For one hour on Saturday, the entire world turned off the lights. From the most famous landmarks in Sydney harbor to the lights illuminating the coliseum in Rome, to bring attention to the burgeoning climate catastrophe, they all went dark Saturday.

Earth Hour was marked across the globe as businesses and individuals alike sat without lights for 60 minutes on Saturday in an effort to show the world how much energy it uses.

London reported that energy usage for Saturday was down two percent across the board. One hour of energy-less time made that much difference in a 24-hour day.

This is an event that organizers promise will continue into the future when the world gathers on March 29 each year to turn off the lights from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. local time as we all try to become more eco-friendly.

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The judge at the head of the inquest into Princess Diana’s death has determined that the royal family had no part in the accident and there is no conspiracy whatsoever.

Diana passed away after being chased by paparazzi in Paris in 1997 with her companion, Dodi al-Fayed. Since that day, there have been competing theories about the princess’ death, many with the royal family at its heart.

After hearing from over 250 witnesses, Lord Justice Scot Baker informed the jury that he had reached his decision with the following statement.

“There is no evidence that the Duke of Edinburgh ordered
Diana’s execution and there is no evidence that the security
intelligence service or any other government agency organized it.”

With that statement, the inquiry into Princess Diana’s d
eath should be a closed case. Now each investigation into
Diana’s death has determined the same cause - driver Henri Paul
was driving too drunk and too fast.

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For thirty dollars you don’t have to haul yourself to New York to appear on the Maury Povich Show to get the DNA-related answers you require.

A home testing kit for DNA, mirroring the drug testing kits popular with parents, is now available on the market. Containing a swab, a consent form (which of course, legally must be there), and a Netflix-like package ready for return mailing. The product will find the DNA answers coming your way in three to five days.

The DNA test arrived Wednesday on select stores’ shelves, but consumers may want to call around to ensure the local drug store carries it. And do not count on this product answering questions for court issues - legally - the home kit does not qualify as sufficient.

By the time all is said and done with lab fees - add in another $119 to receive results. The company behind many a DNA test, Identigene, reported their demand for the product was so high that it called for a home version.

“Store sales are brisk and Identigene has been inundated with questions regarding the product’s availability,” the company said in a statement.

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Although it may seem as if they have been at each other’s throats of late, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton promised Thursday that the Democratic Party would be a united front for November.

Hillary addressed a crowd in North Carolina and told her faithful that talk of each candidate’s supporters voting for John McCain in the general election was absurd.

“Every time we have a vigorous contest like we’re having this primary election, people get intense. Senator Obama has intense support. I have intense support. It’s exciting because people want to be involved,” she told the crowd. “But, the differences (between us) are pale in comparison to the differences between us and Senator McCain.”

There is still weeks to come until the next primary contest in Pennsylvania. Count on more lobbing of political insults and jabs.

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Stephanie Kuleba was an 18-year-old with a bright future. With a perfect grade-point-average in school, she was a cheerleader and now she is dearly missed.

What was supposed to be routine cosmetic surgery on Saturday, Kuleba instead had a fatal reaction to the anesthesia. The death is sparking a debate about how young is too young to have cosmetic surgery.

She was going under the knife to correct irregularly sized breasts and an inverted nipple. Kuleba was thought to recover quickly as the millions who have gone before her who have experienced the same surgery.

Doctors are digging to discover what was missed that would have led the teenager having a fatal reaction to anesthesia.

Mourners gathered in a Florida church Wednesday to say goodbye to the girl many described as “perfect” and someone who well-wishers will “miss so much.”

After the mother of Kanye West passed recently from cosmetic surgery, the debate is raging in medical circles as to the public reaction to tragic results from surgery that should be routine.

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Yes, it’s true and this is not an Arnold Schwarzenegger film. An Oregon transgendered man has come out of the shadows to show the world his new…baby bump!

Thomas Beatie is facing numerous health problems should his pregnancy continue through a birth. But scientists are split as to how the pregnancy will play out. Born a woman, Beatie should be able to carry through to term.

But the question central to the entire issue is whether the chemicals a transgender person goes through will endanger a fetus? As this is not science fiction and not true science, the answers to these questions will be answered as Beatie progresses through the next three months.

Six months pregnant, thus far, issues have not arisen. Doctors are concerned of the biological fact that because women are born with all the eggs they will need for life. Beatie has chemically-altered eggs and leave researchers wondering what will be created inside what is essentially a male human body. It remains to be seen.

Beatie was born female and went through sexual reassignment surgery 10 years ago, but kept reproductive organs intact.

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D.B. Cooper, the name is synonymous with getting away with crime. Then, there is the other aspect of his legend that is domestic hijacking of airplanes. What he did is such a rarity, the vulnerability of 9/11 struck America to its core.

Cooper stands out because of the nature of his crime and now he is in the news once again. After taking a small aircraft hostage, he landed it, was paid the money he demanded and disappeared into history.

The FBI is reporting that it is taking a long look at a segment of a parachute found in Washington state earlier today and its implication to this almost 25-year case.

So, who is D.B. Cooper?

He is the man who hijacked a Northwest Orient flight from Portland to Seattle in 1971, got what he wanted and was never heard from again. The aircraft landed at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and he released the passengers for $200,000 in cash.

D.B. Cooper then demanded that he be flown to Mexico where he promptly parachuted out of the airplane flying him to his desired locale. He has never been seen since. Cooper’s tale was chronicled in the 1981 film, “The Pursuit of D.B. Cooper.”

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A man in Australia had his house burglarized Friday and was so upset about it he called the police. Now any normal person in the world would have phoned the cops, but when the item in question is marijuana…he might have wanted to wait until he calmed down before he called anyone.

As marijuana is illegal in Australia, when the police showed up at an unnamed man’s house in South Adelaide, the man who was burgled was arrested for possession.

The six intruders failed to get all of the man’s plants and police did not see any humor in the fact that a man wanted charges brought for stolen goods that were illegal in the first place.

The 35-year-old man has been released on bail after being charged with cultivating cannabis for sale. Police issued a statement:

“Members of the public are reminded that the growing of cannabis is not only illegal but can also attract other criminal activity such as home break-ins and assaults.”

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Nubs the dog has had a remarkable journey from the sands of Iraq to the beaches of San Diego. As The Wire previous reported, Nubs’ fate mirrors hundreds of other dogs adopted by Iraq veterans. Many “adopted” their Marine.

On Sunday, Nubs’ was reunited with the man he tracked down 65 miles in Iraq. Landing on a Camp Pendleton air strip north of San Diego, Major Brian Dennis had more than well-wishers awaiting his arrival. The German Shephard-Border Collie mix was a stray in Iraq that lived off of Dennis’ unit’s scraps. When the animal returned with its ears severed off, the Marine took to him and Dennis’ commrades named him Nubs.

Nubs arrived in San Diego over a month ago and Dennis returned Sunday from his seven-month tour in Iraq as a fighter pilot. At first hesitant, Nubs took a deep sniff of the man approaching him in full desert fatigues…and completely engulfed him with love.

Covering him with kisses, Nubs and Dennis have a special bond. When Dennis’ unit was moved 65 miles away from where they had met Nubs, the dog followed. Nubs arrived thirsty, yet relieved. Those same looks of unconditional love were displayed as soldier and dog was reunited.

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It is a ceremony that dates back to ancient Olympia, the lighting of the Olympic Games torch. Held yesterday in Greece in anticipation for this summer’s China-hosted Olympics, the ceremony was brought to a temporary halt by protesters objecting to China’s treatment of Tibet.

The protesters were urging a worldwide boycott of the upcoming games as a proper response to the Chinese government crackdown on Tibet and their allies within mainland China. The group unfurled a banner featuring the Olympic rings as handcuffs before being pulled away by Greek police. The Paris-based Reporters Without Borders made their presence felt as three of their members were arrested.

As Liu Qi, president of the Chinese organizing committee was giving a speech to thousands in a ceremony that has been repeated for millennia, the group began their loud chants. Immediately following the banner unfurling, a Tibetan woman covered herself in red paint in front of the first Olympic flame runner.

Greek television carried the scene live while Chinese television quickly cut away to a pre-recorded segment.

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