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Noteworthy

By TIMES WIRES
Published September 28, 2006

A pound of Nasrallah or 18 pounds of Bush

For hundreds of years, it has been determined that the perfect thing to break the Ramadan fast is a big, juicy date. But lately, people in the markets of Cairo have developed an interesting way of rating the quality of the dates. In much the way you can buy a USDA Prime steak here, at the markets in Cairo, a particularly good date will be called a "Nasrallah," named after Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah. And they'll cost you $2 a pound. In the past, the choice dates were named "Saddam" and "bin Laden." If you're short on cash and not picky about the quality, you can pay 11 cents a pound. For a "Bush."

Key to world peace: increased tourism

Wednesday was World Tourism Day, and Pope Benedict XVI was speaking in St. Peter's Square to about 30,000 tourists. So he gave his idea on something that could lead to world peace: tourism. "I hope that tourism will increasingly promote dialogue and respect between cultures, thereby becoming an open door to peace and harmonious cohabitation," Benedict said. This came two days after he met with Muslim leaders about how to end the tension caused by remarks he made recently about holy war.

IS THAT A BOMB?

There's more dirty laundry in D.C.

A federal courthouse in Washington, D.C., where a hearing was scheduled in the CIA leak case against former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby had to be evacuated for three hours Wednesday after a suspicious package was found nearby. Packages are just inherently more suspicious looking these days. But after further investigation, it turned out that it wasn't so much suspicious looking as it was suspicious smelling. It was just clothes belonging to a homeless person. The investigators say dirty clothing can smell similar to some nitrogen-based explosives. Police have not determined a connection between the dirty laundry and the Libby trial.

KINKY CAPER

Forgot handcuffs? Not a problem

Most robbers bring along their own devices to detain hostages, but three masked men robbing a store in Atlanta found everything they needed when they got there. It was a sex shop, and they found all the black fur handcuffs and silver leg irons they needed to subdue the staff. They got away with $230 in cash and jewelry scales worth about $700. Wait ... they robbed a sex shop and took jewelry scales?

Conjoined twins

Formerly conjoined twins Mateo and McHale Shaw are getting used to living separately since their surgery three weeks ago, but it might take a little longer for mom. "Everyone kept saying to us that it probably felt more natural for us to hold them now," said mom Angie Benzschawel. "And it didn't, because we were so used to holding them together." The twins were born May 10 with conjoined spinal cords. "These guys are rock stars," said dad Ryan Shaw. The boys still have medical issues to contend with, but doctors say they are making progress.

[Last modified September 28, 2006, 00:50:48]