NAZZY'S RANDOM STUFF

A SOUTH AFRICAN SPRINTER TOOK A GENDER VERIFICATION TEST TO PROVE THAT "SHE" ISN'T ACTUALLY A "HE":

Yesterday, an 18-year-old sprinter from South Africa named Caster Semenya destroyed the competition and won gold in the women's 800-meter dash at the World Athletic Championships in Berlin, Germany.

But it seems some people aren't ready to recognize Caster as the next big thing in track and field just yet. Why? - Because critics think SHE . . . is actually a HE.

According to a spokesman for the International Association of Athletics Federations, quote, "At this moment in time we do not have any evidence to stop [Caster] from running. It would be wrong today to make a decision to withdraw an athlete."

For what it's worth, South African officials swear Caster is in fact a woman. And, to prove it, Caster has undergone "gender verification" testing. --The results of the test won't be known for a few more weeks. (Daily Mail)

(--Check out some photos of Caster and decide for yourself. . .)

TWO GUYS WERE FIRED FROM THEIR JOBS AT BEST BUY FOR . . . *PREVENTING* A ROBBERY???

Here's even more evidence that it just doesn't pay to do what's right . . . --Earlier this month, an unidentified shoplifter stole two cell phones from the Best Buy store in Broomfield, Colorado.

But as the thief was leaving the store, he was tackled by a 20-year-old Best Buy employee named Jared Bergstreser. Listen to this . .

On Sunday, Jared and another co-worker who helped him catch the robber, 23-year-old Colin Trapp, were both FIRED from Best Buy. Why? -Because Best Buy has a corporate policy against chasing shoplifters outside the store. Since Jared and Colin broke the rule, they had to go.

Anyway, the shoplifter and two knife-wielding accomplices got away and haven't been caught yet. And an unidentified manager from Best Buy suffered a cut to the hand in the incident, but she's expected to be okay. (Denver Post)

(--For what it's worth, officials at the Broomfield Best Buy say they didn't want to fire Jared and Colin, but the word came down from corporate and they had no choice.)


LIFE EXPECTANCY IN THE U.S. HAS RISEN TO AN ALL-TIME HIGH OF NEARLY 78 YEARS OLD:

Yesterday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that life expectancy in the U.S. has risen to an all-time high of nearly 78 years of age, and death rates for almost every leading cause of death (--meaning cancer, heart disease, etc . . .) have fallen.

But, overall, the U.S. still trails about 30 other countries in life expectancy, including Japan which has the longest life expectancy in the world at nearly 83 years of age. (Yahoo News)

(--You can get more information, and check out a diagram charting life expectancy rates since 1975, here . . .)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090819/ap_on_he_me/us_med_life_expectancy