- A western New York postal carrier is headed to prison for a
long time for turning her job into an opportunity to channel her inner El
Chapo. According to police, Briana Fugate admitted to carrying boxes of drugs
shipped to specific addresses and passing them to other members of a
drug-trafficking ring for money. Hers might seem like a small link in a much
bigger felonious chain, but she still faces a maximum penalty of 25 years in
prison and a $250,000 fine. The Cheektowaga resident was arrested in October
after police say they found 1,500 pieces of undelivered mail in her car, which
could have just been a sign of a really lazy postal worker, but instead put her
in the company of fellow postal carrier Dennis Bernhard in pleading guilty to
charges in the drug ring. Bernhard has pleaded guilty to bribery and as of last
week, Fugate also pleaded guilty in federal court in Buffalo to bribery,
marijuana distribution and delay of mail. It’s a nice change of pace from the
days when postal employees developed a reputation for “going postal” with
various, violent workplace attacks, but sadly it’s still illegal and while
Buffalo is a frigid, snow-covered tundra at this time of year and could use
some good news, this isn't it. Then again, everyone knows if you want to ship
your drugs properly, you don’t use government employees and should always go
with UPS or FedEx………
- Apple
TV is looking to break new ground and Dr. Dre is the man with whom it wants to
do so. Dre is reportedly set to be both the
executive producer and star in a new Apple TV show called 'Vital Signs,’ a
project that would represent the corporation's scripted TV debut. As
with many offerings on various streaming services, this one will have a short
run. It’s a six-episode series that will reportedly
be semi-autobiographical and focus on a different emotion (and its impact on
Dre) in each episode. The many emotions of Dre could be fun and in true
streaming service fashion, all six episodes are expected to be released at once
in order to provide maximum binge-watchability. Sam Rockwell and Mo McCrae are
also reportedly part of the cast, but Dre is the obvious name value here and he
has a legit history in terms of movies, having produced 'Straight Outta
Compton' alongside Ice Cube last year, as well as appearing in 'Training Day', 'The Wash' and 'Set It Off.’ He’s
been getting back to work of late and released his first album of the 21st
century last year, 'Compton,’ which he has also said will be his last record.
He routinely partners with Apple through his Beats 1 radio show 'The Pharmacy,’
so this would be an extension of that relationship. If it happens, Apple's
first scripted TV series and it would be a doozy, featuring a dark vibe and
(reportedly) at least one orgy scene. Then again, Dre has never really been
about good, clean entertainment fun………
- Sweden’s
greatest conquering force is expanding its empire in Africa, but the quest to
take IKEA to literally every corner of the globe hasn’t come without a fight. That
fight is centered in the northwest corner of the continent, where Moroccan authorities have given the furniture giant approval
to open its first store in the North African kingdom after months of
uncertainty. Morocco’s first IKEA store was due to open near Casablanca in
September, but instead was hit with a last-minute notice saying the company
lacked the proper certificate of conformity. That was actually code for Morocco
being pissed over what it said were Sweden's plans to recognize the
independence of Morocco-controlled Western Sahara, leading the Moroccan
government to announce a potential boycott of Swedish products. Although these
woes for IKEA, founded by a Swede though now Dutch-based, were seen as linked
to the diplomatic tensions, the issue lingered. It wasn’t until last month that
the Swedish government decided it would not recognize the territory's
independence and in one of the most amazing coincidences imaginable, just weeks
after that announcement, IKEA received the necessary certificate to open. A
company spokesperson announced the good news and now that the bureaucratic red
tape has been cleared up, the company plans to announce an opening date for the
store soon. That means Moroccans will soon have the chance to buy unnecessarily
complicated, assemble-yourself furniture that lacks both personality and
originality………
- Now-former
New York Mets pitcher Jenrry Mejia is three kinds of stupid and for that
reason, he made baseball history Friday, becoming the first player to be
permanently suspended by Major League Baseball after testing positive again for
a performance-enhancing substance. You might remember Mejia as the
flame-throwing closer who was originally handed an 80-game suspension in April
for a positive test for stanozolol, an anabolic steroid. He served that ban and
made his return in June, but a mere three weeks and seven appearances into his comeback
with the Mets, he was suspended 162 games for testing positive for both
stanozolol and boldenone. That the second positive test actually occurred while
Mejia was still serving the first suspension made it all the more galling for
the Mets and anyone else who supported this cheater, but it seemed clear to
anyone paying attention that Mejia had no excuse for not getting the message
this time. Yet here we are, with pitchers and catchers set to report to spring
training sites in just a few days, and MLB has announced that Mejia tested
positive for boldenone and that the right-hander also is permanently suspended
from playing both MLB minor league baseball. Sure, he can apply to commissioner
Rob Manfred for reinstatement in one year, but even then he would have to sit
out a minimum of two years before being able to pitch again in the majors. Mejia
has vowed to fight the ban, but the reality is that his time pitching with
Licey in the Dominican Republic during winter ball may be the extent of his
baseball for now because MLB suspensions are honored by affiliated leagues in
other countries, such as in Japan, South Korea and Mexico. He could choose to
play in an independent league in the United States, but at this point, he seems
to have bigger issues to worry about……..
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