‘The locks on a block of public toilets are being changed following complaints it was being used as cheap lodgings.
With heating, a wash basin, a peg and a mirror, the eight cubicles in Stamford Hill, Hackney, east London, are cheap accommodation at just 20p a night.
Local businesses said there was competition for the cubicles and many wanted the more spacious disabled loo.’
‘Is somebody getting taken to the cleaners?
A $10 dry cleaning bill for a pair of trousers has ballooned into a $67 million civil lawsuit.
Plaintiff Roy Pearson, a judge in Washington, D.C., says in court papers that he’s been through the ringer over a lost pair of prized pants he wanted to wear on his first day on the bench.
He says in court papers that he has endured “mental suffering, inconvenience and discomfort.”
He says he was unable to wear that favorite suit on his first day of work. ‘
‘A 13-year-old boy who lives with his gran has been exposed as one of Britain’s biggest internet conmen.
The boy earned more than £250,000 ($607,000) by posing as the boss of several multinational companies selling vacuum cleaners, stationery and office supplies.
Many goods weren’t sent, but he used the cash to revel in a luxury lifestyle way beyond his years: he wore designer suits, drank vintage champagne and travelled by chauffeur-driven limousine.
He even employed a personal bodyguard, flew abroad on business trips and claimed he was going to buy a private jet.’
‘Canoeist Dennis Bohrn and his companions were stunned when they saw a woman jump off the Perrine Bridge, her body landing near them in the Snake River. Many in the group were crying by the time they managed to reach the woman and paddle her body to shore.
So Bohrn was shocked when an officer walked up and instead of thanking or comforting the group last Sunday, wrote out a couple of $85 tickets for failing to have life jackets on board either of the two canoes.
“The body was right there,” said the 58-year-old Twin Falls resident. “A girl deputy was trying to console everybody. Then a sergeant walked up. He said, ‘I see you don’t have any life jackets so I am going to give you a citation.’ It seemed a little cold.”‘
‘Underworld figure turned author Mark “Chopper” Read appeared in a Melbourne court today where he was fined $300 for careless driving. [..]
His lawyer Bernie Balmer told the court his client – who appeared to be sleeping at times in court – admitted bumping the other car while trying to get into a tight carpark.
However, he disputed the claim that the collision caused $1,500 damage to the other car, saying when Read inspected the cars he could not see any damage to either vehicle.
In a lighter moment, after the court was told Read had no relevant priors, Mr Balmer joked it was a “wonderful day” when you could say in court no priors for Mr Read.’
‘Think your new $1,200 Vista-ready desktop is a bit pricey? Try this on for size: a keyboard that retails for more than $1,500. I’m not talking about your standard, plastic clickity-clak keyboard, mind you. Meet the Optimus Maximus, a much-anticipated — and long-delayed — masterpiece of a keyboard, which has tiny OLED displays on each key that change the layout of the entire keyboard depending on the application you’re running.
The Optimus Maximus first emerged almost two years ago as little more than a lofty concept and some clever graphic renderings of how the dynamic keypad might work. However, while the Maximus looks suspiciously like one of those much-ballyhooed products that never sees the light of day, Engadget is reporting that the keyboard will finally debut in November — albeit in very limited quantities.’
Followup to Optimus keyboard staggeringly expensive.
‘An 82-year-old man wielding a bag of shopping has driven an armed robber from a village post office.
George Smith hit the man twice with a bag containing an iceberg lettuce and bottles of bleach and washing liquid.
The masked raider, who had a shotgun, fled from the shop in Speldhurst, near Tunbridge Wells, Kent, leaving the takings untouched. [..]
Mr Smith himself said his actions were “entirely automatic”.
“The best method of defence is attack – so I did. I whacked him in the face and then I clobbered him again.
“He ran off down to the corner still with the gun pointing my way.
“I took a couple of paces towards him and told him to clear off. And he did.”‘
‘Authorities tried Friday to sort out the strange case of a letter demanding that a St. Louis television station pay a woman $10,000 or she would kill her children and possibly her ex-boyfriend.
The 29-year-old woman whose name was signed to the note denied writing it, Franklin County Sheriff Gary Toelke said. She was arrested on unrelated traffic warrants and released on bond while state officials took temporary custody of her two children. The sheriff said a handwriting expert will be consulted.
“The whole thing is pretty weird,” Toelke said.’
‘The founder of the ambitious “$100 laptop” project, which plans to give inexpensive computers to schoolchildren in developing countries, revealed Thursday that the machine for now costs $175, and it will be able to run Windows in addition to its homegrown, open-source interface.
Nicholas Negroponte, the former director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media Lab who now heads the nonprofit One Laptop Per Child project, updated analysts and journalists on where the effort stands, saying “we are perhaps at the most critical stage of OLPC’s life.”‘
‘A woman has won nearly $240,000 compensation from RailCorp after a judge ruled she was raped because she had broken her ankle weeks earlier at a Sydney railway station.
RailCorp was found responsible for the woman’s rape at a private home, because she could not escape with her leg in plaster, and for her subsequent depression.
The 36-year-old Taiwanese television reporter, Yu-Mei Chu, had been in Sydney to learn English when she lost her footing on slippery stairs at Sydenham rail station in December 2002.
A few weeks later, while still on crutches with her leg ankle in plaster, she was sexually assaulted and beaten at a man’s home.
She told the court she could not get away because of her broken ankle.’
‘An early-morning German bank customer had a bit of a shock when he found a horse in line at the automatic teller machine in front of him.
It seems the horse’s owner, identified only as Wolfgang H., had a bit too much to drink the night before and decided to sleep it off inside the bank’s heated foyer, police said Tuesday. [..]
“It was late, it was already dark and cold,” he was quoted as saying.
Confronted with the lack of a hitching-post, he brought the 6-year-old horse, named Sammy, in along with him.’
‘Boris Yeltsin was always good for a laugh, which is probably why on the occasion of his death people outside of Russia are not calling him words like scum and monster, but instead recalling him fondly, with a smile, as one would a retarded nephew who could always be counted on to pull his pants down at Thanksgiving dinner. [..]
He’s been on the verge of death so many times…His doctors themselves are in shock that he’s still alive. Half the blood vessels in his brain are about to burst after his strokes, his intestines are spotted all over with holes, he has giant ulcers in his stomach, his heart is in absolutely disgusting condition, he is literally rotting…He could die from any one of dozens of physical problems that he has, but contrary to all laws of nature — he lives.’
‘It’s got suicide bombers, political kidnaps and intercontinental war. It’s got filthy propaganda, rampant paranoia and secret treaties…
… and the Axis of Evil is a spinner in the middle of the board. You can fight terrorism, you can fund terrorism, you can even be the terrorists. The only thing that matters is global domination – err, liberation.’
‘As a rule, processed foods are more “energy dense” than fresh foods: they contain less water and fiber but more added fat and sugar, which makes them both less filling and more fattening. These particular calories also happen to be the least healthful ones in the marketplace, which is why we call the foods that contain them “junk.” Drewnowski concluded that the rules of the food game in America are organized in such a way that if you are eating on a budget, the most rational economic strategy is to eat badly — and get fat.’
‘A man fleeing security drowned early Saturday after he leaped over a railing into a moat surrounding a casino, authorities said.
Police said the man, identified as Anthony D. Swopes, 21, of Kansas City, fled while being questioned about his identification at the Isle of Capri casino. A check of the card revealed an outstanding bench warrant. [..]
Moats are common fixtures at Missouri casinos. Casino gambling in the state initially was restricted to floating riverboats, but the state’s constitution was amended to allow riverboat casinos to float within manmade moats.’
‘Police are searching for two would-be bandits after Postal Annex employees got the giggles and foiled an attempted armed robbery, reported television station KPTV in Portland, Ore. [..]
One of the men had a fold-up knife and was having problems opening it. The employees, thinking the attempted robbery was a hoax, laughed at the would-be robbers, KPTV reported.
The assistant manager, playing along with what she assumed was a joke, picked up the phone and threatened to call 911. As soon as she said the three numbers, the two would-be robbers were gone, the employees said.
“He didn’t have a serious voice to him,” said employee Shelley Martin. “We thought he was kidding, so we were laughing back at him.”
“We just didn’t take them seriously. It was like having your kid brother come up with his cowboy and Indian thing,” said employee Nicole Luedtke.’
‘A Bentonville, Ark., man is seeking $20,000 from the city after his two teenage sons found a book on lesbian sex on a public library bookshelf.
He also wants the library director fired.
Earl Adams said his 14- and 16-year-old sons were “greatly disturbed” after finding the book, titled “The Whole Lesbian Sex Book.” Adams said the book caused “many sleepless nights in our house.”
Adams said the book is “patently offensive and lacks any artistic, literary or scientific value,” according to a letter he faxed to Mayor Bob McCaslin. He said the teenagers found it while browsing for material on military academies.’
‘A Dutch escort agency is launching a special virgin service for computer geeks.
Sociology student Zoe Vialet, who set up Society Service last year, says she has had a lot of demand from virgins.
She says most of them work in the IT sector and added: “They are very sweet but are afraid of seeking contact with other people. They mean it very well but are very scared. [..]
“Some men need a little bit of help. But it makes them happy and they are glowing . There is nothing more terrible than dying as a virgin.”‘
‘Russia plans to build the world’s longest tunnel, a transport and pipeline link under the Bering Strait to Alaska, as part of a $65 billion project to supply the U.S. with oil, natural gas and electricity from Siberia.
The project, which Russia is coordinating with the U.S. and Canada, would take 10 to 15 years to complete, Viktor Razbegin, deputy head of industrial research at the Russian Economy Ministry, told reporters in Moscow today. State organizations and private companies in partnership would build and control the route, known as TKM-World Link, he said.
A 6,000-kilometer (3,700-mile) transport corridor from Siberia into the U.S. will feed into the tunnel, which at 64 miles will be more than twice as long as the underwater section of the Channel Tunnel between the U.K. and France, according to the plan. The tunnel would run in three sections to link the two islands in the Bering Strait between Russia and the U.S.’
‘The world’s oldest continuously operating family business ended its impressive run last year. Japanese temple builder Kongo Gumi, in operation under the founders’ descendants since 578, succumbed to excess debt and an unfavorable business climate in 2006.
How do you make a family business last for 14 centuries? Kongo Gumi’s case suggests that it’s a good idea to operate in a stable industry. Few industries could be less flighty than Buddhist temple construction. The belief system has survived for thousands of years and has many millions of adherents. With this firm foundation, Kongo had survived some tumultuous times, notably the 19th century Meiji restoration when it lost government subsidies and began building commercial buildings for the first time. But temple construction had until recently been a reliable mainstay, contributing 80% of Kongo Gumi’s $67.6 million in 2004 revenues.’
‘Saudi Arabia has agreed to forgive 80 percent of the more than $15 billion that Iraq owes the kingdom, Iraqi and Saudi officials said yesterday, a major step given Saudi reluctance to provide financial assistance to the Shiite-dominated government in Baghdad.
But Iraqi Finance Minister Bayan Jabr said in an interview that Russia was holding out on debt forgiveness until talks begin on concessions that Russian oil and gas companies had under Saddam Hussein. Russian Embassy officials in Washington declined to comment late yesterday.’
‘A lonely man is £16,000 poorer after sending money overseas to two women he fell in love with over the internet, in the hope they would join him in the UK. [..]
Mr Hodgkinson, who is a full-time carer for his 86-year-old mother, turned to online dating after he became fed up with being single. [..]
He first struck up a relationship with Natalia, from Russia, who he met through a dating website. [..]
He sent her more than £10,000 to pay for her travel and a visa so she could be with him.
He went to meet her at Heathrow Airport four times, but she never arrived. [..]
His mother, Constance, has been forced to take out a loan to help repay his debts.
“I did tell him off about keeping going to Heathrow,” she said.’
‘Microsoft spent millions of dollars advertising its next generation OS ‘Windows Vista’ in China, in fact the IT juggernaut threw up the biggest Vista Ad on the 421 meter high Jin Mao tower in Shanghai China. However after 2 weeks (Jan 19 to Feb 2) from launch Microsoft managed to sell a mere 244 copies of Windows Vista. Software piracy is rampant in the middle kingdom and a pirated version of Vista sells for a mere $1 on the streets. The following numbers are quoted by Windows Vista chief distributor in Bejing.’
‘The mural destroyed by ACT Liberal MP Steve Pratt was paid for under a government program to promote legal street art and was effective in discouraging vandalism.
The artwork was funded under an urban planning scheme and commissioned by a local sporting group, said Chris Kon of the Department of Territory and Municipal Services.
Legal artworks like the one Mr Pratt painted over as part of a publicity stunt to promote his anti-vandalism policies were “very successful” at discouraging illegal graffiti, said Mr Kon. [..]
“It’ll cost some money for (the artist) to re-do it again.” [..]
State Chief Minister Jon Stanhope said the matter would be referred to the police for investigation.’
‘Police have arrested a 16-year-old from Shreveport who is accused of paying another teen $5 to kill his father. Cops are still looking for the youth allegedly hired for the hit.
The teenager didn’t want to be told where he could live and was tired of having to live by rules, according to Det. Michael Escude of the Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Department.
The boy had moved from his father’s to his mother’s house a day or two before the attempted hit on Wednesday, because the father said he couldn’t deal with him any longer, Escude said.
The youth was arrested Wednesday night on one count of solicitation for murder and remains in the Caddo Juvenile Detention Center, the sheriff’s office said.’
‘The federal government charges patients 15 times more for certified medical marijuana than it pays to buy the weed in bulk from its official supplier, newly released documents show.
Critics say it’s unconscionable to charge that high a markup to some of the country’s sickest citizens, who have little income and are often cut off from their medical marijuana supply when they can’t pay their government dope bills. [..]
Adds Scott McCluskey, 48, in Westbank, B.C., who suffers spinal-cord pain that is eased by marijuana: “They’re selling it for criminal street prices. . . . I don’t think anybody, especially seriously ill people . . . should have to pay this type of money for medicine.”‘
‘About 30 people have faked their own kidnappings in NSW in the past year.
Among a spate of recent false reports to NSW Police have been cases involving ransom demands to relatives, handcuffs and faked injuries.
NSW has Australia’s highest recorded kidnapping rate, with 6.9 abductions per 100,000 people, Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research figures show.
The bureau’s report found, however, that of the 238 cases of alleged abduction reviewed by researchers, only 57 per cent involved an actual abduction.’
‘People who illegally download music would have their telephone and internet services cut off under a radical new plan proposed by the music industry.
Fed up with falling sales, the industry – which claims Australians download more than one billion songs illegally each year – has been discussing tough new guidelines with internet service providers (ISPs) since late last year.
Record labels, music publishers and other copyright holders are involved.’
moonbuggy is proudly powered by WordPress. Site by h0st.com.au.
Entries (RSS) and Comments (RSS). 140 queries. 0.074 seconds.
