Airline"s lewd tarmac surprise

Ryanair ground crew left a shocking image for passengers at Dublin Airport last week. (Reuters)

Ryanair airline staff left a shocking surprise for passengers last week at Dublin Airport.

Ground crew for the Irish carrier, waylaid by weather delays, were caught on camera drawing a giant penis in the snow next to a plane.

The low-budget airline has been trying to win over family-friendly travelers the last few months and prides itself as catering to travelers with children.  

Twitter user Brendan Keary uploaded a photo of the lewd drawing to the social media site on Friday, the UK’s Telegraph reports, and since then it’s been the source of much sophomoric humor.

Ryanair’s Ground Crew Drew A Penis In The Snow Because Giant Snow Penises Are Always Funny –http://t.co/wPwgerD2S1… pic.twitter.com/uRsh9TgV40

— . (@Doctorkmt) February 2, 2015

UK Weather Forecasts Thundersnow, Ryanair Delivers Giant Snow Penis http://t.co/qXh97UupJO #lowcost #ryanair

— Low Cost (@lowcostinfo) February 2, 2015

A spokesman for Ryanair had this to say about the incident: “While our ground crew excel at industry leading 25-minute turnarounds, art isn’t their forte, as they’ve clearly forgotten to draw wings on their snow airplane.”

View the original article here

Airline"s lewd tarmac surprise

Rookie pacer Cotterell could be surprise element -- Lloyd

CENTURION, South Africa (CMC) — Rookie pacer Sheldon Cotterell is being tipped to be a surprise element for West Indies in the three-Test series starting tomorrow.

The 25-year-old has played just one Test, but recent spells in the WICB Professional Cricket League and an explosive five-wicket burst in last week’s three-day tour match, have raised hopes of the left-armer playing a key role in the tourists’ attack.

“Left-arm quick bowlers don’t come often and he is somebody we need to nurture and take along with us as long as possible,” chief selector Clive Lloyd told reporters here.

“He could be very lively. On these pitches here, if he swings it and bowls as well as he has been bowling, he could give batsmen some trouble.”

His single Test has come against India, in Kolkata last year when West Indies were hammered 3-0 in that series. He has, however, remained in the selectors’ frame, and they have kept him involved on A-team campaigns.

Concerned about his fitness following an injury on the recent Sri Lanka A tour, selectors asked him to delay his departure with the rest of the squad to South Africa and contest the fourth round of the PCL with Jamaica.

He subsequently blew away Trinidad and Tobago with a five-wicket haul in the first innings, to set up victory for his side.

“I watched Sheldon Cotterell play a game in Trinidad the other day. We asked him to play that game because we wanted to see how fit he is,” Lloyd explained.

“He is always very enthusiastic and being a soldier, I think he is fit enough and he wants to play.”

Cotterell could take the final fast-bowling spot in the Windies attack, with senior seamers Kemar Roach and Jerome Taylor expected to share the new ball.

Lloyd expects combative left-armer Sulieman Benn to carry the burden of the spin attack, and believes the Barbadian will be an asset for the side overall.

“I would think we would play Sulieman Benn,” said the former West Indies captain.

“He is our best spinner, he has got a lot of experience and he tends to get the team going. He too is very enthusiastic and looks ready for the challenge ahead.”

View the original article here

Rookie pacer Cotterell could be surprise element -- Lloyd

Study surprise

GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — Dramatically expanding broadband access would boost the global economy and could do more good than investing in HIV prevention or clean drinking water, according to a study published Thursday.

Economists commissioned by think tank Copenhagen Consensus Centre calculated that tripling access to mobile broadband networks in developing countries by 2030 would boost economic growth by US$22 trillion.

“There’s a well-established increase in GDP growth if you have more broadband, and it doesn’t take very much of a higher growth rate to make a huge difference in people’s lives,” the head of the think tank, Bjorn Lomborg, told AFP.

Estimating that it will cost about US$1.3 trillion to go from 21 per cent coverage today to 60 per cent coverage by 2030, bringing some three billion more people online, the study found the investment could rake in US$17 worth of benefit for every dollar spent.

Tripling fixed broadband coverage worldwide from 10 to 30 per cent, or in the developing world from six to 20 per cent during the same timeframe, would meanwhile reap US$21 in benefits for each dollar spent, the study found.

The study is part of a broader project in which a network of more than 100 economists are analysing the costs and benefits of a range of proposed global targets under discussion.

Surprisingly, the analysis showed that from a purely economic perspective, hiking access to broadband was “phenomenally better than a lot of other proposals”, Lomborg said.

Some of the most obvious targets do fare better, with every dollar spent alleviating childhood malnutrition, for instance, expected to do US$45 worth of good, according to earlier studies.

But others do not stand up to the benefits of broadband expansion, with investments in clean water and sanitation seen bringing benefits of between US$3 and US$5 per dollar spent, Lomborg said.

Investing in HIV treatment would meanwhile only do US$2.50 worth of good for every dollar spent, while initiatives to preserve forests in protected land would cost more than the benefits created, he said.

Calculating the benefits of proposed development initiatives based purely on economic gain can appear cold, Lomborg acknowledged.

But with an almost eternal list of noble causes, he insisted on the importance of knowing the cost and benefits of projects when trying to choose which to invest in first.

Just because an initiative doesn’t top the list of dollars gained does not mean it shouldn’t be invested in for other reasons, he said.

Economists commissioned by think tank Copenhagen Consensus Centre calculated that tripling access to mobile broadband networks in developing countries by 2030 would boost economic growth by US$22 trillion.

View the original article here

Study surprise

Olympian Campbell-Brown pays surprise visit to hometown kids

Saturday, October 04, 2014 | 11:29 AM    

GRANVILLE, Trelawny — World Championships and Olympic Games champion Veronica Campbell-Brown surprised students and wards of the Granville Child Development Agency when she turned up bearing gifts and encouraging words on Monday.

It was Campbell-Brown’s second visit to the institution — the previous being in her capacity as a UNESCO Ambassador for gender equity — and she told the OBSERVER ONLINE she felt it was time for a return.

“I came back because I wanted to make a contribution to the young ladies,” Campbell-Brown, who is also from Trelawny, said.

She handed over “personal and educational” items and said she spoke to them about empowerment, setting goals and going after their dreams and said she thought her words were well received.

Paul Reid?

Like our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/jamaicaobserver

Follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/JamaicaObserver

View the original article here

Olympian Campbell-Brown pays surprise visit to hometown kids

Shelly-Ann double success no surprise, say coach Francis

MOSCOW, Russia — Stephen Francis, the man who coached Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce to a rare women’s sprint double at the 14th IAAF World Championships, is not surprised by his prized pupil’s success here in Moscow.

On Friday night amid wild celebrations by Jamaicans during and after the race at the Luzhniki Stadium, Francis, who was patiently waiting for the athlete to complete her obligations inside the massive complex, said simply that she would not have been entered in the double if she did not have the chance to win it.“The only reason she was sent to do two events was because it was felt she had a chance to win, so I can’t say it was unexpected,” he told reporters. “It was something which was done because she had a very good chance to win both.”Fraser-Pryce joined two others who completed the double after Silke Gladisch of the former East Germany in 1987 in Rome, Italy, and Germany’s Katrin Krabbe in 1991 in Tokyo, Japan.Four men, including Jamaica’s Usain Bolt has done the double, Maurice Green in 1999, Justin Gatlin in 2005, Tyson Gay in 2007, and Bolt in 2009.Fraser-Pryce, who had won the 100m last Monday evening, used her bullet start to great effect, taking charge of the race early before powering away in the straight to win in 22.17 seconds ahead of Murielle Ahoure of the Ivory Coast and Nigeria’s Blessing Okagbare, both given the same time of 22.32 seconds.And given the conditions, Francis said that was the only way she could have won. It was also the only sprint event of the championships where none of the finalists managed either a season or personal best.“She ran the best way she could, given the type of anti-sprint atmosphere we have had in Moscow,” he said. “Given the (very cool) temperatures and lack of wind, it was the best way she could run…”The first few days of the championships that started last Saturday were hot and sunny, but the temperatures started to drop a few days ago and despite bright sunshine, the conditions, especially in the evening sessions, have been cool.In her post-race interviews, Fraser-Pryce spoke of “hating” the 200m event, but said after her pre-race talk with Francis, “I decided I was going to let it all out on the track, my coach, before I came out, said to me, for the past few meets I have not been running the corner how I should and he said to me ‘you won’t be tired in the end, don’t worry, you will feel some pain, but feel the pain’, and so I decided I was going to run that (first) 100m like a train, I was going to come off the corner and hit the straight and I was going to power home.”American Allyson Felix, who had won three gold medals in the event between 2005 and 2009, suffered an ankle injury early in the race, collapsing to the ground and was lifted off first by her brother then placed on a stretcher.

HOUSE RULES

1. We welcome reader comments on the top stories of the day. Some comments may be republished on the website or in the newspaper – email addresses will not be published.

2. Please understand that comments are moderated and it is not always possible to publish all that have been submitted. We will, however, try to publish comments that are representative of all received.

3. We ask that comments are civil and free of libellous or hateful material. Also please stick to the topic under discussion.

4. Please do not write in block capitals since this makes your comment hard to read.

5. Please don’t use the comments to advertise. However, our advertising department can be more than accommodating if emailed:mailto:advertising@jamaicaobserver.com.

6. If readers wish to report offensive comments, suggest a correction or share a story then please email: community@jamaicaobserver.com.

7. Lastly, read our Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy

comments powered by

View the original article here

Shelly-Ann double success no surprise, say coach Francis

Owen surprise at Suarez Arsenal link

Michael Owen thinks Luis Suarez would be making a surprising career move if he left Liverpool to join Arsenal.

Last week, the Reds rejected a Gunners club record bid of £40m plus £1 for the 26-year-old Uruguay forward, who wants to talk to the London club.

Ex-Liverpool striker Owen told BBC’s Sportsweek that joining Real Madrid or Barcelona would make “more sense”.

“Arsenal are a fabulous club and have got a great heritage, but Liverpool are as big – if not bigger,” he said.

30 goals in 44 appearances for Liverpool last season Since joining from Ajax in January 2011 for £22.7m, has scored 51 in 96 appearances 49 goals in 48 games for Ajax the season before joining Liverpool 31 goals in 62 appearances for Uruguay “I’d be very surprised if he were to move to Arsenal. Madrid or Barcelona would make more sense.”

The 33-year-old, who scored 40 goals in 89 appearances for England, added: “I’m struggling to understand why he would leave and stay in England with Liverpool being the stature they are.”

Recently retired Owen said that the Uruguayan would be more likely to enjoy success in European competition at one of the Spanish clubs next season, rather than at the Gunners.

“From Suarez’s point of view you can understand him if he wants to reach the absolute pinnacle of the game – that’s playing in the Champions League. Liverpool obviously are not in that at the moment,” continued Owen, who joined Real Madrid from Liverpool in 2004.

“Truthfully, can you really see Arsenal winning the Champions League next season or going into the later stages? Unless they buy a good few players then I can’t.”

On Wednesday, Suarez made his first appearance for Liverpool since his infamous bite on Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic’s arm last season, coming off the bench in an 18-minute cameo during the Premier League club’s 2-0 win over Melbourne Victory at the MCG.

With Liverpool 1-0 up, Suarez laid on the Reds’ second for new signing Iago Aspas late in the match.

After the game, Rodgers said: “There’s nothing new to report. He [Suarez] is very much a Liverpool player and over the course of the next couple of weeks we’ve got to get him up to speed.”

Suarez joined Liverpool from Ajax in January 2011 in a £22.7m deal. Last season, the South American scored 30 goals in 44 appearances for the Anfield club.

View the original article here

Owen surprise at Suarez Arsenal link