Daily Commentary – Wednesday December 6th, 2006

Dana Pretzer in his morning update discusses

• Hair Today, Gone Tommorow

Social Security Fraud … Pete Costello Accused of Faking Retardation

Since Peter Costello was 8 years old he allegedly was pretending to be retarded. His mother, Rosie Marie Costello had collected disability checks on his behalf for 20 years. Nice. There are actually people out their with real disabilities and we get people scamming the system pretending to be retarded. The depths of which people will sink just never ends.

Pete and Rosie Marie Costello were indicted in September on charges of conspiracy to defraud the government and Social Security fraud, and the case was unsealed Tuesday. The Vancouver pair pleaded not guilty in federal court in Tacoma on Tuesday after the case was unsealed. The traffic ticket was deferred.

Barbosa filed with the court two videos of Pete Costello taken this year: In one, he allegedly feigns retardation during an interview with Social Security workers; the other is of him contesting the traffic ticket in a courtroom earlier this year. (AP)

Bizarre Stories of the Day …

Flatulence Causes Plane to have Unscheduled landing in Nashville, TN

This may be the next Southwest TV ad for “Wanna Get Away” even though the incident happened aboard an American Airlines flight. An American Airlines flight made an emergency landing in Nashville, TN as passengers reported smelling struck matches.

The passengers and five crew members were brought off the plane, together with all the luggage, to go through security checks again. Bomb-sniffing dogs found spent matches.

The FBI questioned a passenger who admitted she struck the matches in an attempt to conceal body odor, Lowrance said. The woman lives near Dallas and has a medical condition. (WBIR)

Wanna Get Away … ?

South Carolina Mother has Son Arrested for Playing with Christmas Presents

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) – A fed-up mother had her 12-year-old son arrested for allegedly rummaging through his great-grandmother’s things and playing with his Christmas present early.

The mother called police Sunday after learning her son had disobeyed orders and repeatedly taken a Game Boy from its hiding place at his grandmother’s house next door and played with it. He was arrested on petty larceny charges, taken to the local police station in handcuffs and held until his mother picked him up after church.

 

Scared of Santa – The Pictures

If you have small children, odds are you probably went through the period of waiting in line for the picture with Santa. And at that moment of truimph, where you are at the front of the line, your child goes into complete meltdown.

Well, some newspapers around the country put together a collection of Children Scared of Santa pictures  that will have you in tears. Go through the collection, it is worth it.

US Travelers are Warned … More US cities are catching wind of the impact of crime on tourism in Caribbean countries

The word is out there to potential Caribbean travelers … More US cities are catching wind of the impact of crime on tourism in Caribbean countries. Once petty crimes seem to be increasing and escalating from “aggressive soliciting, muggings and purse snatchings” to “armed robberies, burglaries and sometimes assaults”.

Some American dailies as well as the US State Department have warned travelers about possible dangers they could encounter traveling to the region. Different types of accommodations are also susceptible to specific types of criminal behavior, according to warnings.

According to a Washington Post report, properties that offer a romantic and isolated get-away are sometimes easy targets for criminals because there is either little or no security. There have also been more small hotel and motel break-ins, and thieves have hit vacation rental spots, the report noted. Another trend reported is hotel room break-ins while guests are in them. (The Nassau Guardian)