KEY POINTS:
The New World flyer delivered to nearly every household in NZ contains a nice wine offer - Villa Maria Cellar Selection Range for $13.99, until Sunday. But James Goodman found it more than a little difficult to redeem in Devonport: "New World sells the merlot/cabsav for $23.95, so this is a $10 savings," he writes. "But at the Devonport store it's not marked down on the shelf. When I try to purchase two bottles they charge me full price. Why doesn't the coupon apply? They discuss it among themselves and the manager concludes he can't sell it to me for that price. I ask him to tell me it's a mistake, and he refuses. After more discussion, he tells me to check back tomorrow. I inform him this would be a good story for SideSwipe and he sells me the bottles at the coupon price. But they're still charging everyone else full price! Let's see. This offer has supposedly been good since Monday and they clearly know about it. It is not a mistake, but they won't sell it at the advertised price. Can this possibly be legal?"
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Seeing this sign in Coatesville, a reader wonders ... "Did they think locals stole the goods and will return them with questions unasked on becoming aware the stolen goods were not insured? Surely it is more than likely the burglars live miles away in another part of Auckland and will never read the notice. But maybe those stolen from are just naive - after all, they didn't think it necessary to insure!"
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Gary Corbett of Mt Eden has another breakdown story: "My daughter, who is an AA member, broke down in the Waioeka Gorge between Opotiki and Gisborne. She tried to ring the AA but there was no cellphone coverage. She hitched a ride into Gisborne and rang the AA. They refused to provide a breakdown service because she was not with the car!
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I couldn't believe what I was hearing, says one Olympic fan. "A couple of nights back, after the men's 200m heats at the Olympics, TVNZ reporter Toni Street interviewed Paul Hession, the Irish athlete who won his heat, and came up with a gem (to add to all the other gems she's come up with over the last week and a half): 'What's it like being up against all these black men?' Not to mention, 'You're an inspiration for white New Zealand men'."
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The president of Japan's Osakana Planning Co told those attending the Japanese Seafood Show last month that his tuna makes superior sushi because his company administers acupuncture to each fish before its death, in order to reduce stress. (Source: News of the Weird)
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Today's Webpick: This tasteless ad for a redneck outfit called Cash For Gold USA advocates yanking Grandma's gold fillings out before she kicked the bucket. Watch it here. These are the very best online videos from Ana's online magazine Spare Room.
