Emperor

the Klaasohm festival is a Saint Nicholas tradition celebrated every year on the night of December 5 on the North Sea island of Borkum, which has a population of more than 5,000.

The festival has come into the spotlight in Germany following a video report by public broadcaster NDR.

In the story, two male reporters attempt to film the 2023 festivities.

Using their cell phones, they easily film the daytime celebrations, when the community gathers around young, unmarried men dressed in the traditional costumes of the Klaasohms, made of masks with sheepskin and bird feathers.

Later on, the Klaasohms of different ages challenge each other to a type of wrestling match. This event is reserved for islanders, so tourists or reporters are not allowed to watch it.

The party continues into the night. The reporters secretly film a group of so-called "catchers" as they chase women, hold them while the Klaasohms hit them on the buttocks with a cow's horn. People around them, including children, cheer as one woman is being hit.

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The NDR journalists point out in their report that it is possible to deal more openly with media criticism, showing the example of the Krampus run in Austria.

According to tradition, people dressed as the devilish figure whip the procession's spectators using a birch rod.

The runs, fueled by alcohol and anarchic collective energy, have made headlines in the past years for violent outbreaks and injured participants.

Now there is tightened security around the Austrian events, with safe spaces for those who don't want to be hit, and numbers assigned to each Krampus so they can be identified if needed. The Krampuses are now encouraged to only symbolically brush festival-goers, and not actually whip them.

They are:

66. Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez's Locke and Key - 172 points (5 first place votes) [Locke and Key: Welcome to Lovecraft #1-6, Locke and Key:Head Games #1-6, Locke and Key:Crown of Shadows #1-6, Locke and Key: Keys to the Kingdom #1-6, Locke and Key:Clockworks #1-6, Locke and Key: Omega #1-5 and Locke and Key: Alpha #1-2 (plus the tie-in series, Locke and Key: Golden Age #1-3)]
67. Mark Waid and Mike Wieringo's Fantastic Four - 167 points (3 first place votes) [Fantastic Four Vol. 3 #60-70, Fantastic Four #500-524 (Wieringo as artist of 27 of the 36 issues)]
68. Jason Aaron and R.M. Guera's Scalped - 165 points (1 first place vote) [Scalped #1-60]
69. Steve Ditko and Stan Lee's Doctor Strange - 162 points (3 first place votes) [Strange Tales #110-111, 114-146]
70. Chris Claremont and Dave Cockrum's X-Men - 160 points (2 first place votes) [X-Men #94-107 (and I guess Uncanny X-Men #145-164)]

Previously:

• 100-96
• 95-91
• 90-86
• 85-81
• 80-76
• 75-71

Now this is the important information we need!

The tale of the tape:

• Quality Street - 600g, 66 chocs, +2
• Celebrations - 550g, 60 chocs, -5
• Roses - 550g, 51 chocs, -3
• Heroes - 550g, 59 chocs, +3

All retail at £6.

However, with Heroes there is a caveat:

With a total of 59 chocolates, this year’s tin marked a return to form with the mini versions of Twirl returning once again. For the last two years, the miniature chocolates were replaced altogether with two full-sized Twirl fingers due to disruption in its supply chain.

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Last year's Heroes tin contained 56 chocolates - meaning it's the only one of the four to have upped its number this year, but, really, that is due to the fact that we had two full-size Twirl fingers last year instead.

So they replaced 2 full-size Twirls with 5 mini ones.

The conclusion:

If we’re going purely on tin size and the amount of chocolates inside, the clear winner in terms of value-for-money here has to be Quality Street as it has the most choice, the most contents and the biggest tin.

On the opposite side of the scale, Roses had the lowest amount of chocolates inside at 51 - but it didn’t have the least choice of flavours. Celebrations had the least choice with just eight different chocolates inside - but, in a redeeming factor, it did also have the second most chocolates inside (60).

However, you are probably going to go with the one that contains your favourite chocolates. Even if it's a present for someone else.

cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/20808219

Labour is considering capping political donations by individuals and private companies amid reports Elon Musk will hand a $100m donation to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.

The Tesla tycoon is said to be plotting the £79m donation, which would be by far the largest in British electoral history, via the British arm of his social media firm X.

According to The Sunday Times, leading businessmen and Conservative Party officials believe Musk could hand over the cash as a “f*** you Starmer payment” in his ongoing feud with the prime minister.

It would give Mr Farage’s insurgent Reform a significant financial advantage over Labour and the Conservatives and be enough to fund a near-endless barrage of attack ads against the government.

But the government is considering recommendations in an upcoming report by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) think tank that would cap individual and corporate political donations at £100,000 a year.

The Guardian reported that officials have asked for more details on the proposals, though work is at an early stage and any changes would unlikely be made until late in the parliament.

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The potential donation cap comes as Mr Musk and Mr Farage grow increasingly close, with the Reform leader describing the billionaire Trump ally as “my new friend” last week.

Labour is considering capping political donations by individuals and private companies amid reports Elon Musk will hand a $100m donation to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.

The Tesla tycoon is said to be plotting the £79m donation, which would be by far the largest in British electoral history, via the British arm of his social media firm X.

According to The Sunday Times, leading businessmen and Conservative Party officials believe Musk could hand over the cash as a “f*** you Starmer payment” in his ongoing feud with the prime minister.

It would give Mr Farage’s insurgent Reform a significant financial advantage over Labour and the Conservatives and be enough to fund a near-endless barrage of attack ads against the government.

But the government is considering recommendations in an upcoming report by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) think tank that would cap individual and corporate political donations at £100,000 a year.

The Guardian reported that officials have asked for more details on the proposals, though work is at an early stage and any changes would unlikely be made until late in the parliament.

...

The potential donation cap comes as Mr Musk and Mr Farage grow increasingly close, with the Reform leader describing the billionaire Trump ally as “my new friend” last week.

Sir Chris Wormald will become the new head of the civil service and Cabinet Secretary later this month.

The career civil servant, who has headed the Department for Health and Social Care since 2016, will be the most senior official adviser to the prime minister and Cabinet.

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The prime minister said delivering the government's priorities would mean "re-wiring" the British state to deliver reform, and said Sir Chris's brought "huge experience" to the role.

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He will take up the post on 16 December, when the PM said he would be responsible for the government's "five missions", which are at the heart of Labour's plan for reform.

The PM said he brought huge experience to the role, adding: "From breaking down silos across government to harnessing the incredible potential of technology and innovation, it will require nothing less than the complete re-wiring of the British state to deliver bold and ambitious long-term reform."

Sir Chris said that work would mean civil servants learning new skills in order to match the government's ambition, adding: "That will require each and every one of us to embrace the change agenda in how the British state operates."

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Some civil servants responded with incredulity at the appointment, especially given the prime minister’s claim that Sir Chris would drive the “complete re-wiring of the British state to deliver bold and ambitious long-term reform.”

One said he had “failed upwards” after he led the department for health through not only the Covid pandemic but years of preparation beforehand. Another said it was a “farcical” appointment. Several officials involved in NHS reform said they were “baffled”.

A man has experienced a terrifying moment after almost dying when his pet hamster clamped down on his hand and would not let go.

Nathan Halliday, 34, from Kirkby, Merseyside, sat down peacefully with Mochi, his Syrian hamster, when she suddenly attacked him and left him for dead.

He then experienced a anaphylactic shock and moments after she bit him Nathan’s body swelled up, he couldn’t breathe and was covered in hives.

His partner Rebecca Kidd struggled to get Mochi off him but once she did she thought the worst was about to happen so called 999.

Mochi had been looking frail for the last few days before this incident and once she was taken off Nathan she took her last two breaths and died.

In the ambulance Nathan was on death’s door and was given two shots of adrenaline, an antihistamine and put on oxygen.

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‘One of the paramedics asked me if I was Freddie Starr.

‘Mochi is now in a fancy cracker box in the garden – I don’t blame her.

‘We rescue hamsters from people who otherwise wouldn’t want them and I’d never say no to another one.’

Before developing his penchant for crime thrillers and high-octane films like Heat and Ferrari, director Michael Mann took an unexpected dive into the realm of horror and fantasy with his 1983 film The Keep. His second theatrical feature, after his 1981 project Thief, is widely known for being an unmitigated disaster in post-production, suffering from the death of its special effects supervisor and studio meddling that cut Mann's original 210 minutes of footage down to just 96. For a time, the director himself even disowned the film. Its problems haven't stopped it from becoming a cult classic though. Now, the war horror is finally coming home with a long-overdue upgrade thanks to a 4K Ultra HD release from Vinegar Syndrome which is now available for purchase.

At the time, Mann's cursed film was widely panned, and, to this day, it still holds a 39% score from critics and a 43% score from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes. However, it has managed to generate a following in the years since, with plenty of fans calling for a release of a director's cut showing the over 100 minutes of lost content. Regardless of the final result, it benefitted from an excellent cast. Joining the Das Boot breakout Prochnow and Lord of the Rings star McKellen were Scott Glenn, Gabriel Byrne, Alberta Watson, Michael Carter, and Robert Prosky, among others. Adding to the ambiance was a soundtrack by the German electronic band Tangerine Dream, who also lent their talents to Mann's Thief, Risky Business, and Grand Theft Auto V.

...

Vinegar Syndrome's 4K restoration of The Keep comes in either a standard release or a special edition limited to only 12,000 units that comes with a creepy new spot gloss hard slipcase and slipcover combo designed by Edward Kinsella highlighting the monstrous Molasar. In addition to the 4K/Blu-ray discs, it also comes packed with a 40-page bound book for collectors who want even more content from the film. Rounding out the collection is a wide array of special features delving into the creation of the film with the author Wilson, film historians, and others who worked on the project. One featurette also appears to honor the unfinished work of late special effects supervisor Wally Veevers​​​​​​.

When a would-be burglar broke in to a California church on Thanksgiving day, he encountered an unexpected obstacle: A pastor, trained in martial arts and determined to defend his house of worship.

Pastor Nick Neves came to First Family Church in Antioch early on Thursday morning after an alarm went off, he told CNN.

When he arrived, he discovered “a smashed window and a door propped open.” A man had used an axe to break a church window and access the building, the Antioch Police Department said in a Facebook post.

“As I was going into the door, the perpetrator came out with a handful of our goods, and I stopped him, and I told him he was essentially under citizen’s arrest, that the police would be there, and he needs to stop and wait for them,” Neves, who has been involved with the church since 2005, told CNN.

“And he wasn’t having that,” the pastor said. “So he tried to run, and I restrained him, and he began to fight with me. And so we tussled for quite a while before the cops were able to get there.”

Neves told CNN he has practiced martial arts, particularly Brazilian jiu-jitsu, since he was in high school. But he never expected he would have to use his skills in the real world.

A man who caused an online storm when he found a Mars bar without its signature ripple has received £2 in compensation.

Harry Seager’s picture of the confectionery generated interest from thousands of members on the Dull Men’s Club Facebook page, with one labelling it “hideous”.

The 34-year-old said while Mars Wrigley UK would not give him a reason for the imperfection, group members said the bar had escaped being blown by air.

Mars Wrigley UK said earlier this month the bar "slipped" through its production line and confirmed the swirl was being kept.

...

“The only reason I emailed [Mars] was because I was interested in what might have caused it to happen. That is all I wanted to know and they kept side-lining that question,” he said.

“I think £2 is great, it will be two free Mars bars. Maybe they could have sent me more but I’m not being ungrateful. I think it’s amazing after everything that’s happened that I got the £2 voucher.”

...

“A few people who used to work at Mars’ factories commented [on Facebook] and they said it goes through a machine called an enrober, which is like the waterfall the bars go through," Mr Seager said.

“Apparently they get blown with air along the top as it comes out of that waterfall. Apparently there’s meant to be somebody at the end who removes the ones which haven’t been hit by the air.

“I don’t know what happens to them then. I suppose they got put into products that have Mars bars in, like cakes and things.”

Last month, scientists and whale watchers spotted orcas (Orcinus orca) in South Puget Sound and off Point No Point in Washington State swimming with dead fish on their heads.

This is the first time they've donned the bizarre headgear since the summer of 1987, when a trendsetting female West Coast orca kickstarted the behavior for no apparent reason. Within a couple of weeks, the rest of the pod had jumped on the bandwagon and turned salmon corpses into must-have fashion accessories, according to the marine conservation charity ORCA — but it's unclear whether the same will happen this time around.

Researchers think the orcas sporting salmon hats now may be veterans of the trend when it first appeared nearly 40 years ago. "It does seem possible that some individuals that experienced [the behavior] the first time around may have started it again," Andrew Foote, an evolutionary ecologist at the University of Oslo in Norway, told New Scientist.

The motivation for the salmon hat trend remains a mystery. "Honestly, your guess is as good as mine," Deborah Giles, an orca researcher at the University of Washington who also heads the science and research teams at the non-profit Wild Orca, told New Scientist.