Elizabeth Edwards 1949-2010

Elizabeth Edwards died after battling cancer. With uncommon grace and fortitude, she showed us how to continue living in spite of dealing with a deadly disease.

The Queen

Sad news out of Detroit that Aretha Franklin, the legendary Queen of Soul, is battling pancreatic cancer.

Don Meredith 1938-2010

Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback and broadcaster Don Meredith died Sunday from a brain hemorrhage. Meredith along with Howard Cosell and Frank Gifford constituted the first foray of the National Football League into prime time television in what became known as Monday Night Football and a fixture in popular culture. Meredith's folksy humor was the perfect foil for the bombastic Cosell and the reserved Gifford.

Flush with Cash

Former congressman Bill Jefferson (D-New Orleans) famously gave added meaning to the term "cold cash" after $80,000 was found stuffed in his freezer. Now comes Prince George's county executive Jack B. Johnson and wife Leslie to give a fresh perspective to "flush with cash." Yesterday afternoon the Johnsons were arrested by FBI agents for bribery and tampering with evidence. According to the Washington Post, the following exchange took place as Leslie Johnson frantically scampered to dispose of evidence:

Two FBI agents were at the front door of their two-story brick colonial in Mitchellville.

"Don't answer it," the county executive said, unaware that more agents were listening in.

Johnson ordered his wife to find and destroy a $100,000 check from a real estate developer that was hidden in a box of liquor.

"Do you want me to put it down the toilet?" Leslie Johnson asked.

"Yes, flush that," the county executive said.

The Big Three

Miami Heat's so-called "big three" - DeWayne Wade, LeBron James, and Chris Bosh - is a misnomer. True, Wade and James should be mentioned among the NBA's elite players but Bosh is little more than a nice little complimentary player with an unimpressive resume and, as such, undeserving of what amounts to greatness by association.

Novice Dissemblers

Notwithstanding the shellacking congressional Democrats suffered in the midterm elections, the nation's capital has been abuzz over the bizarre benching of Washington Redskins quarterback Donovan McNabb during the Detroit Lions game. And the explanations for the move proved even more bizarre. First, head coach Mike Shanahan suggested that McNabb had not mastered the niceties of the two-minute drill and that backup Rex Grossman, who had spent a year in Kyle Shanahan's offense, gave the team "the best chance to win." Of course, the remarkably immobile Grossman entered the game and promptly fumbled the ball. Then in a press conference two days later, the elder Shanahan amended his explanation, noting that McNabb "cardiovascular endurance" was insufficient execute the rigors of the two-minute drill. Apparently that McNabb was under center for every snap before the benching did not matter. Finally, Shanahan the younger clarified that McNabb's ability to execute the two-minute drill was compromised by the assorted injuries resulting from playing behind a porous offensive line. In a city known for its dissemblers, the Shanahans would do well to refine their approach.

Perry's Colored Girls

Washington Post columnist Courtland Milloy, who could never be mistaken for a fan of director Tyler Perry's oeuvre, dismisses For Colored Girls with the delightful phrase "For Black Men Who Have Considered Homicide After Watching Another Perry Movie."