- Ending the year with a stunning loss to the erratic Tim Tebow was clearly not what the Pittsburgh Steelers had in mind. An overtime loss with a half-dozen of their best players either injured or unavailable was tough to digest for the defending AFC champions and someone had to take the fall. Offensive coordinator Bruce Arians became that scapegoat with a departure that was initially characterized as a retirement only to later be painted as the team forcing him out because Steelers president Art Rooney II wants the team to regain its blue-collar identity on offense by running the ball more, something Arians has moved away from in the past few seasons. Arians himself admitted Sunday he didn’t decide to retire of his own volition and only made the choice after the team declined to give him a contract offer. He explained that while he had considered retiring before, not having a contract offer essentially made the choice for him. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger lashed out at the decision, which makes sense given that he was the primary beneficiary of Arians’ pass-first offensive scheme. Arians was fairly cryptic when asked what the team’s reasoning for not giving him a new contract was. "I can't answer that question," Arians said. "Only the people there can. That's the business. I know the job we did as a staff. I don't have any regrets." He confirmed that Roethlisberger was unhappy about the decision. The veteran quarterback was largely responsible for a push to o keep Arians after the 2009 season when it looked like the coordinator's job was in jeopardy. Despite his “retirement,” Arians hasn't ruled out a return to coaching and said he has been contacted by several teams since being let go by the Steelers………
- If Ron Paul had a snowball’s chance in hell of winning the Republican presidential nomination, this sort of mini-scandal might hurt him. As is, authorities at Nashville International Airport blocking Paul’s son, U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, at a security checkpoint after he refused a patdown is nothing more than one disagreeable legislator trying to make a stand against the establishment. Sen. Paul admitted to going through a scanner at the airport and setting off an alarm. Rather than be subjected to a patdown, he asked to go through the body scan again. According to the senator, he also showed Transportation Security Administration officers his knee and under his socks. Oddly enough, agents weren’t buying his offer and demanded he either submit to a patdown or turn around and leave. "When an irregularity is found during the TSA screening process, it must be resolved prior to allowing a passenger to proceed to the secure area of the airport," TSA spokesman Greg Soule said. "Passengers who refuse to complete the screening process cannot be granted access to the secure area in order to ensure the safety of others traveling." What was Paul’s objection to a patdown? He said that he didn't think it was "appropriate" for him to have a pat-down and felt he should have been able to go through the scanner again. "Is it too much to ask to have a little dignity when you travel? And shouldn't an adult be able to get back in line and go through the scanner?" he asked. "I don't think that's too much to ask." Dignity when traveling? Has he seen his fellow travelers? Who travels with dignity? In addition to patdowns, people board planes looking like they just woke up and rolled out of bed, they carry dinky travel pillows and fall asleep snoring in front of total strangers and try to subsist on tiny bags of pretzels and apple juice on cross-country flights. Nothing about travel is dignified. As for Paul’s saga, he was allegedly ordered out of the screening area and told he may be subject to a "full body search" after he began talking on his phone. He later took another Washington-bound flight and passed through the scanner uneventfully. The drama should give him another soapbox to stand on as he crusades against what he characterizes as an overly obtrusive federal government threatening to strip citizens of various rights and civil liberties, so the day was not a total loss………….
- What’s your prediction for life? Pain. That “Rocky III” reference is specifically for the ladies out there, who according to a new study by the Institute of Medicine are affected by chronic pain more than men. According to a 2011 Institute of Medicine report, pain affects more than 116 million Americans annually and of those Americans, about 50 million are women. While that means more men than women are seeking treatment for chronic pain, the Journal of Pain reports that women seeking medical care for a wide range of medical problems in the hospital or clinics at Stanford University School of Medicine reported higher pain intensity, on average, compared with men with these same diagnoses. In the study, women reported more intense pain than men in 14 of 47 disease categories and men did not report more intense pain in any category. Women suffering from musculoskeletal disorders such as back, neck and joint pain, sinusitis and even high blood pressure reported more intense pain than men with the same conditions. Even so, the study’s authors were quick to point out that their findings did not necessarily mean that pain is actually experienced more intensely by women. The results could simply be due to the fact that women communicate better with their health care providers about pain. In other words, the stereotype about men trying to be tough and gut it out because that’s what men are expected to do could be true. With those conducting the study not exactly trumpeting its impact, it’s not difficult to believe that most medical experts are skeptical about its results. Many say the authors didn't account for the possibility that if many women had additional diseases that caused pain, it could actually be the other diseases, and not their gender, that is to blame for them having more pain than men. "It's a flawed study," said Dr. Lloyd Saberski, medical director of the Advanced Diagnostic Pain Treatment Centers at Yale University. "Just how accurate is the data collected? Probably not too accurate." Listen to the wicked smaht Ivy League dude from Yale, yo. Other experts have pointed to the culture of men being expected to not complain about pain and “deal with it” as another key element omitted from the study. Either way, looks like it’s time for more time and money to be spent on über-important research……….
- Jay-Z may or may not still use the word b*tch in his songs, but he most definitely will not be using the uncooked meat from the refrigerator at his 40/40 nightclub in Manhattan for anything other than trash-can filler. The club, which just reopened after being given a $10 million makeover, was shut down by health inspectors after a Jan. 19 visit. During their visit, inspectors found 69 violations of the city's health codes in the kitchen, including its walk-in fridge heated to 60°, which is classified as a dangerous temperature to store the uncooked meat that was contained within it. A worker was also spotted mixing salsa with his bare hands, which looks, sounds and is extremely disgusting and unsanitary. The temporary closure came just one day after the club reopened following a 10-month shutdown for renovations. By tallying a whopping 69 violations of the city’s health code, the club earned the worst possible rating for kitchen hygiene and its managers must now attend a hearing to explain themselves next month. The past few weeks have certainly been eventful for the club’s famous owner, who celebrated the birth of his first child with wife Beyonce, recorded a song that featured the crying sounds of his new daughter, had to debunk a poem he supposedly wrote in which “he” promised never to use the word b*tch in his lyrics again and now has his club being crushed by city health inspectors. Still, being Jay-Z probably doesn’t suck…………
- Riot Watch! Riot Watch! Tibet/China are the places and that fact should surprise no one. Chinese security forces were the ones using excessive force and a protest seeking Tibetan freedom was the cause. At least five Tibetans were shot and one killed when police opened fire during a peaceful protest in Seda, known to Tibetans as Serthar, on Tuesday. The shooting came one day after the death of a Tibetan man during unrest on Monday, when Chinese security forces fired teargas at Tibetan protestors in the Sichuan province. Monday’s conflict came after authorities deployed extra officers and closed roads to Meruma, in Aba county, after Tibetans demonstrated and refused to celebrate the lunar New Year to protest against repressive Chinese policies. How dangerous or violent the protests were depends upon the person telling the story. Activist groups like Free Tibet painted a scene of non-violent demonstrations by Tibetans seeking more freedom. China's official news agency has claimed that a knife-wielding, rock-throwing mob of dozens attacked a police station and provoked the confrontation. The supposedly angry mob also destroyed two police vehicles and two fire engines stormed into nearby shops and a bank, according to the government. Beijing also accused foreign media outlets of distorting the story to manipulate public perception of the government’s actions. "Overseas forces of 'Tibet independence' have always fabricated rumors and distorted the truth to discredit the Chinese government with issues involving Tibet," foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei said. State news agency Xinhua, citing local authorities, said the unrest was fueled by rumors that three monks planned to self-immolate. Such incidents have become more common in the past year, as Tibetan areas have seen 16 self-immolations, mostly fatal, in the past 12 months. Monks in the Meruma area reported automatic weapons fire and teas gas from police and Free Tibet painted an ugly picture of the scene and the underlying issues tied to it. "Protests are spreading and growing, and the Chinese state response is becoming increasingly disproportionate. By failing to address legitimate Tibetan grievances and responding to protests with brutal force, the Chinese state is exacerbating the situation," said Free Tibet's director, Stephanie Brigden. Keep rioting, Tibet…………
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