RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif. (AP) — Happy holidays. Now pull over to the side of the road.

Motorists may be in for a surprise if they spot flashing red lights in their rearview mirrors in this Sacramento suburb during the holiday season.

Police are stopping law-abiding motorists and rewarding their good driving with $5 Starbucks gift cards.

A traffic officer came up with the idea to "promote the holiday spirit and enhance goodwill between the traffic unit and the motoring public," police Sgt. Tim Curran said.

Local businesses donated money to buy the gift cards.

"They raised a substantial amount of money," Curran said. "They'll be pulling over a lot of people."

I don't like this precedent. This sounds a lot like being pulled over for no reason.

The Associated Press: Police Reward Good Drivers With Coffee

It's something I've pondered for a while, heck I even have a category called "Disneyism" on the blog to track it, does Disney fandom ever cross the lines into religion? Well now Jennifer Porter (homepage), a Canadian professor, is prepared to study that issue in a course at Memorial University in St. John's.

The theme park productions, fireworks displays and so on always involve a morality tale and a requirement of the audience to believe in the power of good, and believe in the power of wishes," she said.

I know theres a temple below disneyland with the severed head of Walt Disney.

The Disney Blog: College course to study Disney as a religion

AKRON -- It looks and fires like something out of Star Wars, but the latest weapon that Akron Police have in their arsenal certainly appears to be from a galaxy far, far away.
It's called "Corner Shot", and it allows officers to load their sidearm into an expandable arm that extends around a corner. Using a video monitor to see that target, the officer can fire a round at a 90-degree angle while staying protected behind cover.

Sort of cowardly. If crooks get these too, shoot-outs are going to become real pointless.

Local police test new high-tech weapon system

Imagine enjoying a friendly lunch with co-workers at the company restaurant. Now imagine every bite, sip and swallow being monitored by company researchers, in a kind of culinary Big Brother scenario.

That's the reality at the new Dutch Restaurant of the Future, where 23 cameras track customers' every move. Facial recognition technologies record every smile and every frown, and a scale built into the floor weighs customers as they check out. Specially designed chairs note diners' heart rate as they get their first taste.

It's all part of a life-size, 10-year social science experiment designed to answer one seemingly simple question: Why do we consume the way we do?

"We're trying to understand what the underlying factors of eating and drinking habits are," said Rene Koster, the project manager and an economist at Wageningen University, which hosts the restaurant.

Why do I have the feeling that this will be ultimately be used for something more ominous?

'Big Brother' Restaurant Spies on Diners

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They may have committed a high crime, but a former Dearborn cop and his wife are only going to be charged with a misdemeanor for allegedly smoking pot in Dearborn Heights.

Edward Sanchez, 30, and his wife, Stacy, 27, are expected to turn themselves in for arraignment on one charge each of using marijuana, according assistant Wayne County Prosecutor Maria Miller.

On April 21, 2006, Sanchez, who lives in Dearborn Heights, called 911 in a panic after he and his wife ate brownies laced with marijuana he said he took from criminal suspects.

Dearborn police allowed Sanchez to resign from his job on May 23, 2006, even though investigators said he admitted to taking the marijuana from his police car and using it to make the brownies. Dearborn police reports the Free Press obtained said Sanchez told investigators he planned to use the marijuana to train his police dog.

Dearborn police have declined to discuss their handling of the matter.

A recording of Sanchez’s 911 call – during which he said he thought he and his wife were dying and asked a dispatcher for the score of the Red Wings’ game – became fodder for comedians and Internet parodies after it appeared on the internet.

The 911 call is great.

Stoned cop to face charges | Cowardly Cops

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- New Yorker Alison Wilson was walking down Prince Street in SoHo last week when she heard a woman's voice right in her ear asking, "Who's there? Who's there?" She looked around to find no one in her immediate surroundings. Then the voice said, "It's not your imagination."
No, he's not crazy: Our intrepid reporter Andrew Hampp ventures to SoHo to hear for himself the technology that has New Yorkers 'freaked out' and A&E buzzing.
No, he's not crazy: Our intrepid reporter Andrew Hampp ventures to SoHo to hear for himself the technology that has New Yorkers 'freaked out' and A&E buzzing.
Photo Credit: Yoray Liberman

Indeed it isn't. It's an ad for "Paranormal State," a ghost-themed series premiering on A&E this week. The billboard uses technology manufactured by Holosonic that transmits an "audio spotlight" from a rooftop speaker so that the sound is contained within your cranium. The technology, ideal for museums and libraries or environments that require a quiet atmosphere for isolated audio slideshows, has rarely been used on such a scale before. For random passersby and residents who have to walk unwittingly through the area where the voice will penetrate their inner peace, it's another story.

This is going to make people psychotically angry.

Hear Voices? It May Be an Ad - Advertising Age - News

In the old days naval recruiters used to get young men drunk in bars, make them scrawl their signature on a bit of paper and next thing the young men knew they woke up not only with a hangover but aboard a ship.
blog post photo

Young men (and women) today spend less time in bars drinking and a lot of time in internet cafes and 11 million of them are pretending to be somebody else on Second Life. So, that's where the French Navy recruitment drive decided to go and get them, well, a few anyway. It's the first time a French armed force has used this kind of method to recruit: some say it's a world first but I couldn't guarantee that.

Wouldn't it be great if more countries recruited online armies. Secondlife needs more of a game element anyway. Well, of course you cant serve online... but still that would be great. Everyone would be eager to play.

Ares Homepage

When it comes to children and school, safety always comes first… unless of course you live in China. Then safety comes right after a clean window.

One elementary school in Beijin, China requires its children to clean the windows as routine task once a week.

Me thinks this culture made on e too many kung-fu movie.

School Puts Children in Danger to Boost Their Bravery | Weird Asia News

Devout Italians will no longer have to carry around worn and tattered images of their favorite saints. A new service is launching on Wednesday that offers downloads of the holy images to mobile phones. The Catholic Church has reacted with horror.

...

The company, Santi Protettori, advertises a subscription with a choice of three saints for €3 ($4.50) per week, with a prayer to go with them for an extra 50 cents. The company promises that "the images of the protective saints will always be with you." The service starts on Wednesday, with a TV ad campaign to be launched Friday to attract more of the faithful. Not just saints, but also Jesus, Our Lady of Lourdes and the late Pope John Paul II will be available.

Nice. Can't wait till they make talking ones.

Holy Mobile: Italians Offer Saints for Download - International - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News