Vermont's legislators lose focus, changing the Doomsday Clock and the USA network makes some major changes

- Way to keep your eyes on the prize, Vermont. Even though your state is facing a colossal budget crisis in 2010, it is great to know that the state legislature can keep its focus off of that and on other, more trivial matters: the importation of elephants, the attire of hunters in the woods and the subject of human trafficking in the state. . "You know the old saying, 'Every bill is important to somebody or it wouldn't have been introduced,'" Gov. Jim Douglas said Thursday. Normally I would say that were true, but it’s hard to concur with those sentiments when a bill like H. 468 is in place. Put simply the bill relates relating to the importation of elephants. Seems that Vermont banned circus elephants from the summer fair and field days circuit a decade ago because of a fear that elephants would bring tuberculosis to the state. A realistic fear? Not so much, but since when has the legislative process at any level been about realism, sanity or logic? Advocates for the allowance of elephants into the state argue that TB testing should alleviate all concerns and it seems like a fair compromise. Rep. Dick Lawrence of Lyndonville is sponsoring the bill and he’s admittedly taking some heat for raising what many view as a trivial issue in light of the budget crisis. But the elephant bill is not alone in terms of minor issues taking up time on the legislative horizon. Another bill would force hunters to wear blaze orange while out in the woods. Then there is the bill forbidding "human trafficking" in Vermont, a state that outlawed slavery in its constitution. What on Earth could Vermont need additional anti-slavery legislation for when the issue is spelled out clearly in its very own constitution? According to Sen. Dick Sears, the Bennington Democrat who chairs the Judiciary Committee, Vermont remains one of a handful of jurisdictions without specific legislation targeting those who exploit illegal immigrants and migrants workers. He cited an example from 2004 when police discovered Asian women here illegally who were forced to work in "massage parlors" in the town of Essex Junction until law enforcement shut the businesses down. There are also a few useful bills tucked amidst the madness, such as the one imposing sales taxes on soda, bottled water and candy bars. There is also one to requiring "chain restaurants" to publish nutritional information on menus, which could help the problem of obesity that continues to run wild in this country. Yet these bills are, in my mind, overshadowed by the fact that a single second is being devoted to the issue of whether or not elephants should be allowed into Vermont. Stay focused on what truly matters, Vermont legislators, and you will definitely have another banner year…………

- I am a firm believer that none of us pays enough attention to the clock - the symbolic Doomsday Clock, that is. The Doomsday Clock was created in 1947 and is operated by reflecting the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, a group of respected scientists that includes 19 Nobel Laureates. Scientists and experts who had produced the atomic bomb for the Manhattan Project founded the BAS in 1945 and two years later, they created a clock designed to represent the world's chances of avoiding catastrophic threats such as nuclear attacks. The proximity of the large hand on the clock, i.e. the minute hand, to midnight represent how close the BAS feels the world is to one of these apocalyptic nuclear event. The closest it has been to midnight is two minutes, which is where it stood from 1953 to 1960 as the Soviet Union and the United States ramped up testing of thermonuclear devices and looked very much ready and willing to go to war. On the flip side, the farthest the clock has been from midnight was 17 minutes, from 1991 to 1995, after the signing of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. This week, the BAS moved the clock one minute further from midnight and it now stands six minutes from the point that we all hope (outside of North Korea and Iran, anyhow) the world will never reach. Doom, disaster and the end of the world just aren’t things that most of us look forward to. "We are poised to bend the arc of history toward a world free of nuclear weapons. For the first time since atomic bombs were dropped in 1945, leaders of nuclear weapons states are cooperating to vastly reduce their arsenals and secure all nuclear bomb-making material," the scientists said in a statement Thursday. Moving the clock is an infrequent occurrence, as the group has done it only 18 times in the 62-plus years of its existence. As a bit of background on the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, they are a group of long-hair, pot-smoking hippies who have weekly keg parties and like to base jump from urban buildings in major metropolitan areas……just kidding. They are a group of über-smart scientists based in Chicago, Illinois. They also seem to be fond of the policies of another prominent Illinoisan who is shaping the way the nuclear age is progressing in the world. "A key to the new era of cooperation is a change in the U.S. government's orientation toward international affairs, brought about in part by the election of [President Barack] Obama," the group said. "With a more pragmatic, problem-solving approach, not only has Obama initiated new arms-reduction talks with Russia, he has started negotiations with Iran to close its nuclear enrichment program, and directed the U.S. government to lead a global effort to secure loose fissile material in four years.” Now we all know where the Doomsday Clock stands, both physically and in the space-time continuum, so let’s try to keep a better eye on it from here on out…………

- The ugliness seemed to have peaked a week and a half ago in the ongoing feud between fired Texas Tech football coach Mike Leach and the university itself, but that was merely the calm before the sh*t storm. Leach, an attorney himself, and his legal team were merely polishing up their wrongful termination lawsuit against Texas Tech and now that the suit has been officially filed, the details are attention-grabbing, to say the least. As a quick refresher, Leach was fired on Dec. 30 following his alleged mistreatment of player Adam Jones after Jones was diagnosed with a concussion. The school suspended Leach while it investigated and when he allegedly failed to cooperate with the investigation to the satisfaction of the administration, he was dismissed. Now, Leach is having his say and he has some strong claims to make. Among them is the allegation that after being demoted to third string in a meeting with coaches, James stormed out of the football offices screaming an expletive and slammed the outer door so hard that it split and came off its hinges, causing approximately $1,100 in damage. Leach’s lawsuit also claims that ESPN college football analyst (and Adam James' father) Craig James was a perennial pest who badgered coaches with threatening and menacing phone messages related to his son’s playing time. In September, according to the suit, Craig James called assistant coach Tommy McVay "to tell him, in effect, that you coaches are crazy and you're screwing my kid." Craig James wasn’t done for the day either; later, he called coach Lincoln Riley "stating, in effect, 'You don't know what you're doing. Adam James is the best player at the wide receiver position. ... If you've got the [blank] to call me back, and I don't think you do, call me back.' " In regards to the claims that he forced James to stand inside a small electrical closet when he was unable to practice, Leach countered that Adam James "voluntarily placed himself into the electrical closet and apparently took pictures with his phone camera." Perhaps the whopper of all the claims in the lawsuit is that Texas Tech president Guy Bailey advised Leach that he thought school chancellor Kent Hance was going to try to "railroad" Leach, because of a business relationship between James and Hance. Alleging a bizarre conspiracy is a good way to get attention and as an avowed fan of conspiracy theories, I love this one. The idea that Hance was plotting to force out his football coach to placate his business partner and using that business partner’s son in some sort of sting operation to create evidence to facilitate the firing is awesome. The lawsuit had barely been filed when Hance swung back, releasing a statement about it that read: "Mike Leach's latest petition contains a number of false statements. I want to make something clear. I do not have and never have had a business relationship with Craig James." Bailey also issued a written statement claiming that he never made any comments to Leach about being railroaded by Hance. At the heart of the suit is the claim that university administrators’ comments and claims "were made intentionally" to harm Leach and expose him to financial harm. I predict a settlement of some sort in the future to make this matter go away, but part of me believes that we will never know the complete truth about everything that went on between Leach, the James clan and Texas Tech University……………

- There is a brand new reason for clueless tourists to stare up above when visiting Times Square these days. Among the litany of billboards and ads - some of the traditional variety and some electronic - there is a new digital billboard with a decidedly different purpose. It is not attempting to sell you any product, convince you to see a particular show or tell you about a major news event going on in the world. Instead, the billboard features men like Tawan Hines. Who is Tawan Hines and why is he on a billboard in Times Square, you ask? Because he’s a wanted man, that’s why. Hines is a drug-trafficking on the run from the FBI. In the hopes that one of the most high-traffic locations in the world could generate tips from tourists and locals alike, authorities are posting the names and mug shots of wanted criminals a giant digital billboard in Times Square. The FBI's New York Office unveiled the 30- by 40-foot digital billboard this week and intends to feature a diverse range of suspects from violent fugitives to white collar criminals. "The process is simple, if you see something on our billboard and have a tip, pick up the phone and call," said Belle Chen of the FBI’s New York Office. This particular billboard is one of more than 1,000 billboards nationwide in 20 cities. So far, the initiative has helped resolve at least 30 cases, according to a written FBI statement. "With millions of people passing through Times Square every year, there is no better way to draw attention," said FBI New York Office's Assistant Director Joseph M. Demarest. If you are visiting Manhattan and want to do your part, the billboard is located at 47th St. and Broadway. Clear Channel Outdoor is providing the billboard to the FBI free of charge as a public service. The display will also feature information on kidnap victims, missing children and high-priority security messages. It’s a nice gesture and if it can help track down criminals who otherwise would go free, then it will do more than enough good…………

- NBC isn't the only network looking to deliver a major shake-up to its nighttime lineup. One of the network’s cable sister stations, USA, is also making drastic moves in an attempt to boost its ratings. As of the week beginning tomorrow, USA will no longer air any of its original dramas on Friday nights but will start putting new shows at 10 p.m. ET on Tuesday and Wednesday in place of for reruns of network shows like "NCIS." USA is cable television's top-rated network, but instead of resting on its laurels, the network is actively looking to improve viewership. The season premiere of "White Collar" on Tuesday will lead the way for this revamped schedule and "Psych" will follow suit on Wednesdays on Jan. 27. It is not an entirely surprising decision because Friday night had been the home for “Monk,” one of USA’s hallmark original shows that ended its final season a few weeks ago. Rather than try to find an equally popular replacement to fill the void, USA will shed its signature Friday night showcase and move its top original shows to two nights when more people generally are watching television. "We decided it was time to take some risks," said Bonnie Hammer, the network's chief executive. "Being complacent was never going to teach us anything.” She added that her own son asked why "White Collar" was on Friday nights, because his friends would watch the show if it were on another night when they weren’t out doing other things. USA is following in the shoes of broadcast networks, which have been de-emphasizing Fridays over the past few years. Of course, that dearth of quality programming on Friday nights has been part of USA’s secret to success over the same time, but the network clearly feels good enough about its programming to take on the challenge. Much of the network’s programming will be unaffected by the change, including “WWE Monday Night RAW” and the original show "Burn Notice," which will stay on Thursdays, with new episodes beginning this week. Industry analysts are skeptical of USA’s maneuvering, saying it is a huge risk with potentially disastrous consequences. I, for one, like the boldness and as a fan of a few USA shows, I hope their gamble succeeds……………