The News Of …

That smacking sound you hear is a chorus of ass-kissing taking place throughout our land.
Kidding! Kind of. Tuesday October 16th is National Boss Day, an actual occasion for American workers to celebrate the Michael Scott or Bill Lumbergh in their life.
Judging by our survey of the many many different employee surveys out there – and our diligent viewing of Office reruns – most people basically hate their bosses. A study released earlier this month by TellYourBoss.com found that nearly two-thirds of Americans are unhappy with their jobs, with 65 percent saying that a new boss would make them happier while 35 percent prefered a pay raise. Common complaints from employees include a lack of enthusiasm, a resistance to new ideas and a lack of direction.
USA Today reports that 75 percent of workers say their boss is the most stressful part of their job, ineffective bosses can be a detriment to both workplace productivity and employee health. Stress costs American businesses upwards of 300 billion dollars per year due to rising insurance and health care costs.

Bosses Day.

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The Denver Broncos overcame multiple first-half miscues to become the second team since 1993 to erase a 24-point second-half deficit, tying an NFL record for the largest comeback win for a road team in NFL history and forcing a tie atop the AFC West standings with a 35:24 win over the equally 3:3 San Diego Chargers on Monday night.
San Diego took advantage of a pair of special teams turnovers to jump out to a 10:0 lead midway through the first quarter. Broncos punt returner Trindon Holliday, acquired off waivers from the Houston Texans last week, muffed a punt that was recovered by Chargers tight end Dante Rosario, leading to a 32-yard field goal field by Nick Novak. The Broncos replaced Holliday with rookie cornerback Omar Bolden on the ensuing kickoff, which Bolden promptly fumbled. Two plays later, Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers connected with Antonio Gates for a 15-yard touchdown.

Peyton Manning.

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Felix Baumgartner, an Austrian daredevil, said that “20 tons have fallen from my shoulders” after becoming the first man to break the sound barrier.
“I think 20 tons have fallen from my shoulders. I prepared for this for seven years” – he told German-language ServusTV in Austria in his first interview after the leap.
Referring to a helmet problem that nearly forced him to abort at the last minute, Baumgartner said – “Even on a day like this when you start so well, then there’s a little glitch. But I finally decided to jump.
“It was the right decision” – added the Austrian, who broke three records: the highest freefall jump, the fastest freefall speed and the highest balloon flight by a human. He failed to make the longest freefall jump.

Felix Baumgartner.

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Gary Collins (an actor who was the longtime host of the syndicated TV show “Hour Magazine” and a former master of ceremonies for the Miss America Pageant) died early Saturday in Biloxi, Miss. He was 74.
Collins died of natural causes soon after arriving at Biloxi Regional Medical Center, Harrison County Coroner Gary Hargrove told the Associated Press.
In 2011 Collins moved to Mississippi, the home state of his wife, Mary Ann Mobley, an actress and Miss America 1959. He had been arrested and fined last year for leaving a Biloxi restaurant without paying his dinner tab. In 2007 and 2009 he was convicted in separate DUI cases in California.
From 1980 to 1988, Collins served as host of the TV talk show “Hour Magazine” – a gentler version of the genre that avoided some of the controversial topics tackled by Phil Donahue, Geraldo Rivera and other tabloid programs.

Gary Collins.

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Alex Karras (the former Detroit Lions All-Pro defensive tackle and later a successful actor) died on October 10. I have vivid memories of him before he ever gained immortality as “Mongo” in “Blazing Saddles” or as the stepdad of “Webster.”
Karras was a star on the great Detroit Lions defenses of the early 1960′s—a unit that included four Hall-of-Famers: middle linebacker Joe Schmidt and defensive backs Night Train Lane, Dick LeBeau, and Yale Lary, all three of whom were in the top five for career interceptions at the time they retired. This defense led the way to one of the greatest moments in Detroit sports history—“The Thanksgiving Day Massacre” of 1962.
The Packers’ record was 10-0 when they came to Detroit for the annual Thanksgiving Day game 50 seasons ago. Featuring 10 future Hall of Fame players and the incomparable Vince Lombardi as coach, the mighty Packers had crushed all their opponents—except for the Lions, whom they had squeaked past, 9:7, in their first matchup in Green Bay.

Alex Karras.

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2012 BET Hip-Hop Awards was glittered with a lot of big stars. One of the highlights was a star-studded performance to pay tribute to Chris Lighty, the late former manager of Busta Rhymes, 50 Cent, Ja Rule, Mobb Deep, Missy Elliott and LL Cool J.
LL Cool J opened up the in-memoriam segment with a heartfelt video message. The somber tone was turned into a celebration of Chris’ life and legacy when Q-Tip and Phife Dawg of A Tribe Called Quest charged into the stage and delivered their 1993 hit “Award Tour”.
“If it wasn’t for Chris, then you wouldn’t hear music like this” – Tip shouted before retreating to the back and giving the spotlight to Busta. The rapper kept the crowd going with “Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See” while pictures of the late Hip-Hop mogul were flashed on the screen.

Kanye West.

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Tsegaye Kebede crossed the finish line in Grant Park on Sunday with his country on his mind. He raised his arms, gave thumbs up to the crowd and took in the applause as he became the first Ethiopian man to win the Chicago Marathon, setting a course record in the process.
“It was a great day for us, for Ethiopia especially” – Kebede said. “It’s very important for us.”
Kebede was the headliner, but not the only Ethiopian on the podium after covering the 26,2-mile Chicago course — a predominantly flat and fast run through 29 of the city’s neighborhoods. Kenya had won the men’s race nine straight years, punctuated by a sweep of the top three positions last year. The Ethiopians turned the trick Sunday, with Feyisa Lilesa finishing second and Tilahun Regassa third. Ethiopia also won the women’s race, when Atsede Baysa edged Kenya’s Rita Jeptoo at the finish.
Kebede (25) separated himself from a pack of East African runners with Lilesa at around the 23-mile mark. Kebede gradually pulled ahead of Lilesa in the last mile and a half and pushed across the finish line 14 seconds ahead.

Chicago marathon.

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Niels Bohr (famous Danish physicist and a Nobel Prize winner for his contribution to the field of physics) is the subject of Sunday’s Google doodle.
Niels Bohr, was born Niels Henrik David Bohr on 7 October 1885 in Copenhagen, Denmark. His father Christian Bohr was a professor of physiology at the University of Copenhagen, and the man who observed the phenomenon called Bohr shift or Bohr effect. At age 18, Niels Bohr enrolled as an undergraduate at Copenhagen University, initially studying philosophy and mathematics.
Niels Bohr continued as a graduate student at the University of Copenhagen receiving his doctorate in 1911. In 1912 joined Ernest Rutherford at Victoria University of Manchester, where he spent four years in association with the older physics professor and became part of the group that included scientists such as William Lawrence Bragg, James Chadwick and Hans Geiger, that involved itself with studying the structure of the atom.
Niels Bohr published his model of atomic structure in 1913 where he introduced the theory of electrons traveling in orbits around the atom’s nucleus, the chemical properties of each element being largely determined by the number of electrons in the outer orbits of its atoms. Bohr also introduced the idea that an electron could drop from a higher-energy orbit to a lower one, in the process emitting a photon, light quantum, of discrete energy. This became a basis for quantum theory.

Google doodle.

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When Mitt Romney vowed to cut government funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting during Wednesday night’s presidential debate, PBS chief Paula Kerger says she “just about fell off the sofa” out of shock.
Romney’s remarks – and in particular his decision to single out the beloved Big Bird – sparked an immediate uproar on social media. And on Thursday, PBS issued an unusually strongly worded statement in response to the attack. “Governor Romney does not understand the value the American people place on public broadcasting and the outstanding return on investment the system delivers to our nation” – it read.
But Kerger and Big Bird’s millions of fans shouldn’t have been that surprised by Romney’s pledge – The candidate is merely the latest in a long line of politicians and pundits who’ve turned the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which distributes money to both PBS and NPR, into a political punching bag.

Sesame Street.

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In the first presidential debate of the fall campaign, neither Mitt Romney nor President Obama appeared to land a knockout blow or commit the sort of serious blunder that would instantly change the presidential race.
The Republican challenger held his own during a 90-minute encounter that revolved almost exclusively around domestic issues.
Romney, offering sharper answers than Obama and seizing control of the debate at several points, was never ruffled, repeatedly predicting that Obama would provide more “trickle-down government” if he were reelected in November. He defended himself against charges from Obama that his tax cut plan would favor the wealthy.
For his part, Obama tried to bury his opponent in the very thing that Romney is said to crave – data. Repeatedly referring to arguments offered by his leading surrogate, former President Clinton, Obama tried to rebut Romney’s claim that he could balance the budget while cutting tax rates across the board and increasing military spending by $2 billion.
“Math, common sense and our history shows us that’s not a recipe for job growth” – Obama said.

Romney and Obama.

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