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Fork stuck in man’s penis after bizarre sexual mishap

Canberra doctors removed a 10-centimetre fork from inside an elderly man’s penis after a bizarre sexual mishap.

The 70-year-old arrived at the Canberra Hospital emergency department with a bleeding sexual organ.

He told doctors he had inserted the 10cm dining fork into his urethra almost 12 hours earlier in an attempt to achieve sexual gratification.

But the utensil became stuck.

The fork was not visible but doctors were able to feel it from the outside and X-rays showed its position.

Doctors considered several retrieval options before deciding to pull the fork free using forceps and “copious lubrication” while the patient was under a general anaesthetic.

The elderly patient was then sent home.

The medical emergency was so rare the team of three doctors published the case in The International Journal of Surgery last month.

The paper, titled “An Unusual Urethral Foreign Body”, said it was rare to see objects lodged in the lower urinary tract.

It went on to list strange objects found inside other parts of the body, including needles, pencils, wire, allen keys, toothbrushes, light bulbs, thermometers, plants and vegetables, leeches, snakes, cocaine and glue.

“It is apparent that the human mind is uninhibited let alone creative,” the authors wrote.

The medical team – Krishanth Naidu, Maurice Mulcahy and Amanda Chung – said the fork case was published to create discussion among the medical fraternity “given the great management challenge faced by the oddity and infrequency with which a fork is encountered in the penile urethra”.

The doctors said the motives for inserting objects into the sensitive region were difficult to comprehend.

“The practice manifests primarily during states of pathological masturbation, substance abuse and intoxication and as a result of psychological compounders.

“Autoerotic stimulation with the aid of self-inserted urethral foreign bodies has been existent since time immemorial and have presented an unusual but known presentation to urologists.”

They said embarrassed patients usually attempted to retrieve the item themselves, risking urethral injury and foreign body migration.

The real danger was infection leading to death, because ashamed patients often delay medical treatment, they said.

Doctors generally try to avoid surgery in such situations, instead choosing an option that would minimise urothelial trauma and preserve erectile function.

The authors said self-inserted male urethral foreign bodies are rare emergencies that urological and general surgeons face on occasion.

While the insertions are unusual, the paper said “any imaginable object is known to be implicated”. – Canberra Times

‘Even if you don’t use the N-word, you may still be racist’: Oprah

On Thursday, CNN’s Anderson Cooper interviewed Oprah Winfrey and Forest Whitaker, stars of Oscar-bait The Butler. During the interview, in which Cooper thoughtfully nodded as Winfrey and Whitaker race-baited, Oprah suggested Emmitt Till and Trayvon Martin were equivalent symbols, and that Americans were racist even if they didn’t have ill will toward black people.

When Cooper cited polls showing that black Americans were upset about Trayvon Martin and whites thought too much had been made of the case, Oprah sighed, “Oh, I know, I know. That’s why I love the film in light of this discussion is because it brings context to this discussion. I mean, look at the film, beginning with that lynching scene and ending with walking into Obama’s office, look at what has happened in the span of one man’s lifetime.”

Whitaker chimed in, “This movie reminds us of the circular motion of things still trying working themselves is going on, as in Emmitt Till, and we’re looking at Trayvon, we’re looking at Oscar Grant, we’re looking at all these situations and recognizing we have to move ourselves forward with this change.” Oprah said, “Emmitt Till became a symbol for those times as Emmitt Till has become a symbol for this time. I mean, there are multiple Trayvon Martins whose names never make the newspapers or the headlines. The circumstances surrounding that allowed that to be. There were multiple Emmitt Tills, there were multiple lynchings, there were multiple young black boys whose names are not remembered and often not even recorded.”

Cooper asked, “It’s amazing to me how people from different backgrounds see this.” He then talked about a juror “who did not understand, did not feel linked to Trayvon Martin, felt connected to George Zimmerman in a way, but not Trayvon Martin, she felt race was not part of this case at all.”

Oprah couldn’t wait to jump in, blurting, “People don’t feel it’s race because people don’t call it race…A lot of people think if they think they’re not using the n-word themselves, they physically aren’t using the n-word themselves, and do not harbor ill will towards black people that it’s not racist. But to me it’s ridiculous to look at that case and not to think that race was involved.” – breitbart.com

1 274 ‘racist incidents’ in Scottish schools

There have been almost 1,300 racist incidents in Scottish schools in the past two years, according to figures obtained by the Liberal Democrats.

The party submitted Freedom of Information (FOI) requests to local councils and received responses from three-quarters of them.

The findings, for 2011 and 2012, showed 730 racist incidents reported in primary schools and 544 in secondaries.

The Scottish government said racism in schools would not be tolerated.

There were a total of 1,274 racist incidents reported at schools in 2011 and 2012.

Of these, 667 were recorded in 2011, with the number falling to 607 in 2012.

‘Reality check’

The figures showed Edinburgh City Council recorded 279 racist incidents in primary schools over the two years, with a further 114 incidents in secondary schools in the capital.

Scotland’s largest council, Glasgow City Council, was among the local authorities which did not provide the information requested.

Scottish Lib Dem education spokesman Liam McArthur said the statistics showed Scotland still had “a long way to go” in tackling racism.

He called on ministers to look again at how youngsters were taught about racism and prejudice.

He added: “We all want to see a fairer society where everyone has the chance to get on in life regardless of their racial or ethnic background.

“Over the past five years we have made real progress in tackling racism but the fact that progress seems to have stalled is a concern.

“I do not doubt the commitment of ministers and teachers to battling racism, but these new figures show that we have a long way to go.”

He said the figures should act as a “reality check ” and addressing these issues should start with education.

“There is a real case for looking again at how we talk to children and young people about racism and teach them that prejudice – in whatever form – is simply not acceptable,” Mr McArthur said.

A Scottish government spokeswoman said: “Racist behaviour or bullying is not acceptable and will not be tolerated in any Scottish schools.

“We expect councils and schools to tackle racist behaviour where it does occur.

“Under Curriculum for Excellence pupils will learn about different cultures and beliefs and materials to support teachers in this area are available from Education Scotland.” – BBC

BBC to cut Israel ‘apartheid’ comments from Nigel Kennedy broadcast

Nigel Kennedy with the Palestine Strings

The BBC is due to cut comments made by violinist Nigel Kennedy about “apartheid” in Israel when it broadcasts his concert, performed with Palestinian artists as part of the Proms musical festival, on British television channels next week.

The concert, held at London’s Royal Albert Hall last week, featured 17 musicians from the Palestine Strings, the troupe performed Vivaldi’s Four Seasons alongside Kennedy.

Kennedy likened the situation in Israel to apartheid in South Africa.

“Ladies and gentlemen, it’s a bit facile to say it but we all know from experiencing this night of music tonight that giving equality and getting rid of apartheid means there’s a chance for amazing things to happen,” said Kennedy.

The decision to cut Kennedy’s comment was made due to “editorial reasons,” they removed because of “the way it fitted in with the program, ” a BBC spokesperson told Al Arabiya English.

“Nigel’s comment to the audience at his late-night prom on August 8 will not be included in the deferred BBC 4 broadcast on August 23 because it does not fall within the editorial remit of the proms as a classical music festival.”

Kennedy has previously refused to play concerts in Israel, but has participated in the Palestinian-run Jerusalem Festival in East Jerusalem.

In 2007 he told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz: “It’s no coincidence. I became aware of the Palestinian story while I was a student in New York. My girlfriend then was Palestinian, and, through her, I began to familiarize myself with and understand the problem even before the [separation] wall and the other atrocities.

“She had to return home every year or she would lose her citizenship, and, like it was for all of us students, that wasn’t exactly her thing. Then I understood that it was simply a way to harass the Palestinians and prevent them from studying,” he added.

Kennedy dedicated his performance at the Proms to Palestinians, according to his introduction.

“The concert tonight is very emotional, because I am performing for people who are imprisoned, to give them two hours of fun and show them that the world has not forgotten about them,” he said.

Dressed in popular Palestinian garments, the players from the Palestinian orchestra played a specially-curated fusion of classical work with Arab and folk music alongside the celebrated violinist. – Al Arabiya

UK police checking new information on Lady Di’s death

British police say they are examining newly received information relating to the deaths of Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed, and that officers are assessing the information’s “relevance and credibility.”

Scotland Yard declined to provide details about the information, only saying Saturday in a statement that the assessment will be carried out by officers from its specialist crime and operations unit.

The force stressed that it was not reopening the investigation into the 1997 deaths of Diana and Fayed, who were killed in a car crash in Paris.

In 2008, a British jury ruled that Diana, the Princess of Wales, and her companion, Fayed, were unlawfully killed due to reckless speed and drinking by their driver, and by the reckless pursuit of paparazzi chasing them. – AP

SA police illegally tap journalists’ phones

Police have finalised the investigation into crime intelligence officers accused of duping a judge to illegally bug the phones of former police chief Bheki Cele and two Sunday Times journalists, the newspaper reported.

Former KwaZulu-Natal police spy boss Maj-Gen Deena Moodley and covert intelligence collection officials Colonel Dumisani Zulu and Captain Bongani Cele are suspected of inserting the three mobile numbers under false names into a legitimate interception order, the paper reported.

The order, granted by Judge Joshua Khumalo on December 6, 2010, authorised police to record “real time” calls, gain access to all text messages, and use GPS co-ordinates to pinpoint the location of phone users.

National police commissioner Riah Phiyega’s spokesman Solomon Makgale told the publication that police had finalised the criminal investigation into the illegal interception of the cellphones belonging to the two employees of the newspaper and the former national commissioner.

“We believe that there is prima-facie evidence against the three SAPS members who were involved. It is now up to the prosecuting authority to prosecute or not,” he was quoted. – Sapa

Thousands march in Morocco in support of Egyptian Islamists

Around 10,000 people took part in a demonstration in the Moroccan capital, Rabat, on Sunday in support of Islamists in Egypt locked in a deadly showdown with security forces.

The crowd carried banners condemning the police operations that have cost hundreds of lives among demonstrators demanding the reinstatement of Egypt’s army-ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi and posters showing the dead in makeshift morgues in Cairo.

“Soldiers should be carrying out their duty of protecting the nation’s territory instead of killing their own people,” said Driss Leghroudi, a 33-year-old academic.

“History is repeating itself. It happened in Algeria in 1992 (with its civil war) … It’s Saudi Arabia which is behind it” in Egypt, he charged, as the crowd chanted for the expulsion of the Egyptian ambassador to Morocco.

Morocco initially adopted a neutral stand after last month’s toppling of Morsi but the authorities in Rabat have since expressed alarm over the carnage resulting from a security crackdown to remove Morsi’s supporters from the streets.

More than 750 people have been killed in violence across Egypt since Wednesday, official figures show. – AFP

Rugby and the Afrikaner

by Albert Brenner

You`ll find him sauntering through the streets of many a city in the West – especially in Commonwealth capitals like London, Dublin and Sydney.

And in the cities and towns of South Africa he is a common sight… the lone big Afrikaner man wearing the Springbok jersey with rightful pride. It is as if wearing the jersey of the national rugby team makes him the real Springbok player, that winner – if only for a moment.

And who can blame him? The Springboks – those gloriously sculptured athletes of a physical game perfectly suited for the rough-and-tumble Afrikaner man – are legends. They have always been one of the top two teams on the planet. It is a tremendous source of pride… for winners they are!

By wearing the Springbok jersey in public, Afrikaner men are finally receiving that positive recognition, that international ego-boost, which they have been denied ever since being blamed – by their peers in the West – for all the woes besetting blacks in South Africa.

It is, in fact, the only source of pride the Afrikaner is allowed to nurture… the sole recognition s/he may claim. For they find themselves in a socio-cultural and politico-economic environment that still regard them, their whole being, only in terms of Apartheid. Not unlike post-WWII Germans, the Afrikaner has, literally, been stripped of all his achievements – his very historical being – before Apartheid.

His unique language, Afrikaans – the third youngest Germanic language on the planet – is still being criminalized and marginalized as the “language of the oppressor” … and derided as the uncool “dumb Dutchman” language by arrogant native English-speakers in South Africa.

His legendary military prowess – as, once again, displayed in the Angolan War – has also been criminalized. Those brave young Afrikaner men – many of them 18-years old at the time – who helped win the Cold War for the West have been vilified as nothing but cruel Apartheid “killers” by the black-run ANC government… which actually rooted for the other side.

His remarkable performance and achievement in having built South Africa into the richest, most powerful and most developed country in Africa have been all but wiped from History by the black government and white liberals in the West – simply because they assume that South Africa`s blacks would have done so any case, had it not been for the “evil” Afrikaner’s Apartheid “intervention”.

Not even to speak of the Afrikaner’s incredible guts and determination for having literally pulled himself, without any help, from the ashes left by Lord Milner’s cowardly scorched-earth “warfare” during the Anglo-Boer War. A war in which the Afrikaner was outnumbered 10/1, a war that left 33 000 of his women and children dead in British concentration camps – and reduced the Afrikaner to the poorest white nation on the planet at the time.

In short; the Afrikaner’s whole historical being has suffered the same fate as his farms during Milner’s attempted genocide a century ago… except this time round it is his mind that has been scorched!

But this doesn`t bother the international community in the least. And most disturbing of all; it does not seem to bother the majority of the modern Afrikaner. Why? I mean, how come a unique people with an incredible history simply forget, as if nothing has happened?

Well, this is where rugby comes in. The recognition the (majority of the) Afrikaner gets through rugby seemingly suffices to keep him happy… even amid all the barbaric chaos in Mandelatopia.

The search for recognition (thymos) is one of the most powerful drives in the human psyche. So powerful that it has even been postulated as the motor of history, by Francis Fukuyama. His (rather trite) book, The End of History and the Last Man, had many a Western leader in hysterical glee, because it provided a utopian underpinning/validation for neo-liberalism, after the Cold War against Communism had been won.

Be that as it may; all of us crave recognition – some more (and on a larger scale) than others. The puberty-wing on the boot of a Ford Escort may be that thing which strokes your ego the most, or a beach house in Hermanus, or a Dr. title before your name, or a multi-national company that gets you invites to Davos (like Kdoos Bekker of Naspers). Whatever the size and shape of your ego, you will go through hell and high water to have it stroked. And when it finally gets stroked, you are that winner… you have craved to be for so long.

And that is exactly why Afrikaners are willing to live with a scorched mind in a lost kingdom run by “noble” savages. For winning in rugby is all the recognition he (thinks he) needs, because just like the Springboks he has never really lost. He is still the “Baas of the Plaas” in his mind.

The dastardly Old Empire Brits won the Anglo-Boer War, but they never succeeded in breaking the Afrikaner’s spirit. The Afrikaner won the Angolan War outright, even though they lost the peace, thanks to the treachery of their half-wit leaders. The Afrikaner never lost their “kingdom” to god-Mandela; they simply gave it to him – like the Springbok jersey they gave him at the closing ceremony of the 1995 RWC.

All in all, Afrikaners, as individuals, are still (on average) winners in Mandelatopia, and globally as expats – especially financially – just like their Springbok heroes and role-models.

The only problem is that rugby is a team sport, like a nation… like a civilization. Even the mighty Springboks can only remain winners, provided they play as a team. That is why fewer and fewer lone big Afrikaner men wearing Springbok jerseys will saunter pridefully through the streets of the cities of the West in the future.

Read Albert’s blog.

Lees dié rubriek in Afrikaans.

ANC boss accused of assault

The ANC’s regional secretary in eThekwini (Durban) has been accused of assaulting a member of the party’s youth league, the Sunday Tribune reported.

According to the report, Bheki Ntshangase was alleged to have struck Menzi Ngcobo, a local ANC Youth League member, at a party meeting in Durban’s Umlazi township recently.

Ntshangase was reportedly incensed that the gates to the hall where the meeting was being held had been locked.

Police spokesman Captain Thulani Zwane told the newspaper that a charge of assault had been lodged at the Umlazi police station.

Ntshangase denied the allegations, the newspaper reported. – Sapa

15 illegal Soweto taverns shut by police

Fifteen illegal taverns around Soweto were shut down on the weekend, Gauteng police said on Sunday.

“The owners were arrested and the liquor confiscated,” said Warrant Officer Kay Makhubela.

He said the taverns were found in Eldorado Park, Zola, Diepkloof, Protea Glen and Dobsonville.

A number of other arrests in those areas were conducted on Saturday night – many related to drug dealing and abuse.

Makhubela said the arrested would appear in various magisrate’s courts on Monday. – Sapa

EU warns Egypt it ‘will review ties’

European Union leaders Herman Van Rompuy and Jose Manuel Barroso warned Egypt’s army and interim government Sunday the bloc would review its ties with the country unless the violence ended.

Further escalation could have “unpredictable consequences” for Egypt and its neighbours, the presidents of the European Council and European Commission said.

“This path will not succeed. It is crucial that violence ends immediately,” they said.

The 28-nation bloc would continue efforts to promote an end to violence, resumption of political dialogue, and return to a democratic process, the statement added.

“To this effect, together with its member states, the EU will urgently review in the coming days its relations with Egypt and adopt measures aimed at pursuing these goals.”

Senior diplomats from the 28 EU nations will Monday hold emergency talks on Egypt in Brussels in which they are expected to call for a snap meeting of foreign ministers within the next days.

The EU has pledged nearly five billion euros in loans and grants for Egypt for 2012-2013 and said shortly after the July 3 ouster of president Mohamed Morsi that aid provisions would be “under constant review” as the situation evolved.

“While all should exert maximum restraint, we underline the particular responsibility of the interim authorities and of the army in bringing clashes to a halt,” Van Rompuy and Barroso said.

“The calls for democracy and fundamental freedoms from the Egyptian population cannot be disregarded, much less washed away in blood.”

They regretted that international efforts and proposals for building bridges were set aside and confrontation chosen instead, and said there was no alternative to dialogue.

“All the Egyptian political forces must recommit to the country’s democratic future and engage in a political process leading to the early holding of elections and the establishment of a civilian government,” they said.

“The violence and the killings of these last days cannot be justified nor condoned. Human rights must be respected and upheld. Political prisoners should be released.”

The leaders of Germany and France, President Francois Hollande and Chancellor Angela Merkel, last week raised the spectre of the EU rethinking its cooperation with Egyptian authorities and called for a swift meeting of the bloc’s foreign ministers.

The next scheduled meeting of EU foreign ministers is in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, on September 6 and 7. – AFP

Springboks annihilate Argentina

The Springboks got their Rugby Championship campaign off to a good start with a 73-11 annihilation of Argentina at FNB Stadium on Saturday.

The Boks were in rampant form as they scored nine tries to one for their biggest winning margin over the South Americans to sound a warning that they want to stake a claim for the title in this year’s competition.

They were not only impressive on attack but deprived Los Pumas of possession, while their defensive line proved to be impenetrable.

The match, played as part of the Nelson Mandela Sport and Culture Day, had little entertainment value in the opening 10 minutes.

However, Springbok flyhalf

converted two penalties in this period to hand his side a six-point lead.

At the quarter-hour mark Argentine captain Felipe Contepomi added to the scoreline with a successful conversion.

The two placekickers exchanged two more penalties between them, with only three points separating the two sides.

However, the momentum swung in the hosts’ favour when a deliberate knock down by hooker Eusebio Guinazo metres from the line earned him a yellow card and a penalty try against his team.

Steyn converted the try to extend the Boks’ lead to 10 points after 27 minutes of play.

The try sparked the Boks into action as they added another five-pointer six minutes later when JJ Engelbrecht fielded a Willie le Roux grubber kick to canter through for the try.

Steyn converted and added another penalty conversion in the 38th minute which saw the Boks go into the change room leading 26-6.

Shortly after the restart the Boks showed their intent with a driving maul from a lineout that saw Adriaan Strauss crossing the whitewash for the their third try of the match, with Steyn converting.

To add insult to injury Argentina received their second yellow card of the match, with Leonardo Senatore receiving his marching orders for a dangerous tackle on Engelbrecht in the 50th minute.

Four minutes later Willem Alberts scored the Boks’ bonus-point try, while captain Jean de Villiers added the fourth a minute later as he intercepted an Argentine ball from the kickoff to find an open goalline, with Steyn converting both tries.

Playing in his first match in more than a year, Fourie du Preez also got onto the score sheet in the 62nd minute.

In the 66th minute Bryan Habana scored the team’s seventh try in the to bring up their 66th point in the match, with only six points against them.

Four minutes before the end of the match Bismarck du Plessis closed South Africa’s try-scoring account, with Steyn finding his target once again.

The Argentineans had the final say of the match as Contepomi got over the whitewash to add some respectability to the score sheet.

Scorers: Springboks 73 (26): Tries: Penalty Try, JJ Engelbrecht, Adriaan Strauss, Willem Alberts, Jean de Villiers, Bryan Habana, Fourie du Preez, Duane Vermeulen, Bismarck du Plessis. Conversions: Morne Steyn (8). Penalties: Steyn (4).

Argentina 11 (6): Tries: Felipe Contepomi. Penalties: Contepomi (2). – Sapa

South Africa crush Argentina to top table

South Africa crushed Argentina 73-13 at Soccer City stadium in Soweto Saturday to set the early pace in the Rugby Championship.

The bonus-point win over rivals who had two forwards sin binned put the Springboks level with New Zealand on five points, but well ahead on points difference. – Sapa

Fight right-wing extremism, Merkel urges

Europe must fight right-wing ideas and movements to protect its democracy, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Saturday as she prepared to visit a Nazi concentration camp next week.

“We must never accept that such lines of thought have a place in our democratic Europe,” she said in her weekly video podcast.

Merkel plans Tuesday to visit the Dachau concentration camp outside Munich. She described herself as moved that a survivor of the camp, Max Mannheimer, the chairman of the committee of former Dachau prisoners, had invited her.

She is travelling there with a “feeling of shame and shock,” she said, “because what happened in the concentration camps is and remains unfathomable.”

“We know that today we live in a democracy, but we also know that this democracy is always at risk,” she warned.

She called it “mortifying,” for example, that Jewish establishments in Germany must stay under police watch “because otherwise we must always worry that they will be desecrated.”

The government and large parts of society take the danger posed by right-wing extremism seriously, Merkel said.

Germany has established clear punishments through its legal system as well as programmes for those who want to leave right-wing movements, she said. All people are also urged to be aware that the rewriting of history and bogus slogans have no room in German society, she said.

“Civil courage is also part of society here, so that such ideas have absolutely no chance of spreading,” she said. – dpa