| Mazda's Speed Demon
The Mazdaspeed3 is a hot little skateboard of a car that's rapidly becoming a cult model among young driving enthusiasts. Nearly 80% of buyers are male and their average age is only 35, youngest in the segment, according to J.D. Power's (MHP) Power Information Network (PIN). There's a reason for that: Dollar for dollar, this may be the hottest low-priced compact on the road. If you're looking for a tamer vehicle, stick with the regular Mazda3, the popular model the Speed3 is based on. The Speed3, however, only comes with a six-speed manual transmission and there's only one choice of engine: a turbocharged version of the 2.3-liter 4-cylinder engine that comes standard in the Mazda3. The turbocharger raises the engine's output to 263 hp and 280 pound-feet of torque, up from 156 hp and 150 lb.-ft.
ETC. News: Nick Hogan Bollea arrested today for driving recklessly ...
Nick Bollea, a/k/a Nick Hogan, was arrested earlier today. He turned himself in on charges of reckless driving involving serious bodily injury, according to reports out of Florida. The passenger in the car he crashed in August remains comatose. He was handcuffed as he arrived at the police station today, accompanied by two police officers. He didn't answer any media questions as he entered Pinellas County Jail to be booked. Bollea's blood test for alchohol came back at a positive of 0.055, well above the 0.02 limit allowed for a driver under age 21. The legal limit for a 21-plus adult is 0.08. He was under that. He also had illegal window tinting. The St. Petersburg Times reports that Nick was boating with his father, Hulk Hogan (Terry Bollea) and friends. A friend said Nick was drinking on the boat, but he didn't know what he was drinking.
Star turn: Brian Fortuna on tour
It's no surprise Brian Fortuna competed in "Dancing with the Stars" and is now on tour with fellow Stars dancers. The tour, featuring Wayne Newton, Joey Lawrence and Marie Osmond, among others, sweeps into Boardwalk Hall on Feb. 2 and the Wachovia Center eight days later. Fortuna was primed for the role since his youth, thanks to his parents, Sandra and Andy Fortuna. The Haddon Heights couple has owned Universal Dance Center in Collingswood for the past 15 years. The center teaches ballroom and Latin dance. "I'm the teacher. My husband got involved with my competitions. He said "I might as well dance, too,' " said Sandra Fortuna, 56, who danced with the Philadelphia Opera Ballet while still in high school, and majored in dance at college.
Ashley Twiggs / Daily Record
In December, Korpita pleaded guilty to DWI and the offense of threatening a public servant. A municipal judge in Dover, Rockaway and Victory Gardens when he was pulled over in November, Korpita flashed his judicial identification during the investigation. He said, "I'm a judge, bro," and asked the officers to give him a break. He admitted at his plea that he threatened to take adverse actions against them if they didn't. Ahto on Friday sentenced Korpita to three years' probation, 100 days of community service, nearly $1,000 in fines, and loss of his driver's license for one year. He also ordered him to complete an inpatient rehabilitation program of at least 28 days' duration. As part of his plea agreement, Korpita agreed to give up his municipal court posts and can never hold a public position of trust again.
Terry McCrann
FEDERAL Treasury and in particular its head, Ken Henry, were slimed in an astonishing comment piece in the Australian Financial Review yesterday. The author, Tony Harris, effectively accused Treasury of conspiring with the former government and in particular the former treasurer Peter Costello to hide Australia's inflation problem before the election. The headline was quite explicit. "Whiff of budget dishonesty". This not only accused Henry and his colleagues of grossly unprofessional conduct but actual impropriety. Indeed, breach of specific obligations under the law. The basis of the Harris article was that the MYEFO - the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook - had benign inflation forecasts. "Inflation is forecast to be 2 per cent in 2007-08 and 2008-09.
'Be Kind Rewind' ode to long-ago era of VHS
The delightfully dippy Be Kind Rewind isn't just a movie that feels as if it was a pleasure to make. It's about how making movies can be fun -- creative, exhilarating enterprises undertaken purely for the joy of the experience. Written and directed by Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind), Be Kind Rewind stars Jack Black and Mos Def as a pair of video-store clerks who inadvertently erase all their VHS rental copies. In a panic and with a reservation put on hold by a loyal customer (Mia Farrow) for Ghostbusters, the two film their own version of that science-fiction comedy and try to pass it off as the real thing. It doesn't fool anyone, of course, but the rental is a hit nonetheless. Soon the whole neighborhood wants to see homemade versions of their favorite blockbusters.
Head-banging Marcus Hahnemann is ready to rock with Cristiano Ronaldo
Marcus Hahnemann, the Reading goalkeeper, is no stereotypical footballer, no average Joe. The bald-headed American owns an armoury of assorted guns and, an avid petrol-head, likes nothing better than tinkering under the bonnet of his ageing Porsche. Yet when it comes to preparing for matches – even the biggest, as when Manchester United, the Barclays Premier League leaders, visit the Madejski Stadium today – routine is everything. Same old this, same old that. Superstition rules, with a quirky twist. Friday evening is chill-out time. "Chicken fajitas first," Hahnemann said. "Then I stick myself in the loft for a couple of hours and play my Halo [video game]. That’s where it all starts." Match day never changes, either. A tuna sandwich three hours before kick-off, then an ear-bashing drive to the stadium to the brain-numbing accompaniment of Slipknot and Tool.
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