Paradigm Relationship between the Winter Olympics and World Cup of Football

It was in 1994 that, for the first time, the Winter Olympics and the World Cup of Football occured in the same year. This came two years after the last unified Olympic Year between the Winter (Albertville, France) and the Summer Games (Barcelona, Spain).
That year of 1994, the Winter Games was hosted by Lillehammer, Norway and Team Sweden took home the Gold Medal in Men's Ice Hockey. Later that year the U.S.A hosted the World Cup of Football, and Brasil won the tournament. It was at this point that Bosnia (a mainly Muslim State) was claiming sovereignty from Serbian Nationalism (Russian Orthodox). Identifying themselves as Culturally unique, this was also a common sentiment of Quebecer's in Canada, pertaining to their relationship with Anglo-phon Monotheism. While this may seem to be speculation, this could be the reason why we saw such a division in each tournament winner that year, between theologically diverse Sweden (mainly Christian) and Brasil (mainly Catholic). In actual fact, it wasn't until 1997 that the Western Media started reporting that the Serbian Military was genocidal towards Bosnia (Muslims).
The following year, 1998, Nagano, Japan host the Winter Olympics and the Czech Republic took home the Gold Medal in Men's Ice Hockey. Later that year, France staged the World Cup of Football and the host nation won the Tournament. Again there was a clear division between sects of religion, paramount by Nation. Some say it was precisely at this time that the Bosnia/Serbia War began and ended.
9/11 occured in 2001 and we saw terrorism to a level that had never before reached America. The terrorist attacks were blatantly al-queda, organized by Osama Bin Laden, and some would say Taliban funded.
In 2002 Salt Lake City, U.S.A host the Winter Games and Canada won the Gold Medal in Men's Ice Hockey, and later that year Brasil won the World Cup (host by Japan/South Korea). Most would say that the division between sects of religion wasn't as strong at this point, as aside from Iraq and Afghanistan there were narry a Nation that would funnel a World War. After Saddam Hussein was put under War Crimes for his involvements in other Terrorist activities and War Crimes), there was actually a cry of foul in the Muslim World (Nations gentrified at 98% or greater Muslim population) pertaining to Hussein being ostracized Politically.
The last held Winter Olympics was 2006 in Turin, Italy and Sweden took home Gold in Men's Ice Hockey. Later that year, Italy won the World Cup of Football. Again there was this division of sects between religion prevelant. Considering that F.I.F.A governs the World Cup, it leaves one curious to wonder if they had anything to do with each World Cup in question being won by a mainly Catholic Nation. Likewise that of the I.O.C, pertaining to the Winter Olympics, as every Gold Medal winner, neigh Canada, exclaims themselves to be strong Christian Nations.
At the beginning of this year, Barack Obama was inaugurated as the first African-American President of the U.S.A. It was in 1994 that Nelson Mandela took the reigns of a turbulent South Africa. That is why I think that either Nigeria or South Africa will win the upcoming 2010 World Cup of Football (being staged for the first time in an African Nation). As for the preceeding Winter Olympics that are being hosted by Vancouver, Canada. As a Canadian, I'm going for my Homeland. My concern is that bloody European favouritism, or I.O.C and F.I.F.A politics will prevail. Go Nigeria !!! Go Canada !!!

Team Canada 2010 - by Moses

With the Canadian NHL'ers playing for Olympic Gold for the first time in Canada, I thought to catch the Olympic spirit. Here is a projected Roster of Team Canada for the upcoming 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. The projected Roster is my opinion only, so please don't take offence if your favourite NHL'ers aren't included.

General Managers

1. Steve Yzerman
2. Scotty Bowman
3. Brian Trottier

Coaches

1. Jacques Lemaire
2. Pat Quinn

Goaltenders

1. Martin Brodeur
2. Roberto Luongo
3. J.S Giguere
4. Marc-Andre Fleury (first alternate)

Defencemen

1. Chris Pronger
2. Mike Green
3. Brian Campbell
4. Brian Seabrook
5. Dion Phaneuf
6. Scott Niedermayer
7. Jay Bouwmeester
8. Shea Weber
9. P.K Subban (first alternate)

Defence Pairings

1. Pronger and Green
2. Campbell and Seabrook
3. Phaneuf and Niedermayer
4. Bouwmeester and Weber (first alternate pairing)

Centermen

1. Sidney Crosby
2. Joe Thornton
3. Ryan Getzlaf
4. Marc Savard
5. Jonathon Toews (first alternate)
6. John Tavares (second alternate)

Left Wingers

1. Rick Nash
2. Vincent Lecavalier
3. Shane Doan
4. Simon Gagne
5. Eric Staal (first alternate)
6. Patrick Marleau (second alternate)

Right Wingers

1. Jarome Iginla
2. Dany Heatley
3. Zach Parise
4. Daniele Briere
5. Mike Cammalleri (first alternate)
6. Mike Richards (second alternate)

Bench by designation

1. Jonathon Toews (C)
2. John Tavares (C)
3. Eric Staal (LW)
4. Patrick Marleau (LW)
5. Mike Cammalleri (RW)
6. Mike Richards (RW)

Lines

1. Rick Nash Sidney Crosby Jarome Iginla
2. Vincent Lecavalier Joe Thornton Dany Heatley
3. Shane Doan Ryan Getzlaf Zach Parise
4. Simon Gagne Marc Savard Daniel Briere
5. Eric Staal Jonathon Toews Mike Cammalleri (first alternate)
6. Patrick Marleau John Tavares Mike Richards (second alternate)

GO CANADA !!!

Video Games - by Moses

Video Games

Ports (Interface Units) and Recording Studio’s

1. Abbey Road
2. Le Studio (Morin Heights)
3. Trident
4. Maclear
5. Cherry Beach
6. Turtle Beach
7. Metalworks
8. Bearsville
9. Studio 306
10. Casablanca
11. Q107 – Skylab
12. Walt Disney Studio’s
13. Lucas Sound
14. Many unnamed Governments and Broadcasters
15. AES/EBU
16. SPDIF
17. U.S.B
18. Optical – Crystal
19. Fiber-Optics
20. VHF/UHF – Antenna
21. M.I.D.I – Musical Instrument Digital Interface
22. Atari
23. Williams
24. Sega
25. Nintendo
26. Apple
27. Olivetti
28. I.B.M – Internal Business Machines
29. Commodore
30. Colecovision
31. Activision
32. Intellivision
33. Tascam
34. Alesis
35. Sony
36. Maxell
37. TDK
38. Yamaha
39. Akai
40. Kurtzweil
41. Neve
42. Westar
43. Neotek
44. Studer
45. Bryson
46. Carver
47. Bell Meridian
48. Cellular
49. Satellite
50. Sonar - Leagues

Video Games

1. Zapper
2. Galaga
3. Space Invaders
4. Galaxian
5. Missile Command
6. Donkey Kong
7. John Elway Football
8. Tommy Lasorda Baseball
9. Dragon’s Lair – Virtual Reality
10. Frogger
11. Qix
12. Labyrinth *
13. Tempest
14. Defender
15. Centipede
16. Pac Man
17. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
18. Super Mario Brothers
19. Tetras
20. Q-Bert
21. Joust
22. Track and Field
23. Asteroids
24. Star Wars
25. Speed
26. Miss Pac Man
27. Pitfalls
28. The Body Synth–The human is the game or character/Muscles making visuals/music/Cyborg

Dimensia and Polarization

1. Modes – Lydian, Phrygian, Dorian, Locrian – Set Scales
2. Octaves – Thirds, Fifths, Sevenths – Scale to Scale
3. Uni – Two Dimensional
4. Bi – Two Dimensional with Common Frequency
5. Tri – Three Dimensional
6. Quadrophonic – Surround Sound
7. Pentagon – Intelligence Gathering Techniques
8. Hexagon – Star
9. Septagon – Million
10. Octagon – 8th Dimension
11. Tetragon – Dan or Highest level in Martial Arts
12. Decigon - Highest/Billion
13. Uni-directional – Taking in at/from one direction
14. bi-Polar - Taking in from two directions at once
15. Omni-directional – Taking in from all directions at once
16. Cardioid – Heart shaped envelope
17. Hyper-Cardioid – Heart shape with a Penis for greater sensitivity

Video Games – Legend

1. Start of Game – Life
2. Game Over – Death and Desensitization
3. High Sc ore – Material
4. Increased Speed – Levels
5. % of hits – Success Rate
6. Virtual Reality – Identifying with the characters
7. Memory – The players’ imagination and talent
8. Discovering Hidden Screens – Conquest
9. Ability – Confidence

Repercussions

In the 1970’s when Video Games were introduced into our communities, the premise was simple – Kill the Alien, anything that is a threat to us - shoot an alien, shoot an asteroid, shoot a Centipede. These games were in-offensive to most. The person who played these games were expediating their rate to achieve high scores. Today, most Video Games employ hand to hand combat, and other acts of violence. When Video Games first came out there were many arcades in Mega-Cities and the usual form of playing was done standing. Today most people play their Video Games from home-systems – usually played while sitting.
In the Tom Clancy novel ‘Games of State’, the concern that he had was that Video Games would be used as a weapon top disorient people into believing that ‘Blacks’ should be exterminated.
On the internet today, practically any and all Video Games can be uploaded and downloaded onto a persons’ hard-drive. This is different from twenty years ago when a person had to buy the software. Today, hard-drives are ports, communication devices (with internal tracking a.k.a G.P.S). Therefore, any electronic device or cable used in our modern day carries with it a built in limiter in the Hardware (now considered a port). This chip can be activated outside of the home (each hardware component exists within the mainframe – a software design. Modulation (or synthesis) is used as a measure of issuing commands or triggers. In a natural state these commands carry no meaning – in other words, passive resistance is a defence mechanism used to combat impulses.
Closed circuit television was employed as a premise to define each Nuclear Household with respect to our programming. In our modern day – since 1990 - we now see many 24/7 businesses. By this perspective the psychology of our time has changed, in relation to the 70’s and 80’s. When almost 100% of the population worked a conformed 9am-5pm position, people were on the same page. Since virtual reality Video Games were introduced and when the Telecommunications industry became much more de-regulated, peoples’ psychology changed. In this writers’ opinion, we’ve become de-sensitized, and we’re experiencing gross acts of violence in the Western World as a result. Once there is a removal of programs within an operating system, this form of sensory deprivation is essentially psychological warfare. A rational person that consciously experiences this becomes disoriented. This is Tom Clancy’s fear. At the point of being triggered, or, having information withheld, a person will naturally combat. To see things clearly is paramount. Once time and depth perception changes, this is a form of terror. A person will naturally deduce based on whatever stimulae their given (how a person feels) - kismet.

Community Centre Food Banks - by Moses

In the City of Toronto, the local Churches are being provided food by the private sector (second harvest, our daily bread, supermarkets, and large and small scale food food companies.
By observation, there are 'emergency services' allotted to people that are clientele of food banks, either because of income allowance or zoning issues. By nature a person in need of 'emergency' food is provided such. This is a mandate of the Church overseen by the City, in the name of donations.
On Thursday, October 15th I walked into a Community Centre food bank that was two blocks outside of their service zone. My friend and I were without food in the home. We waited roughly two hours for our numbers to be called, and once they did I was asked a series of questions. My identification was valid, and I told the people there that this food was for 'emergency' purposes. I told them that I'd been to their food bank once in the past and that although my home was two blocks outside of their zone, the food was for an emergency' purpose as there were no food banks in our zone open on this day. My friend and I were shunned, and when we asked to speak to a supervisor we were asked to wait as he was doing paperwork. After 25 minutes we asked to speak to him again, and we were told that he was now at lunch. I was vocal at this point, and was told by the staff that I could call the helpline, but there was nothing they could do. I demanded to speak to the supervisor.
The supervisor came out finally, and tried explaining that our home was outside of their zone. I told him that this was the only food bank near us that was open at this time. He told us he'd speak to us ion an office for privacy. In opening he said he'd make an exception and service us, as we'd been waiting for roughly two hours. I asked him why 'emergency' services weren't being honoured. He explained that we'd been at their food bank three times in total (between the two of us), and that it was an exception to the rule to process our request
The root issue here is very simple; Should a man with nothing to eat in his home (based on circumstance) walk into a food bank and request 'emergency' food, they are entitled to it. The staff has to be aware, by delegate, that this is an entitlement and not an exception.
Case in point - A man has no money, no food, and hasn't eaten in a day. He waits for his number to be called, and after two hours is told to call a helpline because the mans' home is two blocks outside of the zone of the centre. He gets home and the office number is closed. He goes to bed. He wakes up at 1:00am and suffers hunger pains. He goes to a 7/11 and tries to steal a sandwich (by necessity).

Is this man a criminal?

A True Warrior of God

Maj. Nidal turned out to be a true warrior of God. A true warrior's loyalty is to Islam and this loyalty overrides all other loyalties. His allegiance to the United States, his sworn oath as an officer of the US army to serve and protect his country means nothing when his soul is a risk for not being true to Muslim.

Apparently, yelling “Allahu Akbar” Nidal opened fire on unarmed soldiers at close range. He of course hoped to die as a martyr, and go to Paradise where he would be rewarded by receiving the gift of 72 virgins. But Nidal blew it off by not dying in his Jihadi attack. Now he will live to get American justice which will not be as pleasant.

by Pindsvin

The new Holy Roman Empire

On November 3, 2009, the Czech Republic signed the Lisbon Treaty. All 27 member stated have said yes to this treaty and it now takes effect. This means that the European countries loose their independence and become provinces in the European Union.

The European Union is not a Democracy. Its elected parliament have no legislative powers. The Executive body is appointed, and have legislative powers which can override national legislation.

To me this looks like a modern Holy Roman Empire.

by Pindsvin

Thoughts on Heathen Idemtity

Personal and group identities play an important role in weaving the fabric of society and determining how its individual components interact with one another. Members of any minority group, such as Heathens and Ásatrúar, for example, must constantly deal with defining themselves in relation to the groups they choose to associate with, and the consequences and benefits this identification brings. It is therefore worthwhile to reflect for a moment on some of the sources of identity and the roles identity plays in greater society.

The historical Germanic Heathens derived their identity primarily from two main sources: ancestry and deeds. Ancestry, particularly what tribe one came from as well as one’s more direct ancestors, legitimized one’s existence and provided a strong source of power and luck. Personal deeds, however, could also add to or take away from one’s identity. The boasting culture of the Germanic tribes was an important means of adding to one’s own reputation. A strong identity and reputation were needed not only for favourable interactions within society, but also to ensure that one would be remembered and eulogized in Midgard even after death.

Surprisingly, things have not changed that much over thousands of years. In modern Western society, ancestry is still crucial to determining our sense of being. Many individuals feel strong connections to race, ethnic group, “tribe” (in the broad sense of the word), birth religion and family history. We are born with these inherent aspects of our identity, and they influence how we define ourselves and how others define us. Luckily, our personal deeds still allow us to modify these aspects of our identity, for better or for worse. Examining any high school will demonstrate that deeds such as academic achievement, athletic prowess, artistic abilities and success in dating will greatly influence how teenagers are perceived, and consequently treated.

One area that contributes to our identity more in modern times, and not so much in ancient times, is the groups we consciously choose to identify with. For example, in modern society we can choose our religion, our leisure activities, our political affiliation, the clubs and organizations we support, etc. These further modify and influence our personal identities.

There are thus many sources of identity, some of which we are born with, and others which we create for ourselves. It is often said we should judge people for who they are, not whom they are associated with, but this notion misses some rather key points. Identities are crucial in establishing social norms and maintaining the interactions between different parts of society. By applying labels and group identities to individuals we can quickly get a brief overview of what a person may (or may not) represent, and understand better where he or she may be coming from and what life experiences or sensibilities he or she may have. An individual’s personal and group identity can also be a source of strength and legitimacy, and provide a sense of belonging.

The problem, however, lies in taking identities to the extreme (otherwise known as stereotyping). By refusing to acknowledge heterogeneity within a group of people identified the same way, we often fail to understand the individuals we interact with. Prejudice and discrimination can also result when we do not agree with the central aspects of the identity of another group, and therefore put ourselves at odds with people who either choose to (or must by birth) identify in a certain way.

Now that we are aware of some of the sources of identity and roles it plays, we, as Heathens (or whatever else we may be) must decide to what extent we will identify ourselves within this context. Identifying strongly as a Heathen provides us with a wealth of cultural context and a wide variety of ancestors, heroes and god/desses from which we can learn and grow. However, identifying strongly can also cause us to face stereotyping (if not discrimination) from others, or at least be seen as different and weird.

We must also not be caught up too entirely in our identity that we must change our own personal beliefs and personalities just to fit those that the majority of Heathens (or whatever group we are talking about) share. Just because historical Heathens often attacked Christian settlements or were conversely attacked by Christian missionaries, for example, does not mean that modern Heathens also have to be enemies of modern Christians (which unfortunately seems to be an assumption of many Heathens I have met), as the socio-political context is extremely different now than it was a thousand years ago.

On the other hand, denying or hiding our identity can be self-defeating. I, personally, do not talk about myself in public very much, but was extremely offended to hear someone (falsely!) remark, “ah, but you don’t have any interests outside school and work so you don’t count!” I’ve also been told, “I’ve known you for two years, but know absolutely nothing about you!” And other people just think something is wrong with me and can’t figure out what. Not identifying as Heathen (despite it being a major part of your life) could thus potentially lead to just as many problems and misunderstandings as rubbing it in everyone’s face.

For some things (like race, biological gender, etc.) it is almost impossible not to strongly publicly identify as a member of a certain group. But for others, such as religion, the choice is yours. Reflecting on where identity comes from, and the benefits and drawbacks of group association, will therefore help each individual decide the degree to which he or she will publicly identify as such. Some of us are loud, proud and public, others hide away for fear of being ridiculed, shunned or accused of being something we are not, and others (like myself) find talking about such things with other people unfruitful and usually in vain. Thus, whatever degree of attention one draws to oneself as a Heathen (or member of another group) remains a personal decision, but one should never lose sight of trying to understand why one has made such a choice and the consequences thereof.

Þórsvinur