Salma Hayek Crushes A Strawberry While Reconnecting With Earth, Lions Cheerleader Karoline & Stone Cold Steve's Mullet
Have you guys watched this docuseries American Nightmare on Netflix?
Let's just say I checked to make sure our first-floor windows were locked last night before I went to bed. When I say I was shook, and had goosebumps, I'm not exaggerating. After finishing three hours of that content, I just sat there for a minute digesting what I had just seen and heard.
There I was last night thinking I'd get a little extra sleep. Maybe get to bed an hour or two early. It's been another high-intensity week of balancing blogging, developing content, dealing with a plumber who can't stop a leak with new PVC lines he installed and general life.
Then I sat down and started watching American Nightmare on Netflix. Game over. I was hooked two minutes in.
The premise of the docuseries centers on the 2015 kidnapping of a California woman from her boyfriend's house. There's a break-in and the couple is forced to put on blacked-out swim goggles. The woman is taken and thrown into the trunk of a car and is eventually taken to a guy's house where she's held for a few days.
I won't give away the story.
Sit down, buckle up and prepare to go on one helluva wild ride you won't believe even if you followed the story in the news and know the outcome.
This is still worth your time.
The Libs Are Coming For Mary Lou Retton
This might go down as one of my finest works of 2024.
Wednesday, my OutKick post on how the lefties have targeted Mary Lou Retton made its way to the front page of Fox News where it has received a few hundred thousand views since it was published on Tuesday.
The Super Libs are convinced that Retton pulled a scam on donors who sent money to the American hero in the fall as she was facing death over what was being called pneumonia. They want an accounting of where the donations went and why Retton didn't have healthcare insurance.
Let's take a look at the reactions to the post:
• Gail writes:
I am not a liberal. The money scammed from people on go fund has nothing to do with liberalism and everything to do with greed, lies and opportunity to make easy money.
At the time of go Fund posting by her daughters: Mary Lou was double insured:
1. By her recently divorced ex husband.
2. By the Gymnastic Federation
3. She had access to 4 million assets
4. Her children and ex husband had means to pay.
So yes it passes me off that a wealthy person scammed the American people, and I as a poor senior struggle.
RETURN ALL MONIES.
Kinsey:
I asked Gail to provide links to all these claims she's made. I can only imagine how Gail came to several of these conclusions. How in theee hell does Gail know how much money Mary Lou has in assets?
I'm excited to see her accounting documents.
• Linda R. couldn't wait to email me:
Yes, I care where the money raised for her went. Because she is famous, stupid people contribute to these funds.
These funds should be abolished unless the stipulation is that all moneys used must be documented accompanied by a receipt and any leftover monies spent without documentation must be returned or punishable by law.
So many people have fraudulently gained by these funds and new laws must be established. Living in and maintaining a 9,000 sq ft mansion and then asking for money because she opted not to purchase insurance is fraudulent and unfair.
Please change the Go Me Fund rules to provide accountability.
Kinsey:
I asked Linda if she donated to Mary Lou.
Linda:
No, of course not.
• Bob G. writes:
I didn't donate to her medical care, but I do think it would be proper for her to provide some broad accounting for $400,00 in donations. It wouldn't pass an audit for lack of detail.
Kinsey:
I wonder how much energy Bob gave to investigating what happened to the $90 million Black Lives Matter raised in 2020. Surely, Bob insists BLM give him a broad report on where all that money was spent or where it's invested.
• Zina chimes in:
I'm not much on words because I don't like drama. However, if I donated $20 or $2,000.00 to Mary Lou, I gave it up freely with NO strings attached!!!
It became HER money when it was given. NO ONE has the right to tell anyone how to spend THEIR money!!
Libs, leave her alone!! Better still, ask God about it. Ask what the two greatest commandments are!!
• John P. writes:
She gave up her hips and knees to represent USA which effects her general health forever. She should not need to disclose or donate. 500k does not go far in the medical world and her follow up care will go on and on. She needs more money actually…sue the lib who is defaming and badgering her!
• Antony writes:
I wonder if Christine Brennan would want an accounting of were all the student loan money went before it is forgiven?
Kinsey:
Great point.
• Brian W. says:
I really enjoyed your article about the super Lib. It’s refreshing to have someone not afraid to call a spade a spade. Keep up the good work!
Kinsey:
Thank you, Brian.
• David B. says:
Saw your article about Christine Brennan. Could not agree more with what you said. This is about that feminist man-hater, not Mary Lou.
Brennan has had a big chip on her shoulder ever since she managed to get a job as a sports commentator. Exactly what sport did Christine excel at?
Yes, her anger. angst, and venom-spewing left-wing liberal BS are truly disgusting, but then again, that’s the same mentality that put the current idiot in the White House.
• Screencaps regular Chris A. emails:
As usual, I'm a day behind a story. Call me the King of Ice Cold Takes!
Mary Lou Retton basically donated her body to her sport when she was younger, and gave the Olympic viewing audience memories that will last a lifetime. So if she asks for donations to fight the illness that she went through, as long as it's not a scam, then she has every right to do so.
I wonder if Christine Brennan's next investigation will be to uncover where all the contributed BLM money went, since she is so interested in maintaining the integrity of voluntary donations to worthy causes. But she's too busy chasing down Mary Lou Retton and her donors, so I guess not.
The history of the internet has been a mixed bag of good and evil, but one undeniable good is that it has exposed the former gatekeepers of information as the biased hacks they always were.
• Joanne K. says:
It’s horrible to hear these “judgmental” + self-serving people defame an American Legend in women’s sports!
Shame on them.
Thanks for writing about MaryLouRetton
• John C. in Bowling Green, KY writes:
Following up on Tom from Atlanta's story about the McDonald's Olympics promotion of 1984. I worked at McDonald's that summer.
The McDonald's promotion was that you got a scratch-off ticket with each order. You scratched off to reveal an event. If the USA won a medal in the event, you won a prize. A gold medal won a Big Mac, silver won fries(fried in glorious beef tallow back then), and a bronze won a drink.
The Olympics were in LA that year and the Soviets, East Germany and 12 other Eastern Bloc nations boycotted them in response to the USA's boycott of the Moscow games in '80. The USA dominated the competition and set a record for most gold medals won and McDonald's took a bath on prize payouts. I funneled hands full of cards to my buddies when they came in and we ate free for weeks.
The company wouldn't lose that much money again until the little old lady famously spilled hot coffee on her crotch a decade later.
I'm going to send Mary Lou Retton a get-better card with a donation on behalf of Screencaps and I need your message to include in the card
Try to keep the messages to 40 words or less. Join in. Let's piss off the Super Libs, Christine Brennan and Gail.
Email: joekinsey@gmail.com
Screencaps Ragnar Relay team update -- It's happening!
I've been working behind the scenes with Indy Daryl of Do Hard Things fame and he has big news for us this morning.
• Indy Daryl writes:
As far as Ragnar, we are registered!! I think everyone has signed up and created their Ragnar account, and we are working on a team name. Is that something you want input on? Thinking it should be Screencaps related bit not great on the team name ideas.
Kinsey:
Let's open this up to the community. We need a team name for the 12 runners who will be racing from the Jim Beam distillery to Lexington, KY in October. It's a 200-mile race. Think of a team name that reflects Screencaps, Do Hard Things and Kentucky.
Go.
Email: joekinsey@gmail.com
Americans you can be proud of
This one came from Millennial Chris B. in Bowling Green who spotted this work of art on Instagram. He knows that you guys love great engineering and wood.
An aviation regulatory analyst helps us understand the rules on people farting on planes and the repercussions
Wednesday, OutKick's Mike Gunzelman wrote about the passenger who was kicked off an American Airlines flight for farting and arguing with passengers. I wanted a little more insight into how the airlines handle these situations, so I went to a guy who knows the industry and has helped us out before on airline questions.
• Our industry expert writes:
With regard to the AA flight, what the retired Delta pilot said matches my experience in working with the pilots when I was at an airline. The safe operation of the flight is always the #1 priority, and if there is a threat to the aircraft, passengers, or crew, you address the threat. In flight, this may mean diverting to an alternate airport, or the threatening person may be able to be neutralized by being put in flexicuffs and strapped in a seat with the seatbelt (or even duct tape). It is situation specific, and as the absolute authority on the aircraft, the Captain makes the judgment call as to the necessary action. He or she receives wide latitude in this regard.
In this case, while I'm sure the flatulence was unpleasant, this does not sound like it was the part of AA's Conditions of Carriage (aka the document you check the box to agree to enter into a contract when you buy a ticket, without ever reading it) he got kicked off the plane for ("Be respectful that your odor isn't offensive (unless it's cause by a disability or illness).") Rather, it was the hostile and unstable interactions he was already having with the other passengers before the flight took off. He was swearing when he sat down; yelled odd and unstable comments at the plane as a whole; then engaged with at least 3 other passengers individually, including more F-bombs. It seems like a pretty easy call for the Captain to decide to remove the possible threat to the passengers and crew on the ground, while it's easy to return to the gate, rather than wait until in the air when the threat could escalate and you have a lot fewer options.
With regard to airline protocol, I'd expect the police were at the gate in case they were needed to get the passenger off the plane, but the articles suggest he exited quietly and police weren't needed. AA's gate employee successfully de-escalated the situation, and got the passenger off the plane quickly, so the flight could depart with minimal delay. There is no reporting on any further incident after the man disembarked, so my best guess is that AA's employees explained the situation, and rebooked him on the next flight to Austin with a verbal warning to compose himself and behave until that flight. The airline doesn't want to refund a ticket if it doesn't have to, and the gate agents don't get paid enough to want to deal with banning a customer if they can resolve the problem in an easier way, within the authority given them by the company.
AA's Conditions of Carriage require passengers to "behave appropriately and respectfully with other passengers" and "not threaten the safety of the flight in any way". The Conditions give AA the right not to let a passenger fly if they "are uncooperative, abusive, harassing, or show the potential to be while on board". As such, the passenger will have little to no recourse against the airline. Complaints to AA or to DOT will be easily defended. He could try to sue, but again, he breached his obligations as an AA passenger, and he risks the airline upping the ante and putting him on their internal "naughty list" (if they have not already). More likely he took his next flight to Austin, and won't say anything to the airline because he sobered up/chilled out and realized what a jackass he'd been (or at least figured out how to hide it better the second time).
While I'm writing, a while back a reader asked a question about who is a passenger with a disability and can anyone declare they have a disability to take advantage of the opportunity to pre-board. (I think this was the gist of the question.) I was going to write an answer, but then life got in the way and Screencaps moved onto other topics. Anyway, in case helpful, here is the answer to the question:
Airlines are not subject to the Americans with Disabilities Act like other businesses are. Instead, they abide by the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA), which was passed in 1986. In response to Congress passing the ACAA, DOT passed an entire set of regulations covering the gamut of experiences a traveler with a disability could have when flying, from the moment they enter the airport at their departure city, until the moment they leave the airport at their destination. Disabilities are defined broadly - they can be mental or physical, and can be permanent (e.g. paralysis) or temporary (e.g. broken leg in cast) in nature.
Without going too deep down the rabbit hole, travelers with disabilities are given the right to certain types of assistance in each phase of their travel. Airlines face substantial civil penalties where they do not provide the correct assistance (and guys like me have a job). Required assistance includes certain seating accommodations, and the right to pre-board, which ensures several things: 1) they are not rushed and jammed in with other passengers boarding the flight; 2) they have space to stow their assistive device, if needed; and 3) they are not "on display" of other passengers while boarding the flight.
In determining whether a passenger has a disability, the airline mostly must take the word of the passenger that they have a disability. In many cases it is apparent (e.g. the agent sees a cast or a service dog), but sometimes it may not be (cancer, heart disease, and alcoholism are all considered disabilities under the regulations). Only in very limited circumstances can the airline require a medical certificate from the passenger, and possible further medical evaluation. Likewise, the airline cannot require a passenger with a disability to provide advance notice of their travel on a flight, except if certain specific services are required during the flight.
Yes, in some cases this can lead to people fraudulently claiming disability when they do not have one, but DOT takes the position that it is better for someone to occasionally get away with claiming a disability they don't have, than for a traveler with an actual disability to suffer harm. If a fraud situation becomes rampant, such as happened with service and emotional support animals, DOT will take steps to address it.
Finally, one bit of advice - a lot of people don't realize that airlines have designated Complaint Resolution Officials, trained to resolve disability-related complaints the day of travel. The traveler or their travel companion just has to ask to speak with one. These CROs are empowered to resolve a lot of issues on the spot and are usually a good resource for travelers with disabilities.
Kinsey:
This is why I love writing and editing this column. It's a rollercoaster. Each and every day is different. One minute you're talking Mary Lou Retton, the next minute you're following up on airplane passengers farting.
And that's why you guys keep coming back and keep telling your friends they need to be reading. It's a wild ride.
Let's keep it up.
Travel ball fundraisers
• Mike Mc. writes:
Text exchange with my 16 year old God son…
That's enough today. You guys have homework. I need messages for Mary Lou and I need you to help come up with a fun name for the Screencaps Ragnar Relay team.
Let's have a great day. Let's go win the day. Dominate the left lane on the highway. Stay out of trouble and go win your retirement golf league match.
Email: joekinsey@gmail.com