by Jes

When I heard about Olympic mafia leader Jacques Rogge whining about Usain Bolt being a poor sportsman, I pretty much rolled my eyes like almost everyone else did.

Then, I was pointed to this video of Bolt's 100m race and now we see evidence that Rogge was right ...

Labels: Olympics, Usain Bolt

by Jes

Yes, I am still boycotting/not watching the Summer Olympics, but with no hockey news worth commenting about, and a blogging itch to scratch, I'm gonna bitch about them (again). How long until preseason starts? I really need some actual hockey news or I'm going to cry.

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1. It was certainly nice to see Canada break out and win some actual medals! With all of the resources and people we have in this country, the fact that we had less medals than Azerbaijan was pretty sad. Canada has 9 now (at least that is what I heard last), which finally vaults us into respectable territory. Canada is never good at Summer Olympics, but we ought to be at least in the Top 20.

2. There is no position worse than finishing FOURTH at an Olympic event.

You finish last? You can laugh it about it down the road ... or you know you weren't even THAT good to begin with.

You finish fourth? You are the best athlete not to get a single piece of bling. There is a certain cachet to having an a Bronze Medal. Saying "I finished fourth at Olympics" just doesn't sound 1/50th as impressive, does it?

3. I don't get the love over women's beach volleyball. These women look way too skinny and manly to actually want to lust over. I know it’s a major step up from women's gymnastics (no jailbait worth looking at there), but still not enough to make me turn away from women's tennis.

Do these women look hot to you?


4. I will be "that guy" and piss on the Michael Phelps love a bit. Yes, he's a dominating swimmer, and I have nothing personal against him, but his gold medal record is a bit of a fraud.

A pole vaulter, javelin thrower, or a softball player can win only one medal for their sport, right? Why should a swimmer be able to rack up multiple medals for the same sport? All they do is change the distance by a small amount or change the type of stroke, allowing one guy to basically rack up a bunch of medals simply because he's a far better athlete than his swimming peers. 100m butterfly vs. 200m butterfly vs. 100m freestyle, etc ... what's the difference?

Want to level the playing field? Give shot putters a chance to win five different medals ... just increase the size and/or weight of the ball they throw for each event.

Let's give the other athletes in other sports to win multiple medals for the same sport. Otherwise, shut up about Phelps and his record and realize that swimming is the one sport that allows such a 'record' to occur.

5. How does one decide to be a professional speed walker? Rejects from the running team? I've never seen or head about speed walking competitions other than at an Olympics. This is the kinda job that falls down there with "guy who cleans up the set of a porn movie".

6. What a shock ... The Chinese government has not authorized any of the 77 applied for protests to take place. The IOC was lavishing praise over this corrupt regime for allowing protest zones, but, of course, the Chinese government pulled the wool over the eyes of the Olympic Mafia ... yet again... of maybe the mafia just doesn't give a damn.

Of course, this is the same corrupt regime that needed to have a 'cuter' girl lip-synch the opening ceremonies. *sigh*

7. Steve Simmons is still a douchebag. I hope he gets cancer from breathing in too many Beijing fumes, or AIDS from his escapades with Al Strachan. Seriously.

They ran the women's marathon here yesterday morning at the Olympic Games and no one died.

No one succumbed to thick air and pollution. Many collapsed and fell: But none of it had anything to do with the conditions, the temperature or the apparent quality of air.

As if people are going to keel over and die right on the spot! Just wait until people suffer long term effects. Some athletes have already reported that they felt a certain odd 'fire' in their lungs while training or running, and not the usual kind. Smokers don't die after one cigarette, do they? How has Steve Simmons managed to live this long with an IQ of 52?

The most pressing issues of any Olympics -- facilities, housing, transportation, venues, the athletes, security and this one, censorship -- have for the most part been taken care of.

Censorship taken care of? BWA HAHAHAHAHA!

Oh, MSM sports reporters should never comment on political issues (Perry Mason, are you listening?). It just exposes them for the morons they are.

Labels: Michael Phelps, Olympics

by Jes

From my correspondence with Blues fans over the years, there is one player that is almost universally venerated by most of them.

Brett Hull?
Al MacInnis?
Pavol Demitra?

Close, but it's Brendan Shanahan.

It's hard not to like Shanahan, the blue-collar scoring star with the charming good looks, lyrically pleasing surname, and gritty work ethic that most fans love in a player. Blues fans never saw quite that level of dedication in Hull, or that type of charm in Al MacInnis.

When Shanahan was dealt to the Whalercanes for Chris Pronger, it was almost like a hole was ripped in the fabric of Blues fandom. Even the fact that Shanny went on to success with the hated Wings didn't seem to dampen Blues' fans respect for the dude.

So, you can imagine how excited Blues fans are feeling at the prospect of Brendan Shanahan signing with the club for next season.

Jeff Gordon of St. Louis Today outlines many reasons why Shanny would be a good fit with the Bluenotes. He also makes the point that the Blues are getting some sweet PR points just by saying they'll attempt to sign Shanahan.

Of course, the Blues have had a bad habit of signing or trading aging forwards all too often in the past: Tkachuk, Weight, Guerin, Richer, Derek King (ugh), etc ... but I think Shanahan is worth going after.

Yes, he's 39, but he's still capable of producing some offense. Sure he's declined, but the guy is still a very good 2nd line winger with good skating ability. The Blues certainly have the cap space, so make it happen!


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Over at his legendary blog, Joe Pelletier is counting down his Top 20 photos in hockey history. So far, he's posted #20 and #19.

Just a hunch, but I'm willing to bet a few Slovak Crowns that Bobby Orr's "Superman" will be #1.

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There has been a lot of chomping in the media about how Canada's pathetic showing at the Summer Olympics. Yes, a pasty, somewhat out-of-shape (I haven't been to the gym much these days) hockey blogger has as many medals at the rest of Team Canada combined! ZERO!

Over at the National Post, blogger Scott Stinson opines that Canada just doesn't care enough about winning.

Consider, also, the number of times you have read about a sporting event in some other nation and wondered if the people weren't just a little bit crazy. A soccer match in South America sets off a bloody riot. A referee in Europe has to run from a hail of firecrackers after making a questionable call. Have their been similar such incidents in Canada? Some Calgarians lifted their shirts and/or peed in public during the Flames' playoff run a few years back, but that's about it. And we were shocked. A Canadian team hasn't won the Stanley Cup -- our own trophy -- in 15 years, and how upset are we?

A few beefs and reefs.

1. Riots in Montreal and Vancouver suggest that fans don't always accept losing very well.

2. Many fans are upset that a Canadian team hasn't won a Stanley Cup in 15 years. That said, most players in cup winning teams are Canadian, so what's the big dealio?

3. Sport is just that. SPORT! The fact that anyone would riot over the result of a soccer game or hockey game shows how insecure, immature, and petty those people are. Sport is supposed to be entertaining, and if you are not a player or working for that particular organization, what the hell does a loss really mean for you?

Sure, I get upset and happy and all that, but I've never felt the need to light a car on fire ... although I do want to light Greg Millen on fire :)

4. Canada does treat sports like a hobby more than a profession, unless you play hockey, or maybe baseball. In Hungary, a professional fencer is seen as a professional fencer. How many Canadians would take that seriously as a career? In Canada, a fencer would work at Wal-Mart part time to support themselves.

5. Canada has, in the past, accepted "personal bests" far too often. Instead of wanting a GOLD MEDAL, we hear "Oh, I beat my personal best!" Bah, your personal best isn't good enough

6. Then again, who the hell really cares if we get Olympic medals or not? I've lost most interest in this Olympic mafia, and I don't really care to watch weightlifting or shot put.

7. Of course, I went nutso, as did the entire country, when Canada won Gold at Salt Lake City. Perhaps we just don't care enough about other sports.

Labels: Brendan Shanahan, Olympics

by Jes

I'm not one to tell people what to think or what to do, but that won't stop me from expressing some prickly opinions that will rub some the wrong way, nor will it stop me from trying to change the way people look or think about a particular issue.

Something that has irked me for some time is the Olympic(tm) Games. Ever since Vancouver was awarded (cursed) the 2010 Winter Olympics, we've seen just how disgusting this whole process is.

Make no mistake about it, the Olympics are not about the athletes. The athletes simply provide the cheap entertainment and public front for the money generating merchandise machine that few people truly profit from.

The athletes? Most of them have to scrape by with part-time jobs at Home Depot or the like, with very few getting those lucrative endorsement deals.

Who truly profits? The large corporations, TV stations, developers, wealthy sponsors, and cronies will run the Olympic mafia. Few athletes ever make all that much money, and many of them have to put off more lucrative careers to train in their chosen sport.

As we've seen in Vancouver, the government has spared no expense in dolling out millions of dollars on pork projects that profit very little real value to the people of BC. Millions for an Olympic skating oval? What good will it be after the Games are done? Oh, we can train more Olympic athletes. Lovely. Meanwhile, the downtown Eastside of Vancouver remains one of the most depressing places on Earth.

Now, let's talk about China, that fabulous producer of cheap lead-tainted toys and about 95% of the products we buy.

When the mafia awarded China the 2008 games, it was due to the fact that China promised to clean up its act in the arena of human rights. The IOC figured that putting China in the spotlight would force the Chinese Communist Party to improve living conditions and such in China.

Have things improved? Not really.

Tibet still remains under the strong thumb of China, with the Dalai Lama called a 'terrorist'. Really.

The pollution in Beijing is so awful that many athletes pulled out of the games, worrying more about their long-term health than a shiny medal.

Chinese secret police pose as Tibetan Monks or members of other interest groups to make those groups look bad. Classy.

Freedom of the press rarely exists, and has not gotten better.

Darfur, anyone?

I know, I know ... Canada is far from perfect on the Human Rights issue, but we've long passed the point where we execute people and harvest their organs because they choose to follow a religion not approved by the majority.

I also know that I sound like a radical of some sort, but I don't take this as a partisan issue. The Olympic Games simply costs us peons millions of dollars and gives us nothing but a 2-week party and lots of expensive bills to pay on shiny new buildings nobody needs. Just ask the people of Athens what a poor investment the Olympic Games really is. People of any political stripe should be able to see that they are getting the short end of the stick.

There isn't really much us peons can do if we're not into protesting, so do the next best thing and simply don't watch. It's not as if the Summer Olympics is all that thrilling, and you ought to be outside enjoying the sun. If the Olympics got low ratings, it might send a message, albeit a small one, that people are rather tired of the over-hyped Olympic machine.

Of course, I know that won't happen, so go back to being reamed by the mafia if you so desire.

If you want to learn more, visit these sites.

http://boycott2008games.blogspot.com/
http://boycott2008olympics.org/
http://www.boycott-china-2008.info/
http://www.alternet.org/story/94278/china_unveils_frightening_futuristic_police_state_at_olympics/

** On the hockey side of things, the Canes are giving Jeff O'Neill a tryout. I opine on that bit of news over at FanHouse.

Yeah, I'll get back to hockey when there is something worth blogging about!

Labels: China, Corporate Greed, Olympics

by Jes

The 2010 Winter Olympics here in Vancouver have already cost us BC taxpayers millions upon millions of dollars. Besides throwing away a lot of money to throw a 2-week sporting party for the benefit of corporate asswipes, the real estate market has gone insane, and many people cannot afford more than a postage-sized stamp condo around here.

For all of the $$ we're shelling out, you'd figure we'd at least get a logo that DOESN'T SUCK!

For some time, the 2010 Official Logo has been the Inukshuk, an Inuit statue that is not actually native to BC, and looks like something that would come out of my ass after eating a whole box of stale Froot Loops.



For some reason, The Powers That Be seem to think that any logo that represents BC or Vancouver has to be 'native', despite the fact that about only about 4.3% of Canada's population is 'native'. If we wanted a logo that truly represented this province, it would be an empty Starbucks latte cup, or a generic 20-storie condo. The only thing 'native' in this city is the token totem pole put up for tourists to take photos of.

Yesterday, there was the big unveiling of the new 2010 mascots, and, as expected, they really suck. Instead of using something good, like the Spirit Bear, we get this shit ...

Miga is a mythical First Nations sea bear that is part killer whale and part Kermode spirit bear. Miga was based on the legends of the Pacific Northwest First Nations of orca whales that transform into bears when they arrive on land, but is also a snowboarder.

Quatchi is a sasquatch, but a shy and gentle giant, that loves all winter sports, and is especially fond of hockey and dreams of becoming a world-famous goalie.

The third mascot, Sumi, is an animal-guardian spirit who wears the hat of the orca whale, flies with the wings of the mighty Thunderbird and runs on the furry legs of the black bear.

C'mon! These things don't look at all like the animals they are supposed to be. If I had a kid, I certainly wouldn't waste a dime buying him/her anything with one of these 'animals' on it.

Besides being over-the-top cute, the whole design of the mascots just looks childish and far too Japanese. Yes, Japanese. This is Vancouver, not Tokyo, so why not a design that reflects a North American look? It's as if Vancouverites are ashamed to have their own 'real' culture, and have to pilfer ideas from elsewhere.

The Atlanta Spring-thing now has competition for the worst Olympic logo ever. Puke!

Labels: 2010 Olympics, Olympic Mascots, Olympics, Vancouver Sucks

by Jes

Being a blogger, I tend to get more SPAM than a Hormel employee.

Once in awhile, I'll get something thought provoking, or just plain 'WTF?'

File this one under 'thought provoking', as the Olympic Games Virus spreads through Vancouver.

Thanks to the Powers That Be, BC Taxpayers are being gouged on expensive projects to host a 2-week party. Who benefits? The big developers, the Olympic cartel and the politicians.

Now, the reason the Olympic cartel chose Beijing for 2008 was to 'open the country to Democracy'

Well, we know that it really means 'sweep the bad stuff under the rug for 3 weeks until the world looks away'

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Nine Reasons Why the Free World with The Leadership of America Must Boycott the 2008 Olympic Games in Communist China
By Demetrius Klitou

1) Human rights are practically non-existent in Communist China
Religious persecution, imprisonment and murder of non-violent political dissidents, torture, organ harvesting and sentences to hard labour are widespread.

2) The lack of freedom of the press and safety risks for foreign reporters
Many foreign websites are banned from being visited within China, foreign reporters are prohibited from interviewing anyone without previous permission from the government, and the content of all broadcasting is severely restricted. Foreign news media reporters have been arrested and sentenced to prison under vague and wide-reaching security laws.

3) The 1980 Olympic Games in Communist Russia were boycotted by 64 states, under the leadership of the U.S.
Beijing is not any different from Moscow in 1980, which was also the capital of a Communist police state.

4) Communist China constantly threatens to attack Taiwan
China's government passed a law that explicitly calls for military intervention in response to any intention by the democratic government of Taiwan to declare independence. Military manoeuvres indicate that the Communists' military is preparing to enforce this law.

5) Beijing has the most polluted air in the world
Studies and satellites photos have proven that Beijing suffers from extremely high nitrogen dioxide levels, vitally dangerous to the health of the athletes.

6) China is plagued by widespread social, political, and economic unrest
A surge in huge land grabs and forced evictions by the Chinese government for reasons of economic expansion and Olympic Games preparations have sparked thousands of protests. The government has murdered hundreds of protesters.

7) The Chinese have been bribing and threatening large numbers of members of the International Olympic Committee
A number of U.S. Representatives, for example, Congressman Tom Lantos, have stated this on national television.

8) A boycott has some potential to serve as a strategy to encourage human rights in China
Only the greedy and foolish global elite think this is true.

9) Holding the Olympic Games in Communist China contradicts the Olympic Charter
The Olympic Charter defines the philosophy of Olympism as the "respect for universal fundamental ethical principles" and its goal of promoting "a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity."

Labels: Off-topic, Olympics, SPAM