Wackets! (Wacky snippets of news)

Welcome to our Wackets page!  This section will be dedicated to short news items or news in brief!  Or as we like to call it.......Wackets!

Good luck pilgrimage kills six!  A giant boulder the size of a 
house, fell on six pilgrims, killing them and seriously injuring two others.  The boulder smashed into their car after they were returning from a visit to mountain top pagodas where over 1.2 million people go, to pray for good luck.  The accident could have been caused by the use of dynamite to build a road near the 710m peak in An Giang province, south west Vietnam.




Sale now on!  Ice creams only 10p!  A neighbourhood in Babina Greda, Croatia, are enjoying the delights of their cut price ice creams after Slaven Maric from the local council organised a fight against 'business freeze' by slashing the prices to just 10p.  Mr Maric says "Happy children means relaxed parents who spend money"
Come on ice cream vanners, give us something in the U.K to smile about!





Fat cat finally passes away :....(  Meow, one of the worlds fattest and famous cats weighing in at 2st 8Ib (18kg) has died from complications with his weight.  The two year old tabby was taken to an animal shelter after his 87 year old owner could no longer look after him.  He was immediately put on a diet and had lost 2Ib (900g) but developed breathing problems and sadly passed away in his Santa Fe, New Mexico shelter :(  RIP Meow.







I only wanted to be famous!  Gabriele Reali of Florence, Italy decided to shoot his brother with a crossbow, just so he could get into the papers!  Reali, 46, told police "I wanted to do something that would end up in the papers, I didn't want to kill him, just to injure him so the case would get some publicity!"  His brother Michele is now recovering from a shoulder wound!  Most people just enter the X Factor to make a fool of themselves!




New laws in Switzerland will allow prostitutes to take their punters to court if they refuse to pay up after receiving aherrmmm their service!  
Seems that in the largest city of Switzerland, the sex trade is extremely popular and there are several 'escort' agencies in Zurich that target wealthy business men.  
What happens if a Judge refuses to pay up?







Don't look back in anger!  A Spanish study has shown that people who remember the past in a negative way, are more likely to to find it a physical effort doing day to day things, and are more likely to become ill.  Those who learned from their experiences are physically and mentally stronger, and do not notice body pain as much.  Oasis got it spot on!




A newly wed couple from Tokyo, Japan, spent their honeymoon in.............the football stadium of Southampton!
Mr Yasumoto convinced his new wife that the highlight of their honeymoon would be a visit to the St Mary's football stadium to watch his beloved Coventry City take on Southampton.  His team lost 4 - 0 and were already relegated.  So not the best of days Mr Yasumoto!

A speeding motor cyclist found a novel way to cover his number plate, so he wouldn't get nicked flying down the highways at high speeds.  But unfortunately after getting 'nicked' after cops caught up with him, the 48 year old biker, who was doing 120mph near Johannesburg was forced to remove the pair of knickers covering his number plate!

A stupid burglar tried paying for a taxi with stolen goods, including a gold watch and a DVD player after fleeing the crime scene in Portsmouth, UK, in a cab he'd booked as his get away car!  Anthony Thacker, 33, was sentenced to a suspended 12 month jail sentence and given a supervision order.  Thick as thieves?

A dentist in Glasgow, Scotland is treating a dozen colleagues who are afraid of having their teeth checked with hypnosis, laughing gas and relaxation techniques!
Dr Mike Gow 35, says he can ease their fear of needles by using the unusual methods!
He says: "They are people who have fears just like everybody else"




A study of 3,000 people aged between 15 and 23 has shown that obesity is linked to fast food TV ads!  I thought it was eating too much to be honest!
The US study says TV ads for burger and fried chicken restaurants was leaving a lasting impression on young people's waistlines and says fast food advertising is strongly linked to obesity.  So stop watching TV and eating then!

Cannabis farms are on the rise in Britain!  More than 20 farms and factories were discovered every day last year!
Police seized drugs to the value of £100 million from a total of 7, 865 farms found in Britain during 2011/12.
According to a study from the Association of Chief Police Officers, criminals were reducing the size of their farms and employing "gardeners" to manage small sites!


Ghostbusters!  MP's in Belgrade, Serbia are calling in the ghostbusters after hearing spooky voices in parliament!
The building sits on an old cemetery site and the politicians are said to be genuinely frightened inside the building.
They have heard unusual "spirit voices" and have now had enough.  Lets hope it isn't Slimer causing trouble again!

What a fantastic idea this is!  Convicted drink drivers in Austria will be made to fit "alco-locks" to their cars which will flash the lights and sound the horn until the car is halted, if the driver is over the limit!
The drink drivers must blow into the mini breathalyser before switching on their engine and at intervals during the journey as part of a new trial!










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Pain in the neck!

A REAL man's sport!

Now that's a man's sport isn't it! Rugby.........forget all these overpaid footballers who seem to spend most of their careers, being paid huge amounts of sick pay when ever they get injured!

These lads who involve themselves in the rugged sport of rugby certainly take a lot of knocks.........in fact one rugby mad fella found out he'd been living with a broken neck for 43 years!

I want £200,000 a week or I will cry!!

Phillip Loveday, a former soldier was playing for the Army, when a 22 stone opposing player came crashing down on him.

Mr Loveday, hard as nails!

At the age of 16, he remembers going to hospital after the bone crunching tackle and says: "I went to hospital, and as far as I was concerned everything was OK, but looking back, you have to remember that X-rays then, weren't as clear as they are today!"

Mr Loveday certainly got his break in life!

It was only when Mr Loveday, aged 59, went to hospital after dislocating his shoulder, that it was then discovered he had a fracture of his C3 vertebra!

Mr Loveday from Bridgend, South Wales said: "I had an MRI scan of my shoulders and neck and the doctor asked me if I knew I had a fractured neck.  I said, no.  The fracture was still there and visible on the scan.  I didn't feel anything because there was nothing to feel."

Mr Loveday explains that when he went into the Army, he had to bulk up, and went from a seven stone weakling with a tiny neck, to having a 22 inch neck!  The muscles inside Mr Loveday's neck got stronger and bigger and were able to support his head and neck, despite the fracture!  The former Harlequins rugby player, who served in Northern Ireland and the Gulf, broke his neck again in 1971 whilst playing for the Quins against London Welsh!

Unfortunately experts have told the grandfather of ten, that there is no way to fix the break, but this didn't bother the former soldier who has since re-trained, to become a tutor through the Education Programmes for Patients, and is now helping other patients with chronic and long term illnesses.

My hat goes off to you Mr Loveday.......with that grit and steely determination, you'd be the ideal candidate for the England managers job!  Oh but god forbid the players carry on with a dead leg!!!

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Quick Scopes (29th April 2012 - 5th May 2012)

Lucky, lucky Gemini!

Horoscopes for the week ahead from Enigma Gee.

Our Astrologer predicts that Gemini will be the LUCKY SIGN of the week.

Each week Enigma Gee, determines each star signs reading, including a set of lucky numbers, which have brought luck and good fortune to one of our subscribers so far, who won a nice little amount of cash on the Euro Millions draw in April 2012.

Each reading is short, straight to the point and should be memorable for you to take into your week.

Subscribing to our website, includes being kept up to date with new content, new games, fresh news stories, new themed pictures and videos from Jelly Belly's Funny Pics & Vids, new competitions and of course our Quick Scopes from Enigma Gee.

Subscribing is easy, free and you won't pay a penny to receive our content.

In fact, when you subscribe to us, you will be entered in all future competitions to win some great stuff without having to keep entering your email address!

We won't send endless amounts of emails either, unlike some other websites!

Once we've added fresh content to our site, we will send you an email until new content becomes available.

You can un-subscribe at any time, which is very easy to do, just follow the instructions in each email we send you.

Don't forget our great competition by the way.  You can get your hands on the new Apple iPad if you become our lucky winner.  Incidentally this competition is coming to a close at midnight 30th April 2012, so if you haven't entered already, now is the time to get your entry in!  No Purchase Necessary.  Check our terms on our website.

Enigma Gee wishes every star sign the best of luck, and a great week ahead.  And the best of luck in our Apple iPad competition.

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Pot, Kettle, Black.....but we agree!

Addison Lee chairman John Griffin

It was rather ironic to hear that the boss (John Griffin) of Addison Lee (the private hire or mini cab company) stating that: cyclists should expect to get hurt by drivers, if they take to the road.  The reaction of cyclists was typical, and they stated they would be boycotting Addison Lee's offices with a protest.

Cyclists protest outside Addison Lee offices

Addison Lee's chairman has raised a subject, that with all intensive purpose is extremely valid.  However it may have been a little over the top, to imply that cyclists deserve to get hurt, or should expect to be injured on our roads!  It was also an over the top reaction from cyclists, to stand up and react in the manner in which they did.

Really! Was there any need for this protest?

Any debate that has the potential to make our roads safer, should be welcomed with open arms, considering there was 111 cyclists killed in 2011 and 2,660 seriously injured, the whole debate about whether cyclists should be on our roads, sharing the traffic with buses, cars, cabs, lorries, motor cyclists etc is one that needs some attention.

I am astonished at the comments made from a chairman of a large company however, when from experience can say that, when I have been out driving on our roads, and met other traffic, I have found many, many Addison Lee "black cabs" driving extremely erratically!

Some of the drivers of these private hire cars, surely cannot have passed a normal driving test!

I have witnessed these taxi's stopping abruptly, driving dangerously slow, cutting other motorists up and standards way below their so-called professional status dictates.

This is not a dig at cyclists or Addison Lee, but in a round about way, we may end up getting some changes, that are desperately needed to stop the amount of injuries and fatalities on our roads.  So we sort of agree with Addison Lee in some respects.

Another bike rage incident!

Cyclists do not have any formal training, do not hold road insurance or taxation, and anyone can now ride where ever they feel like, thanks to Boris Johnson's bicycle scheme!

I have encountered a huge amount of cyclists, who think it is ok to go through red traffic lights, and I do mean a huge amount.  I have witnessed near misses with cyclists who do not stop at zebra crossings, children on mountain bikes, circling around on our roads, without a care in the world. 

A very large amount of cyclists are also very rude and inconsiderate to other road users.  In fact a large amount of cyclists seem to provoke a lot of road rage, typically when they shout abuse to a driver.  Many of them do not seem to know how to apply their brakes, and give way to large vehicles and consequently annoy many many motorists.

We all have to share the road, and it is quite annoying that cyclists, who do not pay ridiculous amounts of money for insurance, tax, petrol and do not need to have any formal training think they have a right to treat other road users with a lack of respect.

Look you can get a badge as well!

Should it be compulsory?

The sooner that a nationwide cycle test is implemented the better.  Cyclists should also pay for road insurance, as they have on previous occasions caused accidents.  Cycle owners should also be registered and hold a number plate.

These are some recommendations that have been bouncing around for a while, and until someone grasps this subject and starts to do something about it, the more we are going to hear of cyclists being injured or killed.

Of course implementing all of those ideas, will not stop the amount of accidents, but will go some way in reducing them.

Introducing cycle only lanes on a larger scale, would also help in reducing accident numbers.

It is a fore gone conclusion, that with the introduction of more bicycles in our cities and road dimensions remaining the same that the numbers of accidents are only going to rise, so something has to be done now.

Addison Lee, should probably have gone about raising this subject in a more tactful way, but none the less, it is a subject that needs addressing and quick.

In addition, it might be worthwhile if Addison Lee take a look at their own drivers behaviour on our roads, because it isn't just the cyclists that are navigating our roads without due care!

What do you think?

Take part in our poll about cyclists, should they pay insurance?  Should they take a road test?  Tell us what you think in our survey on the right.

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Lucky to be alive!

Steven with his angel Dr Piper!

A young man declared dead four times by doctors, defied the odds by surviving a car crash that left 21 year old Steven Thorpe with serious injuries to his face, left arm and needing brain surgery.

Steven's parents begged medics not to turn off the young lads life support machine, even after doctors at the University Hospital in Coventry declared young Steven brain dead!

Mr Thorpe, a trainee accountant from Kenilworth, Warwickshire, United Kingdom was woken from a medically induced coma, after two weeks and was eventually discharged from hospital after a further five weeks.

The doctors in charge of Steven's care, had even asked the parents whether they should consider organ donation.  However after pleading with the hospital to reconsider switching off their son's life support machine, the parents decided to bring in a private doctor for another opinion.

Dr "angel" Piper

Dr Julia Piper, was called upon, and after asking a neurologist to examine Mr Thorpe, they discovered that Steven's brain had very faint brain waves, which could indicate a very slim chance of a recovery.

The young fighter was left in a terrible state, after being involved in a three car crash and a run away horse, which left one person dead and the horse fatally injured.  After having brain surgery, doctors at the hospital told the parents that Steven would never recover!  Thank god the parents never gave up hope!

Before and after.  Steven Thorpe continues to recover
from his accident.

The lucky lad, has since had physiotherapy on his arm and four operations to his face, including an operation to rebuild his nose and have an artificial eye socket made.  Steven said: "Hopefully, it can help people see that you should never give up.  I've had so much positive feedback about it.  My father believed I was alive, and he was correct."

Dr Julia Piper, based in Leicester said: "It's an inspirational story about never giving up.  He's a remarkable young man and his recovery has been astonishing."

University Hospital in Coventry.
School report says: Need to try harder!

University Hospital Coventry and the Warwickshire NHS trust stated that Mr Thorpe's injuries were critical, and brain scans revealed almost irreversible damage.

The trust added: "It is extremely rare a patient with such extensive trauma to the brain should survive."

Mr Thorpe said: "As far as I am concerned, living is a full recovery.  From how I was, to how I am now, I think it's a miracle."

What an extremely lucky, plucky and modest young man you are!

You survived the odds, and if it wasn't for your parents, Dr Piper and your will to live, this could have been another sad story.

The University Hospital in Coventry, should seriously take a look at it's approach to other patient's care and raise the bar.  Credit to Dr Piper for her expertise and identifying that Steven had a chance of recovery.  EVERY patient should receive that type of care and consideration.  

Maybe Dr Piper should run the NHS!

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More Money Than Sense survey results!

We conducted a survey during March and April 2012, and would like to say a huge thanks to everyone who selected their answers and took part in the survey, which was based around a young business man, who had spent the best part of £200,000 for a round of drinks at a top London venue.

(Click here to read that news story)

We asked in the survey what you would do with £200,000?
The answers were:  Buy a sports car
                             Give the money to charity
                             Buy a house
                             Take a long holiday
                        or: Buy a round of drinks!

We found most of our participants would buy a house and take a long holiday, followed closely by with a sports car and surprisingly a round of drinks.
Only 5% of participants would give any money to charity!

Results were: Sports car = 20%
                    Charity     = 5%
                    House      = 30%
                    Holiday    = 30%
                    Drinks      = 15%

Thanks again for taking part in our "More Money Than Sense" survey, and look forward to our next survey coming soon.


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Quick Scopes (22nd April 2012 - 28th April 2012)

This week our LUCKY SIGN is Aquarius.
Come and check out your horoscope for the week ahead, including a set of lucky numbers chosen by our Astrologer Enigma Gee.


Aquarius
(20th January – 18th February)





Lucky Numbers:

16, 34, 39, 41, 43, 49

Your Quick Scope this week:
Well, well, well........You are our LUCKY SIGN of the week Aquarius!
You've been feeling under the weather the past week and probably found it hard to shift that nasty cold you had.  But typically with Aquarians, they bounce back  right to the top, and you're energy levels will top right out.  Your social life will be demanding some more time from you, but you'd rather concentrate on your loved one or family.  Money and work is nice and steady and a win out of the blue will bring a smile to your face.  Have a great week Aquarius.




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