The Malaysian Government has been running seminars to teach parents and teachers how to spot nascent homosexual behaviour among children. It says watch out for boys who favour light-coloured or tight-fitting clothes or who carry large handbags ... and that budding lesbians like to hang out with other females. (Reason.com)
Ultimate symbol of waste
A supermarket chain which uses a slogan urging more common sense in shopping has been selling pre-peeled bananas on styrofoam trays, wrapped in plastic film. Customers have threatened to boycott the German-owned Billa supermarket chain in response to what was described as the ultimate symbol of waste and the throwaway society. A spokesman for Greenpeace in Austria said: "If there is an ultimate easy to open ready-packed food it's the banana - peeling it only to pack it in environmentally unfriendly plastic is just madness." (Austrian Times)
Children tell it how it is
Nikki Keane writes: "The other night, out of nowhere my just turned 7-year-old daughter asks 'Mum, were you adopted?'
"'Yes,' I say. 'Do you know what that means?'
"'That you were second hand.'
"That's hitting the nail on the head, I guess."
Working hard for that 'country' living
A reader writes: "If you live in Whangaparaoa instead of, say, Takapuna, you will spend around 30 minutes extra each way in your car at rush hour. Since in each eight-hour work day most people spend at least a couple of hours doing pretty much nothing (coffee, gossip etc), commuters work an extra day a week, equal to 20 per cent of their salary in lost time/money."
Small scallops
The reader who complained about the small scallops will find that they're probably Australian scallops, says Neville. "Our bigger ones are all exported ... and we are left with second best."
