Amish folks: Enough is enough

(CBC)  Amish residents of a western Kentucky town are fighting back against an ordinance requiring large animals to wear collection bags to catch their droppings, arguing that the law unfairly singles out their community.

The Daily News of Bowling Green reports that many Amish in Auburn have refused to comply with the ordinance, citing concerns that attempts to put the bags on their horses might frighten the animals.

Many cases have landed in court, and some defendants have been jailed for refusing to pay the fine for violating the ordinance.

Regulation unconstitutional?

Last week, attorney Travis Lock filed a notice arguing that the regulation is unconstitutional because it discriminates against the Amish.

Auburn officials say the ordinance keeps the streets clean and reduces the risk of spreading disease.

First things first I love the  entertainment the Amish community has provided me over the years from those reality shoes on TLC, and Discovery like Breaking Amish to Amish Mafia all the way to the scripted stuff like Harrison Ford in ‘Witness‘

‘I’ll strike your Da if you disparage my flock again’  s/o to young Viggo Mortenson behind my friend Harry.

Last but certainly not least the most beautiful Amish girl I have seen Rebecca Bowman in the massively underrated show Banshee

Needless to say that she didn’t return home after Rumspringa. 

Ok back to the point about how the Amish think its unconstitutional to equip their horse’s with poo catchers so their many horses don’t shit all over town when they come in to sell their goods and whatever else it is Amish people do besides commit incest. I know you guys like to live like tis the 1800’s but its not like that anymore you cannot just let your trusty steed just drop bombs all over the place. While us regular folk have to make sure to grab a doggy bag for a 3lb chihuahua or face a ticket and fine. Shit ain’t right. If you want to benefit from our society maybe you should follow some rules that benefit everyone. I’m pretty sure everyone else is on board with no poop in the streets rule. You already slow up traffic with your buggies so the least you can do would be to clean up all the horse logs getting sawed off around town. So their big gripe is that the extra bag on the horse will frighten it, haha you have to be kidding me. Look at the horse in the banner pic, if all that gear on it isn’t frightening it I doubt a poo bag will.

I think the real reason they don’t want to follow the new law is because they don’t want to be trotting around with a fresh bag of horse logs wafting into your carriage. I can’t really blame them on that one. But thats the life they chose.

A Foreshadowing Thought on Se7en

I woke up last Sunday morning  got up went to brush my teeth then came back into my room turned on the tv to get some entertainment while I brush. To my delight Se7en was on so my search stopped there and I was all in again for my umpteenth viewing  of the Fincher product.  The part I jumped in on was right before detective Mills and Somerset  discover the ‘Sloth’. When I sat down to watch it I noticed something that I hadn’t previously. Now if you are not familiar with the film its about a serial killer named John Doe who is patterning his kills off of the seven deadly sins.  For a visual refresher this is the scene

 

Pretty wicked scene right, its downright frightening when the guy wakes up and gasps fort air. The part I was referring to earlier happened right after the clip above ends. I couldn’t manage to find the clip after searching for a while so I’ll just describe it instead. The crime scene around the sloth’s apartment is cordoned off. Mills (Brad Pitt) and Somerset (Morgan Freeman) are standing watch at the top of the stairs before the apartment. While they are standing watch a paparazzi sneaks up the stairs and starts snapping pictures (the title image is one of the pics he took) of the scene before Mills gets a little physical with him by showing him the way downstairs and cursing him out as he leaves. As Mills is turning around Somerset says to him “It’s impressive to see a man feeding off his emotions.” For some reason that line struck me differently and with the *spoiler alert* photographer being revealed later to be John Doe when they find the title picture in his apartment it all starts to piece together.

Somerset’s quote foreshadows Mill’s fate perfectly by completing Doe’s plan of the seven deadly sin killings with the final one being Wrath. After Doe sees how easily Mills gets worked up he locks in on him. He knows that under the right circumstances he can manipulate Mills into feeling such hatred and anger he will have very little choice and ultimately give into the violence that festers inside of him and ultimately unleash it on Doe. The transfer of emotion is how Mills becomes a possessed by Doe and ends up doing what he had planned along. By killing the evil Doe Mills has become evil himself and caused it grow stronger. Mills’ innocent and pure wife is violated and sacrificed and Mills the hero protagonist who is in a twisted way a reason his wife died. By avenging her he relinquished his soul in a way and becomes a broken man in mind,body and spirit.

But if he had refused to do that like Somerset pleaded with him to do so that wouldn’t be the case. He would’ve suppressed the wrath he was feeling and had a chance to conquer the evil that was coursing through him in that moment but alas he just became another one of the forsaken. That is why the ending is so gut wrenching because everyone is constantly fighting the Doe that is inside of us all in a spiritual battle. Do we give in to weight of our own anguish and allow the darkness to take over or make the other choice ?

 

SHOOT YOUR SHOT: THE TRUE STORY OF JIM JINKS THE CREATOR OF DOUG AND HIS REAL LIFE PATTI MAYONNAISE

(EW)

It’s been around 25 years since Doug premiered on Nickelodeon and its creator Jim Jinkins gave an interview to EW about it. Jim gave some insight into his inspiration for Doug along with the other characters on the show and as you can probably guess he took inspiration from his own life to mold the characters , especially with Doug being modeled after himself.  He had this to say
“I’ve written the scene,” Jinkins tells EW, referring to one major moment that would answer the question Jinkins’ is constantly asked — whether Doug and his lifelong crush, Patti, end up together.

What happened to the love of Doug’s life? That’s where Jinkins’ tale about his surprise reconnection with the real Patti Mayonnaise comes in. If you want to know what happens to Doug, you must first find out what happened to Jim

It’s my ten-year reunion, and I didn’t go. I was in New York working like crazy as a freelancer and just trying to make it there. And I got a phone call in New York and it’s Patti. The real Patti. And my heart’s beating fast. She’s like, ‘I was at the reunion! You weren’t!’ and I was like, ‘Yeah…sorry…I had to work.’ And she goes, ‘I found out you live in New York. Guess what—I do, too!’ And she told me where she lives. We lived across Central Park from each other. And she says, ‘Why don’t you come over for dinner?’

So now we’re in a Doug show. I’m like, what do I wear? What will she look like!? All that’s happening as I’m walking across Central Park to her apartment, just wondering and just hoping, all those things. I was, at the time, very available.
I get to the door, and you get buzzed up in New York, and so I walk up to the apartment and I hear the lock turn—it’s getting ready to happen—and she opens the door, and she’s perfect. Just perfect. She just looks spectacular and she’s so happy, and her arms fly up and we hug, and I’m just like [frightened guttural gasping noises]. She backs up and she goes ‘Look, Jimmy! Boobs! I got my boobs!’ [Laughs.] It sounds like I’m making this up, right? And I’m like, ‘Yeah… yeah, uh huh!’ ‘Yeah, they always used to call me Flatty Patti, but look!’ And she was just funny and fun and innocent, but it’s like Doug and Patti together again, ten years later, right?
So this is all wonderful, right? And then she wheels and goes, ‘Oh, Jimmy, I want you to meet my husband.’
And I don’t even remember the rest of the evening.

 

Come on Jim, tell me she didn’t like your hair, or your outfit, that your charisma was lacking , that you were too short , that she just didn’t vibe with you but don’t tell me you never tried back in the day. No wonder you ‘very’ available with an attitude like that. You were like that guy in a pickup game that refuses to look at the basket and just passes it. That’s not how you go about booking a trip to Motorboat Bay Jim.

To add insult to injury it turned out that the girl of his dreams has basically been right across the street from him for years without his knowledge. If that’s not some twisted karmic iorny I don’t know what is.  What a roller coaster of emotions that must have been for him , I would pay good money to see what his face must have looked like when he first saw after all those years then seconds later when she went to introduce him to her husband. The regret must have been pouring over him like the cold, frigid waters crashing down upon the rocks at Niagra falls. He was so discombobulated he couldn’t remember the rest of the night and I don’t blame because who would want to.

After reading that story it just reaffirms what I have always thought and that is you have to ‘shoot your shot’ when you get the chance, just let it fly. Because you will only have regret if you don’t. So don’t be like Jim Jinks kids and remember to always shoot your shot.

Popping adderalls like tic tacs? Mr. Robot thoughts

Is control an illusion?

First off i just want to say I do not think Elliot is in prison or some sort of asylum. I do think that he has simplified his life to mimic one though.

One of the constants after the first two episodes of this season is control, whether it be trying to get it, letting go of it, or how to handle it when you get it. Most of the episode is spent with Elliot as he fights for control of psyche against Mr. Robot, a fight he wins temporarily thanks to taking a huge doses of Adderrall. Which helped him rid himself of Mr. Robot for five sleepless days where he walked around with this pleasant hop

http://i.imgur.com/rsZTWHj.gifv

It was fun to see Elliot go through his life without Mr. Robot so we were able to see the vibrancy so often missing from the show. His drug haze was well done and kind of felt like something out of Trainspotting. Maybe going forward now that Elliot has figured out a way to subside him Mr. Robot temporarily we will get to see more of this vibrancy in the coming weeks. The next time we see Mr. Robot is when Elliot is talking to Ray,  then he gets up to get something from a shelf and there is Mr. Robot waiting behind him.

We learned more about Ray’s motives this week and one of them is trying to regain control of his site that is getting infiltrated and stealing his bitcoins. So he needs some to fix the situation and thats where his interest lies with Elliot. The Bitcoin angle is interesting because the lack of available cash since the hack, so it would figure that bitcoin has way more value than it did before ( the exchange rate is 1 bitcoin is worth $657 bucks). Ray is very eloquent guy often using 50 words when only 5 will do, for example when he says this about Elliot’s quest for control of his life, “Control is about as real as a one-legged unicorn taking a leak at the end of a double rainbow”. He studies Elliot and lets him know that they are not much different from one another.  One of the ways is that he talks to his dead wife every morning just like how Elliot does. He appears to   be slowly getting through to Elliot and it can’t come soon enough because I’m eager to see Elliot behind a keyboard again.

Now onto Angela at E Corp, whose scenes have been some of the strongest this season thanks in big part to Philip Price her boss who feels like the personification of capitalism, especially with his speech last week in DC. But this week he throws Angela for a loop when he asks her out to dinner after gauging her interests on a dessert they serve there. Right before getting there she fills herself with positive quotes, assuming it would be a romantic date of some sort. She shows up looking dressed to kill , very vampy stuff. Instead, Price introduces her to two other dinner guests, E corp colleagues. At the end of dinner, Price privately tells Angela of his coworker’s  positive, charitable qualities before telling her that they were complicit in the toxic leak that killed her mother and Elliot’s father. Price then produces a disc with all the evidence of their repeated fraud and  tells her this is all she needs to destroy the men’s lives , saying that while she’s “panicking” right now at the thought, if she removes emotion from the decision, “You’ll do just fine.” So now Angela is struggling with what to with her new found control over their lives. This is one of the more interesting parts of the overall story. How much farther down the rabbit hole can she go and will it ultimately benefit her or Price more?

 

With the show moving a little bit slower than last season we get to see more from the supporting characters on the show like Romero who got to tell the violent and tragic ownership history of the arcade to Mobley. Kind of ironic that he was the de facto owner while he met his untimely demise. The FBI agent had an AH-HA! moment when she found the flyer for the end of the world party in Romero’s trash after gaining entrance to his house by offering to roll some blunts for his grandma because her arthritis made it difficult to roll them herself and decided to stroll on down and give it a look for herself.

 

F. Society, hmm. So thats how they chose the name, fair enough. I wonder what or who she will find out next, she seems really lonely  as do most people in this show so I’m sure that will only help in her endeavors to uncover the hack and those responsible for it. Speaking of those responsible for it, has anyone figured out where Tyrell is? The closet thing that I can think of is maybe he’s in France because he greeted Elliot with ‘Bonjour’ while talking with him on the phone other than that I got nothing for you. But at least his wife can afford to still look fresh as hell

Game of Thrones Top 10 NBA Draft Picks

(Uproxx)  One of my great hopes in life is that George R.R. Martin will release the next book in the series that inspired Game of Thrones, and when fans start reading, they will quickly discover that the whole thing is about a 3-on-3 basketball tournament in Westeros. My reasoning is simple: it would be hilarious. Think of the reaction. People would lose their minds.

A few preliminary notes about my methodology:

The rankings are based on things we’ve learned on the show only. I have not read the books. If you have read the books and have information that would alter the list substantially, you should consider making your own. It’s quite fun.

The rankings are not limited to characters who are still alive. We’ve got dead ones in there, too.

Living characters are ranked based on current potential ability (with one exception), and deceased characters are ranked based on potential ability at the time of their death.

10. Oberyn Martell

9. Melisandre

8. Bronn

7. Jon Snow

6. The One Wildlings Giant

5. The Night King

4. Jaqen H’ghar

3. Jaime Lannister (pre-amputation)

2. Brienne

1. Khal Drogo

 

Cool idea by ‘Brian’ over at Uproxx  but there are some glaring problems with his picks. I get trust the process but My Lanta you have the Wildings Giant aka Wun Weng (you better put some respeckt on his name from henceforth!) going 6th overall and that is a tragedy. Along with having Oberyn going tenth and the ever slow moving Melisandre somehow going above him its time to get started on my list of the top 1o picks if this was the NBA draft.

1. Wun Weg Wun

You can’t teach size and Wun Weg has it in spades, 14 ft of it to be exact combined with the strength of 12 men. He is the franchise changer and a championship cornerstone that you expect from the number 1 pick spot.

2. The Night King

Second off the board is the Night King. He possesses a plethora of skills and talent like his inability to get rattled because of his icy cold demeanor and his win at all costs method. He’s a lot like Kobe Bryant so you know what you’re getting.

3. The Mountain

Going with more size since its a rare commodity in the GOT world and The Mountain fits the bill coming in tipping the scales at 6’9″ four hundred pounds. He is the fierce defensive force you crave to protect your basket. No one is gliding through the lane with him holding down the paint.

4. Jon Snow

Some may he’s too undersized to go this high but I don’t care the kid’s got game. He is a natural born leader and pair that with his quickness and his agility as seen in the above gif he slides perfectly onto any team in the lead guard position. He’s battle tested and plays with a chip on his shoulder like so many of the great ones did.

5. Khal Drogo

The last of the big men goes here because of his strength, explosiveness. He just oozes bravado and he will need that going up against the other giants in this game. Not too mention is his uncanny wingspan, he has all the tools to be a great defender.

6. Bronn

With the game shifting towards position-less basketball Bronn is a great value pick going here. Born iscrafty, agile, mobile and hostile. He’s a jack of all trades what I’m saying and his humor is infectious among his teammates. He most closely reminds me of Draymond Green

7. Jaquen H’ghar

For all the same reasons as Bronn especially except he is not as funny so he loses a couple points in my book.

8. Brienne

I said the last of the big men were gone but I didn’t say the last of the big women. Brienne is a skillfully trained player that can you beat you physically and mentally. She reminds of Marc Gasol , just the prototypical grit N grind player. She would make a great sidekick to a powerful duo.

9. Oberyn Martell

He may not win you a championship but Oberyn Martell will put asses in the seats and be all over Twitter the next morning with his high flying , flashy play. No one can excite or a shock a crowd more than Oberyn with his charisma. His NBA comparison  would be another guy with a nickname almost as good as “The Red Viper” and that is Jason ‘White Chocolate’ Williams.

10. The Hound

Finally rounding out the top 10 is The Hound. He may be a little banged up with some injuries over the years but he’s been in rehab after his near catastrophic fall at the hands of Brienne. Since then he’s been in rehab putting in the work grinding to get back. He could really be the steal of the draft going this low and no one swings a sword or axe quite like him. He has the bloodline as well with his brother ‘The Mountain’ going earlier. He’s highly motivated and seems to have found some peace with his true purpose.

 

The table is set for the Cavs & Warriors Final’s Rematch

 

Before I get into the Cavs Vs. Warriors let me touch on a few things on the teams that lost  to them. The Raptors took it to six which no one expected by playing inspired ball on their home court with the help of Lowry , DeRozan and the emergence of Bismack Biyombo who has made himself a lot money this offseason from his performance. The Raptors will have a nice core returning next season with a healthy Jonas coming back. But I wonder if they can attract any bigger free agents to come there since they have failed to do so in the past. Add that to DeRozan’s impending free agency when the Lakers (his hometown ) will be most likely calling and I would be willing to bet he would leave. Personally I wouldn’t DeRozan on my team just because his lack of a 3pt shot, and now he flat-out doesn’t take them. But I’m sure the Raptor fans out there would be bummed breaking up their best team ever including this super fan, who I’m sure you’ve seen if you have ever watched a Raptors game.  His name is Nav Bhatia and he has been a season ticket holder for 21 years and he is also a really good dude. By giving out the rest of his many season tickets to bring  hundreds of underprivileged children to the games every year.

 

Now onto the Thunder who by all accounts looked to be firmly in control of their series versus the Thunder until a devastating loss at home in-game 6. I felt that after that loss the series would be over going back to Golden State at home. The Thunder’s late decision-making came back to bite them the final two games. This really shouldn’t come as a surprise since they led the league in 4th quarter collapses this year even beating the woeful Sixers in that category. But this postseason they looked like they had finally turned the corner and put those days behind them. Also in games 6 and 7 their second half scoring was abysmal including a 12 point third quarter in game 7, you just cannot expect to win with that kind of output. Going forward for the Thunder I think they are in a good position with Durant’s free agency looming. They have a young coach who is only going to get better. There isn’t a team that could he could go to that would give him a better chance to win like the Thunder unless you believe those Warriors rumblings are true. I say just sign the 2yr deal with an option to opt out after 1 which will also be Russ’ last season under contract too. They have great pieces with emerging pieces like Adams and Kanter. They do need to tweak their roster some because at this rate the Thunder now will be the new age version of those 90’s Jazz teams with Stockton/Malone, in that they continually get to the apex but just can not seem to conquer it. I do think they should deal Ibaka to get back some more shooting and draft picks to bolster their roster. Although I would like to see Durant next to a pass first point guard like a Chris Paul. I just can envision the dynamic pick and rolls those two could unleash on the league.

 Getty Images

Now finally we get to the main course, and what a dish it is between the Cavaliers & Warriors. This will be the 14th time in NBA history that The Finals will be a rematch of the previous season. The runner-up has won the rematch in seven out of the 13 re-matches, but they’ve won six of the past seven so this bodes well for the Cavs.

The Cavs will be entering the finals at full strength unlike last season and they will have the shooting to back it up. The finals features the top two 3pt shooting teams ever to go against each other in the finals. The individual matchups will be interesting as usual with Kyrie probably guarding Curry exclusively because they wouldn’t want him to guard Barnes or Iguadala because of the mismatch guarding them in the post. Tristan Thompson will need to make more of an impact in this series against the smaller Warriors team than he did against the Raptors and he must make them pay on the offensive glass. They won’t be able to defend the Warriors like the thunder did with their mobile 7ft’ers so they will try to outscore them, and they can be able to pull it off winning the  on the offeensive glass. LeBron can basically go 4 out and him driving in creating for himself or dishing it to an array of shooters. He is the best driver in the league as well as one of the best passers to an epic 3pt shooting team (No one team EVER has made more threes in the playoffs than them). Finally if the Cavs really want to win they have to capitalize when Golden State goes cold and step on the gas to get as much of a lead as possible. Because a 10-15 pt lead is only 5 or 6 shots from the Warriors and POOF its gone.

Mandatory Credit: Sam Sharpe-USA TODAY Sports

The Warriors on the other hand with just a couple of nights rest will not be rusty and looking to make a statement in-game 1 which is the opposite of what they did against the Thunder. Now they know just how quickly things can change after losing game 1 on your home court. Can we get more Klay Thompson pub?! The guy has been absolutely lights out this post season , especially when Curry went down with mcl sprain and in game 6 against the Thunder when he shot literal fireballs on his way to 11 threes.

Bogut will be very important this series because of Bron’s ability to dominate the paint and without Bogut playing at high level it will be a long series for dubs fans. I wonder if Draymond can keep himself from getting another technical since one more will mean an automatic suspension and that could be more than enough to swing the series. I’ve talked about how great Curry has been this whole year and he just keeps proving it by going for 36 in-game 7 just solidifying his  Boy Scout bad motherfucker badge even more.  Steve Kerr may also want to put out a BOLO on Harrison Barnes because that guy has disappeared from second halves of games this post season run.

 Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

There is a lot on the line for this finals legacy wise, on one side you have the Warriors attempting to do something that hasn’t been done before and if they accomplish it they can begin to compare themselves to the better dynasties the league has seen , and arguably on the path to being one of the greatest teams ever. Then on the other hand you have LeBron who has been to six consecutive finals which has never been done before in the history of the Association. Then there is the added pressure on Bron bringing a title to Cleveland which hasn’t been done since Jim Brown was truck sticking folks in the 60’s. There will be a lot of history on the line this time around and with each team at full strength it will be a pleasure to watch. I’m going to ride with the Cavaliers in 6 games because as my friend Darren pointed out earlier this week that

With tonight's win, teams with the NBA MVP in that season have won EIGHTEEN consecutive Game 7's.

— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) May 31, 2016

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mr. Robot is back…with a new trailer

Finally after last season’s bombastic finale we get a glimpse of what is to come for season two of my favorite show from the past year.  So without further ado here it is

The two feelings I have after watching that can encapsulated with these

 

Looks we are going to be diving deeper into Elliot’s psyche to figure out what really happened when he blacked out and delve into fSociety’s allies that also operate in the shadows which will be much harder to do in light of recent events. Then we have freaking Obama calling out Tyrell Wellick while linking him to fSociety. Speaking of Tyrell, we do not see him at all in the trailer but maybe we catch a glimpse of his hand when he slaps Mrs. Wellick while she’s getting her BDSM on

I just can’t be sure. I just need for Wellick to come back and share the screen with her again because that resulted in some of the most haunting, erotic, powerful scenes of the show. Also just because the actor who plays Tyrell is the second best performance on the show behind Elliot, he just commands the screen and emotes wonderfully.

 

 

Mr. Robot returns on July 13th

Free at last, Free at last, Thank God almighty we are free at last

 

Finally that debacle of a series is over with it and I’m ecstatic that I will not have to see those same players together ever again in my life. By the end of the series I found myself empathizing with Harden because he was the only consistent scorer on the team even with his ole defense followed by a deadpan stare at a teammate who he think should’ve helped. It’s obvious Dwight and Harden have their issues but a lot of it can be placed on JB Bickerstaff barely playing or not playing Capela at all this series when the numbers have backed up his productivity.

• Outscored opponents by 6.9 points per 100 possessions in 681 minutes with Howard on the floor with either Clint Capela or Donatas Motiejunas, but were outscored by 2.6 in 1,599 minutes when Howard was on the floor without either of them.

For being such an analytic driven team you would think JB would be paying attention to the numbers especially a staggering one like that.  He would also play Harden for long stretches of time without a break, as evidenced by him playing 40 straight minutes in game 4. During the first quarter last night Harden went 6 for 6 and the rest of the season went 0 of 15 which is a perfect microcosm of their season. After the conclusion of last night’s game the Rockets were granted permission to interview Luke Walton for the HC job which would be a phenomenal improvement.

Moving onto next year with Dwight out of the picture along with most of the role players except for Harden, Capela, Beasley, Beverly, Harrell, McDaniels,  D-Mo (going to keep him on a cheaper deal too) and Dekker. Harden is a exceptional offensive talent but he has to become more interested on the defensive end with his effort and not fall asleep on D like he is known to do.

Part of the non effort is due  to his teammates clanking their shots not like never before this season and even more so during the playoffs. Dwight and Harden never really fit they only played around 2 seasons worth games together in 3 years because of Dwight’s injury problems. It was no coincidence Harden had his MVP worthy season in 2014-15 when Dwight missed the second half of the year. He also led the league in points in back to back years which hasn’t been done since his old teammate Kevin Durant did it 3x in a row  from 09-12′.  By the way the person who scores the most total points is my scoring champ not the one who averages the most.

There will be a number of free agents to go after this offseason and they will need to get another creator to go alongside Harden , with a center and a 3 & D guy to replace Ariza. Ideally I would like them to go after Al Horford, Pau Gasol to shore up the frontline. I don’t want Whiteside even though he’s elite defensively because he just strikes me as a knucklehead and its very hard to win with those. For the 3 spot that Ariza used to occupy I would go after Durant first then then Nic Batum who is coming off of his best season ever with the Hornets. The Rockets would be fools to not go after him when Durant ultimately spurns them. The last guy is Kent Bazemore , another underrated guy like Batum who has quietly had his strongest season. Now for the piece that has been missing longest during Harden’s tenure a player that can create shots alongside him. Mike Conley is my first choice followed by Rondo and Jeremy Lin.

PS. Finals Prediction , Cavs in 6 over The Spurs

Man Traveling in ‘Ocean Bubble’ From South Florida to Puerto Rico Rescued at Sea

(NBC Miami) A Florida man trying to reach Bermuda, Haiti, Cuba and Puerto Rico in a giant inflatable bubble was rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard over the weekend.

Coast Guard Petty Officer Mark Barney said long-distance runner Reza Baluchi was picked up Sunday off Florida and his “hydropod” was being towed to shore. Baluchi agreed to be voluntarily rescued.

The Coast Guard tweeted Sunday that Baluchi’s voyage had ended “after he violated a USCG order not to embark on his seagoing journey.”

The contraption, years in the making, includes 36 buoyancy balls on each side, a life jacket with a water filter, a GPS tracking device and even shark repellent.

Baluchi set out from Pompano Beach on Saturday, despite receiving an April 15 letter from the Coast Guard warning him not to depart, according to Barney.

The Coast Guard said it had reviewed Baluchi’s plan and determined it to be unsafe. The first leg alone was about 1,033 miles.

Baluchi, however, was undeterred.

“Mind is power. It’s 85 percent your mind. Anything you can do,” he said before leaving Florida.

He tried to make a similar journey in 2014 and had to be rescued about 70 nautical miles east of St. Augustine.

Baluchi — an endurance athlete who has biked through six continents and run the perimeter of the United States — has said his eventual goal is to run through every country in the world and raise money for children in need.

 I saw the headline and was a little surprised that someone would try to travel 3,500 miles from south Florida to Georgia then on to Puerto Rico and Haiti before finally returning to to the starting point.

But then I saw he was from Florida and it all made sense, he’s just joining the long list of Florida men and women who commit the strangest crimes. But unlike most of his peers he was doing this for a good cause that raises money for children in need somehow. I don’t know how that is supposed to work but maybe its awareness, look at me thing like the Ice bucket challenge or what the Call your Shot will probably turn into. Its noble in some strange way nonetheless.

The big problem I with it is if some yahoo wants to get into a bubble and spin across the ocean on his volition and knows the risks the Coast Guard should let him instead of wasting resources and time not once but two times as his he previously tried to make this journey in 2014.  Now he’s facing jail time and a fine for his attempted efforts. Which is so dumb, it makes more sense to just leave him out there then. With no sails or steering I am pretty sure the wind would decide where this ball goes more than him just spinning.

If he wants to go out into international waters in his air bubble and spin around like a hamster until a Kraken eats him or a storm sinks that bubble…LET HIM. We have an overpopulation problem in this world and fighting natural selection is not the way we will overcome it. What better way to gain attention for your cause than dying for it. But if he made it, what a story that would be right.  Hey Reza here’s a pro-tip for your next attempt, when you send in the plans to get reviewed by the coast guard just leave a couple weeks earlier than you put in your itinerary. Got to keep those guys on their toes.

Conor McGregor has ‘Retired’, so what are his best quotes ???

Conor Mcgregor has abruptly ‘retired’ before what would be the biggest event in the history of the sport also coming with the biggest payday at UFC 200. It’s sad day to see the best fighter on the mic with fight game to back it up in a long time. The reason for the retirement is because Dana white took him off the card because Conor did not want to promote the fight. “Conor did not want to come to Las Vegas and film the commercial or be a part of any of the marketing that we have,” White told ESPN. Conor is still reeling from the loss and wanted to focus all his time training which is respectable. But it is the fighter’s job to sell fights too and Conor knows that. He thinks he’s bigger than sport and he wouldn’t be wrong in a lot of aspects. Hopefully they can meet somewhere in the middle and do this thing come July. But  In either case lets look back to see part of what him the most electrifying fighter out there.

Speaking in Rio de Janeiro

I own this town, I own Rio de Janeiro, so for him to say that he is the king and I am the joker, if this was a different time, I would invade his favela on horseback, and would kill anyone who wasn’t fit to work, but we’re in a new time, so I’ll whoop his ass instead.”

When he heard he was fighting Mendes instead of Aldo

The ship was sailing smoothly. My coach came into my room at 1pm, I was sleeping, and he told me that Mendes was replacing Aldo. I opened one eye, said “it makes no difference” then went back to sleep.”

Precision Beats Power, after beating Aldo 

“Nobody can take that left hand shot. He’s powerful and he’s fast, but precision beats power and timing beats speed.

“I feel for Jose, he’s a phenomenal champion. He was a phenomenal champion. He deserved to go a little bit longer but at the end of the day, precision beats power and timing beats speed.”

Chad Mendes questions Conor’s wrestling skills 

Mendes: Conor is a big talker. Conor brought so much attention to this division, so much attention to the UFC. He talked his way all the way up to the top. When I look at Conor I see dollar signs in my bank account. You know, Conor I match up horrible for this guy. Conor, do you know what wrestling is?

McGregor: I can rest my balls on your forehead

Before he made his U.S. debut in Boston

“There’s two things I really like to do and that’s whoop ass and look good.  I’m doing one of them right now and on Saturday night, I’m doing the other.”

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When questioned on how he would adjust to the weight class change

“The only weight I give a fuck about is the weight of the checks and my checks are super-heavyweight.”

The Death Promise during the final presser between Aldo V. McGregor

“Look into my eyes. Little Brazilian. Você vai morrer (you are going to die).”

El Chapo in his prime

“I’m speaking Spanish, I’m dressed like El Chapo in his prime,” McGregor shouted. “I’m running this company like half a wise guy. I’m up here verbally destroying this man. I am a multi-cultured individual. I do whatever I want.”

It will all be A-Ok

“I was happy to see him, I shook his hand, I embraced him, I gave him a little cuddle and told him that it would all be A-okay.

“It will be over before you know it, just please show up December 12th. I don’t want to scare him any more, he’s petrified, he went running before. So now I’m gonna take the opposite approach, cuddle him look after him, whisper sweet nothings…. tell him it’s gonna be alright and it will be over quick.

“Then hopefully get him in that octagon on December 12th and end his career.”

Red Panty Night

To Cerrone/Dos Anjos

“Because I change your bum life. I can make you rich. I can change your bum life. You fight me, it’s a celebration. When you sign to fight me, it’s a celebration, you ring back home, you ring, ‘Baby, we done it. We’re rich. Conor McGregor made us rich. Break out the red panties. We’re rich, baby.’

 

So with that I bid you adieu Conor you magnificent bastard. I wish you luck in your future endeavors but I really hope you do get back in the ring soon because the fight game isn’t the same without you and we need all the amazing sound bites and ko’s we can get. Plus you had one of the best walkouts ever with the Foggy Dew / Notorious BIG mashup .

 

PS.

Upon hearing the Conor new, we get this from his opponent Nate Diaz

I guess my work here is done I'm retiring too✌🏼️👊🏼

— Nathan Diaz (@NateDiaz209) April 19, 2016

now our collective response …