- If you’re looking for hope that the NBA will be able to somehow avoid a lockout next summer, do yourself a favor and don’t ask NBA players' association executive director Billy Hunter for his take on the issue. Hunter, a man prone to opening his mouth and having stupid sh*t come out, said Monday he is "99 percent sure" there will be a lockout next summer. "I think it's highly probable that there will be a lockout and that's what I'm preparing for because I don't see anything else right now," Hunter said. His words actually seem smart on this occasion, as negotiations toward a new collective bargaining agreement to replace the one that expires next summer are, in essence, a boat without a motor, sitting helplessly in the middle of the lake with a ginormous storm approaching. The union met with league representatives last week and made no progress and the sides do not plan to meet again until next month. Hunter his crew insist that owners aren't budging on their demands for cuts in salaries, contract lengths and guarantees, annual raises, and the rookie salary scale. Since those are the major issues on the table, an unwillingness to negotiate at all on them would pose something of a roadblock. “What's left?" Hunter asked rhetorically. "I don't really see that the argument's all that compelling for the changes that they're asking for.” Well, other than teams playing in arenas that are half empty, with some teams drawing so poorly at the gate that there is talk of relocation or contraction. Perhaps that’s what inspired the league to call for a reduction in player salary costs of $700 to $800 million and a hard salary cap to replace the system which now allows for certain exceptions. The players dispute the league’s claims and insist that what they allege to be record revenues and ticket sales, and strong TV ratings are evidence that the system is fine as is. "It seems like things are doing all right and so our position is that we want to do what's best for the game," said New York Knicks guard Roger Mason Jr., a member of the players' executive committee. "Any way that we can make the game better as players, speaking for a lot of the guys, we're all for it. But we don't want to have a deal that's just not fair and that's what we think is being presented to us right now." The last new proposal offered by either side came from the players way back in July, but Hunter has refused to give any substantive details of the proposal. He theorized that some owners were amenable to the proposal, but that a certain group is dead-set against giving any ground to the players under any circumstances. "I think the message has to be driven home to I guess that hawkish group of owners that if they're inclined, if they want to lock us out -- because we're not going to strike -- if they want to lock us out and they want to pull the roof down on themselves, then hey, have at it," Hunter said. Doesn’t sound like much of a hopeful tone to me……..
- Nation, I have great news for us all. The one thing that terrifies us most when it comes to our nation’s highest elected office - well, outside of W. running again - is apparently nothing to worry about. Aside from the disastrous return to the Oval Office of the worst president in our country’s long history, the only other development that could send shivers down America’s collective spine would be another Bush in the White House - former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, younger brother of W. According to his father, former President George H.W. Bush, Jeb Bush would make a good president, but has no intention of running for the Oval Office. Speaking in an interview for Larry King’s television show, the former president spoke about his two politically-minded sons but shot down talk of a Bush presidential dynasty. Asked if Jeb was considering a run for president in 2012, his father responded: "I don't think he is. In fact, I know he's not. But would he be a good president? Absolutely. And don't just take that from a father's prejudice view. I mean, he's a good man, he performed as governor, he's well-spoken, he's not an extremist, he's not a wild guy that attributes bad motives to those that disagree with him, and he's good.” Fine, but why do I think you would have said the same thing about your other son prior to him taking office and look where that landed all of us. When asked who would make a good choice for the Republican Party’s presidential candidate in 2012, both Bush and wife Barbara mentioned former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. "He's a reasonable guy," George Bush said of Romney. "He's a conservative fellow, that's good. But no, I think he'd be a good president, a very good president." Ironically, the one comment from the interview that has gotten more run than any other has been Barbara Bush taking a verbal sledgehammer to former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, answering a question about her opinion of Palin by saying “thought she was beautiful,” then adding, “And she's very happy in Alaska, and I hope she'll stay there." Ironically, the thought of another member of the Bush family taking office is the only thing that might terrify all sane Americans as much as the prospect of Palin in office……..
- Been finding yourself pining for 1992 lately? Have you been lusting for the days when grunge was on the uptick and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air was the show to watch? If so, Warner Bros. has big news for you. The media titan has announced plans to remake 1992′s Buffy the Vampire Slayer, which gave led to the cult-followed Sarah Michelle Gellar-headed TV series of the same name. Thus far, Warner Bros. has been rather cryptic about the project and short on details, but filmmakers claim the movie would not return to the vampire slayer’s high school days, but would instead portray the “witty, tough, and sexy” heroine in a different part of her life. One big name is in the fold already, as Dark Knight producer Charles Roven has signed on and will be joined by newcomer Whit Anderson. This doesn’t appear to be one of those films that takes years to cast, film and get into theaters, as the team for the project believe that it could hit theaters in 2012 or late 2011. Having watched neither the original movie nor the TV series and possessing a firm hatred for remakes of movies and TV shows of all shapes, sizes and genres, I’m not enthused about the project and am fairly certain that this has everything to do with making a few bucks and no churning out a quality movie……..
- Will it do any good? That’s the primary question to ask in response to news that mayors from around the world have signed a voluntary pact committing them to reduce urban greenhouse gas emissions at a climate summit in Mexico City. The agreement, creatively dubbed the "Mexico City Pact," was signed at the World Mayors Summit on Climate. It has already been signed by 138 mayors from some the world's largest urban areas, including Buenos Aires, Johannesburg, Los Angeles, Paris, Vancouver and Jakarta. When agreements like this are signed, the predictable response from those involved is ridiculous hyperbole to the point that you almost have to break out in raucous laughter. In this case, the signers of the agreement did a decent job of staying in their shoes. "The world's cities must join together and put their data in the same pot," said Marcelo Ebrard, Mayor of the Mexico City and chair of the World Mayors Council on Climate Change. Ebrard went on to say that with over half the world's population now living in cities, "mayors and urban leaders are on the frontline of the planet's fight against a changing climate." The agreement’s most important component is the creation of a monitoring and verification mechanism called the "carbonn Cities Climate Registry" (cCCR), which will be operated by Germany's Bonn Center for Local Climate Action and Reporting. The purpose of the cCCR will be to create uniformity in reporting of urban greenhouse gas emissions as well as keeping track of local projects which combat climate change. Cities around the world will be able to hop online and monitor their city’s performance, as well as compare the results against other cities around the world. Elizabeth Gateau, secretary general of United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) said in a statement: "The cCCR is a platform wherein cities can work together. Cities are ahead of the game of nations and are leading the global process combating climate change. The cCCR will be the official reporting mechanism of this leadership." Of course, there’s no way to wrap this story without hearing from Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC), so let’s tackle that one. Speaking at the summit, Figueres hailed the cCCR as a mechanism that would "facilitate transparency and accountability of local climate actions and help local governments to demonstrate leadership in climate action." To mark the launch of the project, five "pioneer" cities, including Mexico City and Cape Town, South Africa, have already begun reporting some of key actions, commitments and performances. It’s actually a big time for climate change and environmental issues, as U.N. climate talks will soon commence in Cancun, Mexico. I’m sure a ton of great surfing, er, um, work will get done there………
- If you’re dumb enough to pay $199 or so for an iPhone and then lose it, Apple just might be able to help you. Since June, the tech giant has had an app to locate lost Apple mobile devices, but now that app is free for owners of newer Apple products. A new version of iOS was released Monday and it includes new features to the mobile operating system that runs the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad. Anyone who owns an iPad, a camera-equipped iPod Touch or iPhone 4 can go to the App Store and download Find My iPhone to get their copy of the app, which was previously included only as part of Apple's Mobile Me package, which costs $99 per year. Once it is downloaded, installed and enabled, the app allows the owner of a lost device can see its location online through a site which accesses the phone's GPS coordinates to show it on a map. Furthermore, you can use the app to have the lost device display a message asking whomever finds your property to return it. Or, if your phone contains information vital to national security and you fear it falling into the wrong hands, you can set a password or send a command to wipe personal information from the hardware. In addition to improving security, the updated app also allows users to print documents wirelessly and to send video or music to an Apple TV or compatible speaker system using a feature called AirPlay. Another nice feature is that the iPad can run the revised app in the background while other apps are being used, a major upgrade from the first wave of iPads. Installing the software is as simple as connecting your Apple device using a USB cable to a computer running iTunes……….
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