Saturday, June 25, 2016

Putin v. China/Mongolia, Georgia football's criminal ways and The Rock will star in every movie ever


- There will come a year, probably sooner than later, when Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson will appear in literally every movie that is released. Johnson is filming movies at a breakneck pace, anchoring action movies and comedies alike, and he’s now the leading choice to play the title role in a reboot of classic horror movie 'The Wolfman.” You might recall that the film was previously rebooted in 2010 with Benicio Del Toro in the title role, but you should also recall that movie sucking exponentially and making everyone wish it had never happened. That Hollywood is remaking a remake of a movie within seven years is as tired and unimaginative as can be, but Universal Pictures is looking to get Johnson on board for its own take on the movie as part of its rebooted Monster series. Screenwriter Aaron Guzikowski will pen the script and right now, Johnson’s presence as the headliner for the film is still being negotiated, but he seems intent on putting out double-digit movies per year, so the odds of him saying no would appear low. Right now, a revival of “The Mummy,” another franchise of which Johnson has been a big part, is filming a sequel due out next year. That reboot Tom Cruise and Russell Crowe and is directed by Alex Kurtzman. It will be the first movie in the Monster series and will also feature cast members Annabelle Wallis, Jake Johnson and Sofia Boutella. If Johnson does sign on to play The Wolfman, he won't have much work to do to top Del Toro’s version of the film, which currently holds a rating of just 34 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. Look for this to be the latest step in Johnson’s quest for (movie) world domination……..


- Another week, another restaurant patron angered and horrified to learn that their server labeled them with a derogatory team on their bill. A Rhode Island man is the latest victim of a lazy, ignorant waiter who decided that the easiest and most memorable way to identify a patron was picking out something such as their race, ethnicity or an aspect of their appearance rather than learning their name like a normal human being. Dillon Arnold went to All Stars Bar & Grill in Warwick, R.I. with his friends and had a good night right up to the point he received his bill. "I was signing my slip," Arnold told. "I didn't really pay attention to it yet, and then I just happened to read it and I saw it in the corner and I was like, 'Wow,' and my heart just dropped." His hear dropped because the receipt read "fatty" in the place intended for the customer's name. Arnold went where all 21st century, tech-savvy people go with their beefs, social media. He shared a photo of the receipt on Facebook and because body shaming is a huge issue right now, outrage spread quickly. "[The server] legit ID'ed me as 'fatty,' then he wouldn't admit it. They lost mine and my friends business," Arnold wrote in his post. The blowback reached Tony Ambrosio, the owner of the restaurant, and he reached out to Arnold in a comment on the Facebook post. "We sincerely apologize for your negative experience last night. It was very unprofessional to say the least. We take full accountability for what occurred and would like to make it up to you," Ambrosio posted. When Ambrosio found out who the offending server was, he fired him immediately even though the idiot in question turned out to be his son. The son is no longer allowed on the restaurant's property and both men have reached out to Arnold, who has to this point refused to speak to them. If only Ambrosio’s son had put in enough effort to learn Arnold’s first name……..


- There are some rap sheets that even University of Georgia football cannot ignore. Highly ranked recruit  Chad Clay proved as much this week after racking up his second arrest in four months and earning a dismissal from the Georgia football program in the process. Clay, ranked among the top 300 recruits nationally by many recruiting services, was arrested for theft by taking and released on $1,500 bond earlier this week. "Unfortunately, Chad will no longer be a part of our football program," Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart said in a statement. "It is very disappointing, and we wish him the best in his efforts to continue his education." Smart took over the program this offseason after former Georgia coach Mark Richt, who presided over a team that seemed to lead the Southeastern Conference in player arrests on an annual basis, was fired. Richt continually whiffed on booting arrested players from his roster and created a culture in which law breaking seemed to be part of the job description. Smart came in knowing that it would be a super idea to clean things up a bit and when Clay and fellow Georgia freshman Julian Rochester were arrested in April on felony charges of possessing a weapon in a school zone and second-degree criminal damage to property, the alarm bells went off. Although the weapon was only a BB gun, it was discovered in the two players’ dorm room by a university housing official. Adding a theft charge to the mix proved to be the tipping point for Clay, a cornerback from Peachtree Ridge High School in Duluth, Georgia, who had enrolled at Georgia early and can now choose to either focus on his education or talk another school into giving him a chance after the legal system is done with him………


- Ah, the life of a Russian despot. Russian dictator/President Vladimir Putin got a boost this week with the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union, removing one of the EU’s most critical voices against Putin’s evil empire, but he also had to throw his weight around in Asia be issuing menacing remarks about Mongolia's plans to build a hydroelectric plant on a river flowing into a lake in Siberia. Putin, speaking during a meeting with leaders of China and Mongolia in Uzbekistan's capital, Tashkent, claimed that the prospective China-funded dam on the Selenga River would threaten Lake Baikal, the world's deepest lake. Russia v. Mongolia wouldn’t be much of a battle, but Russia v. China is a heavyweight bout with some real marquee power to it. Putin did offer his own (self-serving) solution by suggesting that Russian power plants could increase electricity supply to Mongolia instead to meet its energy needs. Putin has an unusual ally in environmental groups who have stepped up to oppose the proposed hydropower plant project. Putin met with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Mongolian President Elbegdorj Tsakhia during the two-day summit of a security alliance dominated by Russia and China and after hearing how terrible their hydroelectric plant idea was, Xi and Tsakhia  also chatted with the Russian dictator about a transport corridor and other infrastructure projects………

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