Give till it hurts, China

China reaches deep, waaaayyy deep, into its pockets to help the victims of the Myanmar cyclone:

China said on Tuesday it would send $ one million in emergency aid to Myanmar after the southeast Asian nation was devastated by a cyclone that killed more than 15,000 people.

“To help the Myanmarese people with reconstruction, the Chinese government has decided to send the first batch of USD one million of emergency assistance, including cash and materials,” foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang said.

Woo hoo! Feller could have a pretty good weekend in Vegas with that kind of kaching! It’s not even all in cash – they’re undoubtedly sending some old stuff and counting it at full retail price. Maybe China’s still living in the 60’s:

[The US has allocated $3.25 million thus far, and has the military standing by to provide relief as soon as the Myanmar government gives permission.]

Men giving up on sex?

Say it ain’t so:

Counselling and sex therapy charity Relate says it has seen a 40 per cent increase in men who simply cannot be bothered to make love to their wives and partners.

The findings are a world away from just ten years ago, when hardly any men contacted them with a loss of libido. The main sufferers who call its helpline with the problem are generally aged between 30 and 50 and are married.
…
What we have is a lot of men who say, as women did in the 1950s: ‘I can have sex but I do not want to. It’s not rewarding’.

I suspect the ennui that is infecting the world is largely responsible.

Related article: Half of UK men would swap sex for 50 inch TV

The vacant lot case in Boulder continues

You may remember the story of a couple (the Kirlins) who bought a vacant lot in Boulder 25 years ago, and finally decided that they were ready to develop it. To their shock, the couple in the neighboring house (McLean & Stevens) sued them for partial ownership of the lot, based on “adverse possession.” Basically they argued that since they had trespassed on the lot for 25 years, and had “improved” it by creating a dirt path to aid in their trespass, they had establish a squatter’s right of possession.

Richard McLean was a District Judge and a mayor of Boulder, and his wife was an attorney and the head of the Boulder Democratic Party. Very well connected, very familiar with the law, and apparently devoid of any ethics or morals.

The plaintiffs won, outraging most people across the country and many even in Boulder. So the Kirlins went back to court and tried to show that the dirt path had been created after the lawsuit was filed. They used aerial photographs and expert witnesses to demonstrate that the path didn’t exist before 2007, but the judge, who has appeared to be awfully responsive to the nasty neighbors, claimed that he could see a path where the experts couldn’t.

So they lost their appeal yesterday, which really ticks me off. But not as much as hearing McLean say why he stole a third of their land:

“We want to use the property just like we’ve been using it for almost a quarter of a century.”

McLean said he and his wife will continue to fight for that use.

What a crock. “We want to steal $340,000 from somebody else because we like having a vacant lot next door.” How utterly selfish and self-indulgent. Rather than appreciating the free use of the lot for all these years, McLean and his wife have decided that they deserve that free use.

I hope the Kirlins keep the legal battle going, though I know it’s cost them an absurd amount of money already. Their next stop is the Colorado Court of Appeals. Perhaps by getting away from Boulder, the heart of McLean’s and Stevens’ influence, they’ll have better luck.