Toshiba 20-inch TV freaks out, sends distress signal

See what happens when your warranty runs out?. In this case, a 20" Toshiba owned by Chris van Rossman started sending out the international distress signal at 121.5Mhz on October 2. Assuming it was coming from a transponder that had dropped from a nearby airport or a boat that had somehow made its way to Fourth St. and Jackson Ave., the Civil Air Patrol showed up at van Rossman's apartment to tell him that he had to turn off his TV or face fines of $10,000 a day. Toshiba can't explain how this happened (ghost in the machine?), but they do promise to provide van Rossman with a replacement TV.

[Thanks, Adam]