THERE WAS A GNAWING in the pit of my stomach. At 3 in the morning. And it wasn't from The Missus' cooking.
No, the cause of this severe case of stomach acidity started in the pulpit on Sunday. Now before you think I'm criticizing my pastor's preaching -- heaven forbid -- it was the subject matter he brought up, which deserves at least a few groans.
It involved three words: 'The Golden Compass.' There I've said it.
In the past, the Ol' Columnist has attempted to lay waste to such deplorable flicks/books as 'The DaVinci Code', but TGC apparently goes beyond and like another questionable legacy, known as Harry Potter, it spreads its anti-Christian theme among the younger generation.
Now, I'm certain our resident movie genius will have his own take on TGC, but for me, this film with Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig is unadultered trash without ever seeing it. The reason for making such a statement is that it's based on Philip Pullman's trilogy, His Dark Materials.
Pullman makes no apologies and he's already been quoted as saying: "I'm trying to undermine the basis of Christian belief."
While there have been a battery of ground wars throughout the planet, particularly in Iraq and Afghanistan -- there has been a spiritual conflict between the forces of good and evil. And it has become more and more evident with the barrage of books and movies denouncing a person's faith and trying to "crucify" their beliefs.
Of course, it's time that congregations of believers stood up and declare themselves rather than let the likes of Pullman drag them down into a pit of burning embers.
Atheists have been spewing their "faith" among the naive, now being led by Pullman, who apparently believes the "afterlife consists of bodies breaking into particles and being recycled into the material world," while the tenets of the Christian faith are being forgotten and being dismissed as "fantasy."
One of the strongest critics of Pullman's books and the film was Focus On The Family's Adam Holz, who called them "a deliberate attempt to foist his viciously anti-God beliefs upon his audience."
Holz also went on to claim that other messages in the story had praise for "witchcraft, evolution, divination, homosexuality and premarital sex."
Meanwhile, Terry Sanderson, president of Britain's National Secular Society, criticized TGC and its director, Chris Weitz, for removing the "anti-religious elements from Pullman's book." Sanderson told The Guardian: "They are taking the heart out of it, losing the point of it, castrating it." Pullman, incidentally, is one of the society's honorary associates.
***
AND SPEAKING OF RELIGION: Some people will use any excuse to be complete jerks. So it's not a sophisticated word, but it fits the British government with their weak response to those Sudanese sword-wielding criminals after they threatened the very life of British schoolteacher Gillian Gibbons over a teddy bear. Has the world gone completely insane? If it had been called George, would all the Georges of the world seek revenge by calling for a marshmallow-tossing revolution?
***
INJUSTICES IN THE SPORTS WHIRL: Perhaps you missed it, but everyone from Rocco Roman to Pierre Vercheval were inducted into the CFL Hall of Fame in September. And there have been 12 commissioners from Syd Halter to Mark Cohon, but still two of the most illustrious players in league history -- Dick Thornton and Mel Profit -- have been left out in the cold. Why? Could it be they were unafraid to voice their opinions concerning what they considered were "Mickey Mouse" tactics in running the league? Sorry for bringing up your name, Mickey.
Saturday, December 8, 2007
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Warning: Enemies within the gates
IT WAS LIKE a devastating punch to the solar plexus. The unthinkable could happen.
As a former Middle East Bureau chief for a major news-gathering organization, based in Jerusalem, word that parts of that Israeli city were up for grabs sent shivers up and down my spine.
I, at first thought it was just a nightmare and I'd wake up soon, but it seems feasible that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has placed Jerusalem, or some of it, on the bargaining table in an effort to appease the Palestinians and the likes of Abu Mazen (Mahmoud Abbas), who succeeded the vicious Yasser Arafat.
And Olmert has been quoted as believing that "the current Palestinian leadership is not a terrorist leadership."
Present-day Israeli politicians, such as Olmert, must never forget the atrocities committed against the Jews by supposed "civilized" people from the past; the more than six million, who died during Hitler's reign of terror.
Of course, the Jews have suffered through atrocity after atrocity for some 1,900 years, and should never, never give away The Land for what could prove to be just smoke and mirrors.
On Monday, the Arabic Al Quds Al-Arabiya stated Olmert had agreed that Arabs in eastern Jerusalem would be granted Jordanian citizenship. In addition, Vice Prime Minister Haim Ramon has advocated the Palestinian Authority be allowed to make its capital somewhere in East Jerusalem, according to Bill Wilson of Koenig's International News.
And in a supposed age of mass communications, this possible "enemy" takeover has only been met with silence, both within Israel and in the rest of the world. As one observer wrote: "There have been no rallies, no mass demonstrations, no expressions of outrage by American Jewish organizations -- just one big yawn."
While Olmert has had his own problems in recent court proceedings, it appears as if his close aide and friend, Ramon, is leading the charge for dividing Jerusalem and also "his own plan to hand over half of the city to the Palestinian Authority (PA), not to Jordan," according to Hana Levi Julian.
She also quoted National Union Knesset Member Tzvi Hendel, who railed: "I realized a long time ago to my sorrow that there was no doubt Olmert would divide Jerusalem. Today it has become clear that even the Temple Mount is on the sales sheet for destruction."
So, obviously, this division includes the Muslim-controlled Temple Mount and even the Western Wall, the "heart of hearts of the Jewish people," in Jerusalem.
In the same article, Julian pointed out that Olmert's leanings towards dividing the city was in contradiction to his promise he made to Christian Zionists last year.
It would appear Olmert is now siding with the Americans' scheme to give equal shares to both the Jews and the Arabs in a so-called "peace" initiative. However, in this observer's opinion, such a giveaway would only allow terrorist organizations such as Hamas a strategic foothold in its vile effort to actually wipe Israel off the face of the map. And all this would be done with Iran's Ahmadinejad smirking in the background.
The combination of the U.S. and Olmert's weak leadership, seemingly, knows no bounds in giving up The Land, a sliver of a nation given to them by Almighty God, according to the Bible. It's a belief held by millions of Jews and Christians throughout the world.
Former Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu has voiced his concerns in response to Olmert's recent speech in the Knesset.
"Olmert will place Hamas men on the walls of Jerusalem," Netanyahu was quoted in the Israel Insider, adding, "Jerusalem will fast become a pilgrimage site for terrorists from all over the world. Handing over half of Jerusalem to the Palestinians would render the other half uninhabitable ... The town's square will once again stand empty."
Netanyahu, also in the same Israel Insider article, claimed ceding parts of Judea and Samaria to the Palestinians would enable Hamas to fire rockets at Tel Aviv and elsewhere.
While Netanyahu has held the belief Iran's long-range scheme would be the annihilation of Israel and then the U.S., which could include Canada, it might not have to be done by force, but by such benign subterfuge as first taking over Jerusalem with soft-pedalled diplomatic words.
The words from Psalm 137, the song of the exiled children of Israel, sung by the waters of Babylon, should never be forgotten:
How shall we sing the Lord's song in a strange land?
If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand
forget her cunning.
If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth;
if I prefer not Jerusalem above my highest joys.
As a former Middle East Bureau chief for a major news-gathering organization, based in Jerusalem, word that parts of that Israeli city were up for grabs sent shivers up and down my spine.
I, at first thought it was just a nightmare and I'd wake up soon, but it seems feasible that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has placed Jerusalem, or some of it, on the bargaining table in an effort to appease the Palestinians and the likes of Abu Mazen (Mahmoud Abbas), who succeeded the vicious Yasser Arafat.
And Olmert has been quoted as believing that "the current Palestinian leadership is not a terrorist leadership."
Present-day Israeli politicians, such as Olmert, must never forget the atrocities committed against the Jews by supposed "civilized" people from the past; the more than six million, who died during Hitler's reign of terror.
Of course, the Jews have suffered through atrocity after atrocity for some 1,900 years, and should never, never give away The Land for what could prove to be just smoke and mirrors.
On Monday, the Arabic Al Quds Al-Arabiya stated Olmert had agreed that Arabs in eastern Jerusalem would be granted Jordanian citizenship. In addition, Vice Prime Minister Haim Ramon has advocated the Palestinian Authority be allowed to make its capital somewhere in East Jerusalem, according to Bill Wilson of Koenig's International News.
And in a supposed age of mass communications, this possible "enemy" takeover has only been met with silence, both within Israel and in the rest of the world. As one observer wrote: "There have been no rallies, no mass demonstrations, no expressions of outrage by American Jewish organizations -- just one big yawn."
While Olmert has had his own problems in recent court proceedings, it appears as if his close aide and friend, Ramon, is leading the charge for dividing Jerusalem and also "his own plan to hand over half of the city to the Palestinian Authority (PA), not to Jordan," according to Hana Levi Julian.
She also quoted National Union Knesset Member Tzvi Hendel, who railed: "I realized a long time ago to my sorrow that there was no doubt Olmert would divide Jerusalem. Today it has become clear that even the Temple Mount is on the sales sheet for destruction."
So, obviously, this division includes the Muslim-controlled Temple Mount and even the Western Wall, the "heart of hearts of the Jewish people," in Jerusalem.
In the same article, Julian pointed out that Olmert's leanings towards dividing the city was in contradiction to his promise he made to Christian Zionists last year.
It would appear Olmert is now siding with the Americans' scheme to give equal shares to both the Jews and the Arabs in a so-called "peace" initiative. However, in this observer's opinion, such a giveaway would only allow terrorist organizations such as Hamas a strategic foothold in its vile effort to actually wipe Israel off the face of the map. And all this would be done with Iran's Ahmadinejad smirking in the background.
The combination of the U.S. and Olmert's weak leadership, seemingly, knows no bounds in giving up The Land, a sliver of a nation given to them by Almighty God, according to the Bible. It's a belief held by millions of Jews and Christians throughout the world.
Former Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu has voiced his concerns in response to Olmert's recent speech in the Knesset.
"Olmert will place Hamas men on the walls of Jerusalem," Netanyahu was quoted in the Israel Insider, adding, "Jerusalem will fast become a pilgrimage site for terrorists from all over the world. Handing over half of Jerusalem to the Palestinians would render the other half uninhabitable ... The town's square will once again stand empty."
Netanyahu, also in the same Israel Insider article, claimed ceding parts of Judea and Samaria to the Palestinians would enable Hamas to fire rockets at Tel Aviv and elsewhere.
While Netanyahu has held the belief Iran's long-range scheme would be the annihilation of Israel and then the U.S., which could include Canada, it might not have to be done by force, but by such benign subterfuge as first taking over Jerusalem with soft-pedalled diplomatic words.
The words from Psalm 137, the song of the exiled children of Israel, sung by the waters of Babylon, should never be forgotten:
How shall we sing the Lord's song in a strange land?
If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand
forget her cunning.
If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth;
if I prefer not Jerusalem above my highest joys.
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
From Ahmadinejad To Ramage Trial
MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD has blood on his hands. And no matter how revisionists, including those in the United Nations and at Columbia University, try to dull the senses with their rhetoric, this Iranian terrorist had no business on our side of the pond. And while Columbia president Lee Bolinger tried to belittle Ahmadinejad with his introductory remarks, nevertheless, the question remains: Why was this Madman even invited?
Why would anyone want to listen to this little demon, one filled with hate and destruction, including wiping Israel off the map and then annihilating the United States? There are those that would believe that Canada would be safe if there was such a (nuclear) confrontation between the U.S. and Iran. But that really is questionable, not when the N word is so freely used.
Ahmadinejad is a liar and a fraud and such despicable words as Israel being "vanished from the pages of time" must naw at the innards of any sane person.
As someone who has worked as an investigative reporter in The Land, the threat as posed by Ahmadinejad is real and countless people within the Jewish state are concerned with that creep's threats. And yet the U.S. and its liberal bent tolerate such a demonic presence.
Again, this columnist asks the question: Why?
***
The second question for today has to be: Why are 2,500 Canadians still in southern Afghanistan?
Now, the warriors would offer the premise that we are saving a civilization and silencing terrorists in that war-torn country. Perhaps, that's true, but the question still remains: Are we, as Canadians, willing to sacrifice our elite troops? Are we?
That question came to mind Tuesday after learning of the death of Cpl. Nathan Hornburg, a 24-year-old reservist with the King's Own Calgary regiment.
Cpl. Hornburg was hit by a mortar shell and quoting from a CBC News report, "he was fixing a truck that had fallen off the Leopard tank in the Panjwaii district, about 47 kilometres west of Kandahar city."
Of course, the questions as to why we are there must be answered in time for 71 Canadians and one diplomat have been killed and our military machinery with the endorsement of Canadian PM Harper plan to stay there until at least 2009 and, undoubtedly, beyond.
Why? Is it to "rebuild the democratic process"? And at what cost, Ottawa? More lives of our elite?
Just in the past few months, the final bell has tolled for the likes of Hornburg, Maj. Raymond Ruckpaul, Master Warrant Officer Mario Mercier, Master Cpl. Christian Duchesne, Pte. Simon Longtin, Cpl. Jordan Anderson, Cpl. Cole Bartsch, Master Cpl. Cpl. Colin Bason and the list goes on and on.
Why? And for what?
***
And then there are those why? questions in the playpen of life -- sports.
Mike Tyson, once tagged as the Baddest Man on the Planet, will probably be just a prisoner number, for his trangressions -- and soon.
Why?
Well, Tyson could land back behind bars for a lengthy stretch after being convicted in an Arizona court. He nearly crashed his vehicle into a cop car and, in turn, they uncovered cocaine and marijuana. Of course, Tyson, the one-time feared world heavyweight champion, has been in deep trouble before. He spent three years in an Indiana cell after a rape conviction back in 1992 and also three months in 1999 for assault charges in Maryland.
Why? What a sad case and he's only 41.
***
Then there's former Boston all-star shortstop Jose Offerman, who has seen action with Philadelphia, New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers.
On Aug. 14, Offerman apparently went off the deep end and attacked a pitcher and catcher while playing for the Atlantic League's Long Island Ducks. The 38-year-old was nailed with two counts of second-degree assault and Monday in Bridgeport, Conn. he pleaded not guilty. He'll be back in court Oct. 17.
Why? It appears to be a case of diamond rage.
***
Finally, 48-year-old Rob Ramage has been in a Newmarket, Ont. courtroom the past few days. The former Toronto Maple Leaf player has pleaded not guilty to five criminal charges.
On Dec. 15, 2003, Ramage was driving a rental car in Woodbridge, Ont. and collided with a Nissan Pathfinder, driven by Michelle Pacheco. Rampage's passenger, former Chicago Blackhawks star Keith Magnuson, was killed and Pacheco was injured in the head-on crash.
Why? Among the charges against Rampage were impaired and dangerous driving.
Why would anyone want to listen to this little demon, one filled with hate and destruction, including wiping Israel off the map and then annihilating the United States? There are those that would believe that Canada would be safe if there was such a (nuclear) confrontation between the U.S. and Iran. But that really is questionable, not when the N word is so freely used.
Ahmadinejad is a liar and a fraud and such despicable words as Israel being "vanished from the pages of time" must naw at the innards of any sane person.
As someone who has worked as an investigative reporter in The Land, the threat as posed by Ahmadinejad is real and countless people within the Jewish state are concerned with that creep's threats. And yet the U.S. and its liberal bent tolerate such a demonic presence.
Again, this columnist asks the question: Why?
***
The second question for today has to be: Why are 2,500 Canadians still in southern Afghanistan?
Now, the warriors would offer the premise that we are saving a civilization and silencing terrorists in that war-torn country. Perhaps, that's true, but the question still remains: Are we, as Canadians, willing to sacrifice our elite troops? Are we?
That question came to mind Tuesday after learning of the death of Cpl. Nathan Hornburg, a 24-year-old reservist with the King's Own Calgary regiment.
Cpl. Hornburg was hit by a mortar shell and quoting from a CBC News report, "he was fixing a truck that had fallen off the Leopard tank in the Panjwaii district, about 47 kilometres west of Kandahar city."
Of course, the questions as to why we are there must be answered in time for 71 Canadians and one diplomat have been killed and our military machinery with the endorsement of Canadian PM Harper plan to stay there until at least 2009 and, undoubtedly, beyond.
Why? Is it to "rebuild the democratic process"? And at what cost, Ottawa? More lives of our elite?
Just in the past few months, the final bell has tolled for the likes of Hornburg, Maj. Raymond Ruckpaul, Master Warrant Officer Mario Mercier, Master Cpl. Christian Duchesne, Pte. Simon Longtin, Cpl. Jordan Anderson, Cpl. Cole Bartsch, Master Cpl. Cpl. Colin Bason and the list goes on and on.
Why? And for what?
***
And then there are those why? questions in the playpen of life -- sports.
Mike Tyson, once tagged as the Baddest Man on the Planet, will probably be just a prisoner number, for his trangressions -- and soon.
Why?
Well, Tyson could land back behind bars for a lengthy stretch after being convicted in an Arizona court. He nearly crashed his vehicle into a cop car and, in turn, they uncovered cocaine and marijuana. Of course, Tyson, the one-time feared world heavyweight champion, has been in deep trouble before. He spent three years in an Indiana cell after a rape conviction back in 1992 and also three months in 1999 for assault charges in Maryland.
Why? What a sad case and he's only 41.
***
Then there's former Boston all-star shortstop Jose Offerman, who has seen action with Philadelphia, New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers.
On Aug. 14, Offerman apparently went off the deep end and attacked a pitcher and catcher while playing for the Atlantic League's Long Island Ducks. The 38-year-old was nailed with two counts of second-degree assault and Monday in Bridgeport, Conn. he pleaded not guilty. He'll be back in court Oct. 17.
Why? It appears to be a case of diamond rage.
***
Finally, 48-year-old Rob Ramage has been in a Newmarket, Ont. courtroom the past few days. The former Toronto Maple Leaf player has pleaded not guilty to five criminal charges.
On Dec. 15, 2003, Ramage was driving a rental car in Woodbridge, Ont. and collided with a Nissan Pathfinder, driven by Michelle Pacheco. Rampage's passenger, former Chicago Blackhawks star Keith Magnuson, was killed and Pacheco was injured in the head-on crash.
Why? Among the charges against Rampage were impaired and dangerous driving.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Definitely O.J. all day, every day
ALTHOUGH THE O.J. SAGA first began in California in 1994, it's now shifted to Glitter Gulch -- Las Vegas -- in 2007. And the script is becoming more and more bizarre with the Ol' Columnist once again mesmerized by the escapades of the former NFL superstar.
Maybe, I should call my brother, the psychologist. Perhaps, he has a solution to this addiction, which also consumes millions around the world, who are caught up in his antics.
While his wizardry with the Buffalo Bills and later with the San Francisco Forty-Niners earned him NFL accolades and later big bucks as an advertising pitchman, I never realized his influence until that summer of 1994 when his infamous Ford Bronco ride across the freeways of southern California was front-page news. It continued for months upon months until he was found not guilty of murdering his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman.
Later, he lost a $33.5 million civil suit and then he went into relative obscurity in Florida.
However, in the interim, the courts had tried to get money in a number of incidents from a supposed "stone."
That was until late 2006 when a projected two-part TV special and a book, entitled 'If I Did It, Here's How It Happened.' The outcry was heard everywhere. So much so that Simpson and the book publisher, Judith Regan, were denounced.
In a November, 2006 column I tried to relate the deep feelings of the Goldman family concerning O.J.
In the New York Daily News, Kim Goldman was quoted as saying, "It's disgusting. Judith Regan is an opportunist. She's helping a murderer get his voice out there. Is this (book) supposed to be a stocking stuffer for Christmas? It's gross."
Then Fred Goldman, Nicole's father, told the New York Post, "There's little that would surprise me from this murdering s.o.b., but this does reach an all-time low, even for him."
Not quite, Mr. Goldman.
For the past few days, the familiar TV fare has been "O.J. All Day, Every Day."
Those who have been on an excursion to the moon have, perhaps, missed the continuing saga so I'll fill you in on the sordid details. At least some of the grimy details that have been gleaned at the time of this writing.
It appeared the Goldmans might get a semblance of justice and some dollars from taking over the publication of Simpson's book and renaming it, "I Did It."
However, O.J.'s antics or behaviour was just beginning as he showed up in Las Vegas for a Saturday wedding.
With a tape recorder catching every word, mostly unfit for family consumption, O.J. and his so-called posse entered a Las Vegas hotel room. It appears as if O.J. was after some of his memorabilia from his glory days on the gridiron.
The wild and foul-mouthed confrontion eventually led to Simpson being placed under arrest and put in a jail cell.
At the time of this writing, there's a possibility of him being set free on $150,000 (15% cash; 85% collateral) bail Wednesday morning.
But one thing is for certain, O.J. is back and the headlines should definitely read: Excrementum, Tauri, Omnium. Superat.
(It's okay. Even my brother, the psychologist, would probably use such words in describing O.J. and his so-called pals.)
***
SPEAKING OF FOUL WORDS: Remember NBA superstar and now New York Knicks coach Isiah Thomas, who at one time was with the Toronto Raptors? Well, now Thomas is in hot water during the sexual harassment trial brought on by fired Knicks executive Anucha Browne Sanders. In a report in the New York Daily News, Thomas, in a video deposition, "drew a distinction between whites and blacks when it came to the B-word." The Knicks fired her in December 2005 and she wants $10 million from the club and Madison Square Garden, according to the Daily News.
***
HAPPINESS IS A WARM ELECTRODE: That headline in Popular Science magazine led me to Gregory Mone's fascinating story about how Diane Hire's life was changed in almost an instant. It seems Hire suffered from severe depression for some 20 years. In the Cleveland Clinic's surgical center, neurosurgeon Ali R. Rezai along with an anesthesiologist, a psychiatrist and several nurses performed "a radical form of neurosurgery called deep-brain stimulation, or DBS," according to the magazine. The complicated operation involved two volts of electricity being sent through wires inserted in her skull. After the operation, Hire was quoted by the magazine as saying, "I'm really happy. I feel like I could get up and do all sorts of things."
Maybe, I should call my brother, the psychologist. Perhaps, he has a solution to this addiction, which also consumes millions around the world, who are caught up in his antics.
While his wizardry with the Buffalo Bills and later with the San Francisco Forty-Niners earned him NFL accolades and later big bucks as an advertising pitchman, I never realized his influence until that summer of 1994 when his infamous Ford Bronco ride across the freeways of southern California was front-page news. It continued for months upon months until he was found not guilty of murdering his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman.
Later, he lost a $33.5 million civil suit and then he went into relative obscurity in Florida.
However, in the interim, the courts had tried to get money in a number of incidents from a supposed "stone."
That was until late 2006 when a projected two-part TV special and a book, entitled 'If I Did It, Here's How It Happened.' The outcry was heard everywhere. So much so that Simpson and the book publisher, Judith Regan, were denounced.
In a November, 2006 column I tried to relate the deep feelings of the Goldman family concerning O.J.
In the New York Daily News, Kim Goldman was quoted as saying, "It's disgusting. Judith Regan is an opportunist. She's helping a murderer get his voice out there. Is this (book) supposed to be a stocking stuffer for Christmas? It's gross."
Then Fred Goldman, Nicole's father, told the New York Post, "There's little that would surprise me from this murdering s.o.b., but this does reach an all-time low, even for him."
Not quite, Mr. Goldman.
For the past few days, the familiar TV fare has been "O.J. All Day, Every Day."
Those who have been on an excursion to the moon have, perhaps, missed the continuing saga so I'll fill you in on the sordid details. At least some of the grimy details that have been gleaned at the time of this writing.
It appeared the Goldmans might get a semblance of justice and some dollars from taking over the publication of Simpson's book and renaming it, "I Did It."
However, O.J.'s antics or behaviour was just beginning as he showed up in Las Vegas for a Saturday wedding.
With a tape recorder catching every word, mostly unfit for family consumption, O.J. and his so-called posse entered a Las Vegas hotel room. It appears as if O.J. was after some of his memorabilia from his glory days on the gridiron.
The wild and foul-mouthed confrontion eventually led to Simpson being placed under arrest and put in a jail cell.
At the time of this writing, there's a possibility of him being set free on $150,000 (15% cash; 85% collateral) bail Wednesday morning.
But one thing is for certain, O.J. is back and the headlines should definitely read: Excrementum, Tauri, Omnium. Superat.
(It's okay. Even my brother, the psychologist, would probably use such words in describing O.J. and his so-called pals.)
***
SPEAKING OF FOUL WORDS: Remember NBA superstar and now New York Knicks coach Isiah Thomas, who at one time was with the Toronto Raptors? Well, now Thomas is in hot water during the sexual harassment trial brought on by fired Knicks executive Anucha Browne Sanders. In a report in the New York Daily News, Thomas, in a video deposition, "drew a distinction between whites and blacks when it came to the B-word." The Knicks fired her in December 2005 and she wants $10 million from the club and Madison Square Garden, according to the Daily News.
***
HAPPINESS IS A WARM ELECTRODE: That headline in Popular Science magazine led me to Gregory Mone's fascinating story about how Diane Hire's life was changed in almost an instant. It seems Hire suffered from severe depression for some 20 years. In the Cleveland Clinic's surgical center, neurosurgeon Ali R. Rezai along with an anesthesiologist, a psychiatrist and several nurses performed "a radical form of neurosurgery called deep-brain stimulation, or DBS," according to the magazine. The complicated operation involved two volts of electricity being sent through wires inserted in her skull. After the operation, Hire was quoted by the magazine as saying, "I'm really happy. I feel like I could get up and do all sorts of things."
Saturday, September 8, 2007
Harvard Man tackles concussions in sports
CHRIS NOWINSKI, a Harvard grad and former WWE wrestler, is a man on a mission. And it involves chilling concussions, which has spread across the sports spectrum, from hockey to football, and zeroes in on every age bracket, from the tykes to the seasoned professionals.
While there has been an outcry concerning 'roids of ruin, which was launched in 1994, with the Long Island trial concerning WWF promoter Vince McMahon and featuring the now reality TV star Hulk Hogan, the plague of concussions, seemingly, was swept under the rug as just a "given" or the price one pays for being involved in contact sports.
However, Nowinski has peeled back the covers of one of the great dangers on every level with his notable book, Head Games: Football's Concussion Crisis.
And he has been prominent on the television the past few days explaining his conclusions that pro wrestler Chris Benoit's murderous rampage could have been caused by severe brain cell damage. The accompanying photos showed Benoit's brain resembled that of an 85-year-old Alzheimer's patient and the analysis seemed to indicate that the 40-year-old Canadian had suffered multiple concussions during his career.
Nowinski has first-hand knowledge of the subject for he was forced out of pro wrestling because of concussions, resulting in cognitive problems, migraine headaches, sleeping problems and depression. In his book he attempts to link such head traumas involving other athletes to long-term neurolgical disorders such as Alzheimer's and memory impairment.
In a Boston Globe article, Dr. Julian Bailes of the Department of Neurosurgery at the University of West Virginia and medical director at the Center for the Study of Retired Athletes at the University of North Carolina, finds Nowinski's "mission" credible, knowing his history of concussions.
Nowinski, who has established the Sports Legacy Institute, which has begun to study sports-related brain traumas, believes repeated concussions can definitely lead to "irreversible neurological damage and dementia."
In the not-too-distant past, young athletes, most notably in football, who had "their bell rung" were told to shake it off and get back in the game.
As someone, who has had more than three concussions earlier in his life, this columnist now suffers the effects in a variety of ways, including depression and other maladies.
In an article for Sports Illustrated, Nowinski wrote about Carolina Panthers' star linebacker Dan Morgan, who in October 2006 announced he would sit out the rest of the NFL season after suffering the fifth and sixth concussions of his career.
Of course, Nowinski detailed other NFL players, who had retired because of post-concussion syndrome (PCS) and proceeded to name the likes of Steve Young, Troy Aikman, Merril Hoge, Ted Johnson, Wayne Chrebet, Al Toon, Ed McCaffery, Bill Romanowski, Chris Miller, Stan Humphries, Frank Wycheck and Bob Christian.
However, football wasn't the only sport that Nowinski pointed his fingers at; claiming that concussions were prevalent in pro hockey and even could be backtracked to those in the younger age brackets.
He claimed such players as Pat Lafontaine, Mike Richter, Brett Lindros. Jeff Beukeboom and Keith Primeau were prime examples of PCS. Then he listed others such as Eric Lindros, Jeremy Roenick, Jason Allison, Peter Forsberg, Scott Stevens, Paul Kariya and Tim Connolly, who had been sidelined with concussions.
In another article, this one by Alan Schwarz of the New York Times, he discussed the post-mortem brain images of former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive lineman Justin Strzelczyk, who died in an autombile crash in 2004. Those images showed four red splotches showing early signs of brain damage. Strzelczyk was only 36.
As for Nowinski's book, Jesse Ventura, the former Minnesota governor and pro wrestler, said: "Head Games is the kind of book that everybody who is part of football or any contact sport needs to read. I've played. coached, or commentated football my entire life, and I'll never look at this game the same way. It's all right here, in black-and-white football does have a concussion crisis, and we need to fix it now."
Pro Wrestling Insider's Mike Johnson added: "If there is one person that sports fans, much less wrestling fansm should be thanking, it's Nowinski, who has taken a terrible turn of events from his own life and is trying to warn others and better the way concussions are treated (and sometimes dismissed) by the medical and sporting worlds."
VOICES REMEMBERED: Luciano Pavarotti and D. James Kennedy were as diverse as two humans could possibly be, but for me their voices remain as distinct in my memory bank as any member of my own family. And I never met either one of the them. However, I wanted to sing like the great tenor, Pavarotti, although I never succeeded. And as for Dr. Kennedy, the television mininster, he made sense and offered solutions for this scarred planet's past, present and future. Both of those vibrant voices were silenced this week.
While there has been an outcry concerning 'roids of ruin, which was launched in 1994, with the Long Island trial concerning WWF promoter Vince McMahon and featuring the now reality TV star Hulk Hogan, the plague of concussions, seemingly, was swept under the rug as just a "given" or the price one pays for being involved in contact sports.
However, Nowinski has peeled back the covers of one of the great dangers on every level with his notable book, Head Games: Football's Concussion Crisis.
And he has been prominent on the television the past few days explaining his conclusions that pro wrestler Chris Benoit's murderous rampage could have been caused by severe brain cell damage. The accompanying photos showed Benoit's brain resembled that of an 85-year-old Alzheimer's patient and the analysis seemed to indicate that the 40-year-old Canadian had suffered multiple concussions during his career.
Nowinski has first-hand knowledge of the subject for he was forced out of pro wrestling because of concussions, resulting in cognitive problems, migraine headaches, sleeping problems and depression. In his book he attempts to link such head traumas involving other athletes to long-term neurolgical disorders such as Alzheimer's and memory impairment.
In a Boston Globe article, Dr. Julian Bailes of the Department of Neurosurgery at the University of West Virginia and medical director at the Center for the Study of Retired Athletes at the University of North Carolina, finds Nowinski's "mission" credible, knowing his history of concussions.
Nowinski, who has established the Sports Legacy Institute, which has begun to study sports-related brain traumas, believes repeated concussions can definitely lead to "irreversible neurological damage and dementia."
In the not-too-distant past, young athletes, most notably in football, who had "their bell rung" were told to shake it off and get back in the game.
As someone, who has had more than three concussions earlier in his life, this columnist now suffers the effects in a variety of ways, including depression and other maladies.
In an article for Sports Illustrated, Nowinski wrote about Carolina Panthers' star linebacker Dan Morgan, who in October 2006 announced he would sit out the rest of the NFL season after suffering the fifth and sixth concussions of his career.
Of course, Nowinski detailed other NFL players, who had retired because of post-concussion syndrome (PCS) and proceeded to name the likes of Steve Young, Troy Aikman, Merril Hoge, Ted Johnson, Wayne Chrebet, Al Toon, Ed McCaffery, Bill Romanowski, Chris Miller, Stan Humphries, Frank Wycheck and Bob Christian.
However, football wasn't the only sport that Nowinski pointed his fingers at; claiming that concussions were prevalent in pro hockey and even could be backtracked to those in the younger age brackets.
He claimed such players as Pat Lafontaine, Mike Richter, Brett Lindros. Jeff Beukeboom and Keith Primeau were prime examples of PCS. Then he listed others such as Eric Lindros, Jeremy Roenick, Jason Allison, Peter Forsberg, Scott Stevens, Paul Kariya and Tim Connolly, who had been sidelined with concussions.
In another article, this one by Alan Schwarz of the New York Times, he discussed the post-mortem brain images of former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive lineman Justin Strzelczyk, who died in an autombile crash in 2004. Those images showed four red splotches showing early signs of brain damage. Strzelczyk was only 36.
As for Nowinski's book, Jesse Ventura, the former Minnesota governor and pro wrestler, said: "Head Games is the kind of book that everybody who is part of football or any contact sport needs to read. I've played. coached, or commentated football my entire life, and I'll never look at this game the same way. It's all right here, in black-and-white football does have a concussion crisis, and we need to fix it now."
Pro Wrestling Insider's Mike Johnson added: "If there is one person that sports fans, much less wrestling fansm should be thanking, it's Nowinski, who has taken a terrible turn of events from his own life and is trying to warn others and better the way concussions are treated (and sometimes dismissed) by the medical and sporting worlds."
VOICES REMEMBERED: Luciano Pavarotti and D. James Kennedy were as diverse as two humans could possibly be, but for me their voices remain as distinct in my memory bank as any member of my own family. And I never met either one of the them. However, I wanted to sing like the great tenor, Pavarotti, although I never succeeded. And as for Dr. Kennedy, the television mininster, he made sense and offered solutions for this scarred planet's past, present and future. Both of those vibrant voices were silenced this week.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Vipers' Ferner has code for success
MARK E. FERNER, who has taken over the reins of the BCHL Vernon Vipers, has a definitive code which he lives by. "It's honesty, integrity and character," he emphasized prior to Vernon's final exhibition contest.
While the Vipers lost 6-1 to the Salmon Arm Silverbacks in the Multiplex Saturday night, there was a definite reason for the defeat, for the Vipers were hurting with a tired first-year goalie Bryce Christianson "resting" due to back pain. In addition, veterans Scott Zurevinski (blisters), Travis Brisebois (ankle) and Rob Short (tendon) were on the ailing list.
Sitting in the empty Multiplex stands before the night's clash, Ferner emphasized the definite need for more able bodies before the Vipers opened the regular BCHL season against the Smoke Eaters in Trail Friday night. The Vipers take on the Westside Warriors in the home opener Friday, Sept. 14.
For Ferner, the past few weeks has been a roller-coaster ride since becoming general manager and head coach of the Vipers. It was a task he hadn't expected to fill after being fired by a former teammate and present GM-head coach Dean Clark of the WHL's struggling Kamloops Blazers.
Ferner, who will turn 42 tomorrow, was quick to point out he and Clark, seemingly, were not on the same page concerning that personal code of honour.
At Christmas time, the axe fell on Ferner and with the dismissal he decided to "drop out" out of the hockey wars and pursue a small venture, which would complement his wife Jody's interior design business.
However, fate intervened. Or at least, a minor-league game that involved his young son, Mackenzie.
After that contest, he had a chance to talk with Vipers' then general manager Troy Mick, who had been with the Blazers during the 2002-03 season, and it was then that Mick informed him he might be moving on from the Vipers. Mick has since joined a real-estate organization in Mexico.
Ferner, at first, was emphatic about taking time away from hockey, however, meetings with Mick and Vipers' owner Dr. Duncan Wray changed his mind.
"(Duncan) emphasized my own code of honesty, integrity and character during our meetings and that's what convinced me in joining the Vipers," said Ferner.
In addition to Mick's departure, Mark Holick decided to leave as well and take over the WHL's Kootenay Ice, replacing Cory Clouston, who had just been named head coach of the AHL's Binghamton Senators.
Earlier, the Vipers' associate coach Bernie Pimm joined Kal Tire's management team.
So the brain trust of Mick, Holick and Pimm were gone and Ferner took over Vipers' destiny, along with assistant coach, Colin O'Hara, who has had BCHL coaching experience with the Quesnel Millionaires, and Jason Williamson.
While pointing out a bevy of "rookies" in which to finalize his roster for the opening game in Trail, Ferner was impressed by their work ethic with these words: "I can honestly say, this bunch as a whole is the best bunch (I've worked with). Their mentality and their focus has been on winning."
He said the Jones Boys -- Connor and Kellen -- and tireless Hunter Bishop, who will join Ohio State next season, were exceptional. In addition he was impressed with returnees such as Kevin Koopman, Ryan Kakoske, Jon Smith, Chris Crowell and Short.
THAT'S ICE: Coach-GM Ferner, who was a standout junior defenceman with Kamloops, was drafted No. 194 by Buffalo Sabres in the 1983 NHL entry draft. He went on to play in the Bigs for 94 games with the Sabres, Washington, Anaheim and Detroit. During a 16-year career, he also toiled in the AHL, IHL and in Germany. His father, Ed, was a WHL scout with Kamloops while two brothers, Darryl and Kelly, were also minor-league players ... In the four pre-season games, Vernon split with Westside, winning 3-2 while losing 4-3. Although Salmon Arm belted the Vipers 6-1, they did manage a 1-1 draw with the 'Backs ... During the Sept. 14 home opener, Dr. Wray and assistant coach O'Hara will be part of "The Great Canadian Head Shave."
While the Vipers lost 6-1 to the Salmon Arm Silverbacks in the Multiplex Saturday night, there was a definite reason for the defeat, for the Vipers were hurting with a tired first-year goalie Bryce Christianson "resting" due to back pain. In addition, veterans Scott Zurevinski (blisters), Travis Brisebois (ankle) and Rob Short (tendon) were on the ailing list.
Sitting in the empty Multiplex stands before the night's clash, Ferner emphasized the definite need for more able bodies before the Vipers opened the regular BCHL season against the Smoke Eaters in Trail Friday night. The Vipers take on the Westside Warriors in the home opener Friday, Sept. 14.
For Ferner, the past few weeks has been a roller-coaster ride since becoming general manager and head coach of the Vipers. It was a task he hadn't expected to fill after being fired by a former teammate and present GM-head coach Dean Clark of the WHL's struggling Kamloops Blazers.
Ferner, who will turn 42 tomorrow, was quick to point out he and Clark, seemingly, were not on the same page concerning that personal code of honour.
At Christmas time, the axe fell on Ferner and with the dismissal he decided to "drop out" out of the hockey wars and pursue a small venture, which would complement his wife Jody's interior design business.
However, fate intervened. Or at least, a minor-league game that involved his young son, Mackenzie.
After that contest, he had a chance to talk with Vipers' then general manager Troy Mick, who had been with the Blazers during the 2002-03 season, and it was then that Mick informed him he might be moving on from the Vipers. Mick has since joined a real-estate organization in Mexico.
Ferner, at first, was emphatic about taking time away from hockey, however, meetings with Mick and Vipers' owner Dr. Duncan Wray changed his mind.
"(Duncan) emphasized my own code of honesty, integrity and character during our meetings and that's what convinced me in joining the Vipers," said Ferner.
In addition to Mick's departure, Mark Holick decided to leave as well and take over the WHL's Kootenay Ice, replacing Cory Clouston, who had just been named head coach of the AHL's Binghamton Senators.
Earlier, the Vipers' associate coach Bernie Pimm joined Kal Tire's management team.
So the brain trust of Mick, Holick and Pimm were gone and Ferner took over Vipers' destiny, along with assistant coach, Colin O'Hara, who has had BCHL coaching experience with the Quesnel Millionaires, and Jason Williamson.
While pointing out a bevy of "rookies" in which to finalize his roster for the opening game in Trail, Ferner was impressed by their work ethic with these words: "I can honestly say, this bunch as a whole is the best bunch (I've worked with). Their mentality and their focus has been on winning."
He said the Jones Boys -- Connor and Kellen -- and tireless Hunter Bishop, who will join Ohio State next season, were exceptional. In addition he was impressed with returnees such as Kevin Koopman, Ryan Kakoske, Jon Smith, Chris Crowell and Short.
THAT'S ICE: Coach-GM Ferner, who was a standout junior defenceman with Kamloops, was drafted No. 194 by Buffalo Sabres in the 1983 NHL entry draft. He went on to play in the Bigs for 94 games with the Sabres, Washington, Anaheim and Detroit. During a 16-year career, he also toiled in the AHL, IHL and in Germany. His father, Ed, was a WHL scout with Kamloops while two brothers, Darryl and Kelly, were also minor-league players ... In the four pre-season games, Vernon split with Westside, winning 3-2 while losing 4-3. Although Salmon Arm belted the Vipers 6-1, they did manage a 1-1 draw with the 'Backs ... During the Sept. 14 home opener, Dr. Wray and assistant coach O'Hara will be part of "The Great Canadian Head Shave."
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Say, what game were they playing?
To SOME baseball is the perfect game. Ha!
Not after Wednesday's slide into the far reaches of mediocrity when the Baltimore Orioles became the laughing stock of the diamond brigade.
Now, as I've said before, the hit-and-catch game has always rated No. 1 for its purity despite overtones of steroids use by certain so-called superstars in this new century.
However, perhaps, I still live in another era when the Splendid Splinter -- Ted Williams -- and Stan The Man Musial were the reigning kings of their domain and I really thought Abner Doubleday actually invented the game..
Of course, I've written before about the gentle names of major-league teams such as the Red Sox and White Sox, the Cubbies, the Blue Jays compared to the certainly more gruff names associated with the football Bears and the Lions.
But that's another scenario.
So what's your point, Corbett?
Oh, right, it's about the Orioles and their loss to the Texas Rangers the other night.
It wasn't a baseball score; it was a one-sided football massacre. Baltimore 3 compared to Texas 30. That's right 30-3.
For those who live and die with statistics, it had been some 110 years since a major-league team had scored 30 runs in a single game. And for all who want to know, I wasn't around on June 28, 1897 when the Chicago Colts (now the Cubs) routed Louisville 36-7 in a National League game.
It was quite an eye-opener for Baltimore manager Dave Trembley, who had just learned he would be managing the O's in 2008.
Now there was something amiss when Rangers' Jarrod Saltalamacchia, who started out with a batting average of .179, and over the course of nine innings ended up with a respectable .262 average by going 4-for-6.
And then there was David Murphy, who gathered in five of the Rangers' 29 hits.
Of course, it was quite a slamfest for Travis Metcalf, who had just been called up from Triple-A Oklahoma and he was quoted in an AP story as saying, "Thirty is a football score, not a baseball score. It was a great day."
Incidentally, the 30-3 "massacre" was followed up by Texas' 9-7 victory in the second half of the twin bill.
T.R. Sullivan for MLB.com quoted Texas manager Ron Washington as saying, "It was awesome."
Yes, indeed, it was totally awesome.
***
SPEAKING OF BASEBALL: When the Ol' Columnist went searching for diamonds in the rough, I peered into the Best of Uncle John's Bathroom Reader and found some stories behind some team names such as:
Los Angeles Dodgers: Formed in Brooklyn in 1890. Now that town had hundreds of trolleys zigzagging through its streets and, of course, they first were known as the Brooklyn Trolley Dodgers. They later moved to LA in 1958. Boo-hoo.
Cleveland Indians. From 1869 to 1912, the "Mistake By The Lake" tossed around such names as Forest Citys, the Naps and the Spiders. After Luis Francisco Sockalexis, the first American Indian to play in the Bigs, died in 1913, the team was renamed in his honour.
Oh, yes, how could I forget my favorite club, the Chicago Cubs. At one time they were known as the Colts and the Orphans, although unofficially. Then a sportswriter in 1902 tagged them the Cubs because it was short enough to fit into a headline. It stuck.
Then there were the New York Yankees, who once were known as Highlanders or Hightoppers. After World War I, the name was changed to the more patriotic Yankees.
***
WORST LOSSES IN SPORTS HISTORY: David Schoenfield of ESPN wasn't shy about picking his top 100 losers. And, yes, he socked it to the Orioles, slotting them No. 8 on the list. However, I have only room for listing five of Schoenfield's duds before running out of space. Here are my faves: 1. Orioles. That's because of their 30-3 bashing; 2. 1940 NFL championship as Chicago Bears bopped the Redskins 73-0. And no, I didn't see the game; 3. Golfing's Tiger by 15 strokes in the 2000 U.S. Open; 4. Road Runner versus Wile E. Coyote; 5. Georgia Tech 222, Cumberland 0 in 1916. And, again, I wasn't around for that one, either.
Not after Wednesday's slide into the far reaches of mediocrity when the Baltimore Orioles became the laughing stock of the diamond brigade.
Now, as I've said before, the hit-and-catch game has always rated No. 1 for its purity despite overtones of steroids use by certain so-called superstars in this new century.
However, perhaps, I still live in another era when the Splendid Splinter -- Ted Williams -- and Stan The Man Musial were the reigning kings of their domain and I really thought Abner Doubleday actually invented the game..
Of course, I've written before about the gentle names of major-league teams such as the Red Sox and White Sox, the Cubbies, the Blue Jays compared to the certainly more gruff names associated with the football Bears and the Lions.
But that's another scenario.
So what's your point, Corbett?
Oh, right, it's about the Orioles and their loss to the Texas Rangers the other night.
It wasn't a baseball score; it was a one-sided football massacre. Baltimore 3 compared to Texas 30. That's right 30-3.
For those who live and die with statistics, it had been some 110 years since a major-league team had scored 30 runs in a single game. And for all who want to know, I wasn't around on June 28, 1897 when the Chicago Colts (now the Cubs) routed Louisville 36-7 in a National League game.
It was quite an eye-opener for Baltimore manager Dave Trembley, who had just learned he would be managing the O's in 2008.
Now there was something amiss when Rangers' Jarrod Saltalamacchia, who started out with a batting average of .179, and over the course of nine innings ended up with a respectable .262 average by going 4-for-6.
And then there was David Murphy, who gathered in five of the Rangers' 29 hits.
Of course, it was quite a slamfest for Travis Metcalf, who had just been called up from Triple-A Oklahoma and he was quoted in an AP story as saying, "Thirty is a football score, not a baseball score. It was a great day."
Incidentally, the 30-3 "massacre" was followed up by Texas' 9-7 victory in the second half of the twin bill.
T.R. Sullivan for MLB.com quoted Texas manager Ron Washington as saying, "It was awesome."
Yes, indeed, it was totally awesome.
***
SPEAKING OF BASEBALL: When the Ol' Columnist went searching for diamonds in the rough, I peered into the Best of Uncle John's Bathroom Reader and found some stories behind some team names such as:
Los Angeles Dodgers: Formed in Brooklyn in 1890. Now that town had hundreds of trolleys zigzagging through its streets and, of course, they first were known as the Brooklyn Trolley Dodgers. They later moved to LA in 1958. Boo-hoo.
Cleveland Indians. From 1869 to 1912, the "Mistake By The Lake" tossed around such names as Forest Citys, the Naps and the Spiders. After Luis Francisco Sockalexis, the first American Indian to play in the Bigs, died in 1913, the team was renamed in his honour.
Oh, yes, how could I forget my favorite club, the Chicago Cubs. At one time they were known as the Colts and the Orphans, although unofficially. Then a sportswriter in 1902 tagged them the Cubs because it was short enough to fit into a headline. It stuck.
Then there were the New York Yankees, who once were known as Highlanders or Hightoppers. After World War I, the name was changed to the more patriotic Yankees.
***
WORST LOSSES IN SPORTS HISTORY: David Schoenfield of ESPN wasn't shy about picking his top 100 losers. And, yes, he socked it to the Orioles, slotting them No. 8 on the list. However, I have only room for listing five of Schoenfield's duds before running out of space. Here are my faves: 1. Orioles. That's because of their 30-3 bashing; 2. 1940 NFL championship as Chicago Bears bopped the Redskins 73-0. And no, I didn't see the game; 3. Golfing's Tiger by 15 strokes in the 2000 U.S. Open; 4. Road Runner versus Wile E. Coyote; 5. Georgia Tech 222, Cumberland 0 in 1916. And, again, I wasn't around for that one, either.
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