Wednesday, April 29

Blog

Lexus LBX – luxury, sophistication and technology in a small-car package
Life Style

Lexus LBX – luxury, sophistication and technology in a small-car package

They were interesting times when - in the late 80s - Toyota introduced its ‘posh’ division; Lexus. The extra quality, the refinement - the aspirations – all shone through. But only if you wanted the big (slightly blandly-styled), LS400 with its top-spec electronics and swish ride.How things change. The strategy worked and today the range has expanded into all corners of the market, from the brand’s big, luxury LM MPV, through the latest (much sleeker) LS, the mid-range RX and RZ SUVs, and the smaller NX and UX.The LBX is the brand’s smallest ever offering and - just like the LS400 in those far-off days - it oozes class. It’s very refined, beautifully built, crammed with equipment, plush and good to drive. It looks stylish too.We drove the £39,255 Takumi Design model (the LBX range starts a...
Ask Susan: How old is too old for a home loan?
Business

Ask Susan: How old is too old for a home loan?

Susan Edmunds, RNZ's money correspondent. Photo: RNZ If you have questions you'd like answered, email susan.edmunds@rnz.co.nz After reading your article about how to get a home loan, my partner and I wonder if considering our financial and social situations, we could apply for one and if yes, which bank and how much could we ask for. I am 61 years old (ouch!!!), full time employee, My partner is 45, unemployed but finishing a course to upskill. We have two children aged 12 and 14. We currently rent a house for $520 and have never missed a payment. We have combined net income if $77,000. Our KiwiSaver balance is currently $38,000 and have a saving account with $14,000 in it. We do not owe any money or have hire purchases. You may run into questions about how long you are likely to be wo...
Why Putin thinks he’s the winner in prisoner swap
World News

Why Putin thinks he’s the winner in prisoner swap

By Steve Rosenberg, Russia editor for the BBC. In this pool photograph from Russian state agency Sputnik, President Vladimir Putin welcomes Russian citizens released in a major prisoner swap with the West, at Moscow's Vnukovo airport on August 1, 2024. Photo: AFP / Pool It's something Vladimir Putin does rarely: go to the airport to meet people off a plane. Personally. But he was there on Thursday night: on the tarmac at Moscow's Vnukovo Airport to meet and greet those Russians whose release he'd secured from foreign jails; part of the largest prisoner swap between Russia and the West since the Cold War. Out of the plane and down the steps came 10 people, including spies, sleeper agents and a convicted assassin. "Congratulations on your return to the Motherland!" he told them. You co...
Kamala Harris formally chosen as Democratic nominee
World News

Kamala Harris formally chosen as Democratic nominee

By Max Matza and Sam Cabral for BBC News in Washington Vice President Kamala Harris is speaking at the Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Inc.'s 60th International Biennial Boule at George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, Texas, on 31 July, 2024. Photo: Reginald Mathalone / NurPhoto / AFP US Vice-President Kamala Harris has passed the threshold to clinch the Democratic presidential nomination in a vote of party delegates. Speaking by telephone, Harris said she was "honoured to be the presumptive nominee" as the virtual roll call continues ahead of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago later this month. Harris is the first Black woman and first South Asian woman to become the White House standard-bearer for a major US political party. If she defeats Donald Trump, the Republi...
Trump 2020 election subversion case to resume following immunity ruling
World News

Trump 2020 election subversion case to resume following immunity ruling

Former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign appearance on 31 July, 2024 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Photo: Spencer Platt / Getty Images / AFP The US criminal case accusing Donald Trump of illegally trying to overturn his 2020 election defeat resumed on Friday after a nearly eight-month pause, with the judge left to decide how to proceed after the Supreme Court's immunity ruling. US District Judge Tanya Chutkan in Washington was expected to decide in the coming weeks which aspects of the indictment obtained by Special Counsel Jack Smith must be tossed out after the Supreme Court ruled that former presidents were entitled to broad immunity for official actions taken as president. The high court's decision to take up the case, which it heard on its last day of arguments in April an...
18 km in 13 mins: Green corridor helps heart reach G`gram hosp from IGI Airport
Health

18 km in 13 mins: Green corridor helps heart reach G`gram hosp from IGI Airport

Amid heavy rains and traffic snarls, a green corridor from Delhi`s IGI Airport successfully transported a heart to a hospital in Gurugram, covering a distance of 18 km in just 13 minutes. Dr. Udgeath Dhir, cardiothoracic vascular surgery, Fortis Memorial Research Institute, Gurugram on Friday said that a 34-year-old man was brought to them in a critical state, with only 10-15 per cent of his heart functioning. "He was in dire need of a transplant. We got a call in the night and then, with the help of hospital staff, and traffic police, we were able to create a green corridor and could get the heart for transplant," Dr. Dhir said. The man from Haryana`s Rohtak was suffering from dilated cardiomyopathy -- a condition in which the heart becomes enlarged and cannot pump blood effectively. ...
Shekhar Home Trailer Out: Kay Kay Menon`s Sherlock-esque charm takes over
Entertainment, Movies

Shekhar Home Trailer Out: Kay Kay Menon`s Sherlock-esque charm takes over

Shekhar Home Trailer Out: JioCinema announced that their new series, "Shekhar Home," starring Kay Kay Menon, will premiere on August 14. This detective drama, also featuring Ranvir Shorey, Rasika Dugal, and Kirti Kulhari, is directed by Rohan Sippy and Srijit Mukherjee. Inspired by the works of Arthur Conan Doyle, which are in the public domain, Menon plays the main character, Shekhar Home. The show takes place in the early 1990s in the quiet town of Lonpur, Bengal, highlighting a time when technology didn`t exist and people had to rely solely on their own intelligence. Kay Kay Menon plays Shekhar Home, an eccentric and brilliant character. He meets Jayvrat Sahni, a middle-aged bachelor played by Ranvir Shorey, who becomes an unexpected ally. Together, they set off on a journey to solve m...
Horoscope today: Your daily guide for Friday, August 2, 2024
Life Style

Horoscope today: Your daily guide for Friday, August 2, 2024

Aries 0904 470 1141 (65p per minute)*Taurus 0904 470 1142 (65p per minute)*Gemini 0904 470 1143 (65p per minute)*Cancer 0904 470 1144 (65p per minute)*Leo 0904 470 1145 (65p per minute)*Virgo 0904 470 1146 (65p per minute)*Libra 0904 470 1147 (65p per minute)*Scorpio 0904 470 1148 (65p per minute)*Sagittarius 0904 470 1149 (65p per minute)*Capricorn 0904 470 1150 (65p per minute)*Aquarius 0904 470 1151 (65p per minute)*Pisces 0904 470 1152 (65p per minute)**Astro line horoscopes are updated every Friday. Calls cost 65p per minute plus your telephone company’s network access charge and will last approximately five minutes. You must be over 18 and have the bill payer’s permission. Service provided by Spoke. Customer service: 0333 202 3390 Source link
Reporter Evan Gershkovich and ex-Marine Paul Whelan freed in biggest post-Cold War prisoner swap
World News

Reporter Evan Gershkovich and ex-Marine Paul Whelan freed in biggest post-Cold War prisoner swap

Some of those freed in US-Russia prisoner swap: (L-R, top to bottom) US journalist Evan Gershkovich; Paul Whelan, a former US Marine; Alsu Kurmasheva, a US-Russian journalist for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty; and Russian opposition activist Vladimir Kara-Murza. Photo: AFP By Andrew Osborn, Filipp Lebedev and Lucy Papachristou Jailed US Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and ex-US Marine Paul Whelan were among two dozen detainees from the United States, Russia and a number of their allies freed on Thursday in the biggest prisoner exchange since the Cold War. The White House said the US had negotiated the complex trade with Russia and other countries. It said eight prisoners held in the West were being sent back to Russia. Germany confirmed that they included Vadim Krasikov,...
Turbulence takes instant noodles off Korean Air menu
World News

Turbulence takes instant noodles off Korean Air menu

From 15 August Korean Air will stop serving instant noodles to economy passengers. Photo: NongShim/Amazon By Annabelle Liang, BBC News If you're taking a flight on Korean Air, you might soon notice something missing from your menu - a cup of instant noodles. From 15 August onwards, the carrier will stop serving the noodles to economy class passengers. It said the increased risk of turbulence, narrow aisles and passengers sitting closely together could mean "burn incidents occur frequently". Business and first class fliers, however, will continue to enjoy the treat. The snack has long been a passenger favourite and something the carrier is widely known for. Many praise the fact that it is available for free on request. In a statement, the carrier said that since 2019 the number of times ...