The Sassy Water Recipe is by far the best thing I’ve heard about the Flat Belly Diet. Sassy water gets its name from from Prevention magazine nutrition director Cynthia Sass. She’s the one that came up with the Sassy Water recipe originally. Read the full story

Jason Getsy had the dubious honor of being the the first case heard by the newly seated justice of the Supreme Court, Sonia Sotomayor and it did not turn out well for Getsy.

Jason Getsy was pronounced dead at 10:29 am on this morning after being executed by lethal injection for his crimes, in a Southern Ohio Prison in Lucasville.

Sotomayor voted along with three other liberal justices to approve the last minute appeal for a stay of execution in the Jason Getsy case but the full court turned down the appeal in a 5-4 vote late Monday evening.

Getsy, 33 was a convicted hit man who in a 1995 paid hit, shot Charles Serafino seven times. The victim actually survived the attack but his mother, Ann Serafino, also involved in the shooting, was killed.

Getsy was clearly guilty of the shooting and the killing of the old woman but what kind of hit man shoots a guy seven times and doesn’t kill him? Clearly, Getsy needed a bit of time on the shooting range and perhaps some anatomy lessons to locate some of the more vital organs in a human body.

Getsy’s lawyers did not try to claim that their client was innocent but only that there were other participants to the crime. After all, a hit man is a killer for hire so why shouldn’t the man who hired him not be on trial as well? John Santine, accused of contracting the hit, will not receive the death penalty as a result but Getsy will.

The Ohio Parole board recommended sparing Getsy’s life on the grounds he was not alone in the planning of the murder but Ohio Governor Ted Strickland disagreed with their assessment. He felt that although the other conspirators in the case were given more lenient sentences, that did not mean that Getsy, who actually did the shooting, should be spared.

Getsy spent his last evening writing letters, making phone calls and reading the Bible. His last meal included a rib-eye steak, bbq buffalo wings and onion rings. His visitors included his grandmother, some aunts and uncles and a spiritual advisor

Getsy, who was a high school drop out, was raised by his mother and step father. In 1992, he committed his first crime when he was convicted of negligent homicide for participating in a game of russian roulette that resulted in the death of his 14-year old companion.

The Supreme Court issued a two line order on Monday evening rejecting the request for stay on Getsy’s behalf although the 4-5 vote clearly indicates there was some dissention among the ranks.

Justice Sotomayor replaced Justice David H. Souter, another liberal justice who often voted to limit the use of the death penalty in capital cases or to delay an execution.

Zoey Zane was the internet name of a Kansas College student trying to earn enough money to pay for school. She was only 18 years old when she disappeared on November 23rd, 2007. Last seen leaving an El Dorado bar with her accused killer, Israel Mireles. The child was never seen or heard from again.

Mireles is being charged with capital murder in the case and is also charges with counts of rape and another charge of aggravated criminal sodomy. If found guilty of the crimes, he could suffer the death penalty.

Sander was a student at Butler Community college where a close friend admitted that Sander kept her double life secret from everyone except a few very close friends.

After missing work at the italian restaurant where he worked, his employer went looking for Mireles at the motel where he was staying and found his motel room in complete disarray and large amounts of blood where found in the room. Police investigators also found that some of the bed clothes were missing.

A nationwide manhunt was launched to locate the missing Mireles and the young Miss Sanders. their investigation lead them to Texas where Mireles has family. They located a rental car he had been driving but did not find the body of Emily Sanders till six days after her initial disappearance. Her body was located about 50 miles to the east of El Dorado as police followed the route they believed that Mireles used on his way to pick up his 16 yhear old girlfriend Victoria Martens, before skipping town.

Police do not believe that Emily’s double life as Zoey Zane had anything to do with her being killed, one cannot help but wonder if their is some connection.

Mireles was eventually located in Mexico and extradited to the US in 2007. An attorney for Mireles could not be reached for comment.

Emily Sanders had recently signed a contract to do some additional nude work on the internet and informed her parents. Her boyfriend did not approve of her double life and left broke up with Sanders shortly thereafter.

Sander’s grandmother, Shirly Sander could not believe that her granddaughter had been involved in this kind of a double life. “We have never heard anythintg like this and truthfully, I don’t believe it”.

Rebecca Gayheart Video – The latest celebrity to have a tape, although I’m pretty sure it’s digital footage, after all, who actually uses tape these days, is Rebecca Gayheart and her husband Eric Dane and a VERY close friend, the stunning Kari Ann Peniche. Why we as a society, are so fascinated with celebrity sex scandals, speaks volumes about the puritanical mindset that still pervades this nation. Of course, why people who should know better, are recording themselves in the first place, is another question.

Now there is some confusion as to whether the tape can even be considered a “sex” tape since no actual sex occurs on the footage. Rebecca and her husband are seen cavorting naked with Kari Ann Peniche, another amazing beauty.

Now I’m not saying that I wouldn’t enjoy watching Rebecca Gayheart in the buff, after all, she is after all a stunningly beautiful woman, but let’s face it folks, after a while, these “sex scandals” get kinda boring, don’t you think?

In addition to Eric Dane and his lovely wife Rebecca Gayheart, the video footage also includes former beauty queen Kari Ann Peniche. The three of them appear in their birthday suits and during the video, it becomes apparent that they are all three in various states of intoxication.

Eric Dane is the one of the stars of the very popular TV show, Gray’s Anatomy in which he plays the role of Dr. Mark Sloan, a.k.a. “McSteamy”, not to be confused with “McDreamy” who is played by Patrick Dempsey in his role as Dr. Derek Shepherd.

Rebecca Gayheart is a stunningly beautiful Television and film actress who’s TV credits include such hit shows as Nip/Tuck, Medium and Ugly Betty. She also has a recurring role on Beverly Hills 90210.

Kari Ann Peniche is a a former beauty queen from Oregan. She once held the Miss Teen United States title and competed for the title of Miss Teen USA before being stripped of her title after appearing on the pages of Playboy in the November 2004 issue.

So while the the story os being touted as another “Sex Tape Scandal”, it really amounts to three friends enjoying a little naked time. Los Angeles Police where investigating but found no evidence that an actual crime had been committed.

The video has made it’s way onto the internet already although the parties involved have threatened all sorts of lawsuits if anyone has the cojones to actually post the video. According to reports, Gawker.com has released a version of the tape where the obscure all the participants lower bodies but be warned that if you find the video, Mr. Danes wife and friend are topless.

Call me when they find the real sex tape, will ya!

When Chicago shuts down to save money then you know that things must be really bad for the windy city but is closing down the whole city of Chicago in order to save money really a good solution or just a short term, non-effective desperate measure. One could also ask whether the fact that Chicago shuts down to save money will turn into a regular trend for the city and if it is accepted perhaps will become a national trend.

When Chicago shuts down to save money today, which will mean almost a total 24 hour standstill of public services, it is estimated that the city will alleviate it’s somewhat gigantic $ 300 million budget shortfall. When Chicago shuts down to save money it will mean that all non-essential services such as trash collection, libraries, libraries etc. will all be closed in the first of three scheduled service reduction days. City authorities hope that when Chicago shuts down to save money it will save an estimated $8.3 million dollars which barely scratches the surface of the current deficit. This measure also calls for workers to take unpaid vacation in order to show support for this drastic measure. Chicago’s Mayor Richard M Daley said he greatly appreciated the sacrifice being made and that every dollar saved will lead to job creation for folks today and the future generations of Chicago. He also stated the steps require most folks to accept some form of cuts in order to deal with the current budget crisis.

Two more such days have already been planned in the “Chicago shuts down to save money” scheme which may have drastic results during the holiday period. The next such day is planned for 27th of November the day after Thanksgiving day and the final is planned for 24th of December Christmas eve. During these two following “shut down” days workers have been asked to take some unpaid days off and accept vacation without salary.

Chicago isn’t alone when it comes to tightening the belt as states throughout the U.S. follow suit in a bid to reduce costs and curb outlandish budget shortages.California, for example has declared a monetary emergency enforcing a three day a month public sector stste offices closure and Michigan plans to withhold public sector pay from it’s employees for the last week in September.

It looks like the “season of joy” could be anything but merry for a lot of folks across the U.S. this coming holiday season.

The definition of nugatory is something that has little or no value. It has come to my attention that there might be a nugatory sale at either Linder’s Furniture store, Ashley Furniture Canada, or Lee Furniture. While I’ve checked some of their websites for a sale, and couldn’t find any out in the open, that does mean there isn’t a sale. Since the fall season is approaching, that means Labor Day holiday is coming soon (in about 2 weeks to be precise) and these stores need to clear inventory to have their labor day sale. Why it’s call a nugatory sale I’m not too sure but it’s a strange word indeed. It’s probably a good idea to search out other furniture outlets that also might have such sales going on because the Labor Day sale is always a big occasion in the United States, especially because of the profits these furniture stores will book when they sell their sofas, tables, chairs, and such.

“Seen the squirrel photo? Couple tells us it’s real.” How do we know that this is a genuine photo, not a fake or a setup, not a publicity stunt?

Maybe it’s a fake, but I doubt it. Maybe they had a pet squirrel with them. I doubt it. Maybe they had a stuffed squirrel with them.

No, it’s got to be a real squirrel, who could get a stuffed squirrel to look as good as a real one like that?

And even if they had a pet squirrel with them have a look at how far away they are sitting. You’ve got to have a pretty tame pet squirrel to sit right up there in front of the camera like that and not move.

But what I wanted to talk about wasn’t about the squirrel photo, couple or not behind it. What I wanted to point out was the marvels of modern cameras.

Have a good look at the squirrel photo, couple behind, squirrel in front. What do you see?

Well if you’re not a photographer you might just see a squirrel photo, nothing more. But I immediately noticed something.

See how perfectly the squirrel is in focus? You couldn’t ask for a better focus than that. Now of course you could assume that the photo was a fake and the reason the squirrel is in such good focus proves the photo is a fake.

But no, you’d probably be wrong. I’ll bet this was what happened with the squirrel photo.

The couple set the camera on auto timer so they could set it up, and have time to sit down a little distance away and get composed before the camera went off.

Then just before it was due to take the shot the squirrel jumped in front and hey presto, you’ve got the perfect squirrel photo, couple behind, squirrel, in focus, in front.

That’s not proof that it’s a fake squirrel photo, that’s testament to the power of modern cameras to refocus in an instant. It didn’t quite get the depth of field, the couple are a little out of focus, but the camera did a pretty good job of taking a great photo, all by itself.

After undergoing fertility treatments, a woman in Tunisia is claiming to be pregnant with a record-breaking 12 babies. And we thought Octa-Mom had pushed the limits! Now here is Dodeca-Mom!

This news raises a lot of questions. It is reported that the 6 boys and 6 girls were created through invitro fertilization. Was this a normal outcome, or were some medical mistakes made? Read the full story

Hurricane Bill projected path is so far still forming but early guesses indicate that it may hit the U.S. Virgin Islands by the end of this week. With the world environment changing or out of whack, the hurricane season has started much later than usual. Hurricanes Ana, Guillermo, and Claudette are so far weakening or are in the process of just being a tropical storm. With this side of the world being pretty fortunate in terms of hurricanes, Hurricane Bill is the first serious storm that could damage homes and threaten lives, and we’ve been lucky to not have been hit by anything major the past couple of months. The good news is that it is still too early to tell where Bill is going to go but at minimum residents on the eastern coast of Canada and the United States have more than enough time to prepare. Hurricane Bill currently is clocking in speeds of up to 75ish miles per hour and even though it will likely gain in strength over the coming days, weather experts say there is a good chance that Bill will not hit land. May become a level 3 hurricane in 2 to 3 days and is currently 1140 miles east of Lesser Antilles.

Hurricane Bill’s projected path is west or northwest-ish but the storm is still pretty far from any major land and it could dissipate by the time it reaches land, if it does.

Traffic tickets… here is today’s traffic advisory. A traffic ticket is not our favorite thing to get, or to be given. In fact, you know it’s a sign of a bad day when you get a ticket on the way in to work.

Given the harsh realities of budget deficits for cities and towns everywhere these days, one way a clever municipality could collect more revenue is by intensifying law enforcement.

These might be the infringements of the ordinances that once were overlooked, but now they could mean big bucks for a township (if you want to look at things that way).

Yes, you could go to court and try to argue your way out of a ticket, but the easier thing to do is not to get a traffic violation in the first place.

Besides what a traffic fine might cost you, think about your vehicle insurance. It could skyrocket.

Not to mention that if you really messed up on the road and the cops were on the scene, you might be looking at some serious jail time in addition to fines and your lawyer bills.

If a traffic violation involves alcohol (like a DUI or DWI), I”ll tell you what, you are in deep trouble.

Avoid breaking the law when driving.

The single biggest thing to be watching out for today is school zones. The permissible speed can be decreased massively and quickly.

If you miss seeing the school zone sign it could cost you.

School zones have a variety of different speed limits, depending upon where you live.

Watch out for school zones.

Study the signs.

When you see a school, slow down.

Right now back to school season has begun. Some schools are already in session.

Others don’t begin til September.

When school is in session, children are about.

That’s why the speed limits exist. That’s why the speed limits are low.

Sometimes fines are even doubled for speeding in places like construction zones or school zones. Slow down.

You do not want a ticket.

You do not want you money to be paid out for a traffic fine, when you could have avoided it.

Most important, you do not want to injure a child with your car or motorcycle.

And oh my gosh, you do not want to kill a child and live with that guilt in jail for the rest of your life.

So have I made my case?

Back to school means back to tickets for anyone speeding in a school zone.

If you speed in a school zone, do not be surprised when you see the flashing lights in your rear view mirror.

Traffic tickets can be avoided if you drive smart. Avoid traffic tickets. Respect school zones. Speeding in a school zone is the quick way to get a ticket, have a bad day, risk arrest, or even to end up in jail.

Costco, well-regarded warehouse store chain, has reportedly pulled a controversial product from the market.

Could all this be true?

The big hubbub going around is that Costco had a boxed dark-skinned baby doll in the store, that came with an adorable stuffed monkey. On the baby doll’s cap were the words Lil Monkey.

That’s it.

That’s racism?

Has the age of political correctness just hit its proper stride, or, in the contrarian view, are we getting too terribly politically correct for our own good?

If you were Costco, what would you have done?

Do the people on Twitter and the web now have so much power that the nation’s retailers will let them decide store inventory?

Some people ARE really offended by this, apparently.

Other people consider the whole fight fest to be of laughable import.

Maybe it’s just that we don’t have enough good old-fashioned controvery these days– we now have to invent stories to keep us entertained. Is that it?

Or perhaps this is just the tip of the iceberg in a racist society and people have had enough.

Or maybe both sides in this controversy have valid points.

So if this story is true, and if Costco pulled the item, what should Costco do next? Should they let the Lil Monkey story die along with their inventory item Cuddle Baby #404860? Or, is Costco now obligated to keep the conversation going and should they do some kind of community service to regain stature in the eyes of customers?

The Gina Carano Vs Cris Cyborg fight was one of the most anticipated bout in MMA history, or at least in women’s MMA history. Gina Carano and Cris Cyborg are the two highest profile women MMA athletes and it was only a matter of time before the two faced off in a fight to see who is queen of the women MMA world.

The American Gina Carano is a crowd’s favorite, at least in North America: she is beautiful and deadly at the same time. Gina Carano’s weigh in was an event onto itself and had the crowd roaring. She might be beautiful but she is also a very accomplished MMA athlete with convincing wins over some of the best fighters in women MMA. The Carano Cyborg fight set the record straight as to who is the best current MMA fighter.

The Brazilian Cris Cyborg had plans of her own to foil the meteoric rise of Gina Carano to the top of the women MMA rooster. An incredibly aggressive striker, Cris Cyborg has bullied her way to the top of the league, stringing impressive wins one over the other. To many, in this fight she was the favorite to win over Carano, who fought for the first time in her career as the underdog.

My prediction for the Gina Carano Cris Cyborg fight was that if Gina can weather the first round flurry of Cris Cyborg she would eventually get the better of the Brazilian. Cris has never faced a tough opponent like Gina whose striking is also world class and who will not stand there and take it without retaliating with a few shots of her own. That plus the fact that Cris cardio has shown signs of weaknesses before would mean that if the fight reaches the latter rounds things might sway in the favor of Gina as times goes on. Not to underestimate Cris Cyborg though, she is a real wrecking machine with real knock out power.

So was I right or way off with my prediction? On to the Gina Carano Cris Cyborg fight proper:
Round 1: Cris Cyborg dominating, landing more shots and scoring more take downs. It looks like Gina Carano is having trouble coping with the strength and aggressivity of Cris Cyborg Santos. Near the end of the round Cris scores the take down and grounds and pounds Carano to take the victory.

Gina Carano Vs Cris Cyborg fight result: Cris Cyborg wins the fight by GNP round 1.

Democrat Senator Jim Webb is staying out of the controversial Health Reform Bill, on a five nation tour of Asia, has met with General Than Shwe of Burma and gained the release of American John Yettaw.

This unprecedented visit, by a democrat close to President Obama (Webb was once on the possible list for VP), could indicate that there is in fact some changes in international relations between Burma and the US. Although the State Department has made it clear that Webb’s trip was not in an official capacity.

Jim Webb, Senator from Virginia, who chairs the Senate Foreign Relation’s subcommittee on East Asia and Pacific Affairs, is the first high ranking official to visit Than Shwe, the black sheep of previous administrations in Washington.

The meeting in Burma’s Capital, Naypyidaw, lasted about an hour. Webb also met with Aung San Suu Kyi, opposition leader,
who has been condemned to an additional 18 months house arrest by the Burmese government, after American John Yettaw, swam to her lake side house in Rangoo. last may. According to government authorities this appearance of an uninvited guest at the Nobel Peace Prize Laureate’s house was indication that she had contravened the terms of a previous house arrest.

Aung San Suu Kyi has been detained a total of 14 years over the last 20 years.

The first result of the meeting between Webb and Than Shwe is the announcement of John Yettaw’s release. Yettaw’s health has been listed as fragile and he experienced several epilepsy incidents during his detention. He will be “officially” deported from Burma and will leave with Jim Webb aboard a military plane, in direction of Bangkok on Sunday.

Webb issued a statement saying: “I am grateful to the Myanmar government,” 
  
”It is my hope that we can take advantage of these gestures as a way to begin laying a foundation of goodwill and confidence-building in the future,” Webb added. Webb also said that he had asked for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi.

following his meeting with Than Shwe, Webb met with Aung San Suu Kyi for about 45 minutes. He communicated his deepest respect for the sacrifices she has made in her defense of democracy. Should Aung San Suu Kyi not benefit from clemency before the 2010 elections, she will not be able to participate in the promised election.

Last Thursday members of the UN Security Counsel, have expressed their deep concern, on the Burmese situation, and approved new sanctions against the regime. In the months preceding the John Yetaw incident the Obama administration had indicated that it would open to a change in politics towards Burma, with a more open dialogue.

The 76 year old Than Shwe took power in 1992, and has been, for more than a decade, the constant target of sanctions from the United Nations and the United States, for his lack of democratic reforms.

It is hoped that this successful visit from Webb might bring about better terms and a lift of sanctions that are seriously hindering business relations with Burma, and undermine the country’s development.

US sugar supplies ‘running out’ because of the import limits being imposed on manufacturers by the American government. These curbs are causing a scare among makers of sugar based products who say that if the current rules stay in place that it could lead to a scarcity in US sugar supplies. Read the full story

Michelle Simonson of Clarkston Michigan and a former Clarkston Schools teacher is free on bond and awaiting trial. She is accused of sending sexual text messages from her Read the full story

Lance Migliaccio is potentially freed on bond as Federal prosecutors try to appeal a judge magistrate over his decision. At center here is that the Judge Michael Hegarty granted Migliaccio a $50,000 bond, although a hearing is set for August 24, Read the full story

11 year old Damon Weaver, a fifth-grader at Kathryn E. Cunningham Elementary school in Florida is quite the astute journalist.

If you ask Damon Weaver about his career in journalism, I’m sure he will tell you that the highlight occurred yesterday when young Mr. Damon was granted an interview with none other than The President of the United States himself, Barak Obama. Damon Weaver has made history, becoming the youngest reporter ever, to interview a sitting president.

Mr. Obama and Mr. Weaver’s chatted for about 10 minutes in the White House Diplomatic Room. There he grilled the president on issues surrounding Mr. Obama’s policies on Education in America. Damon started his interview with some pretty serious questions about our nations education budget, specifically asking about the allocation of funds to poorer communities like his own small town in Florida. He also asked questions about crime in schools and wether the president could still dunk a basketball, to which the president replied that he couldn’t.

The interview was captured on video and will be broadcast to schools throughout the nation next month.

VIDEO: Damon Williams Interviews the President

Damon joined the television station at his school as a reporter and set his sights on interviewing as many people of influence as he could connect with.

He covered the presidential election in 2008 and actually interviewed Joe Biden. He was invited to attend the presidential inauguration, being the intrepid reporter that he is, went on to get interviews with the likes of Oprah Winfrey, Colin Powell, Paula Abdul and L.L. Cool J. The budding broadcaster has become so famous that he is now on the list of many other reporters and has himself been interviewed by Larry King, made appearances on CNN and MSNBC as well as Fox & Friends and a bunch of local television affiliates as well.

Damon Weaver is a young man with a big future ahead if he plays his cards right. When I was 11, all I was worried about was keeping my lunch money from the local bully. I think this boy is well on his way to becoming a professional journalist and I for one will be looking to see him on one of the major network news shows in the not too distant future.

Today is the 64th anniversary of VJ Day: on the 14th August 1945 Japan surrendered and the war in the Pacific was over, America and the allies had won. For those of us who lived in the Pacific it was a much more important moment than the VE day which was the end of the war in Europe when Berlin fell in May 1945.

Not that I recall it – I am not that old! But I do remember my mother talking about VJ day from the point of view of New Zealander. Japan was seen as a much scarier enemy than Hitler ever was. Australia had serious bombing damage to Darwin and other northern towns. A Japanese submarine was sunk in Sydney’s harbour.

Particularly New Zealand, but to a lesser extend Australia – the price of sending troop to support Churchill and the British saw their own countries basically undefended. If the Japanese hadn’t bombed Pearl Harbor and therefore involved the US in the Pacific War it could well have been that certainly Australia would have fallen to the Japanese well-organised forces.

VJ day was a huge relief – we debate the ethics of dropping not one but two nuclear bombs on Japan – the reality is that otherwise World War 2 could have dragged on for many more years.

The PC police have been having a go at VJ day as well – there is move to rename Victory against Japan to Victory in the Pacific – so as not to pick on the Japanese I guess. Well tell that to the thousands of civilians and POW’s who died of starvation or worse in the death camps, the death railways and the general cruelty which really was at totally different level to that which happened in Europe.

It wasn’t just the well known stories of the Burmese railway and the Bridge over the River Kwai deaths. There was the Australian nurses who having survived their ship being torpedoed were then hearded up on the beach – walked into the water and shot in the back of the head, along with their injured patients.

I know it was all long time ago – but there are still a few of that generation who will never be able to forgive the Japanese military for what happened during WWII and they will certainly be celebrating 14 August as VJ day – Victory against Japan day!

It was with sadness that I discovered that pilot involved in tragic mid-air collision between a light aircraft and a sightseeing helicopter was in fact ex-pat Kiwi, Jeremy Clarke. In total all nine passengers and crew on the two vehicles were killed when they collided mid-air above the Hudson River. The single-engine Piper light plane had three on-board when it collided with a Clarke’s chopper which was owned by Liberty Helicopters and had been chartered by five Italian tourists.

The air corridor above the Hudson and particularly near the Statue of Liberty can get very busy on a fine day. Helicopters are not under aircraft control – so long as they stay below 350 meters and don’t get too near to the Manhattan skyscrapers.

I am not at all surprised that a New Zealander was at the controls of the tourist’s helicopter. For a country of only 4 million people we export a great deal of talent and we also have a very high percentage of qualified pilots – really! Between the top-dressing industry, deer shooting and tourism we have a lot of New Zealanders with pilot licences.

The thing is that ultimately flying in small planes, and more particularly helicopters is intrinsically dangerous. I always think its quite funny when I travel that most people worry about crossing the road or eating bad food, or being mugged. But the real risks aren’t any of those things – instead its flying in small planes and even catching a tourist bus in many countries.

So yes its a tragedy that has occurred in NYC and I really hope that there were no issues with air traffic control as is being reported today. But at the end of the day I think that New Zealand pilot was probably living his dream – and I can imagine that the Italian tourists were having a great time seeing the highlights of Manhattan including a close-up view of the famous New York icon: the Statue of New York.

The question that does appear to being asked is what, if any role did air traffic controllers, who have now been suspended, have on that fateful day over the Hudson River which ended in tragedy.

A French women has been banned from wearing her Australian-designed Burqini in a Parisian swimming pool. The Australians and French certainly have different views on fashion – it would be fair to say that the average French woman probably does out do the average Aussie Shelia in this department. But now the Australians are somewhat upset after a French women – wearing an Australian-designed Burqini – was asked to leave a French swimming pool!

I may need to backup a bit here and explain to my gentle readers exactly what a burqini is. Its basically an Islamic swimsuit which was designed by Sydney based Aheda Zanetti who designed the burqini initially to allow local Muslim women to participate is such Australian institutions as surf life saving.

In fact – the burqini is a very practical item of clothing for a country which has the world’s highest skin cancer rates. The vast majority of Australians would now go to the beach in long sleeves rather than a mini-bikini – maybe that’s where the French with the attitude to modest swimming costumes are a little behind the times?

In fact the burqini is a very practical piece of clothing – no women goes surfing in a tiny bikini- nude bathing is illegal on most Australian beachs – and thats exactly the state you will be in if you go into the Aussie surf with a tiny bikini!

At the other extreme though – the burqa – traditionally in cotton- is potentially lethal on surf beaches – the lose heavy fabric can pull you under and make it very difficult to swim.

The cleverness of the burqini is the use of modern fabrics which shed water and are lightweight means that you a woman can safely swim and surf while fully covered.

But its all too much for the French. The same country which has already banned religious head dress from schools has now banned a French women who attempted to swim at her local Paris pool wearing a burqini. Local officials claim that wearing so much fabric is a “health hazard” – maybe we should all swim nude would that be better?

Ironically here in Australia there have been cases of Muslim women being refused entry to swimming pools because they were wearing clothes not swim suits.

Really whether you are wearing a bikini, a swim suite or a burqini – so long as you have a shower before entering the pool whats the big difference? We still allow toddlers in pools without diapers don’t we?