For the man who has everything
An unidentified wealthy Russian man attempted to purchase a U.S. B-52 bomber plane from a U.S. delegation of American pilots at an airshow near Moscow.
A Russian newspaper said the man, who was surrounded by bodyguards, asked the pilots if he could buy the plane, to which the pilots replied it was not for sale.
The American went on to say that if the bomber were for sale it would cost at least $500 million. The Russian said this would not be a problem.
The Americans did not sell the bomber.
Dead mother left in chair
A German man who said he could not face the prospect of organizing her funeral instead left his deceased mother in an armchair at their shared home for two years.
The man’s mother died of natural causes while sitting in the chair in July 2005. She was 92. The son was given a death certificate by a doctor but never registered the death.
The man’s neighbors reported the corpse to police. When questioned, the man said he didn’t want to move the body and never entered the room where she was sitting. He is under investigation for violation of German burial law.
Chinese ban surgery
TV China’s broadcasting watchdog, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, recently added “public participation” in sex-change operations and plastic surgery to its list of outlawed material.
In a notice posted on its Web site Friday, the agency stated, “All levels of television broadcasters must not plan or produce sex change or plastic surgery programs involving public participation (including news, specials or interviews), effective immediately.”
The ban comes as part of the agency’s crackdown on the country’s increasingly vulgar and bizarre TV show topics. It is urging broadcasters to display more socialist values in their programming.
Taxi turned hearse
A family in Caracas was forced to send their murdered son to the morgue via taxicab after they’d waited five hours for the police, who in the end never showed up.
The 20 year old’s body was found near a creek, and heavy rain was threatening to wash it away if it wasn’t moved promptly. He was killed in what looked like an attempt to steal his motorcycle.
Caracas is one of the most dangerous cities in Latin America. It reports dozens of murders every week.
Man sets 100-child goal
A one-legged Emirati man, who is already the father of 78 children, is attempting to reach his goal of 100 children by 2015 with the help of at least three more wives. The 60 year old already boasts 15 previous brides. He has to divorce some of them when he remarries so as to stay within the legal maximum of four wives at a time.
His oldest child is 36, his youngest 20 days. Two of his three current wives are pregnant. The family has lived in 15 houses, and the disabled man supports them with his military pension and government aid.