Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Malaysian city urges women not to wear lipstick or high heels
The council spokesman for Kota Baru, the capital of Kelantan state which is controlled by the Islamic Party, said the suggestion aimed to protect rape and protect women’s dignity and morals.
He denied reports that the code was compulsory or that women would be fined for breaking it.
"We just distribute pamphlets. Our minimum guideline is they must wear headscarves," said Azman Mohd Daham. "The rest is up to them. If they want to follow the 100 percent Islamic way, it’s up to them."
The guidelines were distributed to shops and businesses last month.
"We do not advocate tight clothes, too much lipstick or thick make-up, and even the headscarf should not be too transparent," said Mr Azman.
more...
19:49 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Malaysia, World, news, weird, blog, journal, women
Italian soldiers floored by 77-year-old Japanese woman
Martial arts expert Keiko Wakabayshi, nicknamed the "Samurai Granny", has been hired by the country's military to train recruits in hand-to-hand combat.
Miss Wakabayshi, who stands exactly 5ft tall, looks tiny compared to her charges who are mostly over 6ft.
But the pensioner is a trained master in an array of martial arts disciplines including jujitsu, jojitso, kenjitso, judo, kendo and karate. Miss Wakabayshi trained for many years to achieve her level of expertise and believes she can carry on defeating brawny soldiers for years to come.
more...
19:44 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Italy, Martial Arts, Karate, Judo, news, world, Ninja
Monday, June 16, 2008
Best friends who simply can't bear to be apart
As far as lifelong friendships go, Muschi thinks her large and loveable friend Maeuschen is the cat's pyjamas. The feline, which struck up the unlikely friendship with the 40-year-old Asian bear eight years ago, now can't bear to be apart from her friend.
In fact, the pair are so close that zookeepers at Berlin Zoo had to reunite them after Muschi, or 'pussy' in German, pined for Maeuschen - 'little mouse' - after they were separated. 
The pair were split up last October when the bear was locked in a cage while her living space was enlarged.
The distraught cat soon caught the attention of zoo keepers after she remained sitting outside the bear's cage pining for her friend.
This week, keepers took the unusual step of allowing the feline into the cage with her shaggy-haired pal.
'They greeted each other and had a cuddle and now they're happy,' said Heiner Kloes, a member of the zoo's management board. More...
20:16 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Berlin Zoo, Germany, animals, Zoo, world, news, blog
Fake Bumps Used To Slow Down Philly Drivers
Philadelphia is rolling out a program to try to get motorists to slow down.
The city is putting out high-tech plastic devices that create a 3-D image that looks like a bump in the road. Chief traffic engineer Charles Denny says in reality, the road is perfectly flat. The public awareness program is called "Drive Care Philly."
Denny says the goal is simple: to change the driver's mind-set to be less aggressive.
The devices will be deployed at about 100 intersections around Philadelphia. They'll give the illusion that something is sticking up out of the pavement so motorists will slow down.
Police are also getting more speed enforcement tracking devices for squad cars, and officers in six districts will be assigned specifically to go after speeders.
19:39 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: USA, news, blog, journal, Police, Bumps, Streets
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Sharks ‘seeking human flesh’
SCIENTISTS fear sharks are now HUNTING people for the first time after Jaws-style attacks on a resort. The horrifying theory emerged after two surfers were killed and one badly injured in a month.
A fourth swimmer is missing at the Mexican seaside town. Locals fear ONE rogue shark is responsible but experts believe a pack of deadly bull sharks are actively targeting humans for the first time.
They think the 10ft-long fish could have developed a taste for human flesh after devouring hundreds of corpses dumped into the sea by mobsters.
The beach at Zihuantanejo – near Acapulco and popular with British tourists – had not previously recorded a shark incident in more than 30 years.
And, with an annual average of only four fatal shark attacks globally, the fact that two people have died along the same stretch of coast within weeks has astonished international experts.
more...
11:37 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Mexico, Sharks, news, travel, blog, web, journal
Monday, June 09, 2008
Wild Wild West
Packing in public: Gun owners tired of hiding their weapons embrace 'open carry'
Bill White, 24, a graduate student at the University of Colorado at Boulder, wears his Colt pistol when he goes to his local Starbucks in Westminster, Colo.
For years, Kevin Jensen carried a pistol everywhere he went, tucked in a shoulder holster beneath his clothes. In hot weather the holster was almost unbearable. Pressed against Jensen's skin, the firearm was heavy and uncomfortable. Hiding the weapon made him feel like a criminal.
Then one evening he stumbled across a site that urged gun owners to do something revolutionary: Carry your gun openly for the world to see as you go about your business.
In most states there's no law against that.
more...
11:53 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: USA, Colorado, news, Guns, West, world, web
Friday, May 30, 2008
The Homeless Billionaire
Nicolas Berggruen is a multi-billionaire that doesn´t own a home.
After making his billions, Mr. Berggruen, 46, lost interest in acquiring things: They didn’t satisfy him, and in fact had become something of a burden. So he started paring down his material life, selling off his condo in New York, his mansion in Florida and his only car. He hatched plans to leave his fortune to charity and his art collection to a new museum in Berlin.
For him, wealth is about lasting impact, not stuff.
“Everybody is different and I think that we live in a material world,” he told me. “But for me, possessing things is not that interesting. Living in a grand environment to show myself and others that I have wealth has zero appeal. Whatever I own is temporary, since we’re only here for a short period of time. It’s what we do and produce, it’s our actions, that will last forever. That’s real value.”
More...
15:27 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Homeless, Billionaries, USA, Hotels, World, Weird, Web
Monday, May 26, 2008
Lost parrot tells veterinarian his address
When Yosuke the parrot flew out of his cage and got lost, he did exactly what he had been taught — recite his name and address to a stranger willing to help.
Police rescued the African grey parrot two weeks ago from a neighbor's roof in the city of Nagareyama, near Tokyo. After spending a night at the station, he was transferred to a nearby veterinary hospital while police searched for clues, local policeman Shinjiro Uemura said.
He kept mum with the cops, but began chatting after a few days with the vet. "I'm Mr. Yosuke Nakamura," the bird told the veterinarian, according to Uemura. The parrot also provided his full home address, down to the street number, and even entertained the hospital staff by singing songs.
"We checked the address, and what do you know, a Nakamura family really lived there. So we told them we've found Yosuke," Uemura said.
The Nakamura family told police they had been teaching the bird its name and address for about two years.
22:03 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Parrot, Animals, Tokyo, Japan, world, news, blog
Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Man asks court to change his name to 'In God We Trust'
Steve Kreuscher wants a judge to allow him to legally change his name. He wants to be known as "In God We Trust."
Kreuscher (CROY'-shir) says the new name would symbolize the help God gave him through tough times.
The 57-year-old man also told the ( Arlington Heights) Daily Herald he's worried that atheists may succeed in removing the phrase "In God We Trust" from U.S. currency.
He recalls that the phrase "God Reigns" was removed from the Zion city seal in 1992 after courts deemed it unconstitutional. Zion was founded as a theocracy - by a sect that believed the Earth was flat.
10:50 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Weird, amazing, news, USA, blog, web, world
Saturday, May 03, 2008
Gasoline May Soon Cost a Sawbuck
Get ready for another economic shock of major proportions — a virtual doubling of prices at the gas pump to as much as $10 a gallon.
That's the message from a couple of analytical energy industry trackers, both of whom, based on the surging oil prices, see considerably more pain at the pump than most drivers realize.
Gasoline nationally is in an accelerated upswing, having jumped to $3.58 a gallon from $3.50 in just the past week. In some parts of the country, including New York City and the West Coast, gas is already sporting a price tag above $4 a gallon.
more...
23:17 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: USA, news, gas, gasoline, oil, world, economy
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Orangutan attempts to hunt fish with spear
A male orangutan, clinging precariously to overhanging branches, flails the water with a pole, trying desperately to spear a passing fish.
It is the first time one has been seen using a tool to hunt.
The extraordinary image, a world exclusive, was taken in Borneo on the island of Kaja, where apes are rehabilitated into the wild after being rescued from zoos, private homes or even butchers' shops. "Orang hutan" means "forest man" in one of Indonesia's many languages and our long-armed cousins do indeed show a remarkable ability to mimic our behaviour.
This individual had seen locals fishing with spears on the Gohong River.
Although the method required too much skill for him to master, he was later able to improvise by using the pole to catch fish already trapped in the locals' fishing lines.
19:40 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Borneo, world, news, animals, web, journal, blog
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Brazil priest flying party balloons lost at sea
A Brazilian priest is missing after he drifted out to sea while trying to set a record for a flight using helium-filled party balloons, authorities said on Tuesday.
Father Adelir Antonio de Carli began his flight suspended in a harness-like seat from 1,000 balloons of various colors on Sunday in the southern port of Paranagua. He had intended to fly 20 hours due west but unexpected winds carried the 42-year-old Roman Catholic priest out over the south Atlantic on a southeasterly course.
Denise Gallas, coordinator of the parish where de Carli worked, said he was last heard from Sunday evening when he used his cell phone to give his coordinates.De Carli, who flew around 55 miles (90 kilometers) before losing contact, had wanted to draw attention to the work of his parish in Paranagua, which targets mostly truck drivers who transport goods to and from the port.
Rescue workers searched the coast farther south, in Santa Catarina state, on Tuesday by boat and plane in the hope of finding de Carli alive. The search will continue for some time.
more...
20:28 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Brazil, news, flying priest, balloons, Web, journal, world
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Ultimate nerd wedding proposal
A US man has been credited with the ultimate nerd wedding proposal after hacking into his girlfriend's favourite video game.
Bernie Peng, 26, of New Jersey, reprogrammed Bejeweled so a ring and a proposal popped up when Tammy Li, 27, reached a certain score.
Mr Peng, who works as a programmer of financial software, said he spent about a month reprogramming the game.
"I thought it was pretty cool, in a nerdy way," he told the Star-Ledger.
He presented the game to a surprised Li, who played until she hit the score that triggered a digital pink sapphire ring to drop down with Peng's proposal.
more...
00:02 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Weddings, videogames, USA, news, love
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
The first new $5 bill was issued by the Federal Reserve
Federal Reserve banks will begin distributing the redesigned $5 bills to customer banks, which will then distribute them to businesses and consumers. The new $5 bill designs will circulate first in the U.S. and gradually spread to other countries as international banks place orders for them from the Federal Reserve. 
You don’t have to trade in your old bills for new ones. Both the new $5 bills and the older-design $5 bills will continue to maintain their full face value.Watermarks: There are now two watermarks on the redesigned $5 bill. A large number “5″ watermark is located in a blank space to the right of the portrait replacing the previous watermark portrait of President Lincoln found on the older-design $5 bills. A second watermark – a column of three smaller “5″s – has been added to the new $5 bill design and is positioned to the left of the portrait.
Security Thread: The embedded security thread runs vertically and is now located to the right of the portrait on the redesigned $5 bill. The letters “USA” followed by the number “5″ in an alternating pattern are visible along the thread from both sides of the bill. The thread glows blue when held under ultraviolet light.
22:10 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Money, news, blog, USA, Dollars, journal, bills
Thursday, March 06, 2008
What Makes Finnish Kids So Smart?
Finland's teens score extraordinarily high on an international test. American educators are trying to figure out why.
High-school students here rarely get more than a half-hour of homework a night. They have no school uniforms, no honor societies, no valedictorians, no tardy bells and no classes for the gifted. There is little standardized testing, few parents agonize over college and kids don't start school until age 7.
Yet by one international measure, Finnish teenagers are among the smartest in the world. They earned some of the top scores by 15-year-old students who were tested in 57 countries, I do not want to mention Mexico's place ( I feel embarrassed about it). American teens finished among the world's C students even as U.S. educators piled on more homework, standards and rules. Finnish youth, like their U.S. counterparts, also waste hours online. They dye their hair, love sarcasm and listen to rap and heavy metal. But by ninth grade they're way ahead in math, science and reading -- on track to keeping Finns among the world's most productive workers.
more...
10:31 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Finish Kids, Finland, Helsinki, Europe, USA, world, news
Sunday, February 17, 2008
World's Biggest Bunny
Hopping into the record books, Humphrey the two-stone rabbit is king of the big bucks! Meet record-breaking rabbit Humphrey - a buck so large he has smashed the official mark for the world's biggest bunny.
The French lop-eared rabbit is 42in long and tips the scales at a mammoth two stone.
That's 3lb heavier than previous world record holder Dancing Star, a rabbit of the aptly named British Giant breed who weighs in at 25lb.
The French Lop's average weight is a comparatively tiny 10lb. And the 18-month-old, who is not yet fully matured, is still growing, fuelled by a diet of hay, carrots, asparagus - and his favourite, digestive biscuits.
Owner Colin Dunigan, from Cumbernauld, Lanarkshire, said: "When I first got him I could hold him in the palms of both my hands.
"Every day he just kept getting bigger and bigger. I thought he would stop, but he hasn't so far."
In a single day he will eat three whole carrots, half a broccoli, a couple of asparagus tips, some wholemeal bread and a handful of biscuits.
more...
16:28 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Bunny, rabbits, World, news, Guiness Records, UK, web
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Japanese firm offers "heartache leave" for staff
Lovelorn staff at a Japanese marketing company can take paid time off after a bad break-up with a partner, with more "heartache leave" on offer as they get older. Tokyo-based Hime & Company, which also gives staff paid time off to hit the shops during sales season, says heartache leave allows staff to cry themselves out and return to work refreshed. "Not everyone needs to take maternity leave but with heartbreak, everyone needs time off, just like when you get sick," CEO Miki Hiradate, whose company of six women markets cosmetics and other goods targeted for women, told Reuters by telephone.
Staff aged 24 years or younger can take one day off per year, while those between 25 and 29 can take two days off and those older can take three days off, the company said.
"Women in their 20s can find their next love quickly, but it's tougher for women in their 30s, and their break-ups tend to be more serious," Hiradate said.
Hime & Company staff can also take two mornings off twice a year as "sales shopping leave", so they can race to stores to hunt for bargains.
"Before, women could take half-days off to go to sales, but you'd have to hide your shopping bags in lockers by the train station," Hiradate said.
"But with paid leave, we don't have to feel guilty about bringing our shopping bags to work, and we can enjoy the best part about sales shopping -- talking about our purchases afterwards."
22:00 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Journals, Love, work, Japan, world, news, blog
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Man sparks world's biggest police chase
More than 2,000 police, 460 police cars and one helicopter - yes, this is one of the world's biggest police chases.
Hirofumi Fukuda, 27, became a wanted man after assaulting several police officers.
But little did he know his eventual capture would turn into one of the world's biggest police chases. The two-hour chase involving 2,240 police officers took place in Osaka, Japan.
Police received an emergency call saying that a car was driving recklessly, ignoring traffic lights. When a patrol car approached the vehicle in question, it took off. Police were mobilised throughout the area and a helicopter called in. The chase ended when Fukuda's car crashed into a bridge column. He suffered minor injuries but no one else was injured in the chase.
12:55 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Police, Japan, web, news, journal, blog, world
Sunday, January 20, 2008
25000% Inflation rate!
Zimbabwe bank issues $10million bill - but it won't even buy you a hamburger in Harare!
And you thought your country was in bad shape!
Forget the glitzy restaurants of New York and London: only in Zimbabwe would have a hamburger actually cost millions of dollars.
The central bank of the southern African country has a issued a 10million Zimbabwe dollar note. The move increases the denomination of the nation's highest bank note more than tenfold.
Even so, a hamburger in an ordinary cafe in Zimbabwe costs 15 million Zimbabwe dollars. The hope is that such a move will help end chronic cash shortages and disperse long, chaotic lines at banks and automated teller machines.
Reserve Bank Governor Gideon Gono said in a statement the 10 million Zimbabwe dollars notes will be issued along with 1 million and 5 million Zimbabwe dollars bills.
Previously, the highest existing note, introduced last month, was for 750,000 Zimbabwe dollars.
The new 10 million note is the equivalent of about £2 at the dominant black market exchange rate. A hamburger at an ordinary cafe costs about 15 million Zimbabwe dollars (£3).
That hamburger has trebled in price this month amid shortages of bread, meat and most basic goods.
more...
12:20 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Zimbabwe, money, inflation, news, blog, web, Africa
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
German experts crack Mona Lisa smile
German academics believe they have solved the centuries-old mystery behind the identity of the "Mona Lisa" in Leonardo da Vinci's famous portrait.
Lisa Gherardini, the wife of a wealthy Florentine merchant, Francesco del Giocondo, has long been seen as the most likely model for the sixteenth-century painting.
But art historians have often wondered whether the smiling woman may actually have been da Vinci's lover, his mother or the artist himself.
Now experts at the Heidelberg University library say dated notes scribbled in the margins of a book by its owner in October 1503 confirm once and for all that Lisa del Giocondo was indeed the model for one of the most famous portraits in the world.
"All doubts about the identity of the Mona Lisa have been eliminated by a discovery by Dr. Armin Schlechter," a manuscript expert, the library said in a statement on Monday.
Until then, only "scant evidence" from sixteenth-century documents had been available. "This left lots of room for interpretation and there were many different identities put forward," the library said.
The notes were made by a Florentine city official Agostino Vespucci, an acquaintance of the artist, in a collection of letters by the Roman orator Cicero.
The painting, which hangs in the Louvre in Paris, is also known as "La Gioconda" meaning the happy or joyful woman in Italian, a title which also suggests the woman's married name.
20:46 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Monalisa, DaVinci, Italy, Germany, Art, news, blog
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Man catches swordfish with his bare hands
A man visiting Lucaya recently spotted a large fish swimming near shore.
He slowly approached a juvenile swordfish and wrestled it to the shoreline. After convincing his partner that they needed to spend a great deal of money to land swordfish, he proved his theory wrong by catching one with his bare hands.
It has not been determined if the fish was sick or had been recently caught. After a few photos, and some cuts and bruises on the man who caught the fish, the fish was released.
more...
14:31 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: USA, Florida, Fish, Sword fish, fishing, news, web
Sunday, January 06, 2008
He had a golden ticket -- and gave it away
A Brookline man bought his family lottery tickets for Christmas. His in-laws hit the $1 million jackpot. And he has no regrets.
Fred DePasquale, a Brookline pharmacist, put the old axiom about it being better to give than to receive, to the ultimate Christmas test.
He bought a selection of tickets in the $1 million lottery and handed them out to family.
Yesterday, the 38-year-old pharmacist who essentially gave away $1 million to in-laws for Christmas, was having no second-thoughts. He was delighted to give the winning ticket. The in-laws, whom he won't name for the time being, were delighted to get the winning ticket.
"I can't say that I play that often," said Mr. DePasquale. "I'm just not a lottery player. Not a gambler. But for a raffle like this you buy them and give them away."
For his troubles, Mr. DePasquale at least gets a $5,000 bonus for selling a $1 million winner, said Lottery Commission spokeswoman Elizabeth Brassell."All it was to me was a $20 ticket in my hand," he said. "That's like giving a shirt for Christmas and asking them if you could wear it New Year's Eve."
19:41 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: USA, news, Christmas, web, blog, journal, journals
Tuesday, January 01, 2008
Couple happy as clams over pearl find!
A COUPLE in Florida are as happy as clams after finding a rare pearl, possibly worth thousands of dollars, in a plate of the steamed molluscs.George and Leslie Brock stopped at Dave's Last Resort & Raw Bar on Friday after a day at the beach, Fox News reported.
Mr Brock had eaten about half a dozen clams when he bit down on something hard - a rare iridescent purple pearl. One expert said the find could be worth thousands.
"Few are round and few are a lovely color, so this is rare," said Vermont gemologist Antoinette Matlins. "I think they have found something precious and lovely and valuable."
The gems occur most frequently in large New England quahogs, clams known for violet colouring on the inside of their shells.
15:13 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Lucky, weird, Florida, USA, news, blog, web
Wedding rings duties for barn owl
A barn owl has been entrusted with a very special task at a wedding - flying in the rings for the bride and groom.
Three-year-old Casber will swoop down the aisle to give the rings to the best man at the wedding of bird owner Islwyn Jones's daughter Jenni in Denbighshire. 
Mr Jones said Casber has been training hard and is confident the wedding will go smoothly at Ruthin register office.
Jenni, 22, who is marrying Stuart Desborough, said: "It will be unique".
Mr Jones, of Llanfihangel Glyn Myfyr, near Ruthin, has been dubbed the bird man of north Wales.
He said: "Casber is highly trained. He will not lose the rings. He knows what to do,
"He will fly the rings in to the happy couple to complete their special day." Handler Katie Townend will be in charge of flying Casber at the wedding on 20 January while proud Islwyn will give his daughter away.
Jenni, a learning support assistant at Brynhyfryd School in Ruthin, said: "Casber will bring the rings in for the best man. It will be lovely. I can't wait."
14:51 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: UK, news, blog, web, weddings, journal, rings
Sunday, December 16, 2007
'My subject is Bond, James Bond'
It might shake, if not stir, the academic world a little.
Cardiff University is offering a chance to study James Bond, the British spy whose career in both books and film has spanned more than 50 years.
The 10-week course, James Bond in Context, will include a look at Ian Fleming's creation in terms of his historical and social significance.
more...
21:10 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: UK, news, blog, web, James Bond, 007, journal
Tuesday, December 04, 2007
Teaspoon of Honey Works Better for Children Than Cough Medicine
A teaspoon of honey before bed seems to calm children's coughs and help them sleep better, according to a new study that relied on parents' reports of their children's symptoms.
The folk remedy did better than cough medicine or no treatment in a three-way comparison. Honey may work by coating and soothing an irritated throat, the study authors said.
"Many families are going to relate to these findings and say that grandma was right," said lead author Dr. Ian Paul of Pennsylvania State University's College of Medicine.
Federal health advisers have recently warned that over-the-counter cough and cold medicines shouldn't be used in children younger than 6, and manufacturers are taking some products for babies off the market.
The parents were asked about their children's sleep and cough symptoms, once before the bedtime treatment and once after. They rated the symptoms on a seven-point scale.
All of the children got better, but honey consistently scored best in parents' rating of their children's cough symptoms.
"Give them a little time and they'll get better," said Pat Jackson Allen, a professor at Yale University School of Nursing.
more...
21:52 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Cough, honey, medicine, USA, news, children, blog
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Natural disasters have quadrupled in two decades: study
Residents of Centla in the Mexican state of Tabasco wade through a flooded street in search of food and water on 04 November 2007. More than four times the number of natural disasters are occurring now than did two decades ago, British charity Oxfam has said in a study that largely blamed global warming.
"Oxfam... says that rising green house gas emissions are the major cause of weather-related disasters and must be tackled," the organisation said, adding that the world's poorest people were being hit the hardest.
The world suffered about 120 natural disasters per year in the early 1980s, which compared with the current figure of about 500 per year, according to the report.
"This year we have seen floods in South Asia, across the breadth of Africa and Mexico that have affected more than 250 million people," noted Oxfam director Barbara Stocking.
"This is no freak year. It follows a pattern of more frequent, more erratic, more unpredictable and more extreme weather events that are affecting more people."
She added: "Action is needed now to prepare for more disasters otherwise humanitarian assistance will be overwhelmed and recent advances in human development will go into reverse."
Oxfam urged Western governments to push hard for a deal on climate change at a key international meeting that runs December 3-14 on the Indonesian island of Bali.
Rich Western nations and the United Nations must act to "make humanitarian aid faster, fairer and more flexible and to improve ways to prepare for and reduce the risk of disasters," it said.
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change conference in Bali aims to see countries agree to launch a roadmap for negotiating cuts in climate-changing carbon emissions from 2012.
22:55 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Global warming, nature, news, blog, journal, web, UK
Firms asks women to work in their undies
A Taiwanese lingerie company encouraged all its female office staff to go to work in their undies for the day.
The Audrey Underwear company in Taizhong city named November 21 Camisole Day to celebrate record sales.
All 500 women working in the firm's headquarters were encouraged to wear only camisoles and knickers - much to the excitement of their male colleagues.
"We have been waiting for this day all month. Today, we are super high, and don't know where to put our eyes," salesman Cai Mingda told Straits News.
More than 90% of female workers reportedly went along with the spirit of the day and worked in their underwear.
Employment lawyers said there was nothing illegal in the move so long as it was voluntary but it had its critics.
Wu Juanyu complained: "Some women may feel forced to join in because of peer pressure and job competition. I don't know if the company is selling underwear or women's bodies."
22:50 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Taiwan, jobs, news, journal, blog, web, Asia
Monday, November 19, 2007
Gimme the money, or I'll staple you?
ASHLAND, Kentucky - A man wearing a ski mask used a stapler to hold up an eastern Kentucky ice cream store _ and briefly got away with $175, authorities said.
Gerald A. Rocchi, 32, was arrested shortly after he flashed a chrome-plated stapler at an employee of The Ice Cream Shop in Ashland on Tuesday and demanded money, police said.
Ashland Police Capt. Don Petrella said he didn't know if Rocchi planned to shoot staples at the shop's employees or use it as a blunt instrument if he didn't get the cash.
Several witnesses saw Rocchi leave the shop and told police where he was headed, Petrella said. After arresting Rocchi, police searched his house and found money, a stapler and a ski mask, Petrella said.
Petrella said the stapler's chrome finish could have made it look like a gun "if someone didn't get a good look at it."
Rocchi was charged with first-degree robbery. He made his first appearance in Boyd District Court on Wednesday morning. He did not have an attorney at the hearing.
21:40 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: USA, news, web, blog, robberies, kentucky, journal
Rabbit adopts new feline family
When veterinary nurse Melanie Humble took home a litter of kittens, she expected her cat Ellie to show some interest.
Instead it was her rabbit Summer who quickly developed a bond with the baby felines. Although only five-months-old, Summer has shown remarkable patience with the frisky five-week-old kittens, and lets them snuggle close to her.
The kittens had been abandoned by their mother and were brought into the veterinary branch in Aberdeen where Melanie works. Melanie agreed to foster them until they reached eight-weeks-old. They were too small to feed themself so Melanie have been giving them a special formula through a syringe every two to three hours.
more...
21:37 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: News, blog, science, animals, Rabbits, kittens, web
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Hunter becomes hunted: Poacher mauled by endangered bear
For those trying to trap a bear, here are some golden rules.
One: Don't fall into your own bear-pit.
Two: If you do fall into your own pit, make sure the bear is not around.
Three: If first two rules have been broken, hope your comrades don't run away.
Clearly no one told Makhan Khan and his fellow hunters as they tried to drive an Asiatic black bear into a prepared pit by waving sticks and a blazing torch. 
In the panic, Mr Khan is half swallowed in the camouflaged pit and the advancing animal swats aside his flailing stick.
Mr Khan suffered multiple injuries but survived - which is more than the hunters had planned for the bear.
Had they been successful, it would have been killed for its pelt and meat.
An agency photographer captured Mr Khan's plight while on assignment to highlight the illegal hunting of bears in Kashmir.
The Asiatic black bear is an endangered species across Asia, but numbers have soared in Kashmir because the armed separatist struggle has made poaching too dangerous in the Indian state.
21:54 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: News, blog, journals, blogs, web, bears, hunting
Sunday, November 04, 2007
Judge fired after deciding case with coin flip
A judge who ordered a woman to drop her pants and decided a custody dispute by flipping a coin was removed from the bench by the Virginia Supreme Court on Friday.
The decision against Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court Judge James Michael Shull of Gate City was unanimous.
“Unless our citizens can trust that judges will fairly resolve the disputes brought before our courts, and treat all litigants with dignity, our courts will lose the public’s respect and confidence upon which our legal system depends,” Justice Barbara Milano Keenan wrote
According to the court, Shull admitted tossing a coin to determine which parent would have visitation with a child on Christmas. Shull said he was trying to encourage the parents to decide the issue themselves but later acknowledged that he was wrong.
The pants-dropping incidents, the court said, “were even more egregious.”
The justices could have merely censured Shull, but they noted that he had appeared before the Judicial Inquiry and Review Commission in 2004 for allegedly calling a teenager a “mama’s boy” and a “wuss” and advising a woman to marry her abusive boyfriend. That complaint was dismissed with an admonition to Shull to chalk it up as a learning experience.
15:51 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: USA, news, courts, blog, journal, web, law
Boy's 'Privy Prop' keeps the lid on
Jake Wulf wants to keep the lid on it. The 9-year-old boy flushed out a plan for a foot-activated toilet seat lifter that is called the "Privy Prop," designed to lower and raise the toilet seat. It was during a visit to a doctor's office that Jake's idea for the "Privy Prop" began to take shape.
He noticed the lid to a small trash can, which opened and closed with a foot-powered lever. He went home and told his parents that he wanted to design a similar device for the toilet.
He made it for the school's Invention Convention with the help of his dad, Jason, who designs equipment for a living.
"Jake drew it all out and I supervised," Jason Wulf said. "I helped him with the tools to make sure he didn't cut off any fingers."
Jake built plywood base and then cut thin pieces of steel and fashioned a teeter-totter at the bottom. You step on it and the seats raises. You step off and it closes.
more...
15:39 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (1) | Email this</