Jena Six Teen Mychal Bell Shoots Himself in Suicide Attempt?
December 30, 2008
(ChattahBox) — Mychal Bell, a teen convicted as the ‘ring leader’ in in the widely publicized ‘Jena Six’ hate crime, sustained a self inflicted gunshot wound to the chest a few days after being arrested on Christmas Eve. Monroe Police Sgt. Cassandra Wooten reports that the 18 year old turned a .22-caliber handgun on himself at 7:40 p.m. on Monday in Monroe, Louisiana. She speculated that he was upset over the media coverage that his recent arrest had caused. “He didn’t want to be in the news again.” She went on to say that Mychal’s injuries are not life threatening.
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Vanity Fair magazine oral history story slices and dices the Bush White House
December 30, 2008
WASHINGTON (ChattahBox) -– Just three weeks away from George W. Bush’s last day in office, Vanity Fair magazine compiled an oral history of the Bush White House, for its February issue, which hits newsstands nationally on Jan. 6. The feature story compiled comments by current and former government officials, foreign ministers, campaign strategists and numerous others on topics that included Iraq, the anthrax attacks, the economy and immigration. Some juicy excerpts have been released to peak interest, most seem to be slanted toward Bush’s failures and seem to imply (not surprisingly) that Vice President Dick Cheney played puppet master. Read more
Scientists Puzzle Over Yellowstone Earthquake Swarm
December 30, 2008
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (ChattahBox) — Scientists are closely monitoring more than 250 small earthquakes that have occurred in Yellowstone National Park since Friday. Scientists are watching closely to see whether the tremors were a sign of something bigger to come. Those of us fans of the Discovery channel are reminded of the 2005 BBC/Discovery Channel docudrama, Supervolcano Caldera. This December 2008 earthquake sequence is the most intense in this area for some years and is centered on the east side of the Yellowstone caldera. Read more
World’s ‘largest dinosaur fossil site’ discovered in China
December 30, 2008
A dinosaur fossil field discovered this year in eastern China appears to be the largest in the world, including the remains of an enormous “platypus”. Paleontologists have discovered 15 areas near Zhucheng city in eastern Shandong province that contain thousands of dinosaur bones, the Beijing News reported. More than 7,600 fossils have been discovered since digging began in March and the number is climbing, said Zhao Xijin, the paleontologist in charge of the project. Zhao from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences said in a paper of the discovery: Read more
Woody Harrelson marries longtime girlfriend Laura Louie
December 30, 2008
(ChattahBox) — Woody Harrelson and his longtime girlfriend and former assistant Laura Louie got married on Sunday. The intimate ceremony was attended by family and friends. Harrelson 47, and Louie 43, are co-founders of Yoganics, an organic food delivery service. The couple, who have been together 18 years, have three daughters, Deni Montana (born February 28, 1993), Zoe Giordano (born September 22, 1996), and Makani Ravello (born June 3, 2006). When announcing Makani’s birth, the couple referred to the three as their “goddess trilogy.” Read more
Update: Family of woman that went overboard on cruise believes she jumped
December 29, 2008
(ChattahBox) — The family of Jennifer Ellis-Seitz, the women that went overboard on a luxury cruise ship near Cancun have made a statement. Seitz and her husband, Raymond, were celebrating their one-year anniversary on the Norwegian Pearl cruise ship. Seitz’s mother joined her daughter and son-in-law on the cruise. A surveillance camera showed someone falling overboard wearing a white bathrobe at 8 p.m. Christmas night, authorities said. About eight hours later, Raymond Seitz reported his wife missing. The family of Jennifer Ellis Seitz, a Florida journalist, said Monday that they suspect the woman “chose an unfortunate ending to her life” and jumped from a cruise ship balcony. Read more
Bristol Palin gives birth to a son
December 29, 2008
Palmer, Alaska (ChattahBox) — Former Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin’s, 18-year-old daughter Bristol Palin, gave birth to a healthy baby boy in Palmer, Alaska on Sunday, it’s now being reported. Bristol is the eldest of Sarah and Todd Palin’s three daughters (the couple also have two sons)
The family notified the media that: “The baby is fine and Bristol is doing well. Everyone is excited.” Read more
Actress Zooey Deschanel has gotten engaged to musician Ben Gibbard
December 29, 2008
(ChattahBox) — Actress and musician Zooey Deschanel has gotten engaged to Ben Gibbard, the frontman for Death Cab for Cutie. The 32-year-old Gibbard popped the question to Deschanel the weekend before Christmas. No date has yet been set, but it’ll be the first trip down the aisle for the low-profile couple. Read more
Plan Ahead For Visiting National Parks In 2009
December 29, 2008
US (ChattahBox) – In an increasingly developing world, it isn’t surprising that more people are turning to nature to balance things out. Which is why national parks are quickly becoming the most popular vacation spots, taking the place of locations like DisneyLand and the beach, which have so long dominated the travel scene.
Dan Rather Sues CBS For Shielding President Bush
December 29, 2008
US (ChattahBox) – It looks like yet another black mark may be placed against President Bush in the history books. Legendary news anchor, Dan Rather, is suing CBS, alleging that they caved into political pressure by the Bush Administration to suppress news stories that were critical against him.