Watercooler Stories

Denied college because of age -- she's 13

ORLANDO, Fla., May 31 (UPI) -- Parents of a home-schooled 13-year-old Florida girl say they are filing a complaint because she's being denied entry to college because of her age.

The retired engineer parents of Anastasia "Annie" Megan say they have gone as far as they can go in educating their daughter. She's almost completed her high school education and they've applied for Annie to take dual-enrollment classes at Lake-Sumter Community College in Leesburg, Fla., but they've been turned down by college officials, who say she's not ready to be in classes with older students, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

The parents have filed an age-discrimination complaint against the college with the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights.

"If she meets all the qualifications but for her age, then why not let her in?" asked her mother, Louise Racine. "What's the worst that can happen, honestly? If a child does pass these tests, don't you think they should be allowed to continue their education to the next level and continue to let their minds grow?"

Although college President Charles Mojock would not comment specifically, the Sentinel said, he talked about the freedom of the college environment.

"Anyone basically can walk onto our campus," Mojock said. "So we've got a very different environment (than a high school). … And we have many adult students having adult conversations on adult topics and that may or may not be suitable for some young students."

"It's a shame to see the (college) administration taking the go-slow approach to a bright student who wants to continue to learn," Annie's father, John Megan, said.

Maverick party wins Iceland election

REYKJAVIK, Iceland, May 31 (UPI) -- Iceland's "The Best Party," founded by comedian Jon Gnarr, has won Reykjavík's municipal election, topping many incumbent parties, polls indicate.

Iceland Review Online showed The Best Party won 34.7 percent of the vote, edging out the Independence Party's 33.6 percent, with incumbents losing in other local races, the BBC reported.

The Best Party, which was established just six months ago, has won over voters apparently because of their lack of trust in government in the wake of the country's 2008 banking collapse.

Specific pledges from The Best Party call for "sustainable transparency, a new polar bear for the Reykjavík zoo and free towels at all swimming pools," the BBC reported.

The party also called for a "drug-free" parliament by 2020 and a Disneyland at the airport.

'Professional' litigant plans another suit

NEW YORK, May 31 (UPI) -- A homeless man in New York, infamous for filing lawsuits when businesses or institutions eject him for his body odor, has a new target, observers say.

Richard Kreimer, 61, who won a $23,000 suit 20 years ago when a New Jersey library kicked him out, says he's going to sue Amtrak in Philadelphia, claiming they had police forcibly eject him from the station there, the New York Post reported.

Kreimer, who hires lawyers to fight his battles, considers litigation his "profession," the Post reported.

He has filed 18 lawsuits against businesses like drug stores and restaurants and the New Jersey cities of Morristown, Summit, Newark and Woodbury accusing them of violating his civil rights by kicking him out of public places.

Many who've dealt with Kreimer consider him a plague on taxpayers and business owners, the newspaper said.

"It's legalized extortion," said a lawyer who once opposed Kreimer in court, insisting on anonymity for fear of legal retaliation. "He's exactly what's wrong with the legal system."

Study shows 'gaydar' may be real

LEIDEN, Netherlands, May 31 (UPI) -- "Gaydar," the supposed innate ability of gay people to identify other gays even in a crowd, may actually exist, Dutch researchers say.

Dutch scientists said gay men and women in a study proved to be more detail-oriented and discerning than heterosexuals when focusing their attention on their environment, and this close attention to detail could help them detect the sexual preference of others, the New York Daily News reported.

"This is the first time that scientific proof has been found for the existence of a gaydar mechanism amongst homosexuals," researcher Lorenza Colzato of Leiden University in the Netherlands said. "This perceptual skill allows homosexuals to recognize other gay people faster and we think it's because they are much more analytic than heterosexuals."

More perceptive and detail-oriented people may be more likely to pick up on subtle clues in other people that they may be homosexual, the study found, which helps them search out gay friends and sexual partners.