Bits & Pieces

Poisoned letters warn against objectifying cheerleaders

The FBI offered a $5,000 reward Tuesday for help tracking down whoever mailed dozens of threatening letters–including some containing a potentially harmful insecticide–complaining about the way ESPN television crews cover college cheerleaders and some professional female athletes.

The letters complained that ESPN crews exploited their camera angles on cheerleaders, WNBA players and Sony Ericsson WTA Tour tennis players–even though those angles were not shown on the air.

“For the past 6-7 years, ESPN and its nationwide networks have exploited cheer/dance teams all across the country. They do this by parking their TV cameras on these women for their own personal entertainment,” an excerpt from one letter said.

An excerpt from another letter said: “Pigs park their cameras on us close up, front view, dozens of times each game, yet rarely ever show on TV in this manner.”

A spokesman for ESPN said the network could not give any details about the investigation.

“But we’re aware of the situation and are cooperating with the authorities,” said spokesman Mike Soltys.

The FBI declined to identify the kind of insecticide contained in some of the letters. But the agency said there were no reports of any injuries.

Free Willy

ST. MARTINVILLE, La.–Willie Nelson and his tour manager were spared jail time Tuesday after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor count of marijuana possession.

Nelson and tour manager David Anderson, along with Nelson’s sister, Bobbie Nelson, and two drivers, were issued citations on Sept. 18 after state troopers said they found marijuana and hallucinogenic mushrooms on the country legend’s tour bus during a commercial-vehicle inspection on Interstate 10.

State District Judge Paul deMahy fined Nelson and Anderson $1,024 each and put both on probation for six months. As part of a plea agreement, the citation against Bobbie Nelson was dismissed.

St. Martin Parish Assistant District Attorney Chester Cedars said he dismissed the citations against the two drivers because there was no indication they “had anything to do with the contraband.”

Word spread quickly that Nelson was in this small southern Louisiana town, and a crowd of about 25 fans gathered outside to wait for the entertainer after his brief court appearance. When he emerged, Nelson obliged, shaking hands, signing scraps of paper and posing for photographs.

“Thank y’all,” he said, waving as he climbed into a waiting car.

Potentially habitable planet discovered, no condos planned yet

WASHINGTON–For the first time astronomers have discovered a planet outside our solar system that is potentially habitable, with Earth-like temperatures, a find researchers described Tuesday as a big step in the search for “life in the universe.”

The planet is just the right size, might have water in liquid form, and in galactic terms is relatively nearby at 120 trillion miles away. But the star it closely orbits, known as a “red dwarf,” is much smaller, dimmer and cooler than our sun.

There’s still a lot that is unknown about the new planet, which could be deemed inhospitable to life once more is known about it. And it’s worth noting that scientists’ requirements for habitability count Mars in that category: a size relatively similar to Earth’s with temperatures that would permit liquid water. However, this is the first outside our solar system that meets those standards.

“It’s a significant step on the way to finding possible life in the universe,” said University of Geneva astronomer Michel Mayor, one of 11 European scientists on the team that found the planet. “It’s a nice discovery. We still have a lot of questions.”

The results of the discovery have not been published but have been submitted to the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics.