Redemption!

What joy! I had the opportunity to see the Oilers in action once again last night at the Joe. I was a little bit afraid that there would be a repeat of the last time the Oil were in town - well, with the huge loss leading to my crying and ending up in the fetal position at the end of the night. It sure seemed like this would be the case - only 8 minutes into the game the Red Wings were up by 2 goals!


But, Ryan Smyth, parked in his "office" in front of the net, got us within 1 before the first period ended!

In the second period, Raffi tied it up 2-2. But, the Wings put another past Roloson, so they took a 1 goal lead into the dressing room after two periods of play. Marty Reasoner tied it up for the Oilers in the third, and after resolving nothing in overtime, it went to a shoot-out. Smyth was the only one who scored in the shoot-out - the Oilers won! It was a fantastic game to attend.

My friends, Dan & Dustin, made the trip from Toronto to join me for this joyous occasion. We had a pass for the Olympia Club, so during the intermission we could bypass the long lines to urinate into a trough (not even kidding, this is what they have instead of urinals at the Joe) and relieve ourselves in the luxurious washrooms in the club. They even had a bathroom attendant offering towels, cologne, and an assortment of chewing gum; it was somewhat strange to encounter this at a hockey game.

It was a fun evening and I think this win will lead the Oilers into the playoffs!

"The Cooling World"

It is clear that human beings could reduce the pollution we create and do a better job sticking to the three r's (reduce, reuse, recycle). We should be better stewards of the earth God has given us.

However, most of the media, many polititians, and people like Al Gore and David Suzuki anger me. They have created an atmosphere of fear that has many people at the point of being unable to have a rational conversation.

The "science" supporting global warming, and the doomsday consequences purported by the above mentioned, may indeed be true. However, it is far from being fact. What angers me is that if you challenge the science, or more importantly, the intransigent political/social/economic agendas of these people, you are considered to be hateful, or uncaring, or selfish because you don't care about the environment. I care about the environment a great deal. We need to smarten up. But, to impose reactionary and drastic regulations (that could cripple the economy) based on unproven science, is irresponsible and simply stupid.

The magazine Newsweek published an article called "The Cooling World" on April 28, 1973. This article informs that scientists predict that the world is in the process of "global cooling" and that the consequences are going to be dramatic. The appeal to the authority of the "science" for global cooling then was as strong as it is now for global warming: "the evidence in support of these predictions has now begun to accumulate so massively that meteorologists are hardpressed to keep up with it...meteorologists disagree about the cause and extent of the cooling trend, as well as over its specific impact on local weather conditions, but they are almost unanimous in the view that the trend will reduce agricultural productivity for the rest of the century."

Only 34 years ago "science" supported the exact opposite theory (global cooling) as it does today (global warming). What if polititians, and others with an agenda, would have fear-mongered people to the same irrational place we seem to be today? What if polititians imposed regulations that could have crippled the economy back then to save the world from global cooling?

As I said, we need to be far more responsible with the environment. But, before we hit the panick button and potentially create many problems for ourselves, let us take a deep breath, engage in rational discussion, and address the issue responsibly. Thankth.