Mexican bus drivers say they deserve tips

MEXICO CITY — So what if they rage through traffic, cause at least one accident a day and barely stop for passengers. Drivers of Mexico City's rickety old "pesero" buses say they deserve tips for their harrowing rides.

Since the city approved a fare hike only for newer buses, the union representing pesero drivers says passengers will be asked to pay tips of at least 50 Mexican cents ($0.05) on top of their normal fares to cover gasoline, maintenance and driver training.

I killed that! Wisconsin man starts Web site devoted to roadkill.

PRESCOTT, Wis. -- Richard Sanders hadn't given much thought to roadkill until a buddy came across a very large bear on the roadside near Hudson. The animal was bigger than any trophy bear the friends had bagged over the years, and they thought it deserved a better fate than rotting by the road.

"It is not their fault they were hit by a car or truck," Sanders said. "They shouldn't go unnoticed."

Tip-dependent workers feeling the slump

Jocelyne Aposaga is a hairstylist who relies on tips for about 20% of her income. As the economy slumps, she has a new survival plan: cut tips.

When Aposaga eats out, she leaves servers a buck or two less than last year. It's not the service that's bad, it's the economy -- and a case of what goes around comes around.

Britain, which has long prided itself on a reputation for good manners, is becoming increasingly rude, according to a new poll.

Highly-paid footballers and celebrities are setting a bad example, according to the survey, put out today.

It listed spitting and swearing as the most offensive forms of behaviour.

Almost nine out of 10 people - 86.2 per cent - think Britons have become ruder than a decade ago, the poll for the ITV1 Tonight television program found.

'Free Tibet' flags made in China

Police in southern China have discovered a factory manufacturing Free Tibet flags, media reports say.

The factory in Guangdong had been completing overseas orders for the flag of the Tibetan government-in-exile.

Workers said they thought they were just making colourful flags and did not realise their meaning.

But then some of them saw TV images of protesters holding the emblem and they alerted the authorities, according to Hong Kong's Ming Pao newspaper.

Tibet independence

US prisoner sues over weight loss

An overweight prisoner in the United States is suing the authorities for not feeding him enough after he lost about seven stone (45kg) in jail.

Broderick Lloyd Laswell, who is awaiting trial for murder, dropped to 22 stone (140kg) after eight months inside the Arkansas prison.

He claims his vision has gone blurry while trying to exercise.

The prison says the meals average 3,000 calories a day - more than the US recommended daily intake for adults.

Recession Changes What Americans Buy And How They Eat

Stung by rising gasoline and food prices, Americans are finding creative ways to cut costs on routine items like groceries and clothing, forcing retailers, restaurants and manufacturers to decode the tastes of a suddenly thrifty public.

Spending data and interviews around the country show that middle- and working-class consumers are starting to switch from name brands to cheaper alternatives, to eat in instead of dining out and to fly at unusual hours to shave dollars off airfares.

Rats From Infested House Offered Up for Adoption As Pets

ROCHESTER, Wash. — Rats from a heavily infested house here are being trapped to be offered for adoption as pets.

After being alerted by neighbors, Thurston County animal control officials served a search warrant on April 9 at the residence of Michele Diller, 64. They found that pet rats had ruined the house, chewing through walls, cupboards, drawers and wires, soaking carpets with urine and covering floors with feces. The officials removed a cat, four severely malnourished snakes, five mice and two rats.

15 Most Common Myths And Misconceptions About Beer

Myth #1 – Dark Beer is Heavy

Couldn't be further from the truth, folks. Colour in beer comes purely from the grain used in its creation, with darker beers containing more toasted or roasted barley malt and paler beers containing less or no darker malts. And roasting malt doesn't make it heavier or more caloric.

Myth #2 – Ale is Stronger than Lager

Many Americans Are Rediscovering Thrift Shops

SHEENA MASSIE, dragged by her mother to garage and estate sales as a child, once cringed at the sight of used goods.

“The very thought of being caught by my peers buying other people’s junk was mortifying,” said Ms. Massie, a 25-year-old waitress in Canal Winchester, Ohio, near Columbus. “If someone else didn’t want it, why would I?”

But, like Ms. Massie, who with her mother is opening a thrift shop, more consumers are concluding that brand new is not necessarily better.