1. 17 Jan



    The moment Armstrong lays blame on his sponsors (for tacitly knowing about it, and even funding his habit) or on the cycling world, or on anything else is the moment where you might want to just turn off the television, because you’ll know that he really isn’t very sorry for anything. He’s just sorry that the proof of his doping became too overwhelming for his own ego to continue to deny.
    — Marc Ambinder says Lance Armstrong deserves nothing
     

  2. 12 Dec


    You know the handheld shooters used to launch T-shirts into crowds at basketball games? Apparently, they can be used in other, very illegal ways. Last weekend, U.S. Border Patrol agents found 33 cans holding 85 pounds of marijuana scattered across a field near Yuma, Arizona. After a little more nosing around, they also found an empty carbon dioxide tank. Their conclusion: Mexican drug smugglers are now using pneumatic cannons — essentially larger cousins of the devices used in sports arenas — to shoot their wares at least 500 feet into the U.S. The can-shooting cannons are also suspiciously similar to ones built on the TV show Mythbusters, another possible inspiration. Keep reading PHOTO: David McNew/Getty Image

    You know the handheld shooters used to launch T-shirts into crowds at basketball games? Apparently, they can be used in other, very illegal ways.

    Last weekend, U.S. Border Patrol agents found 33 cans holding 85 pounds of marijuana scattered across a field near Yuma, Arizona. After a little more nosing around, they also found an empty carbon dioxide tank. Their conclusion: Mexican drug smugglers are now using pneumatic cannons — essentially larger cousins of the devices used in sports arenas — to shoot their wares at least 500 feet into the U.S.

    The can-shooting cannons are also suspiciously similar to ones built on the TV show Mythbusters, another possible inspiration.

    Keep reading

    PHOTO: David McNew/Getty Image

    (Source: theweek.com)

     

  3. 22 Oct


    “It was the whack heard around the world.” In January 1994, at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Nancy Kerrigan was assaulted by a masked attacker who clubbed her in the knee, leaving her unable to skate. Her biggest rival, Tonya Harding, went on to a first-place victory, stirring rumors that she’d orchestrated the attack. Harding pleaded guilty to conspiracy that March to avoid possible jail time, but she maintains her innocence. Lance Armstrong and 9 other disgraced athletes

    “It was the whack heard around the world.” In January 1994, at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Nancy Kerrigan was assaulted by a masked attacker who clubbed her in the knee, leaving her unable to skate. Her biggest rival, Tonya Harding, went on to a first-place victory, stirring rumors that she’d orchestrated the attack. Harding pleaded guilty to conspiracy that March to avoid possible jail time, but she maintains her innocence.

    Lance Armstrong and 9 other disgraced athletes

     

  4. 19 Jul



    The high schooler who allegedly ran a $3 million drug ring

    Most teenagers earn minimum wage in their after-school jobs. According to police, 17-year-old Tyler Pagenstecher of Mason, Ohio, has been hauling in a whole lot more: About $20,000 a month.

    “He looks like someone that would be in your church youth group,” says prosecutor David Fornshell. “He looks like somebody that would be on student council.”

     

  5. 5 Jul



    Invented: Marijuana that doesn't get you high

    Although it appears that the Obama administration is cracking down on medical marijuana, a number of the drug’s health benefits have become increasingly indisputable. One Israeli company hopes that it can create a middle ground: Tikun Olam has successfully created a strain of weed called Avidekel that provides many of the helpful medicinal effects of cannabis minus one notable differentiator — it doesn’t get you high. “Whyyyyyyyyy?” asks Victoria Kekiepmis at the Village Voice. 

     

  6. 21 May



    GOOD DAY FOR:

    Google’s world domination
    Google Chrome surpasses Windows Internet Explorer to become the most used web browser on Earth. [Tecca] 

    Throwback jerseys
    The oldest known Babe Ruth jersey sells for a record-breaking $4.4 million, making it the most expensive piece of sports memorabilia ever. [Business Insider]  

    Submerged swilling
    Beer maker Guinness celebrates its 250th birthday by converting a submarine into an underwater bar. [Discovery News] 

    BAD DAY FOR:

    Spin-cycle parenting
    Two parents attempt to scare their child in a laundromat by putting him in a washing machine, which turns on when they shut the door. [Gawker]

    Fair-weather pet owning
    As the popularity of the Harry Potter series wanes, hundreds of Potter fans abandon their pet owls. [Geekosystem]  

    Pot deals
    Harbor Patrol agents in California discover 4 tons of marijuana worth $3.6 million floating in the ocean, without a boat in sight. [Newser]

    For more winners and losers see: Good day, bad day: May 18, 2012

     

  7. 26 Apr


    A half dozen teens in California have ended up in emergency rooms after drinking alcohol that had been extracted from hand sanitizer.

    Through a distillation process, the kids were able to create a moonshine with a whopping 60 percent alcohol content. If that seems dumb and dangerous, here are 9 other stupid ways teens are making the legal illicit

     

  8. 20 Apr


    Marijuana-infused wine is making a comeback. What originally began as a novelty in the 1980s is becoming more commonplace as winemakers look to ferment grapes with THC-laden leaves.  “While it neither got me stoned nor made me want to ditch the glass of 1985 Roumier Bonnes-Mares that I was holding in my other hand, it was certainly a novel experience.” - Michael Sternberg at The Daily Beast

    Marijuana-infused wine is making a comeback. What originally began as a novelty in the 1980s is becoming more commonplace as winemakers look to ferment grapes with THC-laden leaves. 

    “While it neither got me stoned nor made me want to ditch the glass of 1985 Roumier Bonnes-Mares that I was holding in my other hand, it was certainly a novel experience.” - Michael Sternberg at The Daily Beast

     

  9. 30 Jan


    Demi Moore was recently released from a Los Angeles hospital following what’s been reported as a bender during which the Charlie’s Angels actress allegedly did “whip-its,” or inhaled nitrous oxide, eventually losing consciousness. What exactly is a “whip-it” and how dangerous are they?

    Demi Moore was recently released from a Los Angeles hospital following what’s been reported as a bender during which the Charlie’s Angels actress allegedly did “whip-its,” or inhaled nitrous oxide, eventually losing consciousness. What exactly is a “whip-it” and how dangerous are they?

     

  10. 5 Jan


    An amiable chocolate Lab has unwittingly landed at the center of a Fourth Amendment battle, as the Supreme Court considers a case questioning the constitutionality of drug-sniffing dogs.

    An amiable chocolate Lab has unwittingly landed at the center of a Fourth Amendment battle, as the Supreme Court considers a case questioning the constitutionality of drug-sniffing dogs.

     

  11. 19 Dec


    Why are kids smoking more weed than ever before? Think about it this way: In 1978, 40 percent of 12th-graders admitted to smoking pot. Now most of them are 50 years old with kids of their own. “Would those parents who smoked marijuana in high school be very upset if they found out their kids were doing it?” asks Janice D’Arcy at The Washington Post. Probably not. It’s math, really. More theories

    Why are kids smoking more weed than ever before? Think about it this way: In 1978, 40 percent of 12th-graders admitted to smoking pot. Now most of them are 50 years old with kids of their own. “Would those parents who smoked marijuana in high school be very upset if they found out their kids were doing it?” asks Janice D’Arcy at The Washington Post. Probably not. It’s math, really. More theories

     

  12. 17 Nov



    Study: Kids with high IQs are more likely to use drugs when they grow up

    …and the likelihood is stronger among females than males — according to a new British study published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. Researchers have previously posited that children with a high IQ can grow up to be heavier drinkers. Now drugs, too? Here, a guide.

     

  13. 6 Sep



    The correlation between obesity and marijuana

    Surprising new research has found that pot smokers are actually thinner than those who don’t indulge in marijuana. What’s behind this phenomenon?