Bombers, freeways, football and parks

I don't know how I managed to post 9 times in June, but I suspect I'll fall well short of that mark this month. That's okay though, because I will make up for it by posting about five different topics in one shot here (most of it being commentary about crap in the Saturday Free Press, but gimme a break man ... it's summer. I've been concentrating on important things like drinking, and baseball, and drinking while playing baseball.)

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Now I haven't been to a Bomber game yet, but when I do go I must make a point of watching the new "flag men", just so that I can try to reconcile this:

The Blue Squadron has captured the attention -- and imagination -- of fans and media, who've marvelled at the new game-day feature.

with this:

And please, please, PLEASE get rid of the flag men. This is the most embarrassing “innovation” I’ve ever seen at a sports game. There is NOTHING good about it. It sucks. I’d rather have Mike Kelly return as coach than see these nimrods shuffling around the field. Am I being clear?

(I'll give Frogger the benefit of the doubt and assume he didn't know they were soldiers and fire fighters when referring to them as "nimrods")

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The kick coverage woes of the Bombers make me think of Jamie Stoddard. Yes ... Stoddard. Really. He was more than a reliable but seldom used receiver -- he was a role player who was often on the coverage team. In fact he was an excellent coverage guy. Bring back Stoddard!

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I say this every week, but I really shouldn't read Colleen Simard columns...

In fact, three different tribes have claims to the Stanley Park land.

So this public outrage is about more than just a name change, it's about a shift in power. Nobody wants to give up claim of a treasured landmark to indigenous people.

Or .... maybe the opposition has something to do with the fact that Stanley Park is an internationally known attraction, and renaming it could cause confusion, and necessitate an expensive rebranding effort? Also, if three different tribes lay claim to the area, how wise it is to name it after a specific village for a specific tribe? What about the other tribes? Oh don't tell me: they all lived together in the same village and "celebrated".

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Ok ... let's forget about that and keep flipping through the paper ... Oh look: the new Peguis Trail extension is getting an underpass!

The eastern extension of Chief Peguis Trail will include an underpass below Rothesay Street as part of a $110-million deal to build a freeway across North Kildonan

Freeway? Does a street with one underpass constitute a freeway now? I guess in Winnipeg it might...

Let me ask you something: if we can build an underpass here, why can't we build a grade separation on a street that will see far, FAR more traffic; at an intersection that's already rated an "F" and will be twice as bad in a few short years? I'll even help you out on how to do it.

Oh ya .. I love this part too:

"It would have been nice if all our streets were built with minimal stopping and starting," he (Mayor Sam Katz) said, citing the environmental benefits of reducing idling times

Holy fuck Sam ... is that what you've been doing all these years? Minimizing stopping and starting?!? I can count one underpass (Waverly) and one functional round-about (Lakewood) in all your years in office. Now how many stop lights and four way stops have we added?

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Lastly: congratulations to Spain!

A while back, after the Winter Olympics, I mused about how a successful performance and the national pride it generates can help to crush separatist spirits and unite a country. Well, perhaps it will work for Spain as well.

That is certainly the view of Vicente del Bosque, Spain’s football coach. “There are players from all over Spain here in the squad. We are united and I hope the same feeling of unity occurs back in Spain,”

related: Endless Spin

Memo to the politically correct

The Black Rod has posted a piece with some advice for Ron Evans and the rest of the First Nations leadership. There are some blunt observations as well as thoughtful suggestions. Unfortunately, some people who have opposing points of view can only offer insults. That is not the way dialog works.

It's worth reading the piece and making your own judgments. If you have disagreements, I encourage you to counter the specific points made, either here, on your own blog, or elsewhere. And remember, name calling isn't very persuasive.

Phil Fontaine thinks Indians are racist

I can't help but draw that conclusion after reading this article in today's Freep. According to the column, Phil thinks it is racist to question how Native recipients of the residential school lump sum payment will spend their money. However, very recently, the Aboriginal Healing Foundation does just that. Therefore, the members of the Aboriginal Healing Foundation, who are primarily (if not entirely) First Nations People, must be racist. Simple logic really.

Of course Phil was only referring to non-natives. It's not racism if you talk about your own race (I don't think). However, his point of view is troubling and hypocritical nonetheless.

The AHF report documents many of the troubles that result from the sudden influx of cash:

Increased drug and alcohol abuse was among the more commonly cited consequences of LSPs by recipients. This impact on people’s lives seemed to be felt almost immediately: “When I got the payment, I was sober for 12 years overall. After I got the money, I drank for four days in a row.”
...

Overall, while not every participating recipient worried that LSPs would inevitably usher in widespread alcohol and drug abuse (“some will drink it up, but not all”), others could scarcely recall more than a handful of Survivors who did not indulge in such abuse when the payments came.

So we know we have a problem. Is it racist of us to acknowledge it? How do we deal with it if we aren't allowed to talk about it? The report also suggests that "government money" is particularly damaging because "money is often viewed with suspicion as an instrument which government will use to manipulate and undermine Aboriginal people."

So do you want the damn money or not? Yeah ... that's what I thought. To put words in Phil Fontaine's mouth: "Give us the money you racist pigs, and look at all the damage you're doing to our people."

I suppose at some point in the future we'll have to give compensation payments for all of the hardship caused by our compensation payments.

Heh, good thing nobody reads this blog.

-- update --

Darcey has a good a good post on this over at the Broom. I should have known ...

I also should have know that the Free Press is two days behind in it's reporting.