Chalk this one up to the absurd:
On the exact 20th anniversary of his now historic beating on the hands of the Los Angeles police department, Rodney King was pulled over yesterday in Arcadia, California and issued two summonses for speeding and running a red light.
There's no truth to the rumor that he said to the officers who pulled him over, "Can't we all just get along?"
But if I were Rodney King and I already got my head totally handed to me by a group of white cops, you can be rest assured I'd be driving like 10 MPH and stopping on every yellow light in a section of California, praying to God for no repeat anniversary performance.
As we know, the acquittal of the four cops who pummeled King unmercifully led to the horrific riots in L.A. in 1992. Thank God there were no riots in Arcadia yesterday.
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Today will be a very special day in Hudson County basketball.
For one, the Ramblers of St. Mary's will face Oratory Prep in the NJSIAA Non-Public B quarterfinals at 4 p.m. The game will take place at St. Mary's on Third Street in downtown Jersey City.
What makes the game special is that it will be the last time that St. Mary's will play a home game, because the school will be closing in June. Before the state tourney began, veteran head coach Tom Lalicato was steadfast about entering his team in the state playoffs, because he didn't think it was the right way for the Ramblers to go out.
Now, because of the way the bracket turned out, with the Ramblers beating Morristown-Beard in the first round and Oratory upsetting higher-seeded Montclair Kimberley, the Ramblers get one more home game.
In that respect, things worked out for the best.
At 7 p.m., just a few blocks away from St. Mary's, Hudson Catholic will go to the Golden Door Charter School to take on nationally ranked St. Anthony in another Non-Public B quarterfinal.
The doors for the Golden Door Charter School on Eighth Street will open at 5:30 and considering that the place doesn't hold more than 500 fans, it should sell out very quickly. So you could realistically park your car somewhere in downtown Jersey City and see two exciting high school playoff games, with the winners slated to face each other Monday night. But if you're going to the St. Anthony-Hudson Catholic game, my advice is to get there when the doors open.
It marks the first time that the two Jersey City schools faced each other in a game of significance since the 1975 HCIAA Championship game at the Jersey City Armory, won by Hudson Catholic, who had two players of note named Jim Spanarkel and Mike O'Koren, both of whom went on to bigger and better things.
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Speaking of St. Anthony, Rutgers University is already selling tickets for the anticipated showdown between the Friars and St. Patrick's of Elizabeth for the Non-Public B North title game. The game has not been secured, with both teams still needing to win two games to get to that showdown, but Rutgers is counting on the game being played, so tickets are on sale right now. Call 1-866-445-4678 for details.
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It's with deep sadness to report the passing of a true refereeing legend, Hoboken's Jackie Cullinan, who died Monday. Cullinan, who once officiated all the big high school and local college games, was a beloved character in the Mile Square City, especially his beloved Leo's Grandveous.
Jackie truly cared for every single person he ever met and treated everyone like they were members of his family. Whenever I go into Leo's or hear Sinatra sing "The Summer Wind," I'll think of big Jackie, his tremendous handshake, hug and kiss on the cheek. He was a very good man and will be sorely missed.
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You can read some of my other work on http://www.hudsonreporter.com/, http://www.theobserver.com/ and http://www.dailyrecord.com/.
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