I told you so....

Look in any paper, listen to any radio or television report. The evidence is conclusive and moving towards a Grand Jury. People scoffed at my conspiracy theory about NBA referees but now the truth is coming out. The big difference between what is being reported and the "real" truth is the scale of the conspiracy.

League officials today are claiming one bad apple. David Stern is telling us that Tim Donaghy's activities involving low level mobsters and point shaving and game fixing is an isolated incident.

Well what is apparent is that this CAN happen and has, thus validating the primary premise behind the whole "conspiracy theory".

That now being the case, one has to wonder what other manifestations occur.

I look forward to the detailed analysis that will follow that illustrates the impact that Donaghy has had on games and the difference that his has made in league play.

This my friends is but the tip of the proverbial iceberg.

I love FLICKR

As someone who scans the internet on a pretty regular basis, I love the fact that you can discover new and interesting things, facts, media and people.

The latter has caught my eye again and once again this is through flickr.

Chronicity is the nick of a spectacular individual that I have come across. It's amazing the information that is shared. And the thing that strikes me and frankly surprises me, is the impact that this can have. I'm captivated by this person.

I want to talk to her, engage, and exchange.

The challenge is that with all the noise on the internet, when someone as clearly harmonic as Chronicity is bumped into, rising above that noise is virtually impossible. What does this mean? Well, if it were a party in a crowded room, standing across the room hoping to make eye contact would have a better chance of connecting than the internet.

So for all it's wonders in communicating and bringing people together, there is still this element that keeps people at a distance. It's like taking fibre to the door for Telco's. Laying the infrastructure pipe is easy to a point, but where it makes the biggest difference and has the most benefit it the toughest. So too with connecting with people.

How frustrating it could be to think you have found your one true... You know the one thats destined. If you believe in that. Only to realize that they are a world away and have a life that is totally devoid of you and always will be. Another consequence of the internet. The "talent pool" is more like a talent ocean. Almost infinite variety.

So I marvel at a stunning woman that I will probably never speak to.

I watch as her life continues and she documents it for those that care to watch.

I revel in her joie de vie.

I empathise with her trials and tribulations.

And celebrate her victories.

This is probably creepy as hell for her but it is certainly not the intent. When we enter the public domain, we should expect to engage with the public.

Apologies for appropriating your content but it's so good.

The nature of people demands that most of them be engaged in the most frivolous possible activities—like making money.

~ Marshall McLuhan ~

Enough of the Corporate Ladder

Ok, here's the deal....

After working within one large company for many years. Rising through the management ranks with hard work and ethics, humanity and business accumen; I'm about ready to pitch it. I'm one chair away from running the place and I want out. My pension plan is fully vested and all I have to do is see my way through another 15 years (OMG) and I can cash in. Unless of course a golden handshake comes before that which there is always a distinct possibility.

So why pitch it? Why toss it all?

Well, as I ponder the reasons and decide which to write down, I'm having a tough time picking the one that is really important and makes the decision a no brainer.

More money and ownership and control of my own business are all good reasons.

But at my current I have been blessed with the ability to run my own lines of business as I see fit and staff them (more or less) as I desire. Sure the money could be better but theres more to life than money and the value of job satisfaction is unmeasureable.

So what is a poor fool to do??

Life altering high risk change that could rock to the very core every dimension of life?

Or grind out years of undervalued labour with an uncertain future until retirement?

ick!!!

Conspiracy Theory

I totally feel that the SPURS are given special consideration above and beyond the level of reasonable human error. And in particular, Tim Duncan. My evidence for this can be encapsulated in a single event this year that embodies the impact Duncan and the SPURS can have on the game and the league.

On April 15, 2007, Crawford ejected San Antonio Spurs superstar Tim Duncan for supposedly laughing at Crawford from his seat on the bench during a game against the Dallas Mavericks. Duncan also insulted Crawford with an expletive[7]. Duncan alleges that Crawford challenged him to a fight on the court in which Crawford asked Duncan, "Do you want to fight?"[8] On April 17, Crawford was suspended for the remainder of the 2006-07 NBA season and the 2007 NBA playoffs as a result of this altercation. The league also fined Duncan $25,000 for verbal abuse of an official and warned than a repeat incident in the future would result in an ejection. Commissioner David Stern said Crawford's actions "failed to meet the standards of professionalism and game management we expect of NBA referees."[7]
References
^ a b c Joe Crawford #17. National Basketball Referees Association. Retrieved on 2007-04-17.
^ a b c d Arehart, Jim (May 2004). Being Joe Crawford. Referee. Retrieved on 2007-04-17.
^ a b Extra-Ordinary Average Joe. NBA.com (2005-11-11). Retrieved on 2007-04-18.
^ a b Interview with Joey Crawford. Referee (October 1998). Retrieved on 2007-04-17.
^ Ex-Referee Under House Arrest. CBS SportsLine.com. Retrieved on 2007-04-18.
^ Crawford pleads guilty to tax fraud. CNN Sports Illustrated (1998-06-25). Retrieved on 2007-04-18.
^ a b c d NBA suspends referee Crawford indefinitely. ESPN.com (2007-04-17). Retrieved on 2007-04-17.
^ Ref suspended for actions toward Duncan. Associated Press (2007-04-17). Retrieved on 2007-04-17.

This combined with the "no calls" given and the "touch" fouls taken by Duncan make a compelling case. I can't help but think that if the roles were reversed in Game 4, the league would have somehow found a way to not penalize the star player and take retribution on someone for compromising this position.

I know, I sound like a bit of a sore loser but it really gets my goat when I see double standards at work.

Sadly, the SUNS ran out of gas last night and the SPURS got wicked hot from outside at the perfect time for them. What was it, 5 or 6 three's in a row?? We had issues hitting anything let alone three's. And Steve had a tough time taking care of the ball. THere just weren't any scoring options. D'Antoni needed to use more bench.

Ah it's easy being a Monday morning quarterback (Thursday really but you know what I mean).

Go SUNS.

Ok...so it's been a couple months...

Reality is that you have to be hugely dedicated to these things to find the time each and every day. To those of you out there that are making that investment and actually saying things worth reading, good for you.

Recently (well really a couple of months ago) I discovered a new phenomenon to me. 365's.

On flickr, there are these people that take photos of themselves and publish them. They do this every day and they do it very creatively. One of my favourites is a woman from California that goes by the nom de plume of PHOTOKAT. In an odd way, she has allowed me to watch her. Like a voyeur I watch her through the lense of her camera. Her family. Her friends. And most revealingly herself.

And I must say, in this case I am enchanted. This 27 year old mother of three from southern California is spell-binding. I can't wait to check each day and see what she has shot and what she has been doing. Whether its working out, taking her daughter on a Sparks camping trip or just looking pretty and capturing it. I find it all fascinating, intoxicating and habit forming.

Is this the future? Relationships with people that we get glimpses of through media?

I know that PHOTOKAT has relationships with others on flickr. They get together and have lunch or go out for drinks or have play dates with their kids at the park. And through all this, the constant camera captures split seconds of events.

It's a curious lens to see people through at times. But the wonder I have is what's next. Clearly there are lots of people who are expressing themselves this way.

That's it for another year.

Well another season is done for the NFL and quite a year it has been. The final certainly was an interesting game with a bit of something for everyone.

Now withdrawl starts... pro bowl all of a sudden looks kinda interesting....

Let the SUPER WEEK begin

Media day for both teams pitted in the Super Bowl happened yesterday.

The orgy of media got there first real dose of the players and coaches in Miami yesterday. Watching some of the coverage going on, there was a noticeable media star in the mix.

This star was a reporter that the players wanted to speak to.

This star was a reporter that the reporters wanted to speak with.

The special segment guys wanted to speak with this star.

The producers wanted to speak with this star.

Radio, print and particularly television clamoured to speak with this new star.

Who is this star/reporter.

I dunno, but she sure looks like she knows the game......

Garnett's 44 points ends the Suns streak.

Actually, it was more a flat forth period that did the Suns in but streaks all come to an end and as the coach said, "time to start another...this is fun.".

For the details of the game.

And the Suns win again for the 17th time.

Follow in pictures the run that the Suns have been on.

Are they the best team in the NBA?

Baring injuries, they WILL WIN the NBA crown.

You MUST watch this!

Remember the likes of the Galloping Gourmet, Mr. Graham Kerr, well this is a funny twist on that particular theme.

Suns top Knicks for 15th straight win

NEW YORK (AP) -- The Phoenix Suns took nearly 40 years to win 15 straight games. They needed only a month to do it again.

Hot To The Touch

The Suns are the first team in NBA history to have two separate win streaks of at least 14 games before the All-Star break. Only two other teams had multiple 13-game win streaks before the break:
1st streak 2nd streak Season result
2006-07 Suns 15 15 ???
1995-96 Bulls 13 18 NBA champs*
1991-92 Bulls 14 13 NBA champs
*Won NBA-record 72 games
-- Source: Elias Sports Bureau, Inc.

Amare Stoudemire scored 26 of his 30 points in Phoenix's big second half and the Suns beat the New York Knicks 112-107 on Wednesday night for their second 15-game winning streak of the season.

Barely a month after establishing the longest winning streak in franchise history, the Suns equaled it by turning things around after a sluggish first half in the second night of a back-to-back.

"I think you've got to be a good team," Steve Nash said. "I think we have a lot of talent and have great chemistry and some mental toughness. Whatever mental toughness we lack to start games we find somewhere in us to win games. I think that's part of the key."

All-Star coach

Mike D'Antoni will coach the Western Conference in next month's All-Star game as a result of Wednesday's victory and San Antonio's loss to Houston. With Dallas' Avery Johnson ineligible because he coached last year, D'Antoni earned the spot by clinching the highest winning percentage among coaches through games of Feb. 4.

Nash finished with 22 points and 14 assists as the Suns scored 63 points in the second half after an un-Suns-like 49 in the first two periods. Shawn Marion added 20 points and 10 rebounds, Leandro Barbosa scored 15 points and Stoudemire grabbed 11 rebounds.

Phoenix became the first team to have two winning streaks of at least 15 games in the same season since the Los Angeles Lakers had streaks of 19 and 16 in a row during the 1999-2000 season. The Suns, who joined the NBA for the 1968-69 season, will go for a franchise-record 16th straight win Friday night at Milwaukee in the third game of a five-game trip.

"Especially in the first 41 games [actually 42], it's pretty tough," Phoenix coach Mike D'Antoni said of the streaks. "We take care of business, guys come out and play hard every night. They know when we should win. We've had some breaks along the way. Some people have been out. Hopefully it just keeps going and we keep getting better."

Jamal Crawford scored 29 points, 23 in the fourth quarter in an attempt to keep New York close. Eddy Curry added 25 points for the Knicks, but only four in the final 33-plus minutes. He also left with an injury in the final quarter of New York's second straight loss.

The Knicks were already without starting point guard Stephon Marbury, who missed his first game of the season because of left knee tendinitis. New York doesn't know if either will be available Friday night against defending champion Miami.

"It'll be tough, but we'll manage," Knicks coach Isiah Thomas said. "We'll find a way to make it work. We got some pieces missing, but we'll find a way to somehow scratch out a win here and there."

One night after scoring 76 points in the first half at Washington, the Suns didn't reach that total until the final two minutes of the third quarter -- right as they were taking control of the game.

"For me personally, I just got in foul trouble," Stoudemire said. "As a team, we just started a little slow. Eddy Curry was on fire early. So second half we came out with a little more intensity."

Even with Stoudemire scoring 16 points in the third, New York was down just four after Nate Robinson's 3-pointer with 3:08 remaining in the period. But James Jones answered with a 3 and Barbosa converted a three-point play after a steal to give Phoenix a 74-64 lead with 2:31 to go. Stoudemire added a basket and Barbosa had five more points before period's end, making it 81-68 headed to the fourth.

Jones nailed a pair of 3-pointers early in the fourth, extending the lead to 17 with under 10½ minutes remaining. Adding injury to insult, Curry hobbled off the court and into the locker room with a strained left calf after his basket early in the period and did not return.

"I'm not expecting to miss any time, but you kind of don't really know with these kind of things," he said.

The Suns committed four turnovers in the first three minutes of the game. Even when they did get going, they couldn't contain Curry, who scored 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting in the first quarter to give New York a 25-24 lead.

The Suns finally slowed Curry with double- and even triple-teams and got their running game going late in the half, using a 14-2 spurt that gave them a four-point advantage on Boris Diaw's jumper. Marion's layup on the fast break with 0.8 seconds remaining made it 49-46 at halftime.

Game notes
The other teams with two 15-game winning streaks are the 1996-97 Utah Jazz (both 15); the 1970-71 Milwaukee Bucks (20, 16); and the 1946-47 Washington Capitals (17, 15). ... Phoenix improved to 10-0 on the road and 19-1 overall against East teams. The last team to start 10-0 on the road in interconference games was Utah, which opened 11-0 in 1994-95. ... Phoenix has won six of the last seven meetings. New York's only victory in that span was a 140-133 triple-overtime win on Jan. 2, 2006.

Suns Win AGAIN

The Phoenix Suns' impressive winning streak began with a victory over the New York Knicks. Now they'll try to match the longest run in franchise history with another.

The Suns go for their 15th straight victory as they visit the Knicks on Wednesday in their final meeting of the season.

Added insight from a reliable Suns devotee as follows:

"If they don’t have the glitch against the Wizards here in PHX Dec. 29 when they
arrived at the arena 2 hours before game time after being snowed in at Denver
and then the game was postponed and the last second shot by Nowitski in Dallas,
last night would have been 32 straight wins and tonight they would be going for
the all time record of 33 straight set by The Big Dipper, Wilt Chamberlain and
the Lakers in the ‘60s." ~WK~

The second longest all time streak is 20 in a row.

Sadie Frost has a perfect bottom

Undeniably this has to be one of the most perfect of bottoms ever.

Not really even sure who she is, but following a piece on PETA led me to her.

Now who can not be inspired but a vision as lovely as that; not to mention the other lovelies that are fans of PETA, with the exception of the hugely over done Pam Anderson.

Keep up the good work PETA, fur is murder. Turn your back on fur, especially if it means seeing more bottoms of the quality displayed by Miss Frost.

Passports required

Today is the first day that passports are required to enter the US from Canada. Likewise, US citizens require a passport to re-enter the United States. I wonder what they will do with all the folks that left the US and didn't take a passport with them?? Could prove a little interesting. One thing is certain, I'm glad I don't have to deal with those lines at Customs for a little while. No near term travel plans into the US.

I heard some conversation on the origin of passports as it relates to Canada and the US this morning on CBC. A historian was describing how Abe Lincoln had put pressure on the Canadian government to put armed guards on the Canadian border to quell confederate soldiers from entering the US to attack from the north. I guess this could be expressed another way as our first harbouring of terrorists.

Since 9/11, according to the Department of Homeland Security, the American government has spent more than 122 million U.S. dollars U.S. on technology to secure the Canada-US border. The number of U.S. border agents has almost tripled from 340 to 980. And under the US-VISIT program - a system that grants quick access over the border for frequent travelers - biometric technology such as thumbprints and retinal scanning is now installed in 154 land ports of entry. That program has screened some 4 million visitors.

Meanwhile, on the Canadian side, Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day recently announced an investment of 430 million Canadian dollars on border security. This is in addition to the $433 million previously promised (since December 2001) to upgrade border security technology. Not to mention Canadian border guards will soon be armed, much like their American counterparts.

Another interesting note is on the volume of Canadians in the US. Before 1960, Canadians did not require a "green card" to work in the US. In fact, a census in and around this time showed more Canadians living and working in the US as a demographic group than those that claimed "hispanic" as their demographic.

I do need to get into the US periodically and my passport has expired. Have you tried to get one recently. Good to see how inept our government is at facilitating this travel requirement. On repeated attempts to start the process through the government's website, I have had no luck. The "interactive" version is hootched. The electronic forms are corrupted. And the only viable option is still going to a postal depot to pick up a paper form and then drop off.

It's good to know that the policies and procedure that were essentially developed by Sir John A McDonald are still the gold seal practise for Canadian passport acquisition. Ah the nostalgia. You have to love a tradition.

ESPN.com - COLUMNIST - Wojciechowski: Yes, Lovie, I believe now

ESPN.com - COLUMNIST - Wojciechowski: Yes, Lovie, I believe now

ESPN.com - NFL/PLAYOFFS06 - Woman induces labor so hubby can attend Bears game

ESPN.com - NFL/PLAYOFFS06 - Woman induces labor so hubby can attend Bears game: "PALOS HEIGHTS, Ill. -- Nine months pregnant and married to a fervent Bears fan with tickets to Sunday's NFC Championship Game, Colleen Pavelka didn't want to risk going into labor during the game against the New Orleans Saints.
Due to give birth on Monday, Pavelka's doctor told her Friday she could induce labor early. She opted for the Friday delivery.
'I thought, how could [Mark] miss this one opportunity that he might never have again in his life?' said Pavelka, 28, from the southwestern Chicago suburb of Homer Glen.
At 10:45 p.m. Friday, Mark Patrick Pavelka was born at Palos Community Hospital after close to six hours of labor.
While her husband watched the Bears play the New Orleans Saints at Soldier Field Sunday, Colleen planned to watch in the hospital with the baby wrapped in a Bears blanket -- a Christmas gift from his grandmother.
The couple named Mark after his father, who wore a 'Monsters of the Midway' shirt during the delivery.
'If he wasn't born by Sunday and the Bears won, I would have named him Rex,' after Bears quarterback Rex Grossman, joked Mark Pavelka, 28.
Mark is the couple's second son.
Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press"

The Saints were ROBBED

I don't know if you watch the NFL, but this past Sunday can be one of the best or worst days for the game. There is generally no shortage of hype and expectation. The battles for the conference championships determines who goes to the penultimate game, modestly know as the Super Bowl.

At any rate, after all the hype and hyperbole, the games were played. Indie got the Pats monkey off of their collective back with a 38-34 homefield victory. Manning rallied his troops from an 18 point deficit to become AFC champions.

In the NFC, the fairy tale team from hurricane ravage New Orleans had their dreams shattered by the hapless Bears. But it wasn't all the Bears doing, in a pivotal moment, the referrees failed to reverse an awful call when kick off returner Peterson had the ball ripped from his arms while laying on the ground.

I'm still scratching my head at how the call possibly went the way it did.

So, a major turning point, the Saints went from getting back into the game to getting pinned deep...giving up a safety (really bad decision) and then the flood gates opened. And despite the score (39-14), the Chicago offence remained offensive. Grossman is easily the grossest QB to go to the Super Bowl. Not since Boomer Esiason has someone with so little ability achieved so much. I guess the Al Davis adage holds true in Chicago moreso than in most places, "Just win, baby!".

And I'm still scratching my head on how that fumble was a fumble....

Do you have to talk about Canada to be a Canadian blogger??

Apparently you do. I was rudely told by a series of Canadian blog indices that I don't have enough references to Canada on my blog to qualify as a Canadian blogger.

Curious, one would have thought being born and bred in Canada would qualify. And then there was this absurd threat of billing (legally in Canada) if you were trying to spoof them into thinking you are a Canadian blog when you are not.

So what, who cares. Index the damn thing and be done with it. Is it not simply better to index any submission then let people look for the relative content that they are seeking?

Too many rules in this area of the blog-o-sphere.

And I thought it was going to be like the wild west out here, not grade 4.

"Sit in your desk.... sit up straight.... take out your notebooks on Canadian History and turn to page 112 entitled John Cabot...."

Argg

Sundance Dream Most Notable for an Absence

By DAVID CARR
Published: January 19, 2007
All films arrive at Sundance with a back story, but none have the poignancy of “Waitress,” which was written and directed by Adrienne Shelly. (The New York Times)

Civilian casualties in Iraq total over 34,000 in 2006

With one of the architects of terrorism from an "Axis of Evil" executed, do we feel better about our safety in these post-9/11 days?

Certainly the people of Iraq don't. The UN this week reported that the "volume of civilian casualties greatly exceeded local estimates". The fact that the UN thinks this number is more in the magnitude of the population of St. Albert, Alberta or Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan is staggering. This number doesn't even take into account the volume of soldiers on any side of this "war".

Not long before his execution, Mr. Hussein's lawyers released this letter:

To the great nation, to the people of our country, and humanity,
Many of you have known the writer of this letter to be faithful, honest, caring for others, wise, of sound judgment, just, decisive, careful with the wealth of the people and the state ... and that his heart is big enough to embrace all without discrimination.
You have known your brother and leader very well and he never bowed to the despots and, in accordance with the wishes of those who loved him, remained a sword and a banner.

This is how you want your brother, son or leader to be ... and those who will lead you (in the future) should have the same qualifications.

Here, I offer my soul to God as a sacrifice, and if He wants, He will send it to heaven with the martyrs, or, He will postpone that ... so let us be patient and depend on Him against the unjust nations.

Remember that God has enabled you to become an example of love, forgiveness and brotherly coexistence ... I call on you not to hate because hate does not leave a space for a person to be fair and it makes you blind and closes all doors of thinking and keeps away one from balanced thinking and making the right choice.

I also call on you not to hate the peoples of the other countries that attacked us and differentiate between the decision-makers and peoples. Anyone who repents - whether in Iraq or abroad - you must forgive him.

You should know that among the aggressors, there are people who support your struggle against the invaders, and some of them volunteered for the legal defence of prisoners, including Saddam Hussein ... some of these people wept profusely when they said goodbye to me.

Dear faithful people, I say goodbye to you, but I will be with the merciful God who helps those who take refuge in him and who will never disappoint any faithful, honest believer ... God is Great ... God is great ... Long live our nation ... Long live our great struggling people ... Long live Iraq, long live Iraq ... Long live Palestine ... Long live jihad and the mujahedeen (the insurgency).

Saddam Hussein President and Commander in Chief of the Iraqi Mujahed Armed Forces

Additional clarification note:
I have written this letter because the lawyers told me that the so-called criminal court — established and named by the invaders --will allow the so-called defendants the chance for a last word. But that court and its chief judge did not give us the chance to say a word, and issued its verdict without explanation and read out the sentence — dictated by the invaders — without presenting the evidence. I wanted the people to know this.

— Letter by Saddam Hussein