- The coach of a professional sports team has to do
something extremely offensive to get himself fired just 12 weeks after his
hiring. For a case study in how to make it happen, take a close look at former
U.S. men’s national team and now-former Swansea City coach Bob Bradley. Swansea
broke off the American bench boss just 85 days after being brought on board
because the Swans accumulated just eight points during Bradley's 11 games in
charge. How does a coach, even in the high-pressure world of European
professional soccer, wear out his welcome in less than three months? According
to Bradley, he knew about the negativity surrounding Swansea, brought on in part
by the sale of the club to Steve Kaplan and Jason Levien earlier this year, but
he believes owners Kaplan and Levien, as well as chairman Huw Jenkins, lost
their nerve and fired him in a panic move. A four-point haul from the club's
first seven games and poor performance of late has slotted Swansea in 19th
place, firmly in the relegation zone and ahead of last-placed Hull City only on
goal differential. Bradley had just returned home from training when Jenkins
summoned him to the team's academy for a meeting and like many employees
summoned suddenly into a murky meeting by their boss, he was well aware the end
was near. "As soon as I got the message I knew what was happening,"
Bradley said. "When Huw and I met,
he just talked about the fact that [I] came into a tough situation, that there
was at this point, such a negative atmosphere around the club and as a result
felt they needed to make a change." The veteran coach believed the team
could have bolstered its roster during the upcoming January transfer window and
rallied back up the standings, but now that task will fall to someone else…….
- Times are hard in Florida and even elementary school-age
children trying to make a quick buck selling lemonade in their front yard need
to have their head on a freaking swivel while on the clock. That means you,
Lucas White, and your 9-year-old friend who were selling lemonade at a stand in
their neighborhood in Hillsborough County when a pair of teenage suspects
robbed them of their small stash of cash. The suspects, 19-year-old Deante
Small and a 16-year-old cohort, made their brazen cash grab at an apartment
complex on Livingston Avenue, but this was no ordinary lemonade stand robbery.
According to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, a verbal argument ensued
when the suspects weren't happy with how much drink they were given and at that
point, one of the proprietors of the stand did what 9 year olds are wont to do
in times of disagreement, throwing a temper tantrum by hurling a cup of
lemonade on the juvenile suspect. Rather than act like the person in the
incident much closer to adulthood, the juvenile pushed the child to the ground
and grabbed an iPod from the stand before fleeing. Small grabbed a cup that
contained about $13, then followed suit with a reprehensible drink-and-dash.
White and his friend told the nearest responsible adult, who called police.
Officers were soon able to locate the suspects, but they didn’t find the money
or iPod. Still, Small was charged with robbery by sudden snatching, and the juvenile
was charged with battery and petit theft. In the end, the incident proved to be
a business boon for the two children, who saw sales skyrocket as people in the
community heard about their plight and reached out to buy some watered-down,
warm lemonade from two kids on the side of the road………
- Anyone who’s ever seen British indie rockers The Horrors
live knows that eccentric frontman Faris Badwan is a man who often has fashion
on his mind. The shaggy-haired rocker is renowned for always rocking skinny jeans
and is on the record as saying that he always sticks to wearing black as he
looks ”very ill” in other colors. “I like jeans that stop at the ankles and I
love drainpipes. My favorite jeans are Levi’s,” Badwan said. “I stick to
wearing black because brown makes me look very ill, and I already have a
tendency to look ill anyway.” However, as much attention as he clearly pays to
his own jeans and sartorial choices, apparently he doesn’t feel the same way
about other parts of the wardrobe. In the world according to Badwan, he can’t
understand why people wear shoes to make a fashion statement. In fact, the
opinionated frontman says he’s always suspicious of “experimental footwear,”
preferring to stick to more tried-and-true means of protecting his feet from
the elements. “I’m very suspicious if anyone who is experimental with footwear.
I prefer to stick to smart, classic and British styles,” he said. Rock stars
are known for being eccentric, but this is an odd take on the idea. Badwan has
had himself a busy year despite The Horrors not releasing any new music, as he released
a new album with his side project Cat’s Eyes. The album was recorded at Real
World Studios in 2015 and was produced and mixed by Steve Osborne and was Cat’s
Eyes first studio album since their self-titled debut LP in 2011. It makes you wonder
what kind of footwear everyone was rocking in the studio……..
- If you’re the president of Burundi, you don’t have a ton
of clout. When you do have a chance to exert your über-limited influence, you
clearly have to take it and thus, Burundi's president has threatened to pull
out almost 5,500 troops contributing to African Union forces in Somalia over
unpaid allowances. President Pierre Nkurunziza threw down the gauntlet, vowing
that if there is no payment by January, Burundi will recall the more than 5,400
troops from the 22,000-strong regional force protecting Somalia's weak
government from al-Shabab extremist attacks. Pulling security forces from a
tenuous situation where every last peacekeeper is valuable is a shady move, but
Nkurunziza claimed that Burundi's troops have not been paid allowances for 11
months amid a standoff between Burundi's government and the European Union over
the EU accusing Burundian authorities of human rights abuses. Yes, but who can
be expected to respect human rights in their country while also sending troops
across borders to help keep the peace in other countries? The problem for
Burundi is that the EU is the largest donor to the African Union force in
Somalia and Nkurunziza and his dubious regime have faced mounting international
criticism over the deadly political turmoil that followed his pursuit of a
third term last year, which many in the country called unconstitutional.
Hundreds have been killed in the ensuing dispute and the situation remains
combustible at best. The EU antagonizing Nkurunziza probably won't help calm
things down, but at this point, battle lines have been drawn………
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