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Witch says she was demonised
Kate Jones, tribunal reporter
August 13, 2004

WITCHCRAFT is a peaceful religion and witches do not worship Satan, a tribunal heard yesterday.

But a press release issued by a Christian councillor had incited hatred, contempt and revulsion against transgender witch Olivia Watts, the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal was told.

Ms Watts, who was formerly a policeman, casts spells and believes in both a god and goddess, but does not practise evil magic, barrister Richard Niall said.

"This is not a case of a flippant, off-hand remark, this is not a case about broomsticks or cats -- this is a case of a deliberate and cruel attack," Mr Niall said of Cr Rob Wilson's statement.

"What Mr Wilson wrote about Ms Watts was a cruel and bigoted set of statements. It was false in many respects and picked on Ms Watts because of her religion."

Aug 13, 10:54 AM EDT
Serial 'Snuggler' Gets Probation in La.

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) -- The serial "snuggler" will have to keep his hands to himself. The man who sneaked into women's apartments just to cuddle with them has been sentenced to five years' probation.

Before pleading guilty earlier this year to 12 counts of unauthorized entry, Steve Danos, 26, led a commendable life, a judge said Wednesday before sentencing him.

None of the victims was hurt. Instead, the intruder roused the residents to ask about a party, helped himself to beer and pizza, folded clothes, made nachos and crawled into one woman's bed to rub her stomach.

Before his arrest, Danos had a more notable claim to fame. He drove in the winning run in the state championship baseball game his senior year at John Curtis Christian School in River Ridge.

"It's simply unbelievable," state District Judge Todd Hernandez said Wednesday, while flipping through letters written to the court on Danos' behalf by friends, teachers and school administrators.

Turkmen Leader Orders People to Stop Chewing Chicken Crap
Created: 13.08.2004 18:12 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 18:24 MSK

The president on Turkmenistan, Saparmurat Niyazov, has issued a decree banning his people to chew nas in common places, Russia’s news agency Interfax reported on Friday. Nas or naswai is the country’s staple drug, made of tobacco, slacked lime and chicken excrement. People chew nas for its mild narcotic and stimulating qualities.

According to medical reports, about 80 percent of Central Asian people diagnosed with throat cancer chew nas in their life.

Niyazov’s decree, published on Friday, forbids to consume nas in ministries and public institutions, at all enterprises and organizations, in military units and border guard posts in educational and children’s establishments, in theaters, in public and private transport, in parks and shops. The list of the places gives the rough impression of how spread the habit is.

The decree also banned selling nas everywhere except for specially assigned places — usually cattle markets.

Those who violate the decree will face fine of two minimum wages — 500 thousand manat ($85). Illegal nas traders will be fined $170.