HUNTER S. Thompson, an iconic contrarian who gave birth to an entertaining, anarchic form of journalism he called gonzo, committed suicide yesterday at his compound outside the exclusive ski resort of Aspen, Colorado.
Like one of his great literary heroes, Ernest Hemingway, Thompson, who had a lifelong fascination with guns, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to police. He was discovered by his son Juan in the kitchen just before 6pm.

A self-styled eccentric and maverick, Thompson favoured Ray Ban aviator sunglasses, a cigarette holder and a cowboy hat that gave him the appearance of a modern-day confederate general.

PRAGUE, Czech Republic — North Korea’s embassy in Prague has demanded that the film “Team America: World Police” be banned in the Czech Republic, saying the movie harms their country’s reputation, a report said Saturday.

In the film by “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, a team of marionettes rushes to keep North Korean leader Kim Jong Il from destroying the world, reducing world capitals to rubble along the way.

“It harms the image of our country,” the Lidove Noviny daily quoted a North Korean diplomat as saying. “Such behavior is not part of our country’s political culture. Therefore, we want the film to be banned.”

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Superman is a dick

Historically, all dynasties end. The Sauds are no exceptions. Today they look stable, but in the mid 1970s, people thought Iran was stable. The Shah had a firm grip on the kingdom. The Dec. 31, 1977 celebrations to mark the 2500th anniversary of the Persian empire showed off the modern state of Iran and hid the immanent collapse of the regime. Many watchers of the world didn’t pay any attention to this event, but the signs were there for all to see. Iranians in the US would protest, sometimes violently, against the Shah’s rule. One didn’t see protest in Iran as dissent was dealt with by SAVAK, the secret police.

The same signs are around for Saudi Arabia. In September 2001, hijackers flew planes into buildings in the US killing thousands. Fifteen of the nineteen were Saudi Arabians. One wonders why citizens of a friendly nation would attack the US in such a fashion. This fact is one of the harbingers of difficulties ahead in regard to oil supplies, and there are grave implications for the western world. What is behind this is the squandering of the oil wealth which has done the Saudi people no good and provided them with a bad present and an even worse future.

Over the past 30 years, the per capita income of Saudis has plummeted from $28,000 in 1980 to under $10,000 today. Would anyone in the West vote for a government which had this as one of its accomplishments? Neither would the Saudi citizens. Unemployment is rising among young educated Saudi’s who have studied at home or in the West, and found no employment. One recent news account claims that nearly every family has two or three members who are not working! This same news account notes that this leaves these young men time to go to the mosques where they absorb a radical view of life. (Friedman, 2002). People with no purpose in life (a job) will find a purpose (revolution).