I will miss her a lot.

It was a host-guest thing at the outset, but then we became good friends.  She brought the fledging network plenty: she was a journalist, with a journalist’s impatience for bullshit, and she was far less interested in opinion than in telling a good story – which is what the best journalism is all about.  She was smart, and she knew what she was doing.

I am very confident she will go on to do great things on the other side of the pond.  And that she will be back, as an even-bigger name, in no time at all.

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Interesting.

“May you live in interesting times,” sayeth the font of all acquired wisdom – ie., Wikipedia – is an ancient “Chinese curse.” As in, if you live in an interesting age, you’re not going to be terribly happy.

By that measure, federal Liberals who endured their party’s first leadership debate should be deliriously happy.

That’s because the first Grit leadership debate was not very interesting, and that’s putting it mildly. It was more boring than an Antiques Roadshow marathon. It was more boring than a week-long jazz festival.

It was boring. It was not interesting.

There were some attempts at making Sunday’s debate in Vancouver less dull, inadvertent though they were. The pitiless moderator, for instance, recalled Austin Power’s ‘Dr. Evil,’ but with none of the charm. 

For reasons none could fathom, the audio was also wildly out of sync with the candidate’s lips. It was like a Sergio Leone spaghetti western, but with none of the requisite carnage to keep you glued to your seat.

And finally, there were no less than five (5) contestants who could not recently win a seat in the House of Commons, but who feel that they should be leader of the Liberal Party of Canada.

They were sort of interesting, too, but only in the way that unbridled immodesty and sheer gall are interesting. You kept asking yourself: “Why do these people think they can win the country, if they couldn’t win their own hometown?”

Other than that, it was – as noted – coma-inducingly dull. Justin Trudeau was a little less dramatic than before (good), and Marc Garneau was a little more dramatic than before (also good). They both acquitted themselves well.

Now, we know what you’re thinking: “It’s better to live in interesting times, isn’t it? Better than being dull, no?”

Well, no, actually. Per the Chinese aphorism, being too interesting is still bad. Especially in politics.

Liberals, for instance, had a series of debates in 2006 that were highly captivating. They were extremely interesting.  Contestants like Michael Ignatieff, Stephane Dion and Gerard Kennedy went at each other hammer and tong. They were fiercer than a bunch of cobras at a sock hop.

At the time, they probably thought they were making things interesting, and that interesting was good. Except that, when the election rolled around, the Conservatives ran ad after ad showing the interesting Liberal leadership aspirants scratching and clawing each other.

Their message: “These clowns are more critical of each other than we are. Do you really want them running the country?”

Short answer: no.

Journalists, naturally, love conflict. It makes their bells go off. So, too, the Libs’ political opponents. They adore knock-down, drag-’em-out political leadership races.

Blood sells papers. And, for a Conservative, it’s always better to see Liberal blood spilled blood than your own. 

Thus, Liberals are being very, very careful this time around. They are disinterested in giving the media more prime time Grit fratricide. And they are particularly disinterested in giving Stephen Harper more fodder for TV attack ads.

May you never live in interesting times? Damn straight.

Those ancient Chinese sayings-makers knew what they were talking about.

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The Amandas are me, Bjorn, Troy and Rockin’ Al.  We recorded and mixed this GBV-inspired tunage on an iPhone in Vancouver over the holidays. Click The Handsome Amanda’s – GPS to give it a spin, gratis!

(Oh, and watch out, Davey Snot! I’m steppin’ out on ya!)

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Ontario Liberals are fortunate to have two experienced, capable women at the top of the list of candidates vying to become the party’s next leader – and the province’s premier – next weekend.

Sandra Pupatello and Kathleen Wynne are going into the leadership convention set off by Dalton McGuinty’s surprise resignation as the apparent favourites – and for good reason. Both have strong track records in government. Each makes a persuasive case that she is the Liberals’ best choice now.

It’s a close call, but on balance we favour Sandra Pupatello. Of all the candidates, she stands out as the one with the energy, personality and message that will give her party the best chance to hold on to power in what promises to be a closely fought contest with Tim Hudak’s Progressive Conservatives and Andrea Horwath’s New Democrats. After a year of lurching from one crisis to another, the Liberals badly need to change the channel with a new leader and a new approach. Going with Pupatello would be the most convincing way to do that.

In a meeting with the Star’s editorial board, Pupatello left no doubt what her priority would be as premier: “Jobs and the economy is the number one issue in every part of Ontario.” As minister responsible for trade and economic development from 2006 to 2011, she made her mark selling the province to the world. At the same time, she has made it clear that for Ontario the road to economic success cannot be “a low wage race to the bottom” like that being pushed by the far right.

Pupatello has also demonstrated her commitment to social justice throughout her life, and as minister of community services and education in the McGuinty government. She promises a “frugal government with a social conscience.” That’s the right message for these times of tightened budgets; it’s what voters need to hear after too many reports of wasted money in areas like the ORNGE scandal.

Pupatello brings two other important cards to the table. Her roots in Windsor (where she plans to seek re-election) allow her to counter the unfortunate, but undeniable, anti-Toronto bias in Ontario politics. And she sat out the 2011 election, and so had the good fortune to watch the government’s recent stumbles from the sidelines while adding a stint on Bay Street to her resume. As a result, it will be easier for her to campaign on a message of change when an election eventually comes.

All signs are that her main rival for the top job is Kathleen Wynne, who over a decade as an MPP and minister built an impressive record of accomplishment in three important ministries. As education minister, in particular, she drove improvements in Ontario’s school system that have made it a leader in the English-speaking world. That will be at the top of the McGuinty government’s most enduring accomplishments, and Wynne can claim much of the credit.

The knock against Wynne is that she is not “electable” – code, as she puts it herself, for being “a lesbian from Toronto.” No one knows how that would play out in 2013. But the bigger problem for her, and for other recent ministers in the leadership race, is that she is so closely identified with a government that is discredited in the eyes of many voters. That would make her an easier target for Hudak and Horwath in the next election campaign.

There’s always a chance, of course, that a convention decided by delegates and horse-trading among candidates could take an unexpected twist. Gerard Kennedy, sitting in third place going in, is trying for a comeback after falling short in previous leadership bids at both the provincial and federal levels. He has talent and experience in spades, but can’t seem to shake the perception that he is yesterday’s man.

Harinder Takhar has made a surprisingly strong showing in the race so far, but is dogged by controversy. Charles Sousa and Eric Hoskins, both strong assets for the Liberals, will have to wait for next time.

Whoever wins on Saturday will face an uphill climb to keep the Liberals in power. Any government accumulates heavy baggage after nearly a decade in office, and this one is certainly no exception. Sandra Pupatello is best placed to give the party a new face and energetic new leadership – while keeping it true to the values that make it distinct.

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You know, it is only the Sun that is giving this boy’s death prominent coverage. The Globe’s web site has totally ignored it, from what I can see, and the Star has relegated it to a single link off on the side.

I don’t think the Sun (or any news organization) is perfect. But I figured I’d give them credit for this, seeing as how nobody else ever will.

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I don’t know where this anti-Harinder crap is coming from – although, based on who is retweeting it, I have a few well-founded suspicions – but let me say this:

It isn’t working, Anonymous Campaign Dirty Tricksters. It’s engendering sympathy, not antipathy. It’ll backfire on you.

Just watch.

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Today is Martin Luther King Day, and also inauguration day.  Four years ago today, when Barack Obama was being sworn in as President of the United States, I was in an Ottawa courtroom, fighting a case initiated by a former diplomat who had been associated with anti-Semitism and white supremacy. (My side won, right up to the Supreme Court of Canada.)

So, today is a good day to hear this remarkable speech once more.

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For those interested – and some of you certainly seem to be – one son’s coach didn’t even show up at their weekend tournament. The boys accordingly won the tournament, and my son got to play and score goals, and I haven’t heard him that happy after a game in a long time.

The other son’s coach? Well, I did what I never, ever do. I wrote a note of complaint. Here’s what it said: “How do you expect [son’s name] to feel confident, and play better, when his coaches show so little confidence in him?”

They kept the other boy in. He let in more goals. And so on and so on.

Once again, my pet theory hasn’t changed: the worst part of kids’ sports is the adults.

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Every year, I post my top ten albums of the year around New Year’s Day.  This year, I didn’t.  Apart from my buddy Scott Sellers, I had become convinced nobody read and/or cared.  So I held back.

Lo and behold! I received a number of emails and comments from folks who were Not Scott, wondering where the list was.  Turns out people actually read it, after all!  Who knew?

So, here it is, a bit late, but much-reflected upon, nonetheless.

1. Menzingers – On The Impossible Past:  This is not just the top album of the year.  It is one of the best records I have ever heard, period.  Hailing from Joe Biden’s hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania, these four guys were thought to be heading towards greatness since their formation as a punk outfit in 2006.  Each new release, each new song, revealed the Menzingers to be far, far more than their punk beginnings suggested they could ever be.  With this record – which does not contain a single note that isn’t pitch-perfect – the Menzingers have revealed themselves to be Against Me! (without the willingness to sell out for a hit record), plus Dylan (without the tunelessness), plus The Clash (without the latter-era pretentiousness and self-indulgence).  This is, truly, one of the most extraordinary records you will hear in this year, or any year.  If these guys don’t change your life, you haven’t been listening.
2. Jimmy Cliff – Rebirth:  I have been listening to Cliff, non-stop, since I was 15 years old.  Like most first wave punks, my introduction to reggae – and ska, and bluebeat, and dub – came in the form of the soundtrack to The Harder They Come, in which Cliff stars and sings.  For us skinny, pale, acned young suburban misfits, reggae became the alternative soundtrack to our punk rock lives.  And Jimmy Cliff, more than anyone else, was responsible for that.  He should have been as big, or bigger, than Marley – but he made some bad career moves, and he never quite attained the mythic status of the Tuff Gong.  It is ironic, I think, that Cliff’s greatest record since The Harder They Come was partly the brainchild of another formerly skinny, pale acned young suburban punk – namely the brilliant Tim Armstong of Rancid.  From the side one ‘One More’ to Cliff’s take on Paul Simonon’s ‘Guns of Brixton,’ this album will lift you up – and probably right out of your seat, too.
3. Japandroids – Celebration Rock: Lala and I saw them when they recently came to Tee Dot, playing a sold-out show at the Phoenix.  To say we were disappointed is an understatement.  The mix was lousy, the crowd was annoying, and their performance was choppy – at best.  Part of the reason we were expecting so much is Celebration Rock itself.  It is widely called (by Rolling Stone, Spin, et al.) as one of the top albums of the year, and it is – because it delivers so much.  On it, the Vancouver twosome churn out epic punk anthems for the ages – and their ‘House That Heaven Built’ is the best single of 2012.  You know it’s perfect when (as I did), you bounce along Summertime New England backroads with four young boys in your Jeep, and they are quite content to play that one song over and over, joyously hollering: “When they love you, and they will, tell ‘em all they’ll love in my shadow! And if they try to slow you down, tell ‘em all to go to Hell!” Indeed.
4. Santigold – Master of Make Believe: Like the Menzingers, Santigold is another Pennsylvania-born musical visionary.  Like the Menzingers, Santigold (nee White) got her start in the state’s nascent punk scene, and then went on – improbably – to do A&R work for Epic Records.  Her first album, 2008’s Santogold, was what caught the attention of me and many others: Diplo plus members of Steel Pulse and Bad Brains lent a hand, and the result was a breathtakingly ambitious record, sampling everything from the Clash to Devo to classic hip hop.  Master of Make Believe is just as good, if not better: while Santigold has a broader (and possibly more hit-making) vision, she remains fiercely independent, and she still produces some of the most original rock’n’roll/R’n’B you could care to hear.  Give ‘Disparate Youth’ a spin, and it’ll stick to you like a drawer full of fish hooks.  Genius.
5. Pennywise –All Or Nothing:  Jim Lindberg helped me out, big time, with my book Fury’s Hour (the one of which I will always be proudest), and I was stunned and saddened to hear that he and his Hermosa Beach, California cohorts had parted ways.  Pennywise without Lindberg?  It was inconceivable.  But Ignite’s Zoli Teglas was up to the challenge, and All Or Nothing – despite Lindberg’s absence – is one screamin,’ howlin’ slab of punk rock, and one of the best punk records of the year.  ‘All Or Nothing,’ the title track, also kicks off the record, and is just as memorable as anything that the band ever recorded with Lindberg.  After a back injury, Teglas was sidelined, and devoted himself to encouraging Lindberg to rejoining his old friends. Late in the year, he did, and punk is the better for it.
6. NOFX – Self-Entitlement:  Despite his well-documented fondness for pharmaceuticals, Fat Mike is a prolific producer of punk.  He churns out records the way Octomom creates babies.  As such, you are entitled to wonder if the quality might suffer somewhere along the way.  But on Self-Entitlement, it doesn’t: funny, punny, hummy.  I met up with him again at Toronto’s Riot Fest in the Fall, and gave him one of SFH’s FREE PUSSY RIOT T-shirts.  “Free pussy,” said Fat Mike, without blinking.  “Where do I sign up?”  Some things never change.
7. Soundgarden – King Animal:  Kim Thayill, in my view, is the greatest rock guitarist in the history of the planet.  He is a God.  This band, meanwhile, remains as one of my clichéd Guilty Pleasures: they’re heavy rockers, sure.  They’re heavily metallic, sure.  They’re occasionally emo-style screamers, sure.  But they remain as fascinating and as relevant as they were twenty years ago, too.  King Animal is the band’s sixth waxing, and the first offering from Soundgarden in more than a decade.  ‘Been Away Too Long’ was the album’s debut single, and it told the truth – they’ve been away far too long.  They’re playing in Toronto the weekend of the Ontario Liberal Party’s leadership convention: I don’t know how we’ll get to see them – but we will.  Glad they’re back.
8. Liars – WIXIW: Just when I thought they couldn’t do something totally news and innovative and extraordinary again, they do.  There is no band on Earth as creative as the Liars.  Period.
9. Bruce Springsteen – Wrecking Ball:  It probably isn’t easy to pull off being a multi-milllionaire, and paying tribute to the Occupy Movement’s 99 per cent, all at the same time.  But Springsteen – who I haven’t really paid a lot of attention to since the bleak genius of ‘Nebraska’ – does it on Wrecking Ball, and then some.  Before campaigning (appropriately) for Barack Obama in earnest, the sexagenarian surprised everyone, as he howled against the yawning gap between the rich and the poor, the powerful and the powerless.  Here, he sings for union labourers, Mexican immigrants and civil rights heroes, and he gives you the feeling he means every word, every note.  “[America’s] promise, from sea to shining sea,” remains unrealized, Springsteen sings – but hope, somehow, never fades.
10. WDYHM – SFH: Yeah, yeah, I know.  It’s the band I’m in.  We are too old for this stuff, we’re ridiculous, and we are now down to one original member (that would be me). I know that too. But we got some great reviews on this record, and we had fun doing it.  Here, for instance, is the heretofore unseen ‘Jesus Got Wood,’ Ritalin Boy’s treatise on the Messiah’s chosen profession.  The song was picked for the soundtrack of Julie Pacino’s film, Billy Bates.  We fervently hope it offends.

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Here.

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