Sonya Thomas Can Eat You

I'm not a big fan of competitive eating. Personally, I find it disrepectful of the food, but that's just me. I don't begrudge those who participate. It's with that preamble that I mention that 100-pound Sonya Thomas* once again has eaten her rivals under that table by winning the annual Thanksgiving Invitational, a turkey eating competition. She ate over 4 pounds of bird in about 12 minutes and took away the $2500 first prize.

*BTW, am I the only one who thinks the practice of labeling competitive Asian women "The Black Widow" is a bit troubling?

Warner Bros, Guilty of Payola

New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer announced that, just a few months after Sony BMG agreed to pay $10,000,000 in fines for distributing illegal payola, Warner Music Group has agreed to pay $5,000,000 for the same thing. The money will not be given to artists or consumers directly however. Instead, it will be distributed by the Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors to help fund music programs in New York State.

Shameful Principal Resigns

Last month, Marlene Whitby, principal at William Penn Elementary School in Elizabeth, Pennsylvania, reportedly took third-grader Katie White from room to room in the school, calling her a liar and thief. This after a fellow student accused her of stealing $5. Among the problems with this is that the little girl was apparently innocent.

After a unclear apology by Ms.Whitby was issued, parents protested to the school board. On Wednesday, Ms. Whitby submitted her resignation, which was accepted unanimously by the board.

Onion Ring Emergency

The Thibodaux Daily Comet is reporting that 30 year old Sharita Williams called 911 last Wednesday from a Malt-N-Burger restaurant. When police responded, they found out that the emergency was that Ms. Williams had been served cold onion rings. She was arrested for misuse of the 911 system and given a December court date.

Report: Tomlinson Broke Federal Law

Earlier this month, Kenneth Y. Tomlinson resigned from the board Corporation for Public Broadcasting when a CPB investigation into his activities was made available, privately, to other members of the CPB board.

The report has now become public and it details numerous actions by the former CPB Chairman which the investigators claim violate federal law and, just as importantly, the mission of the CPB to be a kind of firewall between politics and public broadcasting.

"Our review found an organizational environment that allowed the former chairman and other C.P.B. executives to operate without appropriate checks and balances"

Mr. Tomlinson strongly disagrees with the findings.

Goodbye Tomlinson Pt.2

Well, it took about three months longer than I originally thought it would, but Kenneth Tomlinson has resigned as a board member of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Tomlinson's term as the board's chairman ended in September, but remained on the board until an internal investigative report about his tenure (by the Inspector General of the CPB) was reviewed by his fellow board members this week.