- It’s not only opponents of shameless cash grab attempts from studios blindly green-lighting totally unnecessary sequels to successful movies franchises that have run their course who have a problem with Will Smith's new film "Men in Black III." The movie, still filming, is also drawing the ire of the locals in the New York City neighborhood where it's being filmed. "This has just taken over the neighborhood," said SoHo resident Cathey Dillian. She was referring not only to the movie itself, but to Smith’s double decker luxury trailer, which has been parked on Broome Street for weeks. The 22-wheeler top of the line trailer weighs 30 tons, measures 53 feet in width, can expand up and houses a lounge and a movie room. But even that wealth of space isn't enough to meet all of Smith’s needs and he also has a second trailer that houses his gym. Taking up that much space anywhere in New York City is bound to draw the ire of the locals and Dillian and her fellow SoHo residents are livid with Smith. "I think it's a threat to the neighborhood's air quality, peace of mind, I think it's over the top," Dillian said. Local business owners have lamented the trailers blocking off large chunks of the street and preventing them from getting trucks where they need to be and making deliveries. Unfortunately, the multi-million dollar motor home doesn't violate any regulations and Smith obtained all of the proper permits to park it. Still, enough complaints were directed to the film’s production company and the officials to convince all involved parties that moving the trailer was the best decision. The city ordered Smith to move the trailer immediately and find a new, less intrusive location - as if a truly convenient, non-intrusive location for the trailers. A few select SoHo residents have actually welcomed the film’s presence, inconveniences and all, because of the extra dollars pumped into their economy by the massive number of cast and crew members hanging out and spending their per diem. As for Smith, he refused comment on the trailer as it was moved to a private lot near its original location for the final three days of filming…………
- Never before has a friendly hug between two men received such attention and careful media dissection. When one of the huggers is the man destined to be the highest-profile free agent in baseball after the coming season, a hug is clearly not just a hug. St. Louis Cardinals star Albert Pujols shared a brief bear hug with Cubs general manager Jim Hendry before St. Louis' 6-4 win over Chicago at Wrigley Field on Tuesday and with the sports news cycle being the 24/7 beast it is, the hug was being broken down long before the game’s final out and a photo of the Hug Heard Round the World has caused wild speculation and a raft of conspiracy theories that the Cubs will be leading the pack in November, when the nine-time All-Star first baseman can officially become a free agent. Hendry himself expressed surprise that the exchange made national news, half-jokingly telling media members, "He hugged me first. He's a lot bigger and stronger than me." The GM added that he and Pujols were merely exchanging batting-cage plesantries rather than discussing financial terms of a potential contract offer. "I can't win," Hendry said. "I like Albert. We've always gotten along. He's a great, great player. I admire the heck out of him. He plays the game the right way every day." Baseball does have tampering rules preventing any team officials from conversing with players from other teams about contract-related matters and commissioner Bud Selig has levied fines and suspensions against owners and executives in the past for such offenses. MLB officials have also worked to discourage fraternization between members of rival organizations this spring, but sources say the league will not discipline Hendry or the Cubs for the hug. Hendry explained post-hug that he knows Pujols through two mutual friends: former Cardinals general manager Walt Jocketty and former pitcher Alan Benes, who threw for Hendry at Creighton and for the Cardinals. Pujols likewise downplayed the controversy over the hug, saying, "At the end, it's not what you do on the field. It's what kind of person you are off the field. That's the kind of relationship you want to build with somebody you respect. He's on the other side. I'm on our side. I just think it's kind of ridiculous. Three writers came and talked to me about that and the contract. Are you serious? C'mon." Serious? No? Ridiculous? Yes…………….
- What is the cost of a revolution? Check back once Egypt’s uprising is complete, but so far the cost of the revolt has (allegedly) been $3.5 billion, according to the country’s finance minister. That total supposedly takes into account all of the labor unrest and political protests that have seized Egypt and ultimately led to the ousting of President Hosni Mubarak. Demands for higher wages and ensuing strikes have been a big part of the revolution and have led to near-daily protests that continue in the Arab world’s most populous nation. Finance Minister Samir Radwan laid out the financial toll the saga has taken on his country and said the majority of the losses - $2.2 billion - were in the tourism sector. That part of the arguments is dubious and difficult to believe because who doesn’t want to vacation in a country embroiled in a bloody and bitter revolution wherein riots, gunfire and clashes with security forces are common? Getting shot can be a great bonding experience for a family. The country’s treasury has pledged several billion pounds in compensation and unemployment insurance to mitigate the losses sustained by Egyptians during the almost three-weeks of unrest before Mubarak was forced out of office. The offer of cash at some point, some time in the future has done little to placate Egyptians, who continue to complain that life has not come close to returning to normal. Radwan himself has been jet-setting to the U.S. and other countries begging for aid and attempting to lure investors back to the country. Exports remain down, manufacturing is operating at half its normal capacity and the government appears powerless to stop it. Asking the World Bank for $2.2 billion in “soft” loans and for between $3 billion and $4 billion in similar loans, “without conditions,” from the International Monetary Fund just seems desperate. Radwan insists the foundation of the Egyptian economy remains strong and that the government is working on a new law setting minimum and maximum wages linked to productivity, but how can anyone believe him at this point………….
- My, my. Google vs. Facebook is turning into quite a battle. Of course, we’re just now learning that it is in fact a battle with the two tech giants. The revelation came courtesy of Burson-Marsteller, a major public relations firm hired by Facebook to launch a negative campaign against Google's Social Circle. Burson-Marsteller has confirmed it was working on behalf of the social networking site and released a statement Tuesday saying it had away from the campaign because it went against the firm's policies and "should have been declined." The statement adds: "Now that Facebook has come forward, we can confirm that we undertook an assignment for that client. The client requested that its name be withheld on the grounds that it was merely asking to bring publicly available information to light and such information could then be independently and easily replicated by any media. Whatever the rationale, this was not at all standard operating procedure and is against our policies, and the assignment on those terms should have been declined. When talking to the media, we need to adhere to strict standards of transparency about clients, and this incident underscores the absolute importance of that principle." Sifting through all of the business speak, the bottom line is Facebook waging an expensive smear campaign against a competitor by hiring a public relations firm to plant negative stories. It is the sort of story one would expect to hear about in an ugly Senate or presidential campaign, not with two über-successful Web titans doing battle over who was going to win the battle to rip users’ personal data. Facebook’s smear campaign centered on the notion that Google Social Circle service violated user privacy and may have broken federal regulations. When those claims were examined more closely and determined to be false, questions were raised as to their origin. Before long, the trail led back to Facebook and Burson-Marsteller and Facebook finally gave up the charade and admitted to it reluctantly. Pulling such a stunt certainly makes Facebook look small, amateurish and insecure, something the most popular social networking site around probably did not intend to accomplish when it hatched this absurd plan…………
- Above all else, this explains why America remains the FAT-test nation on Earth and will continue to hold that title indefinitely. For as long as fabled California hamburger chain In-N-Out Burger has existed, it has remained a West Coast phenomenon. In-N-Out devotees rave about the food and the simplicity of the chain’s menu, which boasts few options yet is wildly popular because customers swear by the taste of the burgers themselves. Now, In-N-Out is moving out, as in moving out across the country and expanding past the West Coast. The chain opened two stores in Texas this week and judging from the immediate response, the two restaurants should be a smashing success. Rabid fans camped out (yes, you read that right) overnight at the Frisco In-N-Out location to be first in line when the doors opened as if they were one of the legion of dorks camping out at the theater for the release of a new Star Wars movie and lines stretching hundreds of feet away from the restaurant were a constant sight throughout the day. But the true gem is a one-plus-minute slice of video gold in which an unidentified woman talks openly of how emotional the experience of going to a burger joint and eating a Double Double is for her. She speaks openly of remembering her days living in California and how being at In-N-Out stirs up so many powerful emotions. About a minute into the clip, the woman is so overcome with emotion that she literally breaks down in tears and has a difficult time continuing her interview with a reporter from a local TV station. Seeing a person brought to tears by a slab of greasy, fatty beef on a bun tells you everything you need to know about why Americans are head and shoulders (and waistlines) above the rest of the world in girth. Save all of the explanations about what a strong psychological link food can have to certain times and memories in life because the bottom line is, unless the last meal you ever ate with a loved one before an untimely passing was at a particular eatery, then a fast-food meal should not bring you to tears………….
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