The Spew 12-29-17

1.      The  Browns 2017 season will mercifully come to an end on Sunday when they  take on the Steelers in Pittsburgh.   The Steelers are 14 point  favorites and they need a win or a Patriots loss to clinch home field  advantage throughout the AFC playoffs.  Do the Browns win their first  game?  If not, do they cover?

 

2.      “Cleveland  Magazine” is out with their “Most Interesting People” of the year list  and it includes Women of Our Future Founder Savannah James, author David  Giffels who wrote a memoir of grief and recovery, plus size model  Alysse Dalessandro, brew master Shaun Yasaki, weightlifter Holly Miller,  figure skater Sharita Taylor, Indians pitcher Carlos Carrasco, Cavs  guard Kyle Korver, Bishop Nelson Perez and TV 3 meteorologist Michael  Estime.  Besides yourself, is there a Clevelander who is famous or not  so famous who is a “Most Interesting Person”?

 

3.      A  man donated a piece of his liver to a woman that was fighting a rear  genetic disease. After taking failing to find a donor that she was  compatible with, Melinda Ray took to Facebook in the hopes of finding a  donor and found a match in a complete  stranger named Jeff Bramstedt. The California skydiving instructor and  Hollywood stuntman flew to Colorado and was a part of a 10-hour  procedure to get a piece of his liver to Ray. The surgery was a success  three weeks ago and both Bramstedt and Ray came through perfectly. Would  you give up part of your body to help a stranger live?

 

4.      Apple's  Chief Executive Tim Cook was paid $102 million after collecting a huge  share bonus linked to the iPhone maker’s stock market performance. Cook  was paid a basic salary of just over $3 million, a cash bonus of $9.3  million (up from $5.4 million last year), and collected share awards  worth $89 million taking his total 2017 payout to $102 million. Can any  CEO be worth that much? 

 

5.      A tradition done on New Year's Eve is singing the tune Auld Lang Syne  as we bring in the new year. Well, apparently most of you are doing  nothing but humming along or lip-synching because a survey has found  that only 3% of people actually know the words.  Research has shown that  we actually know the chorus and the first few lines of the song, but  after that we fall flat. What's more interesting is that people give  Mariah Carey credit for writing the song when it actually was written by  Scotland's Robert Burns.  In the poll, people also believed that lyrics  from The Beatles, Taylor Swift, and ABBA were part of the 18th century  poem. Also, another 45% thought lyrics to Snoop Dogg's song "New Year's  Eve" were also part of the song.  Do you know the words to Auld Lang  Syne? 

 

6.      The NFL has bowed out of Sunday Night Football in Week 17. This is the first time that the NFL has canceled the final Sunday Night Football game since 2006.  The traditional night-game finale usually ends with two playoff  contenders. The NFL hadn’t yet decided which two teams would play in the  Sunday night game, but none met the criteria for a must-watch game. Is  the cancelation an indictment on the popularity of the league in a  season where the league has seen another ratings dip?

 

7.      Swimming  great Katie Ledecky edged out tennis star Serena Williams for the  Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year. In balloting by U.S.  editors and news directors announced Tuesday, Ledecky received 351  points, edging out Williams with 343.Williams won the Australian Open  for her Open era-record 23rd Grand Slam tennis title. Shortly after,  Williams announced a break from tennis while preparing to deliver her  first child. Ledecky earned five golds and a silver at this year’s world  championships in Budapest, maintaining the upward trajectory she first  established as a surprise gold medalist at the 2012 London Olympics. Who  is the male athlete of the year?  Candidates include Houston Astros  mighty mite Jose Altuve, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady,  Golden State Warriors star Kevin Durant and LeBron James.

 

8.      Top  civil servants in England have one wish for the Royal Wedding of Prince  Harry and Meghan Markle: Don't invite the Obamas. Officials fear an  invite to the Obamas and a snub to President Donald Trump could  jeopardize relations.  Harry and former president Barack Obama are good  friends and have a close relationship. Obama has been a supporter of  Harry's Invictus Games for wounded warriors. A source told The  Sun, "Harry has made it clear he wants the Obamas at the wedding, so  it's causing a lot of nervousness."  What do you think?

 

9.      Dateline:   The United Kingdom.  A mother took to the UK social forum “Mumset” to  complain about a woman who was sunbathing topless at a pool in front of  her kids at a family vacation resort.  One mother posted “if looking at  her boobs makes you uncomfortable, stop looking” while others “Mums”  agreed with her.  What do you think?  Is it OK for women to go topless  in front of children who are not her own?

 

10.   The  French government will ban students from using mobile phones in the  country’s primary, junior and middle schools at the start of the next  school year.  Reports say that children will be allowed to bring their  phones to school, however they will not allowed to use them until they  leave, even during breaks. The French education minister said the ban  was also a “public health message to families”, adding: “It’s good that  children are not too often, or even at all, in front of a screen before  the age of seven.” Do you agree with the French government's efforts?  


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