The city of Scranton, Pennsylvania has a problem.
How much?
The city already has a 5% tax on “live entertainment”, is discussing a 10% “drink tax”, and has jacked up parking rates. That’s going to help a lot:
I imagine a lot of those folks are going downtown and drinking in the downtown bars. Both of them. There’s only two left: all the others have gone out of business.
How bad is it? Many of the city residents quoted in the LAT would welcome a municipal bankruptcy.
Why not indeed?
I hate being silent for two days straight, but I don’t have any thing I feel is worth writing about.
The Chris Christie thing is now being covered by everyone else in the world. I don’t have anything new to add, or anything more to say, about the gun show thing; there’s going to be a Saxet show this month per the existing contract, and Premier is going to have shows in Cedar Park during April and June. I’m frankly a little burned out on this fight, and I’m not sure what else we can do. (“If voting could change the system, it wouldn’t be legal.”)
More than anything else, I’m just feeling cranky and upset and tired and depressed. I think part of it is the season and part of it is the weather. I don’t know. I’m having trouble concentrating on stuff: I’m still trying to write the King of Sports review and do coursework, but both are struggles.
Maybe I just need a weekend. One more day to go.
Ah, the promise of the new year. Ah, the promise of Gregg Easterbrook’s first column of the year. Ah, the promise of the playoffs.
After the jump, this week’s TMQ…
This by way of a rather cryptic tweet from Popehat:
Fucking Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, how do they work? http://t.co/IoWI22Dsgw
— Popehat (@Popehat) January 8, 2014
(Sorry, Mom.)
Not being a lawyer, I’m not sure what Popehat is referring to here as far as the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, though I’m hoping it wasn’t just a play on ICP’s most famous quote and we’ll get a fuller explanation later. As a guess, I want to say that Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope may not have standing to sue, as it isn’t clear to me that they have actually been damaged directly by the government’s actions.
My mother sent the kids an email this morning:
No more gun shows, big Velvetta shortage. Makes me want to get a gun and the big box of Velvetta.
And I said, “Whaaaaaaaaaat?” I wasn’t aware there was a gun show issue. As a matter of fact, I’d checked the Saxet Shows schedule just the other night (while dining with Lawrence) and they have shows scheduled through December 2014. So I figured we were done with the bolshie bushwa. Right?
Wrong.
Here’s a report from yesterday. Basically, the county commissioners couldn’t agree on what to do:
Oh, look. By way of KLBJ, here’s a non-paywalled Statesman link.
And since licensed dealers at gun shows are already required to do background checks, that will accomplish…nothing. Except drive Saxet out of Austin and into someplace like Round Rock or Cedar Park, and reduce Expo Center revenue. Private sales between individuals are still going to take place, gun show or no show.
Perhaps some of my readers might wish to give Judge Biscoe and the other members of the Commissioner’s Court who aren’t Gerald Daugherty a call. I’d recommend being polite and professional. Judge Biscoe has nothing to lose, since he’s retiring this year. So perhaps you should also make a note on your calender for election time…
Jeff Ireland out as general manager in Miami, on the heels of the Mike Sherman firing. This is being spun as “by mutual agreement”:
106 individuals charged in a massive, multi-decade long Social Security disability fraud scheme. Included in the indictments are 72 former NYC police officers and eight former NYC firefighters.
More to come. I’m getting a slow start this morning, but I do plan a gun show post as soon as I’m able to get one up. Assuming Lawrence doesn’t beat me to it.
This story started breaking this morning, but I wanted to wait for the official word before posting anything.
Sheriff Baca and his department have been a frequent subject of coverage here, most recently as the result of 18 of his deputies being indicted on federal charges. But that’s just part of the story; Baca’s department has a long history of issues, including deputies beating the crap out of each other at the Christmas party, questionable hiring decisions, and questionable tactics. Browse the “California Uber Alles” category for more.
I have the feeling that this is another one of those “pass the popcorn” moments, and I look forward to finding out what happens next.
At this point, it is probably easier to list who the Houston Texans have not fired:
Assistant head coach/defensive line Bill Kollar.
Also out of a job: Miami offensive coordinator (and former Texas A&M head coach) Mike Sherman.
The latest episode of “American Experience”, which is airing tonight on most PBS stations (7 PM on KLRU, with repeats at 1 AM and 3 AM) is an adaptation of Deborah Blum’s The Poisoner’s Handbook
Legendary former Houston Oiler Mike Munchak, who went on to coach the Tennessee Titans for three seasons, was fired today.
He was 22-26; the team finished 7-9 this year.
Also:
Now that Bill O’Brien has taken over, what’s going on?
Answer: he fired everybody just as hard as he could go. He fired Wade Philips and he fired Rick Dennison, and he fired some people that he didn’t even know.
Seriously: Wade Philips is gone as defensive coordinator. Rick Dennison is gone as offensive coordinator. Quarterback coach Karl Dorrell is gone. Defensive backs coach Vance Johnson is gone.
Reports from elsewhere say everyone is going to be fired before the day is out.
Musical hattip:
Gerhard Becker has pled guilty to involuntary manslaughter and been sentenced to serve one year in jail. With time served and time off for good behavior, it seems likely he will go free in six months.
I’ve written about this case previously. For those who don’t recall: Becker was an architect who remodeled a home in Hollywood Hills. After the final inspection, and after having lied to the inspectors, Becker installed fire pits designed for outdoor use inside the home. The home eventually caught fire, and Glenn Allen, a firefighter with the LA Fire Department, was fatally injured while fighting the fire. Allen’s death resulted in the charge against Becker.
More “we’re just not feeling the clever this week”. Might as well just open the box. After the jump, this week’s TMQ…
The lawsuit by Alexander Calder’s heirs against his former dealer has been dismissed.
In a decision dated Dec. 23, Judge Shirley Werner Kornreich wrote that “all of these allegations are so patently inadequate that the court can only conclude that they were brought solely for the purposes of harassment or embarrassment, without any consideration of their legal sufficiency.”
The judge also invoked the statute of limitations, writing that the plaintiffs were trying to litigate issues that stretched back “decades without any personal knowledge or contemporaneous records, where nearly all of the people who had personal knowledge of the facts are dead.”
(I expect to have a second legal update later today; I’m just waiting on events.)
I wasn’t all that wild about what the NYT did with this year’s “The Lives They Led” obituary roundup.
But this, this is a swell article:
One aspect of this that fascinates me: the Coast Guard’s use of computers in search and rescue.
Carol Ross, head coach of the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks, was fired yesterday.
Well, actually, she was laid off. Along with her staff. And the entire front office staff.
And the team’s current owner has said that they are “no longer in a position” to continue with the team.