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Overnight Briefing & General Reality Check - Sep 14, 2015
September 14, 2015
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Equal time:
Former New York City Police Commissioner RAY KELLY says the U.S. has an "obligation" to take refugees fleeing war-torn Syria. He told AM-970 in New York, "This is the type of tough decision that executives, that presidents have to make. I think we do everything we can do to do background investigations on these people, but there's clearly a humanitarian need for action."
He added, "You see countries in Europe that are responding, I think the U.S. has an obligation to respond as well." (Pacelli)Trash talk and satellite dish:
JOSH BROLIN is planning a Christmas wedding to his former personal assistant KATHRYN BOYD, but BARBRA STREISAND may not receive an invitation! Sources tell the National Enquirer that the singer is still great friends with Josh's ex, DIANE LANE, blames her stepson for their marriage falling apart and thinks he's marrying "the hired help."
Meanwhile, Babs may have her own problems in paradise with longtime hubby JAMES BROLIN as rumors continue to swirl that a $550-million-dollar divorce is on the horizon. (Lee)Crooks too stupid to live:
Stupid criminal of the week: PAUL NEAVERSON, who's 61, walked into the NatWest Bank in Rainham, Kent, to rob it. He grabbed a teller and held a knife to her neck. Then he told her to put the money in his bank account. The teller hit the bank's panic button and Neaverson ran before police got there. He ran just down the street to the HSBC Bank where he tried to rob that one, too.
Obviously police got his name from the first bank and arrested him on two attempted robberies and possession of a deadly weapon. He told the court that he needed the money to buy a plane ticket to a job interview as a golf coach. (Myers)Grace notes:
Great performers never die, they wind up as holograms. The New York Times says Hologram USA is ready to introduce its versions of WHITNEY HOUSTON and jazz great BILLIE HOLIDAY. Billie's will premiere at the Apollo Theater in Harlem later this year, while the Whitney hologram will stream live next year on FilmOn.com. Whitney's sister-in-law said this is (quote), "a great opportunity for her fans to see a reinvention of one the most celebrated female artists in history and to continue a legacy of performances that will not be forgotten in years to come." Whitney died in 2012 at age 48. (Marino)
Sheer stupidity:
The latest beauty trend for young women in Japan? Intentionally making themselves look hungover.
For young ladies in Tokyo, the disheveled look is in. And, makeup tutorials are springing up all over YouTube teaching them how to achieve it. The look basically consists of wet hair, redness on top of the eyelids, and dark shadows under the eyes. Sometimes, pieces of clear tape are applied below the eyes to make them look puffy and to create that "I haven't slept in days" look. (Still)NFL Fans have high "optimism bias":
A new study has found that that pro football fans and dedicated sports reporters often overestimate their team's chances of going all the way to the Super Bowl.
(Yeah, especially if you're a [Insert Your Team Name Here] fan!)
The British researchers polled more than 11-hundred National Football League fans and asked them to predict how many games their favorite and most hated teams would win during the 2015 season. Since each team plays 16 games that produce only one winner, U.S. News and World Report says the overall average number of wins for each team is always eight. But, the average number of wins predicted for "favorite" teams was 9.59. That suggests fans have an "optimism bias," meaning they were overly-hopeful about their team's chances this year.
The researchers also looked at data from ESPN on 32 sports reporters who were each assigned to one NFL team. When asked to predict how many games their team would win, the reporters, like the NFL fans, were all overly optimistic.
The study also found:
--The New England Patriots were the most-liked team among the study participants. They were also the most hated in the NFL. Both fans and rivals of the Patriots assumed they would perform well this season, but the team's fans expected one more win than the haters.
--The fans and rivals averaged only about a one-game difference for high-profile teams like the Denver Broncos, Seattle Seahawks and Philadelphia Eagles. There were larger "optimism gaps" for lower-profile teams like the Cincinnati Bengals and Arizona Cardinals. (Bartha) -
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