With the World Cup games on the TV every two hours 24/7 I have had the opportunity to watch more soccer (or football if you are a purist) than I have seen in my lifetime. I even think I am beginning to understand the game a little more each match that I watch. And as I caught on to the strategy and execution of the game I started to compare my favorite sport, which is baseball, to this game loved by so many around the world. To begin with the fields of play are not much different in terms of sq footage if you consider not only the diamond size in baseball, but also the foul ball territory. What makes it somewhat more challenging in baseball is that no two baseball parks are exactly the same size and visiting teams must adapt to new surroundings at every game played away from their home park. Next, the main objective in soccer is to score a goal and in baseball it is to score a run. The difference between the sports is that soccer requires that you kick the ball past the goaltender and into a large net while baseball requires that a runner crosses home plate. Of course in bb this may be executed in over 2 dozen different ways whereas in soccer it is pretty much straightforward that you kick or head the ball into the net. Obviously baseball requires many more defensive measures and somewhat more cerebral activity. The main skills in soccer require you to be able to run while in control of a round ball, to be able to kick this ball in a certain direction and to be able to bounce it off your head also to a predetermined area. Generally the defensive and offensive players are confined to their specific roles and are only involved in the play when the ball enters their territory. In bb every player changes from defence to offence at a minimum of 8 times a game. The number of play possibilities that each player must know and react to in baseball are significantly higher than in soccer so once again the knowledge required to play the game is much more in bb. In soccer there are 3 officials, 2 linesmen and one referee who makes all of the calls except offsides and out of bounds. In baseball there are a minimum of 4 umpires that have the authority to make most calls on their own. They also deal with improper behaviour but do not publicize the act (yellow & red cards) until the player is ejected from the game. In soccer the game is over when the time runs out regardless if the score is tied or not. In bb the game continues until someone wins and someone loses. Baseball players play almost everyday during the season whereby soccer players play maybe 2 or 3 times a week tops. It is commonplace to see soccer players taking a dive and rolling around on the field screaming in pain where in baseball when a player is hit with a hard ball traveling at 90 miles an hour he rarely shows any emotion as he trots down to 1st base. In baseball there may be over a dozen potential plays a player could make when a ball is hit to him whereby in soccer you pretty much kick the ball to a teammate, out of bounds or down the field... period. Finally, it is rare to see fans of baseball riot or commit heinous acts of violence after their teams win or lose but not so with soccer. Hooligans, as they call them overseas, prevail at most soccer games and can cause many injuries as well as a lot of property damage. Overall I think I've shown why baseball is a much more athletic game that requires as much brain power as it does physical prowess. Anybody choose to differ?

In My Hand I Hold A Ball,
White And Dimpled, Rather Small.
Oh, How Bland It Does Appear,
This Harmless Looking Little Sphere.

By Its Size I Could Not Guess,
The Awesome Strength It Does Possess.
But Since I Fell Beneath Its Spell,
I've Wandered Through The Fires Of Hell.

My Life Has Not Been Quite The Same,
Since I Chose To Play This Stupid Game.
It Rules My Mind For Hours On End,
A Fortune It Has Made Me Spend.

It Has Made Me Yell, Curse And Cry,
I Hate Myself And Want To Die.
It Promises A Thing Called Par,
If I Can Hit It Straight And Far.

To Master Such A Tiny Ball,
Should Not Be Very Hard At All.
But My Desires The Ball Refuses,
And Does Exactly As It Chooses.

It Hooks And Slices, Dribbles And Dies,
And Even Disappears Before My Eyes.
Often It Will Have A Whim,
To Hit A Tree Or Take A Swim..

With Miles Of Grass On Which To Land,
It Finds A Tiny Patch Of Sand.
Then Has Me Offering Up My Soul,
If Only It Would Find The Hole.

It's Made Me Whimper Like A Pup,
And Swear That I Will Give It Up.
And Take To Drink To Ease My Sorrow,
But The Ball Knows ... I'll Be Back Tomorrow.

Yesterday I was called upon to take my grandsons to school in the morning because their parents had to go into work early that day. I do this from time to time and I try and arrive at their house around 7AM so they can "hit the road" on their long journey to the work place. I then sit at the table and have a coffee and a couple of pieces of toast while the two boys (7 & 5) eat their breakfast. During the meal I hear quite a bit about their latest exploits and a description of some of their latest toys. Usually the older grandson and I finish eating much earlier than the little guy so we go into the living room to watch TV while we wait for #2 grandson to finish his breakfast. Now to really understand this special moment you have to know a little about #2 as he is somewhat unique in both his culinary habits and his personal hygiene. While he most times holds his own with his older brother and can rough house with the best of them he also is very particular about his food and his cleanliness. For breakfast he usually has a banana and a bowl of cereal which can take him up to 1/2 hour to consume as he chews each and every bite thoroughly. He rarely finishes his cereal ( I think because his jaws get tired) so he checks with me to see if he has eaten enough. My standard answer is usually "just two more spoonfuls" and funny enough he downs these in 2 seconds. Next he heads to the washroom where he gets out his stool and stands over the basin to carefully wash his hands. Hopefully you now get the idea about his meticulous habits so you can understand a little more about the special moment I encountered this Wednesday morning. As we often do the boys and I went downstairs to their play room where they had a raucous battle of Go-Go's which are little figures that are flicked back and forth to eliminate each others men. After 30 minutes it was time to get them shoed and jacketed for the trip to school so we climbed up to the main floor. All of a sudden #2 headed directly upstairs to his bedroom (I thought) as #1 and I headed for the door. All of a sudden I hear, "Grampa I need you". I thought oh oh, somethings not right so I hustled up the stairs and as I reached the top step I looked straight ahead into the bathroom and there was my little man with his pants at his ankles and his bare bum staring me in the face. He was bent over in a "mooning" position with his head turned towards me and he said and I quote" Grampa I couldn't get it all out so can you help me?". I was almost ready to break up but I thought that he would not appreciate that reaction so I held my cool and proceeded to help him out which by the way was to wipe absolutely nothing off his backside. Regardless this seemed to do the trick so he said "thank you Grampa and then pulled up his drawers and we headed downstairs. After dropping the kids off at school I sat in my truck and laughed for 10 minutes as I thought to myself, "he'll never believe me when I tell him about this at 16 or maybe 20. What was even better was when he thanked me for rescuing him he smiled and I can still see that wide grin and the twinkle of those beautiful blue eyes. He is such a darling and this event will definitely be filed in my "special moments" folder to refer to in years to come. You see Grampas do come in handy once in awhile.

When you were a teenager I bet you heard from your parents this famous phrase, "While you are living in my house and I am taking care of you my rules must be followed." And rightly so because you are not an adult, have little to no experience, no money and no job to earn a living. And yet when you become an adult, begin attaining experience, have a job and can support yourself why do you want to turn over your freedom to a "mother" state? Before you pooh pooh this statement let's think about how you have done this over the past 100 years. Old Age Pension was the first major program sponsored by the Government in which they required you and your employer to pay into a fund which would provide you with some funds when you hit 65. Next came the Canada Pension Plan that also required you to pay into a fund to reap some benefits when you hit retirement age. I would suggest to you that if you took this same money and put it into a private plan you would be reaping much better benefits than the few hundred dollars a month that the government sends people. It is impossible for anyone to live on this paltry amount but you had no choice and as any insurance or investing scheme would do the government itself invested this money. Now because its government I can't tell you that they made a lot of interest on it but the point is that they made the rule and you had to abide by it. Next is the Health Care Plan that everyone raves about until they need it, particularly at an older age and they find out you are bound by many rules and really have little or no choices (loss of freedom). If you want to choose a doctor forget it, there is a massive shortage of doctors (government created) and you are lucky to find one (Almost 3 million people are without doctors). Because of socialized medicine many laws have also been incorporated purporting that it is for your own good. While it may be the case, you have still lost the choice for instance, to smoke inside everywhere except in your own house. This is because you may get cancer and the Social Health Care system will be burdened with the cost of caring for you. The law regarding seatbelts and motorcycle helmets are in place for the same reason. At one point in time you were free to smoke, drive without seatbelts and go helmetless on a Harley because it didn't infringe on anyone else's freedoms. The smoking ban has gotten so ridiculous in Ontario that you can't even see the products on the store shelves because of government infringements on our rights. Remember I'm not arguing the merits of doing any of these things I am explaining that you have lost the freedom to do so even if you chose to. Because it is very costly to administer all of the many laws that are "for your own good" the government then needed money so they legalized theft. To do this they created taxes. Now look at this in a simple manner. If a man came into your house with a gun and took your money that would be theft. This is what the government does without the gun (they call it the tax code) but it is still theft. The freedom to keep the money you earned has been lost and if you try and retain any more than they say you will quickly be put in jail. The worst part of this "Nanny State" is that it creates more and more "adult kids" that need to be taken care of by the government. Sooner or later when a larger portion of the population become dependants rather than suppliers of tax revenue guess what will happen?

The key difference between Canada, Europe and the United States are the principles their respective nations follow in order to manage their society. Canada and Europe, while starting with “Individualism” in the 1800’s have evolved into a form of “Collectivism” over the past 200 years. The USA has remained steadfast in its belief in “Individualism” but with the latest left wing regime now in power it appears they are joining the rest of the world in the belief that the “group” is more important than the individual. Let’s look at the differences. If society embraces the individual, a person can enjoy the widest range of freedoms and decision making power over their own lives with very little interference from their government or anyone else for that matter. The government’s purpose is 1) to establish and maintain common sense laws that allow a society to function and 2) to protect its citizens from foreign invaders. In this type of environment every citizen has the right and freedom to pursue their goals in life and to capture every opportunity they choose. However, with this freedom comes responsibility and accountability for one’s own actions. It also leaves the onus on each citizen to provide for themselves and not to be dependent on their neighbour. A sense of morality borne in this type of society also creates the will for charity to help those not as fortunate.
Collectivism on the other hand chooses to see the group as the most important part of society and therefore restricts the decision making venue of the individual to minor issues of less importance while the government or head of the Collective makes the important decisions for everyone. The most relevant examples in today’s environment are the Unions and the recent Communist regime in Russia. In the Union philosophy the brotherhood (or Sisterhood if applicable) determines what wages and benefits everyone gets and no member can expect any more for their efforts whether they work harder or do less than their peers. The rules they live by are those directed by the union “bosses” who under the guise of democracy rule their minions with an iron fist. Anyone who has belonged to a union knows what I mean. The Collective thinking governments are worse because the elites actually make decisions that affect not only your working day but every aspect of life itself. They dictate what you can see, what you can eat, what you can read, what you can say and how you can protect and provide for your family. In Ontario for instance I will provide a small list of some of the things that either the Federal or Provincial government controls:
1) Soon you will not be able to purchase cola, soda pop or bottled water in public places.
2) You are not allowed to see tobacco products on the shelves of any store
3) You cannot purchase liquor or beer from anywhere but a government sanctioned outlet
4) You cannot hunt, fish or drive without paying a fee
5) You cannot get a second opinion on health matters unless you go out of the Country because the government makes it impractical to do so.
6) You cannot in Canada choose when or where you get critical medical treatment and yet if you go outside the Country the government will not cover the entire cost.
7) Because the government pushes political correctness all people in airports must be searched and detained regardless of age or nationality
8) Government censors screen movies, TV programs and books to remove any objectionable (to whom?) material.
9) The Human Rights collective doesn’t allow you to say certain things if they are deemed (by whom? to be hateful or discriminatory.
10) You are not allowed easy access to a weapon to protect yourself or your family even if your life could be in danger
I could go on but you get the point. All of these things are argued to be necessary for the greater good of the group so we must of course relinquish some personal freedoms. And of course there needs to be a bureaucracy set up to administer each and everyone one of these control mechanisms.Obviously then the government needs money so we are taxed on everything we earn,do or buy until we die. At this point you are still not clear because you must pay inheritance tax. I hate collectivism but it appears, in Canada at least, there are more people that want to be taken care of from cradle to grave and who are ready to give up their rights and freedoms to be wards of the State. Achtung!!!

Based on Jack’s crimes over the last 24 hrs of the series “24” he should have been shot dead and thus taken the pressure off all of the Liberal minded folks who hated him and everything he stood for. You see he was the macho American hero who singlehandedly takes on anyone and everyone while saving the USA and possibly the world in one day. He uses all kinds of weapons including very sophisticated guns while he defends his country against the most evil of tyrants and their minions. The man can also take punishment as he is constantly tortured and subjected to beatings of all sorts and yet he responds when needed to capture or eliminate his enemies. Of course he can also mete out pain and agony as he tortures key terrorists in the quest for valuable information which is required to save humanity. These particular acts drive Liberals nuts because it offends their sensibilities and upsets their kindness meter. They don’t believe in subjecting any terrorist to torture regardless of how many innocent lives would be saved by extracting information from these animals who kill babies with no remorse. Jack also takes shortcuts around rules and regulations in order to complete his missions using his friends and allies inside and outside of the intelligence community. He is a loner who never is able to establish a meaningful relationship without something popping up and putting the kibosh on the affair. Over the past 9 years several of his love interests have actually died along with many of his close friends and compatriots but Jack somehow manages to trudge onward. Let’s face it Jack is a hero and we all need heroes. He is principled and passionate about his job and his Country and is willing to give all to defend it to the death. He is the good guy who kicks the butts of the bad guys and always saves the day when the show ends. Today there are very few heroes on TV anymore because it isn’t fashionable. Reality” shows are the brand today along with forensic experts that can analyze dirt to get evidence that can be used to track down the culprits. It’s too bad that Jack is going off the air but if so “Why didn’t he go out in a blaze of gunfire? I know I know there is going to be a movie but it just isn’t right. Jack owes us a hero’s death fighting to the last minute with an assault rifle as bullets tear into his chest and he falls to the earth after killing the major domo of the “Bad Guys Inc.” Long Live Jack!

It never ceases to amaze me how a woman can walk into a room, talk to two people, walk out after 15 minutes and relate the entire wardrobe of each person and the specific decor of the room she was just in. A man doing the same thing would walk out and say something like,"What was her name again?". I have been with my wife on many occasions where we have visited friends and she has commented on their new furniture or room accessories and I cannot draw up a single memory of anything new or old based on our recent encounter. I suppose it has something to do with instincts and focussing on the things you enjoy but then how do you explain a woman remembering what another woman wore to a function over a year ago. I have seen this happen time and time again without any hesitation and it is usually two women talking about another. Now some would say that men only get focussed on something sexual such as a naked woman for instance. But I don't think so, they may focus instantaneously on a breast or a body but if you ask them to remember anything about it 5 minutes later you will find they remember nothing specific because in the end they all look pretty much the same. Now talk about a car and you may find that a man can relate not only colour and model but also tire size, engine displacement, horsepower rating, gas mileage, interior accessories along with pricing and upgrades. Do you see the difference? A car is an inanimate object whereby a women's clothes, her jewelry and her interior design reflect her taste and to a certain extent her personality and these are all things women love to scrutinize. It is a personal thing with women as they try to draw comparisons to a rival's choices and their own (which by the way are always the right ones). Perhaps it is a certain feeling of inadequacy that bares the fangs and curls the claws I don't know but I sure do know that Inspector Clouseau could take a few lessons on observation from the members of female gender. I figure I better stop now before I get myself into further trouble.

In the retail world in order to establish conformity, fairness and to eliminate favouritism our society has demanded that a strict adherance to rules and policies must be followed without fail. Individual decision making by employees for instance is frowned upon by all large Companies and if you consider the litigious times we live in you can certainly understand why. But it also leads to some very stupid acts which can be humorous but also very frustrating. For instance the other day I was in a "Canadian Tire Store" and I needed to purchase a 6" piece of 1/4" rubber gas line hose. I went to the parts counter and the gentleman there brought out the exact piece I needed and proceeded to write up a bill with the part number and price required to get through the cashiers station. When I arrived there the young lady looked at the bill and proceeded to tell me she couldn't ring this purchase through because they are not set up to handle this size of order. You see the hose was 6" and the hose was only sold in feet at a price of $1.99 a ft. She proceeded to tell me that she also worked at the parts counter and the gentleman should have known better. At this point she stood quietly thinking about how she could handle this situation. As she pondered I stood quietly with my toonie in hand calmly waiting to settle up. Finally she picked up her mike and paged for the Manager. While waiting I suggested she wait on the people behind me in line as I wasn't in a hurry. The Manager finally showed up and as she explained the situation to him, taking time to berate the parts counter clerk, as he stood back and smiled at me. When she stopped talking he said in a soft voice, "Go ahead and ring it through". She again asked if he was authorizing this transaction and he repeated , "Go ahead and ring it through." Mumbling away she proceeded to check me out while collecting my dollar and 13 cents. I had to laugh because she had been trained so thoroughly that she put aside customer service, good customer relations and had badmouthed a fellow employee all in the name of following policy over a $1.13 item.
A worse example was the young Canadian reservist who was called to duty this month and was preparing to ship out to Afghanistan next week. He had recently signed up for a 3 year mobile phone account with Roger's, the media giant. When he called to put his account on hold he was told this would not be possible because of their "policy" and even though he explained his situation the Roger's rep would not relent so his Dad went to the newspapers who immediately ran his story. Well we all know what happened as Roger's quickly amended their policy for these types of customers but unfortunately not before a public scolding over their thoughtlessness. It seems to me that giving employees a little leeway to think through these type of situations would save a lot of problems and lower public relations gaffes tremendously. I still believe people will make the right decision 9 times out of 10 if they learn to utilize their own thought process and logic. Unfortunately dumbing down seems to be the order of the day and there isn't much hope in stemming the tide. I'm sure that if the cash register told the clerk to give me $100 change for a $10 transaction they would do it without a hitch because their minds have been switched off only to utter the words "Hi how are you? Did you find everything you need? Have a great day!

Recently I met a very unique person which is rare in this day and age of conformity and "follow the celebrity" mentality. I found her when I was cruising the net looking for a rescue dog to replace our beloved Doby that passed away some months ago. We felt that we had owned a dog every day of our marriage and now was not the time to stop regardless of age or because of lifestyle changes. In any event I made an appointment to see a specific dog at her indicated place of business/residence and when we arrived I found that it was a farm with a house up by the road and a couple of barn like structures about 300 or 400 yards deeper into the property. As we got out of our vehicle we were met by this young lady with streaks of red mixed into her black curly hair. After introductions she proceeded to ask us many questions about our previous animals and why were we looking for the specific type of dog I had identified. I must mention here, that I had to fill out a two page application before we could even get an appointment to see the dog. Once inside the pen at the back of the barn she introduced us to the young beagle we wanted to see and left us to check out the dog while she spoke to another prospective family looking to adopt. Once we had spent some time with the dog and felt that she was the one we wanted to take home we were told that we must wait 24 hrs before this could happen. This was a "cooling off" period to allow us to think over our decision to be sure we had made the right choice. Once this time period had passed we returned to pick up the dog and were presented with a contract to read and sign before the transfer could take place. The contract indicated that we must provide the necessities of life for the animal, agree to care for the animal in a non abusive manner, return the dog to the camp if we no longer could care for it and many other things to ensure the dog would enjoy a good life. A specific diet was recommended and several other support mechanisms provided to assist in rearing the dog properly. Also there was a provision in the contract that would allow her to see the dog once after a 30 day period and also permit her to check in on the dog at any other time in the future. Once the contract process was completed we provided her with a cheque (non-refundable donation) which was to cover the vaccinations and neutering of the dog. The amount wouldn't come close to the cost of having a vet complete these things if you had to do it yourself. We also purchased some food and treats for the dog ( which she makes herself and sells to raise money for the dog's care) I would estimate that there were at least 30 to 40 dogs on site when we visited and several of these animals were living in her house up by the road, some in cages in the basement and others roaming around freely. It was obvious that this woman has completely dedicated herself to the care of dogs that no one wanted. She also saves them from euthanisation as she provides a transition home to these animals until they find new families. She is opinioniated, a little bossy and firing on all cylinders most of the time but has a heart of gold and although she can empathize with pet owners it is never to the detriment of the animal. Like her or not she is a gem in a world of takers. She is a giver who has dedicated herself to saving the lives of dogs that would otherwise be put down. She has many volunteers that help raise money for her farm but it is a never ending job to keep the facility up and running. I never put names on my blog but if you want some information about this truly remarkable woman send me an email and I will provide her website. (daveim@rogers.com)

Take a close look at what's happening in Europe and then tell me I'm wrong about Public Service Unions and the need to modify labour laws to limit their power or outlaw them altogether. Every European Country espoused the same type of "Social Welfare" state as Greece and each of them are in the same position although some are not yet bankrupt like Greece albeit not too far away. In each of these Countries the employees in the public sector earned better wages than those in the private sector as well as receiving benefits far and away above anything seen in the latter. So now the "all giving and all benevolent governments" of Europe are realizing they have to stop this foolishness and of course what happens?? There are riots in the streets with acts of violence that rival any other public outburst seen in the 20th century and why do you ask? Because these folks don't care if their Country is bankrupt they want their full retirement benefits at age 51 and their cradle to grave health and welfare benefits. They want their wages to remain in the top quartile of all citizens and every perk in their lucrative contracts to be honoured regardless of cost. Some say that its the bankers fault because of the sub prime rate fiasco but they fail to recognize that this didn't happen just over the past two years. Oh no, Greece has been in trouble for over two decades but decided to turn a blind eye to their ever increasing deficit. They continued to give the store away to the unions without the least concern about the burdensome debt that was crushing their economy. They just borrowed and borrowed until the numbers overwhelmed them and left them no choice. Now they want to sue the US over the bad securities that cost them a bundle but this is just another socialist tactic ie "blame someone else" and relinquish responsibility. Now take a look at Canada and the USA and see if you can spot any similarities. Both of the public sector workers in each country earn more per year on average than do those in the private sector. The strongest and richest pension plans are those in the public sector which of course are funded by the taxpayers who themselves do not have access to any of these golden plans. The deficits in each Country have increased but the USA's has skyrocketed into the stratoshpere as have most of their individual states. One of the anchors around each of their necks are the expensive costs of the public sector in each government. Canada is not as bad as the USA because of Paul Martin's attention to the deficit when he was Finance Minister (even as the economy was good) throughout the last half of the nineties and the 1st half of this current decade. Unfortunately I can see some of the individual states (California 1st) going the route of Greece and I suspect you will see the same reaction from the left wing as they march through the streets with a vengeance. If the US Federal government fails financially or gets someone on board that will legitimately cut costs rather than raise taxes then hold on to your hats as the Liberal fanatics will come out from under the rocks to raise chaos. Canada of course cannot sustain a reasonable economy without US trade and will more than likely follow suit. My point here is that once the going gets tough the folks that don't realize what fiscal responsibility means will be the ones on the street crying about their undeserved rich programs that have been footed by the taxpayer for far too long.