- If Google Street View has this much power to inspire FAT people to change their ways, then may I be so bold as to ask why were aren’t utilizing it more. While you do have to walk a fine line when public humiliation is involved, the fact is that Bob Mewse of Bristol, England is a perfect illustration of the power of calling a FAT person out publicly and having them respond in a positive way. Sure, the intent of the creators of Google Street View was not to shame Mewse into changing his unhealthy ways, but that was the end result. About a year ago, Mewse caught an image of himself on Google Street View, Google’s mapping service that uses a 360-degree camera to record images and puts them up for the world to see. At the time the picture was taken, Mewse tipped the scales at a whopping 297 pounds. He was so horrified by his appearance that he immediately decided that he needed to lose weight. He started winning the battle against his sweet tooth and drastically changed his diet for the better. Coupled with the one thing that FAT people the whole world ‘round abhor - exercise - he started losing weight. All it took was one embarrassing side view of him pumping gas and wearing a grey t-shirt that more closely resembled a circus tent in size. "I was horrified when I saw that photo. I was massive. My belly was sticking out and I looked huge. I'd been thinking about losing weight for some time but after seeing that picture, I knew that I actually had to do something about it. I was in such bad condition that I was unable to walk and talk at the same time. My blood pressure was sky-high and I was getting back problems due to the excess weight I was carrying around,” recalled Mewse, who was classed as morbidly obese prior to his weight loss. Now, he weighs in at a relatively svelte 196 pounds and is a regular at the Fitness First gym in Bristol. He works out with a personal trainer, chows down on fruits and salads instead of cupcakes, pies and cookies and believes he can be an example for other flabby fellows and gals around the world. "If I can do this, anybody can – I'm just an ordinary bloke. I feel much healthier now," Mewse said. Here’s hoping the world takes your lead, Mewse……..
- Nice to know that there are still oversensitive people out there ready, willing and eager to overreact at every sleight - real or perceived - and fight for their right to be morons. Witness the scene at West Chester University, near Philadelphia, where a poster calling for a meeting of what was billed as a white student union group became the cause of a major uproar when the intent of those posting it was merely to foster racial understanding. "It was good intention gone awry," said Pam Sheridan, director of public relations and marketing at WCU. She explained that the post was an poorly worded effort to draw students into a discussion about race. Copies of the poster hung on bulletin boards in several campus buildings Tuesday, called on those who "feel underrepresented on campus" or are "uncomfortable in other 'special interest groups' " to go to a meeting Thursday night in Lawrence Hall. The aforementioned oversensitive kooks spotted the fliers and immediately complained to the school’s administration, which investigated the matter - i.e. came down from their plush office with fine carpeting and leather chairs and looked at the fliers or had one of their underlings do it for them. Sheridan admitted that the school did not know who posted the fliers but somehow knew that they were "a very innocent and naive attempt to create some sense of activism." At a relatively small school (enrollment is 14,500) where only 2,300 students are identified as minorities, it’s good to see that oversensitivity and overreaction can still rear their ugly head. School officials even felt compelled to send out an email stating the flier had "caused a great deal of upset and concern on campus.” However, the email went on the concede that, “ In investigating the situation, we have learned that the meeting was, in fact, designed to draw antiracist allies together. There is no White Student Union at West Chester University, and there is no meeting." Still, it’s reassuring to know that if white students wanted to gather just like the Black Student Union, Black Men United and National Association of Black Accountants groups on campus also meet, there would be people who would be angry about it………
- Wow…..that took some kahones. The NCAA has clear rules stating that Division I-A football teams must have at least six wins to qualify for a bowl game and five of those wins must come against fellow Div. I-A teams. In other words, no loading up on Division I-AA cupcakes to pad your win total so your subpar team can survive a sub-.500 conference season and still go bowling. Everyone knows the rules and makes out the schedule without any misguided impressions about what it will take to become bowl-eligible. Yet somehow, some way, Arizona State and its coach, Dennis Erickson, thought they were going to run an end-around on the NCAA and receive a special waiver to play in a bowl game even though they finished 6-6 and two of their wins were over Div. I-AA schools. The appeal was denied on Friday, just hours after the Sun Devils blocked two extra points to beat archrival Arizona in double overtime in what proved to be the final game of their season. Later in the day, Erickson spoke about the decision and oddly enough, seemed surprised at the way it went down. "It is a pretty steadfast rule, but I thought we had a chance in our discussions with the NCAA because of our situation," Arizona State coach Dennis Erickson said. "They didn't OK it and I understand that." To be fair to Arizona State, they did not originally have two I-AA teams on the schedule. Their season opener was supposed to be against I-A San Jose State, but the Spartans pulled out of the game at the last minute and left Arizona State scrambling. The only opponent they could find on short notice was Div. I-AA Portland State, whom they beat handily. The following week, the Sun Devils throttled Div. I-AA Northern Arizona and knew that they would need five wins in their remaining 10 games to qualify for a bowl game. When they lost their sixth game of the season on Nov. 13 to Stanford, that dream was dead. Still, the school applied for the waiver and hoped against hope that it would be granted. When that didn’t happen, Erickson and the administration were left to pick up the pieces as the team ended its third straight season with no bowl game at the end. “It was a powerful way to end the season last night in Tucson," Arizona State athletic director Lisa Love said. "We are disappointed in the outcome that we are not going to a bowl game, but everyone involved worked very hard to make that happen." In the end, I have zero sympathy for Arizona State because the fact remains that neither they nor any other Div. I-A school should have even one I-AA opponent on its football schedule and if the Sun Devils had followed that rule originally, this all could have been avoided………
- Very creative, scumbag thieves in Britain. Using technology to your advantage is one thing, but using Google Earth to target lead roofs on Church of England buildings to sell on the lucrative metals market is quite another. This isn’t just an isolated set of thefts either; nearly 8,000 churches have made insurance claims for lead theft worth about 23 million pounds during the past three years. The Church's estate commissioner Tony Baldry, explained the situation and said that in many cases, churches have replaced their roofs only to be targeted again, in one case 14 times. While it would be fair to argue that this particular church was just asking for it after the third or fourth time if they didn’t install some sort of added security measures or hire a full-time guard to watch the roof, the fact remains that you literally must have no soul if you’re scanning Google Earth images looking for the next house of God you can steal from in order to turn a quick profit on the metals market. Right now, many of the Church of England's 16,000 churches are "listed," which provides planning protection for buildings of historical value, and date back hundreds of years. However, it also makes them more visible targets for thieves and when a church roof is pillaged, it impacts more than simply the building. The effect on the morale of parishioners and communities is devastating," Baldry said in comments released Thursday. “Congregations felt police were reluctant to act, despite growing evidence showing that organized gangs were involved, mirroring the price of lead on the world metal markets. The higher the price of lead, the more churches are stripped of it.” All of this takes place against the backdrop of the worldwide economic crisis affecting nearly every person on the planet, but that still doesn’t excuse the actions of those stealing the lead from church roofs. However, the fact that lead is currently selling for nearly $2,400 per metric ton on the market - up from below $900 at the end of 2008 - makes it clear why criminals are going to any length necessary to keep their business going. "Lead theft is one of the most serious threats at present to the Church of England's churches," Baldry said. "This is a crime that has to be taken seriously. Night after night, lead is being stolen from church roofs, and thieves now use Google Earth to identify targets, including church roofs." Home Office minister, James Brokenshire insisted the government and police take the theft of metals seriously. "We have seen the significant disruption that metal theft causes to critical national infrastructure throughout the United Kingdom," he said at a debate on the issue. "That includes power and transport networks, with the stealing of live copper cable, which has
resulted in death and serious injury for people involved." When your actions back up your words, I think those involved will feel much better………
- Either people aren’t as passionate about raising money for AIDS research as we all thought or they just aren’t that attached to tweets from their favorite celebrities about boring, inane occurrences in their everyday lives as was believed. The idea for “stars” (hard to use the word without air quotes if Ryan Seacrest is involved) to stage their "digital deaths" until $1 million was raised for Alicia Keys' BuyLife.org charity effort. The campaign began in coordination with Wednesday's World AIDS Day and included the social-media-loving stars staging a so-called Digital Life Sacrifice by signing off their Facebook, Twitter and other online communication sites. They were photographed in creepy pictures of them inside coffins to symbolize their digital deaths and vowed to stay social-media silent until $1 million was donated. Usher, Lady Gaga, Justin Timberlake, Jennifer Hudson and Ryan Seacrest all joined in on the fund-raising effort and I think the general consensus was that the goal would be met within a few days or maybe a week tops. Looking at a ticker on the BuyLife.org site, as of Friday at noon, a mere $183,493 had been raised in the effort to buy back the stars' online presence. True to their word, those involved in the campaign have remained silent on all social media sites and the top tweet on Seacrest's site read, "Ryan Seacrest would love to chat but he's dead. Buy back his life & fight HIV/AIDS." Umm……no thanks. It’s not that I don’t want to see AIDS eliminated from the world along with other terrible diseases, it’s simply that I don’t give a damn about tweets from a man-blouse-wearing, teeth-bleaching, karaoke-show-hosting tool like Seacrest or a reality TV loser like Kardashian. I find it utterly hilarious that the organizers of the campaign may now have to formulate a plan about what to do if the $1 million goal is not reached. I also love the idea of these “stars,” many of whom rely heavily in Twitter and Facebook to connect with fans and build their brand, fidgeting and stressing over losing that publicity for weeks on end after thinking it would only be a few days. Perhaps if the campaign had been that all of these people would go digitally dead once the $1 million was raised, we would have been well past eight figures by now. Heck, I’d give every dime I will give to charity for the next 50 years to the cause if it will buy me a guarantee that Seacrest will take down his Facebook page, Twitter account and just go away forever………
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