Sunday, January 12, 2014

National Western Stock Show, Broncos, & Suing Nike

The Denver National Western Stock Show opened to the public yesterday, and had over 44,000 visitors go through the gates.  It was the second-largest number of folks to visit on opening day since the Stock Show history began, 107 years ago.  There are all kinds of things that can be seen at the stock show - it's an agricultural show, and just about every kind of farm animal possible (from chickens to yaks) have judging contests; there are different types of horse shows, mule shows, donkey shows, and draft horse shows.  You can see Grand Prix Show Jumping; the rodeos - Colorado versus the World, Mexican International Rodeo, the MLK African-American Heritage Rodeo, the Wear Pink Rodeo; the Colorado Fiddle Championship; the Coors Western Art Show; Stock Dog trials; and a Wild West Show,  to name a few.  There are a lot of interactive activities for youngsters, and multiple stock sales - horses, cattle, goats, sheep, llamas and alpacas, swine, yaks and all types of fowl.  There is a daily entrance fee, higher on the weekend than on weekdays; the last day the adult entrance fee is $10 per person, but on Tuesday, 21 January, admission is totally free.
  Today, Denver is awash with Broncos and San Diego Chargers fans.  All week, KUSA, our NBC affiliate, has been passing out "Clingy Thingees" - a clear, self-adhering sticker for windows (car or otherwise) that reads, "Broncos -  United in Orange - Time to Ride."  Actually, it's the Broncos logo, not the word; "United in Orange" is printed in orange; and "Time to Ride" is printed in blue.  I want one.  But you must travel into Denver to get one, so I'll have to do without...  The Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots won their NFL Playoff games yesterday.  Now the Broncos need to put Philip Rivers and the Chargers away this afternoon.  The game temperatures will be in the mid- to low-30s, and the wind will be swirling, with gusts up to 40 mph.  I'll be rooting for the guys in orange and blue!
  I laughed myself silly yesterday, reading one news story.  A man in Washington state is trying to sue Nike shoes for $100 million - because the company's Jordan Nike shoes do not have a warning label stating that the shoes can be potentially dangerous, if used to beat or kick someone.  The man is a pimp, and he beat a john who refused to pay for the use of a prostitute (in his string), with the shoes.  The john had a broken nose and facial fractures, and had to have plastic surgery to repair the damage.  The pimp also beat one of his "girls" with the shoes, causing her to bleed from the ears.  At his trial, the pimp was found guilty of aggravated assault and battery with a dangerous weapon (the shoes), and was sentenced to 100 years in prison.  Now he wants to sue Nike because the shoes were not labeled as being "dangerous!"

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