British actor and comedian Sir Norman Wisdom dies aged 95
Tuesday, October 5, 2010 Tributes are being paid following the announcement late last night that the veteran British actor and comedian Sir Norman Wisdom has died at the age of 95. He passed away peacefully at the Abbot’s Wood nursing home, Ballasalla, Isle of Man yesterday evening. Following a series of strokes over the last 6 months, his health had declined severely. Sir Norman’s career spanned almost seven decades, during which time he starred in 19 films, and 38 sitcoms, most as the inept character “Pitkin”, the persistant thorn in the side of his boss, Mr. Grimsdale. His most well known serious role came in the television play Going Gently in 1981, for ITV, in which he played a patient in hospital suffering from terminal cancer. Following the news, the Albanian Ambassador in the UK, Zef Mazi explained that Sir Norman’s death was covered on all the news channels in…
Manitoba volunteers go to war against Red River flooding
Monday, April 6, 2009 Over 1,600 volunteers registered to help build approximately 65,000 of the 500,000 sandbags to create dikes 20.5 feet (6.2 meters) high to protect the City of Winnipeg, Manitoba in the war against the Red River of the North flood. 700 volunteers answered at the rural municipality of St. Andrews alone. Once sandbags are filled for West St. Paul, St. Andrews, and Selkirk, then frozen culverts must be cleared. The height of the river is expected to be Thursday, and predictions are that it will be less than Flood of the Century of 1997. There is no precipitation in the forecast, and snow in the province should be melted by the end of the week. “The fear right now is we have to get that ice out of the river. The Amphibex [Excavators] are still working and breaking the ice apart, and everyday we buy with the warm weather…
Digest/22November2004
Tuesday, November 23, 2004 Digest for 22-29 November 2004 < 15-22 November 2004 • Index • 29 November-5 December 2004 > This a collection of articles whose datelines read between 22 and 29 November. They have not necessarily gone through a peer-review process, and may not even be done. This is essentially an index right now. Click on an article’s title to read it in full. Activists protest against School of the Americas22 November, 2004, United States Antiwar magazines report up to 16,000 protesters demonstrated outside a United States military school this weekend, demanding it be closed in connection with accused human rights violations. Dan Rather resigns as anchor, to stay on as correspondent22 November, 2004, USA Dan Rather has announced that he will retire on March 9th, 2005 as anchor of CBS Evening News. He will continue to be an investigative reporter for both of the 60 Minutes shows.…
Asbestos controversy aboard Scientology ship Freewinds
Friday, May 16, 2008 Controversy has arisen over the reported presence of blue asbestos on the MV Freewinds, a cruise ship owned by the Church of Scientology. According to the Saint Martin newspaper The Daily Herald and the shipping news journal Lloyd’s List, the Freewinds was sealed in April and local public health officials on the Caribbean island of Curaçao where the ship is docked began an investigation into the presence of asbestos dust on the ship. Former Scientologist Lawrence Woodcraft supervised work on the ship in 1987, and attested to the presence of blue asbestos on the Freewinds in an affidavit posted to the Internet in 2001. Woodcraft, a licensed architect by profession, gave a statement to Wikinews and commented on the recent events. According to The Daily Herald, the Freewinds was in the process of being renovated by the Curaçao Drydock Company. The article states that samples taken…
Andrea Muizelaar on fashion, anorexia, and life after ‘Top Model’
Monday, November 26, 2007 In the 18 months since Andrea Muizelaar was crowned winner of the reality TV series Canada’s Next Top Model, her life has been a complete whirlwind. From working in a dollar store in her hometown of Whitby, Ontario, to modeling haute couture in Toronto, she had reached her dream of becoming a true Top Model. But at what cost? Unknown to casual television viewers, Muizelaar had been enveloped in the eating disorder anorexia nervosa, which inevitably became too much for her to bear. She gave up modeling and moved back to Whitby, where she sought treatment for her disorder, re-entered college, and now works at a bank. Where is she now? Happy and healthy, she says. Recently Andrea Muizelaar sat down with Wikinews reporter Mike Halterman in a candid interview that stretched to nearly two hours, as she told all about her hopes and aspirations, her…
Toyota Drivers View On The 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix}
Click Here To Know More About: Quad Bikes For Sale Submitted by: Mark Clarkson The Panasonic Toyota racing team is heading to Central Europe for the 2006 Hungarian Formula One Grand Prix this Saturday, August 6. The Hungarian F1 Grand Prix will take place in the capital city of Budapest, and the event will be held on the Hungaroring racetrack. The Hungaroring racetrack is said to be a long winding circuit that contains numerous curves and corners. It is also a difficult location for Formula One drivers and road test engineers because of the extreme heat and subsequent high temperatures. Two of the most promising drivers of Panasonic Toyota racing team will put their skills and Toyota wheels to the test by representing their team for the 21st Hungarian Grand Prix. Ralf Schumacher, currently ranked sixth in the drivers championship, commented: Budapest is a beautiful city that I always like…
Satirist Stephen Colbert runs for U.S. President
Wednesday, October 17, 2007 The American satirist Stephen Colbert has announced that he will run for the Presidency of the United States. He made his announcement on his mock news show The Colbert Report. However, Colbert said that he would only run in his home state of South Carolina as a favorite son. He also said that he would represent both major political parties: the Republicans and the Democrats. It is not known how far Colbert will go with his character during his electoral run. Colbert has hosted The Colbert Report, a spin-off to another satirical television series, The Daily Show, since its creation in 2005. “I didn’t have a job back then. I wonder what it was like to have a job back then. I am sure I could ask a dentist or a surgeon. He would know.” On the show he plays a right-wing political pundit, based on…
Chinese police arrest six after woman beaten to death at Shandong McDonald’s
Sunday, June 1, 2014 Police in China announced yesterday the arrests of six people who reportedly pled guilty to murdering a woman by bludgeoning her to death at a McDonald’s restaurant in the city of Zhaoyuan, Shandong province. Police said they believed the suspects, who included a man, his reportedly twelve-year-old son, and two daughters, along with two other women, were members of a cult known as Quannengshen, Chinese meaning “All-powerful spirit”. Police said the victim, surname Wu, refused to give the man, surname Zhang, her telephone number when he solicited her for induction into the group, following which, Zhang began to bludgeon her with a mop before the other suspects joined in the assault. The Australian cited claims from uncensored websites saying the women who accompanied Zhang shouted “beat her to death” prior to attacking the victim themselves. The son, who can’t be held criminally responsible in China due…
South Korean city wins 2018 Winter Olympics
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 The International Olympic Committee (IOC) selected Pyeongchang, South Korea as host of the 2018 Winter Games today. The committee meeting in Durban, South Africa, made its selection in the first round of voting. The South Korean city won over Munich, Germany and Annecy, France after failing in two previous tries. It was an emphatic success for South Korea after its unsuccessful applications for the 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympics. This time its hour-long presentation to the committee focused on the sports with the theme “New Horizons” rather than geopolitical location and included South Korean president Lee Myung-bak and Kim Yu-na, the winner of the 2010 Olympic figure skating gold medal winner. On the first round of secret ballots, cast by the IOC’s 95 voting members from 76 countries, Pyeongchang received 63 votes to Munich’s 25 and 7 for Annecy. IOC President Jacques Rogge opened the sealed…
UN Secretary-General expresses concern about crises in Chad, Kenya, Sudan
Thursday, February 7, 2008 United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has expressed concern about crises in Chad, Kenya, and the Sudan. The U.N. chief is recently back from Africa where he attended the African Union summit in Ethiopia and met with leaders in Kenya. On rebel efforts to overthrow the government in Chad in recent days, the secretary-general welcomed an African Union initiative to have the leaders of Libya and the Democratic Republic of Congo mediate the crisis. He says the United Nations will do its utmost to help resolve the crisis, urging the Security Council to act swiftly to help bring an end to the violence. “It has devastating consequences not only for the people of Chad and Darfurian refugees seeking shelter there, but also for Darfur itself,” said Ban. Mr. Ban told reporters the situation in the neighboring Darfur region of Sudan is no less troubling. He says the…