Monday Thoughts

Quick thoughts on the start of this new week:

• Don Wittman was a great broadcaster. He will be missed by all Canadian sports fans.
• I'm getting really tired of the debate over hand guns and Toronto. Of course they should be banned. Will it change anything? Probably not. It's like the ban on heroin. It doesn't stop heroin but it does make it a little harder to access.
• Good editorial from the Star today about racially divided scholing. I agree. It's a desperate idea and not a good one. We absolutely have a major problem. Segregation is definitely not the answer.
  
• Brady plays badly and the Pats still win? I give you your Super Bowl Champs. It will be a game but Brady has had his one bad game. He's not going to miss against the Giants.
• A huge win for Eli and the boys up at Lambeau field. Winning on the frozen tundra in January is no easy feat. Their reward? See above.
• The right is reorganizing itself again in Alberta. Not an issue in the next election I wouldn't think. However, if Stelmach continues to bleed support, we could see this new Wildrose Alliance Party making a play. Kind of like the Québec Solidaire. Could be something, but isn't quite there yet. I'm sure that comparison would make members of both parties shudder.
• I disagree with Cherniak on local nominations. Yes, instant members are not reliable partisans. However, the ability to sign up instant members and get them to vote for you at a nomination is a good facsimile of a candidate's ability to recruit volunteers and voters. Much like university skills are not horribly relevant in most work places but are still a valuable asset, nomination skills, while not directly transferable, are a good predictor of success. Also, appointing candidates gives your opponents a free cheap shot. "My opponent? She's the Ottawa choice. I am the local here." Does a leader have the right to appoint? Sure. Should he (or she)? No.
  
• We are rapidly approaching 4,000 dead Americans in Iraq. The deaths on September 11th were just under 3,000. The two events are not all that related but it does give you a sense of scale.
• This is folly. There simply is not sufficient transit to try to force people out of their cars. Get on the TTC in rush hour. There isn't much room left. We need more public transit infrastructure before we start imposing tolls.