COSBY NOT FOUND GUILTY
 Victory! (Kinda sorta.)
(Photo by Bastiaan Slabbers/
NurPhoto via Getty Images)
ED GAUTHIER
Judge Steven O'Neill, presiding over the Bill Cosby sexual assault trial, yesterday declared a mistrial.
The decision came after jurors reported being deadlocked (6 to 6) after almost a week of deliberation, being officially logged in for over 50 hours.
Predictably the losing prosecution side has stated that they wish to retry Cosby yet again, which would be an extremely bad move. Such a risky gambit always looks very double jeopardy-ish, since one can't be tried twice for the same crime.
So any further action will now look like plain harassment. Whatever happens, the fact is now that the comedian will most likely never be given even one day of any jail sentence from any trial.
The jury declared that they were "hopelessly deadlocked" about whether the comedian drugged and molested Andrea Constand in 2004. Yes, we get the pun, and it was indeed an attempted con on the stand.
Not being found guilty prompted the comedian's spokesman to claim that "Mr. Cosby's power is back."
Actually, never previously being found guilty of anything, he never lost any power, and if anything has only gained more.
The veteran sitcom star has even talked about producing further projects in showbiz.
Meanwhile, the prosecution - or should we say the seemingly endless persecution - has been damaged beyond any repair.
Just like many other instances of famous black men who have dated many white women - Kobie Bryant, Tiger Woods, Mike Tyson, etc., this particular anti-celebrity angle is obviously racist. Sure, it doesn't take any long investigation to conclude they all may have been "cheating" in one sense or the other, but one shouldn't be thrown in jail for that.
The headline hysteria-raised public apparently needs to be reminded every once in awhile that trying to score and mate with a woman is hardly the same as trying to stalk and murder a woman. Serial daters are not serial killers.
If such were the case, trying to get legal age woman intoxicated enough to have sex would result in most men in the entire country being tossed into the local lockup.
But getting back to the Cosby scenario in particular, the usual "dozens of other women appearing from out of the woodwork" did nothing to injure his reputation, either. They were all by definition lesser possible cases, while the main "wronged woman" they lined up behind was, in the end, not victorious. Which ergo always makes their already tenuous grasp so flimsy that it vanishes.
It is also worth noting that the same type of "woodwork" women also regularly appear during the trials of the likes of the afore-mentioned celebs. Once these accusing females and their lawyers smell blood - i.e. money - the ranks of the too-far-after-the-incident crowd starts to swell.
It's like a lottery for losers - they know that they don't win if they don't play.
Although Cosby jurors were instructed to focus mainly on the allegations by Constand, many lawyers in recent similar cases in the last few decades have been allowing the old "career criminal" ploy to rear its ugly head.
For instance, supposedly juries are never urged to base a current burglary trial of some guy based on his past, especially when it includes previous burglaries. Yet today's lawyers and judges (and even the press) seem to oddly have no problem using that same old "career criminal" move to smear the reputation of many celebrities.
And now all sleezy gold-diggers are "surviving victims," huh? Well, good luck with that, politically correct fans. The loss of putting Cosby in the can may well set off feelings of hopelessness among accusing women worldwide, and rightly so.
Anyone going to court to attack someone else has to show evidence, not emotions.
This man has survived consistent public accusations by many women over many years, which means he is innocent, not "slippery" or "teflon," etc. Other baseless gold-diggers might reason, what chance do they have? Hopefully none, anymore.
Even if this Cosby case, so botched up by the prosecution, goes to another trial yet again, smart lawyers frankly don't expect that any further proceedings will end much differently.
Meanwhile, it was a hasty decision by the prosecutor to pronounce instantly that they planned to retry the case. Any decision to do so, where the jury is deadlocked, is a tough call to make, and should have been weighed carefully.
But instead the prosecutor announced literally the moment the jury filed out of the courtroom that they would retry it, which is ridiculous. As if he already knew he wasn't going to win this time around.
It is also worth noting that a close friend of Constand admitted to overhearing some statements of her saying that "it might be good to set up someone rich or famous."
That's pretty much of a credibility-crusher right there, folks. That kind of truth can be quite deadly to any kind of "revenge trial" the prosecution might be fantasizing about for the future.
So if anything further in this farce is even attempted, it will be virtually impossible to pick an unbiased jury, anyway. And even if a jury was somehow chosen, the resulting trial disaster would go far beyond mere "reasonable doubt," to say the least.
It's pretty rare to do a whole new trial after a hung jury. It's also very tough for the government to justify such vast expenditures just because things didn't go their way.
The case has gotten way too old, and it mainly consists of "he said - she said" stuff, so there's no forensic evidence or anything similar.
Most any such court conflicts that have been tried several times usually tend to be murder cases only.
And as has been well established, this most certainly is not one of those.
Then why has so much time, energy and money been wasted on this?
Must be a slow news decade.
TRUMP, 'YOU'RE HIRED!'
 Of course, this big building buff might see
the White House as just another fixer-upper.
ED GAUTHIER
Bashers of The Donald's presidential campaign have finally been Trumped.
Real estate mogul and The Apprentice reality TV star Donald Trump first announced his bid for president on June 16, 2015. Since that time, so-called political pundits had predicted his chances of beating his opponent Hillary Clinton to be very slim.
But when Election Day rolled around two days ago, he was elected as the 45th president of the United States.
He also won the office strictly via the process of the Electoral College without needing to dominate the popular vote. Despite claims to the contrary, Trump was not the first winner to do so. About half a dozen have accomplished this feat.
Most naysayers of Trump's political career have pointed out that he is one of the rare candidates who ever ran for the country's highest office without first having an extensive background in either politics, the military or the legal profession. However, many other people see not being a career politician, war-mongering military officer or sneaky legal eagle type as being an actual advantage.
While still a candidate, Trump declared himself to be an America Firster, and said he would have a wall built to reinforce the U.S.-Mexico border. Denouncing U.S. foreign policy as a whole, mainly the way it has been practiced by both parties over the past quarter century, he further vowed to dissolve some major U.S. trade agreements.
Trump has also indicated that he wants to pursue a tougher line with China but a softer line with Russia.
However, we know where presidential promises by candidates usually end up - out the window the moment they get elected.
So now we'll just have to sit back and see what happens.
What could go wrong?
PROP TAX LOOP HACKS
 What your family gave you, the tax man can still take away.
ED GAUTHIER
First let's dispose of the disclaimer: I'm not a licensed or bonded financial adviser, real estate agent, contractor, or even lawyer. Sure, I've taken classes in most of that stuff, but what I did academically years ago really doesn't count. What happened in college, stays in college.
Anyway, the following property tax loophole info goes out to the ancient majority, meaning those having a few extra bucks who will soon be approaching retirement (and beyond) and may have a few concerns about their future and/or might be puzzled as to why certain taxes seem to be eating up their money like a ravenous devil dog.
(Sorry, young people, but unless there turns out to be any social security or other significant chunks of money in your future, you're in the vast minority here. You can hang around with the grownups, but no doubt you'll get bored and start missing your little portable phone thingies.)
Each year tangible "real property" which includes houses, cars and boats are arbitrarily tax appraised, and based on that, homeowners must likewise pay said tax annually. (Some areas even require this every half year.)
Early last century, it started out being based only on what was originally paid for the property, but that didn't last too long after local governments got tired of demanding what seemed like only 10 bucks per year, if you get my drift.
Having a great grandparent will you a long since paid off house very much irritates most council members, especially those who are more firmly than usual in the pockets of greedy land speculators.
Your comfortable old rambling ranch house makes those future mall developers - and their bulldozer drivers - very uncomfortable indeed.
The result is having your 401K type life savings account, monthly social security funds, checking account and savings account drained in an ultimately failing effort to pay this tax, until you eventually also lose said house, car and boat, etc., anyway.
As it is in the world of betting, the odds are always tilted in favor of the gambling house, not the gambler.
However, stocks and bonds are not considered to be "real property," so keep any investment savings in safe stocks and bonds.
Therefore do not buy said house, car or boat. Instead just rent a modest property using social security money only. Because renters cannot be property taxed and expected to pay for resulting bills. Only their property-owning landlords are required to do so.
And if you cash out your 401K type savings after retirement, put it into a Roth IRA or regular savings account in your bank, which also cannot be property taxed.
Until far better property tax laws are put in place of the current scam system we have now, we're forced play a little dirty ourselves, thus putting far less money into governmental and real estate company coffers. Well, they showed no mercy to us, so why should we give them a break?
The above may sound like fairly basic financial common sense. But you'd be surprised at how many people have very little clue about these things, nor do they have any particularly strong desire to find out such facts.
So they wind up being scalped on an annual (or semi-annual) basis. Then later on they wonder what the heck happened to their poor beat-up wallet.
Then they also blame media types like me for not writing about it in a column first, to warn them ahead of time. Well, those who needed said warning have now been warned. So mission accomplished.
Now gentlemen, re-start your financial engines!
THE CONQUEROR CURSE
Many people from the same film dying off?
Not really that common.
ED GAUTHIER
The only thing this movie conquered was its own cast and crew.
The Conqueror, which was released 60 years ago today, was a mediocre performing CinemaScope film released in 1956 (but was two years in the making). It was produced by Howard Hughes, directed by Dick Powell, and written by Oscar Millard.
It starred John Wayne as the Mongol conqueror Genghis Khan (yes, you read that correctly) and co-starred Susan Hayward, Agnes Moorehead, and Pedro Armendáriz.
During the Korean war era, several above ground atomic tests were run at the Yucca Flats government-run testing area in Nevada from 1951–1953. That included 11 tests specifically in 1953 under the name “Operation Upshot-Knothole.” Principal photography of the movie was shot from May-August of 1954 in Snow Canyon State Park, located 11 miles (18 km) northwest of St. George, Utah. Snow Canyon is 137 miles (220 km) downwind of Yucca Flats.
Nuke tests run in 1953, and filming in the same area the very next year? Wow, the "upshot" of this "knothole" was that they were not only dosed with radiation, they were dosed with some very fresh radiation!
Making matters worse, after the cast and crew spent many difficult weeks at the site, Hughes also shipped 60 tons of that same radiated dirt to a Hollywood back lot in order to match the Nevada-Utah terrain and lend more realism to studio re-shoots.
So they were exposed to the stuff both on location and later at the studio. (Because, you know, California dirt could never look the same as dirt from another state. Huh?!) While the filmmakers had heard about the nuclear tests, the federal government assured them and local residents alike that the tests caused no hazard whatsoever to public health.
The first shoe to drop was owned by Powell, with a whole shoe store to follow. He died of brain cancer in January 1963, seven years after the film's release.
Armendáriz was diagnosed with kidney cancer in 1960, and after learning of his condition being terminal, he shot himself.
Hayward, Wayne, and Moorehead also all died of cancer in the 1970s. Hoyt died of lung cancer in 1991.
Skeptics of "the Conqueror cancer curse" position point to other factors, such as the wide use of tobacco among the cast and crew. They note that Wayne and Moorehead in particular were heavy smokers. Wayne said he thought his lung cancer to have been the result of his several-packs-a-day cigarette habit, but he ultimately died of stomach cancer.
But since cigarette smoking was much more widespread back in the day, why has no other collection of film stars or crew from any other film in history ever shown cancer rates even close to those who worked on The Conqueror?
The cast and crew totaled 220 people. As ascertained by People magazine (by the end of 1980), already 91 of them had developed some form of cancer, and 46 had died of the disease. Several of Wayne and Hayward's relatives also had cancer scares after visiting the set. Michael Wayne died in 2003 of cancer, after visiting his father on the set at age 22. His brother Patrick had a benign tumor removed from his chest, and Hayward's son Tim Barker had a benign tumor removed from his mouth.
Naysayers claim those are close to average stats, but also neglect to mention such major factors as the following: The extreme eagerness of the state of Nevada to promote filming in their area, assuring everyone with a Hollywood checkbook that things couldn't be safer. Yes indeed, it could be wagered that this is the same line Nevada gave to the original film scouts for The Conquer back in the 1950s.
Also to be factored in is the extreme shortness of time between the first radiation exposure and death of so many of them - just 10 to 15 years. Most such passings (from radiation, asbestos, etc.) usually take decades. Not only that, but it sure is strange that the naysayers so-called "smoker's cancer" usually did not attack the lungs in these cases, but just about everywhere else - brain, stomach, kidneys, etc. - like radiation does.
Reportedly, Hughes felt very guilty about his decisions regarding the film's production, particularly over the decision to film at a hazardous site. So much so that he bought up every print of the film for $12 million and kept it out of circulation for many years, until Universal Pictures purchased the film from his estate in 1979. The Conqueror, along with Ice Station Zebra, is said to be one of the films Hughes watched repeatedly during his final years.
Dr. Robert Pendleton, then a professor of biology at the University of Utah, is reported to have stated in 1980, "With these numbers, this case could qualify as an epidemic. The connection between fallout radiation and cancer in individual cases has been practically impossible to prove conclusively. But in a group this size you'd expect only 30-some cancers to develop. With 91 cancer cases, I think the tie-in to their exposure on the set of The Conqueror would hold up in a court of law."
Several cast and crew members, as well as relatives of those who died, tested the legal waters regarding suing the government for negligence, claiming the military brass and political big shots knew more about the hazards in the area than it let on.
Statistically, the odds of dying from cancer for men in the U.S. population are 23% (slightly lower in women at 38% and 19%, respectively). Because the primary cast and crew numbered about 220, and a considerable number of cancer cases would be expected, controversy exists as to whether or not the actual results are attributable to radiation at the nearby nuclear weapons test site.
The number crunching in this case usually does not also include the extras and other people involved in filming. Numerous American Indians who served as Mongolian warriors contracted cancer in later years.
It is worth noting, however, that although many years have passed since the era of The Conqueror, if it could be proven in court that the government lied about the radiation dangers involved in that situation, it would be considered the same as murder. And there is no statute of limitations on that particular crime.
However, it's abundantly clear that neither the powerful government of Nevada nor the Feds ever had the slightest intention of paying a dime for damages.
Considering this medical mess and it's dismal courtroom chances, was the whole miscast and badly written production even worth doing in the first place?
Even strictly in the profit category, it cost 6 million to make, and ticket sales were 9 million, which means a profit of a quick 3 million. A tidy sum, but nothing to write home about. And quality-wise not only was The Conqueror artistically no Gone With The Wind, but today it's regarded as one of the worst movies of all time.
It never even became known as one of those "cult classic" clunkers, though, like Plan 9 From Outer Space.
So what of the cancer controversy of The Conqueror curse? It would have to be concluded that the whole project wasn't really worth it at all.
But the loopy legend of it will continue for many more years - just like deadly radiation.
LIFE IS NOT A MERE SPORT
And it's not called a penalty, it's called a jail term.
By Ed Gauthier
Not to be harsh, but a lot of people would be much better off by not assuming that everything in life is somehow a kind of "game."
Therefore there is no "playing field" that only needs some leveling to be more in their favor.
And nobody is going to call a "time out" to give them a break.
This is the real thing.
Meaning that they're not safely protected in the schoolyard anymore.
So they need to just grow up and stop their endless whining!
Rant over. (For now.)
SPACE ALIEN DIET ADVICE
Yes, they want you to drink
their Kool-Aid, but not yours.
By Ed Gauthier
This one is a case of dietary meets interplanetary.
Over the years, books mentioning alien encounters with man have yielded, among various social and political warnings, additional concerns regarding health.
And they don't just mean obvious things like staying away from fish, in this modern era of the Fukishima, Japan-radiated Pacific ocean.
Earthly visitors have been told by outer space entities to avoid certain common food and drink substances which they say will seriously harm the human metabolism.
These offenders to the digestive system most often include hard liquor (specifically whiskey) and pork (specifically ham). Another alien-perceived danger is also one of most peoples' guilty pleasures - chocolate.
Of course, every doctor on the planet has agreed with not overdoing such menu items, as well as many more, including smoking cigarettes.
Okay, so you'll live to be a ripe old age if you just do without the evils of certain booze, candy and ham on rye sandwich temptations that may come your way.
But really, who wants to always live like that, though?
Well, it's entirely your own choice to ignore doctors - and now also aliens - in the pursuit of such unwholesome "fruit," as it were.
But thanks to our friends from outer space, at least (once again) you've been warned!
NASH DIES UNDER CLOUD
 John "Beautiful Mind" Nash.
By Ed Gauthier
The "taxi accident" death the day before yesterday of both genius mathematician John Nash and his loyal wife Alicia contained several elements that were mighty darn fishy. Such as:
A rerouted flight plan making their plane early to the airport.
A limo service that refused to pick them up earlier than previously scheduled.
An erratically-driving foreign cab driver whom they had to hire to replace the limo.
Said driver had only worked in the cab driving business for a grand total of two weeks.
A set of seat belts were in the cab for the driver who survived the crash he caused.
But no seat belts were in the cab for the Nashes in back, who did not survive.
(No doubt said driver will soon vanish from the picture, if not also the country.)
Nash, 86, creator of the concept known as the Nash Equilibrium, was the inspiration for the 2002 film A Beautiful Mind, which starred Russell Crowe, and was directed by Ron Howard.
Math wizard Nash had said that for many years that he believed that outer space aliens, and/or secret government forces were "out to get" him. They were not happy that early on in his career he chose to turn his back on them, after they had said they wanted to recruit him in helping to save the world.
By hearing their voices in his head (mental telepathy), Nash had said he became convinced that they would be communicating with him further via messages they placed within the pages of the New York Times.
Other stories have also mentioned a few more periodicals containing such messages - including the magazines Life, and Newsweek, which are both published in New York, the area where Nash lived.
Said alien/secret government theory would fit together if Nash, who was born in West Virginia, therefore died in either his adopted hometown (since 1948) of New Jersey (where his alma mater Princeton is located) or its next door neighbor state New York. Apparently, the aliens chose NJ. Theory confirmed.
Of course, a full treatment involving this alien sub plot was found to be too "offbeat" and "distracting" for the Beautiful Mind film, and although some scenes had been shot dealing with the subject, that material ended up on the cutting room floor.
Audiences were left with only "unexplained voices," which they were to assume were just part of some temporary - schizophrenia or paranoia-related - mental problem on his part.
So did certain high level forces - even aliens - want Nash dead? We may never know.
Nash was also one of those many folk who spoke very highly of the numeral 23, calling it his "favorite prime number." That's right - he and his wife of course died in the afore mentioned crash on the 23rd.
Readers are advised to stay tuned for future oddities in the news regarding this very suspicious scenario.
X-MAS WITH PLANET X
Broadcast: Coast To Coast AM - April 8, 2015
YouTube video first uploaded on Apr 9, 2015
Code: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XH6YJPGRET8
Title: Planet X, The Rogue Planet
Well, this certainly answers the mystery as to why no major psychic (or self-described "time traveler") has ever been able to answer the very simple question of who will win the Presidential election of 2016. It's because there will apparently be no election to begin with! Read on, faithful followers.
In the first half of this Coast To Coast AM radio show, Bob Fletcher, a retired investigative researcher who conducted a probe into the CIA's involvement in the US drug trade, spoke about the return of Planet X (Nibiru), how money has been secretly siphoned out of budgets to prepare for it, and the coming global cataclysm.
According to his information, Planet X was first discovered in 1983 by infrared telescopes and appeared to be on an inbound trajectory. Since then, the United States has built numerous underground facilities (such as at Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado), which will be offered as a survival option to only an elite few, he stated.
China, Russia and other countries have reportedly also completed the construction of their own underground facilities.
Operation Jade Helm 15, a military-law enforcement exercise coming later this year, is a dry run for "martial law," and is being conducted as a test for how to deal with the public when they learn about Nibiru's impending arrival, Fletcher said.
The rogue planet will first be visible as a new star - it's been calculated to be five to seven times the size of Earth, and has several attached moons. It will be first significantly observed in December of 2015 and pass by Earth starting near March 26 for a period of one hour, then make its turnaround behind the sun and pass Earth a second time for an additional hour on its way out.
(There is a chance all this may instead take place starting in December of 2016, however the 2015 scenario has been judged to be much more likely.)
Also to contend with at the same time will be a 26% polar orbit shift, possible damage by super volcanoes such as the one at Yellowstone Park, and the fact that almost half of all nuclear facilities may be adversely affected.
Solar flares connected with Nibiru's passage could in addition wipe out all electronic devices, and a multitude of large meteorites hitting the oceans will cause immeasurably large tsunamis, Fletcher added.
I SLAM THIS
Bite me, you cowardly killer creeps.
Yes, I am likewise a French cartoonist, and on the Comics Journal message board website I made fun of the Muslin sheets crowd with my cartoon character Mo Hammy (aka Mookhammered the Phake Prophet).
This was a few years back (2006), when they started hassling people during that whole Danish/Swedish newspaper thing. They whined that depicting their "prophet" was not allowed by their religious rules, but investigations quickly found such a "no media coverage" law to be a false claim, anyway.
There is actually nothing whatsoever in their favorite ancient clerical texts that even addresses the issue. Which is no doubt mainly due to the fact that online memes, animated cartoons and the science of photography itself hadn't even been invented way back then.
So you Muslin sheets (Sheetites?) still got problems about it 7 years later? Tough toenails.
Refer back to the above art.
- Editor
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