Russia prohibits denial of Santa

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7161468.stm

The Russian government has banned a television advertisement for denying the existence of Father Christmas.

The ad for Eto electrical stores stated Father Frost, Russia's version of Father Christmas, did not exist.

The Federal anti-Monopoly Service said the ad had broken rules for advertisers not to discredit parents and teachers.

It said that declaring that Father Frost did not exist implied that parents were not telling the truth, so undermining childrens' trust in them.

The ad "induces negative relations between children and parents", Andrei Kashevarov, the service's deputy director, told Rossiiskaya Gazeta.

The advertiser, Eto, defended its commercial, saying it was aimed at adults.

A far from cracking surprise - a dead mouse

http://www.brudirect.com/DailyInfo/News/Archive/Dec07/281207/wn03.htm

Wellington - A New Zealand woman who pulled apart a Christmas cracker got more than the party hat and joke she had expected, finding a dead mouse.

Betty Lawrence, a grandmother from the South Island city of Invercargill, made the discovery sitting down to Christmas dinner with 20 relatives, The Southland Times newspaper reported.

"I had said to my granddaughter 'what's the smell' and we couldn't work it out until we pulled the cracker," Lawrence told the newspaper, after finding a dead and partially decomposed mouse.

The discovery curbed her enthusiasm for the Christmas meal.

"It ruined my appetite for the rest of the day," Lawrence said.

Liquor firms fight ban on boozy lunches

http://www.arabtimesonline.com/client/pagesdetails.asp?nid=9943&ccid=18

HONG KONG, Dec 27 (Reuters) - Liquor makers in China are demanding that a city regulation barring public servants and Communist Party officials from the Chinese version of a three martini lunch be revoked, a newspaper reported on Thursday.

The regulation, launched in January in the city of Xinyang in Henan province, is illegal, according to several of the province's producers of 'baijiu', China's pungent answer to vodka that is ubiquitous at banquets where toasts are downed by the shot.

'They are preparing to ask the legal affairs committee of the standing committee of the provincial People's Congress and the government's legal institutions office to react, requesting that the rule be revised or revoked,' the Guangzhou-based Southern Metropolis Daily said.

Liquor, beer and, increasingly, wine are common at China's lunch tables, including at business luncheons where hosts treat guests to lavish, multi-course feasts that can last hours.

Public servants and their lunch partners apparently comprised a large part of Henan's 'baijiu' market, and sales at some liquor companies dropped by as much as a third in the wake of the regulation, the newspaper said.

The Henan liquor producers' association put the issue on its 2008 agenda.

New Yorkers shred bad memories of 2007

http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storyPage.aspx?storyId=103818

NEW YORK - New Yorkers who suffered a tough 2007 took their anger out on photographs of ex-husbands, old letters and annoying cell phones on Friday, consigning their bad memories to a giant shredder.

"I got rid of my ex-fiancee after five and a half years," said Pierre Lucien, 47, "I shredded her picture, because I have very bad memories. I caught her with another guy while I was on vacation for the summer."

The event took place in the Times Square intersection that on Monday night will be packed with hundreds of thousands of New Year revellers. Most of those at the "Good Riddance Day" came with bad memories they were keen to forget.

"I shredded the obsession to drink, the obsession to use drugs, the obsession to women," said one man in his 40s. "I am recovering. I have 32 days clean today and I wanna continue, this is a good start."

Others threw in files of paperwork. One threw in documents relating to a home loan that he -- like so many other Americans -- was unable to pay off.

Geraldine, a 36-year-old Ecuadoran woman, came with her two daughters to symbolically say goodbye to her ex-husband. "He behaved badly and then left us," she explained. "I also got rid of work colleagues who behaved badly."

One woman was destroying a pile of papers: "10 years of a bad relationship," she said, smiling.

Joe Costanella brought along the bane of his life: a garbage can bought by his wife. To the surprise of onlookers, he took a sledgehammer to the can, prompting others to throw in cellphones for similar treatment.

At the end of the event, a garbage truck took away the shredded papers for recycling. A 250 dollar prize for the most creative act of riddance went to New Yorker Eileen Lawrence, who symbolically shredded her former boss.

Manic Greek clothes collector leaves hoard to migrants

http://news.sg.msn.com/entertainment/article.aspx?cp-documentid=1166576

Illegal immigrants landing on the Greek island of Mytilene will receive an unexpected New Year's boon of clothes left by a late asylum inmate who was a manic garment collector, a report said Friday.

Eleftherotypia daily said Mytilene-born George Selimis owned 150 jackets, 58 pairs of shoes and an unspecified number of shirts and trousers which he had spent at least eight years amassing but never wore.

When he died of cancer a few months ago, Selimis' doctors decided that his wardrobe should be given to the migrants who make it to the island after crossing the Aegean Sea from Turkey in search of a better future in Europe.

"George had a harmless quirk, he would buy clothes from expensive stores (with his pension) but inexplicably never wore them," Theodore Megaloekonomou, head of the asylum in Athens where the inmate died, told the newspaper.

Scores of migrants land on the shores of Mytilene from the nearby Turkish coast every month, frequently without even a spare change of clothes.

After a perilous sea crossing in which many of the migrants drown, hundreds of survivors are detained for months in overpopulated holding centres which human rights groups say are ill-equipped to handle their present numbers.

Miss France Keeps Crown Despite Racy Photos

http://www.abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=4060733

PARIS (Reuters) - Miss France 2008 has kept her crown, contest organizers said on Friday, after a row over suggestive photographs that saw members of parliament, a bishop and the minister for overseas territories spring to her defense.

However she will not be able to compete in the Miss World or Miss Universe contests, where she will be replaced by Miss New Caledonia.

Valerie Begue, 22, from Reunion, won the beauty pageant, which is taken more seriously in France than in many other countries, in a televised ceremony on December 8.

But her reign threatened to be short-lived after a magazine published a risque series of photographs in which she was seen lying in a crucifixion-like pose while wearing a bikini or licking condensed milk in a suggestive manner.

The rules of the contest forbid participants from appearing in nude or provocative photographs and the head of the Miss France contest, Genevieve de Fontenay, called for Begue to renounce her title when the pictures emerged.

Begue refused, saying the photographs, taken three years ago, had been published without her consent and in the face of wide public support, the organizers relented.

"We felt that, as she had been elected in front of 9 million television viewers, faced with this public that had never seen the photographs, we couldn't take the title from her," de Fontenay told a news conference in Paris.

The affair stirred a major controversy in Reunion, the French Indian Ocean departement (region) that Begue comes from, and several members of parliament and local politicians spoke out in her defense.

The bishop of Saint-Denis de La Reunion said that while the photograph of Begue lying on a cross like Christ insulted Christians, it was a "youthful error" and he refused to be used as an ally by those seeking to strip her of her title.

Christian Estrosi, minister for overseas territories, also defended Begue on French radio during the week and he welcomed the decision.

"Reunion, beyond any political and social differences has defended Valerie Begue with heart and talent but has also defended the image of a courageous, determined and successful Reunion," he said in a statement.

Student wins lottery, leaves school

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/china/2007/12/28/136704/Chinese-student.htm

BEIJING -- A college student withdrew from school after winning the 5 million yuan (US$683,000) jackpot in a lottery in China' eastern city of Nanjing, local media reported Thursday.

The second year student at the Jiangsu Maritime Institute, identified by the nickname Yong to protect his identity, was the sole first-prize winner in the "Double Colour Ball" issued by the China Welfare Lottery on Tuesday, the Beijing News said.

"After winning the lottery, Yong told his roommates that he would share 2,000 yuan with each of them," it added.

Jail inmates dislike 'unstylish' pyjamas

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/12/28/2128183.htm

Japanese prisoners dislike their unstylish pyjamas, feel their cells are too small and want better meals, a government survey has found.

In the survey of inmates who left prison in the year to March, the former inmates said their vertically striped greyish pyjamas were unfashionable, close to half said the colours were bad, and 44 per cent said the design was ugly.

Almost 70 per cent of respondents who shared cells with others said they had too little space, while 44 per cent of those in solitary confinement said their cells were too small, the justice ministry said in a report issued on Wednesday (local time).

Over half said their meals were bad and having supper at 5:00pm was too early, while almost 75 per cent wished for more bread with their meals, rather than rice or noodles.

About 81,300 of Japan's 127 million people were in prison as of December 31 last year, according to government data.

Chihuahua Helps Police Find Suspect

http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2007Dec27/0,4670,ODDHeroDog,00.html

AUBURN, Calif. — A three-pound Chihuahua mix named Tink helped police put a fugitive in the clink.

The dog's Christmas Day adventure began when four suspects who were fleeing police crashed a stolen minivan into a hillside in this Sierra foothill town east of Sacramento, and one of them fled.

Tink, a Pomeranian and Chihuahua mix, found him hiding under a neighbor's motor home and chased him into the woods, said Wendy Anderson. The dog belongs to her son.

Her son and husband directed a law enforcement helicopter to where the 20-year-old man was hiding.

"The Chihuahua gave him up," California Highway Patrol officer Jeff Herbert said.

The three other suspects, including the driver, were juveniles from the San Francisco Bay area, Herbert said. The suspect who fled was arrested on suspicion of public intoxication and resisting arrest.

The driver was arrested on suspicion of vehicle theft, felony evading, driving without a license and resisting arrest, Herbert said. The other two suspects were released to their parents.

Man accused of pushing car off mountain

http://www.9news.com/news/watercooler/article.aspx?storyid=83515

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - A man pushed his Ford Mustang down a mountain as part of a scheme to claim it was stolen, authorities said.

Richard Way Jr., 28, pushed the car down an embankment along Wopsy Mountain in Blair County last year, then reported it had been stolen from the parking lot of a hot dog restaurant, the Pennsylvania attorney general's office said.

Way, of Claysburg, was arraigned last week on charges of filing false police reports, theft and insurance fraud.

A cousin, Travis Knox, told police he saw Way remove stereo equipment from the Mustang and was asked to help push the car off a cliff, according to the arrest affidavit. Knox said he refused to help, and told investigators that Way confessed the crime to him a few days later.

Reached at his home, Way declined comment and said a lawyer would speak on his behalf later.

Furs found after 30 years in storage

http://www.boston.com/news/odd/articles/2007/12/27/furs_found_after_30_years_in_storage/

BELLOWS FALLS, Vt.—Sam Haskins didn't ask for a fur coat for Christmas. But he got six of them.

Haskins, the new owner of a hardware store, made an unexpected discovery early this month when he started poking around the basement: a climate-controlled vault containing six fur coats, about a dozen suits and some dresses and hats, apparently untouched since the late 1970s.

"The fans were spinning and the furs were spotless," said Haskins. "Everything inside was very nice and clean. The fan was set on 65 degrees and that is exactly what the thermometer read. Everyone wants to know who has been paying the electricity bill."

Haskins, 56, bought J&H Hardware in May and the building -- a three-story structure on the village square -- in September. In surveying the basement, he figured there might be usable space hidden behind a wall that had hinges on it.

With son Jeremy Haskins, 27, he rented an electric hammer and then a jackhammer and eventually bored through 18 inches of brick and mortar, four inches of wallboard and then a cement wall to find the room once used by Royal Furriers, a business that closed in the late 1970s.

Haskins said he had no idea what the coats are worth, but planned to have them appraised.

It was unclear whether anyone could step forward to claim a long-lost coat -- or whether anyone who did would be on the hook for 30 years of storage fees.

Man rescued from Australian pub chimney after 10 hours

http://www.france24.com/france24Public/en/administration/afp-news.html?id=071228053613.7qga24b9&cat=null

Police said Friday they were waiting to question a man who had to be rescued by firefighters after he got stuck in the chimney of an Australian outback pub.

Officers believe the man -- too late to be making a Christmas delivery -- may have been an incompetent burglar who got wedged into the tight spot as he tried to break into the premises.

Firefighters took about 90 minutes to free him from the chimney of the Gapview Hotel bar in Alice Springs after staff heard his moans early Friday morning. He is thought to have been stuck for more than 10 hours.

Alice Springs fire station officer Mark James said the rescue was "unusual".

"When we first got here we, because we've never been confronted by anything like this before, (thought it was) a little bit daunting," he told national radio.

"But we just worked through it and he's fine and now we've got him out."

Police said the man, who was eventually freed after the brick fireplace was smashed down with a jackhammer, was suspected of attempting to rob the hotel when he got stuck.

He had not been arrested and officers would seek to get his side of the story before pressing any charges, a police spokeswoman said. "He has been taken to hospital, we have to wait until he has been treated," she told AFP.

Cards From "Heaven" Have Dead Man Talking

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/12/25/national/main3645668.shtml?source=RSSattr=HOME_3645668

Even in death, Chet Fitch is a card. Fitch, known for his sense of humor, died in October at age 88 but gave his friends and family a start recently: Christmas cards, 34 of them, began arriving _ written in his hand with a return address of "Heaven."

The greeting read: "I asked Big Guy if I could sneak back and send some cards. At first he said no; but at my insistence he finally said, 'Oh well, what the heaven, go ahead but don't (tarry) there.' Wish I could tell you about things here but words cannot explain.

"Better get back as Big Guy said he stretched a point to let me in the first time, so I had better not press my luck. I'll probably be seeing you (some sooner than you think). Wishing you a very Merry Christmas. Chet Fitch"

A friend for nearly 25 years, Debbie Hansen Bernard said, "All I could think was, 'You little stinker.'"

"It was amazing," she said. "Just so Chet, always wanting to get the last laugh."

The mailing was a joke Fitch worked on for two decades with his barber, Patty Dean, 57. She told the Ashland Daily Tidings this week that he kept updating the mailing list and giving her extra money when postal rates went up. This fall, she said, Fitch looked up to her from the chair.

"You must be getting tired of waiting to mail those cards," he told her. "I think you'll probably be able to mail them this year."

He died a week later.

Referee pulls out red card, then a gun

http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticleNew.asp?xfile=data/theworld/2007/December/theworld_December822.xml§ion=theworld

KUALA LUMPUR - A Malaysian referee took out his gun and fired warning shots in the air after a local soccer match turned unruly following the suspension of a player, a newspaper said on Tuesday.

The referee, who was also a policeman, ran to his patrol car to get his gun after players mobbed him for showing the red-card to one of them, the New Straits Times said.

“We are investigating as to whether the policeman was justified in taking out his firearm and discharging it, and also why he had it with him during the match,” it quoted Hussin Ismail, police chief in the southern Johor state, as saying.

The policemen was taken into custody for suspected misuse of firearms.

Five players, aged between 23 and 40, were also being held for questioning and could be charged for rioting, the paper said.

Breaking news! Driver crashes into newscast

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=4048583

CHICAGO (Reuters) - The driver of a minivan who interrupted a local TV newscast while it was on the air by crashing into the station's glass-walled studio, was charged on Monday with reckless driving, authorities said.

Gerald Richardson, 25, was seen driving erratically moments before veering into the street-level studio on Sunday night, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

Richardson's sister later told the newspaper he suffered from mental problems.

He performed several U-turns on the busy downtown street before crashing the van into a thick glass panel dividing the studio from the sidewalk, with a panel giving way, witnesses told the newspaper.

The impact was heard on-air and anchorman Ravi Baichwal shouted, "Ho!," interrupting his introduction to the newscast's first story about harsh winter weather. He said the studio had become drafty.

Small crowds often form outside the studio's windows during newscasts but no one was hurt and the driver was arrested inside the van, the Sun-Times reported.

Initially, Richardson was charged with reckless driving and ticketed for driving without insurance.

Putin wants satnav collar for dog

http://www.physorg.com/news117716374.html

Russian President Vladimir Putin is considering buying a satnav dog collar for his labrador, Connie, in case she gets lost, the country's deputy prime minister revealed Monday.

"When can I get a system for my dog, Connie, so she can't go too far astray?", Putin asked Sergey Ivanov, when the deputy PM presented plans for launching three new satellites.

"Dog collars will be in the shops from July 2008," Ivanov replied in all seriousness, according to the news agency Itar-Tass.

The Russian rocket Proton-K is due to launch three new satellites into orbit on Christmas Day to facilitate Russia's GLONASS navigation system. They will bring to 18 the total number of satellites mapping Russian territory.

Ultimately it is planned to have 24 satellites in orbit from 2009.

The GLONASS system was developed by the Russian army in the 1980s, in competition with the US GPS network, and the European Galileo system.

Go ahead, egg my Hummer

http://www.thestar.co.za/?fSectionId=&fArticleId=nw20071226111724467C670793

Moscow - A Hummer owner in Russia's second city St. Petersburg has given antiglobalists the green light to pelt his oversized vehicle with rotten eggs, Russian news agencies reported on Wednesday.

"Peter Antiglobalist" activists told news agency RIA they found a driver willing to let them express their dissatisfaction with consumerism by throwing things at his luxury sport utility vehicle, a spokesperson said.

A Moscow car dealer puts the base price of a Hummer H3 at $49 500 (about R347 000).

"Luxury is a false value, clouding modern society's vision. Advertising posters, TV shows and slick marketing constantly tells us that buying things is the most important value in our society," RIA quoted the spokesperson as saying.

The antiglobalists said throwing eggs and tomatoes at the Hummer will help draw attention to their cause.

The vehicle's owner said he will then sell it and donate the proceeds to an orphanage.

Protest sex dolls seized in Philippines

http://www.france24.com/france24Public/en/administration/afp-news.html?id=071227065103.l3b2154f&cat=null

Customs officials in the Philippines have seized inflatable sex dolls meant to be used for an international campaign against animal cruelty, an animal rights group said Thursday.

The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) said it had planned to use the sex toys as props in its Asian campaign against alleged abuses of chickens by a major US fast food chain.

The dolls were to have gone on a tour of red light districts in the Philippines, Thailand and Japan where they would be displayed with a banner reading "KFC Blows," PETA said.

The dolls however were confiscated by customs officials here when they arrived in the Philippines through a US-based parcel service, it said.

Philippine representatives of Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) as well as customs officials were not immediately available to comment.

Citing its own "undercover operations," PETA said suppliers for KFC often abused chickens, including allegedly scalding them to death and cutting off their beaks while they are still conscious.

The US firm has dismissed the allegations in the past.

Brothers hand out Christmas cash at mall

http://www.stuff.co.nz/4337218a4560.html

Shoppers got a Christmas Eve surprise when a pair of brothers handed out $US100 bills ($NZ130) at a mall on Long Island, New York.

Police responded to a call from security staff at the Sunrise Mall in the town of Massapequa, concerned that the give-away might create a scene or involve counterfeit bills.

Instead, officers found a simple case of Christmas charity where calm prevailed as the businessmen, aged 45 and 41, gave out the money at the entrance to the shopping centre, police said.

"These two brothers say they do this every year. They say they've been blessed and just want to give something back," Detective Sergeant Anthony Repalone said.

"They gave it to people who they thought needed it. The people were very appreciative."

Police declined to identify the brothers, respecting their wish to remain anonymous.

Gut feeling: US farmer forecasts the winter by examining pig spleens

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/12/24/america/NA-ODD-US-Reading-the-Spleens.php

STEELE, North Dakota: Paul Smokov does not need radar or other high-tech equipment to forecast a major snowstorm on the U.S. prairie. He consults pig spleens.

"It looks like a normal year with no major storms," said the 84-year-old cattle rancher, peering at two of the brown, glistening organs on his kitchen counter like a Gypsy gazing into a crystal ball. "That's what the spleens tell me."

If the spleen is wide where it attaches to the pig's stomach and then narrows, it means winter weather will come early with a mild spring, Smokov said. A narrow-to-wider spleen usually means harsh weather in the spring, he said.

The spleens obtained by Smokov this year are pretty uniform in thickness, which means no drastic changes.

Janice Stillman, editor of the Old Farmer's Almanac, said she had heard of at least one other pig spleen weather prognosticator — Gus Wickstrom of Saskatchewan, Canada — but he died earlier this year.

"It's folklore and a dying art, obviously," she said.

Smokov's Ukrainian parents brought their knowledge of pig spleen forecasting with them when they came to the U.S. a century ago. As for listening to forecasts on the radio, electricity did not reach Smokov's ranch until 1949.

"The spleens are 85 percent correct, according to my figures," he said. As for the weathermen, "Those guys aren't any better."

At the National Weather Service office in North Dakota, meteorologist Vic Jensen relies on Doppler radar and other sophisticated scientific instruments. But he is charitable toward folk methods such as Smokov's.

"I can't discount some of these kinds of theories," Jensen said. "It's just another way for people to forecast what's going to happen."

The weather service's three-month outlook is typically at least 60 percent accurate, Jensen said. Forecasters are calling for a normal winter for North Dakota as well.

2007 was Year of Living Deceptively, Seoul poll shows

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=071224015346.5rycvvn9&show_article=1

For South Koreans 2007 was the Year of Living Deceptively, according to a survey published Monday in the wake of scandals involving fake academics, the nation's top conglomerate and politicians.

A survey of 340 professors selected the Chinese phrase "ja-gi-gi-in" (deceiving yourself and others) when asked to sum up the year, newspapers reported.

"Ja-gi-gi-in is the behaviour resulting from one's excessive desire," Professor Ahn Dae-Hoe told the Korea Herald.

"Forging degrees, plagiarising theses and the moral insensitivity of politicians and big corporations have shaken up Korean society for the past year."

The news that a high-profile art curator had faked her degrees prompted a series of similar disclosures, both voluntary and involuntary. The Samsung group is being investigated by a special prosecutor over claims it operated a massive slush fund for bribery.

Several government officials have quit over corruption claims and president-elect Lee Myung-Bak faces an independent probe into allegations he was linked to a 2001 stock manipulation scam. He denies any involvement.

Koreans still use some Chinese characters alongside the indigenous Hangeul script.

N Korean leader even fixes TVs for beloved troops

http://www.france24.com/france24Public/en/administration/afp-news.html?id=071224161436.6xu98hok&cat=null

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il has such "paternal love" for his troops that he even checks the TV reception and room temperature in their barracks, state media said Monday.

"Today, the soldiers of the Korean People's Army revere and follow leader Kim Jong-Il rather as their father than as the supreme commander," said a eulogy carried by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) to mark the 16th anniversary of Kim's assuming the top command.

Kim paid scrupulous attention to the needs of his soldiers, "showing them warmer affection than their own parents would," it said.

The agency cited his actions in fixing the TV reception for a women's unit located in a deep valley; encouraging sketching by the troops; replacing threadbare winter uniforms; and even checking the room temperature and water quality while inspecting bedrooms and bathhouses.

"Immeasurable is the warmth of his parental love for the soldiers," KCNA added.

Kim, who lacks his late father's credentials as an anti-Japanese guerrilla fighter, has always been eager to cement his ties with the powerful military.

The communist state's "Songun", or army-first policy, prioritises the welfare of the 1.1-million-member armed forces over civilians.

Kyrgyzstan touted as ideal delivery hub for Santa

Reuters

BISHKEK (Reuters) - Seeking a novel remedy to revive its rickety economy, the tiny ex-Soviet state of Kyrgyzstan has declared itself the new home of Santa Claus.

Citing Swedish engineering firm that determined the ideal spot for Santa's global toy delivery hub, officials in this predominantly Muslim country have quickly moved to capitalise on the finding.

They named a mountain peak after Santa, to join Mounts Lenin, and Yeltsin, and declared 2008 "The Year of Santa Claus".

"Its slogan will be "Kyrgyzstan is the land of Santa Clauses", said Kyrgyz tourism authority spokeswoman Nurkhon Tajibayeva.

In most Western countries Santa Claus, or Father Christmas , is thought to live at the North Pole or in Finland. However, if he were located in Central Asia and started westwards on his traditional Christmas Eve trips, Kyrgyz officials said he would have a more efficient delivery route.

"He can eliminate time-consuming detours and avoid subjecting his reindeer to undue strain," engineering consultants at Stockholm-based Sweco, who used geography and demographics in their research, said in a press release.

A group of professional mountain-climbers will pitch the country's flag at the newly renamed peak, Kyrgyzstan's tourism authority said, while a world festival of Santas is planned for the capital's main square.

Pigeon poop plunge wins man $7 million

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=340129

A former New York doorman who slipped on a pile of pigeon droppings on a subway station's stairs has been awarded $7 million in compensation, according to a report yesterday.

Fifty-six-year-old Shelton Stewart slipped on the station steps in 1998, injuring his neck and back, despite saying he had noticed the pile of excrement on his way to work the same day, the New York Post reported.

A jury awarded Stewart $8.7 million in damages, but New York city's transit authority only has to pay 80 percent of the sum, or $7.03 million, since Stewart was found 20 percent liable for failing to avoid the fecal pile.

Stewart was reportedly planning to use his windfall to buy a house and take his two daughters and grandchild to Disney World in Florida.

Platinum Coin Find Way To Salvation Army

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/12/24/ap/strange/main3644444.shtml

A platinum coin estimated to be worth more than $1,000 couldn't fit in a Salvation Army kettle, so the donor handed it over to the bell ringer.

An unidentified person donated the coin Friday outside a Belk department store.

"The man who donated the coin tried to put it in the kettle, but it wouldn't fit," Salvation Army spokeswoman Yvonne Warthen said. "So he just handed it to the bell ringer. It just shows how honest our bell ringers are."

The coin's face value is $100, but the Salvation Army had it appraised, and initial estimates put its value at about $1,300. The coin is from 2006 and is stamped with an image of the Statue of Liberty.

The Salvation Army has also received at least eight gold coins in its kettles this year. One, a one-ounce South African Krugerrand worth about $800, turned up earlier this month in Washington. And gold coins have turned up all the way back to 1982, the group said.

Salvation Army officials also have reported getting an Indian head gold coin in Barre, Vt., one-ounce American Eagle coins in Prescott, Ariz., and Fargo, N.D., and a Lady Liberty coin in Grand Island, Neb., among other unusual coins.

Donor drops $1,000 into red kettle

http://www.boston.com/news/odd/articles/2007/12/24/donor_drops_1000_into_red_kettle/

MORGANTOWN, W.Va.—Salvation Army Major Richard Hathorn knew when and where it would happen, but he still doesn't know who slipped the $1,000 bill into one of the charity's Christmas kettles.
more stories like this

Each Christmas since 1978, someone has covertly stuffed one of the big bills into a kettle in this northern West Virginia university city.

This year, Hathorn says, the donor alerted the Salvation Army that the tradition would continue with a deposit between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Saturday at the Wal-Mart at University Town Center.

During the appointed period, Hathorn carefully scanned the faces of people dropping money into the kettle, but he didn't spot anyone with a bill bearing the likeness of President Grover Cleveland.

He found it later, wrapped inside a $1 bill.

Hathorn says he hopes to raise about $62,000 from the kettles this year to provide everything from toys and food to utility assistance.

Baby Jesus Gets GPS for Christmas

http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-7174427,00.html

BAL HARBOUR, Fla. (AP) - A baby Jesus statue here is getting a Global Positioning System for Christmas. The statue, part of a nativity scene, will be equipped with the device after the previous statue went missing, even though it had been bolted down.

``I don't anticipate this will ever happen again,'' said Dina Cellini, who oversees the display, ``but we may need to rely on technology to save our savior.''

The Mary and Joseph statues will also be fitted with GPS devices, she said.

The devices are being bought using residents' contributions and Cellini's own money.

Cellini has also installed a Plexiglas screen in front of the display.

Man Gives $3,100 to Salvation Army

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/12/23/ap4470736.html

ORWIGSBURG, Pa. -

Less than two weeks after a man put 30 $100 bills into a Salvation Army kettle, someone decided to do one better.

On Saturday morning, someone put 31 $100 bills in a Christmas card and dropped it into the tambourine held by Salvation Army volunteer Margaret L. Wetefsky at on Orwigsburg supermarket. The card had a note inside saying, "I want you to be known as the person who collected the largest donation. May God shine on you." It was signed, "Leo."

"I don't know his last name. I only know him to see him. He had given me money last year, five $100 bills for the last four years straight," Wetefsky said.

Adam W. Hench, captain of Salvation Army/Pottsville Corps, said the money would be used to help the poor heat their homes.

The previous big donation was made Dec. 10 at the Schuylkill Mall.

Trial delayed due to LSU-Ohio St. game

http://www.newsweek.com/id/81498

Justice can wait until after the LSU game. A state judge near the home of the Tigers has agreed to postpone a trial scheduled to start on the same day LSU plays Ohio State in the BCS national championship game.

Stephen Babcock, an attorney defending Imperial Casualty Insurance Co. in a lawsuit over a car crash, requested the delay because he has tickets to the Jan. 7 game at the Superdome in New Orleans. He and other LSU fans have rented out the second floor of a Bourbon Street bar for a pre-game tailgate party.

In his written request for a new trial date, Babcock refers to Ohio State as "Slowhio" ("due to their perceived lack of speed on both sides of the ball") and notes that Allstate, sponsors of the Sugar Bowl, are not a party in the insurance case.

"All counsel to this matter unequivocally agree that the presence of LSU in the aforementioned contest of pigskin skill unquestionably constitutes good grounds therefor," Babcock wrote. "In fact we have been unable through much imagination and hypothetical scenarios to think of a better reason."

Babcock, whose law office is in Baton Rouge, said lawyers for the plaintiff in the case also have tickets to the game.

"We might disagree on the merits of the case, but everyone was in agreement on this, for sure," he said during an interview Friday.

That includes West Baton Rouge Parish District Judge Alvin Batiste, who agreed Thursday to postpone the trial but didn't immediately set a new date. Babcock said he doesn't know if Batiste is an LSU fan, "but most people around here are."

Louisiana already has a legal precedent for football trumping a trial date. In January, a judge agreed to postpone a trial due to a conflict with last season's NFC championship game between the New Orleans Saints and Chicago Bears.

Woman Allegedly Stabs Husband Over Gift

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=4041539

A woman stabbed her husband with a kitchen knife following an argument that began when she accused him of opening a Christmas present early, authorities said Friday.

Misty Johnson, 34, was arrested and charged with aggravated assault and battery, a felony, and misdemeanor domestic battery. Her husband, Shawn Fay Johnson, 34, was treated at a hospital for a wound to the chest, police said.

Misty Johnson made an initial court appearance Thursday in which she requested a court-appointed attorney, authorities said. She was released after posting bail, which was set at $7,500.

There was no telephone listing for her in Rock Springs.

Authorities said Shawn Johnson called 911 just before 1 a.m. Wednesday to report that his wife had stabbed him. He told police that his wife started arguing with him over his opening a Christmas present, according to court records.

As the argument escalated, Misty Johnson accused her husband of having an affair, authorities said. Police found a marriage license in the couple's apartment stating they were married in late September.

Police Detective David Thompson said he didn't know what the present was, or if it was intended for the husband.

Shower-Ready Suit To Go On Sale In Japan

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/12/22/ap/strange/main3641746.shtml

No time to take your suit to a dry cleaner? Just turn on the shower to wash it at home.

Washable suits are already available, but Japanese clothing company Konaka says its "Shower Clean" line of business suits, which can be washed in a warm shower and require no ironing, is one-of-a-kind.

Konaka says the suits _ made of a lightweight fabric easy to clean _ will be available in February in Japan.

The firm's Web site shows how to clean them: Reverse the jacket and pants, put them on clothes hangers and douse with warm water for a few minutes to clean the inside. Repeat the process to clean the outside and drip-dry.

Konaka is targeting job-hunting college students who go through a period of job interviews as well as young businessmen living alone, company official Shigeyuki Tsuchiya said.

"They often don't have time to take their suit to a dry cleaner and it's difficult for them to iron a wool suit," he said. "Our suit can return to the original shape easily after a shower."

The suits, available for both men and women, will be priced between $260 and $492, according to the company, which has some 320 stores nationwide.

Revealed: The seven great 'medical myths'

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/health/20071221-0216-health-myths-.html

LONDON – Reading in dim light won't damage your eyes, you don't need eight glasses of water a day to stay healthy and shaving your legs won't make the hair grow back faster.

These well-worn theories are among seven 'medical myths' exposed in a paper published on Friday in the British Medical Journal, which traditionally carries light-hearted features in its Christmas edition. Two U.S. researchers took seven common beliefs and searched the archives for evidence to support them.

Despite frequent mentions in the popular press of the need to drink eight glasses of water, they found no scientific basis for the claim.

The complete lack of evidence has been recorded in a study published by the American Journal of Psychology, they said.

The other six 'myths' are:

* Reading in dim light ruins your eyesight

The majority of eye experts believe it is unlikely to do any permanent damage, but it may make you squint, blink more and have trouble focusing, the researchers said.

* Shaving makes hair grow back faster or coarser

It has no effect on the thickness or rate of hair regrowth, studies say. But stubble lacks the finer taper of unshaven hair, giving the impression of coarseness.

* Eating turkey makes you drowsy

It does contain an amino acid called tryptophan that is involved in sleep and mood control. But turkey has no more of the acid than chicken or minced beef. Eating lots of food and drink at Christmas are probably the real cause of sleepiness.

* We use only 10 percent of our brains

This myth arose as early as 1907 but imaging shows no area of the brain is silent or completely inactive.

* Hair and fingernails continue to grow after death

This idea may stem from ghoulish novels. The researchers said the skin dries out and retracts after death, giving the appearance of longer hair or nails.

* Mobile phones are dangerous in hospitals

Despite widespread concerns, studies have found minimal interference with medical equipment.

The research was conducted by Aaron Carroll, an assistant professor of paediatrics at the Regenstrief Institute, Indianapolis, and Rachel Vreeman, fellow in children's health services research at Indiana University School of Medicine.

Inmate Says He Needs Thor's Hammer, Drum

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/12/21/national/a134223S11.DTL&feed=rss.news

An inmate is suing the Utah Department of Corrections for denying him his right to practice an ancient Nordic religion while behind bars.

Michael Polk is serving time for aggravated assault and robbery. He filed a lawsuit against corrections officials in federal court, accusing them of denying him religious items that he says are necessary to practice the Asatru religion.

The religion worships ancient Nordic gods like Odin, Thor, Tyr and Heimdal.

In the lawsuit, Polk says he has been a member of the Asatru faith since 2005, and in order to properly practice it he needs items including: a Thor's Hammer, a prayer cloth, a Mead Horn used for drinking Wassail, a drum made of wood and boar skin, a rune staff and a sword.

Snakes on a plane land in Vietnam

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=071221170631.33a4svl3&show_article=1&catnum=0

Vietnamese airport officials discovered a cargo of 700 live snakes on a Thai Airways flight from Indonesia but destroyed them after no-one claimed them, officials said Friday.

"The snakes were alive when they were found in the cargo," a quarantine officer at Hanoi's Noi Bai International Airport told AFP. "Seven hundred snakes were later destroyed when no-one claimed ownership."

The reptiles were found on December 19 in a container that arrived on flight TG 682 from Indonesia. Accompanying paperwork identified the content as "live fish", the state-run Vietnam News Agency reported.

Wild boar scatters French Christmas shoppers

http://www.france24.com/france24Public/en/administration/afp-news.html?id=071222221349.eny1qr7s&cat=null

It was no bull in a china shop, but a wild boar rampaged through a clothes shop in western France on Saturday before being felled by bullets, police said.

Christmas shoppers and employees were evacuated from the store and the 90-kilo (198-pound) boar began charging at police, before falling in a hail of bullets early in the afternoon.

Just how the animal entered the shop, located in a commercial area near the city of Poitiers, remains a mystery. But three boars were spotted during the day in the region bordering the countryside, a police statement said.

The other two apparently returned to their usual habitat.

Local forest service officials believe the boars are part of a larger group they are trying to relocate which have been spotted in the region, the statement said.

Dalai Lama 'is not a call girl'

http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/dalai-lama-is-not-a-call-girl/2007/12/22/1198175405283.html

WHEN Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper tried to explain in a year-end interview why he'd met the Dalai Lama in his Ottawa office, it was clear he wanted to show respect for the exiled Tibetan leader.

Unfortunately, it didn't quite come out that way.

"I met the Dalai Lama in my office but I meet everyone in my office. I don't know why I would sneak off to a hotel room just to meet the Dalai Lama. You know, he's not a call girl," Mr Harper told OMNI television.

He quickly added: "As I say, he's a respected international spiritual leader."

China condemns the Dalai Lama as a separatist and presses world leaders to shun him.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel met him in September, but only in private, and last month the Vatican called off a meeting with the Pope set for December 13.

Pot Suspect Served Hash Cake for Lunch

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/12/20/ap4465486.html

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands -

A man being held in a Dutch police cell on suspicion of growing cannabis got an unintended treat in his lunch - a piece of hashish-laced cake, a spokesman said Thursday.

"It was an accident," said Alwin Don, police spokesman in the southern province of Zeeland.

The hash cake had earlier been seized by police in an unrelated investigation and stored in a refrigerator - close to lunch packets served to suspects being held in cells at the police station in Goes, 110 miles south of Amsterdam.

"Clearly it looked a lot like the other lunch packets," Don said of the hash cake, which was served with a cup of coffee on Sunday.

"Officers returned to the cell a half hour later and the suspect told them: 'I think you've given me something you weren't supposed to,'" Don said.

The man had only nibbled at the cake and a doctor who was called to examine him said he suffered no ill effects.

"It was pure coincidence that this man got the cake," Don said of the fact that a suspected drug grower had been given the cake. "What was in the cake had nothing to do with his case."

Changing chocs trigger oddball complaint

http://www.france24.com/france24Public/en/administration/afp-news.html?id=071221001150.fcov28cn&cat=null

British doctors have made a tongue-in-cheek complaint to a chocolate manufacturer after the firm changed the shape of two sweets that could be used to measure testicles in pubescent boys.

The problem focuses on wrapped chocolates called Teasers and Truffles, whose 8mm oval shape was a dead ringer for a bead used in an orchidometer -- a gadget that measures testes to ensure they are developing normally.

But Teasers' and Truffles' unusual contribution to public health is now doomed after their manufacturer, Masterfoods UK, changed the shape of the chocs, leaving them bigger and flat-bottomed.

"This is a major setback to paediatric endocrinology," say Gareth Williams of the medical faculty at Bristol University and Poonam Dharmaraj, a paediatrician at the Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle.

"Clearly, the original design should be reinstated.

"With skilful marketing, this could play to the manufacturer's advantage: by including a simple package insert with clear, easy-to-feel instructions, young males could self-evaluate their pubertal status (while pointing out that this should ideally not be done at the point of sale)."

It would provide "a rare opportunity for the chocolate industry to become palpably involved in public-health promotion," suggest the pair.

Their letter appears in the end-of-the-year issue of the British Medical Journal (BMJ), a traditional moment for publishing humorous items in the medical profession.

Other articles include a spoof study into the genetic link with magic, as based on characters in the Harry Potter series, and an exhaustive investigation into the fracturability of two honeycombed chocolate bars that doctors often use to explain bone health to patients.

Passport office in need of spellcheck

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,22958126-23109,00.html

ISRAEL'S national passport office could have done with a good spellchecker.

First it stamped "Ministry of the Intrerior" in English in new batches of passports. Then it advised Israelis of the misspelling in a jumbled newspaper advertisement today that only compounded the mistake.

"Due to a technical error in some of the Ministry's stampsthe document you received may have been stampedwith an flawed stamp", the Interior Ministry said in a notice in the English-language Jerusalem Post.

The newspaper said its advertising department was responsible for mistakes in the ministry's ad, which urged people with the faulty passports to apply for new documents.

Man, 60, Sues Boy, 8, Over Ski Collision

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/12/20/ap/strange/main3638041.shtml

A 60-year-old man is taking an 8-year-old boy and his dad to court, claiming the boy caused a ski-slope collision that left the older man with a shoulder injury.

David J. Pfahler of Allentown, Pa., sued in federal court in Denver, claiming Scott Swimm, then 7, was skiing fast and recklessly when they collided in January, the Vail Daily reported Thursday.

The suit claims Pfahler suffered a torn shoulder tendon and seeks compensation for physical therapy, vacation time, nursing and medical services provided by Pfahler's wife, and other expenses. It estimates the couple's losses at more than $75,000.

Scott's father, Robb Swimm, said that he saw the crash and that Scott was skiing slowly and in control.

"It wasn't a violent collision or anything; Scott just kind of tapped his ski boots," he said this week.

Scott's mother, Susan Swimm, said her son weighs 48 pounds and couldn't have been going more than 10 mph.

"Who in the world sues a child?" she said. "It just boggles my mind every day."

Pfahler's Denver attorney, Jim Chalat, declined to comment on specifics but says Pfahler, who works for Reader's Digest, wants to go back to work.

Should we go back for those, Sarge?

Reuters

BELGRADE (Reuters) - Boxes of hand grenades tumbled out of a Serb Army truck Thursday when the driver pulled up to pay his highway toll, officials in southern Serbia said.

The toll-gate was sealed off and the bomb squad called in to recover 18 cases of grenades, part of a bigger shipment on its way for safe destruction at a military facility.

The mayor of nearby Batocina, Radisa Milosevic, said military police were quickly on the scene, assuring backed-up motorists the grenades could not detonate because they were defused for transport.

Russian railways seek help from dancing robots

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/12/21/2124866.htm?section=business

Russian railways want tiny robots to replace humans in difficult maintenance work, and they want Russian-made androids that can dance and talk.

According to a statement from Russian railways, prototypes of tested Russian robots "surpass foreign-produced robots with their technical characteristics".

They have bought eight Russian robots for testing. Seven are 35 centimetres high, and the eighth is 1.4 metres tall and weighs 70 kilograms.

The statement said the plan is to "build special robot models that can replace humans in particularly difficult work for railways."

Rail official Roman Timofeyev says the robots can inspect parts of trains that are difficult for humans to access.

Russian television showed the robots dancing on tables in front of amazed members of the public.

One robot said "Hello" and a few words on its capabilities.

How The (Chinese) Grinch Stole Christmas

http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,22954200-5001028,00.html

A CHINESE city has beaten Dr Seuss's Grinch at his own game, banning Christmas trees from shopping malls, restaurants and other public places because they pose a fire hazard.

Chen Ying, deputy mayor of Zhuhai, a city of 1.3 million people in southern China, said restaurants, malls, grocery stores and other entertainment venues had to remove trees and other "flammable decorations" immediately.

"Those that fail to rectify the situation will be subject to legal measures like suspension or closure," Mr Chen said.

The crackdown on Christmas trees was part of a three-month campaign to boost fire-prevention standards that started this week in Zhuhai, directly across from the Chinese gambling haven of Macau.

The Zhuhai ban came on the same day that President Hu Jintao "reached out" to religious believers in China where commercial Christmas trappings have become increasingly ostentatious in recent years.

The manager of a Zhuhai karaoke bar ordered a Christmas tree last week and was not happy with the new regulation.

"I paid 3,000 yuan (about $400), so who can I sue for damages now?" he said.

Finnish firefighters battle angry anaconda with foam

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/world/finnish-firefighters-battle-angry-anaconda-with-foam/2007/12/21/1198175286857.html

HELSINKI - Finnish firefighters called to help a pet owner with his agitated and aggressive anaconda succeeded in taming the dangerous beast by spraying foam on it, news agency STT reported today.

The 3.3-metre long reptile, which was apparently hungry after fasting for four months, attacked its owner as he tried to remove it from its terrarium to move to a new apartment.

The anaconda also attacked a veterinarian who tried to inject it with a sedative.

The firefighters cooled the snake's temper by emptying the contents of a fire extinguisher into its terrarium. Ten minutes later, the placated snake was easily lifted into a bag and moved to its new home.

Customer finds $5,200 in Reebok sneaker

http://www.boston.com/news/odd/articles/2007/12/20/customer_finds_5200_in_reebok_sneaker/

VERO BEACH, Fla.—A customer looking for a size 10 pair of sneakers at the Indian River Mall ended up with much more than he expected. The unidentified man found more than $5,200 in cash inside a black Reebok shoe he was trying on Tuesday, according to an Indian River County Sheriff's Office report.
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The store's accounting department did not find money missing from its safe. Employees believe the shoes had been purchased and returned, The Stuart News reported.

The money has been turned over to authorities.

Even CEOs think CEOs are overpaid

http://www.forbes.com/reuters/feeds/reuters/2007/12/18/2007-12-18T191656Z_01_N18508457_RTRIDST_0_CEOS-SURVEY.html

BOSTON (Reuters) - With many U.S. chief executives taking home millions of dollars in pay, it is no shock that average workers regards them as overpaid. But that attitude extends to the corner office as well.

Sixty-four percent of top executives view CEO compensation as excessive, according to survey released Tuesday.

The poll of 1,572 readers of BNET.com, a business Web site, found that, overall, 77 percent of employees regarded CEOs as overpaid. The survey, of readers of the Web site, was conducted June 11 through 18. About 90 percent of respondents were from the United States.

Fifty percent of CEOs surveyed said their leadership style was effective, but only 38 percent of employees agreed.

Merry Christmas? No. Mary Christmas!

http://www.boston.com/news/odd/articles/2007/12/19/merry_christmas_no_mary_christmas/

AMERICAN FORK, Utah—Merry Christmas to you, Mary Christmas. That's what the former Mary Young is hearing this holiday season, after she married Brian Christmas earlier this year.

"It was meant to be," Mary Christmas told the Daily Herald of Provo. "God has a sense of humor. What are the chances that it would ever happen?"

She has found, however, that she is not alone. Mary Christmas has been working at Ancestry.com for three years and discovered there are as many as 100 other Mary Christmases in the United States.

The last name of Christmas has its origins in Wales, she said.

"It was given to people that were born on Christmas Day," she said. "Somewhere back there someone of my husband's ancestors was born on Christmas. It is not a super common name."

Christmas said her husband's grandmother, Joy Christmas, once was stopped at a counter at JCPenney, under suspicion for using a phony name.

The name brings compliments.

"For many people, it seems to make them happy. 'You are my favorite,' they tell me. 'I think of your name and it makes me happy,'" Christmas said.

Her husband, Brian, says the best part of her name is that he has Mary Christmas all year long, not just in December.

Helping Son's Parties No Laughing Matter

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/12/19/ap/strange/main3633495.shtml

The mother of a 13-year-old boy has been arrested for supplying nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, used during her son's ditch parties at their Lake Elsinore home.

Maria Antonia Mendez was arrested for providing the gas used by the teens to get high. Riverside County sheriff's Sgt. Evan Petersen says the teens skipped school and hung out at the home.

Police began investigating the case after a school officer noticed repeated absences of a group of students. Canisters of nitrous oxide were found by deputies serving a search warrant Monday evening.

Investigators say the teenagers filled balloons with the gas and inhaled it.

The sergeant says the 28-year-old mother also participated in the nitrous parties. She was booked for investigation of multiple counts of child endangerment and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

"Don't Tase Me, Bro" tops '07 memorable quote list

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/latest/2007/12/19/don-t-tase-me-bro-tops-07-memorable-quote-list-89520-20260400/

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "Don't Tase Me, Bro," a phrase that swept the nation after a U.S. college student used it seeking to stop campus police from throwing him out of a speech by Sen. John Kerry, was named on Wednesday as the most memorable quote of 2007.

Fred R. Shapiro, the editor of the Yale Book of Quotations, said the plea made by University of Florida student Andrew Meyer on September 17, accompanied by Meyer's screams as he was tased, beat out the racial slur that cost shock jock Don Imus his job and the Iranian president's declaration that his country does not have homosexuals.

Shapiro said Meyer's quote was a symbol of pop culture success. Within two days it was one of the most popular phrases on Google and one of the most viewed videos. It also showed up on ringtones and T-shirts.

Second on Shapiro's list was this tortuous answer by Lauren Upton, the South Carolina contestant in the Miss Teen America contest in August:
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"I personally believe that U.S. Americans are unable to do so because some people out there in our nation don't have maps and I believe that our education like such as in South Africa and Iraq and everywhere like such as and I believe that they should our education over here in the U.S. should help the U.S. or should help South Africa and should help Iraq and the Asian countries so we will be able to build up our future for us."

Upton had been asked why one-fifth of Americans are unable to locate the United States on a map and later apologized for her answer not making a lot of sense.

Third was Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's October comment at Columbia University in New York, "In Iran we don't have homosexuals like in your country."

Shock jock Don Imus comments about the Rutgers University women's basketball team: "That's some nappy-headed hos there," was fourth.

Imus created a national outcry and lost his job at CBS radio in April, but returned to the airwaves in December with Citadel Broadcasting.

Other phrases on the list:

5. "I don't recall." -- Former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' repeated response to questioning at a congressional hearing about the firing of U.S. attorneys.

6. "There's only three things he (Republican presidential candidate and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani) mentions in a sentence: a noun and a verb and 9/11." -- Sen. Joseph Biden, speaking at a Democratic presidential debate.

7. "I'm not going to get into a name-calling match with somebody (Vice President Dick Cheney) who has a 9 percent approval rating." -- Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat.

8. "(I have) a wide stance when going to the bathroom." -- Idaho Republican Sen. Larry Craig's explanation of why his foot touched that of an undercover policeman in a men's room.

9. "I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy. I mean, that's a storybook, man." -- Biden describing rival Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.

10. "I think as far as the adverse impact on the nation around the world, this administration has been the worst in history." -- Former President Jimmy Carter in an interview in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette newspaper.

China's new anti-graft Web site crashes under weight of too many visitors

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/headlines/2007/12/19/51126/China's-new.htm

BEIJING -- A new Web site created by China's anti-corruption bureau crashed after barely a day because too many visitors tried to log on to register complaints, state media said Wednesday.

The National Bureau of Corruption Prevention was formed in September to tackle mounting corruption scandals involving government and Communist Party officials.

It set up a Web site Monday that allowed the public to leave comments about its work, but the strain of too many visitors brought down the site Tuesday, the Beijing Youth Daily reported.

The site was back online Wednesday and had 16 pages comprising more than 250 comments, which ranged from complaints about the promotion of public officials to criticism about the Web site itself.

A comment from Qu Han, who said he was a peasant with no formal schooling, claimed that despite the Communist Party's slogans against corruption, the problem has become even more widespread.

The ruling Communist Party has been tainted by a number of high-profile scandals. Its highest ranking member implicated is the former Shanghai Communist Party boss, Chen Liangyu, who is awaiting trial following his arrest in September 2006 for allegedly misusing the city's pension funds.

In July, China executed Zheng Xiaoyu, the country's former top drug regulator, for taking millions of dollars (euros) in bribes to approve substandard medicines, including an antibiotic that killed at least 10 people.

Hey. Where did all that dough come from?

http://www.elpasotimes.com/ci_7761675

BOULDER CITY, Nev.—It wasn't until a store manager and others helped a man round up money blowing around an auto parts store parking that something started to seem fishy.

"We were all joking with him, 'Where's the dye packs?'" said Amy McCaulley, manager of the AutoZone store in Boulder City, told the Las Vegas Sun for a Wednesday report. She referred to devices that banks bundle with cash in a robbery to mark bills as stolen.

When the man gunned his Jeep Commander out of the AutoZone parking lot without even a thank you, McCaulley noted the Arizona license plate number and called authorities.

Boulder City police stopped the vehicle on U.S. 93 heading toward Hoover Dam, questioned the 49-year-old driver and a female passenger, and confiscated a stash of cash they found hidden in the spare tire beneath the rear of the vehicle.

Police tallied the haul at $538,780.

"You got to love the criminal mind," Boulder City Police Chief Thomas Finn said of the Friday seizure, which investigators believe was drug proceeds. "Sometimes they make it easy."

Police did not release the names of the driver or passenger, both Mexican citizens whom authorities said were not arrested. The man told officers he had no idea there was money in the spare tire under the vehicle, which he said he and the passenger borrowed from a Phoenix resident to go on vacation.

It was the second time in 10 weeks that police in the city about 30 miles east of Las Vegas
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have made a large seizure. In October, officers confiscated 115 pounds of marijuana, worth more than $200,000, during a routine traffic stop.

Finn, who took over the 34-officer department two years ago, has made patrolling U.S. 93 a priority. He also sent a group of officers to a class to learn to identify drug couriers.

He said the city of 15,500, now stands to gain a $400,000 windfall for crime fighting if the cash is deemed to have been drug proceeds.

100 arrested for not having toilets

http://www.mg.co.za/articlePage.aspx?articleid=328114&area=/breaking_news/breaking_news__africa/

Local authorities have arrested at least 100 Ugandans for failing to build toilets in their homes in the midst of a cholera epidemic that has killed eight people and infected 164, state media reported on Wednesday.

"We cannot watch as people die [of cholera]," north-western Bulisa district administrator Norbert Turyahikayo told the New Vision daily, justifying the arrest of Ugandans found to have huts with no pit toilets on Tuesday.

Police spokesperson Hassan Kasinje told Reuters the building of homes without proper toilets was forbidden in Uganda, though he did not know of the arrests.

"It is illegal ... but it is not an arrestable offence. Whoever arrested them is wrong," he said. "A health officer is supposed to instruct them to build or they can be cautioned."

In September, 70 Ugandans in the east were seized for the same offence. Many in remote villages lack toilets.

Cholera epidemics spread by poor sanitation are common.

237 Dogs Removed From Texas Woman's Home

http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2007Dec19/0,4670,ODDTooManyDogs,00.html

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Animal control officers removed 237 dogs from the home of a 70-year-old woman who said she had been breeding the animals, officials said.

Kelli Copeland, manager of the city's Animal Care Services department, said it took about six hours Tuesday to gather up all the dogs, which were taken to a city kennel.

Most of the dogs were Pomeranians, but there were also Yorkshire terriers, two standard poodles and several other breeds. Copeland said they appeared to be suffering from the close quarters.

"They had plenty of food and plenty of water but were not living in healthy conditions," Copeland said. "Many were covered in feces and urine. I think she slowly accumulated them to where they were more than she could handle."

A workman who made a service call to the home notified the city about the dog situation. Copeland said the woman will likely face several citations from the city.

One of the dogs was euthanized because of its poor condition. The woman claimed that dog had recently wandered to the house.

Copeland said the city will seek custody of the dogs so they can be given to animal rescue groups.

"The homeowner is a very nice lady; I think she loved her dogs," Copeland said.

Got fleas? Get the vacuum

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=got-fleas-get-the-vacuum

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Vacuum cleaners kill fleas just as well as any poison, surprised researchers said on Tuesday.

They said a standard vacuum cleaner abuses the fleas so much it kills 96 percent of adult fleas and 100 percent of younger fleas.

So no need to worry that a vacuum cleaner bag may turn into a fleabag breeding ground for the pesky, biting creatures, said Glen Needham, associate professor of entomology at Ohio State University.

Needham studied the cat flea, or Ctenocephalides felis, the most common type of flea found in households.

"No matter what vacuum a flea gets sucked into, it's probably a one-way trip," Needham said in a statement.

Writing in the journal Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata, Needham suggested that the vacuum brushes wear away a waxy outer layer on insects called the cuticle. Without it, the fleas, larvae and pupae probably dry up and die, he said.

The findings were so surprising that the researchers ran their experiment several times.

"We didn't do a post-mortem, so we don't know for sure. But it appears that the physical abuse they took caused them to perish," Needham said.

Fleas spread diseases such as plague and can transmit worms.

"There are all kinds of ways to manage the problem, but how people feel about insecticides and how much money they want to spend factors into what they're going to do for flea control. Vacuuming is a great strategy because it involves no chemicals and physically removes the problem," Needham said.

Magna Carta fetches $21.3 million at Sotheby's auction

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/19/AR2007121901847.html

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A rare 710-year-old copy of the Magna Carta, among the most important historical documents ever to hit the auction block, sold for $21.3 million on Tuesday at Sotheby's.

The document was bought by a Washington businessman who said he was determined to see it remain in the United States, where it has been on display at the National Archives and Records Administration since 1988.

The last remaining copy in the United States and the last in private hands, the Magna Carta, one of 17 known to exist, was sold by The Perot Foundation, created by billionaire former U.S. presidential candidate Ross Perot to make philanthropic grants. The foundation acquired it from the collections of the Brudenell family of Deene Park in Northamptonshire in 1984.

"It's a good day for our country," said David Rubenstein, a lawyer and founder of The Carlyle Group, a private equity firm, told reporters after he made the extraordinary purchase, adding that he had arrived just minutes before the sale and very nearly missed out.

"I was determined to do what I could to see that the National Archives can continue to display this," Rubenstein said, noting that the 1297 document was the basis for both the U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.

"I am really just a temporary custodian of it," said Rubenstein, adding that he would not have to travel far to see the document as his office is just a few hundreds yards from the National Archives. Rubenstein said his Washington connections run deep, having once worked under President Jimmy Carter as a deputy domestic policy advisor.

He said he would "rely on the National Archives' advice" regarding the document possibly going on tour internationally, saying his wish was that it could be seen by as many people as possible.

The Magna Carta, which Sotheby's called "the most important document in the world," established the rights of the English people and curbed the power of the king.

The U.S. Constitution includes ideas and phrases taken almost directly from the charter, which rebellious barons forced their oppressive King John to sign in 1215.

Sotheby's said the Magna Carta was ratified and reissued with each monarch who succeeded John. It was enacted as law in 1297 by the British parliament when it was reissued by King Edward I. The copy sold on Tuesday is from 1297.

Asked how high he was willing to bid for the Magna Carta, Rubenstein replied: "I don't think you can put a price on freedom."

When it announced the auction in September, Sotheby's said the document was valued at up to $30 million. The final $21,321,000 price included Sotheby's commission.

The record for a document or manuscript at auction is held by Leonardo da Vinci's "Codex" manuscript, which sold for $30.8 million at Christie's in 1994.

Magna Carta, which has been in display at Sotheby's since December 7, will remain on public view at least through Wednesday.

Bah humbug! Australian bosses water down Christmas cheer

http://www.france24.com/france24Public/en/administration/afp-news.html?id=071219161816.fn4sfvfy&cat=culture

The Christmas Grinch has arrived. Or at least that's the feeling in some Australian workplaces where bosses have warned staff against excessive boozing and even exchanging presents, reports say.

As the festive season ramps up, employers have issued staff with written directives on how to behave at end-of-year functions, including what to do if they, or colleagues, drink too much Christmas cheer, the crikey.com.au news website said.

Although better known for its political reporting, the website has been publishing letters sent in by readers annoyed at notices from human resources departments and executives on how to celebrate Christmas.

According to one letter published in part on the site, one company has even tried to ban gift-giving.

"After discussions between the three presidents, it has been agreed that there will be no expectation of the exchange of presents within the ... Street office this year," it said.

Another reportedly warned staff against drinking any alcohol, or taking any drugs, before the lunch time work event.

"Please also note that it is not acceptable to begin drinking before we are seated at the cafi on Friday," it said, adding that the company would supply "an adequate amount of alcohol for everyone to have a sensible and fun time."

"If anyone is suspected of having consumed alcohol before the function, they will be told to leave the function and take unpaid leave for the remainder of the day and will be given a formal warning upon their return to work on Monday."

The Alcohol and other Drugs Council of Australia has also weighed in, warning that Christmas and New Year "celebrations can sometimes result in unfortunate situations for those who drink excessively".

Paul Atkins, of the Australian National University's School of Management, Marketing and International Business, said work Christmas parties provided a potential clash between personal habits and professional practice.

While it was reasonable to expect people to be sober at work, treating them like children by issuing notices about behaviour could lead to cynicism and resentment, he said.

Companies' human resources departments should be wary of treating staff like "cogs in a machine", he said.

"They are probably afraid of someone vomiting on the photocopier or somebody getting hurt," he said.

Matthew Bambling, a lecturer in psychology at the Queensland University of Technology, said these types of instructions didn't sit well with the idea of a relaxed Australian Christmas which coincides with the start of summer.

"It's a time for relaxing and having a bit of fun at the symbolic end of the year," he said.

Bambling said the notices had been issued at a time when the traditional Christmas slow down had been contracted to just a few days.

Hangover is main reason for Britons taking sick leave

http://www.france24.com/france24Public/en/administration/afp-news.html?id=071219124135.409ofnkk&cat=null

The morning after the night before is the main reason in Britain for employees calling in sick, a study published Wednesday showed.

One in five workers opting to stay in bed do so because of over-indulgence, according to 500 individuals surveyed by Unum insurance company. Scots are the most likely to take sick leave in this way.

"These figures reinforce well-documented and worrying trends that people's drinking habits are impacting on thr workplace," said Unum's chief medical officer, Professor Michael O'Donnell.

"In 2005/06, there were 187,640 NHS hospital admissions among adults aged 16 and over with diagnosis specifically related to alcohol. This has more than doubled in the last ten years."

After a hangover, the next most frequent pretext for taking time off work on medical grounds is the desire to spend time at home making up after a domestic dispute.

Monkeys, college students equal at mental math

http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1140155

CHICAGO: Monkeys performed about as well as college students at mental addition, US researchers said on Monday in a finding that suggests nonverbal math skills are not unique to humans.

The research from Duke University follows the finding by Japanese researchers earlier this month that young chimpanzees performed better than human adults at a memory game.

Prior studies have found non-human primates can match numbers of objects, compare numbers and choose the larger number of two sets of objects.

“This is the first study that looked at whether or not they could make explicit decisions that were based on mathematical types of calculations,” said Jessica Cantlon, a cognitive neuroscience researcher at Duke, whose work appeared in the Public Library of Science journal PLoS Biology (www.plosbiology.org).

“It shows when you take language away from a human, they end up looking just like monkeys in terms of their performance,” Cantlon said in a telephone interview.

Her study pitted the monkey math team of Boxer and Feinstein — two female macaque monkeys named for US senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein of California — with 14 Duke University students.

“We had them do math on the fly,” Cantlon said. The task was to mentally add two sets of dots that were briefly flashed on a computer screen. The teams were asked to pick the correct answer from two choices on a different screen.

The humans were not allowed to count or verbalise as they worked, and they were told to answer as quickly as possible. Both monkeys and humans typically answered within 1 second.

And both groups fared about the same.

Cantlon said the study was not designed to show up Duke University students. “I think of this more as using non-human primates as a tool for discovering where the sophisticated human mind comes from,” she said.

The researchers said the findings shed light on the shared mathematical abilities in humans and non-human primates and shows the importance of language — which allows for counting and more advanced calculations — in the evolution of math in humans.

“I don’t think language is the only thing that differentiates humans from non-human primates, but in terms of math tasks, it is probably the big one,” she said.

As for the teams, both were paid. Boxer and Feinstein got their favourite reward: a sip of Kool-Aid soft drink. As for the students, they got $10 each — enough for a beer or two.

Pedestrian fined for walking over car

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,22946214-5005961,00.html

A PEDESTRIAN has been charged with damaging property after walking over a car that was parked illegally on the pavement in Greece's congested capital.

"I could not get past the vehicle, a four-wheel drive, which had been parked right on the pavement so I got angry and just walked over it, slightly denting its hood," Tasos Pouliasis said to state television today.

Greeks are notoriously unruly drivers leaving their cars on pavements, wheelchair ramps and even hospital entrances.

The owner of the vehicle in Athen's Exarhia neighbourhood saw Pouliasis and called police who arrested him and his girlfriend and briefly detained them in a police cell.

"Now I will be tried for property damage but police did not even bother giving the car owner a parking ticket," Pouliasis said.

Thank God it's not Friday?

Reuters

ROME (Reuters) - An Italian court has ruled that a couple could not name their son "Friday" and ordered that he instead be called Gregory after the saint whose feast day he was born on.

"I think it is ridiculous they even opened a case about it," the family's lawyer, Paola Rossi, told Reuters by telephone from the northern city of Genoa Tuesday.

Friday/Gregory Germano was born in Genoa 15 months ago. The parents registered him as Friday in the city hall and a priest even baptized him as Friday -- unusual in Italy since many priests insist that first names be of Christian origin.

"We named him Friday because we like the sound of the name. Even if it would have been a girl, we would have named her Friday," the boy's mother, Mara Germano, told Reuters.

When the boy was about five months old, a city hall clerk brought the odd name to the attention of a tribunal, which informed the couple of an administrative norm which bars parents from giving "ridiculous or shameful" first names to children.

The tribunal said it was protecting the child from being the butt of jokes and added that it believed the name would hinder him from developing "serene interpersonal relationships."

The Germano family appealed but lost their case this month and the story was carried on the front page of a national newspaper Tuesday.

When ordered to change the name, the parents refused and the court ruled the boy would be legally registered as Gregory because he was born on that saint's feast day.

"I really doubt this would have happened to the child of parents who are rich and famous," the boy's mother told Reuters, recalling that some famous Italians had given their children unorthodox names such as "Ocean" or "Chanel."

The appeals court ruled against Friday because it recalled the servile savage in Daniel Defoe's novel Robinson Crusoe and because superstitious Italians consider Friday an unlucky day.

"I am livid about this," the boy's mother said. "A court should not waste its time with things like this when there is so much more to worry about."

"My son was born Friday, baptized Friday, will call himself Friday, we will call him Friday but when he gets older he will have to sign his name Gregory," she said.

[Ed - And you thought it only happens in China]

N.D. Bank Giving Workers Money to Donate

http://news.moneycentral.msn.com/provider/providerarticle.aspx?feed=AP&date=20071217&id=7953099

FARGO, N.D. (AP) - A bank is giving its full-time employees $1,000 each and part-time employees $500 each. There's one condition -- use it for people in need.

State Bank & Trust Chief Operating Officer Michael Solberg said each full-time employee will receive $1,000 and each part-time employee will receive $500, as part of a $502,000 "Pay it Forward" initiative.

"We're going to really see some huge impact on our community," Solberg said.

Employees were told not to use the money for themselves, their families or families of other bank employees. The bank asked each employee to document the good deed with a video camera. The deadline is June 30.

The employees were told they may choose an individual cause, pool their money for a larger project or collaborate with donors outside the bank. The privately owned bank has more than 500 employees, he said.

The bank made the announcement over the weekend.

In previous years, the Fargo-based bank has taken 5 percent of the company earnings and divided it up at holiday time among employees.

Estonia to sell border posts after Schengen entry

http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/1197994622.47

The Baltic state of Estonia has come up with a solution for its redundant frontier posts after it joins Europe's borderless Schengen zone this week: it plans to put them on the real estate market.

"We plan to sell four facilities used by the Estonian border guard at the southern border between Estonia and Latvia," Piret Lillevali, the official in charge of Schengen preparations, told AFP.

Lillevali did not say how much money Estonian authorities expected to make when they put the facilities up for sale next year.

None of the soon-to-be-mothballed border posts were purpose-built as a crossing point, because the modern frontier with Latvia is a relative newcomer on the map of Europe.

Estonia, Latvia and neighbouring Lithuania were taken over by the Soviet Union at the end of World War II and only regained their independence -- and borders -- as the bloc crumbled in 1991.

They joined the European Union in 2004.

All three countries will drop border controls when they join the Schengen zone from midnight (2200 GMT) on December 20.

Thanks to their one-hour time difference, they will steal a march on the six other EU newcomers who are also due to join the Schengen zone the same day: the ex-communist Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia, plus the Mediterranean island state of Malta.

Village sect prays to... Saint Putin

http://www.france24.com/france24Public/en/administration/afp-news.html?id=071218195909.c4tu7oum&cat=null

Russian President Vladimir Putin is used to fawning supporters but a sect in a remote village has gone further by naming him a reincarnation of Saint Paul, according to disapproving Church leaders.

The Resurrecting Russia sect, in the village of Bolshaya Elnya in the southern Volga region, has given a new twist to the sometimes fanatical support for Putin.

"The sect is using the name of the president, whom it presents as the reincarnation of Saint Paul, to recruit more members and earn money," a spokesman for the local Orthodox diocese, Igor Pchelintsev, told AFP.

The sect's leader, Svetlana Frolova, could not immediately be contacted.

On the sect's website she declares of Putin: "God the Father has made it known to me that you have what Russia currently needs: honesty, love for the fatherland and courage."

The Russian leader is due to stand down from his post next March, after which he has indicated he would be ready to hold the prime minister's post if his favoured successor, Dmitry Medvedev, takes over.

Three arrested in Bulgaria for WWII tank theft

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/12/19/2122279.htm?section=justin

Police in Bulgaria have arrested two Germans and a Bulgarian army officer for stealing a World War II tank and attempting to thieve another, Bulgaria's defence ministry says.

The ministry says first tank disappeared between October and December 13 and is still missing, while the second one only had a few parts stolen off it.

Investigators suspect the armoured vehicle or its parts may have been smuggled to Germany.

According to the Standard newspaper, the three suspects wanted to sell the Maybach tanks to German collectors.

The vehicles had laid half buried since World War II near Bulgaria's south-eastern border with Turkey.

Jingle-bang! Santa's chopper shot over Rio slum

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22309678/

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil - Not even Santa Claus is safe as the violent Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro celebrates the Christmas season.

Drug traffickers in a Rio slum opened fire on a helicopter carrying a Santa to a children's party, apparently mistaking it for a police helicopter, police said on Tuesday.

"They thought it was a police operation and started shooting. Luckily, nobody was hurt," a police official said.

The helicopter had to return to its base after the attack.

Two bullet holes were found in its fuselage.

Police said the pilot, contracted to take an actor dressed as Santa to the party in the Nova Mare slum, was flying over the neighboring Vila Joao shantytown when it was fired upon on Sunday.

Santa later returned to Nova Mare by car to distribute Christmas presents.

Most of Rio's 700-plus slums are controlled by drug traffickers and are not regularly patrolled by police, who instead go into the slums in military-style raids, often using helicopters and armored vehicles.

Property bust? Lunar land prices are rocketing

http://www.ndtvprofit.com/homepage/news.asp?id=310235

LONDON (Reuters) - Property investors smarting from this year's housing bust in the United States might do well to look farther afield -- even out of this world.

Internet searches for lunar land prices show the cost of buying an acre of the moon's surface has risen 40 percent since the start of 2007, investment bank UBS told clients in a tongue-in-cheek analysis.

Lacing a year-end note with caveats, and not a little holiday cheer, UBS strategists said their "esoteric research" of archived news reports suggests lunar property trends may even be a leading indicator of U.S. house prices.

Rising sharply between 1997 and 2001, the cost of a slice of land on the moon suffered a mid-cycle retreat in 2002-03 after the dot.com bubble burst, the bank said.

But prices defied gravity to hit record highs of $37 per acre in December 2005 -- nine months before U.S. housing peaked.

Their fall to earth was a step ahead too, with lunar prices dropping 56 percent to $16 per acre between 2005 and January 2007, the report said.

"Our calculations suggest lunar land prices appear to be a reasonable lead indicator of U.S. house prices by around 12 months. This suggests a trough in U.S. house prices may occur around the beginning of 2008," the bank said.

Quick to caution against "preliminary" conclusions, UBS added: "This is most certainly not a forecast."

United Nations' treaties insist governments cannot claim ownership of the moon. But attempts to close a loophole allowing individuals or firms to do so have failed to garner support.

U.S. President George W. Bush announced in 2004 that the United States plans to send astronauts back to the moon by 2020.

But, citing claims by a "leading lunar real estate agent," the UBS report said Germans are already the number one owners of moon property -- followed by Swedes, English and Poles.

New Miss Belgium gets Flemish tongues wagging

http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticleNew.asp?xfile=data/theworld/2007/December/theworld_December581.xml§ion=theworld&col=

BRUSSELS - Belgium’s political tensions entered the glamour stakes after it was revealed that the new Miss Belgium does not speak Dutch.

Alizee Poulicek, who comes from the country’s French-speaking region, was booed by some of the 4,000 audience when she admitted that she could not understand a question put to her in Dutch at the contest on Saturday night in the main Flemish city of Antwerp.

Poulicek, a 20-year-old language student, speaks French, Czech and English, but Flemish tabloid daily Het Laatste Niuews headlined its Monday edition with: ‘Miss Belgium does not speak Dutch’.

The paper underlined that the ‘community crisis in our country’ -- where there is no government six months after general elections amid bickering between leaders of the main French and Flemish parties—‘has insinuated itself into even the lightest sector.’

Poulicek’s victory ‘is not going down well,’ the daily said.

She said she had been taking Dutch lessons before the contest and has pledged to improve her standard in one of Belgium’s three official languages, along with French and German.

The incident did not hurt her image with television viewers who voted for her, but Flemish journalists assailed her with questions at a press conference, highlighting her deficiencies in their tongue.

The Flemish community accounts for 60 percent of Belgium’s 10.5 million people. A further 3.5 million live in Wallonia and one million in the largely Francophone, but officially bilingual Brussels.

Accident-prone Japanese driver caught again at 100

http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20071217/world-news/accident-prone-japanese-driver-caught-again-at-100

A 100-year-old Japanese man who was arrested after his car hit an umbrella held by a child said driving was his ticket to avoiding senility."Driving helps me from going senile because it keeps me alert," police in Sendai, northern Japan, quoted the driver, Masaru Hori, as saying.

The incident marked the second time Hori had been caught for driving without a licence since it was revoked after a hit-and-run accident in August, police said. He was also involved in a similar accident last month, they said.

Hori was arrested on Friday after a policeman saw him hit an umbrella that a seven-year-old child on the street was holding. The child was unhurt.

Police told the man's family to get rid of the car, media said, and Hori swore his days of illegal driving were over.

"I'll never drive without a licence again," police quoted him as saying.

Starting in 2009, drivers over age 75 in Japan will be required to get checkups for dementia when they renew their licences.