Why Didn't The Messenger Quote My Press Release?

Seriously? Did I read that right? Am I on Earth?

 I linked to the press release on this blog which everyone knows is authored by me. That press release is on the website of smith-green.com which might possibly be my firm's website. And my office refers them to the  press release's URL when they call. And that is not confirming its authenticity? It's Journalism 101. At least the way it was taught since something called the Internet was invented.

I've always said I love the Messenger. Through the years, they have served a valued service to this county. But if they refuse to report news because it's on a blog they somehow view as threatening to its existence, it is turning it's back to it's mission: To distribute information to the public.

For years I've considered hiring one photographer, one reporter, and one salesperson. And I know who I'd choose. Don't tempt me.

Edit: The Star-Telegram's Bud Kennedy didn't think much of the Messenger's explanation.

Emergency Taking You Into The Weekend Part 2

If this was released because of sweeps month, someone at Fox 4 News is a marketing genius.

Arianny Celeste Taking You Into The Weekend

I'm A Sport Observation Genius

Big time LA columnist today:

Me a few days ago:

DWI and A Friday Morning Pick Me Up -- All In One

Woman Says Breast Implants Saved Her Life: MyFoxHOUSTON.com

Random Friday Morning Thoughts

• I dreamed I was playing golf in a twosome with a famous fashion designer. They guy took 20 minutes to examine a chip shot which caused four groups behind us to gather at the tea tee box. (Before you guys psychoanalyse me, yesterday (1)  I watched a little of the Pebble Beach Pro Am, and (2) I read another account of the Springtown guy stabbed with a golf club a couple of weeks ago. Now the fashion designer part is a little hard to explain.)
• We didn't just bring freedom to Iraq, we turned it into Texas: The government has executed 65 prisoners in 40 days.
• The First Lady was at the Olive Garden off of Heritage Trace in North Fort Worth yesterday. That looks to be just about 10 miles from the Wise County line. Has Wise County ever had a First Lady cross the county line before?
• Mark Levin, who sounds like an idiot for what he says but is a genius for realizing the number of people who will believe it, has the New York Times #1 bestseller. How can it not be? He promotes it constantly on his nationally syndicated radio show and Sean Hannity provides him a radio and TV platform to promote it as well. (Last night he had Levin on and called it an "intellectual book." Sheesh.)
• Big 12 Fans: It sounds like West Virginia has reached an exit agreement with the Big East and will join the Big 12 in time for fall football. Road trip to Morgantown anyone?
• The current County Judge of Guadalupe County (and a former DPS trooper) is arrested for possessing pot in a College Station hotel room.  I bet he gets re-elected and there's no reason he shouldn't be. 
• The weather guy of Fox 4 was saying this morning that the National Weather Service needed to update its forecast. He was predicting sleet for Sunday night and that it might not make it to 40 degrees tomorrow.
• What's the eligibility issue of the Brock girls player that's been in the Update?
• I heard from a third person yesterday that the Messenger won't print any of my press release on the County Commissioner story this week unless I "fax" it to them. That cannot possibly be true. (Edit: The Star-Telegram references it.)
• Edit: And to the genius who keeps telling me to "quit trying to influence" potential jury members, uh, what potential jury? A criminal charge doesn't even exist. The only thing that has transpired is the issuance of a search warrant.
• Facepalm last night: Fox 4 ran a video of a guy firing a pistol into his daughter's laptop after a "disrespectful Facebook post" and then brought a shrink on to discuss if his conduct was appropriate. 
• Crazy criminal case out of Denton decided on appeal yesterday: A jury convicts a guy of manslaughter and sentences him to probation.  The verdict is accepted, and the jury is then discharged. A little bit later the judge learns somehow that there might be confusion with the verdict, and the jury is rounded back up. Four jurors then say probation was not their verdict. The judge tells them to go back and deliberate some more. They do, and later come back with a six year prison sentence without probation. The court of appeals yesterday said it was wrong to re-impanel the jury after their original verdict was accepted. Oddly, instead of imposing the original probated sentence, the court remand the case back for a brand new punishment hearing. All the while, the defendant has been sitting in prison since August 4, 2010.
• People in prison who claimed Wise County as their home at the time of the offense. Represent.

Separation Of Church And State Case Settled. Judge Fires Off A Closing Shot.

Explained for those interested.

And Now From The Completely Irrelevant Department

Helicopter Parent and No-Chance-Senate-Candidate Craig James has endorsed Rick Santorum. Wow, what a game changer!!!!

A Kardashian In Wise County?

Link.

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts

• Body found in "shallow grave" in Clay County. Never a good sign.
• I obviously can't publish the comments on the County Commissioner story, but I appreciate those that are submitted. It's good to hear the wide-ranging feedback and the tips as well. Edit: And I'm stunned the Update author was oblivious to my press release yesterday when even WFAA Channel 8 quoted it. 
• Hypothetical: You are in charge of buying office supplies with a company credit card. On a Thursday, you take home a previously purchased ream of paper from your employer without permission because you need it for an urgent school project. As you intended, over the weekend you go by Office Depot and purchase an identical replacement and take it to work on Monday to replenish the paper supply. If you then mention to your employer what you did, have you "Admitted to the theft of office supplies that were purchased with a company credit card?"
• Edit: I don't mind comments on the above, just limit them to the hypothetical. 
• Sports: I was all excited about the Baylor/Kansas game last night and then Baylor promptly got demolished. I think Kansas went on a 32-0 run or something like that. It felt like the old days. (I woke up in the middle of the night with the TV on and I was curious how Duke/North Carolina turned out. I flipped over to one of the ESPN channels just in time to catch the last one minute of a replay of the game. Wow. Duke won a last second three pointer and that North Carolina crowd went dead quiet.)
• I actually told Mrs. LL I felt grumpy last night just in case I said something curt. She told me she thought I was in a good mood.
• The big rumor is that there's a seven second video of Josh Hamilton doing very un-Christian like things with a girl who was not his wife in a bathroom stall during his last drinking binge. Allegedly the owner of the video is shopping it to local stations for $41,000.
• I can see TMZ paying that amount but not a local news affiliate. 
• I wonder if the company or companies who manufactured those military drones are public. I'd like to invest in them because that has to be the way wars will be waged in the future.
• The Family Pup made it back to our bed last night only to be swatted in the face by the Family Cat when he woke up this morning. (The Family Cat is kind of like the Honey Badger. Family Cat don't care.)
• If you would boycott J.C. Penney because Ellen Degeneres is there spokesperson, then you are one strange bird. 
• Will Ferrell introduced the starting lineups last night at a NBA game and did shtick. ("At forward, #5, and he still lives with his mother . . . . ")
• High school basketball Idiocracy: The Ponder and Nocona  girls will play a "play-in" game in Bridgeport to win the third place of their district in order to move on to the playoffs. 

From All Reports: Huge Crowd Showed Up For Santorum Appearance Tonight In Plane Plano

There might need to be the creation of a Third Party for the Hard Right.

Official Statement of Wise County Commissioner Terry Ross

Has been posted here.

Photo Of Santorum Prayer This Morning During Church Meeting In McKinney

He's in the middle somewhere. Although there looks like one photographer, the rest seem to be doing the "laying on of hands."

Coverage.

Boyd Restaurant Calls Out Restaurants Which Jack Up Their Prices For Valentine's

"Anticipation . . . Is Making Me Wait"

I presume this is during the NY Giants parade yesterday.

 And, look! The Cowboys have something in common with New England.

Brady on Sunday

Romo a while back

This Is A New One

Hang on girl! I'm on my way!

Link.

Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts

• Well, it's more chaos for the Republicans. Whomever mentioned yesterday that it "Wouldn't be a good night for Romney" was dead on. Rick Santorum won all three states last night and becomes the GOP Flavor of the Week.
• And Santorum will be in North Texas today with one of the stops being at a Tea Party rally in Allen. Good or bad timing? 
• And WBAP's Mark Davis will give him the equivalent of a free three hour radio show commercial today before he MC's a Santorum event tonight. He should be on the payroll. Edit: He will actually be at two Santorum events today.
• Matt Drudge tweet last night: "Surprisingly LOW voter turnout in Republican races, lackluster cablenews ratings... Who/what to blame? Omen for Nov.? People 'sick of it' ?"
• Said something sweet about the Family Pup yesterday and last night, for the first time ever, she sleeps with the Oldest Girl In The House.
• Do the Dallas Stars still exist? (Joking. Kind of.)
• As much as Dallas needs mass transit, people getting murdered on and around trains is probably not good for PR. (Two dead yesterday, a guy killed in downtown Dallas last month, some guy shot to death in the War on Drugs near Reunion Tower last year, and some kid pushed into a train in South Dallas last year as well.)
• I've taken subways on two different trips: One to New York City and one in Washington D.C.  And using those trains was fantastic. 
• I guess we'll never hear anything else about the hairdresser found dead in her burned car in north Dallas last year. (Cops call it murder. Medical examiner magically says "nuh-uh.")
• I finally watched the "Honey Badger" video on youtube this week. Funny. Really funny.
• TCU has had five suicides in two years? How is that possible? 
• Mrs. LL wants me to point out that she is not assistant coaching but instead head coaching a girl's softball team this year.  
• But, hey, Mr. Assistant Coach --- who I thought was the head coach -- I've got my eyes on you. (Making the two-fingers-at-my-eyeballs gesture that Robert De Niro did to Ben Stiller in Meet The Parents.)
• Set the stage for a very interesting criminal appeal out of the Wise County Court at Law yesterday. I've never had so many prosecutor's tell me I was absolutely wrong and every defense lawyer tell me I'm absolutely right. (From the public record: It involved my client getting arrested for DWI seven days after being placed on DWI probation.  Not the best facts in the world.  The appeal, however, is just a technical procedural point.)
• Josh Hamilton was so strung out on drugs that he missed three seasons (2004-2006) in the major leagues. Yet I've never met anyone who thinks he should have spent a day in prison. Why is that?

Regarding Wise County News This Afternoon

Sometimes my real job collides with this silly hobby, and my real job always takes an ethical and professional priority. However, I might be in a position to release a  statement tomorrow on the news that everyone has been begging me to comment on.