Just a slight feeling of insecurity
Lisa writes: "Saturday night in Glen Eden a guy comes to my house at around 9pm and raps on the door. I lean out from the first-floor window and say, "can I help you?" The guy says he's from a security firm and he was going around telling people in our complex that there have been a lot of break-ins. I said thanks and that I'd double-check everything was locked up. I then called the police. On Sunday afternoon, I get another knock on the door, and same thing and same guy who says he's from the security firm and that they are having a special. I made a face, said no and told him to go. I'm a single female, living alone. Imagine if this thing happened to an elderly person or someone with cause to be frightened by this incredibly cynical business practice?"
Cultural 'cleansing' of Buddha continues
Buddha statues are now viewed the same as Barbie dolls and The Simpsons figures and have been banned in Iran. Authorities are confiscating Buddha statues from shops in the Iranian capital, Tehran, to stop the promotion of Buddhism in the country. Keeping retail free of Barbie is to reduce Western influence, but this is the first opposition to symbols from the East. One newspaper quoted an official for the protection of Iran's cultural heritage calling the Buddha statues symbols of "cultural invasion" and that the "cleansing" would continue. Iranians buy Buddha's statues to decorate their homes and cars. Some Islamists view statues as a way to promote idols. (Source: SFGate)
Let me tell ya about the birds 'n' bees
