Serena Williams is used to breaking records. Monday, she broke yet another when she received an $82,500 fine for last September’s tirade at the U.S. Open. Williams also faces the possibility of a one year suspension from the event should she commit another infraction over the next 2 years.
In a decision nearly 3 months in the making, the Grand Slam Committee handed down the record fine, which actually could have been much higher. Under the sport’s code of conduct, a fine of up to $1 million could have been assessed against Williams. Initially fined $175,000, the new figure represents half of that amount, provided Williams avoids future troubles at the event.
Williams says she is, “thankful to have closure on the incident,” which took place during her match against Kim Clijsters of Belgium, and was broadcast on national television and received countless hits on YouTube. Upset by the call of a foot-fault, Williams cursed and physically threatened the lineswoman that made the call.
In spite of the drama on and off the court, it has been an otherwise stellar year for the No. 1 women’s tennis player. Williams broke the record for earnings for a female player by bringing in over $6 million this season. She also published her autobiography, “On the Line,” and purchased a stake in the NFL’s Miami Dolphins.
She became famous after her hit song, Respect, and is now getting just that in a new poll that rates the top 100 female singers. Aretha Franklin recorded the song in 1967 with her sisters singing back up. The song was first recorded by Stax in 1965, but Franklin’s rendition was an instant hit.
It is now an all time favorite girl power song that is out there. One of her other hit songs, “You Make Me Feel” was listed as number 72 in the top 100 female song list. Every girl gets excited after hearing one of these ego boosting songs.
The list included a variety of different artists including Pink, Madonna, and Gloria Gaynor. The poll was sponsored by Hummingbird100, after a similar poll by Triple J 100 irritated a number of people. The Triple J poll did not have any songs by female artists. The Hummingbird poll launched in October and received 62,000 votes. The poll included 5,500 different songs.
The surprising results included a number of new artists in the results. Lady Gaga made the top 10 with her song, “Pokerface.” Rolling Stone editor-in-chief Matthew Coyte, was also surprised about the number of new songs that made the list.
SAL900 and Nene Anegasaki would seem like typical newlyweds, just returning from their honeymoon to Guam to start their new life together, but they’re not. SAL900 is a living, breathing groom, but his bride is a virtual character from the game “Love Plus.” The two had a virtual wedding with full reception, priest, music DJ, wedding music and all the trimmings. The event was even shared via the internet with the Japanese public. The groom was happy that he could share his wedding with everyone and felt this event was a major turning point in his life.
This kind of wedding may not be real in legal circles, but it is a serious change of life for the groom. SAL9000 states it clearly, “Some people have expressed doubts about my actions, but at the end of the day, this is really just about us as husband and wife.” As technology advances, we may be seeing more cyber relationships like these pop up in the future.
On Wednesday November 25 it was announced that Phil Carter, the 34 year old official in charge of closing Gitmo was resigning. Carter is a lawyer and Army veteran. Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said Phillip Carter resigned after serving about seven months. The reason given for Carter’s resignation was for personal reasons.
Carter announced his resignation after the Obama administration revealed that it would not be able to meet the announced deadline to close Gitmo by the announced deadline of January 22, 2010.
In April Carter was appointed as deputy assistant secretary of defense for detainee policy at Gitmo. Approximately 215 suspects are held there which includes the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 attacks Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.
Also Phil Carter left his position after it was announced by US Attorney General Eric Holder on November 13 that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four other terror suspects who are being held at Guantanamo Bay will be tried in a New York City civilian courtroom.
Carter also announced his resignation after the Obama administrations announced that they were considering relocating some 50 to 100 terrorism suspects indefinitely at a maximum security prison located in Thomson, Ill which is about 125 miles west of Chicago.
Earlier this month Gregory B. Craig also announced his resignation. Craig was Obama’s top lawyer and was in charge of the campaign to close Guantanamo Bay prison.
“Gangs killed to steal fat?” This was the question that puzzled everyone in this community in Peru. A gang of killers were arrested because they murdered their victims and sold their fat for money. It is believed that they found their victims on deserted roads and lured them into their huts to talk to them about a business proposition. It was not determined how many people were killed by the gang, but theory has it, that the gang has been doing this for years. Police say that over the years there have been about 60 peasants that have disappeared and have not been found. It was in this area that the gang murderers were found, so police think that they have found the answer to the disappearances.
The gang members are known as ‘Los Pishtacos.’ The mythology of Peruvian culture describes a pishtaco as a devil that kills people to steal their fat. One of the gang members, Serapio Veramendi, gave a description of how they killed their victims. They used a tool to cut off the victim’s heads. Then they would put the bodies on hooks and let them hang. Then they would place 6 to 8 candles underneath them and then wait 2 to 3 days and this is when the fat would drip into the bottles. Then, they would sell the fat to European cosmetic companies for thousands of dollars.
Cindy Naugle, a 61 year old garage manager in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, won a $300 million lawsuit against Philip Morris. This was one of the largest tobacco verdicts in the U.S. Ms. Naugle suffers from emphysema and also needs a lung transplant. She had been smoking Benson & Hedges cigarettes since she was 20 years old and finally quit when she was 45 years old. Philip Morris marketed the brand of cigarettes to women stating that it would make them look more sophisticated and grown- up. That is why Ms. Naugle started smoking this brand because she wanted to experience this feeling.
The lawyers for Cindy Naugle said that Philip Morris had committed fraud, knowing that the cigarettes were harmful and were detrimental for your health. Ms. Naugle said that if she had known then about nicotine being an addictive drug, she would have never taken that first puff. Philip Morris did not admit to any wrongdoing in this matter.
In 2006, the Florida Supreme Court ruled that each of these cases must be dealt on an individual basis. This opened the door for thousands of lawsuits against the tobacco companies. The juries for these court proceedings said that the tobacco companies knew that tobacco products were harmful, but promoted them anyway, hiding the risks involved, from the public
Retailers in New York and New Jersey have been accused of selling counterfeit cigarettes, spurring a lawsuit by Philip Morris USA, the largest tobacco company in the United States. This lawsuit is only the latest in a series of them being filed since May, 2009.
Ten retailers in both states are accused of selling counterfeit versions of the Marlboro brand cigarettes. With New York yielding a market prime for cigarette smugglers due to high taxes, Philip Morris is on the offensive. Not only are they asking that a ban on these counterfeit cigarettes be made but that all profits made from the sale of them be repaid to Philip Morris. In addition, they are asking for payment of attorney’s fees and punitive damages.
Philip Morris has filed lawsuits against 185 retailers in New York and New Jersey since 2002. They are committed to protecting their trademark and stopping contraband cigarette activity.
Felberbaum, M. (2009, November 19). Philip Morris USA sues over counterfeit Marlboros. The Associated Press. Retrieved from http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hy-WvTEUVDCmAD1HRofmcMSAkj6AD9C2MIM81
This weekend, David Hasselhoff was once again hospitalized for his addiction to alcohol.
Apparently that alcoholism is contagious because Pamela Bach, his ex-wife and mother of his two daughters, Hayley and Taylor had her own alachol related problem. Bach was arrested Saturday night on a freeway in Los Angeles while driving drunk (DUI).
he CHP alleges Bach showed blood alcohol levels of .14 and .13 on a breathalyzer test. California’s legal limit is .08.
Bach was booked at the LAPD’s Van Nuys jail and released.
“I am remorseful and mortified,” she was quoted as telling TMZ. “I am going through a really difficult time between David being in the hospital and dealing with the divorce.”
Bach is scheduled to appear in court on Dec. 24. Happy Holidays!
Supermodel Heidi Klum and Seal are so proud of their little daughter Lou they have decided to show the world.
Last Saturday, the couple of posted pictures on their website of their daughter, with her brothers and sisters Johan, 2 years, Henry, 4 years, and Leni, 5 years.
They also expressed their joy of being parents for the fourth time in addressing a few words to their fans.
“It´s difficult to imagine loving another child as much as you love your existing children,” she writes. “Anyone who has a family will tell you this. Where will one find that extra love?…On Friday October ninth 2009 at 7:46 pm, the answer to this question came in the form of our fourth child and second daughter.”
The Victoria’s Secret supermodel has even decided to take the name of her husband last month. She is now called Heidi Samuel.
The couple have been married since 2005.
As Americans come back from a long Thanksgiving weekend, 1 out of every 6 adults will be shopping online for the holiday season on a day that is traditionally known as Cyber Monday. This totals 30 million Americans taking advantage of numerous Internet deals.
The attention has now shifted from physical store locations to online promotions trying to get shoppers to come back and shop some more. Cyberspace is one of the best places to shop with great deals on discounts and sales that are aimed at attracting shoppers.
Many stores, including Amazon. Com and Newegg. Com, began to post information about their sales a week or so before Cyber Monday began.
These are just some of Cyber Monday 2009 Deals:
~Travel. Starwood Hotels and Resort is offering discounts up to 45% at many hotels worldwide.
~Laptops. Wal-mart is selling a laptop for just $198.
~Apple. Apple is offering a one-day shopping event and many other amazing deals.
~Digital cameras. Best Buy is offering a 10-megapixel digital camera for $49.95.
~CyberMonday. Com. This online store will be having free shipping specials, percentages and dollars off as well as free gifts with purchases.