Sunday, July 8th

1 - Best... political... cartoon... ever... (click)

2 - From the "Full-Disclosure is just a Fancy Term that doesn't really mean anything" file comes this story where one Steven Staples is quoted as saying:

"There's a real danger that Afghanistan starts to look more and more like
Iraq. It's pretty clear that insurgents are learning from the experience
in Iraq, where roadside bombs have proven to be incredibly lethal at striking
back against the foreign militaries there. So Canadians are going to
confront this a lot more often."

The article notes that Steven Staples is a member of the "Rideau Institute, an Ottawa-based think-tank". What it doesn't tell you is that Steven Staples and the Rideau Institute run a web-site called ceasefire.ca. That doesn't mean you can't use him to provide balance in a news story, but it does mean that trying to portray him as an independent analyst is somewhat sleazy.

3 - One of the best blog posts of all time, by Colby Cosh.

4 - I must admit, I am pleasantly surprised by Kent Austin so far this season, and not just because the Riders beat the living you know what out of the Stamps recently. What has impressed me most is his refusal to make excuses for losing. While every analyst and newspaper reporter in the country is lining up to say the Riders are two or three years away from contending Austin is driving his players to succeed right now. As a person who was uneasy to see the once volatile Austin in a head coaching role, I am very thankful for the change in attitude.

5 - Best sign at a CFL game so far this season, from the Al's-Rider's season opener:

'A Rider Nation within a United Canada'.

6 - I know this is old news, but The Tennessean reports that a grass roots petition to keep the Nashville Predators in Nashville has taken off to the tune of 4 000 signatures. I say, when 6 year old kids start donating their life savings to keep the team around, like hockey fans in Winnipeg did when the Jets were moving, then we'll call that grass roots support. Until then, this is just another reason why Nashville shouldn't have an NHL team.

7 - Speaking of delusion, this is why I don't like the Maple Leafs. There are biased hockey fans, and then there are hockey fans who a just flat out lack knowledge. The next time I hear someone say Tomas Kaberle is one of the top 5 d-men in the league I'm going to throw myself in front of a bus. The Leafs don't have depth on defense. They have promising players, but nothing that's going to garner the kind of offensive help they're going to need to make the play-offs next season. For starters, the Leafs don't have a bonafide number one defenseman. Kaberle, McCabe and Kubina are good on the powerplay, but they don't cut the mustard at the other end of the rink to receive number 1 status, or even number 2. Hal Gill was a top four defenseman back in the not-so-good-old-days of the pre-lockout NHL, where clutching and grabbing was elevated to an art form, but he's barely a top six now. Carlo Colaiacovo will be a top four d-man if he ever stays healthy, but at this point he's a spare part at best on a decent NHL blue-line, and so are all the other guys. The Leafs real problem isn't goaltending, it's defense!

8 - And don't even get me started on the stash the Leafs gave up for Vesa Toskala.

9 - Nothing like a good old fashioned vote of non-confidence is there, eh Johnny boy. If I was Leafs GM John Ferguson Jr. I'd be getting out of Toronto while the gettings good, because it's only going to take a slight misstep and you're out, while Muckler is in. This is not how you run a business. Hockey decisions aside, if stuff like this keeps happening, the Leafs won't be Cup Contenders for a long time.

10 - Because I've been bashing Toronto, the media, and the Toronto Media, the much anticipated 'Rumoured to be heading to Toronto' contest/circus will not begin until next post. I realize that this goes against everything this blog stands for (our motto: If they're down, kick them. If they're still down, kick them again, sooner rather than later.), but it's almost midnight, and I'm tired.

11 - More proof that the 80's rock.

Later,

M.O.F.