What Caught My Eye Today

Mexico - Before we begin, I just want to state for the record, I didn't make any of this stuff up. A Mexican matador was arrested and charged with breach of contract after he got scared and ran out of the ring in the middle of a bullfight. Dude got arrested for being chicken? Wow. The matador had been badly gored a few months ago. In his latest match, when the bull charged toward him, he dropped his cape and leaped over the wall, drawing boos from the crowd. Police release him after he paid a fine. He has since announced his retirement Here's my favorite part. In announcing his retirement, the matador said, "There are some things you must be aware of about yourself. I didn't have the ability, I didn't have the balls, this is not my thing." You have to applaud the guy for so eloquently stating the obvious.

Potpourri - Time for another edition from the files of "so bizarre it must be true.

• Minnesota - The Minnesota Department of Human Rights has outlawed "Ladies Night," ruling that offering women discounted drinks is a form of gender discrimination.
  I find it fascinating that this brain trust fails to acknowledge that it is usually men who are paying for those drinks, so the real victims here are...yes, the men who are supposedly getting discriminated against.
• Michigan - A Michigan woman without health insurance shot herself to get medical attention. The woman said she injured her shoulder a month earlier and without insurance, "it would have to be life threatening for the hospital would treat her; so she shot herself in the shoulder. Doctors at the hospital treated the gunshot wound while ignoring the previous injury.
  That just ain't right.
• Britain - A British survey found that 84% of pregnant women had not been offered a seat on full trains. According to researchers, there are now so many obese women that fellow commuters can't be sure if the standee is pregnant or just fat.
  Okay, I stand corrected. Girlfriend in Michigan was just trying to skirt the system. This, on the other hand, just ain't right.
• Florida - A Florida was prohibited from visiting a client in prison when her underwire bra set off a metal detector. She removed the bra, but guards then refused her entry because her bralessness violated the prison dress code.
  Wrong again, I see. Alright, forget Annie Oakley in Michigan and those weight challenged slobs in Britain (It's called manners people. It doesn't matter if they are pregnant or overweight. If they look like they are about to collapse, offer up your seats, you lazy bastards!). This, clearly just ain't right.

Bangladesh - The government of Bangladesh has ordered factories to shut down and shopping malls to close every evening during the World Cup so that there will be enough electricity available for people to watch the soccer matches on television. It's always comforting to see evidence that government has its priorities in order. The order came after a power outage interrupted the transmission of games last weekend, prompting hundreds of angry fans to attack power transfer stations. Can you imagine how bad things would have been if Bangladesh had actually qualified for the World Cup?

Speaking of the the World Cup...

World Cup - We're down to the last set of group play games. Here are some highlights from the second set of group play games.

• What up with Europe? England, France, Germany, Italy and Spain all have to win (and in some cases need lots and lots of help) to advance to the knockout stage. Only the Netherlands have locked up a spot in the next round.
• What up with New Zealand and Switzerland? Apparently, someone forgot to tell they guys that they weren't supposed to be contending for spots in the final 16. It is conceivable that New Zealand, not Italy, will advance out of Group F.
• Cameroon and North Korea are the only 2 teams that have been officially eliminated from the World Cup.
• Along with the Netherlands, Argentina and Brazil have locked up spots in the next round.
• For the United States it is pretty simple--win its last game against Algeria and the Americans advance. Lose or tie and the World Cup is pretty much over for the Stars and Stripes.

My winning percentage bottomed out last Friday (29%; 5 for 17) and appears to be ticking back up. Through today's play (which I happened to pick all 3 winners), my winning percentage is up to 34% (11 for 32).