When Lynn Jackenheimer didn’t return to her home in Ohio from a Fourth of July trip to North Carolina her family and friends sprang into action. They organized searches, printed posters and even had shirts made with her image. She had been vacationing on the Outer Banks with her two children and her boyfriend Nate Summerfield, who was the father of her younger child.
Athletes train their whole lives to try to make it to the Olympics for the chance at earning gold. They give up many of the other activities that young men and women consider to be a normal part of growing up and they devote countless hours to their craft and hope for an opportunity to bring a medal home. Yet, for some who come to the Olympics from countries torn by war, beset by poverty or ruled by oppressive regimes, the Olympics present an opportunity that has nothing to do with athletic achievement.
I’ll admit it — I have a problem. I’m addicted to the Olympics.
Polygraph examinations, warrantless searches and the NCAA’s penalties against the Penn State football program all have something in common. They’re all drastically changed when the party to be penalized has given its consent.
Having spent last week simultaneously on vacation and under the weather, I found myself watching a lot more television than I normally would. I was surprised by several things that I saw, including the proliferation of daytime “court” programs (I pined for Judge Wapner), the fact that during some hours the commercials relating to the 2012 Presidential election outnumber all others combined and the incredible number of ads from national law firms asking people to call and opt in to class action settlements involving mesothelioma, post-surgical dialysis and the use of certain medical equipment during surgeries.
Yesterday, closing arguments were held in the criminal trial of former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. The trial, which took significantly less time than the attorneys had originally projected that it would, ended without the former coach testifying, a move that was certainly risky, but likely necessary due to several prior statements by Sandusky that were bizarre, if not downright incriminating.
Facebook is a wonderful way to share information and stay in touch. As a result of Facebook, I know more about the lives of some of my high school and college friends than I do about my neighbors. (And I haven’t seen some of those friends since I graduated from high school 19 years ago.) At the same time, however, Facebook is a treasure trove of misattributed quotes, misleading statistics and fanciful news stories.
On Tuesday and Wednesday of this week, the jury was seated in Centre County, Pa., in the sexual assault trial of former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. The makeup of the jury raised eyebrows not only in and around State College but throughout the nation. The process of jury selection is far from a science, however.