3.17.2015

I Mentioned Pinching In Random Thoughts . . .




. . . and this Bud Light post appears to be getting a lot of backlash.

Edit: That was embedded earlier and it appears the original tweet has now been deleted. Here is what it looked like . . .


My St. Patrick's Day Traditional Post



And still my favorite Internet video of all time.

Random Tuesday Morning Thoughts



  • I've always wanted to write a book, and Mrs. LL and I stayed up way too late talking about one last night: The Bridgeport basketball championship and everything swirling around it.  Think about it. Small town with no basketball history. Four new move-ins.  The impact of "select" sports programs today. Why Bridgeport? The race angle. The Cuban connection. That house.  And that just scratches the surface. Look,  Friday Night Lights was a fantastic book about Odessa Permian's football program but what we just saw trumps that to the nth degree. But I would need your help with information.
  • Edit: You guys realize that Friday Night Lights was an eye opening critical piece, right? 
  • From Channel 8 News last night: "WISE COUNTY — A bag full of abandoned puppies was dumped into a rural Wise County creek bed on Sunday. Now the family who took them in is pushing for the owner to be held accountable."
  • For some reason I ended up following Chuck Woolery on Twitter and was amazed at what a right winger he was. Then I noticed he is a spokesperson in commercials which appear on Fox News for a product that has to be a scam called the "Willow Curve". It looks like an electronic device out of Star Trek to cure joint pain. Wait a second! Throw out very conservative opinions to become beloved to an elderly Fox News viewer with pain and then try and sell that product? That has to be a coincidence, right?
  • Very obscure sports observation: In light of SMU's tourney appearance in more than two decades, coach Larry Brown was interviewed a lot yesterday. He talked slowly and seemed beyond lethargic. He's 74. Something didn't seem right. 
  • The video didn't show much, but last night the metroplex media had a story of police shooting a mentally ill guy at almost point blank range. Amazing. Edit: The Dallas Observer has posted the unedited video. The shooting happens right after the 1:00 minute mark. You've got to be kidding me!!!!
  • The Texas Senate approved Open Carry yesterday for those who have a concealed handgun licenses.  Hey, I understand those who want a CHL, but why would you ever want to carry a gun that is exposed? 
  • If a program comes on dealing with monkeys, our house shuts down. 
  • I didn't see the HBO mini-series on Robert Durst but if they are going to try and convict him based upon his "bathroom confession", good luck with all that. I could only think of the scene in Presumed Innocent when Harrison Ford sarcastically and angrily uttered in the hallway, "Yeah, you're right. I killed him" to the prosecutor. Later the judge would say (and I paraphrase): "In my neighborhood, if someone were to be falsely accused they would respond with 'Ya momma.' But I suppose in his neighborhood a person would respond with, 'Yeah, you're right."
  • When I was in elementary school I was riding in the car with my mom to school on St. Patrick's Day when I realized I wasn't wearing anything green. My mom looked around frantically and came up with the idea to paste a Green Stamp to my belt. (I laugh just thinking about it.) But I ended up getting pinched all day because no one noticed it. Question: Do kids still pinch one another for not wearing green? I would think not. 
  • The Liberally Lean Tourney Pick 'Em. Don't forget. Sign up. We had 57 who did so yesterday. Couple of funny names in there.



3.16.2015

Please, please, please sign him!


Oh, My


I've posted about that event before.


Liberally Lean March Madness Pick 'Em Tourney 2015



Link to sign up should be here.

My incomplete list of past winners:

2014 - Chris Read
2013 - Tad Billmire
2012 - ????
2011 - Wise County Attorney James Stainton
2010 - Nine year old Blake Cooper (son of former Decatur stationed DPS Trooper Scott Cooper)

Internet Laughed At This Guy Over The Weekend



As did I.

And we should all be ashamed of ourselves.

I do a horrible job of it, but I try to always be mindful of where a person has been before I judge them. It's the concept of, "Maybe he's had a bad day." But sometimes a person has had a very hard life. Sometimes self-inflicted. Sometimes out of their control like this man.

It's Monday. Indulge Me.

Random Monday Morning Thoughts


  • I'll get the Liberally Lean March Madness Pick 'Em Tourney up later this morning. 
  • A lady had her probation for murder revoked in Tarrant County last week for the new offense of credit card abuse. (I know I wrote about the original trial when it happened despite having no specific memory of doing so. And I know that makes no sense.) The story says the verdict led to the a change in the law which no longer allows a jury to give probation in a murder case -- which is insane.
  • The Family Unit wanted me to hit softballs to them on a field yesterday so off we went. Fantastic afternoon. Started off by hitting them grounders. Good stuff. Then they wanted me to hit them high fly balls to the outfield. You know, I haven't done that in years and failed miserably at it. I resulted to throwing the ball instead of hitting it. I'll be sharing a hospital room with Yu Darvish after Tommy John surgery later today.
  • This has been posted and posted again by the Dallas Morning News on social media: "Mark Cuban's lawyer has the coolest, most challenging job in the legal profession." Most challenging? The headline writer has to be an intern. Trust me, there's a new lawyer today who just got a court appointment in a criminal case who has a more "challenging" job. Think about the consequences. 
  • Blue Bell had a recall after three people died from eating the the product. Died! (That goofy Texas Supreme Court judge always panders to his audience by tweeting about how he loves Blue Bell. What happens if a case involving the tainted product ends up in front him?)
  • I was only halfway watching This Week With George Stephanopoulos when I perked up because I heard a politician say this about the issues in Ferguson. "But we need to begin to look at how we move forward. You don't move forward by talking about things like the militarization of the police, which really is decisions [sic] that need to be made by the police of how they protect themselves and how they protect others in the hard job they have to do." Good lord. Not only do the police need to unilaterally decide how they arm themselves but we don't need to question it? 
  • Later I hit "play" on the new episode of Vice which had a disturbing segment on the militarization of the police. Great, great show. 
  • I was in the front yard yesterday and was watching a bird chirping when I saw one of the Family Dogs looking at me through the backyard fence. I decided to take him on a walk and, for once, do so without listening to radio/podcasts/music.  With my ears open, a block over I got to smile when a little neighbor girl yelled out of her upstairs window, "Hello, Barry!!!" But then that mood was taken down a notch when I later heard an argument between a couple in a garage. Such is life. 
  • I heard on the radio that girls love Game of Thrones (which I've never seen.) True?
  • The new Will Farrell movie looks horrible. Thought: Has he ever been in a dramatic role? Other comedians have done it. Robin Williams. Steve Martin. Bill Murray. Even Adam Sandler. 
  • I'm up to date on Better Call Saul. Those feelings of doubt about the show have now vanished. It's fantastic. 





3.15.2015

Bridgeport Wins State Championship -- Media Is Not Impressed

Nothing from the Star-Telegram's sports home page:


And I didn't find anything in the Dallas Morning News -- even on its page dedicated to high school sports. But it still had this item up (mentioning a fact that was also referenced on Fox Sports Southwest about a million times last night):


Channel 8 strikes a similar theme:



3.14.2015

Star-Telegram Fires First Shot At The New Tarrant County DA



Story.

Let's be honest about the elephant in the room: That lady is a nutcase.  She's like an angry and unhappy Ted Cruz or Dan Patrick on meth yet with ultimate power. You should all be scared. Make no mistake about it, she holds the most powerful position in Tarrant County with the capability to destroy lives. Ironically, the article (which only scratches the surface) concerns how she is treating her staff with an iron glove.  If the article accurately represents her attitude towards those who she should care about, I fear for those who she is prosecuting.

The stories are legendary about how, as a judge, she harshly treated prosecutors, defense lawyers, and even spectators in her court. Until recently I thought it was limited to that. Then I learned she treated her court staff just as harshly. That's mind blowing. Those who work for you protect you. I'd love to see how she treats a waiter.

Side note: Many years ago I was talking to a former Tarrant County assistant DA who told me she had an upcoming probation revocation hearing in Wilson's court. "It's a true-but" she said. I replied with a confused, "What?" "It's a true-but. You know, the allegations in the motion to revoke the probation are true but there are some reasons why he shouldn't be revoked," came the response.  I asked, "Does that ever work in that court?" Her response: "Not really. Unless the defendant is young, white and female." I turned to her in amazement but she was distracted. She had uttered those words casually and with no axe to grind.

I can't tell you how badly I feel for every prosecutor in her office. I suspect that most would leave but because of the ridiculous glut of lawyers out there, they simply have nowhere to go. But for those who have already walked out, you will never regret the decision. You can always look in the mirror and say, "I refused to be bullied  by her."

Wilson's campaigns as a judge always amused me. Her signs would say, "A tough Republican!" Politics aside, shouldn't that read, "A tough and fair Republican"?

Being a bad person and horrible boss is one thing, prosecuting people is another. We live in an age where we are finally discovering how wrongful convictions can occur because of prosecutors who care more about themselves than doing the right thing and seeking justice.  I said last year that Sharen Wilson  has the potential to be the re-incarnation of the now disgraced former Dallas DA Henry Wade. I just pray that every media outlet monitors her every move. Kudos to the Star-Telegram for at least firing the first shot.

3.13.2015

Bridgeport 68, Madison 60 (Final)



And that webcast on FoxSports was of pretty good quality.


The Morning News previewed the team today:


And there are those grumbling:


Trophy Club Youth Sports: Bring Your Lawyer


At least if stuff like this goes on.

This is a new court opinion. It's long. Kinda complicated. But the facts are insane.

A guy sues two other guys for defamation arising out of everyone's participation in "Trophy Club Roanoke Baseball Association." (You know, a baseball league for kids.) In fact, Ryan Williams was a coach and he sued his assistant coach and the commissioner of the association. If you ever been involved in those summer sports of youth baseball and softball, you learn that its some of the parents and coaches who make you fear for our future instead of the kids.

I tried, the best I could, to wade through the facts and I kept waiting for the Big Reveal. What could possibly have been said that prompted a lawsuit?  It's bizarre. It basically centered on Williams believing that he was called "abusive" as a coach which he did not appreciate. But there's also part of the opinion regarding the treatment of Williams son by others during the all-start team selection process. However, I was left with the impression of, "You sued two people over that?"

The opinion documents meetings, telephone calls, emails, and text messages among parents and coaches. So much time and energy wasted.

The court actually kicked out the lawsuit. Legally, they considered it to be a "SLAPP" lawsuit under Texas law -- filed in retaliation for the defendants exercise of free speech and without enough evidence existing to ever support the plaintiff's claims of defamation.

I only wish the court would have ended with the opinion with, "We conclude there is no crying in baseball." Instead, they remanded the case back to the trial court to determine if the defendants are entitled to an "award of costs, attorney's fees, and sanctions."


Love the guy in the background: "Woah!"




Random Friday Morning Thoughts



  • I said yesterday that the prosecutor in that horrible double child murder in Graham had caused the jury to question her credibility by telling them the defendant loved his children whom he had killed. Yesterday, that jury decided against the death penalty.
  • The failure to get the death penalty in that case is telling. That would have been a no-brainer for a jury 30 years ago and just shows how the public has now turned against it. If the Texas legislature never has the courage to abolish the death penalty, a civilized society might do it for them by never imposing it.
  • Historic day for Bridgeport basketball as it plays in the state tournament at 1:30 p.m today. 
  • Jeopardy fans: Watch only one contestant make it to Final Jeopardy as the two others end in the negative number. 
  • Had a kid kind of circle me on a bike yesterday while I was jogging and at one point pulled out a cellphone. I could only think about the scene in Breaking Bad where a kid on bike turned out to be a hitman. 
  • For America to be a Christian nation, we sure have a lot of experts on Islam.
  • I haven't mentioned it, but I was really disturbed of the footage of ISIS from a couple of weeks ago destroying rare works of art in an Iraq museum.  Then I heard someone say that its crazy how that video can cause in some people a more emotional response than the numerous executions. (Side note: I learned from an On The Media podcast that most of the works of art which were destroyed were simply duplicates with the originals having been moved for safe keeping before the arrival of ISIS. A quick search found a similar report from Newsweek.)
  • Got behind an extended cab white truck this morning on College and then Hale streets and it was going 10 mph. Not 20 or 15. 10 mph. That's sloooooow. But it was staying in between the lines and came to a complete stop at a stop sign and signaled. It was just barely moving. It was too dark for me to see the driver. 
  • I can't find a news article on it, but an Austin reporter covering the legislature noted yesterday that the heads of agency after agency lined up a hearing asking for millions of dollars to repair and upgrade government buildings. 
  • Grapevine cop involed shooting update: I'm not sure what I think about the lady who claims she came upon the victim laying by his car with no cops around. In essence, she is saying after the cop shot him, that cop left. The videos in the case would give us the truth but they are not being released. If she's right, this is going to be bad. 
  • "Innocent Driver Injured In Carrollton Police Chase." 
  • From all of the mercenaries on the Mavericks to the crazy number of players changing teams during NFL free agency, Jerry Seinfeld had it dead right: "When it is all said and done, we're just cheering for laundry." 



3.12.2015

NFL Free Agency Today Gives Me An Excuse To Post This



This is from Hard Knocks a few years back. (Cromartie is going back to the Jets -- I don't care about that. I just have always thought the clip was funny.)

Edit: But in more local news, one fan is not happy that DeMarco Murray is going to Philadelphia. And proves he's not that smart.



Police Officers Shot In Ferguson: Does This Sound Right?

CNN excerpt: One of them is from nearby Webster Groves. The officer -- a 32-year-old with seven years experience -- was shot at the high point of his cheek, just under his right eye, Belmar said. The bullet that hit him was still lodged behind his ear as of late Thursday morning.

The other wounded officer was hit in the shoulder and the bullet came out the middle of his back, Belmar said. He is a 41-year-old from St. Louis County Police who has been in law enforcement for the past 14 years.

Both men were treated and released from St. Louis' Barnes Jewish Hospital, according to a Thursday morning post on the St. Louis County Police's Facebook page.

We Have A Verdict


A federal court was occupied for almost two weeks for this? The NFL has always said it tried to settle this thing and there's no question they were willing to pay that a long time ago.

Question: Is the Plaintiff's lawyer entitled to recover attorney's fees over and above this because it is a breach of contract case?



"Today we received justice for my clients who were dumb enough to spend outrageous amounts of money on tickets for an NFL game in the first place.  And make no mistake about it, this $76,000 verdict sends a message to the NFL, which made $9.5 billion this year, that they can't abuse its fans, cover up domestic abuse, or ignore the impact of brain injuries. Oh, and camera guy, could you move a bit. My right side is my good side."*
________

*Since this guy will sue over anything, let's be clear that this was not his actual statement. It probably should have been, but it wasn't.
_________

Edit: Based upon a very informed commenter, the NFL will not have to pay his attorney's fees which can happen in breach of contract cases. So was this a financial win for that lawyer? I can't possibly see how. There's no way his seven clients agreed to pay him by the hour. No way. So I would suspect he took a contingency fee. 40%? 33%?  But think about his expenses. First, he's from California. I bet his travel and hotel bills alone for the prep and actual trial of this case are astronomical. Throw in the cost for depositions (court reporters, videographers, transcripts) and other typical litigation costs, and the figure has to be real, real high.  And all that doesn't even factor in the amount of time he dedicated to this thing.  When all is said and done, it wouldn't surprise me if he ended up working for below minimum wage. Did he do it for publicity? Possibly. But can any of you name him?