Mereja

Author: Sean Patterson

  • Pastor: Life Sentence For Killing One Wife, Charged With Killing Another

    A 64-year-old Pennsylvania pastor has been sentenced to life in prison for the murder of his wife in 2008.

    According to an Associated Press report, Arthur Schirmer was convicted of first-degree murder for the death of his second wife, Betty. Schirmer was found to have killed Betty with a crowbar, then staged a car accident to explain her injuries.

    The report states that police originally accepted the murder as a car accident. A thorough investigation began, however, when Schirmer’s affair with his church secretary led to the woman’s husband committing suicide in Schirmer’s office. Along with evidence from Betty’s autopsy, police found her blood on the floor of Schirmer’s garage.

    Schirmer has also been charged with the murder of his first wife, Jewel. In that case, according to the AP, Schirmer claims he was out running and found Jewel dead when he returned home. The trial for Jewel’s murder has yet to begin.

    Schirmer has a girlfriend and two daughters, who all told the AP that they believe the man is innocent.

  • Lisa Rinna Lip Trouble Discussed on Today

    Kathy Lee is vacationing “on the west coast,” according to her Today co-host Hoda Kotb. In her place on Monday, producers slotted in Melrose Place star and Soap Talk host Lisa Rinna.

    Rinna is well-known for her roles in Melrose Place and Days of Our Lives. More recently, though, the star has been battling her fellow celebrities on season 13 of The Celebrity Apprentice.

    Kotb and Rinna went through the normal small talk about the show and how crazy Omarosa Manigault is, but after that things got interesting. Kotb, seemingly out of the blue, brings up Rinna’s obviously fake lips. What followed wasn’t the normal celebrity brush-off about plastic surgery.

    Rinna recalled that she had gotten her lips injected with silicone when she was 24 after seeing the movie Beaches.

    “Stupid thing to do,” said Rinna.

    She stated that she had all (or nearly all) of the silicone removed in recent years, and that her lips are now what is left after the silicone was removed.

    However much grief Rinna has taken in recent years, she still doesn’t regret getting the procedure done. She even pinned her entire career to her silicone-injected lips.

    “I never had a career before I had the lips,” said Rinna. “So, my lips have had their own career!”

    The lip talk starts at around the 3-minute mark:

    (Image courtesy Chrisa Hickey/Wikimedia Commons)

  • $22 Minimum Wage Matches U.S. Productivity, Says Senator

    Though the minimum wage in the U.S. has risen in recent years, the current $7.25 per hour minimum wage is still looking sparse when considered next to the rising cost of living in the U.S. Large hikes in the minimum wage aren’t likely due to the messiness of congress, but at least one senator believes the minimum wage should be at least triple what it currently is.

    Last week, at a Senate Health, Education, Labor, & Pensions (HELP) Committee meeting, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren compared the rise in the minimum wage since the 60′s to the rise in American workers’ productivity. Speaking to a University of Massachusetts Amherst economics professor, Warren stated that if the minimum wage had kept pace with productivity, it would be $22 per hour today. Warren pointedly asked the professor, Arindrajit Dube, why this wasn’t the case.

    “My question, Mr. Dube, with a minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, is what happened to the other $14.75,” asked Warren. “I sure didn’t go to the worker.”

    Dube backed up Warren’s math, and even stated that if minimum wage had kept pace with the rise in income of the top 1% of taxpayers that it would have been around $33, before the recent recession.

    Warren then went on to question David Rutigliano, owner of the Southport Brewing Company. Rutigliano took the side of small business owners, stating that his business doesn’t run the same way or with the same volume as a McDonalds, which Warren pointed out could weather a minimum wage hike with relative ease.

  • Jason Molina Dies of “Natural Causes”; Singer Was 39

    The record label Secretly Canadian today confirmed that singer/songwriter Jason Molina has died.

    The 39-year-old is reported to have died at his Indianapolis home on Saturday March 16 of “natural causes.” Molina’s record label stated that he stopped touring in 2009 to deal with severe alcoholism. From the Secretly Canadian blog post:

    This is especially hard for us to share. Jason is the cornerstone of Secretly Canadian. Without him there would be no us – plain and simple. His singular, stirring body of work is the foundation upon which all else has been constructed. After hearing and falling in love with the mysterious voice on his debut single “Soul” in early 1996, we approached him about releasing a single on our newly formed label. For some reason he said yes. We drove from Indiana to New York to meet him in person, and he handed us what would become the first of many JMo master tapes.

    Molina is best known for releasing albums and touring under the name Songs: Ohia from 1996 to 2003. In 2003 he formed the band Magnolia Electric Co. Throughout his career, Molina collaborated on and created more than a dozen albums.

    (Image courtesy Anders Jensen-Urstad/Wikimedia Commons)

  • Blake Shelton Rumors Denied on Twitter

    This week, Life & Style Weekly published a cover story about rumors that Miranda Lambert had confronted the other woman that her husband, Blake Shelton, “got close” with. The rumors began to swirl through the celebrity press, and the country music stars soon found themselves at the center of a full-blown celebrity cheating scandal.

    Not that they care.

    Lambert and Shelton, who have been married since 2011, took to Twitter to dispel the rumors of their rocky marriage. The two engaged in some playful banter over tweets, effectively dismissing the tabloid rumors:

    Shelton has been topping country music charts since 2001, but is perhaps now best known as a “coach” on the NBC show The Voice. Shelton was awarded the Entertainer of the Year and Male Vocalist of the Year awards at the 2012 CMA awards, while Lambert took the award for Female Vocalist of the Year. The couple also won the 2012 CMA Song of the Year award for “Over You.”

  • Elisabeth Hasselbeck View Firing Rumored Once Again

    Rumors are once again swirling that Elisabeth Hasselbeck may soon lose her seat at the table on the daytime talk show The View.

    Last week, rumors began to surface that the show’s token conservative would be let go to “freshen” the show’s lineup. Barbara Walters later came out stating that there were “no plans” to fire Hasselbeck.

    Now, the New York Post is reporting that ABC is indeed looking to ditch Hasselbeck. Citing an unnamed source, the publication claims that Hasselbeck will be off the show when her contract is up next year, and that it could be even sooner if ABC executives can convince her to leave.

    Hasselbeck got her start on TV as a contestant in the second season of the reality TV show Survivor, Survivor: The Australian Outback, in 2001. Though Hasselbeck placed fourth on the show, she went on to host The Look for Less on the Style Network and was selected to replace Lisa Ling on The View in 2003. Hasselbeck’s conservative political leanings have led to several famous arguments on the show, particularly ones involving co-host Whoopi Goldberg.

  • QB Steve Davis Dies in a Plane Crash

    Famed college football Quarterback Steve Davis has reportedly died in a plane crash.

    The Tulsa World is reporting that Davis was aboard a private jet that crashed in South Bend, Indiana on Sunday. The pilot of the aircraft also died, though two other passengers survived the crash.

    The plane left from Tulsa, Oklahoma at 1 pm on Sunday, and is reported to have crashed into a South Bend home at around 3:15 pm. The cause of the accident is currently unknown. The two injured survivors are reported to be friends of Davis’, and are currently recovering at a South Bend hospital. The Tulsa World reported that one of them is in serious condition and the other is in fair condition.

    Davis was best known as the quarterback for the Oklahoma Sooners football team from 1972 to 1976, and led the team to a 32-1-1 record during his years as starting quarterback. The Sooners won the national championship in both 1974 and 1975, and Davis was awarded the Most Valuable Player award for the 1976 Orange Bowl. Davis later went on to do college football commentary for CBS Sports during the 80s.

  • Vanessa Marcil Divorce is Official

    Soap opera and Beverly Hills 90210 actress Vanessa Marcil is now officially back on the market.

    According to a TMZ report, the 44-year-old star has finalized her divorce from actor Carmine Giovinazzo after less than three years of marriage.

    Giovinazzo is best known for his current role as Danny Messer in the network TV show CSI: NY. He is also notable for playing the first character to die in the first episode of the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

    The divorce was filed for back in August 2012, and the documents revealed that the couple cited “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for their split. The couple were wed in July 2010 in New York City. The couple have no children together. During their marriage, Marcil was reported to have had multiple miscarriages.

    TMZ reports that Marcil will be keeping the couple’s house and her baby-clothes company, while Giovinazzo will come away from the marriage with several vehicles, including a 1969 Pontiac GTO.

  • David Hasselhoff Wants to Save the Berlin Wall

    It’s a well-known fact that David Hasselhoff is big in Germany. Now, “The Hoff” is seeking to preserve a piece of German history.

    The actor is protesting the removal of a section of the Berlin Wall. The section is one of the last pieces of the wall to remain standing, after it was dismantled from 1989 to 1991.

    Hasselhoff is now backing a Change.org petition to prevent the “East Side Gallery” from being taken down. According to the petition, a developer is seeking to move the wall to make way for a “luxury housing development.”

    Hasselhoff echoes the text of the petition on his blog, saying that the wall is now part of German history and should be preserved as a symbol of freedom. From the blog post:

    In 1989 on New Year’s Eve I sang on the top of Berlin Wall, you all know that, it’s no secret. I sang for freedom and for all people who were going through a terrible things living “behind the curtain” or behind the Wall if you prefer. Now they are trying to tear down the wall to put up an apartment complex.

    The Berlin Wall is not just a symbol and part of German history, it’s a symbol for every single person who lived in fear for their lives and in horrible conditions that we, who were lucky to live in countries that represent democracy in its full meaning, couldn’t even imagine and the fall of the Wall represents a new beginning and a hope for all of them.

    Hasselhoff did indeed sing on the Berlin Wall shortly after the wall’s gates were opened for East Germans. The blurry footage of the event seen below features Hasselhoff singing and wearing a light-up leather jacket, with Brandenburg Gate in the background.

  • Eastwood Daughter Wedding: Alison Marries Stacy

    One of Clint Eastwood‘s daughters, Alison, has reportedly married reality TV star Stacy Poitras. Poitras is the star of the CMT reality show Chainsaw Gang.

    According to People magazine, the couple wed in a small ceremony in Calabasas, California. Clint Eastwood and his current wife, Dina, attended the ceremony, as did Alison’s mother, Maggie Johnson. Alison’s siblings, Kyle, Scott, and Kathryn were also in attendance, as were Poitras’ brothers, Mark, Matt, and Bobby.

    Poitras is a sculptor on Chainsaw Gang, and creates wooden sculptures carved with chainsaws. He grew up in Plymouth, Massachusetts and attended the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Poitras told People that he asked Alison’s father’s permission to marry her before proposing.

    Clint Eastwood made headlines last year for a speech he gave at the Republican National Convention during which he spoke to a chair as if it an invisible President Obama were sitting on it. The event was widely ridiculed.

    (Image courtesy CMT)

  • Boehner: Gay Marriage Views Not Likely to Change

    Last week, Ohio Senator Rob Portman became the first senate Republican to openly support gay marriage. Though he was previously an opponent of gay marriage, the senator claims to have had a change of heart that stems from learning that one of his sons is gay. In an editorial, the senator stated that he wants his son, Will, to have the same opportunities “to pursue happiness and fulfillment as his brother and sister.”

    Though Portman eloquently laid out the case for gay marriage and asserted that his new position is, in fact, in keeping with the conservative principles of personal liberty and limited government intervention, it doesn’t seem to have convinced many other Republicans to change their view on the issue. Specifically, fellow Ohio politician and Speaker of the House John Boehner this weekend spoke on ABC’s This Week, and affirmed his anti-gay-marriage position. The politician even went as far as to say that he “can’t imagine” his position would ever change, even if one of his close family members were revealed to be gay:

    It’s normal to see politicians be cagey on the Sunday morning talk shows when it comes to sensitive topics, but it’s clear that the gay marriage issue is quickly becoming a loser for Republicans. Listening closely to Boehner’s statement, he doesn’t explicitly mention gay marriage, instead opting to state, twice, that his definition of marriage only included unions between men and women.

    Boehner’s reasoning for his position is that it’s the belief he grew up with, and that it’s what his church teaches him. Of course, Portman had a similar Ohio upbringing, and took two years after learning his son is gay to officially change his position on the issue. Look for more politicians (though maybe not Boehner) to have Portman-like turnarounds in the coming years, as demographics shift and gay marriage becomes legal in more states.

  • Earthquakes Turn Water to Gold, Shows New Study

    One of the major goals of alchemy was to create gold from other, less expensive materials. Now it appears that if alchemists of old could have harnessed the power of the Earth, they might have been successful.

    A new study has shown that earthquakes can play a role in turning water into gold. Sort of.

    The study, published in this week’s Nature Geoscience, shows that earthquakes can cause gold deposits to form almost instantaneously. The effect is caused by the vaporization of liquids during an earthquake.

    Researchers used a thermo-mechanical piston model to simulate the effects of earthquakes, where fluid-filled cavities in the earth can often expand. This expansion lowers the pressure within the cavity, causing the fluid to expand rapidly and vaporize. Gold contained within the liquid is then deposited in small amounts. Subsequent earthquakes would also deposit gold, turning a small deposit into a significant one.

    The process also deposits silica, which helps to explain why gold deposits can be found mixed with quartz deposits. It could also explain why many gold deposits can be found near old fault lines.

    Though the idea of pressure differentiation causing mineral deposits is not a new one, the extent to which it is responsible for those deposits is debated in geological circles. This new study demonstrates that extreme conditions within the Earth’s crust could build up sizable gold deposits in well under one million years.

  • Emma Watson: Rumors About ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ Casting Denied

    For nearly a year now, rumors have been flying that British actress Emma Watson has been cast in the role of Anastasia Steele in the upcoming Fifty Shades of Grey movie adaptation.

    Unfortunately for Watson’s fans and admirers, it appears that the rumors were all just wishful thinking.

    Watson took to her Twitter feed this weekend to dispel the rumors, sarcastically asking her followers if they actually think she would be in a Fifty Shades of Grey movie:

    Watson was, perhaps, pegged as a frontrunner for the role because of her age and popularity. The Harry Potter actress is one of only a handful of established actresses to be well within the age range to play the Steele character. In the book, Steele is a 21-year-old college student who is drawn into a BDSM relationship with an older man. The novel, along with its sequels, have found wild success, with over 65 million copies sold worldwide.

  • Poker Champ Arrested in Prostitution Sting

    Poker player Greg Raymer may have used all of his luck up at the tables. The 48-year-old was caught this week during a prostitution sting in Wake Forest, North Carolina.

    Raleigh news outlet WRAL is reporting that Raymer was one of five men picked up for soliciting prostitution at a hotel sting set up by police on Wednesday, March 13. Raymer and the other men allegedly responded to a fake online ad posted by police.

    Raymer has been charged with prostitution and attempted crimes against nature. He was released on a $1,000 bond and is scheduled to appear in court on April 18.

    Raymer won money in the 2001 World Series of Poker, where he left with $1,500 from the Omaha hi-lo split 8 or better event. In 2004, Raymer rocketed to fame when he won the no limit Texas hold ‘em event at that year’s World Series of Poker, claiming a $5 million prize. Since that time, Raymer has gone on to win money at a variety of poker tournaments and now operates a poker training school called Fossilman Poker Training, which offers online classes or in-person seminars at casinos across the U.S.

  • Rob Portman ‘Change of Heart’ Leads Republican Senator to Support Gay Marriage

    Rob Portman, the junior U.S. Senator from Ohio, has become the first senate Republican to openly support gay marriage. Portman was previously an opponent of gay marriage and voted for the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which prevents gay marriages from being recognized at a federal level.

    In an editorial in The Columbus Dispatch, Portman outlined his changing feelings on the issue of gay marriage. He reveals that one of his sons came out as gay two years ago. From the editorial:

    I have come to believe that if two people are prepared to make a lifetime commitment to love and care for each other in good times and in bad, the government shouldn’t deny them the opportunity to get married.

    Portman went on to say that his opposition to gay rights in the past was, unsurprisingly, based on his religious beliefs. He stated that he struggled to reconcile his Christianity with his love for his son and ultimately came to his conclusion on the basis of “the Bible’s overarching themes of love and compassion and my belief that we are all children of God.”

    Portman said that he believes individual states should make decisions regarding gay marriage, and that he believes no law should force religious institutions to recognize gay marriages. He also stated that he believes his conservative views support his new position:

    British Prime Minister David Cameron has said he supports allowing gay couples to marry because he is a conservative, not in spite of it. I feel the same way. We conservatives believe in personal liberty and minimal government interference in people’s lives. We also consider the family unit to be the fundamental building block of society. We should encourage people to make long-term commitments to each other and build families, so as to foster strong, stable communities and promote personal responsibility.

    With Republicans such as Portman and former Vice President Dick Cheney supporting gay marriage, it is beginning to seem as if the gay marriage debate, at least politically, is over in the U.S. The tipping point may have been one year ago, when President Obama announced his support for gay marriage.

    The Supreme Court will soon hear cases involving the constitutionality of both DOMA and California’s Proposition 8 law. If the court decides to strike down the laws, the issue of gay marriage could cease to be a political issue sooner rather than later.

  • Jack Greene Dies; Country Music Star Was 83

    Jack Greene, the country music star famous for 60s hits such at “There Goes My Everything,” has died. The singer reportedly suffered from Alzheimer’s Disease, and died from complications of the disease at his Nashville home on March 14.

    Greene was born in Tennessee in 1930, and moved to Atlanta to start a band in the early 1950s. By 1960 he had moved to Nashshville to pursue his music career further, and began opening for Ernest Tubb. Greene’s success began in earnest in 1966 with the release of “There Goes My Everything,” which topped country music charts for weeks. He followed that up with the chart-topping album All The Time.

    In 1967 Greene won awards for Male Vocalist of the Year, Single of the Year, and Album of the Year from the Country Music Association. That same year, he became a member of the Grand Ole Opry. Greene went on to have nine number one country hits throughout his career.

    (Image courtesy Benderguy/Wikimedia Commons)

  • Jacquelin Perry Dies; Post-Polio Expert Was 94

    Dr. Jacquelin Perry, an orthopedic surgeon who became famous for her work with post-polio patients, has died. The Lost Angeles Times reports that Perry passed away at her home in Downey, California on March 14. She was 94 years old and had been suffering from Parkinson’s disease.

    Perry was born in Denver, Colorado in 1918, and graduated from UCLA in 1940 with a degree in Physical therapy. She served as a physical therapist in the Army during World War II, where she treated patients with polio. After the war, she studied medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. Later, along with Dr. Vernon Nickel, Perry developed the “Halo,” the device that uses a ring screwed into a patient’s skull to lock the spine and neck.

    As a professor of surgery at the University of Southern California, Perry later took up the task of analyzing the biomechanics of walking, and developed an approach to treating gait defects. She later wrote a textbook on the subject, titled Gait Analysis, that is still used today.

    (Image courtesy Polioplace.org)

  • Kate Middleton’s Nose Becoming Popular For Plastic Surgery

    Many women dream of someday becoming a princess. While only a select few women will get to live out that fantasy in reality, many more will do just about anything to get close to that dream.

    The New York Daily News this week reported that women in New York are now requesting that plastic surgeons change their nose to match the one seen on Kate Middleton‘s face. Evidently, some women have become obsessed by the Duchess of Cambridge’s schnoz.

    A plastic surgeon in New York interviewed by the Daily News stated that he had already created 100 Kate Middleton noses for women. The women in the article referred to the duchess’ nose as “adorable,” “perky,” and “feminine.” One woman noted that she liked the way the bridge on Middleton’s nose “swoops” and how its tip “doesn’t fall when she smiles.”

    This isn’t the first trend for rhinoplasty, and it won’t be the last. Before the duchess’ nose became popular patients were often requesting actress Jennifer Aniston’s. Before Aniston, Nicole Kidman’s thinly-sculpted nose was awkwardly placed upon the faces of many women, so perhaps Middleton’s normal-looking nose is a step in the right direction.

  • Jack Curran Dies; Basketball Coach Was 82

    Jack Curran, the winningest high school sports coach in the U.S., has died. Curran reportedly died in his sleep at his home in Rye, N.Y. on Thursday. He was 82 years old.

    Curran coached both baseball and basketball at Archbishop Molloy High School in Queens, New York. His combined wins for both the sports total over 2,600 – more than any other high school coach in the U.S. His winning record and longevity as a coach have earned Curran a place in the National High School Athletic Coaches Association Hall of Fame, the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame, and seven other halls of fame.

    “It’s a very sad day for all of us here at Molloy,” said Richard Karsten, president of Archbishop Molloy. “Coach Curran built a legacy that transcends any traditional notion of coaching high school athletics. To him it was always about the kids. They were the reason for his success. His passing will not only be felt by today’s students, faculty and staff, but generations going back over 50 years.”

    Curran was the son of a New York City police officer and grew up in the Bronx. After graduating from St. John’s University, he went on to play minor league baseball. in 1958 he began his coaching career at Archbishop Molloy. Throughout his years of coaching, Curran coached several players who went on to join the NBA, including Kenny Anderson and Kenny Smith.

    (Image courtesy Archbishop Molloy High School)

  • Pat Boone Call Obama a Marxist, Thinks he Was on a Presidential “Enemies List”

    Pat Boone made a name for himself as a pop star and film actor in the 50s and 60s. While he was well-known for his voice, many might not remember that he is also well-known as a highly religious political conservative. That, in and of itself isn’t too odd, but it seems that Boone has now adopted the idea that the president of the United States want to turn the country into a Marxist dictatorship.

    Fox Business News anchor Neil Cavuto brought Boone on his program recently to help critisize President Obama for some economic promises that didn’t pan out. Instead, Boone brought a copy of Rules For Radicals and stated that the book, written by Saul Alinsky, trained the president “to be a community organizer, a Marxist, a socialist, a progressive.” It was unclear exactly whether Boone was accusing Obama of being trained to be all of those things or if he was simply stating that they were qualities of the book’s author, but his message about the president was clear either way.

    Even Cavuto couldn’t go as far as Boone, and ended up defending the president against Boone’s accusations. Cavuto tried to get Boone back on track by insinuating that such wild theories aren’t needed to criticize the president, but Boone powered through, and even made it personal by claiming Obama had placed him on some sort of “enemies list.”

    “Well, I am a target,” said Boone. “I was on his enemies list in the first year of his presidency.”