- When you go trolling for Christmas gifts at the local
Goodwill store this year, make sure you don’t take any grief from your friends
and family members when they get that used sweater or secondhand chess set. The
item you so lovingly pick off the bargain rack for them could well be a
valuable, yet forgotten piece of history worth more than 700 times what you
paid for it. Allow the tale of Milwaukee, Wis. resident Karen Mallet to serve
as proof that great things can happen when a person goes thrifting. Mallet
picked up what she believed to be a random painting of a reindeer for $12.34 at a Goodwill store in Milwaukee. The
painting, “Red Nose,” turned out to be much more than Mallett expected. She
admitted that she didn't even like "Red Nose" when she first spotted
it during one of her frequent Goodwill shopping trips in May and that she was
much more excited about a set of knives she bought at the store the day she saw
the art. "The big find that day was this great set of steel knives, in a
block, for $18.99,” Mallett said. Still, something about the painting caught
her eye and what some might describe as abstract image of a bizarre creature
with spiral swirls for eyes became a bonus purchase for Mallett. She soon
noticed the signature of American artist Alexander Calder and as someone who
works as a media relations specialist, Mallett was smart enough to know that
she had found something that was potentially valuable. "I thought, I don't
know if it's real or not but it's $12.99. I've wasted more on worse things,"
she said. With a 65-cent discount thanks to her Goodwill loyalty card, she was
able to bring the price down to $12.34 and when she took the lithograph to be
appraised, it was valued at $9,000. Maybe Goodwill shopping trips are a
profitable endeavor after all…………
- Hungary rose up Sunday and the result was an impressive
display of 10,000 angry Hungarians protesting against the far-right opposition Jobbik party
after one of its lawmakers triggered outrage and memories of Nazism by calling
for lists of Jews to be drawn up. Jobbik MP Marton Gyongyosi tossed an
unprovoked pipe bomb into the middle of a crowd by suggesting after a debate on
fighting in the Gaza Strip it would be "timely" to tally up people of
Jewish ancestry in Hungary who posed a national security risk. The suggestion
is racist to the core and it spurred 10,000-plus to take to the streets Sunday outside
Budapest's parliament to demand Gyongyosi’s immediate resignation. In an oddly
touching moment, the rally brought together leaders from governing and
opposition parties in an unprecedented show of unity in the country's deeply
divided political scene. "We cannot allow things which belong to the
darkest pages of history books to repeat themselves," proclaimed Antal
Rogan, head of the ruling Fidesz party's parliamentary group. For now,
Gyongyosi remains one of Jobbik's 44 lawmakers in the 386-seat parliament, but
not for long if the angry masses have their way. Even though he later
apologized and said his remarks had been misunderstood, his excuses fell on
deaf ears. It probably would have been better to clarify that he was referring
only to Hungarians with Israeli passports in the government and parliament
before a massive rally solely to demand your ouster, but Gyongyosi insisted would
not resign. That a member of Jobbik would say something so insensitive should
surprise no one after it became the third-biggest party in parliament in 2010
after a campaign vilifying the Roma minority. Opposition parties from across
the political spectrum wasted little time pouncing on Gyongyosi’s comments as a
reason to vilify Jobbik. "Fascism is a virus and Jobbik is the one
spreading this virus," said Attila Mesterhazy, leader of the biggest
opposition party, the Socialists. For the record, between 500,000 to 600,000 Hungarian Jews
were killed in the Holocaust and some 100,000 Jews now live in Hungary, so comments
like Gyongyosi’s are definitely a reason to fight………
- In one of the least surprising pieces of sports news this
year, former LSU
defensive back Tyrann Mathieu has announced that he is entering the next NFL
draft. Mathieu, who was suspended for the entire 2012 season for a third
positive test for marijuana, has been bumping around the LSU campus and going
through treatment for his addiction over the past few months. The rehab does
not seem to have worked, as he was recently picked up for misdemeanor
possession of the hippie lettuce, but Mathieu will not allow that to keep him
from chasing his NFL dream. In a written statement, Mathieu said, "it is
time for me to move forward." After he was suspended, he initially shopped
around for a smaller school where he could transfer and play right away. He
then went to rehab in Texas and returned to LSU, where he seemed to be working
toward returning to the team next season. After his most recent legal issues,
apparently the focus shifted from playing another season of college football to
hoping an NFL team will see his freaky athleticism and take a chance on a
player who recorded six forced fumbles, most by a Division I defensive back in
2011, was third in the nation in punt return yards and returned two punts for
touchdowns. Of course, he’s still an undersized (5-foot-9 at best) athlete who
isn't a great cover cornerback and whose best value is probably as a kick
returner and nickel back who plays only in third-down passing situations. Teams
will take a gamble on a potential playmaker, but probably not in the first two
or three rounds. On his way out the door, Mathieu thanked his parents and coach
Les Miles in his statement, as well as his former LSU teammates. "I am
sorry that I was not able to complete my journey at LSU, but I will always
support LSU in any way I can. To my teammates, you are my brothers. You have
kept me going. I will do my best to make you all proud of me," he said. So
far, not so good………
- Twenty years into their run, rap icons Wu-Tang Clan are
finding ways to remain relevant. Wu-Tang member RZA is directing feature films
with A-list movie stars and branching out beyond the world of music and fellow
Wu-Tanger Ghostface
Killah is….umm…well, he’s currently beefing with Marvel Comics for illegally
sampling the "Iron Man" theme song. Even though Ghostface Killah has
sought to brand himself as hip-hop's own Tony Stark all the way back in 1996
with his debut album, “Ironman,” Marvel has sued the rapper for using sound
bites from the "Iron Man" cartoon on his 2000 album “Supreme
Clientele.” Oddly enough, Ghostface Killah isn’t cool with the lawsuit and
dared to call it "super whack." During a television appearance, the
rapper first promoted Wu-Tang Clan’s new “Wu-Block” album, then answered a
question about the ongoing lawsuit. "That's
super wack [because] that goes back to Supreme Clientele — RZA put the skits on there and now years later, I don't know what's
going on with Marvel, but they just
tryna come at the kid, asking for 20 million," he explained. However, he insisted that his lawyer is
dealing with the case and in the meantime, he’s doing his best not to worry
about it. "I got my lawyer in there, tryna say, 'Yo chill out,' tryna
squash it all," he added. "I
think it's an old man. I think they woke this dude up or something. He ain't Stan Lee or anything but
I guess he's somebody because he ain't stopping. It's like, [why] you coming to
me? Go to SONY man, don't come at me.” Clearly, the details and specifications
of the law are not something Ghostface Killah concerns himself with and
considering the net worth of all involved parties, it feels safe to say that no
one will walk away from this case hurting for cash to buy their next meal and
in the process, both “Iron Man” and Ghostface Killah get extra publicity out of
it………
- Chlorine: Water purifier or culprit in people developing
an increasing number of food allergies? A new study suggests that the answer
could be yes to both, as Dr. Elina
Jerschow of the Albert Einstein University of Medicine and her colleagues have
pointed to chlorine in tap water as a cause for the rising number of people
developing food allergies. Chlorine is a chemical used to treat drinking water
and is also present in commonly-available pesticides and household items and according
to this study, it may also weaken food tolerance in some individuals. In their
analysis, researchers found adults with high levels of dichlorophenol – a
chemical by-product of chlorine – in their urine were as much as 80 percent more
likely to have a food allergy. Food allergies are on the rise in recent years,
but some scientists have pointed to those figures as partially due to a sort of
hypochondria among the masses in their rush to believe that there has to be
something they’re allergic to or cannot tolerate. Previous studies have placed
the number of children with a food allergy at around 4 percent, with common
food culprits being cow’s milk,
wheat, soya, eggs, celery, kiwi fruit and other fruit and vegetables. The
severity of allergies can range from an itchy rash to a sudden life-threatening
reaction known as anaphylaxis. Water supplies are sometimes chlorinated to kill
germs, especially in the United States and United Kingdom. Household products
such as lipsticks and face washes may also contain chlroine, functioning as an
anti-bacteria. In the study, 2,211 American adults were found to have dichlorophenol
– a broken-down form of chlorine - in their urine and of that number, 411 were
found to have a food allergy, while 1,016 had an environmental allergy. “Excessive
use of dichlorophenols may contribute to the increasing incidence of food
allergies in Westernised societies. This
chemical is commonly found in pesticides and consumer insect and weed control
products, as well as tap water,” Jerschow concluded. “Previous studies have
shown that both food allergies and environmental pollution are increasing in
the United States. Our study suggests these two trends might be linked, and
that increased use of pesticides and other chemicals is associated with a
higher prevalence of food allergies.” Yet another valid reason not to take a
refreshing sip from your swimming pool on a hot summer day………
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