Ethic Soup

Autumn Meditations: A Short Prayer, Carl Sandburg and John Keats Poems

 
An Autumn Prayer 

We bless you,

God of Seed and Harvest

And we bless each other

That the beauty of this world

And the love that created it

Might be expressed through our lives

And be a blessing to others

Now and always

Amen

 

Kentucky Judge Rules: "Court Happier Than A Tick on A Fat Dog"

  
"Jumping Naked Into A Bucket of Porcupines" Copyright by EthicSoup.com

There is a judge down South, Kentucky state judge Martin Sheehan, who is bringing some comic relief to a lot of people ever since his words hit the Internet waves.

It was posted earlier on Lowering the Bar, a blog of "Legal humor. Seriously."

Then we read about it on the Wall Street Journal's Law Blog, which said it has "an avowed affection for judicial rulings with at least a touch of humor, no matter how corny or ham handed. Just a touch of occasional levity, that's all we ask of judges."

 

Barbie Loses to Bratz Doll: Mattel Needs $315 Million to Appeal Federal Ruling

 

I can hear the loud raspberries being blown from the Botox-pouty lips of the Bratz dolls (above) aimed at, and showing contempt for, the Barbie dolls.

MATTEL STOLE TRADE SECRETS

Surprisingly, that's what has happened when the world's biggest toy maker, Mattel, tried to ruin much smaller MGA Entertainment, the makers of the Bratz dolls. 

It's been a long legal battle, with a series of court cases beginning in 2004. That's the year that MGA attorneys introduced into evidence a Mattel memo that warned of a "rival-led Barbie genocide."

Whoa! Talk about doom! 

"This is war and sides must be taken: Barbie stands for good. All others stand for evil."

DOLLS MEAN BIG BUCK BILLIONS 

No, they were not talking about human beings. They were beating their chests about dolls. Actually, the chest-pounding was all about money, of course. Globally, Mattel sells $3 billion Barbie-branded (below left) merchandise annually, reports the San Francisco Chronicle.

 

Looks Mean Everything to Baby Zebra: Here Comes de Stripes!

 

The new born orphaned zebra now at China's Wuhan Zoo was only five days old when its mother died. That's why he was named "Little Five," because he only spent five days with his momma .

The Chinese zoo attempted to leave Little Five's care to its father.

"We wanted to leave it to the father," said Chen Nong, the feeder. "But the father denies responsibility and kicks the baby each time he sees it."

Then they noticed that coincidentally when Nong wore a striped t-shirt, the baby zebra  became very excited each time that he saw him.

The zoo built a separate cage for the orphan where it's fed  milk, according to the Tribune (Pakistan). But the zebra refuses the milk unless its feeder Nong wears the striped t-shirt.

"He also looks for nipples on me," said Nong. "I had to give him my thumbs."

Well, thumbs up for a baby of different stripes!

This is a follow-up story for several other Ethic Soup posts :

Click to read "Mamas are so important: a touch, a coo can mean life"

Click to read "Oh yes they do: Babies remember emotional events and moments of neglect" 

 

Lawyers Told: Sleep in Pods at Work, Or Don't Come Back

 

A decade ago during the dot-com-bubble it was computer geeks, working for start-ups in Silicon Valley, who only slept a few hours daily -- zipped up in sleeping bags, on the floors of their cubicles.

Today it's lawyers in London who don't have time to go home for some sleep. Instead they are being provided with Japanese-style sleeping pods designed for one-night stay-overs, reports the Guardian.

Can American law firms be far behind?

LAWYERS WORKING NIGHT & DAY

The lawyers are "working night and day on big corporate cases," according to the ABA Journal, which adds that much of the pressure can be attributed to "client demand."

Comments from readers of The Wall Street Journal's Law Blog include one from Anonymous, who wrote: "I am somewhat comforted by the idea of keeping the attorneys in their cages for their protection, and the protection of others."

Reader Anon wrote: "Can't these people just sleep on a couch in the office like everybody else?"

Want Extra Sugar, Sugar? Police Arrest Dunkin' Donuts Worker as Prostitute

Melissa Redmond, 29, got a job as an overnight employee at a New Jersey Dunkin' Donuts. Perfect! She didn't have to stand on a street corner in a 'tenderloin' neighborhood to make some extra cash.

QUICK PARKING LOT BREAKS

Instead, Melissa just took ten to fifteen minute breaks to make her money in the parking lot, after propositioning customers -- including a plain-clothes officer -- via the drive-thru window. 

"Cops cleverly dubbed their investigation "extra sugar," gathering info and watching over the premises for six weeks," according to New York Magazine, which asked: "But were they allowed to expense their late-night surveillance snacks?"

Pets Make You Happier & Healthier: They Be Good Fer Ya

 

I cannot look at this chihuahua in pink goggles, ears flying in the breeze, without smiling. That's why pets are such great therapy animals in hospitals for people facing health problems.

And, surprise! Pets are great sources of social and emotional support for everyone.

This isn't really news. There is a lot of research showing how having pets can help folks be happier and healthier. But is there really a cause-and-effect relationship between having pets and better physical and mental health?

New research answers that question with a "Yes!" Having a dog or cat as a companion has big and wide-ranging benefits. 

This is certainly something we want for President Obama (pictured right with dog Bo), the guy whose finger on a button could begin a nuclear war.

To find out the benefits of pet ownership, psychologists from Miami University and St. Louis University conducted a series of studies.