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03 Jun 2011 14:32

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Culture: Book excerpt: Psychopaths are more normal than you think

  • After they arrested me, I sat in my cell and I thought, ‘I’m looking at five to seven years.’ So I asked the other prisoners what to do. They said, ‘Easy! Tell them you’re mad! They’ll put you in a county hospital. You’ll have Sky TV and a PlayStation. Nurses will bring you pizzas.’
  • A diagnosed psychopath named Tony •  Describing how he got put into the Broadmoor mental hospital in England. He pretended to be insane to get out of a jail sentence, after other prisoners told him to. He copied books and movies he’d seen and read, and was sent to the mental asylum. However, when it came time for him to get out – he couldn’t. He actually was a psychopath, according to a number of tests that had been done on him. This excerpt from author Jon Ronson’s “The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry” is a fascinating piece on a subject few know about — how psychopaths are diagnosed and treated.  source

08 Mar 2011 21:00

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World: Depressing: Super-brave Mexican police officer forced to retreat

Marisol Valles, 20, was called the “Bravest Woman in Mexico” for taking up a dangerous post as a police sheriff. Now, she’s seeking asylum in the U.S. She’s still brave. source

22 Feb 2011 12:31

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World: Mystery Libyan naval ship off Malta’s coast being monitored

  • yesterday As we mentioned, two Libyan Air Force pilots flew out of Tripoli in jets, bringing two helicopters carrying seven civilians with them. They made it to the small island nation of Malta, where they have claimed political asylum, saying they refused to fire on citizens.
  • today Italian authorities are watching a Libyan naval vessel stalled near Malta’s coast, but they haven’t yet determined what the ship’s intent is. Malta has served as a major relay point for those seeking to flee the chaos and violence in Libya’s besieged capitol, Tripoli. source

21 Feb 2011 14:18

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World: Just a couple of jet jockeys who want the hell out of Libya

  • 2 Libyan Air Force jet pilots seeking political asylum in Malta source
  • » Escape! The two men booked it out of Libya in Mirage jets, landing at Malta International Airport along with two helicopters carrying seven civilians who claim to be French, though only one has a passport. The duo, both reportedly colonels in the Libyan Air Force, flew low out of a Tripoli airfield to avoid detection.

01 Dec 2010 10:22

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World: Ecuador offers Julian Assange asylum … oh wait, not really

  • problem Julian Assange needs to find somewhere to go, stat, because he’s wanted by INTERPOL (RED ALERT!) for sex crimes in Sweden.
  • solution? The Deputy Foreign Minister of Ecuador offered to have Assange stay in his country as a safe haven “without any conditions.” Yeah!
  • denial Unfortunately, Kintto Lucas’ offer wasn’t approved by Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino, or by president Rafael Correasource

25 Jan 2010 09:19

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U.S., World: For some reason, people feel persecuted in the U.S., want asylum

  • 45 Americans felt safer in the U.K., asked for asylum source

18 Mar 2009 21:01

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Culture: Three of Natasha Richardson’s most notable roles