Watercooler Stories

Bike sharing program ended by thefts

BOCA RATON, Fla., June 26 (UPI) -- The students behind Florida Atlantic University's bike-sharing program said all of its community-use Green Bikes have been stolen.

Alexander Van Mecl, 19, a member of FAU's sustainability committee, said the Green Bike system worked on the honor code -- find a bike not in use, ride it to your destination, and leave it -- but not all users were entirely honorable, the Palm Beach (Fla.) Post reported.

"They were done, it worked, and they got stolen," Van Mecl said. "You can think of hundreds of different scenarios as to why we don't have the bikes anymore. Kind of a depressing story."

Van Mecl said the sustainability committee was looking into methods of restarting the program in the spring with more safeguards in place to prevent theft.

Oregon bear benefactor ordered to move

NEWPORT, Ore., June 26 (UPI) -- An Oregon judge Thursday ordered a woman to move out of her rural home for three years as part of her probation for feeding bears from the neighboring forest.

Karen Noyes, 61, of Yachats, also was ordered to stay out of the neighborhood, which has become a hangout for black bears who wandered in for the tasty handouts.

Noyes was convicted in a Newport courtroom on charges of chasing and harassing wildlife after Oregon wildlife agents testified they had warned Noyes as early as 2003 that she should not be feeding the bears that lived in the nearby woods.

"Bears are not your pets to do with as you please," Judge Thomas Branford said from the bench.

The (Portland) Oregonian said Noyes insisted after the hearing that no one had ever told her the bears were a problem, but neighbors told the newspaper they were relieved they would no longer have to keep a wary eye out for them.

The newspaper said one homeowner discovered a bear trying to squeeze into the house through a doggy door. Another said he had a bear shot after it menaced his ex-wife.

PETA pigs allowed at Ohio protest

COLUMBUS, Ohio, June 26 (UPI) -- An animal rights group has been granted permission to bring three hogs in "narrow metal crates" to the Ohio Statehouse as part of a factory farm protest.

The Capitol Square Review and Advisory Board approved the request from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals for the July 9 protest, but it rejected other parts of their plan, including requests to bring "gallons of urine, tons of manure and a fan to blow the odors around," The Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch reported.

The board also gave PETA approval to bring a sound system to play "actual recorded screams of piglets," a video booth to display "undercover footage" of factory farms and a large banner reading: "Ban Factory Farms: Go Vegetarian. PETA."

Swedish city votes to let women go topless

MALMO, Sweden, June 26 (UPI) -- The sports and recreation committee in Malmo, Sweden, has voted to allow women to go topless in the city's swimming pools.

The board struck down a motion that women "with two-piece swimsuits ought to wear a top piece," after controversy was sparked by members of the feminist Just Breasts/Bare Breasts network made visits to the city's pools sans bikini tops, The Local reported.

The board ended up approving a measure stating that "everybody should wear bathing suits" at the city's pools but the measure does not specify that women must cover their upper halves.

"I'm satisfied with the decision," said Bengt Forsberg, chair of the sports and recreation committee on recreation. "Everyone is required to have a swimsuit when visiting the city's indoor pools and if it doesn't cover the upper body, that's OK too."

Forsberg, a Social Democrat, said he believes the entire issue has been overblown.

"We don't define what bathing suits men should wear so it doesn't make much sense to do it for women. And besides, it's not unusual for men to have large breasts that resemble women's breasts," he said.