TresSugar

Thirsty Boy Interrupts TV – Viewers Make Charitable Splash

LibertySugar — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 11:00:26 -0700

Hoping to raise awareness about suffering caused by the lack of drinkable water, an ad agency in Belgium came up with a campaign called: "Thirsty Black Boy Interrupting Live Television."

During various prime time broadcasts, a young boy ran onto the set, chugged the glass of water sitting next to the host or the guests, and then quickly ran out of sight. The viral awareness campaign helped raised $5.24 million for the water cause in only six days!

Every day 1.1 billion people - equivalent to the combined population of North America and Europe - go without clean water. Even worse, every 15 seconds a child dies because he or she doesn't have water to drink. While some could derive colonial or patronizing undertones from the title "Thirsty Black Boy," it's refreshing to see creative viral marketing going to a good cause.

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Bye Bye Budweiser! American King of Beers Now Belgian

LibertySugar — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 11:00:21 -0700

Belgium's government collapsed today, but at least they can drink away their sorrows. An American treasure - Budweiser beer - is now Belgian. Perhaps baseball or apple pie will leave us next. For $52 billion Belgian company InBev purchased Anheuser-Busch, pledging to keep the North American headquarters in St. Louis, while cutting $1.5 billion in costs.

The King's defection hits no place harder than its birthplace St. Louis, MO. Anheuser-Busch's reign in the Midwest city dates back to a brewery founded in 1852. If you're keeping track, InBev's first brewery was founded in 1366.

For more on Anheiser-Busch's American legacy, and what my grandparents in St. Louis have to say about this "rotten deal" read more.

Anheuser-Busch may not have survived this millennium, but it did survive US prohibition by introducing ice cream, root beer, and chocolate-flavor drinks, as well as dealcholized Bud in the 1920s. When prohibition ended, the now infamous A-B Clydesdale horses delivered a case of beer to Franklin Delano Roosevelt in the White House.

My Nana and Papa, born and raised in St. Louis, are mourning the end of their hometown icon. Nana remembers the days before air conditioning when you could smell the hops in your home on hot summer days. And Papa will miss checking the newspaper daily to see how the A-B stock is doing.

Are you sad to see the King of beers be bought by a European company, or do you prefer imported beer anyway? So Belgium, this Bud's for you.

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How Would the World Vote?

LibertySugar — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 15:00:49 -0700

A few months ago a Belgium newspaper wrote the following:

The American mortgage crisis affects banks in Europe. The insatiable American demand for oil makes the Arabian sheiks rich. The American refusal to care for the environment causes the North Pole ice to melt and coastal areas in Asia to flood. Hence, the world should be given the right to vote. Because the current situation is a blatant case of taxation without representation.

Today, the Wall Street Journal, took a look at how the world would vote, if it in fact had a chance. It seems support for the three candidates is divided among continents. Europe and Africa are enamored with the Kennedy-esque Obama. The Middle East is also fascinated with Obama's roots. Mexico and China are hopeful that Hillary Clinton will continue the free trade policies of her husband. France just warmly received John McCain, as he is viewed as a George Bush adversary.

It is true that American policy has global repercussions. Does it matter what other countries think about the candidates? If you're a voting American, how would you feel if you couldn't have a say in who is elected to lead the world's major superpower?

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Headline: Belgium Begins Paying Holocaust Reparations

CitizenSugar — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 09:00:09 -0700

This week Belgium's banks and government agreed to begin paying $170 million in restitution, to families of Holocaust survivors whose property and goods were stolen by Nazi occupiers. The agreement comes years after passing a law authorizing the compensation.

Approximately half of the 50,000 Jews living in Belgium at the beginning of World War II perished in the Holocaust. Of the reparations, $54 million will be paid to individuals, with the rest of the $170 million to be put in a Jewish trust for the poor and for Holocaust education.

The picture above shows a group of Jewish refugee children fleeing Belgium in 1940. At the ceremony announcing the reparations, was a man who had lived in Belgium at the start of World War II, who'd lost eight brothers and a sister during the war. He said that the Nazis took three years of his life, adding, "no money can pay for that."

Is Belgium's reparations plan admirable? Or is there no amount of money that can ease any portion of the pain?

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Parents Get Prison Sentence for Failing to Vaccinate Children

LibertySugar — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 11:00:29 -0700

Two sets of parents in Belgium have been sentenced to five months in prison and fined 4,100 euros ($8,000) for failing to have their children vaccinated against polio. If the parents meet the deadline to vaccinate, they can dodge incarceration. Because of Belgium privacy laws, the details as to why the parents refused vaccination are unknown.

Polio is the only vaccination required by law in Belgium, and France is the only other European county that also requires it. In the US, children can avoid vaccination easily for religious of philosophical reasons. In Saudi Arabia, pilgrims from countries with a polio epidemic must prove vaccination, as well as receive an extra dose from the Saudi authorities at the airport. To see if vaccination is worth it, read more.

While Polio has dropped 99 percent since eradication efforts began, the disease can spread rapidly, leaving all countries at risk of an outbreak. Bioethics experts classify those that refuse to be vaccinated as "free riders" who can only refuse vaccination because others have fulfilled their responsibility.

Do you think the prison-sentenced parents in Belgium have any rights in the case? Or, are they simply failing to fulfill an obligation to their children and society? Will the threat of prison convince parents that they must vaccinate their children, even if they hold a strong conviction against it?
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Celebrity Underwear Museum - Hilarious or Horrifying?

TresSugar — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 08:30:00 -0700

If you're in Brussels, Belgium anytime soon, you might want to check out the recently opened "Musee du Slip" or in English, the celebrity underwear museum! Artist Jan Bucquoy has been collecting the undergarments of famous people for some time now, and he's finally decided to share them with the world.

In the collection faded blue boxer shorts from Belgium's finance minster sit next to a G-string from classic porn star Brigitte Lahaie. All underwear must have been worn by the person for at least one day. There are also photos of people like Nicolas Sarkozy or Margaret Thatcher with underwear superimposed on their heads. Bucquoy explains his vision:

"I want to create poetry with everyday things by putting them in a different context. I say underpants are art. Put them in a frame and create a new way of looking at the world."

Do you like his idea of art?

Do Tell: Got a Good or Horrifying Tattoo Story?

TresSugar — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 03:00:00 -0700

18-year-old Kimberley Vlaminck from Courtrai, Belgium, is suing a tattoo artist for tattooing 56 stars to the left side of her face. (That's a person in solidarity up there, not Kimberley.) She claims she only wanted three stars - but that she fell asleep during the procedure. (How does that even happen?) Well, as quick as the news hit, there were already admirers.

If you want to show support for Kimberley Vlaminck, why not Kimberlize yourself? No muss, no fuss. But more importantly, share pics or stories of your best or worst tattoos in comments below.

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Lawmakers Crack Down on Guns After Shooting Rampages

CitizenSugar — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 10:30:28 -0700

Shooting rampages filled today's headlines. In Alabama, a man killed a dozen people, including the members of his own family. Over in Germany, a 17-year-old boy attacked a high school, killing at least 16 people.

When attacks occur, European countries often hurry to tighten gun laws. Following two school massacres within a year, Finland announced plans today to raise the minimum age for handgun ownership from 15 to 20. In Belgium, lawmakers passed strict gun laws in 2006 after a racially motivated shooting of a toddler and her black babysitter. In Portugal, the parliament is considering denying bail to anyone suspected of a gun crime.

American lawmakers have responded, too. After the Virginia Tech massacre, the governor signed an executive order requiring that anyone ordered by law to get mental health treatment be added to a database of people barred from buying guns.

Do you think this is the correct response to gun-related tragedies?

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Product of the Day: The Little Whizzer

GiggleSugar — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 04:00:00 -0800

Whoopie cushions and fart spray too passé for you? Well, have I got a gag gift for you! The Little Whizzer is a replica of a famous statue in Brussels, Belgium. To the best of my knowledge, though, that statue didn't pee liquor - that's right, liquor! Just fill this little guy's ceramic carafe with say, some Jagermeister, attach the battery-powered statue top, push his button and watch him whizz your favorite alcoholic beverage into your waiting vessel. Will the wonders never cease? (Are my eyes deceiving me, or does that cup say "slut"? WTF?!)

Sarah Palin Gets Pranked! Chats With Faux President Sarkozy

LibertySugar — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 09:00:00 -0800

Yesterday Sarah Palin happily took a call from French President Nicolas Sarkozy. Only problem: two Canadian comedians merely pretending to be the French president were on the line. Despite the tres bad French accent, the Alaska governor carried on the conversation about how Sarkozy could see Belgium from his house. And it got even better - Palin listened politely as the man she thought was the French president discussed his love for the pornography starring Palin's look-a-like. Oh la la.

Palin even chatted policy, saying Sarkozy's help for the French middle class was a great example. Perhaps she's not as afraid of socialists as she lets on.

Don't worry - she isn't the first leader the duo has embarrassed. She now joins Jacques Chirac and Nicolas Sarkozy as victims of the same comedians. Keeping her good humor, Palin's camp released a statement following the prank: "C'est la vie." Take a listen, and then let GiggleSugar know if the joke was funny, or too mean.