Musk’s SpaceX Rocket Explodes and Causes Airport Chaos

Does Elon Musk think he is a law unto himself?

It seems that way. And maybe he is. 

The Federal Aviation Authority grounded commercial aircraft flights across Florida as a second successive SpaceX rocket post-launch explosion sent flaming debris to the ground.

The rocket had what was laughably described as "a rapid unscheduled disassembly" as a stop was placed on flights to and from several Florida airports.

The rocket blasted off from Starbase, outside Brownsville in Texas, but it broke up within minutes, travel news portal Travel Mole reported.

The US FAA issued a "ground stop" at Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Palm Beach International and Orlando airports due to the potential hazard of falling "space launch debris".

I wonder if an ordinary Joe would be allowed to cause such chaos with repeated failures.

It was the second straight explosion of a SpaceX rocket.

Earlier this year, debris rained down on the Turks and Caicos with wreckage still being collected weeks later.

Early evening departures were delayed at the airports while some incoming flights had to be diverted.

SpaceX issued a statement saying: "During Starship’s ascent burn, the vehicle experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly and contact was lost. Our team immediately began co-ordination with safety officials to implement pre-planned contingency responses.”

A meeting of minds: Florida and rugby league

It is a most unlikely marketing partnership.

A regional tourism operation in Florida, Visit St Petersburg Clearwater, Pinellas County’s official destination marketing organisation, has inked an 18-month partnership with the Betfred Rugby Super League.

As an advertising sponsor, branded LED banners will be prominently featured across more than 100 matches, which will be televised on BBC and Sky Sports.

You have to wonder if sports fans in Leigh and Wigan know the difference between St Petersburg, Florida, and St Petersburg, Russia. But there you go.

The partnership includes high-profile games throughout the season as well as the playoffs and finals along with marquee matches, such as the England vs. France international match.

The Betfred Rugby Super League games give the beaches of St. Pete-Clearwater global exposure as the games are, allegedly, aired in over 50 countries.

The sponsorship also includes an integrated online and radio campaign, with Visit St. Pete-Clearwater assets prominently displayed in stadiums.

Additionally, there will be specially-designed ads on the radio and online content.

With an estimated viewership of over 40 million (ahem), the partnership promises “extensive visibility” for the Visit St. Pete-Clearwater brand.

The sponsorship will run until December 31, 2025.

Steve Grimes, Chief Marketing Officer of Visit St. Pete-Clearwater, says: “The Rugby Super League’s growing popularity worldwide provides a dynamic platform to reach diverse and passionate sports fans.”

“We are proud to align our brand with one of the fastest-growing sports globally.”

Righto Steve. 

Florida battling bizarre wave of leprosy infections

Leprosy is making a comeback - in Florida of all places.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the US this week issued a warning over the growing number of leprosy cases in Florida, particularly in Brevard County. 

Their report says leprosy - also known as Hansen’s Disease - could be endemic in Central Florida.

The last full year of data was 2020 when there were 159 new cases nationwide

Almost 20% of those cases were in Central Florida.

The data points to "mounting epidemiological evidence supporting leprosy as an endemic process in the south-eastern United States".

“Travel to this area, even in the absence of other risk factors, should prompt consideration of leprosy in the appropriate clinical context,” the CDC said.

There have been 15 cases of leprosy in Florida this year, the majority of which were in Brevard County.

Leprosy is spread by moisture droplets carried through the air, Travel Mole reports.

The disease affects the skin and peripheral nerves.

The CDC suggests "environmental reservoirs as a potential source of transmission".

Although leprosy brings up connotations of severe skin lesions and the stigma of leper colonies, as in the distant past, it is now fully curable with the right medication.

Although leprosy can spread person to person, it's not known precisely how, NBC reported.

The disease does not spread through casual physical contact like shaking hands or sitting next to a person on the bus, the CDC says.

Rather, scientists' current thinking is that the bacteria gets transmitted via droplets from an infected person's coughs or sneezes during a prolonged period of close contact.

Contact with armadillos, some of which are naturally infected by leprosy-causing bacteria, may be another way people can get sick.

So stay away from those armadillos people.

Here is a link to the report: https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/29/8/22-0367_article  

A Mickey Mouse lawsuit? Disney v DeSantis

The Walt Disney Corporation has declared war on Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

Disney, one of the biggest employers in the US state, has accused DeSantis of organising a campaign of "government retaliation" and filed a lawsuit against the smarmy politician.

The legal action escalates an ongoing battle between the entertainment group and the Republican politician, Travel Mole reports.

The two sides have been at odds since Disney chiefs criticised a state law banning discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity in primary schools.

The lawsuit came after state officials voided a development deal involving the firm's Florida theme park.

There has been weeks of bad blood between DeSantis and the people behind Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck since Disney's public opposition to Florida’s "Don't Say Gay" law.

Disney said DeSantis' moves to assert control over its operations threatened its business and violated its constitutional rights.

It asked the court to negate the moves.

"Disney regrets it has come to this," the company's parks division said in the lawsuit, filed in federal court in Florida.

"But having exhausted efforts to seek a resolution, the company is left with no choice but to file this lawsuit to protect its cast members, guests, and local development partners from a relentless campaign to weaponise government power against Disney in retaliation for expressing a political viewpoint unpopular with certain state officials."

Disney opened Walt Disney World (above) in Florida in 1971 and now operates four theme parks in the Orlando precinct.

The legal action was filed after a board appointed by DeSantis voted to take away control from Disney for its resort areas in Orlando.

Snakes alive! "Emotional support reptile" kicked off flight

Americans seem to suffer from a bizarre range of mental issues.

Like the one who recently tried to smuggle a snake on board a flight, claiming it was "an emotion support reptile".

The traveller was stopped after Transportation Security Administration officers encountered the snake hidden in hand luggage.

The 1.3 metre boa constrictor, was spotted on a security checkpoint X-ray (above) at Tampa International Airport, Travel Mole reported.

Its owner maintained it was her emotional support snake called Bartholomew.

“Our officers didn’t find this hysssssterical,” a TSA Instagram post said.

“TSA notified the airline, which ruled that there was not going to be a snake on their plane.” 

Both the woman and the snake were refused access to the plane.

In recent weeks a dog and a cat have both been found in carry-on bags at security screenings in the US.

Forget Tokyo. Florida wants the Olympics. Now.

We may be less than a month into the New Year, but already he have a brilliant candidate for the award of Tin-Eared, Deluded Opportunist of 2021.

And, no surprise here, the nominee is an American politician - from the Republican Party.

Meet Jimmy Patronis, who enjoys the title of Chief Financial Officer in the US state of Florida.

Patronis is lobbying the International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach into moving the upcoming Olympics to his state should they be canceled in Tokyo.

He pointed out how successfully Florida had recently hosted a UFC fight card. 

The Games were postponed from Tokyo in 2020 due to the Covid-19 outbreak but are due to go ahead in Tokyo in six months' time. 

 
“There is still time to deploy a site selection team to Florida to meet with statewide and local officials on holding the Olympics in the Sunshine State,” Patronis told the IOC. “I would welcome the opportunity to pitch Florida and help you make the right contacts to get this done.”

Patronis said that Florida’s “ample hotel capacity and well-maintained transportation network” could allow it to successfully hold the Games, and that there are “12 major universities that have existing sporting facilities.”

It usually takes a city up to eight years to prepare to host an Olympic Games and there is also the unfortunate matter of Covid-19 to consider. Something Patronis appears to have forgotten. 

The United States leads the rest of the world in both confirmed cases and deaths from the virus and Florida has had the third-most cases among any state in the country. There have been 25,000 deaths so far in the state as the US death toll soars above 420,000.

Florida, with a huge retired population,so much so that locals joke that gangs include "the Bloodclots and the Cripples". It has repeatedly been a hot spot for the virus, and locals have resented being asked to wear masks to prevent the virus spreading. 

Florida is also where the "Paramedic of the Year" was this week accused of stealing Covid vaccines.  

Victor Matheson, a leading sports economist, said holding the Games in Florida would be “mind-bogglingly stupid” and "batshit crazy". 

“The idea that just because Florida has a lot of hotels that they could organize an entire Olympics event within six months is absolutely crazy,” Matheson told the Huffington Post.

“Let’s be honest here: If Tokyo is not safe enough due to Covid-19 to host the event, there’s no way in a million years Florida is safe enough to host the event,” he said. 

“It simply means that Tokyo actually cares about whether they want a mass superspreader event in their city while Florida doesn’t.”

Patronis said in his letter that Florida has successfully allowed sports to take place during the pandemic.

Patronis is a former restaurateur and politician. He was previously a member of the Florida House of Representatives representing the 6th district, which includes Panama City (the one in the US, not the one in Panama) and other parts of southern Bay County, from 2006 to 2014

This mouth-breathing, inward thinker - who probably chants "USA, USA" in his sleep - seems not be aware that the US has already hosted the Summer Olympic Games four times, the most of any country. Los Angeles is again expected to host in 2028. 

Andrew Zimbalist, another leading sports economist, did not hold back. 

“This is an idiotic, delusional, uninformed, ignorant Florida politician trying to put his name out there,” Zimbalist said. “And whether or not he himself believes this can be done, I don’t know. It’s got no chance. It’s just stupid.”

The Tokyo Olympic Games are scheduled to begin July 23 but maybe Patronis can convince the IOC to make them an annual event held at Disney World with free ice creams all round.