Toyota Motor Corp. is off to a bad start this year as they face a lot of cases that were filed against them. Toyota owners have filed numerous cases against the Japanese brand allegedly because of the sudden acceleration problem that their cars are vulnerable to do. With over 100 lawsuits pending in the state and federal courts, Toyota clearly has a big legal battle looming over their heads.

It can be recalled that Toyota has issued massive recalls of their vehicles because it has been found that the cars’ brake systems are flawed. The complainants have argued that their lives are put in danger because the car manufacturer did not install brake overrides that would have made their cars a lot safer. It has been found out that Toyota, as early as 2007, has began talking about ways of putting brake overrides in their vehicles as a safety precaution should the brake system malfunction. Unfortunately, Toyota has only began installing it last year after they have recalled their cars that have been plying the roads.

The legal teams that are fighting the car giant are demanding undisclosed amounts for damages claiming that Toyota’s negligence has caused countless accidents on the road including deaths. To date, there is only once case that Toyota has settled amounting to $10 million as their Lexus ES had a sudden acceleration in 2009 that claimed the lives of four people. Toyota can’t claim that the brake override system is a new sudden acceleration defense as this system has been used widely by other carmakers.

Life is all about second chances. And a second chance is what Ted Williams had after becoming an internet sensation. For those of you who have not seen nor heard the video that has been circulating worldwide, Ted is a man who lost a lot because of wrong choices made in the past. Choices that all of use are capable of doing and of bungling as well.

Ted is a homeless man who wanders the streets of Interstate 71. He is just like any other homeless guy who has unkempt hair, and a dirty and unshaven face. But all these has changed after his video circulated over the internet. Somebody interviewed him and uploaded the interview online. Ted has a sign that he carries with him saying that he has a “God given talent” and that is his voice.

He used to be a radio announcer and when success got into his head, he began experimenting on a lot of things including drugs and alcohol. When finally he realized that his choices were wrong, it was a little bit too late. He ended up with nothing and lost everything that he had.

But obviously God has other plans for him. Ted said that during the time that he was down and out it was then that he found God. Because of what he has been through, he has learned to appreciate every single day of his life and now he is back on track. The online video opened up a lot of doors for him and he is now on his way back to regaining what he has lost. All because his video was posted on the internet with with him carrying a cardboard box telling passing motorists about his “God-given talent”.

We have been warned and forewarned a million times over. But it seems that we do not heed the call of the wise when it comes to the kinds of passwords that we use. Let’s admit it, we all live in the digital age where usernames and passwords are as common as the air that we breath. As almost all of us have internet connection, we have a lot of sites that we go to frequently.

To answer our need of being connected with the people that we love, we must have an account to most probably Facebook or MySpace. Because we need to be heard and our thoughts need to be known by the people in our network, we Tweet with our Twitter accounts. And as everything is done online, even our banking and other sensitive transactions are made online as well.

With all these different accounts, how can we remember the passwords to each and every account. To make things easier, we try to use the password that can easily be remembered. Unfortunately, this kinds of passwords are easily remembered and recognized by hackers who are always out to victimize internet denizens.

Experts say that the most common passwords like 1234, qwerty and even password are big no-nos. They also say that your birthday or your pet’s name is also a dangerous password to use because these information are easily obtainable in your user’s profile. So the best thing to do is to create a password that is composed of letters and numbers. Write it down and lock it up in a safe place and of course, never give out your password to anybody.

The world is going to miss the actor who perfected the art of deadpan comedy. Who wasn’t able to watch the Naked Gun sequels that made Leslie Nielsen a household name. Now, the world bids goodbye to the white haired comic who made life a little bit bearable through the movies that he starred in.

At 84, Leslie Nielsen has lived a full life having been married four times and fathering two daughters in his second marriage. Not a lot of people know but he was an enlist of the Royal Canadian Air Force. He was born in Canada and even became a disc jockey before venturing into the world of TV and Movies. Although he starred in some serious movies and was even lauded for his superb performance, Leslie will be best remembered through his Naked Gun series. Leslie’s role in Naked Gun was as a police investigator who bungled his way around in trying to solve the cases. Even if he did more harm that good as a police investigator but still in the end all thing work together for good and he ends up solving the case anyway.

Spoofs and parody will never be the same without Leslie. Sure there will be actors who would try to fit into his shoes but they will have a hard time trying to fit into really big shoes. As proof of Leslie’s positive contribution to the TV and Film industry, he has numerous awards and inducted into the Canada (his birthplace) and Hollywood Walk of Fame where he really shined and made his mark.

Leslie passed away in the presence of his wife and some friends after battling with complications brought about by his pneumonia. He breathed his last at a hospital near the place he called home in Fort Lauderdale Florida.

Is Pope Benedict XVI softening on his stand regarding the use of condoms? The Pope has a book published entitled “Light of the World: The Pope, the Church and the Signs of the Times” and it covers a myriad of issues concerning the followers of the Catholic faith.

Among the controversial topics is the use of condom. For the longest time the Catholic church has been adamant in their stand for the faithful not to use any form of contraceptives from pills, to condoms, everything except sexual abstinence. But now, the Pope seems to be softening up a little bit by saying in his book that condoms can be used “in certain cases”.

The “in certain cases” means that the use of condoms will still not be acceptable for everybody and for whatever reason they may see fit. The phrase simply means that if a Catholic faithful is found to have HIV- AIDS then he can use condoms to help spread the virus to his partner.

According to the Church, sex is an acceptable activity only for married people and with their wedded partners only. Sex is a gift from God and married couples shouldn’t try and use any form of contraceptive as they try to “go forth and multiply”. Condoms are supposed to promote promiscuity especially amongst young people and makes the sexual act “banal” and not an expression of their love.

Now, the Pope has said that using condoms is not totally unacceptable but can be used for the prevention of spreading diseases like HIV. But still according to the Pope more must be done to address the root of the problem.

German Shepherds out, Chichuahuas in. Well, not entirely. Rescue missions used to be dominated by large breed dogs like St. Bernards and German Shepherds but now, even the tiniest breeds are welcome to join the search and rescue missions of Japan.

“Peach” or “Momo is the first ever of her breed and of her size to be a part of the search and rescue division of the police force of the prefecture of Nara in western Japan. The police force conducted a search for the newest member of their elite K9 search and rescue team. There were 70 dogs who gave their best but only 32 dogs came out successful. And one of them is Peach.

The police has been receiving calls after announcing “Peach’s” selection. Others were wondering what a miniature dog can do for such a daunting task of searching and rescuing people when disasters strike. But the police officers are quick to respond that a small dog like “Peach” can go where big dogs can’t go. They won’t be made to drag heavy objects when rescuing anyway and a dog as small as Peach can fit small openings, something a German Shepherd cannot do.

Peach was able to impress the police officers after she found a person five minutes after she sniffed the person’s cap. Size is obviously not an issue when it comes to disaster rescue missions. If a dog can sniff out his or her target then she can join the team. Residents in the prefecture of Nara are obviously surprised, as everybody would be, but this is a welcome surprise. If Peach can do that job, then size does not matter at all.

Can a 10 year old girl give birth to a child? Impossible you say! Apparently it is possible. In the city of Jerez de la Frontera, Spain a 10 year old girl has just given birth to a healthy baby. The social affairs minister of Andalusia, Micaela Navarro, said that the young mother is in good health even if she has just given birth. The baby is in good health as well.

For the protection of the girl/mother, her identity and that of the baby’s will be kept a secret as she is a minor. The father of the baby is allegedly a minor as well so authorities are not sure if they can file a case against him according to the Spanish Justice Ministry. In Spain, the law dictates that if a person below 13 years old commits consensual sex it is still classified as child abuse.

News reports say that the baby is of Romanian descent and was already pregnant when she arrived in Spain. To make matters worse, the authorities are deliberating if they should allow the young mother and her family to have custody of the newborn.

Apparently even if this is an unusual event, giving birth at such an early age is not impossible at all as proven by this case. Doctors agree that because a teenager girl is still developing physically there is a very big chance that the baby they are carrying in their womb will be born prematurely. The doctors say that she is still growing so she may not be able to carry the baby well.