Category Archives: Settlements

NFL Up For Grabs?

NFL referee

The NFL is the Titanic of sports.  It’s big, fast, powerful, and at the moment it’s sinking fast.    After watching last nights match up between the Green Bay Packers and the Seattle Seahawks, I think it is safe to say that Roger Goodell has done a poor job “protecting the shield”.  I was originally a supporter of Goodell’s reluctance to give in to the NFL referees demands.  In reality, being an NFL referee is the best part-time job anyone can have.  So give me a break refs, you guys need to appreciate the fact that you have the highest per-game salary in American sports.  That being said, Goodell has truly tarnished one of the most powerful and influential brands in the world in the course of 3 short weeks.  The debate is over and the verdict is in, the replacement referees are taking away from the integrity of the game.  As Steve Young put it last night after the game, “everybody senses it, that this is impacting the competitive landscape of the NFL and it brings it down”.  Trent Dilfer, an ESPN analyst, took it one step further by claiming that “the NFL has insulted our intelligence by trying to tell us that this isn’t a big deal.”

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Spoiled Milk

A baby’s world

The most famous set of breasts since Kate Middleton’s are still fueling debates across the country a week after their debut.  American University professor Adrienne Pine, reluctantly become the new face of the feminist movement after breast feeding her infant in the middle of a class lecture.  Pine felt uncomfortable leaving her sick daughter at her regular day care center.  Rather than cancel her first lecture of the year, Pine thought it would be better to bring her daughter to work with her.  During the lecture the infant was crawling around on the classroom floor, and at one point the TA (Teachers Assistant) felt it was necessary to hold and comfort the disrupted baby.  Although this must have all been very distracting, the highlight of the lecture was when Pine unbuttoned her blouse and breast-fed her child in the middle of lecturing.

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Colorado Man Wins $7.2 Million From Popcorn Fumes

Popcorn

Nothing like a buttery bowl of popcorn and a movie, right?  This is no longer the case for Wayne Watson from Denver, who developed a lung disease similar to bronchitis after inhaling the fumes from his microwavable bag of popcorn he had eaten regularly.  Wayne Watson settled with Gilster-Mary Lee Corp., The Kroger Co. and Dillon Companies Inc. for $7.2 million dollars for the damages to his lungs caused by the toxic buttery smell.  He won the lawsuit based on non-existent warning labels for diacetyl, an ingredient found in popcorn that gives the snack flavor.  Diacetyl, is linked with certain health conditions and is found in popcorn, margarine, and many baked goods.  It is even sometimes used to for bug repellent, good thing we are eating it.

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Hurricane Washes Up Same Old Problems

Save New Orleans

Hurricane Isaac’s recent landfall along the Gulf Coast has caused a lot more issues than originally thought.  A collection of businesses in New Orleans and other Gulf cities are contesting that Isaac has washed up oil and tar from the BP oil spill in 2010.  The British oil and gas company has already agreed to pay about $7.8 billion to the plaintiffs effected.  Economic losses, property damages, and personal injuries were all cited in these settlements; however lawyers believe that Hurricane Isaac has shown that there is still work to be done. Read more

Fist Pumps Turn to Knuckle Sandwiches in Seaside Heights

Jersey Shore drama

In a year-old lawsuit, former Seaside Heights resident Joseph Alfieri claimed three members of the Seaside Heights Police Department choked, kicked, and sprayed him with tear gas after allegedly entering his house without consent.  The incident occurred in April of 2009 after Mr. Alfieri’s girlfriend, who was also arrested earlier that night, told the police that he had assaulted her. Upon the department’s release, Mr. Alfieri’s girlfriend returned to his residence and demanded her car keys.  He refused and told her to come back the next day.  The three officers, including the one who had arrested his girlfriend, later arrived and entered his home.  Alfieri claimed facial lacerations and a wrist injury among the physical abuse he received as well as emotional distress.  While the department is not admitting liability, Alfieri received $63,500 in the settlement.

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