Links - 26th October 2012

"Always get married early in the morning. That way, if it doesn't work out, you haven't wasted a whole day." - Mickey Rooney

***

More women marrying younger men - "Last year, 17.2 per cent of all marriages involved an older bride... Mr Tan, who had three previous girlfriends younger than him, said of his wife: “I found her to be quite mature, without being cynical. Older girls bring with them a sense of stability – they have fewer mood swings and throw fewer tantrums.”"

How prostitution became France's hottest social issue - ""'No pimp, no boss' is my motto. I'd rather do this than an office job, getting shouted at by a boss for a pittance." Her strict rules include condoms for everything and no kissing clients. "You have to hit rock bottom to do this," she said. "It's not an easy job, but it's a job where you can make money quickly. People try to say we're victims, say that we're alienated, that there's a sex attack in our childhood history, but I've never been raped by anyone. This is my free choice." She never looks into a client's eyes in the moment of a sexual exchange – "I look anywhere but" – and they rarely tell her their names. But in her top drawer beside the condom supplies is a petition signed by several of them: in neat writing, stating their profession: such as "public works" or "driver". It's a protest against the new French government's war on prostitution... In 2003, Nicolas Sarkozy, then interior minister, introduced a controversial law against soliciting, making it illegal to stand in a public place known for prostitution dressed in revealing clothes. To get round this, women started working in private vans. Selling sex inside a vehicle was not breaking the law... "I'm considering a hunger strike against the idea of criminalising clients," she said. "If clients risk prison, sex work will be forced underground and into apartments, pimps will benefit, sex workers' security will be compromised"... "This is not a job everyone can do, but it's a real job. You need a lot of empathy. People come to us with problems. Sometimes I think I've got the word 'nurse' stamped on my forehead"... The new face of the union is its leader, Morgane Merteuil, 25, a postgraduate literature student"

The 11 best street foods worth blowing your diet over

Venezuela’s presidential election: Henrique and Hugoliath | The Economist - "IMAGINE an election in which the incumbent routinely commandeers the nation’s airwaves for endless campaign broadcasts while his opponent gets just three minutes a day. The incumbent uses all the resources of the state—money, vehicles, buildings—for his campaign, and he has branded state social-welfare programmes as his own personal gift. He controls the courts and the electoral authority. His opponent’s supporters fear that the ballot is not secret, and that for those of them who work in the public sector, voting against the incumbent could cost them their jobs"
At first I thought this referred to somewhere else

Newspaper Article - Manhole without a cover in busy street claims many victims

Fearless witness? Or fearful woman? - "Mr Tan referred to a Whatsapp message that Ng had sent to Ms Sue. It read: "My SP.. has a chip. It's in your body now." It was a reply that Ng wrote after Ms Sue asked him if he was stalking her - he had texted her to say "Hi" just when she stepped into the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) one day. Mr Tan asked what "SP" meant. She said: "I don't know... He's just joking he has a chip in me and that's the brand?" Mr Tan: "Seriously, Ms Sue? Sp.. refers to sperm, doesn't it?" Ms Sue: "It could refer to Singapore Polytechnic, couldn't it?" She added that it could not be "sperm" since there were only two dots after SP and the word has five letters, not four."

Japanese Culture: Why does the Japanese children's manga "Doraemon" include naked girls? - Quora - "In some cases the family likes to take a bath all together. And of course they're all naked. While bathing in western cultures is a very private thing (although it wasn't always like that - see: Romans and their baths for example) bathing was and still is often a social, famiial and sometimes even communal affair in Japan. Nudity, especially for kids, that was not meant to be sexualized and tantalizing, was not such a big deal and still isn't in Japan - although that is changing (more on that later). So, just the fact that Shizuka is often seen taking a bath does not mean it's an overtly sexual thing. It may have been mildly tantalizing for Nobita to see his girl taking a bath (and if I remember right she often threw stuff at him to make him go away) but it was overall quite innocent, and never intended to be more. This reminds me of people who object to the father in My Neighbor Totoro taking a bath with his two prepubescent daughters. Fathers often take baths with their kids in Japan, but I suppose if your mind is wired to think of any nudity as sexual, this is shocking. To me, it just shows that he's a caring father who is dearly loved by his daughters."

People of India (image)
Amused 'Christian' is one group and they're in Western clothing

Why Are Electronics So Expensive in Brazil? - "'When I was living in the US, I was running once when I saw then president George W. Bush, running as well, with security guards. He was using the same Nike shoes as I was. Here in Brazil, it’s hard to picture such a scene. Because objects still very much reflect the social segment of their owners. The sneakers, the car, the restaurant aren’t valued only for what they are, but also as status symbols. This is why it is more expensive to have dinner in Rio or São Paulo than in New York'... “Buying a plane ticket to Miami, staying there for two days and bringing back a camera or a tablet costs almost the same as purchasing them in Brazil”"

Fans requested bigger breasts in Dead or Alive 5

Who vs. Whom - Grammar Rules - "One way to remember is to check to see which pronoun can replace the questionable word. It’s a little trick I learned back in elementary school: If it can be replaced with “he,” you use who; if “him” fits better, use whom"

State not out to police marriage vows, says DPP - "Under the Prevention of Corruption Act, a civil servant who obtains gratification from a person seeking business dealings with the Government is presumed to have done so corruptly. Even if no favours were given - as in the case against Ng, the former chief of the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) - such gratification can amount to criminal behaviour, and the onus is on Ng to prove his innocence. DPP Tan noted that Singapore adopts a "zero tolerance" approach to dealing with public sector corruption. Even where there is no actual interference with government procurement approval processes, the fact that gratification was obtained is cause for great concern. "Such conduct puts the integrity of government procurement into disrepute, and to excuse such behaviour as mere infidelity would be to sacrifice our zero tolerance of corruption at the altar of infidelity," he said. In his statement of facts, DPP Tan said that Ng had, in fact, not influenced the work of his colleagues who were in charge of evaluating the CNB contracts that were called into question...
"In my many years in the Bar, this is the first time I hear a critical principal witness ask for anonymity... The fact that she finds it stressful doesn't justify (an) anonymity order. We, and my client sitting here, are also stressed." - Senior Counsel Tan Chee Meng, lawyer for Ng Boon Gay...
"If prosecution were right... then any civil servant who plays a game of golf or accepts a drink during half-time is guilty of receiving gratification... that cannot be the intent of the law." - Senior Counsel Tan Chee Meng...
"Not seeking a gag order on me, are you? We need to use substance to show that the charges are not adequate, and not just rely on broad statements that Singapore needs to be squeaky clean." - Senior Counsel Tan Chee Meng
Looks like zero tolerance is zero sense regardless of jurisdiction

Japan’s first 'cuddle cafe' lets you sleep with a stranger for Y6,000 an hour - "Sometimes, after a long, stressful day, there’s nothing more comforting than crawling into bed with your significant other and falling asleep in their arms. But what if you don’t have anyone to cuddle with in the first place? If you’re in Japan, you might think to go to a soapland or some other kind of brothel, but then you’d have to deal with all that sex when you really just want to close your eyes and rest in the warmth of another’s body. But wait! Before you resign yourself to another lonely night of shedding tears on your Rei Ayanami dakimakura, why not stop by Soineya, Japan’s first “co-sleeping specialty shop,” where customers can pay to sleep in the arms of a beautiful girl—with no strings attached...
Customer sleeps in girl’s arm (3 min) – 1,000 yen
Girl pats customer on the back (3 min) – 1,000 yen
Customer pets girl on the head (3 min) – 1,000 yen
Customer and girl stare at each other (1 min) – 1,000 yen"

HKSAR Blog: names - "Koala Cheng, Kwun Tong, Hong Kong (SCMP letters 3 September 2010)"

More Chinese brides with Caucasian grooms - "In Singapore, people say having kids is so expensive, but what else are you going to spend your money on?”
Obviously not a local, and hasn't heard of the 6 Cs

If Disney Villains Got Their Happy Endings...

Most horrible singers not tone deaf: Researchers - "Despite what you may have heard, acoustical analysis suggests that most people are not horrible singers, and most horrible singers are not tone deaf - they are just horrible singer"