..and change one thing in my life, I would have lived with my sister in University.

"If all of the Greek islands were merged with the mainland, it would
be about the size of Alabama; there are 10 million Greeks -- and
perhaps another 4 million living throughout the world, who still think
of themselves as Greek. They are, thanks to their history, magnificent
patriots and nationalists -- and abominable citizens, who deeply
mistrust every government they’ve ever had. Essentially they are
fierce individualists, who mistrust so much whatever government
happens to be in power as the very idea of government. The have almost
no sense of civic responsibility --
Pericles complained about this at length -- and History has never
given them much of a chance to work out a stable system of
government."

Here with at this happy time of year, a few confessions from my
beating heart: I have no freaking clue who Nick and Jessica are. I see
them on the cover of People and Us constantly when I am buying my dog
biscuits and kitty litter. I often ask the checkers at the grocery
stores. They never know who Nick and Jessica are either. Who are they?
Will it change my life if I know who they are and why they have broken
up? Why are they so important? I don't know who Lindsay Lohan is,
either, and I do not care at all about Tom Cruise's wife.

Am I going to be called before a Senate committee and asked if I am a
subversive? Maybe, but I just have no clue who Nick and Jessica are.
Is this what it means to be no longer young. It's not so bad.

Next confession: I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was
Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call
those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees Christmas trees. I don't feel
threatened. I don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are:
Christmas trees. It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, "Merry
Christmas" to me. I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready
to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we
are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It
doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a
key intersection near my beach house in Malibu. If people want a
creche, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred
yards away. I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew and I
don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being
Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of
getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came
from that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in
the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat.

Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that
we should worship Nick and Jessica and we aren't allowed to worship
God as we understand Him?

I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too. But there are a lot
of us who are wondering where Nick and Jessica came from and where the
America we knew went to.

2nd email
 
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Jim Balsillie
Date: Sat, May 16, 2009 at 5:11 PM
Subject: MakeItSeven.ca: A Message from Jim Balsillie
 
Dear Hockey Fans,
 
I hope you are enjoying the holiday long weekend. I wanted to take a
moment of your time as a passionate hockey fan to let you know about
the latest developments in our bid to bring a seventh NHL franchise to
Canada.
 
Last week, the NHL filed a motion with the bankruptcy court in Phoenix
which argued, in part, that scheduling issues made it impossible to
fulfill the main condition of my offer to buy the Phoenix Coyotes,
that is to bring the team to Hamilton and to begin NHL-scheduled play
this fall.
 
I say to all Canadians, but in particular to the many Hamilton and
Southern Ontario supporters of our bid: my commitment to bringing an
NHL team to Hamilton remains. It's my firm commitment to Hamilton
hockey fans. It's the best un-served hockey market in the world and it
deserves an NHL team.
 
If bringing an NHL team to Hamilton means needing to remove a
scheduling impediment to my bid to purchase the Coyotes franchise, I
am willing to do what is necessary to assist the NHL in order to get
us to our ultimate goal. That is why I have indicated to the
bankruptcy court, in reply to the NHL's argument, that if beginning
NHL play in Hamilton this fall truly creates a scheduling impediment,
I am willing to remove that impediment and leave the team in Phoenix
for one additional season.
 
I know you share with me our end goal here - to bring a seventh NHL
franchise to Canada, and specifically to Copps Coliseum in Hamilton. I
appreciate that support. We're focused on making that happen, and
making it seven. So stay tuned and I will keep you up to date with the
latest developments.
 
Again, thank you for taking the time to sign up to MakeItSeven.ca.
Please contact all of your friends and family and ask them to sign up
with you. Together we can make it happen.
 
Jim
 
Jim Balsillie
 
 
 
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---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Jim Balsillie
Date: Fri, May 15, 2009 at 2:04 PM
Subject: MakeItSeven.ca: A Message from Jim Balsillie
 
 
Dear Hockey Fans,
 
Thank you for taking the time to sign up to MakeItSeven.ca. I want you
to know, from one passionate hockey fan to another, I really
appreciate it.
 
Since I announced my offer to buy the Phoenix Coyotes, the response
and support I have received from across Canada has been overwhelming.
Within hours, more than 10,000 people had signed up at MakeItSeven.ca
and every day thousands of Canadians continue to add their names and
their support. Today more than 120,000 people have joined
MakeItSeven.ca. Many of you have contacted me with suggestions and
advice on a number of matters related to our mission to bring another
NHL team to Canada. I appreciate all of it.
 
While we are early in the process, I am more optimistic than ever that
we are one step closer to bringing another NHL team to Southern
Ontario and to Canada. I am excited to announce that two iconic
Canadian brands, Home Hardware and Labatt, both supporters of hockey
across this country, have joined the Make It Seven campaign. The
MakeItSeven.ca website is also up and running today as our campaign
hub. Through the site you, the fans, will have an opportunity to shape
the Make It Seven campaign by uploading your own content, interacting
with each other and getting regular updates on our progress. Please
take the time to visit MakeItSeven.ca again and continue to
participate in this important movement. For those of you who want to
follow the progress in other ways, we have also set up an official
Twitter account as @makeitseven.
 
Thanks again for your support. Please contact all of your friends and
family and ask them to sign up with you. Together, with our partners
Home Hardware and Labatt and passionate Canadian hockey fans from
coast to coast, we can make it happen. Together, we can make it seven!
 
Jim
 
Jim Balsillie
 
 
 
This email was sent by:
Make It Seven Inc
218 - 34 Eglinton Avenue West Toronto, ON, M4R 2H6, Canada
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"Today, the Cold War has disappeared but thousands of those weapons have not. In a strange turn of history, the threat of global nuclear war has gone down, but the risk of a nuclear attack has gone up. More nations have acquired these weapons. Testing has continued. Black market trade in nuclear secrets and nuclear materials abound. The technology to build a bomb has spread. Terrorists are determined to buy, build or steal one.... Some argue that the spread of these weapons cannot be stopped, cannot be checked -- that we are destined to live in a world where more nations and more people possess the ultimate tools of destruction. Such fatalism is a deadly adversary, for if we believe that the spread of nuclear weapons is inevitable, then in some way we are admitting to ourselves that the use of nuclear weapons is inevitable.... So today, I state clearly and with conviction America's commitment to seek the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons. I'm not naive. This goal will not be reached quickly -- perhaps not in my lifetime. It will take patience and persistence. But now we, too, must ignore the voices who tell us that the world cannot change." - Obama, Prague, 2009 [April 11-17 Economist]