Corridors that once echoed to the sound of White House staffers walking and talking very fast fell silent on Sunday night as the final episode of The West Wing was broadcast in the United States, bringing seven years of political escapism to a close.
Fifa will push for its members to adopt the world anti-doping code in time for the World Cup next month, the head of the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) said on Sunday. If the code is adopted before the start of the tournament on June 9 in Germany, the world’s soccer stars would be subject to two-year suspensions for serious doping violations instead of the lighter bans under Fifa rules.
Australian winger Wendell Sailor’s lucrative rugby union career will be finished if positive drug tests are confirmed, and he would also be barred from a return to rugby league. Sailor’s positive drug test could cost him more than Aus-million, media reports said on Monday.
Faced with fewer buyers and soaring oil prices, General Motors has decided after a 14-year run to drive its gargantuan Hummer "Alpha" 4X4 into the sunset and shutter its production. GM announced on Friday that production of the giant 4X4 known as the "H1", based on a vehicle designed for the United States army, will cease in June.
First quarter figures on unit trust sales and net inflows suggest growing maturity among South African investors and indicate that a key lesson has been learned — selling high is a lot better than selling when the market hits the bottom. The quarterly perspective comes from Kim Zietsman, head of single manager unit trusts at Stanlib, South Africa’s largest unit trust company.
The European Union is preparing a bold offer for Iran, including economic, nuclear, and perhaps security guarantees, to try to curb its atomic ambitions, EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said on Monday. "It will be a generous package, a bold package, that will contain issues relating to nuclear, economic matters, and maybe, if necessary, security matters," Solana said.
Deadly heat clouds tumbled further down the slopes of Indonesia’s Mount Merapi early on Monday as the volcano’s activity increased ahead of a feared eruption, an official said. Blazing lava has also been oozing down the slopes of Merapi, but many villagers have been defying orders for a mandatory evacuation and are insisting on staying in their homes.
The National Youth Commission on Sunday said an institution should be established to address shortcomings in the implementation of youth development programmes in South Africa. The commission’s Monde Mkalipi said a Youth Development Agency would be responsible for policy and interventions, funding and implementation as well as monitoring.
It’s a tour operator’s gift from heaven — a controversial murder mystery hunt for the Holy Grail that unravels from Paris to England, through some of Europe’s most historic museums and churches. And after once cashing in on the runaway success of <i>The Da Vinci Code</i>, travel agencies are again rubbing their hands in glee at this week’s release of the film version.
Sick of sky-high prices and lengthy waits for operations, growing numbers of Britons are going under the surgeon’s knife overseas, in destinations like South Africa, India and Eastern Europe. Cheaper operations are enticing more than 10Â 000 Britons per year abroad, some travelling huge distances to factor in some fun in the sun — and still saving on the price of British private sector surgery.