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Author: Unknown Publication:** The Associated Press []
 * Title: Fla. chef has 9 reasons his octopus tastes better
 * Date of Publication:** Friday, April 2, 2010 3:46 PM EDT

First, I must say that I don't quite have the stomach for octopus, so I consider anyone who eats it braver than I. I will also say that I find it ironic that this unusual octopus was discovered on April Fool's Day. It seems that humans aren't the only ones with a sense of humor on that most unusual of holidays.
 * Response:** Head Chef Emmanuel Psomas received an unusual surprise on April Fool's Day when, while preparing an octopus for consumption in the Hellas Bakery and Restaurant in Tarpon Springs, Florida. While cooking, he noticed that the octopus had //nine// legs instead of the usual eight. Psomas has been cooking and preparing octopus for forty years, has never reported seeing anything like this before.The octopus sits in Psomas's refrigerator now, but he has every intention of eating it later.

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Author: Unknown Publication:** **The Associated Press** [|**http://home.myhughesnet.com/news/read.php?id=17665128&ps=1020&srce=news_class&action=3&lang=en&_LT=HOME_WINWC00L3_UNEWS**]
 * Title: Officer nabs alleged thief who asks for directions
 * Date of Publication:** Friday, March 26, 2010 3:40 AM EDT


 * Response:** In the state of Utah, would-be shoplifter John White stopped to ask a policeman for directions to a certain address. White perfectly matched the description of a man who had stolen two phones from a local store, and the address was the very same one that police were checking. White was apprehended and found with the two phones, along with a sample of marijuana. Charges are currently pending. I think this is another great example of how ignorant some criminals can be. Common sense dictates that if the police are looking for a criminal of your description, you do not ask a police officer for directions to a suspicious address.

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Author:** JESSICA GRESKO [|**http://home.myhughesnet.com/news/read.php?rip_id=%3CD9E757300%40news.ap.org%3E&ps=1011&_LT=HOME_LARSDCCL3_UNEWS**] Wednesday, March 3, 2010 7:18 AM EST
 * Title: Same-sex marriage becomes legal in DC; line forms
 * Publication: Associated press**
 * Date of Publication:**


 * Response:** Well, folks, it's finally happened. Same-sex marriages have been legalized in Washington, D.C., and America is eating it up. Crowds cheered as no fewer than fifty homosexual couples lined up to receive their marriage licenses."It's signaling definitely a change in the mood of the country," said one such couple. And on this, I most certainly agree. This is definitely a sign of our times: something like this would have never happened fifty--or even ten--years ago. However, unlike the cheering crowds, I absolutely despise the idea. America has finally proven that its arms are wide open to whatever abominations its people can contrive. I suppose next, a bill will be signed to legalize bestiality in the capital.



Title: NYC bomb plotter plea deal might help broaden case Author:** ADAM GOLDMAN and TOM HAYS [] Najibullah Zazi, a man who at one time operated a coffee cart near the site of the World Trade Center, became so appalled by the violence in his native country of Afghanistan that he plotted to join the Taliban and fight the U.S. military. He got as far as Pakistan in August of 2008, but never quite made it to Afghanistan. Instead, he conspired with the al-Qaida to become a martyr in a New York subway bombing. In Brooklyn on Monday, Zazi pleaded guilty to conspiring to use weapons of mass destruction, conspiring to commit murder in a foreign country, and providing material support for a terrorist organization. When Zazi (who is only twenty-five years old) is sentenced in June, he faces life in prison without parole. I believe that Zazi and others like him represent how very real the horrors taking place in the Middle East are. Such horrors can drive people to do terrible things, such as turning an innocent coffee cart operator into a potential terrorist. If America hopes to overcome these crises, then each of its citizens must remember to stay strong and not allow these atrocities to overcome them.
 * Publication:** The Associated Press
 * Date of Publication:** Tuesday, February 23, 2010 3:45 AM EST
 * Response:**

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Author:** ANTHONY McCARTNEY [] Today, we receive yet another “thriller” from the American criminal justice system. That’s right: this time, it involves the tragic death of Michael Jackson and the many conspiracies associated—by the public, the media, and the courts—with it. It is an ill-kept secret that Dr. Conrad Murray, Jackson’s physician at the time of his death, is highly suspected of causing Michael Jackson’s demise. Monday, the doctor pleaded “not guilty” to a charge of involuntary manslaughter, which in itself is a far more lenient charge than many of Jackson’s fans would like. The doctor was released from prison after posting a $75,000 bail, three times more than the amount most people face after an involuntary manslaughter charge. The prosecution, on the other hand, had pushed for a bail of $300,000. Now, only time will tell if the doctor will remain free or will be placed back behind bars where many people believe he belongs. I can see the difficulty that the judge and jury probably face. Although I am admittedly not a fan of Michael Jackson, and his hands are not exactly clean, I still believe he and his family are rightfully entitled to a bit of justice. However, being too harsh on Dr. Murray would be a violation of his constitutional rights to a fair and speedy trial. The courts must find a “middle way,” which is not an easy thing to do, considering how passionately some people feel about Michael Jackson… one way or the other.
 * Title: Michael Jackson's doctor pleads not guilty
 * Publication:** The Associated Press
 * Date of Publication:** Monday, February 8, 2010 5:01 PM EST
 * Response:**

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Author: //???// Publication:** The Associated Press []
 * Title: Sheriff: Fla. lottery winner's death a homicide
 * Date of Publication:** Tuesday, February 2, 2010 1:20 PM EST

Ah, the lottery: if you’re lucky, a great way to make an impressive sum of money. If you’re not lucky, like one Abraham Shakespeare wasn’t, then it becomes the perfect opportunity… for murder. After winning the lottery nine moths ago (a whopping $30 million), Abraham Shakespeare of Lakeland, Florida was almost immediately hounded by friends and neighbors to share his newfound wealth. It got so bad that he once told his family that he wished he’d never won. He suddenly disappeared in April of 2009, and had not been seen or heard from again… until last Thursday, when his body was found behind a home and underneath a concrete slab. The owners of the home deny anything to do with Shakespeare’s disappearance, but their story seems a bit shaky (at least to my unprofessional eye). Personally, I am inclined to believe that the owners of the home had at least //some// part to play. I find it difficult to believe that a dead man buried beneath concrete in one’s backyard can be pure coincidence, but nowadays, the story might hold up in court without difficulty. It will be interesting to follow the progress of this case and see how it all unfolds.
 * Response:**

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Author:** DON BABWIN []
 * Title: Neighbor: Stacy Peterson said 'I'm already dead'
 * Publication:** The Associated Press
 * Date of Publication:** Monday, January 25, 2010 1:23 PM EST

It would seem as though the criminal justice system is at it again, this time in the faraway land of Illinois. There, a former police officer by the name of Drew Peterson is charged with murdering his third wife in 2004, and may he responsible for the disappearance of his //fourth// wife in 2007. The fourth wife, Stacy Peterson, was a full thirty years younger than Drew. She had asked him to leave after the death of his third wife, and had even packed up boxes of his clothes, but he had refused to go. She began to fear for her life, confiding in her neighbor Sharon Bychowski that she was “already dead.” However, the court is still debating whether or not Bychowski’s testimony will be counted as “hearsay” evidence, in which case it will not be used in court. Firstly, I find it silly that a trial is still ongoing //six years// after the murder has been committed. Secondly, I would be shocked to see that Bychowski’s testimony—perhaps the final piece necessary to //convict// Drew Peterson—may not enter the courtroom at all. The endless twists and turns of the justice system have transformed law and order into little more than a farce, and at the rate things are going, we may just see a guilty man go free.
 * Response:**

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Author:** JENNIFER PELTZ **http://home.myhughesnet.com/news/read.php?rip_id=%3CD9DASJAO0%40news.ap.org%3E&ps=1016&_LT=HOME_LARSDCCL1_UNEWS**
 * Title: NYC judge refuses to toss Letterman extortion case
 * Publication:** The Associated Press
 * Title: NYC judge**
 * Date of Publication:** Tuesday, January 19, 2010 10:03 AM EST

David Letterman, host of the popular “Late Show,” is currently facing a crisis. Producer Robert "Joe" Halderman stands accused of blackmailing him, perhaps hoping to extort money from Letterman in return for not revealing certain secrets of Letterman’s (such as numerous affairs with female staff members of the show). Judges have decided to leave Halderman’s fate in the hands of a jury, which I believe is fair. It is, after all, one’s constitutional right to a trial by jury, although evidence does suggest that Halderman is guilty. If he is, then surely the competence of the criminal justice system will be sufficient to see Halderman dealt with in the best possible manner.
 * Response:**