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A few months ago, Guinness World Records declared India's bhut jolokia as the world's hottest chili.
A chili’s spiciness can be scientifically measured by calculating its content of capsaicin, the chemical that gives a pepper its bite, and counting its Scoville units.
As a way of comparison: Classic Tabasco sauce ranges from 2,500 to 5,000 Scoville units. Your basic jalapeno pepper measures anywhere from 2,500 to 8,000. The previous record holder, the Red Savina habanero, was tested...
An explosion that killed three people and critically injured three more at the Mojave Airport is a terrible tragedy.
The victims were employees of Scaled Composites, a company directed by aerospace designer Burt Rutan that is working on SpaceShipTwo.
They were testing the flow of nitrous oxide for the aircraft when for unknown reasons, the explosion occurred.
A visibly shaken Rutan conducted a news conference Thursday evening expressing his sorry and saying, "We...
Thank God, I'm not an athlete. I just play golf.
But in a wonderfully written story, Associated Press reporter Tim Dahlberg wrote about the current scandals in sports, or what he called "a world of drug cheats, puppy killers and game fixers."
You got yer blood doper (Alexandre Vinokourov) on Tour de France (let's learn how to ride a bike, Bobby), yer steroid home run king (should there be a crown for Barry Bonds), yer dog fighter (Atlanta Falcons QB Michael Vick and his puppy...
I am not perfectly svelte.
There's a purpose for that. If I ever find myself in the wilderness without food I can live off my fat for awhile before I have to catch grasshoppers, kill them first (gotta do that) and munch on them.
But it turns out my friends have a 57 percent chance of joining me on the fat farm.
I feel bad about this. Is there a milk shake or something that will help ease my pain?
Perhaps my friends would like to join me.
Posted by Steve E. Swenson
This topic came up at the morning news meeting. We will run a citizen journalism story soon on a writer's Harry Potter movie experience being ruined by people on cell phones.
My wife and I frequently go to the movies, almost always at Edwards because we get the senior discount.
We go on Friday and Saturday nights, the same time as untold number of teens.
And we are almost never bothered by cell phones or obnoxious behavior after the movie starts.
Edwards has a series of...
Miami Herald reporter Cindy Krisher Goodman wrote a story about how people are taking shorter vacations and working more on them.
Nearly gone, the story says, is the two-week relaxed vacation where people forget entirely about work.
It's too hard to clear off the work plate before you go and too hard to deal with the 500 e-mails and pileup of work upon the return.
So people stay connected with laptops, Blackberrys and cell phones.
Some take spouses and families on work trips....
Lindsay Lohan wasn't a nice girl in the movie "Mean Girls."
Her personal life isn't shaping up very nice either.
She was arrested early Tuesday morning in Santa Monica on drunken driving charges, and for a bonus, police found cocaine in her pants pocket.
This comes a week after her release from six weeks of rehab for another dui and hit and run incident in May.
And it's just before this Friday's release of her new film, "I Know Who Killed Me."
I know who's...
If you live in Pine Mountain Club, you expect guests to drop in.
But Tim and Bobbi Marvel didn't expect a guest to be a black bear — twice!
The couple called Fish and Game which said it would put up a trap if one of the options was to euthanize the bear if it was caught.
The Marvels agreed. Other residents, including Liz Bolden of the Los Padres Bear Aware, did not and they took steps to keep the bear out of the trap and alive.
What would you do?
And what if, say the bear...
I couldn't help but notice that California seems to be above federal law when it comes to banning kangaroo leather, but not when it comes to approving medical marijuana.
The California Supreme Court, asserting a state rights superiority, says kangaroo leather shoes — just like Beckham's (the soccer star, not his spicy model wife) — cannot be sold in the state that is paying $5 million to the soccer star.
He wears kangaroo leather shoes because they are lighter and more...
You may have noticed the air around here is dirty.
A New York Times story addresses the issue of exercising outdoors in dirty air, and it highlights Bakersfield.
It basically says go ahead and do it, just stay away from traffic fumes.
The bad stuff in the air is little particulate matter that shoots through the protective nose hairs. (Who knew that little rug patch in my nose was good for something?)
Bakersfield is third in the nation for particulate matter. I always knew...
There appears to be Harry Potter fans in the world.
People who read the books and can't wait for the next installment.
The final chapter, Deathly Hallows, will be sold in Bakersfield on Saturday. But today you can search the media and find the plot.
The cads. Who are these jerks in the media who would reveal the final scene that Potterheads have been waiting ten years and seven books to discover on their own. (I'm not going to reveal them here because I don't want to direct you to...
I thought judges were supposed to be smart.
A judge has banned the word "rape" in a trial where the defendant is accused of raping a woman. It has sparked protests in several cities.
According to an Associated Press article, Tory Bowen, 24, accused Pamir Safi, 33, of raping her in 2004. Safi said the two had consensual sex.
On June 16, Lancaster (Neb.) County Judge Jeffre Cheuvront issued a court order banning Bowen and prosecutors from using the words...
A move is afoot in America to prohibit children under the age of 16 from operating all terrain vehicles.
The move is spearheaded by families of victims of ATV accidents which have claimed the lives of more than 1,200 American children under age 16 in the past decade.
Injuries of young children have skyrocketed.
The industry recommends less powerful ATVs for young children, plus safety training courses.
That hasn't stopped the deaths and severe injuries.
Do you think new laws...
I rarely read the Wall Street Journal. The make up of the newspaper just looks boring.
But I recognize it is a good newspaper and one of the most respected in America.
Now Rupert Murdoch, 76, owner of right-wing Fox News, the tabloid New York Post and the well-respected Times of London, is on the verge of buying it.
The Bancroft family, owners of 64 percent of stock for the paper's publisher, Dow Jones, has balked at the generous sale offer by Murdoch, citing concerns...
A man who was auditioning for The Survivor Show in Bakersfield cut open a live snake and began eating it.
There's an indication that might be animal cruelty and now it's being investigated.
The name the man gave could not be verified, but a video of him doing it is in the above linked story.
The question is, should it be okay to eat a live snake (if you're so inclined) or is this an animal cruelty case?
Posted by Steve E. Swenson
Federal agents for the second time in three months raided the Nature's Medicinal Cooperative, a medical marijuana dispensary, in Oildale.
Officials said the business had done $9.6 million in sales in nine months, a large amount for the type of operation.
It is legal in California — but illegal in the United States — to sell marijuana to patients who have a doctor's recommendation that marijuana is needed for a medical condition.
Agents arrested five people,...
The Los Angeles diocese, home to 4.3 million Catholics, agreed to pay $660 million for 508 cases of alleged sexual abuse.
The settlement is for people who allegedly were abused by clergy in the church and then found that the church covered up or failed to appropriately deal with the allegations.
The amount brings to $2 billion the church has paid out since 1950. I hope they get it by now.
Posted by Steve E. Swenson
About one-sixth of Wal-mart stores, including the one on Rosedale Highway, will begin selling religious action figures in mid-August.
They will include Samson, Daniel and Jesus, although the manufacturer also makes Esther (queen who saved Jews from genocide), Mary, Moses, Noah and David.
The idea is to give children an option from toys such as Spider-Man, G.I. Joe and Catwoman.
Do you think this is a good idea for our children?
Posted by Steve E. Swenson
Kids say the darnedest things.
And apparently, some adults can't handle it.
A Continental Airlines flight last month from Houston to Oklahoma City was delayed 11 hours before it was finally ready to go.
Garren Penland, 19 months old, looked out the window during the flight attendant's safety speech and kept repeating, "Bye, bye plane."
The flight attendant didn't think that was so cute and after suggesting the toddler be given Benadryl for kids, had the plane delayed...
Nick Woodall was 20 years old in 1987 when during an 11-day meth binge on Oct. 31, he beat to death 20-year-old Michael Hoy.
He wrapped the body in several coverings secured by tire chains and crank shafts and dumped it in the California Aqueduct near Tupman Road. The body was found on Nov. 2.
Hoy's face was beaten so badly it was unrecognizable to his family. The motive was financial gain.
The victim's mother, Sue Hoy-Elliott, said on the day Woodall was sentenced to spend the...
Well, finally.
We've finally evolved as a society where we can openly talk about poop, and laugh at its squishy humor. Or learn something substantive from it.
So says a story by Matt Ehlers of McClatchy newspapers.
A Yale doctor has written a book about what your poo (I prefer the word poop, myself, but after all he's from Yale, and a doctor, and probably has more credentials than I do) can tell you about you.
(I'm thinking it means I just ate a while ago).
It has become a...
Forgive me, Lord, for sympathizing with people who want to hurt bankers.
It's because of reports that banks and credit unions raked in $17.5 billion in overdraft fees each year.
The average fee is $27.50 per check that isn't covered by funds in the account.
Banks reply that customers can avoid these fees by keeping track of what they have and how much they spend.
Right, like people act that responsibly.
Another way is to tie your credit card to your account so that any...
A new study has found that women have more power at home.
Like we didn't know that already.
But the study by Iowa State University examined 72 married couples and found that women were more demanding—asking for changes in the relationship or in their partner—and were more likely to get their way than the husbands.
That assumes, of course, that husbands ever get their way.
I think the downfall of men can be traced back to "I Love Lucy" where Desi Arnaz rarely...
We have a story for tomorrow's paper about Merriam-Webster adding more words that have become commonplace. For example, now you'll find sudoku and speed dating in the newest dictionaries.
I love words. They are my job. And I enjoy the proper use of words.
But I must admit even I would love to see a few more words in the dictionary. Take "fantabulous," for instance. That's my take on "fantastic." Reporters and editors who work with me know I say it all the time. Or...
No, Virginia, you can't make this stuff up.
A family of a Yorktown, Texas, 14-year-old girl sued the high school because she was cut from the cheerleading squad.
Wycoda Fischer failed to make the squad and now her family has hired a lawsuit to complain that her rights were violated.
I'll be watching this carefully. My daughter was cut from a cheerleading squad at West High School some years back.
(I'm hoping there's a long statute of limitations with this).
My daughter was...
The Kansas City Star wrote a story on lucky charms, which are sometimes personal items, that have meaning and a calming effect on people.
A few examples:
Sydney Reed, 11
Student and equestrian
She had had Kiss Me Kate, her beloved pony, for almost a year when he died unexpectedly last year. Her mother, jewelry designer Elizabeth Adair Reed, suggested a bracelet of sterling silver and woven hair from the pony’s tail.
“I wear it everywhere,” Sydney said. “I used...
If you watched any of Channel 23, KERO-TV, over the weekend you saw how it promoted its interview with Margaret Kern Brothers, the only surviving daughter of convicted family murderer Vincent Brothers.
The interview with reporter Crystal Figueroa and schedulted to air tonight (Monday, July 9) says this is the first in-depth interview Brothers has given since her father was convicted of killing his wife, mother-in-law, and three children.
I'm guessing this means this is Channel 23's...
Every five years, Congress rewrites a farm bill with its major ingredient being subsidies to farmers.
This year a movement is afoot to cut or eliminate subsidies.
Almost all of the subsidies go to support soybeans, corn, rice, wheat and cotton — all except rice being major crops in Kern County. Cotton is the largest local subsidy.
The argument against subsidies is very rich, corporate farms receive a big boost of welfare to support their crops. And some of these crops afflict...
The vote for the world's new seven wonders is coming to a close and the winners will be announced this weekend. AP says the Great Wall of China, Machu Picchu and the Roman Colliseum are the front runners.
The pyramids in Egypt aren't in the running because their overseers didn't like the idea they had to compete to keep their title (they are the only one of the original wonders of the world to have survived.)
So what would the seven wonder of Kern County be?
Probably no more than 6-6-06, or the day before or the day after.
But people act like 7 is a special number so they get married on 777 or they go to Vegas to gamble.
I'm pretty sure 777 is a really good day for Vegas casinos, notwithstanding the one where a guy started to shoot people this morning.
I believe people make their own luck. They spend some effort to make things work out for them.
If they happen to luck out on 777, it's the same chance that something good can happen...
New studies show men talk as much if not more than women.
We all know that is not true. Women gab much more.
The studies show both men talk about 16,000 words a day. But that's because men talk about important stuff — sports, blondes, cars and work.
We have a few things to say on those subjects, but a lot of it is repetitive. Like, "Did you see that blonde in the halter top. Wow. I mean wow. I'm telling you wow. Did you see her?"
Now if women have...
In life as it should be, Joey Chestnut of San Jose became Wednesday — the day of our nation's birthday — the champion hot dog gulper of the world.
He consumed 66 hot dogs in 12 minutes, knocking off six-time winner Takeru Kobayashi of Japan, whose record of 59 hot dogs was soundly obliterated.
How anyone can even eat wet hot dogs amazes the heck out of me.
Hot dogs don't have the best reputation for healthy ingredients. To make them palatable, I throw in a little...
Scooter skates.
President Bush commuted the prison term, but not the $250,000 fine, that former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby received in the CIA Leak case.
This will spare Libby from a 21/2-year prison term that President Bush said was excessive.
Do you have any thoughts on this?
Sure you do.
Good to know people in high places.
Posted by Steve E. Swenson
In recent days, terrorists have struck or tried to strike in London and Glasgow, Scotland.
We, of course, can't forget 9/11 in New York City and Washington D.C.
America has increased its security alert in light of the London activity.
The question is would Bakersfield be immune from a terrorist attack?
With the notion that Bakersfield really isn't a destination point for most of America, can we assume terrorists wouldn't want to come here either?
Posted by Steve E. Swenson
If you lose your cell phone or wallet, would you pay to get it back?
That's a question raised in a Washington Post story by Monica Hesse.
The story examines whether it is acceptable for the finder to get a little reward for the find, even if it seems like ransom.
Ashton Giese found himself in that situation after he lost his cell phone. He called the number and the finder answered with, "Yeah, I got your phone. But what's it worth to you?"
The story noted that in...
Criminal cases in Kern County are being delayed by months because there's not enough trained people to process DNA.
Everyone who watches CSI (crime scene investigation) on television knows how important it is to rule out or rule in suspects early in the process.
Otherwise investigators spin their wheels, victims become anxious and angry over inaction, and criminals are free to re-offend.
Vernon Kyle, chief of the Kern County Regional Crime Lab, said the problem is training and...
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