Friday, August 27, 2010

Stephen Strasburg

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In the history of professional sports, few athletes have had the kind of up-and-down season that Washington Nationals pitching phenom Stephen Strasburg is having right now.

When Strasburg, the No. 1 pick in the ‘09 MLB Draft, made his big-league debut in June, he exceeded the hype surrounding his arrival by striking out 14 batters in seven innings while picking up a win. Strasburg was the talk of baseball throughout summer, but earlier today, the Nationals announced he needs Tommy John surgery on his right elbow and will likely miss the next year.

Injuries are the cruelest — and yet most common — way in which rising superstar athletes suddenly fall off the map. From baseball (Kerry Wood) to football (Charles Rogers) everything else, the seemingly simple task of staying healthy is a hurdle too large for some fantastically talented athletes to overcome. Granted, Strasburg is by no means “done” and shouldn’t be written off, but obviously having a major surgery on such a major joint so early in one’s career isn’t a good sign.

The NBA is no different. Over the years we’ve seen more than a few future All-Stars and potential superstars derailed by injuries. Some have recovered to salvage decent careers, but some have never fully recovered. Here are the five most memorable examples:

Jay Williams — Before he got a chance to be the first legit post-Jordan face of the Chicago Bulls, Williams had his NBA career ended in a motorcycle accident following his rookie year. The All-American point guard at Duke was taken No. 2 overall in the ‘02 Draft, and put up 9.5 points and 4.7 assists in his first and only pro season.

Grant Hill — On the court, he was something between the next Pippen and the next Jordan. Hill’s first six years in the NBA were fantastic: he put up LeBron-like numbers, including 25.8 points, 6.6 boards and 5.2 assists in the ‘99-00 campaign. But beginning in the ‘00 playoffs, a series of ankle and foot injuries cost Hill the better part of three to five years of his prime. He’s made a comeback and is still a solid starter in the League at 37 years old, but he was once on-track for a first-ballot Hall of Fame career.

Penny Hardaway — The first three years of Penny’ career had people comparing him to Magic Johnson. The 6-7 point guard was good for about 20 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds and 2 steals per game. Then in his fourth season, Hardaway missed 23 games due to injuries, and the next year missed 63 games. Even with his problematic knees, Penny played 14 years in the NBA, but he never could recapture his early form, and by the end of his run he was a little-used role player on middling teams.

Bill Walton — Coming off one of the most accomplished NCAA careers in history, Walton was naturally the No. 1 pick in the ‘74 Draft and expected to be an all-time great. And while he does have a spot in the Basketball Hall of Fame, his NBA career is still seen as something of a letdown. Walton could never stay healthy, having problems with his knees, feet and ankles; in his 10-year career, he played an average of just 46 games per season. He was very, very good, but could have been even better.

Danny Manning — You know the Clippers had to make an appearance (two if you count Walton’s time with the franchise). Manning was the NCAA Player of the Year and won a national title at Kansas in ‘88, and the Clips made him the No. 1 pick in that year’s Draft. But he tore his ACL during his rookie year, and although he recovered to make two All-Star appearances in ‘93 and ‘94, the knee problems persisted and Manning wound up his career much like Penny; a decent role player occupying the body of a shoulda-been superstar.

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LaLa Vazquez

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LaLa Vazquez stepped out in black and gold last night for LA Confidential’s Cover Party in LA. She was there to support her BFF Kim Kardashian who is featured on the cover with her sisters.


We also found a rare video of Lala just few days before her wedding, she introduces us to her brother, cousins, Carmelo and of course her little son Kyian who is adorable in the video.



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Movies And Advertising And Sales

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Movies And Advertising, The movie studios are extending their exertions to bring down land sites that volunteer commandeered textile, a new asking addressed to an advert company that proffers religious services to those web sites. Warner Bros. and Disney have teamed up up to action Triton Media, criminating the company of both contributory and induced copyright infringement Newt aids hold alive land sites, furnishing advert and referral income. Keep Reading Movies And Advertising.

Warner and Disney aver that Newt has relations with at least nine land sites they see "one stopover workshop" for illegal copies of the disciplines work. The listing is made up of for the most part no-name situations such as free-tv-video-online. Information, movies and thepiratecity.org-links. net. Consorting to the complaint, Newt and the nine situations, fundamentally, had a symbiotic family relationship, both political parties have gained from the dispersion of commandeered pieces of work, and Newt made it possible to furnish "material support" to sites.

Much of the complaint focuses on the natural processes of the sites themselves, but the connectedness is obvious. The movie studios say that Newt should be kept apt for infringement of copyright because of its involvement in the doubly-sites because they allegedly knew Newt the supposed illegal activity, with notices directed by Warner and Disney.

The two movie studios have understandably made up one's mind that it is not adequate to engage the pirate ship land sites to create money off the place through ad bodies of work. Straight off, they call up that the promulgation by the companies should be responsible ; excessively, not to be careful whom you do byplay. Whether the bailiwicks are successful in judicature, still, is another matter.

Sue-happy Perfective 10 attempted a similar scheme laying claim legion plastic central processing units in 2004 and once more in 2007 to supply payment-processing services to companies led off to pictures of Perfective tense 10. A federal justice rejected the 2004 case against Visa and MasterCard, and Perfect tense 10 lost the showcase in 2007 against CCBill and CWIE.

Warner and Disney are desiring that their case will go other than Perfective tense 10 SA However, if the DMCA protected plastic processors to be kept creditworthy because they are precisely service suppliers, then it appears likely that the same would utilise here for Triton

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Stevie Ray Vaughan

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Stevie Ray Vaughan died just as 'In Step' was signaling a major musical departure for an artist who showed every intention of being around long enough to change the landscape of rock and blues several times over.

My introduction to Stevie Ray Vaughan came from the nerdiest of sources: an MTV News special about the ‘80s. When the 1989 segment came on, the familiar chaotic images of Tianamen Square were displayed with Stevie Ray Vaughan’s hit “Crossfire” playing in the background. Though the association got me into the library to read all I could about the massacre, I didn’t pick up Stevie Ray Vaughan’s In Step. Less than a year later, Vaughan would be buried in Dallas, Texas.

Being a sophomore in high school in 1990, Vaughan’s type of music didn’t totally reach me. I, like thousands of other teenagers, was slowly trying to deprogram myself from years of listening to hair metal, and was just discovering bands like Soundgarden and Jane’s Addiction. Still, when MTV News announced that Stevie Ray Vaughan was killed in a plane crash on August 27, 1990, I can safely say that his death was the first “rock star” death that affected me. “How can someone who wrote a song that good die?”, I kept asking myself naively. Sure, other rock stars have died, but those deaths came years after they had reached their peak.
 

Regrettably, I purchased In Step after his death. Even for a metalhead, the album was as hook-filled and infectious as a Def Leppard album. I read about the concert he played the night before his death, which featured Vaughan jamming with Eric Clapton, Robert Cray, and Buddy Guy. Looking back, this show is an easy contender for “shows I would have loved to have seen if I had a time traveling DeLorean”. The more I got into Stevie Ray Vaughan, the more I started to take notice of his influences like Albert King and Buddy Guy.

In six short years, Vaughan transformed the genre of blues-oriented rock. With Texas Flood and Couldn’t Stand the Weather, he converted hundreds of thousands of listeners to the blues. At the height of his ferocity, he took on one of the most sacred songs in rock: Jimi Hendrix’s “Voodoo Child (Slight Return)”. Not only did he do the near-impossible feat of doing that song justice, he transformed it into something that was totally his own. His cover ranks alongside Jimi Hendrix’s cover of Bob Dylan’s “All Along The Watchtower” as the greatest covers in rock.

Vaughan’s life did take a Behind the Music arc as years of cocaine and alcohol abuse took their toll on his music in studio (see the hit-and-miss Soul to Soul). But even when he was mixing cocaine in his Jack Daniels to keep going, his live shows rarely suffered. In Step was his “clean and sober” album. It was the album that showcased Vaughan’s increasing confidence as a songwriter. In the spring of 1990, he recorded an unassuming record with his brother Jimmie.

And then it was all over.

Perhaps the biggest tragedy, musically, from Stevie Ray Vaughan’s death was that Vaughan was in the process of another reinvention. Far from being past his prime, he started to experiment by relying less on speed and more on technique. As good as In Step was, it succumbed to overproduction, much in the same way Bonnie Raitt’s comeback album Nick of Time suffered, despite both album’s hook-filled gems. Be it the acoustic “unplugged” movement in the early ‘90s, to the garage rock blues movement of today, there’s every reason to believe that Stevie Ray Vaughan would have remained a viable presence in rock and blues.

For a few years, I couldn’t listen to Stevie Ray Vaughan. Not out of sorrow, but due to listener fatigue from hearing him on classic rock radio. I’ve listened to his albums so much, I could no longer find anything new in them. That was before the latest reissue of Couldn’t Stand the Weather, which features a live performance in Montreal in 1984. Listen to that, then go on to YouTube and start browsing some of his performances, starting with his cover of “Voodoo Child (Slight Return),” and suddenly these worn-out standards start to take on a new life. Twenty years on, he’s still blowing us away.




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Arkansas

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Jeb Huckeba listened patiently as the names of Arkansas’ 2000-2009 all-decade football team, himself included, were read off.

“Those are guys I would feel great to be with facing any team in the country,” said Huckeba, an All-SEC defensive end as a senior in 2004. “That’s definitely an allstar squad, and I don’t think I ever would have predicted I’d be named to such an elite group.”

The all-decade team, as selected by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette with fans also having a voice in the voting, includes players who likely could make the Razorbacks’ second all-century team.

The offense is led by running backs Darren McFadden - twice winning the Doak Walker Award given to the nation’s top ..

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Daxx Garman

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After a three-hour meeting behind closed doors, the District 7-5A Executive  Committee voted 4-3 to deny eligibility for Southlake Carroll HS quarterback Daxx Garman for the 2010 football season. Garman had transferred to Southlake Carroll in the spring after he had been ruled ineligible in Oklahoma.

Coppell ISD athletic director John Crawford, Denton ISD AD Ken Purcell, Saginaw principal Ric Canterbury and Justin Northwest principal Rose Brenner voted to deny Garman's eligibility.

Representatives from Keller (principal Rick Westfall), Keller Central (principal David Hinson) and Keller Fossil Ridge (principal Dave Hadley) cast votes in favor of Garman playing.

Scott Adams, the attorney for Garman's family, said the family will appeal the district committee's decision and all the paperwork will be filed with the UIL by Monday. A hearing with the UIL state executive board will be set up in Austin within seven to 10 days, Adams said. The Garman family is appealing the accusation that the family moved to Southlake for athletic purposes.

Adams said the fact that Garman had been ruled ineligibile in Oklahoma was an issue that shouldn't even have been brought up during Friday's meeting.

"They didn't give reasons why they denied his eligibility," Adams said. "The only allegation out there is that they moved for athletic purposes, and that is absolutely untrue. And why they even got into about what happened in Oklahoma is irrelevant."

Carroll ISD executive director of communications and marketing Julie Thannum issued a statement for the entire district and athletic department after the committee meeting was adjourned.

"On behalf of the district, its athletic program, the administrators, our school board and all of our students, we pledge to abide by the decision of the district 7-5A committee as we have always said we would," Thannum said. "We provided them with all the information and turned over all the documents. Documents that the public doesn't have a right to know because they are FERPA protected, federally protected documents. They are student records. We appreciate the time and attention of the district 7-5A committee."

Thannum went on to say that this third hearing for Garman's eligibility was requested by Southlake Carroll athletic director Kevin Ozee, because it was such a high profile case and would cast doubts in the public's mind.

After the meeting was called to order shortly after 8:30 a.m., Ozee requested, on behalf of the Garman family, that the meeting be closed to anyone not on the 7-5A district executive committee. Once the hearing went into executive session, all matters discussed could not be disclosed by committee members.

Southlake Carroll visits Copperas Cove in its season opener on Friday night.

"We'll open our football season tonight with the same fire and intensity that you've always seen from the Carroll Dragons," Thannum said. "And we will do the job we do every day for kids."

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Taste of Blue Ash

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This year's concert lineup at Taste of Blue Ash, the annual food festival that returns this weekend, will be capped by the Guess Who. The band's name is more appropriate than ever. Like most "legacy bands," decades removed from their salad days, personnel changes have taken place, for better or worse. Here's a rundown of the Friday-Saturday classic rock acts. Sunday's lineup goes country and includes singer/songwriters Justin Moore and Phil Vassar.

The Guess Who

Peak: Early 1970s

Heyday hits: "These Eyes," "American Woman," "No Time," "Share the Land," "Hand Me Down World." "Clap for the Wolfman"

Still around: Bassist Jim Kale and drummer Garry Peterson

Gone: The band's two best-known members and songwriters: Guitarist Randy Bachman, who co-founded Bachman-Turner Overdrive in the '70s, and lead vocalist Burton Cummings.
Little River Band

Peak: Late 1970s

Heyday hits: "It's a Long Way There," "Reminiscing," "Cool Change"

Still around: American singer-guitarist Wayne Nelson, who joined the band in 1980 and was lead singer on "Night Owls"

Gone: Original members Beeb Birtles, Glenn Sherrock and Graeham Goble. They lost a fight over the Little River Band name and now tour as Birtles Sherrock Goble.
Atlanta Rhythm Section

Peak: Late 1970s

Heyday hits: "So Into You," "Champagne Jam," "Imaginary Lover"

Still around: Keyboardist-songwriter Dean Daughtry, previously of Classics IV ("Stormy")

Gone: Lead singer Ronnie Hammond, drummer-songwriter Robert Nix
Night Ranger

Peak: Mid-1980s

Heyday hits: "Sister Christian," "(You Can Still) Rock in America," "Sentimental Street"

Still around: "Sister Christian" lead vocalist and drummer Kelly Keagy, guitarist Brad Gillis, bassist-vocalist Jack Blades

Gone: Keyboardist Alan Fitzgerald, guitarist Jeff Watson
Player

Peak: Late 1970s

Heyday hits: "Baby Come Back," "This Time I'm In It for Love"

Still around: Guitarist and lead singer Peter Beckett, Ronn Moss

Gone: Keyboardist J.C. Crowley

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Tommy John Surgery

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The news that pitching phenom Stephen Strasburg is likely headed for Tommy John surgery put a stunning end to what had been one of the most mesmerizing stories of the the baseball season. Strasburg’s spectacular 14-strikeout debut for the Nationals in June had managed to exceed all the outsized hype that preceded it.

The Nationals announced Friday that a magnetic resonance imaging test revealed a significant tear of the ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching arm. The team said he was headed to get a second opinion and if the original diagnosis is confirmed, he would have the surgery immediately.

That means only 12 games into his major league career, Strasburg, 22, is facing a 12-to-18-month recovery from the operation and perhaps another season to recover his form. Strasburg, the No. 1 pick in the 2009 draft, seemed headed for superstardom and now looks like a lot of young pitchers whose arms fail suddenly.

“It’s a tough day for him and for all of us, for everyone who’s a Nats fan,” the Nationals’ president, Stan Kasten, said in a conference call with reporters on Friday, a day after Jordan Zimmerman pitched for the first time after his Tommy John surgery a year ago. “We saw Jordan come back last night. A year from today, Stephen will be joining him.”

That is the optimistic end of the timeline, but about 90 percent of major league pitchers who have undergone the surgery have been coming back successfully. In fact, nine of the pitchers selected for the 2010 All-Star game had undergone the surgery.

Trouble first surfaced for Strasburg in July, when he was placed on the 15-day disabled list because of inflammation in his right shoulder. He returned two weeks ago, but his season lasted just three more starts. He was pulled from Saturday’s game against Philadelphia in the fourth inning after grabbing his arm and wincing in pain after throwing a changeup.

The team initially called it a strained flexor tendon in his forearm, but further testing revealed the ligament tear.

“The player was developed and cared for in the correct way, and things like this happen,” Nationals General Manager Mike Rizzo said in the conference call. “Pitchers break down, pitchers get hurt and we certainly are not second-guessing ourselves. Frustrated? Yes. But second-guessing ourselves? No.”

Strasburg was not made available on the conference call for comment. He is headed to California for the second opinion, the team said.

“As you can imagine, he was initially upset, but he has really turned himself from being upset to being focused on his rehabilitation,” Rizzo said. “He’s determined to get the surgery done and begin the process of rehabilitation.”



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Barclays Leaderboard

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The Barclays Leaderboard golf Tournament started with great enthusiasm by players like Tiger Woods and many others yesterday. The golf tournament started off with some great shots by the famous players and Tiger Woods has surprised many of his fans by showing a perfect game after such a huge downfall in the world of respect. All the players which are more than one hundred and twenty are competing for this tournament and the reward for the winner of this whole tournament is worthwhile. This latest tournament has been held in the Ridgewood County Club in Paramus in New Jersey. The starting date for this event was 26th of August 2010. Tomorrow will be the day when this tournament will finalize the righteous owner of the great amount of seven million and five hundred thousand dollars.

Recently the Barclays Leaderboard has given its new rankings which tell us that John Senden is on the top position of this tournament followed by Tiger Woods on the third. The fans of golf who are interested in watching the Barclays Leaderboard can switch on their internet and visit the latest rankings on the website of this event. Tiger Woods has given a great performance in this tournament after a big stress in his life that had been disturbing him after his divorce that took place recently. The Barclays golf tournament will be aired live on the ESPN sports channel as well as the official websites of PGA tour. The people can also watch this sport
on the online steaming websites of Justin TV and Ustream.

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B Of A

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Thanks for visit, Sometimes the most important aspects of a subject in this case is b of a are not immediately obvious. I hope you’ll find complete picture.
B Of A Welcome to Bank of America, the nation's leading financial institution and home for all of your personal financial needs. excerpt from web
Bank Of America | Home | Personal Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) is a financial services company, the largest bank holding company in the United States, by assets, and the second largest bank by market … excerpt from web
Bank Of America – Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia Use this page to tell us where you bank, so we may offer you the products and services available in your area. excerpt from web

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Restoring Honor Rally

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Last night Jon Stewart claimed that, since he and his staff are about to embark on a 10-day vacation, there was “one important event we’re not going to be around to cover.” He then launched into a 10 minute segment that described, ridiculed and bewildered at Glenn Beck’s “Restoring Honor” Rally planned for this Saturday at the Lincoln Memorial, the same exact day and place that Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” Speech that helped shape this country’s civil rights movement of the 60’s.

Hardcore fans of The Daily Show and dyed-in-the-wool progressives may actually end up being disappointed in Stewart’s effort to deride Beck and his efforts. Sure, there are lots of funny jokes in the following segment — regarding the alleged co-opting of MLK’s famed time and place in civil right’s history, Stewart said “some people see insensitivity, Glenn Beck sees an insensi-tunity.” But given the very high standards to which Stewart holds himself – particularly when it comes to debunking mythic opinion media leaders that he finds absurdly hypocritical – some may watch the following segment and come away disappointed.

The challenge in openly mocking Glenn Beck is that he is very slippery target. He’s not really the two-dimensional buffoon, as many who don’t regularly watch his show consider him. Is he immune to criticism? Of course not – but the outline of his alleged absurdities and hypocrisies are littered with banal comedy killers like “faith,” “hope,” and “charity.” The fact that Beck has publicly asked that no political signs be displayed at his rally doesn’t help those eager to mock him, fairly or unfairly.

There is of course the Goldline controversy , which makes a predictably funny appearance below. But the math of all the comedy bits built into the segment below, doesn’t quite up to the amount of “funny” one would expect from Jon Stewart.



The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10c
I Have a Scheme
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full EpisodesPolitical HumorTea Party

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Takers Review: New Movie Reviews

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Takers  is the kind of movie where tough guys walk away from an explosion, in slow-motion, without looking behind them. But don't worry! It is also the kind of movie where a man leaps sideways, in slow-motion, while firing two guns at the same time! And the kind of movie where that man is Hayden Christensen!

If you're not hooked already, I don't know what else I can tell you. Directed generically by John Luessenhop from a screenplay written blandly by him and three others, Takers is a buffet of Gritty Crime Drama clichés that offers no surprises but nothing egregiously stupid, either. Basically, you shouldn't see it on purpose, but if you are abducted and required to see it, don't feel like you need to struggle too hard to get away.

Our heroes (I think) are a group of suave, handsome bank robbers. Always dressed to the nines and prone to lounging in the finest nightclubs after a job, these are fancy thieves! And a good-looking bunch they are, too. Christensen plays A.J., who is a street-wise Ivy Leaguer, which means he has tattoos AND a stupid hat. Idris Elba is Gordon, a British cat with a drug-addled aunt (Marianne Jean-Baptiste) causing him problems. Michael Ealy and noted Rihanna-puncher Chris Brown play brothers Jake and Jesse, and Paul Walker is their leader, John.

What's that you say? Paul Walker and Hayden Christensen in the same movie? That's like having a movie with a plank of wood in it, and then also, in that same movie, having an identical plank of wood!

These guys, the takers, are the ones we're supposed to sympathize with, of course, what with the natty clothing and general smoothness. But pursuing them are a couple of cops, Jack (Matt Dillon) and Eddie (Jay Hernandez). One is a loose cannon who doesn't play by the rules, while the other is a family man with a sick kid.

The takers have just finished a job when their old associate, Ghost (Tip "T.I." Harris), gets out of prison with info on a new heist they could pull. Ghost got caught during a robbery back in '04, and the crew isn't sure whether they can trust him or if he's bitter about doing time. They're also on edge because Jake is now dating Ghost's ex-girlfriend (Zoe Saldana).

You see all these elements and you think: These spare parts could be fashioned into something reasonably entertaining. It's not necessarily a bad thing for a movie to be formulaic. You do wish for just a hint of originality, though. Just a trace? Just one thing that we haven't seen in every other Gritty Crime Drama? Alas, no, it's the usual Internal Affairs breathing down a cop's neck, and a squirrelly informant saying, "I don't know nothin' about that!," and detectives using a hand gesture caught on a surveillance camera to determine who a masked bandit is.

Luessenhop (whose only other film, 2000's Lockdown, was a violent prison drama) directs the action scenes chaotically, as is the style of the day, so that even a sequence where Chris Brown does parkour (!) is rendered less exciting than it should have been. Thematically, the story itself is just as jumbled: Whose side are we on? The question of who's "right" and who's "wrong" seems to have been decided randomly, or perhaps based on the relative fame of the cast members. You can't take the movie as seriously as it wants to be taken, but it will not bore you when it shows up in heavy rotation on HBO in a few months.

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Livia Bistriceanu

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Livia Bistriceanu:Leonardo DiCaprio has been dating a super model Bar Refaeli on and off for 5 years. However, a woman named Livia Bistriceanu (check it to Facebook  profile http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000476147426&ref=search), argues that the marriage with DiCaprio.

Bistriceanu was persecution DiCaprio for a long time, and he had enough. She allegedly tried to contact him several times, through letters, e-mail, and even appears in his house. According to her, they were married, and now she is his child by the name of Jesus.


Court testimony from DiCaprio says: “Without a restraining order, I fear, will not be sufficient mechanisms of law enforcement agencies to keep Ms. Bistriceanu from me or those around me, especially since it  apparently supports the delusional belief she is my wife and holding my son, Jesus, recently announced and / or threats that we will live together, forever … His Kingdom ” was found and identified in my house, and  has shown willingness to make contact with me, regardless of the consequences.”

DiCaprio apparently fearing Bistriceanu. He received a restraining order, which orders her to at least 100 meters away from the Hollywood star. DiCaprio hopes that this is sufficient that

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Lincoln Memorial

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Thousands of people are being expected to gather this Saturday in the Lincoln Memorial. The Glenn Beck rally is going to be held at the Lincoln Memorial and many of the gamblers and redskin fans will be present today at the Memorial. This evening many of the baseball fans will be in NY on eve of the rally to watch the Jets play with the Washington. This game will be a preseason game and the game will be full of excitement and entertainment.

The Beck Rally is not going to be a political rally or something like this said Beck himself, however the democrats in the Washington are calling this a big bluff. They are saying that any person who has got a chance to watch Beck on the TV knows that this rally at the Lincoln Memorial is going to be a political one. The really has been touted by the talk show as the restoring honor gathering. Most of the people also think that this rally might be a political rally because Beck is arranging most of the things.

The Democrats are not so happy by the rally and all of the party’s representatives are trying to prove this rally a total bluff for the people and they are trying to convince the local residents that it is a political rally not any type of a restoring honor gathering. The redskins will be the favorite today and the crowd will cheer for the team, the redskins are looking in a better form than their opponents and they have more chance of winning the game.

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UFC 118 Weigh In

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The UFC 118 weigh in fights has been scheduled and the recent fight between Edgar and Penn was the most interesting and amazing one for the fans of Ultimate Fighting Championships. The fighters are very fresh and determined to win the final match in different bouts. The Ultimate Fighting Championships has announced this great event to entertain the fans and display the skills of various fighters. This huge event has been held in the TD Garden in Boston and this same place will be hosting the same event on the policy of Pay per View. All the twenty competitors are in full form to throw down their opponents with great force. This huge fighting force event has attracted fans from all over the world.

The famous fighters including the top fifth fighter James Toney have been greeted by their fan with great enthusiasm in the Octagon. One of the main events of the UFC 118 weigh in is the match between Penn and

Frankie Edgar which is being awaited by many fans. The UFC 118 weigh in posts have been uploaded on the internet. This time new types of celebrations for their victory has been seen by some players like Gabe Ruedigar who gave a cake to his opponent. Giving away a cake was a new style of celebrating victory. The UFC 118 weigh ins have been announced to the fans and the main event fighter Penn is expected to give some greater entertainment to the fans. More details will be updated on the internet about the Ultimate Fighting Championships soon.

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Nicole John Dead

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The 17-year-old daughter of Eric John, the U.S. ambassador to Thailand, died tragically early this morning after a late night of partying at Tenjune in the Meatpacking District followed by drinks at a friend's Midtown high-rise apartment.

The diplomat's daughter, who had a fake Brazilian ID, apparently took her shoes off, climbed out the window onto the ledge of Herald Towers on 34th Street, and fell onto a third-floor landing. The fall appeared to be an accident, Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said. About 10 people were inside the apartment at the time; by the time officers arrived, the apartment had been completely cleaned up (i.e., there was no alcohol present). Investigators found a small camera beside John's body, suggesting that she may have climbed outside to take a picture.

Sources told the Daily News that Ilan Nassimi, 25, the party's host, was charged with giving alcohol to the 17-year-old, who recently graduated from the International School in Bangkok and was set to begin classes at Parsons School of Design this fall.

herald towers.jpg
via Herald Towers website
In New York City, 388 people died from accidental falls in 2008, according to the city's most recent summary of vital statistics. A representative from Herald Towers confirmed that the 25th floor from which John fell is the top floor of the building, and that the ledges outside the top levels are wider than that of the lower floors. The representative would not answer further questions because the investigation is still underway.

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Mlgpro

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MLGPro's subtheorist let us know that they've got five early-access Mythic Map Pack codes to give away - just make a post in this thread on their forum before Monday evening, and you're eligible to win one!



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The Last Exorcism Ending Review

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The Last Exorcism Ending:Until about the last 8 minutes or so, I was really in the last demons. Then it all fell apart in the end, but in such a way that actually kind of interesting to dissect.

Director Daniel Stamm, who previously made a suicide pseudo-necessary death, uses a similar style here, it is interesting that at first feels almost like a Christopher Guest movie (yes, in the first part of the movie is actually very funny) before taking a sharp turn somewhere something about an average of Nowhere, Louisiana, toward a more “Blair Witch-paranormal” find frames “style.

For me, this method was less effective than here, “Blair Witch (who is afraid of me, but I kind of nausea), or paranormal phenomena (which, frankly, scary enough for me, when I looked Slamdance screener him to his room in Park City hotel a few years ago that I made one of my guy friends sleep in the room with me that night – and we both wanted the bathroom light left on).

I think partly why this is so that both “The Blair Witch Project and the Paranormal felt a certain extent, they may actually be” found footage “as they were shot and cut, while the latter feels the demons themselves too clever to be that Faux true feelings. This is still a good movie, though – until the end. But we’ll get to that in a minute.

Last demon starts by introducing us to the Rev. Mark Cotton (Patrick Fabian), a cynical evangelist fundamentalists, who in addition to getting his congregation riled and reaching deep into their wallets every Sunday, performs random exorcism on the side – - a task he believes the same emotional off, with which, say, an engineer-programmer can see sometimes gets the contract by creating a Web site for additional funds. Someone should (read: they believe that their loved one is possessed by a demon), cottonseed provides services to solve their problems (read: he “exorcises” demon, using various methods as old as snake-oil merchants).

Cotton, you see, was trained at the knee of his father’s profession of preaching, since it was just a tiny baby. He never knew any other way, nor are any other options show it (though he notes, with self-deprecating smile, that his skills could be used as well, selling things), and now he’s here with his wife, son and a mortgage to pay, so the same as anyone else, and the preaching work that pays the bills, nothing more.

He sees not as a sermon calling from God, because only then that his work – although he was very convincing in his flock, and not short them on the sale of his passion for the task, but may be false). In this regard, the cotton does not differ from those who bravely does the job they’re stuck in for years or decades, because the account must be paid, and this is the way in which they have chosen to trade time for money.

However, cotton does not mean the goods or used cars, it has a case to the faith of his flock, his faith in both the higher power and what comes after death, as God and the devil (you can not believe one without believing in the other, Subtitle film tells us). Cotton seems to believe in none, but his lack of faith – or perhaps more accurately, his belief that everything he sells his collection every week, one big con – is about to be shaken.

Cotton decided to invite the documentary filmmakers of his last exorcism in order to expose all the secret tricks of casters used in carrying out their hocus-pocus (there is an annular explanation of why he decided to do such a thing, but really, it feels like someone asked: ” And why did he do it? “and someone molded reason).

With documentaries cotton, in short, to reveal the man himself the man behind the green curtain, destroying the faith of believers in demonic possession, opening the “possession”, all in the mind of the victim and exorcising demons is Salon trick. Toward that end, he chooses as his final “client” from the stack exorcism requests on his desk an envelope containing a request for weathering Aid, Louis, the widow of a farmer in rural Louisana, who is afraid of her young daughter was possessed by a demon.

So Cotton and his friends go to the director of rural Louisiana – a superstitious place where people believe in things like witchcraft, satanic cults and demonic possession in such a way that the urban hipster believes in a studio apartment furnised by IKEA, the importance of good coffee and the need for tight jeans: they are part of the landscape of the region, it is impossible to imagine life without them.

If we did not already know, and we believe that it is, the film hammers it home, threw in some interviews with local-men who convince us that all who live in rural Lousiana, or half-crazy and half-stupid, or some combination thereof. In addition, they do not sense of fashion and trends are bad teeth, but they are very funny to listen to and quite easy to feel smug above, such as cotton confirms occasionally nudge-wink in the general direction of the camera.

All this part of the film, incidentally, was very inadequate, there is a hint here and there that you can come, but in a way that hints dropped, for example, in an episode of Scooby Doo, to mislead us, as who the real villain, than in ways that could actually expand and grow our sense of fear and awe. This is the point of the film, on which we should begin to feel that all may not be exactly as cotton is planned, and instead is largely wasted, laughing at the stupid locals who believe in Satan, and UFOs. Oh, those rural people of Louisiana! Are not they a pack of characters? Yee-ha-ha.

We finally get to a remote farm Switzer, Louis (Louis Herthum), his loyal, defensive son Caleb (Caleb Landry Jones) and his sweet – although it may possess one of the minions of Satan – a 16-year-old daughter, Nell (Ashley Bell) and it was here that the film is a sudden transition from pseudo-comic style ala “The Guest” and the company, and in the realm of pseudo-horror. Because Nell … Hu boy.

She is so sweet, so stuttering and shy, so innocent … except when it is not. Cattle keep raising the dead, and Nell continues to wake up with her white, little house on the Prairie-style nightgowns, covered with blood, not knowing what she did at night during sleep. Brother Caleb is protective of his sister (or he?), On the ground trying to escape the preacher and his loyal crew of the camera, it seemed to establish some partnerships with cotton.

Louis, in turn, is distraught about the death of his wife two years ago (she was buried in the yard, I do not think that is legal here in Seattle, but apparently that’s how they behave in a rural Louisiana), and is concerned about how what might be going with her daughter in jthere here and now, and the state of her soul for all eternity (or it’s more than he seems?)

From there, things go rapidly from bad to worse, as cotton is faced with increasing signs that Nell can not be only one case of a mentally ill person who thinks she’s possessed by demons, but actually, in real life, the holy-shit-that – hell-was this an instance of possession of her-gosh minion of hell. And all this, for the most part, done very effectively. Cast of unknowns (required for pseudo-format) gives a good performance overall, bolstered by some pretty impressive turns Patrick Fabian as cotton and Ashley Bell, as Nell. However, there are a few things that keep the demons from the last truly great horror film.

The first problem (which, frankly, the studio could not see a problem at all) solutions, which were apparently made in order to get the coveted PG-13 rating and thus ensure that teens who love horror movies, will be flock to theaters to see this movie. And I get what I really … Why do you want your film be rated R, and cut out all those precious dollars a box, if you can help him? For most of the film, it works just fine, but as the tension ramps, and we have the climax of the film, Stamm pulls back too far, decides some things are too fast, pressing the envelope a little more had been done so much to increase the feeling of really scary .

In 1973, William Friedkin pushed things uncomfortable with the extreme Linda Blair in the Exorcist, with scenes that still make audiences squirm in their seats. If you want to make a film in which the slogan tells you that if you believe in God, you have to believe in the devil, you swear to do better than the devil scary as, well, hell – and too often pulls Stamm ago, when he feels like he should have pulled ahead.

Maybe it was the result of reducing the studio, rather than director’s decision, in which he directly controls, but in any case, there were times when I felt cheated out of my fear of pushing the point that I wanted to look away as I want in a movie horror. In addition, the image on the poster you see outside the multiplex with demonic beautiful girl crawling spiders, as well as on the ceiling? It will not happen – at least not quite so – in the film, which I think is a little marketing trick. If you’re going to market a movie like “Hey, we have extreme demonic possession is going on here!” do not wuss in the final product.

Despite this, pull back, I still find the last demon is very fun and enjoyable (and yes, sometimes even scary) to go, and I was really with what happened to the last 10 minutes or so of the film, when it is simply to hell in a handbasket, and not for the better. However, my reaction to end partly stems from the script I want to stay with Man of God who had lost faith vibe, ala Exorcist, instead, a sharp left turn onto Moderately Stupid, what it does, but it is what it is.

I’m not going to spoil you as just the end of almost all the ruins that came before it, but really, you’re better than just leaving the theater, yet he did not at that point and a much more satisfying ending myself, than what the movie delivers. You do not, I know, but believe me, after sitting until the end you want, like me, that you, and you’ll be mentally pumping his fist producer of the last 10 minutes. So do not say you were not warned.

Nevertheless, despite these shortcomings, I must recommend the latest Exorcist, and give it a positive assessment of the total, because the rest of the film is really well done, and to act as aforesaid, is so strong that I feel obliged to do so. There are things that the film is very intelligent and links as Exorcist, and I think one of my favorite horror movies ever Changeling, and even that seems a little tribute Poltergeist is also one character. There are also some of Rosemary’s Baby mixed there, and undoubtedly other links horror that people are more versed in the genre, which I had not noticed.

performed by Ashley Bell, as Nell rather specatacular – it transfers trusting, confused innocence, all the little girl lost 1 minute and the next, she was smiling slyly at the camera behind cotton with knowing the threat, which will send a shiver your spine. And Fabian, as the preacher-with-crisis-of-faith are great, so convincingly, with cynical charm and AW-hurt about the shell game, he believes that he draws on both his congregation and his clients exorcism, but eventually shaking his loafers as he is forced to confront their own fears.

Last demons not shocker that “The Blair Witch Project was, and is not terribly surprising in the paranormal, but generally does a good job for most of its length runs of tapping into our own fears and sending a shiver of our collective spine, and certainly , feeds much of his work. And in the summer generally weak films, that in itself makes it worth catching … Despite a miserable end.

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Luna Vachon Dies At 48

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There is sad news for the WWE fans, the wrestling legend Luna Vachon has died. The former WWE superstar Luna Vachon died at the age of forty eight in Florida. She died yesterday morning. The cause of her death could not been known but it is said that her death might be the result of using anabolic steroids. The wrestlers of the WWE normally use anabolic steroids and almost all of the WWE superstars use them on daily basis. According to the doctors the use of these steroids without the doctor’s prescription is very injurious to health, though they show good results in the beginning of their use but they soon show their true colors as the user gets older, the people who have used them before die before age, they livers fail, their hearth becomes weak etc. and all of this results as the death of the person.

Luna Vachon was found unresponsive at the house of her mother in Florida. According to the relatives and friends of Vachon she was living in her mother’s house because her house was burnt some time ago. The World Wrestling Entertainment has stated that it has been told about the death of the former WWE superstar and WWE extends the condolences with the family and friends of Luna. She retired from wrestling in 2000. She wrestled for the World Wrestling Entertainment between 1993 & 2000. She signed many contracts for the WWE and she played with the name Luna in the WWE. Her real name was Gertrude Vachon.

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Drake Twitter

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Drake and Nicki Minaj are the latest topic of discussion for the fans of music nowadays as there had been some rumors about this couple that they are going to be married soon. Friday Afternoon both of these celebrities exchanged some status updates with each other related to marriage. Both of them said each other about getting married. At the request of the fans Nicki replied their piles of questions and also stated that she and Drake have married each other. Drake twitter account has also given some other statements related to Nicki Minaj. After some time Drake Twitter account admitted that he has been married to Nicki and she is finally his wife. Drake Also mentioned the new name of his wife which is Mrs. Drake.

The people who are still confused about the marriage of this couple can connect to their twitter accounts and talk to these famous personalities about it. According to the media this is not the first time that Drake has

admitted his love for Nicki. Drake had been mentioning the name of Nicki Minaj in most of his latest songs as well. Drake displayed his love for Nicki in the lyrics of his songs which are quite impressive and entertaining. Nicki Minaj and Drake Twitter Accounts had been watched by the media with great care as they were one of the few celebrities who would provide them with the latest news. This news has been spread a lot in the most of the parts of this world and these two celebrities are declared as men and wife from now on.

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BofA

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NEW YORK (Reuters) – A Manhattan federal judge refused to dismiss shareholder lawsuits against Bank of America Corp (BAC.N) and various executives and directors over the purchase of Merrill Lynch & Co during the 2008 financial crisis and disclosures about Merrill's losses and bonus payouts.

U.S. District Judge P. Kevin Castel issued his 140-page ruling late on Friday afternoon. Nine days earlier, the largest U.S. bank and former Chief Executive Kenneth Lewis denied civil fraud charges made in a separate lawsuit by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo over the merger.

Bank of America spokeswoman Shirley Norton said the Charlotte, North Carolina-based lender was reviewing the ruling. Lawyers for bank shareholders in the lawsuits did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

Lewis had been hailed for saving Merrill from possible collapse when he agreed to buy it on September 15, 2008, the same day Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc (LEHMQ.PK) went bankrupt.

But problems at Merrill later forced Bank of America to get a second infusion of federal bailout money.

The bank was also criticized for not disclosing Merrill's soaring losses in a timely manner and for letting Merrill pay $3.6 billion of bonuses at the time. Merrill's losses reached $15.84 billion in the fourth quarter of 2008.

Some of the claims Castel declined to dismiss related to alleged material misstatements over Merrill's bonuses and the scope of Merrill's losses. Another claim related to whether the bank intentionally hid an agreement with regulators to obtain bailout money.

He dismissed claims over whether the bank should have conducted better due diligence, and should have revealed why it considered invoking a contractual clause to back out of the merger.

Bank of America earlier this year settled a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission civil fraud case over the merger.

In a separate 45-page ruling, the judge dismissed a lawsuit by Bank of America employees over losses in retirement plans, where the bank's stock was an investment option.

Shares of Bank of America traded at $33.74 just before the Merrill merger, but fell as low as $2.53 in February 2009, little more than five months later. They closed Friday up 17 cents at $12.64 on the New York Stock Exchange.

The case is In re: Bank of America Corp Securities, Derivative and Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) Litigation, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 09-2058.

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BankofAmerica

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The people were very annoyed because they were not getting access to their online account on bankofamerica.com. The customers of the bank of America were very angry yesterday because bankofamerica.com was down preventing the customers of the bank from doing online banking. The bankofamerica.com stayed down for many hours and the customers of the bank did not get access to their accounts.

The reasons behind it could not be known but there must have been some sort of errors in the servers of the website. The bankofamerica.com is a very congested site and people from all around the country visit the website and manage their online accounts, but thousands of people were affected and no one could do anything on his/her account.

The ATM system of the bank of working normally and the people went to the local ATM machines to get any amount they needed. The website did manage to get to its ATM machines nationwide and run them successfully. After five pm the website began to open but still a lot of people could not access their accounts and the restoring of the website like this meant nothing for the people who could not access their accounts. After the website was restored it was still running slow than normal and accessing the accounts was not very easy. The bank is updating its customers on its twitter account you may follow them on Twitter to stay updated about the website or you can also call the bank’s helpline services that are open 24 hours a day.

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MLG

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Catching up with USC's professional baseball alumni

THE SHOW

Steve Pearce, 1B, Pittsburgh
Hitting .276 with no homers and five RBIs in 15 games. Is on the 60-day disabled list with a sprained right ankle and likely done for the season.

Landon Powell, C, Oakland
Hitting .217 with one homer and eight RBIs in 29 games.

Brian Roberts, 2B, Baltimore
Hitting .246 with two homers and eight RBIs in 31 games. Has stolen six bases.

Steven Tolleson, 2B, Oakland
Hitting .300 with no homers and no RBIs in nine games. Called up to majors two weeks ago.

MINOR LEAGUES

Parker Bangs, RHP, Arizona League Royals (Kansas City)
Is 0-0 with an 18.00 ERA in two games. Has struck out none and walked four in one inning.

Mike Cisco, RHP, Double-A Reading (Philadelphia)
Is 3-9 with a 5.12 ERA in 13 games with 13 starts. Has struck out 41 and walked 18 in 70 1-3 innings.

Blake Cooper, RHP, Single-A Missoula (Arizona)
Is 0-0 with a 6.75 ERA in four games. Has struck out three and walked one in four innings.

Justin Dalles, C, Single-A Delmarva (Baltimore)
Hitting .215 with four homers and 14 RBIs in 46 games.

James Darnell, 3B, Double-A San Antonio (San Diego)
Hitting .256 with 10 homers and 39 RBIs in 85 games.

Sam Dyson, RHP (Toronto)
Signed with the Blue Jays just before the deadline last week, but has not been assigned to a minor-league team yet. Is expected to be sent to short-season Auburn.

Bobby Haney, SS, Arizona League Giants (San Francisco)
Hitting .241 with no homers and nine RBIs in 15 games.

Reese Havens, SS, Double-A Binghamton (New York Mets)
Hitting .338 with six homers and 12 RBIs in 18 games. Is on the seven-day disabled list with oblique soreness.

Jeff Jeffords, RHP, Single-A Advanced Lynchburg (Cincinnati)
Is 2-1 with a 3.71 ERA in 34 games. Has struck out 52 and walked 20 in 51 innings.

DeAngelo Mack, OF, Single-A Charleston (New York Yankees)
Hitting .257 with 11 homers and 54 RBIs in 111 games. Is on the seven-day disabled list.

Marcus McBeth, RHP, Triple-A Sacramento (Oakland)
Is 0-1 with a 6.46 ERA in 14 games. Has struck out 14 and walked 16 in 15 1-3 innings. Is on the seven-day disabled list.

Kevin Melillo, 2B, Triple-A Indianapolis (Pittsburgh)
Hitting .274 with eight homers and 35 RBIs in 85 games.

Whit Merrifield, 2B, Single-A Burlington (Kansas City)
Hitting .238 with three homers and 15 RBIs in 32 games.

Drew Meyer, 2B, Triple-A Salt Lake (L.A. Angels)
Hitting .276 with one homer and 13 RBIs in 32 games. Is on the seven-day disabled list.

Wynn Pelzer, RHP, Double-A Bowie (Baltimore)
Is 0-0 with a 4.26 ERA in six games. Has struck out 14 and walked four in 12 2-3 innings.

Jordan Propst, RHP, Arizona League Royals (Kansas City)
Has no statistics, according to the team. Is not likely to play soon due a torn ligament in his throwing elbow.

Justin Smoak, 1B, Triple-A Tacoma (Seattle)
Hitting .233 with four homers and 10 RBIs in 20 games.

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Glenn Beck Rally

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NBC's Tom Costello, on Friday's Today show, in previewing Glenn Beck's rally at the Lincoln Memorial this weekend, focused on the racial insensitivity of the Tea Partiers as he reminded NBC's viewers that at last year's  rally in Washington "there were a lot of signs that had rather racist overtones. The concern is that might be repeated this time. By the way, many Beck followers, who are coming, are being urged to avoid African-American areas and avoid conflict."



Costello began his story noting that while "Glenn Beck says that Dr. King is a hero of his" he is still "defiant in his right to be here" and then went on to cite political analyst Stu Rothenberg in insisting "this weekend's event could carry risk for Republicans."

The following is the full Costello story as it was aired on the August 27 Today show:
Story Continues Below Ad ↓

    ANN CURRY: Radio and Fox News host Glenn Beck is promising a massive rally in Washington this weekend to, quote, "Restore honor in America." He plans to do it at the same spot and on the anniversary of Martin Luther King's "I have a dream" speech and that is stirring some controversy. NBC's Tom Costello is at the Lincoln Memorial this morning with more on this. Tom, good morning.

    [On screen headline: "'Restoring Honor' Glenn Beck's Rally On MLK Anniversary"]

    TOM COSTELLO: Ann, good morning to you. And Glenn Beck says that Dr. King is a hero of his, and for that reason he will not stand on the same step that Dr. King stood on in 1963. He plans to stand a few steps below that. That said, he is defiant in his right to be here. What happened on this very spot 47 years ago tomorrow was among the most pivotal moments in American history.

    DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.: I have a dream today.

    COSTELLO: But conservative host Glenn Beck also has a dream.

    GLENN BECK: We will mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.

    COSTELLO: Beck is hoping his rally this weekend will rival last year's anti-tax rally that attracted tens, perhaps hundreds of thousands of people, many of them tea party activists. Increasingly Beck has been evoking the civil rights movement and says this weekend is about restoring honor in America. He also insists he did not realize it was the anniversary of the March on Washington but, he says, that shouldn't matter.

    BECK: I'm sorry. African-Americans don't own Martin Luther King. It's a human idea just like white people don't own George Washington or Abraham Lincoln.

    COSTELLO: But Beck's comments about race have sometimes been inflammatory.

    BECK: This president, I think, has exposed himself as a guy over and over and over again who has a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture. I don't know what it is.

    SARAH PALIN: Do you love your freedom?

    COSTELLO: And joining Beck this weekend will be former Governor Sarah Palin, who last week defended talk show host NBC's Tom Costello, on Friday's Today show, in previewing Glenn Beck's rally at the Lincoln Memorial this weekend, focused on the racial insensitivity of the Tea Partiers as he reminded NBC's viewers that at last year's  rally in Washington "there were a lot of signs that had rather racist overtones. The concern is that might be repeated this time. By the way, many Beck followers, who are coming, are being urged to avoid African-American areas and avoid conflict."



Costello began his story noting that while "Glenn Beck says that Dr. King is a hero of his" he is still "defiant in his right to be here" and then went on to cite political analyst Stu Rothenberg in insisting "this weekend's event could carry risk for Republicans."

The following is the full Costello story as it was aired on the August 27 Today show:
Story Continues Below Ad ↓

    ANN CURRY: Radio and Fox News host Glenn Beck is promising a massive rally in Washington this weekend to, quote, "Restore honor in America." He plans to do it at the same spot and on the anniversary of Martin Luther King's "I have a dream" speech and that is stirring some controversy. NBC's Tom Costello is at the Lincoln Memorial this morning with more on this. Tom, good morning.

    [On screen headline: "'Restoring Honor' Glenn Beck's Rally On MLK Anniversary"]

    TOM COSTELLO: Ann, good morning to you. And Glenn Beck says that Dr. King is a hero of his, and for that reason he will not stand on the same step that Dr. King stood on in 1963. He plans to stand a few steps below that. That said, he is defiant in his right to be here. What happened on this very spot 47 years ago tomorrow was among the most pivotal moments in American history.

    DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.: I have a dream today.

    COSTELLO: But conservative host Glenn Beck also has a dream.

    GLENN BECK: We will mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.

    COSTELLO: Beck is hoping his rally this weekend will rival last year's anti-tax rally that attracted tens, perhaps hundreds of thousands of people, many of them tea party activists. Increasingly Beck has been evoking the civil rights movement and says this weekend is about restoring honor in America. He also insists he did not realize it was the anniversary of the March on Washington but, he says, that shouldn't matter.

    BECK: I'm sorry. African-Americans don't own Martin Luther King. It's a human idea just like white people don't own George Washington or Abraham Lincoln.

    COSTELLO: But Beck's comments about race have sometimes been inflammatory.

    BECK: This president, I think, has exposed himself as a guy over and over and over again who has a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture. I don't know what it is.

    SARAH PALIN: Do you love your freedom?

    COSTELLO: And joining Beck this weekend will be former Governor Sarah Palin, who last week defended talk show host Laura Schlessinger's repeated use of the "n" word, as freedom of speech, saying it wasn't being used in a racist manner.

    DR. LAURA SCHLESSINGER: And I'll say it again *bleep* *bleep* *bleep*

    COSTELLO: While Beck insists this is a nonpolitical gathering, analyst Stu Rothenberg says this weekend's event could carry risk for Republicans.

    STU ROTHENBERG: The Republican Party needs conservatives, needs the Tea Party activists but the Republican Party does not want to be defined by Tea Partiers or Glenn Beck.

    COSTELLO: Activist Reverend Al Sharpton, will also be in D.C., Saturday leading a march to mark the MLK anniversary but promises to avoid confrontation.

    AL SHARPTON: To go and confront him is to make it about him. That would, in my opinion and the opinion of many that are participating with us that day, would mock the memory of Dr. King.

    COSTELLO: So why this weekend? Beck says maybe it was meant to be.

    BECK: I believe in divine providence. It was not my intention it to select 8/28 because of the Martin Luther King tie.

    COSTELLO: Also, Beck says that he believes this is about reclaiming civil rights. Importantly, he says, they will not allow any campaign signs here at all. That may be rather tough to enforce given the scope and the size of this place. The trouble is, of course, last year there were a lot of signs that had rather racist overtones. The concern is that might be repeated this time. By the way, many Beck followers, who are coming, are being urged to avoid African-American areas and avoid conflict. Ann, back to you.

    CURRY: Okay. We'll see what happens. Tom Costello, thanks a lot.



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High School Football Rankings

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WPIAL CLASS AAA

1. Woodland Hills: If anybody in the area is able to plug holes from departed seniors, it's the Wolverines. Division I recruits Lafayette Pitts (RB/DB, headed to Pitt next year), Ejuan Price (LB), and Quinton Jefferson (DE) headline a stellar senior class, and junior linebacker Mike Caprara is on the fast track to join the blue-chip ranks. With such a strong returning core and despite questions of who will replace departed quarterback John Yezovich, the top spot belongs to the former champs until someone knocks them off.

2. Central Catholic: There are a lot of elements that make the Vikings an instant contender: size, speed, experience and overall talent. They have an exciting group of juniors in running back Damion Jones-Moore, receiver Anthony Nixon, and quarterback Perry Hills, among a handful of talented offensive linemen. Also keep an eye out for running back Arnell Farmer, who could join with Jones-Moore for a dynamic one-two punch in the backfield.

3. Bethel Park: The Black Hawks bring back only a handful of veterans from last season, but their seniors are as talented and experienced as they come. The running back pair of Nick Kwiatkoski and Bre Ford is as good as any in the WPIAL, and Max Bair is the anchor on the offensive line. Kwiatkoski will also be a key member of the defense at safety, the position he will play at West Virginia next fall. Head coach Jeff Metheny has built a strong foundation of success for the program with a 25-3 record and a WPIAL championship in the past two seasons.

4. Gateway: I'll admit, losing blue-chipper Dondi Kirby for the season with an ACL injury knocked the Gators down a spot or two, but they've got plenty of talent in reserve not to be counted out. Senior Armstead Williams is a solid receiver, and will also lead a corps of linebackers that should turn some heads this season. Sascha Craig is one of the best returning pass rushers in the area (11 sacks last season), and sophomore quarterback Tom Woodson should get plenty of opportunity to shine under the tutelage of head coach and former Gators WPIAL champion quarterback Terry Smith.

5. North Allegheny: They're already the favorite to win the Northern Seven Conference, and they got a huge offseason boost with the arrival of transfers Rob Kugler (TE/DE) and Sean Kugler (OL/DL) from Buffalo. Offensive lineman Justin Haser fits tightly into a group that should aptly handle paving the road for back-to-back 1,000-yard rusher Alex Papson. Quarterback play could be the difference for the Tigers, and that will be left to first-year starter Mike Buchert.

Look Out For: Erie McDowell, McKeesport, Mt. Lebanon, North Hills, Upper St. Clair

WPIAL CLASS AAA

1. West Allegheny: Bob Palko's Indians from Imperial are back on top of the mountain, and they have one of the area's top players leading the way in senior running back/defensive back Mike Caputo. One of the WPIAL's top rushers and the team's leading tackler on defense last season, he'll look to make another Heinz Field run before packing for Wisconsin next year. But first they'll have to keep a few strong challengers in the rear view throughout the season.

2. New Castle: In what could be a four-horse race for the second spot, the Red Hurricane might be the most experienced of the lot. Their high-powered offense is back with quarterback John Matarazzo at the helm after throwing for nearly 2,000 yards with a 65-percent completion percentage as a sophomore. Yeah, he's pretty good, and with a good number of starters returning from a team that reached the quarterfinals last year behind him, there's no reason to think they can't make a deeper run in 2010.

3. Hopewell: They have one of the best players in the nation in Rushel Shell, and he has already rushed for 4,200-plus yards in his first two seasons, but he's the Vikings' only returning starter on either side of the ball. Can last year's rushing champion carry his team on his back all the way to Heinz Field to finish the mission they fell short of last year? Their regular season finale and championship game rematch against West Allegheny on Oct. 28 will probably determine the top seed entering the WPIAL playoffs.

4. Chartiers Valley: Quarterback Wayne Capers Jr. is back healthy, and his all-around ability makes the Colts a dangerous force in the Big Eight Conference. Look for them to possibly steal the conference title from Thomas Jefferson this season, although that's a much harder job than it sounds. But with one of the WPIAL's best players back under center and a number of experienced veterans returning, it's not impossible.

5. Thomas Jefferson:This is probably one of the few times in this decade you'll see Bill Cherpak's Jaguars ranked so low, but what used to be a perennial power is undergoing a youth movement of sorts. Cherpak has said in the past this incoming group of freshmen could be the best class he's ever had by the time they're seniors, but junior running back Ryan Ruffing will have to shoulder the load on offense for the time being.

Look Out For: Franklin Regional, Greensburg Salem, Hampton, Mars, Montour

WPIAL CLASS AA

1. Greensburgh Central Catholic: The Centurions established their position as the team to beat in last year's championship game when they throttled powerhouse Aliquippa, 33-7. Of course they don't have running back David Miller or Trent Hurley anymore, but they still have the big, dominant line that paved the way for them. Quarterback Terrance Stepoli comes over as a transfer from Monessen, and he should make a big impact immediately. Sophomore defensive back Zach Guiser will be on the prowl to prove his seven-interception freshman season was no fluke.

2. South Fayette: If Greensburg Central is No. 1, then the Lions are more like 1-A. An undefeated regular season was marred by a quarterfinal loss to Aliquippa last year, but they have most of the firepower returning that they need to make a championship run. Quarterback Christian Brumbaugh was the WPIAL's best regular-season passer as a junior in 2009 (2,184 yards, 32 touchdowns), and running back Jeff Davis (1,209 yards, 21 touchdowns) gives South Fayette arguably the best all-around offensive attack in the area.

3. Keystone Oaks: You better believe Nick Kamberis's Golden Eagles want another shot at the defending champs after last year's 24-19 semifinal loss. The tag team of former Clearview Student-Athlete of the Week Matt McCann (1,751 yards, 22 touchdowns) and Jordan Maddox (1,441 yards, 24 touchdowns) was the WPIAL's only 1,000-yard rushing pair last season, and they did that with Maddox missing some time due to injury. Just imagine what they could accomplish with both of them healthy.

4. Aliquippa: After falling short in last year's WPIAL title game, the Quips are older, stronger, and (dare I say) better. Quarterback Mikal Hall threw for 1,045 yards and eight touchdowns as a sophomore, and the running game should get a serious boost from the tandem of seniors Darius Walker (649 yards, seven touchdowns) and Center transfer Ben Cobb. Head coach Mike Zmijanac is one of the best game-planners around, and his teams always seem to be ready to play. Don't count them out. Ever.

5. Freeport: Defense is the name of the game for the Yellowjackets, who rode out a seven-game winning streak to finish the 2009 regular season 8-1, allowing a touchdown or less in the last five. Most of that unit returns, led by senior linebacker Jake Campbell. They will challenge Shady Side Academy for the Allegheny Conference title that the Indians beat them for last season.

Look Out For: Beaver Falls, Ford City, Jeannette, Shady Side Academy, Steel Valley

WPIAL CLASS A

1. Clairton: Is there anything they can't do? They had the largest margin of victory in 2009 at 35.8 points per game, largely because they scored nearly 40 points per game and their defense had eight shutouts on their way to both the WPIAL and state crowns. Gone are Deontae Howard and Kevin Weatherspoon, but Desimon Green is back to lead the offense at quarterback (2,435 yards, 26 total touchdowns) and cause disruption at defensive end, where he'll play next fall at Pitt. Having a bunch of all-conference guys returning with him on defense doesn't hurt.

2. Rochester: Clairton was the only thing that stood between the Rams and their fifth WPIAL title in the past decade; that and a single point, the difference in last year's title game. They will be back to make sure they finish the job this time around, led by quarterback Jason Adamson (1,449 yards). They also had one of the area's best defenses last year, not allowing more than two touchdowns in a game. Another undefeated regular season isn't out of reach, but it won't be enough for the Rams if they can't win the last game of the season at Heinz Field.

3. Sto-Rox: For the first time since 2003, the Vikings are back in Class A. Gone are blue-chip quarterback Paul Jones (Penn State) and Drew Carswell (Pitt), but a quartet of talented juniors that saw plenty of playing time as sophomores are ready to take up the mantle. Deaysean Rippey (WR/LB) is already a Division I prospect. Quarterback Jordan Latimer did an admirable job while Jones was out with his ankle injury. Joshuae Beverly was the team's leading rusher last season, and Dontez Ford is a stud in the making at wide receiver/defensive back.

4. North Catholic: The men of Troy ruled the Eastern Conference with an iron fist last season with an undefeated record, and reached the semifinals before falling to Rochester by only a touchdown last season. Quarterback Martin Long threw for 1,249 yards and 12 touchdowns as a junior, and ran for another 400-plus yards. He's going to need help in the ground game since last year's leading rusher, Julian Durden, transferred to Montour.

5. Beth-Center: There's plenty of room for a dark horse in Class A, why not Beth-Center? The Bulldogs fell only a game short of winning the Tri-County South Conference championship, and their best offensive weapons -- Deshan Brown (RB), Sal Faieta (QB), Jeremy Price (WR), and Jake Sofran (RB) -- all played significant time as sophomores. They should help to progress an offense that tied for fourth in the league in scoring with over 300 points last year.

Look Out For: Bishop Canevin, Jefferson-Morgan, Monessen, Serra Catholic, South Side Beaver, Springdale

CITY LEAGUE

1. Perry: Perry has the talent to regain the place atop the city ranks that it held for so long, led by quarterback Greg McGhee, the consensus best player in the league. He'll have plenty of help around him with the likes of receivers Gerald Sherrell and Devin Ghafor.

2. Schenley: The defending champs return with multi-threat quarterback/defensive back De'Andre Black returning to lead the charge. Head coach Jason Black said after the championship game his team succeeded last year because of "incredible heart," but it's going to take more than that for the Spartans to defend their place on the City League throne.

3. Brashear: It's hard to believe the Bulls could replace such top-flight talent as Manasseh Garner, Henri Chatman, and Bruce Patterson, but they're going to give it a go with a veteran offensive line and skill players Manny Reed, Dom Patterson and Joe Nesbit to plug the holes on the depth chart.

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Rashard Mendenhall

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Rashard Mendenhall, The “fumble-prone” label is one that hits a ball carrier, often long after the time is actually applicable. A lot of runners at some point in their careers are prone to coughing up the pigskin or at least perceived.

More often than not, they will eventually have to fix, and go on to have a healthy career with soccer balls secured. Either that, or simply going to disappear from the NFL all together. The really talented to fall into the first group.

Which brings us to Pittsburgh Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall (notes). Stuck with fumble-prone label early in his rookie year. He is still trying to break out of it. By Scott Brown in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:

When Mendenhall was fumbling issues during his first spring training in 2008, veteran players took over a soccer ball around the training facilities of the Steelers – and fined if someone was able to hit out of reach.

On the play of the fourth preseason game, Mendenhall went through an opening on the right side, but had pushed the ball away from him by Lions safety CC Brown (notes).

[...]

“He did not fumble the ball, he is out of the house,” wide receiver Hines Ward (notes), he said. “It’s starting to become a hit on him now. One thing to handle is that the Steelers did not beat the Steelers.”

Fumbles are a strange thing. As fans, second, any runner leaves a soccer ball, screaming: “Idiot! How can you be so careless? Eat some bank, idiot. ”

What we do not have in mind is that every time he touches the ball run again, eleven of the poorest in the world, more motivated, the winners of the most antagonistic genetic lottery are willing to negotiate their first child to get the ball hands. It’s a miracle that there is a turnover on every play. If you or I had 20 carries in a game of NFL football, you know how many times we fumble? I’d say around 20.

Not that that excuses Rashard Mendenhall or anyone else. Bead Companies are also very motivated and genetically blessed. They are paid well to hang in football. That is what the massive forearms are for.

Mendenhall will eventually get worked out. He’s too good not to. In the meantime, however, it becomes more difficult before it gets easier, because the more is known as a fumble; the defense is difficult to separate him from the football. It’s something to do, as Mendenhall becomes a workhorse back for the Steelers.

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Bank Of America Online Banking

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Bank of America customers were without their online banking service for at least four hours on Friday.  This came due to a glitch involving the BankofAmerica.com website.  With online banking services down, the BAC stock seemed unaffected though.

According to MyFox8.com, the Bank of America banking service suffered an outage on Friday due to a "temporary system" issue.  There was no specific reason given as for the bank website's down time though.  Customers were unable to access the website for over three-and-a-half hours on Friday August 27, 2010.

Bank of America is based out of Charlotte, North Carolina.  Service was finally brought back after 5:15 PM EST, after the outage had started around 1:25PM EST.  This particular Bank of America online banking glitch only affected the only account access, but did not affect any BOA ATMs or banks.

It's been reported that service is back for the banking website, but due to volume customers may still experience slow load times or trouble logging in.  At the close of the stock market on Friday, Bank of America stock (BAC) had traded up by .17, and was up 0.04 in after hours trading.

Glitches like this can be costly for both customers and banks.  Many people enjoy using online banking services from the comfort of their own home so when a glitch takes the service offline for hours, it hurts.  There's also been plenty of customers not happy with the Bank of America service in general, especially during the financial implosion that occurred within the past several years.  Bank of America is still considered a top bank stock despite today's four hour outage, so it probably won't shut down too many investors.

However, even though BAC stock seems unaffected, the Bank of America banking service is still questionable.  Could this latest glitch make more customers move to other banks with more secure online services and less fees?

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Drake And Nicki Minaj Married?

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It seems like two members of the Young Money family just got a lot closer. On Friday (August 27), Nicki Minaj and Drake seemingly announced on their Twitter pages that they are married.

"U scurred? @drakkardnoir u ready to make the announcement or wha?" Minaj tweeted Friday afternoon. Drizzy responded about an hour later with, "Baby I am never scared. PROUD is more the word I would use," before tweeting, "Please refer to @nickiminaj as Mrs. Aubrey Drake Graham and dont stare at her too long. She's finally mine. :)."

The hip-hip diva re-tweeted Drake's missive and added, "Yes, its true. Drake and I tied the knot."

A rep for their label had no comment when MTV News reached out Friday.

Hip-hop heads have speculated about Drake and Minaj's relationship before, and buzz spiked when fans heard a very eyebrow-raising line on Drizzy's "Miss Me" single.

"I love Nicki Minaj/ I told her I'd admit it/ I hope one day we get married just to say we f---ing did it/ And girl, I'm f---ing serious/ I'm with it if you with it/ 'Cause your verses turn me on, and your pants are mighty fitted," the Toronto MC spits.

In June, Drizzy told DJ Envy on MTV2's "Sucker Free Countdown" that he had genuine feelings for Minaj. "I've always really, actually, really had a crush on her, always really loved her, and she's always just looked at me as, like, her little brother," Drake said.

However, Minaj batted away any ideas that Drake is anything more than just her sometime partner-in-rhyme.

"Drake does not have a crush on me," Minaj assured Envy. "Drake knows how to get you guys' attention."

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Aijalon Mahli Gomes

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Apparently, travel to North Korea to release a U.S. citizen who has mysteriously come up against the North Korean border is the new right of way to former U.S. presidents. A little over a year after President Bill Clinton made his much-publicized trip to the country to rescue the journalists Euna Lee and Laura Ling reports have emerged that former President Jimmy Carter is set to travel there to rescue American prisoners Mahli Aijalon schoolteacher Gomes. Foreign policy:

Carter has decided to make the trip and is scheduled to leave from the Hermit Kingdom within days, possibly leading to his wife and daughter throughout the day. His goal is to bring back Gomes Aijalon Mahli, a 30-year-old from Boston, who was sentenced to eight years in prison in April, about three months after being arrested crossing into North Korea through China. In July, the official organ of North Korea reported that the media Gomes had tried to commit suicide. Earlier this month, the State Department secretly sent a group of four men to visit Pyongyang for Gomes, but could not secure his release.

Foreign Policy’s report, said Mr. Carter, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002, traveling as a private citizen, similar to the mission conducted by former President Bill Clinton last year when he secured the release of Laura Ling and Americans Euna Lee, two television journalists who were also jailed after wandering over the border from North Korea China.Mr Carter made an unprecedented visit to Pyongyang in 1994, when America went to war with Korea North on its nuclear program. He helped defuse the crisis through talks with the then leader Kim Il-sung

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