AIG Bonuses and Video of People and Dogs

So, is anyone else kind of aggravated that these executives from AIG got $165 million in bonuses?

These are the same people who were directly or indirectly responsible for putting their company in a mess, but they get millions in bonuses. So our taxpayer money goes to a bunch of guys who screwed up.

That would be like me doing something at the News-Herald that causes the owners to lose a lot of money and then go to the federal government to ask for funding. So after getting free money, they decided to give me a bonus.And then there’s the story about another company that received a bailout giving Sheryl Crow a lot of money to come and sing for them. Of all the news outlets to break this story, it was TMZ.com.

Someone needs to sit down and come up with some better guidelines before any additional bailout money is given out, like limit what these companies can do with their bailout cash. In other words, make sure they don’t give the money to executives or stars who already have enough money to survive.
* * *

I came across a story that just proves there are some sick and stupid people out there. An Indiana woman was charged with two felony counts of bestiality. Michelle Owen was charged after she alerted police to a computer where she believed her ex was downloading child pornography. So the police were able to search it, but they didn’t find any child pornography.

Instead, they found two videos in which Owen was seen engaging in sexual activity with a dog. You can google her name to read all the details I can’t print here.

Forget about why in the world you would decide to let a dog lick your private area. Why would you tape it? How many times do we read about criminals who are doing something illegal and tape it? This just doesn’t apply to your everyday moron bank robber, celebrity and star athlete who only care about “making it rain” and their next endorsement deal. In this digital age, when everyone has a cell phone camera, you never know who is going to make a copy of your film or steal it.

And OK, so you film yourself engaging in sexual activity with a dog, tape it and it is on your computer. Wouldn’t you remember not to allow the police check that computer? And Owen’s ex is also allegedly on this videotape, and they have a child together. It is no wonder that there are so many stupid people running around who don’t know right from wrong. Their parents can’t raise them or teach them because they are too busy drinking and filming themselves with Lassie.

So a lesson to stupid criminals out there: Stop filming yourselves engaging in illegal activity. Or don’t, because it gives me something to write about, and it puts money in my pocket. So go ahead, film yourself robbing a bank or performing sexual acts or beating someone up. Better yet, while you are taping such crimes, you should Twitter them so we know for sure that it is you.

Speaking of Twitter, yes I am on it. And yes, you should follow me. But people don’t have to update it every time they decide to go to the bathroom. This is just another example about why there is no privacy anymore in this world. Everywhere you go, there are cameras watching. And where they aren’t watching, people are posting that they are “loving American Idol tonight.”

(Chuck Salvatore is a reporter for the Southwest News-Herald. He may be reached at (773) 476-4800, ext 241, at chucksalvatore@hotmail.com or at chucksalvatore.blogspot.com. Also, don’t forget to catch him at 8 a.m. every Thursday with Ray Hanania for his entertainment report, his sports reports from noon to 1 p.m. every Thursday on the Linda P Show, and from 2 to 3 p.m. every Friday on the Out’N’About show with Ron and Joe — all on WJJG 1530 AM.)

And The Winners Were.....The Viewers

So being the new entertainment reporter for Radio Chicagoland, I thought I would comment on Hollywood’s biggest night: The Oscars!

Before I get into it, I should mention one thing: I didn’t watch the entire show. I went to the Blackhawks game that night, and since I don’t have TiVo, I didn’t tape it. But I have pretty much seen everything, thanks to the wonderful world of YouTube.

The opening number was funny. Actually, I didn’t know what to expect with Hugh Jackman hosting. Bringing in Ann Hathaway was OK; the whole number was entertaining, but the musical part later on was pretty stupid. I am not a big fan of musicals, and I don’t like Beyonce.

I also don’t like Ben Stiller, but his mocking of Joaquin Phoenix was amusing. I don’t get the whole Phoenix thing, and his appearance with David Lettermen: Was it fake, or is he really that screwed up? I will be honest: There are awards I don’t really care about, even if the industry insiders do, such as best sound editing, best original score, sound mixing and animated short film. This is the time of the show when I start to flip over to SportsCenter and see what they are showing. Thankfully, the president of the Academy did not give his big long boring speech; he just stood up and waved.

I did like how they handed out the Best Supporting Actress and Actor and Best Actor and Actress awards, with former winners coming out and giving a little speech. It added just a little bit of excitement to the show having former winners coming out and saying some nice things about the nominees, although some of them were a little more heartfelt than others.I did not see the big winner “Slumdog Millionaire,” but I do want to. I didn’t realize that Kate Winslet was nominated six times and had never won; I just assumed she had won for “Titanic.” So I was pleased she won. She is a good actress, and, surprisingly, has been in a few movies I have liked.

I hate Sean Penn. He has been in some good movies, but is a goof. There is a time and a place for him to talk all his political jargon, but the Academy Awards is not it. It has nothing to do with if I agree with him or not. I hate when any actor does this, he just happens to do it the most. Nice speech. His wife, actress Robin Wright Penn, was in tears, but in all his rambling he forgot or didn’t care to thank her.

Everyone and their brother knew Heath Ledger was going to win for best supporting actor. It was nice to see his family up there accepting the award. It was an unbelievable performance in a great movie. But if they were going to nominate Ledger and have him win (which he really deserved), why didn’t they nominate director Chris Nolan for writing the screenplay or for direction? The Academy has a thing against action and comic book movies.

I have not seen the movie Penelope Cruz won for, nor have I seen anything she has made, as far as I remember. So I don’t care one way or another that she won. But she is hot, and that’s all that matters.

It was one of the more entertaining Oscars I have seen in awhile. Thanks to YouTube, I saw everything that I missed, at least I think. Of course, it was still long and parts were very boring, but I was entertained.Oh and I don’t care about the dressed lists.

(Chuck Salvatore is a reporter for the Southwest News-Herald. He may be reached at (773) 476-4800 ext. 241; at chucksalvatore@hotmail.com; or at chucksalvatore.blogspot.com. Also, don’t forget to catch him with the sports report every Thursday on the Linda Padgurskis show from noon to 1 p.m. and “The Out-N-About Talk Show with Ron and Joe, on Fridays from 2 to 3 p.m., both on WJJG 1530 AM. Chuck may also be heard every Thursday on Radio Chicagoland with Ray Hanania with the Entertainment Report. He will guest host on Tuesday, March 3, from 8 to 9:30 p.m.