Daniel ...Toronto, CANADA ....... 'My take on everything'

UPDATE: Amex offers cruise on Costa Concordia – Mediterranean getaway, nice touch ‘Welcome aboard’

2012-02-01T05:06:00.004-05:00

American Express mailed out a brochure for a Meditteranean cruise on the Costa Concordia which just arrived in many homes today. Sound familiar, you bet, that’s the one still sinking off the coast of Italy, near Giglio Island, where 17 have been confirmed dead. Amex has announced “Obviously that offer is not valid,” and that is believable.

Full mailer brochure BELOW

Amex has reported that they prepare these mailers many weeks in advance (6 weeks) and of course they didn’t know what would happen in Italy. But I think In the mailer they say to ‘Immerse yourself’ but I think I will immerse myself in something completely different, like taking a bus or a train.

FULL TEXT – Of the American Express mailer received today.

Immerse Yourself In A Truly European Experience:
‘When you choose Costa Cruises, you don’t just see Europe — you live it. From authentic cuisine and beverages to dazzling decor and exhilarating celebrations, it’s easy to fall in love with the rich cultural heritage that inspires “Cruising Italian Style.” On an Eastern or Western Mediterranean vacation, you cruise through thousands of years of history, pampered with posh resort amenities in a floating environment of art and beauty. You’ll visit picturesque harbours, ancient ruins, busy markets and bustling boutiques — destinations that won Costa Cruises the Porthole Cruise Magazine Reader’s Choice Award for ‘Best Mediterranean Itineraries.’
On board you can relax in the dazzling casino, romantic piano bar, internet cafe or on a dance floor. Dine amidst Roman pillars and Italian marble in the main restaurant, savour a gourmet spa menu, or visit a cosy bistro for authentic pizza, gelato and cappuccino. Take time for a state of the art Technogym workout, a private golf lesson, pick-up water polo or bocce ball. Indulge in a Turkish or Roman steam bath. Or just linger on a spacious teak sun deck and savour la dolce vita.
You can meet fascinating global travellers and dedicated staff with distinctively Continental perspectives. Barriers can dissolve in the high jinks of theme nights on board — tarantella dancing, ice carving or a Roman Toga party. As a member of the World’s Leading Cruise Lines, Costa Cruises offers a luxury cruise experience to cherish.’

Daniel … Toronto, Canada
My take on everything
@dandmb50

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Lots of action at Women's Roller Derby (TORD) Saturday.

2011-12-30T02:23:00.002-05:00

By Daniel Boyington.

Toronto - A good turnout at the Downsview Park Saturday night for the Women's Roller Derby League (TORD) just under 1000 fans. Rough and tumble action all night.

Very well organized event and fun for all ages, they even have a scoreboard which is generated from a laptop computer. Spectators are allowed to sit ringside but cautioned in case a player falls into them. No-one under 19 is allowed at the edge of the rink in case of a wipe-out, which thankfully happens quite a lot. Saturday's bout by The Death Track Dolls and Smoke City Betties didn't disappoint, as you can see pictured, Jammers, Betty Bomber (23) of Death Track Dolls and Rug Burn (83) of Smoke City Betties The organizers have a team of first aid specialists on hand in case of injury and last night there were very few. The crowd is spirited on by announcer "Crankypants" who gives a play by play and updates on the action. The teams will take their break when they travel to Montreal for The Beast of the East Tournament at Arena St. Louis, April 30 and May 1.

■ Daniel Boyington

Next bout is Saturday, May 14 with Gore-Gore Rollergirls up against Smoke City Betties. After the trip to Montreal teams come back and enter into playoffs starting Saturday, June 11 with Team 1 vs. Team 2 and the Championship final will be held on Saturday, June 25 at The Hanger at Downsview Parc/Park. Tickets are $18 and can be purchased in advance ONLINE or select locations for $12, but get them early, as they go fast. Don't forget, Toronto Roller Derby League (TORD) will be hosting an International Tournament in December 2011 at a still unanounced location with 13 teams from all over the world.

■ Daniel Boyington

For larger view click picture.

'Occupy Toronto' kicked off Saturday along with 80 other countries and almost 950 cities worldwide

2011-10-22T23:26:00.002-04:00

Toronto, Canada - Occupy Toronto is alive and well, and has been peaceful with very little police presence, for now. Let's hope it stays that way, and they appear to be wearing their name-tags.

Over 950 cities around the world and almost 80 countries held protests on Saturday in support of the Occupy movement and Toronto's gathering was peaceful, with almost 2-3000 supporters.

The Occupy Toronto group appears to be relatively well organized yet many protesters are still not clear on why they are there.

They marched from the financial district yesterday to St. James Park which is near Church and King St. East and about 20-30 people set up tents and planned on staying, for how long no one is sure.

Eric from Port Hope, Ontario plans on staying until next weekend. He had several large bottles of water and supplies and is upset with the "1%" who he assured me, he is not. "I'm here to protest the inequality and to basically tell the 1% they need to start sharing." Eric went on to say "I've been looking into it and if you say you are a 'natural person' and if you say that's what you are, the police can do nothing." Only time will tell, if or when the police move in to evict the campers. But he and others said they want this to remain a peaceful occupation.

Matilda Sunshine (10 months) and her mother Dionne from Toronto dropped by to be part of the protest for the day.
"Matilda is part of the 99% and I would like her to be part of 100% and things are just not what what they should be in Toronto and Canada." She added "I have faith in Torontonians and people in general and now is our time, and Matilda is clearly our next generation."
Dionne was also very impressed that everyone was peaceful and she saw very few police which made her more relaxed.

Check out all my PHOTOS HERE on Occupy Toronto

Daniel .. Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything - MTOE

UPDATE: Bell FibeTV review - almost a year later, still problems and 'deception' at sales office

2011-10-22T15:16:00.006-04:00

Friday, October 21, 2011 2:29:52 PM

Toronto, Canada - I just found out a few things today about Bell FibeTV/internet and the practices of their sales team. They are still giving out wrong and misleading information in an attempt to get people signed up for their services.

IMPORTANT UPDATE: If you joined up within the last year, you were probably told you can record four programs at once. The only thing they leave out, is that yes, you can record four programs at once, but only two HD programs and two standard programs. But, I just found out that you can get more HD recording power if you request it. But you must be forceful because it appears there is an embargo on this feature. They won't tell you it is available, nor do they allow it, if you call in and ask. I had to demand it, and was put through to a supervisor, before I could get the three HD ability and one standard TV recording on my system.

When I called the sales team as a new subscriber, I was told and asked how many stations can I record at once. I paused, and asked if there was any restrictions or more information on recording shows, and the representative told me "no, you can record four shows at once." She left out the part that the default setup is only two HD and two standard. Is that misleading or deceptive?

I then asked Jennifer what happens if the internet is down, can I still watch my TV, she said "yes, and you can watch any pre-recorded shows you have on your PVR." Another deception, you cannot watch TV, or pre-recorded shows if the internet service is down. And if you already have internet service and don't want to switch to Bell, you are forced to buy their internet connection.

Even when I asked the pricing on the same package I currently have, she told me it would be $99.94 for the TV? I then said "is there anything else I need," and she then said "NO." But another deception, you need internet access to make your FibeTV work. I then asked to speak to a supervisor, Bonnie, and she would not answer my questions, gave me the same 'stock' answers, and referred me to another number.

Within the last month we have had no service at least three times and they blame it on many other things rather than accept any responsibility. I realize it is only a year old but most people would give up I'm sure by now, but I have stuck it out for almost a year now.

When the service is working properly, it is one of the best on the market. But just try to get someone at Bell FibeTV to give you straight answers, rather than 'stock' answers and it is difficult.

I finally had the pleasure of talking with Phillip a 10 year employee and he was helpful and very informative and disclosed this hidden secret that you can now acquire the three HD channels, but only if you request it. Why is that?

Check all these things out before you sign up, and it appears that Bell will not carry the new USA channel FX Network which is a highly rated channel with lots of movies. It has been advertised extensively by Rogers who will offer it starting November 1st. It's hard to get a straight answer from Bell, why, or if, it is available on FibeTV.

Another channel I love, but FibeTV does not offer is HD-Net which is owned by Mark Cuban and is very popular in the USA, but it was offered at one time on satellite, but has been dropped, I believe by Bell. There are many good things about FibeTV like the pause live TV, which was originally only offered on the main PVR box initially, but after people complained, they upgraded the system to allow pause live TV on all boxes within your home.
Check out this LINK for more info on FibeTV.

Daniel .. Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything - MTOE

UPDATE: Casey Anthony murder trial – ‘Dick Tracy Orlando’ was discussed, in the absence of the jury this afternoon, but the jury heard it

2011-10-20T01:20:00.001-04:00

Orlando, Florida - The fantasy world touched the Orlando courtroom murder trial of Casey Anthony today as they spent almost an hour discussing whether they would allow defense attorney Jose Baez to introduce information about the Orange County Sheriff’s Office detective nicknamed “Dick Tracy Orlando.”
Not sure which is more REAL, Dick Tracy Orlando or the stories told by Casey Anthony on her way to this murder trial of the millennium. The prosecution indicated to Chief Judge Belvin Perry today that they are only half way through their witnesses.
Today was day seven of the trial and there are few “facts/evidence” so far, and now that we are hearing Casey’s stories, it is clearer that her stories, were never true.
But just as the country was shocked when Jose Baez startled everyone by saying “Caylee Anthony was not murdered, she downed in the backyard swimming pool”, we should have learned to never take anything for granted in this trial. It may well appear that Casey has been lying all along, but we have not heard the whole story yet.
Lee Anthony was the only family member on the stand this morning and never really revealed anything exceptional, but did confirm he is part of the same dysfunctional family tree, with his little sarcastic laugh. And he did mention that he had to “roll play“ to get a story across to his sister Casey. It appears, not only do these Anthony’s, all of them admit to lying, they all seem to be great actors as well.
One of Cindy’s admitted lies was when she called the police on Casey and told them she “smelled a dead body” in the car, to get them to arrive faster, another mysterious lie, was when she did not know Casey was pregnant, but a picture of the two at a local wedding make it abundantly clear she was seven months pregnant. Click the picture to the left to see a larger view of the pregnant Casey, but her mother could not tell she was pregnant even though she is a health care professional.

Lead Detective, Yuri Melich of the Orange County Sheriff’s Office took the stand late this afternoon and he is the one that Jose Baez says is called “Dick Tracy Orlando” after he admitted posting some comments about the case on some local blogs prior to the trial. Melich, has created, or trying to create a fan club of sorts, and at the time back when he first arrived on the scene at the Anthony home at 3:50am on July 16/2008 he was a Detective Corporal but now is working in the Professional Standards division which is internal affairs. As Melich was giving his testimony today about Casey’s statement, Baez asked him “did you ever go by a different name than Yuri Melich?” The prosecution made an objection and the Judge sustained it, and then Baez went ahead and said quickly, “did you ever go by the name of Dick Tracy Orlando?” to which he received no reply, and the Judge said “sustained” again, and then “next question” and then Baez asks for a sidebar and the Judge refuses, but then allows it, and they remove the jury and have a hearing over “Dick Tracy Orlando.” He sure has a smug, arrogant/smart ass attitude while he is on the stand at the trial. I hate to see him in person.

Jose Baez has some information that Melich overlooked during his investigation, and feels he is biased towards his client and unprofessional, but the Judge didn’t buy it, but it took up almost an hour of valuable court time. Melich claims he was only at the house to do an investigation about a missing child, and although he admits he smelled the human remains in the car, he never called CSI or made a report about the suspicious smells.
He also talked about what Casey told him, as to where Caylee was at the time, and he spoke about Zenaida Gonzalez (Zanni the Nanny) and he didn’t say this, but apparently she was being paid $400 a week to babysit Caylee, and Casey has been telling so many stories, she even made up a dog and friends for Zanni, since Caylee came home one day and had been scratched by the made up dog, but maybe, that was made up too.
The trial continues again tomorrow at 9am.

Daniel … Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything
@dandmb50

To go to my FULL WordPress BLOG CLICK HERE or click the Header .. Daniel .. Toronto, CANADA at the top of each page.

UPDATE: Casey Anthony murder trial Day 31 - THUNDERBOLT - Is George Anthony a LIAR? One time, or many times?

2011-10-20T01:20:00.000-04:00

Orlando, Florida - George Anthony was on the stand today in his daughter's murder trial for allegedly killing his granddaughter. This was about the 4-5th time he has been called to the stand.

He constantly doesn't answer questions, he doesn't stay on the point, he just goes into a narrative and tries to get sympathy from the jury. When asked if he molested his daughter, he didn't say NO, he said that "I would never do that" and defense attorney Jose Baez asked again and the prosecution objected, that it was asked and answered, but it was not, it was a YES/NO question.

Questions were brought up to ask about the infamous gas can with the duct tape on it. Baez asked George whether the gas can had duct tape on it when the police picked it up with a search warrant and he said "NO," but when he went to a disposition and gave evidence he was showed a picture of the gas can and it clearly had duct tape on it? The duct tape is important because the prosecution is claiming it was placed on Caylee's mouth when she was found and they are suggesting that the duck tape is what killed Caylee. And the duct tape had a company logo on it and it was spotted at a search site that George had set-up and a roll of it was found in the Anthony's house. But George said today there was NO duct tape on the can when the police picked it up at his house and either the police put the tape on the can or someone is lying?

So George is suggesting by his testimony that the police placed the duct tape on the gas can?? Because he has said when the gas can was picked up from his house it "Did not have duct tape on the gas can" and yet when it was returned to him and it was displayed in a picture at his deposition it did have duct tape on it.
Academy Award performance by George today on the stand as he "blatantly lied" under oath and cried several times trying to get the sympathy of the jury and the courtroom, which in my opinion was an outstanding performance. He was clearly trying to distract the attention from his answers, which he had trouble answering directly without his narrative, and hedged a great deal when he did answer the tough questions.

Is George Anthony guilty of something? Why did he "TRY" to commit suicide, was it because he felt guilty about being involved in the death of his granddaughter which was stated in the opening statement by the defense attorney, Jose Baez. He did purchase a hand gun (January 2009) and the police were informed and picked it up after he had waited the mandatory waiting period and was unable to make any use of it, since he was not allowed to have a gun since his daughter Casey was under bond at the time. He then continued on, and called his parents, to say goodbye, but didn't say the words. He also wrote a suicide note that was challenged today in court. After a proffer (questions asked to witness outside the presence of the jury) was held and the Judge allowed the defenses line of questioning about the suicide attempt.

Prosecutor, Jeff Ashton feels he is in charge of this trial, but has been shot down many times by Chief Judge Belvin Perry who is doing an excellent job.

Why does the MAIN STREAM MEDIA side with the prosecution and clearly have taken sides instead of reporting news about the trial? Especially the group of CNN, HLN channels.

Daniel ... Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything
@dandmb50

UPDATE: Casey Anthony murder trial Day 21 - Prosecution does not want evidence entered by defense, WHY? Dr. Timothy Huntington

2011-08-16T10:13:00.000-04:00

Orlando, Florida - The Casey Anthony murder trial continued this morning with the defense putting on Dr. Timothy Huntington a bug expert. The head prosecutor Jeff Ashton is getting increasingly upset with the defenses witnesses countering his evidence and is constantly objecting to anything he says, when it is against their evidence. He's getting so frustrated he is even objecting to "not being able to see photos?"Jose Baez, defense attorney asked questions to the expert, as to what would cause a stain in the trunk of a dead body and Dr. Huntington tried to give his opinion and thoughts but the prosecution objected. However, the prosecution bug expert had given the same evidence when he was a witness for the prosecution. The jury was not in the courtroom for the exchange between Baez and Ashton but the bottom line, Judge Perry allowed the witness to give testimony before the jury.

The main objection from the prosecution was the fact that Dr. Huntington was saying that he could determine if a dead body had been in the car trunk by the stain, or the amount of blow flies in the trunk. The prosecutions evidence showed there was one blow fly leg in the trunk and that it was inside a bag of trash that was there, and Dr. Huntington said if a dead body was present, "there would be hundreds, if not thousands of dead flies."

So was there a dead body in Casey Anthony's car?

The trial has recessed for lunch.

Daniel ... Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything
@dandmb50

UPDATE: Casey Anthony murder trial – Casey Marie Anthony walks out of Florida jail a free women at 12:11 AM today

2011-08-16T10:10:00.000-04:00

Casey Anthony walks to her freedom July 17/2011

Orlando, Florida - Casey Marie Anthony walked out the front door of Florida jail today at 12:11 am a free women after spending over three years awaiting trial on murdering her daughter Caylee Marie, and was acquitted of all charges except four years for lying to police.

Her defense lawyer Jose Baez lead her to an SUV and heavily armed swat teams surrounded them as they walked out and was expected to head to the private airport area to board a plane to an undisclosed location.

(Photos courtesy of Orlando Sentinel)

A caravan of vehicles left the Orange County Jail and Casey was in one of them and there were hundreds of onlookers with cameras and of course nasty signs and shouting “baby killer” and other profanities as she headed to places unknown. They may say, “we will not watch any interview” but we know they will all watch it because everyone wants to know what took 31 days for her to report Caylee missing.

Caylee will not be forgotten ….

Daniel … Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything
@dandmb50

Volunteers are what makes Toronto's 'Caribana' so successful and last night was an example, at ScotiaBank Toronto Caribbean Carnival kickoff

2011-08-16T10:09:00.000-04:00

Toronto, Canada - At Lamport Stadium in Toronto's west end thousands gathered for the kickoff of ScotiaBank Toronto Caribbean Carnival and volunteers make the difference, as one of North America's largest Caribbean celebrations got underway.

The 44th parade starts tomorrow, Saturday and runs along the Lakshore Blvd. with almost/or over a million revelers expected, and there is special seating available to see all the action much closer, if you want to pay the additional fee.

This young women must have had a professional make-up artist do this to her, but apparently not. She did all the makeup herself and she has been a volunteer for the event since she was a young girl, well done. Fortunately the rain held out last night and for the parade on Saturday, the forecast is no rain or she may have lost her beautiful makeup.

And as you can see the volunteers start at a very young age as this 15 year old helps with many different floats, preparing them for last nights event and will be in full swing on Saturday for the parade.

On Friday at Lamport Stadium the forces were out in plain view as they cracked down on people selling products (food, carnival items) without a license. Metro Licensing Commission Enforcement made their tour around the stadium with police in tow as they cautioned people about selling food products and it's against the city by-laws. One of the Enforcement officers said "It's just like someone with a licensed hot dog stand, but the guy across the street is selling without a license."

The problem is that a license costs between $5-600 per year and the city does not sell licenses for single events or for a weekend. Why not? The city says they are "BROKE" why not sell licenses for one event, one weekend, one day, wouldn't that generate income?

Licensing is an excellent idea, especially when it comes to food, and our health, but why hassle Caribbean Carnival vendors and not other events, like the Taste of the Danforth? I have never seen any Enforcement Officers at the Taste of the Danforth, why Not? And the troops were out in full force, for a very small crowd of about 3-4000 people who paid $38 each to attend the event. Do these enforcement officers target only certain groups?

It shall be interesting to see how they stop the millions on Saturday at the parade on Lakeshore Blvd.
UPDATE: Sunday morning it was reported in the Toronto Star that one man was shot and killed and two others received minor injuries when a Toronto Police officer shot the unnamed man with the gun. Special Investigations Unit is investigating. Very sad indeed. More INFO on the shooting this weekend at the ScotiaBank Caribbean Carnival, CLICK HERE

Daniel … Toronto, CANADA

My take on everything

@dandmb50

Double Your Order, It’s ‘FREE’ – All You Pay Is ‘EXTRA Shipping And Handling,’ Which Turns Out More Than The One Product

2011-08-16T10:08:00.000-04:00

Anytown, Anywhere - We have all seen the ads on TV that say “As seen on TV” and now the newest twist is, they force you to buy two products, even if you only want one. How is that, and why do they force us to buy more than one item, I thought the second product was FREE?

Maybe it’s only me, but it seems like a huge ripoff, since the second product is ‘FREE’ you are required to pay EXTRA shipping and handling. The EXTRA S&H works out to almost three times the cost of one product. I hope stores don’t start this idea, can you imagine, sorry you can’t buy one bottle of milk or one loaf of bread, you must buy five. How are they getting away with this scam?

I’ve called the TV sales numbers, and it’s hard to get a final total cost. They say “it’s plus S&H and taxes,” and I ask several times, “What’s the total cost?” and we keep going in circles. They don’t want you to know, they want you to know, it’s only $9.95, but when you get the charges on your credit card after delivery, it works out to almost $40.

And most people are so embarrassed, they just eat it, and don’t complain, or ask for a refund because the refunds are usually allowed, but that’s minus the S&H so it’s more expensive to send it back, than what you originally paid in the beginning.

Sure, it’s fair for people to make money on their products, but to deceive and ripoff people, that is not fair. But what are governments doing about these new twists to TV deals? It appears nothing, since I see them more and more everyday. I’ve called a few times, and you can’t even buy just one item, you are required to receive your FREE product but must pay the additional shipping and handling charges.

Are you buying these TV products, and do you feel ripped off? Maybe we all better ask, ”What’s the final charges?” If you agree and LIKE this story, please click the LIKE button below, and tell everyone you know. If we stop buying in this way, maybe they will change it back??

Daniel … Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything
@dandmb50

Vancouver loses Stanley Cup finals, riots, fires, stabbings, looting downtown. Black eye on Vancouver again, 17 years later

2011-06-19T11:57:00.003-04:00

Vancouver, ~~CANADA~~ - Vancouver Canucks lost the NHL Stanley Cup final game to Boston Bruins and after the game serious fires were lit and all kinds of looting downtown while police try to disperse the crowd with tear gas. Although a very few may be responsible for the violence the bottom line is it affects the whole city of Vancouver and isn't great for welcoming visitors, especially if they are from Boston.

Vancouver's mayor said it was a few bad apples and yet watching the local news it looked like young men who thought it was fun while they laughed and took tons of cell phone pictures. A snitch facebook page has already been created to post your pictures and tag them if you recognize anyone doing criminal activity. Very sad indeed and this could go on all night.

It was reported that there were over 100,000 people downtown cheering on the Canucks but after the game the mob mentality grew as people joined in and started throwing everything and anything at the police and setting fires and tipping cars. All downtown transit was cancelled and bridges to the city were closed to prevent more people from entering the downtown core.

PHOTO - Richard Lam - It surprised me to see there was not enough officers to control the situation and what really amazed me was that there were police without any type of protective head gear, what were they thinking. And all of this happened 17 years ago and still they were not prepared? What was the deal with the police dogs, were they searching for something or were the police using them to intimidate the crowd? There was a guy in a blue shirt on some stairs confronting the police for about 15 minutes on the local LIVE TV news and the police held back, but did they finally arrest him.

Daniel ... Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything

@dandmb50

Women’s Roller Derby hosting International Tournament Dec/2011

2011-06-17T22:57:00.000-04:00

LOOKING for the dangling KEY, scroll down, and make sure you copy the number to get the $25 credit to the account you open with no fees EVER, yes I said NEVER.

Toronto -Toronto Women’s Roller Derby League (TORD) will be hosting an International tournament in December 2011, venue location is still to be announced. There are just over 100 leagues in North America with 13 in Canada.

Photos courtesy of Sean Murphy

“We just won the bid to host the first ever World Cup of Roller Derby in Toronto, December 1-4, 2011 with 13 International teams from all over the world” said Krizsanta Muerte (Santa) a member of the Gore-Gore Roller Girls and defending champs of last years fifth season. Santa is also on the organizing committee for locations and on the Board of Directors for the league.

On Saturday night match at The Hanger at Downsiew Park, Santa’s Gore-Gore Roller Girls defeated Chicks Ahoy 132-83 and said “The Chicks are always super hard to play against but we did it Saturday night.”
The crowd base of just under 1000 were not disappointed by all the action and it cuts across all demographics, because in the beginning “Back when the league started five years ago, the fan base was mostly women 18-45 but now it has mushroomed into an all different crowd, since people are realizing there is a lot of strategy involved in the game, and Roller Derby is the only game in the world where both teams can score simultaneously,” said Santa.

The scoring is a little complicated and here is a summary of how the teams score points. There are five players on the track at any one time and the “Jammer” is the only one who can score points. “The Jammer gets points every time she laps an opposing blocker. A blockers job is to stop the other Jammer of the opposing team from getting her points and at the same time your Jammer is trying to get points” said Santa.

The rules are 44 pages long but there are really only about 10 major rules. Players violating the rules can accumulate minors and four minors will get the player one minute in the penalty box.

The draw for a lot of fans is that it is so hard to get tickets for major sports like hockey that they like to find something completely different and possibly win some championships.

The rules of Roller Derby are evolving all the time and they test the new rules in one game and then introduce them into the league rules if they are working. “Points can only be scored 20 feet in front of the pack.” commented Santa.

The league has an “All Star” team (CN Power) that travels all over North America and may be planning a trip to the Minnesota area in the near future.

Action get’s underway again this Saturday, April 16 at The Hangar at Downsview Park (Even the TTC stops at their front door) at 6:30pm and more info can be found at the Toronto Roller Derby website. Seating is limited, so it is recommended you bring a chair.

Some of the proposed teams attending (as reported in Blood and Thunder Magazine) the first ever International World Cup of Roller Derby include, England, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, New Zealand, Sweden and USA, and of course Canada, the Host team.

Did you ever get CASH, $25.00 to open a bank account, well you can do it now with ING and they even pay you interest .. FLIP OVER for LINK - Check it out.
Be sure to copy the NUMBERS on the key to get the $25 credit. ...

---------->>

Daniel … Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything

Hockey fans – National Hockey League (NHL) chatter about the playoffs.

2011-06-17T22:53:00.000-04:00

Toronto, CANADA – We’re right into the semi-finals now and there is all kinds of “NHL chatter” about everything.
First off, it was just announced this weekend that the NHL has become involved in the “GreenMen” at Roger’s Arena (formerly GM Place) in Vancouver, where these jerks in green spandex suits sit in their season ticket seats next to the visitors penalty box with the full body spandex suits on (head to toe) and taunt the players while they touch, punch, kiss the glass during a penalty. The current opposition actually made a formal complaint.The NHL has contacted them and said they are “not allowed to touch the glass” any longer. I don’t like these guys either, but you cannot touch the glass in NHL arenas any longer? Does that just mean at the penalty box, or the glass anywhere in the stadium? What do you think?

The issue of linesmen throwing players out of the faceoffs, for no reason, has really got my goat. It has, and will continue and it could cost a team a win/loss in a very important playoff game. Has anyone ever seen a second player get thrown out of a faceoff after the regular centre has been thrown out? Not likely, I haven’t either and I think the reason is the rules say (from what I know) that if it happens a second time, the referee will be forced to give the offending team a penalty? So which is worse, getting a penalty or being thrown out for no reason, and losing the game over such a stupid situation. It happened to Montreal Canadiens in the last round.

Another thing that is prevalent is the ongoing problem of the player changes at the benches, and it always becomes an issue during the playoffs. Last year there were over 20 penalties for too many players on the ice, and this year there has been penalties already.

I like the idea of Don Cherry of Hockey Night in Canada (HNIC) fame, that there should be a “change free zone” just outside the players benches, where they are allowed a five foot zone to change freely, of course unless the extra player is touched by the puck.

And then of course we come to the age old question about the touch icing, and the possibility of a player being injured while they race down the ice to touch the puck first. The NHL did the right thing recently, by changing the rule that the players could NOT touch each other while they tried to touch the puck first, but why did they do that. Are they concerned that someone might get hurt? If that is their reasoning, why not just make it an instant whistle as soon as the puck crosses the goal line, a no-touch icing?
But then that would make sense, and keep everyone safe, but no, the NHL wants the excitement of two men racing down to the end boards to touch a puck.

Makes no sense to me, what about you?

Daniel … Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything

Review of Bell Fibe TV/internet service is nothing but problems, yet very cool, until you get setup.

2011-06-17T22:50:00.000-04:00

UPDATE – May 5/2011 - Bell has been, and can be very arrogant, if you look at this flyer we received this week telling us the service is available in our building. And the fact that they say the service is good quality, “Best TV picture?” We are still experiencing problems six months later, although it is better than in the first week in November 2010, it is still pixillating, and sound-outs. To say “This technology is the BEST” is really a stretch. When it’s working, is is excellent, but that has not been our experience.
One Bell techie told us “You can’t expect it to be 100%” but Bell expects us to PAY 100%?

UPDATE - November 29/2010
It's almost a month since I had Bell Fibe TV/internet installed and I must say I am very impressed by Bell Canada, and especially Ryan the techie who dropped by on Sunday and did a thorough and excellent job fixing my TV signal.
I have had some complaints and they have finally addressed them, however I am still annoyed with the sales practices of the in-lobby sales people. But with that put aside, after talking with the Bell Executive Team in Montreal (they called me) my pixillating and sound problems have been resolved. The picture quality is absolutely ~~excellent, no pixallating (where the picture takes a burp,) or sound outs.~~

UPDATE December 12/2010 - Still getting the pixillating and sound outs but not as bad as it was when we first got it, they "say" they will resolve the problem?
My next question is, will this corrective measure be addressed to "everyone" that has problems? I hope so, and suspect it is in Bell's best interest to do so, and will people just give up and switch back after the first few weeks of pixillating picture.
On another happy note another service techie called and was able to fix the Bell anti-virus software that I was told was a "known issue and would not be resolved for a few months." The internet side was not a problem other that the anti-virus situation since it was excellent speed since the beginning.

UPDATE - November 11/2010 - The original date of this BLOG posting is documented as Monday, November 8/2010, at 10:25am and was first posted on my OPERA BLOG and then posted here earlier this week....

Have you had PROBLEMS since you signed up for the new Bell FibeTV (Internet Protocol television-IPTV) service which allows you to get TV through the internet? One of the first things someone does when they get an internet service provider (ISP) is to load, download, a virus protection software usually provided by the ISP.

You can see my whole BLOG in FRENCH, CLICK HERE, ici en francais. Ou tout simplement faire défiler un peu pour trouver la traduction française.

If you click this link on the picture (above) it will take you to FibeTV's help centre, and I had great difficulty in finding out how to download the virus protection, and I've been using the internet for about 30 years or whenever it was introduced to the public.
At least I now know, that I am not the only one having PROBLEMS with this, I just think they launched it too soon, before they got all the bugs worked out and you can see the comments HERE at dslreports. Did they even have anyone try it, that watches TV, that might ask some tough and honest questions?

All images are © COPYRIGHT - All rights reserved - with "DMB" Watermark.
Click here to "read more" about "Bell FibeTV" "opens new window"

Daniel ... Toronto, CANADA
VISIT my FULL Opera BLOG - HERE
Called today Sunday, November 7/2010 at about 7am to Bell FibeTV support and spoke with Stephane who was the first person I have talked to that had any real answers since I have made many calls to support about the service.

Problems....
They announced about 2 weeks ago ( October 25-26/2010)
that they would be having a demonstration for the new FibeTV which is coming into our building in downtown Toronto.

"To celebrate the arrival of Bell Fibe TV, we'll be hosting a special live demonstration in your building that you won't want to miss. Drop by to learn what Bell Fibe TV can do and for a chance to win a 32" Sony Bravia Series HD LCD TV."

This was just the start of the "untruths, deception" that was presented by the sales people in our lobby. When I handed in the entry form there was no box, or envelope for them, they just threw them on top of the TV like it was waste paper and slips were falling off the TV and no-one seemed to care. Did someone in our building win the HD TV?
As it is stated, "for a chance to win a TV" nothing more, like well, it will go into a drum for the whole city and one person from all of Toronto will win one TV, but it appeared to everyone in our building that it was a draw for our building, deception, not lying, but not telling us the "whole truth."
And then the lies just started rolling. On the demonstration TV they had it on HD-Net a news/sports channel and right now they are showing a show I always liked called "Prison Break" from 2005-2009. They even had episodes of it recorded and were playing it in the lobby of our building. My first question was, "oh great you have HD-Net? (channel 1756)" and both reps told me "yes" and "all" other channels are "FREE for the first month" lie, because now I find out you only get select channels free and Bell Fibe TV doesn't even have HD-Net available for Fibe TV, although it does appear on screen on my Fibe TV guide schedule with all upcoming shows listed, including Prison Break, but when I go to the channel it says you "cannot record this channel" and I have since found out it is NOT a channel that I can receive. (only satellite)
Was that something that the sales people should have told the new subscribers, that what they were showing, to sell the service is not available? Another station that is listed in the guide and on the flyer they hand out to new subscribers is Al Jazeera English channel (516) a middle east news station.
Another lie, was they told us we could have up to six TV's connected for the same price/package and that is

NOT true. You get one box with the "pause live TV feature" (living room) and only one other box for the bedroom. But the one in the bedroom does not have the "pause live feature" nor does it have the ability to store recordings, all the recordings are stored on, the main box which is in the living room. (these things were never disclosed to us) It appears to me it is an upsell situation, where they tell you that you're allowed six TV's but then, you have to buy more boxes to get the results that the sales people told you could receive.
The way I found out HD Net was not available is, for two days I kept asking what "theme package" the HD-Net was located in the folder. They could not answer and made several phone calls to Bell and told me it was in the "Sports Fan" theme package, although it is not listed in the brochures they had handed out.

I accepted their answer until I found out later through my own research, that it is not available. Another problem with the theme packages is that I asked is "CourtTV" available and they said "YES" and I went on to ask what kind of programming is on that station, they said "court trial" and it is listed in Learning and News package. I thought that was great so I was sold, and signed up.

The next day I came to the lobby and again asked about the CourtTV and same answers, so I asked them to turn to CourtTV on their display model and it's clearly called Investigation Discovery (channel 528) and there was NO court trials on this station.
It's been changed from CourtTV for the past about the last six months to TRU-TV and Bell does not carry it, and I know more information than the sales people, and I don't even work in the television business. Is this just the tip of the iceberg, you bet.

So now the installers come on November 5th as scheduled at 10am, one man. He is very nice and gets to work and does a great job. A couple of hours later I asked him which channel I turn to, so I can see the camera in the lobby. He tells me that's not available. Fine. I then ask him how do I receive calls from the intercom entry system in the lobby. He says "oh that's a problem." Huh?
I asked him why, because nearly every building in North America has an intercom entry system and people call up to get buzzed in. He called in two other workers and they were able to get it working, three hours later. But why is this a problem, don't all buildings have intercom systems?
And this is not even the full story, I have spent four hours this morning trying to get the virus protection set-up on my computer to no avail. Even the "internet specialists" that I talked to don't know how to find the download page on Bell.ca, although with all these problems, I still think I MIGHT like it. But more to come, I'm just starting.

All images are © COPYRIGHT - All rights reserved - with "DMB" Watermark.

Advantages/pluses ...
It is far superior to Rogers, it has more space available to save your recordings even though it is on one PVR.
It has a great guide system and search feature to find a movie or TV show.
It allows you to record four programs at once, but fail to mention an important fact. They don't lie here they just leave out information you need to know. Yes I can record four programs at once, but only two HD channels at any one time. The other two channels must be regular non-HD channels (standard.) And the other problem is it doesn't warn you when an upcoming recording is about to start, so you could be watching a two hour show, and then after one hour it just cuts off because the other shows are about to record on the other box.
The picture quality is much better on Bell than on Rogers even on the standard TV.
There are so many other features which are superior.
A very good explanation of what FibeTV is can be found HERE and it tells you how Bell gets the signal to your house.
Any comments, let's hear your horror story/stories, just comment below. And who won the TV?

Daniel ... Toronto, CANADA
VISIT my FULL Opera BLOG - HERE

Driving in Toronto, can it be dangerous, costly, frustrating and just plain madness. Do we have enough enforcement?

2011-06-17T22:49:00.000-04:00

Toronto, CANADA - An excellent article in the Toronto Star today prompted this blog, and writer Ian Law was concentrating on the four driving offences that "drive him crazy" and he could issue tickets (if they game him a title and a car) to drivers, under the Ontario Highway Traffic Act (HTA.) He covers his worst, distracted drivers, running red lights,aggressive driving, and illegal turns.

These are all good points and although many residents would say "We have enough enforcement, too much,in fact" that is not the case. Recently the Province of Ontario added a new traffic law which makes using any hand held electronic devices illegal and subject to over $100 fine and points. This is mainly targeted at people texting and driving, or stopped at a traffic light, and are not using a hands free device. And since the start of this new law, about a year ago, has this eliminated the safety hazard? Not a chance, it's a wee bit smaller than in years past, but it still continues to this day, and I see people texting in backed up traffic all the time. If caught, I think a more realistic fine should be imposed since they are only catching about five percent, so let's make the fine $500 and see how the public reacts to that.
This texting and driving has been responsible for so many accidents since texting started, and now with everyone having a smart phone, and traffic snarls all over the city, people think they can do both. Studies have shown that someone texting and driving is very similar to the conditions of an impaired driver and in Ontario that is a criminal offence.

I just don't get it, people can't wait to answer their phones and for some reason are aware of the dangers, but continue to use their hand held devices while they try to manoeuvre through the heavy traffic of downtown Toronto, and I suspect other major cities across North America. It's getting so bad, it's not even safe in a wheelchair.

So what do you think? Are there other things that DRIVE YOU CRAZY about Toronto Drivers? Let's hear what you have to say.

If you need a good safe driving school, check this place out, it's Ian Law's school just north of Toronto.

(Car Control School - CLICK HERE)

People who liked this BLOG post, liked these, remember the women who walked into a fountain while texting check her video out.
Walked into water fountain while texting.
What's the rule for parking VALET giving keys to drunk drivers?
Can car companies eliminate the bar on the drivers side that blocks view when turning?

Daniel ... Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything

Did you ever get CASH, $25.00 to open a bank account, well you can do it now with ING and they even pay you interest, NO fees ever, yes I said NO FEES, go to my BLOGSPOT BLOG and look for the ING Dangling KEY logo and .. FLIP OVER for the LINK - Check it out. You are required to make a minimum deposit of $100, but where else can you make 25% interest in one transaction instantly. Huh?
Be sure to copy the NUMBERS on the key to get the $25 credit. ...

Favorite links about Toronto

The Wall Photo Group-Join Join today - simple rules
WordPress BLOGJust UPDATED
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Toronto access pageEvents, movies and anything else happening in Toronto
Sewers under the CityPics stories about sewers
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Toronto News 24 - excellent online news about TorontoOnline NEWS site about Toronto and the whole GTA area
My first BLOG tumblrAll about Toronto, TUMBLR Blog
blog.commy other BLOG - My take on everything
AllVoicesNews/comment - citizen journalists
Now PublicNews/comment - citizen journalists
IPTV - Bell Fibe TV forumForum about Fibe TV
TwitPicPictures - photos - comments
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City of TorontoMunicipal Government site
Libya EgyptMy take on "Middle East"
All about dandmb50#dandmb50 on google 54,000 hits
My Flickr pictures on flickriverFlikr pictures on flickriver portal, click picture to see full discription and scroll down to see more
Flickr albumsSome of my favorites on Flickr
Digital Journal - Online news around the worldOnline news - Toronto and the WORLD - great site
On-line Radio ShowInteresting topics check it out

UPDATE – Casey Anthony Trial: George Anthony smell of death, ‘smell like that out in the woods’ evasive to defense cross examination

2011-06-17T22:48:00.000-04:00

Orlando, Florida - Today the Casey Anthony murder trial entered day 15 although it is only the fourth day of the actual trial in Orlando, the other days were spent picking the jury. Casey Anthony is charged with murder of her two year old daughter in June 2008, and is facing the death penalty if found guilty.
Her father George A. Anthony was called to the stand again today for the third time, and went into battle with his arch enemy, defense attorney Jose Baez, after Baez had made some hefty accusations during the opening statements alleging George had sexual relations with Casey when she was a child. He also stated that the defenses position was that Casey did not kill her daughter, Caylee, it was an accident as she drowned in the backyard swimming pool. Baez also alleged George had pulled Caylee’s dead body out of the pool, and scolded Casey for not watching her.

While Georges time on the stand was difficult for Baez, he kept trying to get him to answer questions about the smell of a dead body in his daughters car when he went to the towing yard to pick up his vehicle. The towing company had indicated they sent a notice to them about the car, but they never came to pick it up until about 10-11 days after it was sent. Baez didn’t let the smell in the car go away, he kept pounding at it and George kept evading the question.

He asked if he could smell “death” in the car and George would answer what he saw. He finally came to the point where he said “I had a smell like that outside in the woods, in the house, in a car, I mean it’s” and then a big frown on his face while Baez responded, “And this is six months before your granddaughter is found in the woods?” And then the prosecution called an objection and they went to a sidebar.
To view the courtroom video yourself you can go to WFTV and view any parts of the trial. WFTV is covering the trial LIVE online.

The trial starts again Tuesday, May 31/2011 9AM (EST)

Daniel … Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything
@dandmb50

To go to my FULL BlogSpot BLOG CLICK HERE or click the Header .. Daniel .. Toronto, CANADA at the top of each page.

UPDATE: Casey Anthony murder trial - Cindy Anthony (Grandmother) of Caylee, takes stand for most of today, jury sympathizes?

2011-06-17T22:45:00.000-04:00

Opinion street

Orlando, Florida - I'm no lawyer, but sympathy, emotions, and non-facts, should not be part of any murder trial. Today's evidence in the murder case of Casey Anthony was not evidence, but pure emotion, speculation and sympathy for the grandmother. It has been reported that the whole family is dysfunctional and it was very clear today this may be true, and although it is only the seventh day of trial this is a very dysfunctional family in my view. In previous testimony by George, Casey's Father, he would never answer the defense attorney's questions, and today it was the same approach from the mother, Cindy.
Let's face it, Casey Anthony is not the poster child for Mother of the Year, but this is just so, so slanted, since everyone has been coached to hate her and that is not right. How she acts in the courtroom to her mother, how she dresses, how she looks at anyone, these are not reasons for convicting someone of the worst crime ever. Innuendo, speculation, looks, clothing they are not evidence.

Caylee Anthony

I agree, I suspected she was guilty from three years ago, and she may well be, but we must let the trial play out. From what I understand as a layman, people get convicted on evidence and we have seen very little so far. Yes, computer checks for chloroform, checks for neck breaking, hair in the trunk, these are all circumstantial evidence and no one has placed Casey at the desk of the computer, or putting her daughters hair in the trunk.

Tonight on Nancy Grace show on HLN, where she is in true form, she has said such things as "Casey placed her daughters dead body in a pet cemetery with duct tape over her mouth" is just all conjecture and not based on any real facts. She even had a veteran New York City lawyer Paul Batista as a guest on her show tonight and he spouted the same as me, and she said, "cut his microphone, he's not answering my questions" which means he is not in lock step loop with Nancy Grace's view, and can't be heard, doubt if he will be asked back on. I have read that the duct tape over the mouth of young Caylee was probably done by the person who killed/or covered up the death, to make it appear that it was a kidnapping.

Defense team

It appears that everyone from CNN - HLN shows, seem to have closed minds, and think/demand that Casey is guilty. Thank goodness we even have trials, with people thinking like this, and spewing their biased opinions. I have not decided yet, if I think Casey is guilty, it looks very bad for her if I just listen to the main stream media, but I have my doubts, but they may be addressed later in the trial. But I have not decided to take her out and finish her off before she gets a fair and unbiased trial, what is happening people, there must be evidence, proving these things especially in a murder trial, it must be beyond reasonable doubt. Are people saying, they have no doubt in their minds after the revealing opening statement at the beginning of the trial by Casey's defense attorney Jose Baez? Maybe not, but I sure do, have all kinds of doubt in my mind and I'm just a regular guy.

Casey is the one everyone loves to hate, and "string her up" mentality, but that went out, back when cattle rustlers were hung, not today.

It shall be very interesting in the next few days, when George and Cindy's son Lee takes the stand and maybe then, we will see we have a package deal of a fully dysfunctional family, and it also appears they may all be liars, just as they programmed their daughter Casey.

Check out my pics

TRIAL CHATTER: I thought it was just me mixing up Casey, Caylee, Cindy, all such similar names but I heard Cindy today on the stand make the mistake herself, at least twice?

Daniel .. Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything
@dandmb50

To go to my FULL BlogSpot BLOG CLICK HERE or click the Header .. Daniel .. Toronto, CANADA at the top of each page.

UPDATE: Casey Anthony murder trial – ‘Dick Tracy Orlando’ was discussed, in the absence of the jury this afternoon, but the jury heard it

2011-06-17T22:44:00.000-04:00

Lead Detective, Yuri Melich of the Orange County Sheriff’s Office took the stand late this afternoon and he is the one that Jose Baez says is called “Dick Tracy Orlando” after he admitted posting some comments about the case on some local blogs prior to the trial. Melich, has created, or trying to create a fan club of sorts, and at the time back when he first arrived on the scene at the Anthony home at 3:50am on July 16/2008 he was a Detective Corporal but now is working in the Professional Standards division which is internal affairs. As Melich was giving his testimony today about Casey’s statement, Baez asked him “did you ever go by a different name than Yuri Melich?” The prosecution made an objection and the Judge sustained it, and then Baez went ahead and said quickly, “did you ever go by the name of Dick Tracy Orlando?” to which he received no reply, and the Judge said “sustained” again, and then “next question” and then Baez asks for a sidebar and the Judge refuses, but then allows it, and they remove the jury and have a hearing over “Dick Tracy Orlando.” He sure has a smug, arrogant/smart ass attitude while he is on the stand at the trial. I hate to see him in person.

To go to my FULL WordPress BLOG CLICK HERE or click the Header .. Daniel .. Toronto, CANADA at the top of each page.

UPDATE: Day 15 - Questions: still outstanding about Casey Anthony murder trial - Does anyone have answers? Dates and times of key evidence

2011-06-17T22:43:00.000-04:00

Orlando, Florida - Friday was very disturbing with Judge Perry allowing speculating evidence into the trial with videos that were very damaging to the defense which had nothing to do with "real evidence."
It appears that the prosecution is getting very desperate, and just working on the emotions of the jury and the public by continually showing the death scene photos with the duct tape over and over and over. The pictures are real, but it doesn't show how the duct tape got onto Caylee.
By saying "there is no other way it could have happened," is not evidence, and it appears many of the prosecution witnesses are saying just that.

Dr. Jan Garavaglia, Chief Medical Examiner explained there was no other way it could have happened, just her opinion, but the prosecution never showed any videos of Caylee drowning in the pool?

Questions: still outstanding about Casey Anthony trial - Does anyone have answers? Dates and times of key evidence.

What was the date the car was found in the tow yard?

If it was mid July 2008 according to defense attorney Jose Baez, Caylee died June 16/2008 and evidence has been made that the body was in trunk of car for only 2 days.

How is it the body was not in heavy decomposition if it was 29 days later that it was placed in the car?

Cindy Anthony called police July 15/2008 about Caylee missing.

I always thought that hair samples could be tested for any type of drugs in the body. Did they test the sample in the trunk for chloroform and did they find any?

Have they proved, or are they going to prove that Casey put the tape on Caylee's face, or even prove that Casey put the body in the trunk?

Are they going to prove that Casey made the searches on the internet for chloroform, neck breaking and if she didn't make the searches, who did and why?

Are we seeing all jailhouse videos, or only those that are beneficial to the prosecution?

Caylee's body found Dec 11/2008 in the woods.

Dr. Voss from earlier in week, is a bit of a nut job, using his "defining rod" which is a hangar that detects dead bodies in the ground, and wants to put "tracking devices" on (yes really) flies??
Emotions should not be the "Evidence" that convicts Casey, it should be real facts about the alleged murder and until we hear what the defense has to say, we must just hold back judgement. I think she did it, but I still have an open mind.

Trial continues Saturday at 9am.

Daniel ... Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything
@dandmb50

UPDATE: Casey Anthony murder trial Day 20 - Defense makes some huge advances with evidence and drops some bombshells

2011-06-16T23:45:00.000-04:00

Orlando, Florida - Key pieces of evidence that the prosecution said were a slam dunk were challenged today as the defense started with their charge to the jury. Duct tape, blood on many items was discounted by Heather Seubert, an FBI - DNA expert from Quantico, VA when she said many times, there is no blood or DNA on these items that link directly to Caylee, or Casey Anthony.

A big part of this case has been the duct tape which the prosecution said was used to kill Caylee. Today it was proven by Seubert, that there was no DNA on the sticky side of the duct tape. The prosecution countered with the fact that it was under water, six months in the woods, etc, so it will be up to the jury to believe or not believe her testimony.

This was only the second witness that the defense had called and already the prosecution is on the defensive, making all kinds of objections to keep this evidence out but Judge Belvin Perry is allowing most. (overruled) Seubert did many tests on all of these items and found no blood or semen on all items pointing to Casey and the prosecution just kept objecting.

The prosecutor was furious when Jose Baez (defense attorney for Casey) asked the witness about the parentage of Caylee, and Judge Perry said "I don't have a hearing problem, the amplification of questions and objections, I don't need them." and then they broke for lunch. Defense council Baez has said from his opening statement (which is not evidence) that Casey was molested by George and brother Lee and although he knew already they were not matches for paternity, he still tried to get it in their minds before lunch break.

The defense dropped some bombshells, or it would be better described as, Carpet Bombing. Why did the prosecution hide these facts?

Daniel ... Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything
@dandmb50

Driving in Toronto, can it be dangerous, costly, frustrating and just plain madness. Do we have enough enforcement?

2011-05-15T12:07:00.001-04:00

Toronto, CANADA - An excellent article in the Toronto Star today prompted this blog, and writer Ian Law was concentrating on the four driving offences that "drive him crazy" and he could issue tickets (if they game him a title and a car) to drivers, under the Ontario Highway Traffic Act (HTA.) He covers his worst, distracted drivers, running red lights,aggressive driving, and illegal turns.

These are all good points and although many residents would say "We have enough enforcement, too much,in fact" that is not the case. Recently the Province of Ontario added a new traffic law which makes using any hand held electronic devices illegal and subject to over $100 fine and points. This is mainly targeted at people texting and driving, or stopped at a traffic light, and are not using a hands free device. And since the start of this new law, about a year ago, has this eliminated the safety hazard? Not a chance, it's a wee bit smaller than in years past, but it still continues to this day, and I see people texting in backed up traffic all the time. If caught, I think a more realistic fine should be imposed since they are only catching about five percent, so let's make the fine $500 and see how the public reacts to that.
This texting and driving has been responsible for so many accidents since texting started, and now with everyone having a smart phone, and traffic snarls all over the city, people think they can do both. Studies have shown that someone texting and driving is very similar to the conditions of an impaired driver and in Ontario that is a criminal offence.

I just don't get it, people can't wait to answer their phones and for some reason are aware of the dangers, but continue to use their hand held devices while they try to manoeuvre through the heavy traffic of downtown Toronto, and I suspect other major cities across North America. It's getting so bad, it's not even safe in a wheelchair. (picture below)

So what do you think? Are there other things that DRIVE YOU CRAZY about Toronto Drivers? Let's hear what you have to say.

If you need a good safe driving school, check this place out, it's Ian Law's school just north of Toronto. (Car Control School)

Daniel ... Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything

Did you ever get CASH, $25.00 to open a bank account, well you can do it now with ING and they even pay you interest, NO fees ever, yes I said NO FEES, go to my BLOGSPOT BLOG and look for the ING Dangling KEY logo and .. FLIP OVER for the LINK - Check it out. You are required to make a minimum deposit of $100, but where else can you make 25% interest in one transaction instantly. Huh?
Be sure to copy the NUMBERS on the key to get the $25 credit. ...

Favorite links about Toronto

The Wall Photo Group-JoinJoin today - simple rules
WordPress BLOGJust UPDATED
BlogSpot/BloggerBlogSpot BLOG - My take on everything
Toronto access pageEvents, movies and anything else happening in Toronto
Sewers under the CityPics stories about sewers
FamilyPhoto2000Family Photo 2000
Toronto News 24 - excellent online news about TorontoOnline NEWS site about Toronto and the whole GTA area
My first BLOG tumblrAll about Toronto, TUMBLR Blog
blog.commy other BLOG - My take on everything
AllVoicesNews/comment - citizen journalists
Now PublicNews/comment - citizen journalists
IPTV - Bell Fibe TV forumForum about Fibe TV
TwitPicPictures - photos - comments
My photo AlbumsPictures - photos - comments
City of TorontoMunicipal Government site
Libya EgyptMy take on "Middle East"
All about dandmb50#dandmb50 on google 54,000 hits
My Flickr pictures on flickriverFlikr pictures on flickriver portal, click picture to see full discription and scroll down to see more
Flickr albumsSome of my favorites on Flickr
Digital Journal - Online news around the worldOnline news - Toronto and the WORLD - great site
On-line Radio ShowInteresting topics check it out
Madison, WisconsinAll about Wisconsin, great site

The strength of Tuscaloosa is the people, and 'THEY' will overcome.

2011-04-30T15:10:00.001-04:00

Tuscaloosa, Alabama -

The Royal Wedding - Enough already, I didn't receive my invitation so I'm not watching, um, going.

2011-04-29T12:58:00.000-04:00

Toronto, Canadar (CANADA) - (That's how THEY say it, I don't know where they get the "r" from) Is it just me or is this Royal Wedding thing too much for everybody. They have created stamps, dolls, coins, trinkets, bobbleheads, complete TV/Radio coverage, and we are all suppose to be interested?
It's a wedding. I'm happy for William but it's too much for me.

It's as if the media is telling us, we should be interested in this whole big spending spree and everything associated with it. Am I the only one not interested?

Let us know what you think of it all. I have mixed feelings on the Monarchy in Canada, but all the fuss is a bit too much for me.
I don't usually watch much on TV live anymore because of DVR/PVR so it gives me the opportunity when the Royal stuff comes on to just click through it, and I seem to be doing a lot of clicking the last few days, since it's on every newscast. Bloody HELL ...But I must admit, I do like the crowns.
And why are they calling her "Kate" when her name is Catherine? Most parents name their girls Catherine because they don't want people to call them "Kate."

Daniel … Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything

Can you believe this HAT, yikes. This is how much out of control this thing is, women are suppose to wear hats (by tradition, not required) but someone did not wear a hat and is now ostracized by the British community, Huh ?

This is the Queen arriving at the Westminster Abbey, (founded 960) BELOW, and what's in her purse? Yes, I confess, I did watch a bit of it. I'm so happy for the two of them and so happy everything went smoothly. She's on our money?

Talk about ‘Big Brother’ it’s alive and well with Apples iPhone/iPad – iTracker.

2011-04-21T11:16:00.000-04:00

Looking for ING Key - $25 - scroll to bottom ...
Toronto, CANADA – It was uncovered when Michigan State Police (MSP) had revealed that they have a gadget that allows them to download all information in under two minutes from a person’s iPhone/iPad when they pull them over for a traffic violation and ask “may I search your car” and go about searching and then download all details from their cell phone which is mysteriously, secretly stored on the iPhone/iPad for up to one year. Since you agreed to the search, they assume it is legal. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in the USA has a different view on this and have launched a vigorous investigation.
It has been reported that it stores, GPS, photos, emails, calendar, phone numbers, and many other things that you have on your phone and even though you have deleted them, they are still accessible from this device even if you have them password protected.
And the big question is why has Apple not disclosed this information and it is also reported that you do not have the ability to “opt out” of this unwanted, unknown, “Big Brother,’ private surveillance.
The MSP said “no problem” the ACLU can do an investigation and get the “freedom of information” data that they are collecting, but it would cost them over $500,000 to divulge that data.

UPDATE - There is an app (not from apple) which can/may solve this problem. It's called UNTRACKERED and you can click the link and check it out.

Did you ever get CASH, $25.00 to open a bank account, well you can do it now with ING and they even pay you interest .. FLIP OVER for LINK - Check it out.
And believe it or not, the bank account is FEE FREE, yes no fees ever!
You are required to make a minimum deposit of $100, but where else can you make 25% interest in one transaction instantly. Huh? …
Just CLICK the FLIP OVER button to the right and then SIGN ME UP.

Daniel … Toronto, CANADA
My take on everything

Lots of action at Toronto Women's Roller Derby (TORD) Saturday.

2011-04-18T02:31:00.018-04:00

Toronto - A good turnout at the Downsview Park Saturday night for the Women's Roller Derby League (TORD) just under 1000 fans. Rough and tumble action all night.
Very well organized event and fun for all ages, they even have a scoreboard which is generated from a laptop computer.

Spectators are allowed to sit ringside but cautioned in case a player falls into them. No-one under 19 is allowed at the edge of the rink in case of a wipe-out, which thankfully happens quite a lot.

Saturday's bout by The Death Track Dolls and Smoke City Betties didn't disappoint, as you can see pictured above, Jammers, Betty Bomber (23) of Death Track Dolls and Rug Burn (83) of Smoke City Betties.

The organizers have a team of first aid specialists on hand in case of injury and last night there were very few.
The crowd is spirited on by announcer "Crankypants" who gives a play by play and updates on the action.

The teams will take their break when they travel to Montreal for The Beast of the East Tournament at Arena St. Louis, April 30 and May 1.

Next bout is Saturday, May 14 with Gore-Gore Rollergirls up against Smoke City Betties.

After the trip to Montreal teams come back and enter into playoffs starting Saturday, June 11 with Team 1 vs. Team 2 and the Championship final will be held on Saturday, June 25 at The Hanger at Downsview Parc/Park.

Tickets are $18 and can be purchased in advance ONLINE or select locations for $12, but get them early, as they go fast.

Don't forget, Toronto Roller Derby League (TORD) will be hosting an International Tournament in December 2011 at a still unannounced location with 13 teams from all over the world.

Daniel .. Toronto, CANADA

My take on everything