untitled U.N. Commission Calls for Legalizing Prostitution Worldwide (CNSNews.com) - A report issued by the United Nations-backed Global Commission on HIV and the Law; recommends that nations around the world get rid of “punitive” laws against prostitution – or what it calls “consensual sex work” -- and decriminalize the voluntary use of illegal injection drugs in order to combat the HIV epidemic. The commission, which is made up of 15 former heads of state, legal scholars and HIV/AIDS activists, was convened in 2010 by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon and is jointly backed by the United Nations Development Programme and UNAIDS – the Joint U.N. Programme on AIDS/HIV. The commission recommends repealing all laws that prohibit “adult consensual sex work,” as well as clearly distinguishing in law and practice between sexual trafficking and prostitution. Specifically, the commission wants to: -- “Decriminalise private and consensual adult sexual behaviours, including same-sex sexual acts and voluntary sex work.” -- “Reform approaches towards drug use. Dr.
Bizarre Places - London’s Top 10 Bizarre Places Guest Post by David Long, Author of Bizarre London From the time of Boudicca to the Boris Bike, in a sprawling metropolis covering 600 square miles – a city where eight million Londoners speak 300 different languages – it’s only right to expect places which are unexplained, unusual or just plain odd. Here are 10 of our favourites: London Hydraulic Power Company For more than 100 years the turbines here sent pressurised water through 200 miles of pipes all over London to power hotel lifts, theatre curtains and even dockyard cranes. Kensal Green Cemetery This Victorian cemetery with its huge elaborate tombs and beautiful landscaping is the final resting place of Thackeray, Trollope, Brunel and the great showman Blondin. Fortnum & Mason Far from the Highlands, the so-called Scotch Egg was actually invented in 1738 by upmarket grocers Fortnum & Mason. Burlington Arcade Opened in 1819, Burlington Arcade is one of London’s oldest shopping centres.
Long-bearded axe A bearded axe, or Skeggöx (from Old Norse Skegg, beard + öx, axe) refers to various axes, used as a tool and weapon, as early as the 6th century AD. It is most commonly associated with Viking Age Scandinavians. The lower portion of an axe bit is called the "beard" and the cutting edge of the bearded axe extends below the width of the butt to provide a wide cutting surface while keeping the overall weight of the axe low. The hook, or "beard" of the axe would have also been useful in battle, to hook onto things, such as shields or weapons, to pull them out of the defender's grasp. Modern Japanese bearded axe, demonstrating the grip for shaving wood Additionally this design allows the user to grip the haft directly behind the head for planing or shaving wood. Variations of this design are still in use by modern woodworkers and some foresters.
London’s Pet Plaques And Memorials London’s second most-famous Boris, possibly, is Boris the cat, whose memorial can be found in Kentish Town on Anglers Lane (perhaps he’s looking for fish). London’s most famous pet statue commemorates Hodge, pet cat of Samuel Johnson. Find it in Gough Square near the lexicographer’s museum-house. This little-known cat statue stands in a children’s playground in Old Gloucester Street, round the corner from Great Ormond Street. These two dog memorials hide in a niche within the central courtyard of the V&A. Giro was the pet terrier of German ambassador Leopold von Hoesch and, as such, is often labelled as a ‘Nazi dog’ (in truth, Giro’s political leanings were not recorded). Hogarth’s pug Trump stands beside his painterly master on Chiswick High Street. The Golden Heart pub in Spitalfields has a number of peculiar decorations on its Commercial Street frontage. A pet cemetery in the grounds of Marlborough House. A pet cemetery on the northern edge of Hyde Park.
Just how prevalent were Axes, Flails, and other "strange" weapons on the battlefield? : AskHistorians Pudding Air Travel Redemption Claim: A clever consumer earned millions of miles of free air travel by taking advantage of a Healthy Choice pudding promotion. Example: [Collected on the Internet, 2000] David Phillips, a civil engineer at UC-Davis, has become a cult hero in the obsessive subculture of people who collect frequent-flier miles by converting $3,150 worth of pudding into miles. Oh, yeah — he's also going to claim an $815 tax Last May, Phillips was pushing his shopping cart down the frozen-food aisle of his local supermarket when a promotion on a Healthy Choice frozen entree caught his eye: He could earn for every 10 Universal Product Codes (bar codes) from Healthy Choice products he sent to the company by Even better: Any Healthy Choice bar codes mailed by the end of the month would rack up double the mileage, or 1,000 miles for every "I started doing the math, and I realized that this was a great deal," he said. "They had individual servings of chocolate pudding for apiece," he said. miles. But not to worry.
New Color Display Feature Added to 5000-series Rail Cars CTA’s newest rail cars now feature new LED display signs in colors corresponding to the transit system’s eight rail lines—another amenity to benefit customers. 5000-series rail cars with the full-color LED signs began operating on the Pink Line, Tuesday. The signs are located on a train’s head car, as well as on the sides of each car. When the CTA originally contracted for the cars, color electronic displays were not readily available. The color LED signs will not cost the CTA additional money; the change orders are factored into the purchase price of $1.137 billion for the full 706 rail car order. The first 114 cars built without the color signs will be retro-fitted starting this fall. Photo
The Whiskey Rebellion. | Broken Piano for President [Click to enlarge] After conferring with my publisher’s legal minds, I’ve been given the green light to post this. If you haven’t been following, Jack Daniel’s sent me a letter saying the artwork for Broken Piano for President must be changed. What follows is, perhaps, the most polite cease and desist ever written. If it wasn’t signed by some lawyer, I’d imagine ol’ Gentleman Jack penning it himself, twirling his bushy mustache. In case you’re wondering, no, my publisher, Lazy Fascist Press, will not be taking them up on their offer. *Good news if you already own a copy of Broken Piano for President: that baby’s going to be a collector’s item. Powell’s appears to be sold out. Amazon still has some for sale. Like this: Like Loading...