Mitt Romney would not be moderate!

"There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it -- that that's an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what. ... These are people who pay no income tax. ... [M]y job is not to worry about those people. I'll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives."

- Mitt Romney


Mitt Romney, the Republican candidate for President of the United States, said those words and he meant them.  He can't pretend otherwise.  He can't just shrug them off and say that everybody says the wrong thing sometimes.  Those words reveal the true mindset of the Republican Party. They should not be forgotten by the American electorate.  Romney and the Republican Party should be called into account for their dismissal of 47 percent of the American populace.  Since the population of the United States is about 311.6 million people, they have written off a lot of their fellow Americans.

Don't be fooled, my American friends, by Mitt Romney's professed moderation during the first presidential debate.  He has flip-flopped on so many issues that it is difficult to gauge where he really stands, but as governor of Massachusetts, Romney introduced a health care plan similar to President Obama's Affordable Health Care Plan.  He seems more moderate than his libertarian running mate, Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, but that's not saying much.  It's an indication of how far to the right Republicans have veered.  Even if Romney wanted to be more moderate, his hands are tied.  The Republican Party has effectively been hijacked  by  extreme right-wingers.  The Tea Party is in control and Romney must do their bidding.  He is beholden to them and to the wealthy corporate interests that fund his party.  If he becomes president, he will do their bidding.  He will continue to cut taxes for millionaires and billionaires, thus increasing the deficit.

Paul Ryan

Mitt Romney chose Congressman Ryan, an avowed admirer of the Ayn Rand's school of thought, as his vice-presidential running mate in order to appease the Tea Party, the dominant faction of his party.  The choice of Ryan simply confirmed what was already obvious: the Tea Party is in control of the Republican Party.  Its goal is to completely redesign America in its own fashion.  The rich will get richer.  The middle class will collapse and the poor will suffer even more.  Trickle down economics does not work in difficult economic times. How many companies are prepared to hire new employees if they fear that consumers will not buy their product?

My American friends, before you cast your vote on November 6th, remember that the Paul Ryan budget that he supported in Congress is the same budget that was adopted by the Romney-Ryan campaign.  Do not forget that the Ryan budget would destroy Medicare as you know it for seniors and transform it into a voucher program.  Seniors of America, I ask you, do you want Medicare or do you want Voucher Care?

By the way, I have just finished reading an Associated Press story revealing that VP candidate Paul Ryan sought federal funding for his Wisconsin constituents, the same government handouts that he is so quick to criticize.  According to newly released documents (8,900 pages of correspondence between Congressman Ryan's congressional office and 70 executive branch agencies), Ryan sought food stamps stimulus money, federally guaranteed business loans , grants to invest in green technology and money under Obama's heath care reform law.  The Associated Press obtained the documents under the Freedom of Information Act.

As a Canadian, I don't have a vote on November 6th.  For you, America, the choice is abundantly clear.


- Joanne

Joanne's Journal: October 12, 2012

JOANNE'S JOURNAL
Edition No. 10


QUOTE OF THE DAY

Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,
Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run

- John Keats (1795-1821), English poet
From To Autumn [1820}

If I lived in a warm or tropical climate, I would really miss autumn and the changing of the leaves. Some would say that's a small price to pay to live in Hawaii or the Caribbean.  I have met people from Uganda who had never seen a maple tree or autumn colours.  I guess it all evens out, though.  I have only seen a banana tree once in my life, in Mexico.  I first set eyes on an olive tree in Italy in 1996 even though I have always had an affinity for olives (It must be my Sicilian ancestry).


ON THIS DAY

THE FIRST OKTOBERFEST

Beginning on October 12, 1810, the first Oktoberfest took place in Bavaria and the occasion was a royal wedding.  The good citizens of Munich were invited to celebrate the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria (later King Ludwig I) to Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen.  Five days after the October 12 nuptials, an estimated 40,000 Bavarians gathered in a field outside the gates of Munich to watch a horse race and join in festivities.  The horse race proved so popular that the royal family held it again the next year.  In 1819, responsibility for the festivities was transferred from the royal family to the city of Munich.

The horse race continued until 1950.  The meadow where Oktoberfest is held now is known as Theresnwise or Wiesn in honour of Princess Therese.



ON THE CANADIAN POLITICAL SCENE

ENTER JUSTIN TRUDEAU

Whatever you think of him, Justin Trudeau's entry into the Liberal leadership contest has given Canadian politics a much-need jolt of energy.  Where Justin's concerned, Canadians have seen plenty of sizzle - now he has to show us the steak.  It's not a matter of age.  Trudeau is 40 years old.  He will turn 41 on Christmas Day.  In 1979,  when Joe Clark, became Canada's 16th prime minister, he was one day shy of his 40th birthday.  To be eligible for the office of president of the United States, an American must attain the age of 35. So Justin is not too young at all to lead his party or to become prime minister. It's just that with his wavy, tussled hair, the boyish Trudeau appears younger than his age. Joe Clark, on the other hand, did not have a boyish appearance when he was in politics.

Is it a matter of experience?  Well, Justin Trudeau has been a Member of Parliament for the Montreal riding of Papineau for four years, since October of 2008.  He worked diligently to oust that riding from its Bloc Quebecois incumbent, Vivian Barbot, by less than 1,200 votes.  In the 2011 election, Trudeau won re-election by a greater margin.

The Conservatives have been in office since 2006, so Justin has always been an opposition MP.  He has never had the opportunity to serve a s a cabinet minister as did his father, Pierre, who held the post of Justice Minister before becoming Leader of the Liberal Party and Prime Minister of Canada.  The younger Trudeau would have benefited greatly by having cabinet experience.  Remember, however, that Brian Mulroney had never held public office when he was chosen leader of the Progressive Conservative Party in 1983.

What about his oratorical skills?  Justin is, of course, fluently bilingual.  His voice is clear but his presentation is somewhat theatrical.  He needs to tone it down a bit.

Justin's last name has been both a help and a hindrance to him.  It has brought him recognition and attention that he would otherwise not have received.  Yet he must greater scrutiny because of his name and he must endure  constant comparisons to his father or accusations that he has risen on his father's coattails.  Some have been tougher on him because they don't want him to have a free ride.  Others have been easier on him because of their admiration for his father.

Conservative critics such as Michael Coren have delighted in describing Justin Trudeau as a former "substitute drama teacher."  The fact is that he worked as a social studies and French teacher at West Point Grey Academy and Sir Winston Churchill Secondary School in Vancouver.  Yes, he did teach some drama. Is there something wrong with that. or do far-right conservatives not regard teaching as an honourable profession?  Even though Trudeau has considerably more political experience than Brian Mulroney did when he became Tory leader, Mulroney had a business background and not a background in education.

After six years of Stephen Harper and his brand of neo-conservatism, Canadians are more than ready for a fresh approach and different policies.  If this were a contest based on charisma alone, Justin Trudeau would win hands down.  It's not.  He has great potential and may develop into a wonderful leader.  His future is in his own hands and he's really going to have to demonstrate his worthiness, perhaps because of his name and his fathers' political history.  It's quite a challenge for Justin to be his own man while being the scion of an iconic political figure.  How does one separate oneself from one's DNA without disowning his entire legacy?

Justin Trudeau should not be given a coronation and I hope that someone such as Marc Garneau gives him a tough battle.  On the other hand, he should not be underestimated and cavalierly dismissed as a lightweight. Canadians will know more once he really spells out his ideas and his polices.


ON THE U.S POLITICAL SCENE

U.S. President Barack Obama's performance in the first televised debate was indeed a disappoint.  Obama himself is quite aware of that.  For some reason, he was really off his game that night.  He seemed distracted and nervous, as if he really didn't want to be there,  As a result, he did not challenge Mitt Romney's distortions of the facts.  Nor did he hold him to account for his infamous 47 percent speech.  Thankfully, Joe Biden was much stronger in his debate with Paul Ryan.  I'm expecting Obama to be much more effective in his second debate with Romney on Tuesday, October 16th.


RIDDLE ME THIS

How much was the pirate charged to get his ears pierced?


ANSWER

A buck an ear.



SPORTS

HOCKEY

Americans are too busy watching the World Series and NFL football to care about hockey.  Apart from some fans in the northern states, the absence of NHL hockey bas been barely noticed in the United States. Hockey has certainly not been missed a great deal south of the border. If NHL players are still locked out after the Super Bowl has been played, Americans may take notice, but they won't be terribly upset.  Even here in hockey-crazy Canada, I sense that people don't care as much about the NHL as they used to.  Gary Bettman and his cohorts have seen to that.

Bettman has been commissioner of the National Hockey league since February 1, 1993, almost 20 years.  The owners are quite pleased with him because he promotes and defends their interests vigorously. If that were the one major task of an NHL commissioner, Gary Bettman would be an overwhelming success.   It's too bad he isn't as vigorous about upholding the best interests of the game of hockey.


BASEBALL

I don't have a strong allegiance to any team remaining in World Series competition;  If I had to make a choice, I would like to see the Detroit Tigers win it all.  I don't want to see the Yankees win it.  They have won too many times.

The Toronto Blue Jays are once again looking to next year after a disastrous 2012 season.  After watching the Baltimore Orioles and the Washington Nationals, as a Blue Jay fans long for a season like those two teams had.  I'm pleased that GM Alex Anthopolous has finally realized that his team's starting rotation is far from satisfactory and that the Blue Jays will not contend until it improves.  I don's pretend to be an expert (not by a long shot), but it was painfully obvious during the 2011 off season that the Jays' starting rotation would not cut the mustard.  Nobody could have predicted Ricky Romero's meltdown.  Yet even if Romero had performed well, it would not have been enough for the Blue Jays to contend.  The Jays finished the season with a mere 73 wins, their lowest single-season total since 2004.  Even if the team had had fewer injuries and Brandon Morrow had remained healthy, they probably would have won between 80 and 85 games.  That's not enough to contend in the AL East.

As for the John Farrell situation, going to be difficult to demonstrate confidence in him without extending his contract.  Yet he has really not merited a contract extension.

- Joanne

Baseball and World Series Quiz

The 2012 baseball season is drawing to a close and post-season play is about to begin.  As we head toward the World Series, Number 16 presents a challenging baseball quiz.  How well do you know trivia about the Grand Old Game?  Find out by completing the quiz below.


BASEBALL AND WORLD SERIES QUIZ


1.  How many Cy Young Awards has Roger Clemens won?

A.  Five

B.  Seven

C.  Four

D.  Six

E.  Eight



2. Clemens is one of five pitchers  to have won the Cy Young Award in both the American League and the National League to date.  Who are the others?

A.  Greg Maddux, Gaylord Perry, Pedro Martinez and Randy Johnson

B.  David Cone, Steve Carlton,.Randy Johnson and Pedro Martinez

C.  Gaylord Perry, Pedro Martinez, Randy Johnson and Roy Halladay

D.  Steve Carlton, Pedro Martinez, Randy Johnson and Roy Halladay

E.  Ferguson Jenkins, Gaylord Perry, Randy Johnson and Roy Halladay



3.  The Texas Rangers have been based in Arlington Texas since 1972.  Where was the team located before moving to the Lone Star State.?

A.  Kansas City, Missouri

B.  Minneapolis, Minnesota

C.  St. Paul, Minnesota

D.  Washington, D.C.

E.  San Jose, California



4.  The first World Series was played in 1903.  What team won the first World Series?

A.  The Boston Americans

B.  The New York Americans

C.  The Boston Braves

D.  The New York Giants

E.  The Chicago White Sox



5.  The World Series was cancelled in 1994 due to a Major League Baseball strike.  The only other time the Series was cancelled was 1904.  Why was it cancelled in 1904?

A.  It was cancelled due to a serious virus that had spread among the players.

B.  There was a railway strike and the trains were not running to New York.

C.  No agreement could be reached on the format of the Series.

D.  The American League champion New York Highlanders refused to play the National League champion Pittsburgh Pirates.

E.  The National League champion New York Giants refused to play the American League champion Boston Americans.



6.  This pitcher started his Major League career as a 17-year-old in 1936.  He spent his entire career with the Cleveland Indians. In 1946, he struck out 348 batters.  In 1948, he won his first World Series. Name him.

A.  Stan Koveleski

B.  Mel Harder

C.  Bob Feller

D.  Addie Joss

E.  Bob Lemon



7.  Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers is about to win Major League Baseball's Triple Crown in batting.  Who was the last player to earn the Triple Crown (highest batting average, the most home runs and the most runs batted in (RBI)) in the American League or the National League?

A,  Carl Yastrzemski in 1967

B.  Mickey Mantle in 1962

C.  Frank Robinson in 1966

D.  Ted Williams in 1947

E.  Willie Mays in 1954



8.  Did the Brooklyn Dodgers, known as "dem bums," ever win a World Series?

A.  No, they never won a World Series.

B.  They won the World Series in 1954.

C.  They won in 1955.

D.  They won in 1953.

E.  They won in 1952.



9.  Nolan Ryan is currently the all-time leader in no-hitters with seven no-hitters in his illustrious career.  Against which team did he throw his seventh no-hitter?

A.  The Oakland Athletics

B.  The Toronto Blue Jays

C.  The New York Yankees

D.  The Boston Red Sox

E.  The Detroit Tigers



10.  In which baseball stadium did The Beatles perform their last commercial concert?

A.  Shea Stadium, New York

B.  Candlestick Park, San Francisco

C.  Yankee Stadium, New York

D.  Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles

E.  Wrigley Field, Chicago



11.  Name the last major league team for which Babe Ruth played.

A.  The New York Yankees

B.  The Boston Red Sox

C.  The New York Giants

D.  The Brooklyn Dodgers

E.  Tbe Boston Braves



12.  Who is sometimes referred to as the "father of modern baseball?"  Hint: He is thought to be the first person to draw a diagram of a diamond-shaped baseball field.

A. Abner Doubleday

B. Joseph Strutt

C. Albert Spalding

D.  Alexander Cartwright

E.  John Montgomery Ward



13.  What is the official name of the trophy awarded to the winners of the World Series championship?

A.  The Commissioner's Trophy

B.  The World Series Trophy

C.  The Kenesaw Landis Trrophy

D.  The A. Bartlett Giamatti Memorial Award

E.  The Bowie Kuhn Trophy



ANSWERS

1. B.

Roger Clemens has won seven Cy Young Awards.  He won the Cy in 1986, 1988 and 1990 with the Boston Red Sox; 1997 and 1998 with the Toronto Blue Jays ; 2001 with the New York Yankees and 2004 with the Houston Astros.


2. C

Along with Roger Clemens, Gaylord Perry, Pedro Martinez Randy Johnson and Roy Halliday have all won Cy Young Awards in both the American and National Leagues.  After 6 American League Cys, Roger won a National League Cy in 2004 with the Houston Astros.  Gaylord Perry won the American League Cy Young Award in 1972 with the Cleveland Indians and the National League Cy in 1978 with the San Diego Padres.  Pedro Martinez won the National League Cy in 1997 with the Montreal Expos and the American League Cy in 1999 and 2000 with the Boston Red Sox.  Roy Halliday won the American League Cy in 2003 with the Toronto Blue Jays and the National League Cy with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2010.


3.  D

The Texas Rangers were originally based in Washington, D.C. from 1961 until 1971.  In 1961, the franchise was established as the Washington Senators, an expansion club, after the previous Washington Senators (1901-1960) had become the Minnesota Twins.  At the end of the 1971 season, the new Washington Senators relocated to Arlington, Texas.


4.  A

 Pittsburgh Pirates and the Boston Americans - First World Series (October 1903)

The Boston Americans of the American League won the first World Series in 1903.  They defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates of the National League in eight games.  Note:  The best-of-seven format has been used in all World Series except 1903, 1919, 1920 and 1921.  In those years, the winner was decided by a best-of-nine playoff.


5.  E.

The 1904 World Series was cancelled because the National League champion New York Giants declined to play the American League champion Boston Americans. At the time, there was no governing body for the World Series and no requirement that a Series had to take place.  The owner of the New York Giants, John T. Brush, refused to allow his team to participate because of the "inferiority" of the American League.  John McGraw, the manager of the Giants, concurred with Brush.  According to McGraw, the Giants were the champions of "the only real major league."


6.  C.

Pitching great Bob Feller, known as Rapid Robert, started his career in the majors at 17.  He played 18 seasons, from 1936 to 1956 (did not play due to military service n 1942, 1943 and 1944) with the Cleveland Indians. Feller won a World Series with Cleveland in 1948.  He died on December 15, 2010 at the age of 92.


7.  A

Carl Yastrzemski

Carl Yastrzemski won the Triple Crown in 1967 with the Boston Red Sox.  Yaz hit 44 home runs, 121 RBI and his batting average was .326.  (EDITOR'S NOTE: On October 3, 2012, Mguel Cabrera became the first player to win the Triple Crown in 45 years with 44 home runs, 139 RBI and a batting average of 330.


8.  C.

Yes, the Brooklyn Dodgers finally won a World Series in 1955.  They defeated the New York Yankees in seven games.  Sadly, for Brooklyn fans, it would be their first and only championship.  The team relocated to Los Angeles after the 1957 season.


9.  B

Nolan Ryan threw his seventh no-hitter against the Toronto Blue Jays on May 1, 1991 as a member of the Texas Rangers.  The game took place at Arlington Stadium in Texas before a crowd of 33, 439.  The Rangers defeated the Blue Jays by a score of 3-0.  Bobby Valentine was the manager of the Texas Rangers and Cito Gaston was Toronto's manager.  Lefty Jimmy Key was the losing pitcher for the Jays against the right-hander Ryan.

Nolan Ryan's first four no-hitters occurred on May 15, 1973, July 15, 1973, September 28, 1974 and June 1, 1975 when he was a member of the California Angels and on.  His fifth  no-hitter occurred on September 26, 1981 when he was a member of the Houston Astros.  He threw his sixth no-hitter on June 11, 1990 as a Texas Ranger.


10.  B

The Beatles performed their last public concert in San Francisco's Candlestick Park on August 29, 1966.


11.  E

Babe Ruth's last Major :League team was the Boston Braves of the National League.  He signed as a free agent with the Braves on February 26, 1935 in the hope of eventually becoming manager of the team.  Ruth played for the Braves during a miserable 1935 season.and he was only a shadow of his former self.  The Babe's final game was May 30, 1935 in Philadelphia at the Baker Bowl.  He injured his knee in the first inning and left the game.  His Braves lost 11-6 to the Phillies.  Two days later, he called reporters to his locker and announced his retirement.  Babe Ruth never realized his dream of becoming a manager.


12.  D

Alexander Cartwright

Alexander Cartwright is referred to as the "father of modern baseball."  Cartwright was the founding member of the Knickerbocker Base Ball Club of New York City, baseball's first organized team.  The rules of the modern game are founded on the Knickerbocker Rules set out by Cartwright and a committee from the Knickerbocker club.  Alexander Cartwright  was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 1938.  On June 3, 1953, the United States Congress officially declared him to be the inventor of the modern game of baseball.


13.  A

Commissioner's Trophy 2004

A trophy was first presented to the World Series champions in 1967 and it was named the Commissioner's Trophy in 1985.  A new Commissioner's Trophy is created each year.  The trophy was redesigned in 1999 for the 2000 World Series by Tiffany & Co.  It stands 61 cm (24 inches), excluding the base,.and weighs about 14 kg. (30 pounds),  It is made of sterling silver and features a gold-plated flag for each team in Major League Baseball.


- Joanne

Soeur Sourire: The Saga of the Singing Nun

Back in the 1960s, around the time of John F. Kennedy's assassination, a nun from Belgium gained international fame with a hit song.  Her birth name was Jeanne-Paule Marie Deckers and she was born in Brussels almost 79 years ago, on October 17, 1933. You may remember her as The Singing Nun.

Jeanine's parents, Lucien and Gabrielle Deckers, encouraged their daughter to take over the family bakery in Brussels.  She had other ideas and briefly enrolled in a Paris art school.  She later attended the Catholic University of Louvin and became a high school art teacher.  While in her 20s, she studied art, played guitar and became distraught over a broken engagement.  In 1959, at the age of 25, she entered the Dominican Fichermont Convent in Waterloo, Belgium, taking the name Sister Luc Gabriel (a combination of her parents' first names).  At the convent, the talented nun wrote, sang and performed her own songs.  Her music was so popular with the other members of the order and at retreats that she was encouraged to record an album.that visitors to the monastery would be able to purchase.

The nuns approached the Philips Record Company's office in Brussels about recording some of Sister Luc Gabriel's songs.  Philips was so impressed with her record that they signed Sister Luc Gabriel to a contract.  It was agreed, however, that all royalties from her recordings would be donated to her order as she had taken a vow of poverty. Her album became so popular in Europe that Philips began importing the disc to North America.  It was released in the United States as The Singling Nun.  A single from the album, "Dominique,"  became an international hit.  Sister Luc Gabriel had written the song as a tribute to Saint Dominic, he 13th -Century saint who founded her order.  It was recorded to raise funds for a church mission in Africa.

Suddenly and unexpectedly, the obscure Dominican nun attained celebrity status.  This shy, bespectacled woman became the unlikeliest of pop stars.  She found herself in the midst of a whirlwind of fame that changed her life irrevocably.  She used the stage name Soeur Sourire (Sister Smile), a  moniker devised by Philips, and she also performed concerts . . . reluctantly.  By late 1963, both her album and her single had risen to the top of the charts in the United States..

After the death of President Kennedy on November 22, 1963, grieving Americans were ready for a softer, more soothing sound.  "Dominique" filled the bill.  It is the first Belgian song to become a number one hit single in the United States.  It held the Billboard top spot in  the U.S. for four weeks beginning on December 7, 1963, holding back The Kingsmen's "Louie Louie" from reaching Number 1.  Versions of "Dominique" were recorded in Dutch, German, Hebrew and Japanese and the song was charted in many different countries.

On January 5, 1964, The Singing Nun reached the pinnacle of her fame when she appeared, via tape, on the Ed Sullivan Show.  She performed a brief rendition of Dominique and was interviewed by Ed Sullivan,  At the conclusion of the interview, Sullivan commented that the nation "feels so much closer to nuns now."  In 1964, The Singing Nun put forth her second album, Her Joy, Her Songs.  The album did not receive much attention and was quickly forgotten.

Sudden fame had been difficult for the unassuming nun to handle.  In 1965, she returned to the protective confines of her convent.  In 1966, an MGM musical called The Singing Nun was released.  It was very loosely based on the life of Jeanine Deckers, although she was referred to as Sister Ann.in the film.  The Singing Nun starred Debbie Reynolds in the title role and featured Ricardo Monalban, Greer Garson, Katherine Ross, Chad Everett and Agnes Moorehead.  Ed Sullivan portrayed himself.  The film was dismissed by Deckers who described it as "fiction."  It was, however, nominated for an Academy Award in the category of Best Music, Scoring of Music, Adaptation or Treatment.

In 1967, Deckers left her convent before taking final vows.  She had decided to pursue her  music career on a full-time basis.  This time she performed under the name "Luc Dominque" as Philips Records owned the rights to her original stage name, Soeur Sourire.  That same year, she released another album, I Am Not a Star in Heaven.  The album's title track included the following lyric: Sister Smile is dead, God is the only star . . .  Deckers' disdain for the spotlight was made abundantly clear.  Perhaps that is one reason why he album did not sell well.  It was a commercial failure.

Although deeply religious, Deckers became increasingly critical of some Catholic doctrines, particularly the Church's teachings on birth control.  In fact, she strongly advocated the use of artificial contraception.  Her album I am Not a Star in Heaven contained a song called "La Pilule D'Or."  It's English title is "Glory Be to God for the Golden Pill." and it is a song about how God sent The Pill to women.

Jeanine Deckers was never able to duplicate the success of "Dominque," and was destined to become a one-hit-wonder. With her singing career going nowhere, Deckers opened a school for autistic children in Belgium with her companion, Anne Pecher.  Anne (also known as Annie) was the author of a book on psychomotor therapy with regard to autistic children.  Published in 1977, Individual Experiences in Psychomotor Therapy deals with a therapy that involves the relationship between conscious metal activity and physical movement.  Although Pecher did not invent psychomotor therapy, she used it in the treatment of autism.

Jeanine Deckers and Annie Pecher were plagued by financial difficulties.  In the late 1970s, the government of Belgium claimed that Deckers owed a large sum of money in back taxes (about $63,000 U.S.).  Deckers argued that she was liable for payment of the taxes because the royalties from her recording were donated to the convent and her religious order.  She lacked proof,  however, because she had neglected to ask the convent for receipts.

In 1982, Deckers lost her final court  case with Belgian authorities.  Facing the financial pressure of rising legal fees, she became so desperate that she attempted to revive her singing career with a disco synthesizer version of "Dominique.". Its promotional video featured Deckers traipsing around the ruins of an abbey with her acoustic guitar.   Not surprisingly, it failed to rejuvenate her career.  Click below to watch the promotional video of the disco version of "Dominque."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9uJLAhZU95E

The true saga of The Singing Nun does not have a happy Hollywood ending.  Anxious about their mounting debt and despondent about the prospect of closing of their school for autistic children, 51 year-old Jeanine Deckers and Annie Pecher (born 1944) enacted a suicide pact.  On March 29, 1985, the two women deliberately overdosed on barbiturates and alcohol  On April 1, 1985, their bodies were discovered in their apartment at the Green Horizons Building at 144 Chaussee Bruxelles in Wavre, Belgium  They are buried in a cemetery in Wavre together.

Below are the English and French lyrics to Dominque.

Lyrics to Dominique :

Dominique, nique, nique,
over the land he plods along
And sings a little song
Never asking for reward
He just talks about the Lord
He just talks about the Lord

At a time when Johnny Lackland
Over England was the King
Dominique was in the backland
Fighting sin like anything
Chorus

Now a heretic, one day
Among the thorns forced him to crawl
Dominique with just one prayer
Made him hear the good Lord's call
Chorus

Without horse or fancy wagon
He crossed Europe up and down
Poverty was his companion
As he walked from town to town
Chorus

To bring back the straying liars
And the lost sheep to the fold
He brought forth the Preaching Friars
Heaven's soldier's, brave and bold
Chorus

One day, in the budding order
There was nothing left to eat
Suddenly two angels walked in
With a loaf of bread and meat
Chorus

Dominique once, in his slumber
Saw the Virgin's coat unfurled
Over frairs without number
Preaching all around the world

Grant us now, oh Dominique
The grace of love and simple mirth
That we all may help to quicken
Godly life and truth on earth
Chorus

FRENCH VERSION

Dominique, nique, nique s'en allait tout simplement
Routier pauvre et chantant
En tous chemins, en tous lieux, il ne parle que du bon Dieu

Il ne parle que du bon Dieu
A l'e poque ou Jean-sans-Terre de' Angleterre etait Roi
Dominique, notre Pere, combattit les Albigeois
Repeat first 4 lines: Chorus

Ni chameau, ni diligence il parcout l'Europe a pied
Scandinavie ou Provence dans la sainte pauvrete
Refrain

Enflamma de toute ecole filles et garcons pleins d'ardeur
Et pour semer la Parole inventa les Freres-Precheurs
Refrain

Chez Dominique et ses freres le pain s'en vint a manquer
Et deux anges se presenterent portant de grands pains dores
Refrain

Dominique vit en reve les precheurs du monde entier
Sous le manteau de la Vierge en grand nombre rassembles
Refrain

Dominique, mon bon Pere, garde-nous simples et gais
Pour annoncer a nos freres la Vie et la Verite
Refrain

- Joanne

Paul Henderson should be in Hockey Hall of Fame

Paul Henderson's winning goal easily ranks as the greatest hockey moment in Canadian history. The Summit Series transcended hockey.  It united our nation like never before.  Henderson clearly belongs in the Hall.

- Mark Reid
Editor-in-chief of Canada's History magazine


Forty years ago today, Paul Henderson scored the goal that had a nation rise up in jubilation. There has never been a goal like it, and there never will be.  The '72 Canada-Soviet Summit Series can never be re-created.  The temperament of the times was unique. Although Sidney Crosby's goal in the 2010 Winter Olympics was wonderful, it will never be as special as Henderson's goal.  It will never be The Goal.

Forty years after scoring The Goal, Paul Henderson is still not in the Hockey Hall of Fame.  That's right!  The hero of the Canada-Soviet series is not a member of hockey's greatest shrine.  Yet former NHL president Gil Stein was initially inducted into the Hall until he was forced to resign after allegations that he had rigged his own nomination.  Former Toronto Maple Leafs owner Harold Ballard, a man convicted of fraud, theft and tax evasion, was inducted to the Hall in 1977.  Ballard, who mdiismanaged the Leafs horribly, was inducted in the builder category.

Critics argue that Paul Henderson's career statistics are lacklustre and not worthy of the Hockey Hall of Fame.  Henderson played 13 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) and five seasons in the World Hockey Association (WHA).  During his 18-year professional career, he scored 376 goals and 758 points in over a thousand games.  True, those aren't Wayne Gretzky numbers, but statistics aren't the only measure of a player's contribution to a sport.

The 1972 Canada-Soviet series was the grandest hockey tournament ever played.  Not only did Paul Henderson score the winning goal in the eighth and final game of that unforgettable series, he scored the game-winning goals in the sixth and seventh games too.  In the greatest battle for hockey supremacy, Henderson shone like a beaming star.  He played with one of the most outstanding displays of determination, tenacity and sheer will power in the history of the game.  That alone should qualify him for the Hall of Fame.
Paul Henderson is now 69 years old.  In 2009, he was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia.  Cancer treatments prevented him from attending the 40th anniversary celebrations of the Summit Series in Moscow.  The exclusion of this Canadian hockey hero from the Hockey Hall of Fame is a wrong that must be righted.  The mistake should be rectified soon.

EDITOR'S UPDATE (July 17, 2013): On July 8, 2013, the Hockey Hall of Fame announced the names of the 2013 inductees.  Paul Henderson's name was not on that list.  Brendan Shanahan, Chris Chelios and Scott Niedermayer were selected.  In addition, Geraldine Heaney beame the third woman to be inducted and the late Fred Shero, who coached the Philadelphia Flyers, was elected as part of the "Builder" category.

- Joanne

Romney's tax return: Too little, too late

The issue has never been Romney's 2011 tax return - in fact it is a distraction from the real issue.  All the important compliance and policy questions relating to Romney's personal tax matters relate to the past.

- Edward D. Kleinbard
Law professor, University of Southern California and former Chief of Staff of the U.S. Congress' Joint Committee on Taxation

After much urging, U.S. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has finally released his 2011 income tax return.  Mr. Romney could have spared himself a great deal of criticism had he done so much sooner - and he is not out of the woods yet!  His 2011 tax return has sparked some more questions and some more criticism. Not only that, but the release of his 2011 tax return is not sufficient.  Romney has failed to release any tax return prior to 2010.  That's just not good enough for a man who aspires to be President of the United States and it has cast suspicion on his financial dealings  His opponents will not stop questioning him on the matter.

Romney and his wife, Ann, paid $1.94 million in federal taxes on an income of $13.7 million in 2011.  That's an effective tax rate of 14.1 per cent.  His tax rate of 14.1 per cent is less than many Americans because most of it is derived from capital gains.  Capital gains are taxed at 15 per cent.  The bulk of Romney's income is from investments held in blind trust.

President Barack Obama's tax return for 2011 showed that he and his wife, Michelle, paid $162,074 in federal taxes on an adjusted gross income of  $789,674.  That is an effective tax rate of 20.5 per cent.  The couple's income has plummeted from $1.7 million in 2010 and $5.5 million in 2009 due to declining sales of President Obama's best-selling books.

The point is that Romney's finances are a great deal more complicated than Obama's.  He is more wealthy and his investments are more spread out - particularly his offshore investments and his now-closed Swiss bank account.  In order to have a clearer picture, his pre-2010 tax returns need to be released.  By not releasing them, Romney has cast suspicion on his financial dealings.

Mitt Romney's own father, the late George Romney, released 12 years of tax returns prior to entering the 1968 presidential campaign. When asked why he was revealing so many years of tax information, the elder Romney replied, "One year could be a fluke, perhaps done for show."  Perhaps if Mitt had the good judgement and the integrity of his father, Americans would trust him more.


- Joanne

Laura Secord: A Woman of Courage

This is the face of a courageous woman.  It is not the portrait of the young Laura Secord that appears on the boxes and wrappers of the chocolate company that bears her name.  It is, however, the only authentic drawing of this heroic Canadian, though she lived to the ripe old age of 93.

Today is the 237th anniversary of Laura Secord's birth.  She was born Laura Ingersoll on September 13, 1775.in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, less than a year before the Americans declared their independence from Britain.  Her father, Thomas Ingersoll, supported the American revolutionaries during the War of Independence and he served as a lieutenant in the American militia from 1777 to 1781.

In 1793, Thomas Ingersoll and his family immigrated to Upper Canada after receiving a land grant of 27,000 hectares (66,000 acres) from Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe.  Thomas named the new settlement Oxford-on-the-Thames.  Charles Ingersoll, Laura's younger brother, later renamed it "Ingersoll" in honour of his father,  In 1852, it was incorporated as the "Village of Ingersoll" and it is now the site of the town of Ingersoll, Ontario.

In 1795, Thomas Ingersoll moved to the Niagara region and operated a tavern at Queenston, now part of Niargara-on-the-Lake, Ontario. His eldest daughter, Laura, married James B. Secord, a Queenston merchant in 1797.  The couple lived in Queenston and Laura gave birth to seven children, six daughters and a son named Charles Badeau Secord (1809-1872).  The daughters were Mary Lawrence (born c. 1790), Charlotte (1799-1868), Harriet Hopkins (1806-1877), Apollonia (1811-1828), Laura Ann (1815-1850)  and Hannah Cartwright (1820-1877).

When the War of 1812 broke out, James Secord, a staunch United Empire Loyalist, served as a sergeant with the 1st Lincoln Militia.  On October 13, 1812, James was severely wounded in the Battle of Queeston Heights.  Upon hearing of her husband's wounding, Laura Secord immediately went to the battlefield and climbed the hill to search for him.  After finding him with his shoulder and knee bleeding profusely, she brought him home, dressed his wounds.and nursed him during his convalescence.  In short, she single-handedly saved his life.

In June of 1813, Queenston was occupied by American troops and James was still recuperating from his battle injuries.  The Secord family was forced to billet some American soldiers in their home. At that time, Laura learned of a planned American attack on a British outpost at Beaver Dams (near present-day Thorold, Ontario).  Since James was unfit to make the trip to warn the British, Laura  undertook the difficult journey herself.  Early on June 22, she set out for the stone house of United Empire Loyalist John De Cou, in Thorold Township, Upper Canada, near present-day Brock University.  During De Cou's absence, the house was being used as a British army detachment headquarters commanded by Lieutenant James FitzGibbon.

:James FitzGibbons

Laura's remarkable 30 kilometre (18 miles) journey was fraught with peril.  The terrain was rough and she had to take a circuitous rote in order to avoid Amrerican sentries.  She walked through the woods until she reached a Native encampment on the Twelve Mile Creek. The aboriginals escorted her to the British outpost where she delivered her message to Lieutenant FitzGibbon. Within days, FitzGibbon and his forces ambushed the Americans and they surrendered.  Although Laura Secord never revealed exactly how she obtained knowledge of the planned American attack, it is probable that the American soldiers were less discreet around her because she was a woman.

In 1828, James Secord was appointed registrar of the Niagara Surrogate Court and promoted to judge in 1883.  The Secords left Queenston in 1835 when James became a customs officer at the Port of Chippawa.  His new position came with a home  in the Village of Chippawa (part of present-day Niagara Falls).  Son Charles took over the Queenston home.

James died of a stroke on February 22, 1841 at the age of 67.  After her husband's death, Laura moved to a red brick cottage in Chippawa on Water St. (now a historic house at 3800 Bridgewater Street). She was quite destitute after James' death because his war pension had ceased and she was unable to make a profit from her land holdings.  In addition, Laura's own petition for military pension had been denied.

Laura Secord did not receive any official recognition for her bravery until she was 85 years old.   In 1860, Albert Edward, Prince of Wales (the future King Edward VII) visited Canada and Laura presented him with a memorial detailing her contribution. She added her signature to a list of War of 1812 veterans who had prepared to address him.  Upon returning to England, the prince sent her 100 pounds sterling for her service.  Laura Secord died at Chippawa on October 17, 1868 at the age of 93.  She is buried next to her husband in the Drummond Hill Cemetery in Niagara Falls, Ontario.

THE CHOCOLATE COMPANY

So how did Laura Secord's name become associated with a chocolate company?  In 1913, Frank P. O'Connor founded a small candy business on Toronto's Yonge Street.selling hand-made chocolates.  He expanded his business across Canada and into the United Stated.  In the United States, it is known as Fanny Farmer Candy Stores.  O'Connor said that he named his company after Laura Secord because she "was an icon of courage, devotion and loyalty."

In 1935, Frank P. O'Connor was appointed to the Senate of Canada where he served until his death on August 21, 1939 at the age of 54.  Senator O'Connor College School, a Catholic high school in Toronto, was named after him.


MY VISIT TO THE LAURA SECORD HOMESTEAD

During my visit to Niagara-on-the-Lake this past Labour Day weekend, I toured the Laura Secord Homestead at Queenston, the residence of  Laura Secord from 1803 to 1835.  Invading American soldiers looted the Secord house in October of 1812 during the Battle of Queenston Heights. Less than a year later, that same house was the starting point of Laura's celebrated journey to warn the British of a surprise attack.

In 1971, the Laura Secord Candy Company restored Laura's Queenston home with original furniture and gifted it to the Niagara Parks Commission in 1998.  It is located just off the Niagara Parkway, a short distance from the scenic Bruce Trail.

At the Laura Secord Homestead, a costumed tour guide provided me with much information about Secord and her family. The guide, a Brock University student, was very personable and answered all my queries.   The homestead is a great place to visit.  Next year there will be a re-enactment of Laura's historic trek to mark the 200th anniversary of the event on Saturday, June 22, 2013.

Here are some photos I took of some of the rooms in the Laura Secord Homestead.

- Joanne

Joan Kennedy at 76

If fragile means somebody who can't cope, well, Joan coped.  I think she had a life that was very demanding of her.  Sometimes she had real problems in those days.  I think she never gave up.  She consistently tried to improve and overcome her problems, and eventually she did.  So that is not a person who is fragile.

- Eunice Kennedy Shriver, sister of Ted Kennedy
Interview with the Boston Globe in the year 2000

Joan Kennedy, the first wife of the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy, turns 76 years old today. She was born Virginia Joan Bennett on  September 9, 1936 in Riverdale, an area in the Bronx borough of New York City.  Her parents, Henry Wiggin Bennett, Jr., a British-born (Editor's Correction: New York-born) advertising executive and her mother, Virginia Joan (nee Stead) Bennett, married in New York City on June 8, 1935.  A second daughter, Candace Bennett, was born to the family in 1939. Candace is now Candace McMurrey and resides in Houston, Texas.

According to Laurence Leamer, author of the 1994 book The Kennedy Women: The Saga of an American Family, Joan's father and mother were both alcoholics.  It is certainly no secret that Joan herself  has struggled with alcoholism for years.  She lost her driver's licence for the first time in 1974 after a drunk driving arrest in Virginia.  After years of battling her addiction, she reached the lowest point of her life on a rainy night in February of 2005.  A passer-by  discovered her on a sidewalk in Beacon Hill, Massachusetts, bleeding and disoriented after a drunken fall.  She was hospitalized with a concussion and a broken shoulder. In October of 2005, only months after she was found lying on the street, Joan underwent surgery for breast cancer.

As a teenager, Joan worked as a model during summer vacation.  She appeared on television as the Revlon Girl on Perry Como's show and on Coke Time with Eddie Fisher.  She also joined the actors union under the name J. Bennett to avoid confusing herself with the well-known Hollywood actress Joan Bennett.  

In October of 1957, Joan's life was changed forever when she met Edward Moore "Ted" Kennedy, a dashing young University of Virginia law student.   Joan was a senior at Manhattanville College in Purchase, New York, the same college attended by Ted's sister Jean and his future sister-in-law Ethel.  It was Jean who introduced Joan to Ted at the dedication of a Manhattanville College gymnasium to the their sister, Kathleen Kennedy Cavendish, who had perished in a 1948 plane crash in France.  Joan and Edward Kennedy were married by Cardinal Francis Spellman on November 29, 1958 at St. Joseph's Church in Bronxville, New York.  Kennedy was 26 years old and his bride was 22.

Joan & Ted on their wedding day

Ted Kennedy graduated from law school and was admitted to the Massachusetts Bar in 1959.  In 1960, Ted's brother, John, ran successfully for the presidency of the United States and Ted managed his campaign in the Western states.  In November of 1962, Ted himself was elected U.S. senator from Massachusetts.

Joan and Ted had three children.  Their daughter, Kara Anne was born on February 27, 1960.  Their first son, Edward Moore Kennedy, Jr., was born on September 26, 1961 and their second son, Patrick Joseph Kennedy II, was born on July 14, 1967. Through the years, the family faced numerous trials and tragedies.

On November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas.  In 1964, Ted was injured in a plane crash and spent months in the hospital recuperating from a broken back. During Ted's convalescence,  it was Joan who went out on the campaign hustings to support her husband's re-election to the Senate.  In June of 1968, Ted lost a second brother to an assassin's bullet when Senator Robert Kennedy was gunned down  in Los Angeles while campaigning for the presidency.  Then, in July of 1969, Ted, became involved in a scandal that did irreparable damage to his marriage, his reputation and to his political career.

On the night of July 18, 1969, Senator Edward Kennedy attended a party for a group of women who had worked on his brother Bobby's campaign the previous year.  On the way home from the party, his car went off a bridge at Chappaquiddick Island on Maratha's Vineyard, Massachusetts.  His companion in the vehicle, 28-year-old Mary Jo Kopechne, drowned.  Kennedy escaped from the overturned car but failed to contact the police until nine hours had passed.  When  he reported the accident  the next morning, Kopechnie's body had already been found.

Ted pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of an accident and received a sentence of two months in jail, suspended.  Joan stood by her husband throughout this nightmarish ordeal.and even accompanied him to Mary Jo Kopechne's funeral in Pennsylvania.  Joan was pregnant at the time and a month later, she suffered her third miscarriage.

In 1973, when Edward Kennedy, Jr. was 12 years old, he was diagnosed with a form of bone cancer in his right leg.  On November 17, 1973, the leg was amputated.  Fortunately, Ted Jr. survived the cancer and will soon celebrate his 51st birthday.  A father of two, he is a lawyer and an entrepreneur.

Joan and Ted separated in early 1978.  Joan moved into her own apartment in Boston's Back Bay and pursued a master's degree in education.  Her alcoholism and Ted's philandering had put a terrible strain on their marriage.  Nevertheless, Joan campaigned for him during his run for the presidency in 1980, responding to question about her alcoholism and assuring the press that she would live in the White House if her husband were elected..  The following year, Ted and Joan Kennedy announced plans to divorce and their divorce became final in 1982.

Joan had always been reluctant to confront Ted about his reported womanizing.  In her 1985 biography, Living with the Kennedys: The Joan Kennedy Story, author Marcia Chellis quotes Joan as saying, "And so rather than get mad or ask questions concerning the rumours about Ted and his girlfriends, or really stand up for myself at all, it was easier for me to just go and have a few drinks and calm myself down, as if I weren't hurt or angry."

In 1991, Ted began dating Washington lawyer Victoria Anne Reggie, daughter of  longtime Kennedy ally, Louisiana judge Edmund Reggie.  On July 3, 1992, Ted married Victoria, a divorced mother of two, in a civil ceremony at his home in McLean, Virginia.  Joan, meanwhile, has never remarried.  In 2007, she was admitted to hospital for alcoholism after reportedly becoming inebriated at a charity event.

Senator Ted Kennedy died of brain cancer on August 25, 2009 at his home in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts, two weeks after the death of his sister Eunice.  Joan attended the funeral but remained out of the spotlight. In 2011, she suffered yet another tragedy when her only daughter, Kara, died of a heart attack at a Washington, D.C. health club after a workout.  Kara was 51 years old and had been diagnosed with lung cancer in 2002.  She underwent surgery to remove a part of her right lung.  The surgery was successful and she had been able to resume an active life.

Joan Kennedy is a talented pianist.  She has taught classical music and performed with the Boston Symphony Orchestra.  In 1992, she published a book titled The Joy of Classical Music: A Guide for You and Your Family.  I distinctly remember watching Joan's appearance on The Andy Williams Show many years ago.  She played the piano and joked with Williams and Henry Mancini.  (I looked it up.  She appeared on Andy's variety show in 1971.   An Associated Press report by Bob Thomas said "The piano keys stuck and she couldn't read the cue cards, but otherwise Joan Kennedy's debut as a television performer appears to have been a success."

Joan has faced numerous challenges and tragedies in her life.  After the assassinations of her brothers-in-law John and Bobby, Ted's safety became a serious concern for the family.  It wasn't easy being married to the last of the Kennedy brothers. Joan, however, tried to face her problems head on.  She sought psychiatric treatment at a time when it was frowned on in Washington.  She spoke openly about her battle with alcoholism and was not afraid to reveal that she had joined Alcoholics Anonymous.

- Joanne

Editor's Update:  Joan Kennedy passed away on October 8, 2025 at the age of 89.  She died in Boston Massachusetts.  

Thoughts from Niagara-on-the-Lake

Greetings from beautiful Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, arguably the most picturesque small town in Canada.  As the month of September begins, I find myself in the heart of Ontario's wine country and a place that's a peach-lover's delight. The big attraction here is, of course, the Shaw Festival. Last night I saw a wonderful  comedy at the historic Court House Theatre , George Bernard Shaw's The Millionairess.  Of the Shaw Festival's four theatres, the Court House is my favourite.  It is small and intimate and I really enjoy a stage performance there. This one did not disappoint. Completed by Shaw during a visit to New Zealand in 1934, The Millionairess features the flamboyant and avaricious Epifania Ognisanti di Paterga as its main character.  Nicole Underhay is simply outstanding in the demanding lead role.  She truly brings Epifania, the millionairess of the title, to life.

Friday night I watched the magnificent Blue Moon, the second full moon in the month of August. As a dedicated moon watcher, I revelled at the rare sight of the encore full moon.  As I gaze at the orange-tinged ball in the sky, I thought of Neil Armstrong who died recently and of his first steps on the lunar surface back in 1969.

Here are some photos of Niagara-on-the-Lake taken over this Labour Day Weekend.  As you can see, the town was festooned with War of 1812 bicentennial banners and beautiful flowers.

The historic Prince of Wales Hotel

The posh Prince of Wales Hotel was built in 1864 by William Long and specializes in traditional afternoon tea.  In 1899, it was called The Niagara Hotel.  In 1901, however, due to a royal visit, it was renamed The Prince of Wales.  The establishment is said to be haunted.by a ghost.


- Joanne

Facebook denies us choice

This morning, I checked my Facebook account and discovered a message welcoming me to my Timeline-Preview.  Am I ever lucky!  I will be on Timeline on September 4, 2012 - whether I like it or not.  Do I get a say in the matter?  Do I get a choice?  No way, Jose!

Some people enjoy Timeline and that's fine.  I prefer to be more private.  I do not want every biographical detail of my life available online, especially since identity theft is so rampant. Even without the privacy factor, I still resent the fact that Facebook is not giving its users a choice.  I'm sure many people share the same opinion.

This is the message I and countless others received on Facebook.

Welcome to Your Timeline — Preview Timeline is your collection of the photos, posts and experiences that help tell your story. People won't start seeing your timeline until September 4. This gives you a chance to: 1. Review what's on your timeline now. 2. Add or hide whatever you want. Want people to see your timeline before September 4? Just click Publish Now.  I am finding Facebook increasingly dictatorial and intrusive.

- Joanne

Joanne's Journal: August 28, 2012

JOANNE'S JOURNAL
Edition No. 9

Quote of the Day


I learned . . .that one can never go back, that one should not ever try to go back - that the essence of life is moving forward.  Life is really a One Way Street.
- Agatha Christie (1890 - 1976), English writer of murder mysteries
From At Bertram's Hotel [1965]

Is life really a One Way Street?  As August begins to fade away and we head into September, the subject of experience comes to mind.  I think about the 1993 film Groundhog Day starring Bill Murray.  Murray's character, an egotistical TV weatherman named Phil Connors, lives the same day over and over again and is given the opportunity to correct his mistakes.  In real life, there are no do-overs.  You can't relive an experience.  You can't go back in time.  All you can do is learn and move ahead.


Experience is the best of schoolmasters, only the school fees are heavy.

- Thomas Carlyle (1722-1881), Scottish historian and philosopher
From Miscellaneous Essays [1838] "Goetha's Helena"


The light which experience gives is a lantern on the stern, which shines only on the waves behind us!

Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834), English poet, critic and philosopher
From Table Talk [1835] 18 December 1831

On this Day

On August 28, 1963, 49 years ago today, Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech.  Dr. King made the inspiring speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.  His rousing 17-minute oratory in front of thousands of civil rights marchers was a plea for racial equality and it is regarded as one of the greatest speeches ever given by an American.


Joke of the Day

A man went for some medical tests and was diagnosed with  Tom Jones disease.  The man was taken aback.  He had never heard of such a disease.  "Is it rare?" he asked his doctor.  His doctor replied, "No, it's not unusual."


Joanne's Look-a-Likes

Gary Bettman and Count von Count 

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman

Count von Count of  Sesame Street

Jose Bautista and a young Fidel Castro

Jose Bautista of the Blue Jays

Cuba's Fidel Castro

Roses and Thorns

ROSES

ROSE: To the CBC for acquiring the rights to the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Socchi, Russia and the 2016 Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  At a time when Canada's national broadcasting system is being slowing starved to death by a reduction in funding from the Harper government, our public broadcasting system was long overdue for a break..

ROSE: To Britain's Prince William for rescuing a Canadian woman from Barrie, Ontario.  The woman, Darlene Burton, was on vacation in Wales.  She was hiking along the Anglesey Coastal Trail when she slipped and  fell on a rock, breaking her leg.  She was rescued by a Royal Air Force helicopter controlled by Prince William.  True,William was only doing his job.  Nevertheless, with his status and his wealth, he could have be idling and spending his money on less noble pursuits.  Instead he has chosen to rescue people.

THORNS

I am not intentionally picking on Mitt Romney.  The Republican candidate for president of the United States, however, has earned three thorns.  Hence, the triple crown of thorns goes to the former governor of Massachusetts.

THORN: To Mitt Romney for pandering to right wing "birthers" during a speech in his home state of Michigan.  Romney quipped that no one had asked to see his birth certificate.  This was a clear reference to the right wing theories about President Barack Obama not being born in the United States.  Romney later remarked that he had been joking and that he hadn't questioned Obama's citizenship. Yet that not how the crowd in Michigan perceived his remarks.  They cheered and laughed heartily.  They clearly believed that Romney was questioning the president's "Americanism."  The whole "birther" issue is ridiculous and has been discredited.  Barack Obama was born in Hawaii.  So why won't Romney and other Republicans put the matter of Obama's birthplace it to rest?  To their shame, they are playing to the xenophobic and racist elements of American society.  Of course, Obama's race can't be mentioned by the Mitt Romneys, Donald Trumps and Rush Limbaughs of America.  Instead, they paint the president as a foreigner, not a real American.  They are using code to convince white voters that Barack Obama is not one one of them.  How disgusting!  How unworthy of America!  Mitt Romney should have risen above that.

THORN: To Mitt Romney for not releasing his tax returns as his father, George Romeney, did when he was Governor of Michigan.  In 1967, George Romney released 12 years of tax returns ahead of his 1968 presidential campaign.  When asked why he was releasing so many years' worth of tax information, Mitt Romney's father replied, "One year could be a fluke, perhaps done for show."  Oh Mitt, why can't you show some of the same integrity as your father?  What have you got to hide?  Some offshore tax havens, perhaps?

THORN: Speaking of offshore tax havens, a third thorn goes to Mitt Romney for remarking that big business was "doing fine" in the current struggling economy partly due to companies taking advantage of offshore tax havens.

THORN: To Pauline Marois, leader of the sovereigntist Parti Quebecois for calling for a ban on the wearing of religious symbols by public employees.  This would prevent many Jews, Sikhs and Muslims in Quebec from working in the public sector.  It is not inclusive and it is not the Canadian way.  If this is Marois' vision of an independent Quebec, it should be soundly rejected by the people of the province.   It is simply intolerant.


Sports

 









Hockey

An NHL lockout looms and it seems inevitable.  The only question is whether the entire season and the Stanley Cup playoffs.will be lost.  I can't say that I have much sympathy for the owners or the players.  They are both greedy and overpaid.  The real victims are the small business owners near the arenas who depend on the hockey crowd.  The restaurant owners and the shopkeepers all stand to lose money and some will have to lay off employees.  I also empathise with the arena employees, those who sell tickets and programs and refreshments.  As for the fans, I hope they express far more displeasure than they did during and after the lockout of 2004-05.

Baseball

So Roger Clemens is attempting a comeback at the age of 50.  He is playing for the Sugarland Skeeters of the independent Atlantic League.  Of course, Rocket Roger has motives and an agenda for his return to the mound.  According to Richard Griffin, baseball columnist for the Toronto Star, it's all about Clemens' ego and his legacy.  In his August 21st column, Griffin writes that Clemens is concerned about "his place in the hall of fame, and the negative reaction from the fans and the media after being acquitted of obstruction of justice and perjury on June 19."  Griffin contends that Roger wants to disassociate himself with others implicated in the steroid scandals.  Without a major league comeback, Clemens' name will appear on the same Hall of Fame ballot as Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa.

As the 2012 major league season heads toward the finish line, the Toronto Blue Jays are once again out of contention.  It's been a trying year for Blue Jays fans.  All the injuries have been unbelievable.  At last count, the team has 14 players on the DL.  After a brief return to the lineup, star slugger Jose Bautista is out for the remainder of the season with a wrist injury.  He sustained the injury at Yankee Stadium back on July 16th and will undergo surgery.

This injury-riddled season is mercifully coming to an end for the Blue Jays. Once again, it's wait until next year.  The situation would have been easier to deal with, however, if the Jays had acquired a proven starting pitcher during the off season.  They didn't and they paid the price.

The Baltimore Orioles have been the most surprising team this season.  I hope they make the playoffs.  I'd rather see the Orioles win than the Yankees.  I'm tired of them winning all the time.

- Joanne