[The Nation (Nairobi)] A 47-year-old telecommunications engineer died on Tuesday night in a freak accident when his car rammed an elephant at Nkunga forest on the Meru-Nanyuki road. "Look out, Dalton! It's an elephant!"
"Aaaaiiiieeee!"
Mr Dalton Mwachenga, who was travelling from Uganda, hit the elephant that then fell on his car. "It's a falling elephant!" [SMASH!] Africa Wins Again
Imenti North police boss Joshua Lutukai said the incident occurred around 1 am. Highway officers, who were manning a roadblock near the forest, rushed to the scene but could not rescue the man as there was a herd of about 50 elephants hovering around the scene. "Jumbo! Wasn't there a car here just a minute ago?"
"I thought I saw one, too. Say! What's the matter with Tusko?"
Mr Lutukai said there were many accidents in the area because of overgrown shrubs that reduced visibility on the 6km stretch. He also said that there were no warning signs for motorists that they were driving through a forest. The trees weren't a giveaway? Couldn't see the forest for the trees, of course. Can't blame a man -- or an elephant -- for that.
"The accident could have been avoided if the road had markings indicating it is passing through a forested area," he said. Mr Lutukai said his department would write to the Ministry of Roads to have the necessary markings put up. "Dalton, maybe you'd better slow down! There are trees all around us! I think we're in a forest!"
"Tut tut! Obviously we're not, since there's no sign!" Meanwhile, ...back at the ranch... another car overturned as its driver evaded an elephant crossing the road. Which brings up the question: Why did the elephant cross the road?
Mr Lutukai said the vehicle occupants were unhurt. He was looking for a chicken.
Isiolo Kenya Wildlife Service warden Thomas Mailu blamed the accidents on speeding drivers. "Hey! Slow [CRASH!] down."
"It is clear the vehicle was speeding. It's rare to see an elephant die after being knocked down," he said and asked drivers to be careful while passing through the forest. And next time that elephant might be a tiger. Tigers are generally not satisfied with merely falling on attacking cars.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/17/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Comparison - Elephant & Car - Remember, if you are ever in this situation, the Elephant should ALWAYS have the right-of-way.
#2
Judging from the article the elephant was killed as well. In that these were African elephants, and there were a bunch of them about, this could be a very bad thing.
Sometimes elephants do conduct acts of revenge. This would amount to an elephant raid on a village, killing lots of people. Which has happened a lot in recent years.
#3
"The accident could have been avoided if the road had markings indicating it is passing through a forested area," he said. Mr Lutukai said his department would write to the Ministry of Roads to have the necessary markings put up.
Sounds like Africa has its share of liberals, too.
And judging from the apparent excited state of the elephant in the picture, I recommend staying out of the back seat if he runs around behind the car to get a better angle on things.
#7
ANOTHER government failure - failed to put up "Elephant Crossing" signs, so careless drivers would know what's going to kill them. Always paying more, getting less...
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/17/2011 13:34 Comments ||
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#8
I nearly hit a black bear with a Mercury Lynx once. It would have destroyed the car and gotten the bear pissed at me. An elephant would be orders of magnitude worse to run into.
Posted by: Mike ||
02/17/2011 15:41 Comments ||
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#9
swksvolFF: I do not create similar problems. I rarely, if ever, stomp on cars.
[Straits Times] FROM almost the moment Le Yati Min was born, her mother knew the girl had a little something extra.
'I asked the nurses whether my kid was born complete with hands and legs,' says her mother. 'They replied that the baby even has more than she needs.'
Born with 12 fingers and 14 toes, Le may be the most 'digitally enhanced' person in the world. Now, the 16-month-old girl's family in impoverished Myanmar is seeking a Guinness World Record to prove it.
A neighbour is helping her mother apply to claim the record hearing that a boy from India currently hold bragging rights for the most digits, with 12 fingers and 13 toes.
Polydactylism - being born with an extra finger or toe - is fairly unusual, but it is even more rare for someone to have spare functional digits on both hands and feet, as Le does.
Proud mom Phyo Min Min Soe, 26, said on Tuesday that she'd be happy to see Le gain a world record, but even without that, her daughter already has a happy life, and even some natural advantages.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/17/2011 00:00 ||
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Cool! Cute kid. My cat has 22 toes, one extra on each extremity. Most cats only have 18 toes.
Maybe not. Burma's primarily Hinayana Buddhist, except for the Muslim Rohingyas, and the name's not Muslim.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/17/2011 9:03 Comments ||
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#6
She has a budding future in programming, probably the fastest programmer ever.
30 Years ago I'd have said typist.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
02/17/2011 12:08 Comments ||
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#7
Have her take piano or guitar lessons. Her future would be completely assured. Can you imagine how much easier it would be to play "Flight of the Bumblebee" with 12 fingers?
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/17/2011 12:55 Comments ||
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#8
Kinda made for 6-string guitar, isn't she?
Posted by: Fred ||
02/17/2011 17:01 Comments ||
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[Arab News] Tunisia accepted technical help from Rome on Tuesday to stem the tide of illegal migrants who have been landing on an Italian island since Tunisians overthrew their president.
European Union estimates say 5,500 people from Tunisia have arrived illegally in Italy in the past few days, an influx the Italian government has called a humanitarian emergency and blames on turmoil inside Tunisia.
In a sign that security was gradually improving, Tunisia's Interior Ministry said it was lifting a night-time curfew imposed at the height of the protests which brought down President Zine Al-Abidine Ben Ali last month.
European governments have for years relied on tough measures by entrenched North African leaders to keep out illegal migrants. Ben Ali's overthrow, and subsequent disarray in Tunisia's security forces, upset the arrangement.
Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini, after talks with Tunisian caretaker Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi, said the two countries had agreed on a framework for cooperation on migrants that "respects Tunisia's illusory sovereignty."
Under the deal, Italy would give Tunisia practical aid including "a network of radars and fast boats that will be operated by Tunisians," Tunisia's official TAP news agency quoted Frattini as saying on a visit to Tunis.
The two sides appeared to have papered over a diplomatic row that flared after Italy's interior minister suggested Rome could send its police to the North African country. Tunis said that infringed on its illusory sovereignty.
Tunisian protesters ended Ben Ali's 23 years in power on Jan. 14, in a popular uprising that served as an inspiration for the revolt in Egypt which forced geriatric President Hosni Mubarak to resign last week.
Since Ben Ali's departure Tunisia's interim government has been making faltering steps toward stability. But police have melted away in many places, and strikes and protests around the country are disrupting the economy.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/17/2011 00:00 ||
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Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith said job vacancies will no longer be filled by foreign workers while "millions" of Britons stay on benefits because radical welfare reforms due to be unveiled by the Government will provide financial incentives.
Mr Duncan Smith is to launch the Welfare Reform Bill at an event in London today with Prime Minister David Cameron.
The proposals include replacing most existing benefits with a universal credit - designed to ensure people are always better off when they are employed, and close the loophole where some couples receive more living apart.
Those who refuse to take up job offers face losing their handouts for up to three years, and there will be tougher sanctions for fraud.
The Prime Minister will also announce moves to tackle the UK's "sicknote culture", pointing out that 300,000 people leave work and claim sickness benefits every year.
Details and a video at link.I seem to recall this new Conservative government also told the EU that British prisoners weren't getting the vote, no matter how much EU commissioners might stamp their little feet about it. Worms turning, sheep forming packs to hunt wolves, [your metaphor here].
You probably used one of the words on Fred's List of Forbidden Words, Pollyandrew. No, I don't know what they are -- it's a secret that only Mr. Pruitt knows, and possibly badanov. I don't even know where Mr. Pruitt keeps the list, which is probably just as well, although I'm sure it would be educational. ;-)
#3
The current government is not conservative, it is a coalition government of tories and lib-dems. That is one reason it is making changes. There is a broad consensus to cover left and right. We are going to need that kind of consensus here before we fix our problems.
Two years after President Barack Obama signed the Democrats $787 billion stimulus debacle into law, voters are reminded that liberal U.S. Senator Jon Tester (D-MT) has failed to create the jobs he promised.
The Obama White House projected that their massive stimulus spending would cap national unemployment at 8 percent, and Tester promised Montanans that the bill would [create] millions of new jobs, calling it a jobs bill and a a big victory for middle-class folks in Montana.
BAGHDAD / Aswat al-Iraq: Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki discussed on Wednesday with Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah boosting bilateral relations in different fields, according to a statement from his office.
The premier held talks with the emir and Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah, with whom he discussed ways of boosting and expanding relations in various domains, said the statement received by Aswat al-Iraq news agency.
This assumes either of them has a job this time next month...
Al-Maliki congratulated the emir on the national day and the 50th anniversary of the independence. He said that the new Iraq became more developed in its relations with all countries and succeeded in establishing institutions based on constitution and law.
Sheikh Sabah underlined his countrys readiness to open new horizons of relations with Iraq, noting that he will attend the Arab summit in Baghdad.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/17/2011 00:00 ||
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[Straits Times] MALAYSIA has cancelled a concert by a singer dubbed Iran's Bob Dylan Lemme guess: he wears a proletarian hat and sings through his nose, occasionally giving a hit on the harmonica...
after an Islamic party argued Mohsen Namjoo's work was incompatible with Islam, media reports and his website said on Wednesday. "Youse can't sing through yer nose! It's un-Islamic! It's in the Koran someplace! You could look it up!"
The 34-year-old, whose music fuses traditional Iranian music with pop and jazz, was due to perform in Kuala Lumpur on Friday. "The Profit (PTUI) never sang through his nose, youse can bet on that!"
But Malaysia's minister for information, communication and culture, Rais Yatim, said the event would no longer go ahead. 'The government will not allow the concert because it (is) not appropriate in terms of religion, culture and the country's cosmopolitan nature,' he was quoted by the Star newspaper as saying.
In 2007 Mr Mohsen was dubbed Iran's answer to Bob Dylan by the New York Times, which highlighted his 'playful but subtly cutting lyrics' about growing up in an Islamic state.
Malaysia's conservative Islamic party, the Pan-Malaysia Islamic Party (PAS), had pushed for a ban against Mr Mohsen.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/17/2011 00:00 ||
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[Straits Times] A THAI soldier was maimed on Tuesday in a new skirmish on the tense Cambodian border, Thailand's military said, just hours after the UN appealed for a permanent ceasefire in the disputed area.
'Cambodia threw hand grenades into Thailand this morning,' Thai army front man Colonel Sunsern Kaewkumnerd said, describing it as a minor incident. 'One Thai soldier was injured.'
A Cambodian military commander near the border who did not wish to be named denied the accusation, saying Thai troops regularly threw grenades but Cambodian forces did not retaliate.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/17/2011 00:00 ||
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
[Straits Times] FROM almost the moment Le Yati Min was born, her mother knew the girl had a little something extra.
Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith said job vacancies will no longer be filled by foreign workers while "millions" of Britons stay on benefits because radical welfare reforms due to be unveiled by the Government will provide financial incentives.
