Monday, April 04, 2016

Ladies v. Indian temples, NFL free agents sing for jobs and renewing "Always Sunny in Philadelphia"


- It’s crunch time for NFL free agents. The league’s new business year has begun, teams are well into the process of signing the players they want and anyone still unsigned at this point is in a precarious position because it now appears that they are either a) damaged goods, b) an undesirable leftover or c) unrealistic in their contract demands. Free-agent linebacker Emmanuel Acho, who spent the last three seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles, is in that very place and knowing that he needs to do something to set himself apart from the pack, he’s turning to the pre-NBA draft playbook of former Vanderbilt basketball standout Shan Foster for ideas. Foster once sat down at his Casio keyboard in his off-campus apartment in Nashville and crooned a song in which he expressed how he “just can't wait … to play in the NBA,” something he did for a very brief time after being chosen in the second round of the draft. Acho, taking inspiration from such success, rolled tape on his very own musical offering and while he didn’t craft an original tune like Foster, he did sing a parody of John Legend's "All of Me" to pitch himself to NFL teams. He posted the video on YouTube and although he hasn’t secured a new gig yet, a guy being willing to humiliate himself and show he has a sense of humor has to be worth a little something to teams with a need at linebacker. If not, maybe Acho can be one of the new generation of YouTube, 15-minutes-of-fame video stars who use the site as an actual way of making a living………..


- Riding in the dryer: It’s not just for weird kids anymore. It’s also for that meth head-looking, wanted fugitive of a guy who decided that the best way to evade police looking for him on an outstanding warrant was to tuck himself inside a dryer and wait for the fuzz to leave. Brookside (Ala.) police were seeking Michael Christopher Davis on an outstanding warrant and arrived at a property on Fields Avenue. When they arrived, investigators found several people inside and outside the residence and - prepare to be shocked - several of the people attempted to run away and were chased by officers and a police dog. The incident, part of the police department’s on-going Operation Crack Down - not to be confused with Operation Put the Crack Down or the much funnier Operation Crack Up - led to multiple arrests, but police initially could not find Davis. Officers went about their business began an inventory of items found laying in plain sight inside the residence. As they went about their work, they heard what sounded like snoring coming from the laundry area. Inside, there was M.C. Davis. "I was trying to hide and y'all just stayed too long,” Davis told police. "I fell asleep." Police described Davis as "being folded up like he was in a shirt pocket,” with the possible exception of the shirt being much smarter than this tool. “Our officers have worked hard and put in a lot of over time this month in a concentrated effort to put a dent in the drug trade in our community. We have had some really scary times, as well as some really funny ones,” the department wrote on its Facebook page. Yes, because there are always morons to arrest and they continue to do idiotic things………..


- So people really seem to like “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.” The popular, long-running FX sitcom entered the weekend having already locked down an order for its 12th season, but before the new week had even begun, the show secured the unheard-of two-season renewal, booking seasons 13 and 14 and putting it at the top of the list of longest-running live-action comedy shows ever. The irreverent show centers on the friends running Paddy’s Pub in South Philadelphia and stars Charlie Day, Kaitlin Olson, Glenn Howerton, Rob McElhenney and Danny DeVito and its bawdy humor and quirky setting have made it a massive fan favorite. “If anyone doubts the power of a camcorder and a dream, just look at ‘It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia,’ which was a DIY backyard pilot when Rob, Charlie and Glenn brought it to FX and will go down in TV history as one of the most loved and enduring comedies,” co-president of Original Programming for FX Networks and FX Productions Nick Grad said of the multi-season renewal. “Few shows make it this far or have such devoted fans, and we owe it all to the creative vision and great humor of the creators and cast who keep Sunny fresh and inventive every season.” What’s cool about the show is that outside of DeVito, none of its primary cast members are widely known names in the TV world, but the cast meshes and works so well together than they have become beloved among the show’s devoted followers, enough to stick around for nearly a decade and a half………


- So, about that Mumbai court ruling that women have a fundamental right to enter and pray inside temples … not so much. Seizing on the apparent opening created by the ruling and/or sensing a major opportunity to grab publicity, 25 female activists decided that the day after the court’s decision was a perfect time to enter a temple in western India traditionally open only to men. These rainmakers entered the Shani Shingnapur temple compound for a little weekend spiritual boost, but were stopped from offering prayers in the temple's inner sanctum. It was quite the dramatic scene as police intervened to “escort” the women to a safe place after angry villagers barricaded the temple and said they would attack anyone who tried to forcibly enter the main shrine. Nice of y’all to embrace progress and respect the authority of your legal system, socially backwards rural villagers. The temple was selected as the site for this forced confrontation because of its status as a focal point of female activists who say they're fighting a centuries-old tradition of barring women from worshipping at some Hindu temples. Judging by how this weekend went down, it’s fair to say that Maharashtra state is not going to be vaulting to the top of the list of India’s most progressive places any time soon. However, keeping 25 female activists out of the inner sanctum for a day is one thing; keeping out all of the ladies all of the time for as long as the temple exists is going to be a much more daunting task, one all the angry villagers with their torches and pitchforks may not be able to accomplish……..

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