Officials Paint Mountain Green

Local government officials in China have been criticised for spraypainting a barren mountain face green.

Laoshou mountain, near Fumin in Yunnan province, was left an eyesore by quarrying.

But instead, of re-foresting the mountainside, forestry officials hired seven workers for 45 days to spraypaint it green.

Nearby villagers have been driven from their homes by the strong smell of paint,

Some villagers speculated that Fumin County officials, whose office building faces the mountain, were trying to change the area’s feng shui — the ancient Chinese belief of harmonizing one’s physical environment for maximum health and financial benefit.

A woman who answered the phone at the Fumin County forestry department said the department was unaware of reasons behind the paint job.

"This is an order from above," she said.

China's official Xinhua News Agency estimated the cost of the paint job at 470,000 yuan ($60,000) and quoted villagers as saying that, if spent on plants and trees, the money could have restored a far greater area of barren mountain.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/china/story/0,,2012697,00.html

Contributed by the videoddgrapher

Get your money on HD-DVD

Back in the 80s when there were two competing video technologies, VHS
triumphed over Betamax largely because Sony, who owned Betamax, refused to
allow their format to be used by the porn industry.

Hence VHS became the industry standard.

There’s a TV format war brewing again - HD DVDs versus Blu-ray.

Sony own Blu-ray and, guess what, they don’t seem to want porn on this
system either, having backed out of a deal with adult film studio Digital
Playground.

HD-DVD is easier to produce anyway so the porn industry is 100% behind
this format.

PS3 uses Blu-ray so there is some hope for Sony but we’re still sticking
our money on HD-DVD.

Contributed by Vonross
http://www.clubofpioneers.com/blog/blog-from-ross-von-burg/16/

Chocolate Car

A Chinese car dealer covered a car in chocolate for Valentine's Day.

About 450 pounds of melted chocolate was spread over the VW Beetle after it was first wrapped in cling film.

Seven people worked overnight to make sure the chocolate car was ready to go on display on the morning of Valentine's Day.

There is no word if anyone ate the car

Hannibal Helmurto

Soon To Be A Movie?
From Misc-Reports contributor Larry

Former tax inspector Helmurto was kept in intensive care under observation for three weeks and was unable to eat or drink.

The blade pierced the inside of his respiratory tract. But doctors decided to let the throat repair itself rather than operate.

Several weeks ago, the entertainer took to the stage for the first time since receiving his self-inflicted injury.

Helmurto, who has more than 200 tatoos, said: "The accident was just one of those freak moments and it certainly hasn't put me off performing."

Hailing from Germany, he has spent 10 years modifying' his body after seeing the Circus of Horrors in his home town of Munich in 1996.

"I was working for the German government at the time," he said. "I did not have one tattoo or piercing but after seeing the show I knew I had to join it."

And now the performer boasts there is more ink on his skin than blood running in his veins.

He also has giant yoyos fitted inside his earlobes and his tongue
has been sliced with a laser to ensure it is permanently forked.

His stage show sees him insert huge hat pins through his face then drink water and squirt it out through the holes.

The self-taught' Bavarian staples £10 notes to his forehead and dangles himself from just two meat hooks rammed through his back.

For More Info:
http://www.swordswallow.org/news.php

What? That Was 23 Years Ago, Officer

SMETHPORT, Pa. (AP) - Talk about the slow wheels of justice. A man was arrested on a 23-year-old bench warrant that he said he thought was taken care of years ago.

Merle Hulbert Jr., of Eldred, was brought Thursday before McKean County Judge John Yoder, who noted that Ronald Reagan was president when the warrant for failing to appear at a hearing was issued.

Hulbert said he had no idea the case, a driving-while-intoxicated charge, was still open. His former attorney has since died and he said he was stopped once or twice by police before without the warrant coming up.

Yoder ordered the case to be scheduled for a plea, then told prosecutors he hopes they have a witness with a good memory.

Virgins Wanted Reality

From roving reporter R

UK TV has been unfavourably compared to
US series for a few years.

It's not always the case. MTV UK made a series this year called The Virgin Diaries,in which some teenagers made video diaries of the months before and after they first had sex.

Cue usual Daily Mail furore, but it was a sympathetic and genuinely revealing piece of TV, and picked up a Broadcast Award this week.

In America this year, get ready for Virgin Territory. Teens are being auditioned in Los Angeles and New York to lose their virginity on screen.

It's brought to you by the man behind Paris Hilton's home sex
tape and he's trying to get porn star Jenna Jameson involved.

Update Go To: TMZ

The Cold Wave

It is the middle of January and freezing weather is finally upon us.