Lochte: Racing prince in Vegas 'the coolest thing'

(no statements released about strip billiards being in the next Olympics)

LAS VEGAS — Team USA's swimming golden boy says it was "the coolest thing" that Britain's Prince Harry challenged him to swim race at a Las Vegas pool party, but he's glad he missed the royal's Sin City controversy.

Ryan Lochte tells NBC's "Today" show Thursday that the prince's entourage approached him at his 28th birthday party Monday, saying Harry wanted to meet him.

Lochte says both were fully clothed but took off their shirts for the contest at the XS nightclub pool at the Wynn resort.

The 11-time Olympic medalist won.

Lochte says he's "kinda happy" the prince didn't invite him up for partying at a hotel suite. Photos leaked online show Harry naked and next to a woman during a game of strip billiards.

Lochte says he "didn't need that."

Hugh Hefner Accuses Conservatives of Assaulting the "Rights of Gays"

(ah the Hef, an inspiration to us all. If ever there was a man who’s living the American dream it is Hef)

Bruna Nessif, eonlinePlayboy founder  Hugh Hefner wanted to share his two cents on a specific topic, and lucky for him, he has a widely read publication to use as a way of getting his word out there.

The 86-year-old put on his editorial hat and published an article in his mag's September issue accusing conservatives of assaulting the rights of gays. 

So what did he have to say?

"The fight for gay marriage is, in reality, a fight for all of our rights. Without it, we will turn back the sexual revolution and return to an earlier, puritanical time," he writes.

"Today, in every instance of sexual rights falling under attack, you'll find legislation forced into place by people who practice discrimination disguised as religious freedom. Their goal is to dehumanize everyone's sexuality and reduce us to using sex for the sole purpose of perpetuating our species. To that end, they will criminalize your entire sex life."

He continues, saying conservatives "assault the rights of gays, whether by denying them to right to marry or, as in Kansas, by attempting to empower landlords, business owners and employers to discriminate against gays on religious grounds."

After calling out specific laws that particularly got him boiling—mainly bills that had to do with women's access to birth control—Hef concluded with this thought, "This is a religious nation, but it is also a secular one...No one should have to subjugate their religious freedom, and no one should have their personal freedoms infringed. This is America and we must protect the rights of all Americans."

What do you think of Hugh Hefner's stance? Let us know in the comments!

USDA, McDonald's suspend slaughterhouse buys

By TRACIE CONE, APFRESNO, Calif. — Federal officials say nothing they have seen so far in covert video shot in a California slaughterhouse shows meat from cows that may have been sick made it into the food supply.

But the federal government and McDonald's Corp. have suspended purchases of meat from the facility.

The suspensions by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the fast-food chain came after an animal welfare group's video shot at a slaughterhouse operated by Central Valley Meat Co. showed cows that appeared to be sick or lame being beaten, kicked, shot and shocked in an attempt to get them to walk to slaughter.

"There are behaviors in the video which appear to be unacceptable and would not adhere to the standards we demand of our suppliers," McDonald's said in release.

The video was shot in June and July by an undercover operative for the group Compassion Over Killing who worked at the plant and also gave a written statement to the USDA about events not on tape.

"We do know that workers were trying to make non-ambulatory cows not eligible for slaughter go to slaughter," said Erica Meier, executive director of the animal welfare organization. "We believe red flags are raised for sure with our video, but it's up to the USDA to decide."

It's against the law to slaughter a non-ambulatory animal for food out of concern that it could be infected with bovine spongiform encephalopathy, also known as mad cow disease.

The Hanford slaughterhouse is in the same city where a dairy cow at a rendering plant was discovered in April to have mad cow disease. The USDA said earlier this month it was an isolated case and didn't pose a threat to the food supply.

Central Valley Meat Co. primarily slaughters dairy cows that have lost their value as milk producers.

The USDA bought 21 million pounds of beef from the company in 2011 for the national school lunch and other federal food programs.

Records show the government made five large-scale purchases of ground and chunk beef, spending more than $50 million of the total $135 allocated by the government for such acquisitions that year.

USDA spokesman Justin DeJong said he did not know to which government food programs the beef was allocated. The meat generally goes to the national school lunch program and food distribution on Indian reservations, and is available for discount purchases by community food banks.

"The department works to ensure that product purchased for the federal feeding programs meets stringent food safety standards and that processors comply with humane handling regulations," the USDA said in a statement.

McDonald's also said it had suspended purchases of meat from the slaughterhouse. The company did not immediately say how much meat it had been buying. But a spokesman for the chain said the percentage of meat purchased from the slaughterhouse was in the single digits.

Regional fast-food chain In-N-Out Burger previously suspended purchases after learning of the allegations of inhumane treatment.

The New York Times reported that Costco Wholesale Corp. also suspended purchases. That company did not immediately return a call from The Associated Press seeking comment.

The USDA acted quickly to shut down Central Valley Meat Co. on Monday after the video documented the treatment of dairy cows.

The video appears to show workers bungling the slaughter of cows struggling to walk and even stand. Clips show workers kicking and shocking cows to get them to stand and walk to slaughter.

The video prompted the National Cattlemen's Beef Association to issue a statement.

"We firmly believe that those knowingly and willfully committing any abuse to animals should not be in the business — period," Dave Daley, a professor at California State University, Chico, said in the statement released by the marketing group. "The actions depicted in these videos are disgraceful and not representative of the cattle community."

Central Valley Meat Co. has referred all questions to a public relations firm that issued a statement saying Central Valley Meat is cooperating with investigators and developing a plan to remedy any potential violations of USDA guidelines.

"Based on our own investigation and 30 years of producing safe, high-quality US beef, we are confident these concerns pose no food safety issues," the statement said.

The video shows one man standing on the muzzle of a downed cow. Other footage depicts cows struggling after being repeatedly shot in the head with a pneumatic gun.

Federal regulations say slaughterhouses must be successful with a single shot.

Other clips show cattle with udders so swollen they are unable to keep their legs under them to walk, and workers trying to lift downed cattle using their tails.

Compassion Over Killing also provided the video to the district attorney's office in Kings County, where the plant is located. The office is following the federal investigation before deciding whether to file state cruelty charges.

The case has attracted the attention of Temple Grandin, a professor of animal science at Colorado State University and subject of a documentary about her life working with livestock behavior issues while she struggled with autism.

In a release distributed by the American Meat Institute, she said some video clips of cows twitching after being shot in the head with a pneumatic gun are normal reflexes, but she did note some problems.

"I did observe some overly aggressive and unacceptable use of electric prods with non-ambulatory cattle and in sensitive areas like the face," she wrote. "I would classify this as egregious animal abuse."

___

Hippo stuck in SAfrica swimming pool

(‘cause sometimes even natures most dangerous herbivore needs to chill in the pool.)

y EMOKE BEBIAK, APJOHANNESBURG — A hefty hippo chased away from his herd at a South African game reserve has found a refreshing place to relax: the lodge's swimming pool. Now it's stuck there.

The young hippopotamus plopped into the pool on Tuesday at the Monate Conservation Lodge north of Johannesburg. The pool is big enough for the hippo to swim but it's eight feet deep with no steps and "there's no way he can come out," lodge manager Ruby Ferreira told The Associated Press on Thursday.

A game capture team will sedate the hippo and lift it out of the pool with a crane, said MuIsabel Wentzel of South Africa's National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Much of the water has already been drained to make the extraction easier. A veterinarian will be present during operation hippo extraction on Friday.

Wentzel said the 4-year-old hippo's mother gave birth recently, and more dominant males forced him from the herd.

The staff has been feeding the hippo. Ferreira said it's been noticeably relaxed with no other hippos fighting it for dominance, though the water in the pool has been getting mucky with hippo poop. The pool will be entirely drained before the hippo is lifted out.

Because the hippo was chased away by his herd, it will be moved to another animal sanctuary, Ferreira said.

Montana man injured by runaway cow

(reverse cowtipping rampant in South Park!!)

BILLINGS, Mont. — A construction worker who tried to help police corral a runaway cow said the bovine charged at him "like a bull at a rodeo," tossing him into the air before continuing its rampage through the streets of Montana's largest city.

The snorting, charging cow ran amok in downtown Billings on Tuesday for more than an hour and a half, terrifying pedestrians and knocking over a bicyclist until a police sniper fired a single shot through its heart.

Morgan Logan of Acton suffered broken bones in his lower leg and had sore ribs after his encounter with the 1,200-pound black Angus cow after it escaped from the Public Auction Yards on Tuesday afternoon, The Billings Gazette ( http://bit.ly/MOC8uM) reported.

Logan, 52, said he was driving a gravel truck when he saw the police chasing the animal and decided to try to help.

"I've been around livestock my whole life, so at first sight I thought it was pretty funny seeing cops chase a cow down the street," said Logan. "But she was like a bull at a rodeo."

The cow charged at him from under a tree, said Logan, who was released from the hospital Wednesday.

"I guess I saw her too late because the next thing I knew I was in the air," Logan said. "I had no fence to climb — she caught me right in the open."

Billings police Lt. Kevin Iffland said by the time Logan encountered the cow it had already tipped over a bicyclist, charged pedestrians and nearly jumped over a police vehicle.

"It's not like we are out in the pasture," Iffland said Wednesday. "This was a totally different scenario of asphalt and a lot of traffic. We are not equipped to wrangle large animals in a city environment."

A police marksman shot the cow in the heart with a rifle about two hours after it escaped.

"There were a lot of factors that were considered that went into this as well — backgrounds and angles," Iffland said, "and whether to shoot in the head or heart. We were certainly concerned with the most humane way and the safest way."

Auction yard manager Bob Cook said the consigned cow was "on the fight" as they tried to unload it at about 3 p.m. Tuesday and tried to run back into the trailer before escaping.

"I guess she saw just enough daylight through the wing doors and crashed through them," he said. "She was mad when she came off the truck and those kinds of cows can certainly be dangerous."

Jeramie Burg, 35, of Billings, was leaving the library when he first spotted the rampaging cow.

"The way the cow was snarling and scuffing, at first I thought it was a bull without horns," Burg said. "It was total chaos. At one point, I saw the cow tip over a man who was on a bicycle in South Park."

Cook said the cow's carcass was taken to the city landfill.

B.B. King does intimate show in Miss. 'homecoming'

By HOLBROOK MOHR, APINDIANOLA, Miss. — A crescent moon hung over the Mississippi Delta as a legendary bluesman crept onto the stage. He sat in a folding chair, grabbed a guitar, and introduced each member of his band. Then, as if it was needed, he introduced himself.

"I guess you can look at me and tell I'm the old man. My name is B.B. King."

At 86, King may be grayer and slower than he used to be, but there's no questioning his ability to please fans. King performed for about an hour Wednesday night on an outdoor stage at the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center in Indianola, built on the site of a cotton gin where he worked as teenager while growing up in the impoverished delta.

King was born in Leflore County but spent time in several cities, including Indianola, Kilmichael and Lexington. He was honored earlier this week in Kilmichael with a marker on the Mississippi Blues Trail, which memorializes and markets Mississippi as the birthplace of the blues.

The 32nd annual B.B. King Homecoming was Indianola's turn to celebrate. The crowd was young and old, from as far Britain, or from just down the street.

"This is one chance in a lifetime," said Luke Woodcock of Bristol, England, who ended up at the show almost by chance as he was touring the United States with a friend, Barney Ware of Cheltenham, England. The 25-year-old friends were in Clarksdale this week when they heard King was performing the next night.

"This whole trip has been about a year in the making," Ware said. "This is the best thing."

Before taking stage, King took time to connect with his younger fans. He brought the W.A. Higgins Rock Ensemble from Clarksdale, a group of children ages 11 to 14, aboard his tour bus for a private meeting.

"It was, oh my God, like the best thing that ever happened to me," 13-year-old Brittney Marshall said. "I really am speechless."

The setting was intimate. He sat close to the edge of a stage on a grass lawn outside the museum. There were no fixed seats and a crowd stood just inches from the star as he plucked off some tunes. He asked the crowd to sing along with him at times, saying "this one is for the ladies" before playing "Do You Know You Are My Sunshine."

"I didn't see you shake your booty one time," King teased a fan.

King closed with one of his anthems, "The Thrill is Gone."

For his fans on a hot night in the Mississippi Delta, the thrill was back.

China is tough against Tokyo but reins in activism

By DIDI TANG, APBEIJING — Wu Qingjun is no dissident. In fact, this activist's pet issue — China's claim over a set of islands controlled by Japan — aligns him squarely with Beijing's government. But that didn't stop authorities from sending four agents to tail him.

As Beijing continues a tense war of words with Tokyo over a set of islands in the East China Sea, it is quietly reining in anti-Japanese activists at home, trying to keep them from staging protests that could threaten relations with Tokyo or even backfire into criticisms of China's communist government.

The government's sensitivity over protests that took place in several Chinese cities on Sunday over the set of islands — known as Diaoyu in China and Senkaku in Japan — reflects its perpetual fear that allowing its people too much freedom to hold protests — any protests — could snowball into domestic dissidence.

The four state security agents sent to watch over Wu ahead of a planned protest in his hometown of Changsha in southern China tailed him for 24 hours, ended their surveillance only after the protest was well over. He was thwarted in his plan to deliver calcium pills to the local military base in a gesture aimed at telling his government to show more fortitude in the dispute.

"They need to have a stronger backbone," Wu said. "Our government has failed to protect its own interests."

Veteran activists involved in previous anti-Japanese campaigns say police have prevented them from taking part in protests in several Chinese cities this past week and that they remain under watch. The government has warned boat captains not to take any campaigners to the islands, where likeminded Chinese from Hong Kong landed on Aug. 15 in a move that raised diplomatic tensions.

Beijing is especially averse to activism ahead of a generational handover of power in the Communist Party later this year, and dislikes being portrayed as soft in defending Chinese territorial interests.

Territorial disputes are common among East and Southeast Asian nations as they vie for control of fishing grounds and natural resources. South Korean President Lee Myung-bak recently angered Japan by visiting a disputed island in the Sea of Japan claimed by both, prompting Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda to send Lee a letter of protest.

On Thursday, a South Korean diplomat in Tokyo attempting to return the letter was stopped by Japanese authorities from entering the Foreign Ministry building.

Japanese Foreign Ministry spokesman Masaru Sato said returning a signed personal letter from a national leader is "simply impossible" and "extremely impolite and unheard of."

The United States on Thursday said it was "uncomfortable" that two valued U.S. allies were in dispute and urged them to resolve it peacefully.