Welcome to the MarlinBlog - unvarnished, unedited and uncensored comments from your host on just about any topic you can imagine. Fishing, sports, celebrity, politics, religion - all those topics they tell you to stay away from in polite conversation. Not here, baby! I make you no promise but this - we may agree, we may disagree, but you'll always get the truth - as I see it ...
Friday, June 30th
TdF Deja Vu
Readers who have followed this blog and it's predecessor, the SCMO Fishing News, know that I'm a big cycling fan. For me, the only day that can rival the first marlin of the season is the first day of the Tour de France. Since that's tomorrow, I was excitedly preparing to write my own analysis of LeTour for the MarlinBlog.
Then came this morning's headlines. Ivan Basso, Jan Ullrich and Francisco Mancebo - the riders who finished second, third and fourth behind Lance Armstrong in last year's Tour - have all been banned from this year's race because of their role in a ongoing doping investigation.
Blood doping has been a problem for professional cycling for many years. With no way to gain any sort of technical advantage through equipment, the only tool that can be improved is the cyclist's body. With each of these athletes tuned to their peak, those who still lag can only turn to cheating.
In this case, a Spanish investigation that started several months ago has touched nearly 60 riders, including one entire team. Ever since the Festina scandal in 1998, Tour officials have taken the hard line on doping - you don't have to be proven guilty, you only need to be accused. That's the same path they're taking here, and you have to respect their desire for a clean race. But, wow - what a shocker!
Ironically, it was the emergence of Lance Armstrong in 1999 that was credited with saving Le Tour after the Festina team was tossed off the Tour in 1998 in what was the largest doping scandal to date. Now, in the sport's first Tour since LA's retirement, doping once again rears its ugly head. How this will resolve itself remains to be seen, as it is likely there will be additional expulsions.
One thing is for sure, though - this year's Tour is off to a wild start! I'm sure it's give us a lot to talk about between now and July 23, when those who remain pedal the cobblestones of Paris.
UPDATE: The team I mentioned above as having nearly all of its riders under suscpicion, Astana-Wurth, has withdrawn from the race, including Alexander Vinokourov, last year's fifth place finisher. So now the top 5 from 2005 are all out - unbelieveable!
Here's why: They think Benny Hill is funny, beer should be served warm, and this thing is sexy.
For those interested, this is Jodie Marsh, a "famous" Page Three girl at a movie premiere earlier this week in London. Now you might be wondering if she somehow forgot part of her costume, but I can assure you that's not the case - this is all there is. And just in case you didn't notice what she's "famous" for, she's pointing them out to you.
I'm just curious ... how low must your self-esteem be that you are willing to butcher yourself in this fashion and then humiliate yourself in public as an encore? What is she going to look like in 20 years? It can't be any scarier than she looks now, that for damned sure! Give it a couple of years and I'm sure you'll find her plying her trade on a corner somewhere.
There's no question that my beloved Florida Marlins are playing far above expectation, and that the Fish Fans are able to enjoy baseball in a way none of us expected to do this season. But that does little to erase the memory of the offseason dismantling that forced us to play so many rookies in the first place. One need only look at how the past Marlins are playing to get a sense of where we might have been this season:
- Josh Beckett - An 8-3 record and 82 strikeouts for the Red Sox; having the blister-free Cy Young season we knew he had in him.
- Mike Lowell - Batting .307 with 9 home runs and only 4 errors for the Red Sox; far from the ballast weight the Marlins considered him to be.
- Carlos Delgado - 22 home runs for the Mets; part of a new "Murder's Row".
- Paul LoDuca - Only 5 errors behind the plate for the Mets; on his way to the All-Star game.
I could go on, but you get the point. Now there's nothing to say that any of these guys could have performed like this for the Marlins this year; nothing inspires a player like getting traded (except for a contract year). But they were thisclose to the playoffs last year, and with the Braves imploding this season there'd have been no one else in the East to challenge them (don't even say the Mets - they're riding the backs of a bunch of ex-Fish!).
I'm not one to advocate having the government messing into people's personal lives, particularly when they tend to screw things up when they do. But sometimes, the government needs to step up and take on its primary role of protecting the people. Usually, it does so by securing borders (er, sort of) or bombing bad guys. There are those times, however, when the action needed is a little closer to home.
Case in point: Cigarettes.
Look, for forty years we've known that they can kill you. We suspected it a lot longer back than that. As a society, we keep taking baby steps in the general direction of outlawing them, but nothing so large as to be seen as radical. We slap a label on the side. We ban advertising. We tax the crap out of them. We keep taking the little steps, when we all know what needs to be done. Hell, even the tobacco companies feel guilty - why do you think they have their own "quit smoking" sites? They're praying that it will placate the politicians long enough to rake in more dough while their products keep killing.
Now, I know what you're thinking - it goes something like "hey, it's a free country and I should be able to kill myself with cigarettes if I want to." Normally, I'd agree with you. I certainly do when it comes to other similar products, like alcohol. Problem is, you getting drunk in the corner won't kill me (unless you're dumb enough to try and drive). But cigarettes will:
"I am here to say the debate is over, the science is clear," Surgeon General Richard H. Carmon said during a televised news conference from Washington. "Secondhand smoke is not a mere annoyance. It is a serious health hazard."
Again, this is something we all thought, but couldn't prove. Now we can; the research is done and is irrefutable. If you light up, you don't just kill yourself, you kill me, too. That is unacceptable.
I'm willing to entertain solutions for the many farmers whose lives will be disrupted by the ban. Pay them to grow grain for ethanol-based fuels instead of tobacco - there's a win-win. But it doesn't matter how you resolve it - allowing one person to act in a fashion that will injure or kill another is not just wrong - it's illegal. If it were a car or a stick or a gun, we wouldn't even question it. Nor should we with a cigarette.
All these years when as we laughed at those who smoked their "coffin nails" - little did we know the coffin being nailed was our own ...
Observational comics like to say that sometimes, the material just writes itself. This would be one of those times ...
You're a famously conservative radio host who's on probation for a little trouble you had regarding prescription medicine a couple of years ago. Unfortunately, you have a ... condition ... that requires you to take a certain little blue pill periodically. Compounding the issue, you're dating a cable news hottie with whom you certainly don't want to have performance issues. But, being a normal, big-headed celebrity, you don't want to risk the media learning that you have a prescription for erectile disfunction. What do you do?
Well, if you're Rush Limbaugh, you apparently have your doctor write you a prescription for Viagra but put his name on the label instead of yours. While this might sound like harmless fun to you and I, it's no laughing matter to the US Customs Service, who held Rush for 3 1/2 hours in Palm Beach yesterday after the drugs were found in his luggage. I certainly understand wanting to avoid any embarrassment associated with a lack of wood, but you'd think someone who's been in the media eye as long and often as Rush Limbaugh would be smarter than this. Lord knows he's gonna get a lot more media attention for this than he ever would have for simply having the prescription in the first place.
Last time I checked, Rush was dating CNN's resident MILF Daryn Kagan. Assuming she's the target of the freshly fueled Rush Rocket, I'd pay cash money to watch her have to read this story on the air ...
Thomas G. Arthur died earlier this month in St. Louis. Chances are, you have no idea who he was. But if you are a Los Angeles baseball fan over 30, I guarantee he had an impact on your life.
Tom Arthur invented the DodgerDog.
Initially called a "foot-long" (even though it was really only ten inches in length - see, I'm not the only one who lies about it!), the DodgerDog was introduced at the opening of Dodger Stadium in 1962 as a tribute to the Nathan's foot long dogs served at Coney Island. Although sushi, nachos and God knows what else have invaded the stadium since his company left in 1990, none will ever hold the place in the hearts of true fans occupied by Tom Arthur's creation.
On July 7th, I'll be in the bleachers for the Giants game. In between waves and chants of "Baaaaarry" I'll down my share of DDs and when I do, I'll think of Tom ...
I'm a sucker for love, even though history has demonstrated that I have absolutely no idea how it all works. I'm happy for any couple that can find love and move on together through this crazy thing we call life. Considering the minefield that couples have to navigate these days, I'm amazed anyone chooses to link up. That goes double for celebrites. The cameras, the tabloids, the nutcases - I just don't know how they do it.
This weekend, Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban tied the knot in Sydney, Australia. When you consider what he's been through (cocaine) and what she's been through (Cruise), there's more baggage than just the togs for the honeymoon, if you know what I mean. But in a day when so many celeb couples opt against marriage, even when having kids, I applaud anyone willing to go the traditional route.
There is talk of expanding the NCAA Men's Basketball tournament to 128 teams from the current 64 (65, if you count the play-in). Perhaps the worst bb idea since the red, white and blue ball. There's not enough quality teams to justify 64, much less 128. Is there even that many Division I programs? You'd think anyone who's watched the NIT in recent years would see what a dog this idea is ...
Didn't watch golf this weekend - not a shot. Feeling pretty good about it, too ...
Did watch a lot of World Cup. As I've said, I'm not a big soccer fan, but it's always a joy to see the top athletes in any sport compete. Probably no play bigger this weekend than the set piece goal by Beckham - now I understand why they make movies about his skill. Wasn't too impressive for most of the match, but scored when it counted - just like a captain should. Props to Ashley Cole, for an amazing knee deflection that saved the British squad ...
The Marlins went into Gotham for three, and got a win and two 1-run losses. I'll take that. When you put your $15 million payroll up against the $200 million juggernaut, you can't expect much. We got a good duel between Moose Mussina and the D-Train, and the MLB debut of a kid from AA who was the first guy to shut out the Yankees this season. You can buy a lot of things, but you can't buy nerves. I'm telling you ... the Fish are looking more and more serious every day. Think I need to see how far off the wild card leader is ...
Can someone tell me what they're feeding Nomar and where I can get some? He's leading the league in batting and has made 1 error at a position he never played before this spring. Think he's out to prove Beantown wrong?
Say what you want about professional athletes being able to shake the ghosts of past performances. Last night, it was clear that Brad Lidge couldn't. The White Sox smoked him in the Series last year, and they did it again last night - and you could see it coming. Like a train wreck that unfolds in front of you, you know you should turn away - but you just can't. At least it didn't cost the game, as the Astros won in extra innings.
I'm trying hard to be gracious about Shaq getting a ring with the Heat. I keep reminding myself that he wasn't the protagonist in the breakup of the Lakers, and that he's a nice guy, and that he's earned it and that I should be happy for him. But then I remember him laughing at Mark Madsen's dancing and shouting "Can you dig it ..." What might have been ...
I don't know if tortoises are like cats, but I know one that has at least 2 lives - and has used up the first.
As I said this morning, Sluggo the tortoise appeared to have met a gruesome end at the hand ... er, paws ... of a neighborhood raccoon, and I was left with the unfortunate task of explaining the law of the jungle to my 6-yr old nephew. Today after work, I once again searched the area around the tortoise pen, looking for any evidence of Sluggo's fate. Finding none, I went in the house and was working at the sink when something caught my eye outside the window. Over there, next to the bench - could it be? Yep - a tortoise shell. Fearing the worst, I headed outside. Something seemed wrong, though - it was in plain sight. There was no way that I had missed it during my search last night. As I approached, I saw a more or less intact tortoise with its head laying to the side. That can only mean one thing for a tortoise - dead or sunbathing. Fortunately, it was the latter. Somehow, Sluggo survived being plucked out of its pen and carried across the yard. I can only assume that at some point, the raccoons got frustrtated and gave up, and Sluggo went into hiding, only to come out when the sun beckoned.
Here's the little bastard looking pissed because I interrupted its post-adventure meal:
Needless to say, tonight Sluggo spends the night in the house. Tomorrow, we begin work on the Mark II Critter-Proof Tortoise Pen ...
You knew someone would do it. All those nice fat intentional walk pitches floating just inches outside of the strike zone - you knew someday someone would make a mistake and one would get jumped on by a frustrated batter. And considering the amazing way the Marlins have been playing lately, I guess I shouldn't be surprised it would be them.
As a Marlins fan, I feared this season would suck. For reasons that were almost understandable, last year's team - one that flirted with the wild card until fading late - was dismantled in the offseason, leaving only Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis to be joined this season by a cast of rookies. You could hope that some of the untried players would catch on - just as Willis and Cabrera had during the unlikely World Series run in '03 - but no one expected the team to light it up as they have lately.
So when the Fish had their nine-game winning streak broken Wednesday by the Orioles and then went down 5-1 last night, it was easy to figure things were just back to what they should be. Imagine the surprise I felt when we rallied to tie against their closer - who blew his first save in 19 tries. But that was just a prelude to the real fun.
When you have one slugger on a team of rookies, you gotta figure he's not gonna see a lot of good pitches to hit. That has certainly been the case for Cabrera, who's not the most patient person. So when he came up in the 10th with a runner on second and the catcher stood up to signal the pitcher to walk Cabrera intentionally, he apparently decided enough was enough.
The ball floated in the air, much closer to the plate than Miguel Cabrera anticipated. It was supposed to be the first pitch of an intentional walk, yet Cabrera wasn't about to let this one get to the catcher.
And so he took a swing at it.
Cabrera stepped into the soft, outside pitch and drove it to center, scoring Ramirez with the go-ahead run on a swing more likely to be seen in the movies than the major leagues.
I saw the video of the pitch last night on SportCenter. It looked just like on of those beer-league slow pitch tosses that usually get driven deep into the night. I'm not sure who was more surprised, Cabrera or the catcher, but it was clear who recovered first. The Marlins went on to score twice more and win 8-5.
A team that was predicted to lose 110 games this season, the Marlins are flirting with .500 as 31-38. After really sucking for the first 40 games as their rookies figured out how to play in the majors, the team is playing like seasoned veterans. Last night's victory was the largest Marlins comeback since 1998, and included the majors' first back-to-back pinch hit home runs since 2001.
Now, reality could come crashing home when they visit the Yankees for three games starting tonight. But if they were to lay the wood to the Bombers, people might start to think there's something pretty special going on in South Florida - again.
I am not what you would call an emotional guy. I make very few relationships with others, and those I do tend to be shockingly shallow. So it might come as a surprise to see me attempt to wax poetic at the loss of a tortoise, of all things.
A little background. Several years ago, through a complicated series of events almost too silly to be believed, my mother ended up with a 10-gallon aquarium filled with wood chips and a turtle. Her thinking was that it would make a nice pet for her then-2-yr-old grandson. My brother, the child's father, had a different opinion - something about "that thing's not going in my house!" Out of choices, Mom turned to me, and I became the guardian of a 6-inch, 25-yr old desert tortoise.
Not being one to do things half-way, I built an enclosure on the side of the house to get the turtle out of the glass box. I did a web search to learn what to feed it, and how to deal with hibernation. As my nephew grew, his sense of ownership grew as well, and it was not uncommon to see him trooping across my back yard with friends in tow to show off "his turtle".
I don't want to say I was really "attached" to this thing, since it clearly wasn't attached to be. Tortoises are a lot like your prickly old grandfather - always just a little pissed at something. Initially, I wouldn't even name it, but I had to call it something, so I settled on "Sluggo" after comedian Ron White's dog that has a habit of crapping on the floor. I knew that my Sluggo would do the same, given the chance.
Several weeks ago, I was feeling guilty (you'll see that guilt is the underlying thread of this episode ...) because the enclosure was in the shade. Tortoises, being reptiles, need the sunshine to keep warm, so I would take the tortoise out of the enclosure to let it run free in the yard while I was tending the roses. However, being a small animal, it could get into places I didn't want - like under the fence - and I was constantly worried it would make its escape while I was pre-occupied. So, I put a barrier around a portion of my rose garden and created a connection between it and the enclosure. To give the tortoise access, I cut a hole in the chicken wire of the enclosure and bent it back. The tortoise could now move freely between the two, getting all the sunshine it wanted without any chance of escape. When I first cut the hole, I realized that it was much larger than the cross-section of the shell. I adjusted the cut wire and pushed part of it back into place, but didn't secure it. I made a note to permanently decrease the hole size when I got a chance (cue ominous music ...)
Unfortunately, the path to hell is paved with good intentions. Yesterday morning, I noticed that the racoons that frequent my yard had obviously been swimming in my pond, and had torn up the filters and pumps. This happens periodically, and results in all the water draining from the pond, and me being pissed off. I didn't think to look and see what other damage might have been done ...
After work, I was showing my brother and nephew the new addition to the pen. As I walked around the corner of the house, following the path from the addition to the enclosure, I could see that something had been digging right next to the opening - and had made it larger. I suddenly felt like Gil Grissom rolling up on a crime scene. I suggested my brother take his son elsewhere while I initiated the gruesome search.
The good news is that there was no clear evidence of a struggle - no tortoise parts, no blood, no shell pieces. The bad news is that there was no tortoise, either. I spent several hours searching the yard and all the places I know the raccoons hang out, but there was no sign of of the tortoise. It could have been carried off, I could have simply missed the evidence, or it got away and escaped. I may never know.
Unfortunately, I now have the task of explaining to a 6-yr old that his turtle is gone. At least I can hide behind the technically true statement that it simply escaped, albeit with help. That'll all change if I find a shell fragment over the weekend ...
Hard to believe, but I miss the little bastard ...
So much for "the greatest US World Cup team ever". Anyone looking for the gritty performance in the draw against Italy to bleed (literally) over into today's match against Ghana was surely disappointed. The US had their chances, but they didn't look like a team that knew they needed to win to move on.
Sure, there will be talk about the iffy penalty called in injury time of the first half that led to a converted penalty shot - the ultimate difference in the final score. But when your opponents score as many goals for your team as you do (1 own goal, 1 real goal), you really don't have much to complain about.
So now it's time for the retribution. We may not understand futbol, but we understand winning and losing, and won't tolerate the latter. This team may have overachieved in 2002, but they looked old and slow most of the time, and I suspect we've seen the last of many of the starters.
Oh, has anyone seen Landon Donovan? I heard he was going to play for Team USA in this tourney, but apparently he forgot to show up ...
BTW - congrats to the Aussies. Their draw against Croatia put the Socceroos in the elimination round.
As a SoCal guy, I've been watching beach volleyball tourneys my entire life. The sport has gone up and down in popularity, usually based on the competance of whomever is running the tour at the time, but it's always been big here. We locals often wonder why it is that the rest of the country hasn't figured it out, especially when you see how wildly popular it was at the recent Athens Olympics.
Anyway, I'm apparently not the only one wondering, as there's a nice first-person piece on ESPN.com. Their writer was on the sand with us in Hermosa, but she obviously had better access than I did, since she got to ask my girl Rachel Wacholder why she thought the sport had such a tough time catching on outside of SoCal ...
"I don't know!" she said, frustrated. "It's such a great sport, it's challenging and sexy, I just don't get it!"
"What's the catch?" I asked E.Y.
"Maybe that's it," Youngs said. "Maybe it's too sexy for people to legitimize. Maybe all people see are bikinis and bare backs and think it's a big barbecue out here. Who knows?"
I guess that's what a press pass gets you. I try to ask questions and all I get is a restraining order ...
We may be widely split on our opinion regarding the war in Iraq, but I think most Americans support the troops, even if they don't support the war. We all realize that they were sent somewhere dangerous to do a job, and we want them to do the best they can and come home safely.
That's why it's so troubling to see the recent allegations and charges of atrocities committed by our soldiers. I understand that it is a difficult war, and these are young, scared kids. But you cannot allow fear, lack of training, or the fog of war to overcome basic principles of humanity. I know - its a war. But warfare has traditionally been an honorable thing, as oxymoronic as that might sound. Even if the other side chooses to abandon honor and morals, we cannot.
We have asked the Iraqi people to stand up - and sometimes be shot down - for this great experiment we call democracy. Frankly, they are doing a far better job with it than I think we could under the trying circumstances they face. But it is important that America demonstrates with her actions that democracy is not free, and that there can be a price to be paid by those who fail to uphold democratic standards - even by the warriors who fight for that democracy.
Those who commit barbaric acts must be held accountable for those acts. It doesn't matter if it is al-Qaida, Iraqi rebels, or US soldiers. There can only be one standard - the highest one. By taking action against those who fail to uphold the moral standards for which they fight, we send a very powerful message to those who would question our sincerity. It is a message that should resonate with the Iraqi people.
The shame is that the message had to be paid with blood.
Politically, I consider myself to be a conservative-leaning centrist. I think Democratic policies as a whole are idiotic, but I can easily admit that W screwed the pooch in Iraq. I think that Arnold is right in trying to steer down the middle, and those on either side who think that's wrong are just wrong.
That said, I am perplexed by one aspect of the current immigration rights debate. No question that we as a country are paying the price for ignoring the issue for the last 20 years, and now it's a lot like trying to cut out an inoperative cancer - we might get it all, but we'll cripple the patient. At least now we're going to have to face the issue like something that resembles adults.
Both sides have valid points. The folks who've snuck in have done so for the best of reasons - a desire to improve their lives. And it's true that they play a vital role in our economy, taking the jobs no one else wants (and if you don't believe that, you're simply kidding yourself). But it's equally true - maybe even more so - that they have broken the law by entering the country illegally and the government is absolutely within their rights to simply kick them out, even if it is somewhat akin to cutting off one's nose to spite one's face.
What I don't understand is how all the newcomers to the discussion - whether politicians, activists or talking heads - all seem to miss the same point. Either by choice, or by ignorance, they cannot - or will not - differentiate between legal immigrants (otherwise known as “immigrants”) or illegal immigrants (otherwise known as “invaders”)? There is a huge difference between the two, and you cannot simply lump the two together for conveniece. Any discussion that does not take the time at least acknowledge the difference is just a waste of time.
Here's a related question that I can’t help but ask – when the illegal immigrants start chanting for rights while waving the Mexican flag and singing the American National Anthem in Spanish, where is the righteous indignation of the LEGAL immigrants? I know how pissed I get when someone cuts in line in front of me; these guys cut ahead in the ultimate line, and now are claiming the right to stay at the head of the line. Those who went through the admittedly torturous process of legal immigration should be the ones leading the opposition.
Paparazzi. Where would the gossip pages be without them? Lord knows they've gotten a horrible image over the years, and for the most part it's deserved. But the celebrities they stalk share in the blame as well, with their attempts to evade and silly statements about "I just want to be left alone." Right - like we pay you $20 million for a movie and now you expect privacy? I have to laugh.
It's refreshing, though, to see that sometimes the hunted and the hunter can get along, even if for a short while. Case in point: Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban. The Aussie couple are back home in Sydney preparing for this weekends wedding vows. As you might expect, the photogs are camped outside the front door. But unlike the confrontational scenes you see here in SoCal, these folks are actually getting along.
Earlier this week, when Kidman celebrated her birthday, the waiting press horde celebrated by singing "happy birthday" into the intercom outside the house. How did Nic and Keith react? Did they fire teh water cannon? Release the hounds? Nope - they sent beer.
After staking out Kidman's harbor-side Sydney house for most of the day, some 20 photographers heard her garage door start to rise and quickly armed themselves with motor-drive cameras.
But instead of a shot of the bride and groom before the wedding day, two women carrying a case of beer and water bottles met the paparazzi.
Written on the case of 24 bottles of Victoria Bitter beer was a note: "Enjoy!, Nicole and Keith."
Proving once again that our Aussie friends are just not the same tight-asses we are
On a related topic, wasn't it just a couple of years ago that Nicole Kidman was one of the hottest women on the planet? When did she turn so scary?
I suppose you could blame the pressures of impending marriage or the long-term effects of exposure to Tom Cruise, but I'm betting it's another case of surgery and botox gone bad. Kinda sad, really ...
Leave it to two of golf's legends to be far from a TV set during Phil Mickelson's now-famous meltdown on Sunday. Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson were at a salmon camp in Canada, of all things, and got to hear about it second-hand. As befits the number of major tournament wins between the two of them, they had a similar opinion regarding Phil's decision-making on the 18th hole ...
"He had an easy option to get back into play? Really?" Watson asked.
"Put the ball in play. Go play golf," Nicklaus added.
It's amazing, sometimes, how things can go so wrong so quickly. One minute, Phil was on his way to a third consecutive major victory and a shot at the Grand Slam. The next, he's a permanent member of a group that includes Greg Norman, Bill Buckner, Chris Webber, Donnie Moore and Jean Van de Velde - all memorable for the wrong reasons.
Hopefully, he'll find the way to put this into some kind of perspective and move on. I just don't know how.
You gotta love the little burg of West Hollwood. Not content to dabble in the politics of certain alternative lifestyle choices or the "human rights" of animals, the WeHo City Council has decided that they know best when it comes to drug law enforcement. More specifically, they think they know best which laws not to enforce.
The City Council approved a resolution that urges the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department to make marijuana-related offenses a "low priority" that deputies should largely ignore.
In doing so, it became the first city in Southern California to request that its law enforcement agency look the other way at recreational pot use and target only the sale of marijuana.
As you might imagine, LA Sherriff Lee Baca has a different opinion.
West Hollywood isn't the first to try this. San Francisco and Oakland each have similar laws on their books. The difference is that they have their own police forces, and exert some kind of control. All WeHo can really do is ask nicely.
Of course, they could always cancel their contract with the Sherriff's Department and form their own police force. I can even see the slogan - "To Protect and Look Fabulous" ...
If you had any doubt about why CBS chose Katie Couric to take over the Evening News instead of recalling Connie Chung, this video should set you straight.
Once upon a time, CC was part of the short list of Important Women In Journalism - CBS' answer to Baba Wawa. We all cocked our heads to the side and wondered when she married Maury Povich, but we figured she knew what she was doing. Apparently we were wrong.
She and Maury hosted a show on MSNBC for the past year. You probably didn't know that and, therefore didn't watch. You probably don't know that it was cancelled, either, for the same reason as you didn't know about it. Not content to go quietly into the night, Connie closed out the run with a statement that say something like "Marilyn Monroe meets Courtney Love meets American Idol Reject". I guess you'll just have to watch ...
How do you follow up that? I think her only options now are going to be limited to Animal Planet and Oxygen ...
I was fishing this weekend, so I had to experience a lot of this second-hand. Unfortunately, I witnessed the Phil Phizzle in real-time ...
The Heat are for real, but don't start printing those Miami championship tees just yet. Yes, they won all three of their home games to take a 3-2 lead back to Dallas, but two were come-from-behind nailbiters. They'll have to win one on the road, and they haven't shown they can do that yet. DWade is playing out his ass, but can that happen for two more games? It'll have to, since Dallas is going to want to pound him in Game 6 and Shaq's been on vacation for two weeks ...
Argentina is looking like the only squad that really wants to win the World Cup. England and Brazil each look like they're doing just what is needed to move on - we'll have to see if they have another gear, because at some point they'll need it. I don't think the average American sports fan realized how big a deal the draw with Italy was, since we tend to be victory-obsessed. And I don't think it's as important as the press makes it out, since it was an own-goal. But a point's a point ...
Strange baseball fact: Of the 15 series that wrapped up yesterday, 9 were sweeps, including the Marlins (winners over the Jays), and both of "LA's Teams" (hometown Dodgers losers to the A's and squatter Angels swept by the Padres). Anyone else notice the Marlins are on fire? They even passed the Braves in the standings. It'd mean a lot more if the Fish weren't 13 games out of first place, but it's still the Braves. Looks like I'm gonna win that "under" bet I made on the Marlins losing 100 this season ...
Phil. Wow. I guess it'd be easy to kick the dude while he is down. OK, I will ... move over, VanDeVelde - there's a new goat in town. Phil Mickelson moved steadily up the rankings to the point where he was a dominant force in major tournaments and arguably the best player in the world once he started thinking with his big head instead of his little one. He survived the bloodbath that was Winged Foot and was standing on the final tee of the event as the leader when little Phil apparently grabbed the wheel. After bouncing an ill-advised driver off a sponsors tent (stupid, but survivable), he inexplicably violated the basic rule of every hacker - put the ball back in play. Chip the ball into the fairway, count your blessings for a one-stroke lead and play for the tie. He does this, and I skip work today to watch the playoff. But the wrong Phil was still making the decisions, and he tried to drive the green. Instead, he centerpunched a tree, but he might as well have driven it into his foot, as he effectively shot himself there with that stroke. From there, it was an iron to a fried-egg lie in a greenside bunker, a sand wedge that scurried across the green to the second cut of salad and a half-hearted chip that rolled wide and long. The tourney gone, he made the comeback put - naturally. Geoff Ogilvy was gracious in victory, but while he has the cup and the dough, this wasn't about him, nor will it be remembered for him. How it will be remembered was best summed up by Phil himself - "I am such an idiot."
I know that, much like the dealer who gives out free samples, I've hooked you all on the MarlinBlog. And, just like the junkies those samples create, you'll have withdrawl symptoms the first time you don't have a fresh blog entry to absorb.
Which makes me feel sort of bad, since that first time is going to be tomorrow. The tuna are running, and the marlin can't be far behind, so my place is on the water. Of course, whatever happens to me out there will make great fodder for here. Until Monday, when I'll return refreshed with a new batch of entries, try breathing into a paper bag. Just stop before you pass out ...
A lot has been said in recent years about the decline in popularity of the "traditional" news sources - newspapers and the evening news. Usually, the culprits named are the internet, cable news channels, and a general explosion of new ways to get your news - like this blog, for example. But while the new sources certainly have had an impact, much of the damage to the traditional sources is self-inflicted.
Case in point: KNX 1070 "NewsRadio"
I was born and raised in Southern California. For myself and millions of those like me, immediate news meant one thing and one thing only - KNX. If something happened, that's where you went to get the up-to-the-minute facts. Feel an earthquake? Tune to 1070 and get the magnitude. See smoke on the horizon? Check KNX to find out where the fire was. Whatever was happening - no matter where it was happening - you knew if you tuned into KNX you'd hear about it before long.
More than just informative, it was reliable. You knew that at :15 and :45 you could get the latest sports scores; at :20 and :50 you could get a business update, and at the top of the hour you could hear the network news. There's great comfort in reliability, especially in difficult times.
Apparently, though, reliability isn't sexy. As part of the homogenization of radio brought about through corporate mergers, CBS fired the management teams at KNX and corporate sibling KFSB and placed them under a single leader. This supposedly-talented individual dismantled all that was familiar at KNX until it reached the sorry state it is in now.
He split up established anchor teams and brought in new talent - some with no news experience whatsoever. The key characteristic of the new folks seems to be that they can yakk it up with their coworkers. This morning, for example, this supposed news station broadcast the cackling of their team as they reviewed People Magazine's list of eligible bachelors. A 5-hour block of midday time has been given over to talk radio, with the only news being a minute at the top of the hour. Same goes for the weekends, when six hours are devoted to cooking and computer talk. It's enough to make you scream.
I'm not one of those guys who longs for the past just because it's the past. But when something works, you don't screw with it. One listen will demonstrate what a pathetic shell KNX has become of it's former self - and the ratings prove this out. I'd like to think someone will wake up and see the light, but I doubt it.
It must really suck sometimes being one of the little people in Hollywood. No, I'm not talking about midgets - I mean all those people tasked with making some of the crap that passes for movies these days look like something you'd like to go see.
Case in point: Remember "The Fast and the Furious"? It was a pretty basic car movie best remembered as launching Vin Diesel's "career" and paying off Michelle Rodriguez's bar tab. But it did OK at the box office, which meant the inevitable sequel - "Too Fast, Too Furious" (clever, don't you think? Me neither). It didn't do as well, since none of the original cast came back, but it did well enough to make the suits upstairs think they could squeeze one more drop of blood out of the turnip.
Imagine you're a publicist in Hollywood. The studio folks come to you and ask that you craft the ad campaign for the next chapter in the saga - something called "The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift". Like me, you'd first ask what the hell is drift? With a little research you'd find it's some kind of pseudo-racing that is the flavor of the day. So you have a sport no one has heard of set in a city no one understands with a cast no one knows. How do you pitch it? Damn right - fast car, sexy babe.
This is one of the promo images released for the film. No production stills, no cast photos - just the car and the girl.
What film is this for again? Ah, who cares. As the man in the Guinness commercial says, "Brilliant!"
This just might be the coolest thing I've ever seen ... a vending machine for iPods!
It's from an outfit called Zoom Systems, who accurately claim to "place the hottest brands directly in the hands of consumers." They have kiosks for all kind of products in airports, malls, and hotels. You can check out more pictures here. As someone who has a whole drawer-full of iPods, I think they've got a winner ...
You're a member of the White House press corp and you've been invited to join the President and his folks up at Camp David as they discuss the war efforts in Iraq. At the end of your first day in the woods, the President announces that he'll be holding a teleconference between his cabinet and the new Iraqi Prim Minister Nuir al-Haliki. "Should be like watching paint dry," you think.
So imagine your surprise - and chagrin - when you see this picture come across the wires this morning. Apparently, while you were sleeping, W snuck out the back door and disappeared into the night. Seems he decided this was one of those times when it's just not good enough to telecon - he needed a little face time.
"I've come to not only look you in the eye, I've also come to tell you that when America gives its word, it keeps its word," Bush told al-Maliki as cameras flashed.
"And it's in our interest that Iraq succeed. It's not only in the interest of the Iraqi people, it's in the interest of the American people, and for people who love freedom."
I find it encouraging to see that the leader of the western world knows how to ditch the paparazzi ... I'll bet Paris Hilton wishes she could figure it out ...
OK, now that it looks like he's not going to die, it's time to call out Ben Roethlisberger. Oh yeah, big guy - you looked real cool riding on your rice rocket wearing nothing more than a Terrible Towel on your head. Just think how cool you must look now - broken nose, broken jaw, no teeth - quite a sight, I'm sure! The good news is that you're not dead; the bad news is that when training camp opens next month, you'll have to watch Charlie Batch run the offense while you sip your Gatorade through a straw. I understand you're only 24 - hell, I was 24 once, too. Most 24-year-olds are basically dumbasses, and you're no exception. But most of them aren't paid millions of dollars and given the keys to a Super Bowl-winning football team. Apparently, being given responsibility doesn't mean you're responsible. I know it's legal to ride without a helmet in PA - only because they recalled a 35-year-old helmet law a couple of cycles back - but that's like a skydiver shunning a reserve chute "cuz reserves are for pussies, man!" Unlike Jay Williams, Kellen Winslow and the other big name athletes who made the same dumb mistake, you were cut a break - the parts that broke aren't related to your athletic career. Take it as a sign: you got lucky this time, hoss - next time you're a damp spot on the side of an overpass.
I may be the MarlinNut, but I am definitely a sports nut as well. I'm no athlete, but I can enjoy watching and analyzing just about any kind of sport. Summertime means sports time, so plan on seeing my thoughts on the sports weekend each Monday ...
- The English are gonna have to do better in the World Cup than win on an own goal if they intend to move out of their own group. Of course, they still got one more goal than the US squad did this morning. Man - those guys looked flatter than road kill ...
- My girl Rachel Wacholder got it done this weekend when she and partner Elaine Youngs smoked beach volleyball world #1 team Misty May-Trainor and Kerri Walsh at the AVP Hermosa Beach Open. May/Walsh looked flatter than the US World Cup squad, and Rachel played over the top as she and EY made it look easy. I've always believed that when Rachel is on, they can beat anyone. And it's always good for her to have a title other than "Best Butt on the Beach" ...
- Matt Kemp blasted a pair of home runs yesterday for the Dodgers. For those of you keeping score, that 6 in 13 games. Get those Rookie of the Year ballots ready ...
- Anyone else notice that the Florida Marlins have quietly started to win games?
- Turns out Ben Roethlisberger is every bit the knucklehead you'd expect a 24-yr old to be, as he crashed his motorcycle this morning while not wearing a helmet. I'd really jump on his ass about it, but he's not out of surgery yet. All I can say is that if Terry Bradshaw - not a world-class thinker - tells you to "save the riding until you're retired", it should be pretty obvious. Ben might not wear a helmet, but apparently he's fully capable of using his head - in this case, as a bumper.
- Michelle Wie did not win the McDonalds LPGA Championship this weekend, but she got damned close. All the more reason she should first conquer the ladies before she takes on the men.
- Shaquille O'Neal looked really old last night in the Heat's loss to the Mavericks. DWade is sick, but will have to do the heavy lifting if Miami is going to come back. Everyone talks about what a great story it will be for Pat Riley to win another championship, but what about the Maverick's Mark Cuban. Imagine the look on David Stern's face if he has to hand the trophy to a guy he's fined over $1 million - it'll be a better story than when Pete Rozelle had to give the Lombardi to Al Davis ...
We haven't talked yet about my roses (don't worry, we will ...), but they're gonna hate me very soon.
All spring long, my rose garden got the loving care it needs. The plants got watered and fertilized, they got pruned and preened, they got sprayed with all kinds of toxic crap that keeps them looking fine. And they rewarded my efforts with beautiful spring crop. But they know something is up, because every year about the end of summer I suddenly disappear, leaving the roses to fend for themselves all during the fall. This is not something they do well, and usually they end up a diseased and dying mess.
I've been putting a lot of effort into the roses the last few weeks, because I knew it was just a matter of time - and now it's happened. The first billfish* of the season has been caught. So now my attention will be pulled offshore - and away from the roses.
They're gonna be pissed ...
* What? You mean you didn't hear about the first two swordfish of the season being caught? Well, you would have if you were an MNAC member ...
Once again, a proud member of the romantic Catalina fleet has been turned into a mud dart. Yesterday morning, the PHOENIX, a glass bottom boat that hugged the lee coast of Catalina and introduced millions to the garibaldi, sank off Malibu. Its 4-man crew was trying to move the PHOENIX from its current home in Newport Harbor to San Francisco Bay, where it was destined to become ... a cajun restaurant?
The men had called for help at about 9:50 a.m. after noticing a two-by-six-inch crack on the glass hull of the vessel, Los Angeles County Fire Inspector Ed Osorio said. Attempts to pump water out of the sinking boat had failed, he said. The men then jumped onto an inflatable raft and were picked up by lifeguards minutes later.
The good news is that no one was hurt. But the PHOENIX now joins the CATALINA, last seen rotting in Ensenada Harbor as one more monument to our inability to preserve our past.
OK, let's talk about making comments to the entries you see here at the MB. Now, based on the low number of comments - hell, there are no comments! - one might think no one reads this blog. But I prefer to live in my own reality, so I'll assume it's just that no one knows how to add their comments.
So you've come to the trusty MarlinBlog for your daily dose of rants. You see something that you agree with/disagree with/love/hate/whatever and you just have to say something about it. No problem - the MB has you covered.
At the bottom of each entry is a line with information about that entry. We talked earlier about the author, time of entry and permanent link to the entry. But there's one more component to that line. It will say something like "2 comments" or "10 comments" or whatever. Actually, so far they all say "No Comments", but that'll change. Whatever it says, however, the purpose is the same - it is a link to the form that lets you post a comment against an entry.
Click on the link, and you jump to the comments form at the bottom of the entry. No registration is required, and you don't even have to use your own name. Enter your comments - you can even choose from one of our new smilies - and hit the submit button. That's all there is to it. You're now a permanent member of the blogosphere!
Just like over at our forums, I don't care what kind of comments you make, so long as they are honest ones. Agree - disagree - rant - it's your choice. Just don't sit on the sideline!
Where would all the rest of us be without the stupid people of the world to laugh at?
Our friends at KUTV in Salt Lake City provide the details on a guy who thought he could bolt from a convenience store without paying for his purchase.
His first problem came when the clerk tried to grab him and ripped his shirt.
Once outside he ran into a slow moving truck and was knocked down.
Then he got up, collected himself, and then ran into busy 33rd South where he was struck again, this time by a minivan.
His injuries were minor and he refused medical care, but he was promptly arrested.
The item of his desire that caused all this grief? A box of Pop-Tarts. And you thought the worst injury you could get was a burn to the roof of your mouth ...
We've arrived at one of my favorite weekends of the year. It's time for the AVP Beach Volleyball tourney in Hermosa Beach. That's only about a mile west as the crow flies from the SCMO Home Office, so you can guess where I'll be spending my weekend!
For many, Memorial Day marks the official start to the summer season, but for me, it's the girls of the AVP diving in the sand at the base of Pier Avenue. Yeah, there are guys playing, too, and they're pretty good. But do we really care? OK, maybe a little. But they just don't bring the same kind of ... assets ... like my girl Rachel Wacholder here does.
All sexist comments aside, you can't believe what athletes these guys and girls are. Yeah, they all look great, but when it comes to skills, they bring it!
Of course, if the AVP girls are here, and summer is starting, then the marlin season must be on the horizon. That can only mean it's time for me to start publishing the Fishing News, as well - look for the first edition on Monday.
Until then, it's work when I gotta and beach when I can. I'll be easy to spot - I'll be the guy with white skin on Friday, pink skin on Saturday, and red skin on Sunday ...
No doubt jealous at all the ink ... and pixels ... being garnered by Brangelina after the birth of their baby, TomKat have jumped back into the public eye. Just weeks after it appeared they were on the rocks, it seems maybe Katie ... er, Kate ... Holmes is going to marry Tom Cruise after all. Why? It's all about the Benjamins, baby!
According to the folks at Life and Style Magazine, they've renegotiated the prenup so that Katie is paid a cool $3 million for every year they stay married. If they last 12 years, the standard California community property law kicks in and she's eligible for half of Cruise's 400 million fortune.
As an added "incentive", Cruise has apparently made it clear he'll expect custody of their new daughter Suri should they split.
“If she walks now, Tom will fight her for custody of her, and Katie can’t outlast him in court,” an insider told the mag. “She knows she needs to marry him to get the money to fight him for custody, if it comes to that.”
I guess I'll have to revise my earlier statement. Apparently, the only folks in Hollywood wanting to get married are the gays and those needing the cash ...
I support our efforts in Iraq, but I don't always agree with the way it's being run. As a project manager, I look for the essential milestones that demonstrate progress towards a goal. So far, though, it's not been very clear what the milestones towards victory are, or when they're met.
Certain milestones are obvious, though. The invasion of Iraq. The fall of Bagdad. The capture of Saddam Hussein. The first election. The installation of a democratic government. No one needs to outline these as steppingstones towards success.
Today, we saw another such milestone with the death of the leader of Al-Qaeda in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. This guy was the worst kind of terrorist - an imported thug. He didn't care about the Iraqi people - hell, he killed them by the busload willingly if it helped achieve his operational goal of the day. He's the guy who strove to pit Sunni against Shia, and he was actively working to export his particularly violent brand of insurgency - starting with the hotel bombings in his home country of Jordan.
Sometimes in war, certain people simply have to die. They need to be taken out to achieve the ultimate success, and al-Zarqawi was one of them. Much as Yamamoto was targeted for assassination by the Army Air Corps in World War II, so did this thug achieve his own personal martyrdom. Unlike those who sacrificed themselves willingly in his name, though, this guy met his end at the business end of a 500-lb bomb while cowering in a safe house. Somehow, it just seems appropriate.
I guess right about now, he's learning the whole thing about the gaggle of virgins was a lie ...
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie made their first public appearance after the birth of their new daughter Shiloh the other day in Namibia. The purpose of the event seemed to be twofold - to coo over what a wonderful experience they had there ...
"We were afforded a peace here that we could not have at home ... We had absolute top notch medical assistance from the operation crew to the nurses and pediatricians. We couldn't have received anything better in the States."
... and to re-emphasize that they have no intentions of getting married.
"There is nothing in the air. The focus is the kids, and we are obviously extremely committed to the children and as parents together. So that kind of says it for us, and to have a ceremony on top of it is nothing."
The lessons we learned here? That if you're rich, you get to make the rules, and that the only ones in Hollywood that want to get married anymore are the gays ...
While I have political views, my roles in politics (beyond voting, of course!) is to laugh at the stupidity of politicians. Next to celebrities, they make the most headlines - and topics for blogging!
Case in point: The "Impeach Team". Charles Coleman, Bob McCloskey and Marcie Winograd all had two things in common - they were Democrats and anti-war activists. So they decided to add one more thing in common by running for Congress.
To their credit, they took a unique stance: they called for the impeachment of Bush and Cheney and for the ouster of the incumbant Democratic representatives for their less-than-stout opposition to the Iraq War. They even coined the catchy phrase "Impeach Team" and produced a series of joint campaign commercials.
It may have been unique, but it wasn't smart. All three got smoked in the Democratic primary yesterday. Coleman got a little over 19% of the vote against Howard Berman in the 28th District, while McCloskey could only gather slightly more than 18% against Adam Schiff in the 29th. The big "winner" was Winograd, who managed almost 38% against Jane Harman in the 36th.
They say that incumbant representatives are nearly impossible to defeat, and that was certainly the case yesterday. I'm sure the IT thought they were making some kind of a statement with their stance, but it would appear that they were the ones who were sent a message ...
As a Florida Marlins fan, I knew that this would be a painful season watching a lot of rookies take the field for the teal and black. What I didn't realize would be that my hometown Dodgers would find themselves hip deep in rookies as well. Watching the two teams has given a good comparison between the right and wrong ways to groom a crop of new players.
Out of all the new faces, one stands out - outfielder Matt Kemp of the Dodgers. Seen as one of the leading prospects for the Dodgers in future years, Kemp was called up as an injury replacement from Jacksonville (AA) two weeks ago. In his first game, he looked like a guy who was overmatched by the jump to the bigs. That didn't last long, though.
In Game 5, he homered. In Game 6, he homered. In Game 7, he homered. See a pattern here? No, he didn't homer in Game 8. But he's continued to hit, currently riding a 7-game hitting streak with a .354 batting average for his now 10-game major league career.
Last night, the Blue faced the Mets and Pedro Martinez, one of the nastier pitchers a young player could face. In his first AB, Kemp looked like the rookie he is, swinging wildly as a couple of wicked sliders and not even getting close.
In his next plate appearance, he buried a Martinez fastball halfway up the left field bleachers for a 2-run home run.
I hate lawyers. If you're a lawyer, I'm sorry, but I hate you. For every good, useful lawyer, there are a dozen muckrakers fighting for a place at the nipple that is today's litigious society.
Case in point: Yesterday, I'm driving to work and I come to a red light. I need to make a right turn, and there's one car in front of me. I wait until he starts to make his turn, then I look to the left to see if traffic is clear. Seeing that it is, I start my turn. As I do, I bump the car in front of me, whose driver apparently decided to abort his turn sometime after I started my look to the left.
There was no damage to either car, as I was going barely 5 miles an hour. The other driver got out, took down my license number and came back to speak to me. Or tried to. Turns out he only speaks Korean. He had a sheet of paper in his hand with a lot of foreign writing, so I presumed he wanted my insurance info. Normally, I'd look at an incident like this as "no harm, no foul" and expect both drivers to simply drive off. But, unable to communicate reasonably with the other driver, and recognizing my basic fault in the incident, I did the decent thing and gave him my information. Considering there was absolutely no damage to either car or driver, I assumed this would be the end of things.
Right.
By the time I came home from work for lunch, there was a message on my machine from my insurance company. Apparently my Korean friend had lawyered up, made a visit to the emergency room and a claim against my insurance for both property damage and personal injury. In talking to the agent (and trying to keep from telling him how I really felt about the situation), he explained to me that it was pretty common for folks with limited language skills to use a lawyer as an intermediary. And of course, once the lawyer is involved, here comes the suit.
Greedy, bottom-sucking bastards.
You know, I said I was sorry earlier. I was wrong - I'm not. Shoot 'em all.
Today is an interesting convergence of events. Here in California and seven other states, it's Election Day, as voter head out for their respective party primary elections. It's also the 62nd anniversary of the longest day: D-Day - the invasion of Europe and the beginning of the end of World War II.
When you head out today to vote, keep in mind that anniversary. A lot of people died for your right to exercise this simple act, and people continue to die the world over for the right to vote. It is a small but impowering thing. No other action can let the weakest tell the strongest, "You don't control me." That's why it's so feared by the tyrants of the world, and why it's so important to fight for.
It doesn't matter what party you represent - Democrat, Republican or other - do you duty and vote!
Michelle Wie missed the cut at the US Open qualifier yesterday by 5 shots after melting down in the last 9 holes. To her credit, she did not play like a girl. She did, however, play like a 16-yr old.
I hate it when I'm right. OK, no I don't.
Next up for MW is a date with the ladies this weekend. You go, girl!
As I write this, Michelle Wie is on a golf course in New Jersey, trying to qualify to play in next week's US Open golf tournament. While it would make a compelling story, I'm hoping she fails.
Now don't assume this is some misogynistic rant akin to Hootie Johnson and the Masters. It ain't. It's about earning respect, and the opportunities that come with it.
One more reminder of what happens if you head out unprepared ...
Two men were killed Sunday when their boat struck the breakwater off the Port of Los Angeles and capsized, authorities said.
The men were among six relatives who embarked on a fishing trip Sunday morning from Cabrillo Beach on an 18-foot motorboat. The group consisted of three children, the children's mother, their stepfather and their grandfather, officials said.
After reaching open water, the family encountered heavy fog and tried to return to shore, officials said. But the boat's engine is believed to have failed, and it began to drift. Shortly after 11 a.m., about an eighth of a mile southwest of Angel's Gate — the opening in the breakwater that marks the entrance to the port and Los Angeles Harbor — the vessel struck the rocks.
The children were wearing life jackets, but the adults were not.
It's worth noting that the ones who died were the ones without life jackets.
Each season when I hear of the large number of small boats charging south to chase tuna, I think of things like this. While a lot of them are prepared, there's a shockingly large number who aren't - not enough fuel, not enough boat, not enough knowledge.
Remember - it only takes one mistake to make you pay a horrific price.
Remember the good old days, when the worst thing your kids might encounter at college was late night pranks?
Two college students were found dead inside a large, deflated helium balloon after apparently pulling it down and crawling inside it, officials said.
Their bodies were found Saturday partially inside a deflated helium balloon at the entrance of a condominium complex a few miles north of Tampa.
The 8-foot-diameter balloon was used to advertise the complex.
Ironically, one of the two students was an advertising major.
"It was more a fun thing they thought they were doing," said Linda Rydman, whose daughter was found dead. "You know how you blow up the balloon and suck the helium."
I'm sorry, but if that's the reaction of the mother of someone who just died from their own stupidity, then her license to reproduce needs to be revoked ...
As Scott Fitzgerald famously said, "Let me tell you about the very rich. They are different from you and me." The same could be said today, if you replaced "very rich" with "celebrity", and "different" with stupid.
Today's Celebrity Idiot is Michelle Rodriquez, recently blown away in Lost. She just got out of jail for the second time in the last month after serving 4 hours plus of a 60-day drunk driving charge (don't even get me started on that one. Later that evening, she was seen partying at a Hollywood club.
You'd think that two trips to the slammer and getting bumped off the top show on TV might be seen as a sign, but recent reports indicate not for this star.
When asked if she planned to curb her wild ways in light of her recent troubles, she fires back, "That's bullshit! I'll be spending most of my days in London or France and I'll just work there for the next couple of years." Rodriguez insists that she doesn't have a problem with alcohol stating, "My father threw up his liver. If I were going to be an alcoholic, I'd know it by now." The actress claims she's not worried about the future of her career. She adds, "I don't come and pretend to be some perfect broad. I am imperfect, but I get there. I do the job; I'm good at what I do and I go home. I'm not worried."
If she's headed for Europe, somebody better tip Interpol. I'd worry about the effect she'd have over there, but hey - France is where Jerry Lewis became a near-god. She just might fit in.
Hard to believe, but the 2006 hurricane season begins today. We all pray its nothing like last year - we could really use a mild one, Lord! More than that, I hope everyone has learned the lessons of Katrina. God knows there were plenty to go around.
For the government: 1) don't wait - act!; 2) more aid is better than less aid; 3) don't assume the old plans will still work. Heck, don't assume, period!
For the people: 1) when they tell you to go, GO; 2) don't blame the government for the effects of what is basically your own decision; 3) don't live below sea level.
This is a topic-free blog - I can write about anything I want. But there's a reason there's so many celebrity-gossip blogs - the celebs make it so damned easy.
Case in point: Halle Berry. The outrageously sexy star of last weekend's #1 movie, X-Men 3, told Conan O'Brien that she kept the skintight suit of her character Storm, and has been known to wear it in the bedroom for her boyfriend (a younger guy, I might add ...)
"Yeah, I wear it sometimes. You gotta keep your life spiced up. Storm never has sex in the movies - but Storm has a lot of sex at my house."
I swear, I'll never look at the weather the same way ...
If you're reading this, then you've already taken the first big step into the SCMO blogosphere, and for that I thank you. But the MarlinBlog is an interactive tool, and I want you to be, well, interactive! So, this is the first in a series of entries where we'll talk about how to use the MB and get yourself involved - and, hopefully, hooked!
The "homepage" for the MB lists the last week's entries, grouped by day. So if I'm particularly prolific and make three entries today, you'll see a heading for "Wednesday, June 1st" and a border surrounding the three entries. Don't get your hopes up that you'll always see that many!
At the bottom of the entry, you'll see who made the entry - for now, that's just me - and when I made it. You'll also see a couple of very important links that you need to know about.
The first looks like this: [link] - it's a permanent link to the particular entry. That's important, because the contents of the homepage will change every time I make a new entry. Using the permanent link, you'll always be able to access that particulary entry, no matter how long ago it was created. For experienced bloggers, using those permalinks lets you make a link from an entry in your blog to the entry in my blog. You can also use it to link from the Marlin Club, for example, if you saw something you just had to share with your friends.
Sometimes, that same link will look different - like this: [more..]. It's still the permanent link, but this means that the entry has more information than just what you see on the homepage. By clicking on the link, you'll be able to see the entire entry. Usually, I use this if there's a lot of pictures that I don't want you to have to load every time you go to the MB homepage. Usually, I'll use something witty like "More after the jump ..." to tip you that there's more to come.
Here's why: They think Benny Hill is funny, beer should be served warm, and this thing is sexy.
I'm happy for any couple that can find love and move on together through this crazy thing we call life. Considering the minefield that couples have to navigate these days, I'm amazed anyone chooses to link up. That goes double for celebrites. The cameras, the tabloids, the nutcases - I just don't know how they do it.
Anyway, I'm apparently not the only one wondering, as there's a 
So imagine your surprise - and chagrin - when you see this picture come across the wires this morning. Apparently, while you were sleeping, 
Once again, a proud member of the romantic Catalina fleet has been turned into a mud dart. Yesterday morning, the PHOENIX, a glass bottom boat that hugged the lee coast of Catalina and introduced millions to the garibaldi, 
We've arrived at one of my favorite weekends of the year. It's time for the 
Today is an interesting convergence of events. Here in California and seven other states, it's Election Day, as voter head out for their respective party primary elections. It's also the 62nd anniversary of the longest day: D-Day - the invasion of Europe and the beginning of the end of World War II.
