Multiculturalism, what hath thou wrought?
Last night, after a town hall meeting that was at times both inspirational as well as head-poundingly infuriating, TDSB school trustees voted 11-9 to officially establish an afrocentric school.
Does anyone seriously believe that teenage boys who assault girls in school bathrooms are going to suddenly become changed, upstanding members of society because they're being taught more about black history? How can these people say with a straight face that what happens from 4 to 8 every afternoon in nobody's business and yet these kids need an afrocentric school? I've already heard it said this morning that this school isn't any different than schools we already have which focus on the arts. Um, no. This school, by its very nature, focuses on race. They couldn't be more different. But you know what? go right ahead. Really, whatever. The government funds so many things I disagree with who would notice? There's just one thing; don't you dare try to tell me that this is different from funding the religious school I might want to send my own son to someday!
Oh, and the Premier just can't stop telling us how he really, really, really hates this idea. I mean, he really hates it. Tears him up inside. But the TDSB is independent, he couldn't possibly intervene. Except... Except that he was considering shuttering the TDSB a few years ago when it couldn't balance its budget. Hmm.
There's only one way to end the opening chapter of this sorry mess. John Tory delivers the understatement of the year.
30 January, 2008
24 January, 2008
Can't Buy Me Love
So the official salaries for the 2007 Major League Baseball season have finally been tabulated. And of course, at number one for the ninth year in a row sit, or rather slouch the New York Yankees. Apparently, spending two hundred and eighteen (I rounded it down) million dollars can't buy you a ticket into the American League Championship Series. Once again the Yankees are the richest team in baseball, but they aren't the smartest, not by a longshot. They're the neighbour who buys the 50-inch Pioneer Elite plasma TV and doesn't realize he has to get the HD cable box. He's got a Ferrari in the garage and he doesn't know how to drive it worth a damn.
Apparently the Patriots aren't the only game in town when it comes to being smart in Boston, the Red Sox won the whole smash by 'only' spending $155 million. And two years out of four ain't bad at all.
But the saddest story here might be the Dodgers, who managed to pour $126 million into the weak National League and didn't even sniff the playoffs. Of the Dodgers who came to bat 400 times in 2007, only Jeff Kent managed to hit .300.
Only three weeks to pitchers and catchers. :)
Apparently the Patriots aren't the only game in town when it comes to being smart in Boston, the Red Sox won the whole smash by 'only' spending $155 million. And two years out of four ain't bad at all.
But the saddest story here might be the Dodgers, who managed to pour $126 million into the weak National League and didn't even sniff the playoffs. Of the Dodgers who came to bat 400 times in 2007, only Jeff Kent managed to hit .300.
Only three weeks to pitchers and catchers. :)
20 January, 2008
Ryan's Song
Michigan quarterback Ryan Mallett has decided to transfer to Arkansas in the wake of the recent coaching changes at the big house. Mallett of course must now sit out the 2008 season as a penalty for his transfer.
Okay, where do I start with this? Rich Rodriguez breaks his contract with West Virginia in order to coach at Michigan. Mallett, realizing that the new coach and likely new Michigan offense isn't what he signed up for decides to transfer. And Rodriguez gets to start coaching this Summer, while Mallett must sit out a year. On exactly what level is this fair or does it even make sense? If the NCAA is not prepared to slap coaches around for contract breaking (and it isn't), how can it hold athletes to a higher standard? I hope Mallett decides to fight this absurdity and I hope he wins. After all, what else is he going to do this year?
Okay, where do I start with this? Rich Rodriguez breaks his contract with West Virginia in order to coach at Michigan. Mallett, realizing that the new coach and likely new Michigan offense isn't what he signed up for decides to transfer. And Rodriguez gets to start coaching this Summer, while Mallett must sit out a year. On exactly what level is this fair or does it even make sense? If the NCAA is not prepared to slap coaches around for contract breaking (and it isn't), how can it hold athletes to a higher standard? I hope Mallett decides to fight this absurdity and I hope he wins. After all, what else is he going to do this year?
17 January, 2008
Selig + 3
Groan.
I know, I know, more money is pouring in than baseball has ever seen on his watch. But I've always considered this fact to be more coincidence than correlation. After all, don't you think baseball could be the least bit more popular with the youngones if it had a commissioner that didn't put you to sleep whenever he opened his mouth? Face it, he's the Lloyd Carr of sports commissioners, in a sport that kids already think isn't cool. At least he's only the second worst commissioner in pro sports. Unlike the commissioner who's name rhymes with Gettman, he doesn't appear to be actively trying to sabotage the league he's running. Then again, this is the commissioner who saw the World Series cancelled on his watch. This is the commissioner who at worst ignored the entrance of steroids into his sport, thereby throwing the integrity of every sacred record into question for the sport in which they matter most. And that's just the on-field chaos that's taken place during his tenure. I won't bring up the fact that there's absolutely no chance in hell that we'll ever see a reasonable salary structure in the sport again until Budd is long gone. Selig is either directly or indirectly responsible for some of the sleaziest backroom deals in the history of pro sports, namely the sales of both the Red Sox and the Expos/Nationals. Oh well, just keep thinking the same happy thought that baseball fans everywhere think when the owners do something stupid during the off-season. Pitchers and catchers... Pitchers and catchers...
I know, I know, more money is pouring in than baseball has ever seen on his watch. But I've always considered this fact to be more coincidence than correlation. After all, don't you think baseball could be the least bit more popular with the youngones if it had a commissioner that didn't put you to sleep whenever he opened his mouth? Face it, he's the Lloyd Carr of sports commissioners, in a sport that kids already think isn't cool. At least he's only the second worst commissioner in pro sports. Unlike the commissioner who's name rhymes with Gettman, he doesn't appear to be actively trying to sabotage the league he's running. Then again, this is the commissioner who saw the World Series cancelled on his watch. This is the commissioner who at worst ignored the entrance of steroids into his sport, thereby throwing the integrity of every sacred record into question for the sport in which they matter most. And that's just the on-field chaos that's taken place during his tenure. I won't bring up the fact that there's absolutely no chance in hell that we'll ever see a reasonable salary structure in the sport again until Budd is long gone. Selig is either directly or indirectly responsible for some of the sleaziest backroom deals in the history of pro sports, namely the sales of both the Red Sox and the Expos/Nationals. Oh well, just keep thinking the same happy thought that baseball fans everywhere think when the owners do something stupid during the off-season. Pitchers and catchers... Pitchers and catchers...
16 January, 2008
The great defenders
Or did you expect anything different from this bunch the second time around? Quoting from today's National Post:
I should hope so! After all, these are the great defenders of the Ontario public education system, fighting against that nasty John Tory and his dastardly plan to give public funding to religious schools that aren't, you know, catholic schools. Right... right. That was then and they had an election to win. A man who had proven that he couldn't be trusted to do what he said he would when we gave him the big chair to sit in had a good man to demagogue and demonize. God this makes the blood boil, both as a conservative and as a Jewish Ontario taxpayer. If it weren't so infuriating it could be funny. After making the issue of "one publically funded education system for all" the defining issue of his campaign and riding it to a sweeping majority, it barely took three months for this jerk and his government to give us the finger and show us for the fools we are. Congratulations Ontario, see you in 2011.
Although Premier Dalton McGuinty has publically said he was not "personally comfortable" with the idea of Afrocentric schools, Kathleen Wynne, education minister, said in an interview yesterday the province will support the school board's final decision. "At the end of the day, they are going to do what they need to do to meet the needs of their students," she said, but added: "Our position is that we prefer to have our students learning together in an inclusive environment."
I should hope so! After all, these are the great defenders of the Ontario public education system, fighting against that nasty John Tory and his dastardly plan to give public funding to religious schools that aren't, you know, catholic schools. Right... right. That was then and they had an election to win. A man who had proven that he couldn't be trusted to do what he said he would when we gave him the big chair to sit in had a good man to demagogue and demonize. God this makes the blood boil, both as a conservative and as a Jewish Ontario taxpayer. If it weren't so infuriating it could be funny. After making the issue of "one publically funded education system for all" the defining issue of his campaign and riding it to a sweeping majority, it barely took three months for this jerk and his government to give us the finger and show us for the fools we are. Congratulations Ontario, see you in 2011.
11 January, 2008
Hammer to Fall
The Toronto Maple Leafs have just lost 5-2 to the Los Angeles Kings, creating a mere six point cushion between themselves and the worst team in the league. This team has now won 16 games and lost 27, overtime scraps be damned. They have embarked on the second half of the season and produced, on consecutive nights, embarassing efforts against what may be the best and worst teams in the NHL. If this morning you took a bet on this team making the playoffs you would likely be able to retire on the payout. But some good can come of tonight. Every major Leafs executive had a front row seat for this game. The reality is that the Kings represent the best possible future for the Maple Leafs. The Kings are a team built from the draft, with a core of talented young players poised to begin a climb towards the top of the West. The Leafs should be so lucky. Because as it stands now, this team is not good enough, not in one single aspect of the game. This team mustn't be tweaked or tinkered with, it must be destroyed. Ideally, not one member of the current roster over the age of 25 should enter Leafs training camp on September 1. Of course given the reality of how things are done in today's NHL that's really not possible. But it should be the goal of the front office, however that office is constituted, from this moment forward.
08 January, 2008
No bleeping way
June 3 Update: OK, go ahead and laugh. I know I did after I just read this again. All I can say in my defense is that I was, in a way, technically right. If you look at the breakdown according to party registration, you'll find that McCain did not win the pleurality of votes from registered Republicans who voted in the Republican primaries. That being said, congratulations to him. Them's the rules and he won fair and square. Now he's earned his shot to convince us why he's worthy of the office. It'll certainly be an interesting five months.
Various articles today about 'the rebirth of Senator McCain's campaign', don't believe the hype. I'll stop this at two reasons, but I'm sure there are more.
1: NEW HAMPSHIRE PEOPLE!! This is so the perfect state for a candidate like McCain. It's full of voters who call themselves independents. Remember, people who call themselves that are really disillusioned democrats. Always remember that. And it's a state full of former Massachusetts residents who have found enlightenment in the form of, "yes, I realize now that it is possible to be forced to pay too much in taxes for lousy government." These are McCain's dream voters.
2: In states where republican candidates really do sound different from democrat ones, McCain is drawing dead. This is because he is reflexively hated by republicans for holding two completely different positions. Plugged in republicans hate him for McCain/Feingold, the most brazen assault on the first amendment in living memory. And republicans who are a little less detail oriented merely know McCain as one of the prime movers in the Senate behind the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act. That's the bill that almost burned down Washington last June. For voters who care about them these are drop dead, anyone-but-him issues.
Senator John McCain is a good man, a hero who served his country bravely and with distinction. He should forever be hailed and honoured for his service. But as it stands, I would rather stay home than vote for him on election day. And there are more who are like me than the pundets in New York and Washington would like to believe. Tonight is the last joyful stop for the Straight Talk Express, or whatever he's calling it this time.
Various articles today about 'the rebirth of Senator McCain's campaign', don't believe the hype. I'll stop this at two reasons, but I'm sure there are more.
1: NEW HAMPSHIRE PEOPLE!! This is so the perfect state for a candidate like McCain. It's full of voters who call themselves independents. Remember, people who call themselves that are really disillusioned democrats. Always remember that. And it's a state full of former Massachusetts residents who have found enlightenment in the form of, "yes, I realize now that it is possible to be forced to pay too much in taxes for lousy government." These are McCain's dream voters.
2: In states where republican candidates really do sound different from democrat ones, McCain is drawing dead. This is because he is reflexively hated by republicans for holding two completely different positions. Plugged in republicans hate him for McCain/Feingold, the most brazen assault on the first amendment in living memory. And republicans who are a little less detail oriented merely know McCain as one of the prime movers in the Senate behind the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act. That's the bill that almost burned down Washington last June. For voters who care about them these are drop dead, anyone-but-him issues.
Senator John McCain is a good man, a hero who served his country bravely and with distinction. He should forever be hailed and honoured for his service. But as it stands, I would rather stay home than vote for him on election day. And there are more who are like me than the pundets in New York and Washington would like to believe. Tonight is the last joyful stop for the Straight Talk Express, or whatever he's calling it this time.
Talk to me Goose
And who didn't see that line coming?
After eight years, Rich Gossage will finally take his rightful place in Cooperstown this July. A closer before they were called that, Gossage was one of the best ever. Unless your name was George Brett, the combination of Davis to Gossage was as lethal as there has ever been in baseball. We're talking 77-2 at one point when the Yankees lead after six. That's not just good, that's legendary. And Gossage wasn't one of the pampered princes they call closers today, most of his saves were two and sometimes even three innings. Congratulations Goose, you've crossed the last mile.
After eight years, Rich Gossage will finally take his rightful place in Cooperstown this July. A closer before they were called that, Gossage was one of the best ever. Unless your name was George Brett, the combination of Davis to Gossage was as lethal as there has ever been in baseball. We're talking 77-2 at one point when the Yankees lead after six. That's not just good, that's legendary. And Gossage wasn't one of the pampered princes they call closers today, most of his saves were two and sometimes even three innings. Congratulations Goose, you've crossed the last mile.
Better... Stronger... Faster...
Hmm. I haven't seen the SEC lay a beatdown on the Big Ten like that since... 364 days ago. That's right sports fans, after playing against the pathetic Big Ten and a non-conference schedule for the ages, Ohio State had to face the best players they've seen since practice. The result was eventually swift and very predictable. Make no mistake, the score was a bit more flattering than last year but the result was every bit as sure.
I really don't understand everyone I've heard beating on Jim Tressel this morning. If you watched the game, you have no doubt that LSU had the superior team in every respect. They took what was supposedly the number one defense in the country and shredded it. In sports the best team is supposed to win, remember? Maybe if Tressel isn't prowling your sideline the score might have been, let's say 87-12. Coach Tressel got the best from what he had to work with this season. It was good enough to dominate the lackluster Big Ten, and more importantly, it was good enough to fool the voters into sending the Buckeyes into a championship game they had no business being anywhere near.
LSU's best players aren't necessarily better than OHIO State's best, but LSU is obviously deeper. When Les Miles sent his defenders out to play OSU man-to-man he was saying what he thought of Ohio State's secondary wide-outs. I guess he was right.
Not that I'm pushing LSU as the best team in the country after last night or anything. They didn't really belong in that game either. They were dominated at home on senior day by a bad Arkansas team that got crushed by Missouri. No, if you're going to insist on having a championship game, this year it's between USC and Georgia. And so the book closes on the 2007 college Football season. Damn, that was fun!
I really don't understand everyone I've heard beating on Jim Tressel this morning. If you watched the game, you have no doubt that LSU had the superior team in every respect. They took what was supposedly the number one defense in the country and shredded it. In sports the best team is supposed to win, remember? Maybe if Tressel isn't prowling your sideline the score might have been, let's say 87-12. Coach Tressel got the best from what he had to work with this season. It was good enough to dominate the lackluster Big Ten, and more importantly, it was good enough to fool the voters into sending the Buckeyes into a championship game they had no business being anywhere near.
LSU's best players aren't necessarily better than OHIO State's best, but LSU is obviously deeper. When Les Miles sent his defenders out to play OSU man-to-man he was saying what he thought of Ohio State's secondary wide-outs. I guess he was right.
Not that I'm pushing LSU as the best team in the country after last night or anything. They didn't really belong in that game either. They were dominated at home on senior day by a bad Arkansas team that got crushed by Missouri. No, if you're going to insist on having a championship game, this year it's between USC and Georgia. And so the book closes on the 2007 college Football season. Damn, that was fun!
01 January, 2008
Not a great start
For the BCS that is. Illinois seemed petrified of facing an actual powerhouse team, and Hawaii... well, Hawaii did too. It looks like that's it for feel good upsets this season. Maybe Kansas will take down Virginia Tech or something.
Insert 'Hawaii hasn't been bombed like that since...' jokes here.
Sure I'm a little bummed that the Warriors crapped out like that, but I'm also really happy for the dogs. I've watched them all year and after tonight I think they're 1 and 1A with USC for the best team in college football. It would've been easy for them not to care about tonight. But like true champions, even though they knew they got screwed by the system, they still went out and laid a beating on an inferior team. Good for them.
Insert 'Hawaii hasn't been bombed like that since...' jokes here.
Sure I'm a little bummed that the Warriors crapped out like that, but I'm also really happy for the dogs. I've watched them all year and after tonight I think they're 1 and 1A with USC for the best team in college football. It would've been easy for them not to care about tonight. But like true champions, even though they knew they got screwed by the system, they still went out and laid a beating on an inferior team. Good for them.
Michigan wins!
My first reaction is, where was that Michigan team this millennium? This doesn't refute everything I've always said about Lloyd Carr, it validates it. Michigan might be the best college football program in the country. Today it finally looked like it. What the hell took so long? Wins like today's should've been business as usual for the last six years; they were not. Today Michigan played aggresively, with heart, with determination. They left it all on the field as it were. It was beautiful. And now that the underachiever is gone, Michigan fans should demand more of what they just saw. Oh, and I'm sure all the e-mails are flooding in to sports radio at this very moment defending coach Carr. Hey Michigan fan, before you start pecking away like a lemming yourself, consider: How did that Michigan team lose to App State? How did that Michigan team get smashed by 30 by Oregon a week later?
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