h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Two adjacent headlines on the front page of the BBC News site -

Experts puzzled by spot on Venus
Warnings over online 'face filler' kits

photographer being gone for Blasphemy

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cornwall/8179635.stm

if he stands up in court and refuses to swaer on the bible as he is not a christian, themn the charge of blasphemy cannot stick as blasphemy is 'within' a religion and does not apply to heathen

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/08/200981202254903397.html

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8180069.stm

http://www.boxturtlebulletin.com/2009/08/01/13755

Attack on a community centre in Tel Aviv for LGBT young people leaves two dead and others seriously wounded.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8175379.stm

new strain of HIV from gorillas

<>

or there is a real PERV out there Shaing gorillas

I heard this story about the Archbishop of Westminster saying that teenagers spend too much time on Social networking sites and that this could cause suicide.

As a teenager, I was on the internet every day, and... well, I guess it might have done me some harm. But it also broadened my horizons and gave me people to talk about things with that I would have otherwise had to figure out on my own.

Being a teenager causes suicide. Between the ages of 12 and 20 (bit older if you're a guy) your chances of killing yourself skyrocket.

Anything else is likely to have a negligible effect.

At least in the USA, the highest suicide risk is actually to middle-aged men. Don't ask me for statistics to back this up though--something I read quite some time ago.

or there is a real PERV out there Sha ing gorillas


As I heard the report the transmission is being linked to the "bush meat" trade - that is the people are eating gorilla and chimpanzee meat.

Are they eating gorilla tartare? Surely cooking will kill off the virus?

RF

Apologies - further reading says

"It is almost certain that other people have the new variety of HIV-1 as the virus appears well-adapted to the human system and the woman it was found in told researchers she'd had no contact with live gorillas or bushmeat. "
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/woman-found-carrying-new-strain-of-hiv-from-gorillas-1766627.html


More here ....

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/08/03/2644721.htm

http://globalgrind.com/content/870227/Hooker-named-Lay-Person-of-the-Year/

no explanations necessary.

Fox News, always on the cutting edge, has decided to turn to Russian beefcake: http://www.foxnews.com/slideshow/2009/08/05/macho-man-putins-fight-stay-fit/?%3ftest=faces


or, if you can do Russian (or read the French subtitles): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OFOPd6pgjI

Ronnie Biggs, the Great Train Robber, is to be released from his prison sentence tomorrow on “compassionate” grounds, the Ministry of Justice has announced

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article6741879.ece

What's so great about him, anyway?

Doesn't make for such a snappy title to say "Ronnie Biggs, thief".

He wasn't in fact in prison but in a hospital. The decision to release him means freeing up the guards guarding him. The son's comments were a load of tosh IMO, 'he's served his time' and whatever.
His release is a victory for common sense, proper use of taxes and, yes, humanity.

TC here, reporting from the North Sea Coast of Germany, on holiday. I've had a quick scan of English-language new sites, but can find nothing about this in English:

http://www.bild.de/BILD/news/leserreporter/2009/07/29/marienkaefer-invasion/jetzt-droht-die-plage-ueberall.html

A plague of ladybirds which hit the Baltic coast several days ago has now moved along to this end of the German coast line. We were absolutely bombarded by the dratted things on the beach the other day. By now they may be moving on to the Dutch coast, and may even cross to the East Anglian or Kent coast. Don't say I didn't warn you!

Sorry - I mean "news" sites. I should have apologised that, as a consequence, the link is only in German, but there's a self-explanatory photo.

Yep, they've reached south of Sweden as well:
http://sdsmedia.sydsvenskan.se/archive/00257/MANnyckelpiga3_art_257289a.jpg