Who Had the Worst (Half) Week?

This holiday week offers a condensed version of “Who Had the Worst Week.” I want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. While there are a lot of challenges in the world, there are also many reasons to be thankful. Now, the list:

• Branding matters. It turns out ladybugs are just “vicious” insects that have benefitted from a cute name.
• Her hips may not lie, but apparently her accountant does. Singer Shakira agreed to a plea deal with Spanish prosecutors that included a suspended three-year prison sentence and a $7 million fine to settle charges that she failed to pay millions in taxes.
• Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay says his 2014 arrest for DUI only occurred because of police prejudice against him for being “a rich, white billionaire.” Those poor guys can never catch a break, amiright?
• United Airlines’ Hallmark Channel-inspired movie short about two strangers who cross paths in a busy airport made several Washington Post reviewers “reach for the airsick bag.”
• The transfer portal and now NIL deals have revolutionized collegiate sports, but they are also slowly killing competitive athletics at the military academies.
• Fears about a mystery illness affecting dogs are sweeping through Denver. Researchers think the respiratory illness could be caused by a new type of bacterial infection that may be very good at evading the canine immune system.
• Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. The BBC announced it will halt production of its highly popular and highly profitable TV show “Top Gear” after one of its stars was seriously injured in a crash.
•  A judge ruled that rapper A$AP Rocky must stand trial for allegedly firing a gun at a former friend and collaborator outside a Hollywood hotel in 2021.
• If you were waiting for a Hall & Oates reunion tour, bad news. Daryl Hall has filed a lawsuit against John Oates, claiming breach of contract. I don’t know about you, but I can’t go for that, noooo, no can do.
• In his first game back from a three-game suspension for a pattern of dangerous and illegal hits, Denver Broncos safety Kareem Jackson lasted three plays before hitting Minnesota Vikings QB Josh Dobbs in the head with his helmet. The NFL has now suspended Jackson another four games.
• It is chaos in Silicon Valley right now:
  • The CEO of autonomous vehicle start-up Cruise resigned abruptly amid serious safety concerns.
  • Apple, Disney, Comcast/NBCUniversal and Paramount are among the companies that followed IBM’s lead in pausing their ads on Elon Musk’s Twitter (“X”) after antisemitic and other hate speech allegedly appeared adjacent to their ads.
  • Speaking of Musk, he also saw the launch of his SpaceX’s Starship mega rocket explode (a “rapid unscheduled disassembly” in SpaceX-speak) during a test launch.
  • OpenAI’s board quickly and without warning fired CEO Sam Altman, who then announced he was joining Microsoft (Microsoft is an OpenAI investor). An overwhelming majority of OpenAI employees then signed a letter saying they would also leave to join Microsoft unless Altman was reinstated and a new board was seated. This morning, Altman was, in fact, reinstated and the company is in the process of seating a new board.
• Inflation is real – Gov. Jared Polis had to pardon four turkeys this year. They now head to the Luvin Arms Animal Sanctuary in Weld County.
• Three hundred rabbits, guinea pigs and rats given to the Humane Society of Southern Arizona to be adopted may have instead been sold as reptile food.

So, who won the week?

• They will be in their 80s, but Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and the other members of the Rolling Stones plan to play Empower Field in Denver in June 2024.
• Oldies station KOOL-105 FM topped the list of highest-rated radio stations in Denver.
• A California groom secretly learned Korean so he could surprise his new wife and her family on their wedding day.
• Warren Buffett donated more than $870 million to four charitable foundations in what is becoming a Thanksgiving tradition. He has previously pledged to give away most of his wealth to philanthropy.  
• The Denver Broncos have improbably won four games in a row and will try for win number five against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.