A blast from the past, courtesy a friend (and real author) on Facebook.
Enjoy the Fokker.
Year: 2010
Chicago Blackhawks Drink Lord Stanley’s Cup
Park Foresters celebrate the Blackhawks’ Stanley Cup victory at the Holiday Star Theater. (Photo: ENEWSPF)
The Chicago Blackhawks drink from Lord Stanley’s Cup, ending professional hockey’s longest drought. Patrick Kane sealed the slim 4-3 overtime victory with a slam that just kissed net after passing under Flyers goalie Michael Leighton. After brief hesitation while officials and television comentators comprehended the winning goal, fans at Park Forest’s Holiday Star Theater, and throughout the rest of the Chicagoland area, erupted in cheers.
Chicago drinks the cup again at last.
Richard Roeper had the honor summarizing the game at the Sun-Times:
Victory!
The enigmatic half-smile of Chief Blackhawk has widened to a full-out expression of joy. OK, so there might be a few teeth missing in that smile in honor of Duncan Keith, but oh what a satisfying grin it is.
Let that signature horn of victory blare deep into the night, as Chicago celebrates its first major championship in a half-decade, brought to us by the best team in their sport — a team that outlasted, outsmarted and outplayed Nashville, Vancouver, San Jose and finally, Philadelphia, home of the nastiest fans and the most weirdly-bearded players in all of hockey.
It seemed as if the playoff marathon lasted nearly as long as the regular season. (Do the Bears kick-off tomorrow?) When it was finally over, there was one team left standing, one team hoisting the fabled Stanley Cup. After decades of watching the Oilers and the Islanders and the Red Wings and the Penguins and so many other franchises have their day, it’s finally Chicago’s turn.
Let “Chelsea Dagger” and “Here Come the Hawks” play until your iPod explodes and your ears bleed.
Rattle your windows as if you were a fan in the front row celebrating a goal by Patrick Kane or a bell-ringing hit by Dusty Byfuglien.
Drink out of your own cup to celebrate the first Stanley Cup to be claimed by the Chicago Blackhawks since John F. Kennedy was a freshly minted president, Roger Maris was making a run at Babe Ruth’s single season home run record and a band called the Beatles was performing for the first time at the Cavern Club.
At this moment, it doesn’t matter if you’re an Original Six diehard who saw Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita skate in the glory days, or a newbie whose feet still feel the sting from jumping on the bandwagon. You have the right to cheer as much as you want for as long as you want.
Brian Hamilton had the honors at the Chicago Tribune:
Patrick Kane streaked down ice, threw his stick and his helmet into the air and soon was mobbed by a horde of exultant Blackhawks.
At the other end of the ice, no one was quite sure where the puck had gone. The Flyers stood motionless and still by the net. And in short order the verdict came: A half-century of agony had ended.
Kane, the superlative 21-year-old winger, scored 4:10 into overtime of Game 6 at the Wachovia Center on Wednesday, and that made the Blackhawks 4-3 winners and Stanley Cup champions for the first time since 1961.
“I knew it went in right away,” Kane said. “What a feeling. I can’t believe it. We just won the Stanley Cup. I can’t believe this just happened. … It’s something you dream about, scoring the final goal in the Stanley Cup finals.”
Kane scooped up the puck along the wall and flung it toward the net, and it zipped past Michael Leighton and in on the far side of the goal — such a blisteringly quick score that officials reviewed it just to make sure. Once they did, the celebration was on in earnest.
“I was just hoping to God it was just an actual goal,” said captain Jonathan Toews, the Conn Smythe Trophy winner as playoff MVP. “They came back hard in the third and we just stuck with it.”
As captain, Toews received the honor of being the first to hoist the Stanley Cup. Next was Marian Hossa, who finally won a title after near-misses with Pittsburgh and Detroit.
“There’s so many great things about winning a Stanley Cup. This is it,” Toews said. “This is the best feeling you can ever get. I just can’t believe it’s happened.”
The Tribune reports that the Blackhawks’ victory parade will begin at 10:30 a.m. Friday at Wacker and Washington, and proceed east to Wacker and Michigan, where a rally will be held at 11:30 a.m.
The Chicago Cubs now stand alone with the longest drought in sports history.
Yes, just had to slip that in.
Caveat Lector! This is the Internet, After All!
For all our readers, we have revised our About Turning Left page to include a caveat…
Turning left is a collection of the musings and reflections of select authors, all of whom have been turning farther and farther left for quite some time. As the right continues to raise its ugly head, it is more and more apparent that all of us should be Turning Left. We are proudly, unabashedly liberal.
Let it be clear: Turning Left is first, and foremost, opinion. We do not claim to publish first-hand news. We will point the reader to first-hand sources, and, we must stress, caveat lector! Let the reader beware! Remember, something is not true just because it exists online. Please do your own fact checking!
Our goal is not to mock or hide behind anonymity. Our goal is Truth, Veritas, and we recognize that human rights are still being denied many in this the United States and abroad. We wish to help shed light where there is darkness.
We respect the right of our authors to remain anonymous. The anonymous journalist helped shape this country, the United States, and many anonymous journalists labor today in the U.S. and more oppressive countries. In the proud tradition of Thomas Paine and countless others, we invite you to join us as we all continue Turning Left together.
City Councilman Steve Blair Fired By KYCA Because Of Comments Re: Mural on Miller Valley School
I wrote about the mural controversy in Arizona just a few minutes ago. City Councilman Steve Blair was fired by the radio station he worked for due to his remarks, according to reports.
Steve Blair has been fired by KYCA, due to his comments regarding the new mural on Miller Valley School at the corner of Whipple Street and Miller Valley Road.
Besides being a City Councilman, Steve Blair is also a well-known afternoon talk show host for radio station KYCA. Well, make that "was" because he has been removed from his radio talk show as of today, due to a controversy over the mural painted on Miller Valley School.
The discussion about the mural has been controversial ever since the paint began being brushed on the wall. Now it’s a full blown controversy, with statewide and even national media paying attention. Right now, the spotlight is on Blair, who made comments that some interpreted as being racist.
Blair is not backing down, saying that the mural “defaces” the public building.
He says he "doesn’t get it," that the picture looks like a "big old black guy," and maybe that has something to do with the "guy that’s in the White House."
The picture actually depicts one of the children who goes to the school, according to reports.
Here’s Blair in his own words:
And the mural in question:
Arizona’s Gone Wild: Officials Want Dark Skin of Child on Grade School Mural Lightened
What’s wrong with this picture?
An Arizona school mural designed to promote environmentally friendly transportation has ignited a debate about race and censorship of the arts.
Officials at Miller Valley Elementary School in Prescott, Ariz., asked the painters of the mural to lighten the skin of children depicted after a city councilman denounced its prominent portrayal of ethnic minorities. Following protests, the principal apologized today for making the request. "Miller Valley made a mistake when we asked them to lighten the mural. We made a mistake," said Principal Jeff Lane.
The mural shows children walking and cycling in a garden-like scene, with birds flying around them.
"We don’t have a racist town," R.E. Wall, who painted the "Go on Green" mural, told AOL News. "I believe we have racist city council."
City Councilman Steve Blair, who says he "can’t stand" the word "diversity," criticized the mural on his talk-radio show. He particularly targeted the portrayal of the painting’s main figure, a dark-skinned boy in blue jeans and green sweatshirt.
"To depict the biggest picture on that building as a black person, I would have to ask the question, ‘Why?’" Blair said on a May 21 broadcast, according to The Daily Courier.
The child in question is meant to be a Mexican-American, Wall told AOL News.
When the Courier published an article online about the unveiling of the mural, readers left comments describing the painting as "tacky," "ghetto" and "ugly." On his radio show, Blair said that he had spoken to locals who are offended by the mural and call it "graffiti."
Welcome to post-racist America. Yes, we’re beyond all that, of course.
Consider for a moment what this kind of ugly rhetoric is doing to children in Arizona. How will the brown-skinned kids be treated now by their lighter-skinned peers?
Jane Elliott, what would you charge to give the entire state of Arizona a Blue Eyes Brown Eyes exercise?
BP Pays Through the Nose for Influence: $19.5 Million, 49 Lobbyists Since 2009
Since the beginning of 2009, BP has employed 49 lobbyists at a cost of $19.5 million. Of these 49 lobbyists, 35 – or 71 percent – previously held federal positions, according to a new Public Citizen analysis.
BP has dramatically increased its lobbying efforts in recent years, Public Citizen found. The firm spent $16 million lobbying in 2009, more than four times the average $3.9 million per year it spent in the first nine years of the past decade, according to the analysis of lobbying disclosure data provided by the Center for Responsive Politics.
“It’s no exaggeration to say that a stronger democracy would have prevented the oil gusher at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico,” said Robert Weissman, president of Public Citizen. “If it weren’t for the improper influence and insider leveraging made possible by revolving door lobbyists and other exertions of BP and Big Oil’s undue political power, we would have had the laws and rules in place to prevent BP’s recklessness.”
More here, including a link to the BP lobbying and contribution data.
Philadelphia Freedom: Phillies Fan Who Intentionally Vomited on Child Pleads Guilty
Chicago Blackhawks fans in Philadelphia for the Stanley Cup Finals might want to wear rain ponchos if they’re lucky enough to get anywhere near the Wachovia Center. Why? A 21-year-old New Jersey man pleaded guilty to intentionally vomiting on a man and his 11-year-old daughter in the stands during a Philadelphia Phillies game.
Ugh.
Here’s the scoop (sorry about that):
A New Jersey man is facing charges after police say he intentionally vomited on an 11-year-old girl and her father in the stands during a Phillies game.
Matthew Clemmens, 21, of Cherry Hill, N.J., was arraigned Friday on charges stemming from his behavior at Wednesday night’s Phillies-Nationals game. Police say Clemmens made himself vomit on an off-duty police captain and his daughter after a companion was kicked out for unruly behavior.
Matthew Clemmens of Cherry Hill, N.J., pleaded guilty today to charges stemming from the incident at a Phillies-Nationals game on April 14.
Police say Clemmens stuck his fingers down his throat and vomited on Easton police Captain Michael Vangelo and his daughter after Clemmens’ companion was ejected from the park.
And the dude:
Enough said.
Go Hawks!
Poll: Growing Number of Americans Oppose Repealing Health Insurance Reform Law
A new 60 Minutes/Vanity Fair poll asks a random sample of 855 adults nationwide, interviewed by telephone May 6-9, 2010, whether any parts of the health insurance reform law should be repealed. Results show that a plurality of Americans said they would prefer Republicans to leave the new healthcare law alone and not repeal any parts of it.
As you may know, many Republicans have vowed to repeal President Obama’s health-care-reform law. Which part, if any, WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE THEM GET RID OF?
| ALL | REP. | DEM. | IND. | |
| Requiring all Americans to buy health insurance | 30% | 45% | 13% | 32% |
| Stopping insurance companies from denying coverage | 8 | 6 | 6 | 11 |
| Letting children stay insured until age 26 |
8 | 10 | 8 | 7 |
| Expanding prescription coverage for seniors |
2 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| None; I’d keep them all | 42 | 18 | 68 | 38 |
Tip of the hat to The Wonk Room at Think Progress for this.
BBC: Catholic Bishop Stabbed to Death in Turkey
A Roman Catholic bishop has been stabbed to death in southern Turkey, state-run media report.
Luigi Padovese, 63, was attacked in the garden of his summer house in the Mediterranean port of Iskenderun, according to Anatolia news agency.
Police have arrested Bishop Padovese’s driver, a man identified only as Murat A. He was suffering from psychological problems, the provincial governor said.
There has been a series of attacks on Christians in Turkey in recent years.
No doubt there will be wild speculation as to motive besides "psychological problems." We’ll be careful here.
Study: Marijuana Smoking Associated With Minimal Changes In Driving Performance
Marijuana may not impact driving, according to a new study.
Subjects exhibit virtually identical psychomotor skills on a battery of driving simulator tests prior to and shortly after smoking marijuana, according to clinical trial data published in the March issue of the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs.
Investigators from Hartford Hospital in Connecticut and the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine assessed the simulated driving performance of 85 subjects in a double-blind, placebo controlled trial. Volunteers responded to various simulated events associated with automobile crash risk — such as avoiding a driver who was entering an intersection illegally, deciding to stop or go through a changing traffic light, responding to the presence of emergency vehicles, avoiding colliding with a dog who entered into traffic, and maintaining safe driving during a secondary (in-the-car) auditory distraction. Subjects performed the tests sober and then again 30 minutes after smoking a single marijuana cigarette containing either 2.9 percent THC or zero THC (placebo).
Investigators reported that volunteers performed virtually the same after smoking cannabis as they did sober and/or after consuming a placebo. "No differences were found during the baseline driving segment (and the) collision avoidance scenarios," authors reported.
Let the discussion begin.