Bits and Pieces from Here and There

Some bits and pieces from here and there:

• I Watched David De Gea Play for Atletico Madrid this weekend. Unfortunately. My handpicked successor to Edwin Van der Sar inspired about as much confidence as a bumbling Detective Barney Fife against Levante on Saturday, conceding a rather soft goal to open the scoring in yet another shock Atleti loss. I wonder what's going on with the young Spaniard. He's had a tough few games lately -- appearing both indecisive and inexperienced against both Espanol and Aris Thessaloniki, in addition to his performance against Levante -- and looks to have lost his preternatural swagger. I wonder if all the rumors about United and other teams vying for the young 'keeper have finally proved unsettling.

• A Leaked Cable from Wikileaks has revealed that the illegitimate thug who leads Burma, Than Shwe, considered making a $1 Billion controlling bid for Manchester United in mid 2009. Thankfully for United fans, Shwe changed his mind at the last minute because he thought it might "look bad" coming directly on the heels of a hurricane which killed 140,000 of his subjects (and not only because the $1 Billion price tag for United almost exactly mirrored the amount required to rebuild Burma after the extensive damage caused by the storm). Umm... Yeah. It would have definitely looked bad. And you thought the Glazers weren't good stewards of our club.
• Also, What's with Two-Bit Asian Thugs looking to buy their way to legitimacy in the world's biggest football league? It's bad enough (but appropriate) that discredited Thai con man Thaksin Shinawatra owned Manchester City for a brief period of time, but the news that Shwe considered making a bid for United is just flat out ridiculous. It makes me wonder if there is there an Illegitimate Asian Ruler Handbook that contains the following suggestions on how to gain and hold power: 1.) Seize power in a coup, preferably bloodless; 2.) Steal billions from your own people; and 3.) Use said billions to buy an EPL team, preferably one that plays in the City of Manchester.

• And While We're on the Subject of Wikileaks, what's up with the vaunted US Government electronic security protocol? The masterminds who allowed a US Army private to access any file he wanted are the same guys who are in charge of keeping my Social Security Number private? No offense, but farlieonfootie's crack IT team has done a much better job of keeping our own internal dirty laundry hidden from prying eyes (including columnist Ed's embarassing fetish for watching football games in the nude, even while in the company of others).

• Speaking of Embarassing, Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley should be ashamed to show his face in public after the shocking and classless dismissal of Chris Hughton earlier today. Not only did Hughton stabilize a club in chaos last year and earn them promotion, he had done well to date in the Premier League, guiding the Magpies to a better point total than nine other clubs have achieved to this point in the season. Although I've enjoyed watching Newcastle back in the League this year, my new hope is that Ashley's meddling lands them squarely in the relegation heap. Good riddance.

It's a farlieonfootie who's thankful for our veterans, signing off on December 7, a date which will live in infamy (although not for the reasons cited above).