Thursday, March 10, 2016

MLB insomnia issues, $200,000 quarter thefts and Seth Rogen meets Where's Waldo?


- Maybe it’s time for the president of Sierra Leone to re-evaluate his views on effective government.  President Ernest Bai Koroma appears to hold some very narrow-minded, antiquated views on what makes for an effective government and how members of his cabinet should act while working and quite frankly, it’s hurting his country’s regime. Wielding all of the powers that come with being Sierra Leone's president , Koroma has fired two Cabinet ministers and worse still, he made the move official in a written statement. In the statement, the president announced that he has fired the country's Minister for Social Welfare, Gender and Children's Affairs, Alhaji Moijueh Kaikai, along with his Deputy Mustapha Bai Attila, after the two allegedly got into a fight in the office earlier this month. The two top officials reportedly publicly traded insults at the office and although the president didn’t give an official reason for the firings, it’s hard to imagine two high-ranking government officials getting axed just for saying some not-nice things about each other around a conference table, so maybe there was a punch or two thrown or a week, man-in-a-suit shove delivered during the showdown. Attila isn't taking this sitting down and publicly released a lengthy letter complaining about his time in the office and saying a letter of complaint was sent to government. Someone must have gotten to him after the letter dropped, because he later went on a local radio broadcast and apologized to the president and the nation………..


- Live action movies based on children’s books can be a dicey proposition for all involved. Unnecessary “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” remake starring Johnny Depp, anyone? So Seth Rogen had best tread lightly now that he has reportedly signed on to produce a live action film based on the classic children’s book “Where’s Waldo?” Rogen and fellow Grey Point Pictures producer Evan Goldberg are rumored to be helming the project, but as of now it’s only to produce and not to star in or direct. The duo previously worked together on “Superbad,” “Pineapple Express” and “The Interview,” none of which was an award-winning effort but one of which was a solid film. The “Waldo” project is being developed by MGM and has been in the works for a while, only to suffer multiple delays from other studios. The identity of the bespectacled dork in the red-and-white-striped shirt known as Waldo is unknown, but given that he’s essentially a fashion-ignorant nerd who seems to wander around the world and get lost in the scenery everywhere he ends up, can there really be a long line for this one? According to information from the studio, a recent draft of the script centered on a time-traveling twist wherein Waldo accidentally activates a time machine and must find a way to get back to the love of his life, Wilma. Various drafts of the script have been penned and scuttled over the years, with writers Marc Hyman, Adam Rifkin, Adam Cooper, Michael Berg and, most recently, Todd Berger all contributing. It’s not clear why this time will be different, but that’s what studios always tell themselves when they take over a project………


- Rather than arrest and prosecute Stephen Lancaster Dennis, maybe the judicial system should simply respect him for being willing to work the long con doing a piecemeal scam that took a long time to earn a relatively modest return. According to federal prosecutors, the Harpersville, Alabama, man used  his position with the Brink's armored transport service to steal $196,000 in quarters.  The thefts took place between January 1, 2014, and February 20, 2014, when Dennis was a money processing manager for the Brink's Birmingham branch. The money he stole belonged to the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta and after pleading guilty to a count of bank theft, he must  repay Brink's, which has already reimbursed the Federal Reserve. According to authorities, Dennis stole five tons of quarters using his access to the Federal Reserve coin inventory, which included so-called ballistic bags containing quarters in $50,000 increments. When officials did an audit in April 2014, they found that four of the bags had been filled mostly with beads and contained only $1,000 in quarters, which had been strategically situated so the coins were visible through a plastic window in the necks of the bags. It was a clever move after Dennis allegedly entered the Brink's facility on Feb. 16, 2014 on an off day, collected four empty skids and four empty ballistics bags, which he filled with beads, then "What Mr. Dennis may have thought was a nickel and dime theft was, in the end, the equivalent of a major bank heist," Roger Stanton, special agent in charge of the FBI's Birmingham Division, said of the case. Dennis faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, but he won't be able to steal his way into the money for this one……….


- One would think that earning an eight-figure salary and preparing for your upcoming season in a warm, arid climate would be an extremely non-stressful way to spend your spring. One would be wrong, at least as it pertains to Texas Rangers slugger Prince Fielder. The cherubic first baseman, who remains in the running for the title of fattest vegetarian in all of professional sports, has been sent back to Texas to take part in a sleep study after having trouble getting rest during spring training. According to the Rangers, Fielder returned to Texas on Wednesday and is expected to spend 48 hours in the study before returning to spring training in Arizona this weekend. The star first baseman and designated hitter has struggled to catch any real shut eye since arriving in Arizona for spring training and it may be affecting his play on the field, as he has played just four games and recorded one hit in nine at-bats with two strikeouts. Sleeping in an unfamiliar bed in a condo for a few weeks during spring training could be a difficult adjustment even if that condo is extremely nice and comfortable, so Fielder probably isn't the only guy who isn't getting as much rest as he should during the month of March. He’s just the only one who appears unable to deal with it using some Sominex and a playlist filled with the soothing sounds of the ocean. Next year, have your own mattress shipped out to Arizona and see if you can't avert a problem that way………

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