Recent readings...

Fun fun fun on the Net with a mix of funny, interesting and disturbing stuff...

In Japan, you can buy non-alcoholic beer designed for children - good to get them started early! I've seen these drinks for sale in Himeji. I haven't tried them coz I can buy the real thing, dang!

In Kyoto, a mascot for a shopping street has become a cultural phenomenon since its name is also the name given to a kind of manga where the protagonists are young men who fall in love with each other. The shopping street managers are actually encouraging it since the extra money and publicity are good for everyone!

In what only can be a sign of the apocalypse, Mark Philippoussis is starring in a reality TV show to choose a new girlfriend. We have a new definition of 'desperation', as well as 'attention whore'.

In the U.S. a man has found a way to 'burn' sea water, unleashing a possible alternative to petroleum based engines. PLEASE develop some of this new technology! Bring it on!

In Mexico, farmers are burning fields of the cactus used to make tequila and replacing them with corn since the price has sky-rocketed recently. (Thanks George Bush and big agri-business again for stuffing up our lives) Enjoy the tequila while you still can.


Australia's WorkChoices legislation is working so well.

The figures show 37 per cent of employees work overtime or extra hours - and about half of them do so for no extra pay.

Thirty per cent said their shifts regularly overlapped the hours between 7pm and 7am as part of their main job. Three in five said they had no say about when they started or finished.

Yay, Australia! (another reason to stay in Japan, even though the yen sucks at the moment...)



And in follow up to the story about Aung San Suu Kyi's detention being extended, a peaceful group of demonstrators was set upon by a group of junta-supporting thugs as they tried to go to a temple to pray for her release.