Dang; willya lookit all this? I take a few days off and, lo & behold, a total buttload of interesting stuff all pops up all over the place.
The Poor Little Rich Girl of Canadian politics has decided that, since nobody will let her be in charge, she’s running back home to Daddy’s company to… well, be in charge. Because of her overwhelming qualifications, of course. Don’t let the door hit ya where the Good Lord split ya on the way out.
The Torys put yet another nail in the now almost all-nail coffin of the billion-buck bugger-up of the long gun registry and the Liebrals, naturally, were miffed that it was done outside of Parliament where they could have huffed and puffed — but actually done sweet bugger all — about it:
“It says the Conservatives are trying to do by stealth what they can’t do out in the open — which is kill the long gun registry,” said Liberal Justice Critic Marlene Jennings.
“But by doing it by stealth, they are attempting to ensure that the vast majority of Canadians won’t know what they’re doing, and so they get away with it.”
No, dipshit; it means that the Tories — along with most other people in this country that have two non-partisan brain cells to rub together — are sick and God damned tired of worthless, self-serving, Grit grandstanding on this issue and have decided to take away one of your favourite horns. Go toot something else. Have some beans.
Our boys in Afghanistan had a bad day over the Easter weekend. Perhaps in something of a telling portent of changing values, the deaths of six of our men came almost right on top of the 90th anniversary of the assault on Vimy Ridge where losing six men would have happened about every seven minutes. 3,598 dead in three days; do the math. And none of them came home. But look to get innundated with a fresh volly of “body of fallen soldier begins/continues/ends long journey home” stories in the MSM for the next while (unless there’s something more Lefty-friendly to blab about for a few minutes).
All charges were finally dropped agains the lacrosse players from Duke University, which must have totally baffled the lib-left because hey, the accuser was black and the accused were white. Which means they’re clearly guilty, right?
And much, much more. Dang. Well, I’m back now and seeing as how I’m laid off for a while, that should mean that I’m going to have a lot more time to dish out all the little nuggets of wisdom that you have all come to know, love and depend on to get through your days.
Ouch. That’s gotta hurt. What I’d like to know is, how the hell did Tootoo catch on to Robidas coming up behind him like that? For those wondering what you’re about to see, here it is in a nutshell:
Tootoo creams Modano with a high-but-clean hit and then sends Robidas to the corner of WhereTheHell & AmI, seemingly by sense of smell, before getting whacked across the back by Modano’s stick after he peeled himself off the ice. Things got cranky from there and Robidas ended up riding the stretcher off the ice. Final tally: no majors, charging for Robidas and double roughing for Tootoo.
I repeat: how the HELL did Tootoo smell that guy coming?? Robidas clearly thought he had the element of surprise, or else he never would have led with his chin like that…
Following the tragic death of Trooper Mark Wilson in Afghanistan in October of last year, one sports artist (a friend of Wilson’s family) was hit hard and decided that something should be done to show appreciation for the sacrifices of our men and women in uniform. Well, David Arrigo up and did just that in his own, very Canadian, way. Patrick Maloney had the story in today’s Freeps, which is reproduced in its entirety below:
Goalie mask soldier tribute
Mon, January 8, 2007 By PATRICK MALONEY, FREE PRESS REPORTER
Trooper Mark Wilson’s death in Afghanistan has inspired a special piece of art that’s being passed among elite NHL players and may become part of the upcoming all-star game.
Sports artist David Arrigo, a friend of one of Wilson’s relatives, was hit hard by the October death of the London soldier and inspired to design a military-themed goalie mask.
“It just sort of pushed me — this is going to be my addition to thanking the soldiers,” said Arrigo, who has done work for years for the NHL, NFL and other pro sports leagues.
“(But) I didn’t want this piece to be about any one person — it’s more about all the soldiers in Afghanistan.”
The detailed mask design, Arrigo explained, has two distinct sides: The right is called “the mission,” and features images of an Afghani girl reading and a Canadian soldier. The left side, called “the memory,” includes a bagpiper and a soldier pinning a poppy on a wreath.
What could have been a quiet tribute, however, is getting much more attention thanks to the contacts Arrigo and Wilson’s cousin, NHL photographer Dave Sandford, have throughout pro hockey.
The pair are in discussions with at least one goalie to wear the mask in Dallas on Jan. 24 during the all-star skills competition or in the all-star game.
They have also photographed the mask with hockey celebrities such as Don Cherry, who mentioned the project during Coach’s Corner on Hockey Night In Canada. Sandford was to photograph Pittsburgh star Sidney Crosby with it.
Those photos will eventually be posted at nhl.com and on Arrigo’s own website, darrigoart.com. Arrigo’s mask will then be auctioned off on the NHL’s website with the money raised going to the families of fallen troops.
“I’m looking to put a call out to corporate Canada,” Arrigo said. “If they’re not going to bid on the mask, (they could) create some other programs of awareness.”
NHL officials in the U.S. were so impressed, they have asked Arrigo to make a mask with an American theme.
Wilson, 39, was killed in an October roadside bomb attack while serving in Afghanistan. As London’s first combat casualty of the mission, his death rocked the city and sparked an outpouring of support for the family.
The attention the mask is generating is further proof that support continues, his cousin Sandford said.
“They’re not forgetting this,” said Sandford. “While everybody may not agree with why they’re there (in Afghanistan), the fact . . . is they’re there. You have to support them.
“Whether it’s in the form of a little yellow ribbon or a goalie mask, it’s one of those things that keeps (it) in the forefront.”
If you’re anything like me, you probably have quite a few fond memories of playing hockey with friends, or even just skating around in the waning light, on a frozen pond somewhere. I think most of us — or at least those of us that grew up in the country or small towns — have such recollections. For us it was a pond in the middle of a farmer’s field on the northeast edge of town.
Most folks my age will tell you that the winters were quite a bit colder back then, and they were. I can remember a time in my life when storms like the one that dumped about 3 feet of white stuff on London recently were expected at least once or twice a year. So, to make a long story short, skating on frozen ponds was just something that we did, every chance we got.
But along with all that fun came constant warnings from the grownups, delivered with the kind of tone that made it damn clear that any screwing around would be dealt with immediately, and harshly:
Stay away from ponds if there had been any kind of a thaw, no matter how brief, within the last week.
“Thick and blue is tried and true; thin or crispy, way too risky.”
Don’t trust ice that has a milky colour to it.
Don’t go out on any ice until somebody — or, more likely, somebody’s dad — has augered it to make sure exactly how thick it is.
Don’t trust ice that’s covered in a layer of snow. Snow doesn’t just obscure ice, it also has an insulating effect and inhibits good ice formation.
Never trust the ice on a river or a stream; it can be a foot thick in one spot but paper thin just a few yards away.
Always have a lifeline nearby, just in case the worst happens.
Finally, no matter how well you think you know the ice: never, never, EVER go out on the ice alone.
I was reminded of all this today as I heard the news of the tragic death of 11-year Brunthan Nadarajah in Scarborough, who died trying to rescue a friend who had fallen through the ice on a drainage pond. The other kid, a 15-year old, is currently in critical condition at Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children.
Winter in Canada is a wonderful time, and peppered with innumerable traditions but, for God’s sake, make sure your children know what to do, and what not to do, to keep themselves safe. No parent ever wants to read something like this about their own children:
The older boy plunged through the thin ice that covered the pond. The younger boy tried to pull his friend from the water, only to break through himself.
“He was the only person who went and tried to rescue him,” Nadarah said of his son, adding that the sixth-grade student was trying to save a high-school student.
“I miss him so much. We miss him so much.”
Rescue attempts
One man rushed to the scene with a long electrical cord and tried to throw it to the boys. His rescue attempt was almost successful.
“I threw it out again (and) he finally got a hold of it,” Phil Hall said.
“I tried pulling him up and he couldn’t hold on to it. I guess his hands were freezing, he couldn’t hold on to it.”
Hall then crawled out on the thin ice, inching his way towards the boys in an effort to get closer.
“As I got close towards them, the ice gave way,” he said.
Hall, who cannot swim, and a police officer still had the extension cord and were able to get back to safety.
Four police officers in total attempted to rescue the boys, but were not successful.
Well, this isn’t surprising. In their never ending quest to find some deep, dark secret in PM Stephen Harper’s closet, the MSM may have finally latched onto something that will get Canadians‘ attention, and maybe keep it, too (though I haven’t yet figured out how they’re going to put some “Bush-loving, neocon, American Republican conspiracy angle on it yet, but I’m sure they’ll think of something). CTV leads off with:
Hockey fans are wondering if Prime Minister Stephen Harper unwittingly outed himself as a closet Toronto Maple Leafs fan with his reaction to the team’s lone goal Wednesday night.
Harper, a hard-core hockey fan, has been careful to keep his allegiances to himself.
But that hasn’t prevented hockey fans from speculating whether the Toronto-born Harper, who studied in Calgary and now lives at 24 Sussex Drive in Ottawa, has any favourites only his inner circle knows about.
So there you have it. A far-right wing, nutjob, knuckle-dragging, homophobic, neanderthal, gun-toting, redneck Evangelical troglodyte is one thing, but are Canadians ready for a PM that’s a Leafs fan?
Dang; willya lookit all this? I take a few days off and, lo & behold, a total buttload of interesting stuff all pops up all over the place.
Our boys in Afghanistan had a 
Ouch. That’s gotta hurt. What I’d like to know is, how the hell did Tootoo catch on to Robidas coming up behind him like that? For those wondering what you’re about to see, here it is in a nutshell:
Trooper Mark Wilson’s death in Afghanistan has inspired a special piece of art that’s being passed among elite NHL players and may become part of the upcoming all-star game.
I was reminded of all this today as I