Ken Dryden Was Hockey's Renaissance Man

 

I just learned that Ken Dryden passed away yesterday of cancer at the age of 78. 

Dryden was first and foremost a hockey player and not just any hockey player. He was among the greatest goalies to ever take the ice.

In an 8-year career with the Montreal Canadiens, Dryden was part of six Stanley Cup winning teams earning five Vezina Trophies as the best goaltender in the league before retiring at the age of 31.  

During his hockey career, Dryden attended law school at McGill University even sitting out a season to article at the prestigious Canadian law firm of Osler Hoskin & Harcourt.

After ending his time on the ice, Dryden wrote 9 books (most notably The Game which was an account of his final NHL season in 1978-1979). Dryden would also serve as a color commentator (including for the Miracle on Ice game during the 1980 Winter Olympics with Al Michaels), as President of the Toronto Maple Leafs before running for the House of Commons and serving in Paul Martin's Liberal government as Minister of Social Development. After the Liberals lost power, Dryden attempted to run for the party leadership but fell well short in a rare setback. Following politics, Dryden would return to McGill to teach at its Institute for the Study of Canada and continued to write books and articles even appearing in The Atlantic.

Ken Dryden was truly hockey's Renaissance man. R.I.P.

Trump's DoJ Mulling Gun Ownership Restrictions Against Transgendered Persons

In my piece yesterday on President Trump's attempt to revert the Department of Defense back to the Department of War, I made the case the Department of War would be going to war against Americans by, among other things, targeting people President Trump dislikes such as transgendered persons.

From ABC News:

Senior Justice Department officials have held internal deliberations in recent days over potentially issuing a rule that could restrict transgender individuals from being able to own firearms, two officials familiar with the discussions confirmed Thursday to ABC News.

The policy discussions, which are believed to be in their early stages and driven in part by chatter in right-wing media, follow last week's Minneapolis Catholic church shooting that the FBI has said was carried out by a transgendered woman.

Of course, the murder and mayhem which took place at the Anunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis last month is appalling. Frankly, this is a discussion which should have never happened at DoJ. But now that it has happened, now is the time to stop such foolishness and mischief.

For starters, this is flagrantly unconstitutional. The Second Amendment does not read "the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed unless it is transgendered persons or any other groups President Trump and MAGA dislike."

Instead of discussing gun control measures which would apply to all Americans, the Trump Administration is using the tragedy as a cudgel against transgendered persons. 

But let us suppose the Trump Administration was serious about restricting firearms ownership then what better place to start than with white supremacists. Indeed, white supremacists have been responsible for numerous mass shootings in this country - the Sikh Temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin in 2012, the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh in 2018, the Walmart in El Paso, Texas in 2019 and the Tops grocery store in Buffalo in 2022 among others.

And undoubtedly it will happen again.

When it does, do you honestly believe for a moment that the Trump DoJ would give a moment's thought to restricting the gun rights of white supremacists?

Not on your life. Indeed, white supremacists are a core part of the Trump/MAGA constituency. 

So why are transgender persons being singled out? Well, I mean beyond the fact that the Trump and MAGA hate transgendered people. 

Then again there probably is no other reason.

Trump's War Department Will Wage War Against Americans

That President Trump would rename the Department of Defense as the Department of War is on brand. As Trump remarked at a White House event last month:

It used to be called the Department of War and it had a stronger sound. And as you know, we won World War I, we won World War II. We won everything. Now we have a Department of Defense with defenders.

Yes, defending things such as the U.S. Constitution which get in Trump's way.

However, Trump's repeated proclamation of "no new wars" seems to fly in the face of reestablishing a Department of War. Unless, of course, the Department of War's aim and objective is to wage war against Americans be it sending troops into cities with Democratic mayors as he has done with the National Guard in Washington, D.C. and is threatening to do in Baltimore, Chicago and now New Orleans.

The Department of War would likely also wage war against groups that President Trump doesn't like such as transgendered persons with the DoJ now planning to place restrictions on transgender persons owning guns. Perhaps federal troops would enforce these new rules. In other words, the Second Amendment for me but not for thee or, in this case, they.

The Department of War might very well be called upon to assist ICE with deporting non-citizens or at the very least people who look like non-citizens. 

The Department of War might very well be called upon to quell dissent by people who dare to publicly disagree with President Trump and his policies. In which case, this quelling would involve our military murdering American citizens much like a military junta in Africa, Asia or South America. 

All of which would be done in the service of worshipping a false G-d. But this is what happens when we choose Trump over America. Trump declares war on America and everything for which it once stood.

Chris Martin Cruelly Coldplays Two Israeli Fans at Concert in London

 

For the second time this summer, Coldplay's Chris Martin has been part of a viral video.

Of course, the first viral video took place in July at Gillette Stadium outside of Boston when the kiss cam caught two people who ought not have been embracing. The video took on a life of its own. 

Whereas Martin's role in the kiss cam video was inadvertent and passive, the same cannot be said concerning what happened at Coldplay's concert at Wembley Stadium in London on August 31st. 

Martin brought two female fans onstage and asked them where they called home. When the ladies said they were from Israel, they were met with boos and jeers along with some smattering of applause. Unfortunately, Martin made things much worse:

Okay, well listen—I’m very grateful that you’re here as humans, and I am treating you as equal humans on earth, regardless of where you come from or don’t come from. Although it’s controversial, maybe, I also want to welcome people in the audience from Palestine because… out of the belief that we’re all equal humans.

So, Martin could only bring himself to acknowledge the women as humans and not as Israelis and then moments later give a full throttled welcome to people in the audience from Palestine.  

I think it is worth reminding people that nearly a third of the people who were murdered by Hamas on October 7th were attending the Nova Music Festival. Does Martin consider these people to be sufficiently "human" to offer his sympathy?

I also think it is worth reminding people that Hamas took 44 concertgoers as hostages on October 7th and 14 of those people remain in captivity. Does Martin consider the remaining hostage sufficiently "human" to demand their release by Hamas?

It is worth noting that during a concert in San Francisco exactly three months earlier, Martin saw a Palestinian flag and said he was glad to see it although adding, “But just to be clear: We love all people from everywhere, so don’t put that out on the internet with some bull—, OK?”

When I see a Palestinian flag, I am not filled with gladness. When I see a Palestinian flag being held by someone chanting "from the river to the sea", I see someone who hates Jews and wishes us grievous harm.

Chris Martin might very well love all people from everywhere. But those who hold Palestinian flags and chant "from the river to the sea" are not only telling us they don't love Jews, but that they want us dead.

The Rockies Lost Their 100th Game Last Night But Only Need 3 More Wins to Avoid Baseball Ignobility

Last night, the Colorado Rockies lost their 100th game of the 2025 season in a game which will be remembered for a bench clearing brawl precipitated by San Francisco Giants first baseman Rafael Devers admiring his HR and having to wait nearly 10 minutes to run around the bases. 

The Rockies fell to the Giants 7-4 and now have their third consecutive season with 100 plus losses. 2025 will certainly represent their worst record in franchise history.

However, there is a small silver lining. At the All-Star Break, the Rockies were 22-74. Since the All-Star Break, the Rockies are 17-26.

Now 17-26 is generally not impressive unless we consider the fact the Rockies did not get their 17th win in 2025 until June 18th when they bested the Washington Nationals 3-1 for a season best 4-game winning streak. After beating the Nats that day, the Rockies stood at 17-57.

The Rockies have played respectably enough since the All-Star Break that they will likely avoid the fate of being worse than the 2024 Chicago White Sox who finished last season with modern MLB record of 121 losses. Colorado only needs to win 3 more games this season to evade baseball ignobility.

As of this writing, the Rockies have a 5-4 lead against the Giants in the top of the 6th having scored 4 runs in the bottom of the 5th. 

Oops!!! I may have spoken too soon. The Giants just took a 6-5 lead.

Well, to quote Yogi Berra, "It ain't over 'til it's over."

There Was a Time Not So Long Ago When Rudy Giuliani Would Have Been Worthy of the Presidential Medal of Freedom

Yesterday, President Trump announced he would bestow the Presidential Medal of Freedom upon former U.S. Attorney, New York City Mayor and his former errand boy Rudy Giuliani. 

The announcement came less than 48 hours after Giuliani had sustained injuries in a car accident in New Hampshire which resulted in a brief hospitalization. 

Regardless of the circumstances of Trump's announcement, Giuliani is unworthy of the honor. 

However, this wasn't always the case. There is no doubt Giuliani left New York City a better place than he found it over his two terms as Mayor. With the 24th anniversary of the September 11th attacks next week, Giuliani will be remembered for being a source of calm, eloquence and understanding in the days, weeks and months following the attack. 

Had either President Bush or President Obama saw fit to bestow Giuliani with the Presidential Medal of Freedom between 2002 and 2015, few would have objected.

But then Giuliani tethered himself to Trump being front and center in the attempt to pressure Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to open an investigation against then former Vice-President Joe Biden which ultimately led to Trump's first impeachment. Then came his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election which led to his disbarment in New York and D.C. as well as his defamation of two Georgia election poll workers who were ultimately able to bring a successful civil action. Rudy Giuliani went from being America's Mayor to Trump's Chump.

Of course, Trump is perfectly happy with such things even if he didn't pay Giuliani for his services. In which case, it could be said that Trump is bestowing Giuliani with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in lieu of payment. In which case, the award is fitting. But it is without honor.

Thoughts on the Anti-Semitic Stabbing Attack Against an Elderly Jewish Woman in Ottawa

Yesterday, while commenting on the worsening situation against the Jewish community in Boulder, Colorado in the months following the terrorist attack which claimed the life of one person while injuring 15 others, I briefly mentioned an incident which took place in Ottawa last week in which a Jewish woman was stabbed in broad daylight at a grocery store noting that it warranted further comment.

As some of you might know, I lived in Ottawa for nearly a decade and still have family in the area. Naturally, when something awful happens there such as the terrorist attack on Parliament Hill in 2014 or the 2022 trucker convoy it strikes a chord.

If there is one bit of solace I can take from this awful incident is that the woman will survive her injuries. However, there can be little doubt this woman will experience trauma going out in public for the rest of her life. She was accosted and attacked solely because she is a Jew.

And the "man" who attacked her is an unabashed anti-Semite characterizing Judaism as "the world's oldest cult." One can only hope he spends the rest of his miserable life in prison.

Yet there are many who feel as he does and undoubtedly approve of his actions. The question is how many will follow in his footsteps.

Although Prime Minister Mark Carney condemned the attack, former Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Michael Oren took Carney to task:

This is the same prime minister who has contributed to the sharp rise in antisemitism by denouncing Israel daily while rewarding Palestinian terror with recognized statehood. He fuels the fire then pledges to put it out.

Now one can reasonably argue that the perpetrator of this attack has likely harbored anti-Semitic views for decades. The difference now is that he felt emboldened to express them both verbally and subsequently through violence. At the very least, Carney's anti-Israel rhetoric did little to discourage the behavior of anti-Semites in Canada.

I'm no fan of Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre, but when the House of Commons resume sitting in a fortnight from now, I hope Poilievre pillories Carney over the incident, his anti-Israel sentiments and helping to inflame anti-Semitic sentiment in this country. Because anti-Semitism isn't going away anytime soon and someone has to hold Carney to account for its spread and his role in spreading it.