Investors in Caterpillar got a nasty surprise last Friday when the company revealed that it had uncovered massive fraud at a Chinese mining equipment firm that it bought last year.

FORBES: Alleged Fraud At Caterpillar's Chinese Acquisition Puts Spotlight On U.S. Principals

They got into a nasty, pointless war in 1914.

FORBES: When Sovereign Default Is The Most Attractive Option

Our estimate of the net worth of California real estate developer Donald Bren, 74, got caught up in a nasty child support fight he's engaged in with his jilted ex-lover.

FORBES: A (Bigger) Check Is in the Mail

He added that although there are indications that the inflation rate may fall considerably in 2012, the bank and the government "have got a very, very nasty period in the middle".

BBC: Inflation casts shadow over bank rate decision

Hewlett-Packard (NYSE:HPQ) had a huge move since the start of the year, but a pretty nasty topping tail with a screaming RSI got me short this yesterday.

FORBES: Apple Holds Its Bounce, First Solar Fires Up Again

Weaver still has a nasty scar of his right leg from a cut he got while being tossed about in the turbulent waters.

NPR: New Orleans: A Tale Of 2 Cities Since Katrina

Brace yourself and make sure no children are looking over your shoulders, because these hoodlums belong to a particularly nasty group called the Christmas Sweater Club and they got in trouble for handing out miniature candy canes.

FORBES: Local Government Stupidity Contest

The fatigue has been complicated by the fact that Obama has been battling a nasty cold, telling aides he feels like he's got an "acorn up my nose" -- an interesting turn of phrase I had never heard before but seems to mean the president is stuffed up.

CNN: Ed Henry: Obama in Europe -- Barack and a brandy

One was that its grandiose plans to set up a new studio on an expanse of marshland north of Los Angeles airport got into trouble, leaving DreamWorks embroiled in nasty rows with both environmentalists and developers, and with premises inefficiently scattered around the city.

ECONOMIST: How well Mr Spielberg wears a suit