Swedens Ugly Win

While all eyes were on the NHL games this weekend, it was the final round of the IIHF World Cup in Riga, Latvia. And Sweden defeated Canada on Saturday to go on and win their second Gold Medal, after winning against Team Canada at the Olympics.

This however was an ugly win, not worthy of the Swedes, and frankly a lousy call by the Refs. A major nasty cross check was put on Sidney Crosby, the young outstanding Canadian in the game, after he scored.

While assessed as a major penalty of five minutes, it should have been a major game misconduct worthy of losing a player for the rest of the game. It was an ugly cross check to Crosby's face knocking off his helmet , busting his nose and knocking him to the ice while he was celebrating his goal.

Sid's effort falls short

The game was comfortably in Sweden's control until Crosby was viciously cross checked in the jaw by Mika Hannula after scoring to make it 5-3 with 35 seconds to play in the second period.

He left the game feeling dizzy but had a breakaway 10 seconds after returning in the third period. Crosby then set up Patrice Bergeron's goal to get Canada within one and had a few chances to tie it.

It was a performance that left his teammates in awe.

"I think it said a lot to us the way Sid came out and played the third period because he was in rough shape during the second intermission," said captain Brendan Shanahan. "It says a lot to hockey fans and the people of Canada."

It was malicious and brutish. Something that one expects in the NHL but not in International Hockey. But then look where Sweden and the other Europeans play hockey, in the NHL.

As it was Crosby went on to score another goal, but it wasn't enough to win. That cheap shot, cheapened the game, and the Swedes win. What victory they gained in the Olympics is now tarnished, and their Gold Win in the World Cup was not won by gentlemen but by thugs.

Canada loses 5-4 to Sweden in semifinal

The game looked comfortably in Sweden's control until Crosby was viciously cross-checked in the jaw by Mika Hannula after scoring to make it 5-3 with 35 seconds to play in the second period.

The Canadian star had his arms in the air in celebration after poking his own rebound past Johan Holmqvist when Hannula ran him into the end boards. Crosby stayed down for a minute before being taken straight to the Canadian dressing room.

Hannula was assessed a five-minute major and given a game misconduct, but Canada only got a three-minute power play after a melee ensued.

"It was a blatant cross-check to the face," Canada coach Marc Habscheid said. "It's disappointing, especially when there's smiles and laughs on their bench. . . .

"He's a great player, I don't know what they were doing."

Crosby returned for the third period and broke in alone on Holmqvist just 10 seconds into the period, but was stopped by the Swedish goalie.

His revenge would still come. Crosby took control of the puck behind the goal while still on the power play and fed Bergeron, who one-timed it by Holmqvist at 3:38 to narrow the lead to 5-4.

As Canada pressed for the tying goal, the Swedes continued to test Crosby with late hits after the whistle. The teenager's temper was questioned a couple times during the NHL season, but he showed no signs of losing his cool here.

"I think it said a lot to us the way Sid came out and played the third period because he was in rough shape during the second intermission," Canadian captain Brendan Shanahan said. "It says a lot to hockey fans and the people of Canada who are still trying to figure him out."

In a lot of ways that game ended it for Canada, demoralized they could not win against Finland whom they played for the Bronze. The cheap shot on Crosby, and the continued attacks on Canada's Star Player shows that the age of Gretzky is over even in International Hockey, and the rough and tumble NHL rules, rule.

Pluck just not enough
`Drained' Canadians give their all but come up empty versus Finns
Olympic champion Swedes blank Czech Republic to win gold

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Crosby, IIHF, World-Cup, Hockey, Team-Canada, Sweden,

Montenegro By A Nose

`Victory' for Montenegro

Balkan state votes for independence, unofficial tally shows

Opponents of break with Serbia refuse to concede defeat

An unofficial count of all ballots by a referendum monitoring group gave Yes forces 55.5 per cent of the vote — slightly above the 55 per cent minimum set by the European Union for the sovereignty vote to be recognized.

I would say winning by .5 is a Pyrrhic victory And it resolves nothing leaving both sides now dangerously divided, and thus could increase the potential for politcal upheaval and instability in Montengro more than anything else. Reminding us once again of the dangers of independence by referendum.

Something Quebec also learned the hard way in 1995. And which the Federal Clarity Act will to little to correct.



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Anarchism A Google Trend

I looked up Anarchism on Googles new tool; Google Trends and found that Greek was the language used most often to look up Anarchism. No surprize there since Anarchy comes from Greek; Anarkos. Which may explain why Anarchy gets confused with Kaos sometimes, exactly Mr. Shmart.

English was second and Swedish third, yes there is a large Anarcho Syndicalist movement in Sweden. Proving my thesis that you need a strong social democratic movement and government to create a condition for a strong extra-parliamentary left opposition, the very ocean within which anarchism spreads.

New Zealand topped the list for regions where references to anarchism can be found. Canada I am pleased to say came ahead of the U.S. and U.K. in sixth place. Not to shabby.

When it came to cities Vancouver came second behind Dublin (which is home to the Platformist Anarchist movement) and ahead of Auckland. The US. West Coast was well repersented of course with Seattle, Portland and San Fransisco. Surprising London England home of Freedom Magazine was missing.

The four most popular articles since 2004 are;

	Teen Columnist: Music fat cats bastardizing punk rock, anarchism Tucson Citizen - Sep 7 2004
	Indigenism, Anarchism, and the State ZNet - Apr 29 2005
	The triumph of anarchism Hindu - Dec 10 2005
	Venezuela 2006: Anarchism against all odds Bay Area Indymedia - Mar 10 2006

Now compare that to Libertarian which is dominated by English language and American sites and you can see which is the real Internationalist movement.

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Macho Kinsella

Macho Warren Kinsella was in fine form the other day proving that not only is he a Zionist syncophant but he is sexist as well.

Calling Tor Star blogger Antonia Zerbias a 'screecher', the sort of epithat used for women, oh like Sheila Copps, because in his conspiracy adled brain he see's her focusing on the Asper media chain, of which the National Pest his employer is part of, because, gasp they are Jewish. Hence she must be...wait for it...an anti-semite.

This guy never gives up on the low blows and cheap shots, and seeing anti-semites everywhere. He is in a sense the mirror image of the fascists whom he opposes, they too see conspiracies everywhere.

Maybe she is criticising the Asper chain because they are a Media Monopoly, like their predecesor the notorious criminal and Dark Lord of Media; Conrad Black. Whom they replaced when they bought him out. Wait lets not criticize Lord Black, his wife is Jewish. Warren is Canada's other loonie.

Warren is so predictable, when it comes to anything to do with Israel. The illegal state that currently rules over occupied Palestine. And now he is defending the yellow journalism at the Pest, his employer, when they make false claims about Iran. Of course Warren like other Zionist apologists see a nuclear Iran as far scary than a nuclear Israel.

At present, Iran has little more than primitive gropings towards the technology needed for nuclear self-defence. Yet these are being presented as a casus belli by Bush, Blair, Chirac and Olmert, whose own states are armed with hundreds—in the American case, thousands—of nuclear weapons. Whining and cavilling over the small print of Vienna protocols, however warranted, is a futile pursuit for Iranian diplomacy. The country would do better to choose the right moment and simply withdraw from the Non-Proliferation Treaty. Of all the anachronistic emperors in the world, it is the most brazenly naked. There is not a shred of justification for the oligopoly of the present nuclear powers, so hypocritical it does not dare even speak its name—Israel, with 200 nuclear bombs, is never mentioned. There will never be nuclear disarmament until it is broken. Tariq Ali: Mid-Point in the Middle East?


See:
Harper Says No Nukes For India

Iran

Asper

National Post

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You don't need a Weatherman to know.....

From this mornings weather prediction on the Weather Channel

TEMPERATURE	7°C	21°C	21°C	11°C
CONDITION	Mainly sunny	Chance of thunder- showers	Chance of thunder- showers	Cloudy periods
P.O.P.	0%	40%	40%	10%
WIND	S 10 km/h	SW 10 km/h	S 10 km/h	SE 10 km/h
HUMIDITY	100%	47%	49%	86%
We don't expect any precipitation from Sunday morning to Monday morning.

Oh really no precipitation. Wonder what they mean by Thunder Showers?!

As this clearly shows weather prestidigitation is neithier prescient nor empircal.

And as a science IT is in good keeping with astrology.

Proving you really don't need a Weatherman to know which way the wind blows.....





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Harper Says No Nukes For India

Finally the Harpocrite government has decided to take a stand in opposition to the U.S. In this case over the USA's new found nuclear alliance with India.

The real reason of course is less about enlightened politics than it is about dealing with American attempts to force Canada and Australia to clean up their nuclear waste, a punitive attempt to make US uranium exports appear more competitive.

That and of course the promotion of US nuclear plants, which are far less safe than the Canadian CANDU reactors. Harpers announcement about India, while good PR will probably last as long as when he and Howard get an agreement from their pal Bush to include them in his new nuclear pact. Yep colour me cycnical about Harper ever doing the 'right thing'.

Mr. Harper, speaking at a joint news conference with the Australian leader, said the Conservatives have not yet established a nuclear policy. But he believes nuclear reactors will be an important source of energy in the decades ahead.

But the question of supplying India is another matter, he suggested. "It's an issue we are looking at with some degree of caution."

Canadians are particularly sensitive on this point, he said, because India used Canadian-supplied technology in the early 1970s to put together its first crude nuclear bomb.

Mr. Harper said Canada will be looking to see if India signs on to international non-proliferation agreements as Ottawa decides whether to supply that country with nuclear technology.

Harper also said his government is "looking carefully" at a United States proposal that would compel uranium exporting countries such as Canada to repatriate and dispose of spent nuclear fuel.

The Bush administration has proposed creating the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership, a consortium of nations that supply nuclear fuel in order to better control weapons proliferation. Canada and Australia together export 43 per cent of the world's uranium.

Neither Harper nor Howard directly addressed the question of repatriating nuclear fuel waste, but both indicated nuclear power is part of their countries energy future and that the U.S. proposal is in play.

See Nukes
and Nuclear

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Gee Thats What I Said

The strong Canadian dollar is doing the Bank of Canada's job for it -- keeping a lid on inflation -- and in doing so is saving each Canadian household hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars, and the economy billions.

Yep thats what I said here. To those right wingers who say I don't undertand economics. Nyah, Nyah.



Also See

Loonie

Petro Dollar

Monopoly

Monopolies


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Canada Reaches Peak Oil In 2020

Behind the rosy glasses and good news, tinkling of champagne glasses, report of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, touting the increased growth in the Tar Sands oil production, there lies the ominous Peak Oil prediction. Yep peak oil will begin in Alberta in 2020, about the time that Hubbert predicted. " production from conventional oil wells will decline by half by 2020, to only 550,000 barrels a day, CAPP predicts."

And Alberta is not the only region in Canada facing a decline in conventional gas and oil production. Canada's newest oil supply source, offshore production on the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, is forecast to peak at 320,000 barrels per day in 2010 then sink by 50 per cent to 160,000 barrels daily in 2020. Slow exploration, poor drilling luck, forbidding environmental conditions and political disputes over resource ownership and revenues are expected to stall development.

So while CAPP predicts Tar Sands production will replace conventional production, that still does not mean that Peak Oil conditions will be allievated in 2020. Rather they are betting that Tar Sands production will meet world demand, however they fail to consider that their predictions are based on current world demand, not on the inevitable; increasing demand. And again they gloss over the more serious issue, our conventional oil and gas reserves are on decline. Period.



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Technocracy Inc. Predicted Oil Crisis Over 50 years ago

I thought I would re-post this article here, as it is buried deep in my RedBetweenTheLines blog at Modblog. And given how often Modblog fails, which is why I no longer post there, I thought I would republish it here. Just in case it disappeared into the cyberabyss. And it is still relevant since it was published in January 2005. Wow way back then.

Recently a discussion on M.K.Hubbert arose on the marxism discussion list. This in itself was rather surprizing since Hubbert is a technocrat, and Technocracy Inc. is usually dismissed by the left as being some utopian scheme, or some kind of strange sect or cult. They were the original scientists and engineers for social responsibility, and being ahead of their time their theories appear to read like science fiction.

Hubbert is a favorite reference for my uncle, John Gregory, a professional engineer and geologist who worked for the National Research Council of Canada and is a long time member of Technocracy Inc here in Edmonton. As a social democratic technocrat living in the energy capital of Canada, his promotion of Hubberts therom was downright heresy. I grew up with a political understanding of technocracy as a progressive movement thanks to my uncle. Technocrats in Edmonton have always been activists appearing at all the progressive rallies and forums promoting their form of planned industrial/energy economy.

M. K. Hubbert predicated the Oil Crisis of 1972, waaaay back in the Fifties. He predicts that we will face a further oil crisis in the early part of this Century as reserve stocks decline along with increased demand.
Hubbert was dismissed at the time as a technocrat and his work is still villified in some circles today.Hubbert's work however has gained further legitimacy as oil prices have rocketed, and the Imperialist oil wars have drawn attention to this ongoing crisis.

Hubberts solution to this crisis was his theory of steady state economics. What was once thought of as crackpot theories of Technocracy, Hubbert has gained with new respect for his predictive analysis. Especially now that the impact of oil culture on the biosphere has been documented. Hubbert had already predicted that increasing reliance on oil would lead to an evironmental crisis in 1974.

Before dismissing Technocracy, one should review their work on economics needing to be energy based, actual credits based on the total value of physical energy available in an industrialized society. Not wage based, in other words they call for abolishing the wage system! Technocracy opposes capitalisms m-c-m formula (money-capital-money, or as we would call it today the Casino Capitalism of the Stockmarket) they oppose this money economy or price economy as they call it and propose replacing it with an energy economy.

Technocracy is a left wing industrial/social planning model , once banned at the same time as other left wing groups in the US and Canada. They promoted the theories ofthe Icelandic/American socialist Thorstein Veblen, author of the Leisure Class which gave us the term 'conspicious consumption'. Spefically Technocracy was influenced by his work: The Engineers And The Price System, regarding the social responsibilities of Science and Engineering which were direclty linked to the radical workers movement of the 1920's. The opening chapter is about Sabotage in the work place, the workers dissastisfaction with work and their alienation in industrial societies.

Technocracy Inc. from its beginings had friendly relations with the IWW, and was influenced by its unique form of North American syndicalism. Howard Scott was a friend of IWW General Secretary Vincent St. John, who got him to write articles for the union. Like other brain workers Technocrats viewed themsleves as workers, not a professional managment class as scientists and engineers have become today.

Unfortunately like left wing ideas of workers control, or self management which have been recuperated by capitalism and its managment theorists, technocracy and the term technocrat have been used as a prejorative for years. The reality is that technocrats are not just social engineers but socialist engineers, and an open organization to everyone, except politicians. Why thats downright anarchist of them.

Which may explain why politicians use technocrat as prejorative, they don't like being left out of anything.

Modblog stories on Peak Oil

Le Revue Gauch stories:

Thorstein Veblen

Technocracy

Peak Oil



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Another Free Trade Deal

I must have been sleeping through these talks....but note why they take on importance now...more open markets to importing not just goods and capital, but skilled labour into the Tar Sands.

Canada and South Korea are in the midst of negotiating a free trade agreement and have just wrapped up the fifth round of bilateral talks aimed at signing a comprehensive deal by the end of 2006.South Korea is interested in expanding its presence in the Canadian oilpatch and the country's state oil firm, Korea National Oil Corp., will be opening an office in Calgary. The country is also interested in providing skilled labour

Time for Alberta's unions to begin to organize their own globalization campaign by working with unions in Korea, the Phillipines and Venezuala and anywhere else that the capitalists are planning to import temporary labour from.
Also See Waugh


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