By James Donahue

No doubt about it, people are beginning to act very strange as we rush toward a global transition that will bring about more change than even America’s newly elected President-Elect Barack Obama promised.

We must mention the youth who committed suicide in front of his web cam as people all over the world watched, or the guy who was shot dead after he charged a Los Angeles Church of Scientology building packing two Samurai swords. Beyond these, there were a few events that fly right out of any sense of reality.

Claire Jones told a British court she accidentally delivered a baby and then flushed it down the toilet because she didn’t realize what had happened. She said she knew she was pregnant but thought the pain she was suffering was from diarrhea. She didn’t realize she had delivered until she saw the foot of the baby in the toilet bowl. When she couldn’t revive the infant she said she put it in the trunk of her car where it was found by police following her arrest.

In Florida, police arrested a 12-year-old elementary school student after his teacher accused him of “deliberately passing gas to disrupt the class.” The youth also was accused of such mischief as turning off computers used by his classmates. Police turned the boy over to custody of his mother after removing him from the class.

In Iowa, a Methodist minister, two members of the Des Moines Catholic Worker Community, and a fourth man were found guilty of trespassing by a six-member jury after they attempted to make a citizens’ arrest of former White House advisor Karl Rove. The four made their move while Rove was appearing in Des Moines at a Republican fundraiser. One of the four was quoted as saying “I’m surprised that there are six people in the United States who don’t believe Karl Rove should be suspected of committing felonies.”

Police in Albuquerque, New Mexico are advertising in local newspapers in a quest to hire “snitches” to help them nab criminals in the community. The ads ask “people who hang out with crooks” to earn cash by telling the cops what they know. Police are offering $50 to anyone with a tip leading to the arrest of a drug dealer. Squealing on a murderer could pay up to $700.

And in Harwich, Massachusetts, authorities are scratching their heads over the discovery of a large Baldwin piano found in the middle of a forest. The piano, which is heavy enough to have required several good men to have carried it, was found in perfect working condition, complete with its bench. Was it a practical joke or did we have a serious time warp?