5 Things the Religious Right Needs to Learn About the 10 Commandments

This far-right obsession with the Commandments has legal and political ramifications because fundamentalists often try to display the Commandments at seats of government.

Federal courts ruled recently on the legality of Ten Commandments displays on public property in North Dakota and New Mexico—reaching opposite conclusions. And in Alabama, Jackson County Commissioner Tim Guffey wants to display the Ten Commandments at the county courthouse. Guffey told local media that the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution “all stemmed from the word of God, from the Ten Commandments.”

Guffey’s argument is a common one: It’s OK to display the Ten Commandments at a courthouse, city hall or the state capitol because U.S. law is based on them. Thus, a government-sponsored Ten Commandments display isn’t really religious. It just makes a statement about the origins of our law.

But there’s one gaping flaw with this argument: American law is not based on the Ten Commandments. Here are five reasons why.

Two accused of spraying doe urine on WalMart merchandise

Deer me, urine trouble now!

Two Oklahoma men are in jail after allegedly spraying doe urine on $2,500 worth of merchandise at the Walmart in Owasso.

Cody Hudson, 18, and Jon Ohlman, 24, were arrested and charged with malicious injury to property after allegedly spraying deer pee on various toys, fabrics and shoes inside the Walmart, News9.com reports.

Witnesses said that six suspects sprayed the urine inside the store, but Hudson and Ohlman told police they were the only ones responsible, according to Fox21.com.

"God Loves Gays" billboard unveiled in Topeka, hometown of Westboro

A new billboard with the message "Gods Loves Gays" debuted Monday in Topeka, Kansas, the home city of the Westboro Baptist Church, the notorious congregation known for picketing funerals with signs bearing anti-gay slogans.

"The Facebook God," a satirical Facebook page with more than 1.7 million "likes," raised more than $80,000 on the crowd-funding platform Indiegogo in order to mount the billboard. "This hate group goes around saying that God hates gay people," an animated depiction of God says in a YouTube video uploaded to the Indiegogo page. "Nonsense! I love gay people. These Westboro psychos protest at the funerals of soldiers, murdered children and more. How dare they!"

Westboro Baptist Church followers believe misfortunes that befall Americans, most infamously 9/11 and the deaths of U.S. soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, are God's punishment for the country's tolerance of homosexuality, according to the church's website. The South Poverty Law Center, a nonprofit organization that tracks extremist movements, describes Westboro as a hate group.

Pet tortoise, missing since 1982, found in attic alive and well

Earlier last month, after their father Leonel passed away, the Almeida children returned to help clean out his cluttered storage room upstairs. As it turns out, Leonel was somewhat of a horder, so the room was jam-packed with things that he had found on the street, like broken televisions and furniture. Deciding it was mostly junk, the family set about moving it to the trash out front.

But while son Leandro Almeida was making a trip to the dumpster with a box of broken records, a neighbor asked him if he was intending to throw out the tortoise that was holed up inside.

"At that moment I was white and did not believe," Leandro told Globo TV.

OFA gives John Boehner a pep talk

Catholic school students first in Ireland to march in gay pride parade

he principal of St. Paul's High School in County Armagh – one of Ireland's largest Catholic secondary schools – has defended his decision to have a group of students represent the school at a gay pride parade in Newry last weekend.

The students were accompanied by their principal Jarlath Burns who is known to be a passionate defender of Catholic education.

The school had sent a message on Facebook inviting Year 13 and 14 students to represent their school at the march saying: 'We are proud to be a school that embraces diversity and promotes inclusivity, further demonstrating commitment to our Catholic ethos... The rainbow flag will be flown at the school to mark our support for equality for all.'

Photos of the students at the parade were also posted on the school’s Facebook and Twitter page.

Cherries Waffles Tennis arrested in Florida

She may have had a brush with the law, but her name makes her sound pretty sweet.

Cherries Waffles Tennis, 19, was arrested in August after allegedly making fraudulent purchases at surf shops in Jupiter, Florida, according to the Palm Beach Post. Police say Tennis, along with 19-year-old Vincent Mitchell and 22-year-old Paul Miller, purchased a $400 spear gun and GoPro camera with a credit card that ended up being declined.

All three were booked into jail on fraud charges, but Tennis started getting the Internet’s attention on Thursday when her mug shot was posted by the “Florida Woman” Twitter account with the caption “Florida Woman’s Name Just Random Assortment Of Words.”

Whatever. Cherries Waffles Tennis is an awesome name, in competition only with “Crystal Metheny” and “Beezow Doo-Doo Zopittybob-Bop-Bop” for our favorite Weird News name.

Man upset when he realizes he bought cocaine instead of heroin

A man has been jailed after being caught in possession of cocaine after mistakenly buying the drug thinking it was heroin.

Police found known drug addict Richard Kenins, 28, with heroin paraphernalia and the class A drug on him on Wednesday, but he was reportedly dismayed when plain clothes officers informed him that he had actually purchased cocaine rather then heroin from a drug dealer in Bexleyheath.

While being searched Kenins was also found to be in possession of used dirty needles and heating spoons used to inject heroin.

Kenin’s back luck didn’t end with him being sold the wrong drug, as he was sentenced to eight weeks in prison at a virtual court on Thursday.

Quadruple Amputee to Walk in New York Fashion Week

Crespo is a quadruple amputee who uses prosthetic legs, the first to ever appear in one of New York Fashion Week’s prestigious shows.

“I had so much fun,” she told ABC News. “I’m happy that it’s over, and I’m pooped. But I’m ready to see the next step.”

The West Covina, California, woman, 31, had never even visited New York City before this week. She has had a tortuous two-and-a-half years dealing with the loss of all four limbs because of a severe form of bacterial meningitis and, until February, when she came across another disabled woman’s inspiring tale of conquering the runway, she never dreamed that was a goal she, too, could actually accomplish.

“I saw Danielle Sheypuk last year in the wheelchair and I was like, ‘Oh, my gosh, I have to email Carrie Hammer and let her know how I feel,’” Crespo explained of her inspiration for writing to Hammer, a women’s fashion designer who specializes in custom, professional wear. “I thought, ‘This is amazing how someone would break the boundaries and let someone in a wheelchair be in New York Fashion Week.’”

Dolan OK with gay groups in St. Patrick's parade

After years of strong resistance, organizers of New York’s St. Patrick’s Day parade on Wednesday (Sept. 3) said that gays and lesbians will be allowed to march under their own banner for the first time, and Cardinal Timothy Dolan — the parade’s grand marshal next March — has welcomed the move.

The decision is another sign of how quickly changing public attitudes toward gay people have pushed changes in state laws, government policies and the practices of private entities.

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“Neither my predecessors as Archbishop of New York nor I have ever determined who would or would not march in this parade … but have always appreciated the cooperation of parade organizers in keeping the parade close to its Catholic heritage,” he continued.

Dolan concluded by praying “that the parade would continue to be a source of unity for all of us.”