We can never forget that our law enforcement put their lives on the line every day. Today we had another reminder after two police officers were killed and a third injured. Here are portions of the story from the NY Times.
The call came in late on Wednesday night, the authorities said. The police were needed at a house in suburban Bristol, Conn., to investigate a possible domestic dispute.
When three Bristol police officers arrived, they were met by a man with a gun, the authorities said. Shots were fired, and Sgt. Dustin Demonte, 35, and Officer Alex Hamzy, 34, were killed in what officials are describing as an apparent ambush.
The suspected gunman, Nicholas Brutcher, 35, was also shot and killed at the scene, the Connecticut State Police said. Another police officer, Alec Iurato, 26, suffered a severe gunshot wound that required surgery, and the suspect’s brother, Nathan Brutcher, 32, was also wounded.
On Thursday, as flags across Connecticut were lowered to half-staff and members of the state’s law-enforcement agencies mourned their slain colleagues, the State Police were investigating what might have led Nicholas Brutcher to open fire on three officers of the law.
It seems the Larry Nassar case will be impacting the governance of Michigan State University for many years to come. Today it cost MSU President Samuel Stanley his job only three years after he was chosen to lead MSU out of the Nassar mess. Stanley has recently received support from the student governance and the faculty senate, while the board of trustees has received no confidence votes from the same groups. Per the Detroit News,
Michigan State University President Samuel Stanley announced his resignation on Thursday, saying he has “lost confidence” in the East Lansing school’s board of trustees.
In a video posted Thursday on YouTube, Stanley said that he gave his contractually required 90-day notice of resignation to MSU’s Board of Trustees.His last day will be Jan. 11.
“I know very well from the outpouring of support that I have had from students, staff, faculty, shared governance, alumni donors, affinity groups and others, that many of you will be profoundly disappointed in my decision,” Stanley said.
But he said he has lost confidence in the board, like the MSU Faculty Senate and Associated Students of MSU, and he “could not, in good conscience, continue to serve this board.”
The culture at MSU has gotten to the point where qualified candidates for the presidency will no longer want the position and anyone who wants the position is not the right person for the job.
This should not be a surprise to anyone who has followed the policies of Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savitt, who has instructed his staff to plead down felony charges that were a result of a routine traffic stop. Per the Detroit News,
Emoni Bates, a one-time high-school basketball phenom in Ypsilanti, has been reinstated to his hometown Eastern Michigan basketball team by the university following his arrest on felony gun charges last month.
Bates is pleading down to a misdemeanor charge, his lawyer confirmed Thursday, and EMU subsequently confirmed his updated status with the team. Bates returned to practice Thursday afternoon, a school official said, with the exhibition season set to get under way in two weeks.
Two years ago, I said in this blog that Emoni Bates was the best high school basketball player I had ever witnessed when he was still playing at Ypsilanti Lincoln High School. Then the pandemic hit and the season was cancelled.
The next year his father started a prep school for Emoni which was strictly to enhance father and son’s career. A year later, Bates opted out of his senior year in high school and was part of a highly regarded recruiting class at Memphis State University, where he was competing with other five-star recruits, even though he was only 17 years old. He was also playing for an all-star coaching staff made up of former NBA greats Penny Hardaway, Rasheed Wallace, and Larry Brown, who is the only coach in history to coach an Olympic Gold Medal Team, an NBA championship team and an NCAA championship team. Let us just say, that all the accolades that Bates received prior to his arrival at Memphis, including his being on the cover of Sports Illustrated, meant absolutely nothing to Hardaway, Wallace, Brown and the other four and five-star recruits Bates was competing with for playing time.
In watching some of Bates games last year, it was clear that he was not physically or emotionally ready for the spotlight he was under. His season was a bust and he transferred to Eastern Michigan University, where he will be playing in an arena that he routinely packed as a high school player at Lincoln High School. Here is hoping lots of lessons have been learned and Bates can begin his development as a young adult and a talented basketball player. He will not be getting another chance if he is arrested again.
To no one’s surprise, the House Select Committee voted to subpoena former president Trump today. The committee wants him to testify under oath about his involvement in the January 6 insurrection. The committee is doing the right thing even though there is no way that Trump will ever appear before the committee because he will tie the subpoena up in the courts for months and months to come. The committee has made their case. It is time to wrap up their report and get it into the hands of the public so voters can make informed decisions when choosing the next presidential candidate of the Republican Party.
Although I have not watched a lot of the MLB playoffs this year, I have seen some of it. It is clear to me, that the teams in the playoffs have gotten there because they have earned it through great defense, timely hitting, and outstanding pitching. Some of the defensive plays I have seen have been outstanding, especially the play by Guardian third baseman Jose Ramirez in the 12th inning of a 0-0 game with the Tampa Bay Rays and the two plays by Dansby Swanson and Austin Riley of the Atlanta Braves. See my Video of the Day.
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Elections Matter. Pray for peace and tolerance. What are you doing to stop the violence and mass killings?
Quote of the Day: I cannot, in good conscience, continue to serve this board.” MSU President Samuel Stanley.
Orchid of the Day: To the family and friends of the Bristol, CT police officers, Sgt. Dustin Demonte, 35, and Officer Alex Hamzy, 34, who were killed yesterday and Alec Iurato, 26, suffered a severe gunshot wound that required surgery
Onion of the Day: MSU Board of Trustees
Question of the Day: Will the culture at MSU deter the most qualified candidates from seeking the presidency of the university?
Video/Image of the Day: