- Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti is a f*cking bada** and
everyone knows it. He doesn’t take no bullsh*t from anyone, motherf*ck*r, so don’t
start nothing. Garcetti proved he’s no G-rated elected official when he took
the stage during a rally celebrating the hometown Kings' Stanley Cup
championship and proceeded to go all HBO late night by letting fly with an F-bomb.
Clad in a hockey jersey rather than a suit and tie, the mayor played to the
assembled media and voters in the very building where the Los Angeles Kings had
defeated the New York Rangers to win the NHL title for the second time in three
years Friday evening. "There are two rules in politics," Garcetti proclaimed.
"They say never ever be pictured with a drink in your hand. And never ever
swear. "But this is a big f*cking day. Way to go, guys." The mayor
got exactly what he wanted, as he quickly became a trending topic on Twitter
and YouTube videos posted by fans at the celebration went viral within minutes.
Anyone stunned that Garcetti used a profanity intentionally in a very public
setting clearly doesn’t understand the power of a well-placed F-bomb, nor did
they hear the reaction from the crowd when it happened. Saying f*ck may not
have the edge it once possessed because the word has become rather ubiquitous
in pop culture, but using it in front of a crowd of screaming hockey fans is a
smart play. Those worrying that the older generation or the church-going folks
of SoCal will hear this and turn on their mayor sound a bit alarmist at the
moment and as Boston Red Sox star David Ortiz proved with his well-placed
F-bomb in the aftermath of last year’s Boston Marathon bombing, a quality f*ck
can be f*cking awesome. Even Vice President Joe Biden was recently caught in
front of a bank of TV microphones whispering to President Barack Obama,
"This is a big f---ing deal," as Obama was about to sign the
Affordable Health Care Act. Yes, it’s a new f*cking era, y’all………
- Wait….what? Did something major change to rewrite
television history in the past four years? Back in 2010, NBC’s short-lived
sci-fi drama “Heroes” came to a muted end after four seasons of declining
ratings that turned a red-hot start into a disappointing finish that was seen
by only a fraction of the fans who enjoyed its first season. Yet somehow, some
way, the four years that have passed since its ignominious ending have dulled the
memories of how unwatchable the show was at the end and now, NBC is readying a
short-term revival of the show called “Heroes: Reborn.” The miniseries will begin filming
this year and is slated to air next year. Even though production has yet to
begin, former cast members are already lining up to be a part of it and in the
process, proving that they really haven't locked onto anything of note since
their time on “Heroes” ended. The show’s two biggest stars in its massive
ensemble cast were Milo Ventimiglia
and Zachary Quinto, both of whom are also rumored to be returning. Count Jack
Coleman in as well, reprising his role as Noah Bennett, a.k.a. H.R.G.
(horn-rimmed glasses), the father masquerading as paper salesman when he’s
really an agent for a secret organization that hunts down people with
superpowers. The show itself was built around a group of unrelated individuals
from around the globe who discover they have superpowers and their lives are
intertwined by all manner of curious happenings and coincidences. NBC president
announced the show’s return and initially said that while the revival will be
about a new set of characters, "we won't rule out the possibility of some
of the show's original cast members popping back in.” Sounds like that tune has
already changed……….
- Technology, despite its stated purposes, rarely makes life less
stressful. A soon-to-launch wearable device, called Spire, is billed as actually
accomplishing that aim. It is a health and fitness monitor that determines when
the person wearing it is stressed out and gives them directions to stop
whatever they’re doing and take a few deep breaths. Spire will retail for $149
and the iOS-compatible device is designed to be worn close to the body, either
attached to a bra strap or on a waistband, where it can measure a user’s
breathing patterns and other physical activities, such as how far they have
walked and how fast they are moving. The developers behind Spire plan to use it
in tandem with a mobile app to help people reduce their stress, or more
specifically, lower their cortisol levels and increase endorphins. "There
are essentially five ways to do that," said Spire co-creator Neema
Moraveji, director of Stanford University's Calming Technology Lab. "You
can smile, laugh, eat, move, or take a breath." Moraveji and his partner,
entrepreneur Jonathan Palley, are hanging a lot of hope on what looks like a
tiny stone attached to a metal clip. Once it is calibrated and attached, Spire
watches the wearer’s breathing and activities using seven streams of raw sensor
data, which includes a three-axis accelerometer. It goes all Big Brother by
sensing activity, body position and breathing, so it knows when you're taking
short shallow breaths or holding your breath and even when a person is standing
or sitting down. Based on its stalkerish ways, it may advocate change in body
position, simple breathing exercises or a calming walk around the neighborhood.
In other words, it’s like your spouse or overbearing mother, except not nearly
as expensive. One of its biggest selling points is that the device charges wirelessly
in a charging dish and its battery is supposed to last seven days, which is
comparable with some of the top fitness trackers on the market. For those who can't
wait until it starts shipping in September, the company is offering a few pre-order
units early at a discount………
- As the trial
brought in federal court against the NCAA by former UCLA basketball star Ed
O'Bannon and 19 others who are seeking remuneration for the cash the governing
body made off their likenesses in all manner of merchandise drags on, most
sports fans have stopped paying attention – if they ever were. Some may regain
interest when a verdict is reached, especially if that verdict is in favor of
O’Bannon and his crew, but even then the response will be minimal. Maybe
University of San Francisco
economist Daniel Rascher can change all of that with an idea so crazy that it
might actually make sense to anyone with a shred of objectivity. While testifying
under cross-examination in a landmark antitrust case, Rascher postulated that football
players at big schools could make several hundred thousand dollars in their
college careers if they were paid a portion of the broadcast rights to games
similar to what NFL players now get. The news is even better for college
basketball players, who could earn as much as $1 million over four years if schools split their broadcast
revenues equally with athletes. With new television contracts in the offing,
Rascher speculated that those lofty numbers could rise even higher. While
admitting that the figures are at the high end of his model because they come
close to the 55 percent of broadcast revenue the NFL shares with its players,
there is no question that the idea of paying players with money that would
normally go to wealthy old dudes in suits who contribute nothing to the actual
product on the field is a solid one. The case in which Rascher testified hinges
on the plaintiffs’ request for an injunction that would allow players to band
together and sell the rights to their names, images and likenesses (NILs), with
the money likely being put in a trust fund and given to them after they leave
college. Even if they win, the appeals and eventual process of determing the
amount of money to be set aside would take years. The more immediate takeaway
could be Rascher's contention that colleges would not be hurt if they used some
of the money now spent on facilities and coach's salaries to pay athletes. "We've
seen the NCAA change its rules over decades on how much they should be paying
athletes," he said. "The fanaticism and the demand continue to rise
during that time period." Well said, Dan-imal………….
- So….it seems like the recent presidential election in
Afghanistan went well. If a vote happens and participants file a mere 2,500
complaints of ballot box stuffing and other election irregularities, it has to
be considered a resounding success…right? Maybe not, but just because fraud
allegations by the two candidates and their supporters threaten to provoke a
new political crisis in the troubled nation is no reason to overreact. This
particular round of campaigning has been uglier and nastier than of the first
round of voting on April 5, when Afghans had eight candidates to choose from.
The field has now been narrowed to two possible election cheaters vying to
replace Hamid Karzai and lead the country as most U.S. and allied forces
withdraw by the end of 2014 and international aid diminishes. Both presidential
hopefuls -- Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai – claim they were
cheated, but both have also vowed to sign a security pact with the U.S. that
will allow up to 14,000 American and NATO troops to remain in the country next
year to advise the Afghan security forces. The good news for everyone claiming
the voting process was thoroughly corrupt to the core is that the first initial
results are not due until July 2, with the final results set to drop on July
22. The loudest whining so far came from Abdullah Abdullah's team, which is
challenging a reported 1 million vote lead by Ahmadzai. Those numbers could be
suspect in an election where a candidate was nearly 14 points behind his top
rival, but maybe the voters who supported the six candidates who did not
advance all threw their support behind Ahmadzai. "In which part of the
country did the situation change so dramatically that the people changed their
minds and then came and cast their votes?" Abdullah asked. Nadir Mohsini,
spokesman for the Electoral Complaint Commission, confirmed that his panel had
received 2,558 complaints about the election by a midnight deadline to file
them, but perhaps that number could creep higher or go away entirely if the
price was right………..
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