Mitch Melnick's Blog: February 2008

Friday February 15 8 PM

What a ridiculous week.

Ryan O'Byrne and Tom Kostopolous are arrested at a bar in Tampa. Nobody in Montreal really knows what happened. Yet we're supposed to believe they "sullied" the good name and reputation of the Montreal Canadiens and their fans. (Fake outrage & humiliation before proceeding.)

I love Chris Chelios. I'd rank him alongside Larry Robinson on my all- time Habs team. But he may have done more "damage" in a single hour circa 1987 than O'Byrne & Kostopolous could have possibly done in eight hours or so at and following the rookie dinner. Ditto for Shayne Corson. Mike Keane. Brian Skrudland. Guy Lafleur. John Ferguson. Want to hear that some of the best players of any given era were squeaky clean? Go read a fairy tale. The over-the-top reaction to the story will, in the end, likely far surpass the actual events of the night in question.

I have no clue what O'Byrne was thinking. Wait, scratch that. I'm a guy. I have some idea. What I'm more certain of is that Kostopolous, without getting physical with anybody, got himself arrested to make sure rookie O'Byrne didn't spend the night in jail by himself.

Kostopolous already made a name for himself-for all the wrong reasons-very early in the season when he had the audacity to cough up the puck in his own end which led directly to a Senators goal and victory in Ottawa. Reaction? You would have thought that he had impregnated Mitsou with the anti-Christ.

Slowly, Canadiens' fans have come to, if not fully appreciate the guy, understand why he's on the team. Hard work. Tireless. Selfless. Stands up for his team and teammates. Harder along the boards than Mike Johnson. Very limited ability but appreciated by the people who matter most.

So when Michel Beaudry decided to childlishy make fun of the winger on 110% he thought he was merely playing to the crowd. But the more sophisticated fan saw it for what it really was. Not necessarily a racist comment (loved that Friday on air apology to PJ Stock when Beaudry claimed he couldn't be racist because he "lives in (racially mixed) Brossard". Yes, but does he live next door to a non-white resident? Yeesh.) but a direct hit on an English guy who was playing at the expense of a French player (Steve Begin). Let's be honest about this. No way does Beaudry-or anybody on that panel-criticize a French player by poking fun at his name. No way. And if you believe otherwise you likely also believe Roger Clemens' denials of steroid use.

http://www.tqs.ca/videos/110/2008/02/debat-110----partie-2-24460.php

TQS is at least as much at fault as Beaudry. They hired him for a reason. 12 different guys yelling at each other was not enough. So they decided to hire somebody else who's NHL-knowledge expiration date coincided with the ousting of the Rejean Houle regime.

Beadry is to TQS what Rush Limbaugh was to NFL Today.

We received an enormous amount of e-mails as a result of what Beaudry said. Many from the Greek community. But an equal number came from French Montrealers who were also embarassed. Unfortunatley we also got a few from those who will always try to exploit a situation like this to try to paint all French citizens with the same xenophobic brush. Not fair.

Michel Beaudry is not a French Asshole. He's just an asshole.

.......................................................................................................................

Now that the Leafs have hit the rock bottom of the Eastern Confrence standings here's a mini "I told you so" from an early October post:

Tuesday, October 2, 2007

NHL East; Who's The Boss?
Tuesday October 2 10:22 PM (Bucky "Effin" Dent Day-no longer nearly as painful)Listening to "Magic" by Springsteen while wondering what Habs marketing genius Ray Lalonde has planned after placing billboards all over town of Maxim Lapierre, the 22 year old checking centerman who has a total of 47 games of NHL experience. Oops, now playing at an arena in Hamilton. What's next-television commercials featuring the key to the Habs blueline-Jean-Phillipe Cote?

Ok, here we go...drumroll please....how the NHL's Eastern Conference will wind up:
1. Ottawa: Spezza, Alfredsson & Heatley...who can possibly defeat me? (How about that 8th place team)
2. Pittsburgh: Crosby wins everything, including the Cup, then asks for trade to Montreal
3. Carolina: Back to top of Southeast but an early spring exit
4. NY Rangers: Sean Avery hosts season finale of SNL
5. Philadelphia: Paul Holmgren, Executive of the Year (By 2009 he'll look like an idiot)
6. Buffalo: Still stacked with talent; Tim Connelly is comeback player of the year
7. New Jersey: Brent Sutter takes them to the top...once they're in Newark
8. Montreal: Stop laughing; Carey Price makes the difference; all bets are off it's Huet
9. Florida: Olli Jokinen still looking for a playoff game
10.Washington: Olie Kolzig runs out of gas
11.Atlanta: Kovalchuk demands a trade by Christmas
12.NY Islanders: Di Pietro wins a Cup in 8th year of his contract
13.Tampa Bay: Tortorella finally fired; Feaster too
14. Boston:Next team for Claude Julien, the Leafs...
15. Toronto: Dysfunctional goofs would rather have John Ferguson Jr. than Scotty Bowman

Not bad, huh?

In addition to finding somebody to play alongside Saku Koivu & Chris Higgins Habs GM Bob Gainey has to be looking for some useful muscle. If not, by season's end Alex Kovalev will go from looking "sexy-ugly" (courtesy Andie Bennett) to just plain scary-ugly. Can former Hab Scott Thornton (LA Kings) still play?

Want to know more about the guy who made the biggest fool of himself this week on Capitol Hill in Washington? No, silly, not Roger Clemens. Indiana congressman Dan Burton, who seemed pained that Brian McNamee had previously lied to reporters and others about steroid use by Clemens and others he worked for.

"This is disgusting!", huffed Burton while questioning McNamee. "All lies!...the only thing I believe at this point is that I don't believe you!"

Here's the skinny on Mr. Burton, courtesy of Wikepedia:

Drug Warrior
In 1990, Burton introduced legislation that would require the death penalty for drug dealers. "We must educate our children about the dangers of drugs," Burton said, "and impose tough new penalties on dealers." In 1994, son Dan Burton, Jr. (Danny) was arrested while transporting nearly eight pounds of marijuana from Louisiana to Indiana. Just five months later, while awaiting trial in that case, police raided his Indianapolis apartment and Danny was arrested again for growing thirty marijuana plants. Police also found a shotgun in the apartment. Under federal law, Danny faced a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison just for the gun, plus up to three years in prison under state law for all the marijuana. Federal charges were never filed, and Indiana prosecutors got his charges dismissed. In Louisiana, he wound up receiving a mild sanction: a term of community service, probation and house arrest.[15][16]

[edit] Golf junkets
In 1997, Burton played in the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am with the AT&T's chairman. At the time, Burton headed the congressional committee overseeing the award of a federal telecommunications contract. AT&T hosted a fundraiser for Burton at the tournament.[17]
In 2004, the Guam government and tourism industry paid for Burton and two aides to fly to the Pacific Island in December. In addition to some official events including touring a military facility, Burton played in a charity golf tournament. After he returned, Burton tried to help Guam's tourism industry get a sought-after change in visa rules.[17]
In 2005, Burton accepted a trip to Taiwan paid for by the ROC-USA Business Council. The junket cost $15,520.[18]
Burton missed the beginning of the 2007 legislative session, choosing instead to play golf in California[19]. Upon his return, a measure banning lawmakers from accepting gifts and free trips from lobbyists and discounted trips on private planes was put before Congress. The measure passed 430-1, with Burton the sole vote against the measure.[20]

[edit] Missed votes
In February 2007, a review of House votes by the Indianapolis Star for the past decade showed that Burton had been absent every year votes coincided with the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic. Burton ranked last in voting among Indiana lawmakers in 2006, casting ballots in 89% of the 541 recorded votes.[17]

[edit] "... off the coast of Bolivia"
On March 29, 1995, during congressional hearings on the US War on Drugs, Burton proclaimed that the US military should place an aircraft carrier off the coast of Bolivia and crop dust the coca fields. It was later pointed out to him that a) Bolivia is landlocked and has no coast (Burton was chairman of the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee); b) the Bolivian coca fields (in the yungas and Amazon lowlands) are beyond the reach of any carrier-borne crop-duster, being separated from the nearest coastline (the Pacific coast of Peru and Chile) by the 20,000+ feet high peaks of the Andes; and c) F-18s cannot crop-dust. While criticism of this mis-statement was muted in Washington, it sparked a major anti-American backlash in Bolivia, derailing the same War on Drugs that Burton purported to be speaking for. [21] [22]

[edit] Investigation of Democratic Party fund-raising
Main article:House Government Reform and Oversight Committee investigation of alleged campaign finance abuse
In 1997, Burton headed an investigation into possible Democratic Party campaign finance abuse, focusing on the 1996 Presidential election. The committee investigation ran for several years and issued over 1,000 subpoenas of Clinton administration officials and cost over $7 million.[23]. The committee, and Burton's leadership, were labeled a "farce"[24], a "travesty"[25], a "parody"[25], and "its own cartoon, a joke, and a deserved embarrassment".[26]
In March 1997, as the investigation began, Burton was accused of demanding a $5,000 contribution from a Pakistani lobbyist. The lobbyist said that when he was unable to raise the funds, Burton complained to the Pakistani ambassador and threatened to make sure "none of his friends or colleagues" would meet with the lobbyist or his associates.[27]
In May 1998, Burton apologized for releasing edited transcripts of prison audiotapes of Webster Hubbell, a former associate of President Bill Clinton. The edited transcripts omitted substantial information and differed significantly from the original recordings. Burton was harshly criticized by members of his own party, including Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, who called the investigation a "circus", and chided Burton for initially refusing to admit any error.[28].
David Bossie, the staff member who arranged the editing and release of the tapes, resigned on Burton's request. Noting that Burton had personally released the tapes and had supported Bossie's plans over the objections of other committee staffers and attorneys, Democrats urged Burton to step down as well. Minority Leader Richard A. Gephardt said, "A committee staff member should not be made the scapegoat for Chairman Burton's mistakes, missteps, and misdeeds."[28] Burton said, "I take responsibility for those mistakes," but never resigned nor faced any consequences for his actions[28].
In President Clinton's final year in office, Burton was mentioned in a short film for the White House Correspondent's Dinner. President Clinton: Final Days, which depicted Clinton as a lonely man closing down a nearly-deserted White House. Clinton is shown hitting golf balls from the South Lawn, and gets excited when he hits a car parked in a spot near the U.S. Capitol that says "Reserved for Chairman Burton."

Insert laugh track here.

Until next week..in the meantime check out Dawn Tyler-Watson & Paul Deslauriers at
http://www.dawnandpaul.com/
They were tremendous in studio on Friday.

Mitch Melnick's Blog

Friday, February 15, 2008

Michel F*&@ING Beaudry & Dan F#$%ING Burton

Monday, February 4, 2008

Oops

Friday, February 1, 2008

19-0

Blog Archive

About Me

THE TEAM 990