64 San Diego Reader January 5, 2017


news of the WeiRD


LEAD STORY — Almost all law-enforcement agencies in America use the Scott Reagent fi eld test when they discover powder that looks like cocaine, but the several agencies that have actually con- ducted tests for “false positives” say they hap- pen up to half the time. In October, the latest victims (husband-and-wife truck drivers with spotless records and Pentagon clearances) were fi nally released aſt er 75 days in jail await- ing trial — for baking soda that tested “posi- tive” three times by Arkansas troopers (but, eventually, “negative” by a state crime lab). (Why do police love the test? It costs $2.) T e truck drivers had to struggle to get their truck back and are still fi ghting to be re-cleared to drive military explosives.


Unclear on the Concept — Activists told Vice Media in November that 100,000 people worldwide identify as “ecosex- uals,” ranging from those who campaign for “sustainable”-ingredient sex toys to those who claim to have intercourse with trees (but sand- ing the bark for comfort might provoke con- cern about being “abusive”). A University of Nevada, Las Vegas, professor studies the phe- nomenon and knows, for example, of humans who “marry” the Earth or prefer sex while rolling in potting soil or under a waterfall. On one “arborphilia” support blog, a female post- er regretted her choice to have “convenient” sex with the sycamore outside her bedroom window instead of the sturdy redwood she ac- tually covets.


The Continuing Crisis — Ricky Berry and his roommate walked in to a CVS store in Richmond, Virginia, in No- vember to ask if it carried sliced cheese but were told no. Minutes later, all the employees walked to the back of the store, hid in a locked room, and called the police. Berry and pal, and a third customer (with a toothache and desper- ately needing Orajel), were bewildered by the empty store until a Richmond police offi cer arrived. Aſt er observing that the three custom- ers appeared nonthreatening, he mused along with Berry that “this is how weird, apocalyptic movies start.” WRIC-TV reported later that the employee who panicked and called police will “possibly” need retraining. — In October, a court in Australia’s Victoria state began considering an appeal on whether three deaf people might be too intellectually challenged to have planned a murder. T e pros- ecutor off ered surveillance video of the three in a lobby planning the murder’s details via sign language as they waited for an elevator to take them up to the eventual crime scene. — Pigs are such complex animals that scientists are studying how to tell the “optimists” from the “pessimists.” British researchers writing in a recent Biology Letters described how “proac- tive” porkers diff ered from “reactive” ones, and, as with humans, how their particular mood at that time distinguished them as “glass half full” rather than “glass half empty.” (Unaddressed, of course, was specifi cally whether some pigs were actually “optimistic” that the chute at the slaughterhouse might lead to a pleasant out- come.)


Questionable Judgments — T e Schlitterbahn Waterpark in Kansas City, Kansas, got the message in November and shut down its “world’s tallest waterslide” (17 stories; riders reaching speeds of 60 mph) aſt er the neck-injury death of a ten-year-old rider in August. But comparably altitude-obsessed ar- chitects in Tokyo said in November that they were moving ahead with proposals for “Next Tokyo 2045” to include a one-mile-high resi- dential complex (twice as tall as the currently highest skyscraper). A spokesperson for princi- pal architects Kohn Pedersen Fox said he real- izes that coastal Tokyo, currently in earthquake, typhoon and tsunami zones, would present a climate-change challenge (and especially since the building would be on land once reclaimed from Tokyo Bay).


Ironies — San Diego police offi cer Christine Garcia, who identifi es as transgender, was turned away in November as she attempted to enter the Transgender Day of Remembrance at the city’s LGBT Community Center — because organiz- ers thought the sight of a police uniform might upset some people. (Garcia herself was one of the event’s organizers.) — Gary Zerola was arraigned in Boston in No- vember on two counts of rape. He is a defense lawyer, former prosecutor, onetime “Most Eli- gible Bachelor” winner, and was a fi nalist in the fi rst season of ABC-TV’s T e Bachelor. He was also accused of two counts of rape in 2006 (but acquitted at trial) and another in 2007 (but the charge was dropped).


by Chuck Shepherd © 2017


Perspective — It was only a quarter-million-dollar grant by the National Institutes of Health, but what it bought, according to budget scrutiny by the Washington Free Beacon in November, was the development of a multiplayer computer game with an objective of teaching good reproductive health habits. Caduceus Quest employs role- playingas “doctors,policymakers, researchers, youth advocates” and others to “solve medical mysteries andepidemiologic crises.”Tetarget, according to the University of Chicago grant proposal,isAfrican-Americanand Latino teenagers around Chicago.


How to Tell If You’re Too Drunk — On Nov. 16, Richard Rusin, 34, was charged with DUI in St. Charles, Illinois, aſter he drove off of a street, going airborne, hitting close to the top of one house, rebounding off of another, uprooting a tree (sending it onto a roof), and knocking out electricity to the neighborhood when the car clipped a utility pole guy wire — and his car landed upside down in a driveway. He was hospitalized. — Allen Johnson Sr., of Meriden, Connecticut, was driving a tractor-trailer up Interstate 89 near Williston, Vermont, on Nov.2at63mph, when, said state police, he apparently tried to stand up in the cab in order to change pants (enabling the rig to roll over). Johnson regis- tered .209 blood-alcohol; it was 9:30 a.m.


Send your Weird News to Chuck Shepherd, San Di- ego Reader, P.O. Box 85803, San Diego, CA 92186 or to WeirdNewsTips@Yahoo.com


The Most Trusted Doctor’s Offices in San Diego! We offer the best priced 1-year evaluations. 420 Evaluations Use discount code “reader” for a 5% discount! Easy420Rec.com


Instantly Get Your Online Doctor’s Rec Now from the Comfort of Your Home!


Accepted Everywhere in California!


Out of State ID? No Problem! Dispensaries can not


provide you meds without a doctor rec until 2018.


Easy420Rec.com Use discount code “reader” for a 5% discount!


760-310-9613


North Park: 619-633-0227 3930 Utah Street, San Diego


La Mesa: 1-855-MMJ-EVAL (665-3825)


7400 El Cajon Blvd., #103, La Mesa


Spring Valley: 1-855-665-3825 3911 N. Cordoba Ave #F, Spring Valley


Escondido: 760-215-5236 202 4th Avenue, Escondido


$5 Off with this ad! We will match or beat any advertised coupon


Instantly Get your Evaluation Online Now.


www.Easy420Rec.com Use discount code “reader” for a 5% discount!


Congratulations on legalization! Dispensaries can NOT legally sell you marijuana until


January, 2018 unless you have a valid Doctor’s Recommendation. After 2018, a rec will allow you to get discounted product from any dispensary, allow you to carry more meds & grow more plants.


Downtown: 1-855-665-3825 4101 Market St., Ste. B, San Diego


Vista: 1-855-MMJ-EVAL (665-3825) 510 Civic Center Dr., #D, Vista


South Bay: 619-386-0288 1067 Broadway #113, Chula Vista


El Cajon: 619-457-3176 130 W. Washington Ave., El Cajon Walk In’s Welcome!


MON - FRIDAY 11am - 6:30pm SATURDAY 11am - 5pm SUNDAY 11am - 3pm


Locations hours / days may vary.


Real doctors with more than 30 year’s experience


Out of state? No problem!


Credit Cards Accepted Call today or walk in


High Quality ID Cards Grower’s License


Central San Diego: 619-396-6468 1925 Euclid Ave, City Heights


Santee: 619-633-0227 (by appt. only)


8770 Cuyamaca St. #4, Santee


Coastal: 858-281-8840 (by appt. only)


765 Academy Dr., Solana Beach


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80