Only in America

Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue triggered a protest by atheists when he led a public prayer on the lawn of the statehouse begging God to bestow some rain on the drought-stricken state. “God, we need you,” Perdue beseeched during the prayer service, attended by three Protestant ministers and a church choir, which sang hymns. “We need rain. We do believe in miracles.” About 20 members of the Atlanta Freethought Society staged a protest. “My public leader is making a fool of himself and acting as though all the people of Georgia agree with this foolishness,” said freethinker Ed Buckner.

Housewives are now hosting Taser parties to promote ownership of the handy crime-fighting device. In the tradition of Tupperware, cosmetics, and sex-toy parties, groups of women are now gathering for snacks and drinks in a private home while a law enforcement officer introduces them to the portable, nonlethal stun gun, which delivers a paralyzing jolt of electricity. “It’s light, it’s small, it comes in colors,” said Lynne Rigberg, who recently hosted one such party. “It just makes you more confident.”

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