Research has shown that more than a third of anti-malarial drugs sold in Africa have failed quality tests. The study of drugs bought in Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda reveals that 35 percent contained too little active ingredient or failed to dissolve, rendering them ineffective.

Toyota, a Japanese car-maker, has posted a 28% fall in profit for the first three months of 2008 and predicted its first annual profit fall in seven years.

According to BBC News, “it blamed falling demand in the U.S. and a stronger yen, which makes Japanese exports more expensive. Net income dropped to 316.8bn yen ($3bn) in the quarter to March, down from 440bn yean a year ago.”

In Europe, young adults deliberately binge on alcohol and drugs to improve their sex lives. Great Britain has one of the worst reputations for binge drinking and under-aged sex, but there are remarkable similarities between other European countries as well, a study found.

On May 2, The Austin American-Statesman ran an expose about House members who are hiring former legislators and other employees, classifying them as “full-time,” and paying them a few hundred dollars a month.

House Regulated Industries Chairman Phil King (R-Weatherford) is a critical member of Speaker Tom Craddick’s leadership team. I caught up with King to talk about utilities and other key political matters. Due to the interest in these issues, we are splitting the interview into two parts. In this week’s installment, King discusses electricity issues.

The U.S. government reported on Friday that domestic demand for imports fell in March by the most since 2001, the latest indication that the economic slowdown is forcing Americans to rein in their spending habits.

It’s illegal to sell or possess horsemeat meant for human consumption in Texas, as well as shipping horsemeat through the state to markets overseas.

The Houston Chronicle reports that, “Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott issued an opinion this week saying the state’s prohibition on horsemeat for human food would almost certainly apply to the transport of horsemeat, too.”

Rep. Tony Goolsby (R-Dallas), chairman of the House Administration Committee, sent a letter to all House members relating to the full-time, part-time issue with their employees. Link here.

According to calculations by Christian Research, a think-tank, practicing Muslims will outnumber worshipping Christians in Great Britain within 30 years. There will be about 1.96 million active Muslims in the UK, compared with 1.63 million church-going Christians.