo's injuries aren't constantly on his mind. If he wakes in the night and wants to get out of bed, he sometimes tries to stand straight up.

"You think you've still got legs, but you don't," he said.

The pain can remind him. After the stitches that circled his healing legs were removed, Saaristo said it sometimes felt like ants were crawling across his skin, nipping and biting at his flesh. Sometimes he feels pain in a foot that isn't there.

FIVE STEPS FORWARD

The body armor and other protective gear soldiers use today protect their heads and chests from most devastating injuries, but their arms and legs often are left vulnerable. As a result, soldiers today are surviving attacks that would have killed them in past conflicts, said Don Vandrey, public affairs officer at Walter Reed. They live, but they lose limbs.

To handle this influx of amputees, the hospital's entire physical therapy department is now used only by amputee patients. Crews also recently broke ground on a new $10 million amputee training center -- even as officials prepare to close and move the Walter Reed campus in the next five years, Vandrey said.

Full recovery and therapy for amputees can take more than a year. Saaristo's doctors told him he would probably be at Walter Reed for eight months, but he has other ideas.

Less than two months after the bomb ripped through his Humvee, Saaristo slipped his shins into the custom-molded acrylic sleeves of his new legs, heaved himself upward and tottered five steps forward. Cheryl watched with glee.

It felt good to be upright again despite the pain, Brian Saaristo said. He did a little celebratory shimmy the first time he stood.

Next, Saaristo walked without balancing bars. Now he walks as much as he can, though his doctors won't let him keep his feet for fear he will push himself too far too fast. The feet wait for him in the leg room, balanced on their size 10 running shoes.

Saaristo's doctor said he's made remarkable progress.

"He's been one of the fastest-recovering patients I've seen," said Dr. Jared Anderson, a resident physician at Walter Reed. "We've had to slow him down a little. He was trying to bust through his sutures."

Saaristo walks slowly, with a slightly exaggerated gait, like someone who has just finished a long, hard run. He uses a cane for balance and probably always will. He'll also keep several pair of specialized feet for different activities.

There will be a pair for jogging, a pair for swimming and a pair for daily walking. The government will keep Brian Saaristo in feet for the rest of his life.

'GAVE WHAT I CAN GIVE'

The hard part about being a military amputee isn't learning to walk again, the Saaristos said -- it's all the paperwork.

Their days are full of phone calls, medical appointments and bundles of forms to be completed. The Saaristos are trying to find a contractor who can make their home handicapped-accessible by the time Brian comes home. On a recent day, Brian Saaristo was puzzled by a Social Security Administration form asking for proof he had been injured.

"Do they want me to wobble down there, or what?" he asked. The form was a new one for the doctor, too, but they spent time filling it in.

Brian Saaristo began petitioning a month ago for release from the military. He wants to be transferred to a hospital closer to home, possibly in Minneapolis, to finish his therapy. The medical evaluation board, or "med board," process usually takes months to clear, and Saaristo is already impatient.

Meanwhile, he wants Cheryl and the kids to return to Minnesota and their normal lives. Cheryl refuses.

"Right now, we should be with him," Cheryl said. "The kids are OK going to school here."

It took Brian Jr. and Leah awhile to adjust to Glen Haven Elementary, about a 20-minute trip from Walter Reed. Cheryl drives them there and picks them up each day in a car rented by the Yellow Ribbon Fund, a private nonprofit group that helps wounded soldiers and their families.

Help in ways both large and small has been indispensable, Cheryl said. The family lives together in a single room at the Mologne House, a hotel on the Walter Reed campus for outpatient soldiers and their families.

Clothes, toys and paperwork are piled everywhere, and the bathroom sink is cluttered with dishes and bath toys. After months of relying on a microwave oven, "I'd love to just cook something," Cheryl said. "Pork chops, potatoes..."

The kids, still full of energy after their second day in school, wrestled with each other at the foot of Saaristo's bed. Brian Jr. extracted himself and darted around the room, doing backflips from floor to bed.

"Tie him up, would you?" Brian asks Cheryl, and he's only half-joking.

It's been an exhausting day -- getting the kids ready for school, appointments, therapy, taking and making myriad phone calls, navigating D.C. traffic to retrieve the kids, grabbing a quick snack and dinner at McDonald's, managing the kids' restless energy, trying to cook a frozen lasagna in a tiny microwave oven. At 6 p.m., Brian Saaristo is still on his cell phone with a med board official, motioning for the kids to be quiet.

The Saaristos' time and attention are now focused on their daily life, recovery and anticipated homecoming. They avoid discussing the politics behind Brian's injuries.

"I don't think anyone in the country wants a war," Cheryl said.

During one rare family trip outside the Walter Reed campus in August, the Saaristos avoided a group protesting the Iraq war outside the White House.

And when President Bush made a visit to Walter Reed during Saaristo's recovery, the family also passed on the opportunity to meet their commander in chief and shake his hand.

"You just want to put it behind you and get on with your life," Brian Saaristo said. "I gave what I can give; there's nothing more. It's time for me to get home and take care of my family."

And let's not forget
The Breakfast benefit

A pancake breakfast and bingo day will be held to benefit Brian Saaristo and his family on Oct. 7 at the Cromwell Park Pavilion, located at the intersection of Highways 210 and 73.

Breakfast begins at 7 a.m., with bingo at 1 p.m. For more information or to make a donation, contact Barb Dahl at 644-3691.

The Saaristo family would welcome comments and news from home as a diversion from their hectic lives in Washington, D.C. They can be reached at brian.saaristo@us.army.mil.

Chavez Says U.S. Empire Will Soon Fall, Calls Bush 'Devil

I'm MAD as hell. All true American citizens should be. In fact, part of the reason I'm so mad is that a bigger uproar hasn't been made by the U.S. Not by the media and not by it's citizenry, as far as I can tell.

This maniac actually came on American soil and attack our president, our country and our way of life. On American soil ! Sure it's not American soil in the true sense it being sovereign U.N. real estate, but it's within the confines of our great country. Chavez can go to hell and like I've always said, so can the worthless United Nations.

It's time America woke up, pulled it's head out of the sand, and got MAD as hell!

READ FOXES FULL ARTICLE HERE AND GET MAD

Wednesday, September 20, 2006

UNITED NATIONS — The United States will soon lose its place as leader of the world, and the United Nations is a broken organization that is beyond repair, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Wednesday.

The United “States empire is on its way down and it will be finished in the near future, inshallah," Chavez told reporters, ending the statement with the Arabic phrase for "God willing."

Chavez said that the United Nations is a “deceased” organization because it was formed to bridge the differences between the United States and Russia, and a brand new international organization would have to be formed to replace it.

Earlier, Chavez initiated a verbal assault on President Bush, calling him "the devil" during an insult-riddled address to world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly.

"The devil came here yesterday," Chavez said, gesturing to where Bush had stood during his speech on Tuesday. "He came here talking as if he were the owner of the world."
He later said he was referring to President Bush when he spoke of the devil.

Chavez held up a book by American leftist writer Noam Chomsky "Hegemony or Survival: America's Quest for Global Dominance" and recommended it to everyone in the General Assembly.

He also lambasted the U.S. government for trying to block Venezuela's campaign for a rotating seat on the U.N. Security Council. He said if chosen over U.S.-favorite Guatemala in a secret-ballot U.N. vote next month, Venezuela would be "the voice of the Third World."

The council currently consists of five permanent members with veto power — the United States, Britain, Russia, China and France — and 10 non-permanent members who serve two-year terms and have no power to veto resolutions. The 10 elected members do have the right to propose resolutions, chair committees and hold the rotating council presidency for one-month periods.

Five countries from different regions are elected every year by the General Assembly to replace five retiring ones.

The U.S. government warns that Chavez, a close ally of Iran, Syria and Cuba, would be a disruptive force on the council.

"The imperialists see extremists everywhere. No, we aren't extremists," Chavez said in his speech. "What's happening is the world is waking up." He said many in the world now subscribe to the battle cry: "Yankee empire, go home!"

Holding a rotating Security Council seat would bring Chavez a higher profile and a platform to challenge the U.S. on its stances in regions from the Middle East to Latin America.

The campaign is shaping up to be a formidable diplomatic test for Chavez, gauging his ability to lobby head-to-head against the U.S.

In the past few months, Chavez has crisscrossed the globe collecting promises of support, visiting about a dozen countries including Russia, Belarus, Iran, Vietnam, Qatar, Mali, Benin, China, Malaysia and Syria. His diplomats also have been busy, while top Guatemalan officials and U.S. diplomats also have been doing their own lobbying.

Chavez said he has the solid backing of the Caribbean Community, the Arab League, Russia, China and much of Africa, in addition to his allies across South America.

But winning a Security Council seat requires a two-thirds majority — 128 out of 192 U.N. members — and Guatemala says it has 90 votes secured. If neither side wins the necessary two-thirds, there could be more rounds of lobbying and voting next month, possibly followed by a search for an alternate candidate.

Chavez, in his drive to counter U.S. influence around the globe, is practicing a unique "diplomacy for show" that thrives on protagonism and confrontation, said Milos Alcalay, who was Chavez's U.N. ambassador until he resigned in 2004 amid differences with the government.

"A post for non-permanent membership in the Security Council has never been so politicized," Alcalay said. If Venezuela manages to win the seat, "it will be a rock in the shoe of the United States" and any other countries Chavez differs with, he said.

The Venezuelan leader, a close friend and admirer of Cuba's communist leader Fidel Castro, has sought to be a voice for poor countries and has warned that if the U.S. tries to block U.N. reform, Venezuela and others may eventually create a separate "United Nations of the south" to rival a body they no longer find democratic.

Chavez also said it might eventually be necessary to move the U.N. headquarters out of the United States.

He reiterated his accusations that the U.S. planned and financed a short-lived coup that briefly unseated him in 2002, and said with Washington's backing Israel had carried out a "genocide" in Lebanon.

Chavez's government still earns handsomely from oil sales to the U.S., Venezuela's top export market, but he has crusaded against its capitalist system, selling millions of gallons (liters) of heating oil at a discount to low-income American families.

Dozens gathered in a downtown square in Caracas to watch Chavez on a large-screen TV as the government took over all TV and radio channels to broadcast the speech live. The crowd in the square spontaneously broke into applause during some of his harsher criticisms of the U.S.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Article is from Fox News

The 'Dog' Arrested

Duane `Dog' Chapman Arrested by Feds
Thursday, September 14th, 2006 at 5:17pm
AP Photo/LUCY PEMONI

TV reality star Duane "Dog" Chapman and two co-stars on his show were arrested Thursday in Hawaii on charges of illegal detention and conspiracy in an alleged kidnapping three years ago.

Chapman, son Leland Chapman and associate Timothy Chapman were taken into custody and did not resist arrest, said Mark Hanohano, U.S. Marshal for the district of Hawaii. "It went down without incident," Hanohano said.

Mona K. Wood, a publicist for the star of the popular cable series "Dog The Bounty Hunter," said Chapman would be vindicated. "He arrests the bad guys _ and he is definitely not one of them," she said.

The charges stem from Chapman's capture of Max Factor heir Andrew Luster on June 18, 2003, in Puerto Villarta, Mexico, said Marshals spokeswoman Nikki Credic in Washington.

Chapman's capture of Luster, who had fled the country after being convicted of raping three women, catapulted the 53-year-old bounty hunter to fame and led to the reality series on A&E.

The three are being held in Honolulu. Bail has not been set. They will face an extradition hearing to Mexico under terms of treaties between the U.S. and Mexico, Credic said.

Chapman's son Leland, 29, and Timothy Chapman, 41, no relation, assist Chapman in exploits chronicled for the TV show around the Hawaiian Islands. The show focuses on Chapman's family as much as the bounty hunting, which generally involves tracking down bail jumpers, often creating emotional scenes with repentant captives.

Charges have been pending against the three since local police in Mexico arrested them shortly after they roped in Luster. They posted bail but never returned to Puerto Villarta for their court hearing on July 15, 2003, Credic said.

Mexican authorities demanded that the Chapmans transfer Luster to Mexican police. Their refusal to do so led to their initial arrest.

A U.S. warrant for their arrest was signed by a federal judge in Honolulu on Wednesday.