What business do lawmakers have legislating about how one handles one's tongue? When it comes to the practice of tongue-splitting -- cutting the tongue down the middle so that it becomes forked, like a snake's -- officials in Illinois have passed a law that makes it illegal.

The Associated Press reported recently that the new law prohibits all but trained medical professionals -- doctors or dentists -- from performing the procedure. Unlicensed tongue-splitters could face up to a year behind bars. Those in favor of the tongue-splitting restrictions say the practice is dangerous and can lead to infections. No mention was made of concerns over the sight of forked-tongue teens slithering satanically.

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A Fool and His Money

If you won $113 million what would you do? Probably go blow a bunch of it on strippers, booze and gambling -- maybe leave 500 grand tucked in the truck for safekeeping, right? That's just what Powerball winner Jack Whittaker was doing in West Virginia when he nearly had half a million dollars swiped from his SUV, the Associated Press reported recently. A briefcase with $240,000 cash and $300,000 in cashier's checks was taken from Whittaker's vehicle while it was parked at a strip club. Whittaker, who won a record jackpot in December 2002, was rumored to carry large sums of cash and checks to fund his well-known gambling habit. Whittaker's luck struck again evidently because the money was recovered near a dumpster.

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Old Racist for Mayor

It's not exactly what Idaho needs for its image: a weezing geezer of a bigot serving as mayor of one of the state's towns. The Associated Press reported recently that Richard Butler, the not-long-for-this-world 85-year-old founder of the white supremicist group Aryan Nations, is planning to run for mayor of Hayden, which is not far from the group's old compound. Butler suffers from congestive heart failure, but he says he's running office so he can gain attention for a discussion of why we're "going down the tubes as a nation."

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Walking on Water

Aside from a few weird insects that can skim along on the water's surface as if walking on a thin film and, of course, the references to it in scripture, walking on water is one feat that hasn't been mastered. But scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a small robot, called the Robostrider, to emulate the water-walking bugs, the Economist reported recently. The Robostrider is about three inches long and it looks a lot like the water-strider insect, which also stay afloat because of the surface tension of the water. The Robostrider is made out of aluminum and steel wire, and powered by an elastic thread and pulley.

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Good Vibrations

An X-ray machine in Georgia made an X-rated discovery, the Associated Press reported recently. A post office in Liliburn, Ga. had to be evacuated after a postal employee noticed a vibrating package. The package was taken to the parking lot and a police high-tech robot was sent to X-ray the package. The X-ray showed wires and other objects. Upon opening the package, several adult items, including a vibrator and massage oil, were found. No charges will be filed, according to police.

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Rags to Riches

An Australian couple with only 45 cents left in their bank account ended up winning $949,939.90, the Australian Advertiser reported recently. The husband and wife, both in their 30s, thought at first that they won $60.10 for winning two games in the Tattslotto Superdraw. However, when they checked their entry card, they noticed that one of the other 16 games contained the six winning numbers. With 19 other winners in the $19 million jackpot, they walked away with almost $1 million. The couple says they plan to invest $500,000, buy a house and give some to family members. There was no word on why anyone with 45 cents to their name would be playing the lotto in the first place.