Northern Echo #40

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Published monthly and distributed thru out the communities of northern Manitoba *(plus) Issue # 31

May 2014

Circulation 12,000

Prince Charles, Camilla to visit 6 Canadian communities in May

On May 20 and 21, Charles and Camilla will visit Winnipeg, where they'll see Assiniboine Park and drop by the Manitoba Legislative Building.

While Prince Charles last visited Manitoba in 1996, this will be his wife's first visit to the province.

"Our relationship with the Royal Family is a long and proud one," said Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger in a news release.

"We are delighted that Their Royal Highnesses have decided to include our province in their next visit to Canada and we look forward to showcasing some of the best things Manitoba has to offer." continued on page 14

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Manitoba & RCMP News

who is wanted on a British Columbia wide warrant. Jolene AYAH (B: 1975-10-08) is wanted on a British Columbia wide warrant. AYAH is described as a native female, 163 cm or 5'4" tall and weighs 48 kg or 106 lbs. AYAH has brown hair and brown eyes.

Prince George RCMP Call: (250)561-3300 Email: bcrcmp@rcmp-grc.gc.ca

Alleged bank robber wanted by police

Wanted

CUNNINGHAM, Nakheita Irene Prince George, B.C. The Prince George RCMP is asking the public's assistance in locating the following person who is wanted on a British Columbia wide warrant. Nakheita Irene CUNNINGHAM (B: 198805-15) is wanted on a British Columbia wide warrant. CUNNINGHAM is described as a First Nations female, 163 cm or 5'4" tall and weighs 66 kg or 146 lbs. CUNNINGHAM has brown hair and brown eyes. CUNNINGHAM should be considered violent.

Prince George RCMP Call: (250)561-3300 Email: bcrcmp@rcmp-grc.gc.ca

Wanted AYAH, Jolene

Prince George, B.C. The Prince George RCMP is asking the public's assistance in locating the following person

The Coquitlam RCMP, working with the Vancouver Police Department, have identified a suspect in a string of bank robberies that took place six days apart in late March. Warren David Bonsell, 45, is wanted by the police for three counts of robbery. In addition, he has a number of outstanding arrest warrants for Possession of Stolen Property, Possession of Breakin Instruments, and Break and Enter.

Due to the serious nature of the allegations, Mr. Bonsell is considered to be armed and dangerous. Don't approach him if you see him, and call 9-1-1 immediately.

Warren David Bonsell is described as: A 45 year-old Caucasian man, 5'9" tall and 170 pounds, and Has short greying brown hair.

If you have any information on Warren David

Bonsell's whereabouts, please contact the Coquitlam RCMP at 604-945-1550 and quote file 20147245. Anyone wishing to provide information anonymously can contact Crime Stoppers: by phone: 1-800-222-8477(TIPS)

Telephone Scam The RCMP is warning of fraudulent telephone calls in which the caller identifies themselves as an RCMP officer calling to collect fines or income taxes or a variety of other scam tactics. The callers inform the victims must pay immediately or will be arrested within 24 hours.

In most cases, the number for RCMP National Headquarters General Inquiries line – 613-9937267 appears on the victim’s call display.

Be aware: the RCMP does not contact individuals for the purpose of collecting fines or taxes and NEVER asks the public to make a payment over the telephone.

Anyone who receives a call from someone alleging to be a police officer collecting fines or taxes should hang up immediately and contact their local police, and the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (Toll free 1-888-495-8501).

"Scareware" scam warning The Canadian Anti Fraud Centre has been receiving reports from Canadians who say their computers are being frozen or they have been “locked out” of their computers after receiving

If you have any important news you would like to share with other Northern Manitoba Communities...

DO NOT HESITATE... e-mail the information to: northernews@mymts.net (or call 1-204-978-0777)

Just like a flyer A Nonprofit Publication Published Monthly by local businesses and distributed thru out the Communities of Northern Manitoba To place an Ad please call: 1-204-978-0777

pop-up messages warning them their computer has been associated with child pornography.

These warning messages, which claim to be from the RCMP or CSIS, tells the recipient to pay $100 dollars via Ukash so their computer can be “unlocked”.

These types of messages, commonly known as scareware, are designed to create such shock and anxiety that victims respond by sending money quickly.

If you receive one of these messages, please be aware that it is a scam – these messages are not being issued by the RCMP. Last November, Ukash posted an alert on their website about a similar scam targeting residents in the United Kingdom. If you’ve been “locked out” of your computer, it’s a indicator that your system may have been infected with malware and you will need to take steps to address the problem.

Tips to protect yourself: Never click on a pop up that claims your computer has a virus Update your anti-virus software often and scan your computer for viruses regularly Don’t click on links or attachments in e-mails sent to you by someone you don’t know Turn on your browser’s pop-up blocking feature Never download anti-virus software from a pop-up or link sent to you in an e-mail

Northern Echo Printed at Winnipeg Sun 1700 Church Avenue Winnipeg, MB R2X 3A2 Telephone: 1.204.694.2022

page 3

Faron Hall, Winnipeg's 'homeless hero,' jailed for assault A Winnipeg man who was hailed as a "homeless hero" for rescuing people from the Red River twice in 2009 has been sentenced to four months behind bars for assault.

Faron Hall was sentenced to a total of five months in jail, after he was convicted of assault with a weapon and breaching probation.

Hall is receiving credit of two months and three weeks for time he already spent in custody.

He was hailed as a hero after he saved a 19year-old boy from drowning in the icy and fastmoving Red River in May 2009.

Then in September 2009, Hall jumped into the same river a second time in the hopes of rescuing two friends he had been drinking with.

Hall helped one of his friends out of the river, but he was unable to save the other — a loss that Hall has said had a bigger impact on him emotionally than his heroic deeds.

THOMPSON

Winnipeg's 'homeless hero' regrets assault Hall apologized for his actions in court, saying he struggles with alcohol and it has been his coping mechanism.

Hall also told the court, that he suffers from grief, guilt and depression since his friend died in the September 2009 rescue.

Winnipeg group adopts 22 dogs after U.S. puppy mill seizure A Winnipeg animal charity has brought 22 dogs rescued from a U.S. puppy mill into the province and is now trying to raise thousands for their veterinary bills.

Three Winnipeggers who work for Free and Alive Dog Rescue drove to Arkansas last weekend after hearing a puppy mill had been raided and the dogs seized were to be auctioned off.

Shannon Brown said any animals that weren’t purchased would be euthanized, so the group tried to bid on as many of the 200 dogs as possible.

After successfully bidding on 22, the trio packed them into an RV for medical treatment in Manitoba. Many of the dogs had significant health issues.

One of the dogs, which FAAR named Maggie, may lose both her eyes. Another named Shaggy has sores all over his body, and another, named Arkansas, needed to have all his teeth pulled.

“He has very, very advanced dental disease,” said veterinarian Val Dirvala. Dirvala said the animals were not being well cared for, as their conditions were preventable.

Brown believes the animals were only being used to breed and many had never had any human contact. “[One of the dogs] was just held up, and he was fighting the person holding him at the auction,” she said.

The group believes the vet bills will be between $10,000 and $20,000.

The group is now trying to raise money to cover the costs. They’re also looking for foster homes until the dogs are ready for adoption.

“They just need to learn not every hand from a person will hurt them,” said Brown.

Paramedics say Manitoba's bad roads making it hard for them to do their job Manitoba paramedics say crumbling roads are putting patients at risk, with gaping potholes making it difficult to perform medical procedures and forcing detours en route to hospital.

Eric Glass, administrative director of the Paramedic Association of Manitoba, said he hears complaints from his colleagues daily about the poor state of the province's roads.

Often the roads are so bad that it's dangerous for paramedics to move around the ambulance and

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across CANADA Montreal filmmaker Jesse Freeston posts video of alleged laptop theft When a local filmmaker had his knapsack full of valuable gear snatched from under him in a café last Friday, Jesse Freeston decided to make a video showing the alleged theft and post it online.

“I’m a filmmaker and a video editor, so what can I do to turn myself from a victim — so I’m just not sitting at home crying? So I made this video, put in some music, tried to make it interesting for people and it seems to be going viral,” Freeston said.

“The bag was under my chair between my legs, and in three movements, he was able to pull it out and take off with it,” Freeston said, who edited the footage at home and posted it on social media.

In the video he posted online, Freeston even leaves the alleged thief his email address to contact him and remind him of his schedule.

“At the very least, please write and tell me what’s in my agenda for the next few weeks,” the video says.

Freeston said he doesn’t think he’ll ever get his possessions back, but he hopes this video will prevent a repeat incident.

“So far, not a single lead on the whereabouts of the equipment, but at the very least we’re going to cybershame this guy.”

Montreal police confirmed that they received a theft report, adding that they don’t encourage victims to post videos of alleged crimes online. A police spokeswoman said citizens should leave the police work up to police.

Shaw Communications to lay off 400 workers Shaw Communications says it plans to lay off 400 employees in Western Canada — about three per cent of its workforce — as it tries to consolidate operations. 140 of those jobs are in Calgary, but no offices are closing.

The Calgary-based company said the changes will be focused on bringing its cable, satellite, internet and home phone services under one umbrella to make them more efficient.

"The roles and structure we established years ago to support us as a cable company can no longer support our growth," Brad Shaw, the company's CEO said in a news release.

"We are eliminating duplication of work and organizing our activities and operations in a way that best meets the needs of our customers and viewers."

The reworked operations will be divided into two units — one for the company's residential consumers and another for business customers.

'At the very least, we’re going to cybershame this guy.'

- Jesse Freeston Freeston was having coffee with a friend on Friday afternoon at Café Pi on Saint Laurent Boulevard in the Plateau.

“It wasn’t until I was leaving, I was going out the door and said, ‘Wait a minute, I had my backpack with me.'”

His backpack contained all his professional gear.

“A brand new laptop — which was a souped-up laptop for video-editing purposes. I lost a notebook with a lot of my ideas in it. I lost my agenda with all my future meetings in it, my phone and flash drives.”

Freeston filed a police report and got the surveillance video from the coffee shop owner.

It shows a man who appears to be talking on a cellphone, with a newspaper in his hand, pick a backpack up off the floor and leave the coffee shop.

The company also said it is hiring upwards of 100 people to support the new structure.

Shaw has 3.4 million customers and employs over 14,000 people, mostly in Alberta and British Columbia, with smaller operations in Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

Shaw Media, the division of the company that operates Global television network and specialty channels like HGTV and the Food Network Canada, will continue to operate as a stand-alone unit.

Restaurant inspections at national chains uncover repeated, major violations Canada’s biggest analysis of public health inspection reports from national chain restaurants reveals that almost one in four inspections has at least one major violation.

Major violations, such as improper food handling, inadequate handwashing and failing to keep food at safe temperatures, have the potential to negatively affect human health. Two million Canadians get sick every year from eating in restaurants, according to Health Canada.

page 5 In the largest investigation of its kind, Marketplace analyzed the data from a year’s worth of public health restaurant inspections in five Canadian cities -- Vancouver, Calgary, Regina, Toronto and Ottawa -- almost 5,000 reports in total. Two statisticians from the University of Toronto analyzed the data.

“Food safety is a very serious matter,” says Jim Chan, a retired public health inspector who spent 36 years with Toronto Public Health. “The public has a right to know so they can make informed choices.”

The Marketplace investigation looks at 13 national chains, including fast food, family restaurants and coffee shops.

The fast food restaurants included in the Marketplace analysis are KFC, A&W, Subway, Wendy’s, and McDonald’s. It also looked at the inspection reports for family dining chains Pizza Hut, Swiss Chalet, Boston Pizza, The Keg and Moxie’s, and coffee shops Starbucks, Second Cup and Tim Hortons.

Marketplace looked at a range of health violations, including temperature and food storage issues, food handling and handwashing problems, pest control, cross-contamination and general kitchen cleanliness.

In some cases, Marketplace discovered that serious problems continued even after restaurants were notified by public health inspectors: A Subway restaurant in Calgary was cited by health inspectors three times for contaminated cleaning cloths.

A Moxie’s in Vancouver failed to keep food at a safe temperature during three consecutive inspections.

A Tim Hortons in Calgary was written up by inspectors five times for a fly infestation.

According to the reports, handwashing was a significant problem in most cities, as was general kitchen cleanliness.

In addition to the statistical analysis of report results, Marketplace used a hidden camera to document troubling behaviour at several locations. ?Retired Vancouver public health inspector Domenic Losito was alarmed by footage showing garbage strewn all over the kitchen floor at one restaurant. ?“At least try to get the garbage in the garbage can, but – I think I would have walked into this place, walked out and filed a closure notice right away. I just – it’s just unacceptable,” he said.

Other problems include a restaurant with inadequate hot water at the handwashing station in the staff washroom, an issue that health inspectors had cited on several occasions. That restaurant also failed to prevent cross-contamination of beverage ice.

“There have been foodborne illnesses that arise from contaminated ice,” Losito says. “If your hand then goes into the ice as well ... or if the scoop’s been contaminated previously, you’re basically just spreading that contamination.”

After watching the footage, Losito says that this restaurant should be closed.

Losito says that inspection programs may have to be more rigorous when dealing with restaurants with recurring problems.

“We’re not there to keep the business operating, we’re there to protect the public,” he says.

In another example caught on hidden camera, a worker at a fast-food restaurant sneezes into her hands, takes cash from a cus-

tomer, then reaches for gloves and makes a sandwich, without washing her hands. Experts say this behaviour is a major health violation, as it fails to prevent cross-contamination.

Canadian households spend almost $2,000 every year dining out. And Health Canada says that of the four million cases of foodborne illness every year, half are acquired from restaurants. ?In some cases, foodborne illness outbreaks traced back to restaurants have sickened dozens of people. In one 2008 case, an outbreak at a Harvey’s and Swiss Chalet restaurant in North Bay sickened more than 200 people, many with confirmed cases of E.coli. ?“You have no choice but to trust the people who have prepared this for you,” Brad Hill, who got sick from E.coli in the outbreak told Marketplace. “Like, everything can look fantastic, but a couple days later you might experience a couple of very alarming symptoms.”

In another case in Toronto last year, more than 200 people got sick from Cronut burgers at the Canadian National Exhibition after bacon jam had been improperly stored.

“One of the biggest reasons for food poisoning is inadequate cooling and refrigeration, so that one it’s at the top of the list,” says Losito. “About 30 per cent of foodborne illness [is] because of inadequate cooling.”

But according to Health Canada, while it’s the larger outbreaks that make the news, they represent only a small proportion of the overall number of foodborne illness in Canada.

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Quick rest: A bear appears to grab a quick break from fishing for his dinner at Bella Coola, in BC, Canada This bear looked as if he needed a quick rest while putting in some serious time fishing as he grabbed a helping hand from a floating log.

The young bear appeared to grow tired after wading in the waters at Bella Coola, in BC, Canada, while looking for fish.

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USA Hands-Free Devices are Confusing Matters Chicago, Ill. - Safety advocates want motorists to pay attention to the dangers of distracted driving. As April was designated Distracted Driving Awareness Month, the century-old Itasca, Ill.-based National Safety Council has released a new poll showing that 80 percent of drivers across the U.S. believe hands-free devices are safer than using a handheld phone while behind the wheel. The group believes this not to be the case. Meanwhile, among motorists reporting using hands-free devices while driving, 70 percent said they do so for safety reasons.

A motorist appears to be texting while driving through an intersection. Local law enforcement agencies are cracking down on distracted driving.

"While many drivers honestly believe they are making the safe choice by using a hands-free device, it's just not true," said David Teater, the NSC's senior director of transportation initiatives. "The problem is the brain does not truly multitask. Just like you can't read a book and talk on the phone, you can't safely operate a vehicle and talk on the phone."

Confusing matters, NSC says, many states have laws prohibiting the use of handheld cellphones while driving, though no state has yet banned the use of hands-free devices. Likewise, automakers continue to incorporate hands-free communication technologies into their vehicles. NSC fears this sends a dangerous mixed message to drivers that the availability of and lack of restrictions on hands-free devices means they're safe; certain statistics show the opposite, linking thousands of deaths each year as a result of cellphone use while driving.

To help spread the word on distracted driving, NSC has com-

piled these facts to show the dangers: About 100 people die in car crashes every day; 90 percent of car crashes are caused by driver error; and 26 percent of all car crashes involve mobile-phone use, including hands-free devices, which at any moment are being used by 9 percent of drivers.

With regard to what NSC calls the "big fat myth" of multitasking, activity in the area of the brain that processes moving images decreases by as much as one-third when listening to talking on a phone, and drivers looking out the windshield miss as much as 50 percent of what's around them due to a narrowing of their field of view, NSC reported. Concerning emerging technologies, NSC reports that new studies show using voice-to-text is actually more distracting than typing texts by hand.

partially buried in the dirt. It was six inches from Hutto's foot.

"It was a high stress moment," Hutto said.

A short time later, Eddie sniffed out another improvised explosive placed on a bridge the patrol unit was about to cross.

Eddie saved Hutto's life, the lives of a dozen patrol members and countless people in the village.

For his service, Eddie retired with full military honors. The ceremony was held at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, and a few dozen soldiers turned out to cheer Eddie on.

Soda Sales Rapidly Decline Across the U.S. Americans are drinking 20 percent less soda than they did in 1998, according to trade tracker Beverage Digest.

Diet drinks are losing market share even faster -- a 6% drop in 2013, compared to a 3% drop for sugar beverages.

Since 1998, the drinking habits of Americans have been steadily moving away from carbonated sodas such as CocaCola and Pepsi, to healthier alternatives like bottled and tap water for years.

With diabetes, obesity and tooth decay on the rise in the 1990s, people started to turn away from soft drinks because of health concerns around sugary processed drinks. During the same period, the practice of purchasing convenient single-serving bottled water became widely accepted and commonplace.

With health and environmental concerns becoming even more key in the twenty-first century, look for the trends to bend even further away from bottle water and toward drinking filtered tap water from home or the office.

Heroic Bomb-SniďŹƒng Dog That Saved Dozens In Afghanistan Retires With Full Military Honors TAMPA, Fla. — Staff Sgt. Shannon Hutto thought his bomb sniffing dog Eddie was just being lazy when he wouldn't move from a certain spot one hot day in Afghanistan in 2012.

But Hutto then saw what Eddie smelled: a homemade bomb,

The Belgian Malinois dog was assigned to MacDill's 6th Security Forces Squadron and has served for about five years. He's also helped sweep government buildings and helped the Secret Service by checking presidential and vice presidential visit venues.

In retirement, he will be reunited with his first handler, Andrew Grymes.

Hutto said he will be forever grateful to Eddie for saving his life.

During the brief retirement ceremony, Eddie wasn't quite sure what to make of all the people clapping, talking and saluting. He appeared nonplussed when someone formally handed Hutto a plaque.

But when Carol White, a private Air Force contractor, gave him a special cake made out of peanut butter and bananas, he dove right in.

As a working dog, Eddie wasn't allowed such luxuries. Now he's free to enjoy the pleasures of retirement.

"He can go and be a pet," said Hutto. "100 percent, sitting on the couch, playing with toys, sleeping in the bed."

Florida woman survives bear mauling ORLANDO, Florida - A Central Florida woman was recovering at home on Monday after a bear knocked her down outside her house, clamped its jaw on her head and tried to drag her away on Saturday, her husband said.

Terri Frana, 44, of Lake Mary, received stitches and staples in the back of her head to close a wound, and had visible gashes on her forehead, back and around her mouth, according to Greg Workman of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Workman said that as of Monday morning, wildlife officers had killed five bears in the area that seemed to have lost their fear of humans. One bear was shot after it continued to advance toward officers whose yelling usually scares them off.

page 7 DNA testing will determine whether they caught the bear involved in the attack.

Frana was attacked in her driveway on Saturday evening after she went outside to check on her children.

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Frana's home is located in a part of Florida where urban sprawl has plopped homes in former wilderness areas connected to the 600-square-mile Ocala National Forest, fracturing bear habitat and allowing people to live alongside long-established bear trails.

Calls about bears, including reports of sick or injured bears, more than quadrupled in Florida over the past decade, and more than half of actual complaints come from Central Florida, according to the wildlife commission.

In December, Susan Chalfant, 54, of nearby Longwood, was attacked by a bear while walking her dog. Chalfant told neighbors who found her bleeding profusely from the head that she didn't see the bear that knocked her to the ground.

Wildlife officials try to educate the public about ways to avoid interactions with bears and keep both people and bears safe. At the top of the list is keeping food garbage out of reach.

"The fact that we have come across so many bears with so little fear of humans indicates that these bears are highly habituated and are regularly receiving food from people," said Dave Telesco, the FWC's bear program coordinator.

"Our staff is dedicated to wildlife conservation. Having to put down these bears is a very difficult decision, but it's the right decision to ensure public safety.

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drivers are forced to plot alternative routes, he said.

"It certainly makes it difficult to try to ensure our patients are comfortable and, at times, can impede some of the procedures that

we want to carry out in the back of an ambulance," Glass said.

"If we're using an EKG machine to monitor heart activity, it's often difficult to tell if the activity shown on the electrical monitor is as a result of the rough road versus what we're looking at in a patient's heart."

With frigid winters and sweltering summers in Manitoba, residents often grumble about gaping potholes and bumpy highways.

Manitoba's governing NDP hiked the provincial sales tax last summer and has promised to spend every cent of that new revenue on fixing crumbling roads and bridges.

Glass said it can't happen soon enough.

About 150,000 patients are transported by ambulance each year in Manitoba and more than 10,000 are taken from rural hospitals into Winnipeg.

Premier Greg Selinger said the paramedics' concerns are an example of why the sales tax increase was necessary.

The revenue generated by increasing the sales tax from seven to eight per cent will fund a five-year infrastructure improvement plan totalling $5.5 billion, he said.

"Safe roads are good for Manitoba citizens and the paramedics know that," Selinger said Tuesday as he announced $28 million in highway improvements south of Winnipeg.

"Paramedics saying they want the roads to be safer is exactly why we've made infrastructure a top priority for our budget."

But Conservative member of the legislature Reg Helwer said Manitoba's roads are bad because of previous cuts the NDP made to infrastructure spending.

"When you don't maintain infrastructure like this government has fallen off on, then you get the big infrastructure failures," Helwer said. "Now you are seeing Manitobans having services compromised. This is having an impact on health-care delivery and how they're able to be safely transported to emergency facilities."

Paramedics in Manitoba are not the only ones who have raised concerns.

In Newfoundland, rural paramedics have said they have to pull over to use heart monitors because part of a road leading into St. John's is in such rough shape that the readings are unreliable. They say even manual blood pressure machines are virtually impossible to use when paramedics are being "bounced around like rag dolls."

In southwestern Saskatchewan, Highway 32 was repaired after poor road conditions made it impossible for ambulances to get to the hospital from areas outside of Swift Current.

Manitoba farmers can sell some products at market, not on website WINNIPEG - A jar of homemade jelly from Manitoba's Harvest Moon collective can be sold at a farmers market, taken home and enjoyed.

Selling that same jar on Harvest Moon's website is illegal and could prompt authorities to seize the jelly, issue fines or shut down production.

The same goes for farm-fresh eggs and poultry. Manitoba farmers are allowed to sell their products directly to consumers at markets and at the farm gate, but selling them through a website is a grey area.

"It seems like a lot of this stuff is fairly irrational," said Troy Stozek, one of the farmers who belong to Harvest Moon. "We really should be finding ways to look for opportunities and encouragement for startup farmers or long-established farmers that are trying to diversify their incomes and respond to supply and demand."

Manitoba has been criticized recently for making it difficult for producers to meet a growing demand for locally sourced food. Many were outraged when food inspectors seized meat from Harbourside Farms — producers who won an award from Manitoba's Agriculture Ministry for its prosciutto.

A Winnipeg charity that has been selling homemade spring rolls for 20 years to raise money for poor children in Vietnam was recently shut down. The province said it didn't have a licence to prepare the rolls.

Harvest Moon farmers have been taking orders on the collective's website. The products are delivered in a communal van once a month. But while the farmers can legally sell their eggs, poultry and jams from their front door, provincial inspectors have said they cannot sell them through the website or deliver them in the van.

Stozek said they were told that to sell preserves legally they would have to drive 200 kilometres to the nearest inspection lab and get the product analyzed. Same thing for eggs and poultry.

Harvest Moon has written a letter to Agriculture Minister Ron Kostyshyn in hopes of resolving the issue.

"It just seems like it's a no-brainer to try to figure out a way to make it work."

Manitoba says selling products over the Internet falls under the category of retail sales and isn't considered an extension of the farm gate. It says its interpretation of the rules is in line with

other provinces.

Kostyshyn said he's open to looking at the regulations. The province doesn't want to make it harder for people to support local farmers, but it has to ensure food that is sold is safe, he said.

"Maybe we need to review some of our regulations today. But should certain things not be processed appropriately, we're the ones who are going to be held accountable as far as food safety goes, so we want make sure we cover all bases."

Alexander Svenne, one of Winnipeg's top chefs, said he is extremely frustrated — and baffled — by how hard it is to get the locally produced food he tries to use in his entire menu. The chef of 7 1/4 Bistro said colleagues in other parts of Canada can't believe the challenges he faces.

It doesn't make sense that it's legal to sell uninspected eggs at the farm door, but not through a website, he said.

"It's absolutely crazy," added Svenne, who met with Kostyshyn last year to discuss barriers facing producers. "I think the regulations probably were written before there was such a thing as websites."

He said he's encouraged that Kostyshyn is open to reviewing the rules, but he's also worried that bureaucracy moves too slowly for producers who are living close to the line.

"In the meantime, you have hundreds of chickens laying hundreds of eggs that producers can't sell," he said. "They're not rich and to remove a chunk of their income and to review the process, so that two years down the road it's changed, is not going to be fast enough."

Beautiful moment polar bear and her cub poke their heads out of their den after 8 days Emerging from its den with its mother, a polar bear cub raises its head above the snow and looks out at the freezing world it calls home.

Wildlife photographer Christine Haines captured the images after she spent eight days watching the den.

Her patience in the biting cold of the Wapusk National Park in Manitoba, Canada, was rewarded when she managed to capture pictures of first a cub, then its mother peeking out of their hole.

It is thought less than 500 people have been lucky enough to witness baby polar bears as they emerge from their dens in the wild.

page 9

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NEWS Mystery man found in a snowdrift in Norway emerges from a coma to reveal he speaks English, is not Norwegian and has no idea who he is.

A man who was discovered in a snowdrift in the Norwegian capital Oslo has emerged from a coma to reveal he speaks perfect English but has no idea who he is or where he comes from.

ous that my hands had been tied together.

'I was paralyzed and could not speak. But the doctor said it was different drugs in the system. I'm desperate, scared and want nothing more than to get out of this situation.

'I think I'm Czech, it is the language I understand best. I also understand Polish, Slovak and Russian. But I think and dream in English.'

The man was discovered by a passerby in a snowdrift in an industrial part of Oslo on December 15th. He spent three days in a coma before coming round.

Police took fingerprints and released his picture to Interpol, but so far investigations have drawn a blank.

He added: 'At least I know I can't be a criminal, although I almost wish I was. Then they would have found out who I was.

'I woke up with a nurse beside me, and as I did not understand, I asked her to speak to me in English. I remembered nothing. It was so funny when she asked what my name was and then I couldn't remember it.'

Oslo police say his case is being handled by their violence and sexual crimes branch.

A spokesman said: 'The man did not possess any form of identification, and did not remember his name, origin, how he ended up in Norway or any other details of his life.

'He is of European origin, speaks very good English with an Eastern/Central-European accent, and understands Czech, Slovak, Polish and Russian languages.

'He is 187 cm [6.1 ft] tall, has blue eyes and dark blonde hair.'

Tragic reality exposed: Rhinos 'will be extinct by year 2020' RHINOS in the wild will be extinct by 2020 if the levels of poaching continue, experts have warned.

The slaughter of both white and black rhinos has soared in six years. In 2007, 13 rhinos were poached, but last year that number rose to 1,004.

The mystery man, who calls himself John Smith but does not know his real name, was found with a cocktail of drugs in his system and cuts on his wrist suggesting they had been strapped.

He said he is not Norwegian but may be Czech as that is the language he understands best. He also understands Slovak, Polish and Russian and speaks with a heavy Russian accent.

Mystery man: Police have released a picture of a man who was discovered in a snowdrift in December last year and awoke from a coma with no idea who he was or where he comes from He told Norway's NRK channel: 'The cuts were deep and it took several months before the wounds healed. It was quite obvi-

tional medicine in the Far East.

Will Travers, chief executive of the Born Free Foundation, warned: “There are now just 20,000 white rhino and 5,000 black

rhino left in the wild. If poaching carries on at the rate it is now for six more years it will devastate the numbers.

“There will probably be no free-living rhinos as the remaining numbers will be fenced off in military-style compounds which are alarmed and heavily guarded by armed patrols.”

The conference, attended by 140 experts, was held in response to plans by the South African government to legalise the trade in rhino horn so the proceeds can be used for conservation.

“That’s the wrong way to go about it,” said Mr Travers. He said making tourists pay a $5 conservation tax would work far better.

He added: “Poaching is a low-penalty crime and that has to change. We need better intelligence gathering and more equipment and manpower.”

Cruel people are everywhere

Criminal gangs are making millions of dollars a year by hacking the animals to death for their horns.

Most of the horns are ground into powder and used as tradi-

Couple facing jail for starving dog so badly every bone in its body was visible. Jennifer Jayne Plater and Michael Night were convicted of animal cruelty in their absence and a warrant has been issued for their arrest. continued on page 29

page 11

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Coughs and sneezes can travel far further than we thought.

Droplets can travel 200 times further when they join together to form cloud. Researchers say cloud is higher that expected and warn it can get into air conditioning systems.

Sneezes can travel far further than we thought - and even form their own cloud to move, researchers have found.

The study by MIT researchers found that coughs and sneezes are far more adept at spreading viruses than they had thought.

They say the discovery means office ventilation systems play a far bigger role in spreading disease that previously thought.

A cough or sneeze is a 'multiphase turbulent buoyant cloud,' as the researchers term it in the paper, because the cloud mixes with surrounding air before its payload of liquid droplets falls out, evaporates into solid residues, or both.

The study found that droplets 100 micrometers — or millionths of a meter — in diameter travel five times farther than previously estimated, while droplets 10 micrometers in diameter travel 200 times farther.

Droplets less than 50 micrometers in size can frequently remain airborne long enough to reach ceiling ventilation units.

'When you cough or sneeze, you see the droplets, or feel them if someone sneezes on you,' said John Bush, who led the research.

'But you don’t see the cloud, the invisible gas phase.

'The influence of this gas cloud is to extend the range of the individual droplets, particularly the small ones.'

Researchers founds the smaller droplets that emerge in a cough or sneeze may travel five to 200 times further than they would if those droplets simply moved as groups of unconnected particles — which is what previous estimates had assumed.

The tendency of these droplets to stay airborne, resuspended by gas clouds, means that ventilation systems may be more prone to transmitting potentially infectious particles than had been suspected.

With this in mind, architects and engineers may want to reexamine the design of workplaces and hospitals, or air circulation on airplanes, to reduce the chances of airborne pathogens being transmitted among people.

Has man's best friend become a PERSON?

The way we treat cats and dogs is blurring the line between people and pets - and it could affect laws, claims expert.

You might think of cats and dogs as merely faithful companions. But a new book says we are starting to treat them more and more like humans. And it may affect our laws, not only legally but socially as well, in ways we hadn’t imagined.

90% of pet-owners regard their animals as part of the family.

And $60 billion was spent on companion animals in the US alone in 2013.

The implications of this are that owners are treating their pets just like they would another human.

‘You wouldn’t do that for a bird or a toaster. Cats and dogs are getting this rarefied status in the home.'

Grimm, who also teaches science journalism at John Hopkins University, Maryland, says that cats and dogs have achieved a status in Western cultures that is unheard of for any other animal.

They are being treated more like people in society and law, blurring the lines between animals and person.

‘In some legal cases the best interests of the cat and dog are considered,’ Grimm continues.

‘And judges are awarding more emotional distress damages from killing cats and dogs. ‘In the past it used to be $50, now it’s in the tens of thousands of dollars.

‘And during Hurricane Katrina, rescuers were saving pets as well as people.

‘It’s a revolution not only in our homes, but in society and law.’

While the change in status of the animals may give rise to complications, it also has some benefits.

Not least, the animals now have greater protection than ever before. But this could have some far-reaching connotations.

For example, Grimm envisages a future where if a pet owner didn’t walk their dog enough, or it wasn’t given proper medical treatment, an organisation could turn up and take it away like a child.

‘There are a lot of bizarre consequences, and perhaps if pets were regarded as people they couldn’t be neutered (this law already exists in some European countries.)

In ancient Egypt cats were worshipped as gods and given ethereal status, but this is one of the first times in history that they have been given almost an equal footing to humans.

According to Grimm, some people are fighting for cats and

dogs to be considered more like children.

They could one day be allowed into restaurants (allowed now in France, Belgium, Poland, Sweden and Russia), and apartments would not be allowed to have ‘no pet’ policies.

But from the perspective of the cats and dogs themselves, we’re not quite sure if they are starting to think like us yet.

‘From more than a dozen labs around the world studying dogs, we know they have a sense of morality, justice and jealously,’ says Grimm.

‘We are discovering more going forwards.’

‘Cats are harder to study, there hasn’t been a lot of research into the feline mind.’

‘But as a cat owner myself, I hope we’ll discover they’re just as capable as dogs are.’

page 13

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4 Of The Most Brilliant Heists Ever There’s something about an elegant heist that fascinates us.

From the germination of an idea, the formation of a plan and the final execution, we are intoxicated by the concept of the “genius” criminal. Glorified in movies like Oceans 11, Oceans 12, Oceans 13 and the blessedly Ocean-free Snatch, we welcome an escape into the world of smooth-talking thieves who are as quick with their wit as they are with their handguns.

Take, for example, the tale of Bruce Reynolds, who in 1963 fastidiously planned the robbery of a Royal Mail train in Buckinghamshire, England. With the help of a mysterious figure known only as “The Ulsterman,” Reynolds and his team of 15 men modified the line signals, brought the train to a halt, and dashed off with over $4.3 million.

Less than four years later, the perpetrators of the “Great Train Robbery” would be immortalized when Peter Yates directed a factually accurate big-screen adaptation of the heist called Robbery.

Audiences, of course, have long been lured in by the words “based on a true story,” and Yates’ success with Robbery is at least partially responsible for his subsequent Hollywood career.

We can take Hollywood’s predilection for heist movies as confirmation of our enduring interest. From the escapades of Jesse James to the modern adventures of the Bling Ring — now on DVD, as well — we’ve always found our surroundings a little more thrilling when viewed through the lens of a brilliant criminal.

It is with this fixation in mind that we delve into a corner of our universe populated by these felonious masterminds. Pickpockets, planners and gentleman thieves will all find themselves at home here. From a suicide leap of faith at 10,000 feet to a real-life reenactment of The Ladykillers, we take a look at four of the most brilliant heists ever.

vember 24, 1971 a man who had purchased a ticket under the name “Dan Cooper” took his seat in the rear cabin of a Northwest Airlines flight. Wearing a dark suit and matching tie, he lit a cigarette, ordered a bourbon and had the general appearance of a background extra from Mad Men. Then he handed a note to the flight attendant. Initially assuming it was just another raunchy one-liner from a randy businessman, the attendant pocketed the note. Cooper calmly leaned into her and whispered, “Miss, you’d better look at that note. I have a bomb.”

With his message relayed, Cooper opened his briefcase to reveal eight red cylinders connected to a central battery.

Cooper ordered another bourbon and laid out his demands: $200,000 in “negotiable American currency” and four parachutes.

The FBI scrambled to acquire the ransom money. Cooper released the passengers — the crew remained aboard — and delivered a new flight plan to the plane’s pilot. Remaining calm and gentlemanly throughout the entire ordeal, flight attendants would later testify that Cooper, “seemed rather nice. He was never cruel or nasty. He was thoughtful and calm all the time.”

Twenty minutes later, the cockpit received an alert that the aft airstair had been opened. The plane’s tail section surged upward and the dapper thief parachuted out of the shuddering airliner — unseen by the two fighter planes shadowing close behind — and into the realm of legend.

The Antwerp Diamond Heist Haul: $100 million

D.B. Cooper’s Airplane Hijacking Haul: $200,000

One can hardly begin a discussion of heists without mentioning what is — to many — the quintessential American heist. On No-

Called “the heist of the century,” the theft of diamonds, gold and other jewelry from the Antwerp Diamond Centre was, at the time, the largest diamond heist in history. Nearly three years in the making, the team who executed the theft were meticulous, patient and — above all else — rigorously dedicated.

As a testament to this dedication, two and a half years before the heist, Leonardo Notarbartolo rented an office in the diamond

Business hours:

Breakfast Monday to Sunday 8:00 am to 11:00 am Lunch & Dinner Monday to Sunday 11:00 am to 8:00 pm

center for $700 per month. For years, he posed as a another faceless diamond merchant in an area inundated with them, building a reputation and credibility. As part of Notarbartolo’s rent agreement, he was provided with a safe deposit box in the vault beneath the center and 24-hour access to the building.

Notarbartolo’s team, calling themselves “The School of Turin,” was an Expendables-style assembly of scoundrels and old-timers: locksmiths, electricians and masterminds. Notarbartolo himself was a lifelong thief and grandfather.

The group’s commitment to groundwork paid off when, in 2003, they made their move. Bypassing a private security force and over eight layers of security including heat detectors, seismic sensors, and Doppler radar, the team snaked its way into what was continued on page 17

British sniper in Afghanistan kills six Taliban with one bullet A British sniper in Afghanistan killed six insurgents with a single bullet after hitting the trigger switch of a suicide bomber whose device then exploded.

The 20-year-old marksman, a Lance Corporal in the Coldstream Guards, hit his target from 930 yards (850 metres) away, killing the suicide bomber and five others around him caught in the blast. “The guy was wearing a vest. He was identified by the sniper moving down a tree line and coming up over a ditch,” said Lt Col Slack. “He had a shawl on. It rose up and the sniper saw he had a machine gun.

“They were in contact and he was moving to a firing position. The sniper engaged him and the guy exploded. There was a pause on the radio and the sniper said, 'I think I’ve just shot a suicide bomber’. The rest of them were killed in the blast.”

The same sniper, with his first shot on the tour of duty, killed a Taliban machine-gunner from 1,465 yards (1,340m).

It is understood the L/Cpl was using an L115A3 gun, the Army’s most powerful sniper weapon. The incident in Kakaran in southern Afghanistan happened in December but has only now been disclosed as Britain moves towards the withdrawal of all combat soldiers by the end of the year.

page 14 Continued from page 5 'It took him about five minutes to catch a fish and ended up with a large Chinook Salmon so it was worth the effort in the end.'

Success: After a brief moment of rest however he continued his search in the water and plucked a juicy catch for dinner The area of Bella Coola includes the Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park, which contains a number of grizzly and black bears.

Training Institute, an experiential school based in Hay River.

He wants to start small, with about 15 animals.

"This isn't going to replace hunting. You can hunt all you want but are you going to eat it 20 years down the road?

"Our elders have always made allowances for what's going to happen on the face of this earth in their little areas. So to me, if we know the caribou are going to be infected and we're not going to be able to eat them anymore, well, this is the only way to do it. To me, that's what has to be done."

Lamalice says he's busy researching similar projects all over the North and the world.

He hopes to have animals and space set aside by next year.

Ontario court rules man must pay fine for briefly unbuckling seatbelt at stop sign

Farmed caribou will be safe from pollution A man from the K'atlodeeche First Nation near Hay River, N.W.T. is beginning a plan to farm caribou or reindeer.

Doug Lamalice is a Dene Cultural Advisor for the reserve.

He says the idea isn't meant to replace the hunting and harvesting of the animals.

Rather, he has concerns about animals existing in a polluted environment and the effects that could have on human health.

“When we take those animals and bring them into a controlled environment where the water is controlled, the fluoride is controlled, whatever they have to have that is going into their system that is nothing but healthy,” Lamalice says.

“All of a sudden they're not drinking the river water, they're not drinking the little stream water with all the filth in it. So whatever happens to the world, well all of a sudden, our animals will be safe" Lamalice says the project will be part of the Northern Farm

If you don't buckle up, you have to pay up.

Three years ago, Tyler Wilson momentarily unbuckled his seatbelt at a stop sign in Burlington, Ontario, in order to stop a coffee cup from leaking onto a laptop in the backseat.

A Halton Regional Police officer spotted Wilson's unbuckled seatbelt and ticketed him under Section 106(2) of the Highway Traffic Act. As there was no evidence that he put anyone's safety at risk, impeded the flow of traffic or had any questionable intentions when he unbuckled, Wilson challenged the ticket.

After a successful appeal to the Ontario court of justice, the Crown took the case to the province's top court.

On March 21, the Ontario Court of Appeal ruled that Wilson deserved the $100 ticket he was given that day, ruling that the act of not wearing a seatbelt is a case of "strict liability."

If you're caught without your seatbelt on, you're guilty of breaking the law — but have the opportunity to give a due-diligence defence.

"Situations in which a defence of due diligence arise are bound to be rare," the Appeal Court said.

"A defence of due diligence to this charge would only be made out where, although the driver was found not wearing his or her seat belt when driving, the driver had taken all reasonable care to wear the seat belt."

Continued from p. 1

Prince Charles, Camilla to visit 6 Canadian communities in May Prince Charles and his wife Camilla will be spending next month's Victoria Day weekend touring six communities in Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Manitoba.

Charles, the Prince of Wales, and Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, will be in Canada from May 18-21 to celebrate Queen Victoria's birthday.

Among the events the pair will mark are the centenary of the First World War and the 150th anniversary of the Charlottetown Conference in P.E.I. that led to the Confederation of Canada.

"Our relationship with the Royal Family provides Canadians with an opportunity to learn more about our constitutional monarchy, which is the pillar of our system of government," Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages Shelly Glover said in a statement.

"The 2014 Royal Tour of Their Royal Highnesses will not only highlight Canada's achievements and our shared heritage, but will also look to the future of Canada and how we will continue together to build a country that is the envy of the world."

The couple'sCanadian tour, announced in January, will begin in Halifax on May 18 and May 19, where they be officially welcomed to Canada at the historic Grand Parade. They will also visit Pictou County in Nova Scotia.

Beginning May 19, they will stop in Charlottetown for Victoria Day fireworks, and will also take trips to Bonshaw and Cornwall in P.E.I. On May 20 and 21, Charles and Camilla will visit Winnipeg, where they'll see Assiniboine Park and drop by the Manitoba Legislative Building.

While Prince Charles last visited Manitoba in 1996, this will be his wife's first visit to the province.

"Our relationship with the Royal Family is a long and proud one," said Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger in a news release.

"We are delighted that Their Royal Highnesses have decided to include our province in their next visit to Canada and we look forward to showcasing some of the best things Manitoba has to offer."

page 15 Wilson couldn't prove that his seatbelt undid itself against his will.

There are, of course, some ways to legally skip buckling up.

If you're a courier, garbage collector, or have been given an exception due to "size or other characteristics," you can be exempted from wearing a seatbelt, the 3,500-word March 21 decision noted.

"The case we have to decide deals with the plight of an individual who has no such needs," wrote Justice Robert J. Sharpe.

"The prosecution need only prove that the driver was not wearing a seatbelt," Sharpe concluded.

If you must unbuckle, pull over first — and keep your coffee away from your laptop.

father-in-law, pushing 90, still drives, though generally not too far.

But I'd be lying if I said that doesn't make us anxious. You keep seeing those videos of seniors crashing their cars through store windows after mistaking the gas pedal for the brake. Or you worry about something like the 2011 accident at Victoria's airport, when an 81-year-old driver ploughed into a group of off-duty taxi drivers, killing one.

A new poll done for the B.C. Automobile Association (BCAA) shows we're not alone. A majority of British Columbians worry about how safe seniors are behind the wheel, yet have trouble broaching the subject with their aging loved ones.

We’re not good at telling our elders it’s time to stop driving, B.C. poll shows As baby boomers age, the number of senior citizens is going to increase along with the number of senior driver …

Getting your driver's licence was a ticket to independence when I was growing up and it's something I'd be reluctant to give up voluntarily.

For seniors, it's an especially hard step because it sharply reduces their self-reliance. Now they have to depend on friends and family for trips that were once routine, or they're forced to sample the dubious pleasures of public transit.

My mother voluntarily quit driving at age 84 after 50 accidentfree years, realizing she could no longer cope with city traffic. My

According to the survey, conducted by Insights West, 72 per cent of respondents said they were concerned about the road safety of drivers aged 65 or older.

Seventy-one per cent, including senior drivers, said there should be more road safety education available for senior drivers.

And 42 per cent of those who had a senior driver in their lives felt they didn't have enough information to determine whether that driver was safe behind the wheel. More than a third said they don't know what signs to look for that might indicate a senior driver is having trouble.

About two-thirds of respondents said they haven't talked with an aging family member about their driving and 41 per cent said they don't know how to bring up the subject.

While the poll results are limited to British Columbia, the issue affects all Canadians as the leading edge of Baby Boomers follow their parents into the their "golden years."

A look at seniors' transportation habits released last year by Statistics Canada noted most Canadians live in neighbourhoods designed around cars and most seniors want to remain in their homes as long as possible. They want to lead independent lives.

Their desire to remain in their homes is not very realistic unless they have adequate transportation. In most residential areas, this means having access to a private vehicle.

Yet the same article points out that drivers aged 70 and older have a higher accident rate per kilometre driven than any other age group except young men. They're also more likely to die in collisions.

"In the context of an aging population, the balance between road safety and the autonomy some people associate with driving is a growing concern," the article said.

StatsCan reported that in 2009, 28 per cent of people aged 65 or older who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease or some other form of dementia — roughly 20,000 people — had a driver's licence. Of those, about 7,000 were classified to have an advanced

stage of the disease.

Driving a car is not necessarily a problem for someone with early-stage dementia, the StatsCan article said, but driving ability should be assessed regularly.

The StatsCan data review found seniors who got around mainly by driving their cars or as a still-licensed passenger were more likely to participate in family and other social activities than those who no longer had a license or relied on various forms of transit or taxis.

There's the dilemma in a nutshell. We're reluctant to deprive our elders — and eventually ourselves — of the independence driving provides but there's a growing realization that past a certain point, seniors' driving must be regularly monitored.

The Globe and Mail noted in an article last November that most provinces require drivers aged 80 and above to renew their licences and take a written test every two years. But mandatory road tests are not part of the program.

You can't generalize about elderly drivers, a road-safety expert told the Globe.

"The mere fact that you are old doesn't mean you have a problem," said Dr. Jamie Dow, medical adviser on road safety for the Société de l’assurance automobile du Quebec, the provincial agency that licenses drivers and vehicles. "The fact that you are older does make you more susceptible to having a problem."

Which means it's up to us to monitor our own skills and those of aging family members.

The BCAA poll was released to coincide with the launch of the association's new tool kit aimed at older drivers or families that support one. It's designed to help seniors and their families assess driving skills, learn more about the issues facing older drivers and how, if needed, to modify driving habits.

Imported Mafia 'They saw our faces, we had no choice': gang leader recalls aftermath of murders

VANCOUVER - Former gang leader Michael Le says he had just finished signing a lease for a Maserati sports car on a Friday afternoon in October 2007 when he received a panicked phone call continued on page 16

page 16 continued from page 15

from a member of his group, the Red Scorpions.

Le, who is a co-operating witness at a murder trial linked to the mass killing of six people near Vancouver, testified Tuesday that he knew his gang planned to execute a rival drug trafficker in a dispute involving egos and money.

But it quickly became clear things did not go to plan, according to Le's account.

On the phone was Matthew Johnston, who was among the gang members assigned to carry out the hit, Le testified. He sounded "pretty urgent" and asked to meet at a shopping plaza in nearby Burnaby, Le said.

Le, 29, testified that when he arrived, Johnston broke the first bit of bad news, telling him: "Mike, I'm sorry, but we killed Eddie," referring to Eddie Narong, a friend Le had known since middle school.

By then, Narong lay dead in a highrise apartment in Surrey, south of Vancouver, along with Corey Lal — who Le said was the intended target of the hit — and two other men also linked to gangs and drugs. Also dead were fireplace repairman Ed Schellenberg and building resident Chris Mohan, who were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"I told him (Johnston), 'You are (an) idiot — why did you kill so many people?'" Le testified in a secure courtroom in downtown Vancouver.

"His exact words were: 'Mike, they saw our faces, we had no choice.'"

Johnston is currently on trial alongside Cody Haevischer for six counts of first-degree murder and one count of conspiracy. The Crown alleges Johnston, Haevischer and a third man, known only as Person X, who has already pleaded guilty, carried out the hit.

Le had been sitting next to Johnston and Haevischer in the prisoner's dock until last November, when he pleaded guilty to conspiracy. He was sentenced to three years and one month after time served, in a deal with the Crown that included his testimony.

Le told the court Lal found himself in a dispute with the other leader of the Red Scorpions, Jamie Bacon, whose own gang had merged with Le's earlier that year. Bacon is also charged in the murders and is awaiting a separate trial.

Le testified that Bacon was upset after hearing Lal had been badmouthing him, and he demanded Lal pay a $100,000 "tax."

When Lal failed to pay, Bacon insisted he be killed, Le told the court. Le was initially reluctant, in part because Lal was in business with his friend, Narong, but he relented, he said.

After the alleged meeting with Johnston on Oct. 19, 2007, Le

testified that he told Johnston to "lay low."

Le said he met with Haevischer a few days later, communicating using an erasable white board — a precaution to ensure their conversations couldn't be recorded. Le said Haevischer's girlfriend and another associate were in the room, though he said they weren't involved in the conversation.

"He wrote down 'six people got killed,'" Le testified.

"He wrote down '(Person X) shot three.' He wrote down, 'I shot three.'"

In July or August of 2007, Le said he met with Lal in an attempt to smooth over the dispute and urged him to stop antagonizing Bacon.

"I told him basically don't (badmouth) Jamie and his guys no more and I would talk to Jamie to try to resolve the problem," Le said.

Le said he didn't know that Bacon later met Lal on his own and demanded the $100,000.

Le's testimony is offering an unprecedented look inside one of the region's most violent street gangs and its alleged involvement in a crime that turned the region's gang war into a national concern. It also revealed that Le, in addition to founding the Red Scorpions, was a member of a triads gang, which he said supplied him with drugs.

Le, a Canadian citizen who was born in Vietnam, told the court he began trafficking drugs when he was 18, and was soon operating dial-a-dope operations in several communities in the Vancouver area.

During a stint in jail, he met Konaam Shirzad, with whom he formed a close friendship, Le testified. They decided to start a gang, which they named the Red Scorpions, Le said — "red" for blood, or family, and "scorpions" to symbolize brotherhood.

The gang had no official ranks, said Le, but instead members were seen as brothers. New recruits were little brothers, and those vouching for them were big brothers.

Le said Johnston, who he had also met in jail, was an early member of the Red Scorpions. Johnston vouched for Haevischer, who eventually became a member, said Le. He said he was arrested on drug charges in 2006 and pleaded guilty. While in jail, he met Bacon, who was his roommate for a month.

Bacon talked about joining together, partly to deal with problems he was having with other gangs, Le testified.

He soon became Bacon's sole supplier of cocaine, and in 2007 the groups merged, keeping the name Red Scorpions, Le testified.

Bacon is charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy, and is expected to stand trial separately.

Johnston and Haevischer are each charged with six counts of first-degree murder and conspiracy.

They have pleaded not guilty.

First Air pilots suspended after flying 100s of km off course First Air says the pilots of a flight that went hundreds of kilometres off course last month have been suspended with pay until an investigation is complete.

In a statement, the airline said it launched an investigation immediately after learning that a Boeing 737-200 with 19 passengers and four crew members on board went off its planned route last week.

“We have learned that there was no threat to the safety of the passengers and crew on board and the flight landed safely without further incident,” the statement reads.

First Air said it will work closely with the Transportation Safety Board on its review of the incident.

The Transportation Safety Board said the First Air flight left Rankin Inlet on Monday, March 31, headed for Iqaluit, but instead of flying there, the plane flew northeast.

“It was substantially off course,” said Peter Hildebrand, the regional manager for the TSB in Winnipeg.

Hildebrand said the aircraft was flying on auto-pilot using GPS navigation when the crew noted that they hadn’t been handed off from air traffic control in Edmonton to Montreal. They made a transmission to Montreal, but couldn’t make out the reply.

He said the crew was already reacting to the situation and was taking steps to get back on track when another aircraft relayed a message from Montreal to the flight crew.

“They reset those instruments and proceeded direct to Iqaluit,” Hildebrand said.

Upon arrival in Iqaluit, First Air maintenance crews checked the autopilot flight director and GPS without finding any faults. They cleared the plane to return to Rankin Inlet and then Yellowknife.

Hildebrand said there are other navigational tools available to pilots on that route.

“It’s always a concern to us when airplanes are substantially off track, because of a risk to proximity with other aircraft,” said Hildebrand.

“You don’t want this to be happening.”

A plane could also theoretically run out of fuel while correcting continued on page 18

page 17 continued from page 13

considered an impregnable vault and absconded with the contents of 123 out of 160 safety deposit boxes.

The Banco Central Heist Haul: $70 million

Credited as the largest bank robbery in history by the Guinness Book of World Records, Paulo Sergio and his team netted a staggering $70 million when they tunneled their way into Banco Central in Fortaleza, Brazil.

Sergio, a man regarded as friendly by his neighbors, appeared to live an ordinary life. He owned his own company, Grama Sintetica — Spanish for “Synthetic Grass” — that afforded him the opportunity to pursue his love of gardening.

The only minor caveat was that Grama Sintetica wasn’t real. Instead, the company served as a cover for a months-long subterranean excavation from its storefront to the 1600-squarefoot vault of Banco Central. For three months, a team of 10 to 20 men dug a tunnel beneath Dom Manoel Avenue, going so far as to fit it with lighting and air circulating systems. Investigators would later find a trail of dirt, blades, and power-saws in the group’s wake.

To this day, police are still uncertain of how the group made it through the vault’s three-foot thick steel-reinforced concrete floor. The bank itself is unable to figure out why both the cameras and motion detectors inside the vault failed to function. What is known, however, is that the team operated completely beneath the radar for months and worked with an almost mechanical efficiency, employing experts in both math and engineering. continued on page 33

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page 18 its course. In this case, Hildebrand said the plane was carrying enough fuel to be able to reach Happy Valley-Goose Bay in Labrador.

First Air is now doing a review to try to find out what happened and why.

One of the things the airline is looking at is how the crew programmed the flight management computers on board.

Hildebrand said the TSB has not launched a formal investigation into the incident, but it will be keeping an eye on First Air’s review.

The investigation may be tough, he added.

“We can’t be sure we’ll be able to recreate all the circumstances that were happening there.” *** After reviewing the flight data and navigational aids on board, First Air has fired two pilots who flew a Boeing 737 hundreds of kilometres off course during a routine flight from Rankin Inlet to Iqaluit.

“During the interviews, we learned the pilots did not follow our standard operating procedures designed to eliminate navigational errors,” a news release from First Air said.

The airline company said it interviewed the pilots and received reports from the cabin crew on board before making the decision to fire the two.

“Most importantly, we have learned that there was no immediate threat to the safety of the passengers and crew,” the release says.

First Air said passenger and crew safety have always been the company’s top priority, and they have taken this incident “very seriously.”

The company said it has reinforced procedures with all crew and dispatch staff and increased in-flight oversight using data monitoring tools.

First Air said it will share the results of its investigation with the Transportation Safety Board.

On March 31, Flight 955 left Rankin Inlet for Iqaluit with 19 passengers and four crew members on board.

Instead of flying to its destination, the plane flew north.

The pilots were relying on auto-pilot using GPS navigation when the crew noticed they hadn’t been handed off from air traffic control in Edmonton to Montreal.

After making contact with Montreal, the pilots reset their course and landed without incident in Iqaluit.

Maintenance crews on the ground found no equipment problems, and cleared the plane to continue flying.

The pilots were grounded while the investigation was underway.

Peter Black, chair of the First Air unit of the Air Line Pilots Association International, said in a statement that the union is

"deeply disappointed" with the decision to fire the pilots "prior to a complete and thorough investigation of the incident."

“This rush to judgment has unfairly called into question the expertise and professionalism of a crew with more than 40 years of combined flight experience," Black said. "We will use all of the union’s resources to investigate this incident and support the crew.”

Heartbleed bug may expose your private data A "serious vulnerability" has been found in the software that often encrypts your user name, password and banking information when you log into "secure" websites, as indicated by the little lock icon in your browser.

The "Heartbleed bug" has the potential to expose huge amounts of private data, including user names, passwords, credit card numbers and emails, since it was found in a popular version of OpenSSL software code. The code is used by over two-thirds of active websites on the internet to provide secure and private communications, reported a website set up by security researchers to provide information about the bug.

The software code is also used by many email and chat servers and virtual private networks.

The bug allows "anyone on the internet" to read the memory of systems protected by the bug-afflicted code, compromising the secret keys used to encrypt the data, the researchers reported.

"This allows attackers to eavesdrop on communications, steal data directly from the services and users and to impersonate services and users."

Tests by the security researchers who discovered the bug showed that eavesdropping via the bug is undetectable.

"Without using any privileged information or credentials we were able steal from ourselves the secret keys used for our X.509 certificates, user names and passwords, instant messages, emails and business critical documents and communication," they wrote.

The bug was discovered independently by security engineers at the Finnish internet security testing firm Codenomicon and Neel Mehta of Google Security. It is found in a version of the code that has been used by internet services for more than two years.

The researchers say they don't know if any cybercriminals have discovered and exploited the bug.

A patched version of the software code was released Monday

when the bug was disclosed, but it still needs to be incorporated into the actual operating systems and software that use it. Then it must be installed by the owners of the affected internet services.

All that may take some time.

Meanwhile, as a user, what can you do to ensure the web services you're using are safe? Italian security researcher Filippo Valsorda has created a tool that lets you check whether a website has the Heartbleed vulnerability.

Valsorda noted that the site sometimes generates a false negative, probably because it is overloaded, but testing a vulnerable site over and over will eventually give a positive result. "The red result takes precedence over all the others and is certain," he wrote.

As of Tuesday morning, the tool suggested that Google, Microsoft, Twitter, Facebook, Dropbox, and Amazon remain safe, but Yahoo.com is vulnerable.

"Please take immediate action," the site says, directing users to the Heartbleed FAQ. By 3 p.m. ET, Yahoo said it had successfully patched the bug on its homepage, search, mail, finance, sports, food, tech, Flickr photo and Tumblr blogging services.

"We are working to implement the fix across the rest of our sites right now," a Yahoo spokesperson wrote in an email.

The official name of the Heartbleed bug is CVE-2014-0160, and it affects OpenSSL versions 1.0.1 to 1.0.1f, but not earlier or later versions. It was nicknamed "Heartbleed" because it was found in a part of the code called the "heartbeat extension."

Sex trafficking, extortion charges laid against woman Calgary police have charged a woman with human trafficking after she allegedly extorted her female roommate into working in the sex trade.

Police began an investigation in January after receiving a request from a family member to check on the welfare of the 18year-old alleged victim, who was believed to be in Calgary.

Amanda Kathleen McGee

Shortly after, officers located the woman at a bus station. She told police she had been held against her will and forced to work in the sex trade since the fall.

It's believed the woman arrived in Calgary in October 2013 for

page 19 a job and was looking for a female roommate.

She met a woman who offered her inexpensive rent, which she accepted.

After a short time living together, it's alleged the homeowner began slipping drugs into the alcoholic drinks the two were consuming together.

Police say the homeowner then allegedly took inappropriate photos of the 18-year-old without her knowledge and later used those photos to extort her into participating in sex acts for money.

During the investigation, another female came forward alleging she had been the victim of voyeurism and extortion, by the same woman.

Amanda Kathleen McGee, 31, of Calgary, faces nine charges: Trafficking in persons.

Administering a noxious substance to aggrieve or annoy.

Living on the avails of prostitution.

Keeper of a common bawdy house.

Sexual assault with a weapon.

Forcible confinement.

Procure a person to become a prostitute.

Extortion.

Voyeurism.

Drilling near Thunder Bay yields 'significant platinum discovery' A platinum deposit discovered close to Thunder Bay has caught the attention of an exploration company.

Transition Metals resumed drilling near Sunday Lake, about 30 km north of the city, in Jacques Township — and says its earlier drilling efforts were promising.

The president and CEO of Sudbury-based Transition Metals, Scott McLean, said the company previously drilled half a dozen holes. Four of those samples showed a healthy amount of platinum.

"After five years of intense work and fairly dedicated work and persistent work, we've been rewarded with what we think is a fairly significant platinum discovery in the district,” he said.

McLean said this is the first step of many that are needed before a mine is developed.

in and out of Thunder Bay, that's all important,” Mason said.

Platinum Daily prices between 13 Apr 2014 and 27 Apr 2014 Platinum average: $1446.43/oz

This Dog Was Scared And Freezing To Death, But They Never Gave Up On Him Alberta, - When you think of first responders, you picture them rushing to the scene of an accident or a home where someone is sick. But what these heroes did shows us that they'll also risk their safety for man's best friend.

Prince Albert police use stun gun on 35-year-old man Police in Prince Albert used a stun gun on a 35-year-old man after they say he became aggressive and violent.

At about 11 a.m. CST, police went to a Prince Albert residence for a Mental Health Act warrant. A 35-year-old man was taken to Victoria Hospital.

Police say the man became aggressive and violent while at the hospital and they believed he was threat to himself, hospital staff, and police.

When police were unable to calm the man, they used a Conducted Energy Device, or stun gun, to subdue him.

Several officers were assaulted in the incident, but no charges will be laid because police say mental health issues were a factor.

Prince Albert police are reviewing the use of the stun gun.

Benefits for mining supply companies The manager of mining for the Thunder Bay Economic Development Commission said the work being done near Thunder Bay is encouraging.

"Those types of deposits have really … spurred interest in Lake Superior in the Thunder Bay area,” John Mason said.

“We're seeing other investment. What we hope from the Transition Metals discovery that'll spur more investment in mineral deposits of this type."

But the project is already a benefit to the city, Mason said.

"Thunder Bay can fully capitalize on working with Transition on their goals of moving this project forward as they advance through exploration."

With mounting interest in similar geological deposits around Lake Superior, Mason said he hopes the projects feed off of each other, to raise more capital, ultimately leading to new mines.

Businesses serving the mining sector will reap the benefit of any discoveries so close to Thunder Bay, he added.

Those service and supply companies include diamond drill companies, assay labs, and fuel companies.

“Everything from consumables [and] products on site, right down to food and accommodation in Thunder Bay, transportation

This terrified dog had fallen through ice and was near death, but help was on the way...and the rescuers arrived on the scene.

They had to get him out of the freezing water and to safety as fast as possible. Time was not on their side...

He got covered with blankets to dry him and warm him up. It didn't look good. In the ambulance he was treated for hypothermia.

And the best news? The dog, Charlie, is happy and healthy again, thanks to these amazing people. continued on page 25

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Vancouver's cheapest house sold A house listed for just under $600,000 in East Vancouver sold for $643,000 after its first weekend on the market.

Vancouver's cheapest listed single family home attracted large numbers to open houses, with two written offers pushing the final purchase price seven per cent over asking.

Aliens exist and UFOs are covered-up

by US government, says ex-astronaut Alien life does exist but the truth is being covered up by the United States government, former NASA astronaut Edgar Mitchell has claimed.

The government has denied their existence for decades. Popular media portrays UFO's as science fiction, and their believers as crackpots. Yet images of them have been seen in cave paintings, in religious artworks and elsewhere for centuries. Many people don't believe they exist, but then again most people never look up and watch the sky. So, before everyone laughs and says I'm crazy, let's look at the evidence.

Mr Mitchell, who was part of the 1971 Apollo 14 moon mission, made the claims in a talk to the fifth annual X-Conference – a meeting of those who believe in UFOs and other life forms.

He also said he had attempted to investigate the 1947 'Roswell Incident', which some believe was the crash-landing of a UFO, but had been thwarted by military authorities.

The former astronaut, 78, said: "We're not alone.

Our destiny, in my opinion, and we might as well get started with it, is to become a part of the planetary community. ... We should be ready to reach out beyond our planet and beyond our solar system to find out what is really going on out there."

Mitchell grew up in Roswell, New Mexico, which some UFO believers maintain was the site of a UFO crash in 1947. He said residents "had been hushed and told not to talk about their experience by military authorities."

He claimed he had raised the issue of evidence from local residents with the Pentagon 10 years ago. An unnamed admiral working for the Joint Chiefs of Staff promised to uncover more information for Mitchell but was denied access when he "tried to get into the inner workings of that process."

Mitchell claimed the admiral now denies the story.

"I urge those who are doubtful: Read the books, read the lore, start to understand what has really been going on. Because there really is no doubt we are being visited," Mitchell said. "The universe that we live in is much more wondrous, exciting, complex and farreaching than we were ever able to know up to this point in time."

The house was the cheapest listing in Vancouver last month.

The price of the 100-year-old, 1,951-square-foot, three-bedroom, detached house at 2622 Clark Dr. was set low initially due to its smaller size and half lot site.

"It's very rare, and that's why all the excitement," said RE/MAX realtor Mary Cleaver.

"I believe this house was, potentially, saved because it is on a different kind of lot, one that isn't necessarily appealing to builders.

So this has been a lovely family home for 100 years and, if well taken care of, could house a family 100 years from today," she said.

The question no longer is, "Is there life on other planets and, if so, do they visit our planet?" In spite of what our governments wish us to believe. Yet there are those who wish us to believe that there is no intelligent life beyond Earth.

Does the general world population believe in UFO's and aliens? According to the latest statistics, more do believe than do not. Do the majority of people believe our governments when they tell us that, despite years of effort and research, there is still no proof of the existence of life on other planets? Most people reject the Government's theory as being absurd and an insult to their intelligence. I cannot comprehend how anyone who looks up at the nighttime sky, filled with billions of stars, could be convinced that only Earth contains intelligent life. I urge everyone to look on the subject of aliens with an open mind. I know this is difficult, since there has been so much dis-information as well as cover-ups on this subject.

page 26

How to Destroy Your Marriage in 8 Easy Steps Marriage counselors will tell you how to keep your marriage together. If you want to know what destroys a marriage, the experts you want to consult do not necessarily have psychology degrees. Rather, they went to law school.

Divorce lawyers see relationships at the bitter end. They see couples at their worst. So it makes sense to me that they must have a clear sense of what not to do if you want to keep your relationship happy. I asked family lawyer Lisa Helfend Meyer, who happens to also be a happily married parent of a special needs child, if she'd be willing to share what, in her opinion, are the top eight things that land couples in divorce court. This is what she told me.

#1: Be secretive.

Pretend you're both in the CIA. "It's so easy these days to avoid a real conversation with your partner," says Meyer. After all, after a long day of work and diapers and traffic, sometimes the last thing you want is to actually talk with your mouth. Leaving cute emoticons as comments on Facebook or binge-watching Modern Family reruns seems so much more enjoyable, right?

"The other scenario I've started seeing: Couples who take snipes at each other via text and email rather than face to face. Either way, almost all my clients attribute the failure of their marriage in large part to a failure to communicate," says Meyer. "I had a client whose husband lost his job, and he pretended to my client that he was still working until she got the bill from a local restaurant that showed he spent a majority of his days there. Now they are fighting over who should be responsible for those charges at the restaurant. Just remember this: The energy it takes to have an honest conversation is nominal compared to the energy and expense it takes to get a divorce."

#2: Continue to debate the toothpaste cap and the toilet seat as if winning the argument means you get to live 10 years longer.

"This is a sure-fire way to guarantee your partner will tune out

when you face real items of concern," says Meyer. "If you recognize yourself criticizing every little thing your partner does, chances are you are harboring deep resentment about larger issues that you may find difficult to confront. Get in touch with your true feelings, start working on the major issues with your spouse, and learn how to let go of the minor irritations."

#3: Always play the role of the Saint.

"A pattern I've observed often is one person becoming the responsible party in the marriage - paying the bills and disciplining the kids and discounting his or her spouse's contributions," Meyer says. "A marriage requires teamwork and for the partners to take on and to value their different roles."

Related: How to survive the 7 stages of marriage

#4: Put work before family.

All work and no play doesn't just make Jack a dull boy: It destroys the family, says Meyer. "I have clients who complain that their spouses refused to put down their phones or iPads - even when putting their children to bed. You wouldn't be on your phone or iPad during an important business meeting with a client or your boss, right? All you need to do is show the same commitment to your family as you do to your job," she says. "Don't have dinner as a family and don't invest any time or effort in family activities, then your only activities will revolve around child custody agreements and division of assets."

#5: Put kids before marriage.

"As women, we're programmed to be caregivers and that often translates into putting our kids' needs before our own and those of our spouse," Meyer says. "When your marriage hits a rough patch, you may fall into a cycle of giving your all to your children and deriving all of your emotional sustenance from them. This will drive a wedge between you and your partner."

#6: Don't let anyone else watch your kids. After all they might screw your precious spawn up for life.

If you never hire a babysitter, you'll never have the opportunity to date each other. And if you don't

hire babysitters, go on vacations together, go to Victoria's Secret, go golfing together or share other interests, you'll grow apart.

"You'll lose yourselves and what made you want to marry in the first place," says Meyer. "I really believe that the lack of special, shared time is what starts couples down the slippery slope of taking each other for granted and lapsing into the boredom that ruins so many marriages. Establishing a date night is an excellent start to rediscovering the things about each other that brought you together.

But you have to make it a once-a-week, mandatory, non-negotiable evening that revolves around just the two of you. The money you spend for a babysitter or an intimate dinner is one of the best investments you will ever make."

#7: Reserve your bed for sleeping. After all, that's what the mattress was designed for, right?

"I think we can all agree that having a fun and satisfying intimate life strengthens a marriage," says Meyer. "But it's easy for intimacy to take a backseat when you're working hard, taking care of the kids, and coping with all the other stresses of modern life.

Rather than accept routine and boring bedroom life as inevitable the longer you're married, my advice is to spice things up by introducing toys and games to the bedroom, dressing up and role playing, or coming up with a new location for your romantic rendezvous. Trying new techniques may make you feel a little nervous and self-conscious at first - similar to the way you felt when you first became intimate with your partner. It's exactly that newness and excitement that you're looking to recapture."

#8: Nurse buyer's remorse for as long as you can.

Remember, the grass is not always greener, even if you think it is. It's greener where you water it. "Try a little gardening before you leave your spouse," says Meyer. "There are things you can do to work on your marriage and resolve your differences, like seeing a marriage counselor or parenting coach.

Maybe even a weekend away can breathe life into your marriage.

But, you have to be committed to the process. Anything less than a good faith effort will only reaffirm the decision to get a divorce."

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page 28 NSA Illegally Collected Emails of Americans With No Terrorism Links Director of National Intelligence James Clapper declassified documents Wednesday confirming that the National Security Agency illegally gathered up to 56,000 emails of Americans who had no ties to terrorism.

Over a three-year period, the NSA gathered thousands of electronic communications between Americans in a now-defunct program. The 86-page court opinion from 2011 (embedded in full below) details why John D. Bates, chief judge of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA), ruled the collection method unconstitutional. The NSA revised the program one month after the ruling.

On Monday, Clapper announced that, per President Obama's request, a National Intelligence Review Group would investigate

the agency's collection capabilities. According to the statement, this group will assess whether the NSA's latest technologies optimally protect national security and account for "other policy considerations, such as the risk of unauthorized disclosure and our need to maintain the public trust."

This comes a few weeks after The Guardian published another expose on the NSA's surveillance methods, based on information from Edward Snowden. The report detailed XKeyscore, a top-secret program that monitors nearly everything you do online. The NSA says it's the "widest reaching" system for developing intelligence from the Internet.

That same day, Clapper authorized the release of three previously classified documents related to the NSA's phone data collection. President Obama said he welcomed "a debate" on the NSA's programs, assuring that they're legal and have prevented domestic terror attacks.

Marlins fan loses wallet, stranger returns it with something extra On Opening Day, Miami Marlins fan Christhian Reyes lost his wallet at the game.

"I was looking all over, like the seats, to see if I had just dropped it," he told WSVN. "I was paranoid because I had my school ID. It had some important stuff in there so I could contact other people, and I had money in there, obviously."

Later that week, a Good Samaritan returned the Miami high school senior's wallet — with a note and an extra $20 inside.

"I found this at the game last night and wanted to make sure you got it back," the note read. "I added $20 to it so you know the world is a great place. Do me a favour and when you get the chance, do something nice for someone else."

The man who found the wallet used Reyes' student ID to track him down at Miami Senior High School. He left the wallet at the front desk.

"This nice gentleman walked in, and I said 'May I help you?'" registrar Barbara Piedra told WSVN. "And he said, 'Somebody lost this wallet. One of your students.

I think it's one of your students from this school, lost this wallet at the game, and I just want to make sure he gets it back.'"

The school was so impressed with the stranger's good deed that staff contacted the Marlins organization to praise the Good Samaritan.

"And now you have a student, inspired by an anonymous person who wanted to do a good deed, and I'm certain this student will continue to pay it forward," said Alfredo Mesa, vice president of The Marlins Foundation.

"I just want to thank him for giving me back my wallet," Reyes said of the kind stranger. "Whenever I can, I'll return that favour that they asked for."

Oklahoma Teen Sold A Jelly Bean-Sized Diamond She Found In Park For $20,000 OKLAHOMA CITY — An Oklahoma City girl has sold a 3.85-carat diamond she found at an Arkansas park for $20,000.

Tana Clymer told television reporters that she plans to use the money from the recent sale of the yellow diamond to help pay for college.

Tana found the diamond last October while hunting for gems with her family at Crater of Diamonds State Park in Murfreesboro, Ark. She says she couldn't believe her good luck and asked her father if she was dreaming.

The park is the only diamond-producing site in the U.S. that is open to the public. Other gems discovered at the state park include amethyst, garnet, peridot, jasper, agate, calcite, barite, and quartz.

The yellow diamond the teen found is teardropshaped and about the size of a jellybean.

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continued from page 10 London, UK. - Jennifer Jayne Plater, 39 and partner Michael Knight, 40, were found guilty of causing unnecessary suffering to Lola, their Wiemaraner, who they starved for six weeks.

But the pair failed to turn up to court to face the charges and a warrant has been issued for their arrest.

They could face up to two years in jail.

Tony Stock, prosecuting at Wigan and Leigh Magistrates Court, said the alarm had been raised after neighbours called in the RSPCA to investigate after becoming concerned about Lola's severe weight loss.

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He said: "They said that they could see every bone in her body, she was so thin."

RSPCA Inspector Vicky McDonald was called to the house and seized the dog after finding Lola was "very emaciated" with her bones visible through her skin.

Speaking at Wigan and Leigh Magistrates Court, Mr Stock added: “When she lifted Lola into the Society’s vehicle she was taken aback by how light Lola was and how easy it was to lift her.”

Vet Angus McKenzie, who examined Lola on behalf of the charity, rated her on an 0 - 5 body weight index emaciation scale at just 0.5.

He found the dog to be dehydrated and suffering as a result of being starved for “at least six weeks or longer.”

Lola was taken into the care of the RSPCA weighing 15.5 kg in six weeks she had increased her weight through normal feeding to 21.4 kg - a 47.6 per cent weight gain.

The couple, from Wigan, Greater Manchester, face joint charges of causing unnecessary suffering to the pet by failing to investigate her weight loss and poor condition.

They were also accused of failing in a duty of care to ensure they met the dog’s s needs for fresh drinking water.

Lola has now been re-homed by the RSPCA.

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10 ThingsYou Never Knew About Queen Elizabeth II Almost everybody knows something about Queen Elizabeth II. We’re familiar with her pastel suits, great hats, and her mastery of the very distinct “royal wave”. We know from a great deal of news coverage that she has reigned over the Commonwealth Realms for more than 60 years, which is the second-longest reign in British history. We also know that despite the Queen’s long reign and a lengthy marriage to Prince Philip, her hubby is still and always will be just a prince (and the Duke of Edinburgh). Another thing we’re certain of is that Her Majesty loves her corgis.

Besides these rather superficial facts, many of us don’t know much more about the Queen. She rarely gives interviews and has not written any books, unlike her son Prince Charles. Because of this, little information is available about her personal life. What are available, if you delve a little deeper, are some strange and interesting facts about this elusive character which give some slight indication as to what it’s like to be a reigning monarch.

With her 88th birthday coming up just in a few weeks, here are some of the odder facts available about Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

10. She gets two birthdays Given the meaning of the day, every individual having one birthday per year makes sense. Even so, a lot of people stretch it out to mean a full weekend or even a week of festivities, but how about celebrating it twice per year, every year? Not

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even during the same week, but perhaps even months apart. This is how things work for the Queen, and actually any other reigning monarch of England. Because England has so few nice sunny days, the monarchy decided that ‘official’ birthday celebrations be held during the summer when the weather is more likely to be pleasant.

Though having two birthdays sounds a little extreme, it makes sense given there is a birthday parade and various gun salutes in parks around London. If the weather is good, it makes for a more agreeable day for everyone involved. This is why they choose a Saturday in June for the Queen’s official birthday celebrations, rather than the date of her actual birthday, which is April 21. On this (likely rainy) day, she celebrates in private with her family.

9. She has owned more than 30 corgis during her reign Most people own one beloved dog during their childhood and maybe one or two dogs as an adult, if any at all. The Queen has owned more than 30 dogs during her reign, often owning more than one at a time. Her first corgi as Queen was a gift for her 18th birthday and its name was Susan. Because the royal family breeds dogs, many of the Queen’s subsequent corgis are descendants of Susan. The Queen owns five corgis currently; Emma, Linnet, Monty, Holly and Willow; along with four “dorgis” named Cider, Berry, Candy and Vulcan. The “dorgi” is in fact a breed that was developed by the royals themselves, mating one of

the Queen’s corgis with Princess Margaret’s dachshund.

8. A footman was once demoted for getting her corgis tipsy that the footman wasn’t fired, but a newspaper claims he was only demoted. Regardless, the story goes that this footman used to regularly spike the corgis water with whiskey and gin (very English) in order to amuse the other employees while the Queen was away. He was discovered when one of the older corgis eventually died and a post-mortem examination was done. The veterinarian who performed the examination found traces of alcohol in its blood and brought the information forward. The palace has never commented on how exactly the naughty footman was reprimanded.

7. She doesn’t have a passport or a licence, nor does she require a licence plate for her vehicle Though Elizabeth II has visited a vast number of countries, she doesn’t require a passport – because, of course, British passports are issued by

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How do casinos make a profit?

Casinos are extremely profitable businesses: From small casinos to those loaded with luxuries, they take in huge amount of dollars in profits each year. Even with the occasional winner who truly strikes it big, casinos still rake in the cash. But how?

Casinos make money off of gamblers due to a statistical advantage that each game provides. In some games, this advantage, or "edge," can be as low as less than two percent. Still, when you're dealing with millions of bets over time, even a small edge pays off.

The term for the edge varies from game to game, and is often known as the "vig" (short for "vigorish") or the "rake."

To understand how casinos make money by using an edge, you have to look at the difference between true odds and casino odds.

True odds are related to the likelihood of rolling a particular number. The more combinations are possible, the higher the odds. For that reason, you're more likely to roll a seven than a two or a 12. To win with true odds, you would theoretically receive the mathematically correct amount. However, casinos exist for profit, so they take a portion of the winnings -- the edge -- so the winner gets less than true odds. The difference between true odds and the amount the casino actually pays out is called casino odds.

With so many people gambling, these casino odds add up to enormous amounts of money for casinos. Unfortunately, a need to keep playing the odds leads many people into a gambling addiction: In Canada, about a million people are addicted to gambling. While it's a sad fact, it's one of the main reasons casinos are such a profitable business.

10 Tricks Casinos Use On You Casinos are a psychological minefield. Their architectural design, as well as everything in it, has a methodical function devised to keep you, the player, inside spending your money. Some tactics they use are as conspicuous as the nose on your face, while others are guile and subtle. However, they all play on the players’ psyche and make them feel comfortable, wanted, and most of all, optimistic. Following are ten maneuvers casinos use that keep them rolling in our money.

10. No Clocks Casinos aren’t about to assist people in keeping them punctual.

It’s a fact that when someone is engaged in an activity time seemingly drifts by at a faster pace for them, and you will rarely see humans more engaged than in a casino. Whether it be at a slot machine, table game, or poker table, most are in a trance-like state while chasing their dreams. With no clocks adorning casino walls it is not difficult to simply let time slip away deep into the night without a care in the world. Don’t expect to get the time from dealers either since they are told not to wear watches for this very reason. Day melds into night and night into day and schedules dissolve into nothingness.

Add that to the fact that if you’re in a casino you are most likely on vacation, and that contributes to the indifferent attitude you may have about sticking to your standard routine and spend more time than you had planned repeatedly slapping dollar bills down. Some casinos, have passed laws saying that players must be aware of how much time they have spent gambling, and the casino must encourage taking breaks from playing.

9. No Windows In most casinos there may be windows near the entrance or exit, but once you get inside the belly of the beast you will be hard up to see any. This tactic goes hand-in-hand with having no clocks. When they get you in, they don’t want you to have any inkling of what is occurring in the outside world. If you were to see it getting dark outside, or even getting light with the dawn, your internal clock would

kick in and tell you it’s time to move on and do something else, like go to sleep. However, this will tear you away from gambling and the casino can’t have that. In addition, they don’t want you to see anything remotely interesting happening outside. If you’re playing in a casino on the Las Vegas strip, there is enough visual stimulation outside to draw anyone’s eye to it. Therefore, the casino you are in will do its best to make that outside world nonexistent.

8. Lights, Sounds and Activity A casino is a cacophony of wonderful and alluring stimulation: bells ringing, siren-like lights flashing, change clanging, slot wheels whirring, digital sounds beeping – it’s all captivating. Why is it captivating? Because it’s non-verbal communication saying, “Win! Win! Win!”. It gives the impression that everyone is indeed winning when, in reality, most are losing. However, even as these people are losing, whatever machine they are on is still blaring out festive, euphoric sounds. It makes people want to get in on the action and become part of the winning as well. It’s such a happy place, how can I lose?! Everything is slick, burnished, and gleaming with a hypnotic draw to it. On some level, everyone, regardless if they are a big or small bettor, is attracted to these ostentatious displays of excess and flamboyance.

7. Ambience Ever notice how the lighting in a casino is low and mellow? This is to give it a homely, friendly feel, kind of like sitting on your couch in your living room at home – and who wants to get off of their comfortable couch? Harsh lighting can be grating to the eyes, but a more subdued motif allows gamblers to settle in, kick back, and enjoy themselves while feeling safe, secure, and cozy. Also, the carpeting in casinos isn’t just picked out randomly. Many may say that the patterns and designs on these carpets are downright tacky, with colorful swirls, lines, and splashes being the norm. However, to the human brain they are mesmerizing, welcoming and pleasing to the eye. In addition, the color of the walls is often times red which studies say evokes a safe, comfortable feeling. And like shopping malls and stores, the soundtracks played at casinos are always soft, easing, and mollifying which helps get the gambler in the trance-like state that is desired. Related to this category is the cleanliness of casinos. Any reputable one will be spotless with no clutter or waste in sight. Workers continually sweep and pick up after players which makes them feel somewhat pampered and catered to, as well as gives them a pleasing environment in which they want to stay.

6. Location of Services If you want to use the restroom, get something to eat, or cash out your chips, you must burrow yourself deeper into the bowels of the casino. Often, these services are wedged as far back as possible. This is a last-ditch effort to keep you inside since you have to walk through the whole place again and pass all of those tempting machines and tables. You have just cashed in your winnings and perhaps you may want to try your luck one last time before leaving. It’s the same principle stores use in hopes of getting a customer to make that last impulse buy during that long walk to the exit.In larger casino/hotels, the casino is buried deep inside the building itself. Taking various escalators, stairs, etc. is the only way to get to and from it and is one way to keep you on the property.

5. Near Wins Next to actually winning, nothing gets your adrenaline pumping like nearly winning and the realization that you almost took money from the casino. But if casinos gave out money to everyone who almost won, they would be broke after one day. Every game, whether it be a table or machine, is designed to payout small wins in the short

run, but eventually take more from you in the long run. Slot machines constantly make small payouts while perpetually being one cherry or star away from the big jackpot. Players always win hands at blackjack which gives them the impression that the game is winnable, but the house edge is always grinding away at their bankroll and their money slowly dissipates. Other games give the gambler a feeling of “control” such as craps or keno. Here, the player has a direct influence on the outcome, such as throwing the dice or picking their own numbers. This is yet another ploy that gives the player a false sense that they can beat a game and therefore will cause them to play longer. Basically, players overestimate their chances and probability of winning. Near wins are what essentially keep casinos in business. Giving players a taste of winning will almost always guarantee that they visit again.

4. Freebies Free or reduced services, otherwise known as comps, are another lifeblood of the casino. Players will often receive coupons for free meals, buffets, shows, etc., or point cards which enable them to win other prizes in order to get them to keep coming back. It makes them feel important, even if they are low rollers and don’t gamble substantial sums of money. Even if they lose, they still feel as if they have gained something and are more likely to return. They are important to the casinos because the vast majority of money made comes from these smaller gamblers, so their business is even more coveted than the high rollers’. Are they simply being good hosts to their patrons? Not really. It’s all calculated to keep them there so they play more and longer. Whatever casinos give out in comps, they make back hundreds-fold from the same people. It’s sort of like persuading a child to behave well in exchange for a cheap toy.

3. Alcohol This could have gone under the freebies category but deserves to be discussed independently. It’s as obvious and transparent a trickas freebies but may be the most powerful. Free drinks work on a couple of levels. First, they’re FREE. Unless you’re a teetotaler, who doesn’t love free drinks? Cocktail waitresses swarm the casino floor, their trays full of various drinks at all times. It’s no secret why this would keep a player put, satisfied, and feeling cheerful. Next, alcohol makes even smart players sloppy. If you’re a player who uses basic strategy in blackjack, alcohol will slow your brain therefore corrupting your ability to make the proper decisions. Gamblers will also become more liberal with their money if buzzed or drunk, throwing their chips around like they’re nothing more than the pieces of clay that they are. To many, sucking down free drinks while playing enjoyable games is pretty much as good as it gets.

2. Keeping the Big Winners Although small bettors are important, casinos surely want to keep the high rollers as well. Those fortunate enough to win big are treated like kings. They basically make these players offers they cannot refuse, from free suites to extravagant, special treatment.

The longer a big winner lingers inside the casino/hotel, the more money they will inevitably spend there. The casino may lose money continued on page 36

page 33

continued from page 29 The Isabella Gardner Museum Art Heist Haul: $500 million In what may be the most daring — and definitely the most costly — art heist in history, two thieves made off with more than $500 million in paintings, including The Concert, one of only thirty-four of Vermeer’s known works. The duo, disguised as Boston police officers, approached the side entrance of the Isabella Gardner Museum at 1:24 a.m., identified themselves as

officers, and were buzzed in without incident.

The facade of legitimacy promptly faded when the thieves handcuffed the security guards and asserted, “[t]his is a robbery.

Don’t give us any problems and you won’t get hurt.” Prowling upstairs, the two thieves began to hastily extract the museum’s paintings, even going so far as to barbarically cut Rembrandt’s The Storm on the Sea of Galilee out of its frame.

At 81 minutes, the Isabella Gardner Museum heist is one of the longer engagements on this list. The thieves, loaded up with their ill-gotten gains, made two trips to their car and were gone by 3:00 a.m. It wasn’t until 8:15 a.m. the next morning that police arrived and freed the restrained guards.

Despite a hefty $5 million reward offered by the museum for information leading to the recovery of the stolen art, the case remains unsolved.

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Mac vs Windows PC - which is best?

By Matt Egan

How I miss the old days. In a past life I was the editor of PC Advisor, and I knew where I stood. For everything Windows, and against everything Mac. Of course the world has changed and things these days are much more nuanced. In a world with iPhones, iPads and all the other smartphones and tablets, our reliance on Macs and Windows PCs has reduced. And this makes the differences seem less key.

At the same time as smartphones and tablets have brought va-

riety to the world of personal computing, Macs and Windows PCs have never been more similar. Apple even uses Intel processors. So the battle beetween Windows and Mac is both less important and less clear cut than once it was. But there are significant differences.

And so it was that one morning in March Macworld editor Karen Haslam and I debated the hoary old Mac vs PC issue. Putatively we set out to establish which is best: Mac or Windows PC? But really we just wanted to have a good old natter about the state of the desktop and laptop computer market in 2014. I was taking the part of the Wintel world, defending and promoting Microsoft's products.

The simple fact is that Apple produces only five kinds of OS X computer. Two types of laptop, the Mac mini, the iMac all-in-one and the Mac Pro. They are all fine products, and they will satisfy plenty of people's needs.

But not by any means all of them.

More importantly, you can't buy a Mac for less than $590 (least expensive), and that's the Mac mini - hardly a workhorse for everyone. By contrast you can pick up a perfectly decent Windows PC or laptop from a big-name maker such as Dell, HP or Lenovo for as little as $429. Less if you are prepared to shop around.

Games

Where do we start? Yes, lots of big name game franchises have ports that work on Mac, and yes since the move to Intel there is no inherent reason for Macs not to run demanding games. You can also access Steam from a Mac, so this is the golden age of Mac gaming. And it sucks.

Face facts, Mac fans: no serious gamer is going to be trapped into Apple's walled garden. There are infinitely more games available for Windows PC, from casual games up to the biggest, baddest games on the planet. And you'll pay for the privilege of playing those relatively few games the Mac supports: you could get a decent Windows gaming rig for the cost of a Mac mini - and with onboard

page 35 graphics the mini is useless for playing all but the simplest games.

You can game on a Mac, but if you consider yourself a gamer the options in the Windows world are much greater - not least because you can customise a PC to fit a gaming-specific spec. And for every type of gamer the choices offered in the Windows world are greater.

Security This is where Mac fans get smug. 'There are no viruses in the OS X world', they say. And 'you don't need antivirus on a Mac'. The first statement is palpably untrue, the second is debatable. There is no doubt that you are less likely to be infected by a computer virus if your computer is a Mac. This is partly because OS X - as a UNIX-based system - is compartmentalised in such a way that it is harder to infect than a Windows PC. And it is also true that fewer criminals attempt to hack Macs because there is a smaller user base and it is harder to do. Criminals don't become criminals because they have a great work ethic.

But Macs are not inherently secure. They do get malware, and that is likely to become a bigger deal as Mac market share grows. Moreover the vector of attack these days tends to be social rather than technical. You are more likely to be phished for bank details, or persuaded to click a dodgy link on Facebook, than you are to hit by a driveby malware exploit. (This is one reason why security software companies are desperately trying to get people to install pointless AV on smartphones.)

Windows is very far from perfect. It is inherently insecure. But at least Windows users know that. The herd immunity is far from perfect, but as a percentage Windows users are more likely than their Mac brethren to run security software. Windows 8 comes with antivirus baked in. It is, as Kylie once sang, better the devil you know. All internet use exposes you to threat: at least Windows users no they cannot be complacent.

Value We have covered this before, but let me say it again: the cheapest Mac is the basic no thrills Mac mini. It has integrated graphics and limited storage. And without a keyboard or display it costs almost six hundred dollars. (+ tax) Most Macs are actually decent value, but they are not cheap. And they cater to a wealthy, high-end clientele. If you want a true value computer you need to look to the Windows world. You can pick up a decent family or office PC or laptop for $429 or even less. And that's value.

Software And finally - software support. Windows software is like Windows games, and the same is true on the Mac side. There are plenty of programs to run on your OS X Mac. And most major programs have Mac versions. But that's most, and not all. And they are often ports of software originally developed for Windows.

The most popular productivity suite for Mac? Microsoft Office. It's good, but it's never quite up to date with the Windows version (as you might expect).

The Windows world is a feast of free- and shareware, free downloads that do just about anything. On the Mac side you have to change the settings to install anything that isn't approved by Apple itself. It means the software all works well, but the choice is limited.

The verdict That's as good a place as any to stop: go for a Mac if you have money to burn, aren't a serious gamer, and value a controlled experience over freedom of choice. Go for Windows for variety, value and the option to customise. Basically, get a Windows PC.

NASA's Kepler Telescope Discovers First Earth-Size Planet in 'Habitable Zone'

Kepler-186f resides in the Kepler-186 system about 500 light-years from Earth in the constellation Cygnus. The system is also home to four inner planets, seen lined up in orbit around a host star that is half the size and mass of the sun.

Image: NASA Ames/SETI Institute

Using NASA's Kepler Space Telescope, astronomers have discovered the first Earth-size planet orbiting a star in the "habitable zone" -- the range of distance from a star where liquid water might pool on the surface of an orbiting planet. The discovery of Kepler-186f confirms that planets the size of Earth exist in the habitable zone of stars other than our sun.

While planets have previously been found in the habitable zone, they are all at least 40 percent larger in size than Earth and understanding their makeup is challenging. Kepler-186f is more reminiscent of Earth.

"The discovery of Kepler-186f is a significant step toward finding worlds like our planet Earth," said Paul Hertz, NASA's Astrophysics Division director at the agency's headquarters in Washington.

"Future NASA missions, like the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite and the James Webb Space Telescope, will discover the nearest rocky exoplanets and determine their composition and atmospheric conditions, continuing humankind's quest to find truly Earth-like worlds."

Although the size of Kepler-186f is known, its mass and composition are not. Previous research, however, suggests that a planet the size of Kepler186f is likely to be rocky.

"When we search for life outside our solar system we focus on finding planets with characteristics that mimic that of Earth," said Elisa Quintana, research scientist at the SETI Institute at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, California.

"Finding a habitable zone planet comparable to Earth in size is a major step forward."

Kepler-186f resides in the Kepler-186 system, about 500 light-years from Earth in the constellation Cygnus. The system is also home to four companion planets, which orbit a star half the size and mass of

our sun. The star is classified as an M dwarf, or red dwarf, a class of stars that makes up 70 percent of the stars in the Milky Way galaxy.

"M dwarfs are the most numerous stars," said Quintana. "The first signs of other life in the galaxy may well come from planets orbiting an M dwarf."

Kepler-186f orbits its star once every 130-days and receives one-third the energy from its star that Earth gets from the sun, placing it nearer the outer edge of the habitable zone. On the surface of Kepler-186f, the brightness of its star at high noon is only as bright as our sun appears to us about an hour before sunset.

"Being in the habitable zone does not mean we know this planet is habitable. The temperature on the planet is strongly dependent on what kind of atmosphere the planet has," said Thomas Barclay, research scientist at the Bay Area Environmental Research Institute at Ames. "Kepler-186f can be thought of as an Earth-cousin rather than an Earthtwin. It has many properties that resemble Earth."

The four companion planets, Kepler-186b, Kepler-186c, Kepler-186d, and Kepler-186e, whiz around their sun every four, seven, 13, and 22 days, respectively, making them too hot for life as we know it. These four inner planets all measure less than 1.5 times the size of Earth.

The next steps in the search for distant life include looking for true Earth-twins -- Earth-size planets orbiting within the habitable zone of a sun-like star and measuring the their chemical compositions. The Kepler Space Telescope, which simultaneously and continuously measured the brightness of more than 150,000 stars, is NASA's first mission capable of detecting Earth-size planets around stars like our sun.

Kepler is NASA's 10th Discovery Mission and was funded by the agency's Science Mission Directorate.

The SETI Institute is a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to scientific research, education and public outreach. The mission of the SETI Institute is to explore, understand and explain the origin, nature and prevalence of life in the universe.

page 36 continued from page 31

none other than Her Majesty herself. She doesn’t require a licence or licence plate for similar reasons. You also might expect that she never drives and would only be taken from place to place by her chauffeur. This is mostly true; however she has been known to take the occasional cruise around the royal grounds in one of her many

6. She was once a Girl Guide In 1937, at the age of 10 or 11, Elizabeth II became a Girl Guide along with Princess Margaret who became a Brownie.

They were members of the 1st Buckingham Palace Unit along with a few other girls, and changed units a few times during the war. Elizabeth II served as a Patrol Leader and even a Sea Ranger, which involved taking the Queen Mother out in a dinghy. Eventually she became Chief Ranger of the British Empire and now that she is Queen she is their official patron, with the Countess of Wessex serving as the group’s president. vehicles, usually a Range Rover.

5. She has Facebook Her Majesty does not have her own personal page where you could friend or poke her, but there is an official community page for the British Monarchy. They have more than 1.1 million likes and post very frequently, often several times per day. Posts range from facts about historic landmarks to photos of baby Prince George.

4. She was the first head of state to send an email In 1976, before most of us were aware that email was coming into existence and even before the invention of the modern day internet, Her Majesty sent her first email. It was sent over ARPANET, a precursor to today’s internet, and was sent from a research facility used by the army. No other details about the contents of the email or who it was sent to have been released. It’s a safe bet the email was pretty thin on ‘LULZ’ and smileys, though.

3. She has survived a shooting and a stalker On June 13, 1981, the Queen was celebrating her official birthday when shots were fired during the parade as she rode on her horse. Fortunately, the shots were blanks and her horse didn’t spook too much, and so she settled her horse and continued riding. The shots were fired by a teenager who was enthralled by the assassinations of John Lennon and JFK. The teenager spent several years in a psychiatric prison following the incident.

Perhaps even more shocking, a man named Michael Fagan broke into the castle not once but twice in 1982. The first time, he got in through a maid’s window, startling the maid, but when she ran for help and others investigated, no one believed her. Meanwhile, the intruder was wandering the corridors of the palace and drinking Prince Charles’s wine. Because Fagan was unsure of where he was going and soon tired, he left. He returned several

continued from page 32

2. She has raced pigeons This is probably one of the more absurd things on the list as many people are not aware that it’s even possible to race pigeons.

Apparently, not only is it possible and the Queen participates, but there is in fact a long history of pigeon racing among the royals. The tradition was started in 1886 when King Leopold II of Belgium presented racing pigeons as a gift to the British Royal Family. The sport has continued and Queen Elizabeth II is a patron of several pigeon racing clubs.

1. She was a driver and mechanic in the army during WWII This might explain the Queen’s joyriding around the castle grounds from time to time. After begging her father to participate in the army during the Second World War, he finally conceded, allowing her to train as a mechanic and military truck driver. At the age of 18 she was in the Women’s Auxiliary Territorial Service and was known as Second Subaltern Elizabeth Windsor. Apparently Her Majesty performed quite well and is still the only female royal to have entered the army. She is also the only remaining head of state who served in WWII.

Here are few good tips on your visit to any casino.

giving away a free suite or room, but by keeping that person there they can make it back in the casino; the house edge ensures that.

Players feel like they are treated like royalty because they are important, yet it’s their MONEY that is important. In addition to keeping the money there, casinos are also gaining free advertising and marketing when other high rollers learn how they will be treated at that particular establishment. Pandering to big winners is so crucial for casinos that a large part of their resources, from VIP hosts to limousines, is dedicated to it.

1. Find a Friendly Dealer The dealer can make or break your experience. Find dealers that are friendly so you can enjoy yourself. Dealers work for tips and should be as nice to you as a good waitperson is. If they aren't, what are you still sitting at their table for?

2. Don't Drink Too Much Sure, the drinks are free in Nevada and available at most casinos, but don't have so much that you can't make good decisions. Playing blackjack is fun, don't ruin it by keeping yourself from playing at your best.

1. Labyrinth Design

Casinos are essentially giant mazes that are intentionally set up for you to literally get lost in. A sea of machines and tables create obstacles and barriers that keep the player from leaving. There is no logical arrangement; a bank of slot machines may be in one location, then another bank of the exact same machines will be 200 feet away.

Confusion is the end result. You know the exit was near the video poker machines, but which set of video poker machines? Nooks and crannies abound with various twists and turns. This plays on the common mental error people make when they mistakenly believe that if they walk in along a certain path, they can easily turn around and walk out the same way. However, the path leading out is unfamiliar because visually it is completely different. The tall slot machines which make up most of the floor layout also hinder people

weeks later and this time when he crawled through a window, it was into the Queen’s bedroom. He woke her and she summoned for help immediately, resulting in an unarmed footman coming to her aid and dealing with Fagan, who was arrested soon after.

from seeing far which further disorients them. Moreover, more modern casinos have lower ceilings which prevent someone from seeing any landmarks on the walls or ceiling in the distance that may help orient them, but instead keep them hemmed in. For many, especially those who have been imbibing alcohol, finding their way out is like participating in one, large, interactive brain teaser.

3. Don't Take Your Frustrations Out on Your Bankroll Find a limit that you are comfortable with. You will make better decisions if you are not worried about what you are betting. You can't win every time you play, so play within your means. If you aren't in the mood to have fun and enjoy yourself, you shouldn't be gambling.

A good rule is to decide in advance what you are willing to risk, then put only a quarter of that amount on a table at any time. This will force you to consider quitting or finding another table if you don't do well with your first buy-in.

page 37 What was the problem before?

Taxiing down the tarmac, the jetliner abruptly stopped, turned around and returned to the gate. After an hour-long wait, it finally took off.

A concerned passenger asked the flight attendant, "What was the problem?"

"The pilot was bothered by a noise he heard in the engine," explained the Flight Attendant, "and it took us a while to find a new pilot."

K9 for assistance Returning home from work, a blonde was shocked to find her house ransacked and burglarized. She telephoned the police at once and reported the crime. The police dispatcher broadcast the call and a K-9 unit patrolling nearby was the first to respond.

As the K-9 officer approached the house with his dog on a leash, the blonde ran out on the porch, shuddered at the sight of the cop and his dog, then sat down on the steps.

Putting her face in her hands, she moaned: "I come home to find all my possessions stolen. I call the police for help, and what do they do? They send me a BLIND policeman!"

An engineer and a programmer A programmer and an engineer are sitting next to each other on a long flight from Los Angeles to New York.

The programmer leans over to the engineer and asks if he would like to play a fun game.

The engineer just wants to take a nap, so he politely declines and rolls over to the window to catch a few winks.

The programmer persists and explains that the game is real easy and is a lot of fun. He explains "I ask you a question, and if you don't know the answer, you pay me $5. Then you ask me a question, and if I don't know the answer, I'll pay you $5."

Again, the engineer politely declines and tries to get to sleep.

The programmer, now somewhat agitated, says, "OK, if you don't know the answer you pay me $5, and if I don't know the answer, I'll pay you $100!"

This catches the engineer's attention, and he sees no end to this torment unless he plays, so he agrees to the game.

The programmer asks the first question.

"What's the distance from the earth to the moon?"

The engineer doesn't say a word, but reaches into his wallet, pulls out a five dollar bill and hands it to the programmer.

Now, it's the engineer's turn. He asks the programmer "What goes up a hill with three legs, and comes down on four?"

The programmer looks up at him with a puzzled look. He takes out his laptop computer and searches all of his references. He taps into the Airphone with his modem and searches the net and the Library of Congress. Frustrated, he sends e-mail to his co-workers-all to no avail.

After about an hour, he wakes the Engineer and hands him $100.

The engineer politely takes the $100 and turns away to try to get back to sleep. The programmer, more than a little miffed, shakes the engineer and asks "Well, so what's the answer?"

Without a word, the engineer reaches into his wallet, hands the programmer $5, and turns away to get back to sleep.

80 Proof Watermelon Discovering too late that a watermelon spiked with vodka had accidentally been served to a luncheon meeting of local ministers, the restaurant's owner waited nervously for the clerics' reaction.

"Quick, man," he whispered to the waiter, "what did they say?"

"Nothing," replied the waiter.

"They were all too busy slipping the seeds into their pockets."

Ex-girlfriend The soldier serving overseas was annoyed and upset when his girl wrote breaking off their engagement and asking for her photograph back.

He went out and collected from his friends all the unwanted photographs of women that he could find, bundled them all together and sent them back with a note saying, "I regret to inform you that I cannot remember which one is you -- please keep your photo and return the others."

Telephone accident The policeman arrived at the scene of an accident to find that a car had struck a telephone pole. Searching for witnesses, he discovered a pale, nervous young man in work clothes who claimed he was an eyewitness.

"Exactly where were you at the time of the accident?" inquired the officer.

"Mister," exclaimed the telephone lineman, "I was at the top of the pole!"

His military etiquette Officer: Soldier, do you have change for a dollar?

Soldier: Sure, buddy.

Officer: That's no way to address an officer! Now let's try it again. Do you have change for a dollar?

Soldier: No, SIR!

There are lawyers on the ight An airliner was having engine trouble, and the pilot instructed the cabin crew to have the passengers take their seats and get prepared for an emergency landing.

A few minutes later, the pilot asked the flight attendants if everyone was buckled in and ready.

"All set back here, Captain," came the reply, "except the lawyers are still going around passing out business cards."

Why did he ďŹ re you?

Two neighbors were talking about work, when one asked,

"Say, why did the foreman fire you?"

Replied the second, "Well, you know how a foreman is always standing around and watching others do the work.

My foreman got jealous. People started thinking I was the foreman."

The boss tells some jokes The boss returned from lunch in a good mood and called the whole staff in to listen to a couple of jokes he had picked up. Everybody, but one girl laughed uproariously.

"What's the matter?" grumbled the boss.

"Haven't you got a sense of humor?"

"I don't have to laugh," she replied.

"I'm leaving Friday."

Not so serious Little Johnny came in from the backyard sobbing. His mother asked "What's the matter?" "Dad was fixing the fence and hit his thumb with the hammer," he said through his tears. "That's not so serious," his mother said, "and a big boy like you shouldn't cry about that. Why didn't you just laugh?" "I did!" cried Johnny.

Horoscope Aries

(March 21 - April 19) Both financially and in terms of work, you can now afford to sit back and allow matters to mature in their own good time. This gives you the space to look around and assess your surroundings. Stay on a contemplative frame of mind to make this a rewarding time. Unexpected financial fluctuations may take you by surprise this month, but don’t rush to fix matters as there may be something you’re missing that could end up being the fault of someone else.

Leo

(July 23 - August 22)

An amazing month lies ahead for you Leo – full of action, surprises and going after what you need with your usual flair. Also, know now that light delays are possible in some areas, so don’t let frustration lead you into doing or saying something you’ll regret. Count to ten here Leo. Input and information relating to current dreams and schemes can be discovered by looking in every conceivable direction at this time. Be as flexible as possible. Don’t be stubborn.

Sagittarius

(Nov. 22 - Dec. 21) Your progress could be hampered in May as everyone and their dog seems to have something for you to do. Take comfort in the fact people want to involve you in their lives. Be aware of situations that are starting to break down, and plan how these can be rebuilt in a new more productive way.

It’s all about planning ahead this month, so start to see the bigger picture. You have the energy and personality to do anything you want now. But, don’t let

your irritation turn to anger, or you’ll burn your bridges.

Taurus

(April 20 - May 20) Great friendships can be made around this time, and you have everything you need to make yourself the centre of attention socially. Don’t compromise over issues you feel strongly about, but stand your ground.

The stubborn side of your nature is an advantage for once, and you’ll give into nothing. Are those around you behaving out of character? Adopt a careful, considered approach and be firm but gentle.

Identify the most interesting people and get them firmly on your side.

Virgo

(August 23 - Sep. 22)

mAY Gemini

(May 21 - June 21) Physical and emotional strengths are at a peak, allowing you to feel good, and to act with significant determination. Don’t be too quick to jump to negative conclusions however at work or at home. What matters most is that you maintain your popularity now. Plan slowly and steadily for future challenges. A change of emphasis at work could make you busier than ever, so make sure you’re getting paid what you deserve. Be ready to reconnect with someone from the past.

Libra

(Sep. 23 - Oct. 23)

No matter what, this is the month when excitement grabs you, the tempo of your life increases, and you get the go ahead for many of your ideas and plans. You’ll do your best to look to the future with a positive slant, so don’t allow minor setbacks to put you off your stride. Keep your thought processes original and think of unique ways to deal with life in general. You’re so confident others will look to you for guidance. Positive trends continue.

Remember to have some fun.

May, a good month to focus your attention on your creativity.

Your strength lies in your ability to get others on your side. Be willing to take charge of certain situations. Balancing the wants and needs of everyone is hard, but you’ll be able to manage something. Meeting new inspiring people would be no bad thing, but be sensitive to family members. Seek out new horizons. Keep information and opinions to yourself. Stay away from

Capricorn

Aquarius

(Dec. 22 - Jan. 19) Be honest with yourself and ask if you’re just trying to achieve too much and that’s why you’re tired?

It’s important to be prepared for minor distractions and to slow down to accommodate them. You have a mouth, open it and ask for help if you need it.

Favourable time for conversations that could lift your spirits and expectations.

Make sure you pick the right people to chew the fat with, as friendly chats can work wonders and can unearth new information.

personal conflicts.

(Jan. 20 - Feb. 18) Seek out the fun and pleasure in things whenever and wherever you can this Month. Life is too short to wear a frown all the time, so lighten up and let your hair down. On a professional level, there’s a great deal of forward movement. It’s a question of focusing your mind on the main issues, and being willing to make snap decisions in order to take full advantage of what’s going on around you.

Make sure you stand a good chance of seeing options through.

Cancer

(June 22 - July 22) Seeking alternate methods of getting ahead at work is the perfect way to capitalise on current influences, as positive planetary trends give you every assistance to get a great deal from life. Also, look out for more promising signals in a professional sense and make the most of your determination to prove something about yourself. Your integrity and character are in no doubt, and never have been.

Find the time to speak words of love to your partner as well.

Scorpio

(Oct. 24 - Nov. 21) There are good reasons for you to be working harder than before as there’s something you really want to achieve. You have the staying power to go out and get it. Routines are boring and spontaneous actions seem more appealing, but watch your step around the 19th and 21st of May. Seek out the people who have the most power and who could make things happen for you and give them a nudge. If you don’t ask you won’t get, so speak up.

Pisces

(Feb. 19 - March 20) Not everyone has your best interests at heart, so use your intuition to find out who is not all they seem. The results may surprise you.

Push the bounds of possibility and you’ll arrive at some surprising destinations. Favourable results come from persistence and determination, two qualities you have in abundance. Best time to pursue new ideas. Push the bounds of possibility and you’ll arrive at some surprising destinations. Avoid routines. They annoy you.

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