Top News Stories –

Weasel riding woodpecker storms the internet –
Amateur photographer Martin Le-May, from Essex, photographed this extraordinary image of a weasel riding on the back of a green woodpecker as it flew through the air. The photograph was taken at Hornchurch Country Park in east London and rapidly gained circulation on social media and gained a number of photoshopped memes including Vladimir Putin and Gandolf hitching a ride with the woodpecker.
The original photo by Martin Le-May

Putin and stormtrooper version

Finnish man fined €54,000 for speeding –
A Finnish man has been handed a 54,000-euro fine for speeding in his car. Finland’s speeding fines are linked to income, with penalties calculated on daily earnings, meaning high earners get hit with bigger penalties for breaking the law. So, when businessman Reima Kuisla was caught doing 103km/h (64mph) in an area where the speed limit is 80km/h (50mph), authorities turned to his 2013 tax return, the Iltalehti newspaper reports. He earned 6.5m euros (£4.72m) that year, so was told to hand over 54,000 euros. The scale of the fine hasn’t gone down well with Mr Kuisla. “Ten years ago I wouldn’t have believed that I would seriously consider moving abroad,” he says on his Facebook page. “Finland is impossible to live in for certain kinds of people who have high incomes and wealth.” [BBC]

Video of the Day –

The Roast of Justin Bieber from Comedy Central

List of the day –

Fastest production cars from 0-60 mph

from Wikipedia

[note – Fastest of manufacturer and independently verified times]

Top Twitter Trends –

Other News Stories –

Business and economy

• Norwegian Air Shuttle will ground all passengers in Norway, Denmark, and Sweden as the result of an industrial dispute leaving 35,000 people stranded. (Norway local)

Disasters and accidents

• The Villarrica volcano explodes in southern Chile leading to the evacuation of 3,000 people. (Xinhua)

International relations

• Murder of Boris Nemtsov
  • Latvian lawmaker and vice-chair of the biggest bloc in the EU, Sandra Kalniete, is refused entry into Russia at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport. Having received no reasonable explanation for the ban, she is flown back to Brussels. (Yahoo! News)
  • Russia’s authorities deny Poland’s Senate speaker Bogdan Borusewicz entry into Russia for the funeral of slain Kremlin critic Boris Nemtsov. (ABC News)
• North Korea lifts restrictions on entry into the country imposed ostensibly to stop the spread of the Ebola virus. (BBC)

Law and crime

• Former CIA director and U.S. Army officer David Petraeus pleads guilty in federal court to a charge of unauthorized removal and retention of classified information. (Reuters vis MSN)
• A Turkish court orders President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to pay 10,000 lira ($4,000) in compensation for the mental anguish caused to artist Mehmet Aksoy for having called his sculpture Monument to Humanity — meant to promote reconciliation between Turkey and Armenia — a “monstrosity” in 2011. (Fox News)

Politics and Elections

• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses a joint meeting of the United States Congress over the nuclear program of Iran. (BBC) (New York Times)
• Myanmarese students on a march to Yangon to protest an academic bill defy a police order to disperse in Letpadan Township. (BBC)
• Norwegian Nobel Committee
  • For the first time in 114 years, the Norwegian Nobel Committee (which awards the Nobel Peace Prize) replaces against his will its head Thorbjørn Jagland. Kaci Kullmann Five succeeds Jagland who will still remain a member of the committee. (AFP via ABC) (Wall Street Journal)

Science and technology

• An archaeological expedition claims finding the legendary White City in northeastern Honduras, with artifacts that date to CE 1000 to 1400. (National Geographic)

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