As we all know, I am an Australian. I am also an Australian who used to live in the Sydney suburb of Cronulla, and who is reading the current news reports with absolute horror. In the past hour, I have seen the following ‘news’ passage reproduced on the websites of at least 10 ‘credible’ news sources: “About 5,000 white men, many of them drunk, targeted people believed to be of Arab or Middle Eastern descent on Cronulla Beach on Sunda...
An American television viewer is suing the producers a reality show because he claims became ill whilst watching it. Stating that he suffered ‘violent nausea, vomiting and dizziness’ as a direct consequence of the contents of programme in question, the viewer is reportedly seeking damages in excess of US$2.5 million. The scenes in the show responsible for the ‘upset’ apparently contained footage of contestants drinking ‘milkshakes’ containin...
I’m becoming tired of hearing about various public areas, services and attractions being closed or scaled-down due to the operators/owners being unable to afford spiraling public liability insurance premiums. The concept of public liability insurance is a sound one: someone becomes injured or otherwise disadvantaged due to liability or neglect on your property, they sue you, the insurance company pays up and they go away. This prevents you f...
In November 2004, just three days before her 57 th birthday, New York woman Aleta St. James gave birth three weeks prematurely to twin babies, a boy and a girl, by planned Caesarian section. Using an egg from a stranger and donated sperm, this was the first pregnancy for the unmarried St. James, who said of giving birth at her age “It is never too late. You are never too old. It is just in your mind." St. James, a motivational sp...
The modern world is advancing, and with that advancement comes such looming horrors as ‘chemical weapons’ and ‘biological warfare’. These ‘modern’ ideas of ours surely have reached the outer limits of the awful things we humans are capable of. We have come full circle. We have developed chemical weapons, that, once released, cannot be detected or controlled, and we have developed conflicts that almost guarantee their eventual use. Modern day...
In what has surely got to be the grossest thing I have ever heard of, a UK expert in transplant ethics says that surgeons who are currently preparing to offer human face transplants have not considered the possible psychological and other complications. A number of international medical teams are expected to carry out the first human face transplant, possibly before the end of the year, and one ‘face transplant’ surgeon says people h...
New York fashion retailers are being applauded for displaying mannequins modeled on the ‘new’ generation of curvy women, citing Jennifer Lopez and Beyonce as the influence behind (pardon the pun) this ‘trend’. Initially intended as marketing for the ‘street’ fashion stores, established labels are now adopting the bootylicious shop dummies manufactured by mannequin firm Goldsmith. According to Goldsmiths’ Creative Director, the recent pop culture fixation on large bottoms has a positive m...
Scientists at Tokyo University of Agriculture in Tokyo, Japan, have produced a female mouse that is the offspring of two female parents. Considered biologically impossible up until now, the female mice were able to produce a daughter without the involvement of any male cells or sperm. The baby mouse, nicknamed “Kaguya” by scientists (after a Japanese folk tale of the moon princess Kaguya), has shattered the scientific belief that two mammals of the same s...
According to BBC News, the British Armed forces has given permission for 24 year old Chris Cranmer to officially register as a ‘Satanist’, which will allow Mr. Cranmer, a Naval Technician, to perform 'satanic rituals' on board Naval vessels. Mr. Cranmer says that he became a Satanist around nine years ago, after reading a copy of “The Satanic Bible” by Anton Szandor LaVey, who founded the Church Of Satan in San Francisco in 1966 (and remained its' high p...
What would life be like if the world were ruled by women ?. We may never know, but we do have the examples of the rare but fascinating matriarchal cultures still in existence in today’s world to give us the ‘low-tech’ answer to this complex problem. An example of such a culture is the Khasi (or Khasia), an agricultural people who live in the hill districts in Meghalaya state (North-Eastern India), where they arrived about 500 years ago, presumably from...
India has long been regarded as a ‘spiritually advanced’ country, with tourists heading there in droves to experience the teachings and atmosphere of this amazing place. Yet, as with all cultures deeply rooted in spiritual values, there can exist a outdated faction that adheres to traditional ‘spiritual law’, often with disastrous consequences. Consider the case of the Sundargarh district of Orissa, India, within whose boundaries exists a group that to this day persecutes people on suspi...
By Alan Sipress and Ellen Nakashima ~ Washington Post ~ Thursday, September 9, 2004; 2:47 AM JAKARTA, Indonesia, Sept. 9 -- A large explosion was set off early Thursday outside the Australian Embassy in Jakarta's financial district, killing at least four people and wounding more than 100, officials said. Police said the blast appeared to have been caused by a car bomb. The explosion at about 10:30 a.m. mangled the high metal gate in front of the Australian Embassy and shattered th...
From a report filed in Istanbul, Turkey, by Reuters: Turkey's government wants to make adultery a crime, the justice minister was quoted as saying Monday, a proposal that has outraged the main opposition and women's groups. Athough the legislation would also apply to men, a previous adultery law abolished six years ago was used mainly against women. The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), which traces its roots to a banned Islamist movement, wants to include the adultery...
According to Princeton University’s online dictionary, the word ‘feminist’ means: (noun) feminist: women's rightist, women's liberationist, libber (a supporter of feminism), reformer, reformist, crusader, meliorist (a disputant who advocates reform). (adjective) feminist: (of or relating to or advocating equal rights for women; "feminist critique") (this use is rare) In the 1800’s women commenced their path to ‘equality’ by focusing on the right to vote. Despite this not being for...
In the Royal Village of Swaziland, thousands of young women have bared their breasts and danced for the King in the hope of trading a life of poverty for one of royal comfort as the newest of King Mswati's many wives. The 36-year-old king picks a new bride each year at the 'Reed Dance' in a royal ritual that is defended by traditionalists as a time-honored piece of the nation's cultural fabric. King Mswati, sub-Saharan Africa's last absolute monarch, has 11 wives and a fiancee. Mswa...