"Desperate husbands" - this can be called men who, until the last minute, pull the campaign for shopping for Christmas. Such husbands consider to be postponed by the acquisition of gifts in a long box with a matter of honor, writes The New York Times (translation on the website inopressa.ru ). Women -like men back in November make purchases for Christmas on the Internet or in a shopping center, pack their gifts and lock them in a closet. Real men postpone purchases until December 24.

In St. Petersburg, on the night of December 16, an attack on a famous artist, one of the founders of the "lyceum" Robert Gorodetsky Theater, was committed. The tragic incident occurred on Science Avenue. Unknown criminals attacked the actor when he returned home. Robert Gorodetsky hit the head a lot. The victim was discovered at about 3 o’clock in the night at the entrance of his house N73, building 1. The moaning of the wounded was heard by a neighbor.

On Monday, the media discusses the alleged appointment of the former US Minister of Trade Donald Evans Head of the Rosneft board of directors. The British The Financial Times claims that Evans may well abandon this proposal. And Kommersant, meanwhile, indicates that at first Gerhard Schroeder refused to cooperate with Gazprom. His position was changed by the intervention of a friend - Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Neftyanaya concern Boris Nemtsov leaves his post. "I decided to leave the post of chairman of the board of directors of the Neftyanaya concern. I consider it incompatible to engage in business and socio -political activity at the same time," Nemtsov told reporters on Monday. The idea of ​​this came to him almost two years after the election: Nemtsov was elected chairman of the board of directors in February 2004 .

The opposition of Armenia intends to achieve a change in power in the republic in 2006, representatives of the Armenian opposition said on Monday, speaking at the New Times party held in Yerevan. It is reported by "Interfax." “In 2006, indigenous reforms should be held in Armenia and a change of power occur,” said Aram Karapetyan, leader of the New Times party at the congress.

The outstanding Spanish tenor Jose Carreras will perform in Moscow with the blessing of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II . In a charitable concert, part of the funds from which will be sent to the children's hematological center, the star of the world opera Maria Gulegin, the choir of Patriarch, the Children and Youth Choir "Transfiguration" and the symphony orchestra led by H.

The Munich court of jury justified the 88-year-old native of Slovakia Ladislav Noznesansky, who was accused of massacres of civilians during the Second World War, and decided to pay him compensation for 9 months in prison. The prosecutor’s office demanded for Naunnansky, who was during the war, the commander of the auxiliary group to combat partisans, a life imprisonment.

The key to success is not at all intense work, but happiness. Cheerful people more often try something new and challenges fate, which stimulates positive emotions and leads to career growth, good relationships and good health, the study says, the results of which are published on Monday in the Psychological Bulletin Psychology Bulletin. Observations of scientists say that happiness is not a luxury, but a necessary condition for human life.

The Moscow region expect light frosts and reduced pressure. According to Roshydrome, on Monday afternoon in the capital, the air temperature will be minus 3-5, in the region from minus 1 to 6. The east wind will reach 4-9 meters per second. In Moscow and the Moscow Region there will be little snow. On the roads ice. At night, the thermometer will fall to minus 7-9, in the region up to 5-9 frost. In the morning, such an air temperature will remain.

The director of the Russian Foreign Intelligence (SVR) of Russia Sergey Lebedev said that the special services of the countries of the anti-terrorism coalition to date liquidated or arrested a significant part of Al-Qaeda’s leaders. "During the international counter-terrorist operation conducted since 2001, about 70% of the al-Qaeda leadership was arrested or destroyed.

At least seven Australian patients with renal diseases may have received the kidneys of executed Chinese prisoners for transplanting, Interfax reports. It is possible that at least three residents of Victoria, two patients from the state of New South Wales, one patient from South Australia, as well as another of Queensland, could get the kidneys of prisoners executed in China in recent years. The recipients were people who searched for transplanting donor bodies in Asian countries.

The Pope Benedict XVI called to give each other more joy and good on Christmas days. “Joy is a true gift of Christmas , inexpensive, not requiring a lot of time and money. You can give joy, providing help with a smile, showing mercy, and joy will return to you,” said the head of the Holy See, addressing believers in the church of Santa Maria Consolatrich in the suburbs of Rome. Pontiff noted with regret that "the Lord is absent in today's world." "People need" anesthesia "in order to live.

Six employees of the Kyrgyz police and two civilians attacked border guards who served as Ayrybas in the Batken region in the south of the country. All the attackers were detained, the press service of the border service of Kyrgyzstan said on Monday. “Without explaining the goals of arrival, they began to attack the border guards, twisted their hands and searched the personnel of the borderpost. The attackers also tried to seize the weapons of border posts,” the press service noted.

In Khabarovsk, hot water supply can be disconnected due to the fact that the content of nitrobenzene in the Amur, according to Monday, is higher than the maximum permissible concentration (MPC). This opportunity was not excluded by the Governor of the Khabarovsk Territory Viktor Ishaev.

In Moscow, a sentence was sentenced to the former nurse for the resale of babies born, including from minor mothers. Pensioner Lyudmila Verzhbitskaya was found guilty for two articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation: for part 3 of Article 327 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Falsification of documents") and part 1 of Article 330 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Arcting"). The defendant was sentenced to a fine of 350 thousand rubles.