1. februar 2004

This is most disturbing I guess the idea with this high tech urinal (qt, sound) is to improve the aim. I especially loved that women can finally learn to practice the art of urinating against a wall. A strap-on normally emulates a different functionality, though. 10:21:31 PM    comment []  trackback []

Too old for jigsaw puzzle Iris Milne was shocked to find she was too old to be allowed to buy a jigsaw puzzle. She phoned Express Gifts, an English mailorder firm, to buy a specific product. But when the operatior heard she was 84 years old, she was told that they didn't sell to people over the age of 80 since they had trouble filling out forms (over the telephone?). In the end Iris got her 1000 piece puzzle, but the explanation and "apology" given by the mail order firm was, well, rather puzzling: The Daily Express reports bosses at Express Gifts, which runs the Ace catalogue, later apologised and explained the ban only applies to people over the age of 90. Eh, yeah, that is so much better. Not! 9:06:25 PM    comment []  trackback []

Super Bowl domestic violence myth A very interesting debunking of the common myth that Super Bowl Sunday leads to a sharp increase in domestic violence. Feminist groups and the media shamelessly propagated a story without any supporting evidence whatsoever. I was a bit puzzled to learn that the Dobisky Associates had mailed warnings to women advising them not to stay at home with their husbands on Super Bowl Sunday. Sheesh! It's not just an impression that some gender feminists seriously hate men. They obviously hate facts, too. 5:43:31 PM    comment []  trackback []

More flights grounded due to bioweapons terror threat A number of Air France and British Airways flights to the US has been cancelled due to a specific terror threat. Three intelligence officials told The Washington Post that the possible threats included releasing a biological agent like smallpox or anthrax on a plane so those aboard would spread the infection without knowing it. British Airways, Air France and Continental Airlines canceled several transatlantic flights scheduled for Sunday and Monday citing security concerns. A grounded BA London-Washington flight was the same service canceled several times in January because of security worries. "There are a handful of flights we are concerned about, and British Airways has canceled about half of them," a U.S. official said, on condition of anonymity. "We have received threat reporting that indicates al Qaeda's desire to target these particular flights." Seriously, has Bin Laden read Tom Clancy? Or has the CIA? 4:44:27 PM    comment []  trackback []

— "Lost girls" killed by untouchables in blood sport Close to 400 young, poor women have been murdered in Ciudad Juarez in Mexico over the last ten years. The corrupt police appear unable to solve the horrible crimes, and the authorities take no interest in solving them. One journalist dares to go on record with specific accusations as to who the killers are. Diana Washington Valdez has investigated the murders for five years for the El Paso Times. Courageous in the mould of Veronica Guerin, the investigative journalist murdered in Ireland, she has gone on the record about the killers' identities. In doing so, she knows she is putting her life on the line. In her book, Harvest of Women, to be published next year, Washington exposes the seedy underworld of Juarez's narco-traffickers. 'The girls are carefully screened,' she says. 'They're always a safe bet. Disposable women. They are watched in advance for suitability - young and poor.' Washington's accusations are based on her research and on leaks from the FBI and Mexican investigators. 'Mexican federal authorities have conducted investigations, which reveal who the killers are,' she claims. 'Five men from Juarez and one from Tijuana who get together and kill women in what can only be described as blood sport. Some of those involved are prominent men with important political connections - untouchables.' The chosen victims are so young, explains Washington, to avoid sexually transmitted diseases. Underlings supply new victims: 'They capture the girls and bring them to their masters.' Washington alleges at least 100 women have been killed by these men, of whom all but one are multi-millionaires. They have political connections going all the way to President Vicente Fox, and some have allegedly made contributions to Fox's presidential campaign. They have ties to the Juarez Cartel, and have used their drug wealth to build respectable businesses. Very scary, if true. 2:58:21 PM    comment []  trackback []

Pakistan adopting British colonial methods against militants Pakistan is adopting an old and brutal tactic in the area where al-Qaeda's fighters are hiding: collective punishment. In fact, the tactic was developed to perfection by the British, who has been fighting various wars on terrorism for more than a century. Mark Lyall Grant, the British ambassador to Pakistan, said the British empire sent 11 expeditions into Waziristan in the early 1900's in an effort to subdue them. Criminals had repeatedly kidnapped British colonialists, fled to the impenetrable border areas and demanded ransom. In one famous case, the saga of a schoolgirl kidnapped and taken into the tribal areas played out across London's front pages, embarrassing colonial administrators. But all 11 expeditions failed to subdue the areas, he said. The British decided instead to take advantage of an existing tribal custom that held an entire tribe responsible for the actions of one of its members. Tribes were ordered to find kidnappers themselves, or face collective punishment. "It's kind of striking to see how Pakistan today is using tactics that the British used 100 years ago," Mr. Lyall Grant said. Brutal, ruthless and effective. 2:42:13 AM    comment []  trackback []

© Copyright 2004 Jan Haugland. Last update: 01.03.2004; 14:41:21.