Finally Friday Sept. 11 th 2009

Saudi prince urges U.S. to recognize oil dependency Fri Sep 4, 2009 MILAN (Reuters) - The United States has no alternative to oil to meet its massive energy needs and should recognize its energy interdependence with the Middle East, Saudi Arabia's Prince Turki al-Faisal wrote in an article on Friday. U.S. President Barack Obama has been pushing to boost green energy which cuts emissions of heat-trapping gases and reduces the use of fossil fuels. In his election campaign, Obama raised some potentially disturbing issues for the Saudis, such as ending dependence on Middle Eastern oil. In the article translated into Italian and published by Italian newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore, Turki said energy independence was an unrealistic, groundless and harmful concept which was likely to re-emerge once economic recovery pushed oil prices up. "There is no technology on the horizon which can replace oil to satisfy colossal needs of U.S. industry, transport and armed forces. Any future scenario will be characterized by mix of renewable and non-renewable energies whether you like it or not," Turki said. His criticism comes as the U.S. Senate is working on a wide-ranging energy and environmental bill aimed to put limits on the amount of greenhouse gases that big industries are allowed to emit. Turki, a former Saudi intelligence chief and envoy to Washington and London, said the United States, the world's biggest energy consumer, should put aside the rhetoric of energy independence and instead recognize interdependence of energy producers and consumers. "Whether you like it or not, the destinies of the United States and Saudi Arabia are linked and will remain (linked) for decades," he said. The United States is the biggest trading partner for the world's biggest oil exporter.

United Nations conference calls for new global currency September 7, 2009 The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development said in a report published Monday that the U.S. dollar should be replaced as the world’s standard reserve currency, giving rise to a new global currency managed by an as-yet undetermined financial regulatory organization. Heiner Flassbeck, director of the conference, told Bloomberg News that changes needed in the world’s financial systems rival the scope of the Bretton Woods or European Monetary System agreements. The Bretton Woods agreement established in 1944 the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, following allied victory in World War II. “[The] dominance of the dollar as the main means of international payments [has] played an important role in the build-up of the global imbalances in the run-up to the financial crisis,” the report says. “Another disadvantage of the current international reserve system is that it imposes a greater adjustment burden on deficit countries (except if it is a country issuing a reserve currency) than on surplus countries.” The UN adds: “Such a multilateral system would tackle the problem of destabilizing capital flows at its source. It would remove a major incentive for speculation and ensure that monetary factors do not stand in the way of achieving a level playing field for international trade. It would also get rid of debt traps and counterproductive conditionality. The last point is perhaps the most important one: countries facing strong depreciation pressure would automatically receive the required assistance once a sustainable level of the exchange rate had been reached in the form of swap agreements or direct intervention by the counterparty.” The move should not be surprising to observers of global economics, as a U.N. panel of currency experts came to the same conclusion in March, according to Reuters . The conference specifically emphasizes the enhancement of the International Monetary Fund’s “special drawing right” (SDR), which may serve as the “supranational” currency. the raw story

Spy probe images Apollo landing sites NASA's newly launched Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has snapped images of hardware left on the moon by the Apollo astronauts, striking a blow against conspiracy theories that the landings were a hoax. Images of five of the six Apollo landing sites were captured by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) within weeks of reaching the moon. The team hopes to see its first images of the Apollo 12 landing site next month. LRO is currently orbiting the moon on an elliptical path that takes it some 30 km over the moon's south pole and 200 km over the north pole, but later this year it will enter a circular orbit at an altitude of about 50 km.

Illegal immigrant scoops £100,000 on Swedish lottery An illegal immigrant has caused soul-searching in liberal Sweden by winning around £100,000 in a televised national lottery contest. 05 Sep 2009 Tesfaldet Tesloy, 28, from Eritrea in east Africa, appeared on Swedish TV on Saturday to collect his winnings, even though the authorities have been trying to deport him. Mr Tesloy, who moved to Sweden six years ago, has so far been able to remain there because of his own country's refusal to take him back. He is one of around 12,000 people awaiting deportation in Sweden, many of whom cannot be sent home because their own nations either ignore or refuse to co-operate with deportation orders. "They are not allowed to be here ... and we are unable to deport them, and they won't leave voluntarily," Leo Garpenhielm at the Stockholm County Border Police said. While Mr Tesloy is not legally allowed to work in Sweden, the Swedish National Lottery said he was legally entitled to take advantage of his lucky break. He now plans to become a physiotherapist. Telegraph.co.uk

Sailor Jessica Watson hits bulk carrier before solo round the world voyage Wednesday, 9 September 2009 Australian Associated Press A 16-year-old schoolgirl attempting to become the youngest person to sail solo around the world has suffered a setback after her yacht hit a bulk carrier , but she plans to continue her record voyage. Jessica Watson left Mooloolaba on Queensland's Sunshine Coast on Tuesday on a 10-day preliminary solo journey to Sydney in her 10.4-metre sloop Ella's Pink Lady. However at 2.30am (AEST) on Wednesday, her yacht crashed into a 63,000-tonne cargo ship believed to be heading north, 15 nautical miles east of North Stradbroke Island's Point Lookout. Ms Watson's media spokesman Scott Young described the collision as a "small incident" and said she would continue her journey after repairs were made. "They came together at sea and she's now bringing the boat back to southeast Queensland," Mr Young told AAP. Mr Young said a preliminary assessment of the yacht indicated there was no structural damage. "There's mostly just damage to rigging, which can be replaced," he said. Ms Watson hopes to become the youngest person to sail solo, non-stop and unassisted around the world. In 1999, Australian Jesse Martin became a household name and entered the record books at 18 by covering 27,000 nautical miles in 328 days by himself. His record was broken last month by 17-year-old Briton Mike Perham.

P-plater 'naked at wheel' in fatal crash September 8, 2009 A PROBATIONARY driver's estimated alcohol reading and speed - and the fact that she was driving naked at the time - were used as evidence yesterday to commit the teenager for trial on culpable driving. Jessica Maree Langford, 19, pleaded not guilty to the charge and to dangerous driving causing the death of her boyfriend at Hastings on November 29 last year. Melbourne Magistrates Court heard that Langford's speed was calculated at 104 km/h in a 90 km/h zone and her blood alcohol concentration at .09 about two hours after the crash. She and Daniel Andrew Glover, 19, had been ''skinny dipping'' at Shoreham around midnight and remained naked after using their clothes to dry off. Langford later told police they had been drinking at the beach and that swimming in the nude had been fun, but denied any sexual activity happened while driving. In a record of interview, she said that usually when she drank she would get dropped off and someone else would drive home. ''But this time I was very stupid.'' The Sydney Morning Herald

Police shut down kick-for-cash operation at Triangle Center Thursday, September 10, 2009 A Rainier man came up with an innovative — if rather painful — money-making idea and decided to give it a test run Tuesday at the Triangle Center in Longview. The 23-year-old man held a sign inviting people to kick him in the groin for the bargain price of $5. Perhaps fortunately for him, only one customer took him up on the deal before police decided to break up his enterprise. And even worse, he’d dropped the price to $3 for his one customer because she was female, he told Longview police. After receiving a complaint about the man, Longview police made him leave the area and told him not to return. He got off lightly compared with a Canadian man who, in 2007, asked women in Guelph, Ontario, to do the same thing to him at no charge. According to a Canadian newspaper, one of the women kicked him repeatedly.

Amateur Inventor’s Homemade Submarine September 4, 2009 “Tao Xiangli prepares his homemade submarine before operating it in a lake on the outskirts of Beijing September 3, 2009. Amateur inventor Tao, 34, made a fully functional submarine, which has a periscope, depth control tanks, electric motors, manometer, and two propellers, from old oil barrels and tools which he bought at a second-hand market. He took 2 years to invent and test the submarine which costs $4,385 .”

BMW Blue Dynamics Concept BMW Blue Dynamics Land Yacht by designer Stefan Radev , the concept is a wind powered vehicle. It consists of three wheels and a sail. The name "Blue Dynamics" combines a symbolic connection of the wind(air) and BMW "efficient dynamics", "active hybrid" greener emmision programs. The concept has a rigid sail to harness the energy of the wind, and the driver can adjust the sail from the cockpit. Entry to the cockpit is through the concept's elevating windscreen. + More >>

'I never wear sunscreen', says former Baywatch babe Pamela Anderson as she reveals her ageing face Daily Mail 09th September 2009 Pamela Anderson cut a still enviable figure in a tiny yellow bikini as she and her boyfriend surfer Jamie Padgett enjoyed a day on the beach. And in the most unforgiving of bikinis she looked much younger than her 42-years...when seen from behind that is. But the same could not be said when she revealed her tired, lined face and it seems that she only has herself to blame. The 42-year-old revealed that she has no skincare routine - and amazingly never wears sunscreen, despite living in the Malibu sunshine.

Dareway 08 Ride On If you can’t afford a Segway for the kids, consider a Dareway 08 Ride On - the next best thing. The Dareway - which, in addition to the pink and purple model also comes in a more demure and masculine silver - operates with a quiet motor and progressive acceleration. Travel forwards, backwards left and continue reading… $229 Check It Out

Italian actress Maria Grazia Cucinotta arrives for the screening of the film "Baaria" at the Palazzo del Cinema building during the 66th Venice Film Festival September 2, 2009.

Mercedes-Benz F-Cell Roadster Past, meet Future. For about a year, more than 150 trainees and dual education system students worked on the overall concept, development, assembly, and completion of this, the Mercedes-Benz F-CELL Roadster. The result is a retrofuturistic machine that uniquely combines state-of-the-art technologies with the history of vehicle construction. Paying homage to eras long gone, the continue reading… Check It Out

Losing 8-metre talons robbed woman of ‘identity’ Thursday, 3 September 2009 A woman who until recently held the world record for her eight metre-plus fingernails has spoken of the car crash that robbed her of the impressive talons and her “identity”. Lee Redmond, of Salt Lake City, Utah, had grown her nails for 30 years when the accident happened in February this year. Speaking publicly for the first time since then, Ms Redmond said it was “the most dramatic” event in her life, but added: “There’s more to life than nails”. The 68-year-old great-grandmother had nurtured her nails to a combined length of 8.65 metres (28ft 4in). She currently has 11.5cm (4.5in) of nails and said she has no intention of growing them back to their former glory. To coincide with the launch of the 2010 edition of Guinness World Records, she spoke of her life since the crash. She said: “Losing my fingernails has been the most dramatic thing that’s happened in my life. I think it was my grandson that said, ‘Grandma, they are like your baby; you’ve taken care of them for 30 years and lost them in a second’. But then when you think about it, you know our whole life could end in a second, not just part of the body, but your whole life.” To coincide with the interview, Guinness World Records is including a picture of Ms Redmond taken just three months before the crash in its latest edition.

Dutch police ruin legal cannabis experiment Dutch police swooped on what they thought was an illegal cannabis farm only to partly dismantle a scientific experiment, the University of Wageningen said. 03 Sep 2009 "More than half the plants were destroyed," Simon Vink, spokesman for the university, said on Thursday. The plants were part of a legal experiment on the suitability of cannabis fibres for the production of textiles, paper and synthetic materials, he said. "The project had been underway for years and was in its final phase, which would have allowed us to introduced these new fibres to the market. "We will probably suffer big losses; we are busy doing the calculations." He added the university, in the east of the country, was "busy talking to the police" about recovering costs.

Mach Ness Motorcycle manufacturer Arlen Ness crafted this metal monster powered by a gas-turbine helicopter engine. The aluminum outer shell with noticeably large rivets gives it a sort of steam punk edge that you just won’t get from carbon fiber and plastic. The body has been shaped entirely by hand, which lends to why it’s not being mass produced. Source

So much for packing a, um, rod September 8, 2009 It's a lesson he should have learned from Plaxico Burress -- but this was worse. A 15-year-old Brooklyn boy shot himself in the penis Sunday after fumbling with a gun that had slid from his waistband, authorities said yesterday. Khamir Grant was then arrested for reckless endangerment and criminal possession of a weapon -- the same charges levied against Burress, who shot himself at a Manhattan nightclub in 2008, law-enforcement sources said. Grant told cops that he was walking home from Amersfort Park at East 39th Street and Avenue J in East Flatbush around 1:30 a.m., when the gun began to fall into his pants, sources said. When Grant grabbed for it, he accidentally pulled the trigger, firing a bullet right through his penis. Grant staggered home and told his mom what had happened, sources said. They took a livery car to Kings County Hospital, where Grant was released after treatment and then arrested by police.

Quarrel may be linked to drug find in Durant September 6, 2009 DURANT, Oklahoma — A bad breakup or a lovers’ quarrel are the leading theories Bryant County officials have for finding nearly $500,000 worth of someone’s property strewn about a Durant area street last week. Just as surprising as the overall value was the property itself: 236 potted, high-grade marijuana plants. "Strangest thing I’ve ever seen,” said Chuck Carroll, field supervisor for the District 19 Drug Task Force. "That (a domestic dispute) is the first thing that came to our minds. Someone wanted this marijuana to be found.” A caller reported "shrubs” in the road about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday and called back a short time later saying they appeared to be marijuana, Carroll said. Some plants were standing upright and others toppled, in the middle of and next to the street. Carroll and the deputies found about 156 in several groups, each about 100 yards apart. They found 80 more about a mile away. The Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control estimates the plants’ street value at $2,000 each. "Crazy. Someone’s Christmas is going to be lean this year,” Carroll said. "These were indoor-grown, very good marijuana plants.” Investigators had not made any arrests as of late last week. The plants were destroyed. "We got a county commissioner to dig us a hole and furnish some diesel, and we burned it,” Carroll said. "A half-million dollars’ worth of marijuana up in smoke.”

Fetishist Nabbed In Car Lot Louisiana man in lingerie, fishnets "trespassed" between vehicles SEPTEMBER 8--Meet John Hudson. Two days after celebrating his 18th birthday, the Louisiana man was arrested last Thursday night on obscenity and trespassing charges. Hudson was nabbed at the Hixson Autoplex in Monroe, where cops discovered him wearing women's lingerie and fishnet stockings. Hudson explained that he was "masturbating in the parking lot and that he had a fetish." A further description of that fetish is not contained in a Monroe Police Department report . However, the document does note that Officer Rodrick Candley observed pornographic magazines, women's clothing, lotion, and a "pink dildo with pubic hairs on it" between two cars on the Hixson lot. Hudson, pictured in the below mug shots, was booked into the Ouachita Correctional Center. He was released after spending about five hours in custody. Smoking Gun

Woman charged with raping, burning man Thursday, September 03, 200 Police say a Washington County woman raped a man and burned him with a curling iron to get him to comply. Police say the 22-year-old man knows his alleged attacker, 23-year-old Samantha Harvey, of Washington, Pa. Ms. Harvey was on her probation on theft and threat charges for stealing money from her grandmother in 2006. Police charged Ms. Harvey Tuesday after investigating the man's claim that she forced him to have sex at his home on Aug. 20. The man told police Ms. Harvey clipped the hot curling iron to his ear and burned his genitals with it. Ms. Harvey is also charged with involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, terroristic threats and reckless endangerment. Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09246/995333-100.stm#ixzz0Q9VufqGX

Bizarre act halts court hearing September 2, 2009 James Orr put an immediate halt to his criminal trial Wednesday when he squeezed the contents of his colostomy bag onto the table in front of him and ate it. "There was what appeared to be feces on the table and on the floor," assistant Hamilton County prosecutor David Prem said. Prem was prosecuting Orr, 66, for robbery and kidnapping. The trial, without a jury before Common Pleas Court Judge Ethna Cooper, began last week but continued today. A witness had just taken the stand in the case Wednesday when Norm Aubin, Orr's attorney, said Orr leaned into him and asked if Aubin had anything to eat. A shocked Aubin said he didn't. Orr then said he was hungry and asked for food. Aubin ignored him. That's when Orr made a spectacle of taking his colostomy bag, worn on the outside of his body to collect his waste, and placing it on the table. He then squeezed it and looked to be eating it. "It appeared he was eating his own (feces) at the table," Aubin said. The Sheriff's deputy in the room shouted "What are you doing?" and then cuffed Orr and rushed him out of the courtroom. The Sheriff's office later reported there was feces on Orr's lips, beard, hands and the defense table where he was sitting. The judge suggested the courtroom had become a biohazard area and closed it for cleaning, continuing Orr's trial until next week. Prem admitted he almost vomited up while watching Orr's antics but suspects they were done with a purpose. "He's a con man. He has over 50 aliases and has convictions in Ohio and New York for thefts and robberies," Prem said. "He's done just about everything a person can do to avoid justice. He feigned (mental) incompetence" leading up to this trial, Prem said. Orr was ordered to trial after court mental health workers deemed him mentally sound and a faker. "I'm completely convinced his whole goal here is to cause as much mayhem as he can," Prem said of Orr. Aubin will have jail workers again check Orr's mental health before continuing the trial Wednesday. No additional charges were filed against Orr after Wednesday's courtroom activity.

Icare Bike Concept Of all the possible concept designs for Batman’s motorcycle the Icare Bike Concept would certainly be on the list. One could just imagine the Dark Knight leaning into a tight turn on this sleek black bike. Icare isn’t just a cool concept, but a real working design. It’s powered by a six-cylinder 1.8 liter Honda engine with dual exhaust. Right now it’s still up in the air whether or not it will go into production, but keep you fingers crossed. Source

camper cart The work of kevin cyr , is a project of his titled 'camper cart'. The pop up camper is affixed to a shopping cart which can be pushed to a chosen location and opened to serve as a functioning habitat for an urban camper. The project investigates habitats and housing, recycling and ecology; exploration and mobility. The project is supported by FEAST (funding emerging art with sustainable tactics)

Suburban Tipi “The ’suburban tipi’ is a fusion of three different nomadic home structures: the yurt, igloo, and tipi. The home measures 16 feet tall by 18 feet in diameter and has 255 square feet of living space. to the John Paananen website

The Classicist: The $100,000 Panama Hat Sept 10th 2009 . Brent Black , renowned authority and preeminent purveyor of handwoven straw hats , is now offering the world's finest Montecristi Panama for $100,000. Known simply as "The Hat", Black calls the exquisite creation the most finely woven Montecristi Panama the world has ever known. Authentic Montecristi Panamas , the world's greatest, are made from extremely fine toquilla straw and woven only in Ecuador ; a handful of master weavers produce the best of the best, which sell for tens of thousands of dollars apiece. The Hat was commissioned by Black from the king of the master weavers - Black calls him the best weaver in history - Simón Espinal , who lives in the village of Píle in Montecristi Canton. It took him five full months to complete. After Espinal completed the weaving, five other artisans spent several more weeks preparing and finishing The Hat. An incredible amount of handwork goes into Montecristis; hence the price. You can see some of it in the gallery and a more detailed exposition here . The Hat has not been blocked into a style or sized yet, and is awaiting the purchaser's final instructions. Black offers dozens of different styles and bespoke finishes, some based on vintage patterns such as the dashing Optimo design, above. The Hat is so incredibly fine it weighs less than one ounce.