Free Republic

A Waterloo man and his dog made a harrowing escape from the clutches of a vicious black bear Thursday while portaging near Wawa, Ont. Tom Tilley, 55, killed the nearly 200-pound bear by jumping on its back and stabbing the aggressive animal with a six-inch hunting knife after his dog alerted him and distracted the bear. "Love is a very powerful emotion and my thought right away was, 'You're not going to kill my dog,' " Tilley said yesterday. "I really consider my dog a hero. Without that first warning I would have had the bear clamping down on my...

Back from the Marines and two combat tours chasing the Taliban in the mountains of Afghanistan, Joseph Singer found more trouble than he ever expected just two blocks from home. Tuesday night, Singer, 22, and his father, Bruce Singer, 50, both of Revere, fended off an attack by knife and shovel-wielding punks that left the younger Singer stabbed in the gut. ``They were vicious, godless animals, that's what they were,'' Bruce Singer said yesterday. About 6:30 that night, Joe Singer was on his way home to have dinner with his dad when he saw some youths throwing chunks of ice...

The Buck Knife Co. of California says if you have one of their MiniBuck Knives, you should stop using it. They have recalled 2,000 of them. According to the company, the MiniBuck knives have black plastic handles that can crack. A person could be hurt on the exposed blade. They were sold in department, sporting goods and specialty stores nationwide from July 2003 through September 2003 for about $15. The company will give free replacements for the knives. Call (800) 215-2825. For more information on the recall visit the Web site of the Consumer Product Safety Commission.