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Overnight Briefing & General Reality Check - Sep 23, 2014
September 23, 2014
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Tuesday (09-23):
It's National Voters Registration Day --only 54.87 percent of eligible Americans voted in the 2012 U.S. presidential election.
Culture Shock:
Happy Banned Books Week! Its slogan is "Celebrating the Freedom to Read."
Out of 307 challenges as reported by the American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom, the following are the top-10 most-complained-about reads for 2013 (Or as iHeartDaily.com calls it: a list of excellent books):
10. Bone (series), by Jeff Smith. Reasons: Political viewpoint, racism, violence
9. Bless Me Ultima, by Rudolfo Anaya. Reasons: Occult/Satanism, offensive language, religious viewpoint, sexually explicit
8. The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky. Reasons: drugs/alcohol/smoking, homosexuality, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group
7. Looking for Alaska, by John Green. Reasons: Drugs/alcohol/smoking, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group
6. A Bad Boy Can Be Good for A Girl, by Tanya Lee Stone. Reasons: Drugs/alcohol/smoking, nudity, offensive language, sexually explicit
5. The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins. Reasons: Religious viewpoint, unsuited to age group
4. Fifty Shades of Grey, by E.L. James. Reasons: Nudity, offensive language, religious viewpoint, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group
3. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie. Reasons: Drugs/alcohol/smoking, offensive language, racism, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group
2. The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison. Reasons: Offensive language, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group, violence
1. Captain Underpants (series), by Dav Pilkey. Reasons: Offensive language, unsuited for age group, violence (Kaye)Guilty Pleasures:
Bottoms up! October is still a week away, but over in Germany, they've already begun pouring beer for Ocktoberfest!
DIETER REITER, the mayor of Munich, got things started by tapping the first keg yesterday in the Bavarian capital, which is expecting around 6.4 million people for the annual 16-day celebration.Fast Food:
Starbucks is launching a brand new drink for the fall. And --get this-- it tastes just like Guinness.
The popular coffee chain is currently test marketing something called a "Dark Barrel" Latte, which reportedly tastes like a pint of dry stout. A spokesperson for Starbucks says the new drink was "inspired by the rise of craft beers." It's currently only available in parts of Florida and Ohio. (Still)Grace notes:
Would you let MILEY CYRUS anywhere near you with a tattoo needle? MTV says she will happily design some custom body art for you... for $10-thousand dollars! The money will go to My Friend's Place, which is a youth homeless center in Los Angeles. That's also where Miley found the guy who accepted her Video of the Year status at the VMAs. Yes, the one who was wanted by police. Miley will give away a VIP Concert Experience with her in Rio sometime today for everyone who entered a contest to raise money for My Friend's Place. There are still some goodies available if you still want to make a donation at Miley's Prizeo page. (Marino)
Survivor: real life:
A man in Australia survived a crocodile attack by using a move from the Three Stooges.
20-year-old STEPHEN MOREEN was goose hunting in Peppimenarti when a six-foot croc grabbed hold of his arm and pulled him into the water. Moreen --who was drunk at the time of the attack-- says, "Lucky for me when (we) went underwater I saw him and poked his eye." The poke-in-the-eye counter-attack worked and the reptile let go. The tipsy hunter drank some more beer to numb the pain while waiting for medics to arrive. He suffered some flesh wounds, but is doing fine. (Still) -
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