- David Stern’s ideas and plans don’t always incite the
most brilliant, eloquent responses from his league’s star players. The
egotistical NBA commissioner instituted a new dress code for players during
their time “on the job” for their team and San Antonio Spurs forward and
certain hall of famer Tim Duncan memorably labeled the new rules “retarded.”
Duncan has nothing on Los Angeles Lakers star and Team USA member Kobe Bryant,
who blasted the
23-and-under concept for filling the roster for USA Basketball at future
Olympics. Multiple injuries to players during Team USA training camp and other
issues have prompted owners and others around the NBA to suggest that maybe
it’s not a great idea to allow the league’s biggest stars to play for free and
possibly sustain injuries that could negatively impact the bottom line for
their NBA teams. Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was the first to float the
idea and Stern, unlike his usual response to anything Cuban says, has expressed
support for the idea. Bryant disagrees. Speaking at an appearance at the town
hall in Manchester not long after the American team landed in Britain for an
exhibition game, Bryant branded Stern's proposal to restrict the NBA's Olympic involvement
to players aged 23 and younger as….well, stupid. "It's a stupid idea," Bryant told
local reporters at the reception to welcome them to Manchester in advance of Thursday
night's exhibition game here against Team Great Britain. "It should be a
(player's) choice." When asked to expound on any discussions he and his
Team USA teammates have talked about the idea, Bryant was equally unkind to
Stern. "Our discussion is this: Basically, it's just a dumb idea and we
(discuss) it that way. ... We just discuss it like that (and) kind of voice our
opinions through you (media) guys." Bryant has previously said he believes
having a player from one’s franchise in the Olympics should be considered a
positive for an owner because that player will improve from the experience.
Well, unless that player is stupid, of course………
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears to have stepped in
it, with it being the uber-battle between the ultra-Orthodox and the secular
centrist and left parties in Israel. The Israeli political landscape is a
volatile place and for three years, Netanyahu has walked a tightrope between
two diametrically opposed political forces. With elections looming, he is
caught in the middle slowly on the politically charged issue of ending military
draft exemptions for ultra-Orthodox Jews. The centrist Kadima party and its
leader, Shaul Mofaz, bolted a 10-week-old "unity" coalition
yesterday, accusing the prime minister of moving too slowly on the draft issue.
Critics blasted both men for not sticking together and enacting more change,
but they have been destined to part ways since Netanyahu began dragging his
feet on draft reform. The two sides had formed a coalition in mid-May and
Netanyahu had touted it as a "historic" chance to change the draft
system,
which for
decades has allowed thousands of ultra-Orthodox young adults to avoid the mandatory two or
three-year military service and subsequent reserve duty by remaining in state-funded
religious seminaries. For weeks, teams from the Likud and Kadima parties debated
the terms of the reform but no deal was reached. Kadima's Mofaz continued to
take a hard line on the issue, supporting stiff fines for draft dodgers and a
maximum deferral of four years. Netanyahu opposed the penalties and backed a
longer deferral. Ultra-Orthodox Jews will surely like his push for a gradual
elimination of the deferment, but everyone else leans toward the notion that he
is catering to the religious minority at the expense of the mainstream. With an
election looming, seeming weak and indecisive is the last thing any politician
wants, especially the prime minister of Israel. The Supreme Court ruled the
exemption were unconstitutional earlier this year, which further pressurizes
the immediacy of the issue. Now that Kadima has left the coalition, Netanyahu
is in command of a 66-seat majority in the 120-member parliament, down from the
94 seats secured with the unity coalition. His focus should probably be more on
how to keep his government from imploding, though……….
- It may soon be DIY time for homeowners whose house catches
on fire in New London, Conn. At present, the tiny city has a fully staffed fire
department. As of Tuesday, they will have 25 less men and women to fight blazes
around town. Those 25 firefighters desperately tried to save their jobs, but at 5
p.m. on Tuesday, they will get their walking papers after the city council
failed to vote on a contract that would have averted layoffs. Amazingly enough,
the vote was tabled at a city council meeting Monday night and now, public
safety hangs in the balance. Residents don’t have to look too far back to see
how beneficial their fire department can be. A fire tore through a multi-family
home on Grand Street Saturday and all 15 tenants got out of the building
safely. Fire crews battled the blaze and put out the fire as quickly as
possible, but the building and a neighboring house were so damaged, both were
condemned. Still, resident Kevin Foley saluted the firefighters who came to his
and his family’s rescue. "They did a heck of a job," he said.
"They put the fire out very fast. It could have been a lot worse. Nobody
got hurt, that is the biggest thing." In a city that is just 36 square
miles in size, maybe laying off firefighters isn't the end of the world, right?
If a blaze breaks out, just make sure all of the residents know the security
code for the firehouse, maybe offer classes to teach them how to drive the fire
truck and work the hoses and there really shouldn’t be any problems……….
- Both Tom Hanks and Jerry Seinfeld could be lending their
talents to one of the major blockbusters hitting theaters this summer, but
they’re not. Instead, both men are going animated and online. Hanks created and
voiced “Electric City,” an animated sci-fi video series now available on Yahoo! Screen.
Meanwhile, Seinfeld's online series, “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee,”
made its debut Thursday on Crackle.com. Hanks’ project is a 90-minute,
20-episode series, airing over three nights and is being promoted as a
"first-of-its-kind, 360-degree online interaction of digital, social,
mobile and gaming media." "It's the first project in what we call
online digital blockbusters," says Erin McPherson, vice president and head
of video for Yahoo. "This is new for Yahoo and new for the Internet — this
is maiden territory." It may be new, but McPherson believes it will become
much more common. “TV and movies are not going away, but we believe
passionately that this is a key part of the future, which is filled with a lot
more choices and a lot more mechanisms to watch," she said. "As it becomes
more crowded, the unique, exclusive things (like Electric City) will
stand out." Seinfeld’s project is somewhat different, as the man who
created and starred in an uber-successful sitcom about nothing, features him
driving around in vintage cars with friends like Larry David, Ricky Gervais,
Alec Baldwin and Michael Richards on the way to getting coffee and getting laughs.
He tweeted up his new project last week, suggesting the project will take shape
as it goes. "Not sure. Shot a bunch but we'll see how everyone likes
it," he tweeted. His web series is hosted by Crackle.com, which is a free
video site owned by Sony Entertainment. So even though Hanks’ project is
fictional and animated and Seinfeld’s is real human beings, both might hail the
arrival of an new era in entertainment…………
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