[ozswede]

Beard Olympics sees men head to Germany to test the mettle of their facial hair

Do you proudly wield a hefty amount of facial hair? Do you take meticulous care of your beard, and relish every opportunity to show it off?

Then the Beard Olympics and the German Beard Championships could be just the thing for you.

Held in Eging am See, in Lower Bavaria, the competitions see the proudly bearded flock to take part.

This year, 100 men came to test their facial hair mettle, with participants coming from Italy, the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland and Israel as well as Germany.


Iconique

It was up to a panel of seven trained barbers and hairdressers to choose the winners across the multiple categories.

These included ‘Muscateer’, ‘Dali’ (as in Salvador Dali-inspired) and ‘Natural,’ for the beard connoisseurs who like to let their facial hair fly free.


Christian Feicht, from Germany, is the president of the East Bavarian Beard and Moustache Club

Christian Feicht, president of the host organisation, the East Bavarian Beard and Moustache Club, said the jury would assess the beards on mass, measuring length and density to choose their winners.

While he said the competition is overall a friendly event, he’s quoted in DPA International as saying the competitors have a ‘certain ambition and seriousness’.

‘Beard care is actually the most important thing,’ he said.

‘The more “material” you have, the more you have to style.’

Fancy giving it a go?

To join in with the German Beard Championships, participants needed to be a resident of Germany or a member of a relevant club.

Meanwhile, as the name suggests, people from all over the world were able take part in the Beard Olympics.

If you want to try your hand (and beard) at competing, there’s the 2023 World Beard and Moustache Championships is coming up in Auckland, New Zealand, taking place on Saturday February 25 that year.

Note: If I was judging the Beard Olympics, the winner would be the shortest one. But each to their own...

[Fatima99]

Holland & Barrett stuns shoppers with new veg-shaped vegan sex toys



Health food store Holland & Barrett has begun selling veg-shaped vegan sex toys.

The chain is reportedly helping customers get their five-a-day in new ways, with silicone corn on the cob, chilli peppers, carrots, bananas and aubergines.

The £16.95 vibrating bullets are made by VeganToys, who specialise in “guilt-free pleasure”.

One woman, who bought the corn on the cob claiming she was searching for food on the Holland & Barrett website, shared her confusion when it arrived.

She wrote in her five-star review: “At first I was a bit surprised at what I got as I was expecting a nice cob for dinner.



"I soon realised this was a whole other ball game, but I decided to make the most of this monster and I can honestly say it was the best experience of my life.

"Definitely not suitable for vegans if you know what I mean.”

The shopper, who went by the name “Karen” in her reviews, also purchased the aubergine.

She wrote: “He’s a big boy. I ­recommend working your way up as he’s quite substantial.



“Definitely buy the corn on the cob one with it for a more fulfilling experience. Enjoy ladies...”

The website description for the Chilli Pepper Bullet Vibrator reads: "Let's bring some heat to your sexual health with the limited edition Chill Pepper Vibrator.

"Curved at the tip and powered with 7 settings this chilli will hit all the right places and meet your sexual needs."

Where's the cucumber? NOOOOO don't answer that

17 pounds of illegal sperm whale vomit seized by police during Sting operation
October 27, 2021 by adminaws

Indian officials seized about 17 pounds of sperm whale vomit, also known as ambergris, on Saturday night, according to multiple reports.

Ambergris is a waxy substance that comes from the intestines of a sperm whale and is said to be used to make high-quality perfumes. According to National Geographic, when sperm whales have a “stomach or throat irritant… they coat it with a greasy substance” [ambergris] and cast it out.”

A district forester in India, K. Arivozhi, said: The Hindu: “When the animal regurgitates the mass, it floats a foot below the surface of the sea. Only those who know about it can collect it.”

Times of India said forest officials in Tiruvarur, Tamil Nadu, India set a trap on Saturday after receiving a tip that a “gang” was trying to sell the substance in foreign markets. Officials approached two men believed to be in possession of the ambergris and offered to buy it from them.

The men fell into the trap and were both arrested after offering to sell 17 pounds of ambergris to the undercover officers. From Times of India’s In the latest reporting, the men – S. Nijamudeen, 53, and Zahir Hussain, 52, are in Nannilam prison.

According to Sin, the whale vomit was worth about $1 million.

It is illegal in the US to use ambergris because the sperm whale is protected; however, it is commonly used in foreign markets. The substance is also contraband in India.

This is because those seeking to make a profit from the substance are known to illegally hunt sperm whales “to extract the valuable Ambergris from its stomach”, The Indian Express reported.

Speak with SinSumanth Bindumadhav, senior natural disaster manager at Humane Society International, said he and other conservationists fear that more people will turn to sperm whales for the substance, rather than just collecting it when it comes to the surface.

“While there used to be a time when people happened to find ambergris in the ocean, this could lead to people killing sperm whales in large numbers and looking for [ambergris] simply because the chances of finding it otherwise are so minimal,” he said.

The men arrested on Saturday were not the first to be caught with the illegal substance in India in recent months.

In June, forest officials in Kerala, India seized nearly 42 pounds of the substance from three men after receiving a tip that a group was planning to sell it in a nearby town, the Hindu Times said. Those caught with the ambergris told the agents they bought it from fishermen in Sri Lanka; however, they were all arrested because it is illegal to own or trade the product in India.

In August, local media reported that police seized 176 pounds of the substance from a group of five in India’s Bengaluru.

[prokroustis]

The only church in the world without a roof is in Greece

Panagia Kakaviotissa is in Limnos island

People are oftentimes left in awe at the sight of grande Church buildings, chapels, or monasteries clinging to steep cliffs, as if suspended in mid-air, monasteries with unique architecture or carrying a special history.

These religious structures make up the incredibly diverse and rich traditions of Orthodox Christianity from one end of Greece to the other. But there is a small church that stands out among them all for a very strange reason.

Panagia Kakaviotissa on the island of Limnos, is the only small church without a roof in the country, possibly in the world.

The picturesque chapel is perched at the top of a mountain in Limnos. Located under a cave, Panagia Kakaviotissa is the only small church in Greece without a roof. It took its name from the mountain Kakavo in which it is located, 4 km southeast of the port of Myrina.

The history of the small church that covers the cave begins in 1,300 when it was erected. There, hermit monks decided to follow their calling and practice asceticism.

In 1305 the church became the property of the monastery of Megisti Lavra of Mount Athos, when monks from Agios Efstratios who belonged to the monastery, settled in the chapel to protect themselves from Turkish raids.

It was then, under the rocky “canopy”, the hermits built the small temple for the monks to perform the divine service. Over the years, the monks passed away and the remaining hermit decided to leave Limnos and go to Mount Athos.

Tradition has it that before leaving for Mount Athos, the last monk found a local shepherd from the Moumtzi family and entrusted him with the icon of the Virgin Mary, “Rodon the amaranth”. The monk asked the shepherd to place the icon in the temple each Tuesday following Easter Day for the mass.

Then, according to folklore legend, the ascetic entered the sea, opened his garments, which became a boat and left for Mount Athos. Young monks did not come to the chapel, which remained an attraction of the island. The chapel of “Panagia tis Kakaviotissa” is a sanctuary for those who want to be isolated and pray.

Access to the temple is via a path that leads to the top of Mount Kakavos.

[Mintydreams00]

Travelling walrus hitches a lift with Dutch submarine


Freya the walrus enjoying a free ride on board the HNLMS Dolfijn. Photo: Koninklijke Marine

Submarines don’t often pick up hitchhikers, but a Dutch vessel made an exception this week when they gave a lift to an itinerant walrus.

Freya, the first walrus to be sighted off the Dutch coast in 23 years, was filmed by submariners enjoying a rest on HNLMS Dolfijn, which appropriately belongs to the Walrus class of vessels, on Tuesday morning.

‘It looks like they have more in common with this species of seal than we thought,’ the crew said on its Twitter feed. ‘Freya the walrus sought out the Dolfijn [dolphin] for a hug!’



The female walrus has been in Dutch waters for at least two months, having previously visited the island of Schiermonnikoog and the Zuiderpier in Harlingen.

She is thought to have swum down from her regular habitat in the polar circle via Denmark and Germany during the summer. The submarine crew said she appeared to be in good health.

The Pieterburen sea mammal rescue centre said she was ‘well able to look after herself and will find her way home in time if left to her own devices’.

[PennySerenade]

It's not uncommon for people in Toronto to come across squirrels, sparrows, raccoons, rabbits — sometimes even foxes — while going about their daily lives in the city. But deer? Among a population of roughly three million people? Not so much.

Dax Martin was thus surprised on Sunday morning when he happened across what appeared to be a young buck just chilling outside a popular grocery store.

"Such an unexpected encounter in the No Frills parking lot this morning on my way to work," wrote Martin when sharing video footage of the beautiful forest creature in a Facebook group for members of the Bloor West Village, High Park and Junction communities.

"I was worried he would run out to the street. Lucky I was able to herd him back into the park."



VIDEO HERE:
https://twitter.com/i/status/1452736841040474112

The grocery store in question, on Bloor Street West just east of Runnymede Road, is only about 400 metres away from the sprawling High Park, which is likely where the deer came from.

Martin says he noticed a hole in a fence that borders the northwest section of the park and suspects that the wild animal came through it.

"I've never seen a deer in the 5 years I've lived here," he tells blogTO.

"It was an unexpected encounter and a strange feeling because no one else was on the street at the time or even saw it. It was just me and the deer. I didn't want it to run on to the road and I'm glad it ran back into the park."



Encounters with deer are far less common around here than those with skunks, raccoons or even coyotes; the City of Toronto's wildlife advice page doesn't even have a section dedicated to dealing with them.

Still, these shy, stoic creatures do venture out into city streets from time to time, delighting all who see them.

"It's amazing to discover the beauty of Toronto's wildlife, living in the second world within our city," said Toronto Animal Services about a different deer encounter on Twitter amid Ontario's longest lockdown, when forest creatures were being spotted everywhere.

"But remember, observe from a distance."

A Photo Of BJ Novak Was Accidentally Deemed Public Domain, And Now His Face Is Printed On Personal Care Items And Household Products Across The World



Most of us are used to seeing BJ Novak on TV. You probably know him best from his role on The Office and might have watched his recent Hulu anthology series, The Premise, too.

If you're living in Sweden, Uruguay, or the US — or searching for personal care items online from anywhere else — then it's possible you've also caught a glimpse of BJ's face on an assortment of miscellaneous product packages.



Like this multicolored face painting kit, for example:



Not ringing any bells? How about this Nordic cologne?



Or these rechargeable hair clippers...?



There's this razor as well:



Anyone wondering when and why BJ decided to dabble in stock photo modeling will find some answers on the actor's Instagram story today, where he shared the merchandise snapshots above alongside a message explaining what exactly is going on here.



Years ago, someone mistakenly put an image of me on a public domain site, and now apparently I am on products all around the world," he wrote.



It most likely wouldn't be difficult for BJ to request that his photo is removed from the public domain website, but the star noted that he's currently "too amused to do anything about it," which is a sentiment we can get behind.

Details of ancient Olmec site in Mexico revealed by aerial remote-sensing



Aerial remote-sensing of a large region of Mexico has revealed hundreds of ancient Mesoamerican ceremonial centers, including a large one at an important site for the ancient Olmec culture that is known for its colossal stone heads.
The remote-sensing method, called lidar, pinpointed 478 ceremonial centers in areas that were home to the ancient Olmec and Maya cultures dating to roughly 1100-400 BC, researchers said on Monday. The study was the largest such survey involving ancient Mesoamerica, covering all of the state of Tabasco, southern Veracruz and bits of Chiapas, Campeche and Oaxaca.
Lidar, short for Light Detection and Ranging, uses a pulsed laser and other data obtained while flying over a site to generate three-dimensional information about the shape of surface characteristics. It penetrates vegetation and pinpoints structures that otherwise might not be seen from the air or the ground.
A large ceremonial center was spotted at the early Olmec site called San Lorenzo, which is located in Veracruz in the lowlands near the Gulf of Mexico and was at its peak from roughly 1400-1000 BC. The Olmecs represented the oldest-known major Mesoamerican civilization and are thought to have influenced later cultures, including the Maya.

University of Arizona archaeologist Takeshi Inomata, who led the study published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour, said lidar spotted a large and previously unknown rectangular earthen ceremonial space at San Lorenzo.
It measures about 3,300 feet by 900 feet (1,000 meters by 275 meters), with 20 platforms around the edge slightly elevated above it. Its purpose remains unclear but it may have been a plaza where large numbers of people gathered for some type of ceremonies, while the platforms surrounding the plaza may have had residences, Inomata said.
The Olmec heads, each fashioned from a single basalt boulder, are among the most evocative pieces of art from ancient Mesoamerica. The naturalistic facial features are carved in such a way that experts suspect they are representations of actual ancient Olmec rulers.
Ten of the heads have been discovered at San Lorenzo. Inomata said there may be more of them undiscovered at related sites.
Many of the hundreds of ceremonial complexes identified in the study share common layouts like the one at San Lorenzo. Many appear to have been built with orientations aligned with the direction of sunrise on specific key ceremonial dates.

"These centers were probably the earliest material expressions of basic concepts of Mesoamerican calendars," Inomata said, noting that such calendars were based on a unit of 20 days -- matching the number of platforms around the San Lorenzo ceremonial center.
An even larger ceremonial center, described by Inomata and his colleagues last year, was found at a site in the Maya region called Aguada Fenix in Tabasco near the Guatemalan border. Dating to slightly later than the one at San Lorenzo, it and others found in the study suggest that Olmecs and other peoples in the region exchanged ideas.
Lidar has proven increasingly useful for archaeologists.
"The advantage of lidar is that it provides a three-dimensional, birds-eye view of the landscape and modifications to it made by humans -- ancient and modern -- in the form of building, transportation, agricultural and water control infrastructure," said lidar engineer and study co-author Juan Carlos Fernandez-Diaz of the University of Houston's National Center of Airborne Laser Mapping.
"Lidar also allows us to 'see' the landscape and infrastructure that in many parts of the world is hidden under forest cover," Fernandez-Diaz added.

https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/ ... index.html

Former addict gives ‘a little bit of love’ out on Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside

James Harry is no stranger to the back alleys and mean streets on Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside.

Originally from the Haisla Nation in Northern B.C., he spent many years downtown before he, along with his wife, both got sober. They now dedicate their lives to helping others lead a better life.

Along with helping others get into treatment – he started a lunch program at the beginning of the pandemic and says its now grown into something much larger.

“It just started out like 12 lunches,” he told APTN News. “The wife and I during the pandemic, the start of the pandemic and we made 12 canned salmon sandwiches we bought some bananas and some juice handed them out.

“Word got out next thing families were bored at home they were baking bread, banana bread making sandwiches we got one of our youth donating their own money to buy snacks for us.”

Every Wednesday, more than a dozen volunteers gather near the infamous intersection of Main and Hastings Street- an area of the city where drugs and crime are rampant.

Harry explains it’s not just about getting a free lunch but an opportunity to inspire others.

“We hope that people that receive and feel the love that has gone into this and we hope it kickstarts their healing journey we thank you for our volunteers and what they do for the downtown,” he says.

As the volunteers roll out with the bagged lunches – people on the streets express their appreciation –

“Thank you, brother man, I appreciate what you guys are doing and you are doing an awesome job keep up the good work,” says one man.

Charlie Morrison is one of the volunteers. He attended the former residential school in Port Alberni, B.C.

He says he is really proud to help others.

“Even helping James out it’s a big thing for me because I’ve been sober for 37 years now and that’s a big plus for me especially being a survivor because I could’ve been out on the streets like the people we are helping, that could have been me there,” says Morrison fighting back tears.

“That’s really emotional.”

Ernest Edgar Jr. and his best friend Donovan Bolton look forward to the lunches every week.

“A lot of us down here are hurting but because there is so much help down here I used to do drugs but I am stopping now I’m sobering up and it’s because of these guys- it’s a lot of help,” says Edgar Jr.

For Harry the message is simple.

“This is just a little bit of love to carry on their day to know they are not forgotten,” he says.

What started with just 12 lunches has now bloomed into 280 lunches every Wednesday and now corporate donations are pouring in.

[goldie0608]

World Series 2021 - Braves' Charlie Morton threw 16 pitches on a broken leg -- and then apologized it wasn't more



Inside the training room of the visiting clubhouse at Minute Maid Park during Game 1 of the World Series, friends kept dropping by to apologize to Atlanta Braves pitcher Charlie Morton for his misfortune. His response to them, and to others who reached out and wished him well after a comebacker broke his leg, was the same: "I'm sorry."

The guy who wore a 102 mph shot off his right fibula in the second inning was sorry. The guy who worked through the pain to face three more batters -- and retire all of them -- was sorry. The guy who pushed himself so far that his leg quite literally gave out under the stress of his effort was sorry.

"And if that doesn't tell you everything you need to know about Charlie Morton," Atlanta star Freddie Freeman said, "I'm not sure what does."

Pain, it's important to understand, always has been part of Morton's baseball experience. It's not something he'd ever wish on anyone else -- Morton is legendarily earnest, as his apologies illustrate -- but he's here now, still playing baseball at 37 years old, because of what he learned in the first half of his career, when all he seemed to know was what it felt like for his body to betray him. There were injuries big and little, prime years lost and talent stolen, and eventually Morton started to understand that his job entails coming to terms with a barbaric reality: Throwing a baseball for a living necessitates embracing the hurt.

Still, what Morton did Tuesday night went beyond pain tolerance. The tone he set in Atlanta's 6-2 victory over the Houston Astros was abundantly clear. He wanted to win a championship so badly that he'd pitch until his body no longer let him. He wanted to do it against the team with which he won a ring in 2017 and for the team to which he returned this year after nearly a decade and a half away.

"He was doing exactly what we hired him to do," Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said. "Bring credibility. He did it all year. He did it tonight. And I hate it for him. He really is the kind of guy that would break his leg and say he's sorry."

Atlanta signed Morton to a one-year, $15 million deal last November because his wizened arm could still whip 97 mph fastballs and feather 80 mph curveballs, sure. But more than that, it was for the same reason he was so beloved in the Tampa Bay Rays' and Astros' clubhouses before Atlanta's: Having Morton around is an exercise in joy and amusement, in seeing someone who bursts with good vibes except for when he's being self-deprecating.

"He goes eight innings, gives up one run and is like, 'I'm sorry, guys,'" Atlanta catcher Travis d'Arnaud said. "He genuinely, sincerely feels like he shouldn't have given up a run."

"Everyone knows his résumé, and his humility is something you wouldn't expect from someone with that kind of résumé. He's just so genuine all the time, very open with anything he's thinking to anybody. Doesn't matter if you've never played a day in your life or you've got 20 years in the big leagues."

This is the reason so many teammates dropped by the training room Tuesday night. Morton is beloved. He was when he arrived in Atlanta as a 24-year-old after spending seven years in the minors, and he was when Tommy John surgery and hip surgery and shoulder injuries derailed his career, and he is now that he has finally stayed healthy for a few years in a row -- culminating this season, in which he tied for the National League lead with 33 starts and was characteristically dominant in most.

At first, Morton didn't look particularly wounded by the 96 mph fastball that Yuli Gurriel, the American League batting champion, ricocheted off Morton, bouncing to Freeman for an easy out. Morton acted like it was nothing. He struck out Chas McCormick on four pitches. He threw six more to Martin Maldonado, occasionally grimacing but perhaps no more than in an average Charlie Morton start, during which his faces are regularly amusing.

Between innings, an X-ray machine in the stadium snapped an image of Morton's leg, and the diagnosis was: no break. It hurt, but his shoulder and elbow and hip hurt once upon a time, too, and he pushed himself through those. This was the World Series. Even though Atlanta thinks so much of Morton it already signed him to a $20 million extension for 2022, nobody can predict what's to come. Maybe this was his best chance at a title. Discomfort wasn't going to stop him from returning.

So back he came for the third inning, when he threw six pitches and caught Altuve staring at a curveball for the second time, only after this one he pirouetted away, a grimace creasing his face, and avoided landing on a ginger leg that 30 minutes, 39 seconds earlier had been ambushed by Gurriel's batted ball.

"It's incredible that he even thought of going out there, and I bet you it was so A.J. could have some more time to get ready," d'Arnaud said of A.J. Minter, the reliever who spelled Morton with a season-high 2⅔ innings. "He sacrificed himself."

There is something about this Braves team and how it responds to injuries. In the middle of the year, it lost Ronald Acuña Jr., one of the best players in baseball, to a torn ACL -- and got better. Tuesday, relievers needed to get the final 20 outs against a devastating Astros lineup. It worked in Game 1. With Morton out for the rest of the World Series (a second X-ray, after the third inning, revealed the fibula fracture), the prospect of multiple bullpen games going forward makes the path even more difficult.

That's why Morton was sorry. Not for anything he actively did, of course, but because Gurriel's bat happened to hit his pitch at a negative-6-degree angle and the cut of the grass and swing of his leg conspired such that the latter ended up in a boot. He was sorry that he went only 2⅓ innings, because he expected more than that.

There was no bloody sock to memorialize Game 1, nothing tangible beyond Morton becoming quite literally a Sorry Charlie. In the end, there's just the hope that the guy who kept pitching until his leg broke will have a gold-and-diamond ring to show for it.

[lush]

Massive Discount Coupon Fraud Gets Virginia Woman 12-Year Prison Sentence
October 27, 2021

• Got to hand it to her — she was an expert at what she did.



You wouldn’t think faking a discount coupon is that big of a deal. Sure, it’s illegal, but saving an illegitimate dollar on toothpaste seems like a victimless crime.

But start stacking those small savings up and you could end up with significant savings. It was the sheer scale of her coupon fraud operation that caused the FBI to bust a Virginia woman’s coupon fraud operation.

In September 2021, Lori Ann Talens, 41, got slapped with a 12-year prison sentence for running a nation-spanning discount coupon fraud scheme. On top of that, the courts ordered her to pay whopping $31.8 million in restitution to the companies she’d defrauded.

In addition to Talens herself, her husband Pacifico Talens, Jr., 43, also got himself an 87-month sentence. According to the FBI, he knowingly assisted and profited from the scheme, despite not being directly involved in the production of the coupons.

If that seems like a ridiculous sentence for coupon fraud, you’re probably not grasping the sheer scale at which Talens operated. That’s alright, though — even the FBI didn’t initially realize just how big of a fraud they were dealing with.

“It was a different type of case,” summarized special agent Shannon Brill.


Fake coupons found at Talens’ home. Photo courtesy of the FBI.

A Difficult Start

Talens and her fraudulent ways first came to the authorities’ attention when a person who had bought a coupon from her reported her to the Coupon Information Center (CIC). The CIC is a group of consumer goods manufacturers that upholds the validity of discount coupons.

The CIC contacted the FBI and got in touch with postal inspector Jason Thomasson. At that time, though, CIC didn’t have an estimate of how much money Talens’ operation was costing them.

Thomasson informed the CIC that without a loss estimate, there was little to nothing he could do. So, the CIC decided to get an estimate the hard way.

According to the Eastern District of Virginia Attorney’s Office, the CIC started buying coupons from Talens to see just what she was up to. In the end, they bought enough coupons to deliver more than $125,000 in illegitimate savings.

The CIC called Thomasson again, and this time they had a case. In the best buddy cop movie tradition, Thomasson started looking for a partner and paired up with Brill.

Together, they tackled the case, and after some time confirmed Talens as the source of the fake coupons. Then, the cops did what cops do and carried out a search warrant at Talens’ residence.

It was only then that they realized how ridiculously huge her operation was.

‘Coupons in Every Pocket’

When the investigators arrived at Talen’s home, they didn’t find just a few stacks of poorly made fake coupons. The house was filled — and we mean literally filled — with professional-quality counterfeits.

According to Thomasson, they discovered the coupons “in every crevice of the house.”

“There were coupons in every jacket pocket. They were stuffed in her vehicles,” he said.

In total, the coupons were worth more than $1 million. On the Talenses’ computer, the investigators also more than 13,000 design templates for the fakes.

“[Talens] trained herself in the different techniques she needed to manipulate barcodes to make these coupons work,” explained Brill.

Talens could use her templates to make the coupons give her whatever discount she dreamed of at practically any store. Thomasson and Brill said in several cases the discount even went over the product’s retail value.

“She had coupons for $24.99 off a $25 box of diapers. And it would work,” Thomasson said. “You’d have people walking out the door with those diapers for almost nothing.”

Highly Organized Fraud

Talens didn’t make the coupons just for herself, either. According to the investigators, she ran an intricate supply network throughout the country for customers she found on social media.

The FBI discovered Talens used an encrypted messaging app to communicate with her customers. Getting into her delivery network was an entire challenge of its own.

To get in, one of Talens’ existing customers would need to refer you to her. She’d ask you to send her a copy of your ID with evidence that you had previously used counterfeit coupons.

Talens accepted payments through everyday digital payment apps or in cryptocurrencies. Sometimes, she’d exchange coupons for the specialty coupon printing paper that her customers stole for her.

Over three years, she made a comfortable $400,000 off her fake coupons. The Talens couple used the money to fully renovate their home, on top of lavish vacations, dinners, and shopping trips.

Hurting the Little Guy

Talens’ coupons were so meticulously crafted that they were nigh-impossible to tell apart from real ones. But in a way, retailers helped Talens out with their coupon acceptance practices.

According to Thomasson and Brill, retailers usually tell not to question a customer’s coupon. If it scans correctly, just let it go through — and without mistakes, Talens’ coupons would scan.

That would help the coupons to go undetected potentially for months until they ended up at a coupon clearinghouse. The clearinghouses bill the manufacturers for the coupons and pay retailers back so the stores themselves don’t lose money on them.

“If the coupons are rejected, if they are counterfeit, then the retailer doesn’t get paid back for them. But that whole process takes a lot of time,” Brill said.

“By the time a coupon gets identified as being fraudulent or fake, that coupon has already been used who knows how many times.”

The delayed identification process can end up causing significant losses for retailers. And who gets to pay for that?

Of course, it’s us.

“Someone has to eat those losses. It ultimately funnels down to us, the consumers,” Thomasson explained.

Talens might be headed for jail now, but Thomasson and Brill say the investigation isn’t over. Next, they’ll be going after Talens’ customer network.

The FBI was nice enough to even give them a fair warning. The agency said anyone who’s bought Talen’s fake coupons “should not be surprised if they hear from investigators.”

"$31.8 million in restitution" dang...

[johngriffen]

I sometimes get REALLY DEPRESSED reviewing the news these days.
It's always about a global pandemic threatening life as we know it,
protests around the world, stupid politicians, natural disasters,
or some other really bad story.
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

Welcome to The mobi weekly news magazine
IN OTHER NEWS
THURSDAY OCTOBER 28
What is it?
Here is your chance to become an "ACE REPORTER" for our weekly news magazine.
It is your job to fine weird, funny or "good feel" stories from around the world and share them with our readers in our weekly magazine

How do you play?
Just post a story that you have come across that made you smile, laugh, feel good...
BUT NOTHING DEPRESSING

EXAMPLE POST

​Naked sunbather chases wild boar through park after it steals his laptop bag

A naked sunbather was seen chasing wild boar through a park after it stole his laptop bag.
Amusing photographs from Germany show the man running after the animal to try and claim the plastic bag back.
But the cheeky boar and its two piglets appear to be too quick for the sunbather, who can't keep up with their speedy little trotters.
As the incident unfolds, groups of friends and family sat on the grass watch on and laugh.
Heads are seen turning in surprise and amusement in the hilarious photographs.
The incident happened at Teufelssee Lake - a bathing spot in the Grunwell Forest in Berlin, Germany.

Rules:
Each Edition of IN OTHER NEWS will be open for 7 days...
You can post as many stories as you like, but you will only get paid for One Story in any 24 hour period
So in other words, you can only earn WRZ$ once a day.
Each news day will start when I post announcing it
OR at:
9:00 AM CHICAGO TIME (UTC -5)
2:00 PM GMT (UTC -0)
on those days I space out and forget to post or can't due to Real Life
Stories may be accompanied with images - but No big images, please! 800x800 pixels wide maximum
Videos are allowed, but please keep them short, and post a short summary for those that don't like to click on videos
No Duplicate stories - Where a post has been edited resulting in duplicates, then the last one in time gets disallowed.
And please limit this to reasonably family friendly stories

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IN OTHER NEWS

[ozswede]

Bat ‘winning by quite a lot’ in New Zealand’s Bird of the Year contest

New Zealand’s native birds have long been threatened by mammalian arrivals. Now, they are being thrashed by a mammal in the one arena that they might have expected dominance – the country’s annual bird of the year competition.

The election, run by Forest and Bird, allowed a surprise entry this year from the pekapeka-tou-roa, or long tailed bat, one of New Zealand’s only land-based native mammals. On Tuesday, Forest and Bird officials confirmed that the bat is winning in current polls by a considerable margin.


New Zealand’s long tailed bat, or pekapeka-tou-roa, is winning the country’s Bird of the Year competition by ‘quite a lot’.

“It’s winning overall, yeah,” said Forest and Bird spokesperson Laura Keown. “Actually, when you look at the number one and number two rankings, it’s not winning by a little. It’s winning by quite a lot.”

The bat caused some consternation when it was entered in the polls, being the first mammal in the competition’s 16-year history. Keown said Forest and Bird had granted the bat entry in an effort to raise its profile as critically endangered.

“Native pekapeka are among the most seriously threatened native animals that live in Aotearoa, but many people don’t even know they exist,” she said.

Trailing the bat in second place was the kākāpō – a large, flightless parrot and the competition’s reigning champ from last year. In third place was the kea, an alpine parrot known for its fierce intelligence and fondness for stealing paraphernalia from tourists.

The bat may be helped in the polls by powerful backers: New Zealand’s Ministry of Environment on Tuesday announced it was endorsing the pekapeka campaign. Voting on bird of the year closes at the end of the month and Keown said there was still time for an upset.

“It’s not a foregone conclusion, anything can happen. But definitely looking at the results, the bat is the frontrunner. It’s streaking ahead.”

New Zealand’s bird of the year competition is no stranger to controversy. In 2019, the arrival of hundreds of votes from Russia sparked claims of election meddling. The votes were ultimately judged legitimate, and a Forest and Bird spokesperson said at the time that interest from Russian ornithologists may be responsible. “New Zealand actually shares birds with Russia,” they said at the time. “We have the bar-tailed godwit that makes an annual round trip.”

The year before, Forest and Bird alleged that 300 fraudulent votes were cast in the online ballot by Australians attempting to rig the contest in favour of the shag. ( That's my fellow countrymen for you!)

Keown said voting had been strong this year, with more than 33,700 votes cast so far. New Zealand’s Bird of The Year attempts to raise awareness of some of the country’s endangered wildlife. The long-tailed bat is categorised as critically endangered nationwide.

Source

[Fatima99]

Istanbul Improves the Lives of Thousands of Stray Cats with Elaborate Outdoor Cat Houses



In Istanbul, a city of 15 million people that’s famous for its relaxed attitude towards stray cats, groups of volunteers build elaborate houses for their feline neighbors.

There, cats can find donated food and toys, cushions and boxes to keep them out of harsh weather, and even a new owner if they’re lucky.

It all started back in 2008, when, according to one source, an interior architect named Didem Gokgoz regularly passed through a park on her way to work in the district of Sisli—in which there were always stray cats trying to find places to keep warm in winter.

Attempting to help the felines, she placed several plastic boxes they could shelter in around Mistik Park, but officials removed them because they were seen as an eyesore.

Gradually, Gokgoz came to know the people who would feed the stray cats, and formed a plan to build more refined and pleasant shelters anchored to the ground with chains. Gokgoz invited the mayor to a meeting, and the idea was discussed in circumstances that perhaps drove home the need for some sort of action.

“There were three of us in the pouring rain: Me, my lawyer friend, and Mr. Mustafa Sarigul [then the Sisli mayor],” Gokgoz reported to Tol, a solutions-focused journalism outlet in Istanbul.

“We showed him our designs, explained how it would work and everything. Mr. Sarigul listened carefully and said, ‘OK, do it; if we think it works, we will support it.'”

Cat hotels

Estimated at 125,000, the stray cat population of Istanbul is a more appreciated component of the metropolis. A 2016 documentary called Cat was a hit with international audiences, and revealed an interesting relationship between the city’s furry residents and their human neighbors.

After getting Mr. Sarigul’s word that new houses would not be removed, Gokgoz, who now runs the nonprofit cat supplier Podo, installed two houses in Mistik Park with her friends.

The Mistik Park houses, whimsical and colorful, were a turning point, which after being covered by local news saw replication in parks around the city’s 39 districts. (See two of the designs on Tol.)

Gokgoz was flooded with requests to build houses: for two universities, cafes, and even the Industrial Development Bank of Turkey. After that came the requests to build cat houses in places further afield: the cities of Alanya, Izmir, and Gaziantep.

“It became something normal; individuals make requests for cat houses,” she said. “That was our main goal, and we’ve reached it. Today, everybody accepts that cats must have their own life spaces in the city.”

The cats too, responded to the real estate boom, and moved to them in droves.

This allows volunteers, who often organize via WhatsApp groups, to keep a closer eye on the cats’ lives, ensuring that strays who wander into the community are spayed and neutered, and that any signs of disease can be dealt with swiftly.

Sitting Bull's great-grandson identified through DNA fragments



A living descendant of the famed Lakota leader Sitting Bull has been confirmed using a novel technique for analyzing fragments of the historic figure's DNA.

Scientists were able to trace family lineages from ancient DNA to verify that 73-year-old Ernie LaPointe of South Dakota is Sitting Bull's great-grandson and closest living descendant. The findings, published Wednesday in the journal Science Advances, will likely help LaPointe in his long-standing fight to move the Lakota leader's remains from their current burial site in Mobridge, South Dakota, to a location he said has more cultural relevance to his great-grandfather.

Eske Willerslev, a professor of ecology and evolution at the University of Cambridge, said his research normally focuses on piecing together ancient DNA to understand human genetic diversity and how different groups of people around the world are similar and distinct. But he couldn't pass up the opportunity to study Sitting Bull's DNA.

"I've always been extremely fascinated by Sitting Bull because in many ways he was the perfect leader — brave and clever, but also kind," said Willerslev, who is also director of the Centre of Excellence in GeoGenetics at the University of Copenhagen.

Sitting Bull, born in 1831, was chief and medicine man of the Hunkpapa Lakota Sioux. He united the Sioux tribes across the Great Plains in the late 19th century and led the resistance against settlers who were invading tribal lands. After he was killed by Native American police in 1890, an Army doctor at the Fort Yates military base in North Dakota took a lock of Sitting Bull’s hair and his wool leggings.



The hair and leggings were obtained by the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C., in 1896, but both items were repatriated to LaPointe and his family more than 10 years ago.

When Willerslev heard more than a decade ago about LaPointe's efforts to claim the Lakota leader's bones for reburial, Willerslev said he felt compelled to assist.

"I reached out because I'm an ancient DNA researcher," he said. "I told LaPointe, 'If you want to do this, I think I can help you.'"

Obtaining enough usable fragments of Sitting Bull's DNA from the small hair sample proved challenging. Willerslev said the hair had badly degraded after being stored at room temperature at the National Museum of Natural History for more than a century.

"There was very little DNA in the hair — way too little for established methods of DNA analysis," he said. "So we had to develop a new method."



It took the scientists 14 years to develop a technique to search for "autosomal DNA," which is non-sex-specific DNA that people inherit from both their mother and father.

The researchers compared autosomal DNA from Sitting Bull's hair sample to DNA samples from LaPointe and other Lakota Sioux to establish the familial connection.
Typically, genealogy studies focus on sex-specific genetic matches, such as zeroing in on the Y chromosome, which is passed down to male descendants, or specific DNA in the mitochondria that is passed from mothers to their offspring. But since LaPointe claimed to be related to Sitting Bull on his mother's side, Willerslev said his team could not rely on these more traditional methods.

Kim TallBear, an associate professor in the faculty of Native studies at the University of Alberta, said that while confirming Sitting Bull's family lineage may help LaPointe win the dispute over his great-grandfather's final resting place, the study's findings likely don't represent an "aha" moment for the Lakota and other tribal communities.

"To my knowledge, there’s never been any real challenge to Ernie LaPointe and his siblings' direct descent from Sitting Bull," TallBear, who is a member of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate, said. "We have detailed genealogies that we keep through oral history and now also tribal genealogical documentation."

She added that these types of studies are complicated because they risk further exploiting Indigenous communities.

"Any time we participate with a scientist in reaffirming genetic definitions of what it means to be Indigenous, we are de facto helping to uphold their definitions over our own," TallBear said. "But we're stuck between a rock and a hard place because settler institutions control the disposition of Sitting Bull's remains."

Willerslev said the new method of DNA analysis could be used to confirm other familial relationships between living and historic people or to assist forensic investigations where DNA evidence may be scarce.

It’s also possible to use autosomal DNA for other high-profile genealogical studies, he added.

“In principle, you could investigate whoever you want — from outlaws like Jesse James to the Russian tsar’s family, the Romanovs,” Willerslev said in a statement. “If there is access to old DNA — typically extracted from bones, hair or teeth — they can be examined in the same way.”