Animals In The News

'Humans evolved after a female chimpanzee mated with a pig': Extraordinary claim made by American geneticist

Dr Eugene McCarthy points to features that distinguish us from primates
He says that the only animals which also have these features are pigs
Controversial hypothesis has been met by significant opposition

The human species began as the hybrid offspring of a male pig and a female chimpanzee, a leading geneticist has suggested.

The startling claim has been made by Eugene McCarthy, of the University of Georgia, who is also one of the worlds leading authorities on hybridisation in animals.

He points out that while humans have many features in common with chimps, we also have a large number of distinguishing characteristics not found in any other primates.

The prehistoric pig was known as vodka porcine martinicus sheen. Known for its reckless sexual behavior after imbibing any fermented beverage, fossils at the University of Edinburgh have captured it mating with a T-Rex, prehistoric sharks, a Pterodactyl and the Pyramids.

Elephant Dies of Constipation at Miami Zoo

Eating mud proved to be fatal

A 41-year-old elephant died at the Miami Zoo Wednesday of what appears to be severe constipation.

Maude, an Asian elephant, stopped eating and having bowel movements last week, Miami Zoo communications director Ron Magill told the Miami Herald. She was undergoing treatment for a digestive issue when she collapsed and died.

Maude tried to tell her caregivers what was wrong, but they thought she was simply full of s...

Two Canadian Men Rescue Shark Choking on Moose

This past Saturday, two men came to the aid of a shark that was choking on a large piece of moose hide in the shallow waters of a Newfoundland harbor.

CBC News says Derrick Chaulk was driving along a harbor when he saw what he thought was a beached whale. When he and another local man, Jeremy Ball, investigated closer, they saw it was a Greenland shark with a large chunk of moose hide protruding from its mouth. Chaulk and Ball pulled the hide from the shark's mouth, tied a rope to the shark's tail, and towed it to deeper water where it recovered for 30 minutes.

Mr. Chaulk feels very good about his intervention after seeing the shark struggle with the moose. "It was a good feeling to see that shark swim out, knowing that you saved his life." Representatives from the The Loyal Order of Moose have filed suite against the heroic rescuers.

Teenage surfer is killed by a shark in the second fatal attack in Australia in a WEEK

Zac Young, 19, is said to have lost both legs in attack in New South Wales
Swimmers on Campbell's Beach, near Coffs Harbour, attempted rescue
Last week father-of-two Chris Boyd was killed by great white in Gracetown

The boy, named as Zac Young, 19, from the NSW coastal town of Port Macquarie, is believed to have lost both legs when the shark attacked off the coast of New South Wales and died of cardiac arrest when he was pulled onto a beach.

The horror attack occurred as the teenager was surfing off Campbell's Beach, near the town of Coffs Harbour.

In related news, a pair of Canadian tourists came to the aid of a beached, 18 foot Great White Shark after seeing it struggling with a large piece of surfboard protruding from its mouth. "It was a good feeling to see that shark swim out, knowing that you saved his life," said one of the heroic rescuers.

As it turned out,the shark was merely flossing.

91 Degrees

 It's only been nine days since my right knee was cut open, the joint dissembled and metal used to replace it's load bearing surfaces. Rehab continues apace.  I had been through four iterations of rehab  prior to this, but nothing has ever challenged me so hard.

My therapist is a nice guy who pushes me; just when something starts to get a little easy, he introduces a new set of painful exercises - yet he does it in such a way that I really don't mind. He is a truly competent professional who knows how to provoke an appropriate and beneficial response from his clients. Either that or the daily doses of Oxycontin keep me from killing him.

I now have 91 degrees of flexion in my knee. Just have to reach 126 degrees at which point I will have the same range of motion in both knees. Already I am able to walk short distances without any assistance, but use a cane until my stability improves. 

I thank God for the technology that has allowed this transformation in such a short period of time and the trained medical personnel who worked on me and with me to effect it. I think back to last Saturday when I left the hospital and the change since then really surprises me.

Officer Henwood

SAN DIEGO - Two years after San Diego police Officer Jeremy Henwood was killed while on duty, a documentary featuring the fallen officer honors his bravery, as well as the heroism of other law enforcement officers.

The film "Heroes Behind the Badge" is being shown at the Birch North Park Theater Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. The movie recounts law enforcement officers and their families as they deal with the reality of injury and death while working to protect others.

"Jeremy's death struck every officer throughout the country. Every one of us felt that vulnerability because that could have been and still could be anyone of us," SDPD Capt. Todd Jarvis said in an interview in the film.

"He was shot not because he was Jeremy Henwood. He was shot because he was a police officer in a marked police car," Jarvis added.

Henwood's last act of service was caught on surveillance video on August 6, 2011. While at a McDonald's, Henwood bought cookies for a young boy who didn't have enough money. Minutes later, he was shot by a suicidal man in broad daylight -- the food in his patrol car was still warm.

"I think they're going to see a very accurate portrayal of what an officer experiences in those situations and you're also going to see the follow-up from the family who have to deal with the repercussions," said Brian Marvel, president of the San Diego Police Officers Association.

Henwood survived two deployments to Iraq and one to Afghanistan. He was a four-year member of the San Diego Police Department and a Marine reservist when he was killed at the age of 36.

"I think you will walk away with a brand new perspective on police officers and what they do in your city and county," Marvel said.

Kanye West: The Prophet Of A Morally Bankrupt, Intellectually-Challenged Popular Culture

If shit were brains, this man would need three heads.

From News Busters:

KANYE WEST: We don’t got it like that. When I tell you only seven black billionaires, look at marginalization, and we feel like we happy because me and Rick Ross got it made, or I got a spread outside, a couple of us, or they put a black president.
 
Man, let me tell you something about George Bush and oil money and Obama and no money. People want to say Obama can't make these moves or he's not executing. That's because he ain't got those connections. Black people don't have the same level of connections as Jewish people. Black people don't have the same connection as oil people.

Cheer Up Honey

I love my wife's apple pie! She made two today.

Caliph Obama

First this:

Islamic Extremists Kill at Least 71 Christians in Nigeria Suspected Fulani herdsmen slaughter 37 in Plateau state; Boko Haram attacks in Borno. By Our Nigeria Correspondent
The Rev. Ayo Oritsejafor, president of the Christian Association of Nigeria. (Morning Star News)JOS, Nigeria, November 26, 2013 (Morning Star News) – Suspected Muslim herdsmen slaughtered 37 Christians in coordinated attacks on four Plateau state villages early this morning after Boko Haram terrorists killed at least 34 Christians in Borno state earlier this month, sources said.

In attacks on the four predominantly Christian villages that started at 1 a.m. in the Barkin Ladi Local Government Area in Plateau State in central Nigeria, ethnic Fulani herdsmen killed 37 people, injured many others and destroyed homes, the military’s Special Task Force spokesman, Salisu Mustapha, said in a press statement.

And nary a word from the caliphate at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

Then this:

The Obama administration, in what’s been called an egregious slap in the face to the Vatican, has moved to shut down the U.S. Embassy to the Holy See — a free-standing facility — and relocate offices onto the grounds of the larger American Embassy in Italy.

The new offices will be in a separate building on the property, Breitbart reported.

SEE ALSO: Pope Francis takes veiled swipe at ‘progressive’ Democrats

And while U.S. officials are touting the relocation as a security measure that’s a cautionary reaction to last year’s attacks on America's facility in Benghazi, several former American envoys are raising the red flag.

It’s a “massive downgrade of U.S.-Vatican ties,” said former U.S. Ambassador James Nicholson in the National Catholic Reporter.

Still nothing on the countless attacks by Muslims on Christians.

You so called Christians who voted for Obama, get this through your thick heads; in the coming American Ummah, there is no room for infidels such as yourself.

Football Ain't What It Used To Be

And now instead of Johnny we get Ellen and Maury.

It ain't fair I tell ya; it just ain't fair.

H/T IoTW

Possibly One Of The Funniest Episodes Evah In Sitcom History!

WKRP in Cinncinnati...

I'm Home Again

Had my right knee replaced on Thursday, it went pretty well. The hospital staff were great and I was introduced to some amazing drugs. It was a partial replacement so I'm hoping that maybe in four weeks or less I'll be able to drive again. Thank you all for your encouragement and prayers. It was not as bad as I thought it would be. The procedure started around noon on Thursday, took a little less than an hour and I was out of the hospital by Saturday afternoon.

What a difference a week makes. Last Saturday was my daughter's wedding day and it was a gorgeous day, simply beautiful. Yesterday it was cold, sleet, snow, high winds and freezing rain.

Right now my wife is talking to her cousin on the telephone; she's describing my last bowel movement. I passed a healthy nine pound bouncing baby brick.

It's good to be home.