Plagues, Canadian Institutions, and fat lazy gorillas

OTTAWA - Industry Minister Jim Prentice says he won't approve the sale of iconic Canadian space technology, the 'Canadarm', to a major American arms-maker unless it has a "net benefit" to Canada.

The financial gain would have to be considerable, he argued, to compensate for the trouble of having to re-write all of the Canadian edition Trivial Pursuit questions that include it in some way, let alone the social studies textbooks.


CHICAGO - In the face of mounting research on wild animals' food needs, today's zoo staffers are trying new feeding tricks to keep their lions and tigers healthy and happy, with fewer sugary snacks.

In a more advanced tactic, zoos in LA are training keepers to ridicule the animals until they develop anorexia.


RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AP) — Snakes — including one 10-foot anaconda — are increasingly invading the eastern Amazon’s largest city, driven from the rain forest by destruction of their natural habitat, the government’s environmental protection agency said Tuesday.
Government spokespeople downplayed the issue, noting that "It's not an actual plague until there are frogs and/or locusts."