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Jeremy Clarkson apologises for calling Gordon Brown 'a one-eyed idiot'

Jeremy Clarkson - Top Gear_01
Jeremy Clarkson: made comments on Gordon Brown to the Australian press
Jeremy Clarkson: made comments on Gordon Brown to the Australian press

Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson has apologised for calling the prime minister, Gordon Brown, a "one-eyed Scottish idiot" after a barrage of criticism from politicians and disability groups.

The BBC star, who is currently in Australia on tour, said in a statement: "In the heat of the moment I made a remark about the prime minister's personal appearance for which, upon reflection, I apologise."

Earlier, Clarkson had compared Brown to Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd, after Rudd had just addressed the country on the global financial crisis.

"It's the first time I've ever seen a world leader [Rudd] admit we really are in deep shit," Clarkson was reported as saying in the Australian newspaper.

Control Panel

Secularist group buying billboards to honor Darwin

Charles Darwin
© Henry Guttmann, Getty ImagesBritish naturalist Charles Darwin. Original Artwork: Woodbury type by Lock & Whitfield.

Grand Junction, Colorado - A secularist group is observing the 200th birthday of Charles Darwin with billboards that urge people to "Evolve Beyond Belief."

The Freedom From Religion Foundation placed "Praise Darwin" billboards in Grand Junction; Dayton, Tenn.; Dover, Pa.; and Whitehall, Ohio.

They feature stained-glass designs and a picture of the evolutionary theorist born on Feb. 12, 1809.

The Tennessee and Pennsylvania towns had landmark court cases about the teaching of evolution.

In Grand Junction, the foundation has complained about prayers in county meetings. The organization has battled Whitehall over nativity displays.

Mr. Potato

How the Kremlin Caved in Over Girl's Guinea Pig

Russian Guinea Pig
© UnknownWhat a Russian Guinea Pig may look like.
Pigs were used by George Orwell to satirise Stalin's Soviet state in Animal Farm - but guinea pigs are just as controversial in modern Russia.

13-year-old girl has felt the wrath of the Kremlin for having the audacity to ask the Russian president for a new pet. Nastya Ivliyeva wrote to Dmitry Medvedev's website asking for a guinea pig to go with her existing one.

As soon as local officials found out about the request they went to the girl's school where she was called to the headmaster's office and ticked off so badly that she burst into tears.

Cow

Injured Deer Stumbles Into Ohio Vet Clinic

No appointment needed: injured deer stumbles into Ohio pet shop with veterinary clinic.

Workers at an Ohio pet shop are used to worried pet owners bringing their animals in to be treated in the store's clinic.

But an unaccompanied visit Saturday by a deer to the PetSmart in Rossfield was a first for the store.

Manager Trudi Urie says the wounded doe was hanging out behind the store and then ran through an open door into a stockroom.

Smiley

Ohio Teen Charged with Billing School for $37K of Candy

Police: Sweet scam sours when Ohio teen caught billing High School for $37,000 worth of candy.

Police say an Ohio teenager tried to pull off a sweet deal by ordering more than $37,000 of candy online and charging the bill to his former high school.

Police say the 18-year-old used a Middletown High School purchasing number to place orders for thousands of lollipops and candy bars from Michigan-based The Goodies Factory. It wasn't clear how he accessed the number.

The candy company became suspicious, contacted the school and was told by detectives to send an empty box.

Snowman

Twitter suspends fake Dalai Lama account

US micro-blogging service Twitter has suspended an account said to have been set up the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama saying it had been created by an impersonator.

Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, in an email to AFP on Monday, said "the account was suspended because it violated our Terms of Use regarding impersonation".

The account - twitter.com/ohhdl - was created on Saturday and attracted nearly 20,000 followers in just two days, a phenomenal rate of growth.

Smiley

'Miracle baby' survives after 20 minutes underwater

A two-year-old girl who spent 20 minutes under water after falling into a swimming pool has stunned British doctors by making a full recovery in hospital.

Oluchi Nwaubani was playing at a friend's house when she fell into the pool and sank to the bottom.

The toddler spent 20 minutes under water before she was found and rushed to hospital, where doctors gave her just a two per cent chance of survival.

Her parents, from Petts Wood in south London, were told that if she survived she would not be able to move, speak or eat properly.

But after three months of treatment in hospital, Oluchi has made a full recovery.

Blackbox

Japan: Police baffled by Y360 million that disappeared from backyard

On Oct 10, 2007, an 83-year-old company owner in Saga Prefecture reported to police that 360 million yen, which he had buried in his yard, had disappeared. The money was never recovered and the man passed away last December. The police revealed details of the case on Jan 28.

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Flashback Recording Industry Calls Radio 'A Kind Of Piracy'

from the and-mocks-broadcasters dept

It would appear that the recording industry now likes to call any sort of business model it doesn't like "piracy." At least that's the only explanation I can come up with in its latest battle, where it has referred to traditional radio as "a form of piracy." It's almost too bizarre to be true, and that's before we even explain how this involves a (literal) can of herring.

It's difficult to pick a side to cheer for in a dispute between the RIAA and the NAB -- as we're talking about two organizations with a history of saying the most outrageously incorrect things in misguided attempts to "protect" the industries they represent (which almost always ends up backfiring and hurting the industry). However, in the latest battle between the two, it seems pretty clear that it's the RIAA that's being more ridiculous.

Smiley

Canadian Woman Offers Free Hugs

A 26-year-old Canadian woman says she offering free hugs for the third year in a row on the streets of Toronto.

"Some people will walk by smiling and other people will come running because they love the hugs," said Tanya Neumeyer, who took to the streets Sunday with her older brother Ian in tow.

The Neumeyers and a few friends carried large signs saying "Free Hugs," which startled some passersby and comforted others, The Toronto Star reported Monday.