Italy bans crotch scratching

by Anna Brones on

If you’re a male and making your way to Italy soon, be warned: crotch scratching in public is officially off limits.

The Italian Court of Appeals made the decision after listening to the plea of a 42 year year old man from Como who had been fined 200 euros last year for adjusting himself in public. The Court would have none of his appeal and made it clear that any touching of the privates in public is “a sign of ill manners and must be considered against public decency.” Not only was the man in question forced to pay the 200 euro fine, but he was also ordered to pay another 1000 euros in costs. At the current euro to dollar rate, that is a hefty price to pay.

The ban might make many Italian men weary as superstitious ones often hold or touch their private parts for good luck when they see a hearse, or to ward off bad luck; similar to our own “knock on wood.” No pun intended. Moral of the story: keep those hands above the waistline.

Fake Ferraris for sale in Italy

by Catherine Bodry on

Fake Guccis, faux Rolexes — these are items you see for sale on Italian streets everywhere. But fake Ferraris?

Reuters reports that Italian police broke up a ring “selling fake Ferrari cars for a fraction of the real price,” or as little as 20,000 euros. The police also suggest that those buying the cars knew they were buying fakes.

So how did the salesmen pull it off? How do you actually build a fake Ferrari? Police say that the car body workers were “very able,” and cobbled together “mostly fake parts and a few original components.” They then modified the body parts to resemble Ferrari classics, such as one (the 328 Gtb) that went out of production in 1980.

Do you think you could tell a real Ferrari from a fake? Better yet, would you buy a fake one?

Towns where John McCain might feel young

by Aaron Hotfelder on

Does eating well help you live longer? Well, duh. But does religious faith? How about inbreeding? The answers may surprise you.

The residents of three towns spanning a great distance– Okinawa, Japan; Ovodda, Sardinia; and Loma Linda, California– seem to have discovered the secrets to living long lives. These towns are host to the longest-living populations in the world, but each has its own explanation for the distinction.

In Okinawa, diet is the key. Residents of this Japanese island eat more tofu and soya than anyone in the world, as well as following the practice of hari hachi bu, which means to stop eating when one is about 80% full. Scientists believe that their exceptional diet causes residents to continue producing a hormone called DHEA more than normal, which slows down the aging process. About 900 of the one million people living in Okinawa are at least 100 years old, which is about four times the amount in the US.

Residents of Ovodda, Sardinia, live long lives as well, but for a more surprising reason. In Ovodda, marriage within the same few families is more common than elsewhere, and one professor believes this, in addition to their Mediterranean diet, might have something to do with their long lives: “From a genetic point of view when this happens there’s a higher probability of having genetic diseases, but also of having positive results like centenarians.” That seems to be because the 1,400 residents of Ovodda seem to share (more than most places) specific genes that are associated with longevity.

Finally, the town of Loma Linda, California, composed of a heavy population of Seventh Day Adventists, can credit its residents’ longevity to a balanced diet and, maybe, religion. Seventh Day Adventists live about five to ten years longer than the general U.S. population, thanks in part to their religion’s discouragement of drinking, smoking, eating meat, and basically anything fun. Still, the BBC article notes, “[N]ot all members do [abstain] and even they live significantly longer than average. ‘It does certainly raise the question if there’s something about spiritual life that also has an impact on longer life,’ says Dr Gary Fraser, who is researching the community.”

The doctor adds: “[T]here’s been one interesting fact that’s been known now for 20 or 30 years and that is that people that go to church regularly – whatever faith they have – live longer and there’s no question about that.”

Then again, when asked what her longevity could be attributed to, the chef Julia Child once remarked, “Red meat and gin.” I’ll drink to that.

More here.

Oscar nominated shorts: A world tour

by Jamie Rhein on

Every year as a member of the Columbus Academy Motion Picture Pickers (CAMPP) I embark on a movie going frenzy to see all the movies nominated in every major category. Not on the list of my obligatory must-sees were the films nominated for Short Features and Short Animation, but I saw them anyway and highly recommend them as a way to enjoy the scope of humanity and art.

For the past three years I’ve seen the nominated movies in both categories all in a row, one after another–10 in all. This is one way to travel from country to country, from sensibility to sensibility in a few hours. What strikes me is that, although there are often cultural influences and differences particular to each country from which the movies hail, there are many thematic similarities among them. What this shows to me is through the diversity, we can always relate. Terrific stories are terrific in any language.

These movies are making the rounds. Check out film festivals or independent cinemas to see if you can catch them. Here’s the list of the films and which country they are from:

Short Film (Live Action)

Short Film (Animated)

For clips of the animated shorts, head to BuzzSugar.

Photo of the Day 2-17-2008

by Catherine Bodry on


The way the angle captures these ruins makes them remind me of those space invaders on “War of the Worlds” with their long, spindly legs. I sort of expect the ruin to start walking, destroying everything in its path — which seems like it could be a good metaphor for the Roman Empire. Here, the grandeur of Rome’s glory days seems emphasized by these stout and strong pillars. Thanks to Larixk for capturing this twilighty scene.

Have some travel photos you think might remind readers of space invaders, or simply invoke one of the most powerful empires of the Western world? Upload them to Gadling’s Flickr pool and we’ll consider them for our Photo of the Day feature.