Monthly Archive: October 2008

Past imperfect, future tense

I finally got around to watching on YouTube the infamous ATV interview with Stephane Dion conducted during the election campaign. It is a journalistic travesty. There are so many things wrong from a reportorial and human standpoint, it’s hard to know where to start. But let’s begin by acknowledging that Dion was tired. Steve Murphy launched a lengthy first question on the economy. The wording contains snippets from Dion’s speech earlier that day and finally gets around to the nugget when Murphy asks: “If you were prime minister now, what would you have done that Mr. Harper has not done?”...

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Blue Jays Nation

It was August when I became a temporary member of the Red Sox Nation, sitting in the Pavilion Club section, between home plate and third base at historic Fenway Park, munching on a frank and drinking a beer. The weather couldn’t have been better on that fine summer’s eve. Jon Lester was on the mound for the Red Sox, the home team jumped out to an early 8-0 lead and went on to post an 8-4 win over the Texas Rangers. Equally important was the mood of the place. Entire streets were closed off for the festivities; there was fan...

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Serendipitous moments

Someone was telling me recently about what he called an “out of body experience” that occurred while he was in Fiesole, the village that dates to Etruscan times and sits high on the Tuscan hills overlooking Florence. He was staying at Villa San Michele, one of the top hotels in the area, and was drawn to music coming from a large ballroom. Inside the room was a blonde opera singer, standing beside a pianist, rehearsing a performance. My friend sat in a corner, the only other person present, smoking his cigar for twenty-five minutes while she sang popular arias from...

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Debates and debacles

Like most poltical junkies, I switched back and forth between the two debates last night, but I finally gave up on the fivesome. Steve Paikin did a fine job as moderator, but there were simply too many voices for anyone to be properly heard. I must admit I’m fed up with the Bloc, with no seats outside Quebec and no plans to run candidates in the rest of Canada, appearing with national leaders. As for Elizabeth May, much and all as I admire her policies, she was like the second cousin who comes to the family reunion and holds court...

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