Sideswipe: May 4: Cakes with threatening auras

Looting fail

A dealership's entire stock of brand new farm vehicles, worth about US$5million, somehow made its way from a Russian-occupied city in Ukraine to Chechnya, more than 1100km away. Whoever expected to enjoy the plunder sadly found that the vehicles were inoperable, having been remotely disabled by the manufacturer. The sophistication of the machines, all of which are equipped with GPS, meant that their travel could be tracked. The equipment included combine harvesters which can also be controlled remotely. The equipment now appears to be languishing at a farm near Grozny. The hijackers have found consultants in Russia who are trying to bypass the protection.

Don't be a tosser

Mike came across this sign while fishing at Matata, Bay of Plenty. "Environment BOP should be commended for their great and witty way they get the message across of no dumping rubbish."

Throwing the book at banning

At a time when censorship and cancel culture have become prevalent, one Maine library is promoting tolerance by opening its shelves to banned book titles. The small library is located off the coast of Maine, on an island called Matinicus. The population of the island may be tiny, only 100 residents live there, but their open-mindedness is huge. The library hosts oft-banned titles such as Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath and the more recent And Tango Makes Three, among others. To Kill a Mockingbird has been banned for its racial and adult themes. The Grapes of Wrath has been banned for its use of profanity and "inappropriate sexual references". Meanwhile, And Tango Makes Three, based on a true story about two male penguins who raised a chick together at the Central Park Zoo, is one of the most challenged books in the US for portraying a same-sex couple.