- Riot
Watch! Riot Watch! Another day, another instance or rage by a disrespected
populace against its unjust government and this one comes from a place that has
grown to be known for its violent uprisings in recent months. Yes, it’s time
for a return trip to Chișinău, the capital of
Moldova. It’s where some 7,000 people gathered and rose up over the weekend, demanding
the resignation of the government and early elections. Sure, those are some
pretty generic demands for a riot, but they’re still lofty aims and underscore
the fact that little has been resolved since September, when demonstrators
began demanding a proper investigation into more than $1 billion that went
missing from three banks prior to parliamentary elections in November 2014. The
entire country has been rocked by protests ever since and the bold dissidents
who marched through the city Sunday claim the current government is under the
influence of politically connected business people who dictate policy. It’s not
so different than the claims being made by a certain current Democratic
presidential candidate in the United States, just on a smaller scale. However,
some cowards, er, political leaders and parties declined to take part in
Sunday's protest because Orthodox Christians celebrate Palm Sunday, a religious
holiday in Moldova. Whatever y’all need to tell yourselves, “leaders.” Fact is,
in the past year your country has had six prime ministers and it’s no more
stable now than it was a year ago……..
- There
is good news and there is partially scary news for fans of three of HBO’s
biggest shows. “Game of Thrones,” “Silicon Valley” and “Veep” have all been
renewed for another season, but for one member of that trio, the next season
could be the final one. “Game
of Thrones” will get a seventh season, HBO confirmed,
but its impending two-season renewal
could come with a caveat. There is speculation that show runners David Benioff
and DB Weiss are considering splitting the finale into two shorter final
seasons with seven episodes for the seventh season and six a truncated eighth
campaign that would be the series’ ending. As for “Silicon Valley,” a comedy about hapless nerds struggling to make
it in the ruthless tech industry, its next season will be its third. “Veep” is
heading into its fifth season, which will be its first without creator Armando
Iannucci, who found maintaining family life in London tricky to balance with an
American production schedule. The sixth season of “Thrones” just got underway
and the speculation, hype and fervor around the show remains intense despite rumblings
of its approaching end. Part of its possible winding down is that fact that,
for the first time, the show is ahead of the books on which it is based. Still,
having new seasons of three respected, highly rated shows is great news for
HBO, which continues to build its brand of strong original content with no
commercials that allow people to say whatever the f*ck they want because there’s
no bullsh*t censorship to worry about like there is on network television or
basic cable……..
- Any
story that includes a police detective uttering the words, “It’s my first time
ever recovering a monkey from a prostitute,” has to be considered a positive
for the world. Sure, a cynic could argue that there is a downside to the tale
of a married Oregon pet shop worker paying a prostitute with cash from a Girl
Scout donation jar and tipping said hooker with a small exotic primate, but
that person would be a moron. They would be failing to appreciate the beauty of
the scumbag that is Nathan Allen McClain, who is charged with soliciting a
prostitute after a police investigation
stemming from the Zany Zoo Pet Store reporting the theft of $7,000 in Girl
Scouts donation money, a laptop and a Galago primate nicknamed “Gooey.” Detective
Rick Lowe helped steer the investigation and it was this law enforcement hero who
spoke the soon-to-be-famous words about recovering a monkey from a hooker. One
of the best parts of this is that the pet store from which McClain allegedly
stole is owned by the wife on whom he was cheating. Police recovered
surveillance video from a neighboring store showing McClain breaking into the
pet shop. Detectives recovered Gooey last month when they interviewed an
out-of-town prostitute who had the primate and she narced out McClain, telling
police he paid her with money taken from the pet store, including cash stolen
from a Girl Scouts donation jar. Gooey served as a gratuity for her sexual
favors and officers arrested McClain two days later when he was observed
exiting a porn shop allegedly under the influence of meth. Oh, and the porn
shop is next door to the Oregon State Police’s Albany office. All told, this
meth head, hooker-soliciting thief faces multiple charges, including
DUI-controlled substance. Still, he’s brought so much wonderment and amusement
to the world……….
- So,
about having NHL players in the next Winter Olympics…umm, tag that with a major
question mark. Word on the street is that the NHL, NHL Players Association and
International Ice Hockey Federation met last week, with the IIHF updating the
other two groups on the bad news that the International Olympic Committee is balking
at reimbursing some of the expenses that were paid for in the past for the
league and players. Ever since NHL participation commenced in 1998 at Nagano,
Japan, the IOC has been willing to pitch in and help cover expenses such as
insurance for players and travel costs, but these days everyone even
tangentially associated with the Games has been much more hesitant to shell out
money unless they absolutely have to. Of course, there’s always the chance that
this is merely another conniving plot by the ever-dodgy IOC early in the
negotiation process for NHL participation in the 2018 Winter Games and given
the organization’s shady history, that’s probably even likely. Many believe the
NHL might have interest in investing in a long-term plan for the sport in Asia
by committing to both the 2018 Games in South Korea and the 2022 Games in
Beijing, but that’s a bigger issue that will take time to hammer out. This game
of hockey chicken has a few more chapters, as the NHL and NHLPA could respond
to the IOC’s threats by pulling out and electing to focus on the World Cup of
Hockey, which returns next September. Of course, everyone could simply choose
to focus in on the exciting, dramatic tale that’s unfolding in the ongoing NHL
playoffs, but that would be far too easy to do……….
No comments:
Post a Comment