Clemens Busted by An 11-Year-Old at Party?

One of the key factors in Roger Clemens condemnation of the Mitchell Report and the testimony of his former trainer Brian McNamee is Clemen's assertion that he never attended a birthday at Jose Canseco's Florida home ten years ago. A photo may exist, however, that shows Clemens at that very party posing with an 11-year-old fan.

The birthday party was asserted as evidence that the Mitchell Report's was sloppy and inaccurate and McNamee was either lying, confused, or simply mistaken. Clemens' lawyer brought forward several pieces of evidence that supposedly supported his client's absence at the birthday party.

According to a news story in The Houston Chronicle, the father of a young man now playing college baseball was disturbed by McNamee's treatment the during the Congressional Committee, because his son had a photo taken of himself and Clemens at Canseco's 1998 birthday party stuck on his wall for a decade. The photo hasn't been produced yet, because the player is worried about what impact the whole mess could have on his prospects as a professional ball player.

Clemens vehemently denied multiple times that he was at Canseco's party that day and testified the same before the House Committee. When news that there might be a picture of Clemens at the birthday party in question, lawyer Rusty Hardin issued a statement backtracking from the certainty that Clemens was not at the party, saying that he may have stopped off there between playing golf and going to play a baseball game.

I always say, there are many versions to a lie but the truth never changes.

Razzie Award Winners

Well the worst movies have been crowned this year and Lindsay Lohan did pretty good. Lindsay and "I Know Who Killed Me" swept the Razzies today winning 8 awards! Lindsay personally took home Worst Actress and Worst Screen Couple (with herself). Here's the Razzie site.

Worst Picture: I Know Who Killed Me

Worst Actor: Eddie Murphy, Norbit

Worst Actress (tie): Lindsay Lohan (as Aubrey) and Lindsay Lohan ( as Dakota), I Know Who Killed Me

Worst Supporting Actress: Eddie Murphy (as Rasputia), Norbit

Worst Supporting Actor: Eddie Murphy (as Mr. Wong), Norbit

Worst Screen Couple: Lindsay Lohan and Lindsay Lohan, I Know Who Killed Me

Worst Rip-Off: I Know Who Killed Me

Worst Sequel: Daddy Day Camp

Worst Director: I Know Who Killed Me

Worst Screenplay: I Know Who Killed Me

Worst Excuse For A Horror Movie: I Know Who Killed Me

When to suspect your boyfriend is in Al Qaeda

Mug Shot of the Week

It's the eyebrows that caught my attention. Looks like they were done by the guys who paint lines on the highway.

McCain is Straight!

Finally a Republican sex scandal involving heterosexual relations. After Mark Foley, Richard Curtis, Larry Craig, etc, we have some straight sex. Is that where Straight Talk Express comes from?

But still to confirm the straight talk we still need to hear from lobbyist Vicky Iseman.

Heterosexual Males Envy This Guy

He goes by the nickname Shy and he is 44 and living in Miami. His Myspace site is loaded with pictures of him wearing his Tom Cruise shades with dozens and dozens of hot women. Is he the real thing or is it just an act for jazz up his site?

Disgusting Looters in Belgrade

After the proclamation of Kosovo independence, majority of Serbs were rightfully outraged and disappointed with theWestern powers. And while the majority of them expressed their disagreement and anger in a dignified and civilized manner, there were groups of hooligans, ultra-nationals and thugs who abused the situation. This video presents a pair of girl looters who are, in their patriotic extassy, trying to get as much of valuables as possible. They are patriots, as they are stealing only from stores with US goods.

L.A. Wants to Regulate Paparazzi

Agitated by "reckless" and "out-of-control" photographers who jam sidewalks, clog streets, and make it difficult even for ambulances to get past them — all in the scramble for shots of Britney Spears, Paris Hilton and others — LA councilman Dennis Zine wants a crackdown. His plan would force the tabloid mobs to literally back off, legislating a "'personal safety zone' ... of clear space" between paparazzi and their celebrity targets.

Sounds nuts doesn't it. LAPD Chief William Bratton pooh-poohed the idea. His response to the Concilman's proposal was: "What we need is Britney Spears to stay home instead of traipsing all over town. That would solve the problem. We don’t need additional laws…. I’ve got laws coming out my ears to deal with this issue…."

Some common sense from the Chief!

And to prove it four paparazzi were arrested in two separate incidents in West Hollywood last night.

Middle East Conflict Spills Over to Monopoly Board

Hasbro is developing a global Monopoly board game to be called Monopoly Here and Now: The World Edition. Fun, right? Not quite.

Well you can vote for your favourite city online and the eventual winners will be featured on the final version. Hasbro recently removed the country name "Israel" after "Jerusalem" when it received complaints from pro-Palestinian groups. And then, you guessed it, Hasbro received even more heat from people online who noticed the only city without a country was Jerusalem.

This issue has been a minefield for seasoned politicians and diplomats. Hasbro has now issued an apology for removing Israel from Jerusalem on its list of cities. The company also pulled all country names from other cities on the site when even more people complained because Jerusalem was listed as the only city without a country. What a mess.

Anyway there are still 6 days to vote for your favourite cities. Below is a list of the current top 10 list. A very strange list I might add.

#1Gdynia, Poland
#2 Quebec, Canada
#3 Taipei, Taiwan
#4 Lvyv, Ukraine
#5 Szczecin, Poland
#6 Winnipeg, Canada
#7 İzmir, Turkey
#8 Novi Sad, Serbia
#9 Chennai, India
#10 Johannesburg, South Africa

One Hit Wonder

The Vapors - Turning Japanese - 1980

Romney’s Gambling Problem

This guy needs help: Romney put in $42 million of his own fortune. Before withdrawing from the presidential race, Mitt Romney put in at least $42.3 million of his own money.

His campaign reported to the Federal Election Commission this evening that he loaned his campaign another $6.95 million during January to reach that total.
The former Massachusetts governor's total self-financing puts him past Steve Forbes, the wealthy publisher who spent $38 million on his run for the GOP nomination in 1996, but shy of the $63.5 million that H. Ross Perot spent on his 1992 third-party campaign.

So he bet $42 million on a long-shot.

Mu List of Top 5 Movies That Make Men Cry

5. Saving Private Ryan (1998)
As U.S. troops storm the beaches of Normandy, three brothers lie dead on the battlefield, with a fourth trapped behind enemy lines. Ranger captain Tom Hanks and seven men are tasked with penetrating German-held territory and bringing the boy home. Steven Spielberg and cinematographer Janusz Kaminski paint a harrowing picture of the price of war and heroism -- one that netted them Oscars for Best Director and Best Cinematography, respectively.

4. Philadelphia (1993)
When attorney Andrew Beckett (Tom Hanks) reveals his HIV-positive status -- and his homosexuality -- to his co-workers, he soon finds himself unemployed. Seeking to sue for wrongful termination, Hanks works with the only lawyer who'll take the case: ambulance-chasing, homophobic Joe Miller (Denzel Washington). Hanks received an Oscar for his work in this Jonathan Demme-directed film -- the first major-studio picture to tackle the topic of AIDS.

3. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)
The first movie since It Happened One Night to win all five major Academy Awards (picture, director, actor, actress, screenplay), Cuckoo's Nest still has the ability to entertain and inspire. Implacable rabble-rouser Randle Patrick McMurphy (Jack Nicholson) is committed to an asylum and inspires his fellow patients to rebel against the authoritarian rule of head nurse Mildred Ratched (Louise Fletcher).

2. Million Dollar Baby (2004)
This multiple Oscar winner follows a determined young athlete who, through her sheer determination, awakens a long-lost fire within two aging boxers. Despondent over a painful estrangement from his daughter, trainer Frankie Dunn (Clint Eastwood) isn't prepared for boxer Maggie Fitzgerald (Hilary Swank) to enter his life. Maggie's determined to go pro, and she eventually convinces Dunn and his cohort (Morgan Freeman) to help her get to the top.

1. Brian’s Song (1971)
This Emmy-winning movie of the week focuses on Chicago Bears running back Gale Sayers (Billy Dee Williams) and his friendship with fullback Brian Piccolo (James Caan). Coach George Halas (Jack Warden) encourages Piccolo to be Sayers's roommate during the season -- the first white-black pairing of its kind in professional sports. When Piccolo develops cancer, Sayers stands by his pal.

Are Barbra Streisand and Steve Buscemi beginning to look alike?

Who is Behind the Obay Ads in Toronto?

Since fake pharmaceutical ads for a drug called "Obay" starting appearing across Toronto and elsewhere last week, everyone has been speculating who is behind the campaign. I've heard rumours it was a street artist and the Scientologists.

It is beginning to come out that an advocacy group Colleges Ontario has told the Torontoist that it is behind the ads, and the organization just sent out a press release with information about a media launch event next Monday that promises to reveal the news behind Obay and its side effects on Ontario’s Post-secondary Education. The organization represents 24 colleges across Ontario.

Sderot: Israel's Town Under Siege

For the past 7 years, the Israeli desert town of Sderot has on the firing line in the war of attrition between Israel and Hamas which controls the Gaza Strip. The city of about 20,000 is about 1 kilometre from the Gaza and under constant rocket fire from Qassam rockets. Despite the imperfect aim of these homemade projectiles, they have caused deaths and injuries, as well as significant damage to homes and property, psychological distress and emigration from the city. Many of the residents suffer from post traumatic stress. The economy is in shambles. The citizens feel they have been abandoned. Around 3,000 have left.

The Israeli government has installed an early warning system to alert citizens but the the system only provides about 15 seconds advance notice of an attack.

Most will point out that the inhabitants on the other side of the border are much worse off. There is no arguing that. But the Israeli government has until now been successful in protecting civilians from attacks. Suicide bomb attacks have been pretty much shut down. However, Israel has failed to stop the daily barage of rockets.

The Biton family have lived in Sderot for almost 25 years. Both Debby and her husband were born in Sderot and have three children, Mor, Ziv, and Noa. The family has experienced two kassam rocket attacks on their home in the past seven years of rocket fire from Gaza. The door to the entrance of their house still has holes from the shrapnel of a rocket which exploded one year ago in their yard.

"Our home is no longer the center of our family life," says Debby. "My children cannot live with this rocket terror, so two have moved away to maintain a sense of normalcy." Morr, 22, is the oldest of the three children. She moved away a year ago to Ashkelon and studies at a college there. Her younger sister, Ziv, 18, has moved to Jerusalem to complete her high school studies and matriculation exams. For Ziv, life in Sderot was especially difficult, due to the fact that she is partially blind.

It became clear to Ziv that she must move out of Sderot when a rocket hit the school yard of her high school in eleventh grade. Because of her vision impairment, Ziv had difficultly locating the bomb shelter as her fellow students ran to safety when the red alert sounded. The fifteen seconds one has to escape to shelter once a rocket is launched from Gaza, is insufficient for those physically handicapped or visually impaired.


Sderot - Israel's Town Under Fire

Why Did the US Military Really Destroy That Satellite?

We will never know the real reason that the U.S. military found it necessary to use a missle to destroy a spy satelitte yesterday. The reason given was the risk posed by unused fuel onboard the satellite once the thing fell out of the sky. But surely this isn't the first time this has happened.

The risk of getting killed by the satellite is far smaller than getting killed crossing the street. It cost $60 million to shoot that thing down. More lives would have been saved if the $60 million would have been spent on road safety initiatives.

I'm not a conspiracist by nature but there may be other reasons why the U.S. govenment wanted to destroy that satellite. Afterall, it was a spy satellite and the government might have been concerned that some components might have survived when it crashed and fallen into the wrong hands. Perhaps it was just a display of military might American rivals and/or enemies. Less likely is the theory that it was part of a plan to test missile defense.

We will never know for sure but it did attract a lot of attention. And it may be simple as just that.

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Rat-Infested Dumpling House Re-Opens

The popular Chinatown Dumping House restaurant has been re-opened. The rat problem has been cleaned up and the Department of Health has given it an all-clear. No rats were actually killed or caught, let alone located. They probably just moved down the street to one of the other lovely establishments on Spadina Ave.

Lunar Eclipse from Toronto

I'm not staying up for the lunar eclipse this time around. It's just too cold (supposed to be -16C tonight). But here are my pictures from the August lunar eclipse.

Avoid Escalators in Your Crocs

Those dreaded Crocs present another safety hazard. A 7-year-old New York City boy has joined a growing number of children who’ve had the horrifying experience of getting their feet mangled by escalators while wearingCrocs. The boy’s mother says the accident happened in a Kentucky airport. She yanked loose is foot just in time.

The boy’s mother has now contacted escalator-chasing lawyer Andrew Laskin, who is suing Crocs on behalf of a New York 3-year-old (and her parents) who sustained “severe and permanent” injuries when a JFK airport escalator devoured her foot while wearing Crocs.

After seeing President Bush in a pair, it totally turned me off.

Current Delegate Count

Barack Obama decisively beat Hillary Clinton in the Wisconsin primary and the Hawaii caucuses on Tuesday night, accelerating his momentum ahead of crucial primaries in Ohio and Texas and cutting into Clinton’s support among women and union members. It appears difficult for her to stem the tide so this race is largely over.

On the Republican side, John McCain won a commanding victory over Mike Huckabee in the Wisconsin contest and Washington State. All but assured of his party’s nomination, McCain immediately went after Obama during a rally in Ohio, deriding “eloquent but empty” calls for change.

I had picked McCain to win the Republican nomination long ago though I had doubts when he slipped in the polls last summer. Obama is completely unexpected for me. I had expected Al Gore jumping into the race in the Fall of 2007 and taking the nomination. It should be an interesting contest between an older and experienced politician and someone more youthful and liberal candidate.

Democrats (2,025 needed to win)
Obama 1319
Clinton 1245
Edwards 26

Republicans (1,191 needed to win)
Romney 253
Huckabee 245
McCain 942
Paul 14

Running Career on Hold

Got back my MRI results and as expected it's not good news. Another torn menicscus (last one was 6 years ago, same knee). Not too keen on surgery on my knee again so the running career (40 years) is sadly on hold. The spring/summer season is ruined anyway so will re-evaulate in the fall.

Warning To Drivers: Gas To Hit $1.09 A Litre By Wednesday Morning

The 13 Steps to Breaking a CrackBerry Addiction

1. Admit we were powerless over our CrackBerries — that our lives have become unmanageable without the little gadgets and that, like Pavlovian dogs, we are slaves to its bleeps, vibrations, buzzes and rings.

2. Admit to the universe, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our CrackBerry addiction. Admit that while you might look like you’re praying you are really just texting someone about that chick in HR/guy in the mail room. That you don’t respond to your children unless they vibrate first. That your spouse communicates with you during lovemaking through e-mail -- ‘To: Bob Smith. From: Wife. Subject: Left a little bit.’

3. We must come to believe that only the greater power of wireless-lessness can restore us to sanity.

4. We must make a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the power of unconnectedness and eschew knowing if someone is mailing us at this very minute.

5. Make a searching and fearless moral inventory of our CrackBerry use – do we shamelessly put our BlackBerries on the table in a bar to present a false sense of importance; do we drive and compose e-mail at the same; do we rudely ignore our co-workers, loved ones and children in order to take that “important call” from Ron, the lounge lizard from accounts?

6. Make a list of all persons we have harmed through our rudeness, inconsideration and pretentious self-involvement, and make amends to them all. Sincerely and in person, not via text message -- ‘sory 4 bng a rde bstrd. wnt hppn agn.’

7. Turn off the CrackBerry. Now. No “I’m expecting an important call.” No “My life depends on Shirley getting me those numbers.” No “I’m almost finished my Sudoko game.” Turn it off now. Stop looking at it expectantly. Seriously, stop.

8. Realize that you are not the center of the universe. If someone can’t get a hold of you they will have to wait. That waiting is a natural state. That failure to reach you 24/7 will not mean the end of the world. The universe will not implode, the apocalypse will not happen if Ron/Jeanie doesn’t get a hold of you and has to wait until lunch time to find out if you got lucky with that chick from HR/guy from the mail room.

9. Set limits on BlackBerry use. Use only during business hours. Lock it up when on vacation – you can’t do anything from Cabo anyway. Turn off the vibration feature. Yes girls this means you too. Set a time to review e-mail. Don’t set that time when you are operating a vehicle.

10. Turn off the BlackBerry during all meetings, classes, presentations, weddings and funerals. No one wants you to interrupt the eulogy. Especially if you are giving it.

11. Know that the world actually functioned before BlackBerries and that people managed to survive with ancient tools like phones and desktop computers. While it was a long time ago (circa 2005) there are people still alive who remember this time. Seek out these people and ask them about life back then. And take their advice and learn from them.

12. Having fulfilled these steps know that you control the CrackBerry. It does not control you. That access is a two-way street. That it is a tool, not a chain. That you can relate to actual human beings too.

13. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, carry this message to all CrackBerry addicts, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

Castro to Retire?

For a second I thought it was Cliff Fletcher. I'm wondering if Castro will be short-listed for the Maple Leaf GM position? Hmm, I guess only if Scotty Bowman turns down the job.

I'm just wondering how many people know what this is?

Poor Choice of Words?

Nature is Twisted

From the desk of the Mayor of Mitchieville

Waiting For Winter to End

Mugshot of the Week

Who poses for a mugshot with no top?

Andy Pettitte Addresses the Media

Andy Pettitte addressed the media in Florida this afternoon. Pettitte, who previously admitted using HGH in 2002 and again in 2004, apologized to the Yankees, Astros, and his fans for the "embarrassment" he caused. Pettitte said, "I also want to tell anyone who is an Andy Pettitte fan that I am sorry."

Pettitte's close friends Roger Clemens and Brian McNamee testified in front of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform last week, a hearing that Pettitte was excused from and did not watch. During the press conference, Pettitte said that he had not spoken to Clemens for about a month and that he considered retiring due to the situation, but it "wouldn't be the thing to do as a man."

While Clemens told the House committee that Pettitte "misremembers" conversations that the two had, Pettitte said today that he told the truth and that he still considers himself Clemens' friend. "I think Roger knows how I feel about him," Pettitte said. "He knows I've admired him and I continue to admire him. He's been a great friend to me and I love him like a brother. The situation is a horrible situation. Mac is also a very good friend of mine. Mac told the truth about me."

I can't help but think that Clemens must be a liar. Since both Pettitte and Chuck Knoblauch have confirmed Brian MacNamees allegations, it is inconceivable that MacNamee lied about Clemens.

Rock band Boston asks Huckabee to stop playing their song

The founder of the rock band Boston is enraged that Mike Huckabee is using his band's hit "More Than a Feeling" on the campaign trail. He's written a letter to Huckabee demanding the GOP candidate stop using it. "Boston has never endorsed a political candidate, and with all due respect, would not start by endorsing a candidate who is the polar opposite of most everything Boston stands for," wrote Tom Scholz. "In fact, although I'm impressed you learned my bass guitar part on 'More Than a Feeling,' I am an Obama supporter."

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Top 10 George W. Bush Moments

Candidates when they were young

Here are Hillary Clinton, Barock Obama, and John McCain when they were young. Can you guess which is which?

Heil Hilary!

I understand Hilary is trying to invoke a tough image as the only female candidate. But the Nazi salute may be going to far.

I have a deram

And part of my deram is that every childe in Amireca gets da best possible edumacation.

And the Winner of the NBA Slam Dunk Contest is...

Dwight Howard.

The Ice Storm Cometh

Warnings

City of Toronto
9:20 AM EST Sunday 17 February 2008

Freezing rain warning forCity of Toronto continued ..Several hours of freezing rain today..This is a warning that an extended period of freezing rain is imminent or occurring in these regions. Monitor weather conditions..Listen for updated statements.

A large scale winter storm - currently over Missouri this morning - will track northeast towards the Great Lakes reaching northern Lake Huron early Monday morning. Associated with the storm is a band of freezing rain that will March across southern Ontario today reaching eastern Ontario this afternoon.

2 to 3 hours and about 2 to 3 millimetres of freezing rain has already been reported over most of southwestern Ontario early this morning. Sarnia..London and Kitchener provincial police are reporting very icy roads and dangerous driving conditions in these areas.

Meanwhile the freezing rain has just moved into the Golden Horseshoe area including the GTA and will move into regions along the 400 corridor during the next hour. Again...Freezing rain will likely persist for 2 to 3 hours producing an icy coating of 2 to 3 millimetres before the mercury rises above the freezing point and the precipitation turns to rain.