Bummerdog Millionaire

Kathy Evans from US brought humiliation to her friends and family when she set a new standard for stupidity with her appearance on the popular TV show, "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire."

It seems that Evans, a 32-year-old wife and mother of two, got stuck on the first question, and proceeded to make what fans of the show are dubbing "the absolute worst use of lifelines ever."

After being introduced to the show's host Meredith Vieira, Evans assured her that she was ready to play, whereupon she was posed with an extremely easy $100 question.

The question was: "Which of the following is the largest?"

A) A Peanut
B) An Elephant
C) The Moon
D) Hey, who you calling large?

Immediately Mrs. Evans was struck with an all consuming panic as she realized that this was a question to which she did not readily know the answer.

"Hmm, oh boy, that's a toughie," said Evans, as Vieira did her level best to hide her disbelief and disgust. "I mean, I'm sure I've heard of some of these things before, but I have no idea how large they would be."

Evans made the decision to use the first of her three lifelines, the 50/50. Answers A and D were removed, leaving her to decide which was bigger, an elephant or the moon. However, faced with an incredibly easy question, Evans still remained unsure.

"Oh! It removed the two I was leaning towards!" exclaimed Evans. "Darn. I think I better phone a friend." Using the second of her two lifelines on the first question, Mrs. Evans asked to be connected with her friend Betsy, who is an office assistant.

"Hi Betsy! How are you? This is Kathy! I'm on TV!" said Evans, wasting the first seven seconds of her call. "Ok, I got an important question. Which of the following is the largest? B, an elephant, or C, the moon. 15 seconds hun."

Betsy quickly replied that the answer was C, the moon. Evans proceeded to argue with her friend for the remaining ten seconds. "Come on Betsy, are you sure?" said Evans. "How sure are you? Puh, that can't be it."

To everyone's astonishment, the moronic Evans declined to take her friend's advice and pick 'The Moon.' "I just don't know if I can trust Betsy. She's not all that bright. So I think I'd like to ask the audience," said Evans.

Asked to vote on the correct answer, the audience returned 98% in favor of answer C, 'The Moon.' Having used up all her lifelines, Evans then made the dumbest choice of her life.

"Wow, seems like everybody is against what I'm thinking," said the too-stupid-to-live Evans. "But you know, sometimes you just got to go with your gut. So, let's see. For which is larger, an elephant or the moon, I'm going to have to go with B, an elephant. Final answer."

Evans sat before the dumbfounded audience, the only one waiting with bated breath, and was told that she was wrong, and that the answer was in fact, C, 'The Moon.'

"Valentine's Day" originated in India - Here's the Proof!!!

In spite of what you have been told by everyone, the truth is that Valentine's Day originated hundreds of years ago, in India, and to top it all, in Gujarat !!

It is a well known fact that Gujarati men, specially the Patels, continually mistreat and disrespect their wives (Patelianis) . One fine day, it happened to be the 14th day of February, one brave Pateliani, having had enough "torture" by her husband, finally chose to rebel by
beating him up with a Velan (rolling pin).

Yes....the same Velan which she used daily, to make chapattis for him....only this time, instead of the dough, it was the husband who was flattened.

This was a momentous occasion for all Gujarati women and a revolt soon spread, like wild fire, with thousands of housewives beating up their husbands with the Velan.

There was an outburst of moaning "chapatti-ed" husbands all over Anand and Amdavad. The Patel men-folk quickly learnt their lesson and started to behave more respectfully with their Patelianis.

Thereafter, on 14th February, every year, the womenfolk of Gujarat would beat up their husbands, to commemorate that eventful day.The wives having the satisfaction of beating up their husbands with the Velan and the men having the supreme joy of submitting to the will of the women they loved.

Soon The Gujju men realised that in order to avoid this ordeal they need to present gifts to their wives....they brought flowers and sweetmeats. Hence the tradition began.

As Gujarat fell under the influence of Western culture, that day was called 'Velan time' day.

The ritual soon spread to Britain and many other Western countries, specifically, the catch words 'Velan time!'. Of course in their foreign tongues, it was first anglisised to 'Velantime' and then to 'Valentine'. And thereafter, 14th of February, came to be known as Valentine's Day!

P.S.: even now during the Holi festival, there is part of a celebration, when women 'beat' their husbands in a mock ceremony !!

Get Married for FREE on Valentine's Day! Courtesy Sri Ram Sena

Unfazed by the outrage over its attack on a Mangalore pub, the self-styled moral brigade of Sri Rama Sene on Thursday threatened to forcibly ‘marry off’ couples dating in public on Valentine's Day.

Sri Rama Sene founder Pramod Muthalik said that his activists would hold protests at hotels, hostels and colleges where Valentine's Day celebrations are held.

"Those found dating, expressing their love, cosying up to each other would be married off," Muthalik, who has been released on bail in the Mangalore pub attack case, said.

He said at a meeting of the Sene held on Wednesday it was decided to request the Karnataka Government to ban Valentine's day celebrations in the state. A memorandum to this effect would be submitted to the Governor Rameshwar Thakur, Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa and Home minister V S Acharya, he said.

The outfit has formed ‘five teams’ which would roam around with a hidden camera on Feb 14. A priest would accompany the team which will have a turmeric stub and 'mangalsutra'. Muthalik, who came to limelight after the January 24 attack by Sene members on boys and girls in the pub, even claimed that the marriages will be ‘registered’.

Hitting back at Union Minister Renuka Choudhary, who had demanded stern action against the outfit, he asked why the Minister had not voiced her opinion ‘when they were cases of rape and crime against women in metros’.

Asserting that the outfit's drive was not politically motivated, Muthalik said, "as a citizen of the country, it is my democratic duty to put an end to anything that is obscene."

While issuing the threat to marry off couples who dated in public, he insisted that while holding protests, Sene activists 'would not take the law into their hands'.

Muthalik claimed his activists had been working for the last 10 years and had ‘succeeded in putting an end to the Valentine's day celebrations in five districts of Karnataka’.

The Sene chief said he faced 53 cases and appeared in 41. To a scribe's retort that if the couple were minors an act of marriage would be unlawful, he said that in such cases the couple would be counselled and the police informed about their activities.

Srirama Sene leaders warned parents who did not want their wards to be married off to ensure that their children do not step out on February 14.

Reacting to Union Minister of State for Women and Child Development Renuka Choudhary's comments that he would not understand love since he was a celibate, Muthalik said, ‘being a brahmachari does not mean I do not understand love’ and said ‘it was not right for a woman who was a national leader to remark like this’.

Muthalik claimed that he had ‘defended women in distress whenever situations arose, unlike Choudhary’.

On reports that the pub attack involved extortion, he challenged those making the allegations to provide proof.

"None of my workers have resorted to extortion", he said.

More...

Good News India IT - India will still grow in 2009!

India's IT industry will show "strong resilience" in spite of the current economic climate, with spending projected to grow 14.1 percent this year.

According to a Springboard Research report released Tuesday, the Indian IT market will not be as severely affected by the downturn as economies in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific markets such as Japan and Korea.

In fact, IT spending in India will still expand by 14.1 percent in 2009, albeit at a slower rate than the 18.1 percent growth it clocked last year, the research firm predicted.

Verticals such as retails and real estate will see the largest cuts in IT budgets, Springboard noted, while telecommunications will see some growth from the anticipated arrival of 3G this year.

After a series of delays, India is expected to conduct its first 3G spectrum auction this year, though the country's Cabinet last week said a ministerial panel is currently looking to resolve several related issues, such as deciding on the base auction price.

However, Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd. (MTNL) and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. (BSNL), which are both India state-owned enterprises or Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs), were given 3G spectrum last year ahead of private telecommunication services providers. Both operators will be required to pay the same license fee when the auction is finalized.

MTNL recently launched its 3G mobile services in selected areas in New Delhi.

Not as affected
Government initiatives to bolster economic growth, increased spending on public security and national defense, as well as IT initiatives in rural India, will pave the way for new technology, Springboard said.

"With the economic crisis expected to further worsen, we will see IT spending affected in India--although not to the same degree as in North America, Europe and other Asia-Pacific markets like Japan, Australia and Korea", said Manish Bahl, research manager at Springboard.

"[India] had delivered impressive growth and profits to both leading multinational and domestic vendors last year, and for many of these vendors, their Indian revenues grew more than 50 percent in 2008," Bahl said.

According to the analyst, local enterprises will focus more on their core business in a bid to build specialization. This will increase their dependence on technology to reduce operational expenditure.

"Albeit in a slow pace, SMBs (small and midsize businesses) will also play their part to drive the market and this is well supported by the changing attitude of Indian companies to view IT as an investment," Bahl noted.

Springboard expects the economic downturn to "trigger a new kind of competition", driving businesses to closely focus on returns on investment calculations, improve their planning and deepen the involvement of IT vendors.

"While major multinational vendors continue to view India as a critical growth market, we expect other U.S.-based firms to amplify their resource influx into the region and set up special teams to focus only on emerging markets such as India," Bahl said.

The top 10 trends Springboard believes will shape India's IT market this year:

1. Arrival of 3G will unlock enormous opportunities for IT vendors.

2. Cost concerns will drive key focus on IT infrastructure consolidation.

3. Economic pressures will drive SMBs toward outsourcing and software-as-a-service.

4. Startups and smaller businesses will become more important accounts for IT vendors.

5. Virtualization will gain traction in medium- and large-sized enterprises.

6. IT outsourcing will be seen as a catalyst to HR (human resource) retention and cost reductions during this economic downturn.

7. The media and entertainment industry will transform further with new technologies.

8. Online advertising markets to gain momentum with the emergence of niche social networking sites and regional portals. 9. The public sector will buoy IT spending.

10. Green IT will be fueled by cost-efficiency benefits.

Courtesy: zdnet News

Oh no Naxals - You have a problem!

The Union Home Ministry has convened a high-level meeting here today to discuss naxal situation in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa and Chhattisgarh.

The Directors General of Police of the four naxal-hit states have been summoned by the Ministry for a thorough review of the situation.

The meeting will also discuss the follow-up action that need to be taken on the decisions taken at the meeting of the Chief Ministers of the naxal affected states on January 7.

The meeting will be chaired by the Special Secretary (Internal Security) Raman Srivastava in the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Over 70 districts in the country are affected by Left wing extremism, which has been described by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as a "virus" and the biggest internal security threat.

In continuing naxal violence in around a dozen states, over 400 people, including over 150 security men, have been killed so far this year.

The Government recently approved formation of a 10,000-strong special anti-Naxal force "COBRA" - Combat Battalion for Resolute Action - to tackle the menace.

In another decision, the Union Cabinet approved creation of 48 new posts of Special Directors General, Additional Directors General and Inspectors General in various central police organisations keeping in view functional necessity.

These posts will strengthen the supervisory structure of these organisations for better command and control.

Courtesy - Yahoo! News

Guess what - Iraq has a new Monument in the shape of a shoe!!!,

An Iraqi town has unveiled a giant monument of a shoe in honor of the journalist who threw his footwear at former U.S. President George W. Bush.

The two-meter (six-foot) high statue, unveiled on Thursday in former dictator Saddam Hussein's home town of Tikrit, depicts a bronze-colored shoe, filled with a plastic shrub. "Muntazer: fasting until the sword breaks its fast with blood; silent until our mouths speak the truth," reads an inscription, in honor of journalist Muntazer al-Zaidi, who hurled his shoes at Bush and called him a "dog" at a news conference during the former president's final visit to Iraq.

Zaidi has been held in jail in Baghdad since the incident, facing charges of assaulting a visiting head of state.

Fatin Abdul Qader, head of an orphanage and children's organization in the town, said the one-and-a-half-tonne monument by artist Laith al-Amiri was titled "statue of glory and generosity."
"This statue is the least expression of our appreciation for Muntazer al-Zaidi, because Iraqi hearts were comforted by his throw," she said.

Courtesy - Reuters

(Reporting by Sabah al-Bazee; writing by Peter Graff)

Joke of the Century - Pakistan gives a new meaning to the Beatles' song!

"Third Place" - In No-where land by no-where men making their no-where plans!!!


There is a place on earth which belongs to no one...and that is where the "stateless actors" planned the 26/11 attacks is the brilliant latest findings by the Pakistanis.

The Mumbai terror attacks of 26/11 were planned in a 'third place' outside Pakistan and Britain, Pakistani High Commissioner to Britain Wajid Shamsul Hasan said Friday.

Hasan said Pakistan's official report on the Mumbai attacks in which over 170 people were killed will be ready 'by Saturday or Sunday'.

'I have spoken to the interior ministry to check on Pakistani newspaper reports that said the attacks were planned in the UK,' Hasan told IANS.

'They told me there was no evidence of UK involvement. The attacks were not planned in either Pakistan or the UK.

'However, they said it was planned in some other outside place. It may not necessarily be a country - it could be a ship,' he said.

Hasan, who was an adviser to slain former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, said the report will be ready by Sunday after it is seen and approved by the president and the prime minister.

Earlier, Hasan told NDTV news channel: 'We are not going to do any whitewashing business. We believe in going after facts. Our findings will be acceptable to the world. We will try to satisfy India with our findings. We are addressing the concerns of the world not just India.'

'When you collect material, then you sort it out, you re-do it and re-read it. That requires time, so I am sure once they complete it, they will come out with concrete facts that will satisfy the world as to Pakistan's non-involvement in the Mumbai attacks,' he said.

Courtesy - Yahoo! News