Detroit Free Press

MARION JONES: THE NEEDLE, THE LYING DONE

MARION JONES: THE NEEDLE, THE LYING DONE

Marion Jones is reportedly out of money, out of work, nursing one child and raising another. She lives in a modest house, having sold the others she once owned. She was forced to give back her Olympic medals. She is banned from track and field, her sport. She was charged with crimes, pleaded guilty, and despite her plea for mercy, a judge sentenced her to jail Friday - six months, for lying to federal investigators, mostly about her steroid use.This is more than a "fall from grace," as analysts have called it. This is a cannon shot. This is a sonic boom.
WEBBER MAY TEST IF YOU CAN GO HOME AGAIN

WEBBER MAY TEST IF YOU CAN GO HOME AGAIN

And what if Chris Webber became a Piston? It could happen. The Pistons would like it to happen. Hey, any team that could pick up a guy of Webber's talent - or what's left of it - for the price of chewing gum by NBA standards would be crazy not to.And so the Pistons might.And wouldn't that be something?
WIN THE BIG LOTTERY, SPOIL THE MARRIAGE

WIN THE BIG LOTTERY, SPOIL THE MARRIAGE

I'm sure winning the lottery is good for something. But that something obviously isn't marriage.Take the recent case of Robert Swofford, a postal worker in Florida. He had been separated from his wife for three years. That's a long time to be separated. That's longer than many marriages. You figure that much time apart, you might as well finalize it. But they never got around to it.Then Swofford won the lottery. A fat $60 million. And wouldn't you know it? Just like that, his wife served him with divorce papers -- and claimed half of his prize.
BOWLED OVER

BOWLED OVER

PASADENA, Calif. - Here came a linebacker. Here came a nose tackle. Here came a cornerback. Here came another linebacker.It's supposed to be the ocean that smacks up against you in these parts, but on Monday it was the Southern Cal defense that crashed like waves against Michigan quarterback Chad Henne, over and over, chasing him, knocking him down, until you half expected some "Baywatch" lifeguard to come flying out of the stands to save him.No such luck.
Let’s give thanks, NFL style

Let’s give thanks, NFL style

Let's give thanks, NFL styleFilled with the spirit of this wonderful holiday weekend, we who follow the NFL should be thankful today that: Dexter Manley doesn't have a brother who plays football.Lions fans only have to see Anthony Carter twice a year. Brian Bosworth plays way up in Seattle, where nobody can hear him.The Broncos won't make the Super Bowl, so we won't have to be bored to death again.Tom Landry isn't the screaming kind.Elvis never showed up for Jerry Glanville's tickets.Jamie Morris is getting a chance in Washington.
HARK, THE CURRENT ANGLES SING …

HARK, THE CURRENT ANGLES SING …

I hear a knock. I open my door. Look who's come a-Christmas caroling with their own personal spin …Striking Hollywood writers do "Joy to the World":Joy to the world, we're still on strikeLet reruns fill the aiiiir!Let every week of "Heroes"Look like last week of "Heroes"Let "CSI" go away"Grey's Anatomy" go grayThen maybe, just maaaay-beWe'll get our payTony Romo and Jessica Simpson duet on her being a distraction with "Baby, It's Cold Outside":You really can't stay (baby, it's cold outside)

Mitch Albom writes about running an orphanage in impoverished Port-au-Prince, Haiti, his kids, their hardships, laughs and challenges, and the life lessons he’s learned there every day.

Subscribe for bonus content and giveaways!