Pete Stenhoff was only 16 years old when a single football play changed his life forever. After Ramming his head into another player’s chest, Stenhoff, a junior at Chula Vista High School, cracked vertebrae in his spine. He is now paralyzed from the neck down. Having once weighed a solid 210 pounds, he now weighs 172 pounds. The injury has forced Pete to not graduate on time. He is now trying to get his diploma by taking correspondence courses. Tragically, Stenhoff is not alone, each year 20,000 high school football players are injured, and 7,000 of those injuries are to the neck and head, according to football critics. 840 of those 7,000 athletes are permanently disabled. Critics believe that the helmet design is to blame for the multiple neck and head injuries that are suffered by amateur football players. Stenhoff is not bitter. “I knew the risks involved when I decided to play football,” he said, “but I wish I would have known just how bad it could be.”
Springfield- Fifteen horses are dead after a possible arson fire set a barn ablaze here early this morning, one day before the opening of racing season.
Flames ripped through the one-story structure, killing 13 thoroughbreds and two saddle horses. Ten horses escaped, two of them with their backs ablaze.
Only charred wooden supports remained of the barn, which burned from 4 a.m. till about noon.
The fire started in the middle of the barn, Fire Chief Bernard Perry said. The electrical outlets and heaters were at the end of the barn, according to assistant track manager Dan Bucci. Fire officials are considering arson in their investigation.
(I would need to substantiate this information later on Dan Bucci)
Michael Jordan is scoring 100 times more money yearly in endorsements, than he did points in his entire 14 year career in the NBA.
Jordan, who his one of the world’s most notorious athletes, has endorsement deals from 20 companies that are rumored to total between 35-45 million dollars yearly.
The Nike Company, which is the largest sports brand in the world, having a net worth of about 10.7 billion dollars, pays Jordan 16 million dollars a year to put his name on their products.
Alongside Nike, Jordan is also signed with nine other multimillion-dollar corporations, and advertises for ten Chicago based companies as well.
Coca Cola, Hanes, Wheaties, Gatorade, McDonalds, and MCI are among the other large names that sponsor Michael Jordan.
At 48 years old, and far from playing conditions, Jordan earned 55 million dollars between June of 2009 and 2010. Though Jordan keeps his endorsement worth under wraps, he has been making at least 20 million dollars yearly since 1991.
Alongside Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, Michael Jordan is highly marketable worldwide because he is recognized in many of the richest countries in the world, the two most important being the United States and China. The United States which brings in 14.3 trillion dollars a year G.D.P, and China who brings in 4.4 trillion dollars.
Basketball is just as large of an industry to the Chinese as it is to Americans, the only difference is that instead of following Chinese basketball, people in China are fans of the NBA. This makes big names just as Jordan, Bryant, and James highly marketable not only on a national basis, but on a worldwide basis. Nike has reported that the Air Jordan brand brings them in at least one billion dollars in revenue each year worldwide.
Forbes Magazine had some interesting insight into why athletes who are sponsored by Nike are among the highest paid in the world: “The company (Nike) also has the distinction of being the only sports apparel maker whose worldwide market share has increased since the start of 2008.”
Even though our country is entering an economic downturn, Jordan’s endorsement deals will continue rising in my opinion. This is mainly through the success of companies such as Nike and McDonalds, where people can acquire goods that are very cheap, but socially popular.
Dateline- A gunman (confirmation of male) disguised with a pillowcase over his head pointed a pistol at a clerk and fled down an alley with $2,845 seconds before police arrived at the Black Derby Liquor Store on Ripley Way.
The unknown assailant pointed a pistol at store clerk Steve Bellinos demanding that he empty the register into a second pillowcase, police said.
The gunman was described as 6 feet tall, 155 pounds, and wearing blue jeans with a dirty white tee shirt and a pillowcase over his head, according to police.
Store clerk Steve Bellinos triggered the silent alarm approximately four minutes into the robbery. When police arrived three minutes after the alarm, the assailant was just leaving the store on foot, police said.
One round was unloaded by local police Officer Fulgham, but she missed, police said. The officers pursued him on foot, but he finally escaped into an ally, said police.
“The officers did a great job,” according to witness John Paul Reinicke, who was walking down Ripley Way when the incident occurred, “The guy ran so fast he looked like a track star.”
Police Chief Antonio Grasso said the Police Internal Security Squad began an investigation. Such investigations are necessary when an officer fires a service revolver, police said. It's understood that no suspects are under arrest.
Tulsa,OK- Fresno Pacific routed Springfield behind Kellen Moore’s double double. Despite Ivan Muldrow dropping 20 points on 9-13 shooting, Springfield could not overcome a 9 point halftime deficit and fell to Fresno Pacific by 25. Moore shot 11-14 from the field and pulled down 11 boards to lead the way for Fresno Pacific. Ty Admundson also helped the cause raining in 18 points including burying four of Fresno Pacific’s five threes on the night. "Ty was really feeling it tonite," according to Coach Huggins in his post game press conference. "He was the only one on point, we got lucky that Moore was big in the paint and Springfield was missing their shots." The night was highlighted by poor shooting performances for both teams. Springfield shot only 29.7% from the field including a feeble 6-26 performance from beyond the arc. Fresno was much better inside the paint, shooting 55.9% on the night; however they shot only a mediocre 33% from outside the three point line. "Nobody could hit it tonight, not from anywhere on the court. I should have done more; we should have had this one," said Muldrow after the game.
Senior citizens in the Lenoir School District worry that a proposal for a year-round schooling might hit them in the pocketbook.
At Tuesday night’s school board meeting there was only one topic that was heavily discussed, that being the possibility of year round schooling. It was believed that the $35 million bond being voted on in April would be on everyone’s agenda, but the people in attendance wanted to discuss whether year round schooling would cut construction costs on the school. If the school were to implement a year round school system the need for trailer classrooms would decrease, and daily attendance at the school could be cut by 25%. This would allow smaller class sizes and more face time for students with the teachers. Board President Elton Fay said about the situation that year round schooling isn’t a practical idea. “If we are to avoid erecting additional buildings, to save on construction costs, the cost of educating our children would go up substantially,” said Fay. A technique such as year round schooling would mean that different kids would be on completely different schedules based on their ages. Fay said, “This community does not want schools on totally different schedules.” With the increasing population it is becoming harder for schools to counteract the large class sizes. “Private schools have a clear advantage over public because they can pick and choose the number of kids that they want to educate,” says Kerry Corino.
Blog: In response to this article I believe that there is no proper solution for the overcrowding of the public school system. I was lucky enough to attend private school where this problem is irrelevant, however I understand how tough it must be to succeed in a classroom where the teacher has to teach many disinterested kids. Many of these kids are only disinterested because they cannot acquire the face time that is necessary for them to learn because there are so many other students in their classes. With large school many kids seem to get lost in the mix, and I do not know enough about politics to have a good solution on how to re-allot money into the school systems to pay more teachers.
St. Joseph, MO- Two men are dead after a shooting rampage occurred near 22nd and Frederick Streets; one of the victims was a St Joseph Police officer. Early in the evening calls came in of a gunman with a semi automatic assault rifle opening fire on 22nd street. A police officer responding to the scene was killed when bullets struck the back window of his cruiser seven times. The gunman was shot and killed when other officers responded to the scene. The shooting officer’s name was not revealed to the public. According to the police the gunman also shot at four or five other civilians, but none were injured seriously. “The shooter had a Mohawk and was wearing camouflage. He had a shotgun strapped to his back and a knife in his belt,” according to Officer Connors Officer Bradley Thomas Arn was the first to report to the scene when he was struck in the back of the head with a bullet that flew through his rear window, according to the police report. Witness Roger Liberty, who lives in the area, described the shooting, “I saw two cop cars. The guy started shooting at them. I knew the cop got hit; his car lurched and zigzagged.” He is the first St Joseph Police Officer to be killed in the line of duty since 1991, and the first to be shot since 1944. (sidebar) Police are still investigating motives for this seemingly random shooting spree. “The shooter was firing randomly; he didn’t care what was in front of his gun. The situation was handled well. They (the officers) did a good job. They did what they were trained to do,” Said Officer Connors Police are currently using fingerprints in an effort to identify the shooter. Officer Bradley Thomas Arn is survived by his wife and two 3 year old twin daughters. There is no info on a funeral service, but there will be a 10 a.m. press conference tommorow, police said (sidebar with funeral updates)
Pete Stenhoff was only 16 years old when a single football play changed his life forever.
