Month: May 2017

Is public’s interest in celebrities’ finances a threat to their privacy?

These days, when it comes to celebrities, the first thing that fans wish to know is the person’s financial status. And, privacy activists from around the world believe that showing interest in anyone’s finances is nothing but an invasion of privacy.

Experts also believe that some people actually start becoming jealous after looking at the revenue of stars.

This point has been proved in the past when some people expressed satisfaction after Jose Canseco, Mike Tyson, and Terrell Owens filed for bankruptcy. The three celebrities ended up losing all their money, and people expressed extreme satisfaction after reading about the same.

People’s interest in such issues is pretty old. Before around eighty years, Babe Ruth (New York Yankee slugger) made more than $80,000 during certain months. This information was available in the public domain. During a press conference, journalists asked the player if his salary was justifiable when the country faced unemployment and depression. On being asked if he is making more than the president, Ruth justified his earnings and said he had a better year than the President Herbert Hoover.

Journalists cannot be blamed

There is no point in blaming journalists alone for publishing such information. Such articles are often published with support from celebrities (sportsmen and movie stars) who themselves love to reveal details about how much they make annually and how they spend as a part of their lifestyle. They even release information about their mortgage payment, property rent, laundry bills, shopping, etc.

Privacy activists blame individuals for releasing such explicit details and suggest that this information should only be revealed in front of family members as well as taxmen. People should not reveal anything personal and it’s not significant to others.

It is clear that more and more people are showing interest in such details as days pass by. How much do they earn? How much do they have? How much do their competitors have? Such questions can be pointless for the public and may even degrade their life. But, anyway, websites have to cater the information that people want and celebrity net worth offers just that.

Thieves Leave Rugby Club on Ride-on Lawn Mowers

In the early hours of Wednesday the 17th of May, thieves broke in to the Bedworth Rugby Club in Coventry and made off with thousands of pounds worth of equipment. Then, instead of fleeing in a getaway car, they stole the club’s ride on lawn mowers and drove off into the night. To add insult to injury, a neighbour saw the thieves joyriding down the road on the mowers and failed to call the police.

For Mick Slater, chairman of Bedworth Rugby Club, the news of the burglary came as a shock and he said he felt sick upon hearing about the incident. Slater said that they were extremely disappointed, as the club barely breaks even and they’d never be able to replace their equipment and the mowers. They were only able to scrape funds together for the mowers every few years, and one was almost brand new.

A Clean Break In

It seems that the thieves knew exactly what they were doing, as no damage was done to the club’s storage container despite it being emptied in its entirety. Mr Slater said that the locks had been drilled off and the container emptied. In addition to all the equipment, two pedal mowers and two sit on mowers were stolen, totalling up to a loss of around £8,000.

Sadly, because the equipment was stolen from a container, the club cannot claim from insurance. For the foreseeable future, practising teams will have to rely on rugby drill video tutorials such as those available at https://www.sportplan.net/drills/Rugby/ and make do without any equipment.

More Worries and Woes

The robbery is not just the clubs only worry, as at present they are waiting to see whether their lease will be renewed.

They are not too sure if they will be able to stay on in their current home, as a new lease had been offered but included a hefty price hike. Should they not be able to afford the lease, they’ll be forced to move to St Nicholas Chamberlaine School and bid Rectory Fields farewell. Being left in limbo also saw the club leave the grass uncut, and now the loss of the mowers adds to their woes.

Police are on the lookout for the two thieves and the club is hoping their equipment will be returned to them.