- How committed are you to your job? Depending on your salary and how much you hate what you do, the answer could range from extremely committed to don’t give a damn and don’t care who knows it. Polish military prosecutor Col. Mikolaj Przybyl would seem to fall more into the former category and anyone doubting that fact need look only at Przybl was willing to shoot himself in the head rather than allow the work of his office to be insulted and reforms to its practices instituted. The colonel read a statement to reporters about the proposed reforms and allegations or corruption within his office in the western city of Poznan, then asked everyone to leave the room. He proceeded to shoot himself in the head, a wound he somehow survived. Footage recorded by TVN24 station, whose camera was left rolling after reporters left, shows the colonel walking across his office and out of sight before a gunshot can be heard. For a member of the military, Przybyl must be a terrible shot because he is currently in stable condition, conscious, and his life is not in danger, according to hospital director Leslaw Lenartowicz. His status as deputy head of the prosecutor's office in Poznan and the head of a local department investigating organized crime in the army may not be quite so stable, although Chief Military Prosecutor Krzysztof Parulski said that Przybyl was one of the "best prosecutors" and a "man of honor." President Bronislaw Komorowski and Justice Minister Jaroslaw Gowin vowed to closely monitor an investigation into the shooting and some national lawmakers are calling for a special parliament probe into the case. Many lawmakers believe Przybyl's statement suggests a massive corruption problem in the army. That seems awfully cynical just because Przybyl read a statement to reporters in which he objected to plans by Prosecutor General Andrzej Seremet to put military prosecutors under civilian authority. The allegations of corruption stem from the questionable purchases of equipment for Poland's troops on missions in Afghanistan and, earlier, in Iraq. Whatever the outcome, just don’t say Col. Mikolaj Przybyl is not extremely passionate about the process…………
- Morgan State basketball coach Todd Bozeman appears to have anger issues. That much was obvious back in 2007, during his first season as Morgan State's coach. He was charged with misdemeanor assault stemming from an incident at a Virginia restaurant in which his order was allegedly messed up. Restaurant manager Carlos Holland claimed Bozeman had gone "belligerent, screaming that he didn't want ham sandwiches” when his server delivered his meal. The charges were ultimately dismissed after Bozeman reached an undisclosed financial settlement with the manager of the establishment and apologized publicly to Mulligan's Sports Grille in court. He is also no stranger to breaking rules and laws, as his first head coaching job at the University of California-Berkeley ended when he was accused of recruiting violations that included paying a recruit’s family $30,000. That earned him an eight-year ban from coaching, after which he resurfaced at Morgan State. He survived the 2007 incident and remains on the bench for the Bears, but has now been suspended indefinitely with pay after a scrape he has described as "accidental contact" with senior guard Larry Bastfield during a win Saturday at South Carolina State, Athletic director Floyd Kerr informed Bozeman of the decision Sunday night and told the coach he was to "separate" himself from the team and have no further contact with any of his players or coaches until further notice. It certainly didn’t aid Bozeman’s case that South Carolina State president George E. Cooper witnessed the incident and thought the coach had punched the player in the face. Cooper summoned campus police during the game to question Bastfield during the game about bringing possible charges against Bozeman. In Bozeman’s defense, both he and Bastfield maintained Sunday night the situation was blown out of proportion. Bastfield went so far as to say he didn’t give much thought to the incident until he was questioned by two campus police officers during the game. The facts of the case don’t suggest any charges or additional discipline are forthcoming for Bozeman, but he does seem to be every bit as angry as ever…………
- The sad state of the American judicial system notwithstanding, this is still unique. Hennepin County Judge Lloyd Zimmerman is refusing to do his job at three suburban courthouses. He won't hear cases until his concerns about courtroom security are addressed. “It’s an issue that’s been on everybody’s plate for a long time,” admitted Chief Judge James Swenson, who presides over courts that have weapon screening, and three suburban locations that don’t. Swenson’s comments come just weeks after a shooting incident in a St. Louis County courthouse and the chief judge says most judges favor stronger security measures. “They’re concerned with participants in court,” he said, “and they’re concerned with themselves. It’s not just about judges.” Zimmerman was not placated when an extra deputy was added at the courthouse in Brookdale last year and is on the record as saying he won’t work at the Brookdale, Southdale or Ridgedale courthouses until they get screening. He sent out a scathing email to colleagues that read, “I’m tired of driving to Brookdale, the courtroom everyone who knows agrees is the most likely place for a shooting or violence to occur, and not know whether I will be carried out in a body bag that day.” Wow….a nice body bag blast, well done. Swenson and other Hennepin County officials met with county representatives on Tuesday, but implementing security screenings with the requisite equipment will take time. The plan formulated at the meeting calls for a 16-week study to assess the needs of the three facilities and there is no guarantee what consultants will recommend. They could suggest metal detectors at all courthouses, or even moving all domestic cases, which are the most volatile, to the Government Center downtown. Long-term recommendations won't come until some time this summer and Judge Zimmerman will have to stick to his threat to boycott justice in suburbia until then…………
- Put the liquor down, Brits. Those are tough words to hear, but your own government is telling you it’s time to lay off the sauce just a little bit during the week. The British Science and Technology Committee, made up of several members of Parliament, warned Brits not to drink alcohol twice a week. The committee believes the country's current guidelines for "sensible drinking" could lead to excessive drinking. Why? Just because the British government’s position since 1987 has been that British men could drink up to 21 units of alcohol a week and women could drink up to 14 because scientific evidence suggested drinking alcohol could cut the risk for heart disease? Even in the 1990s, when the government revised its recommendation to quantify daily alcohol use, officials still recommended that men should not regularly drink more than three to four units a day and women no more than two to three units a day. Oddly enough, members of the STC are skeptical about those recommendations because the evidence of alcohol’s benefits was found for only men over 40 and post-menopausal women. They objected to the fact that the guidelines "appeared to endorse daily drinking." Right, and the problem is? So what if the average Brit doesn’t know how much alcohol is in a unit? For the record, a can of beer or a standard glass of wine contains two units in the British system. Asking Brits to forego alcohol two days a week is a big ask, even if the committee suggested doing so would promote better health and "enforce the message that drinking every day should be avoided, and would helpfully quantify what 'regular' drinking means to the public." They probably don’t need that help and they’re also going to ignore that suggestion, but go for it anyhow…………
- Kanye West’s ego is healthy enough that he could take on any project, no matter how absurd, and believe it was the best project ever. He’s dabbling in fashion even though his looks are typically pretty absurd and feature styles that only Kanye West can really get away with. He’s launched a new company called DONDA, recorded an album with Jay-Z and been his usual egomaniacal self. Soon, he may have a new gig as creative director of "The Jetsons" live-action movie. Yes, the futuristic cartoon about a family living in the space age with a robot maid named Rosie and a dog named Astro is going to be made into a live-action movie and for some odd reason, West’s name surfaced as a possible choice for creative director. Producer Denise Di Novi confirmed a meeting with West and said that although no deal was reached, both sides remain extremely interested. "Kanye's always been a 'Jetsons' fan, I think because he's so into design and he loves the design aspects," Di Novi said. "So we had a fun brainstorming conversation." Oh, and the reason West’s name surfaced for the project is because he "reached out and said he's a huge Jetsons fan," Di Novi explained. West then tweeted about the meeting and his desire to be a part of the film. "He was interested in creatively brainstorming what we were doing with the movie and what ideas he might have," Di Novi said. West reportedly told Di Novi he would consider the project further and “see if he got inspired visually.” With or without him, the revival of the show that first aired on television the '60s and returned two decades later before jumping to the big screen with the 1990 animated film "The Jetsons" will go forward, just less arrogantly if he’s not on board…………
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