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  • Steven Seagal Supports Vladimir Putin

    While filming a movie in Romania, actor, film producer, screenwriter, director, martial artist, musician and reserve deputy sheriff Steven Seagal did an interview with the state-run Russian newspaper Rossiskaya Gazeta, in which he’d expressed that Vladimir Putin’s actions against Crimea are “highly reasonable.”

    The 7th-dan black belt in Aikido commented that Putin’s “desire to protect the Russian-speaking people of Crimea, his assets, and the Russian Black Sea military base in Sevastopol … is very reasonable,” and added that the U.S. policy on Ukraine was “idiotic.”

    Republican Seagal, a close friend of Putin’s, reportedly because they both share a keen interest in the martial arts, called the Russian president “one of the great living world leaders,” and that he “would like to consider him as a brother.” Early this month the straight-to-video action star had helped Putin relaunch a national physical fitness program that had been axed after the fall of the Soviet Union.

    As a sort of Renaissance Man, Seagal has also developed an energy drink called “Lightening Bolt,” as well as a fragrance called “Scent of Action.”

    seagal

    Seagal was recently part of an American delegation to Russia following Boston Marathon bombing, and conveys his stance against the U.S. policy regarding Russia and the crisis in Ukraine:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAb39HMVAGE

    Excited about Seagal’s perceived superstar status, Rossiskaya Gazeta went on to compare the former silver screen star’s popularity to that of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Ronald Reagan’s, deeming him “no less popular or authoritative in the world today.” Seagal had previously threatened to run for governor in Arizona, and when asked to comment on the matter, the former husband of Pantene peddler Kelly LeBrock stated that it was more important to be a peacemaker than the leader of a state.

    Seagal also stated that he might “sometime” become a Russian citizen, though he stills loves the United States.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons (1), (2)

  • Steve Masiello Loses South Florida Deal

    Steve Masiello Loses South Florida Deal

    After finding “previously undetected discrepancy in his background check,” University of South Florida officials were prompted to end a contract with Manhattan coach Steve Masiello late Tuesday night. USF had paid a Texas-based search firm called Eastman & Beaudine $60,000 to find a replacement for coach Stan Heath, and the company found that Masiello had falsified a credential on his résumé.

    Masiello had claimed he’d graduated from Kentucky in 2000, but in actuality, he doesn’t have a degree. It was reported that Masiello had actually signed a 5-year contract with the USF Bulls worth at least $5 million, early Tuesday. Masiello had previously worked as an assistant under coach Rick Pitino at Louisville, and received praise from Louisville athletic director Tom Jurich upon the news of his Florida hire.

    While at Manhattan, Masiello led the team to its first NCAA tournament since 2004:

    Jurich had told the Tampa Tribune that “Stevie can do whatever he wants to. He’s just terrific. He’s a rising star in this business.” Then Masiello’s background check came in.

    Perplexed fans took to Twitter:

    As of writing, Masiello hasn’t yet formally resigned from Manhattan, and is presently on leave. South Florida is back in the hunt for Coach Heath’s permanent replacement.

    Louisville Coach Rick Pitino told ESPN, “If it’s accurate, I’m shocked by it. I had no idea. I left the previous year, and he was on track to graduate.” Louisville AD Jurich added, “I knew Rick was comfortable with him. He played for Rick, and Rick knew all about his background.” It’s now clear how the formality of completing a communications degree would affect one’s basketball coaching ability.

    Masiello played for Kentucky as a walk-on under coaches Pitino and Tubby Smith from 1996 to 2000.

    Image via YouTube

  • Best Paper Towels Ranked by Consumer Reports

    Consumer Reports, the monthly magazine that’s been published by Consumers Union since 1936, has reviewed and compared 18 different paper towel brands, using results from its in-house testing laboratory and survey research center.

    The tests conducted included absorbency (a measure of how much liquid weight a towel can suck up), scrubbing strength (the amount of strokes it takes to tear a wet towel when rubbed across an abrasive surface) and wet strength (the force it takes for a ball to break through a paper towel).

    Interestingly, the “green” brands of towel scored very low – in the 40’s on a scale of 100. Seventh Generation Right Size and Scott Naturals Mega Roll Choose-A-Size were the green brands we tested. Seventh Generation states its rolls made from 100 percent recycled paper. Scott said its Naturals brand are made from 60 percent recycled paper. Both brands failed.

    Consumer Reports submitted a video of their towel testing:

    Brands tested included Bounty, Viva and Brawny, as well as big-box store brands like Costco’s Kirkland Signature and Walmart’s Great Value. Bounty’s DuraTowels were highly rated in all the tests, though they cost around twice as much as all other brands. Of the economy brands, Walmart’s Great Value Strong and Absobent towels were rated highest.

    More paper towel intrigue:

    To be clear, a paper towel (also called kitchen roll or a kitchen paper) is an absorbent textile made from paper instead of cloth. In 1907 the Scott Paper Company of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania introduced paper towels to help prevent the spread of germs sticking to cloth towels in restrooms. Paper towels are likewise disposable and intended to be used only once. Paper towels defy gravity while soaking up water, and can be individually packed as stacks of folded towels, or coiled into rolls. Uses for domestic and institutional paper towels include wiping up spills, drying off hands, dusting, scrubbing, cleaning windows, spitting gum into, eating sandwiches off of and unrealized origami.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Moon Craters Mapped by Amateurs as Well as the Pros

    Moon Craters Mapped by Amateurs as Well as the Pros

    CosmoQuest, a collective of amateur astronomers that identify and map craters on various space objects, including the moon, has gotten so adept in their studies that their data has been used in scientific research and at times published.

    Stuart Robbins, a research scientist at the University of Colorado’s Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics who led a comparative study between amateur and professional astronomy research stated, “What we can say is that a very large group of volunteers was able to chart these features on the moon just as well as professional researchers. More importantly, we now have evidence that we can use the power of crowdsourcing to gather more reliable data from the moon than we ever thought was possible before.”

    CosmoQuest’s mission is to “create a community of people bent on together advancing our understanding of the universe; a community of people who are participating in doing science, who can explain why what they do matters, and what questions they are helping to answer. We want to create a community, and here is where we invite all of you to be a part of what we’re doing.”

    The collective also offers online classes via its CosmoAcademy portal, and has submitted various stargazing tutorials via social media:

    Robbins and his team gauged the findings of thousands of CosmoQuest members against that of eight scientists, using pictures taken by NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. While amateur volunteers and scientists saw vastly different numbers of craters in the study area, averages for the two groups were statistically aligned. Robbins’ team called the results “reassuring” for CosmoQuest, which has crater-mapping projects for the moon, Mercury and the protoplanet Vesta.

    Pamela Gay, who runs CosmoQuest out of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville said, “Put simply, the sky is large, and astronomers need all the help the public can offer.”

    The study was published on March 4th in the online science journal Icarus.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Chris Martin Heartbroken Over Split with Paltrow

    Coldplay frontman Chris Martin is reportedly devastated over his split from wife of ten years, Gwyneth Paltrow. In a joint statement posted on Paltrow’s website Goop the two announced a “conscious uncoupling” on March 24th, after traversing years of marital problems.

    A source told Hollywoodlife that Martin is “devastated,” and that “He suggested counseling, he even suggested they move back to London but ultimately that just didn’t work out for them.”

    Martin, 37, and Paltrow, 41, met in 2002 while Coldplay was touring, and were married in 2003, after she got pregnant. The couple has two children, Apple, 9, and Moses, 7. A source added, “Now they’ll have to figure out custody because he loves those kids more than anything. He’s (Martin) very hurt.”

    Martin suffers from being accessibly emotional, as seen here in Coldplay’s “Every Teardrop is a Waterfall”:

    Coldplay’s new breakup track entitled “Magic,” set to appear on “Ghost Stories,” set to be released on may 19th:

    Here is the full text of the “conscious uncoupling” Martin and Paltrow announced on her site:

    It is with hearts full of sadness that we have decided to separate. We have been working hard for well over a year, some of it together, some of it separated, to see what might have been possible between us, and we have come to the conclusion that while we love each other very much we will remain separate. We are, however, and always will be a family, and in many ways we are closer than we have ever been. We are parents first and foremost, to two incredibly wonderful children and we ask for their and our space and privacy to be respected at this difficult time. We have always conducted our relationship privately, and we hope that as we consciously uncouple and co-parent, we will be able to continue in the same manner.

    Love,
    Gwyneth & Chris

    Coldplay fans took to Twitter over the split:

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Flavor Flav’s Speeding Cased Postponed

    Flavor Flav’s Speeding Cased Postponed

    William Jonathan Drayton, Jr., better known by his stage name Flavor Flav, appeared in a Mineola, New York courtroom Tuesday, where a judge postponed a criminal speeding case against the rapper, after he was pulled over on a Long Island parkway as he was en route to his mother’s funeral in January.

    Flav, 54, plead not guilty to a felony charge of aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, a speeding violation and marijuana possession. While removing his signature clock chain to pass through courthouse metal detectors, the reality television star told reporters he’s, “Just trying to get this over with as fast as possible so I can get back to my life in Vegas.”

    Flavor rose to fame as a member of the mainstream hip-hop group Public Enemy. He is also known for making the role of the “hype man” popular, by yelling “Yeah boy!” and “Flavor Flav!” during performances. When Rick Rubin initially signed Public Enemy in 1984, he didn’t fully understand Flavor Flav’s role in the group, and wanted to sign Chuck D as a solo act. Chuck D wasn’t having this, and Flav remained on as his comic foil, offsetting Chuck D’s more serious and political charged themes with relative silliness.

    Flavor Flav displays his skills as a hype man in Public Enemy’s “Can’t Truss It” from 1991:

    Flav had 16 license suspensions at the time he was pulled over on January 9th, while doing 79 in a 55 mph speed zone on the Meadowbrook State Parkway. Concerning the 16 license suspensions, Drayton’s lawyer, Indji Bessim, commented, “We’re still conferencing the matter,” and added that she had “no idea” if Flav would change his present plea.

    Drayton, who will be back in Nassau County Court in Mineola on May 16, commented, “Hopefully, by my next court date, we can get this thing resolved,” while complaining of the price of plane tickets from Las Vegas to New York.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Patrice Wymore, Widow of Errol Flynn, Dies at 87

    Patrice Wymore Flynn, widow of late silver screen idol Errol Flynn, has died of pulmonary disease at her estate in Portland, Jamaica, according to family spokesman Robb Callahan.

    Wymore Flynn was a film and television actress who once starred opposite Frank Sinatra in the original “Ocean’s Eleven,” but was best known as being the last wife of romantic swashbuckling matinee idol Errol Flynn, who died of alcohol-related complications in 1959 at the age of 50.

    Wymore Flynn launched her acting career on Broadway in the 1940’s, performing in musicals such as “Hold It!” and “All for Love.” She made her transition to Hollywood in 1950, and co-starred in “Rocky Mountain,” a western starring Errol, which brought the two together. At the time, Flynn was engaged to a Romanian princess, but had his housekeeper break it off, according to his 1959 autobiography, “My Wicked, Wicked Ways.”

    Here’s the trailer for “Rocky Mountain”:

    Flynn had written in his memoir, “Patrice typified everything that I was not, and I presumed that she knew what my life was, since my life had been an open newspaper. She could cook Indian curry, she could dance, she could sing, she was reserved, she had beauty, dignity … homebody qualities that go toward making a sensible and lasting marriage.”

    Wymore Flynn was born in Miltonvale, Kansas, on Dec. 17, 1926, and grew up in Salina, Kansas. She’d moved to New York in her teens, to work as a model. After Flynn’s death, she’d went on to act in various films and television shows, but eventually returned to the Jamaican cattle ranch she’d shared with her late husband. She was once voted as being the Jamaican cattle rancher of the year in the 1980’s.

    Wymore Flynn never remarried, and also defended her late husband’s wicked ways, saying that “He just lost his way.” Flynn was staying with his teenage girlfriend at the time of his death.

    Wymore Fynn is survived by her grandson, Luke Flynn.

    Image via YouTube

  • Twitter Turkey Ban: Facebook Called “Immoral” by PM

    In a statement at an election rally recently, according to AFP, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan (pronounced ER-doo-won) continued his attack on sites like Twitter, Facebook and Youtube, saying , “I cannot understand how sensible people still defend Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. They run all kinds of lies.”

    Either Erdogan himself is fundamentally unfamiliar with the concept of social media and how it works, or he thinks that the kind of voters who support him are.

    Erdogan is more of an Islamic traditionalist than his political opponents. Many see his angle of attack on social media as shrouded in the kind of “rally against an external enemy” common in fundamentalist thought. But even if this is his line of appeal to the faithful, his opponents see a much simpler cause behind Erdogan’s recent attempt at “banning” Twitter in his country.

    Erdogan and his friends in the Turkish government have come under scrutiny for corruption. Twitter, YouTube and other social media staples have been a handy platform for materials, including audio recordings, that seem to prove these accusations. He wants them shuttered. He calls this exposure in social media a “dirty operation to tarnish the government.”

    Erdogan sees himself as “the government.” He said that he is action to oppose “any attack threatening my country’s security,” when the security threatened is his own. He speaks of “state secrets” being revealed on Twitter, but it is his own association with corrupt officials that is being spread on social media.

    He frames his difficulties as some moral struggle that his people have to contend with.

    “If Twitter acts honestly, we are ready to support it. If YouTube acts honestly, we are ready to give every support. If Facebook gives up immoralities… it will receive support,” he said.

    In contrast, Turkey’s President Abdullah Gul sees this all as ridiculous, hurting his country’s standing in the world community, taking them back to a darker, fundamentalist time when freedoms of speech and expression were squelched.

    “I believe this problem will be over soon,” Gul said in an interview. “This is of course an unpleasant situation for such a developed country as Turkey, which has weight in the region and which is negotiating with the European Union.”

    Image via Twitter

  • Gwar Frontman Dave Brockie Dead at 50

    Gwar Frontman Dave Brockie Dead at 50

    David Murray Brockie, known by his stage name Oderus Urungus as the frontman of fantasy thrash-metal band Gwar, was found dead in his Richmond, Virginia apartment Saturday night. The cause of the death is currently unknown, though no foul play is suspected. Brockie was 50.

    As Urungus, who Brockie described as being 43 billion years old, the singer appeared live as a horned, intergalactic humanoid barbarian, always wielding a long sword named “Unt Lick.” According the Gwar lore, Oderus was “assembled” on the planet Scumdogia in “Syntho Womb 5,” using moldy fragments of himself that had been scattered across the galaxy. Oderus claimed his father was a supercomputer, and that his mother was a petri dish.

    Ex-Gwar bassist Mike Bishop commented that “Dave was one of the funniest, smartest, most creative and energetic persons I’ve known. He was brash sometimes, always crass, irreverent, he was hilarious in every way. But he was also deeply intelligent and interested in life, history, politics and art.”

    Gwar’s video for “Let Us Slay”:

    Brockie was the only member of Gwar who had existed in every incarnation of its lineup since 1984. The band made a name for itself with science fiction/horror fantasy-inspired costumes, obscene lyrics and graphic live sets, which feature satirical enactments of politically and morally taboo themes.

    Lamb of God singer Randall Blythe commented on Brockie’s passing via Instagram, “When someone dies, a lot of the time people will say “Oh, he was a unique person, really one of a kind, a true original”- most of these people no idea of what they are talking about- they obviously had never met Dave. Dave TRULY WAS ONE OF A KIND – I can’t think of ANYONE even remotely like him. That’s VERY HARD TO SAY.”

    Former Gwar guitarist Steve Douglas wrote on his Facebook wall, “I have had a few bad days in my life but this one truly ranks right up there… Dave Brockie, I do not know what happened to you yet, but I know you are gone and it is hurting very badly!”

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Ana Ivanovic Beats Flavia Pennetta at the Sony Open

    Number 12 in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) rankings for singles Ana Ivanovic defeated 20th seed Flavia Pennetta on Saturday, at the Sony Open in Miami, at the Tennis Center at Crandon Park.

    Serbian Ivanovic, 26, claimed victory over Pennetta in one hour and 17 minutes in a 6-4, 6-3 run. With the win, Ivanovic’s record against her Italian opponent is now 5-0.

    Ivanovic was ranked No. 1 in the world in 2008, after beating Dinara Safina to win the 2008 French Open, though saw diminished success afterwards, and failied to make a Grand Slam quarterfinal in her subsequent 17 Grand Slam tournaments. She’d dropped to number 65 in the world in July, 2010.

    Below is a clip of Ivanovic’s defeat of Pennetta in its entirety:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTtDwICii1g

    In June, 2011, Time Magazine called Ivanovic one of the “30 Legends of Women’s Tennis: Past, Present and Future,” and reporter Matthew Cronin added her to his list of the Top 100 Greatest Players Ever (male and female combined). Since going pro in 2003, Ivanovic has earned over $11 million in winnings.

    Ivanovic’s fans took to Twitter after the win:

    Ivanovic is described as an offensive baseliner who is known for her aggressive play. She also has a very strong serve, clocking in at 124.9 mph at the French Open in 2007, the fifth fastest serve of all time on the WTA Tour. Still, after her 2008 French Open win, her confidence was said to have diminished, which affected her game. Hall of Famer Martina Navratilova commented that, “while she has absolutely no confidence in herself, she still fights till the last point.”

    Though, as of 2013, Ivanovic’s play has become more even, under the tutelage of Nigel Sears, which has allowed her to build her game on her strong first serves.

    Image via YouTube.

  • William Shatner Turns 83, Launching New Series

    Cultural icon William Shatner turned 83 yesterday, and has yet to show any sign of slowing down – He’s set to star in his own home renovation series on the DIY network, entitled The Shatner Project. Best known for his role as Captain James Tiberius Kirk on Star Trek: The Original Series, Shatner also gained notoriety for the title role on police drama T.J. Hooker, as attorney Denny Crane on the legal seriocomedy Boston Legal and was also the host of the popular reenactment series Rescue 911.

    Shatner was born on March 22, 1931, in the Côte Saint-Luc neighborhood of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He began his silver screen acting career in the 1951 Canadian film The Butler’s Night Off, though his first feature role came in the 1958 MGM film The Brothers Karamazov with part-time robotic cowboy Yul Brynner.

    Aside from acting gigs, Shatner also co-wrote several novels set in the Star Trek universe, and authored a series of science fiction novels called TekWar that were adapted for television. The auteur also began music and spoken-word projects, beginning in 1968, with the release of The Transformed Man, in which he’d delivered disjointed, disproportionately intense renditions of Mr. Tambourine Man and Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. Shatner has also collaborated with Ben Folds on numerous occasions, and the duo co-wrote the album Has Been in 2004.

    Shatner’s interpretation of Pulp’s Common People:

    Awesome.

    Here Shatner loses, and then regains control, in a profound display of his mastery of his craft:

    Interestingly, Shatner has ties to central Kentucky, and owns a 360 acre farm near Versailles called Belle Reve. He enjoys breeding and showing American Saddlebreds and Quarter Horses.

    The Shatner Project is set to premiere some time this year, and will be a five-episode series in which Shatner and wife Liz will gut their 1970’s-era California home, and remodel it. Commenting on the new series, Shatner states, “I am embracing change. Our home will be unfamiliar territory for a while but I am excited by all of it.”

    Image via YouTube.

  • Robin van Persie Out for Six Weeks

    Robin van Persie Out for Six Weeks

    Dutch Manchester United striker Robin van Persie will be sidelined for four to six weeks due to a sprained knee sustained shortly after scoring against Olympiakos in the Champions League on Thursday.

    Van Persie, regarded as being one of the best strikers in the world, joined Manchester United in 2012, after leaving Arsenal as team captain. Van Persie was United’s highest scorer last season, logging 30 goals, helping his team to win the Premier League title. His style of play has drawn comparisons to legendary Dutch striker Macro van Basten.

    If van Persie, 30, is out for the full six weeks, he will only be able to participate in two or three of United’s final Premier League games. United manager David Moyes had hoped that United’s 3-0 victory over Olympiakos would be a turning point for a bad season, as his team has already been eliminated from both domestic cup competitions.

    Van Persie was injured shortly after scoring on this free kick:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knH-JsUnj1o

    Van Persie was taken off the field in a stretcher, and United manager Moyes commented during his weekly press conference that “We’re just getting him re-scanned again today. We’re not conclusive in everything we’ve seen yet, so we want to check that out and be sure. He won’t be available for the West Ham game, but we’ll try to give some update as soon as we can on the outcome of it.”

    Then Manchester United took to Twitter to confirm van Persie’s sidelined status:

    Moyes had at first minimized the seriousness of the sprain, saying it was “hopefully not too bad.” Repeated injuries have restricted van Persie to only 18 league games this season, but he was still able to rack up 11 goals.

    Image via YouTube.

  • Kate Bush Announces First Full Shows in 35 Years

    English singer-songwriter, musician and record producer Kate Bush announced on Friday that she will be playing at least 15 full, live sets at the Hammersmith Apollo in London, beginning on August 26th. The Hammersmith Apollo is the same venue where the iconic singer performed the last shows of her 1979 tour, and while tickets have yet to go on sale, her website quickly crashed after the announcement, due to heavy traffic.

    Kate’s official announcement, per her blog:

    I am delighted to announce that we will be performing some live shows this coming August and September. I hope you will be able to join us and I look forward to seeing you there. We’ll keep you updated with further news on the web site. Meanwhile, all details of concert dates and tickets are in the note below.
    Very best wishes,
    Kate

    Bush’s hit single “Wuthering Heights”:

    Bush’s only full tour took place between April 2 and May 13 1979, after which she has only performed live on occasion. A few theories about why she’d stopped touring surrounded exhaustion, a fear of flying and most notably the accidental death of her lighting director, Bill Duffield. Duffield was killed in an accident during Bush’s April 2, 1979 concert at The Poole Arts Centre.

    The 1979 tour was a tightly choreographed, physically-demanding spectacle, which exhausted Bush at the age of 19. The sort of performance the artist plans for at 55 has intrigued her fans.

    Kate Bush, “Running Up That Hill”:

    Bush’s fans took to Twitter after the announcement:

    Responding to rabid fan interest, Bush added this message to her blog:

    Hallo everyone,

    I was working all day yesterday and so was totally unaware of the reaction, apart from friends who’d told me it had all gone bonkers….I am completely overwhelmed and genuinely shocked by the incredibly positive response from everyone. Thank you!

    Tickets to Bush’s Hammersmith Apollo residency go on sale next Friday.

    Image via YouTube.

  • “Dumb and Dumber To” Gets New Posters

    The upcoming sequel to 1994’s “Dumb and Dumber,” entitled “Dumb and Dumber To” just got a couple of new promotional posters. The Warner Bros.-distributed film, starring Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels as Lloyd Christmas and Harry Dunne, is set to be released on November 14th.

    The premise of the movie concerns idiotic best buddies Harry and Lloyd setting off on a road trip, in order to obtain a kidney from one of their long lost children. The plot picks up 20 years after the original, and explains what the duo had been up to in the interim.

    The film also stars Laurie Holden and Kathleen Turner, and will feature a cameo by Jennifer Lawrence, who had said in interviews that she is a big fan of the original “Dumb and Dumber.”

    Who can forget Harry’s baby blue tuxedo?

    dumb and dumber

    Or Lloyd’s mandarin orange getup?

    dumb and dumber to

    Back in September of last year, Jim Carrey took to Twitter to convey this omen:

    The film is co-written and directed by Bobby Farrelly and Peter Farrelly. The latter brother explain last year, “It’s going well. We have a great script and now we are just trying to get it made. I love the script. It’s exactly like the first one. We pick up 20 years later. We explain what they’ve done for the last 17 or 18 years. We take off from that and it’s just a lot of laughs.”

    Judging by the new posters, it would appear that Harry and Lloyd held on to their party clothes:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67Vgag2PtNA

    On November 25, 2013, Daniels announced that principal photography had been completed.

    Images via Facebook.

  • Brazil No-Fly Zones for World Cup: With a Catch

    Brazil’s Air Force has established no-fly zones around the stadiums hosting the 64 soccer games of the 2014 FIFA World Cup taking place July 12-13. A four mile perimeter has been set around each stadium, and the suspensions will begin one hour before each game, and last 4-5 hours, though takeoffs are permitted. Planes cannot land at any of the eight airports that sit near any stadiums hosting games during the no-fly period.

    Though, there is a bit of a catch. The Brazilian Air Force isn’t legally allowed to shoot down any offending planes, and the anti-aircraft guns posted around the stadiums cannot legally be fired at intruders, according to Air Force Brigadier Antonio Carlos Egito. The games will take place in 12 cities, and though defenses are in place, as of now, they can’t be utilized if an incident were to occur. The Air Force is lobbying to change some laws before the games begin.

    The following clip describes the cities and stadiums where the 2014 World Cop games will be hosted:

    The no-fly zone measure won’t affect any of Brazil’s major airports, though the suspensions will hinder flights at Rio de Janeiro’s domestic airport Santos Dumont. Still, civilian aviation regulator ANAC president Marcelo Guaranys says that only ten percent of seats have been sold on Brazilian domestic flights for the games.

    An estimated 600,000 foreigners are expected to arrive for the World Cup, along with another 3 million Brazilians. In order to alleviate the impending crunch due to the influx of visitors, the Air Force is allowing certain flights to land at various bases. Portugal’s team will land in Campinas, followed by a press plane with 200 journalists and four private jets carrying superstar Cristiano Ronaldo and his family.

    Civil Aviation Minister Wellington Moreira Franco confirmed that Italy will be able to use Santa Cruz Air Force base near Rio de Janeiro, in order to bypass the city’s crowded airports.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons.

  • Pontiac Silverdome Memorabilia to be Auctioned Off

    Pieces of the former home of the Detroit Lions will soon be auctioned off, as renovations of the Pontiac Silverdome get underway. Fans will have the opportunity to own seats, signs and even stadium urinals, by way of an auction being handled by Plymouth, Michigan-based RJM Auctions. The auction will be held between May 12-16, and a pre-auction is offering seats for sale, starting at $100 a pop.

    The Silverdome held 80,000 seats, and RJM Auctions facilities manager Jim Passeno has stated that every seat will be sold, pending buyer interest.

    The Silverdome opened in 1975, and is located in Pontiac, and spans 127 acres. It was once the largest stadium in the National Football League until FedEx Field in Washington, D.C. opened in 1997. The Silverdome hosted the Detroit Lions of the NFL (1975–2001), the Detroit Pistons of the NBA (1978–1988) and four first-round games during the 1994 FIFA World Cup.

    During a winter storm, the dome was permanently damaged, as seen here:

    The Silverdome is presently owned by Triple Investment Group, and renovations plan for a permanent, self-supporting roof which includes solar panels.

    Potential buyers can order clusters of seats at the RJM Auction site here. One can have 4 adjoining Silverdome seats for $385, and for an extra $25, a certificate of authenticity would be included. The scoreboard will also be up for auction.

    Silverdome intrigue via Twitter:

    During its heyday, the Silverdome hosted Elvis, Led Zeppelin, Pope John Paul II, The Who, Pink Floyd and the Jackson 5. On March 29, 1987, the World Wrestling Federation’s WrestleMania III set the record attendance of 93,173, the largest recorded crowd for a live indoor sporting event in the U.S.

    Image via YouTube.

  • Colorado Man Involved in Real Life GTA Car Chase

    A Colorado man was recently involved in a 2-hour long car chase that resembled a real life depiction of a scene from the popular video game Grand Theft Auto. The incident began when Ryan Stone, 28, stole an SUV with a 4-year-old child inside at a Longmont gas station. An Amber Alert was issued, law enforcement quickly responded, and general mayhem ensued.

    While eluding the authorities, Stone utilized the tried and true tactic of speeding into oncoming traffic, before ramming the stolen SUV into a minivan. He’d pulled the driver out of said van, switched vehicles, and then crossed the highway median, to where he began speeding into more oncoming traffic.

    Police tried to throw down spike strips to end the pursuit, but the chase continued south along E470. Stone then rammed a silver sedan with the minivan, pulled the driver out of the car, and switched vehicles again. The woman driving the sedan tried to stop him, to ill avail.

    Helicopter footage of the chase:

    At 8:07 am, Stone T-boned another vehicle at the intersection of E. Lincoln Avenue and S. Peoria Street. The suspect tried to carjack another SUV, but the police were closing in, so he took off on foot. Stone ran to a nearby maintenance facility, but was unable to climb the fence behind the building. He was forced to surrender at around 8:10 am, bringing an end to a chase that spanned almost 100 miles.

    Four-year-old Allen Chavarria-Rodriquez was found safe, though the Colorado State Patrol confirmed that trooper Bellamann Hee suffered serious injuries in the incident, while attempting to throw down spike strips during the E470 portion of the chase. Hee is expected to make a full recovery.

    Douglas County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Tony Spurlock stated that Stone had multiple warrants out for his arrest in multiple jurisdictions, and is currently being held with official charges pending. Spurlock also confirmed that the three carjacking victims were unhurt.

    Image via YouTube.

  • Sons Unite to Create New Roy Orbison Song

    The three sons of singer/songwriter Roy Orbison have united to create a new track featuring the late artist, using samples from an old boombox recording of a song entitled “The Way is Love.” Wesley, Roy Jr. and Alex Orbison were able to isolate a vocal track from the unreleased song, and added their own instrumentation. “The Way is Love” is set to be released as a part of the 25th anniversary reissue and expansion of Orbison’s final album, ‘‘Mystery Girl.’’

    “The Way is Love” is being co-produced by John Carter Cash, son of the late Johnny Cash, and will be released on May 20th.

    Alex Orbison, 38, who contributed drums and backing vocals to the new song commented, ‘‘It really brought us closer together in a lot of ways. We were able to finish it up and get it out by Father’s Day, too, which was obviously special to us.’’ Roy Orbison passed away in 1988 at the age of 52.

    Orbison, known for his hit songs “Pretty Woman,” “Crying” and “Only the Lonely” is remembered for his powerful voice, eerily melancholic ballads and complex compositions.

    Orbison’s “Crying” from his Black and White Night set, featuring Bruce Springsteen and Elvis Costello:

    Orbison was also a member of the supergroup The Traveling Wilburys with alongside George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty.

    Check out The Wilbury’s “Handle With Care”:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WtfCAw8zS1g

    Who can forget Dean Stockwell’s rendition of Orbison’s “In Dreams,” featured in David Lynch’s 1986 romantic comedy “Blue Velvet?”

    Regarding “The Way is Love,” Alex Orbison added, ‘‘We all just wanted to not stop recording. That was the first thing – ‘When are we going to do an Orbison Brothers record? We had so much fun. It was really too much fun.’’

    Image via YouTube.

  • Google And Viacom Settle Once And For All

    Google And Viacom Settle Once And For All

    Google and Viacom have finally settled their lengthy legal battle over copyright once and for all. The companies both announced the news Tuesday morning.

    Here’s their joint statement: “Google and Viacom today jointly announced the resolution of the Viacom vs. YouTube copyright litigation. This settlement reflects the growing collaborative dialogue between our two companies on important opportunities, and we look forward to working more closely together.”

    Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

    The two companies have been battling for a long seven years. In 2007 (the year after Google acquired it), Viacom sued YouTube for $1 billion claiming “massive intentional copyright infringement”. Viacom alleged that YouTube contained roughly 160,000 infringing videos, which had then accumulated over a billion and a half views.

    The battle raged on for years. In 2010, it looked like Google was victorious. Google even claimed a victory on its blog, as the court granted its motion for summary judgment, deciding YouTube is protected by safe harbor of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).

    Obviously Viacom continued to fight, and last year, YouTube scored another victory when a federal court rejected Viacom’s suit. Google called that an “important day for the Internet” (twice in the same announcement).

    But the battle continued. Until now.

    Stick a fork in it.

    Image via YouTube

  • YouTube Is Down For Many Users

    YouTube Is Down For Many Users

    Update: We got this statement from a YouTube spokesperson: “Some people encountered errors, or a slower than normal experience on YouTube today. We worked quickly to address the issue and fixed the problem. We’re sorry for any inconvenience this caused.”

    Nothing on the embed code so far.

    YouTube has been acting weird for the past hour or so. Users are getting a variety of errors when visiting YouTube.com, and embedded videos are also frequently not working.

    Here’s what we’re seeing from the site sometimes:

    Other times we’re being prompted to enter a CAPTCHA to enter the site. Some are seeing “500 Internal Server Error…Sorry, something went wrong…”

    Sometimes it just works like normal.

    A lot of people are tweeting about problems though:

    On Tuesday, YouTube’s embed code started acting weird. It has been showing a “)” at the end, which when used, puts that extra character after the video on your page. That has continued into today despite people tweeting at YouTube about the issue, and me asking them about it. We haven’t heard back yet.

    We also reached out to YouTube about today’s outage, and will update accordingly.

    Images via YouTube

  • YouTube Embed Code Has A Weird Parenthesis At The End

    Writing for the web all day, we tend to use a lot of YouTube embeds. We couldn’t help but notice that today there is a weird issue with the code. It’s adding a single parenthesis at the end:

    I don’t know why this is happening, but I do know we’re not the only ones having this issue.

    We’ve reached out to Google for comment, and will update accordingly. They don’t appear to be responding to tweets.

    Image via YouTube