Banning skimpy skirts, and more

Banning skimpy skirts

A government minister in Uganda has called for a ban on women wearing miniskirts, calling them a danger to motorists. “Some of our people are weak, mentally,” confessed Nsaba Buturo, Uganda’s minister of ethics and integrity. If while driving you see a woman wearing a skimpy skirt, Buturo continued, “you begin to concentrate on the make-up of that person, and yet you are driving.”

Halting New York traffic

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The world’s shortest man brought traffic to a halt when he visited New York City, as cab drivers, cops, and office workers stopped to gawk at the 2-foot-5 He Pingping of Inner Mongolia. Mr. He, recently cited by Guinness World Records for his unrivaled shortness, said it was “like a dream’’ to visit New York, and his family said he enjoyed all the attention he got. Earlier, while in London, Mr. He posed for photos with 6-foot-7 Svetlana Pankratova of Russia, whom Guinness certified as the owner of the world’s longest pair of legs.

Defibrillating a shrimp

Two British paramedics tried to cook a shrimp with the electric shocks they were administering to a dying heart-attack patient. Clive Greedy and John Jones, investigators say, were joking around as they used a defibrillator to try to restart the patient’s heart. While Greedy munched on a celery stick, Jones placed the shrimp on the man’s chest and quipped, “Let’s see if we can cook this.” They failed to cook the shrimp or save the patient, and both men were fired.