Shots in the Dark

Death Valley, Nevada, yesterday

…including this soon-to-be Ivy Leaguer (well, maybe not any more), who pulled a gun and threatened to kill her mother when Mom refused to cosign for a 2004 black Nissan 350Z.

(It is a nice car, I will say that.)

The mother told investigators she did not want to press charges against [her daughter], because she had recently been accepted to several Ivy League colleges.

Good luck to whichever school gets her…..

Two people have emailed me this story about a spotted eagle ray that jumped into a boat and hit a woman in the chest.

My reaction?

I hope the ray is all right.

Unfortunately, it sounds like the boaters didn’t do the right thing and just put the ray back in the water…..

The New York Post reports that James Franco will teach film at NYU.

Why?

I thought we all agreed that there would be no more reporting on James Franco.

The Times reports on Facebook’s attempts to build up its lobbying/PR team in Washington.

“One of the big points is to show lawmakers that Facebook is important to [Congressional] campaigns,” Mr. Hoofnagle said. “Once that fact is established, Congress will not touch Facebook.”

Scary, right?

But the article will have special resonance for Harvardians.

It notes correctly that Facebook has hired Sheryl Sandberg, Larry Summers’ former chief of staff at Treasury and the woman who, while at Google, got Summers to sign Harvard on to Google’s book project without even a whisper of public discussion. (I like her new ‘do, by the way—tech casual suits her much better than that Washington bob.)

The Times also notes that Facebook hired another Washingtonian, Marne Levine. But the article doesn’t point out that Levine was also Larry Summers’ chief of staff—this time at Harvard.

It’s worth asking, I think, whether Levine’s job was a payback for any help she might have given Sandberg on the Google project. I have absolutely no proof of this, and I’m sure that Levine has many professional talents. But…this is a cozy group, and Facebook, which has never internalized the more thoughtful ethics of Google (“do no evil”) is getting more and more powerful. An enterprising Crimson reporter might want to look into these relationships.

I also think it’s worth asking whether these ties might have something to do with Larry Summers’ unusually genial response when he was recently asked whether his portrayal in the Facebook movie is accurate.

How long will it be before the relationship between Summers and Facebook becomes monetarized? And what will Facebook get in return?

Sammy Hagar gives a hilarious interview to MTV, sampled here by the LA Times.

On the band’s sex tents, which were built under the stage and utilized during shows:

SH: Honestly, I think it was the production team that built our stages. I think they just thought it was part of the deal. They were like, “Well, this is Van Halen. The guys must want sex tents, right?”…

…In the book you claim that you sometimes had sex with between seven and eight fans at a time. When you’re onstage, looking at the audience and deciding who’s going to be in your underground sex tent orgy, how do you know who to pick? Is there some sort of system? Something to do with numerology? One blonde, three brunette, two red-heads, etc.

SH: No, no, I just went for the ones that looked strong.

Kind of like Lance Armstrong!

Jason Aquino pled guilty yesterday to participating in the shooting death of Justin Cosby in Harvard’s Kirkland House. The Globe reports that he’ll get 18 to 20 years.

“Today, Jason Aquino is held accountable for his part in the killing of Justin Cosby, by admitting the role he played and his culpability in the shooting death of this young man, which occurred in broad daylight on the campus of one of the world’s premier educational institutions,’’ Middlesex District Attorney Gerard T. Leone Jr. said.

(Would Aquino’s crime have been considered lesser had he committed it at Rocky Mountain College? Or was he punished by the Harvard brand? That’s a serious question.)

The victim’s mother, Denise Cosby, gave a statement blasting Aquino.

“I sit here and look into the face of what is supposed to be a man,’’ Cosby said in a stern voice. “You are a fool.’’

No question. On the other hand, her son was participating in a major drug deal involving “what authorities called a substantial amount of marijuana.” On the campus of one of the world’s premier educational institutions!

I’m not saying he deserved it, don’t get me wrong. Just saying that if you’re dealing drugs, you’re maybe not so bright yourself….

On a separate note, I wish that all the kids at Harvard and elsewhere who like to get high and don’t think it’s any big deal would consider the toll their habits are taking on Mexico and, increasingly, the countries of Central America.

I’ve traveled a fair amount in this part of the world and love it—its beauty, its people, its culture—and it breaks my heart to see these countries torn up by violence because American kids want to fire up a doobie at a Strokes concert.

Maybe the answer is to legalize marijuana. But until that happens, how can anyone justify a habit that exacts such a terrible price?

Facebook “likes” generate more revenue than Twitter tweets—$1.34 on average, as compared to 80 cents, when people shared an event.

Meanwhile, Mashable.com reports that Twitter has become one of the most effective vehicles for bad guys to spread malware around the Web…. In some cases, just moving your mouse over a malicious tweet can launch a worm that infects your account and your computer.

Their team is going broke: The Times reports that the franchise lost $50 million last year, and is expected to lose the same amount this year—money that the team crooks owners don’t have.

The revelations about the team’s losses come as Wilpon and Katz look to raise cash to keep the team running by selling at least 25 percent of the club. Five to eight prospective bidders are taking their first looks at the club’s recent financial history — and examining documents that help with projections.

Why is this good news for Mets fans?

I’m tempted to say because it might finally get them to wise up and become Yankees fans, but I’ll restrain myself.

No, it’s good news because the Wilpons, who are so deeply implicated in the Madoff scandal, should sell the team, and this financial pressure makes that possibility more likely. It’d be good for baseball and good for the Mets.