Pony Party, NHL Playoffs, Round 2

The first round was amazing…i always love the regular-season games, and then always pout, once the playoffs start, that they haven’t been playing this hard all year  ðŸ˜‰  im such hockey brat!!

Anywho…here’s our first round results…

Eastern Conference

Montreal (1) over Boston in 7

Pittsburgh (2) swept Ottawa

Rangers (5) over NJ in 5.

Philly (6) over Washington in 7

Western Conference

Detroit (1) bested Nashville in 6

San Jose (2) beats Calgary in 7

Dallas (5) beat Anaheim in 6

Colorado (6) over Minnesota in 6

Dharmafan 1st round results:

who picked whom? H2D fortschreitend Night Owl undercovercalico 73v
Habs/Bruins Habs-5 Habs-4 Habs-5 Habs-6 Habs-6
Pens/Sens Pens-6 Pens-5 Pens-6 Pens-6 Pens-6/7
Caps/Flyers Caps-5 Flyers-7 Caps-7 Caps-7 Flyers-6
Devils/Rangers NJ-7 NJ-6 NY-7 NY-6 NY-7
Wings/Preds Wings-6 Wings-4 Wings-5 Wings-5 Wings-4
Sharks/Flames SJ-5 SJ-6 SJ-6 Flames-6 SJ-5
Wild/Avs Avs-7 Wild-5 Avs-6 Wild-5 Wild-6/7
Ducks/Stars Ducks-5 Stars-7 Ducks-6 Ducks-6 Ducks-6
# correct 5 6 6 4 6

(i tried to work out a mathematical formula whereby i could give some sort of ‘advantage’ to H2D and forts, who each called a series in the correct # of games…i rolled out my chalkboard on wheels, paced professorially in front of it, used many, many squiggles and intersecting arrows….and i got NOTHIN!!!  if you have any ideas, please, feel free to interject…ill be outside clapping my erasers…)

Which leaves us with the following 2nd round matchups:

(the lower-numbered seed has the home-ice advantage)

Eastern Conference

Montreal (1) vs. Philly (6)

Pittsburgh (2) vs. NY (5)

Western Conference

Detroit (1) vs. Colorado (6)

San Jose (2) vs. Dallas (5)

With only 4 series to pick, the margin for error is a lot smaller….but at least the punishments are lighter 😉  (in case youre just joining us, there are NO punishments…i was kidding).  Feel free to post your picks in the comments, whether you’ve played along so far or not….the more the merrier.

My picks, with one disclaimer:  If it were at all possible for me to ever pick against the flyers, i might just do so here.  but i cant.  my fingers woulndt let me even if my heart would 😉

Philly over Habs in 6

Pens over Rangers in 7

Detroit over Colorado in 5…maybe 6

San Jose over Dallas in 6, probably 7

Thanks to everyone who’s played, is still playing, or would like to join in.  Keep your heads up and your elbows down  ðŸ˜‰

~73v  

Tibet: Chinese Government Tries To Tone Down Nationalism…Will It Work?

There is a BIG difference between a protester and a separatist. A protester is a white man, holding a Tibetan flag, yelling, screaming and cussing at Chinese, a man ill-informed and stubborn. A separatist is a Tibetan man holding a Tibetan flag, yelling, screaming and cussing at Chinese, with the intent of separating the People’s Republic of China. In total, about 30 “protesters” came, and 2 “separatists” came. That’s right, only 2 Tibetans, and two or so dozens of ill-informed westerners.

Quote from text accompanying this pro-China YouTube of the protests surrounding the Olympic torch relay in Australia today:

The Australia Olympic torch relay was relatively peaceful today, with few disruptions. Taking place under a “Free Tibet” sign written in the sky over Canberra, the most dramatic protest moment was when a man sat down in front of the torch runner. He was quickly escorted away by police.

Al Jazeera has footage of that moment in this report:

The Sydney Morning Herald reports on the scuffles between pro-China and Free Tibet protesters:

Thousands of chanting pro-China supporters from across the country flooded Canberra’s streets with red flags from dawn before the Olympic flame travelled uninterrupted through the capital.

They easily outnumbered an estimated 2,000 pro-Tibet protesters who had pledged to peacefully highlight China’s human rights record.

There was taunting and some heated scuffles between the two groups, and pro-Tibet protesters later accused Chinese students of violence and intimidation.

But police also wrestled away some pro-Tibet demonstrators, including at least one who tried to sit in the path of torchbearer and former marathon runner Rob de Castella.

ACT chief police officer Michael Phelan said seven people were arrested and all charged under special major event laws put in place for the relay.

All seven, five of whom were pro-Chinese and two pro-Tibetan, remained in custody on Thursday afternoon.

link: http://news.smh.com.au/torch-r…

Now, for anyone who’s been watching the above YouTube and following this story, it may come as a surprise that the Chinese government – after stoking the flames of nationalism in a PR offensive against what they refer to as “the Dalai Lama clique” – would be taking active steps to curb that same nationalism.

But that appears to be exactly what’s happening:

In the latest sign, authorities informed participants in a major music festival that the event would likely be postponed to avoid providing a venue for new demonstrations of patriotic or anti-Western sentiment. Already, they have been cracking down on student protests and online videos of demonstrations have disappeared from Chinese Web sites.

snip

The student crackdown appears to be particularly strong in the city of Hefei, in the eastern province of Anhui, where on Saturday, thousands protested outside a Carrefour store near the city’s university district, waving red flags and chanting “love China, boycott Carrefour.” On Sunday, universities there suspended classes and asked students to stay on campus, students say.

The Communist Youth League, a division of the Communist Party with a big presence on Chinese campuses, has been arranging meetings and distributing propaganda to calm nationalistic sentiment, say students. The Anhui branch of the Communist Youth League declined to answer questions.

“The atmosphere here on campus is a bit intense at this moment,” said a Ph.D. student surnamed Shen from Hefei’s China Technology and Science University. “Those who went out for the weekend protest were called for a talk in counselors’ office this week,” she said.

Some Chinese have reported difficulty sending text messages such as “boycott Carrefour” and “don’t shop at Carrefour” on the cellular network run by China Mobile Ltd., the country’s largest cellphone carrier. Rainie Lei, a spokeswoman for China Mobile, said the company wasn’t blocking any such messages.

link: http://online.wsj.com/article/…

Even the hackers have been told to reel it in:

Moreover, some Chinese hackers who had planned a significant attack on the Web site of Time Warner Inc.’s CNN, a major source of nationalistic resentment over its coverage of the recent unrest in Tibet, appear to have withdrawn. While CNN.com did experience an attack that affected users in Asia last Friday, hacker Web sites in China had promised much more.

The posts by some organizers of the attack calling for disbandment have an edge of “fear” to them, says Scott Henderson, author of the book Dark Visitor, about Chinese hackers. One in particular “could not have added many more exclamation points in his announcement,” he said. “It was a ‘PLEASE DO NOT HACK!!!!!!!!!’ sort of plea.”

link: http://online.wsj.com/article/…

State run media had this to say about the protests against the French company, Carrefour, in China:

“A stubborn insistence that those who do not join the protests and boycott Carrefour are not patriotic is false patriotism,” the newspaper said in an editorial. “Patriots are supposed to adopt a tolerant attitude toward others and be broad enough to see what is good and what is bad in them.

“Over-the-top nationalism is not constructive, but can do harm to the country. If we want to improve things, we will have to encourage responsible patriotism.”

link: http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/…

Just to keep everything fair and balanced, the Chinese government is also warning Tibetans to keep their opinions to themselves:

Chinese authorities will harshly deal with anyone who spreads rumours which “excite popular feelings” or disturb social harmony in the already restive region of Tibet, the government said on Thursday.

The notice, coming just months before the Beijing Olympics, seems to be aimed at Tibetans who listen to foreign radio broadcasts about the recent demonstrations in their remote mountainous region, skirt China’s firewall to access overseas websites or simply exchange news with friends.

“We will severely root out and give no indulgence to people with ulterior motives who spread rumours or excite popular feelings,” the Chinese-appointed government in Tibet said in a statement on its website (www.xizang.gov.cn).

Rumours which are “malicious and create serious consequences” will be “strictly dealt with in accordance with rules”, it added, without elaborating.

link: http://www.guardian.co.uk/spor…

Can Chinese authorities successfully maintain this negative peace through the Beijing Olympics? It remains to be seen.

Please keep all sides of this conflict in your thoughts, prayers and meditations, and please keep journalist and writer Jamyang Kyi in the forefront of your minds, as there is still no confirmation on her whereabouts after allegedly being detained by Chinese authorities.

Action Call: BEAR BUTTE ISSUE MORE CRITICAL THAN EVER!

( – promoted by buhdydharma )

Kevin Woster:


Many years ago, the federal courts ruled that the Black Hills of western South Dakota had been taken illegally from the American Indian tribes –

As governor, would you consider transferring Bear Butte State Park land and management to a consortium of American Indian Tribes as a gesture of reconciliation from the state?

Mike Rounds, Republican candidate in 2006:


“I do not believe that Bear Butte State Park, and it is a state park,
should be transferred to a Native American tribe.

I’m not sure which Native American tribe you might suggest (that) you hold
that they are all sovereign.

SD Governors Discuss Bear Butte


Why is the Bear Butte issue more critical than ever?

Crossposted at Native American Netroots

From Protect Bear Butte:

(Seems only first link in bulletin is still working)

Contact us at [email protected]


—————– Bulletin Message —————–

From: NDN News

Date: Apr 23, 2008 10:17 PM

Hello Everyone,

Please forward this flier widely! If you can, print them out, distribute them, post them, whatever you can think of! Please help spread the word!
If you want it as a Microsoft word document, for easier printing, email me!

We appreciate all of your help and support to protect sacred sites!

Thank you!

In peace & solidarity,
(name not posted)

www. NDNnews. com
www. ProtectSacredSites. org
http://bearbutte. blogspot. com/  

“Providing news and information about Native American Issues & Causes”
“Helping to make a difference for our people in Indian Country, one day at a time.

What will you do today to help make a difference?”

“Our sacred lands are all that remain keeping us connected to our place on Mother Earth, to our spirituality, our heritage and our lands; what’s left of them.

If they take it all away, what will remain except a vague memory of a past so forgotten?”

Join our friends list on my space at http://www. myspace. com/ndnnews and
http://www. myspace. com/protectsacredsites
Also, join our yahoo group at Protecting our Ancestors & Sacred Sites

Photobucket

Protect Sacred Sites Indigenous People, One Nation is a grass roots organization, which works towards protecting our sacred sites across the country.

We are a local organization actively working on the Protection of Bear Butte, in South Dakota.

BEAR BUTTE ISSUE MORE CRITICAL THAN EVER!

SACRED SITES ARE WORTH THE FIGHT!

Greetings to all my relations,

I am writing to you today to alert you to the commercial desecration of land held sacred by nearly all the Plains American Indian Nations, Bear Butte.  This blatant disregard for the spiritual beliefs and traditional and cultural treasure of thousands of people is evidenced by the continuing and mounting presence of bars, clubs, strobe lights, a proposed stadium, and other venues of crass commercial entertainment.

A brief background:

Bear Butte is a sacred site located eight miles west of Sturgis, South Dakota. It is registered as a National Historical Landmark. Bear Butte is sacred to the Plains Tribes, many continue to travel to the mountain each summer to pray and hold their annual ceremonies. Instead of praying in peace, traditional people are forced to pray with loud music from bars, mufflers and flashing strobe lights over the mountain.

For the past few years there has been a continual encroachment of bars and venues heading towards the sacred mountain. In the summer of 2006, the massive two story bar opened just one mile from the mountain, called Sturgis County Line. Their goal is to have a 50,000 seat concert stadium and a RV park, in addition to the newly built two story bar. The owner of this location, Jay Allen has been disrespectful from the start. He initially wanted to call the location “On Sacred Ground” and erect an 80-foot Indian statue pointing towards the sacred mountain. Of course this was not viewed lightly, there has been a major battle to shut Jay Allen down, ever since.

There have been several developments since the summer of 2006, expansions are in progress and things are potentially getting worse. On April 14, 2008, Jay Allen announced a new partnership with a travel corporation from Boston, MA. In addition to this new partnership, they announced their plans to open the Sturgis County Line, year round. Biker rally events are NOW scheduled in June, July and August for the Sturgis Rally. So far, over a thousand bikers are scheduled to attend each event in June and July. The concert venue will be moving forward, by next summer they could have a 50,000 seat concert stadium, one mile from Bear Butte!  With this new year round expansion, it will virtually become impossible ALL summer, to pray in peace at Bear Butte.  This issue has escalated and is now, more critical than ever.

 We are continuing the struggle to Protect Bear Butte and hope you will join us in these efforts!  

What YOU can do to help!

Help us create awareness for the continual desecration of sacred sites, including Bear Butte.

Get actively involved! Take Action!

Help spread the word! The goal is to create public awareness across the country about desecration of our sacred sites! Being proactive and creating awareness, is one of the many ways, WE EACH can help to make a difference.

Join our Bear Butte Working Group! We need pro-active, dedicated people who are willing to help in this continual struggle.

 Email us to find out how YOU can help Protect Bear Butte!  

Talk with as MANY BIKERS as you can! Ask for their support on this issue, to not endorse Jay Allen’s Sturgis County Line.

 The motto is Bikers for Bear Butte!

Sign up for our email updates! We send out announcements, updates, action alerts, upcoming meetings, hearings and information about current status.

Contact us at [email protected]

Have a little Faith in Me

( – promoted by buhdydharma )

I want to tell you about my Faith this morning.


(mirriam webster)

Noun:

1 a: allegiance to duty or a person : loyalty b (1): fidelity to one’s promises (2): sincerity of intentions

2 a (1): belief and trust in and loyalty to God (2): belief in the traditional doctrines of a religion b (1): firm belief in something for which there is no proof (2): complete trust

3: something that is believed especially with strong conviction; especially : a system of religious beliefs (the Protestant faith)

Transitive Verb:

archaic : believe, trust

Those in boldface ones come close.

My Faith in Humanity is as simple as my Faith in physics, my Faith in myself, my Faith in you.

I have always held Faith closer than Hope.

Hope has always seemed to me a selfish trickster. I can hope for many things, like a child weeks before a Birthday, hoping for that one toy. I can hope for World Peace with that same childlike selfishness thinking my desire will be enough to produce the results I want.

Children grow up and understand soon enough that many things sought cannot be given without earning them in ways they could not through their former eyes.

There are realities: Ponies can’t live in your backyard in the city.

Adults who cling to hope, well, bless their childlike hearts, they will be stuck within the parameters of their world’s gifts… left disappointed and bitter when their pony and their messiah doesn’t come. Hope is inactive. Hope is doing nothing, just waiting for the payoff that never comes.

Faith, for me is an entirely different animal.

You see, I have had those fleeting moments, not only of complete unity and peace, although I enjoy those results. Those moments are defined by being and acting in a way that is in utter balance.

That kernel of Godhood; that interconnection and loss of self while being utterly self is where my Faith lies.

My proof that it is in You? If someone stumbling along through life like me has found this Godhood time and again since childhood, then certainly you all hold it.

It means we can each, individually act and be in that perfect way. From that place, no harm can be done anyone.

Faith is active, if your Faith is in yourself. Faith is knowing that place exists and the struggle to get back to it, stay there longer each time you do, and ACT accordingly.

Now, Carlos Castenada may well have ripped off a bunch of philosophers, and who knows his motivation; but before the weirdness, he exposed a lot of people to some really good ideas.

We are luminous beings able to connect in many inexplicable ways, and the lines of the world connect us all. It amuses me that 30 years later, string theory and probabilities say much the same thing.

It all ties with the ancient truth: We are all one.

They say a man can move a mountain through Faith alone. But somewhere along the lines religion turned Faith into Hope, and took the power away from us, so that we we became so lazy we won’t “lift their fat fucking asses off of their sofas to take a shit or fetch more junk food during the latest episode of American Idol.” (thanks that, Ed, heh, sorry.)

Yes, revolution after revolution has come, and the Power structure has changed little. The Now is different.

Can all of you not feel the restlessness?

Never before has it been Global, never before has it been so transparent what is happening; that even the panicky blind must protest too loudly what they know to be true.

I am amazed this thing called the internet still stands relatively unscathed. People all over the world can read each other’s thoughts, see the commonality.

My Faith is that every single person on this Blog sees what is happening, and is an agent of enlightenment every time they stroke a key, from the practical advice of asqv, to my flights of inane philosophical rambling here this early morning.

You have your soul-mates, your work you love, your bastion of security at home. Yet, each and everyone of you must reach out to try and reach that place, not alone anymore but together. You do it here.

There have always been those who cry from the mountaintops, seers and prophets; but never before on this scale.

The Earth is fragile and humanity is so very hungry for its next step. You feel that hunger or you would not be here. We would not be here in numbers, in masses across the blogosphere. In MIND-BOGGLING numbers.

I know that struggle to act in balance lies in me; it must lie in every one of them who involved in the act of writing about it. They have Faith too.

Every day, every action becomes the agent of Real Change, Real Awakening.

I have no idea what part I play. I really have no idea if one word I have ever uttered these last couple years in pixels have changed one person. I do know that I do it anyway. I do know for some reason, I made this place and all of you came.

Thinking about that amazes me. I am no charismatic. I am no scholar. Yet in this time, in this space it is what I am doing, with Intent and Faith.

Connection happens in many ways, and worldwide hits come to this tiny place. Connection happens away from any electronic source, too, in those quiet moments when you can feel the connectedness of Humanity.

If we could not FEEL that, we wouldn’t care enough to be here.

We are at a tipping point. Everyone in the world knows that, at some level.

I have Faith in that.

I have Faith in myself.

I have Faith in you.

Thus?

I have Faith in humanity.





I have Faith in Her too.  ::grin::

Looking at Matt Gonzalez (Ralph Nader’s VP Candidate)