- The John Lynch experiment is going well for the San
Francisco 49ers. How well? Well enough that the standout former
player-turned-general-manager-with-no-previous-executive-experience pulled off
some impressive draft day moves and has teams in other professional sports
following the Niners’ lead. The Atlanta Hawks may soon do the same, as they are
slated to interview former NBA player and current ESPN analyst Chauncey Billups
this week for their general manager opening. With Billups set to sit down with
team management in Los Angeles early in the week, it could be the fulfillment
of a goal he’s been working toward for some time, having made it clear
throughout his 17-year professional career that he would be interested in the possibility of running his own team. The
2004 NBA Finals MVP could be in a unique position, having been a high draft
pick only to bounce from team to team early in his career as one organization
after another overlooked his talent before he finally found a home with the
Detroit Pistons, won an NBA title and became a five-time All-Star. He’s largely
viewed as one of the top young front-office prospects and despite his dearth of
front office experience, he’s well-known as a student of the game with the
knowledge of how to operate within the collective bargaining agreement. Whoever
takes this job could be walking into a contentious situation, as the gig is
open only after head coach Mike Budenholzer was stripped of his responsibility
as president of basketball operations and Wes Wilcox, the former GM, was
reassigned as special adviser to ownership earlier this month. Oh, and the new
GM has to find a way through LeBron James in the Eastern Conference to chase
any real championship aspirations………
- The first rule of fight club is that you turn in your
homework before showing up to fight club. Oh, and make sure that no one is
passing notes about it in Mrs. Arnold’s fifth-period algebra class, because
that could be a problem too. Such is life for the members of a now-defunct
"Fight Club" created by seventh-grade boys at a Las Vegas middle
school. The fight club is taking a bit of hiatus due to the fuzz bringing some
serious heat, with police launching an investigation last week after learning
about the bouts at Tarkanian Middle School. According to authorities, the fight
club has been around for a while, and the boys who participated used it to
stage bouts that were wagered on and recorded. However, the school district’s
claims that it only discovered the club’s existence recently are being questioned
by parents who wonder how, with the volume and raucous atmosphere the fights
created, no adults were aware of its operations. One way fight club members
tried to conceal their activities was reportedly avoiding striking each other
in the face so as to keep from leaving visible bruises after bouts. Several
students have been suspended and the Clark County School District Police
Department is investigating the fight club, which held its clashes in a
restroom during school hours, with the fights circulated on social media on Instagram
or Snapchat and the bets on the outcomes weighing in at $5 or $10 in most
cases. Someone get Brad Pitt and Edward Norton on the phone because this sounds
like a sequel in the offing…….
- It’s been nearly nine years since the forgettable
cinematic debut of 'Mamma Mia!' and that means it’s time for a movie that was
universally panned and yet somehow able to bank $609 million worldwide to get
its very own (totally unnecessary) sequel. Sure enough, with the bulk of the
cast from the first movie back, Universal Studios have announced that ‘Mamma
Mia: Here We Go Again!” is on its way as the sequel to the 2008 original. Of
course, the first movie was filled with gawd-awful, ear-assaulting disco music
from Swedish musical manglers ABBA and seeing as ABBA hung around far too long,
they left behind plenty more terrible songs that weren’t used in that first
film and can now provide fodder for the many song-and-dance numbers that will
populate the sequel. That sequel is set for release next July and the original
cast is expected back, including Meryl Streep and Pierce Brosnan. For many, the
only surprise about the sequel is that it didn’t happen sooner given Hollywood’s
growing obsession/love affair with building onto existing films and franchises
rather than ever trying to explore any new cinematic ground. ‘Mamma Mia: Here
We Go Again!’ follows up on a movie that actually managed to outearn a James
Bond film, “Quantum of Solace,” that came out the same year and coincidentally
starred a 007 who more than made everyone forget how über-awful Brosnan was
when playing the iconic special agent. The sequel will be written and directed
by Ol Parker with Streep and Brosnan joined by returning cast members Colin
Firth and Amanda Seyfried……..
- What good is it to have a highly placed, elected position
in your country’s government if you don’t abuse the hell out of said position
in the name of massive profits? Australian Taxation Office Deputy Commissioner
Michael Cranston (allegedly) knows what’s up and that’s why this senior
Australian tax bureaucrat and two of his children are among 10 people charged
in connection with a sophisticated tax fraud that police say netted $123
million) in less than a year. Cranston - proving than long-lost, distant cousin
Brian playing money-making machine/meth dealer on TV Walter White isn't the
only one in the family who can turn a quick, highly illegal buck - faces up to
five years in prison if convicted of abusing his position as a public servant
by passing information to his son. Australian Federal Police Deputy
Commissioner Leanne Close laid out the allegations that Cranston’s son, Adam
Cranston, used his position as managing director of a Sydney-based financial
services company to allegedly serve as the hub for this scam involving payroll
taxes. Police took down Adam Cranston and his sister Lauren Cranston and seven
others in raids that were punctuated by them being charged with crimes ranging
from conspiracy to defraud the government to dealing in the proceeds of crime
to demanding money with menaces. At the apex, their 58-year-old bureaucrat father,
who isn’t believed to be part of the alleged criminal syndicate, but provided
the valuable information that made it run and allowed his progeny to spend unpaid
taxes on luxury homes, racing cars, airplanes, motorbikes, jewelry, art and
vintage wine. The core of the criminal enterprise was a legitimate payroll
company contracted to pay staff on behalf of their employers, which the accused
began scamming they introduced subcontractors to pay the salaries, using those
people as "a front" that only paid part of the taxes that the
employees owed. These masterminds believed they were exploiting a loophole in
which each individual tax underpayment was too small to trigger a tax office
response. Since last June, they churned out $10 million a month, at least until
it came to a crashing halt……..
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