freedom to fail
Here is your single's love horoscope
for Friday, September 26:
Lately, you've been way too hard on yourself. It's important to stay track with your relationship goals, but that doesn't mean you should be overly critical regarding missed milestones. Cut yourself some slack.
one of the oddities of the week remains the fact that it's taken a sprinkle of trouble for john mccain and his presidential campaign for me to actually have trouble deciding for whom i'm going to vote: it's as if all of the uncertainty has really raised questions about the ability of the candidates to do exactly what they've spouted off for several months now: i've asked the question in many places, "what happens if the candidate of change cannot deliver it?" to what solid political perspective can you hold someone you don't know? that's all neither here nor there in my life in the end. by sunday, the drama had blown over at pier one and i found myself returning to the financial panic of not getting enough hours at pier one -- i'm talking less than ten hours in a week -- and while this felt somewhat like a blessing considering how i generally have to horsetrade to accomodate my real job and the professional organizations i involve myself with on the periphery, and that worked as on monday and tuesday, i could veg out and on wednesday, i could go to the young professionals' mixer at leroy selmon's which -- although not my choice of venue -- turned out as quite the wonderful event. the buzz in the crowd remained the financial crisis although none of us seemed to feel it at all as we sipped martinis and twittered about the newest condos, the best bars, and winter vacations. after (and before) the event, i hung out (again) with a high school friend of mine who keeps me on my toes with wit: she's a lawyer who's trying to get as involved in the community as i've become and since she drove her bmw this week, i had to go with her shopping and found myself shocked to find that insanity pricing continues in every retailer including my own. and although i didn't get that tipsy at the event, i could not get up in the morning and i could not stay awake on thursday. not only that, i found myself flat broke because besides getting my blue cardvedbarstools, a couple yankee candles, a bcbg workshirt, an express polo (i know, but it was there), and calvin klein unmentionables. tiffany michelle has told me that her painting costs three hundred fifty dollars framed and i simply don't have the money for that so i asked how much it'd cost unframed which i'm not sure is not a dillitantish question. in other news, i'm not sure i like the hot latin sales assistant anymore which you know, is fine, since we can be friends and i'm starting to be really jealous of my coworker on the team who clearly has more disposable income than i have -- going to margaret cho last night, having extravagant weekends every weekend, traveling at least once a month -- and in a committed relationship at a time when i choose to be signle to get on my feet with my apartment -- i have to re-buy the screen and get the couch and probably now two bookcases, the bali mirror, and five paintings (i've decided to go with rubens rendition of titian's adam and eve)--and what else? oh yeah, i'm framing three issues of people magazine -- the one with ellen and portia de rossi, the one with clay aiken i bought today, and the one with lance bass -- which leads me to something else: it's funny how different the world has become. well. with pained squints i watched a re-run of mad men last night where sal throws himself at someone who has absolutely none of the recipricol feeling while finding himself completely unable admit the thing that impells him so and we've come into a world where you have the most ardent fan base of clay -- thoroughly conservative, i'd say -- arguing that it doesn't matter. of course, it doesn't! it never has. but people have made it matter. and it's a principle that we see at work in the macro sense in our world right now. we need the freedom to fail. sure, clay's coming out spell ruin for his mainstream career. but it's in our great country that we're allowed to choose our paths and take those risks and live with the consequences. it's in that vein why i find it so discordant with everything we call america that we'd bail out all of these wall street firms when, on the whole, we're not doing that bad yet. i'm not convinced that we'd do all that bad. maybe i need to talk to my grandmother so she can tell me how it was during the depression. but it doesn't feel like it. i live on the froth of our economy, advertising, and while it's bad, it's not fatal. and i know people who are not doing bad at all. in fact, i'd argue most people aren't right now. we don't have 25% unemployment and bread lines. yes, lots of people are losing their homes, but lots of people aren't. and hell, it was too easy to get a house. people who made nothing and had nothing qualified! my parents had to scrape and save -- and they WORKED to do it -- to get together a down payment and still had to jump through hoops to qualify and that at 14% interest. what's going on? while i'm sad to see my bank go under -- wamu won we early with inclusive advertising and guerilla marketing in the only bar in town -- we need to let these things fail so people won't jump into these risky ventures without something in their short term memory. anywho. it's like milan fashion week. compare prada (which i'm still digesting) with francesco scognamiglio (who i had dismissed until i read the review): francesco's collection clearly had more edge and challenged the way people dress today, but his collection got deadpanned for the less interesting prada collection because she took a risk and she completely departed from what she did last season (lace anyone?) or the season before that (still got those pjs?) or the season before that (laminated knits?) or the season before (let's do turbans)! so in a week that we saw designers scared to death by the worldwide financial crisis -- where did the fur at fendi go? how conservative will versace become? what happened to the sexiness at gucci? and let's not even talk about missoni. -- we saw prada introduce a new perspective on sexuality that we hadn't seen before that isn't easy while we saw others cling to rewrites of tunes they had sung before. i mean, i loved marni but even she did nothing but return to her comfort zone. it's one thing i continually appreciate these days in my local community: we're out there taking those risks to try to grow up quickly. while i'll never defend my small town as anything but it's inspiring to watch as those things that bring us in the national spotlight keep bubbling up to the top of the national ticket like great sports teams and great events and we're doing it. anywho....
Here is your single's love horoscope
for Saturday, September 27:
Quit stalling when it comes to asking out someone new for a date. It's easier than you think. Rehearse what you plan to say on a friend who can tell you if it sounds natural or forced. The just do it!
Will WaMu brand clash with Chase?
By Associated Press | September 27, 2008
MILWAUKEE - Washington Mutual is known for its no-thrills, no-fees, unconventional banking with a hip, neighborly feel. Its nickname? WaMu. Its tag line? Whoo hoo!
But the collapsed bank's new owner, JPMorgan Chase, is known for being big and conservative - two very different vibes. Its advertising preaches value and security.
The newly combined company has its work cut out for it, experts say, if it wants to blend the two different brands and keep customers.
It's not clear yet what will happen with the brands, but WaMu's ads will no doubt have to change to temper its feisty image, which has mocked staid rivals like Chase, said Jean-Pierre Dube, a marketing professor at the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business.
"It strikes me as incompatible because JPMorgan Chase represents precisely what Washington Mutual was critiquing and attacking in their advertising," he said yesterday.
Washington Mutual Inc. was seized Thursday by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., which then sold the thrift's banking assets to JPMorgan Chase & Co. for $1.9 billion. The collapse marked the nation's biggest bank failure. The sale makes JPMorgan Chase the second-largest bank in the United States after Bank of America Corp., which recently bought Merrill Lynch.
JPMorgan Chase said the acquisition will give it 5,400 branches in 23 states, and that it plans to close less than 10 percent of the two companies' branches. But little has been said about the brand marketing.
Neither company immediately returned calls and messages.
The problems at WaMu had apparently been building for some time as the company got caught up in the subprime mortgage business, whose troubles spread across the entire industry.
But those issues weren't evident in WaMu's peppy ads, which portrayed a lively, unconventional banking environment.
Some of the ads positioned WaMu as a happier, freer alternative to its competitors. The "antistodgy banker" campaign launched in 2006 featured older men in suits who didn't like WaMu's perks such as free checking for life and free ATM cash withdrawals.
New ads feature the slogan "Whoo hoo!" and show people fantasizing about driving cars and being in kangaroo pouches, with their newfound financial freedom.
"The focal point is the customer's 'Whoo hoo! moment' " a WaMu said in February. It defined the moment as "a dream-like state where customers visualize moments of personal elation in response to learning about WaMu products and services."
In an era that is seeing so much financial upheaval, JPMorgan Chase may want to drop those types of ads, Dube said. Tried and true may be a better route, he said.
"Washington Mutual had a radical message in their advertising and given how hard they fell it seems like maybe there's something to be said for the old, conservative, traditional banking model," he said. "The stodgy old businessmen may not be fun and give you deals, but they give you value. They give you security."
Value is also a big part of the WaMu package, said Rita Rodriguez, chief executive for the US division of The Brand Union, a firm that helps companies create brand identities. She said WaMu was an early trendsetter of positioning itself as a friendly bank that was accessible and focused on helping customers.
© Copyright 2008 The New York Times Company
In an NRO blog post, Krikorian asked if WaMu's diversity policy was "[c]ause" of bank's demise
Summary: In a blog post on National Review Online, Mark Krikorian asked if diversity policies touted by Washington Mutual, which was seized by federal regulators and sold to another bank on September 25, were the "[c]ause" of the bank's collapse.
As Salon.com's Glenn Greenwald noted, in a September 26 blog post on National Review Online's The Corner titled "Cause and Effect?" Mark Krikorian reproduced part of a press release by Washington Mutual bank -- which on September 25 was seized by federal regulators and sold to another bank -- touting its diversity policies and programs. Crediting a blog post by Steve Sailer, Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, wrote: "I really thought this was a joke, but it's not. WaMu's final press release, before it sank beneath the waves." The release that Krikorian partially reproduced was headlined "WaMu Recognized as Top Diverse Employer--Again" and included the subhead, "Company ranks in top ten of Hispanic Business' Diversity Elite and earns perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index."
From Krikorian's September 26 blog post:
Cause and Effect? [Mark Krikorian]
I really thought this was a joke, but it's not. WaMu's final press release, before it sank beneath the waves (h/t Sailer):
WaMu Recognized as Top Diverse Employer-Again
Company ranks in top ten of Hispanic Business' Diversity Elite and earns perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index
SEATTLE, WA (September 24, 2008) - Washington Mutual, Inc. (NYSE:WM), one of the nation's leading banks for consumers and small businesses, has once again been recognized as a top employer by Hispanic Business magazine and the Human Rights Campaign.
Hispanic Business magazine recently ranked WaMu sixth in its annual Diversity Elite list, which names the top 60 companies for Hispanics. The company was honored specifically for its efforts to recruit Hispanic employees, reach out to Hispanic consumers and support Hispanic communities and organizations.
The Human Rights Campaign, the largest national gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) civil rights organization, also awarded WaMu its second consecutive 100 percent score in the organization's 2009 Corporate Equality Index (CEI), which measures progress in attaining equal rights for GLBT employees and consumers. WaMu joins the ranks of 259 other major U.S. businesses that also received top marks in the annual survey. The CEI rated a total of 583 businesses on GLBT-related policies and practices, including non-discrimination policies and domestic partner benefits.
In both surveys, WaMu earned points for competitive diversity policies and programs, including the recently established Latino, African American and GLBT employee network groups, all of which have a corporate executive sponsor and champion.
"Diversity is an integral part of cultivating a welcoming, innovative and dynamic workplace here at WaMu. We are proud to be recognized for the opportunities and benefits we offer to all of our employees, including the specific efforts we have made to engage Hispanics and the GLBT community," said Steve Rotella, WaMu president and COO. "We are committed to diversity at WaMu and pledge to listen to our customers and work closely with our employees to continue to make progress."
These two recent honors build upon diversity recognitions WaMu received earlier in 2008. WaMu was named one of 25 Noteworthy Companies by Diversity Inc magazine and one of the Top 50 Corporations for Supplier Diversity by Hispanic Enterprise magazine.
- L.Y.
Posted to the web on Friday, September 26, 2008 at 03:00 PM ET
WaMu fails, JPMorgan buys assets
$1.9 deal comes after FDIC seizes thrift
By Marcy Gordon, Sara Lepro, Madlen Read, Associated Press | September 26, 2008
NEW YORK-- JPMorgan Chase & Co. came to the rescue of Washington Mutual Inc. yesterday, buying the thrift's banking assets after WaMu was seized by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. in the largest failure ever of a US bank. This is the second time in six months that JPMorgan Chase has taken over a major financial institution crippled by bad bets in the mortgage market.
The deal will cost JPMorgan Chase $1.9 billion, and the bank said in a statement it planned to write down WaMu's loan portfolio by approximately $31 billion. JPMorgan Chase, which acquired Bear Stearns Cos. last March, also said it would sell $8 billion in common stock to raise its capital position.
The FDIC, which insures bank deposits, said it would not have to dip into the insurance fund as a result of the seizure. There had been concerns that the fund, which took a big hit after the seizure of IndyMac Bank, could be depleted by a WaMu seizure.
WaMu "was under severe liquidity pressure," FDIC chairwoman Sheila Bair told reporters in a conference call.
"For all depositors and other customers of Washington Mutual Bank, this is simply a combination of two banks," Bair said. "For bank customers, it will be a seamless transition."
The government measures bank failures by an institutions's assets; Seattle-based WaMu has roughly $310 billion in assets. The previous record was the failure of Continental Illinois National Bank in 1984, with $40 billion in assets when it closed. IndyMac, seized in July, had $32 billion.
WaMu was searching for a lifeline after piling up billions of dollars in losses due to failed mortgages. WaMu has seen its stock price plummet by 87 percent this year, and it suffered a ratings downgrade by Standard & Poor's earlier this week that put it in danger of collapse.
The Bush administration's proposal for a x $700 billion bailout for distressed financial institutions was believed to have given fresh impetus to a buyout and new allure to WaMu. But it was't immediately clear how the bailout, which was still being negotiated in Washington late yesterday, would affect the JPMorgan Chase-WaMu deal.
JPMorgan Chase's chief executive, Jamie Dimon, said in a conference call, said the "only negative" related to the deal was "how to handle some of these bad assets." JPMorgan Chase said the acquisition will give it 5,400 branches in 23 states. JPMorgan Chase said it plans to close less than 10 percent of the two companies' branches; the bank has not yet decided which to close.
Washington Mutual, which operated seven retail locations in Massachusetts until it closed them last December, ran into trouble after it got caught up in the booming part of the mortgage business that made loans to people with bad credit, known as subprime borrowers.
Troubles spread to other parts of WaMu's home loan portfolio, namely its "option" adjustable-rate mortgage loans. Option ARM loans offer very low introductory payments and let borrowers defer some interest payments until later years. The bank stopped originating those loans in June.
Problems in WaMu's home loan business began to surface in 2006, when the bank reported that the division lost $48 million, compared with net income of about $1 billion in 2005.
At the start of 2007, then-chief executive Kerry Killinger said the bank had prepared for a slowdown in its housing business by sharply reducing its subprime lending and servicing of loans. was replaced as chief executive on Sept. 8 by Alan H. Fishman, former president and chief operating officer of Sovereign Bank.
© Copyright 2008 The New York Times Company
PRADA
MILAN, September 23, 2008
By Sarah Mower
Miuccia Prada had a sound bite for her Spring collection. "It's primitive," she said, "going back to what counts." And what counts most in a back-to-basics time, when most of us will need truly visceral temptation to get us out and shopping? Why, glamour and eroticism, of course. When the chips are down, there is no one who can turn up the thermostat of subversive sexual provocation quite as high as Mrs. Prada. Her girls, their skin glistening as if on a fevered summer's night, might have been passing through on their way to or from lovers' assignations, their clothes disarranged in various states of falling-off or looking as if they might do so at any moment. Rumpled and crinkled fabrics have been appearing all over this season, but never with such sly intent. One pull of a trailing drawstring tape and, whoops! A person could find herself half naked. Not that this collection is, of course, at all brassy. From some angles, it can all look like a perfectly innocent summery dishevelment-that is, until there's a glimpse into an open-sided dress, or a cashmere sweater turns to display hospital-tape ties holding the back together (or just about).
There was something fabulously Italian about all this shameless reveling in femininity. The fifties overtones, with the high chignons, the ruched bras, and swishing rear action in the below-knee pencil skirts, managed to channel the heyday of Cinecittà without cliché. Best of all, this is a collection destined to look even better on a woman with a real body than it does on a teen model. And that, Mrs. Prada surely knows, really is "what counts."
PRADA
June 22, 2008
Post-show, Miuccia Prada cited her inspiration as a man poised between fragility and power, hanging in the balance-in other words, between extremes. As usual, her enigmatic comment cast an illuminating light on the collection we’d just seen. The first outfits out were a parka and blouson hanging off the models' shoulders on straps. Once upon a time, Helmut Lang offered up the same idea, but where his version suggested fierce refugee pragmatism (you have to be ready to carry your world on your back), Miuccia's made a nice portrait neckline for her new batch of boychicks. But at the same time, there was a hint of tension-suspension-in the idea. And it was extended in subtle details like the elastic bands that wrapped shoes or encircled waists.
You could parse Prada collections till hell froze over, so loaded with suggestion are they. That button "buried" in a double-breasted jacket? True, Margiela already explored the idea of the phantom garment, but it doesn't make it any less seductive. And the elongated polo layered over cotton smock layered over boxer shorts? It evoked emergency-room or sanitarium whites-what better way to convey the subtext of men in crisis? But step back from obsessive fandom and there were irresistible basics, like a gussied-up Gap: perfectly tailored pants, fine knits, cotton shirts, top-stitched denims. All this and a gold latex coat: As the mannequin moved, it trembled, poised indeed between fragility and power.
- Tim Blanks
Francesco Scognamiglio
MILAN, September 22, 2008
By Nicole Phelps
As the kids say, Francesco Sconamiglio has mad skills. He can cut a lean, mean suit with the best of them-but he'll never graduate to the big leagues like his front-row pals Tommaso Aquilano and Roberto Rimondi have until he turns down the kink factor. The show opened with a respectable-enough cropped ivory jacket; unfortunately, it was worn with see-through plastic trousers. The second look, a coat-dress with an asymmetrical neckline that purposely exposed one breast, was even more risqué. The blouses were lovingly crafted, with spills of ruffles at the throat or, more unusually, with shoulder pads made from feathers-but, again, because they were so sheer, their appeal will be limited.
A series of little white dresses (bracelet-sleeved, one-shouldered, or strapless, decorated with sculptural rosettes or ruffles) showed Scognamiglio at his best: just this side of flamboyant, but relevant at retail, too. When he starts thinking more along these lines, he'll start drawing the crowds that his technique deserves.
Francesco Scognamiglio
MILAN, February 16, 2008
By Nicole Phelps
If you looked past the fetish-y, rhinestone-studded, cream-colored latex, there was plenty to admire in Milan up-and-comer Francesco Scognamiglio's show. Nodding in the direction of Yves Saint Laurent's late-sixties/early-seventies heyday and displaying a deft hand for couturelike cuts, Scognamiglio sent out bell-shaped coat-dresses in stiff gold brocade or boiled wool; slim-line suits in black or ivory with puffed shoulders and flaring, deeply cuffed legs; and silky blouses with exuberant bows spilling down their fronts. More up-to-date were his silk or nylon puffer jackets, especially the ones lined in fox. When it came to after-dark, an ankle-grazing, lavender silk shantung dress with a spray of crystals decorating the asymmetric shoulder line was almost regal, while a short and strapless number in the same material was primed for the nightclub dance floor. If forced to choose between the demure and the louche, Scognamiglio would seem to lean toward the latter-the clue was not only in that latex but also in the thigh-high crocodile boots. These were a less obvious, but still kinky, touch that kept the collection from looking like a nostalgia trip, and more like a sexy bit of fun.
September 22, 2008
Man arrested, accused of sleeping nude outside City Hall
http://blogs.tampabay.com/breakingnews/2008/09/man-arrested-fo.html
ST. PETERSBURG -- Some people may prefer to sleep in the buff. But perhaps on a sidewalk in front of City Hall isn't the best place to do it.
Early this morning, police arrested a man and accused him of sleeping naked in front of St. Petersburg City Hall. Officers wrote in an arrest report that they found Wesley Lee Campbell, 56, sleeping "completely nude" with his "sexual organs fully visible" about 1:30 a.m. in front of the building at 175 Fifth St. N.
Officers arrested Campbell, who is homeless, on a misdemeanor charge of exposing sexual organs. When officers asked him why he was nude, Campbell said "he had an itch and it felt more comfortable to sleep naked," the arrest report states.
-- Times Staff Writer
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Plans for Tampa Ritz-Carlton off
By Steve Huettel, Times Staff Writer
Published Monday, September 22, 2008 5:35 PM
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Plans for the Tampa Bay area's first top-tier branded hotel are off.
Clearwater developer Sandip Patel and his Orion Communities partners failed to raise enough money for the $425-million project, which was to include a 269-room Ritz-Carlton and 176 condos on the site of Tampa's Bay Harbor Radisson Hotel, just off the Courtney Campbell Parkway.
The hotel's owners terminated the land sale.
Capital Realty Investors will renovate the aging Radisson and give it a new brand, said president Ben Wacksman, a partner in the company with Lazy Days RV Center founder Don Wallace.
The project stalled when two overseas investors withdrew because of deteriorating financial markets over the past year, Patel said.
"The current financial headwinds made some of the equity financing impossible at this time," he wrote in an e-mail to the Times. "Had we been in the market about 18 months (earlier), it is likely we would be under construction."
Patel and Ritz-Carlton officials say they remain committed to bringing the brand to the area and hope to jump-start the project in a year to 18 months. But Patel isn't sure if the Radisson property or alternative sites will be available.
There's no shortage of high-end hotels in the area. Clearwater Beach has the Sandpearl Resort. St. Pete Beach boasts the Don CeSar Beach Resort. Fancy Renaissance properties sit on both sides of Tampa Bay: the Vinoy Resort & Golf Club in St. Petersburg and Tampa Hotel International Plaza.
But none carry the white-glove Ritz cachet.
"When you talk about Ritz-Carlton, it's on a list with St. Regis and Four Seasons," says Steve Hayes, executive vice president of Tampa Bay & Co., Hillsborough County's tourism marketing agency. "Obviously, we don't have a property like that."
Besides stoking civic pride, luxury brands bring business. Republican Party officials counted the lack of a "five-star hotel" as a strike against Tampa's bid for their national convention this year, said Mark Huey, economic development administrator for Mayor Pam Iorio.
The area attracts enough high-spending visitors to support a luxury hotel with average daily rates above $350, says Lou Plasencia, chief executive of the Plasencia Group in Tampa, which brokers hotel sales nationwide.
"There's demand as long as (the hotel) is modest in size and scope," he says. Clearwater Beach and St. Pete Beach would be the most likely locations, followed by Tampa's West Shore area, downtown Tampa and St. Petersburg, says Plasencia.
Radisson's owners don't plan to go upscale. They'll freshen up the waterfront hotel with new carpets, furniture and exterior work while remaining open, said Wacksman.
Casual touches like Crabby Bill's Beach Club, sand volleyball courts and all will remain, he said.
Steve Huettel can be reached at huettel@sptimes.com or (813) 226-3384.
© 2008 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111
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Trump tower standoff stepped up
The developer and the tycoon are waging a towering court fight.
By JAMES THORNER, Times Staff Writer
Published January 4, 2008
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In February 2005, Donald Trump blazed into Tampa with his new bride on his arm to announce the sales kickoff of Trump Tower Tampa.
It's nearly three years later, and the 52-story condo tower remains more a fixture in the courts than on the building site at 111 S Ashley Drive.
Not only did developer SimDag LLC miss a self-imposed December deadline to conclude financing for the project but on Wednesday, SimDag answered a lawsuit Trump filed in May by countersuing the New York tycoon.
SimDag alleges that Trump, by going public with the lawsuit in May, breached a confidentiality agreement.
Trump revealed that he was to receive 50 percent of the profits on the sale of the $300-million tower's 190 condos. In return, SimDag was supposed to affix the Trump brand to a luxury high-rise, where penthouse units top out at $6-million.
"The license agreement provides ... that the parties will not, under any circumstances, disclose the existence of the licensing agreement or its terms," the SimDag countersuit reads, in part.
The Trump Organization in New York declined to comment about the project beyond confirming that negotiations were continuing. Trump has been trying to recover more than $1-million in unpaid licensing fees. SimDag's attorney didn't return a call from the Times.
The tower remains little more than a vacant lot on the Hillsborough River.
To provide last-ditch financing for the tower, SimDag recruited a New York hedge fund and sketched out a resurrection plan at a meeting with condo buyers on Oct. 24. SimDag pushed back the grand opening from December 2008 to December 2010 and asked buyers to re-up their soon-to-expire contracts another two years.
Trump Tower history
February 2005: Arriving in a limousine with his new wife, Donald Trump helps launch the 52-story skyscraper lauded as a new standard of luxury in Tampa.
March 2006: Developer SimDag LLC holds a groundbreaking at the site, though the project hasn't secured financing. Trump is conspicuously absent.
July 2006: The project's former general contractor files a lien for unpaid bills of more than $1-million.
August 2006: Developers reveal that soil instability on the riverfront lot could delay the project for months, spoiling the planned December 2008 opening.
January 2007: Disgruntled condo buyers begin filing lawsuits to get deposits back.
May 2007: Frustrated over lack of progress and $1-million in unpaid licensing fees, Trump sues SimDag and demands his name be pulled from the project.
August 2007: SimDag promises to secure a financing deal from a New York private hedge fund or else refund deposits. The agreement doesn't materialize.
October 2007: SimDag holds a closed-door meeting with condo buyers and promises a financing deal by the end of the year. The completion date is pushed to December 2010. Scenario includes Trump dropping his lawsuit.
January 2008: Failing to finalize financing by year's end, SimDag countersues Trump, alleging the tycoon breached a confidentiality agreement by going public with complaints in May.
© 2007 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111
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Grothe wants No. 13 USF 'to make a statement'
By JOEDY McCREARY - 18 hours ago
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - As the Big East's only ranked team, No. 13 South Florida might be the closest thing to a national power that the beaten-down conference has this year.
Quarterback Matt Grothe figures it's about time the Bulls started playing like it again, starting Saturday night at injury-depleted North Carolina State.
"I think we need to make a statement," Grothe said. "It is an ACC team. Everyone has been saying the Big East is down this year. So if we can come out and play well, and do like I know we can, it will help us as a team and help us nationally with everybody."
The inconsistent Bulls (4-0) are leaving the state of Florida for the first time this season for their nonconference finale, and they're looking for any signs of encouragement they can find. Three victories against Bowl Subdivision teams have come by an average of six points, knocking off nationally ranked Kansas one week and struggling to get by lowly Florida International the next.
The up-and-coming Bulls also are dealing with their new status as the Big East's flagship program, at least this year, following their breakthrough 2007 - in which they started 6-0 and reached No. 2 in the Top 25 poll before fading - with a perfect-so-far September while preseason favorite West Virginia stumbled.
"Last year, when all that happened, we were just a team from Tampa," defensive end George Selvie said. "Now, everyone knows us as South Florida. ... We are a program to be reckoned with. Everyone is going to prepare for us like we are a big-time program, like we are. They are going to play us hard. Some teams will have nothing to lose, like FIU."
And N.C. State.
The Wolfpack (2-2) finally seemed like a team that had things figured out in Tom O'Brien's second season, stunning then-No. 15 East Carolina in overtime last week. But the buzz didn't seem to last long after it was revealed that quarterback Russell Wilson and top defender Nate Irving would miss this week's game with undisclosed injuries, making it 11 banged-up N.C. State starters to miss playing time.
That left the job under center to interception-prone Nebraska transfer Harrison Beck, a Florida native who has thrown nine picks and just four touchdown passes in his career.
"I'm just going to have to tell him that we're wearing the red jerseys on Saturday night, and we'll be in good shape," O'Brien quipped.
There isn't much history between the two programs or the coaches who lead them. O'Brien's former Boston College program left the Big East at the same time the Bulls joined the league in 2005, and the only meeting between the teams came that postseason when the Mario Williams-led Wolfpack won 14-0 in the Meineke Car Care Bowl in Charlotte.
That seems like a lifetime ago for N.C. State, which has finished under .500 in each of the past two years and looked well on its way to another losing season before last week's shocker over the Pirates.
Now comes the tough part: Pulling another upset, this time with a lineup that's thinned even further.
"Our spirits, I would say, will never go down if a player goes down, because we have so many talented players, that they can come in and play as a first-string player," linebacker Ray Michel said.
Hosted by Copyright © 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
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Rays celebrate AL East title after Red Sox loss
The Associated Press
Saturday, September 27, 2008; 4:45 AM
DETROIT -- The wait is over. The Tampa Bay Rays won their first AL East title late Friday night when the Boston Red Sox lost to the New York Yankees. The Rays lost 6-4 to the Detroit Tigers earlier and had to sit through the rain-delayed Boston loss before celebrating their championship.
Manager Joe Maddon and a few of the players remained in the clubhouse at Comerica Park to watch the Red Sox game. Others watched it at Detroit's MGM Grand and back at the team hotel.
"It's one of those things where it's something you've fantasized about your whole life," Maddon said. "You can't believe it. You have to kind of wait and sit back. It just feels fantastic right now, wonderful."
After the Red Sox lost, Carlos Pena hugged teammate B.J. Upton and yelled "I told you we could do it! I told you we could do it!"
"Unbelievable," Pena said. "It just feels unbelievable."
Tampa Bay, which had never won more than 70 games in a season, became the first team other than Boston and New York to win the division since Baltimore did it in 1997.
The Rays also became the first AL team in the divisional era to finish with the worst record in its league then win its division in the following year, according to Stats, LLC. Atlanta in 1991 and the Chicago Cubs in 2007 also accomplished the feat.
Their mantra was "98" _ which essentially translates to nine players playing hard for nine innings every day equals one of eight postseason berths.
Gary Sheffield hit two home runs and Ramon Santiago also went deep in the Tigers' victory.
"We were definitely disappointed, it would have been nice to win it on the field," Pena said after Tampa Bay's loss.
Sheffield, who returned from a four-game suspension for fighting with Cleveland pitcher Fausto Carmona, has 499 career home runs.
"It wasn't something I thought about," Sheffield said about the 500-home run milestone.
Santiago homered for the third time in two days and Justin Verlander (11-17) won his first game since Aug. 22. He allowed two runs and five hits in five innings, walking three and striking out eight.
Upton homered and drove in two runs for the Rays.
Fernando Rodney pitched the ninth for his 12th save in 18 chances. He allowed a run on first baseman Miguel Cabrera's error, but escaped a second and third, two-out jam by getting Jason Bartlett to fly out.
Andy Sonnanstine (13-9) gave up five runs and five hits in 5 2-3 innings for the Rays, walking five and striking out seven.
"A little erratic at the start," he said. "And by the time I got things straightened out, it was to late."
Detroit won despite losing Placido Polanco in the first inning, when the second baseman slid into home and sprained his left ankle.
He rolled over and writhed in pain after sliding across the plate and beating the tag by catcher Dioner Navarro. X-rays were negative and Polanco, hitting .307 with eight home runs and 58 RBIs, was scheduled to be re-evaluated Saturday.
Tampa Bay got on the board in the third on Upton's fielder's choice grounder, and Pena's two-out RBI single in the fifth closed the gap to 5-2. Upton's ninth homer of the season made it 5-3 in the seventh.
Sheffield added his second homer and 19th of the season in the eighth.
Notes:@ Tampa Bay reinstated OF Carl Crawford from the disabled list before the game. He missed 43 games with a right middle finger injury, suffered on Aug. 9. He had surgery on Aug. 14. He was used as a pinch runner in the ninth. ... Magglio Ordonez has driven on 100 runs for the third straight season. He's the first Tiger to do so since Cecil Fielder (1990-93).
© 2008 The Associated Press
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September 22, 2008
Bears say Buccaneers didn't play clean
By ANDREW SELIGMAN
AP Sports Writer
Charles Tillman jumped on the pile, took a swing and got flagged for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty at the worst possible time for the Chicago Bears.
His teammates believe the referees saw only half the picture.
Still stinging after blowing a 10-point lead in a 27-24 overtime loss to Tampa Bay on Sunday, the Bears believe they were victimized as much by dirty play as their own mistakes.
"We saw a lot of the dirty stuff that they were doing, and we retaliated, got caught," Bears receiver Marty Booker said Monday. "It's always the second man."
Not too long ago, the Bears were all smiles after taking the season opener at Indianapolis. Then, they blew a 14-point lead before losing at Carolina and now this.
The Bears (1-2) and Buccaneers already had several skirmishes when this scene unfolded in overtime.
Tampa Bay had third-and-9 at the Chicago 8 when Jerramy Stevens caught a 2-yard pass from Brian Griese, but instead of having to punt, the Buccaneers caught a major break.
Jeremy Trueblood took some shots at Bears defensive end Adewale Ogunleye during a pileup, and Tillman ran over and jumped on. Then, he was caught taking a swing at Michael Clayton, resulting in a 15-yard penalty that kept the drive going.
"There are plenty of opportunities on the field to injure somebody," Bears defensive end Israel Idonije said. "You never think about that because that guy is a player in the NFL. There's a code. You play tough, you play hard, but you don't intentionally go out to injure somebody."
And he thought Trueblood was trying to do just that.
"They called us for something that was not nearly on the same level as what was going on," Idonije said.
Even so, coach Lovie Smith wouldn't absolve Tillman.
"I think everyone knows that's unacceptable," he said. "Me just saying, 'Hey guys, don't do it anymore,' it's not that easy. Charles knew when it happened. It's something that in the heat of passion, sometimes you do things that you regret later. That's one play out of a lot of opportunities we had."
Wide receiver Antonio Bryant wound up beating Nathan Vasher along the left side on a 38-yard pass from Griese a few plays later that put the ball on the 6, and after a 3-yard run by Earnest Graham, Matt Bryant booted the winning 21-yard field goal.
Tillman said he didn't think he threw a punch.
"I just tried to swing him off me," he said after the game.
Should Tampa Bay have been penalized?
"Well, you know the saying is they always see the second man who hits, they always see the second push, not the first," said Tillman, who also had a run-in with Donald Penn after the game's first play from scrimmage. "Obviously, they saw that second push. Like I said, costly mistake. Shouldn't have happened. Shouldn't have put myself in that situation."
That a sixth-year pro who has played at a Pro Bowl level did was surprising, but the game should have ended long before that.
"That whole Peanut (Tillman) part, it shouldn't have even gotten that far," defensive tackle Tommie Harris said. "We should have finished the game."
The Bears had their chances.
A first down after Tampa Bay's Matt Bryant kicked a 35-yard field goal with 3:11 left in regulation would have done the job. Instead, the Bears went three-and-out, and the Bucs took over with 1:49 left. Griese led them on a 79-yard drive that ended with a 1-yard TD pass to Stevens tying it at 24 and sending the game into overtime.
Along the way, the Bears were unable to stop Tampa Bay on third-and-10 at its 32. Instead, Griese connected with Stevens for 18 yards, hit Clayton for 13, Ike Hilliard for 17 and Antonio Bryant for 19 to put the ball on the 1.
Was the defense worn out?
Smith said it might have been.
In overtime, Rashied Davis dropped a pass near the Tampa Bay 35 on third down from the Chicago 47, stopping a possible scoring drive and forcing the Bears to punt.
"I took my eyes off the ball," Davis said. "It should have been an easy catch. I just dropped an easy pass. It shouldn't have happened, but it did."
© 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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September 24, 2008
Clay Aiken Tells People: "I'm Gay"
American Idol runner-up and Broadway actor Clay Aiken announces he is gay on the cover of People magazine's next issue, out Friday.
Aiken, 29, recently became a father to a baby boy with friend and record producer Jaymes Foster, whom he met while performing on the show that launched his career. His son, Parker Foster Aiken, was born in August.
"I cannot raise a child to lie or to hide things," he says, according to the People cover.
Aiken's sexual orientation has been the subject of much tabloid discussion since the musical sensation left American Idol's second season as runner-up to Ruben Studdard. Though members of the press have prodded Aiken with questions about being gay, he has steadfastly refused to reveal his sexual orientation; in 2006 he called Diane Sawyer "rude" on Good Morning America for even asking.
Also in 2006, talk-show host Kelly Ripa caused an uproar when Aiken, who was guest-hosting Live With Regis and Kelly with Ripa, put his hand over her mouth so he could interject in an interview with Dancing With the Stars' Cheryl Burke and Emmitt Smith. Ripa pulled away, saying, "Oh, that's a no-no. I don't know where that hand's been, honey!"
Rosie O'Donnell, then a cohost on The View, said she took offense to the incident. "To me, that's a homophobic remark," O'Donnell said on the show. "If that was a straight man, if that was a cute man, if that was a guy that she didn't question his sexuality, she would have said a different thing."
Ripa countered that Aiken had been shaking hands with people and that it was flu season at the time.
Later that year a Green Beret claimed to have had a sexual encounter with Aiken in the National Enquirer. He later apologized, saying he should not have told his story without Aiken's consent.
Aiken took a leave from absence from his role as Sir Robin in Broadway's Spamalot earlier this year. He will reprise his role from September 19 to January 4.
Out magazine 's Popnography blog posted early this morning about the People cover and the lengthy backstory that led Aiken to come out. (Michelle Garcia, The Advocate)
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'Net Play
Claymates Deal With Their Gay Grief
http://radaronline.com/exclusives/2008/09/claymates-deal-with-their-gay-greif.php
SLOW 'MO Aiken (Photo: Getty Images) High-pitched shrieks and excited OMGs could be heard all through America's suburbs yesterday as Clay Aiken admitted that he's gay, on the cover of People. Aiken's rabid fanbase, who call themselves Claymates, have taken to the message boards to deal with this shocking (to them) news. Many professed their undying support for the man they find talented, kind, and yes, sexy. But others are having trouble reconciling the news with comments Aiken made to Rolling Stone in 2004, when he denied having homosexual leanings. Nearly all Claymates are at one stage or another of the Kubler-Ross Grief Cycle, whether they're denying the truth of the story, raging at their hero himself, or coming to accept that he's a sinner. Examples follow:
DENIAL
"[The People cover] Reeks of photoshop to me. We can probably even find the picture of Clay's head from a recent fan photo if we look hard enough. Believe if you want, I just know that nothing is true unless it is printed in the fan club..." Playbiller at AikenForums.com
"I don't understand the timing of all this information, or supposed information. I'm not making any assumptions until I actually see credible information. Is that actually Parker in the photo? Some of my friends think the baby looks older than a child a month old." Claygirl at The Clayboard
ANGER
"I wish him well and hope he gets some peace of mind now BUT I feel he lied to everyone-especially us fans. He should have just said so years ago. I feel like we were "used". I still love to hear him sing but I also feel he has now become like a Michael Jackson and it's a bit too weird! He isn't just the plain ordinary person with the values he first stood for. But it's just my opinion." NJ4ClayA at The Clayboard
"So why lie in Rolling Stone and in his autobiography? Sorry, the Bible says homosexuality is wrong, and as a Christian I believe that. We can't just follow the parts of the Bible that we want or that are convenient to us, or we are not Christians. And he says he's a Christian. Too bad, I was supporting him since 2003." Diane at AikenForums.com
BARGAINING
"I loved his voice before the announcement, I still love his voice. I still listen to all the Clay cd's I bought, I will continue to buy Clay cd's provided the music and his voice remains as great." Debrah at AikenForums.com
DEPRESSION
"This is a gut wrenching day for The ClayNation. Somebody wake me up, I hope it's a dream." strollynn63 at The Clayboard
"I've cried a river of tears and truthfully do not know where I stand right now. I am envious of those who can take this news and continue to state their unconditional love and support for Clay." Clayncfan at The Clayboard
ACCEPTANCE
"I'm not going to lie and say I'm not shocked. I can't believe I said he wasn't gay. I denied it up and down to my mom and all. But hey, I still love him. He's a great person who's done so many wonderful things for the kids of other countries and has the most incredible voice." Alexandria at AIkenForums.com
"Clay is still the same talented singer I saw on AI2 five years ago. Nothing for me has changed. The baby is adorable." xtinad at The Clayboard
By Adam K. Raymond 09/24/08 12:35 PM
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September 23, 2008
McCain Chief of Staff Outed?
Republican presidential candidate John McCain's chief of staff was outed Monday after radio host Michelangelo Signorile quoted additional sources to confirm the long-blogged-about rumors. Mark Buse, 44, previously served as a lobbyist for several large corporations including AT&T and ExxonMobil, the only Fortune 10 company without a nondiscrimination policy covering sexual orientation, according to the Human Rights Campaign.
Signorile said on his blog that he had previously been contacted by three sources, all wishing to remain anonymous, claiming Buse is gay. The radio host says he was then contacted by 46-year-old Brian Davis, who claims to have had a past intimate relationship with the McCain staffer.
Davis claims he first met Buse at a Phoenix bar called Connections in 1986, around the same time Buse started work as a McCain intern during the presidential hopeful's tenure in the House of Representatives. Davis said Buse asked him to move to Washington, D.C., with him after a long-distance courtship taking place over several months. A year after moving to Washington, Buse left Davis for his current partner.
McCain has opposed several gay rights bills during his Senate tenure. He told the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network in 2007 that the ban on openly gay and lesbian military personnel was necessary and that the legislation "unambiguously maintains that open homosexuality within the military services presents an intolerable risk to morale, cohesion, and discipline."
McCain also voted against two hate-crimes bills in 2000 and 2002 and did not cast a vote for the Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act in 2007. He voted against the Employment Non-Discrimination Act in 1996 and 2006, because, he said, current laws already apply to LGBT workers.
In 2003, McCain voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment, which would have federally banned same-sex marriage. Instead, he said, he favors states' rights to grant or deny same-sex marriage, and he supported Arizona's proposed (but failed) ban in 2006. (Michelle Garcia, The Advocate)
for Friday, September 26:
Lately, you've been way too hard on yourself. It's important to stay track with your relationship goals, but that doesn't mean you should be overly critical regarding missed milestones. Cut yourself some slack.
one of the oddities of the week remains the fact that it's taken a sprinkle of trouble for john mccain and his presidential campaign for me to actually have trouble deciding for whom i'm going to vote: it's as if all of the uncertainty has really raised questions about the ability of the candidates to do exactly what they've spouted off for several months now: i've asked the question in many places, "what happens if the candidate of change cannot deliver it?" to what solid political perspective can you hold someone you don't know? that's all neither here nor there in my life in the end. by sunday, the drama had blown over at pier one and i found myself returning to the financial panic of not getting enough hours at pier one -- i'm talking less than ten hours in a week -- and while this felt somewhat like a blessing considering how i generally have to horsetrade to accomodate my real job and the professional organizations i involve myself with on the periphery, and that worked as on monday and tuesday, i could veg out and on wednesday, i could go to the young professionals' mixer at leroy selmon's which -- although not my choice of venue -- turned out as quite the wonderful event. the buzz in the crowd remained the financial crisis although none of us seemed to feel it at all as we sipped martinis and twittered about the newest condos, the best bars, and winter vacations. after (and before) the event, i hung out (again) with a high school friend of mine who keeps me on my toes with wit: she's a lawyer who's trying to get as involved in the community as i've become and since she drove her bmw this week, i had to go with her shopping and found myself shocked to find that insanity pricing continues in every retailer including my own. and although i didn't get that tipsy at the event, i could not get up in the morning and i could not stay awake on thursday. not only that, i found myself flat broke because besides getting my blue cardvedbarstools, a couple yankee candles, a bcbg workshirt, an express polo (i know, but it was there), and calvin klein unmentionables. tiffany michelle has told me that her painting costs three hundred fifty dollars framed and i simply don't have the money for that so i asked how much it'd cost unframed which i'm not sure is not a dillitantish question. in other news, i'm not sure i like the hot latin sales assistant anymore which you know, is fine, since we can be friends and i'm starting to be really jealous of my coworker on the team who clearly has more disposable income than i have -- going to margaret cho last night, having extravagant weekends every weekend, traveling at least once a month -- and in a committed relationship at a time when i choose to be signle to get on my feet with my apartment -- i have to re-buy the screen and get the couch and probably now two bookcases, the bali mirror, and five paintings (i've decided to go with rubens rendition of titian's adam and eve)--and what else? oh yeah, i'm framing three issues of people magazine -- the one with ellen and portia de rossi, the one with clay aiken i bought today, and the one with lance bass -- which leads me to something else: it's funny how different the world has become. well. with pained squints i watched a re-run of mad men last night where sal throws himself at someone who has absolutely none of the recipricol feeling while finding himself completely unable admit the thing that impells him so and we've come into a world where you have the most ardent fan base of clay -- thoroughly conservative, i'd say -- arguing that it doesn't matter. of course, it doesn't! it never has. but people have made it matter. and it's a principle that we see at work in the macro sense in our world right now. we need the freedom to fail. sure, clay's coming out spell ruin for his mainstream career. but it's in our great country that we're allowed to choose our paths and take those risks and live with the consequences. it's in that vein why i find it so discordant with everything we call america that we'd bail out all of these wall street firms when, on the whole, we're not doing that bad yet. i'm not convinced that we'd do all that bad. maybe i need to talk to my grandmother so she can tell me how it was during the depression. but it doesn't feel like it. i live on the froth of our economy, advertising, and while it's bad, it's not fatal. and i know people who are not doing bad at all. in fact, i'd argue most people aren't right now. we don't have 25% unemployment and bread lines. yes, lots of people are losing their homes, but lots of people aren't. and hell, it was too easy to get a house. people who made nothing and had nothing qualified! my parents had to scrape and save -- and they WORKED to do it -- to get together a down payment and still had to jump through hoops to qualify and that at 14% interest. what's going on? while i'm sad to see my bank go under -- wamu won we early with inclusive advertising and guerilla marketing in the only bar in town -- we need to let these things fail so people won't jump into these risky ventures without something in their short term memory. anywho. it's like milan fashion week. compare prada (which i'm still digesting) with francesco scognamiglio (who i had dismissed until i read the review): francesco's collection clearly had more edge and challenged the way people dress today, but his collection got deadpanned for the less interesting prada collection because she took a risk and she completely departed from what she did last season (lace anyone?) or the season before that (still got those pjs?) or the season before that (laminated knits?) or the season before (let's do turbans)! so in a week that we saw designers scared to death by the worldwide financial crisis -- where did the fur at fendi go? how conservative will versace become? what happened to the sexiness at gucci? and let's not even talk about missoni. -- we saw prada introduce a new perspective on sexuality that we hadn't seen before that isn't easy while we saw others cling to rewrites of tunes they had sung before. i mean, i loved marni but even she did nothing but return to her comfort zone. it's one thing i continually appreciate these days in my local community: we're out there taking those risks to try to grow up quickly. while i'll never defend my small town as anything but it's inspiring to watch as those things that bring us in the national spotlight keep bubbling up to the top of the national ticket like great sports teams and great events and we're doing it. anywho....
Here is your single's love horoscope
for Saturday, September 27:
Quit stalling when it comes to asking out someone new for a date. It's easier than you think. Rehearse what you plan to say on a friend who can tell you if it sounds natural or forced. The just do it!
Will WaMu brand clash with Chase?
By Associated Press | September 27, 2008
MILWAUKEE - Washington Mutual is known for its no-thrills, no-fees, unconventional banking with a hip, neighborly feel. Its nickname? WaMu. Its tag line? Whoo hoo!
But the collapsed bank's new owner, JPMorgan Chase, is known for being big and conservative - two very different vibes. Its advertising preaches value and security.
The newly combined company has its work cut out for it, experts say, if it wants to blend the two different brands and keep customers.
It's not clear yet what will happen with the brands, but WaMu's ads will no doubt have to change to temper its feisty image, which has mocked staid rivals like Chase, said Jean-Pierre Dube, a marketing professor at the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business.
"It strikes me as incompatible because JPMorgan Chase represents precisely what Washington Mutual was critiquing and attacking in their advertising," he said yesterday.
Washington Mutual Inc. was seized Thursday by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., which then sold the thrift's banking assets to JPMorgan Chase & Co. for $1.9 billion. The collapse marked the nation's biggest bank failure. The sale makes JPMorgan Chase the second-largest bank in the United States after Bank of America Corp., which recently bought Merrill Lynch.
JPMorgan Chase said the acquisition will give it 5,400 branches in 23 states, and that it plans to close less than 10 percent of the two companies' branches. But little has been said about the brand marketing.
Neither company immediately returned calls and messages.
The problems at WaMu had apparently been building for some time as the company got caught up in the subprime mortgage business, whose troubles spread across the entire industry.
But those issues weren't evident in WaMu's peppy ads, which portrayed a lively, unconventional banking environment.
Some of the ads positioned WaMu as a happier, freer alternative to its competitors. The "antistodgy banker" campaign launched in 2006 featured older men in suits who didn't like WaMu's perks such as free checking for life and free ATM cash withdrawals.
New ads feature the slogan "Whoo hoo!" and show people fantasizing about driving cars and being in kangaroo pouches, with their newfound financial freedom.
"The focal point is the customer's 'Whoo hoo! moment' " a WaMu said in February. It defined the moment as "a dream-like state where customers visualize moments of personal elation in response to learning about WaMu products and services."
In an era that is seeing so much financial upheaval, JPMorgan Chase may want to drop those types of ads, Dube said. Tried and true may be a better route, he said.
"Washington Mutual had a radical message in their advertising and given how hard they fell it seems like maybe there's something to be said for the old, conservative, traditional banking model," he said. "The stodgy old businessmen may not be fun and give you deals, but they give you value. They give you security."
Value is also a big part of the WaMu package, said Rita Rodriguez, chief executive for the US division of The Brand Union, a firm that helps companies create brand identities. She said WaMu was an early trendsetter of positioning itself as a friendly bank that was accessible and focused on helping customers.
© Copyright 2008 The New York Times Company
In an NRO blog post, Krikorian asked if WaMu's diversity policy was "[c]ause" of bank's demise
Summary: In a blog post on National Review Online, Mark Krikorian asked if diversity policies touted by Washington Mutual, which was seized by federal regulators and sold to another bank on September 25, were the "[c]ause" of the bank's collapse.
As Salon.com's Glenn Greenwald noted, in a September 26 blog post on National Review Online's The Corner titled "Cause and Effect?" Mark Krikorian reproduced part of a press release by Washington Mutual bank -- which on September 25 was seized by federal regulators and sold to another bank -- touting its diversity policies and programs. Crediting a blog post by Steve Sailer, Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, wrote: "I really thought this was a joke, but it's not. WaMu's final press release, before it sank beneath the waves." The release that Krikorian partially reproduced was headlined "WaMu Recognized as Top Diverse Employer--Again" and included the subhead, "Company ranks in top ten of Hispanic Business' Diversity Elite and earns perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index."
From Krikorian's September 26 blog post:
Cause and Effect? [Mark Krikorian]
I really thought this was a joke, but it's not. WaMu's final press release, before it sank beneath the waves (h/t Sailer):
WaMu Recognized as Top Diverse Employer-Again
Company ranks in top ten of Hispanic Business' Diversity Elite and earns perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index
SEATTLE, WA (September 24, 2008) - Washington Mutual, Inc. (NYSE:WM), one of the nation's leading banks for consumers and small businesses, has once again been recognized as a top employer by Hispanic Business magazine and the Human Rights Campaign.
Hispanic Business magazine recently ranked WaMu sixth in its annual Diversity Elite list, which names the top 60 companies for Hispanics. The company was honored specifically for its efforts to recruit Hispanic employees, reach out to Hispanic consumers and support Hispanic communities and organizations.
The Human Rights Campaign, the largest national gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) civil rights organization, also awarded WaMu its second consecutive 100 percent score in the organization's 2009 Corporate Equality Index (CEI), which measures progress in attaining equal rights for GLBT employees and consumers. WaMu joins the ranks of 259 other major U.S. businesses that also received top marks in the annual survey. The CEI rated a total of 583 businesses on GLBT-related policies and practices, including non-discrimination policies and domestic partner benefits.
In both surveys, WaMu earned points for competitive diversity policies and programs, including the recently established Latino, African American and GLBT employee network groups, all of which have a corporate executive sponsor and champion.
"Diversity is an integral part of cultivating a welcoming, innovative and dynamic workplace here at WaMu. We are proud to be recognized for the opportunities and benefits we offer to all of our employees, including the specific efforts we have made to engage Hispanics and the GLBT community," said Steve Rotella, WaMu president and COO. "We are committed to diversity at WaMu and pledge to listen to our customers and work closely with our employees to continue to make progress."
These two recent honors build upon diversity recognitions WaMu received earlier in 2008. WaMu was named one of 25 Noteworthy Companies by Diversity Inc magazine and one of the Top 50 Corporations for Supplier Diversity by Hispanic Enterprise magazine.
- L.Y.
Posted to the web on Friday, September 26, 2008 at 03:00 PM ET
WaMu fails, JPMorgan buys assets
$1.9 deal comes after FDIC seizes thrift
By Marcy Gordon, Sara Lepro, Madlen Read, Associated Press | September 26, 2008
NEW YORK-- JPMorgan Chase & Co. came to the rescue of Washington Mutual Inc. yesterday, buying the thrift's banking assets after WaMu was seized by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. in the largest failure ever of a US bank. This is the second time in six months that JPMorgan Chase has taken over a major financial institution crippled by bad bets in the mortgage market.
The deal will cost JPMorgan Chase $1.9 billion, and the bank said in a statement it planned to write down WaMu's loan portfolio by approximately $31 billion. JPMorgan Chase, which acquired Bear Stearns Cos. last March, also said it would sell $8 billion in common stock to raise its capital position.
The FDIC, which insures bank deposits, said it would not have to dip into the insurance fund as a result of the seizure. There had been concerns that the fund, which took a big hit after the seizure of IndyMac Bank, could be depleted by a WaMu seizure.
WaMu "was under severe liquidity pressure," FDIC chairwoman Sheila Bair told reporters in a conference call.
"For all depositors and other customers of Washington Mutual Bank, this is simply a combination of two banks," Bair said. "For bank customers, it will be a seamless transition."
The government measures bank failures by an institutions's assets; Seattle-based WaMu has roughly $310 billion in assets. The previous record was the failure of Continental Illinois National Bank in 1984, with $40 billion in assets when it closed. IndyMac, seized in July, had $32 billion.
WaMu was searching for a lifeline after piling up billions of dollars in losses due to failed mortgages. WaMu has seen its stock price plummet by 87 percent this year, and it suffered a ratings downgrade by Standard & Poor's earlier this week that put it in danger of collapse.
The Bush administration's proposal for a x $700 billion bailout for distressed financial institutions was believed to have given fresh impetus to a buyout and new allure to WaMu. But it was't immediately clear how the bailout, which was still being negotiated in Washington late yesterday, would affect the JPMorgan Chase-WaMu deal.
JPMorgan Chase's chief executive, Jamie Dimon, said in a conference call, said the "only negative" related to the deal was "how to handle some of these bad assets." JPMorgan Chase said the acquisition will give it 5,400 branches in 23 states. JPMorgan Chase said it plans to close less than 10 percent of the two companies' branches; the bank has not yet decided which to close.
Washington Mutual, which operated seven retail locations in Massachusetts until it closed them last December, ran into trouble after it got caught up in the booming part of the mortgage business that made loans to people with bad credit, known as subprime borrowers.
Troubles spread to other parts of WaMu's home loan portfolio, namely its "option" adjustable-rate mortgage loans. Option ARM loans offer very low introductory payments and let borrowers defer some interest payments until later years. The bank stopped originating those loans in June.
Problems in WaMu's home loan business began to surface in 2006, when the bank reported that the division lost $48 million, compared with net income of about $1 billion in 2005.
At the start of 2007, then-chief executive Kerry Killinger said the bank had prepared for a slowdown in its housing business by sharply reducing its subprime lending and servicing of loans. was replaced as chief executive on Sept. 8 by Alan H. Fishman, former president and chief operating officer of Sovereign Bank.
© Copyright 2008 The New York Times Company
PRADA
MILAN, September 23, 2008
By Sarah Mower
Miuccia Prada had a sound bite for her Spring collection. "It's primitive," she said, "going back to what counts." And what counts most in a back-to-basics time, when most of us will need truly visceral temptation to get us out and shopping? Why, glamour and eroticism, of course. When the chips are down, there is no one who can turn up the thermostat of subversive sexual provocation quite as high as Mrs. Prada. Her girls, their skin glistening as if on a fevered summer's night, might have been passing through on their way to or from lovers' assignations, their clothes disarranged in various states of falling-off or looking as if they might do so at any moment. Rumpled and crinkled fabrics have been appearing all over this season, but never with such sly intent. One pull of a trailing drawstring tape and, whoops! A person could find herself half naked. Not that this collection is, of course, at all brassy. From some angles, it can all look like a perfectly innocent summery dishevelment-that is, until there's a glimpse into an open-sided dress, or a cashmere sweater turns to display hospital-tape ties holding the back together (or just about).
There was something fabulously Italian about all this shameless reveling in femininity. The fifties overtones, with the high chignons, the ruched bras, and swishing rear action in the below-knee pencil skirts, managed to channel the heyday of Cinecittà without cliché. Best of all, this is a collection destined to look even better on a woman with a real body than it does on a teen model. And that, Mrs. Prada surely knows, really is "what counts."
PRADA
June 22, 2008
Post-show, Miuccia Prada cited her inspiration as a man poised between fragility and power, hanging in the balance-in other words, between extremes. As usual, her enigmatic comment cast an illuminating light on the collection we’d just seen. The first outfits out were a parka and blouson hanging off the models' shoulders on straps. Once upon a time, Helmut Lang offered up the same idea, but where his version suggested fierce refugee pragmatism (you have to be ready to carry your world on your back), Miuccia's made a nice portrait neckline for her new batch of boychicks. But at the same time, there was a hint of tension-suspension-in the idea. And it was extended in subtle details like the elastic bands that wrapped shoes or encircled waists.
You could parse Prada collections till hell froze over, so loaded with suggestion are they. That button "buried" in a double-breasted jacket? True, Margiela already explored the idea of the phantom garment, but it doesn't make it any less seductive. And the elongated polo layered over cotton smock layered over boxer shorts? It evoked emergency-room or sanitarium whites-what better way to convey the subtext of men in crisis? But step back from obsessive fandom and there were irresistible basics, like a gussied-up Gap: perfectly tailored pants, fine knits, cotton shirts, top-stitched denims. All this and a gold latex coat: As the mannequin moved, it trembled, poised indeed between fragility and power.
- Tim Blanks
Francesco Scognamiglio
MILAN, September 22, 2008
By Nicole Phelps
As the kids say, Francesco Sconamiglio has mad skills. He can cut a lean, mean suit with the best of them-but he'll never graduate to the big leagues like his front-row pals Tommaso Aquilano and Roberto Rimondi have until he turns down the kink factor. The show opened with a respectable-enough cropped ivory jacket; unfortunately, it was worn with see-through plastic trousers. The second look, a coat-dress with an asymmetrical neckline that purposely exposed one breast, was even more risqué. The blouses were lovingly crafted, with spills of ruffles at the throat or, more unusually, with shoulder pads made from feathers-but, again, because they were so sheer, their appeal will be limited.
A series of little white dresses (bracelet-sleeved, one-shouldered, or strapless, decorated with sculptural rosettes or ruffles) showed Scognamiglio at his best: just this side of flamboyant, but relevant at retail, too. When he starts thinking more along these lines, he'll start drawing the crowds that his technique deserves.
Francesco Scognamiglio
MILAN, February 16, 2008
By Nicole Phelps
If you looked past the fetish-y, rhinestone-studded, cream-colored latex, there was plenty to admire in Milan up-and-comer Francesco Scognamiglio's show. Nodding in the direction of Yves Saint Laurent's late-sixties/early-seventies heyday and displaying a deft hand for couturelike cuts, Scognamiglio sent out bell-shaped coat-dresses in stiff gold brocade or boiled wool; slim-line suits in black or ivory with puffed shoulders and flaring, deeply cuffed legs; and silky blouses with exuberant bows spilling down their fronts. More up-to-date were his silk or nylon puffer jackets, especially the ones lined in fox. When it came to after-dark, an ankle-grazing, lavender silk shantung dress with a spray of crystals decorating the asymmetric shoulder line was almost regal, while a short and strapless number in the same material was primed for the nightclub dance floor. If forced to choose between the demure and the louche, Scognamiglio would seem to lean toward the latter-the clue was not only in that latex but also in the thigh-high crocodile boots. These were a less obvious, but still kinky, touch that kept the collection from looking like a nostalgia trip, and more like a sexy bit of fun.
September 22, 2008
Man arrested, accused of sleeping nude outside City Hall
http://blogs.tampabay.com/breakingnews/2008/09/man-arrested-fo.html
ST. PETERSBURG -- Some people may prefer to sleep in the buff. But perhaps on a sidewalk in front of City Hall isn't the best place to do it.
Early this morning, police arrested a man and accused him of sleeping naked in front of St. Petersburg City Hall. Officers wrote in an arrest report that they found Wesley Lee Campbell, 56, sleeping "completely nude" with his "sexual organs fully visible" about 1:30 a.m. in front of the building at 175 Fifth St. N.
Officers arrested Campbell, who is homeless, on a misdemeanor charge of exposing sexual organs. When officers asked him why he was nude, Campbell said "he had an itch and it felt more comfortable to sleep naked," the arrest report states.
-- Times Staff Writer
###
Plans for Tampa Ritz-Carlton off
By Steve Huettel, Times Staff Writer
Published Monday, September 22, 2008 5:35 PM
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Plans for the Tampa Bay area's first top-tier branded hotel are off.
Clearwater developer Sandip Patel and his Orion Communities partners failed to raise enough money for the $425-million project, which was to include a 269-room Ritz-Carlton and 176 condos on the site of Tampa's Bay Harbor Radisson Hotel, just off the Courtney Campbell Parkway.
The hotel's owners terminated the land sale.
Capital Realty Investors will renovate the aging Radisson and give it a new brand, said president Ben Wacksman, a partner in the company with Lazy Days RV Center founder Don Wallace.
The project stalled when two overseas investors withdrew because of deteriorating financial markets over the past year, Patel said.
"The current financial headwinds made some of the equity financing impossible at this time," he wrote in an e-mail to the Times. "Had we been in the market about 18 months (earlier), it is likely we would be under construction."
Patel and Ritz-Carlton officials say they remain committed to bringing the brand to the area and hope to jump-start the project in a year to 18 months. But Patel isn't sure if the Radisson property or alternative sites will be available.
There's no shortage of high-end hotels in the area. Clearwater Beach has the Sandpearl Resort. St. Pete Beach boasts the Don CeSar Beach Resort. Fancy Renaissance properties sit on both sides of Tampa Bay: the Vinoy Resort & Golf Club in St. Petersburg and Tampa Hotel International Plaza.
But none carry the white-glove Ritz cachet.
"When you talk about Ritz-Carlton, it's on a list with St. Regis and Four Seasons," says Steve Hayes, executive vice president of Tampa Bay & Co., Hillsborough County's tourism marketing agency. "Obviously, we don't have a property like that."
Besides stoking civic pride, luxury brands bring business. Republican Party officials counted the lack of a "five-star hotel" as a strike against Tampa's bid for their national convention this year, said Mark Huey, economic development administrator for Mayor Pam Iorio.
The area attracts enough high-spending visitors to support a luxury hotel with average daily rates above $350, says Lou Plasencia, chief executive of the Plasencia Group in Tampa, which brokers hotel sales nationwide.
"There's demand as long as (the hotel) is modest in size and scope," he says. Clearwater Beach and St. Pete Beach would be the most likely locations, followed by Tampa's West Shore area, downtown Tampa and St. Petersburg, says Plasencia.
Radisson's owners don't plan to go upscale. They'll freshen up the waterfront hotel with new carpets, furniture and exterior work while remaining open, said Wacksman.
Casual touches like Crabby Bill's Beach Club, sand volleyball courts and all will remain, he said.
Steve Huettel can be reached at huettel@sptimes.com or (813) 226-3384.
© 2008 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111
###
Trump tower standoff stepped up
The developer and the tycoon are waging a towering court fight.
By JAMES THORNER, Times Staff Writer
Published January 4, 2008
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In February 2005, Donald Trump blazed into Tampa with his new bride on his arm to announce the sales kickoff of Trump Tower Tampa.
It's nearly three years later, and the 52-story condo tower remains more a fixture in the courts than on the building site at 111 S Ashley Drive.
Not only did developer SimDag LLC miss a self-imposed December deadline to conclude financing for the project but on Wednesday, SimDag answered a lawsuit Trump filed in May by countersuing the New York tycoon.
SimDag alleges that Trump, by going public with the lawsuit in May, breached a confidentiality agreement.
Trump revealed that he was to receive 50 percent of the profits on the sale of the $300-million tower's 190 condos. In return, SimDag was supposed to affix the Trump brand to a luxury high-rise, where penthouse units top out at $6-million.
"The license agreement provides ... that the parties will not, under any circumstances, disclose the existence of the licensing agreement or its terms," the SimDag countersuit reads, in part.
The Trump Organization in New York declined to comment about the project beyond confirming that negotiations were continuing. Trump has been trying to recover more than $1-million in unpaid licensing fees. SimDag's attorney didn't return a call from the Times.
The tower remains little more than a vacant lot on the Hillsborough River.
To provide last-ditch financing for the tower, SimDag recruited a New York hedge fund and sketched out a resurrection plan at a meeting with condo buyers on Oct. 24. SimDag pushed back the grand opening from December 2008 to December 2010 and asked buyers to re-up their soon-to-expire contracts another two years.
Trump Tower history
February 2005: Arriving in a limousine with his new wife, Donald Trump helps launch the 52-story skyscraper lauded as a new standard of luxury in Tampa.
March 2006: Developer SimDag LLC holds a groundbreaking at the site, though the project hasn't secured financing. Trump is conspicuously absent.
July 2006: The project's former general contractor files a lien for unpaid bills of more than $1-million.
August 2006: Developers reveal that soil instability on the riverfront lot could delay the project for months, spoiling the planned December 2008 opening.
January 2007: Disgruntled condo buyers begin filing lawsuits to get deposits back.
May 2007: Frustrated over lack of progress and $1-million in unpaid licensing fees, Trump sues SimDag and demands his name be pulled from the project.
August 2007: SimDag promises to secure a financing deal from a New York private hedge fund or else refund deposits. The agreement doesn't materialize.
October 2007: SimDag holds a closed-door meeting with condo buyers and promises a financing deal by the end of the year. The completion date is pushed to December 2010. Scenario includes Trump dropping his lawsuit.
January 2008: Failing to finalize financing by year's end, SimDag countersues Trump, alleging the tycoon breached a confidentiality agreement by going public with complaints in May.
© 2007 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111
###
Grothe wants No. 13 USF 'to make a statement'
By JOEDY McCREARY - 18 hours ago
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - As the Big East's only ranked team, No. 13 South Florida might be the closest thing to a national power that the beaten-down conference has this year.
Quarterback Matt Grothe figures it's about time the Bulls started playing like it again, starting Saturday night at injury-depleted North Carolina State.
"I think we need to make a statement," Grothe said. "It is an ACC team. Everyone has been saying the Big East is down this year. So if we can come out and play well, and do like I know we can, it will help us as a team and help us nationally with everybody."
The inconsistent Bulls (4-0) are leaving the state of Florida for the first time this season for their nonconference finale, and they're looking for any signs of encouragement they can find. Three victories against Bowl Subdivision teams have come by an average of six points, knocking off nationally ranked Kansas one week and struggling to get by lowly Florida International the next.
The up-and-coming Bulls also are dealing with their new status as the Big East's flagship program, at least this year, following their breakthrough 2007 - in which they started 6-0 and reached No. 2 in the Top 25 poll before fading - with a perfect-so-far September while preseason favorite West Virginia stumbled.
"Last year, when all that happened, we were just a team from Tampa," defensive end George Selvie said. "Now, everyone knows us as South Florida. ... We are a program to be reckoned with. Everyone is going to prepare for us like we are a big-time program, like we are. They are going to play us hard. Some teams will have nothing to lose, like FIU."
And N.C. State.
The Wolfpack (2-2) finally seemed like a team that had things figured out in Tom O'Brien's second season, stunning then-No. 15 East Carolina in overtime last week. But the buzz didn't seem to last long after it was revealed that quarterback Russell Wilson and top defender Nate Irving would miss this week's game with undisclosed injuries, making it 11 banged-up N.C. State starters to miss playing time.
That left the job under center to interception-prone Nebraska transfer Harrison Beck, a Florida native who has thrown nine picks and just four touchdown passes in his career.
"I'm just going to have to tell him that we're wearing the red jerseys on Saturday night, and we'll be in good shape," O'Brien quipped.
There isn't much history between the two programs or the coaches who lead them. O'Brien's former Boston College program left the Big East at the same time the Bulls joined the league in 2005, and the only meeting between the teams came that postseason when the Mario Williams-led Wolfpack won 14-0 in the Meineke Car Care Bowl in Charlotte.
That seems like a lifetime ago for N.C. State, which has finished under .500 in each of the past two years and looked well on its way to another losing season before last week's shocker over the Pirates.
Now comes the tough part: Pulling another upset, this time with a lineup that's thinned even further.
"Our spirits, I would say, will never go down if a player goes down, because we have so many talented players, that they can come in and play as a first-string player," linebacker Ray Michel said.
Hosted by Copyright © 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
###
Rays celebrate AL East title after Red Sox loss
The Associated Press
Saturday, September 27, 2008; 4:45 AM
DETROIT -- The wait is over. The Tampa Bay Rays won their first AL East title late Friday night when the Boston Red Sox lost to the New York Yankees. The Rays lost 6-4 to the Detroit Tigers earlier and had to sit through the rain-delayed Boston loss before celebrating their championship.
Manager Joe Maddon and a few of the players remained in the clubhouse at Comerica Park to watch the Red Sox game. Others watched it at Detroit's MGM Grand and back at the team hotel.
"It's one of those things where it's something you've fantasized about your whole life," Maddon said. "You can't believe it. You have to kind of wait and sit back. It just feels fantastic right now, wonderful."
After the Red Sox lost, Carlos Pena hugged teammate B.J. Upton and yelled "I told you we could do it! I told you we could do it!"
"Unbelievable," Pena said. "It just feels unbelievable."
Tampa Bay, which had never won more than 70 games in a season, became the first team other than Boston and New York to win the division since Baltimore did it in 1997.
The Rays also became the first AL team in the divisional era to finish with the worst record in its league then win its division in the following year, according to Stats, LLC. Atlanta in 1991 and the Chicago Cubs in 2007 also accomplished the feat.
Their mantra was "98" _ which essentially translates to nine players playing hard for nine innings every day equals one of eight postseason berths.
Gary Sheffield hit two home runs and Ramon Santiago also went deep in the Tigers' victory.
"We were definitely disappointed, it would have been nice to win it on the field," Pena said after Tampa Bay's loss.
Sheffield, who returned from a four-game suspension for fighting with Cleveland pitcher Fausto Carmona, has 499 career home runs.
"It wasn't something I thought about," Sheffield said about the 500-home run milestone.
Santiago homered for the third time in two days and Justin Verlander (11-17) won his first game since Aug. 22. He allowed two runs and five hits in five innings, walking three and striking out eight.
Upton homered and drove in two runs for the Rays.
Fernando Rodney pitched the ninth for his 12th save in 18 chances. He allowed a run on first baseman Miguel Cabrera's error, but escaped a second and third, two-out jam by getting Jason Bartlett to fly out.
Andy Sonnanstine (13-9) gave up five runs and five hits in 5 2-3 innings for the Rays, walking five and striking out seven.
"A little erratic at the start," he said. "And by the time I got things straightened out, it was to late."
Detroit won despite losing Placido Polanco in the first inning, when the second baseman slid into home and sprained his left ankle.
He rolled over and writhed in pain after sliding across the plate and beating the tag by catcher Dioner Navarro. X-rays were negative and Polanco, hitting .307 with eight home runs and 58 RBIs, was scheduled to be re-evaluated Saturday.
Tampa Bay got on the board in the third on Upton's fielder's choice grounder, and Pena's two-out RBI single in the fifth closed the gap to 5-2. Upton's ninth homer of the season made it 5-3 in the seventh.
Sheffield added his second homer and 19th of the season in the eighth.
Notes:@ Tampa Bay reinstated OF Carl Crawford from the disabled list before the game. He missed 43 games with a right middle finger injury, suffered on Aug. 9. He had surgery on Aug. 14. He was used as a pinch runner in the ninth. ... Magglio Ordonez has driven on 100 runs for the third straight season. He's the first Tiger to do so since Cecil Fielder (1990-93).
© 2008 The Associated Press
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September 22, 2008
Bears say Buccaneers didn't play clean
By ANDREW SELIGMAN
AP Sports Writer
Charles Tillman jumped on the pile, took a swing and got flagged for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty at the worst possible time for the Chicago Bears.
His teammates believe the referees saw only half the picture.
Still stinging after blowing a 10-point lead in a 27-24 overtime loss to Tampa Bay on Sunday, the Bears believe they were victimized as much by dirty play as their own mistakes.
"We saw a lot of the dirty stuff that they were doing, and we retaliated, got caught," Bears receiver Marty Booker said Monday. "It's always the second man."
Not too long ago, the Bears were all smiles after taking the season opener at Indianapolis. Then, they blew a 14-point lead before losing at Carolina and now this.
The Bears (1-2) and Buccaneers already had several skirmishes when this scene unfolded in overtime.
Tampa Bay had third-and-9 at the Chicago 8 when Jerramy Stevens caught a 2-yard pass from Brian Griese, but instead of having to punt, the Buccaneers caught a major break.
Jeremy Trueblood took some shots at Bears defensive end Adewale Ogunleye during a pileup, and Tillman ran over and jumped on. Then, he was caught taking a swing at Michael Clayton, resulting in a 15-yard penalty that kept the drive going.
"There are plenty of opportunities on the field to injure somebody," Bears defensive end Israel Idonije said. "You never think about that because that guy is a player in the NFL. There's a code. You play tough, you play hard, but you don't intentionally go out to injure somebody."
And he thought Trueblood was trying to do just that.
"They called us for something that was not nearly on the same level as what was going on," Idonije said.
Even so, coach Lovie Smith wouldn't absolve Tillman.
"I think everyone knows that's unacceptable," he said. "Me just saying, 'Hey guys, don't do it anymore,' it's not that easy. Charles knew when it happened. It's something that in the heat of passion, sometimes you do things that you regret later. That's one play out of a lot of opportunities we had."
Wide receiver Antonio Bryant wound up beating Nathan Vasher along the left side on a 38-yard pass from Griese a few plays later that put the ball on the 6, and after a 3-yard run by Earnest Graham, Matt Bryant booted the winning 21-yard field goal.
Tillman said he didn't think he threw a punch.
"I just tried to swing him off me," he said after the game.
Should Tampa Bay have been penalized?
"Well, you know the saying is they always see the second man who hits, they always see the second push, not the first," said Tillman, who also had a run-in with Donald Penn after the game's first play from scrimmage. "Obviously, they saw that second push. Like I said, costly mistake. Shouldn't have happened. Shouldn't have put myself in that situation."
That a sixth-year pro who has played at a Pro Bowl level did was surprising, but the game should have ended long before that.
"That whole Peanut (Tillman) part, it shouldn't have even gotten that far," defensive tackle Tommie Harris said. "We should have finished the game."
The Bears had their chances.
A first down after Tampa Bay's Matt Bryant kicked a 35-yard field goal with 3:11 left in regulation would have done the job. Instead, the Bears went three-and-out, and the Bucs took over with 1:49 left. Griese led them on a 79-yard drive that ended with a 1-yard TD pass to Stevens tying it at 24 and sending the game into overtime.
Along the way, the Bears were unable to stop Tampa Bay on third-and-10 at its 32. Instead, Griese connected with Stevens for 18 yards, hit Clayton for 13, Ike Hilliard for 17 and Antonio Bryant for 19 to put the ball on the 1.
Was the defense worn out?
Smith said it might have been.
In overtime, Rashied Davis dropped a pass near the Tampa Bay 35 on third down from the Chicago 47, stopping a possible scoring drive and forcing the Bears to punt.
"I took my eyes off the ball," Davis said. "It should have been an easy catch. I just dropped an easy pass. It shouldn't have happened, but it did."
© 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved.
###
September 24, 2008
Clay Aiken Tells People: "I'm Gay"
American Idol runner-up and Broadway actor Clay Aiken announces he is gay on the cover of People magazine's next issue, out Friday.
Aiken, 29, recently became a father to a baby boy with friend and record producer Jaymes Foster, whom he met while performing on the show that launched his career. His son, Parker Foster Aiken, was born in August.
"I cannot raise a child to lie or to hide things," he says, according to the People cover.
Aiken's sexual orientation has been the subject of much tabloid discussion since the musical sensation left American Idol's second season as runner-up to Ruben Studdard. Though members of the press have prodded Aiken with questions about being gay, he has steadfastly refused to reveal his sexual orientation; in 2006 he called Diane Sawyer "rude" on Good Morning America for even asking.
Also in 2006, talk-show host Kelly Ripa caused an uproar when Aiken, who was guest-hosting Live With Regis and Kelly with Ripa, put his hand over her mouth so he could interject in an interview with Dancing With the Stars' Cheryl Burke and Emmitt Smith. Ripa pulled away, saying, "Oh, that's a no-no. I don't know where that hand's been, honey!"
Rosie O'Donnell, then a cohost on The View, said she took offense to the incident. "To me, that's a homophobic remark," O'Donnell said on the show. "If that was a straight man, if that was a cute man, if that was a guy that she didn't question his sexuality, she would have said a different thing."
Ripa countered that Aiken had been shaking hands with people and that it was flu season at the time.
Later that year a Green Beret claimed to have had a sexual encounter with Aiken in the National Enquirer. He later apologized, saying he should not have told his story without Aiken's consent.
Aiken took a leave from absence from his role as Sir Robin in Broadway's Spamalot earlier this year. He will reprise his role from September 19 to January 4.
Out magazine 's Popnography blog posted early this morning about the People cover and the lengthy backstory that led Aiken to come out. (Michelle Garcia, The Advocate)
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'Net Play
Claymates Deal With Their Gay Grief
http://radaronline.com/exclusives/2008/09/claymates-deal-with-their-gay-greif.php
SLOW 'MO Aiken (Photo: Getty Images) High-pitched shrieks and excited OMGs could be heard all through America's suburbs yesterday as Clay Aiken admitted that he's gay, on the cover of People. Aiken's rabid fanbase, who call themselves Claymates, have taken to the message boards to deal with this shocking (to them) news. Many professed their undying support for the man they find talented, kind, and yes, sexy. But others are having trouble reconciling the news with comments Aiken made to Rolling Stone in 2004, when he denied having homosexual leanings. Nearly all Claymates are at one stage or another of the Kubler-Ross Grief Cycle, whether they're denying the truth of the story, raging at their hero himself, or coming to accept that he's a sinner. Examples follow:
DENIAL
"[The People cover] Reeks of photoshop to me. We can probably even find the picture of Clay's head from a recent fan photo if we look hard enough. Believe if you want, I just know that nothing is true unless it is printed in the fan club..." Playbiller at AikenForums.com
"I don't understand the timing of all this information, or supposed information. I'm not making any assumptions until I actually see credible information. Is that actually Parker in the photo? Some of my friends think the baby looks older than a child a month old." Claygirl at The Clayboard
ANGER
"I wish him well and hope he gets some peace of mind now BUT I feel he lied to everyone-especially us fans. He should have just said so years ago. I feel like we were "used". I still love to hear him sing but I also feel he has now become like a Michael Jackson and it's a bit too weird! He isn't just the plain ordinary person with the values he first stood for. But it's just my opinion." NJ4ClayA at The Clayboard
"So why lie in Rolling Stone and in his autobiography? Sorry, the Bible says homosexuality is wrong, and as a Christian I believe that. We can't just follow the parts of the Bible that we want or that are convenient to us, or we are not Christians. And he says he's a Christian. Too bad, I was supporting him since 2003." Diane at AikenForums.com
BARGAINING
"I loved his voice before the announcement, I still love his voice. I still listen to all the Clay cd's I bought, I will continue to buy Clay cd's provided the music and his voice remains as great." Debrah at AikenForums.com
DEPRESSION
"This is a gut wrenching day for The ClayNation. Somebody wake me up, I hope it's a dream." strollynn63 at The Clayboard
"I've cried a river of tears and truthfully do not know where I stand right now. I am envious of those who can take this news and continue to state their unconditional love and support for Clay." Clayncfan at The Clayboard
ACCEPTANCE
"I'm not going to lie and say I'm not shocked. I can't believe I said he wasn't gay. I denied it up and down to my mom and all. But hey, I still love him. He's a great person who's done so many wonderful things for the kids of other countries and has the most incredible voice." Alexandria at AIkenForums.com
"Clay is still the same talented singer I saw on AI2 five years ago. Nothing for me has changed. The baby is adorable." xtinad at The Clayboard
By Adam K. Raymond 09/24/08 12:35 PM
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September 23, 2008
McCain Chief of Staff Outed?
Republican presidential candidate John McCain's chief of staff was outed Monday after radio host Michelangelo Signorile quoted additional sources to confirm the long-blogged-about rumors. Mark Buse, 44, previously served as a lobbyist for several large corporations including AT&T and ExxonMobil, the only Fortune 10 company without a nondiscrimination policy covering sexual orientation, according to the Human Rights Campaign.
Signorile said on his blog that he had previously been contacted by three sources, all wishing to remain anonymous, claiming Buse is gay. The radio host says he was then contacted by 46-year-old Brian Davis, who claims to have had a past intimate relationship with the McCain staffer.
Davis claims he first met Buse at a Phoenix bar called Connections in 1986, around the same time Buse started work as a McCain intern during the presidential hopeful's tenure in the House of Representatives. Davis said Buse asked him to move to Washington, D.C., with him after a long-distance courtship taking place over several months. A year after moving to Washington, Buse left Davis for his current partner.
McCain has opposed several gay rights bills during his Senate tenure. He told the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network in 2007 that the ban on openly gay and lesbian military personnel was necessary and that the legislation "unambiguously maintains that open homosexuality within the military services presents an intolerable risk to morale, cohesion, and discipline."
McCain also voted against two hate-crimes bills in 2000 and 2002 and did not cast a vote for the Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act in 2007. He voted against the Employment Non-Discrimination Act in 1996 and 2006, because, he said, current laws already apply to LGBT workers.
In 2003, McCain voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment, which would have federally banned same-sex marriage. Instead, he said, he favors states' rights to grant or deny same-sex marriage, and he supported Arizona's proposed (but failed) ban in 2006. (Michelle Garcia, The Advocate)
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