Dateline: IndiaA textbook publisher in New Delhi is being criticized for a health and hygiene book which claims meat eaters “easily cheat, tell lies, forget promises” and “commit sex crimes.” The New Healthway textbook, written by David S. Poddar and published by S. Chand Group, is intended for 11- and 12-year-old students. One particular chapter, however, is creating some controversy. “The strongest argument that meat is not essential food is the fact that the Creator of this Universe did not include meat in the original diet for Adam and Eve. He gave them fruits, nuts and vegetables,” says the chapter titled “Do We Need Flesh Food?” Among the characteristics of non-vegetarians, the book lists the following facts: “They easily cheat, tell lies, forget promises, they are dishonest and tell bad words, steal, fight and turn to violence and commit sex crimes.” Janaki Rajan of the Faculty for Education at Jamia Millia University in Delhi told the BBC News the textbooks are “poisonous for children.” After the controversy broke in local media, Himanshu Gupta, Joint Managing Director of S. Chand, told NDTV the company planned to discontinue the book and reword new versions. “We are also trying to contact the author who may have died because he was very old,” Gupta stated.Dateline: EnglandDonald Junior Green, 23, admitted in Oldham Magistrates’ Court to “accidentally” handing out bags of cocaine to several young trick-or-treaters—who just happened to be the children of a police officer. According to London’s Daily Telegraph, Green told the court he reached into his pocket when the three children showed up at his door on Halloween. Instead of pulling out candy, however, he produced a plastic pack containing eight bags of cocaine, which he had purchased for 200 pounds ($320) earlier that day. Green then dropped the drugs into the bags of the children—ages 8, 6 and 5. Shortly after closing the door, Green realized his mistake. He went out on foot, scouring the streets of Oldham in northern England, looking for the costumed kids. But the children’s father, an off-duty police constable named Simon Fowell, had already taken them home and discovered the cocaine. Green was sentenced to perform 130 hours community service and ordered to pay 145 pounds ($230) in court costs.Dateline: OhioA judge offering a convicted drug dealer a chance at treatment instead of prison was forced to turn down the convict’s in-court plea to smoke “one more joint.” Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge Melba Marsh said she was willing to work with 19-year-old Damaine Mitchell, who was charged with trafficking marijuana. A treatment program would have kept the teen out of prison and erased the charge from his record. All Mitchell had to do was give up smoking pot. “That’s going to be hard for me to do, to be honest with you,” Mitchell told the judge. “I like smoking weed.” Asked if he could get off the pot by Easter, Mitchell admitted he could not. The judge offered Valentine’s Day. That wasn’t going to work for Mitchell either. Several other dates were offered, with Mitchell eventually saying, “If I put my mind to it I can, [but] I won’t want to.” Mitchell eventually capitulated to the idea of treatment but had one final request for the judge: “I know this is probably not the right question to ask, [but] can I get a little time at least [to] get one more joint in?” The judge wasn’t exactly enthralled by the idea of toking up in court. “No. You can’t have one more joint for old time’s sake,” she said. Marsh ordered Mitchell to return to her court for sentencing after he deals with an unrelated trespassing charge. “That’s the first time I’ve ever had a request for marijuana while they’re serving time in jail,” Marsh told the Cincinnati Enquirer.Dateline: IllinoisPolice in Chicago say a 36-year-old armed robber donned a ski mask in order to hide her identity from her victim—her own mother. According to investigators, Julie Franck and an accomplice both wore ski masks on Tuesday, Oct. 9, when they attacked Franck’s 55-year-old mother outside her apartment. The Chicago Sun-Times reports Franck’s accomplice shocked the victim about 15 times with a stun gun. The robbers made off with a $40,000 engagement ring, several debit and credit cards, and $200 in cash. Prosecutors say that during the scuffle over valuables, a neighbor managed to pull off Franck’s mask, exposing her face. Franck fled the scene in a Smart car, but was arrested earlier this month. She is being held on $300,000 bail. Police declined to comment about her alleged accomplice or why it took more than a month to actually arrest Franck.
Compiled by Devin D. O'Leary. Email your weird news to devin@alibi.com.
