So, if you thought we had energy problems, there are now con artists selling fake ‘biofuel-producing plants’ in Kwa-Zulu Natal. That was the warning from the KZN provincial government today. The province has urged people to beware of buying alien plants from people claiming they will buy back the vegetation’s by-products to be used as fuel. They are lying.
There has been a mild outcry from some of the five million BBC viewers who tuned in on Tuesday night for The Great British Bake Off finale. They’re not that impressed that they had to witness a relatively prolonged close-up shot of a squirrel that had quite a large package.
This morning we told you that Peter Davies has become the second Supersport Rugby World Cup anchor in as many months to be taken off air. The only feedback given was due to the pending of the conclusion of “a criminal case”. According to several news sites, Davies allegedly exposed his genitals and masturbated in front of a 15-year-old boy.
Because it’s important to learn about economic disparity from an early age, Sesame Street will introduce an indigent Muppet named Lily, who will educate Elmo and the rest about the millions of starving families in America during an hour-long special episode. The letter of the day will be H.
News of Steve Jobs’ death resonated around the world this morning. A sad day for many, but Steve’s death has put tremendous momentum behind the move to have 14 October named as “Steve Jobs Day”.
In another case of “Why didn’t I think of that?”, a Belgian record label that goes by the name of SonicAngel, identifies future stars by tracking trends on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Not only that, they also allow fans to invest in the artists’ success, with a six monthly return on their initial investment. Brilliant.
British politics is theatrical at the best of times. They’re dealing with cat-gate at the moment, so it just became even more theatrical. A judge has actually ruled that an illegal immigrant could avoid deportation partly because the judge feared separating him from his pet cat and partner risked “serious emotional consequences”.
India’s most famous tourist attraction, the 358-year-old Taj Mahal, will collapse within five years unless something drastic is done. The wooden foundation is becoming brittle and disintegrating due to a lack of water. This is because the river crucial to its survival is being blighted by pollution, industry and deforestation.
The New York protest movement, “Occupy Wall Street,” currently enjoying a crowd of 15 000 supporters, has inspired folk in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, and other cities around the United States to join in on the fun/outcry. Some level of police violence is being seen in all cases, with Seattle police forcibly removing all “occupation” settlements.
This was the world’s first taste of Steve Jobs’ genius. RIP. Click through for the advertisement.
FourFourTwo is a venerable British football mag, and each year their website runs a survey detailing the bottom line of England’s most popular sport. Here are some of the highlights from this year’s survey.
Can’t afford an iPad? Still confused about whether RIM is or isn’t discontinuing the BlackBerry tablet (er, or as a technology company generally)? You may be interested in the Aakash. It means ‘sky’ in Hindi – and it’s been launched today in India under the tagline “the cheapest tablet computer in the world”.
You may recall a previous article on the three-times widowed, fantastically wealthy Duchess of Alba’s proposed remarriage to Alfonso Diez, a man 24 years her junior. I’m pretty sure the last thing anyone (especially her) wanted popping up was a topless photo of that 85-year-old struck match, on the cover of a magazine. Lawsuit, here we come. [No pics. Naughty.]
There are some fantastic wine lists out there, please don’t get me wrong, but there is a disease of boring, careless, drek as well. Wine lists composed with the imagination of a brain bathed in tepid-water, whose purpose is more to nab bucks out your wallet than make your meal memorable. Considering restaurant wine lists in South Africa reminded me immediately of a recent South Park episode where Cartman’s mom doesn’t get him an iPad. His response:
The majority of the furore surrounding the Dalai Lama not coming to South Africa is beginning to blow over, so let’s take a moment to remember what this was all about to begin with – the Arch’s 80th. You want to wish him, don’t you? Have you ever met him? How has he impacted your life? Well, wish him happy birthday, and you could be on CNN for your efforts.
Klingon is a fictional language spoken by an alien warrior race in the Star Trek series – those guys that look like they have six-packs on their foreheads. But, according to Jonathan Brown from the UK, it also has some other uses. Although getting laid is not one of them, he does claim it can help people suffering from dyslexia.
Pedophilia is a rather serious crime. It hurts those that are most defenseless, and has developed a horrible stigma for anyone that drives an unmarked van. Countries around the world have established various means of combating the crime, including imprisonment and the introduction of sex offender registries. Russia, however, is trying something a little different. The land of vodka, mail-order brides and really cool furry hats has just set the ball in motion to cut off the cause of pedophilia at the source. Castration.
Disney’s 3D The Lion King reissue has been topping the box offices for the past two weeks, and netted them a cool $22,1 million over a weekend. So it’s not surprising that somebody in the studio realised that, hey, they have a bunch of other well-loved movies that they could probably re-release and make money with too.
Soulful UK songstress, Adele is heading in to the studio to record the theme for the upcoming 23rd Bond film, according to reports from music industry insiders (read: pizza, flowers, and cocaine delivery people).
One can understand the anger of Dan Castellaneta (Homer Simpson), Julia Kavner (Marge) and Nancy Cartwright (Bart) when Fox Television explained that they would be receiving a 45% pay cut. The broadcasting network claims they can’t afford production costs and, if the actors won’t budge, they’ll pull the plug. I think I speak for everyone when I say: Fox you, Fox.
Coca-Cola Australia has launched an innovative campaign called “Share a Coke”, by replacing its brand name on its bottles and cans with 150 different ordinary names in the run up to Christmas. They’re hoping it will go “viral”. “Cool”.
A new fast-food restaurant in Beijing has caused controversy for using a cartoon caricature of Barack Obama in an imitation of KFC’s Colonel Sanders’ face. Its name, Obama Fried Chicken (OFC), has also upset some people. The slogan reads: “We’re so cool, aren’t we?” Magic.
Russian Prime Minister and, let’s face it, soon-to-be-President-again, Vladimir Putin has made calls for a “Eurasian Union” as part of his presidential campaign platform. A Eurasian Union made of entirely of former Soviet Union states. Because it worked so well the last time that happened.
I’m sure you have one in your family. There always seems to be one person, constantly claiming a myriad of small promotional prizes on a weekly basis. Do you know why they win? Because they enter competitions often.They’re the ones who are forever peeling the linings off the caps of soda bottles, mailing in bags […]
A new book by a former Los Angeles Police Department Detective, called Murder Rap, was released today. It alleges that Sean Combs aka Puff Daddy aka Diddy commissioned both the murders of Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls. The lyrics to “Every Breath You Take (I’ll Be Watching You)” make a little more sense now.
It’s nice to know that whatever horrible, depressing situation life chucks at you, there is a bland, trite greeting card just desperate to leap off the rack at CNA and into your life to depress you even further.
A hard line taken today by the International Rugby Board could see the All Blacks not competing in the next Rugby World Cup. In response to New Zealand’s warning last week that they would consider pulling out of the 2015 tournament, citing financial losses during this year’s World Cup, the IRB have shrugged and said, “everyone is replaceable”.
The Japanese have proved that they are some of the most resilient people on earth. With the earthquake and tsunami that struck earlier this year, numerous acts of heroism emerged. Now they’ve invented the Noah Disaster Shelter as a very probable device for protection when particular natural disasters strike.
Pussy, the only 100% natural energy drink made from milk thistle and schizandra is gearing up for a global launch over the next six months with new investors, Holly and Sam Branson joining the brand. Created by British entrepreneur Jonnie Shearer in 2004, Pussy has been a well-kept secret in celebrity circles within the South […]
While it might not be doing too well at the moment, the New York Stock Exchange is fairly important. One of the world’s biggest markets, the daily business of the NYSE has been threatened for a while now by the Occupy Wall Street protests. Internet hacker group, Anonymous, has now also jumped on the bandwagon, […]