Newzity

Of course they do. Otherwise how would we know that they are snobs? And it is no joke. The 25-th richest man of the world thinks all the money, fame, and luxury are not enough until the ultra-rich gets their own magazine. This summer he will start publishing Snob magazine.

There would also be website and television dedicated to all the Russians snobs. You see, all the magazines of the world are about the rest of us common people. It is not fair to the ultra-rich. It is high time they have their own. Forty two year old Mikhail Prokhorov, worth $22 billion, will spend $150 million to set up the magazine, website, and a TV station - all called Snob. He thinks boasting about money is justified if you earned it. A few in Russia in recent days have become rich from rising energy prices, and Moscow has most billionaires. At the same time one in five Russians lives under the poverty line. But Russian ultra-riches love to flaunt their money to underscore the depressing disparity.

The middle age bachelor Mikhail thinks the magazine would give a voice to the ultra-rich. Or could it be just the midlife crisis of a rich man?

Not in a big way, but there are signs. The two largest retails chains, Sam’s Club and Costco, are putting restriction on how much rice one can buy. They blamed the decision on the current change in supply and demand.

Following news of the global food crisis there is a surge in people stocking up large quantities of food items in the fear of rising price. To prevent supply shortage Costco warehouse in California started limiting purchases of flour, rice and cooking oil. Following that Sam’s Club, a division of Wal-Mart, is limiting customers to four bags at a time of imported jasmine, basmati and long grain white rice. The limit applies only 20-pound bags and not smaller retail size bags. Another chain BJ’s Wholesale Club said it is not imposing limits for now but watching the situation and may impose restriction later. Rising demand from all developing countries compounded by lower crop yields has incased the price of rice by more than 70 percent since January. The shortage of rice, a staple food for half of world population, can cause a serious problem days ahead.

The present restrictions seemed to target small business and restaurants that might be stocking up in anticipation of higher prices down the road. For now, there is no real shortage of food supply in US.

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Clinton’s campaign tactics have such a right wing tone to it, the swift boat flavor, working under the shadow feel. They have embraced the win-at-all-cost theory and gone to such an extreme place where even John McCain has refused to go. Not to mention the vast right wing support for Hillary.

McCain thinks an ad referring to Rev. Jeremiah Wright controversy is too extreme and should not be aired. This is in contrast to the position Hillary camp has taken with ads: the notorious 3 a.m. ad, the new ad featuring Bin Laden. Remember the race card they played from the start. Bill Clinton made reference to the fairy tale candidacy and even in the recent days he was accused of playing the same race card. But every time when confronted, Hillary camp denied it. This is classic bait and switch technique we have seen often form right wing. And then there are those other rumors they wanted everyone to know: Obama is a Muslim, he is not a patriot, and he is not a true American. Haven’t we heard this soft of smear campaign before? Now Hillary says she against Bush’s war, but she is ready to obliterate Iran. And then there is her new love to guns and religion. She even accused Democratic grass roots plotting against her. No wonder Hillary is the darling of the right wing including active support from Rush Limbaugh and Richard Mellon Scaife.

It makes you wonder who the new right wing is.

Okay, the blind part is a joke. But scientists think regular masturbation helps men reduce the risk of prostate cancer. The same is not true for regular intercourse though.

Australian researchers came to the conclusion form a survey of 1,000 men with prostate cancer and 1,250 healthy men. They found men between 20 to 50 years of age with frequent ejaculation were least likely to have the cancer. It is more effective for younger men in their 20’s, and a frequency of more than five times a week reduced the risk of prostate cancer by a third. They think ejaculation helps men flush out the cancer-causing chemicals that accumulate in the prostrate glad. One such chemical is 3-methylchloranthrene, also found in cigarette smoke. However, frequent intercourse with multiple partners actually increases the risk by 40% due to the increased risk of STIs.

This is similar to the connection between breast cancer and lactation: breastfeeding also helps to get rid of cancer causing chemicals in women.

This time it was Tony himself. On Monday he was caught without a ticket on train to London’s Heathrow airport on his way to the US. He has made millions last year and wanted to skip on a $50 train ticket.

This is nothing new for the Blair family. Cherie Blair, wife of Tony, was fined in 2000 for riding a train without a ticket. And she is a judge of all things. Tony Blair got on the express train without buying the ticket, and when he got caught by the ticket inspector he said he had no money on him to pay for the ticket. He was let go without any fine. This made some people really unhappy. The transit authority said they are pleased to have the former prime minister as a customer, but they are not giving any special discount to him, and expect him to pay the regular fare. Maybe Blair family follows the tradition of queen of England who does not carry money with her.

It is now known how many times he traveled without ticket before he got caught.

It might sound absurd but 13 people were arrested for practicing black magic. A wave a panic has spread in Kinshasa, the capital of Congo, followed by attempted mob lynching of the people suspected of witchcraft. They are accused of making the victims’ genitals shrink or disappear just by touch.

In West Africa there is a deep rooted believe in black magic and feared to be a tool for taking revenge on enemy. And men’s genitals are often assumed to be the target. About a decade ago twelve people were beaten to death for the assumed crime in Ghana. A score of men in Kinshasa are convinced that they were victims of black magic. The fear spread and people were advised to avoid the touch of strangers wearing gold rings in public transport. The victim first claimed they lost their organ but when asked to prove it they say they suffered a great shrinkage. Kinshasa residents believe a separatist sect from nearby Bas-Congo province is trying to settle score for the recent crackdown by government.

But before you judge others for being superstitious, remember how many people fall prey to the bogus emails promising the opposite.