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Hunt for serial cat killer
No TV, but still have to pay fee
Implants: Risky for space flight
24th most expensive

Hunt
For serial cat killer
One killed a day; civilian volunteers on the prowl. Fayen Wong, Reuters
Sep 7, 2006

Singapore is on the hunt for a serial cat killer who has slaughtered at least 20 felines in the past two weeks. The cats were found dumped in bushes and drains, with their throats slit.

Singapore's Cat Welfare Society said on Wednesday that residents and cleaners on a western part of the island had found several dead, mutilated cats in their neighbourhood.

All the cats had their throats slashed, while some of them also had their heads smashed or their throats burned.

"It is really disturbing because in terms of frequency, there is nearly one cat getting killed every day," Dawn Kua, director of operations at the Cat Welfare Society, told Reuters.

Kua said the group had lodged a police complaint and had organised about 15 volunteers to keep a lookout for the cat killer.

The Cat Welfare Society and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals have also set up a joint reward of S$2,000 for anyone who can help arrest the culprit.

In Singapore, animal abuse is punishable by a maximum jail term of one year and a fine of up to S$10,000.

But the wealthy Southeast Asian city-state frequently reports cases of animal abuse and authorities have come under fire from animal welfare groups who say the penalties are not stiff enough.

Last month, a 28-year-old man who abused a cat by grabbing it by the neck and repeatedly slamming its body against the wall was sentenced to eight weeks in prison.
Reuters

No TV
Still have to pay fee
Reader says government staff tells him ‘You should have told us you had no TV set. Now pay.” Straits Times forum
Jun 17, 2006

RECENTLY I received a summons sent by the Media Development Authority (MDA) for having a 'broadcast television receiver without a valid licence'.

I called up Licensing Services (Broadcasting) to inform the staff that I have not had any television set in my house from at least last year, so how could I be guilty of the offence?

An officer from the licensing unit told me: 'You did not inform us that you did not have a television set, so you have to pay the fine.'

I asked: 'So I am being fined for not having a television set?'

She replied: 'Yes, if you did not tell us that you didn't have a television set, you have to pay the fine.'

The offence is one of having a TV without a licence but I am being penalised for not telling the MDA that I did not have a TV set.

Is this how our government departments work? They penalise you for not telling them what you don't have.
N. Stanley Jeremiah
ST forum

Web comment
Sammy Boy forum
AhCui
About 15 yrs ago, I was living in new Pasir Ris and an TV Inspector from SBC (MediaCock) came knocking on every door to check whether residents own TV set at home.
You know what? This inspector who flashed his authority card demanded I open door for him to inspect!
I told him to go to hell. I received a letter from SBC two weeks later demanding TV licence payment or face court proceedings. That's how they suck our money and giving us bum programme.
Jun 17, 2006

Implants
Risky for space flight
Women with fake breasts may not make these shuttle flights in 2008. UPI.
Apr 2, 2006

London - Of the 157 people who have paid Virgin Galactic $200,000 for a brief space flight in 2008, those with breast implants may find themselves flat out of luck.

Company spokesman Will Whitehorn told The Sun safety concerns have come to light for those who want to be launched in groups of eight to an altitude of more than 60 miles for 7 minutes of weightlessness.

"We've discovered there may well be issues with breast augmentation," he said. "We're not sure whether they could stand the trip -- they could well explode."

No decision has been finalized, but Whitehorn said an investigation was also under way as to whether extreme cabin pressure could harm those with heart or circulation problems, Sky News said.

Apparently age is not a factor, as the company is reportedly in talks with 75-year-old William Shatner, who played Capt. James T. Kirk on "Star Trek," to take one of the flights, the report said.
UPI

Singapore
24th most expensive
A cheaper neighbourhood offers Singaporeans cheaper holidays. By Seah Chiang Nee
Feb 4, 2006

Oslo (Norway) is most expensive of 128 cities surveyed. Kuala Lumpur: No. 95.

Even cheaper places to live are Jakarta, Hanoi, Bangkok and Manila, according to the latest cost-of-living survey by the Economist Intelligence Unit.

Comparatively Singapore is dear at 2h place, a drop from 19th.

economic growth has pushed up the cost of living inn many Asian cities. Seoul, at 13th overtook Hong Kong (14th) as the most expensive city in the region after Tokyo and Osaka.

Despite the yuan's appreciation, Chinese cities experienced a drop in rankings as more business opening up pricing competition and lower tariffs.

Shanghai, the most expensive Chinese city, stands at No. 51, up five places from last year.

The most expensive city in the world was Oslo in Norway, which knocks Tokyo from the perch for the first time in 14 years.

In that Scandinavian city, the price of a compact disc is US$24.07, the price of two in Kuala Lumpur.
Feb 4, 2006