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A compilation of brief news reports for Thursday, November 13, 2008.

A new study has found that people storing extra fat around their waist have a strongly increased chance of early death, even if their overall weight is average. The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine today, found that for each addition 5 cm on the waist, the chance of early death is increased by between 13% and 17%.

In the study, 360,000 people from across nine countries in Europe were surveyed.

One of the study’s authors, Professor Elio Riboli of Imperial College London, commented on the findings. “We were surprised to see the waist size having such a powerful effect on people’s health and premature death,” he stated.

Sources

• “‘Love handles’ raise death risk” — BBC News Online, November 13, 2008
• Ian Sample. “Waist, not just weight, shows risk of premature death, study says” — The Guardian, November 13, 2008
• Tobias Pischon et al. “Abstract: General and Abdominal Adiposity and Risk of Death in Europe” — New England Journal of Medicine, November 13, 2008

The European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union, has today lifted its ban on unusually shaped fruits and vegetables, in what the EU’s agriculture commissioner has called “a new dawn for the curvy cucumber and the knobbly carrot”.

The regulation has previously been criticized as an example of the EU’s bureaucracy by critics of the organisation.

The products affected by the deregulation are apricots, artichokes, asparagus, aubergines, avocadoes, beans, Brussels sprouts, carrots, cauliflowers, cherries, courgettes, cucumbers, cultivated mushrooms, garlic, hazelnuts in shell, headed cabbage, leeks, melons, onions, peas, plums, ribbed celery, spinach, walnuts in shell, water melons and witloof/chicory.

Sources

• “EU slices up ‘ugly fruit’ rules” — BBC News Online, November 13, 2008
• “Europe Relaxes Rules on Sale of Ugly Fruits and Vegetables” — New York Times, November 13, 2008

A vase purchased at a car boot sale for £1 has sold for £32,450, following advice from experts on the BBC‘s Antiques Roadshow television program. The vase was sold in an auction at Christie’s.

The vase was found to be a 1929 work made by the French designer Rene Lalique.

Sources

• “Car boot sale vase nets £32,450” — BBC News Online, November 13, 2008
• “£32,449 profit for car boot sale vase by Lalique” — Times Online, November 13, 2008

Recent anonymous press briefings by US State Department officials indicated that its arms control division may punish Blackwater Worldwide for improper paperwork.

The Directorate of Defense Trade Controls has the power to fine or agree voluntary penalties with exporters of certain weapons, who do not follow correct procedures. Blackwater Worldwide, a private military company, exported automatic weapons to Iraq that became the subject of a federal investigation first disclosed in 2007.Concern was expressed by the unnamed officials that paperwork errors may make the weapons untraceable, and that some reached Iraq’s black market.

Sources

• “Blackwater Faces Millions in Fines for Weapons Shipments (radio show transcript)” — Democracy Now!, November 13, 2008
• Knight Ridder / McClatchy Newspapers. “Blackwater faces Fines over Arms Deal” — Military.com, November 13, 2008
• Dan Friedman, Congress Daily. “Blackwater could face sanctions for improper arms shipments” — Government Executive, November 7, 2008

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

In what participants are terming a victory, all 28 of the occupiers arrested this morning at the Thomas Cook office in Grafton Street, Dublin, Ireland have been released with a minimal punishment and Thomas Cook management are returning to the negotiating table.

Employees had made plans to strike in order to obtain a larger redundancy package following the announcement of the closure of their store; when the company attempted to close the store earlier and without warning, in response the workers began an occupation.

Of the over 44 people occupying the office last night, 28 refused to leave and were arrested between 4am and 5am this morning in a pre-dawn raid by the Garda Síochána reported to have involved at least 80 officers. “It was quite scary” when the police broke through the office’s glass door, noted occupier Caroline Cullen, speaking to Wikinews. “We haven’t had any notice”, she recalls telling the officers. Occupiers had expected the police to arrive later at 11am.

Cullen reports that of the 28 arrested, 27 went immediately to jail where they spent about nine hours; the 28th, Avril Boyne, was nine months pregnant and entered labour as the police arrived. She was taken to hospital and delivered a healthy baby girl, Chelsea, just after 11am.

While in jail, Cullen says that the 27 “weren’t treated like criminals”. They were not handcuffed and were provided with good food. The meal consisted of a hot lunch of fish & chips, and chocolates for dessert. The Gardaí also gave the occupiers private toilet facilities.

In court, the arrests of the 27 for contempt of court were purged, on the condition that they each sign a document saying they would comply with the court order in the future.

The employees of the Thomas Cook office in Grafton Street will return to work as usual tomorrow, with negotiations about the size of the employees pension package resuming tomorrow morning between the employees and Thomas Cook management. The workers will be represented by TSSA general secretary Gerry Doherty. Cullen told Wikinews that the Thomas Cook workers were “absolutely delighted” with the situation and hope to have a final settlement with the company tomorrow.

The Thomas Cook employees were supported in their occupation by the community and an impromptu and growing coalition of left-wing political groups. Socialist Party Councillor Matt Waine and People Before Profit Councillor Richard Boyd Barrett were among the 28 arrested this morning; the Workers Solidarity Movement and Eirigí also supported the demonstrations from the beginning; Sinn Féin made an official declaration of support after this morning’s arrests; and two Labour Party (Ireland) TDs, not speaking officially for the party, criticised Thomas Cook management’s conduct in statements released after the occupiers were released.

Trade union Unite has declared solidarity with the TSSA and the Thomas Cook workers.

Speaking to Wikinews from Socialist Party headquarters, Matt Waine told Wikinews that he and his party consider the results of the Thomas Cook occupation “definitely not a loss. It’s a victory. The workers have laid down a very important marker for other workers that are in a similar situation.” Workers, though, must remain militant, he said: “we feel that this issue has thrown the gauntlet down as to what they [workers] can expect from the police, the state etc. if they take action…this doesn’t end here. I think the issue still remains of justice for the workers in terms of a decent redundancy package.”

Waine also took issue with the TSSA’s refusal to support the occupiers after last night’s court order ruled that the industrial action was an illegal occupation. While allowing that the TSSA’s response in court was made “under pressure”, Waine said that always complying with the law, as general secretary Doherty pledged the TSSA would do, is “not what the trade union should stand for. The rights of members should be paramount.”

Thomas Cook management was unavailable for comment.

Saturday, April 8, 2006

A Honolulu man who fell into the sewage-contaminated Ala Wai Yacht Harbor died Thursday night of a massive bacterial infection that caused the loss of one of his legs, septic shock, and ultimately organ failure.

Oliver Johnson, 34, a Honolulu mortgage broker, died between 9:15 and 9:30 p.m. HST Thursday (0715-0730 UTC Friday) when his family removed him from life support. On Friday, March 31, Johnson had apparently fallen into the waters of the Ala Wai Yacht Harbor, located at the mouth of the Ala Wai Canal on the western side of Waikiki.

At the time, the canal and surrounding beaches were contaminated by over 48 million gallons of untreated sewage. The extent to which the sewage spill contributed to Johnson’s symptoms remains unclear.

Johnson earlier reported that he had fallen accidentally into the harbor, then later indicated that he had been involved in a fight on board a boat and had been pushed or thrown into the harbor waters. A security guard at Johnson’s apartment reported that he was bloodied and soaking wet, and that he stumbled into the lobby and collapsed. Paramedics took Johnson to Straub Hospital where he was treated and released.

Johnson reported steadily worsening leg pain that weekend and was admitted to Queen’s Hospital on Sunday with breathing difficulties. Doctors that night amputated his left leg above the knee to try to halt the spread of the infection, and Johnson was placed in a medically induced coma.

Initially suspecting that Johnson had contracted streptococcus-caused necrotizing fasciitis, doctors later found that Johnson had contracted three different bacteria, two of which, vibrio vulnificus and aeromonas hydrophila, have flesh-eating properties. Despite the amputation, Johnson’s condition steadily worsened to the point where doctors said that his other leg and left arm would also have needed to be amputated to save his life.

An autopsy performed by the Honolulu medical examiner’s office reported that Johnson had suffered from massive organ failure caused by septic shock. The medical examiner noted that Johnson had a vulnificus infection on his foot and suffered from chronic alcoholic liver disease which may have contributed to the infection’s taking hold.

The Honolulu Police Department has opened a third-degree assault case; with Johnson’s death, homicide detectives are also investigating. State health officials are also investigating Johnson’s illness.

Johnson’s family has retained an attorney to investigate the causes surrounding his illness and death. It is not clear yet whether any legal action will be taken.

Sunday, October 30, 2011

U.S. Republican Party presidential candidate and former Governor Buddy Roemer of Louisiana took some time to answer a few questions from Wikinews reporter William S. Saturn.

Roemer served four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives in the 1980s as a member of the Democratic Party. He was elected governor as a Democrat in 1987 before switching to the Republican Party ahead of the 1991 election for governor. That year, he lost the party’s primary to state legislator David Duke. After his governorship, Roemer worked as CEO of Business First Bank in Baton Rouge.

Roemer announced his candidacy for president back in July after exploring a bid for several months. He has focused his campaign on the issue of campaign finance reform, refusing to accept money from political action committees (PACs) and limiting individual campaign contributions to $100. He raised a total of $126,500 in the third quarter of 2011, far short of the $14.2 million raised by former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.

For his campaign, Roemer has adopted the slogan ‘Free to Lead’. He rails against corruption, special interests, and money in politics, and has expressed support for the Occupy Wall Street protests. Furthermore, he has taken issue positions in favor of fair trade, a balanced federal budget, and a strengthened national defense.

Roemer has not been invited to any national presidential debates. He has focused largely on the first-in-the-nation primary state of New Hampshire, and recently signed up to appear on the state’s primary ballot. However, a recent University of New Hampshire Survey Center poll shows him with less than one percent support in the state. Pearson Cross of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette commented, “If Buddy can exceed expectations in New Hampshire or even sneak in and steal third — that would give a boost that he could build on”.

Tuesday, September 4, 2018

Fan Expo Canada ran in Toronto last weekend, from Thursday to Sunday, spread over both multi-storey buildings at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. The event is one of North America’s largest pop culture events, with panels, product unveilings, screenings, an artists’ alley, and celebrity autographs.

Featured programming included reunions of cast members from 2001: A Space Odyssey, Back to the Future, Xena: Warrior Princess, and Degrassi: The Next Generation. Other cast panels included Star Trek Discovery, Adventure Time, Steven Universe, and Grand Theft Auto. Attendees could have their portfolios reviewed by staff from Marvel and DC Comics, speed date others of the same sexuality, or try a Doctor Who escape room.

The end-of-summer event is one of three held in Toronto by convention firm Informa, a list that also includes the springtime Toronto Comic Con.

Wikinews was there, and captured some of the cosplay creativity and booths full of products new and old.

• Peekaboo Cosplay as “Glitterbomb Jessica”, based on Jessica Rabbit

• Faraway Cosplay as Ariel from The Little Mermaid

• Dayna the Sloth as Nightmare Ysera from World of Warcraft

• Jennocide as Storm and Lisa Mancini as Thor

• Quarter_year_cosplayz as Toothless the dragon

• Fan-made Pokemon sculptures

• Artist’s Alley promotional display

• Hasbro booth

• Ralph Breaks the Internet promotion

• Funko Pop display

• Dragonball Z display

• Voice actor Grey Delisle

• Voice actor Jim Cummings

• Alpha Flight action figures unveiled at the event

• Alpha Flight action figures unveiled at the event

• Rogers built a structure nearby, including a SpongeBob-themed room.

• Toys’R’Us is still active and open in Canada, despite closing in the US.

• Showcase had live painting for the show Marvel Runaways.

• Inigo Montoya

• Game of Thrones

• The Incredibles

• The Incredibles

• Super Mario characters

• Belle and Prince Adam

• Inflatable dinosaur meetup

• Peter Pan, Wendy, and Captain Hook

• Rainbow Brite

• Spinelli from Recess.

• Ariel

• Chuckie Finster from Rugrats

• Waluigi and Wario

• Lara Croft

• Objecthead cosplay

• Daft Punk cosplay

Friday, October 21, 2016

The following is the fifth edition of a monthly series chronicling the U.S. 2016 presidential election. It features original material compiled throughout the previous month after an overview of the month’s biggest stories.

In this month’s edition on the campaign trail: an arrest warrant is issued for the Green Party presidential and vice presidential nominees; the “Birther King” opens up about Donald Trump’s changing view on President Obama’s place of birth; and Wikinews interviews a write-in presidential candidate hoping to run the “most libertarian” campaign in history.