- This may seem like a conflict of interest…and it probably
is, but let’s overlook that for now. Instead, let’s dive in to the total mess
than is Poland's Constitutional Tribunal ruling that parts of a new law
governing its own operation are unconstitutional. Deciding whether or not the
rules by which you can do business are legal or not seems like it’s
bass-ackwards, but this ruling is merely the latest plot twist in a convoluted
nine-month saga centered on Poland's highest legislative court. The players in
the drama include the right-wing ruling Law and Justice party, which got all of
this rolling after taking power last November, taking significant steps to
stack the court with its supporters and change the rules by which it can reach
rulings. The court isn't the only one with a beef with the legal changes, as the
European Union says the steps have weakened the rule of law. This isn't a
small, easily fixable issue either; the court said among rules that are
unconstitutional is a provision giving four judges on the 15-judge court the
power to block rulings for up to six months. It’s a sharp rebuke for the ruling
party, but given the calloused disregard and disdain they’ve shown for what’s
fair and just during their first few months in power, it’s not difficult to
imagine them responding to all of this with a giant middle finger to the world
and simply passing new laws trying to make their previous unconstitutional
actions totally constitutional and acceptable……….
- If Bobby Petrino really want the world to believe that his
Twitter account was hacked after material including a link to an adult website
and sexually suggestive hashtags were "liked" by his profile, he
should probably find someone other than himself to make the case. The
third-year Cardinals coach - a man who has lied, deceived, ducked
responsibility and generally shown no semblance of integrity or character at
every single stop in his coaching career - said in a statement that he
generally supervises his Twitter account but noted that there are
"multiple people, and possibly an unauthorized user" with access to
his account. Issuing statements rather than get in front of cameras himself is
a Petrino specialty, as he famously quit as the head coach of the Atlanta
Falcons mid-season by leaving a form letter in players’ lockers in the middle
of the night. Oh, and his integrity on pretty much any subject will forever be
in doubt given that he a) once lied straight to his athletic director’s face
about leaving Louisville while he was working on getting the Atlanta job and b)
was fired by Arkansas in April 2012 for misleading school officials about a
motorcycle accident that eventually revealed his mistress was a passenger. So
when someone using his Twitter account likes some Internet freakery and shows a
proclivity for the sort of sexually devious behavior to which he seems fairly
inclined given his history of infidelity….let’s just say it’s hard to give Bob
Petrino the benefit of the doubt. But keep selling your innocence, coach,
eventually maybe someone will buy it……….
- A weed battle is threatening to ruin lives in the Show Me
State. Alice Hezel has lived in her historic Maplewood home for more than 35
years and much like the down-and-out soul who has given up on life and bails on
the idea of personal hygiene, in recent years she has elected to allow the
plants in her garden and yard to grow unchecked. She especially enjoys growing
milkweed because it is a natural habitat for the monarch butterfly, which she
enjoys viewing. Her approach caught the attention of city leaders, who have
determined that the plants are weeds and says Hezel is in violation of an
ordinance which mandates that a land owner or occupant cannot allow or maintain on any such lot or tract of
land or any part thereof any growth of grass or weeds to a height of 12 inches
or over. Simply put, mow your damn yard. Hezel has received tickets for ordinance
violations since 2012, leading to her recently being designated a habitual
offender who must answer to a judge for her crimes. “They’re going to issue a
warrant for my arrest. I’ve lived here for 35 years. They don’t need to issue a
warrant, they know where I live,” Hezel whined. She intends to fight for her
butterfly garden and in the battle for public opinion, the city recently
responded with - of all things - a Facebook post insisting it does not arrest
residents for weed-based violations. “No resident of Maplewood is facing
possible jail time for a weeds violation,” the city wrote. “The attorney of a
Maplewood resident had previously called for a hearing after receiving a
citation for a weeds violation, not the City of Maplewood. The City of
Maplewood views this matter as a maintenance issue (lack of cultivation); the
type of plants that are being grown is not an issue.” If only this woman were
growing actual weed, then there would be something interesting to talk about in
this mess………
- The new Star Trek TV series is looking to push some
boundaries and boldly go where other network shows haven’t gone before, so it
only makes sense that the show’s lead character will be female. Show runner
Bryan Fuller previously revealed that at least one crew member will be
homosexual and now, he says “Star Trek: Discovery” will focus on a female
Lieutenant Commander, rather than the Discovery’s captain. The lady commander
will have a crew of which many members will be aliens and he believes that
focusing on a the lieutenant commander rather than the captain will give the
series “a different perspective” from previous Stark Trek series. “For our new
lead to understand something that is truly alien, she first has to understand
herself,” Fuller said. Having the ship’s crew try to be friendly towards alien
races is a bold step and it will be interesting to see how fans react to all of
this when the show hits the airwaves next year. Although that date is in the
future, the show will actually be set 10 years before the original TV series
featuring Captain James T. Kirk. Rumors of storylines and who will be cast in
specific roles have been running rampant for months and given the recent run of
Star Trek and Star Wars films, it’s clear that Hollywood believes the public’s
thirst for all things space-related is as high as it has ever been. Having a
diverse cast is one more way to increase that appeal and try to draw in as many
different types of fans as possible because alien or not, at the end of the
day, the only color that really matters in this business is green……..
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