Al Nye The Lawyer Guy

Verdict Against Law Firm Bernstein Shur for $7.3 Million

The Portland Press Herald today reported that a jury has awarded a $7.3 million verdict against the law firm of Bernstein Shur Sawyer & Nelson after finding it was negligent in its representation of a client in a case.

I was out of town all last week and had no knowledge about this trial or the facts of the case. Unfortunately, the Press Herald article about the trial is less than clear.

From the newspaper article, it appears that Bernstein Shur, one of Maine’s largest law firms with around 85 lawyers, represented Peter Redman in a dispute with his brother Mark Redman over control of a mattress and furniture business.

Peter Redman’s lawyer alleged that a complaint of sexual harassment against his client was not adequately investigated or defended by Bernstein Shur. It appears from the Press Herald article that the jury agreed. Bernstein Shur vows to seek a new trial or appeal and states that they don’t believe they were negligent and expect to ultimately prevail.

Hopefully, the Press Herald will do a follow up story that better explains each side’s position in this case.

Regardless of the final outcome, this is a black eye on this major Portland law firm and is not the type of publicity any firm wants to have reported in the newspaper.

Papelbon's Stock Goes Down

Ever since blowing the season’s last game last year with a choke performance against the Angels, Papelbon has been vulnerable. He used to be practically automatic. Now … not so much.

He blew the game Wednesday in closing against Rockies — allowing three runs in the 9^th. He blew it last night too — allowing two more runs in the 9^th. Lucky for Papelbon, Dustin Pedroia was on fire with three home runs and going 5 for 5.

I don’t know whether it’s his confidence or something physical, but Papelbon is no longer a source of comfort for the Red Sox Nation when he tries to close out games.

Hope Papelbon bought Pedroia a beer after the game.

When I Stop Talking; Blue-Eyed Devil; 61 Hours -- All Reviewed

I’ve decided to post a few more mini-reviews. I’ve read quite a few books this year and don’t have enough outlets to post full reviews. Enjoy!

 

 

When I Stop Talking, You'll Know I'm Dead

By Jerry Weintraub

Twelve – Hachette Book Group

$25.99, hard cover, 291 pages, 978-0-446-54815-1 (2010)

 

            This is a breezy novel about Jerry Weintraub's job representing the rich and famous. He has chapters about Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, and John Denver. He's also promoted many well-known stars: Led Zeppelin, Neil Diamond, Bob Dylan, Elton John, Barry Manilow, Wayne Newton, Richard Pryor, to name just a few.  

 

            Later in his career, he turned his attention to acting and producing. Again, you might recognize his work as a movie producer: Nashville, Oh, God!, The Karate Kid (and its three sequels), as well as Ocean's Eleven, Ocean's Twelve and Ocean's Thirteen. Throughout this rollicking trip, you'll meet George Clooney, Bruce Willis, George H.W. Bush, Armand Hammer, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, and many, many others. If they're someone famous, then Weintraub knows them.

 

            This book is a quick read brimming with fascinating stories. Along the way, you also find out quite a bit about the author and what it takes to be successful. If you want an untarnished view of Hollywood from the inside, pick up this book. It's like watching Entertainment Tonight – without the pictures, but with all the juicy details very much included.

 

Buy it on Amazon here.

 

 

Blue-Eyed Devil

By Robert B. Parker

G. P. Putnam's Sons

$25.95 hardcover, 276 pages, 978-0-399-15648-9 (2010)

 

            Long acknowledged as the dean of American crime fiction, Robert Parker began this western series in 2005 with the publication of Appaloosa, which was made into a hit motion picture starring Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen. Following Appaloosa, Parker wrote Resolution, Brimstone. Blue-Eyed Devil is the forth book in this series. Sadly, with Parker's death in January of this year, the adventures of Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch have ended.

 

            For those who have only read Parker's Spenser novels (or his Jesse Stone or Sunny Randall novels), it may be hard to believe that stories of western gunfighters Cole and Hitch could be as entertaining as his other works of fiction. But it soon becomes apparent that Parker's clean, sparse writing style, engaging characters and multiple sub-plots make these novels as good as any he has written.

 

            In Blue-Eyed Devil, Coal and Hitch have returned to the small town of Appaloosa where they once were marshal and deputy to find that things have changed in their absence. As in previous novels in this series, the book is narrated in the first person by Everett Hitch. Parker begins the novel this way:

 

Law enforcement in Appaloosa had once been Virgil Cole and me. Now there were a chief of police and twelve policemen. Our third day back in town, the chief invited us to the office for a talk.

 

            They find out that the new chief of police is shaking down the saloon owners for protection money. Operating under his own moral code, Cole agrees he and Hitch will work for the saloon owners to provide security. This puts the men squarely in opposition to the big ambitions of the chief of police. They also throw another powerful local man's son out of a saloon for abusing a whore and find themselves with another enemy.

 

            Throw in a hired killer looking to fight Virgil Cole, and some Indians trying to burn down the entire town and you've got a showdown brewing with only the best men left standing.

 

Buy it on Amazon here.

 

 

61 Hours

A Reacher Novel

By Lee Child

Delacorte Press

$28.00 hardcover, 383 pages, 978-0-385-34058-8 (2010)

 

            I read a review of this book that called it a "rare ground-shifting work."

 

It's not.

 

I also saw an interview of Lee Child in which he said that in writing his Jack Reacher novels, he believes that Reacher's character is more important than the plot.

 

He's wrong.

 

            First let me say that I enjoy Child's Reacher novels and have read nearly every one of them. The last couple of books have been wonderful examples of edge-of-your-seat reading where you rush doing everything else in life, just so you can return to the novel.

 

And Reacher is a quirky but extremely likeable character – a loner with no home, who only has the clothes on his back (and throws them away and buys new ones rather than wash them), who has no ties to anyone – but who has his own rigid moral code and is definitely not a man to be trifled with under any circumstances.

 

But a great character doesn't sustain a novel: it needs action and this book sorely wants in that respect.

 

Reacher gets stuck in a small town in North Dakota in the middle of a savage snowstorm. Bolton, North Dakato is a small town with big problems, mainly due to the new federal prison just on its outskirts. There is a brave woman in town under police protection who is willing to testify against some criminals living at an abandoned military station a short distance from town. When murders start happening, Reacher offers his help to the local police chief and his assistant who don't appear to be the sharpest knives in the drawer. To top it off, a Mexican drug lord is looking to make a score in Bolton and a hired assassin is ready to assist him.

 

So what does Reacher do about it all? Mostly, he tries to schmooze with a woman who has taken over the position he held when he was with the U.S. Army. So except for a little action in the beginning of the book and a lot at the end, the only thing Reacher does in the middle pages is flirt with this woman and show off his intelligence and highly-honed investigative skills.

 

Understanding how Reacher thinks and anticipates his adversaries is kind of interesting, but hardly riveting. For many authors, that is how they write. But Childs knows better – just read the first few chapters of Gone Tomorrow and see if you don't agree. This novel would be vastly improved by Reacher doing more and saying less. Recommend only to the die-hard Jack Reacher fan.

 

Buy it on Amazon here.

 

 

Celtics Out in Seven -- Here's Why

 

What happened to the Celtics in Game 7 of the finals?

 

Two things:

 

#1, they were missing their center, Kendrick Perkins, and that just killed them on the boards. The Lakers were getting so many offensive boards that it allowed them to have lots and lots of extra shots. Rasheed Wallace did a good job – he just didn't have the muscle to keep the Lakers off the boards. Perkins is big, good on defense, and a rebounder – all things that the Celtics needed last night.

 

Even though Kobe was not having a good night, the other Laker starters were producing – especially Gasol and Artest. The Celtics were swarming Bryant to keep him in check and it was working. They gambled that the other starters couldn't produce. Normally that would be a good gamble – not last night.

 

Despite not having Perkins, the Celtics played exceptional ball and led up to about midway through the last quarter. That's when things fell apart for them.

 

#2 – the Celtics are too damned old. The schedule of having the last three games every other night didn't give the C's enough time to rest. They were dragging in the last quarter of this game. Instead of running their offense, they were content to isolate Pierce and pick and roll from the top of the key. The Lakers were double-teaming and the rest of the Celtics were too tired to get open. The offense they'd been running the whole game was given up due to fatigue.

 

When the camera went into the Celtics huddle and Doc was imploring the guys to "Move, move, move, move, move," he was right. They were standing around because they were just too tired to do much else.

 

That's why there were so many fouls by the Celtics at the end of the game. When you get tired, your defense deteriorates and you foul to make up for lack of energy. (When Magic stated that he thought Allen's foul of Kobe while in 3-point land was a good foul because it gave Rondo time to rest, Magic was dead wrong. For the Celtics, the score was the most important thing at that point in the game. When Bryant made all three foul shots, the Lakers were just a point behind the Celtics. No amount of rest for Rondo was worth losing the lead – one they never recovered.)

 

Because the Celtics were so spent, Rondo couldn't force the pace in the last 6 – 8 minutes of the game because there was no one with him on the fast break. The Celtic transition game was nonexistent.

 

Bottom line: The Celtics played a brilliant game for three quarters. Their missing center and their age caught up with them during the last quarter and they just didn't have any more to give. They had a phenomenal year and played with courage, conviction. They expended all their energy and talents in the final game. They just ran out of gas.

Oops -- Town Has To Throw Out Election Results

As reported in the Portland Press Herald, the town of Waterboro has some explaining to do.

It seems that they held an election for a town official last week when that person still had a year left to serve in his term. Town representative are pretty embarrassed about the mistake and the candidates aren’t too thrilled with the error either.

In addition to paying for the cost of the election, the town is also going to offer to reimburse the candidates for their campaign expenses.

I’m sure the taxpayers of Waterboro aren’t exactly wild about that idea.

Instead of Celtic Pride; Celtics Died

What happened? Game 6 of the series was over before it even started. The C’s ended up getting trouncing by the Lakers.

31 points in a half? Are you kidding me? It was embarrassing.

The 89 – 67 blowout was a night for the players and all Celtics fans to forget. I just hope that the Green Team can put it behind them quick. With the final game tomorrow night, the Celtics need to regroup — FAST.

The Celtics drubbing last night by the Lakers made me think of that Amazing Grace – Salvation Army commercial.

Boston looked homeless, broken, sad … just lost.

 

Celtics Win Two-in-a-Row and Take Series Lead

Well, they finally did it. The Celtics took two games in a row away from the Lakers and now hold a series lead of 3–2 with the final game (or two, if necessary) being played in LA.

They did it as a team. Despite Kobe Bryant pouring in 19 straight points in the 3^rd quarter (making some shots that were practically unbelieveable), the Celtics just kept adding points of their own. Each of them. Together. As a Team.

And that was the key.

Bryant couldn’t beat the Celtics by himself. Like all sports, basketball is a team game. And the C’s finally had their team clicking like clockwork.

Paul Pierce 27 points; Kevin Garnett 18 points, Rondo 18 points — plus each of them contributed with rebounds, blocks, and steals at key moments, especially Pierce. This was his breakout game when he scored 11 points in the third quarter while Bryant was going on his incredible streak.

Pierce had a brilliant save of an inbound pass by Garnett with 35 seconds left. He then performed a quick-thinking toss while falling out of bounds to Rondo streaking for the basket for a layup — effectively putting the game out of reach. I may not have been the Larry Bird steal from Isiah Thomas with a dish to DJ — but it was close.

This was team basketball. No, more than that — this was Celtics basketball.

Celtics Down 1-2 in Series Need Pierce

Face it, Paul Pierce has pretty much stunk up the Lakers series so far. In three games, he’s shooting a measly 36%. How bad a percentage is that? Ray Allen, who missed all 13 shots in game 3, is shooting 34%.

Pierce may be the Celtics leading scorer in the series but he’s been struggling — big time. Even worse than not shooting well, Pierce just hasn’t been a factor in any significant phase of the game.

For the C’s to win the NBA finals against the Lakers, one player must have a huge game, two players need very good games, and the remaining starters need solid performances.

After game 2, Pierce apparently shot his mouth off about not having to go back to LA by finishing off the Lakers in 3 straight games in Boston. That was a stupid thing to say.

Not that I mind players boasting. I actually enjoy it — but they have to back it up. When you make brash predictions and do everything in your power — in other words have a monster game — and your team still loses, that’s one thing. But when you spout crap that you then don’t back up — it makes you look like an idiot.

I’m not sure what Paul Pierce is waiting for — this is, after all, the NBA finals. So far, he just hasn’t done much in this series with the Lakers. I don’t know if he’s too old, too tired, overmatched with Ron Artest guarding him, sick, or what is is — but he’s not producing when the Celts need him.

Instead of making predictions about future games, Paul Pierce should let his skill on the court speak for him tonight and during the rest of the playoffs. That is, if he still has in him. 

Tears in the Darkness by Michael Norman & Elizabeth M. Norman

 

Tears in the Darkness

The Story of the Bataan Death March and its Aftermath

By Michael Norman and Elizabeth M. Norman

Farrar, Straus and Giroux

$30.00, hard cover, 464 pages, 978-0-374-27260-9 (2009)

 

            If you're like I was before reading this book, you probably don't know much about the Bataan Death March. Oh, you might remember that it was something that happened in World War II in the Philippines. You might even recall that 76,000 Americans and Filipinos surrendered to the Japanese, the single largest defeat in American military history.

 

To label the movement a "march," as the men took to calling it,was something of a misnomer. During the first few days of walking there were so many men on the road, one bunch following closely behind another, they appeared a procession without end, prisoners as far as the eye could see, mile after mile after mile of tired filthy, bedraggled old men, heads bowed, feet dragging through the ankle-deep dust.

 

            But this book is so much more than just an historical retelling of a grim military defeat. The authors skillfully insert you into the Philippines before the battle and set the stage for everything else that later happens. They carefully show the toll of war from all perspectives: American, Japanese and Filipino. The result is an unflinching portrayal of not only the actions, but the thought processes behind the inhumane treatment of American and Filipino prisoners.  You are left with a glimpse into the psyche of the Japanese that was -- though far from morally justified, acceptable, or even remotely appropriate -- somewhat understandable according to Japanese culture.

 

            The surrender to the Japanese doesn't occur until you are approximately 150 pages into the book, and by that time you are fully immersed in the narrative of courage, starvation, dehydration, and brutality. The death march itself is filled with examples of unimaginable cruelty, beatings, torture and death. The description of the Japanese mistreatment of prisoners is not for the faint of heart.

 

            And when the prisoners have marched sixty-six miles and think that the worst is over, they find themselves subject to unspeakable conditions in the Japanese prison and labor camps. The degradation and deprivation suffered by the prisoners at these camps rivals the treatment the Jews received in Nazi Germany.

 

            At the center of this riveting novel  is a young Montana cowboy, POW Ben Steele, who became an artist after the war. Seeing the atrocities of war through Steele's eyes and his remarkably harrowing drawings (reproduced throughout the book) leaves you with a gut-wrenching sympathy for these courageous prisoners.

 

They ate rice. Rice with stones, dirt, and weevils. They steamed, stewed it, made it into soup. Sometimes they supplemented the rice with vegetables -- camotes, a poor-man's sweet potato, kangkong, a spinach-like vine commonly known in America as swamp cabbage, as well as other assorted, and often unidentifiable, leaves and weeds. Once in a while they got meat (beef or carabao), but the ration was so small -- one pound twice a month for every fifty men, or a third of an ounce per prisoner -- it appeared as nothing more than flecks floating in the dirty rice.

Starving men will eat anything, and much of the camp was picked clean of weeds and cogon grass. Army Corporal Johnny Aldrich told himself, "If cows and horses can eat grass, I can eat grass, too." He tried it raw first but couldn't get the bitter stuff down, then he took his forage to a friend in the camp kitchen, who boiled the long blades into a brown and green stew.

They ate in the open, sitting or squatting in the dirt, spooning or fingering their food with one hand and swatting away the flies with the other. On the average they would given eighteen ounces of food a day (fifteen hundred calories and thirty grams of protein), half of what a healthy adult man (under ideal conditions and doing moderate work) needed to live. For sick men -- and almost all of the Americans and Filipinos at O'Donnell suffered from something -- this prison-camp "diet" was a disaster.

The lack of nutrients aggravated and accelerated their malaria dengue fever, blackwater fever, diphtheria, and pneumonia, and left them suffering from a host of painful, and lethal, conditions: wet beriberi (with its gross edema), scurvy (which made their noses bleed and their teeth fall out), pellagra (a feeling of pins in their skin accompanied by severe diarrhea), nyctalopia (night blindness), amblyopia (day blindness or loss of vision), tinnitus (ringing in the ears), vertigo (severe disorientation), burning feet, conjunctivitis (severe itching and burning in the eyes), and gross peripheral neuropathy (their limbs went completely numb).

Far and away, however, the worst of their maladies was dysentery. So many men had come into camp with it (a third? half?) the slit trenches they dug -- and they dug them regularly -- filled within days. And like the foul holding pens of Balanga and Orion along the route of the march, Camp O'Donnell started to look and smell like a sewer. Men who were too weak to walk fouled themselves wherever they happen to be when the urge seized them.

 

            This is a war that brings out the black depravity most men hide all their lives deep, deep in their souls. It's also a book about courage, sacrifice, and the indomitable will to survive despite overwhelming odds. Some passages will leave you shaking your head wondering how some men can treat others with such unwavering contempt. Other parts will leave you rejoicing over man's capacity to endure and eventually forgive horrendous mistreatment. Ultimately, it's a first-rate description of unsung heroes who endure draconian hardships while maintaining their basic humanity. This highly recommended novel is one you'll never forget.

 

           Buy it on Amazon here.

Celtics Tie It Up In LA

The Boston Celtics were down early, took a big lead, got sloppy just before half, lost the lead, ran tied for awhile, and finally came back big at the finish to tie the series 1 – 1.

Ray Allen (32 points) was the story in the first half with seven 3–pointers (and another one in the second half for an NBA record). Rondo was the story in the second half with a triple double (19 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists).

It’s a good thing Allen and Rondo were productive. Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett had only 16 points between them, and shot an embarrassing 4 for 16. Those guys need to step up — especially KG who really hasn’t done much the first two games. In the fourth quarter, Pierce was scoreless and never even took a shot.

No way the Celts can win it all without more of a contribution from both men.

 

 

Sox Letdown After Sweep

After sweeping three games from division-leading Tampa Bay, the Sox are let down by Dice-K against the lowly Kansas City Royals.

Daisuke Matsuzaka threw 8 walks and hit a batter.

Please.

That’s no way to win a game and the Sox didn’t, losing 4–3. With that type of pitching, they were lucky it was even that close.

Celtic Believer

 

You probably think that I'm going to tell you that despite the Celtics current improbable playoff standing that I was always a true believer. That during the second half of the regular season, when the Celtics didn't seem to have the ability to beat a local high school team – losing to the lowly Nets and washed-out Wizards, I kept the faith.

 

I could even argue that I had no doubts when Boston began their playoffs against the Cleveland Cavaliers and two-time MVP King James. And that I was confident that the Celtics would overthrow his Majesty and the team with the best record in the NBA.

 

Sure, I could say all those things -- but they'd be a lie.

 

Like almost everyone I know, I thought the Celtics were toast. They were just too damned old, and too tired to play defense. Oh, I tried to cover all the bases. If you look at my earlier posts, I always hinted that they could turn it around. But the implication was clear; I – like the rest of planet – thought the season was over.

 

Though some will refuse to admit it now, Boston fans were disillusioned, disbelieving, and disgusted. In fact, New England fans believed that the Celtics would suffer the same fate as the Wicked Witch of the East. It was just a matter of time before the Celtic team understood that it was "morally, ethically, spiritually, physically, positively, absolutely, undeniably, and reliably dead."

 

No one, including the Celtics themselves, thought they had enough left in them get past the second round of the playoffs.

 

No one except for my son, Aaron.

 

After the Celtics went even with the Cavaliers (2 - 2), Aaron correctly predicted the outcome of the remaining games in the series. Despite the overwhelming evidence that their season was over, my son never lost faith.

 

At nearly 30 years old, he continues to wear Celtic jerseys, Celtic hats, Celtic sneakers, Celtic shorts, Celtic sweatpants, Celtic jackets, and every other Celtic product available. He wears the current jerseys and the throw-back shirts.

 

He lives in Florida now and works with schizophrenics. I can picture him now, when everyone else thought Boston's season was over, wearing his Celtic garb to work and explaining to his patients that Boston would turn it around in the post season. I imagine the schizophrenics nodding in agreement -- just as they might if you told them that the sky was green or that the Easter Bunny was real.

 

Everyone else he spoke to about his absolute belief in the Celtic comeback probably thought he was the one who was schizophrenic. I certainly took little stock in his uber-fan rantings.

 

But my son had drunk the Kool-Aid of Celtic lore, and it is entirely my fault.

 

When he was a kid and I was closer to his current age, the Celtics had me utterly captivated. This was the time of Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish. A few years earlier, I was going to school in Boston and went to games whenever I could.

 

How many times did I watch in wonder as Boston dueled with the Lakers – Magic, Kareem and company? How often did I make my first born son stay up late to watch the games, or sit beside me on Sunday afternoons while I extolled the virtues of the hard-working men in green against the flashy showstoppers in LA?

 

So he learned that all Boston patriotism from me. He became a Celtic fanatic because I showed him the way. Now, all these years later, when my fervor has waned, his has only intensified. This year, when I joined the chorus of nonbelievers, he held steady.

 

In the last few days, with Boston up 3-0 against the Magic, he has begun tweaking my lack of faith. He has every right to do so. He is supremely confident that Boston will win another championship banner this year to hang from the rafters. I hope that he's right.

 

I want the Celtics to prove that they are unstoppable. Not for me, not for all those other doubting fans and critics who counted them out in the post-season, not even for the team members who admitted only to themselves that the chemistry, the talent, the energy, the stamina, and the will to dominate seemed to have slipped away from the team.

 

No, I want the Boston Celtics to win another championship not for those who had given up on the team – I want them to win it for the one person who never waivered in his faith.

 

Win it for Aaron.

 

 

 

Celtics Dethrone King James -- Again

Poor Lebron James. He’s been the MVP twice, his team had the best record in the NBA this year, and he filled the Cleveland fans with expectations of a Championship. All they had to do was keep winning in the post season and claim the ultimate prize.

Too bad the Boston Celtics had other ideas.

In a stunning loss, the Celtics ended Lebron James’ season with a 94–85 victory.

Two time MVP and zero-time NBA champion (and now free agent) Lebron James goes home and tries to figure out what went wrong and where he goes from here.

And the Celtics go on to play the Orlando Magic on Sunday.

 

 

False Convictions by Tim Green -- Reviewed

 

False Convictions

By Tim Green

Grand Central Publishing

$25.99, hard cover, 373 pages, 978-0-446-40152-4 (2010)

 

            The author of this book, Tim Green, is a practicing attorney and former NFL defensive end living in New York. That sounds like an interesting combination. Since he has also written more than a dozen novels, when I was offered the opportunity to review this book, I jumped at the chance.

 

The novel begins with a deceptively simple plot. Twenty years ago, a black man was convicted of murdering a pretty white college student and now a well-known attorney is attempting to prove him innocent. Casey Jordan is an ambitious lawyer who runs a legal clinic for underprivileged women. She is contacted by billionaire philanthropist Robert Graham to participate in his charity program that attempts to free wrongfully convicted people, called Project Freedom. In exchange for her help, Graham agrees to donate $1,000,000 to her clinic.

 

            The case Graham wants Jordan to look into is that of Dwayne Hubbard who vehemently claims his innocence. In her interview with Hubbard, Hubbard describes the victim this way:

 

"The dead girl?" Hubbard asked, raising an eyebrow. "I knew who she was. Everyone did. The queen bee of the East Sider's. Country club kids. Not that her family belonged -- the dad flipped burgers at Mickey D's. You wanted to wipe that smile off her face and watch her freckles turned purple? All you had to do was sing the big Mac song: 'Two all beef patties special sauce lettuce cheese pickles onions on a sesame seed bun.' Rich boys didn't care about that, though. She was VIP. Tall and blonde and built for speed. Dude had to have a fat roll of cash and a sweet ride before he even thought about running with her."

 

Hubbard claims that in addition to him being innocent, he was also attacked by some white man during the time of the crime and stabbed one of them with a knife. Later analysis of the DNA on Hubbard's knife was found to match the victim's blood type. However, the blood was never fully tested against the DNA of the victim, and when Casey Jordan gets involved in the case and goes to the warehouse where evidence is kept, Hubbard's file is mysteriously missing.

 

            Once Jordan is finally able to secure the evidence she needs, it appears that nearly everyone involved in this case has something to hide. The more that she investigates this case, the more cover ups Jordan encounters. She is soon teamed up with a TV news journalist, Jake Carlson, who wants to interview Robert Graham for an article about the Freedom Project. She also receives help from Marty Barrone, an inexperienced local lawyer who helps her with the local politics.

 

            What I liked about this book was that there were plenty of plot twists. What started out as a straightforward attempt to free a wrongly convicted prisoner quickly turns into a labyrinth of lies and deceit. Although I never quite connected with the lead characters in the book, the plot surprises make this a quick and entertaining read.

 

Buy it on Amazon here.

 

 

Republicans Running For Governor Take Off Gloves

Bruce Poliquin is hoping that he can be the next Maine governor. Right now, Les Otten is standing in his way. So Poliquin lost the gloves and came out swinging with the campaign’s first negative ad: “Les Otten, Less jobs.”

See it here.

Otten is complaining that the ad is inaccurate. That may be so, but welcome to politics Mr. Otten. If all political ads had to be factually accurate, then there wouldn’t be any.

Iron Man 2 Reviewed

I saw Iron Man 2 over the weekend. I know that it did great at the box office, but I was disappointed. 

I thought it was very average. Basically pompous rich guy acknowledges to the world that he’s Iron Man, and then refuses to share the technology with anyone saying that it’s years away from anyone else discovering it.

Oops.

At the racetrack, narcissistic Tony Start kicks his driver out of the racing car just before the race so he can drive instead and show the world some more of his endless ego. Stark gets his butt kicked but manages to turn into Iron Man and defeat deranged Mickey Rourke (bad guy). One bad guy helps another bad guy and it’s soon time for a big finale with lots of Iron Mans blasting each other and everything in sight.

Good guy wins.

Zzzzz.

The plot for this one is pretty much the same as the original Iron Man — only more machines against Iron Man, who teams up with a buddy. Much of the movie seems to center around Samuel Jackson and Scarlett Johansson and what the producers want to do in the next Iron Man movie. I’d prefer they make this one better instead of giving hints about Iron Man 3.

The acting was good, special effects convincing, destruction level at anticipated levels. But the story itself held few surprises — if you’ve seen the trailer, you’ve seen the movie.

Bottom line: mildly entertaining.

I’d advise saving the $9.00 and renting it in a few months.

Celtics and Red Sox Come Storming Back

Nice to see the Celtics pick themselves up after the embarrassing loss in Game 3. Rondo did it all yesterday.

Even the Red Sox managed to save a game in the three game series with the Yankees. I’m glad NY didn’t sweep but sure would have liked to see a little more production from Boston in the first two games.

Hey, the C’s are still alive and the baseball season has a long way to go….

                  

Sox And Celtics Turn It Around

After my thumping of the poor performance of the Red Sox and Boston Celtics in this blog recently, they’ve turned it around.

The Sox found their offense in a 17 – 8 win over the LA Angels. The Celtics played with concentration, defense and intensity in their 104 – 86 beating of the Cavaliers.

Sweet.

               

Celtics Set To Play Game 2 Against Cavs?

It seems pretty clear that Boston either didn’t have the ability to put Cleveland away, or they simply choked in Game 1. How else do you explain that they led by 11 at the half, and the Cavs outscoring the Celts 22–15 in the final quarter.

Big game tonight. Face it, if the C’s go down 0–2, this series is over.

Speaking of choking, can the Sox stink it up any worse?

Saturday, Dice-K gets thumped after having half of last year and all the pre-season to get himself straightened out. Clearly, he has a long way to go.

And yesterday the Sox get swept by the Orioles. The Orioles, are you kidding me? Baltimore is currently baseball’s worst team and they sweep the Red Sox?

And that picture in the paper today of Papelbon hiding his face — well, that says it all doesn’t it?

I’d ask how low Boston can go — but I’m afraid in the next week or so we may find out. After all, the Yankees are on their way.

I’d hate to see the Red Sox at the bottom of the standings, but they’re lost right now. It’s not often easy to be a Sox fan.

 

 

Knee Surgery

I’m having arthroscopic knee surgery on Wednesday and had a pre-op meeting on Friday. At the meeting, they asked me to come to the surgery on Wednesday with a Living Will.

That seems a bit overkill, um, overboard. But better safe than sorry.