When you got nothing to say, how 'bout non-stories?

Because those I have found a few of lately.

One of them came through my Twitter feed- "Adam Vinitieri gets drug tested after 53-yd field goal."   So, yeah, a 50+ yard FG is big enough to warrant an extra 1 point in many fantasy leagues.  Adam has hit 23 out of 41 chances in regular season games, which is 56%- which would have been double the league average in 1970, but is almost 10% lower than what the league managed last season.  So what's the big deal?  Here's where punter Pat McAfee comes in.

Pat McAfee        ✔ @PatMcAfeeShow

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When u're closer to 60 than 20 & bang a 53 yarder 3/4 of the way up the upright..This type of thing is expected #GOAT

11:30 AM - 5 Jan 2015

So now the story goes up looking like the NFL said, "Wow, that old man hit a field goal that long at HIS age?  Let's give him a "random" drug test!"  And if Peyton Manning were still in Indy, he might reprise his famous comments about Vinitieri's predecessor, Mike Vanderjagt, to McAfee:

 "The sad thing is, he's a good kicker. He's a good kicker, but he's an idiot."

  My next non-story comes to us from (OMG) FoxNews.  I know, I know, being a conservative and a Christian, I am supposed to be brainwashed into believing everything that FoxNews or Rush Limbaugh says...  but one of today's front pagers was about a poor man from New Mexico who was SURE he had a winning ticket- until he had it scanned.  And the evil state of New Mexico refused to do anything about it.  They said it was a misprint- the NERVE of them!  At least, until you actually LOOK at the ticket:

The object of the game is, a "1" equals a win.  And the fold mark is pretty obvious.  The lottery scolded the printer for poor quality, but all they were obligated beyond that was to refund the price of the ticket.


Next non-story takes place not surprisingly on FB.  A friend of Al Penwasser's (imagine that) posted a link about Alabama passing a law against Shiara Law, and that Muslims were a tad upset with it.  Moseying down the comments, all of them pretty much on topic until... up pops a troll:


 It's time we left old testament stories about how to live and how to treat women, etc behind. Muslims got their savagery ftom old testament scriptures, which they took for their own.

If you want to STOP the vile Islamic religion, then stand up and admit that the old testament scriptures are a bunch of damn lies made up to justify evils with superstitious beliefs. 

Biblical Marriage - Rape Your Way In, Stone Your way out. 


Which is where I stepped in.  "Yeah,", I said.  "That'll do it."  This precipitated a three-video attack that alleged the evil of the Bible, and asserted that I was wrong for believing in a "bronze age sky-god" and that "Solomon would be in heaven with his 900 concubines"... oh, and-

By the way, how come Thou shalt not rape, take sex slaves and commit incest aren't in the ten commandments? 


By this time, I tired of pulling the wings off half-witted flies:


... you aren't really bright enough to bother with explaining all the ways you are wrong, and Ive bagged my troll quota for the week...


After which, another commenter pretty well summed up the contribution of Mr. Troll to the post:

And here folks we have a perfect example of how a legitimate and open discussion disintegrates into nothingness.

Which brings me to mind that I've been sitting on a couple items for MWN I keep forgetting since they're on e-mail.  First, a missive from one Valerie Williams at Paul Frederick:

Hello!

My name is Valerie Williams and I'm the community engagement coordinator at Paul Fredrick. Since the launch of our new winter collection, we haven't been able to stop talking about our favorite winter and holiday fashion trends.
With the holiday season in full swing, there are lots of fun and festive parties to attend. This means not only finding the perfect outfit for ourselves, but for the men in our lives too! Given your sense of fashion, I'd love to have your input for our winter-themed "Sharp Dressed Man" project. If you're interested please let me know, I'd love to send you the details!


Sincerely,
Valerie Williams
Community Engagement Coordinator
Paul Fredrick

Typical Paul Frederick model picture

Typical Chris Martin picture

The other one is more of a "the more things change" deal.  I get a daily e-mail from "One Hundred Years Ago Today", and on New Years Day, there was a story that sounds a LOT like today...


Far from the front: In Broken Hill, New South Wales, Australia, two men later identified as muslims from British India (now Pakistan) shoot dead four people and wound seven more, before being killed by police and military officers ("The Battle of Broken HIll"). Flying the Ottoman flag, the two former camel-drivers at Broken Hill open fire on a train carrying picnickers celebrating the New Year holiday.


Yep.  Muslims HAVE changed a lot in 100 years.  I wonder if we just edited the Old Testament...