Saturday, June 07, 2014

Donald Sterling's second thoughts and other eye-catching headlines

Turns out Donald Sterling has not signed off on the deal to sell the Clippers to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.  Apparently he is hoping the NBA will rescind the $2.5 million fine and lifetime ban from games and he may not sign off if they don't do that.  Stay tuned.

On a related note, Sterling continues his "Apology" tour, this time stopping at Mo Better Burgers in the Mid-Wilshire district of Los Angeles.

A patient in an Orange County hospital is being charged with attempted murder and elderly abuse after he attacked the man he was sharing a room with.  36 year old Ibrahim Yousef Battat allegedly attacked his 91 year old roommate, trying to suffocate him and then beating him.

Remember those old California vehicle license plates with the black background and gold letters?  They are once again available, of course at a premium price.

Kavi Arora is a serious fan of the NY Rangers hockey team.  So when he thought he'd purchased four tickets to Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals on Stubhub.com for only $12.20, he was very excited.  Then the seller claimed inability to deliver the tickets and Stubhub's would only refund his money and offer him a $300 voucher as an apology.  The ticket selling site said it could not locate comparable seats for that low a price.

It isn't often you see a candidate learn they lost their election while being interviewed by a major news network, but that's what happened to Republican candidate Annette Bosworth when she appeared on "The Kelly File" on Fox News.  She learned she'd lost the primary, and then she found out there was a warrant out for her arrest on perjury charges related to campaign petitions.  That's a bad day.

The Koch brothers are donating $25 million to the United Negro College Fund. 

Jeffrey Edward Fowle is being detained by the North Korean government after he allegedly left a Bible in his hotel room.

You can now follow the CIA on Twitter, or friend them on Facebook.

Ferrets have been banned for fifteen years in New York City but now there's a move afoot to lift the ban.  More than 600 signatures have been collected on a petition calling for the end of the ban.

Republicans in Texas continue to push for state-recognition of 'reparative therapy' for gays.  The practice, debunked as being virtually useless by the AMA and American Psychologists Association, is part of the GOP state party platform in Texas.

The driver deemed responsible for a six car pile-up that left one person dead and four critically injured faces charges of death by auto and four counts of assault by auto.  Actor Tracy Morgan was one of the four people critically injured in the New Jersey accident.

California Chrome's owner is not pleased, as his horse's bid for the elusive Triple Crown came up short today.  His gripe is that Tonalist, the winner of the race, did not run the other two legs of the Triple Crown.

Did Melanie Griffith and her people choose to announce her split from Antonio Banderas on the same day as Jennifer Lopez's split with Casper Smart became public news?  Smart money is saying that it was a deliberate move.

The FBI is reporting that someone is threatening the family of Sgt Bowe Bergdahl.

Bill Watterson, the genius behind "Calvin and Hobbes" drew some panels as guest artist this week for a strip named "Pearls Before Swine."

L. A. mayor Eric Garcetti is saying it may be time to pull the plug on the multi-million dollar project to renovate a city-owned yacht.

Arnold Giammarco lived in the U. S. for 53 years, served in the U. S. Army even though he wasn't a citizen, and was deported to Italy in 2012 following his release from jail for a drug and larceny conviction.  Now he's applying for a pardon so he can come back to the U. S. so he can be with his wife and daughter.

Lunch with Warren Buffett for one person and up to seven of his or her friends was up for bids on EBay, to benefit a charity that Buffett supports.  The winning bid this year was $2.2 million.

A strip club in Kansas City, MO has covered its big sign that reads "Totally Nude" while Republicans are in town to consider the city as host of the 2016 Republican National Convention.

A Salt Lake City police officer is on paid administrative leave pending an investigation after the officer refused to work an assignment doing crowd control at a Gay Pride parade.