Kinda Funny

Via Today's Papers, from an article of the same title in The Washington Post:

Several governments around the world have tried to rebut criticism of how they handle detainees by claiming they are only following the U.S. example in fighting terrorism, the U.N. special rapporteur on torture said Monday. Manfred Nowak said that when he criticizes governments for their questionable treatment of detainees, they respond by telling him that if the United States does something, it must be all right. He would not name any countries except Jordan. "The United States has been the pioneer . . . of human rights and is a country that has a high reputation in the world," Nowak said at a news conference. "Today, many other governments are kind of saying: 'But why are you criticizing us? We are not doing something different than what the United States is doing.' "

First the crocodile hunter...now a geezer in Florida. From an AP an article in USA Today titled "Stingray stabs Florida boater in chest":

An 81-year-old boater was in critical condition Thursday after a stingray flopped onto his boat and stabbed him, leaving a foot-long barb in his chest, authorities said. "It was a freak accident," said Lighthouse Point acting fire Chief David Donzella. "It's very odd that the thing jumped out of the water and stung him. We still can't believe it." Fatal stingray attacks like the one that killed "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin last month are rare, marine experts say. Rays reflexively deploy a sharp spine in their tails when frightened, but the venom coating the barb usually causes just a painful sting for humans.

From an article of the same title on BBCNews.com:

A Japanese woman in her 50s gave birth to her own grandchild last year, using an egg from her daughter and sperm from her son-in-law, a doctor has revealed. It was the first time a woman has acted as a surrogate mother for her daughter in Japan, local media reported. The case is set to stir debate in Japan where surrogate births are opposed by the government and a key medical group. Japan's justice ministry also views the woman who gives birth as a child's mother - not the biological mother… She had agreed to in vitro fertilisation and to act as a surrogate mother because her daughter had had her uterus removed due to cancer and was therefore unable to bear children. Both the mother and child were reported to be in good health… Surrogate births involve removing an egg to be fertilised and then implanting it in another woman who carries the baby to birth.

From an article of the same title (subtitled "Even Unbuilt, Jerusalem Tolerance Museum at Center of Fight Between Jews and Muslims") by Matti Friedman on abcnews.com:

The Museum of Tolerance started off with good intentions, over $100 million in donations, an eye-catching design by architect Frank Gehry, a 2004 kickoff ceremony attended by Arnold Schwarzenegger, and a great piece of Jerusalem real estate. But underneath that real estate, it turned out, there were Muslim graves. As a result, instead of bringing this contentious city's warring tribes together, the museum has sparked a fight with political, religious and historical dimensions between Muslims and Jews and all this before it has even been built. Months of arbitration have ended in deadlock, the site is enclosed in aluminum walls, and the dispute is now before Israel's Supreme Court. Even if the court gives the go-ahead, however, the Museum of Tolerance could well remain permanently tainted by allegations of intolerance.

Via Scott Freeman's blog, an Australian airport prank: