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Rafael Nadal Comes To Life at Mercedes Cup Beating Gael Monfils

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rafael nadal comes to life at mercedes cup gael monfils 2015Rafael Nadal certainly loves to keep his doubters on their toes, and after dropping to the number 10 position in the tennis rankings, he didn’t let that stop him from knocking out Gael Monfils and pushing forward into the Mercedes Cup finals. He defeated Monfils 6-3, 6-4 in under ninety minutes and will go on to face Viktor Troicki on Sunday in Stuttgart.

“It’s a great feeling to be back in a final, especially on grass,” said Nadal. “It’s been since 2011, I didn’t play a final on grass. So it’s very good to be back and I think I’m playing well. It was a tough match but I played well against a very difficult opponent.

“He’s a charismatic player and does different things on court… I just tried to be ready and wait for my moment. I was solid with myself.

The draw for the London event on Saturday pitched Kyrgios in against the new French Open champion, Stanislas Wawrinka, in the first round on Tuesday, so there are challenges everywhere in a draw reduced to 32 players this year, including eight of the top 14 in the ATP rankings.

Nadal will rest on Monday before playing Alexandr Dolgopolov in his opening match on Tuesday.

It is seven years since Nadal won his first tournament on grass, here at Queen’s, before going on to beat Roger Federer in one of the great Wimbledon finals – and, although he has tumbled down the rankings this summer to a 10-year low of 10, the Spaniard seems to be repairing the damage to his tennis on the surface to which he is least suited.

Between 2006 and 2010 he was a contender on grass, reaching the final at Wimbledon against Federer in 06 and 07 before that epic victory the following year, then beating Tomas Berdych to win the title in 2010. But, by his own admission, he is not the player at 29 that he was then.

Still, while he suffered the humiliation of going out in the quarters on the clay of Roland Garros, where he has won nine of his 14 slam titles, he might surprise a few people at Wimbledon, where he has suffered early exits at the hands of 100th-ranked Lukas Rosol in 2012, Steve Darcis (135) in the first round in 2013 and last year against Kyrgios.

He beat Gaël Monfils 6-3, 6-4 in Stuttgart on Saturday to reach his first grass final in five years, where he will meet Viktor Troicki, who beat Marin Cilic 6-3, 6-7, 7-6 in the other semi-final.

rafael nadal beats gael monfils mercedes cup 2015“I think I’m playing well,” Nadal told Sky Sports. “It’s important for me, after losing at Roland Garros, to keep going and have the right attitude, the right level of tennis in the next couple of weeks and that is what I am trying.

“I’m practising every day with a very positive attitude, working a lot of hours on court. I’m enjoying again the tennis and every victory is important and being in the final is great news.”

Then there is Queen’s. The defending champion, Grigor Dimitrov, starts against the American Sam Querrey, and said later he would like Queen’s to be upgraded to a Masters tournament, although that is unlikely in the medium term.

“I always get a special feeling, a different connection when I step on the grass court,” the No6 seed said. “I’ve never had a problem switching surfaces. I wouldn’t mind if they made this a Masters 1000 event. I’ve been coming here four or five years, and it would add spice to the Tour.”

Andy Murray supported him, saying he did not agree with the stipulation that a centre court for a 1000 event should have seating capacity for 10,000.

“You have a tournament with unbelievable history here,” Murray said, “and they get fantastic crowds. If they could make a 10,000-seat stadium here, they would fill it as well.”

Murray plays a qualifier in his first match on Tuesday and could meet Dimitrov in the quarter-finals.

Warriors Betting Odds Favorites: Game 5 NBA Finals 2015

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warriors betting odds favorites nba finals game 5 2015 images

The Golden State Warriors really stepped it up and easily covered the spread for the first time since Game 1, and they are now the betting odds favorites for Game 5. They were able to tie things up with the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday night with a 103-82 Game 4 win in the 2015 NBA Finals.

Now, less than a day removed from their odds to win the series as low as -115, following Cleveland’s incredible Game 3 win, the Warriors are now a -380 favorite to win the series outright with the Cavs’ chances moving from -105 to +300, according to Sportsbook.ag.

As the series turns back to Oakland for Sunday’s Game 5 at Oracle Arena, the Warriors are also favored by 8.5 points to take a 3-2 series lead.

Lethargic and outhustled throughout Game 3, it looked like the Warriors were about to submit to Cleveland’s energy and pressured-packed defense. Golden State and league MVP Stephen Curry couldn’t break past Cavs darling and guard Matthew Dellavedova, and as a team Golden State shot 40 percent from the field while suffering just their fourth home loss of the entire season.

Thus it made sense for the betting lines to shift, especially with LeBron James averaging better than 40 points a game and Cleveland’s role players J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert nailing their threes. Cleveland took control of home court with wins in Games 2 and 3, to put Golden State down 2-1 in any series for only the second time during these playoffs.

But Golden State head coach Steve Kerr turned to veteran swingman Andre Iguodala, whose presence in the starting lineup took away the Warriors size but made them much quicker and more lethal from the perimeter in Game 4. Iguodala poured in 22 points and snagged eight rebounds, while Curry chipped in 22 points and six assists.

Veteran forward David Lee’s 15 minutes and nine points led a Warriors bench that contributed 19 total points to Cleveland’s seven. The Cavs were especially hindered by shooting guard J.R. Smith’s 2-for-12 shooting night off the bench, including 0-for-8 from three.

But the biggest difference, and likely why odds makers have significantly shifted to the Warriors is James’ exhaustion. Playing 41 minutes in Game 4, James netted 20 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists, a tremendous line, yet he wasn’t Cleveland’s leading scorer and looked gassed through long stretches of the game. Center Timofey Mozgov led all players with 28 points, but many believe the Cavs can’t win without James scoring on a consistent basis.

GAME OF THRONES Season 5 Finale Internet Breakers

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game of thrones season 5 finale images 2015

It’s finally here. We’re just some hours away from quite potentially the biggest Game of Thrones season finale. The last two episodes have caused a frenzy online and if that’s anything to by, “Mother’s Mercy” could be even more shocking.

To hype it up even more, Kit Harington who plays Jon Snow and Jessica Henwick who plays Nymeria Sand have said this particular episode could break the internet. And so, we take a look at what this potential internet breaker is but be warned for book spoilers.

jon snow stabbed to death game of thrones finale 2015

Jon Snow gets stabbed

If you’re a book reader or even if you’ve been paying close attention to the foreshadowing, episode ten has all the makings of Jon Snow getting stabbed. Actually, let me correct myself – he will get stabbed and there’s even been a leaked picture of it.

So it’s confirmed and this is a very likely internet breaker. After all, majority of show watchers who have no idea what happens in the books will be huge Jon Snow fans and if they see another fan favorite dying, they just might abandon the show.

However, we don’t know how they’ll show him dying. There are so many theories on the internet – does he warg into his direwolf, Ghost just before dying? It’s a possibility and even if there are pictures of his eyes warging on the internet from that above picture, it’s likely to be photoshopped.

Will he die and be resurrected by Melisandre? Another interesting option but one that would require a sacrifice which definitely rules out Shireen. I however, think they should just show him dying and leave it at that just like the books which will build up even more anticipation for season six while at the same time, causing the internet to look like out of whack like the image above. But could there be other internet breakers?

Just this past week, Harington got to check out some possible Jon Snow replacements on Kimmel. Check it out below”

stannis wins battle of winterfell game of thrones 2015Stannis wins the battle of Winterfell

Finally, could the one true King do something of note in his bid to sit on the Iron Throne? Stannis may have lost a lot of fans for his actions in last week’s episode but if you’ve been a fan of the “Mannis” from the start, it’ll still be hard for you to root against him especially when his enemies are these guys in the image below.

Him winning the war wouldn’t exactly be the internet breaker but if it includes the death of a Bolton (or two), that is certainly something that will appease the fans and bring joy especially to those who can’t get enough of the Starks. Another potential internet breaker is if Stannis ended up dying or even getting killed by Brienne who if you remember, is camped outside Winterfell and still wants revenge for the death of Renly.

Arya changes her face and kills Meryn Trant

Since killing Syrio Forel, Arya hadn’t seen one of the names on her list which was Meryn Trant until the last episode. Following him into the Braavosi brothel, it looked like she was going to kill him then and there, however it never happened.

As we all know, faceless men can change their faces so a potential internet breaker could be Arya striking another name off her list and doing so with a different face. Not many will forget Trant following Joffrey’s every order, striking Sansa, killing Syrio and most recently, asking for a young girl for his own pleasure. It would certainly be a welcomed death.

game of thrones lady stonehart image 2015Lady Stoneheart reveal

We all expected it at the end of season four but ended up heartbroken as it never happened. Following the outrage, we were also given the impression that Lady Stoneheart would never happen.

However, could it be happening in this season’s finale? If you notice in the image above from the episode ten preview, you can see a figure standing alone on top of the cliff in an area which most definitely is the North. It can’t be Brienne because she’d be with Podrick. I can’t see it or think of it being anyone else either.

The show writers may have denied the possibility of Lady Stoneheart just to keep us off our toes and surprise us which would definitely be a stroke of genius. If it is in fact her though, we can be rest assured that the internet will be broken.

Does Data Privacy Even Exist?

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data privacy exist questionThere has been a lot of talk in the media recently about the need for data privacy. Emerging technologies like big data and the Internet of Things are brining privacy concerns to the forefront and it seems like the need to protect our personal data is becoming more and more relevant as more of our information is being exposed to the Internet in various forms.

How safe is our data at the moment?

The safety of our personal data (or rather the lack of safety) was also brought to our attention recently by news that the NSA had been spying on us via digital means – Internet giants including Facebook, Google, Yahoo, Apple and Microsoft had admitted to providing the NSA with direct access to user information stored on their servers.

We can’t really blame any of those companies for doing so because in fact they had no choice – if you are requested by the US government and/or security agencies to hand something over, you do exactly that.

does data privacy exist today 2015 imagesDoes this really change anything though?

The likelihood is that the latest revelation is just a drop in the ocean and if we think that our data is private and secure aside from this one incident then we really are kidding ourselves. The reality is that government and security agencies have access to such a huge plethora of information that they probably know everything there is to know about each and every one of us.

When you think about how much of our lives are held on line (and by the way, part of a global network that links almost every computer in the world together, called the Internet) it is hard to believe that we have any privacy at all. From social security to our bank account details, our mortgage, our mobile phone information and our shopping history – all of this information is stored online and to think that people do not have access to it is laughable.

So how can we keep our data private?

Keeping your data private is almost impossible; you would have to stay offline completely to remain private and that would mean no bank account, no social security and no passport. This would be reserved for the likes of Frank Abagnale Jr.

The most we can hope for is keeping our online communications private and even that would be a mighty challenge – it would involve browsing exclusively via secure connection or encrypted VPN link, encrypting all of the data on our computer and only using encrypted and anonymous email communications such as Hush Mail. Even then, based on what the NSA let us know they have access to, who is to say they don’t have access to encrypted communication channels as well; I wouldn’t put that past them.

The reality is that we live in a connected world – we all wanted it to be that way for our own benefit – and there really is no way to get away from it and we simply don’t have the right to a private life anymore so we may as well get used to the big brother state.

Matthew Dellavedova: Weak Link in NBA Finals

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matthew dellavedova cramped up during nba finals 2015Much has been made about Matthew Dellavedova and his play in the 2015 NBA Finals. The 24-year old guard, primarily used as support off of the bench, has been called upon to play big minutes in the championship series following the game one injury to Kyrie Irving. However, despite some highlights, overall Dellavedova is where the Cavaliers are weak.

The Aussie did not play much in the opening game of the series, a game that Cleveland loset However in over nine minutes of play he had no points and just a trio of assists en route to a plus/minus of -13. He wasn’t exactly the reason why Cleveland lost the opener, in fact they almost stole it, however in very limited minutes he still posted the worst plus/minus of any player that saw court-time.

In game two the guard was forced into a starting role following the injury to Irving, one that ended his season. In that game, Dellavedova was on court for over 42 minutes and his defense was considered part of Cleveland’s success. However, on the offensive end, the guard had just nine points on 1 of 6 shooting from behind the arc. Furthermore, Dellavedova had just one assist on the night – a piddly total for his position and for the number of minutes he logged. However Cleveland claimed game two, a result that silenced the Cavs’ critics for the time being and, in a twist of fate, Dellavedova had clutch free throws in the effort.

Matthew Dellavedova with steph curry weak link in nba finals 2015Game three of the NBA Finals promises to be a career highlight for Dellavedova. The guard had 20 points in the game, well above his career average, and he helped curb Stephen Curry‘s offense for the first three periods which put Golden State in a desperate fourth quarter situation. Additional, much like game two, Dellavedova made a key play late that was instrumental in giving his side victory.

However in game four we saw the Aussie come back down to Earth. Dellavedova went just 3 for 14 shooting overall, including a terrible 2 for 9 from three-point land. He had a team-high three turnovers and scored just ten points.
Furthermore, if you go by the old eye-ball test, in game four Dellavedova often looked like he didn’t belong on the court. His efforts to drive to the rim and then to lob to a post player were not only ineffective but they were perplexing. A lot of his three pointers missed the mark by a lot and he didn’t help out on the boards either.

Dellavedova has shown tremendous heart in the 2015 NBA Finals. Following severe cramping after game three, the Cavs’ guard must have been playing through pain in game four.

But despite my criticisms I think that the Aussie will likely bounce back in game five as he is the player that will benefit the most from the extra day off. I do think he should probably take less shots, especially three pointers, and instead focus on getting the other players the ball. I think the 20 point output in game three was an anamoly and that Dellavedova isn’t capable of that type of production night-in/night-out.

The Cavs need an offense that runs through Lebron James and Timofey Mozgov nearly every time down the floor. Dellavedova needs to relegate himself to a role player that chases down loose balls and punishes defensive sags or contributes when a planned offense breaks down. At this point in his career, I don’t think he should be taking fourteen shots in a game but if he got half as many assists then Cleveland would have a good chance to win.

Prosecutor Fighting Aaron Hernandez Sentence Reduction

aaron hernandez sentence reduction sought 2015

What is Aaron Hernandez going to do when all the press attention stops as his murder cases come to their obvious conclusions and he becomes a Jeopardy question? Now that Hernandez’s legal team is trying to get a new trial due to possible ‘jury corruption’, prosecutors are jumping in quickly to stop the former New England Patriots players ‘tortured legal gymnastics’ as they put it. They’re requesting that a Superior Court judge not reduce the former tight end’s sentence.

A motion filed Thursday by Bristol County Assistant District Attorney William McCauley claims that Hernandez’s legal team “misstates or omits key evidence, misstates the governing legal standards,” draws shaky conclusions about the guilty verdicts and, overall, fails to make his case that the evidence requires a different outcome.

The defense also wants two firearms convictions voided entirely.

McCauley’s filing argues that Hernandez bears the “considerable” burden of proving that no reasonable jury could have convicted him of shooting and killing 27-year-old Odin Lloyd in North Attleborough in 2013. He was given a mandatory life sentence, which, under Massachusetts law, triggers an automatic appeal.

prosecutor fighting aaron hernandez sentence reduction 2015

Pointing out that Hernandez was prosecuted under the state’s joint venture law, McCauley said there was no need to prove he shot Lloyd or even handled a gun in order to get a murder conviction. Two friends from the athlete’s hometown of Bristol, Conn., Ernest Wallace and Carlos Ortiz, also are charged in Lloyd’s death; so far, prosecutors have not said who they believe fired the fatal shots.

The document filed on Thursday further makes the case that Hernandez acted maliciously, planned the crime with his alleged co-conspirators, helped them flee law enforcement afterward, and worked with his fiancée to destroy evidence. It also fires back against the defense’s claims that using a gun does not constitute “extreme atrocity or cruelty” under the law, citing a Supreme Judicial Court case which found even a single blow from a baseball bat could meet that standard.

On Friday, GateHouse Media urged a judge not to allow another of Hernandez’s legal moves. His lawyers want to conduct a “post-verdict inquiry” about a juror’s possible exposure to matters not in evidence, and seal all the documents and hearings from the public. Judge E. Susan Garsh, who presided over the trial, did not immediately rule.

In more Hernandez prison news updates, a media group on Friday asked a judge to unseal documents relating to an unspecified juror issue in ex-New England Patriots star Aaron Hernandez’s recent murder trial in Massachusetts.

“It’s an attack on the media that doesn’t go anywhere. I think it ignores the First Amendment role of the media and press on behalf of the public to investigate the criminal judicial system,” said Zack Kleinsasser, an attorney for newspaper publisher GateHouse Media.

Hernandez lawyer James Sultan recently filed papers under seal requesting an inquiry into a juror’s “exposure to significant extraneous matter.” Sultan hasn’t disclosed details about what the issue is, and prosecutors haven’t either.

Hernandez was convicted in April of first-degree murder in the 2013 killing of Odin Lloyd, who was dating the sister of Hernandez’s fiancee. He was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole.

Kleinsasser told Superior Court Judge Susan Garsh that the criteria for sealing documents had not been met in this case and that the defense had not offered any adequate alternatives, such as redacting the documents.

A spokeswoman for the Bristol County district attorney’s office said it wouldn’t comment on the case until the judge had issued a ruling.

Sultan told the judge that he and the other lawyers for Hernandez believe he did not receive a fair trial. He said he has requested that his filings be temporarily impounded until a factual investigation is completed.

Garsh suggested that, given the intense media interest in the Hernandez case, it might be fair to assume that if a juror’s identity were revealed, the media would attempt to interview that juror, which could interfere with an evidentiary hearing.

But Kleinsasser argued that that was an assumption and that the burden of proof is “not on the media” but “at all times rests on the defendant.”

Garsh took the arguments under advisement.

Meanwhile, prosecutors filed a document Thursday in Bristol Superior Court opposing Hernandez’s motion for a required finding of not guilty, a procedural step that Hernandez must take before any appeal.

Google Chrome Puts Flash on Hold

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google chrome putting flash on hold images 2015Flash has been with us for quite some time now. We’re not talking about Barry Allen but the technology which helped revolutionize how we interact with information on the internet. But progress can be a thankless thing. What was once revolutionary is now reviled. We all want the optimal browsing experience but Flash is in the way. While we can’t completely get rid of Flash for now, Google Chrome has a way to actually put Flash on hold and speed up the browsing experience. Will Google Chrome pave the way to finally put an end to Flash ads?

Before Flash, web pages were mostly static texts, strong, eye-straining colors and animated GIFs. When these elements are put together without the help of design experts, users were treated with the most outlandish, eye straining websites. It was a weird time for many of us but we didn’t mind. The WordPress/Facebook generation sure would. Even the most properly designed and attractive website back then would be ugly by today’s standards. Adobe Flash (Macromedia Flash back then) helped raise the bar. It made the web interactive, simpler and attractive. We now had games in our browsers, cartoons were made with it, data was meaningfully displayed through it, streaming video was made possible and ads looked a lot better. Flash’s better animations, transitions and audio gave ads a more TV commercial-like quality and they became as interesting as Superbowl ads. Now Flash has the highest percentage of the types of ads displayed on the internet.

Now ads, have been the bane of entertainment for so long and we all know that when we watch television, especially highly anticipated shows which are not on cable or pay-per-view. Ads go on forever and even last longer than the show’s airtime. Mayweather or Pacquiao fights, NBA games, Soccer, American Football, Game of Thrones, and The Walking Dead. Ads extend the time you spend on the couch and it’s the same case with the internet because they extend the time you spend on the browser. Ads are often pre-loaded before the whole page works, especially Flash ads, resulting in a slow internet experience. But we need ads. The economy can’t survive without them. That’s why industries arose where people have to pay a premium not to be bothered by ads such as cable TV, pay-per-view and paid browser ad-blockers such as Adblock.

google chrome going after flash for users 2015The problem with Flash is ironic. Despite the name, it slows down the internet experience. Flash content tend to take up a lot of resources such as memory and processing power. Go to a Flash-ridden site and feel your tablet heat up and your laptop fans go into overdrive. The content may be rewarding but the loading is painstaking. The name Flare would have been more appropriate. Many websites pre-load ads before the actual content so there’s no escaping them. They’re loaded even before they give the option to skip them. For many of us without the bandwidth, browsing the internet becomes a challenge and quite stressful for people with data caps. Many alternatives have come up prompting Apple to give up supporting Flash in its bid to give users the best experience as possible or it could be the other way around since Apple gave up Flash, alternatives had to be made.

In any case, Flash may be on the way out but not in the near future so Google Chrome, in keeping up with its mantra of being the fastest browser adds a new feature that keeps Flash from automatically playing. Though the new feature can’t keep Flash from pre-loading, it still helps since initialization and playing of Flash plugins also take up time and memory. The project is still in beta but promises to keep Chrome in the forefront of browser speed wars. The feature is intended as a follow-up to a corrected flaw in Chrome that saps battery life as a tradeoff to better responsiveness.

The new feature further increases Chrome’s responsiveness, reduces the memory and processing power and reduces the annoyance users experience when their computers suddenly makes noise due to audio-enabled ads suddenly blaring up. But Chrome won’t do this automatically as there are many legit Flash sites out there. Users can control Flash plugins within Chrome’s Preferences whether to run all plugin content or selectively do so.

google eating up flash with adobeAs a company that gets most of its revenue from ads, it seems a pretty surprising move from Google but many of the company’s ads are text based. Flash effectively was put on death row when Steve Jobs announced they wouldn’t support Flash in Apple devices. Google is also keen on embracing using new technologies for its other ads so shutting down Flash is not considered a loss. In fact, this move could speed up the internet’s transition from using Flash to other technologies such as HTML5, improved animated GIFs and better Flash-like technologies. For those who can’t wait, the beta is available now. If this feature takes off, other browsers are sure to follow and we can finally say goodbye to slow speeds and hot laps when browsing the internet.

Lebron James Shows Some Johnson & NAACP’s Undercover Sistah: Celebrity Gossip

lebron james johnson nicki minaj naacp dusty rhodes 2015 celebrity

It’s Friday and I have to admit, it is my favorite day of the week because it starts a sequence of days where people really turn up. Here are some highlights in celebrity gossip and current events.

lebron james malfunction for junk 2015 gossipAnd Now We Know Why He is Called King James

I am a HUGE Lebron James fan, I mean really, he can do not wrong. So last night before game four of the NBA Finals, we all got a clearer understanding of perhaps why he is called King James. While getting himself ready to go on the court, thanks to the media gods’, we got a glimpse of Lebron James’ dick.

Okay so he didn’t do it on purpose really, those pesky cameras just happen to be rolling on him while he was fixing his shorts, which is something that all basketball players do at some point during a game.

Of course people had so much to say and in my book, they are all just haters. It was not intentionally and it had nothing to do with his performance…ahem… on the court that is.

nicki minaj not happy with safaree samuels meek mill 2015 gossipNicki Minaj Has Something to Say about Whack Ass Ex Safaree Samuels

I hate when niggas and chicks try to ride the coattail of an ex or former friend in the form of dissing them/spilling the beans in order to gain some kind of notoriety.

Such is the case with Nicki Minaj’s ex Safaree Samuels, a dude she was with for 12 years. This guy is a joke and is using any leverage he can of his former connection to the mega star to get his own shit off the ground. In his new song (it doesn’t even feel right saying that)  “Love The Most,” he accuses his superstar ex of cheating on him by kissing Nas, popping pills and letting him down.

Here are some of his “touching” lyrics.

“Yeah I was a backbone, a little caught up in the light. All I did was hold you down, before it all you was my wife. Real life behind the scenes, all I did was really help. To them you just a billboard, I cared about your health.”

So Nicki, who was not feeling Safaree’s words, took to Twitter to send a clear message on how she feels about his song and how she feels about life.

“Took a person with me to fame and fortune. These dudes leave their girl in the hood. Tell ppl the truth or you will be doomed… Enough with the pity party, just live your life…I am happy today not b/c of meek, but b/c I know I’m a good person. Don’t hate u, will always love you, I forgive you. It’s time to move on… And just for the record, I’m in love with meek.”

Well okay Nicki, tell us how you really feel.

naacp rachel dolezal white cover 2015 gossipWhite Woman Poses as Black Leader of NAACP Washington Chapter

This is a hell of a story if there ever was one. So a white woman has been posing as the leader of a Spokane, WA NAACP chapter for years and has finally been outted by her own parents.

Rachel Dolezal’s mother spilled the beans for whatever reason, saying that her daughter “has not explained to us why she is doing what she’s doing and being dishonest and deceptive with her identity.”

This is all very interesting because obviously this woman has gone out of her way to maintain her privacy and her guise as one of the Spokane’s most beloved black community advocates.

Things began to come to light about her racial identity on a national level Thursday when a reporter asked her specific questions about her father, who she claimed was black, that she refused to answer.

All of this has brought up a transracial conversation on social media and other outlets that perhaps has never been had before on this level. Without a doubt the debate here will focus on the fact that black people are not able to switch races and be accepted so why should she.

But the thing is she has for a while so how does the NAACP proceed?

wwe dusty rhodes rip 2015 gossipR.I.P.  to The American Dream… Dusty Rhodes

The ever confident and beloved WWE wrestler Dusty Rhodes has died. He was 69 years old and will be remember around the world for the persona he exemplified during the length of his successful career.  With his signature polka dot tights a corner stone of his wrestling character, the sport has long another great.

Survived by his four children including two very famous wrestlers Goldust and Stardust, he is remembered as a legend, teacher friend and more by those who had the privilege to be in his presence.

R.I.P. to the man that made his dream an American Dream.

Steph Curry Helps Bring Warriors Game 4 Win: NBA Finals

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steph curry helps warriors win game 4 nba finals 2015The 2015 NBA Finals looked as though they were heading Cleveland’s way following game three. The Cavs, playing at home for game four, had a 2-1 lead and appeared poised to take a commanding 3-1 lead entering play on Thursday night. However Golden State had other ideas as the Warriors came out strong in game four and leveled the series at two games a piece.

Steph Curry and Andre Iguodala were both pivotal in the Golden State victory. Curry, with four three-pointers, had 22 points and six assists while Iguodala also had 22 points.

Stephen Curry shook off Iman Shumpert with a dribble, stepped back behind the line and splashed a 3-pointer that seemed to submerge a mute button on rocking and rolling Quicken Loans Arena.

Curry clenched both fists, slapped his chest and yelled, “C’mon!”

At last, this was the MVP and these were the Golden State Warriors – so deep, so deadly.

Curry and Andre Iguodala scored 22 points apiece and the Warriors, showing why they were the league’s best team all season, squared the NBA Finals at 2-2 on Thursday night with a 103-82 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

golden state warriors beat cleveland cavaliers nba finals 2015

“Tonight we came in with the mentality that we had to win this game,” said Curry.

“We played desperate out there, man,” Klay Thompson said. “We played real hungry. It was just awesome to come out here and impose our will on both sides of the ball and play our brand of basketball. That’s what’s been winning us games all year.”

Conversely, Lebron James of the Cavaliers was not as active on offense as he had been in previous games in the series. King James had 20 points and twelve boards but the Cavs had received a lot more scoring from him in games one, two, and three.

LeBron James scored 20 points – 21 under his average in the series – with 12 rebounds and eight assists, but Cleveland’s megastar, who needed stitches to close a cut on his head sustained when banged it into a camera in the first half, didn’t score in the fourth quarter and couldn’t do enough for the undermanned Cavaliers.

Timofey Mozgov led Cleveland with 28 points and guard Matthew Dellavedova, again battling leg cramps after a hospital stay for dehydration, had 10.

The Cavs shot just 2 of 18 from the field and were outscored 27-12 in the fourth quarter. They also got nothing from their bench as J.R. Smith missed all eight 3-point attempts and Cleveland’s reserves combined to score seven points.

“Offensively we were terrible,” James said, noting the Cavs were 4 of 27 on 3-pointers. “Sometimes your offense just doesn’t show up.”

Missing All-Stars Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving, the Cavs didn’t have enough firepower and their legs were heavy after playing three games in five days against a team that comes in waves.

The Cavs looked tired, and played tired. But they’re not done yet.

“We’re in a three-game series for the NBA Finals,” coach David Blatt said. “Six months ago I would have bought that. We’ve got to go back to the drawing board, go back to work, play the best basketball we can and try to win this thing.”

Matthew Dellavedova, a player who suffered from cramps following game three, was also not as effective for Cleveland as he had previously been. He missed seven three point attempts in game four while barely chipping in with ten points.

The best player for Cleveland on Thursday night was arguably Timofey Mozgov. The center played well above his averages as he scored 28 points on the night in about 33 minutes played. Posting a double-double, Mozgov also had 10 rebounds in the loss.

The final score in the game was 103-82, by far the biggest spread the series has seen so far. The Cavaliers no longer have home court advantage in the series, meaning they must win a game on the road to win the NBA title now.

An attritioned team, Cleveland have been without Kevin Love since the opening round of the playoffs. Furthermore they have been without Kyrie Irving since game one of the finals. Game four was arguably where the shortage of players showed the most as players that were playing below par still logged big minutes.

Building off a strong fourth quarter in Game 3 that gave them confidence, the Warriors showed a sense of urgency from the outset and took it to the Cavs. Iguodala, who played so well coming off the bench in the first three games, made his first start this season and made coach Steve Kerr’s decision look brilliant.

Known for his defense, Iguodala drained four 3-pointers, kept James in check and Curry, who finally found his range in the fourth quarter of Game 3, also dropped four 3s, including a deep dagger in the fourth over Shumpert to end any thought the Cavs had of a comeback.

Iguodala said he tried to make things tough on James, who went 7 of 22 from the field and 5 of 10 from the free-throw line.

“Make him work as hard as possible,” Iguodala said of his plan on James. “Make him take tough shots. You look at his strengths, you look at his weaknesses, and you try to take him out of his comfort zone. Sounds easier said than done, but we all have a lot of talent and when we go out there we want to make our stamp on the game.”

Draymond Green added 17 points and Harrison Barnes had 14 for Golden State, which didn’t lose three straight games all season while racking up 67 wins.

Since losing Game 3, the Warriors vowed to use the experience they gained when rallying from a 2-1 deficit against Memphis in the Western Conference semifinals.

“It’s just a street fight,” Green said. “Nobody’s doing anything dirty, but they’re battling and we’re battling and that’s why this series is so exciting.”

Looking for a spark, Kerr decided to go “small” with his starting lineup, putting Iguodala at forward, moving Green to center and benching struggling big man Andrew Bogut. Kerr initially said he wouldn’t make any changes, but went with a lineup that worked well late in Game 3, when the Warriors scored 36 points and trimmed a 20-point deficit to one.

Shortly before tip-off, Kerr told reporters he was sticking with his usual first five.

“I lied,” he said. “I don’t think they hand you the trophy based on morality. They give it to you if you win. Sorry about that.”

Kerr got the result he wanted, but only after the Warriors withstood an early flurry from the Cavs, who scored the game’s first seven points.

“You’ve got to take a chance with the situation we were in tonight,” Curry said.

Golden State’s ball movement was better, the shots that didn’t drop in the first three games were on the mark, and the Warriors are headed home feeling much better about things.

The Cavs are perhaps fortunate that there will be an extra day off before the start of game five. That game, like both games one and two, will be played back in Oakland however it will not go until Sunday at 8pm ET. That will give Cleveland Friday and Saturday as full off days, perhaps rest that the Cavs need a little bit more than Golden State at the moment.

Hannibal 301: Appetite for Antipasto

hannibal antipasta 401 images 2015Well fannibals, our craving for wondering what happened to our favorite cannibal after he escaped with his warped psychiatrist Bedelia Du Maurier has finally been satisfied. If you don’t remember what happened at the end of season 2, all you really need to be reminded of is the fact that Hannibal tried to massacre Dr. Alana Bloom, Will Graham, Jack Crawford and Abigail Hobbs for discovering his secret life as a prolific serial killer. He then hopped on a plan and ran to Europe with his mysterious and apparently troubled therapist Bedelia.

There is no question of why many (including myself) rave about this show as the best show on television. The visual aesthetics are beyond captivating. Everything is seen drenched in black and red. Time literally slows down while everything has an elegant flare and stylish lighting. From every angle you see life as a work of art. This is because you’re seeing things through the eyes of Hannibal.

And through the eyes of Hannibal, everything is a work of art. Even murder. Even cannibalism. The very beauty of the show created by Bryan Fuller is that by the end of the episode, you’ll be seeing even the most grotesque things in this series as a work of art as well. The opener to season 3 was no exception. The episode kicks off with Hannibal riding around Paris on a motorcycle. He no longer walks around in designer suits; he now prefers leather motorcycle jackets. It’s clear that Hannibal is on the hunt when he walks in to a party full of intellectual bores and snobs.

hannibal 401 antipasta images 2015 760x506-007A young and equally conceded poet named Tony takes a liking to Hannibal, from that point on you know this guy’s time is limited. The show then picks up with Hannibal appearing to be his own self again in Florence. He’s killed, eaten and assumed the identity of intellectual Dr. Fell. He’s murdered the man’s wife as well. Hannibal’s comfortable in his new role as literary curator under his new identity. Could life be anymore grand for him?

hannibal 401 antipasta images 2015 350x350A flash back is shown of Dr. Abel Gideon and Hannibal having a most unusual dinner together. Gideon is a killer who tried to take over Hannibal’s identity as the Chesapeake Ripper killer. Hannibal really doesn’t enjoy when someone takes credit for his handy work. So for dinner, Hannibal and Gideon feast on Gideon’s legs. He appears to have more insight in to the mind of Hannibal than almost anyone else. He realizes that Hannibal is lonely and along with those feelings he’s losing control of himself. The massacre at the end of season 3 was a clear indication that Hannibal finds it very hard to be in control of himself when he’s been betrayed and almost forced in to being alone.

hannibal 401 antipasta images 2015 760x506-006After a ballroom dance with his new “wife” Bedelia, a man accuses Hannibal of not being able to make a decent curator due to the fact that he’s not Italian and couldn’t properly recite Dante. This man apparently has no idea who the hell he’s dealing with. Hannibal shuts the little arrogant man down by reciting Dante in perfect Italian and saying that he will give a full presentation on the subject.

hannibal 401 antipasta images 2015 760x506-009Bedelia and Hannibal spend some emotionally intimate moments together that leave you so deeply entranced you have to shake your head to clear your mind during the commercial breaks. Bedelia is not the only one falling under the spell of Hannibal, the viewer is as well. Hannibal assured Bedelia that he hasn’t hardly had to killed anyone during their residency. Bedelia assures Hannibal that she’s in control of her own mind. It is clear that Hannibal is working hard to change that for her.

hannibal 401 antipasta images 2015 760x506-003Hannibal runs across the young poet Tony when he heads out for a walk. Knowing that Tony might be on to him, Hannibal invites him over for what might be Tony’s last meal. During the dinner, Bedelia is clearly uncomfortable witnessing the man’s looming death. She mentions that “My husband loves the way I taste.” after the man notices that Bedelia is regulating her diet by not eating any meat. Tony mistakes the invitation for dinner as one for a threesome. Hannibal clearly takes offense to this. While being angry with Bedelia’s transparency, he lets Tony go.

hannibal 401 antipasta images 2015 760x506-004A surprise revelation about Bedelia is made when we find out that she has a dark side that may have her more emotionally linked to Hannibal than we ever realized. Bedelia claimed that she had to kill a patient in self-defense. We find out in a flash back that it wasn’t self-defense at all and Bedelia also has a taste for blood.hannibal 401 antipasta images 2015 760x506-011One of the greatest things about this show is its absolutely beautiful way of making statements. As Hannibal gives his Dante lecture, you see his face blend in with the image on the projector of Satan. We always knew Hannibal was the devil, but it’s never been said (or seen) before in such a beautiful way. When Bedelia sees Tony arrive at the lecture she gets spooked and leaves. Tony lets Hannibal know, that he knows Hannibal is not who he says he is however, he wants to form an alliane with him. Now we know it’s end game for Tony!

Bedelia is trying to get away from Hannibal for good with her bag in her hand when Hannibal and Tony get back to the house before she can escape. A look of complete terror and defeat washes over her face. After the commercial break, we come back to Hannibal bashing Tony in the head. Hannibal questions whether Bedelia is a participant or an observer. Hannibal ends up snapping the man’s neck. She clearly has no choice, but to stay now that she’s in so deep.

hannibal season 3 ep 1 recap images 2015

This episode was full of beautiful, breath taking visual sequences and surprising revelations. Even though there was no Will Grahm in this episode I didn’t miss him. It was great to get a window in to the new and always dark life of Hannibal before all the real madness truly sets in.

We all know it won’t be long before the madness really sets in.

5 Best Moments From GAME OF THRONES 509 Dance of Dragons

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game of thrones 509 recap images 2015It’s been a long time coming but Season 5 of Game of Thrones is finally picking up in the latter stages of the season. Last week’s episode blew us away with many top moments and ‘Dance of Dragons’ was no different, so here’s a look at some of the best moments.

game of thrones jon snow brings wildings to wall 509 2015Jon Snow bringing the Wildlings past the wall

We knew this was going to happen but when it finally came down to it, the newly appointed Lord Commander may have been humiliated as he gambled on whether Alliser Thorne would open the gates for him and a couple hundred Wildlings.

Fortunately for Jon, Thorne does it and as the Wildlings enter, you can see the disdain on the faces of the rest of the Night’s Watch, directed at Jon for doing this. Olly in particular, whose family was killed by the Wildlings, was particularly cold even when Jon smiled at him.

It all builds up to something bad happening to our favorite bastard in the next episode which is said to ‘break the internet.’

Daenerys and Jorah reunion?

When Jorah first encounters Dany again, she wants him to get out of her sight so she still expressed anger against her former adviser. However, when he’s in the fighting pits and in danger, Dany actually shows concern for him and Tyrion – who feels the same – encourages her to stop the fight.

Luckily for Jorah, he makes it alive and even saves Dany by throwing a spear at one of the Harpies. While chaos ensued, Jorah and Dany were in a five second staredown which eventually leads to her holding his hand and letting him save her which was a very nice scene to see, especially after what he’s gone through the past season.

However, it makes one wonder – if Jorah has greyscale, is Dany at risk of getting it as well now that she’s touched Jorah?

trystane martell goes to kings landing game of thrones 509 2015Trystane Martell going to King’s Landing

The Dorne storyline has been a bit of a joke especially since it’s completely deviated from what happens in the books. However, one good thing to come out of it is the fact that not only is Myrcella going back home but Trystane is also accompanying her, getting a seat in the Small Council.

It’ll definitely be interesting to see where that takes us in the story as I don’t know about you, but I already like Trystane from the small amount of scenes we’ve seen him in.

game of thrones ellaria with jaime 509 2015Ellaria and Jaime’s conversation

We all loved Oberyn Martell and were terrified when he died. Ellaria has all the reasons to be angry but she took it a bit far which lead to many disliking her. However, after swearing her allegiance to Doran Martell, she calms down and shortly afterwards, is with Jaime privately.

Rather than an angry outburst, we see a different side of her as she interestingly tells him that his incest with Cersei would be completely normal in Dorne and no one would judge him even if his last name wasn’t Targaryen. She then says that Myrcella isn’t at fault and neither is Jaime for what happened to Oberyn. It was interesting to see this change of heart and hopefully, we have better scenes from Dorne next season.

shireen game of thrones burned at stake dragons 2015Shireen gets burned alive

This is obviously the biggest moment and not because it was awesome or anything. Stannis goes completely out of character, having defended his daughter for ages and ends up giving the order to burn his only living offspring.

It was foreshadowed for ages but it was one of those moments which you still never expected to happen, especially when a fan favorite like Stannis mercilessly watched his daughter scream and beg for help.

shireen tied to stake game of thrones dance of dragons 2015

With that one decision, Stannis broke the Internet with his own fans – including me – having a frenzy and turning on the ‘one true King.’ Davos may have expected Melisandre to do it but I doubt he ever expected Stannis to be the one issuing the orders so once he returns from Castle Black, it’ll definitely be interesting to see how he takes this bit of news.

We’ve seen more shocking stuff from the show in the past but it was still heart wrenching to see a lovely girl like Shireen cry and scream as her parents watched. It’s also ironic how Selyse despised her daughter and in the end, showed more humanity than Stannis by wanting to save her.

These last two weeks have been crazy and next week, it’ll only get crazier as the season comes to a close. Stay tuned!

Duke’s Jahlil Okafor Longing To Be A Los Angeles Laker: They’re Listening

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duke jahlil okafor wants to be los angeles laker 2015 nbaWhile the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors battle it out on the NBA’s biggest stage, the Minnesota Timberwolves, Los Angeles Lakers, Philadelphia 76ers, and New York Knicks have problems of their own to worry about.

The worst four teams in the NBA from this past season hold the top four picks in the 2015 NBA Draft in said order, and now the question becomes which of these rookies is good enough to chance the face of the franchise. Karl-Anthony Towns, Jahlil Okafor, D’Angelo Russell, and even Justice Winslow all fit the bill; but each team can only pick one.

Well, Duke superstar Jahlil Okafor seems to think that he would fit right in with the Los Angeles Lakers. Apparently walking in the footsteps of the league’s best big men—including Shaquille O’Neal and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar—doesn’t scare Okafor one bit:

“They were all about winning, and when they came [to Los Angeles], they won,” said Okafor when asked about the pressure to win as a dominate center in yellow and purple. “I’ll have some big shoes to step into, but I’m ready.”

Those shoes will be a little bigger than usual this year as the Lakers are coming off their worst season in franchise history in which they finished with a dismal 21-61 record. Do you really think you’re good enough to turn this group into a winner again?

“Not by myself, not on this level, not coming right in,” replied Okafor when he received a similar question. “That’s why we have Kobe Bryant here.”

I’m sure a soon-to-be-37-years-old Kobe loved hearing that from an up-and-coming star rookie that may be sharing a locker room with him next season. At least he won’t have to run another big man out of Los Angeles.

The Minnesota Timberwolves are expected to select Karl-Anthony Towns out of Kentucky with the 1st overall selection, which means Okafor just may have his wish granted when the Lakers are on the clock at No. 2 overall.

It would be hard for the Lakers to pass up such a dominate scoring threat—especially when that player is already saying “we” in reference to the city and team.