 | Perspective Volume XVI 
Sunday Nov 24, 2002
Perspective is a weekly features of unorthodox news reports from around the globe. Some of the reports serve to prove the point that we Nigerians are not as unique as we may be thinking. To put any news report in Perspective please send a note to
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Headlines
Area Boys Fight over Lagos Governor's Gift Back To TopGovernor Bola Tinubu's monetary gift to vagrants, popularly called area boys, caused a stir at the Murtala Muhammed Airport Ikeja on Saturday, as dozens of them fought over how to share the money.Tinubu, on arrival from Abuja, threw wads of crisp notes to the boys to share, following persistent praise singing of the governor's good works in the state. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that the boys, who acted as touts at the airport's domestic wing coerced Tinubu to part with the money as they praised him ``for transforming the state to a centre of excellence.'' As soon as Tinubu handed the money over to one of the touts, his colleagues pounced on him and a fight ensued while airport users and workers scampered to safety before airport security operatives dispersed the touts. Some passengers who spoke with NAN, condemned the lax security, saying it was unimaginable that touts could come within the vicinity of the airport and engage in such shameful act. Source:http://www.thisdayonline.com/news/20021118sta11.html
A UK based Professional, Running for Senate, promises to 'Bring Honour, Integrity Into Politics' Back To TopA contender for the slot of Ondo South Senatorial district in the 2003 elections, Pastor Johnson Wole Ogunyemi has pledged to bring the values of honour and integrity into politics.The United Kingdom based professional who is contesting under the platform of the Alliance for Democracy, (AD), stated this in a chat with newsmen in Lagos. Decrying the neglect suffered by his senatorial district in the hands of the Federal Government in spite of the enormous resources tapped from the area, he promised to use his wealth of experience, international exposure and commitment to serve the people's interest. "I have chosen to be a selfless advocate of justice and development. Justice to our people, Justice to our land" he said, adding that he would not go into politics of hatred, bitterness and selfishness. He promised to always voice out the aspirations and yearnings of the people as well as better their lives by building a modern grassroots-oriented welfare development programme, advocating for youths and graduate employment programmes, seek for compensation for those affected by exploration, erosion and pollution among other things. Pastor Ogunyemi hails from Ilaje Local Government Area of Ondo State and is the president of both the Ilaje Welfare Association in London, and the Yoruba Congress in the U.K. He is also an active member of the AD both in Europe and Ondo State and has a professional background which cuts across administration, financial as well as management consulting spanned over two decades. Source:http://www.thisdayonline.com/news/20021118sta03.html
Man Bags Three Months for Stealing 12 Bags of Gravel Back To TopA 21 year old man was sentenced to three months imprisonment with hard labour for stealing twelve bags of gravel from Water Park, Kado Estate, Abuja.The convict Audu Usman, of Water Park, Kado Estate, Abuja from the police First Information Report was said to have dishonestly stolen twelve bags of gravel valued at N6,000 from the premises of one Babangida Yunusa of the same address. Audu, told the court, that he stole the gravel when he took a customer to buy the said gravel, but though the owner did not give him permission to sell, he decided to sell them and keep the money. The prosecutor Mr. O. Simeon told the court that since the accused person has admitted to the allegations, he should be tried summarily according to section 157 of the criminal procedure code. The presiding magistrate, Adepoju Ajoke said since the accused person had no reasons why he should not be convicted, he would be jailed under section 157 of the criminal procedure code. She then sentenced him to three months imprisonment with hard labour without an option of five for the offence of theft contrary to section 288 of the panel code law. Source:http://allafrica.com/stories/200211190658.html
Robbery suspect caught after stopping for a beer after heist Back To TopTAUNTON, Mass. (AP) — Perhaps if he wasn't so thirsty he would have gotten away with it.Taunton police arrested a bank robbery suspect shortly after he popped into an American Legion two blocks from the scene of the crime for a drink. "He stopped to have a beer after robbing the bank and that's what did him in," Detective Dennis M. Smith told The Enterprise of Brockton. Joaquim Grace, 28, entered the Bristol County Savings Bank on Wednesday morning, barged to the front of the line and threatened to shoot a teller and a customer, police said. No gun was shown. He escaped with an undetermined amount of cash. Police searched the American Legion after witnesses reported a man running there. The bar manager told police that Grace, a regular customer, had stopped in for a beer and that he appeared to be sweating. He called a cab and left, the manager said. Police then went to Grace's last known address, where they found the suspect and some of the stolen money. Grace denied robbing the bank but three bank employees identified him as the robber. He was charged with armed robbery. Source:http://www.courttv.com/people/2002/1118/robber_ap.html
Naked Truth: Sexy Madonnas Get Church Hot Under Collar Back To TopROME (Reuters) - Images of the Madonna always get lots of exposure in Italy in the run-up to Christmas, but this year the mother of Jesus is completely naked.And then some. In a 2003 calendar on sale at news stands country-wide, a glamour photographer has shot 12 months of undressed women in provocative scenes inspired by the life of Christ. It's all part of a sexy calendar craze that takes Italy by storm every year, with top models and TV celebrities baring all in what has become a $10 million business. This time, however, the naked Madonnas calendar may have gone too far. September features a heavy-bosomed Virgin Mary suckling a child, while March depicts a raven-haired nude washing a woman's toes in a pose evocative of Mary Magdalene, the penitent prostitute who anointed Christ's feet. And those are just the mild months. April is a bare-breasted Virgin Mary, halo shining above her head, with her arms held out to reveal bleeding palms like the wounds of Christ on the cross, and wearing nothing but a transparent loin cloth and white high heels. It's all too much for news stand salesmen, many of whom are keeping the calendar under the counter, not to mention the Church, which is hot under the collar about the blasphemy of it all. "It's the height of sacrilege and a disgraceful transformation (of the Madonna)," Gino Concetti, a moral theologian who is close to the pope, told Reuters. "It's playing with religion to exalt hedonism and eroticism, and turns women into blatant consumer objects." Newspaper salesmen have stopped displaying it with other titillating calendars because of customer complaints. That's all something of a shock to Alberto Magliozzi, who has an international reputation for his "artistic-erotic" images of celebrities, including Sharon Stone and Nicole Kidman. "I think the calendar has been misinterpreted," the photographer, 52, told Reuters from his studio outside Rome. "The naked body of a woman is not an obscene thing. I didn't want to create anything blasphemous... These pictures transmit innocence, desperation, pain and suffering. "I'm a religious man myself, but I'm also passionate about the aesthetic form -- being religious doesn't mean you can't appreciate beautiful women." While conceding some of the images might be difficult to take, Magliozzi said the public reaction was positive and sales were strong, although he had no numbers. Publishers printed 40,000 copies, which retail for eight euros ($8). A random selection of people on the streets of Rome was not particularly impressed, however. "It's revolting," said 26-year-old Alessandra D'Abramo as she cast an eye over a picture of a red-head looking somewhat angelic, naked but for a slip of white gauze at her waist. "Rather than blasphemous, it's just ugly." For the men, the Madonnas can't compete with the host of other temptresses that adorn calendars. This year's favorites include Elisabetta Canalis, the long-legged, sultry girlfriend of Inter Milan soccer star Christian Vieri, who had said she'd never pose topless, and Luisa Corna, another soccer-mad Mediterranean beauty. Alongside that pair, the Madonnas don't stand a chance. "It's not even that erotic," said Lorenzo Taglioferro, 20, as he went through the calendar. "I wouldn't buy it. But Canalis -- now she's a winner." Source:http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=1767200
Shoplifter grew fatigued during foot chase Back To TopWINFIELD, Kan. — A youth suspected of shoplifting at JC Penney last month was arrested after he grew fatigued during a foot chase.His pursuers were none other than the Southwestern College men's cross-country team, the winner of 22 consecutive championship titles in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference. The teenager, whose name and age were not released, ran into the group of runners as he sprinted around a corner shortly after stealing from the Winfield Plaza shopping center on Oct. 28, police said. The team routinely warms up around the complex. All-American runner Nathaniel Wheatley said the boy appeared nervous and scared, but wasn't hurt and ran away. But moments later, when someone on a sidewalk informed the runners that the boy was believed to be a shoplifter, the cross-country team split into groups to chase after him. The suspected thief eventually surrendered his backpack as the runners caught up to him. Thinking the stolen goods were inside, the team took the backpack to the store. They were surprised to learn, however, that the stolen items were the shoes that the suspect was wearing. The teen had taken off his old shoes in the store and replaced them with new shoes in the shoebox, according to a Winfield police department spokesman. The backpack contained schoolwork and a cellular phone, however, which led police to his home and his eventual arrest. Source:http://www.courttv.com/people/scm/scm_111402.html#2
Crazy Woman Scares American General Back To TopCan you imagine that one of the world’s most powerful armies was frightened by one woman who seemed to be a mentally unbalanced individual? This is what happened back in 1939, when an American general had to deal with an anonymous woman, who lived in a desert. It happened one fine morning in Alabama.An eyewitness of that event, a former FBI agent, never said a word about that incident for years. He told his story to a Mexican magazine when he felt that he was getting on in years. Back in those days, security agencies used to work in close cooperation with military men to implement several projects. One day, an FBI agent and his assistants got a notice, which said that a fortune teller told a colonel some interesting facts about his work. That information was categorized as top secret. The colonel reported that incident to his chief, and the latter informed Washington. Washington called the FBI, which started an investigation. Our eyewitness was to supervise the entire work on the subject. He had to leave for the countryside in Alabama, where the alleged fortune teller lived. Two other agents traveled there with him. When they arrived, they found the woman sitting in her house. The agents showed her their IDs. The agents asked the woman to answer a few questions, but before the conversation started, she smiled to them and said that she was not a fortune teller. A surprised agent said that no one said that she was actually a fortune teller. The woman smiled again and said that she was aware of that. She added that she thought the FBI was going to ask her about it anyway. This statement confused our agent, because it was exactly the thing that he was thinking of at that moment. Then the agent asked her if she knew why the FBI came to see her. She sat still for a while and then said that they came to her house because she said something to a military man, something about his work at a military base. The woman said that she told him the things that he saw in his head. The agent was intrigued. He asked her if she could read the minds of every human being. The woman answered that it was really so. The woman said that she could do it all the time, before time was born. Then she said that she came from another world. The agent thought that the woman had lost her mind. However, he decided to play her game. He asked her why she came to planet Earth if she did not live there before. The woman said that she had to take care of something on the planet. The agent wondered what it was, and the woman said that it was none of his business. The agent thought that it would be better to take her to town and ask questions there. But before he uttered those words, the woman said that she was not going anywhere at all. The agent turned to his colleagues and asked them to take the woman out of the house to the car. An assistant could hardly make a step towards the woman. All of a sudden, he had a cramp attack. The woman was sitting there quietly, as if nothing was going on. She just said that if they were going to do something to her, she wouldn’t let them leave her house. The agent said that he would not make her go anywhere. The cramps suddenly stopped. The woman warned the agents that she was aware of their intention to come back with more men to help. She warned the agents that she would not be responsible for the consequences of such an action. She also added that she would not leave for any interrogations or conversations either. She said that if they wanted to see what she could do, she would show them. The agents asked her to explain. The woman said that they should choose an uninhabited territory, a huge space of 250 square kilometers. She said that FBI should set up its posts on the four corners of the territory and then inform her. The FBI agents thought that it would be better for them to leave. They headed for headquarters and reported everything that happened to them. Their chief called the military. A general came to the office several hours later. He said that he was going to fulfil the woman’s requirements, to put an end to all the jokes and then arrest her. The general said that there were several range grounds in the desert that could be used for the woman’s experiment. The next day, the general called the FBI and said that everything was ready, just as the woman wanted it. The general and an FBI agent drove to the place where the mysterious fortune teller lived. When they arrived to the woman’s house, she was sitting on the porch, waiting for them to come. The men got out of the car and approached the house. The agent did not have to introduce the general to the woman: she said that she was aware of everything. The woman asked the general if there was any air traffic above the chosen territory. The answer to that question was negative. No one had any idea of what was going to happen. The general asked the woman when she was going to show them the things that she promised before. He added that if she was making a joke, she would be jailed in return. She answered that if someone was going to come back and bother her again in the future, the show that they were about to see would pale in comparison then. The general was soon informed that there was no living being on the territory. A reconnaissance group reported that every plant on the territory died, as well as all insects and little animals. They said that all birds that happened to fly above the territory fell down dead. The general ordered FBI agents not allow the information to become public anywhere. He also ordered that the woman and her house be left alone and to forget about her for good. As far as our eyewitness knows, no one bothered the woman again. The former agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation said that he was aware of the fact that his story was more like a science fiction movie. Yet, he assured that it was true. Source:http://english.pravda.ru/main/2002/11/19/39697.html
2 Robbers Lynched by Mob Back To TopTwo robbers who specialised in using motorcycles , popularly called Okada, to operate around Ogba, in Ikeja Local Government Area of Lagos state, yesterday morning met their waterloo, where they got lynched by an angry mob.The incident which happened at Isheri Road, Omole at about 7.30 am followed a failed attempt by the robbers, four in number, to dispossess some workers of a nearby firm of their money and other valuable. Eyewitness told THISDAY that the robbers had overtaken the bus and ordered the passengers to bring out what they had on them or be shot. However, one of the workers raised an alarm, which made the robbers, attempt to escape. Two of them, our source said were able to escape but two others were not lucky as the workers and some passers-by caught them. The impatient mob took over, drew out petrol from the motorcycles and set the robbers ablaze. When THISDAY got to the scene of the incident yesterday, the charred remains of the robber and their Okada were still there. One of the Okada riders, who simply gave his name as Okon, said the robbers had destroyed the good names of genuine Okada riders who operate in the area. He disclosed that people were now afraid of riding Okada in the area because of the activities of these robbers. Source:http://www.thisdayonline.com/news/20021120news21.html
Crooks Slip Up Selling Loot Back to Owner Back To TopBERLIN (Reuters) - Two postal workers were arrested in Germany after they unwittingly tried to sell high-tech telephone equipment stolen from the post back to the original owner, police said on Wednesday.A police spokesman said the pair, aged 20 and 28, tried to sell the goods to a second-hand dealer in the Bavarian town of Nuremberg. But he spotted the package as the same one he had taken to the post office that morning and called the police. "The funny thing was -- the suspects didn't realize they'd taken the stuff back to the place it was from," Nuremberg police spokesman Peter Schnellinger said. Police arrested the thieves and searched their apartment, discovering a cache of missing post that included stolen laptops, video cameras and fax equipment worth $10,000. http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=1775006
Snake kiss turns ugly Back To TopYACOLT, Washington (AP) -- A man who was showing off for friends by kissing his new rattlesnake was bitten on the lip and nearly died.Matt George, 21, was hospitalized in critical condition after the incident Sunday. By Tuesday, his condition had been upgraded to serious. George was showing friends the snake he had caught on a recent trip to Arizona. Holding the 2-foot snake behind the head, he kissed it. "I said, 'OK, man, you're being stupid, put it away,"' recalled Jim Roban. "He said, 'It's OK, I do it all the time."' After the second kiss, the snake bit him under his mustache. He dropped the snake on the kitchen floor, and Roban killed it with his cowboy boot. As they waited for an ambulance to arrive at George's home, his face began to swell. "He said, 'I'm going to die,"' Roban said. "I said, 'No, you're not going to die, just calm down and relax."' Sheriff's Deputy Steven Johnson said he watched in the ambulance as George became limp and his eyes rolled back in his head. After George lost consciousness, he was flown by helicopter to a hospital in Portland, Oregon. Source:http://www.cnn.com/2002/US/West/11/20/offbeat.snake.bite.ap/index.html
More than 1 in 10 American youth Can't Locate America on Map Back To TopAmong 18- to 24-year-old Americans given maps:87 percent cannot find Iraq 83 percent cannot find Afghanistan 76 percent cannot find Saudi Arabia 70 percent cannot find New Jersey 49 percent cannot find New York 11 percent cannot find the United States
American Police considering selling ad space on patrol cars Back To TopNORTH BRUNSWICK, N.J. (AP) — Cash-strapped police departments around the country are considering selling advertising space on their patrol cars -- an idea that has some officers worried they will get stuck driving around with a really embarrassing ad."I don't want my officers driving around in a car that says, `Trojan: Ribbed for extra pleasure,"' said Louis Napoletano, public safety director of Long Branch. "We've come a long way to be perceived as professional, and this would set us way back." Government Acquisitions LLC, a company in Charlotte N.C., started selling the ads about two months ago. The deal works like this: A police department agrees to put ads on its patrol cars, usually on the hoods or on the side and rear. In return, Government Acquisitions provides new patrol cars to the department for $1, and replaces them every three years. The company keeps the ad revenue. "Due to a lack of government funding and tight budgets, police departments across America don't have the equipment they need," said Ken Allison, president of Government Acquisitions. "If you're home at night with your wife and kids and some maniac breaks into your house, you call 911 and you want a police car there. You don't care if there's a Burger King logo on the trunk." So far, 20 mostly smaller municipalities around the country have signed contracts, and scores of other cities have expressed interest, Allison said. The first cars should be delivered within a few months. "I'll be happy to slap someone's name on our municipal building if they give us enough money," North Brunswick Mayor David Spaulding said. "My overriding goal is to be fiscally responsible, and that's what we're doing. We're trying to save the taxpayers money." His police department is considering the idea, which Spaulding estimated could save the township $250,000 a year on its 18 marked patrol cars in a municipality with a $30 million annual budget. Government Acquisitions has signed up or hopes to sign up burglar alarm companies, real estate agencies, auto body shops, children's learning centers, fast food restaurants, and lost and missing children's agencies. The ads cannot come from alcohol, tobacco, guns or gambling interests, and the police departments have some leeway to reject ads they deem inappropriate, Allison said. Some potential advertisers love the idea. "We'll be able to attach our name to local authorities, which gives us near-instant credibility," said Victor Adams, president of Alltech Specialists, a Tampa, Fla., distributor of home burglar alarm systems. The Elizabeth Township Police Department near Pittsburgh hopes to buy up to 15 cars from Government Acquisitions. The police chief is a NASCAR fan and liked the idea of plastering ads on cars, Deputy Chief Bob Wallace said. But many police officers do not like the idea of turning their police cars into rolling billboards and joke about the poor guy who gets stuck driving a car with an ad for a feminine hygiene product, or worse. Michael Moriarty, North Brunswick's public safety director, said officers from other communities find the idea hilarious. They have been calling up, pretending to be from Hooters and offering to sponsor a car. But he said the idea can work, provided the ads are done tastefully. Michelle Bozio Beaton, who runs a vacuum cleaner business in North Brunswick, said the ads ultimately are not worth the price. "Police have a position of respect, and a lot of people might find it comical and not respect them because of it," she said. "There's enough jokes about cops already. These guys put their lives on the line for us every day. They deserve more respect than that." Source:http://www.courttv.com/people/2002/1120/ads_ap.html
Singapore relaxes ban on chewing gum: You get it by prescription Back To TopSingapore has agreed to relax its decade-long ban on chewing gum.The pristine city-state, which did not like gum sticking to its pavements, has been under pressure to lift the ban as part of a trade deal with the US. But Singapore's gum-chewers are not salivating yet - the government says chewing gum will only be available to people with a medical prescription. Singapore's chief negotiator for the trade pact said the move was a concession to the US. "There's a compromise agreed between the two countries, where sugarless gum prescribed by doctors and dentists as having therapeutic benefits will be sold by pharmacists," Tommy Koh told reporters. However, even smokers who have been prescribed gum to help them stop smoking will not get their fix immediately, as the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) is unlikely to take effect until after 2004. Many locals agreed the change was long overdue. "The whole ban idea was not a good idea to start with but it did help to educate Singaporeans about the nuisance effects of chewing gum," 41-year-old manager Daniel Quek told Reuters news agency. "Now Singaporeans, including kids, are more mature about their civic responsibilities. It's time for the chewing gum ban to go." The import, manufacture and sale of chewing gum has been banned in Singapore since 1992, and the penalty for smuggling gum into the country is a year in jail, and a 10,000 Singapore dollar- ($5,500-) fine. Source:http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/2494499.stm
Scientist Burns Penis with Hot Laptop Back To TopLONDON (Reuters) - Laptops have always been a hot item but a 50-year-old scientist didn't realize to what extent until he burned his penis.The previously healthy father of two remembered feeling a burning sensation after he had been writing a report at home for about an hour with the computer on his lap. He noticed a redness and irritation the following day but it wasn't until he was examined by a doctor that he realized how much damage had been done. "The ventral part of his scrotal skin had turned red, and there was a blister with a diameter of about two centimeters (0.8 inches)," Claes-Gorn Ostenson, of the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, wrote in a letter published in The Lancet medical journal on Friday. Two days later, the blisters broke and the wounds became infected and then crusted but after about a week the unidentified scientist was "healing quite rapidly." Ostenson noted that the computer manual did warn against operating it directly on exposed skin but said the patient had lap burns even though he had been wearing trousers and underpants. "This...story should be taken as a serious warning against use of a laptop in a literal sense," he added. Source:http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=1790144
British Workers Spend about 20% of Work Hours Flirting and Gossiping Back To TopLONDON (Reuters) - Britons spend more than 90 minutes a day gossiping, e-mailing friends and flirting and in the office, according to a survey published Friday.In a typical working day, staff spend 54 minutes gossiping, 16 minutes flirting, 14 minutes surfing the Internet, nine minutes e-mailing friends and family and three minutes shopping online, the Daily Telegraph newspaper reported. Contrary to the popular belief that women indulge more in idle chit-chat than men, the survey of 2,000 people by Halifax Share Dealings showed that both sexes spent almost the same amount of time gossiping. Source:http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=1790129
Russia government obtains state monopoly on vodka production Back To TopThe state is recovering the people’s property. Moreover, the state is recovering the monopoly it once had on the production of Russia’s all-time favorite beverage: vodka. The federal enterprise Soyuzplodoimport has recently recovered its traditional monopoly on the production of world-known vodka brands. The company has started producing Stolichnaya and Moskovskaya vodkas in the town of Chernogolovka, the Moscow region.Russian Minister for Agriculture, Aleksey Gordeyev, pointed out that the event was of important economic and political significance. “The home market will be filled with high-quality vodka, and the state will receive considerable revenue: both from taxes and income earned from exports,” said the minister. The company OST Alko, one of the largest producers of alcoholic beverages in Russia, was the first manufacturer of previously state-owned vodka brands. This is the only private enterprise that received an award from the Russian government for its high-quality products. So far, the company deals with the production of only two kinds of Russian vodka: Stolichnaya and Moskovskaya; however, new vodkas are coming soon. Soyuzplodoimport and OST Alko assure customers will love their products. The level of production control is very high at the enterprises. In addition, a bottle of state-owned vodka will no cost more than 60 rubles (about two American dollars). It is planned to produce 1.2 million decaliters of Stolichnaya and Moskovskaya vodka in 2003. However, taking into consideration the rate of issuing licenses for production, the level might achieve5.1 million liters a year in 2003. Vladimir Loginov, the director of Soyuzplodoimport, said that the company was ready to export vodka. The foreign economic association Soyuzplodoimport operated during the time of the Soviet Union. The company controlled all brands of state vodka, which were quite popular all over the world. Then, the company was privatized and became the owner of tens of vodka brands. Last year, an arbitration court considered the privatization of 17 vodka brands illegal. The brands were registered to the Russian Agricultural Ministry. Source:http://english.pravda.ru/main/2002/11/22/39841.html
Celine Dion Works for McDonald’s Back To TopThe visitors of one of McDonald’s restaurants in the town of Jupiter, Florida, have been surprised a lot recently. The people were shocked to see Celine Dion working behind the counter, packing burgers and fries. The pop diva was wearing an apron and a McDonald’s cap, taking money from startled visitors.Later Celine Dion said that she was trying to help McDonald’s to raise money for Ronald McDonald House Charities. The goal of this action is to help to provide dwelling for the families, whose children were hospitalized. Dion said that Ronald McDonald House once helped her family in Montreal, when her niece was hospitalized because of cystic fibrosis. Now the singer wants to attract people’s attention to the importance of this action of charity. Did she sing anything during her stay at a Jupiter McDonald’s? Did she sing “Old McDonald had a farm ...” song? Source:http://funreports.com/2002/11/22/39853.html
Two Prisoners Tried to Infect Guards with AIDS Back To TopTwo prisoners from the republic of Chuvashia, Russia, were sentenced to more time in jail for their attempt to infect the guards with AIDS. The criminal file on Article 122 of the Russian Criminal Code (AIDS Infection) was a ground for a court trial in the republic for the first time.The guards of the prison tried to take two drunk AIDS-infected prisoners to a medical department to register the fact of drinking alcohol. However, the prisoners showed some resistance to the guards. One of them broke a window, cut his body with fragments of broken glass and then started waving his arms, sprinkling blood on the guards. He was aiming in their faces and eyes. The other prisoner tried to do the same. None of the guards was infected with the lethal virus. The infected blood did not fall on mucous membranes and there were no damages on the guards’ skin. The Supreme Court of Chuvashia republic sentenced the criminals to six and seven years in jail. Source:http://funreports.com/2002/11/21/39794.html
US Election: Candidates Drawing Cards to Settle Vote Back To TopGOLDFIELD, Nevada (AP) -- A deadlocked election ended Friday with an Old West-style draw of the cards in this virtual ghost town.Republican Dolores "Dee" Honeycutt and Democrat R.J. Gillum, who tied 107-107 for an open seat on the Esmeralda County Commission, each pulled a jack in the ornate courthouse. But Gillum's spade beat Honeycutt's diamond. "Unbelievable," Gillum said. "Only in Goldfield." The showdown in Goldfield's ornate courtroom recalled the town's glory years a century ago, when it was a booming mining center of 20,000. Today, the entire county has about 1,000 residents -- about one for every three square miles. About 100 people were on hand Friday for the card draw in the ornate courtroom. The rules: High card wins, but in case of a tie, spades are highest, clubs are lowest. In Nevada, the Legislature decides the outcome of statewide or multiple-county general election races that end in a tie. All others are determined by the luck of the draw. "What you've got is Nevada political poker," state archivist Guy Louis Rocha said. Rocha knew of two other races decided by chance: a 1972 election in Gabbs that ended with a coin toss, and a Eureka County Commission race settled by draw of the cards in 1982. The Eureka County candidates back then both drew eights, forcing a second draw because no one had thought to specify which suit would prevail. On Friday, Rocha successfully urged District Attorney Patty Cafferata to decide ahead of time which suit is highest. "What do you think are the chances of that happening again?" Cafferata had asked rhetorically. Source:http://www.cnn.com/2002/US/West/11/22/offbeat.draw.ap/index.html
Madonna borrows money for son's cake Back To TopLONDON, England (Reuters) -- Multi-millionaire pop singer Madonna had to borrow money in a London restaurant after finding herself short of cash to buy a slice of cake for her son, a British newspaper reported on Thursday.The Sun said Madonna told two sisters, Mimi and Titi Negussie, that she had forgotten her purse when she went into the restaurant with film director husband Guy Ritchie, their son Rocco and her daughter Lourdes. "A woman came up and said, 'Excuse me, but you look like really nice people. Can I borrow some money? We forgot our wallets'," Mimi Negussie told the Sun. Titi, who did not recognize the singer, gave the Material Girl a £2 coin to help her cover a £1.25 ($2) shortfall in her £5.25 bill. A spokesman for Madonna told the Sun the sisters would be sent CDs and a check to cover the loan. Michigan-born Madonna, now a UK resident, was the highest earning musician in Britain in this year's Sunday Times Pay List, with estimated annual earnings of £36 million. Source:http://www.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/Music/11/20/offbeat.people.madonna.reut/index.html
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