The LuLac Edition #2836, February 13th, 2015

13 QUESTIONS

Our 13 Questions logo.

1. You seem to have gone full bore against anyone running on the Republican side for President at this point, a tad judgmental aren't we?

Well here's the thing. If you have Rand Paul and Chris Christie weighing in on measles, Rick Santorum and Rick Berry back again, Sarah Palin doing an imitation of Tina Fey, right wingers saying Jeb Bush was too liberal, Marco Rubio is not acceptable and Donald Trump out specifies all of them, what do you expect. Scott Walker is getting good vibes from even Rush Limbaugh but I'm not sure how long that love affair will last. But it is way too early to even think seriously about how all this will shake out.

2. So what was the menu on Super Bowl Sunday at the LuLac household?

Left overs from Mrs. Lulac's birthday dinners and a few Nathan's dogs with split top buns. Plus whole grain Goldfish and diet Snapple.

3. Is Pete Carroll an idiot?

Absolutely not. I just think he over thought the last part of the game. I liken it to a baseball pitcher with a 2 and 0 count wasting a pitch and having the batter hit a home run. My opinion was he was wasting a play. Not something I might have tried but as they say, that's why they play the game.

4. What do you think of the people who say that 4 years in the Luzerne County Charter should be overturned?

I think they are not giving this form of government a fair shake. We need more Council members that are doers and less whiners. With all due respect to Rick Morelli and Linda Hauck, I miss Tim McGinley as Chairman.

5. If you were a juror would you give Hugo life or death?

To make a statement death,  but no one ever gets executed in Pennsylvania. So what's the point.Now with Governor Wolf's moratorium, who knows. My hope is that there will be less appealing and more dealing. Prosecutors aren't happy but neither are the citizens who have paid George Banks way for three decades while his kids lay stone dead in graves.

6. Thoughts on the SI Swimsuit Edition?

None that can be published. No seriously I think the magazine is that glimmer of hope that spring and warmer weather is coming our way. Will pick up the magazine this weekend because I let my SI subscription lapse.

7. Any take on Brian Williams and his saga?

Conflicted. He's a very good news presenter and the ratings were good. But he is no Frank McGee, John Chancellor or Walter Cronkite. But then again that was a different era. What really concerns me is the hubris. He was warned not to repeat that story by NBC brass but did. It was a reference to a well intentioned story but it blew back on him. Should he be fired? This was 12 years ago so I think you can't fire a guy with a dozen years of quality work. But the 6 month suspension without pay might be permanent. I liked his work but he will be gone. Book it. That said I can't help but wonder what a guy like Bob Woodruff of ABC who was seriously wounded in battle must be thinking.

8. The Grammy Awards were this week. Earliest Grammy memory and did you watch the show?

This is funny. 1965 was the year that I became obsessed with music. It started really in '64 but intensified a year later. 65 had the Beatles, the Byrds, and even entertaining acts like Gary Lewis, the Animals, the Kinks and even Roger Miller. So my friends and  I the Dellarte and Wasko Brothers waited with baited breath for the song of the year. Turns out it was "The Shadow of Your Smile" by Henry Mancini! It was only the 8th Grammy awards but wow were we disappointed! DVRed it and thought Bennett and Gaga were great. Madonna was dressed to the nines and even though Mrs. LuLac referred to her as an aged whore wearing a bullfighters hat, I thought she looked fabulous. Sorry I just don't get Sam Smith. Ponderous.

9. Can you answer this? Why is Ryan Seacrest on everything? He hosts everything! Who is is ****ing? He's not good looking! He's not talented. He's short!! Why him?

Thank you for your passionate question but I have no idea.

10. You are closing in on your ninth year of writing LuLac. Was there anything you wrote that caused people to call you at home and complain? With the thousands of words you wrote, what was the trigger?

During the Judicial scandals some people said I was piling on but they also said that LuLac was providing an on line record that was fair. But there were three instances where I was taking to task for calling the subject of three editions which were not topical but rather historical recaps of events of political history as well a few of my childhood memories. No one questioned the events or the veracity of what I wrote but there were a few who were highly insulted and indignant of my use of the word "diminutive" to describe a subject. I guess I never had a problem being called "corpulent" so I was a little surprised. I mean these people were upset but the reaction came years after the piece was written. When I first got the e mail and phone calls I was taken aback because I had no idea where it was coming from. Another time I did what I thought was an innocuous you tube video of a Yankee trip from 1998. I put the video up in 2008 and in 2013 got a complaint from a guy who felt his privacy was threatened because the video was shot in front of his nondescript apartment complex. That came out of left field because think it had only 200 views. So you just never know. But getting back to the use of the "diminutive" word, Mrs. LuLac told me no man ever wants to be seen as small in any way. So that is duly noted.

11. How was your time hosting "The Storm" on WYLN TV?

It was fun. I had not hosted a TV show since 1978 at WVIA TV so it was a little strange. But Tiffany Cloud and I had a good time with it. I appreciated the invite.For those who missed it, here's how it went.


12. So the other day I heard a caller on your buddy Tarone's show talking about the deficit. Do those two not know this President reduced the deficit since he took office?

Apparently not. Deficit reduction under this President has been conducted every year since 2009. Just like jobs created since 2009 too.

13. Hope this isn't too late for 13 questions. I know this may sound insensitive, but don't you think Mike Kerkowski's parents should have been charged with some type of money laundering charge? Via reported testimony it would appear they were stashing the ill gotten loot.

Never too late for 13 Questions. I've rearranged a few right before publication before. Tough one. It appears that they had ill gotten gains but did they know they were ill gotten? Depends on what Kerkowski told them. People involved in things like that usually lie to the parents. This case was unusual. Why would the family believe Hugo after their son was not showing up? These are intriguing questions but it is hard to investigate a victim's family on a few suppositions. I think the big fish was Hugo and if Kerkowski was alive and a viable witness, I'm sure his alleged behavior would not be a major issue in comparison to Hugo. My opinion is there are more victims we don't know about. Good questions though.