Jack Goes Confidential: ‘Fifty Shades Of Grey’ – Softcore, Hanky-Panky Fetish

Posted on February 12, 2015 by Jack Poessiger

50-shades2I’m obviously the wrong person to review this decadent BDSM, Cinderella melodrama…

And I’m totally the wrong demographic for this (love) story of  fetish sex. I haven’t even read the books, for crying out loud.

Still I’m NOT letting those small forks-in-the-road stand in the way of sharing my undervalued opinion on Comcast Universal NBC’s screen adaptation of this just over two hour long sex romp of  E.L. James’ best selling mommy porn.

So here are my basic observations of FIFTY SHADES OF GREY.

*** The sexual titillation doesn’t get going until about 40 minutes into the film.

Up until then it’s a long and tedious  exercise in “getting to know you” interplay with any realistic signs of chemistry between Christian and Anastasia sorely missing.

*** And even in its most dramatic and compelling scenes, the film’s dialogue borders on sketch comedy material. Ditto the delivery of some of the lines.

(i.e. “I don’t do romance.”—“Enlighten me then.”

And how can you keep a straight face with this milk dud hitting you square in the face:

“I don’t make love. I f*ck!”) Continue reading →

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Hearne: The Rich Get Sleazier at KU

Posted on February 12, 2015 by Hearne Christopher Jr.
High road, anyone?

High road, anyone?

Henceforth and forevermore let the record show that college sports is about one  thing – and one thing only – the almighty buck…

And it’s about folks like us, trapped in flyover state cities, with nothing much better to do than feeding the dog, raising some kids and root for the home team while pretending they’re actually from anywhere near around these parts.

What it’s not about?

For decades – if not longer – it’s had zero to do with Lawrence, Kansas, Manhattan, Kansas or Columbia, Missouri breeding and raising world class, solid citizen athletes. They’re brought in from other cities, states – countries even – to stand up for the Sunflower and Show Me states.

Because with rare exception most anyone much any good that plays for our local teams are out-of-towners attracted and recruited by the lure of money and fame.

That’s why KU basketball deity Bill Self wants the school to build lavish living quarters for his athletes so he can keep a few of them from going to Kentucky. That’s also why the school just bought an $8 million luxury jet that the Topeka Capital Journal labeled a “high-flying perk for some of its officials.”

Money, power, greed – that’s what college sports today are about.

Dare to try and break away from that like the KU Student Senate did last year and you’ll get fly swatted by school officials cashing the six and seven figure paychecks. Continue reading →

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Steele: The Truth About Kansas Found in the Driest of Places

Posted on February 12, 2015 by Rich Steele

kansas_rocks_mesh_hat-ra1a17019cc004b0fb79759abdc31a724_v9wfy_8byvr_512Quite possibly the least ideological—and least sexy—publication in North America is the “Purchasing Economy Survey Report” produced by Creighton University…

Now unless some deep operative from the Sam Brownback administration bought the editors’ cooperation with promises of new farm implements, one can relay their findings with some degree of confidence.

The headline of this October 2014 story reads, “Kansas Cuts Taxes and Expands the Economy: Earnings Growth Soars Past U.S. and Neighbors Since Passage.”

According to the report, in 2012 Kansas Governor Brownback cut individual tax rates by 25 percent, repealed the tax on sole proprietorships, and increased the standard deduction. In 2013, the state legislature cut taxes again.

“How has the Kansas economy responded to these dramatic tax cuts?” ask the editors.

Well, since the fourth quarter of 2012, “Kansas grew its personal income by 2.92% which was higher than the U.S. gain of 2.85%, and was greater than the growth experienced by each state bordering Kansas, except Colorado.”

That is not all. Continue reading →

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Steele: Why Star Downplayed NC Muslim Slaying

Posted on February 12, 2015 by Rich Steele
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Craig Stephen Hicks

Each day the Kansas City Star emails “Your Morning News,” a summary of its Top 10 news stories of the day…

Before opening my email, I guessed that the tragic slaying of three young Muslims – two of them female in North Carolina – would not make the top ten, and I was right.

Given the photo of the hulking white man responsible, Craig Stephen Hicks, you would think this a story from newsroom heaven, but unfortunately Hicks is not exactly the white male newsrooms were hoping for.

Apparently Hicks refers to himself on Facebook as a “militant atheist.”

He “likes” groups such as “Forward Progressives,” “Mitt Romney sucks,” and an anti-“tea bagger” group. True to type, Hicks is a fan of atheist honcho Richard Dawkins and transgressive science guy Neil deGrasse Tyson.

Not just an atheist, Hicks is a militant anti-theist of the Bill Maher school.

“I don’t deny you your right to believe whatever you’d like,” reads the text on the lead photo of his Facebook page, “but I have the right to point out it’s ignorant and dangerous for as long as your baseless superstitions keep killing people.” Continue reading →

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Paul Wilson: Brian Williams & the Double Standard of Situational Exaggeration

Posted on February 10, 2015 by admin

906x904xScreen-Shot-2015-02-08-at-2.39.21-PM.jpg.pagespeed.ic.kMDBztUij_K_j0zaGqkYSeventy three years ago this month, C.S. Lewis wrote, in The Screwtape Letters, “ It is always the novice who exaggerates.”

Well, Mr. Lewis, a lot has changed since then. We have some exceptional exaggerators and professional pathological perjurers to contend with in today’s world.

They range from minor to felonious. Subway “footlongs” are, in fact, 11 inches long.

In the year 1999, Al Gore claimed he “took the initiative in creating the Internet.”

In January of 1998, President Clinton forcefully denied that he had “sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky.”

Colin Powell had weapons of mass deception.

PolitiFact named ebola the great exaggeration of 2014. 

We opened 2015 with deflated foorballs.

And now, in the past week, Brian Williams has stepped down as NBC’s Nightly News anchor over an exaggerated story. He’s taking a few days of quiet contemplation, but my money says he won’t be back. Ratings are down 37% after his apology; that’s a sinking of Titanic proportion. Continue reading →

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Hearne: Star ‘Slashes’ Business News Coverage

Posted on February 10, 2015 by Hearne Christopher Jr.

IMG_0071_largeMaybe I’ve been reading too much Rich Steele…

Which undoubtedly accounts for my use of the word “slash” in reference to the Kansas City Star’s after-the-fact announcement today that its Kansas City Star Business Weekly is no more.

Just like that the newspaper lopped off the head of its Kansas City Business Journal killer with nary a comment. No solemn words about how long the publication has been in existence or tributes to past accomplishments and scoops.

Nada.

Just a tiny yellow box in the lower left front page above a “Dealsaver” ad hyping half off offer at Le Peep restaurant.

Ah, the indignity.

And to think, a couple years back the Star had the audacity to tack a buck or two surcharge on one of the Business Weekly issues at the same time they decided to charge subscribers extra for their Thanksgiving ads.

However today, instead of a once plump pull out, readers of the print edition Star get but a one page business header, a couple story jumps, some filler wire news and a few paid ads. It’s come to that.

So since the Star won’t mourn the loss of one of it’s own, I’ll do the honors. Continue reading →

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Steele: What Non-Hysterical Kansas School Budget Reporting Looks Like

Posted on February 10, 2015 by Rich Steele

FACTSKudos to Bryan Lowry of the Wichita Eagle‘s Topeka Bureau for his analytical look at education funding in Kansas…

A sentence as balanced as the following has not graced the Kansas City Star since it had daily competition: “Some lawmakers and residents have expressed anger over the cut to the schools’ current-year budget, but others agree with the governor that school spending ought to be reined in and say this offers an opportunity to reform the state’s school finance formula.”

Lowry then works through the numbers.

As he notes, the average amount of state aid per pupil this year will be $8,793. He adds, “Last year, the amount of state aid per student was $8,431.”

Admittedly, I have not had the benefit of Common Core math, but isn’t $8,793 more than $8,431? In fact, this year’s total per pupil seems to be 4.2 percent higher than last year’s. Continue reading →

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Steele: Star’s Racist Attack on UMKC Plays Out

Posted on February 10, 2015 by Rich Steele
StarMag_Tan_Mutrux_0446_11-21-2010_431ID8CI

Teng-Kee Tan

With UMKC Chancellor Leo Morton‘s apology for the inflated rankings of the university’s Bloch Business School, the Kansas City Star succeeded in its goal of embarrassing the university…

Although no one questions that the data submitted to the Princeton Review were fudged, some question why the Star saw fit to invest its dwindling resources in exposing this mini-scandal and wonder whether there wasn’t a racist subtext to the reporting.

Indeed, on review, the original Star article on this subject seems to have been written to provoke anti-Chinese sentiment. The reader learns, for instance, “of a previously undisclosed relationship between the university and the study’s Chinese authors.”

The gratuitous use of the word “Chinese” here serves no obvious purpose but to invoke stereotypes of stealth and craftiness. Continue reading →

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Starbeams: Brian Williams Grammy, James Shields a Padre & Inhaling Chocolate

Posted on February 9, 2015 by Kelly Urich

B9FcP9AIgAAM8YJAnother year without a Grammy tribute to Rick Astley…I give up.

                                              *******

NBC News Brian Williams just announced he was proud to accept the Grammy for Best Rap Artist.

                                              *******

John Mayer played that guitar like he had made love to half the women in the audience.  Oh, wait a minute. Continue reading →

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Hearne: Dean Smith Death News Coverage Reveals ‘Tale of Two Cities’

Posted on February 9, 2015 by Hearne Christopher Jr.
Michael Jordan plants one on former NorthCarolina coach Dean Smith of Kansas

Michael Jordan plants one on former NorthCarolina coach Dean Smith of Kansas

So much for home court advantage…

One would think living large in the Cradle of College Basketball that the Lawrence Journal World would have a huge reporting leg up on what’s left of the Kansas City Star. At least when it came to celebrating the life and times of basketball deity Dean Smith. 

The Emporia, Kansas native who played on KU’s 1952 NCCA championship team – the Jayhawk’s first – died Saturday at the age of 83.

But no, the Star’s sportswriters “who want something controversial to write” that a Journal World editorial recently dissed schooled the homeowners in Lawrence by unleashing not only a front page, top-of-the-fold commentary on Smith, but a front page Sports Daily story documenting his life and a third story documenting the lessons Smith learned as a scrub, backup player on the “KU bench.”

All three stories by the way, were written by the Star’s top sportswriters and columnists.

And what did the Journal World have to offer?

Not much. Continue reading →

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Glazer: The Battle of Westport – Take 2 – Former Landlord Poised to Create Parking Problem

Posted on February 8, 2015 by admin

westport1lgWas a time businessman Doug Weltner was once considered the savior of Westport…

Weltner and his real estate company outbid others around 1990 to purchase Westport Square and the parking lot along Westport Road across from Kelly’s and the old Stanford and Sons.

As I recall, he paid around $850,000 for all of it. Then he cleaned it up and did some remodeling. Some.

Weltner’s game plan was to clean up Westport and protect the parking for customers and businesses. He was at practically every meeting of the Westport Merchants over the years and stood tall against the street problems and for wanting “the right crowd” in Westport.

Over the years however Weltner sold off everything in Westport that he once “cherished,” so in the end, he seemed to care more about the money than he did Westport. Continue reading →

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New Jack City: Hooray For Y’allywood

Posted on February 8, 2015 by Jack Poessiger

235069c2e8071686320c3f10912d4b57Do you know what motion pictures and television programs like THE DUFF, HUNGER GAMES MOCKINGJAY, ANCHORMAN 2, THE WALKING DEAD, LAWLESS, THE SPONGEBOB MOVIE, DIVERGENT, TAKEN 3, SELMA, FAST & FURIOUS 7 and ANT MAN have in common?

They were all filmed in Georgia which has become known in the industry as Y’allywood.

According to THE WALL STREET JOURNAL Georgia is now one of the most popular states for movie and tv production behind California and New York.

Why Georgia?

It’s primarily due to that state’s generous tax credits which were increased in 2008.

Georgia offers film and tv projects transferable tax credits for 20% of production costs—plus an additional 10% if the production agrees to display the Georgia logo in its credits. Continue reading →

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Steele: Star’s Brownback OCD May Be Fatal

Posted on February 7, 2015 by Rich Steele

more_is_less_blc_11_cover-scaled1000As I write this, three of the five “trending stories” on the Kansas City Star‘s website involve Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback and his budget…

In one of the stories the Star absolves KCK’s much discussed 48K piano for Kansas’s budget woes. (Are we getting to them?)

In another Brownback “lied” to Kansas about funding cuts. And in a third he cut education by $44.5 million among “budget woes.”

Now, as they say, the rest of the story.
Last year, the Legislature increased spending on schools. Six months later, the Kansas Department of Education handed Brownback and the legislature a $63.6 million dollar bill above the budgeted increase.

Someone apparently underestimated the fiscal note for the school finance bill passed last year, which is one reason why Brownback wants to scrap the school finance formula.

Even after this week’s hysterically received reduction OF THE INCREASE, school districts will still get $177 million more this year from state funds than last year. Continue reading →

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Leftridge: TV Time: The Best Worst Spin Offs

Posted on February 7, 2015 by Brandon Leftridge

tv-better-call-saulBetter Call Saul premieres Sunday night (and Monday night, kinda), and like everyone else who knows what’s good, my bowels are quaking in nervous, anticipatory terror. The anticipation is one of both dread and glee; riding the coat tails of the legendarily great Breaking Bad means that it’ll be really good or an abject embarrassment. (For what it’s worth, the more I read makes the former seem more likely than the latter, so WHEW.)

The nervousness isn’t without merit. For every successful spin-off (Barnaby Jones, A Different World, The Andy Griffith Show, Dance Moms: Miami), there are 375 godfuckingawful abortions. Here are the worst:

11. Do you remember the five episodes of Mr. T and Tina that aired in 1976? Of course you don’t! A spin-off of Welcome Back, Kotter, MT&T as it’s known to its rabid fans (just kidding, there are none), starred Pat Morita as a Japanese inventor. Whatever you say, ABC. LOLZZZZZZ.

10. 21 Jump Street was a cool show about cool, hip, young police being hip and young and cool while working undercover to catch bad teens. It begat Booker starring Richard Greico, which was not hip, young or cool for 22 interminable episodes. (Despite Greico being like, super cool and attractive at the time.) Continue reading →

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Glazer: Golf’s Tiger Turning into Paper

Posted on February 6, 2015 by Craig Glazer

tiger+woods+lindsey+vonn1One of sports biggest names may be coming to the end of his storied golf career…

Tiger Woods just pulled out of yet another golf tournament. Woods just finished his worst tournament ever at the Phoenix Open last week.

And remember, it was Tiger Woods who took golf to another level around the world. He won his first major tournament The Masters in 1997. However it’s been seven years since Woods last major win at the US Open in 2008. While he maintained his No. 1 ranking for another 6 years, Woods was unable to win another major as he continues to chase Jack Nicklaus record of 18 majors.

Tiger has 14 but he’s been stuck there for 7 years.

He’s continued to win lesser tournaments and compete well in some majors, but clearly the magic has faded. Continue reading →

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Steele: The Star Is Wrong About ‘Pianogate’

Posted on February 5, 2015 by Rich Steele

1-jerry-lee-lewis-gate-to-his-ranch-in-nesbit-ms“So maybe the ‘optics’ are unfortunate,” reads the opening sentence in the Kansas City Star editorial on Pianogate, “but the Kansas City, Kan., school board ought to be applauded for investing in its students.”

For starters, any editor who uses “optics” in a sentence should be sent to Bad Boys Island along those who who use the word “meme.” However, given the cuts at the Star, that may be where they’re heading.

More importantly, the school board did not invest in its students. The word “invest” implies putting up your own money.

What the school board did was put up other people’s money. They spent it on a $48,000 piano all the while denouncing those people and their governor for not giving them enough of it. Continue reading →

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Steele: The Media ‘Misremember’ a Lot of Stuff

Posted on February 5, 2015 by Rich Steele

williams-lettermanNBC anchorman Brian Williams has taken more fire over his remarks about Iraq than he ever took over Iraq itself…

In the process, Williams has added a handy new locution to the lexicon of the disingenuous, the word “misremember.”

A more accurate phrase might be “making sh*t up.”

Williams apologized on air for misremembering how his helicopter had been hit over Iraq in the early days of the Iraq War. To understand how epic was his mischief, however, it is useful to check out Williams’ appearance on David Letterman two years ago.

The misremembering picks up at the 2:45 mark. Continue reading →

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Hearne: The Star is Right, Sumner Piano Controversy a Non Issue

Posted on February 4, 2015 by Hearne Christopher Jr.
High school student playing a concert grand piano

High school student playing a concert grand piano

All of you who think I’ve got an undying hate of the Kansas City Star take notice…

I’m just as capable of praising them at times as I am of bagging on them. 

Yeah, it’s far easier to criticize and even with the newspaper’s diminished capacity in trying to shape local opinion, they’re still the 300 pound gorilla of what passes for local news. Even if too often they cling to their haughty thinking that they know what’s best for Kansas City and Kansas Citians, even when they obviously don’t.

All of that said, they can at times be the voice of reason.

Such is the case today in regard to a faux controversy over the spending of $47,000 to replace a 40 to 50 year-old piano at the Sumner Academy of Arts & Science. Continue reading →

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Hearne: The Anatomy of a Sports Rivalry, Hating on KU-MU

Posted on February 4, 2015 by Hearne Christopher Jr.

hc kuIt’s funny how small town mindsets can compare to big city thinking…

Case in point, the manner in which the Lawrence Journal World treats the subject of the historic Kansas versus Missouri sports rivalry – you know, KU-MU – the so-called Border War.

Athletic competition between the University of Kansas and University of Missouri – dates back to the 1890s. Sports Illustrated and others claimed that up until 2011 that it was the oldest Division One football rivalry west of the Mississippi.

But the rivalry went away in 2012 after MU bailed on the Big 12 for the SEC.

And because Kansas was pissed and felt jilted – with the Big 12 facing possible extinction – it has since refused to play Missouri in football or in basketball. You know, the games that matter.

Small time/small town town thinking at its finest, right?

However, isn’t time supposed to heal all wounds…or most anyway?

Because since then, the Big 12 has righted itself. KU no longer fears being trapped on the outside looking in and losing the $20 million or so it gets from the Big 12 conference. Missouri gets a bit more from the SEC, but life goes on – no harm, no foul.

And yet KU – and the fair City of Lawrence, Kansas – can’t seem to get over itself. Continue reading →

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New Jack City: Mommy Porn – ‘Mr. Grey Will See You Now’

Posted on February 3, 2015 by Jack Poessiger

video-undefined-1FEFB72600000578-207_636x358This Valentine’s Day why not give that special someone a whip?

That’s Hollywood’s wish, anyway.

There hasn’t been this much excitement about an erotic fantasy movie targeted largely to married women over 30 since 2012’s MAGIC MIKE. And we all remember that one, don’t we guys?

Of course I’m talking about the movie 50 SHADES OF GREY—or what some might refer to as ‘mommy porn’  – R-Rated mommy porn, as it were.

And the fan base for this chick flick is going bunkers.

With the film’s opening just a week and a half away, advance ticket sales are reportedly through the roof with some theaters experiencing complete auditorium buyouts.

In fact, Comcast’s Universal Pictures is allowing advance screenings for complete theater buyouts as early as Monday, February 9th.

So just who IS reserving these auditoriums for this first film installment of E.L. James‘ steamy trilogy?

Groups of friends. Girls night out parties. Radio stations. Housewives hoping to share in the erotic visual thrills of Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey‘s BDSM romp games.

Continue reading →

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