The Observer, September 28, 2007
Volume XL, Issue 5
News You Can't Use
Jack Hanna, flamingo get stuck in airport turnstile
While returning to Columbus, Ohio, from a zoo fundraiser, Jack Hanna and an 11-month-old baby flamingo became trapped while attempting to squeeze through an airport security turnstile. Firefighters were eventually called to the scene to rescue the flamingo.
Jack Hanna, a crew of three other people, a mongoose, a small leopard, and a flamingo arrived at the Ohio State University Airport late one night last week to find the terminal closed. The only way to exit the tarmac was through a 10-foot-high metal turnstile.
"I never thought about the crate being square and the turnstile being round," said Hanna of the flamingo crate. Hanna attempted to push the crate through the turnstile while straddling it, which only trapped both of them.
He eventually got free, but the flamingo remained trapped. After walking to a nearby fire station, Hanna found some help. With the assistance of three fire fighters, the flamingo crate was freed.
Hanna joked that the next time he flies through the airport, the biggest animal he'll bring is a gerbil.
Disgruntled voter puts Belgium on eBay
Chronic eBay users found an unusual item for sale last week "For Sale: Belgium, a Kingdom in three parts ... free premium: the king and his court (costs not included)."
The posting was the product of a disgruntled Belgian in protest of his country's political crises, which reached the 100-day landmark on Tuesday, with no end in sight to the squabbling between Flemish and Walloon politicians.
"I wanted to attract attention," said Gerrit Six, the teacher and former journalist who posted the ad. "You almost have to throw a rock through a window to get attention for Belgium."
The ad offered free delivery but warned the potential buyer would incur $300 million in debt.
But Six's concerns are shared among the masses of citizens who been in political limbo since the June 10 elections, which resulted in a power struggle between the country's French-speaking and Dutch-speaking politicians. And currently, the kingdom is on the brink of a breakup.
"My proposal was to make it clear that Belgium was valuable, it's a masterpiece and we have to keep it," he told Associated Press Television News. "It's my country and I'm taking care of it, and with me are millions of Belgians."
"It was a really fun listing made by a Belgian," Peter Burin, PR manager of eBay Belgium. "This person, in a very funny way, reminded the Belgians what a great country Belgium actually is and it would be a shame to sell it."
However, the company decided to pull the ad Tuesday after receiving a bid of $14 million.
"We decided to take it down, just to avoid confusion," he told APTN.
