Monday, February 17, 2020

Georgia fire captain has been suspended from his job because he ran inside a burning house to rescue a 95-year-old woman

Atlanta Fire Captain was suspended without pay this week because he broke “protocol” when he heroically rushed into the burning home of 95-year-old woman last June. Apparently, he was supposed to wait for his fire crew before attempting to save the lady’s life. In his disciplinary report, it states, “You entered the structure without your crew members which is in immediate conflict with no freelancing, accountability and maintaining crew integrity.” The head of the fire union said that the Captain made a “split-second” decision to enter the burning home because the intensity of the blaze significantly decreased the survival chances of any occupants. He said the suspension “sends the wrong message.” Unfortunately, the lady was unable to survive her injures. The Captain was suspended without pay for four days and will be able to return to work on Wednesday, February 19th, but he is appealing the decision. (WXIA)

Customer throws fried chicken, mashed potatoes at KFC manager during dispute, police say

A Wisconsin woman threw fried chicken and mashed potatoes during a dispute with a manager at KFC, police said. A woman came into the restaurant, complained about her order and wanted a refund. Employees said they would remake her order, but she was not satisfied with that response. Instead, she started throwing fried chicken, biscuits and mashed potatoes at the back of the manager’s head. The woman returned to her vehicle and left the restaurant. Police were called out to the restaurant. It is unclear if the woman was cited. (WITI)

You Can Now Buy Al Capone’s Bulletproof 1928 Cadillac Sedan For $1 million

Want to ride like a big-time mafia boss? You can. But it comes with a price. Al Capone’s former vehicle, a bulletproof 1928 Cadillac, has been listed for $1 million. Celebrity Cars, the company selling the vehicle, says the infamous gangster’s car is among the earliest surviving bulletproof vehicles, fitted with glass almost an inch thick and lined with nearly 3,000 pounds of armor plating. The four-speed manual transmission vehicle has logged 1,111 miles. It has a rear window rigged to drop quickly, “allowing occupants to fire upon would-be pursuers.” The modified windows are also designed so the glass can be raised an extra inch or so, revealing a circular cutout large enough to accommodate the muzzle of a machine gun. The Cadillac’s history has been documented since 1932 and can be tracked through references in old newspapers, IRS records, and accounts provided by its more recent owners. The car was initially armored in a body shop owned by Ernest Capstran, his son Richard Capstran told Celebrity Cars. Al Capone was one of the most notorious gangster in American history. During the height of Prohibition, Capone’s multimillion-dollar Chicago operation in bootlegging, prostitution and gambling dominated the organized crime scene. Capone had built a fearsome reputation in the ruthless gang rivalries of the period, according to the FBI, until he was finally busted on tax evasion charges. (Celebrity Cars)

Cancer growth can be slowed by eating prebiotic foods such as asparagus and onion which boost killer immune cells

Cancer growth can be slowed with prebiotic foods such as asparagus and onion, a study on mice suggests. Prebiotics are a group of compounds that help boost the variety of gut bacteria, and are also found in garlic, leeks and bananas. Scientists fed mice water infused with prebiotics and studied how the rodents fought melanoma skin cancer, one of the aggressive forms of the disease due to its ability to spread to so many organs. For the first time, research showed how prebiotics populated the gut, which bolstered the immune system. With more immune cells attacking cancer, the disease progression was curbed, the researchers said. They believe prebiotics hold the potential to make ‘cutting-edge cancer treatments’ once studies on humans are conducted. Probiotics, which are live microorganisms, may benefit your health by changing the overall composition of the microbiota. They are found in a range of natural food sources, particularly fermented foods such as kefir. Prebiotics, on the other hand, are ‘food’ for probiotics in the gut. They are not live organisms, but they help probiotics stimulate the growth of diverse gut populations. (Daily Mail)

US says Huawei using ‘backdoors’

The U.S. government says Chinese telecoms giant Huawei has been accessing “backdoors” meant to be solely used by global law enforcement agencies though the mobile networks it has built across the world since 2009. Huawei denies the allegations. Telecoms companies are required to provide access to the networks they build for law enforcement agencies, without being able to access this themselves. The U.S. has continued to accuse Huawei of spying for the Chinese government, an allegation it denies. (The Wall Street Journal)

Job openings slumped at 2019’s end

Job openings in the U.S. fell to a two-year low at the end of 2019, suggesting waning hiring demand. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the U.S. had 6.4 million open positions on the last business day of December, down from 6.8 million in November. The slump in openings appeared across industries, but the retail, manufacturing and transportation sectors neared two-year lows for openings. Job openings now outnumber job seekers by about 670,000 — also near a two-year low. (The Bureau of Labor Statistics)

Teen pranksters pretend to spill coronavirus on NYC subway

A video clip is making the rounds on the internet from January 31st when two teens dressed in full-body hazmat suits pretended to spill a vat of COVID-19 on a packed subway leaving other riders screaming as they fled in terror. The pair initially sat calmly in their protective get-ups while holding a clear container with red liquid. The teens both gave thumbs-up signals while telling riders they were “good”, soon eliciting screams as they removed the lid of the box plastered with “WARNING” stickers. They then pretended to fall to the floor, spilling the liquid that quickly spread down the subway carriage. Most commuters ran away from the spill, some jumping on seats to avoid the spreading liquid in the hoax. “It’s a prank! It’s a prank!” the teens quickly reassured the screaming riders  who feared the virus that has killed 1,113 and sickened more than 44,000 around the world. The clip received plenty of praise and laughing emojis. The teens understand the backlash. (New York Post)

Warning about new social media challenge

It’s called the “Tripping Jump Challenge.” Parents probably have no clue what it’s about, but their children probably do. Three people stand side-by-side. The person in the middle doesn’t know what’s about to happen. Thinking they’re taking a slo-mo video of jumping, the person in the middle jumps high only to have the person on the left and the right sweep their legs out from under them. (WBNS)

Harvard, Yale in foreign funds probe

Harvard and Yale are under investigation over suspicions they failed to report at least $6.5 billion in foreign funding. The Education Department claims the Ivy League schools did not fully report gifts from countries including Qatar, China, Russia, Saudi Arabia and Iran, whose governments and companies are known to be hostile to the United States. Last month, the chairman of Harvard University’s chemistry department was charged by the U.S. Justice Department for lying about his links with the Chinese government. (The Wall Street Journal)

FTC turns up heat on Big Tech

The Federal Trade Commission says it wants to investigate takeovers by five U.S. tech giants to see if they violated antitrust laws. The regulators will force Alphabet, Apple, Amazon, Facebook and Microsoft to disclose details of the smaller firms they’ve purchased over the last decade, which normally aren’t big enough to require FTC competition reviews. The agency says it’s looking for a practice called killer acquisitions, which rivals say are used to eliminate competition. (Washington Post)

Monday Shines In Our Eyes With:

• Analog to Digital TV Day
• My Way Day
• National PTA Founders Day
• Presidents Day
• Random Acts of Kindness Day
• World Human Spirit Day