- Doesn’t the sight of clergy, elected officials and civil servants collaborating and cooperating to launder hundreds of thousands of dollars in stolen money just warm your heart? What a sight is unfolding in New Jersey, where at least three New Jersey mayors, other public officials and five rabbis were among 44 people arrested Thursday in a federal investigation of public corruption and money laundering. Included in that tally were luminaries such as Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano III and New Jersey Assembly members Daniel Van Pelt and L. Harvey Smith. Other sleazy, integrity-free individuals included in the sting were Secaucus, New Jersey, Mayor Dennis Elwell, Ridgefield, New Jersey, Mayor Anthony Suarez and Jersey City Deputy Mayor Leona Beldini, representing the ladies. But what would a story like this be without a little involvement from the clergy? As it turns out, five rabbis, were also in on the indictment party. Included in those 44 arrests was the national leader of the Syrian Jewish community and four fellow Jewish leaders accused of laundering more than $3 million. This is just a crazy story, with all sorts of dirty money flying and flowing around. A total of $650,000 in bribes were paid to New Jersey public officials and one man was charged with conspiring to broker the sale of a human kidney for transplant for the handsome price of $160,000. Levy Izhak Rosenbaum of Brooklyn is the kind soul who allegedly offered to obtain a kidney for an undercover FBI agent for that $160,000 fee. All told, investigators searched about 20 locations in New Jersey and New York to recover "large sums of cash and other evidence of criminal conduct.” They also executed 28 seizure warrants against bank accounts for individuals they believed to be a part of the conspiracy. Cammarano was clearly a greedy S.O.B., allegedly accepting $35,000 in bribes from a government witness posing as a real estate developer. Other officials allegedly took bribes "to help get approvals from high-level state agency officials for building projects,” which is always a solid way to get things done. Those bribes were then labeled as “consulting fees” in order to sanitize them and make them appear slightly less criminal. Oddly enough, New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine seemed upset by the arrests and said in a statement: "Any corruption is unacceptable -- anywhere, anytime, by anybody. The scale of corruption we're seeing as this unfolds is simply outrageous and cannot be tolerated." Somebody’s a tad cranky today, eh? But that’s the sort of thing that will happen when the FBI conducts a large-scale operation over the course of three years into rampant corruption. Personally I like the incorporation of individuals from a wide range of fields and professions into corruption of this scale, so there’s something positive to take from this tale after all……..
- Are you a huge fan of The Simpsons? If your answer is the same as mine - namely, no - then this may not be of much interest to you. If you are a fan, you might be interested to know that an open casting call for The Simpsons 20th Anniversary Special — In 3-D! On Ice! will be held tomorrow at Comic-Con in San Diego. Filmmaker Morgan Spurlock (Supersize Me), who will direct the anniversary special, is looking for some of the show’s more gung-ho fans to drop in and try to earn a spot on the show. "I hope we find some of the most incredible super-fans that the world has ever seen," Spurlock said. Be careful what you ask for M., because I have a feeling some really bizarre, scary freaks are going to be heading your way. Ironically, the show, which will air in January, will be neither in 3-D nor on ice. What it will be is a chance for an über-fan or two to live their dream of being a part of one of the longest-running shows on television. "Maybe there's people who want to tell stories about how it changed their life...but we hope we get great people who have great stories to tell,” Spurlock added. How an animated show with low-rent humor changed their life? Now that I would have to hear. So how to go about preparing for the auditions if you’re planning on going? Spurlock suggests dressing up like a favorite Simpsons character, or transforming yourself into some sort of "billboard" for the show. Other than that, plan on showing up really early and camping out with the rest of the losers at the Marriot Hotel & Marina in San Diego. The casting call kicks off 10 a.m. EST and ends that night at 8. Best of success to anyone planning on going, I have a feeling you’ll be in for a long day…….
- Great, this is just what we needed. Already the NFL draft was a two-day monstrosity consuming the better part of 36 hours on the second-to-last weekend in April. The draft has become an increasing target for criticism and mocking among those who argue that it has become a bloated, oversized festival of excess that drags on and on fueled largely by filler content and wasting of time. With that in mind, I can only imagine what the reaction will be now that the league has expanded the event from two to three days. Commissioner Roger Goodell has notified teams that the draft will bloat to three days in 2010, starting at 7:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, April 22 and running late into the day on Saturday, April 24. “We continue to look for ways to make the draft more accessible to more fans," Goodell said in a statement. "Moving the first round to prime time on Thursday night will make the first round of the draft available to fans on what is typically the most-watched night of television.” Either that or you’re looking to expand the league’s presence by another day and take up even more of the sports calendar than you already do. I’m not saying it’s wrong from a business standpoint, I’m simply saying it’s tending toward excess. I’m a huge football fan and watch a lot of NFL action, but three days is just going too far. Yes, ESPN and the NFL Network will televise the event from start to finish as they always do, but just because someone will televise it doesn’t mean you should do it. The first day of the draft will consist only of the first round, with second and third rounds starting at 6:30 p.m. ET on April 23 and rounds 4 through 7 starting at 10 a.m. ET on April 24. But you can see where the NFL, feeling its oats after a total of 39 million viewers watched the draft this year, thought this was a good idea. This is the third major format change to the draft in the past 16 years, as the NFL held its draft on Sunday-Monday two-day blocks from 1988 to 1994 and changed it to a Saturday-Sunday event from 1995 to 2009. Next step after this? How’s about a whole week of draft madness, one round per day? It’s only a matter of time…….
- Caravan time! Although I’m upset that no one invited me to join, but I’ll overlook that and enjoy the attempted return of deposed Honduran President Jose Manuel Zelaya to the country he was elected to govern. Zelaya climbed into a sport utility vehicle yesterday and kicked off his journey from Managua, Nicaragua, to the country's border with Honduras. Joined by a caravan of supporters and reporters, Zelaya headed north to the city of Esteli, close to the Honduran border. His plan is to stop there, finalize his border-crossing plans and then do some border crashing. The actual plan to return to Honduras was announced earlier this week, but observers on both sides of the current crisis in Honduras worry that Zelaya going home could spark off more unrest. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Philip Crowley said, “Any step that would add to the risk of violence in Honduras or in the area, we think would be unwise.” He already attempted a return via air on July 5 and found the Honduran military waiting on the runway to block him from getting off the plane. Nearly a month has passed since the June 28 military-led coup that deposed Zelaya, but tensions are clearly as high as ever. Regular demonstrations by both sides in the debate have taken place across the country since the coup. Some demonstrators have marched in support of interim President Roberto Micheletti, but the majority of them have backed Zelaya. Asked about the reception he expects to receive at the border, Zelaya optimistically declared that he hopes border guards in Honduras will recognize him as president and commander in chief and allow him to cross. "We go with a white flag, with a flag of peace," Zelaya said. In response to Zelaya’s attempted return, Micheletti's government renewed its pledge to arrest Zelaya on charges of violating the constitution and announced a curfew in the border area with Nicaragua from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. Meanwhile, Costa Rican President Oscar Arias continues his attempts to play peacemaker in the conflict. Arias has presided over two rounds of unsuccessful talks between the two sides and offered a peace agreement Wednesday called the San Jose Accord. The agreement calls for Zelaya's return to power, the creation of a unity government, and early elections. Don’t expect Micheletti’s governent to accept it, but it’s a nice thought anyhow. Also, don’t expect the Honduran supreme court to roll out much of a welcome mat for Zelaya. The court has gone on the record as saying it would not accept Zelaya's return under any circumstances. Outside forces like the United States and the Organization of American States continue to push for both sides to sign the San Jose accord, but their wishes don’t carry much weight here. All of this because the guy wanted to give voters a chance to decide on extending term limits and keeping him in office longer………..
- Learning about obscure state laws that allow or prohibit random actions, behaviors or practices is always a fun exercise. Whether it’s your town that has a law banning more than three lawn gnomes five inches tall or taller or someone else’s town, these laws are always good for a laugh. Maybe not so much in Rhode Island, which may be the smallest state in the union but is leading the way with one unique, controversial law. This week, the Providence Journal revealed a loophole in state law allowing minors to work as strippers as long as they are home by 11:30 p.m. Yes, 16 year olds can take it off for the sleazy, greasy losers at their local strip joint as long as they don’t stay out too late. In fact, Rhode Island has no laws on the books to stop teenagers as young as 16 from going so far as to work as "indoor hookers,” whatever that means. No one would have even been aware of this law if not for a case involving a 16-year-old runaway who had been working at a strip club in Providence. Police investigating the case finally found the girl but found they could not prosecute because there were no local or state laws to stop teens from working in the adult entertainment business. When Lt. Governor Elizabeth Roberts heard about this, she was curiously upset. She lamented the lack of such laws in her state "mind-boggling." What’s your beef, Liz? So some high school sophomore wants to peel off her clothes, put on translucent high heels and work a greasy brass pole while 40-something stockbrokers shove $1 bills down her G-string. Kids want to earn money so they can buy a car, get that cute pair of jeans at the mall or buy the latest Jonas Brothers album. If these girls want to make that money in the most disgusting, depressing, deplorable and unsanitary places to work, who are you to stop them? And so what if most states around the country have a minimum age requirement that prohibiting minors from entering strip clubs? Don’t be a follower, I always say, be a leader………..
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