Watercooler Stories

Amazon staff asked to moon camera

LONDON, Dec. 22 (UPI) -- Staff at Amazon's warehouse in Bedfordshire, England, say they waved, rather than mooned, when bosses at the giant U.S. Internet retailer set up a mass photo.

Staffers at the Marston Gate warehouse said they rejected pressure to drop their trousers in unison for a mass mooning photo -- an idea reportedly conceived by Jeff Bezos, Amazon's founder -- The Sunday Times of London reported. The photo was to be Amazon's response to a Times story last week that detailed difficult working conditions at the warehouse, staffers told The Times.

"It's ludicrous and a lot of the staff are upset about it," said an unnamed staffer, noting more than 200 workers eventually were photographed waving at, but not mooning, the camera.

Officials with the Seattle company said they were not aware of the proposed moon pose, but believed it would have been suggested in jest, The Times reported.

Facebook bans breast-feeding photos

NEW YORK, Dec. 22 (UPI) -- More than 58,000 people reportedly are protesting Facebook's decision to remove images of women breastfeeding from the social networking site.

"Hey, Facebook, breastfeeding is not obscene!" said the protesters' site, asking supporters to "cyberprotest" by changing their profile picture to an image of breast-feeding, the New York Daily News reported.

"We need to take our bodies back," said mother and protester Stephanie Muir. "Whether there's a nipple exposed or not, female breasts, specifically in the context of breast-feeding, should not be considered obscene."

Facebook spokesman Barry Schnitt said the site removes photos only when the entire breast is shown.

"These policies are designed to ensure Facebook remains a safe, secure and trusted environment for all users, including the many children who use the site," Schnitt said.

Airport security suspicious of clown

BIRMINGHAM, England, Dec. 22 (UPI) -- A 60-year-old clown says security at a British airport stopped and searched him when he tried to board a flight in his costume.

Dave Vaughn said he was boarding a flight at Birmingham International Airport dressed as PC Konk the clown, when he set off a metal detector and was stopped by security and told to remove his costume, The Mail on Sunday reported.

Vaughn, who was to provide entertainment on a flight for disadvantage youth, said airport guards then declared his plastic handcuffs as a security risk.

"My plastic scissors and camera got through fine, as did my funny glasses and bubble machine, but then they discovered my plastic toy handcuffs," Vaughn said. "I told them I had bought them from the Early Learning Center especially for the trip but they still said they were a risk."

Vaughn said he was finally allowed to board his flight after guards determined it was a metal clasp holding up his clown pants that had set off the metal detector.

Man cuffed for playing bagpipes in public

LONDON, Dec. 22 (UPI) -- A bagpipe player says he was arrested for refusing to stop playing on the main street of Bridport, England.

Bagpiper Shaun Cartwright, 38, said when police approached following complaints about his playing he refused to pack up his bagpipes and leave immediately, The Mail on Sunday reported.

"They asked me to move on but I wanted to finish my hour of playing and put the blow stick to my mouth and that was it," Cartwright said. "I was handcuffed, put in the back of a police car and taken to the station."

Cartwright was released an hour later.

"People are prejudiced against the bagpipes," he said. "People may not like the sound of them but that doesn't give them the right to get the police to come along and hassle you."