Something new for Singapore's pampered pets: obituaries
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Grieving pet owners in Singapore, known for lavishing care in life on their animals, can soon share their feelings about furred family members after they pad off to the great beyond - via obituaries in the city-state's largest newspaper. From Sunday, The Straits Times pets section will let pet owners publish goodbye messages to their favourite non-human companions along with an accompanying photo.
Who's living past 100 in the U.S.? Mostly white women
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Women have long been known to live longer than men, but when it comes to hitting the century mark the difference is stark: just 2 out of 10 Americans who live to 100 or longer are male. Of the 53,364 Americans age 100 and older, more than 80 percent are women, a U.S. Census Bureau report released on Monday showed.
Air rage: Chinese screaming mad over delays
SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Airline crews and ground staff are assaulted, passengers storm a runway, and a person yanks open an emergency exit door on a plane. In China, angry passengers are resorting to extreme measures to protest delays as the country's restricted air corridors are becoming clogged with millions of new fliers each year -- a fact attributed to the fast rise of the middle class and cheap flights.
Russia's Hermitage Museum denounces blasphemy investigation
MOSCOW (Reuters) - The head of Russia's renowned Hermitage Museum accused Russian authorities on Monday of fostering "mob rule" in taking up complaints by Russian Orthodox Christians over a British exhibit they said injured religious feelings. The row coincides with a surge in religious, nationalist sentiment in Russia, with President Vladimir Putin moving closer to the Orthodox Church to consolidate his support after facing the biggest protests since he rose to power nearly 13 years ago.
Apple Australia map glitch: Snakes! In the desert!
CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australian police have warned travelers off using Apple's troubled iPhone mapping software after several motorists became stuck in a snake-infested, desert corner of the country while using their phone for directions. Police in southeast Victoria state said they had been forced to rescue a number of motorists who had become stuck for up to 24 hours "without food or water" after being directed to the arid Murray Sunset National Park, instead of the tourist town of Mildura, 70 km (43 miles) away.
Man hurls paint cans at Poland's black Madonna
WARSAW (Reuters) - A man hurled cans of paint at Poland's most sacred icon on Sunday in an attack that failed to damage the Black Madonna of Jasna Gora but shocked many in the staunchly Catholic country. The 58-year-old attacker was detained by guards at the monastery holding the revered depiction of Mary and the baby Jesus in the southern city of Czestochowa, police said.