... Finally Friday ... 4-11-2008

Slide 2: $136M Michigan Mega Millions Winner to Boss: 'I'm Out of Here' Friday, April 04, 2008 LANSING, Mich. — David Sneath has worked at a Ford Motor Co. parts warehouse for 34 years, but it didn't take him any time at all to walk out once he discovered he'd won a $136 million Mega Millions jackpot. "I yelled to the boss, 'I'm out of here,"' the Livonia man said Thursday after coming to state Lottery Bureau headquarters in downtown Lansing to pick up his first $1 million check. Sneath said the reality of his win has yet to sink in. "I still haven't touched base with Earth yet," he said. When he saw in a newspaper that he had a winning ticket, "my whole body went numb." Sneath plans to buy a cottage on Mullett Lake in northern Michigan and maybe a new fishing boat or two to help him land the walleye he loves to catch. He's tired of misplacing his glasses and may get laser surgery to correct his vision. And he'll probably move out of his three-bedroom, two-bath ranch home, although he plans to stay in Michigan. He's even considering a return to Eastern Michigan University to finish his bachelor's degree. He's eight credits shy of a major in warehousing and a minor in international marketing, and would like to complete his degree. Page 1 of 2

Slide 3: Sneath turned 60 on Tuesday, the day he won the jackpot. Friends and family at first thought it was an April Fool's joke. "I called my sister, she didn't believe me. I called my daughter, she thought I was nuts," said Sneath, who said he made his first call to his ex-wife, Deborah. Deborah, whom he referred to as "my significant ex," attended the Thursday news conference where Sneath was presented with a large replica of a $136 million check. His daughter was there with her daughter, as was his son, who had bought the winning ticket on his father's behalf during trip to a nearby gas station to get cigarettes. Sneath plans to take a one-time lump payment worth $84.3 million, or $59.6 million after taxes. On Thursday, he got the first $1 million; he'll get the remainder in a second payment. At the warehouse, he made $60,000 to $70,000 a year. A self-described "character," Sneath generally kicked in $6 a week with four co-workers at his job in Brownstown to buy lottery tickets, spending half the money on tickets for Tuesday's draw and half for Friday's. This time, his son bought him $15 worth of tickets, picking numbers Sneath suggested. The winning combination — 4, 17, 26, 46 and 56, plus 25 for the Mega Ball — were numbers Sneath once got as a random pick and continues to play. But his four coworkers didn't entirely lose out. He plans to give them $1 million each out of his winnings. Despite his longtime association with Ford, he said he won't be using any of the money to buy one of his former employer's vehicles. "I worked for Ford Motor Company," he said. "I won't be buying a Ford product.“ Page 2 of 2

Slide 4: Outsourcing passports 'profound liability' Published: March 26, 2008 at 10:14 AM WASHINGTON, March 26 (UPI) -- A U.S. government agency uses foreign firms to make new e-passports and is reportedly overcharging for them, The Washington Times found. The Government Printing Office outsourced the manufacturing of U.S. passports to foreign firms and charged the U.S. State Department nearly twice what it cost GPO to have them made, the Times reported Wednesday, based on its investigation. The law that established the printing agency states that it can only charge what it needs to recover its costs. Security agencies and the GPO said it has protective measures in place to keep blank passports out of the hands of U.S. enemies but the agency's inspector general, J. Anthony Ogden, said in October that there are "significant deficiencies" in the security of the manufacturing process, the Times said. Ogden's report said the GPO stated it couldn't overcome the "significant deficiencies" because of "monetary constraints." The blank passports travel to Europe where a microchip is inserted in the back cover and then onto Thailand where they are fitted with a radio antenna. The Netherlands company that makes the covers for the passport said in October that China stole the technology for the microchips, the Times said. Michelle Van Cleave, a former counterintelligence official, called the possibility of blank passports getting into criminal hands was a "profound liability" for the United States.

Slide 5: http://dollartimes.com/calculators/millionaire-calculator.htm

Slide 6: Farmer cuts property in two to give to ex-wife 4-4-2008 A Serb farmer used a grinding machine to cut in half his farm tools and machines to comply with a court ruling that he must share all his property with his ex-wife, local media reported on Thursday. Branko Zivkov, 76, told Belgrade daily Kurir he had been ready to give his wife Vukadinka her equal share of everything earned during their 45-year marriage, but was furious at being asked to give away half his farming equipment. Instead, he bought a grinder and cut in two all his tools, including large items such as cattle scales, a harrow and a sowing machine. "I still haven't decided how to split the cow," he told the newspaper. "She should just say what she wants -- the part with the horns or the part with the tail."

Slide 7: Police Find Huge Marijuana Plants In Burning Weber County Home 4/08 5:45 pm Salt Lake City PLEASANT VIEW - The resident of a Weber County house was jailed recently on drug charges after firefighters responding to a fire there discovered $78,000 in marijuana plants in his basement. Police said the man was charged Monday with cultivation and possession of marijuana. The charges are more severe because he lives near a school and playground. Authorities said they discovered the setup in the basement as firefighters searched the house Saturday to make sure the flames were out. Officials were clued-in when they saw a basement window from outside, but only an interior wall inside. Firefighters said they knocked a hole in the wall and found about 130 plants behind it.

Slide 8: School Principal Charged With Sexual Abuse April 9, 2008 CHICAGO -- The principal of Spring Grove Elementary School was in a Wisconsin jail Tuesday night on charges of sexually abusing a 16-year-old girl. Daniel Markofsky, 47, of Richmond, was caught over the weekend in Glendale, Wis., at a Super Motel 8 with two teen sisters, 15 and 16, according to police. Police alleged Markofsky and the two girls were smoking marijuana, drinking alcohol and watching pornographic material. The sisters were from the Milwaukee area, according to police. The Chicago Tribune reported that on Saturday a Glendale police officer knocked on the door of his room after smelling marijuana, according to the report. The report said Markofsky answered wearing a shirt and boxer shorts. Neighbors near the school in Spring Grove were shocked by the news and feel Marckofsky should not remain as the principal. "You wonder how long that kind of stuff has been going on with the kids," said Jamie Mason, a neighbor in Spring Grove. "I don't think any man should have the authority to be around kids when he does stuff like that." The school did not wish to comment on the case. A closed-door school board meeting was scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday at Nippersink School in Richmond, according the Chicago Tribune.

Slide 9: Diamond thong shown to the throng Thu Apr 3, 11:19 AM ET A diamond thong worth S$168,000 ($122,000) was the highlight of a lingerie fashion show in Singapore on Thursday. The Triumph Luxurious Diamond Thong had 518 brilliant-cut diamonds, totaling 30 carats, studded into the front of a black lace thong in a floral pattern. The skimpy underwear that left little to the imagination also had 27 white gold tassels hanging off it. Danielle Luminita, a brunette model from Romania, was carried down the runway on the shoulders of two male models wearing only the diamond thong. "It is very comfortable, it's not heavy or scratchy or anything," Luminita told Reuters backstage. A spokeswoman for Triumph International, the lingerie company that commissioned the thong, said that the thong would be dry cleaned before going on display. "It's a signature piece, obviously we aren't going to sell it," she said.

Slide 10: Teacher offered to "break" student of shyness before sex act, detectives say TAMPA -- Before a Davidsen Middle School teacher started a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old student, she told the boy she could help him overcome his shyness, according to a new court filing. Ragusa told the boy when they got into the elevator that she noticed he was "shy and she could break him of that," the warrant states. Then, it says, she invited him to go to her apartment after school instead of attending an after- school program. At her apartment, they had what the boy described to police as "consensual" sex. Ragusa then took him back to school in time to be picked up by his step-mother. Over the next several weeks, detectives wrote, Ragusa and the boy spoke over the phone. One night, while the boy's parents were sleeping, the teacher picked him up around the corner from his house and they had sex in the back seat of her silver Lexus SUV, the report states. Their sexual relationship lasted from October, 2006 to May 2007, detectives said. The last reported sexual incident between the two took place the night of the boy's eighth grade dance. The boy said he skipped the dance, got a ride from Ragusa to an after-hours party, then got a ride with her to Gant Road, where they had sex again, detectives say. The boy described to detectives two tattoos -- a flower and possibly a butterfly -- in Ragusa's groin area that they said would be visible only without clothes, as well as a gecko on her back. Hillsborough Sheriff's detectives requested the search warrant to obtain pictures of Ragusa's body as well as DNA samples and fingerprints from her Lexus.

Slide 11: Marina kicks out topless charter service Friday, April 04, 2008 FORT PIERCE — A charter fishing service that offers bikini-clad or topless women as mates has been kicked out of the city marina for violating its family-friendly atmosphere. Smokin' Em Charters, a Port St. Lucie-based company, was told to leave after city officials realized that, along with standard fishing tours, clients could pay a little more for bikini-clad or topless women to act as mates. The women, in addition to regular boating duties, also prepare food and drinks for their clients. Kathi and Harold "Captain Gil" Coombes, a husband and wife team, have run Smokin' Em Charters for about eight years, the last four on the Treasure Coast. They began offering the bikini and topless fishing tours in January, Kathi Coombes said. She said they thought the service would appeal to bachelor parties and vacationers looking to combine beautiful women with fishing on board the company's 44-foot Trojan. Coombes defended the tours, too, saying the women come to the boats fully clothed. They wait to undress until away from shore, and those going topless wait to take their tops off until the boat is 3 miles out and in international waters, she said. The company also has a strict no-touching policy, she said. Smokin' Em Charters' tours cost $1,250 for eight hours of fishing. It's an additional $100 for each woman in a bikini and an additional $150 for each topless woman. Since news of their forced departure broke, Coombes said the phone has not stopped ringing. Most of the calls have been from people interested in the tours, she said. "That was never the basis of our business," she said. "Sex sells, if that's the way to put it." PalmBeachPost

Slide 12: Fresh, Wild Game -- No Hunting Required In Vermont, the tradition of hunting is still going strong, with men and women heading out into the woods each Fall hoping to make a good shot. Using a gun or bow is one way to pack a freezer full of wild game. But there is another way too, one that even a vegetarian might appreciate—at least for the economy of it. It follows the maxim: waste not want not. It’s roadkill. Each game warden in the state has a list of people to call when there is a road accident that involves a deer or moose. Once comprised of only butchers, today the list is open to anyone—anyone willing to receive a call, often in the wee hours of the morning, that will require them to scramble out of pajamas and into boots and coat and into the night to pick up the game. “First dibs always go to the driver,” says Game Warden Justin Stedman. Or, “if it’s mangled and I wouldn’t eat it myself,” he says, “I won’t give it to someone else to eat.” Most often, though, Stedman is making a call to someone noted on his list. Once the person picks up the animal—or sometimes Stedman is able to make a home delivery— it’s either processed at home or brought to a butcher Butcher Bill Lake, owner of Simply Meats, in Rutland, Vermont, has seen 30 deer, three moose, and even two bear in the past year alone, each passed along to a customer from a game warden. Lake’s main business involves processing purchased beef and poultry and he also takes care of wild animals, from hunters and from customers on the roadkill distribution list. newengland.com

Slide 13: 10 quotes on what it feels like to get shot April 4th, 2008 1. The Soldier’s Story: Vietnam in … - Google Book Search "The bullet felt like somebody took a log and ran into you and knocked you down." 2. German immigrant takes bullet for U.S. ‘ideals’ - CNN.com Pinned down in a firefight with insurgents in the Iraqi city of Ramadi, Jamaleldine was shot in the face. "I felt like I got hit by Mike Tyson," he says, pointing to a two-inch long scar on his left cheek. 3. Why South Africa Sucks: Stray bullets "I thought I had been hit by a firewok. Then there was a sharp, severe pain in my foot. I took off my shoe and sock and I spotted the end of the bullet. Without thinking what I was doing, I pulled the bullet out with my fingernails." 4. ‘80 Taliban had surrounded me, I had to keep on firing’ - Telegraph "I looked down and could see that my femur had been snapped," recalled the 22-year-old soldier. "There was a bullet hole and a lot of blood. It felt as though I had been hit with a hammer. 5. BBC - WW2 People’s War - A Letter From a Derbyshire Serviceman Then I jumped up and shouted for the stretcher bearer — and boy I felt the biggest bash in my chest. It was, just like a kick from a mule. It picked me right off my feet, and flung me on my back. I just shouted Tom they’ve hit me, and he came.

Slide 14: 6. Then I Was Shot "I remember feeling like someone hit me in the head with a hammer," Russell says. "It caught me by surprise. I didn’t think I was a threat. I didn’t think I deserved to die." 7. KEMP EXCLUSIVE: I WASN’T TOO BOTHERED ABOUT BEING SHOT.. I WAS ON FIRE AT THE T Mirror.co.uk Recalling his battle in Moscow, Ross says: "I know I was shot a couple of times - it felt like being hit by a nail gun - but I didn’t worry too much. I was too concerned about being on fire. 8. A Closer Look At Littleton, Two Students Tell Their Stories - CBS News "I was shot with a shotgun from a distance, and no more than seven pellets went into my right leg," he says. "At one point I was lying on the floor after I’d gotten shot just hoping they wouldn’t come back and, you know, shoot us in the head. That was my worst fear." 9. A student described in court how a gunman looked him straight in the eye before opening fire and sho The student added: "His arm was outstretched. He was holding a black gun. ?He pulled the trigger and I turned my body. He hit me on the side." 10. I was shot, claims anti-whaling activist - New Zealand’s source for World News on Stuff.co.nz "I felt an impact on my chest at one point and didn’t think too much of it at the time and then when I opened up my survival suit – I had a bulletproof vest (on) – and there was a bullet lodged in it," he told ABC Radio. notdirtywriter.net

Slide 15: On board the world's first 'gigayacht': The £100m luxury yacht with its own garden, pool and tennis court Life can have its little irritations when you're cruising around the world on your £100million superyacht. For example, the endless vista of clear blue sea fails to provide much greenery to ease the eye - apart from the odd tropical island. As good as it gets: The 'gigayacht', complete with tree-filled garden and swimming pool For the owner of a forthcoming craft named WallyIsland, however, this will not be a problem. For he, or she, will have a personal ocean-going garden. The 325ft-long yacht is to feature a growing area with shrubbery and flower beds, kept healthy by an irrigation system. An artists's impression of the onboard garden - a revolutionary concept in luxury yachts It will also have a tennis court, pool and five accommodation decks including a main saloon, dining room, library, cinema, spa and fitness area. The fuel tanks are so large that they allow for five years of cruising without having to stop for a fill-up. Its designer, Monaco-based Wally Yachts, is known for coming up with unconventional ideas and is already in negotiations with a potential buyer. The term megayacht has already been used for private vessels more than 220ft long. However, WallyIsland - which is 59ft across and at half load weighs 2,730 tons, is considered to be in a class of its own and so earns the name "gigayacht". Page 1 of 2

Slide 16: Wally's Monica Paolazzi said the vessel, an artist's impression of which is above, would fulfil the dream of someone who wanted to "live comfortably on board like on their own estate". She added: "This is a yacht where you have a piece of land that you can use to play your favourite sport, to grow your favourite plants, to enjoy your favourite outdoor activity. "This will appeal to someone who wants to be completely independent. No other yachts offer this kind of garden." The buyer will be able to specify the exact foliage required before building is completed. Because of its huge 1,000 square metre deck space, which is finished in teak, the WallyIsland design differs from that of traditional super-yachts in that it is constructed more like a tanker. Although the makers are refusing to disclose a price for the extraordinary vessel, it is believed that this industrial method of construction will bring the cost down to a "competitive" figure of around £100million. WallyIsland includes sleeping quarters for up to 40 crew and 24 guests as well as the owner's suites. It holds 750,000 litres of fuel, enabling it to stay out of port for 15,000 nautical miles. The aft deck holds two 45ft motor yachts, as well as space for two 27ft sailing yachts, two cars and water-toys including six jetskis. Page 2 of 2

Slide 51: Brande Rodericks