Labour follows debate failure with car crash event The VW Golf crashed after some dustmen were distracted by the poster launch Martin Fletcher and Philippe Naughton Labour’s ill-starred election campaign took another hit today when Gordon Brown’s launch of a poster designed to set the agenda for the final week was interrupted by a car crash. Witnesses at the poster launch in Hockley, Birmingham, said that, after a long squealing of tyres, Aa green Volkswagen Golf smashed into a bus shelter on a traffic island only yards from the car park where the Prime Minister and nine Cabinet ministers were … Continue reading ‘Crash Gordon’ in Birmingham?

Dr. Taxi Posted by Guest (www.dawn.com) Canada:  Some say it’s not a country, it’s winter. In some parts of it, for about eight months of the year, the dog shit is too frozen to worry about. But what worries me most is that my fellow Pakistani taxi drivers are on the road all year round. The time has gone when Sikhs used to dominate the taxi business here; now it’s the Pakistanis who rule. From Yellowknife, a city near Arctic Circle, to the eastern cities, I can’t recall a single major city where I haven’t come across Pakistani taxi drivers. … Continue reading Dr Taxiwalla Sahib!

Following the final TV debate, our panel assess the performance of Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg Jackie Ashley, Madeleine Bunting, Aditya Chakrabortty and Gaby Hinsliff guardian.co.uk, TV debate: what’s your verdict? Photograph: guardian.co.uk Jackie Ashley: No one leader has this election in the bag One thing went right for Gordon Brown: yesterday really did seem to be yesterday. His brief self-deprecating reference to “Bigotgate” at the beginning of the debate defused the situation, and neither of his opponents were daft enough to try to make political capital out of it. Clearly shaken by his day in Rochdale, Brown … Continue reading Leaders Debate: Verdict

VIEW: Of interventions —Gulmina Bilal Ahmad We are not fighting only a military war. It is a war against mindsets and attitudes that are discriminatory and bigoted. It is actually a war against a paranoid mindset Comedy of errors or a case of what goes around comes around? For years now, human rights activists have highlighted the plight of the ‘missing persons’. From demonstrations to contacting politicians to even approaching the Supreme Court, the families of the missing persons have continued their protests and agitation. It is alleged that the missing persons were and are in the custody of the … Continue reading The Takfiri Mindset in the kidnapping of Colonel Imam

Indian military scientists are studying an 82-year-old who claims he has not had any food or drink for 70 years. telegraph.co.uk Indian patient Prahlad Jani (Mataji), who claims he has survived without food and water for more than seven decades Photo: AFP Prahlad Jani is being held in isolation in a hospital in Ahmedabad, Gurjarat, where he is being closely monitored by India’s defence research organization, who believe he may have a genuine quality which could help save lives. He has now spent six days without food or water under strict observation and doctors say his body has not yet … Continue reading Man claims to have had no food or drink for 70 years

Sarkozy’s niqab ban: a legal nightmare While boasting about human rights, the president has got the French state into a muddle about what it is trying to achieve Agnès Poirier guardian.co.uk A veiled Muslim woman walks near the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Photograph: Gonzalo Fuentes/Reuters President Sarkozy must be having nightmares every night. Little did he know last June that his idea of banning the niqab in France, “the country of human rights”, would so lamentably backfire. Today, he is struggling to put an end to l’affaire. And it is of little satisfaction to him that Belgium should be the … Continue reading Sarkozy’s womens clothing fixation: a legal nightmare

Three-year-old boy arrested as suspected terrorist in France By Peter Allen Arrest: A three-year-old boy has been detained on suspicion of terrorism with his father in France (file photo) A three-year-old was arrested as a suspected terrorist and held at a French police station for more than two hours, it emerged today. The child – identified only as Daniel – is the son of an illegal immigrant from the Paris suburb of Juvisy. Last Thursday the pair were arrested as they returned to their car after visiting a leisure centre. Police officer claimed they were carrying out routine vehicle checks … Continue reading Three-year-old boy arrested as terrorist in France!

Don’t even think about it! The fearless squirrel who fights off crows determined to eat his dead friend By Daily Mail Reporter Loyalty among the larger creatures of the animal kingdom is well documented. But faithfulness and friendship from a squirrel? A remarkable video has appeared showing just that, with one scaring off several crows as he protects the dead body of his little mate. His stand against overwhelming odds and the formidable devotion shown by such a small animal has been acknowledged by over half-a-million hits on the video-sharing website YouTube. Don’t mess with me: The squirrel eyeballs the … Continue reading Honorable and fearless squirrel

Is this haunting picture proof that chimps really DO grieve? By Michael Hanlon United in what appears to be deep and profound grief, a phalanx of more than a dozen chimpanzees stood in silence watching from behind the wire of their enclosure as the body of one of their own was wheeled past. This extraordinary scene took place recently at the Sanaga-Yong Chimpanzee Rescue Center in Cameroon, West Africa. When a chimp called Dorothy, who was in her late 40s, died of heart failure, her fellow apes seemed to be stricken by sorrow. As they wrapped their arms around each … Continue reading Chimps coping with death of an elder

What I learned from Boobquake When I heard an Iranian cleric claim that immodest dress caused earthquakes, I had to test it out, as scientifically as possible Jennifer McCreight guardian.co.uk Figure one – the total number of earthquakes per day (measured in GMT) going back to 5 February. Boobquake marked in red. What turned into a viral media extravaganza began as a humorous science experiment. On Monday 19 April, I had just read Iranian cleric Hojatoleslam Kazem Sedighi‘s assertion that “Many women who do not dress modestly … lead young men astray, corrupt their chastity and spread adultery in society, … Continue reading The Way of Tits!