Teenage sex-killer's sentence cut

A teenager who strangled a 15-year-old schoolgirl has had his jail term cut by the appeal court.

Kenneth Fraser, from Fife, was originally sentenced to serve at least 20 years for the murder of his former girlfriend Jenni Gordon.

But three judges at the Court of Appeal in Edinburgh have now ruled that he should spend 15 years in jail before being considered for parole.

They said this was due to the fact that he was only 16 at the time.

Scotland's senior judge, the Lord Justice General, Lord Hamilton, sitting with Lord Carloway, ordered that Fraser, now 18, should serve a punishment period of 15 years - after which he will be eligible to seek release on parole.

Fraser, a former youth footballer with Dunfermline, strangled the Inverkeithing High School pupil in November 2004 in the former mining village of High Valleyfield, in Fife, where they both lived.

He then removed her clothing and had sex with her before abandoning her half-naked body on the frozen ground, where she was discovered by a passer-by the next day.


Exactly why this freak should be eligible for parole after 15 years (i.e. he is 31) and not 20 years (i.e. he is 36) is beyond me.

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Wheelie bins bugged

"Electronic spy 'bugs' have been secretly planted in hundreds of thousands of household wheelie bins.

The gadgets - mostly installed by companies based in Germany - transmit information about the contents of the bins to a central database which then keeps records on the waste disposal habits of each individual address.

Already some 500,000 bins in council districts across England have been fitted with the bugs - with nearly all areas expected to follow suit within the next couple of years.

Until now, the majority of bins have been altered without the knowledge of their owners. In many cases, councils which ordered the installation of the devices did not even debate the proposals publicly.

The official reason for the bugs is to 'improve efficiency' and settle disputes between neighbours over wheelie-bin ownership. But experts say the technology is actually intended to enable councils to impose fines on householders who exceed limits on the amount of non-recyclable waste they put out. New powers for councils to do this are expected to be introduced by the Government shortly."

Bugged wheelie bins! Fer feck sake! Next thing is the wagons will be reading the rfid chips that are implanted in the daily shopping.

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City girl apologies over 'control freak' party email

"On the occasion of her 21st birthday bash at the Ritz Hotel, however, bank worker Lucy Gao decided there would be none of these problems.

She sent a detailed e-mail to 39 of her friends setting out the schedule for the evening. It gave them staggered time slots for arrival and told them what to wear and even what to say.

There were also helpful hints such as: ‘It goes without saying that the more upper-class you dress, the less likely you shall be denied entry.’

The meticulous Miss Gao, however, saw her best-laid plans backfire on her. One colleague at Citigroup bank was so stunned by the message that he forwarded it on to a friend. She in turn sent it to 12 colleagues in her department with four additional words at the top – ‘Her best yet … enjoy’.

And as always seems to happen in these cases, the e-mail has pinged around the world, entertaining bank workers by the thousand."

Charming ...

The Email in full

"Dear Friends,

Thank you for all your replies and I am glad all of you can come this Friday to celebrate my 21st with me. Please read ALL the following to ensure your entry into the Ritz.

Lucy's 21st Birthday Party at The Ritz Hotel London

Friday, 18th of August
9pm Champagne Reception
10pm Photo Shoots
10:30pm Blowing Candles
Mid-night Pangaea, Mayfair

I have arranged the Ritz to host a Champagne Reception with a selection of Ritz Champagne for all my guests, this will be on me so please come and indulge.

A specially made birthday cake has also been ordered and the Ritz waiters will kindly serve you each a generous slice with Ritz cutleries, etc... also on me.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR ENTRY:

* When you arrive, take the Hotel entry on the opposite side of the Green Park tube station [Please refer to your arrival time at the end of this email]

* When asked 'how can I help you Sir/Madame?', you reply 'I am here for Lucy's Birthday Party at the Rivoli Bar'

* You will be escorted to the lounge area next to the Rivoli bar, where you will hopefully see a gorgeous group of ladies.


If you experience any issues getting in or getting to the Ritz, please call my mobile on 07782 205 450 and my PA Ms Gill will kindly deal with your queries between 8:30pm to 10pm.


STRICT DRESS CODE:

Gentlemen: Jacket, shirt, and please also bring a tie (no jeans, trainers, flip-flops, polo-shirts)
Ladies: skirt/top, cocktail dress (no denim, min-skirts, flip-flips, bad tastes)
Advice 1: It goes without saying that the more upper-class you dress, the less likely you shall be denied entry.
Advice 2: Photos will be taken between 10pm to 10:30pm, and these will be distributed once processed, therefore you may want to be well-groomed! ;)


Finally...
I will be accepting cards and small gifts between 9pm to 11pm... hehehe


I very much look forward to seeing you all at the Ritz this Friday.


Lucy


ARRIVAL TIMES: [Please stick to these as best as you can, thank you]
9:00pm: Lucy, Sophie Sandner, Kajai, Mandeep, Preet, Sanami, Su, Lisa, Kate.
9:15pm: Phoebe, Sophie Seugnet, Theo, Dmitry, Ed, Nikolay, Paul, Nick, Harry.
9:30pm: Marco, Andrea, Jess, Ovi, Yuki, Olga, Kim, Marcelo, Ulyana, Krystal, Dan.
9:45pm: Sunita, Alan, JingJing, Emma. 10:00pm: Anthony, Rachel, Roger, Uli, Yogi, Gharzi"

Strange 'hybrid' animal found dead

Residents are wondering if an animal found dead over the weekend may be the mysterious creature that has mauled dogs, frightened residents and been the subject of local legend for half a generation.

The animal was found near power lines along Route 4 on Saturday, apparently struck by a car while chasing a cat. The carcass was photographed and inspected by several people who live in the area, but nobody is sure exactly what it is.

Interestingly, in an unrelated incident, police in Maine seized a wolf-dog hybrid.

TIME.com: 50 Coolest Websites

TIME.com: 50 Coolest Websites

"Many of this year's choices are shining examples of Web 2.0: next-generation sites offering dynamic new ways to inform and entertain, sites with cutting-edge tools to create, consume, share or discuss all manners of media, from blog posts to video clips."

Worthy of a rummage, I'd say.

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Hezbollah rockets, Israeli response, poor sod in the middle

From YouTube



Fictional but (almost) realistic conversation --
Householder: Hello? Police?
Police: Yes. This is the Police.
Householder: There's a strange guy in front of my house with what looks like a rocket launcher.
Police: We'll get somebody there right away. Don't approach the person.
Householder: Never mind. My house has just been blown to shit.