In almost a decade, Vancouver has been bumped out of first place as the best city in the world, according to The Economist Intelligence Unit’s liveability survey. The reason for the drop: traffic and congestion issues following a 22-hour closure on the Malahat Hwy north of Victoria in April.
Melbourne, Australia took the lead spot out of 140 cities, which were evaluated in terms of stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education and infrastructure.
Though the riots happened too late to affect the scoring, it's expected that Vancouver will drop further down the list in the future.
As the EIU explained, “The concept of liveability is simple: it assesses which locations around the world provide the best or the worst living conditions”.
In total 140 cities were surveyed. The cities were evaluated across five broad categories: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education and infrastructure.
Toronto placed fourth, after Vancouver, while Calgary came fifth. At the bottom of the barrel, unsurprisingly, was Harare, Zimbabwe.
Tsk tsk to 'Lost' actor, Matthew Fox, who assaulted a female bus driver outside a bar in Cleveland, Ohio.
After Heather Borman refused him entry onto her private party bus, 45-year-old Fox reportedly punched her breasts and stomach as he tried to board the coach.
“He smelled like a liquor cabinet, like a bar," said Borman. "I told him, ‘Sorry, buddy, this is a private party. You have to get off my vehicle.’ I told him three times. He never said a word. He just looked at me.”
Then Fox, who was in town filming 'I, Alex Cross' starting swinging at her. He was led away in handcuffs, but later freed without charge. Police are still investigating the matter.
While the star hasn't yet commented on the incident, Boreman plans to press charges against the actor. Let that be a reminder to Fox: just 'cause you're famous doesn't give you an excuse to be an abusive *sshole.
Nothing like a storm to get you in the mood. It may seem unlikely, but natural disasters have a tendency to lead to a spike in births, especially during extended power outages when there is no television for entertainment.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Irene, a record number of babies were born -- 17, to be precise, within 18 hours at one North Carolina hospital, and in Virginia, more than three dozen. Maybe the stress of evacuation and the coming storm set off labour in some cases?
Nine months from now, expect another baby surge and perhaps even a few little girls named in Irene's honour. (One newborn in Pennsylvania, whose midlde name is 'Hurricane', is already a living reminder of the storm.)
In 1965, the so-called Great Blackout, which left a good section of Canada and the States in darkness for up to 13 hours, set the stage for romance. A sociologist at the time admitted that “under the circumstances, it’s not unreasonable to assume that a lot of sex went on”.
Already the children of Hurricane Katrina are entering kindergarten classes in New Orleans, a potent reminder of new beginnings.
As someone born on the anniversary of JFK's assassination, I can relate. My mother was born on the day Pearl Harbour was bombed. How would you feel about giving birth on a tragic historical occasion?
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