News Of The Week Roundup: Week 42, 2021

What a crazytown news week it was.

Colin Powell died. The remains of Brian Laundrie were found and identified. Steven Bannon was held in contempt of Congress for ignoring a subpoena from the January 6th commission and now the Department of Justice has to make a decision on what to do with him. Kids are well-protected with small doeses of the COVID-19 vaccines. A plane crashed with nearly two dozen people on board... and they all lived... and of course, the tragedy on the set of Rust where Alec Baldwin's prop gun was loaded with a live round and he killed the cinematographer and injured the director. A tragedy.

It is ridiculous that another prop gun mishap has taken the life of a person a movie set. After the death of Brandon Lee, most thought films would be more careful. Also, why don't movies just use CGI to show gun battles? The technology is so amazing now, it wouldn't even be noticeable.

The death of a cinematographer on a movie set when Alec Baldwin fired a prop gun has led to calls for fundamental change in Hollywood. One network TV drama has already banished real weapons from the set and some are calling for an industry-wide ban. https://t.co/HSr56noNig

— The Associated Press (@AP) October 24, 2021

An assistant director unwittingly handed Alec Baldwin a loaded weapon and told him it was safe to use, in the moments before the actor fatally shot a cinematographer, according to unsealed court documents. https://t.co/q1z1CXYoAF

— NPR (@NPR) October 24, 2021

The crew did walk off the set of Rust to protest set safety, so there is a lot going on here.

My brother works in the film industry and is active in the union @IATSE, so I asked him about Alec Baldwin being given a loaded gun and accidentally killing director of photography (DP) Halyna Hutchins.

He explained that it's a result of union busting, scabs, and negligence pic.twitter.com/uHOcV55RTt

— Ben Norton (@BenjaminNorton) October 23, 2021

“Rust” crew members who spoke with The Times said they were mystified how first assistant director Dave Halls could have handed a loaded gun to Alec Baldwin without thoroughly checking it.

“You don’t hand an actor a loaded gun.” https://t.co/itq0l6gvAX

— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) October 24, 2021

Retired four-star general Colin Powell died Monday at age 84 from COVID-19 complications. He was fully vaccinated and we learned that he had cancer and Parkinson's disease. This means he was severely compromised. A memorial service is planned for next month.

A memorial service for Colin Powell will be held Nov. 5 at Washington National Cathedral, a spokeswoman says. https://t.co/0a7kgvs28k

— NBC News (@NBCNews) October 22, 2021

There are so many unanswered questions surrounding the murder of Gabby Petito and her assumed killer, boyfriend Brian Laundrie. Laundrie's remains were found earlier this week - his parents pointed police in the direction of some items that belonged to him like a backpack and notebook. The remains were found in a nature area where he went hiking many weeks ago. Perhaps the notebook will have some answers for investigators.

Dental records confirmed that the human remains found in a thickly wooded Florida park were those of Brian Laundrie, a “person of interest” in the murder of his fiancée, Gabrielle Petito, the FBI said on Thursday. https://t.co/wUQ7LH67AD

— The New York Times (@nytimes) October 21, 2021

Not all plane crashes are fatal - even really freaking bad ones. More than 20 people survived a crash in Texas last week. Just one person was injured.

A plane carrying nearly two dozen people crashed in Waller County, Texas, Tuesday morning. All passengers were removed from the plane and one injury has been reported, officials said. pic.twitter.com/YLqJX7M6ev

— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) October 19, 2021

What will the Department of Justice do with Steven Bannon? Only AG Garland knows.

Today, the House found Steve Bannon in criminal contempt for defying a subpoena.

That charge will now be sent to the Justice Department for prosecution.

The DOJ should take the matter before the grand jury without delay and bring Bannon to justice.

No one is above the law.

— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) October 21, 2021

Small doses of the COVID-19 vaccine seem to work really well for kids age 5-11. The FDA is expected to vote on approval of the vaccine for kids this coming week and the White House is already making plans on how to distribute the vaccines to kids. This is pretty big pandemic news!

BREAKING—Kid-size doses of Pfizer’s #COVID19 vaccine appear safe & nearly 91% effective at preventing symptomatic infections in 5-11-year-olds, & their low-dose shots developed antibody levels just as strong as teens and young adults who got full doses.
https://t.co/9CzzNmyWxH

— Eric Feigl-Ding (@DrEricDing) October 22, 2021

We expect the FDA and CDC’s decision on Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for kids ages 5-11 in the next few weeks and have put together a plan to ensure that vaccines for this age group are available, easy & convenient, should the FDA & CDC authorize the vaccine. https://t.co/o4eX8N2F8e

— White House COVID-19 Response Team (@WHCOVIDResponse) October 20, 2021

And I leave you with this: most Buy Nothing groups don't pass around half-eaten food items.

Comments

[Steve]

I think this series of posts clearly explains why we need trump back in office.

[Metalboy!]

I think this series of posts explains why we DON’T need trump back in office.

[Jack T. Ripper]

@ Steve….. not only this series of posts but the sad state of our Country in less than 10 months Under the current Potato and Chief! I’ve seen many Presidents through the years and never thought one would be worse than Carter. Sadly It’s a lot worse. I pray 🙏🏿 we as a country can rally back and stop this sinking ship.

[Kixchix]

The Alec Baldwin gun thing is STUPID. For the record. I am pro 2nd Amendment. However, our founders did not envision guns that can fire hundreds of bullets per minute. Read into that what you will and don’t flame me.

I would guess that Hollywood sets are full of anti gun types of people. Why is NO ONE asking, writing or REPORTING on how or who put a live bullet in a gun for a movie set? Why the F did that f’ing happen?!?!?!?!

Why is Alec pointing the gun at someone who is NOT an actor?!?!?! Alec playing around? Disgracia! You don’t point a gun at anyone. One would think all the f’ing lawyers that hang around Hollywood would have protocols to check and recheck and check again. These people can’t even protect themselves. Stupid.

Stupid people.

[Jack T. Ripper]

@kixchix… What a tragedy that could have been avoided. The gun armor on the set will probably be charged criminally. Baldwin will be sued. He was co producer of the movie. I’m not a fan of Baldwin but definitely have sympathy for him. He will have to live with this nightmare and always be remembered for it. Not sure why he would point a firearm on the set at a non actor but obviously it was a horrible accident that took an innocent life. Gun safety is paramount at all times and he definitely did not practice it. Prayers for the girls family.

[EddieLongHair]

From what I've read, the scene was to be a shot of Baldwin shooting directly at the camera. A POV (point-of-view) look. So that is exactly where the DP and the director would be located, right behind and/or next to the camera. Terrible tragedy. Really no reason live rounds should have been anywhere near the set.

[Mike]

I started to read this article and at first thought it said "Cozy Powell died": I'm like "yeah a many years ago"... then I realized this was one of the non-music posts, different Powell. Carry on...

[Metalboy!]

Huh-uh-lo-oh, Ripper and Steve! … A VERY large reason everything is SO f’d up country is not solely Biden, though he certainly shares some of the blame … Two primary forces are at work here, the pandemic and the calculated mishandling of countless problems by his predecessor and his merry men.

Plain and simple, downplaying the pandemic, rejecting vaccines and objecting to mask protocols have perpetuated death and division in The U.S. … The facts are the facts.

Cutting a deal with the Taliban with a Timeline? … Every General would tell you NEVER give a timeline … It was messy and poorly handled but at least Biden had the balls to do it.

I’ve met Alec Baldwin numerous times as I lived in the same Long Island resort town he primarily calls his home (a place you might be familiar with, Ripper), and generally liked the guy (save for his temper and occasional snaps with reality (punching out paparazzi and limo drivers or blasting your young daughter in a taped phone conversation is not a good look).

But I can’t forgive him for this … As Kixchix points out and Ripper broaches, absolutely NO reason to point a gun at anyone … I learned that at age 6 and I’ve never even shot one.

And why were the Director and DP standing behind the camera … Sure they need to line-up the shot but they could have been sizing it up remotely from the video monitors they have hooked up to the camera and make adjustments (via remote control) accordingly without a REAL gun pointed at them … Or SOMETHING!

Though a stupid idea to begin with, the gun should have been triple double-checked … The armorer should have double-checked it, the AD should have double-checked it and Baldwin should have double-checked it. Except the whole incident should never have occurred, period!

It’s obvious an incident like this will NEVER happen again on a movie set as new protocols will be permanently out in place and adhered to.