In the News

'Why Believe in a God?' goes on D.C. Buses

'Why believe in a god? Just be good for goodness' sake,' could be coming to a bus stop near you — just in time for the holidays.
Ads proclaiming, "Why believe in a god? Just be good for goodness' sake," will appear on Washington, D.C., buses starting next week and running through December. The American Humanist Association unveiled the provocative $40,000 holiday ad campaign Tuesday.
In lifting lyrics from "Santa Claus is Coming to Town," the Washington-based group is wading into what has become a perennial debate over commercialism, religion in the public square and the meaning of Christmas.
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Fat Kids Found to Have Arteries of 45-Year-Olds
NEW ORLEANS — Obese children as young as 10 had the arteries of 45-year-olds and other heart abnormalities that greatly raise their risk of heart disease, say doctors who used ultrasound tests to take a peek inside.
"As the old saying goes, you're as old as your arteries are," said Dr. Geetha Raghuveer of Children's Hospital in Kansas City, who led one of the studies. "This is a wake-up call."
The studies were reported Tuesday at an American Heart Association conference.
About a third of American children are overweight and one-fifth are obese. Many parents think that "baby fat" will melt away as kids get older. But research increasingly shows that fat kids become fat adults, with higher risks for many health problems.
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Man Charged With Stealing Communion Wafers During Mass
Police in Florida say they arrested a man after he tried to steal communion wafers during a church service.
The Martin County Sheriff's Office says 33-year-old John Samuel Ricci of Canton was cornered by fellow churchgoers when he grabbed a handful of wafers from the priest during communion services Saturday.
Ricci was being held down by six or seven offended parishioners when deputies arrived at St. Martin de Porres Catholic Church in Jensen Beach. Police say two parishioners, ages 82 and 61, received minor injuries in the scuffle.
Ricci was charged with two counts of simple battery, theft and disruption of a religious assembly. He was being held Tuesday on $2,000 bond at the Martin County Jail.
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Smile! Get A Ticket, Get Your Picture Taken, Too
If you get pulled over by the police in Ormond Beach, Florida you'd better smile.
"An officer has the capability of taking a picture of the driver the vehicle and where the violation occurred," said Sgt. Jamie Gogarty of the Ormond Beach Police Department.
If a driver tried to fight an expensive ticket, police could use these pictures in court. The devices also cut down on the time it takes cops to write a ticket. The machines read drivers' licenses, instantly get driver information and a portable printer prints the tickets.
Some drivers question why police need pictures of speeders. "(I'd feel) my privacy was invaded," said Peggy Nardone. "I wouldn't feel safe. How do I know what they're going to do with that picture now?"
Ormond Beach police said the pictures gives them more evidence in court and even protects drivers whose cars might have been used without their knowledge. "If you don't have anything to hide, you shouldn't mind a picture being correlated with your identity," said Patrice Stoves. In three months, the city has only had one complaint.
The Florida Highway Patrol also started using the ticket writers this month but troopers do not take pictures so far.
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Hannah Montana and birds blamed for power outage
Authorities blamed a "Hannah Montana" balloon and some birds for causing a power outage for hours around a Miami middle school.
Miami fire officials said a helium balloon bearing the image of young "Montana" star Miley Cyrus collided with some power lines near Jose De Diego Middle School at about 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, scaring away a flock of birds.
Fire officials said the sudden weight shift from the fleeing birds caused the electrical lines to dislodge and fall to the ground, electrifying a nearby fence. The school ran on a backup generator while officials shut down the power grid, but dozens of residents lost power for a period of hours, the officials said.
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