- Why
does no one understand the idea of a strike anymore? In order to wield maximum
clout, a work stoppage must be long enough to affect significant damage, it must
of an amount of time that those striking do not disclose to the powers that be
in order to have proper leverage and it must always have a specter of violence
or anger lurking just overhead. The strike going on today by France's six rail
unions fits none of those criteria and that’s why it’s going nowhere fast. The
unions are engaged in a one-day strike disrupting local and national train
traffic, but not international lines. In other words, its scope is limited and
the authorities know that all they need to do is grind through one day of
discomfort - one for which they could plan and prepare - and then it’s back to
business. State railway company SNCF warned travelers that only half of the
local trains in the Paris region and half of the TGV high-speed trains would
run on Tuesday, but the Paris Metro subway system is not affected by the strike
and two of the major routes running in and out of France, the Eurostar train line
to London and the Thalys trains to Belgium, haven't been affected by the
strike. Maybe the unions want to spin this as a warning shot, a light blow to
hint at what could be in store if the rail line doesn’t capitulate to their
demands and alter or drop its plan to change working hours and rules about days
off. Honestly though, it feels like a weak-ass ploy by a group that doesn’t know
how to properly conduct a quality strike……….
- Naz
and Baz Luhrmann: a natural pairing in the entertainment world, no? It made so
much sense that the outspoken rapper and accomplished director are teaming up
for Luhrmann's forthcoming Netflix show “The Get Down,” about the birth of
hip-hop in New York. It actually does make a ton of sense for both men and
Luhrmann revealed the collaboration during a panel at the Tribeca Film Festival
in New York City. He’s no stranger to music and is perhaps best-known for his
production of “Moulin Rouge.” Luhrmann
described Nas "one of the most iconic voices of the 1990s” and sounds
genuinely fired up to work with him. “One of the great collaborations is that
I’ve been working really closely in creating these rhymes, and he’s a producer
on the film, with one of the most iconic voices of the 1990s and that’s Nas,”
Luhrmann said. “And so Nas has been this other huge creative force in the
production. And it’s been playing really, really successfully. One of the
things which I don’t think anyone knows, because it’s not in the trailers — and
we’ve been doing this for about a year now — is that one of the characters goes
on and we discover that he’s actually a successful rap star in the 1990s, and
he narrates it through rhyme, through rap.” The project itself should be very interesting if
done well, as “Get Down” will feature Will Smith’s son Jaden and its story will
detail the very beginnings of hip-hop at the
height of the disco craze in the 1970s. Anything involving the existence of the
disco era has the strong potential for disaster, but Luhrmann has the chops to
handle this one……..
- And
people wonder why the United States government struggles so much to cut costs
and stop deepening its national debt. While it may not solve the entire $20
trillion debt, it clearly isn't helping anyone’s bottom line when a government
agency or branch of the military is spending a lot of money and manpower
rescuing a moron whose attempt to propel himself into the Guinness Book of
World Records inspires him to make a second ill-fated attempt to
"run" from Florida to Bermuda in an inflatable bubble. The ass hat in
question is ultra-marathoner Reza Baluchi, who blew right through the Coast
Guard’s order not to depart "because your vessels and the conditions under
which you are attempting to complete your voyage to Bermuda is unsafe,"
heading out to sea for a second time only to be towed him back to land for the
second time. Baluchi had intended to be at sea for five months, allegedly to
“raise money for children in need and to inspire those that have lost hope for
a better future," but mostly to gain attention for himself. He wrote on
his website that he had secured a support boat to lead him into international
waters and that he intended to depart from Pompano Beach, Florida, which he
clearly did, only to end up voluntarily calling off his voyage. The Coast Guard
lit him up on Twitter, writing that he had flouted its safety orders and
wasting its time and resources. The agency tweeted that Baluchi's voyage had
ended "after he violated a USCG order not to embark, the same thing that
happened in 2014, when the Coast Guard rescued him after receiving a report
about a disoriented man in a bubble off the coast of Miami who was asking for
directions to Bermuda. Given that his 2014 rescue cost $144,000, maybe it’s
time for the government to bill him for his stupidity for each successive
attempt……..
- It’s
time for Sam Bradford to remember that he’s Sam Bradford. In other words, the
guy who has never started an entire season for any NFL team, has 78 career
touchdown passes against 52 interceptions and couldn’t stay healthy if football
were played in Jell-O and its players were wrapped in bubble wrap. Bradford was
acceptably decent last year in his first season for the Philadelphia Eagles,
throwing 19 touchdowns and 14 picks, but didn’t do enough to convince anyone
that he’s the long-term answer at quarterback. With a new head coach in charge
and the franchise in need of a reboot, the front office acquired the No. 2
overall pick from the Cleveland Browns last Thursday in a blockbuster trade,
using draft picks acquired in two previous trades, and it’s a virtual certainty
that the Eagles will draft a quarterback with the second pick. Knowing that his
successor is about to be drafted this weekend, Bradford is acting like he’s
much better and more important than he is, telling the team that he wants to be traded and will not be showing up
for their offseason program any longer. Sources claim that he’s angry and wants
to show that he’s the best choice for the Eagles, but not showing up for work
is kind of a curious way to do that. The team is trying to act like it still
gives a damn about Sam, with executive vice president of football operations
Howie Roseman saying Monday that he wanted "to reiterate our support for
Sam Bradford and go back to our statements last week -- that Sam is our
starting quarterback.” Roseman tried to further spin his comments and cushion
to blow to Bradford’s ego by saying that the “workouts are voluntary” and that
the team “looks forward to seeing Sam again in the near future." Oh,
they’ll see him. They’ll see him pouting on the sidelines the next time the
team holds mandatory activities and they’ll see him on the field for short
stints this season before he either gets injured or is simply so mediocre that
either Carson Wentz or Jared Goff comes off the sideline to replace him as a
last-ditch effort to salvage yet another forgettable season for a team that has
never won a Super Bowl and doesn’t seem likely to break that drought any time
soon…….
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