Om Nom Nom Nom Om: Cookie Monster Steals Bronze Sculpture, Demands Cookie Ransom

Beloved Sesame Street Muppet the Cookie Monster recently committed a brazen act of crime in the German town of Hanover by stealing a century-old bronze cookie sculpture from outside one of the country's largest cookie and treat manufacturers!

The sculpture went missing last month from the Bahlsen food company which makes and distributes the successful Liebnitz brand of cookies and other delectably sweet goodies. Flash forward a few weeks, when a "ransom note" arrived at the offices of the local newspaper, the Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung, complete with a photograph of the Cookie Monster with the cookie in his/her mouth, stating that the cookie was indeed safe and would only be returned if certain demands were met.

The initial letter demanded, among other things, that the company provide yummy goodies to all the rooms at a local children's hospital if it ever wanted to see the prized golden cookie again. The head of corporation, Werner Michael Bahlsen, immediately offered 52,000 packs of cookies (called "biscuits" in Europe) to different organizations upon the emblem's safe return, but Bahlsen also stated that the company would not meet the thief's demands and that it "refused to be blackmailed" or give in to extortion.

This gave the Cookie Monster Thief a change of heart, as a second letter arrived this week, stating the precious sculpture would be returned: "Because Werni [Werner Michael Bahlsen] loves the biscuit as much as I do and now always cries and misses the biscuit so badly, I'm giving it back to him!!!"

No word on whether the sculpture has been returned to its rightful owners as of now, but hopefully some sick children in Germany are enjoying some sweet treats due to the Cookie Monster's civil disobedience protest! Should we look for more such protests to hit Sesame Street in the coming months? Time shall tell...

Update...apparently the Cookie Monster was good on his word. The bronze sculpture was recently recovered at a local university, hanging from the neck of a horse sculpture with a red ribbon!

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/02/04/4048606/cookie-monster-sends-2nd-note.html#storylink=cpy

Land Ho! New Island Size of 25 Football Fields Emerges in North Sea

A new land mass has suddenly "emerged" from the North Sea, off the coast of Germany and Denmark. The new island has been christened Bird Island and has grown to the length of over twenty-five football fields over the course of the past several years, ecologists are saying.

The island is now home to almost fifty species of plants and wildlife is also flocking to the burgeoning ecosystem. The landmass, which is comprised mostly of sandbanks and grasses native to the region, gradually emerged from the stormy waters of the North Sea over the past few years. Biologists say that seeds blown on the often hurricane-force winds on the sea carried various seeds to the new island from across Europe, and the new flora is now flourishing on the island.

The German government want to protect the new land mass and will limit public access to the area. Scientists warn that the island is subject to the often brutal forces of the North Sea, and the grasses growing on the island do not yet have the root system necessary to bind the sand dunes that make up the island together, which leaves the island very vulnerable to tidal erosion and heavy flooding.

[Addendum: This does meet the fulfillment language in the Webbot Project's (Web Bot Project) "New Land Rising" linguistic meme and temporal marker for the onset of major global events.]

Related links to this story:

Webbot Project Sees Scary Future 

Webbot Hit as Mass of Volcanic Rocks Larger Than Belgium Emerge Off New Zealand Coast 

Ancient Prada: Archeologists Uncover 4500 Year Old Purse

Wilma Flintstone & Betty Rubble model the latest in prehistoric prêt-à-porter.

Excavators in Germany have uncovered what is believed to be the world's oldest handbag, National Geographic reveals!

The amazing discovery—believed to be the first of its kind anywhere in the world—was found in a grave site at an ancient burial ground on a 250-acre site being excavated outside of Leipzig, Germany. The item—thought to be a ceremonial handbag used to carry precious cargo of the time—is elaborately decorated with over 100 canine teeth and is at least 4500-years-old, dating from the time of the Stone Age.

Over the millennium, the leather and fabric that the purse was fashioned from has rotted away, leaving only the dog teeth as evidence of its former glory. While a handbag made of canine teeth is an extremely rare find, canine teeth used for ceremonial decorations is actually a common theme among Stone and Bronze Age artifacts.

In fact, so many teeth from dogs have been excavated from graves around the region that it suggests dogs were as important as livestock to Stone Age man and they have been man's best friend since pre-historic times.

We know that the handbag would look right at home on the arms of Wilma Flintstone and Betty Rubble!

Canadian Psycho: Cannibal Murderer Caught in Germany

An international manhunt for cannibalistic murderer Luka Rocco Magnota has ended after the suspect was apprehended in Berlin, Germany, today, police officials say.

The 29-year-old former porn star went on the run from authorities after he allegedly murdered his Chinese boyfriend, graduate student Jun Lin, in Montreal. Authorities also believe the disturbed Magnotta posted a video of himself online, which allegedly shows him murdering Lin, as well as dismembering the body, eating portions of the dead body and sexually assaulting the corpse.

Authorities believed that Magnotta had taken off for Europe shortly after committing the grisly murder, issuing a warning of the danger he presents to everyday citizens as well as advising that he might be dressed as a woman while in public.. He is also accused of sending parts of the rotting corpse to various governing officials, including to the office of Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. The remains of the body were discovered in a suitcase after police raided the suspect's Montreal apartment.

Berlin police descended on an Internet cafe in the Neukoelln area of the German capital and arrested Magnotta, after a witness tipped off police after identifying him from media coverage photographs.

Prime Minister Harper, in London for Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee ceremonies, briefly spoke to the press about the development Monday. "I'm obviously pleased that the suspect has been arrested and I just want to congratulate the police forces on their good work," said Harper.

Magnotta made international headlines and was dubbed "The Butcher of Montreal" as well as the "Canadian Psycho" after his disturbing and grisly series of crimes were revealed.

I'm the Pied Piper: German Town of Hamelin Sees Return of Rats

The German village made famous by the Medieval fairy tale of the Pied Piper has seen a troubling return of the same menace featured in the classic story...an infestation of rats!

The village of Hamelin in the Lower Saxony region of Germany has seen a return of the rodent pests, who recently put a fountain in the town square out of commission by gnawing through an electrical power cord. Unfortunately, due to budget restraints, the fountain was set to be decommissioned soon anyway, as the Euro crisis continues to dig deep throughout the continent.

The classic fairy tale of the Pied Piper of Hamelin featured a traveling piper hired by the village to lure rats away from the town by playing his magical flute, which he does, causing the rodents to jump into the Weser River and drown. When the villagers refuse to pay him for services rendered after accomplishing the feat, he proceeds to lure away all of the town's children in an act of revenge. The tale became popular during the time of the Black Death (Bubonic Plague), which is believed to have spread to people after being bitten by the fleas from rats.

German Court to Artist: Killing Puppies Onstage Is NOT Considered Art

A court in Berlin, Germany, has warned an artist planning to strangle two puppies live onstage that laws definitely prohibit anyone from killing animals for the purpose of entertainment!

The German artist had planned to stage his play, titled Death as Metamorphosis, at a small theater in the Spandau district of Berlin, as a way to highlight the unfortunate plight of sled dogs in Alaska, who are often killed once they can no longer compete in races.

Accompanied by funeral music and an ominous-sounding gong, the artist had planned to strangle two innocent puppies with cable ties after a brief meditation. Fortunately, a Berlin administrative court stopped the show from going ahead as planned on Friday, saying that animal protection laws in the country forbid an animal from being harmed or killed during a performance meant for entertainment. Who would find something so disturbing "entertainment" is another matter entirely...

All of this comes the same week as a group of students at Berlin's University of the Arts threatened to guillotine a sheep live on camera, depending on the results of an online vote. The students claimed the project was meant to stimulate debate on humanity and democracy. According to Berlin's Tagesspiegel newspaper, the website registered 120,000 "Yes" votes approving the killing of the animal and 190,000 "No" votes in only six days.

Never Forget: Elephants Say Touching Goodbye to Dead Infant

Zoo keepers at Munich, Germany's Hellabrun Zoo had the somber task of arranging an elephant memorial service after one of the zoo's baby elephants passed away from a congenital heart condition.

The three-month old calf Lola was scheduled for emergency surgery to repair a heart defect, but sadly she passed away before the operation could be performed. The workers at the park decided to hold a memorial for Lola to allow her mother Panang and the other elephants in the zoo to say their goodbyes.

As Lola lay upon the ground, the massive elephants took turns approaching her body, gently touching and nuzzling Lola with their trunks, seemingly in an effort to revive her lifeless body. Similar behaviors involving large elephant herds "mourning" the death of a member have been observed in the wild.