$35 to $75 for the Santa Experience at Oak Park Mall! Some parents are complaining this morning, but I’ve paid more to sit in someone’s lap.
*******
One thing I’ve learned in the past week: If my dad was worth $20 million I could start a hunger strike at Mizzou and get a lot of people fired.
*******
The website “Money Under 30” says Kansas City is one of the top 10 places to get rich if you’re young. Especially if you’re a mechanic who specializes in front end alignments. Continue reading
After the big win in Denver for KC Chiefs yesterday – the first against Peyton Manning as a Bronco – are the Chiefs back in the hunt?
Yep, we went to Denver and beat a 7-1 Bronco team that had a quarterback break the all time passing yards record early in the first quarter. Do you believe that?
Only three teams are in front of KC in the wild card hunt now. What’s more, all of them seem just as shaky as the Chiefs. Only the Pittsburgh Steelers with Big Ben look impressive. The other pretenders are the Jets and Bills. Of course we have Oakland in our own division as well, but hey, who cares if a 4-5 team like KC can get there in this mess of a season called the NFL playoff hunt?
Yes, Kansas City won and the game was over at halftime.
Manning did all he could to give KC the game by throwing to Chiefs defenders with horrible passes in the first half, and all our points were set up by his weak arm. Yet other than one drive our offense couldn’t move the ball hardly at all. So we kicked 99 field goals with set ups at mid field or in Bronco land all day. True West had a few nice runs as did Alex Smith, our quarterback. That’s about it for KC’s offense.
So was our defense really that great or was Manning showing us the end of his career? Continue reading
News sources say Charlie Sheen will announce he is HIV positive to the world tomorrow…
Oh boy.
He’s known about it for several years according to media sources. We’ll get more details tomorrow, but the rumor’s been out there for some time. Sheen has been the total party boy for several years and his wild behavior escalated a couple years back to the point that he was fired from his smash hit series TWO AND A HALF MEN. The show went on without him for a brief period, but is now off the air. Sheen went on to star in the series ANGER MANAGEMENT. Continue reading
Ten new movies will be competing for KC’s entertainment dollars during the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday..
And what’s more, there’s not a turkey in the bunch—well maybe a couple.
Here’s the latest KC holiday release schedule.
Opening Friday, November 20:
* “THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY-PART 2”
Jennifer Lawrence and the gang’s swan song.
* “THE NIGHT BEFORE”–Seth Rogen, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Anthony Mackie = Debauchery.
* “BY THE SEA” (Limited Engagement)-Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie‘s trip into voyeurism.
* “SECRET IN THEIR EYES”–Julia Roberts, Nicole Kidman and Chiwetel Edijofor murder thriller.
* “SPOTLIGHT” (Limited Runs) Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo, Liev Schreiber, Rachel McAdams, Stanley Tucci.
(Note: This is the best picture that I’ve seen so far this year!)
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Continue reading
Original art by Mark Valentine
Washington pundits have spent a lot of time talking about Donald Trump…
They all seem to agree that his support is based on anger towards the government. They all seem to agree that he’s not a “normal” politician. They all have their theories about Trump’s rise in the polls while saying politically incorrect things. And they tend to agree that he’s a master at manipulating the media.
Yet they’ve all missed the big signal Trump’s candidacy sends to the nation.
We have passed a tipping point and there is now more money in government than in the private sector. And Donald Trump has been in the hunt for money his whole life. He’s not changed, America has changed.
Now government jobs are attractive even to successful capitalists.
Look at the numbers.
The year 2015 signaled for the first time in history that the majority of Congressmen are millionaires. President Obama’s net worth has risen 450% since he ran for office. Bill Clinton is now in the top 10 richest presidents in history with a net worth of nearly $60 million. It’s especially on point to note these last two presidents because they never worked in the private sector. Continue reading
According to a bleak, depressing post on the official Facebook page, New York Dawg Pound closed for permanent on October 27th, in the year 2015.
RIP, New York Dawg Pound, I loved your hot dogs.
Despite its terrible name, the NYDP was the best thing about a sad stretch of Shawnee Mission Parkway, and really, the best hot dog-centric restaurant in the greater metro. (I know there isn’t much to be said for competition, exactly, but that wasn’t their fault; consider it the shortcoming of a society gone mad with fear of processed meats, and the ill-health effects they may usher.)
I, like thousands of others, discovered NYDP through Yelp, the probably-horrible user-food review site that purportedly boosts the rankings of restaurants who choose to advertise versus those who do not. Regardless of pretense, I took their 135 reviews with a 4-star average and made a visit. Continue reading
Can the Chiefs get back into the wild card race Sunday with a win at Denver?
On paper yes, but not likely.
Our boys are 3-5 with wins over two bad teams – Houston and Detroit – and one wounded team, the Steelers. Yes, they’ve won two in a row. However now they’re on the road to Denver where they never beat Peyton Manning and the Broncos. In fact they haven’t beaten the Broncos since Manning took over.
Yes, the Chiefs have been better as of late, but it’s hard to measure how much better given who they defeated. The Chiefs offense was all but nonexistant until they ran over Detroit in London last week. However Detroit has only one win this season.
Losing Jamaal Charles may have in a strange way have helped KC’s offense in that QB Alex Smith has been forced to use other weapons more often. That includes him running the ball which is one of the things he does best.
Denver suffered its first loss at Indy last week and are now 7-1 but they’ve all but locked up the division. The Oakland Raiders are much improved and seem headed for a wild card spot. The AFC is so upside down that teams like KC are still in this thing with only three wins.
If KC loses this week at Denver they pretty much have sealed their fate.
Only three teams have made the playoffs since 1995 with six losses.
I think the Chiefs will play it close but lose at Denver. The Broncos just have our number and Manning will be looking to bounce back from last weeks loss. Continue reading
University of Missouri president Tim Wolfe steps down…
The chancellor of MU says he will end his days at the college this year as well over protests by students over race relations at the school.
And all of this was brought to a head by two student leaders. Payton Head, the president of MSA, complained about students in a car yelling the N word at him. Later someone using human waste to write a swastika on the walls of a bathroom. Nobody has been named or arrested for any of these incidents yet, but more were reported. The president of the school was aware of these and other incidents according to students but did little to prevent further issues.
The result was a hunger strike by student Jonathan Butler.
All of these acts were bandied about on Facebook and social media. Next the student football players got behind the students and Butler and the football team announced it would not play this coming weekend’s game if MU’s president didn’t step down – which he finally did.
There was also nationwide talk about the treatment of football players and athletes at predominately white college campuses. Regular African American students did not have nearly the care or attention that was given to the student athletes. Everything from tutors to living conditions.
And once it became national news everyone jumped in on the side of the students. Continue reading
What kind of crazy, fucked-up world do we live in where the charge is led by football players?
One in which money talks.
That’s why the President resigned. The college was gonna lose a cool million if its football team didn’t play Brigham Young on Saturday.
Welcome to the sixties, they’re back again. That’s right, history repeats, but always with a twist.
Like the nineties, everybody thought the fifties were copacetic, that everybody was equal and happiness ruled. But this was untrue if you were black, ergo the protests on college campuses.
It always starts on campuses.
But back then, music went hand in hand with change.
The folk movement was integral to the protest movement. Bob Dylan became a national fixture. Continue reading
Is it time yet for a holiday movie?
It may seem a bit premature but LOVE THE COOPERS could easily be set around any holiday. Think of it as dysfunctional family regifting.
LOVE THE COOPERS borrows from a lot of movies—even hinting touches of IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE. Well, maybe that’s pushing it.
The Cooper clan is led by John Goodman and wife Diane Keaton. And while there are no sparks left in their marriage they DO look forward to their annual Christmas Eve dinner for which several generations reunite for this once-a-year multigenerational feast.
And everyone there is dealing with their own set of issues, from broken relationships to getting caught shoplifting.
And you guessed it, everything falls apart at precisely the wrong time.
We’re talking heavy cases of jealousy, grudges, losses and insecurities—not to mention some bittersweet emotional baggage.
But don’t let that scare you off! Continue reading
The University of Missouri bowed to the pressure and ran off its president…
Thus demonstrating the power of college sports in education. Then Concerned Students 1950 got a bonus; chancellor R. Bowen Loftin walked as well.
I can see the “racist” comments and hate mail coming now but let’s explore this.
What are the facts that lead to this?
In one incident, a drunken white college bro went on stage while black students were practicing skits and made a racial slur. Students stated, “They were made victims of blatant racism in a place that they should be made to feel safe.”
Next black student body President, Payton Head said he was walking down a street near campus when, “Some guys in the back of a pickup just started yelling the n-word at me.”
Finally, we have the charge of a poop swastika painted in a dorm. Seems more offensive to the Jewish kids than blacks, but they coopted the event into their narrative just the same. Continue reading
The MIZZOU/BYU football game is on for Saturday at Arrowhead. The mayor’s office estimates the stadium will be packed with 300,000 people.
******* ******* *******
Can we all get away from protesting red Starbucks cups and get back to protesting the $7 coffee?
******* ******* ******* Continue reading
An over caffeinated cacophony of charges were leveled last week against Starbucks after it released the design of its new seasonal cup…
In previous years, it featured snowflakes, signs of winter, but never religious symbolism. However this year, it’s absent anything but the classic green Starbucks logo and a red cup and people are furious.
Breitbart News tweeted, “War on Christmas: Starbucks red cups are emblematic of the Christian culture cleansing of the West.
More sensible folks tweeted more comical responses – “Starbucks is rounding Christians up into coffee death camps and making them drink Pagan Spice Lattes.”
Starbuck’s explanation was simple: “We have anchored the design with the classic Starbucks holiday red that is bright and exciting.”
Rarely do I write an editorial that features another writer, but over the weekend I read this from Chris Gilmore. one of the great, young thinkers in theology today:
The North American Church has wasted far too much energy on this issue and it is to our detriment. Somewhere along the way we have decided that our culture owes us something. Continue reading
The NFL season is at the halfway point…
And New England quarterback Tom Brady has proven beyond a doubt that air in or air out of a football, he’s the best quarterback who ever lived. His team is 8 and 0 and they may go undefeated. Brady’s numbers are off the chart – 22 touchdowns, only 2 interceptions and 2709 yards passing. With a quarterback rating of 113.5 he’s the best in the NFL. Wow.
Now lets look back at deflate-gate…
Brady was charged by the league with cheating, having his guys inside the locker room take some air out of footballs. Most current and former NFL quarterbacks, including ultra conservative QBs say they too had air added or taken out. That included Joe Theismann. He likened it to baseball pitchers scuffing a baseball up to get the ball to drop or move before a pitch.
The amount taken in or out was so small it was almost undetectable.
Brady was accused of having this done in the first half of the AFC title game against the Colts. The ref’s watched more closely in the second half but Brady destroyed the Colts in that half as well. Tom went on to win the Super Bowl in yet another near record performance. Continue reading
Original art by Mark Valentine
Hooray!
Kansas City is a world class sports town. The world looks at the pictures of us in awe. It was amazing to see that many people wearing a blue shirt that says “Kansas City.”
And we’re still an amazingly good music town. Our musicians are constantly been noticed by millions around the world. They are just harder to pick out because they don’t wear a blue shirt that reads Kansas City.
When Jason Pritchett made it to the finals of America’s Got Talent two seasons back, not very many people in Kansas City knew him. It was like we discovered his talent at the same moment the rest of the country became aware. Continue reading
Nobody thought much of Missouri, K-State or Kansas before the football season began…
And while there was at least some hope for Mizzou to be decent, with their offense going to sleep all season and quarterback problems they ended up a shadow of what they’ve been the last couple seasons.
Now a MU program that bordered on being elite two years ago is in shambles.
They’ll need at least two wins in last three games to go bowling even in a low level spot.
And that likely won’t happen.
K-State started off looking above average, but then lost five in a row. They too have run out of games left to win the needed 6 victories for a Schmo bowl.
KU as usual is horrid with likely wins zero games this season.
So for the first time in years no local team will go bowling over the holidays.
“Wait til next year,” will be the battle cry. Continue reading
The estimates for 800,000 people at the Royals Rally Tuesday is raising some eyebrows. Several KC Confidential readers have questioned this number as well – all 1.5 million of them!
******* ******* *******
Last year Kansas City broke a tourism record with 24 million people visiting our city and this year they believe we’ll shatter that record. Most came for the amusement parks and baseball games and to buy KC souvenirs made in China.
******* ******* ******* Continue reading
Much to the surprise of nobody, longest current Kansas City Royal Alex Gordon will officially hit the free agent market tonight at 11pm…
It’s a bittersweet moment for a franchise mostly bereft of “career” Royals; you know, guys who were here from sunup to sundown. Guys like George Brett and Frank White. But that model of organizational structure is mostly an archaic sentiment in modern baseball, anyway. Bryce Harper won’t be a Washington National his whole life; someone other than the Angels will probably give Mike Trout an ill-advised deal when he’s an old, feeble man.
And it seems likely that someone other than the Royals will give Gordon an inadvisable deal in the here and now. Continue reading
I’ve been Bond-ed since the very beginning: 1962’s DR. NO…
To think that SPECTRE is the 24th official installment in the longest running movie franchise ever is hard to comprehend.
We’re talking half a century here!
So to point fingers and routinely apply thoughts of same-old, same-old might be perceived as cinematic sacrilege. Because had the producers NOT recycled some of the old shaken, not stirred standbys, fans would have screamed foul.
So either way they approached SPECTRE, the filmmakers were do-or-be-damned.
One aspect of the franchise they DID change though involves the emotional and psychological level of the main character portrayed again by Daniel Craig.
It should be noted that SPECTRE is the follow-up, continuation or sequel (whichever one likes to call it) to SKYFALL, which in my opinion, was a better paced picture. Continue reading
Kansas City crowd estimates used to be great sport…
Especially since nobody did any actual counting, so pretty much anybody and everybody could play – and play they did! The owners of the Country Club Plaza were the most prolific. Year after year they upped the attendance numbers for the vaunted Plaza Lighting Ceremony until it reached more than a quarter million people.
However the worst offenders were local television “newscasters” who with zero compunction embraced the unquestioned “estimates” then goosed the numbers to 300,000 or more. Like I said, anybody can and did play.
Enter a local businessman named Gary Evert who teamed with UMKC math and statistics professor Yong Zeng and lead a task force of students and volunteers to actually count the crowd, employing Jacobs Method.
Evert’s official tally: 32,000 and change.
In other words, about 10 cents on the dollar in comparison to media and Plaza estimates.
A front page bust went down in my column in the Kansas City Star, resulting in a confession by the Plaza that it had never counted the crowd and had no idea how many people were at its lighting ceremonies.
Which brings us to Tuesday’s Kansas City Royals Million Man March.
You know, the dazzling spectacle that prompted grown men – people like KC Mayor Sly James and Kansas City Star sports columnist Vahe Gregorian – to blather about completely ridiculous crowd numbers ranging from 500,000 to 800,000 people.
Straight faced, no less. Continue reading
