PONDERABLES
Will we ever again hear a politician answer a question with a simple “yes” or “no?”
Why do TV producers display graphics containing more information than we can possibly read in the time they’re on the screen?
How could anyone not like ABBA?
THINGS I FIRMLY BELIEVE
And speaking of ABBA, their bass player, Rutger Gunnarsson, who passed away in 2015, never got enough credit for his contribution to their success. Not only was his driving bass an integral element of their music, he was also a talented arranger and producer.
Political correctness is overrated.
A CAUTION FOR DOUG FORD
Ontario premier Doug Ford has surprised a lot of people with his straightforward and largely effective handling of the Covid-19 crisis. However, although there’s nothing inherently wrong with showing appreciation for federal government cooperation, his spurning of new federal Conservative leader Erin O’Toole and his cozying up to Justin Trudeau and Chrystia Freeland are steps down a very slippery slope for the leader of a Conservative party and government.
AND ONE FOR CHRYSTIA FREELAND
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland’s recent statement that “all Canadians understand that the restart of our economy needs to be green” was disappointingly hyperbolic from someone who’s appeal consists in large part of avoiding such sweeping generalizations. Whether rightly or wrongly, “All Canadians” most decidedly do not agree that the restart of the economy needs to be green.
A PRIME EXAMPLE OF “SYSTEMIC
“Systemic” is a word we hear and read a lot about these days. The classic definition of systemic is: Something that is spread throughout, affecting a group or system, such as a body, economy, market or society as a whole.
Ethics Commissioner Mario Dion has ruled that Trudeau’s former ambassador to the U.S., and longtime Liberal bigwig, David MacNaughton, violated section 33 of the conflict of interest act at least nine times by taking improper advantage of his position to lobby cabinet ministers and senior staff. Dion also ordered ministers Chrystia Freeland, Navdeep Bains and his chief of staff, Ryan Dunn, and Procurement Minister Antia Anand’s chief of staff, Leslie Church, not to have official dealings with MacNaughton for one year. All of these people, especially Freeland, knew, or should have known, that the law was being broken when they interacted with MacNaughton while he was pitching the services of his current company, US-based Palantir Technologies, to the government. Add these to Trudeau’s and former Finance Minister Bill Morneau’s violations and it’s obvious that the Liberal party has a systemic attitude that the conflict of interest rules don’t apply to them.
CANADA’S DEARTH OF STANLEY CUP WINNERS
At a family dinner last Sunday the subject of the ongoing dearth of Stanley Cup winners by Canadian NHL teams came up. There hasn’t been one since Montreal won in 1993, so it’s going to be a string of at least 28 years. This drought becomes even more inexplicable when you consider that Canadian teams won 8 out of 10 leading up to 1993. Currently, over 40% of NHL players are Canadian-born and over 70% came up through the Canadian major junior leagues, and these percentages were considerably higher during most of the dry spell. I certainly don’t know the answer, and for anyone who does there are seven NHL teams that will pay a pretty penny for it. (Thanks for the suggestion, Al; and also for last week’s baseball oddity.)
WELCOME BACK JEOPARDY
Being a long-time, dyed-in-the-wool Jeopardy fan, I’m thrilled that the program returned on Monday for its 37th season with Alex Trebek as host and a set redesigned to mitigate Covid-19 risks. The three contestant podiums are appropriately physically-distanced, there’s no studio audience, and Alex stayed a safe distance away when chatting with the contestants. That we didn’t see any shots of the judges or announcer Johnny Gilbert probably means that they’re working from home.
And speaking of Johnny Gilbert, he celebrated his 96th birthday on July 13th. He started out in the entertainment business as a nightclub singer but has been a game show announcer now for over seventy years. Gilbert’s body may be 96 years old, but his voice is only 25.
I mused recently that Ken Jennings being hired as a production consultant on the show may be a harbinger that he’s being groomed as Trebek’s successor. That he was used to introduce all the clues in a category this week is another strong indication that he is.