Patrick Swayze dies

Patrick Swayze has died at the age of 57.
Diagnosed with stage 4 Pancreatic cancer, the deadliest form of the disease, Swayze was determined to continue working, although he acknowledged that his time might be limited due to the nature of the cancer.

The Hunky actor who found fame as the dance instructor "Johny Castle" in the film "Dirty Dancing" passed away quietly surrounded by family. The film made use of Patricks' muscular physique and dancing talent, it was to become a worldwide hit and propelled him to stardom

Swayze later starred in "ghost" a touching comedy/thriller in which he played a murder victim who tries to communicate with his girlfriend, played by Demi Moore, through psychic medium Whoopi Goldberg, again this film became an international hit and cemented Patrick Swayzes' status as a Hollywood superstar.

Born in 1952 in Houston, Texas, Swayze was married to Niemi in 1975 who he met at his mothers dance class when he was 19 and Niemi was 15, his heart-throb staus saw him voted "Sexiest Man Alive" in 1991 by People magazine.

His string of films include, Youngblood, Red Dawn, Road House, The Outsiders, Point Break and To Wong Foo.

The People of Wal-Mart

It appears that the latest MUST VISIT site on the Internet happens to be of a relatively new and previously unthought of concept, that of posting pictures of people who shop at Wal-Mart. Not exactly the most interesting of website theme one might think, but how little we know.

The site set up by two brothers, Adam and Andrew Kipple and a friend, has suddenly gained momentum and gotten viewing figures reaching one million plus per day. Originally conceived as a site to showcase the many weird and wonderful people who shop at Wal-Mart, the site has attracted complaints that it is a way to mock poor and rural patrons of the store. The site owners strongly deny this, saying that they had only intended to show the ill advised dress sense and hair styles of many shoppers. Pictures are emailed in to the site for inclusion from across the US but any depicting any sort of physical or mental handicap will most definitely not be published.

People of Wal-Mart is just for fun say its' creators, not for mean spiritedness or spite, although unfortunately many of the people who have taken to commenting on individual pictures don't seem to agree. There are lots of uncomplimentary remarks made about people just because they appear to be poor or unattractive.

Wal-Mart themselves have declined to comment on the site, although the owners of People of Wal-Mart are quick to point out that their site could be a boon to Wal-Mart as it is encouraging people who haven't visited recently to decide to go now.

It could however work the other way and people who are conscious of their looks, dress sense or those who may be somewhat down on their luck, will decide that the risk of being happy snapped whilst reaching for the economy tin of beans is too much of an embarrassment and keep away.

LeGarrette Blount punches his career into the dust

Oregon tailback LeGarrette Blount has landed himself in real hot water with his latest temper tantrum, punching an opposing player to the floor and taking a swing at one of his own team-mates, not to mention his attempt to get at some opposing fans who had allegedly been taunting him, has brought his career prospects into serious doubt.

There is also the very real possibility of criminal charges being preferred against LeGarrette Blount, at the very least a suspension for the foreseeable future is a certainty, if not for the remainder of his senior season.

What makes the behaviour of LeGarrette Blount all the more reprehensible is the fact that the American Football Coaches Assn (AFCA) chose this game to start its sportsmanship initiative. Designed to help encourage good will on the field, the idea didn't quite go to plan, although in honsty the game played well enough, it was just the ending that went down the pan.