News of the Weird: Jan. 10, 2019

Expand

Drone Patrol Saves Lives!

Taisei Corp., a construction company based in Tokyo, announced in December 2017 that it would use autonomous drones to combat karoshi, or “overwork death,” reported The Independent. The drones hover over desks of employees who have stayed at work too long and blast “Auld Lang Syne,” a tune commonly used in Japanese shops getting ready to close. A company statement said: “It will encourage employees who are present at the drone patrol time to leave, not only to promote employee health but also to conduct internal security management.” Experts are skeptical: Scott North, professor of sociology at Osaka University, told the BBC that “to cut overtime hours, it is necessary to reduce workloads.”

Yellow Journalism

Ikea took advertising in a whole new direction with its print ad for a crib. The ad, which appeared in the Swedish magazine Amelia, invited women who think they might be pregnant to urinate on the paper to reveal a discounted price. “Peeing on this ad may change your life,” the ad read at the top of the page. “If you are expecting, you will get a surprise right here in the ad!” Adweek reported that the agency behind the gimmick adapted pregnancy test technology to work on a magazine page.

Message Received Loud and Clear

Linda Jean Fahn, 69, of Goodyear, Ariz., finally succumbed to a frustration many wives suffer. On Dec. 30, 2017, as her husband sat on the toilet, she barged in and “shot two bullets at the wall above his head to make him listen to me,” she told Goodyear police when they were called to the scene. Fahn said her husband “would have had to be 10 feet tall to be hit by the bullets,” ABC15 in Phoenix reported, but officers estimated the bullets struck about seven inches over the man’s head—as he ducked. She was charged with aggravated assault.

I Love You, You Love Me

What’s become of the beloved Barney the Dinosaur character of children’s TV fame? Well, the Daily Mail has the answer for you. David Joyner, 54, romped inside the big purple suit for 10 years on the 1990s “Barney & Friends” show on PBS, but now, he’s a tantric sex guru in Los Angeles who claims he can “unite a client’s body, mind and spirit through tantric massage and unprotected sex.” Joyner credits his tantric training with helping him endure the 120-degree temperatures inside the Barney suit.

Godspeed

A woman led a Kentucky State Police trooper on a chase at speeds of up to 120 mph on Feb. 10, stopping only when another trooper managed to pull in front of her car and bring her to an eventual halt. According to the Elizabethtown News-Enterprise, Connie Lynn Allen, 52, of Goodlettsville, Tenn., told officers that she was “Mother Mary,” en route to pick up “Baby Jesus,” and that “God has given me permission to speed.” She also said that she had died six years ago. She was charged with several offenses and is being held in Hardin County.

Use Your Spidey Sense

Alarmed neighbors in Perth, Australia, called police after hearing a child screaming and a man repeatedly shouting, “Why don’t you die?!” on Jan. 1, according to the Evening Standard. Multiple units of officers arrived at the property, weapons drawn, only to learn that the unnamed man, an arachnophobe, had been trying to kill a spider. His wife confirmed to police that their child had been screaming in fear of the eight-legged intruder. The spider didn’t survive.

Going Bananas

Rogelio Tapia, 26, was arrested in Des Moines, Iowa, on Dec. 31 after a dispute at a QuikTrip around 3 a.m. The store clerk and witnesses told police Tapia chased the clerk around the store and assaulted him with a banana after the clerk tried to intervene in a domestic situation. According to KCCI, Tapia caused about $1,000 in damage; he was charged with assault and third-degree criminal mischief.

© 2019 ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION