ARKANSAS: Apparently two local governments have jurisdiction over a wastewater treatment plant in Texarkana. Each side is split on how to deal with the waste issue. Well, tell them their name is Texarkana and work it out. Wait, is that Texas or Arkansas?
OKLAHOMA: A Tulsa man shot himself in the leg. Check that, we did not know how he was shot when this story went to press. But he was shot in the leg. Oh, and he attempted to drive himself to the hospital. He stopped at a fast food joint for hello instead. This all started while he was feeding the ducks. Any moral here?
INDIANA: Identical twin sisters in Bloomington gave birth birth on the same day. Most at the hospital have said they do not know of any instance of this happening before because nobody really cared.
DELAWARE: Higher education in action in Lewes with give the students of the University of Delaware the assignment of naming the school's ice cream flavor. Student loans in action.
IOWA: A recent power outage in Mason City was blamed on birds. Our question is: could the smart grid prevent that?
MICHIGAN: Apparently the police in Detroit have to remind residents that it is illegal to "pump gasoline into containers and carry flammable liquid from Oct. 27 through Oct. 31." How many will wait that one out? And, it is OK to do it at all, huh?
GEORGIA: In Atlanta, 62 teachers were fired, then rehired, then fired again. They were rehired to work in jobs that simply were not really jobs, just titles. Welcome to the United States Government.
NEVADA: You will see yellow pill boxes in Henderson as a way of getting rid of those nasty prescriptions noone wants. make that, people want, so they have to put them into yellow lock box. Now, enter Illinois were purple paint will surely keep away unwanted intruders. That is the aim and resident await a swatch of purple all over. Well, not from Bears fans, that is.
TENNESSEE: In Greensville, they haven't seen a species known as Chucky Madtom (a catfish) in years. The result: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has suggested they designate 20 miles along a river as "critical habitat." Critical? I would say "possibly extinct" and dead, expired, "cease to exists." And with Monty Python in mind: "It would be pushing up daisies in you hadn't nailed it to the perch."
MASSACHUSETTS: A sidewalk was to be paved in North Andover. But the problem was, a tree was in the way. A very old tree. Never fear as two, yes two, families got together and donated parts of their land so the sidewalk could be paved around the tree. Now, take care of that nasty budget matter.
*Inspired by the Across the USA section in the USA Today. This is compiled by Tim O'Brien for the O'Brien News Service. Tim is also an avid reader and gathers items from a wide variety of soy in the sources, while adding in his own thoughts and nuggets. No dates needed here as this can and did happen Any Day in the USA. Sure, some may have been resolved, went further and even had other implications, but, they did happen once on Any Day in the USA. Enjoy this NEW feature.