Editorial
NHL Hockey Star Endorses Ron Paul?
Hockey is a game I know – rather well, actually. As a young person I excelled at the sport and even left home when I was 14 to live and play in a city that offered better coaching and a brighter road to the NHL. Yes, like many other young people growing up in Canada, I was highly infected with a burning desire to don my skates whenever possible and hit the ice ... preferably outdoors.
As I grew older and suffered through many knee injuries the prospect of playing professionally began to dim. Today I can truthfully say that I am thankful for that, although I certainly didn't always feel that way.
See, I have had many friends and teammates go on to join the upper ranks of hockeydom. I've watched as their candles lit and then burnt out, and then, sadly, saw how unprepared they were for life beyond the rink.
Perhaps this is a fate that is looming for one Tim Thomas, the goaltender who more than anyone else is responsible for the Boston Bruins winning the NHL's coveted prize and every young player's dream, the Stanley Cup.
However, Tim's fate may have nothing to do with failing knees but everything to do with celebrating his patriotic right to be an individual.
I am so sick and tired of hearing "there is no 'I' in team." Of course there is. It takes a bunch of individuals to make a team in the first place. But that is not what this editorial is about. It is about one man having the courage to stand up for what he believes in, despite a massive amount of mainstream media pressure.
So what exactly did this two-time Vezina and Conn Smythe trophy winner do?
Mr. Thomas declined to join his team on a trip to the White House to meet with US President Barack Obama. Simply put, Tim Thomas made an individual decision to not to be part of a political grandstanding event for Mr. Obama, a soapbox politician if ever there has been one, to be sure.
And the media machine has been relentless ever since. It is nauseating to listen to these pundits opine on "Tim's lack of patriotism," or "whether or not he should be suspended for his ungrateful actions," or question "Who does he think he is putting himself above his team?" and other such pathetic nonsense.
I, for one, fully support this man and his efforts to retain some separation between himself and his sport – one that regularly puts war veterans on display at games throughout the NHL as a means to brainwash fans into believing these "heroes" are fighting for a "just cause."
It is all just "Bread and Circuses" and the players are expected to play their part in support of the greater meme: Athletes are like warriors, only they don't fire guns. Wars are necessary so be thankful you are not on the front lines while others do their "duty" to defend your "freedoms."
Anyway, here is what Mr. Thomas had to say in his defense on his Facebook page ...
"I believe the Federal government has grown out of control, threatening the Rights, Liberties, and Property of the People.
"This is being done at the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial level. This is in direct opposition to the Constitution and the Founding Fathers vision for the Federal government.
"Because I believe this, today I exercised my right as a Free Citizen, and did not visit the White House. This was not about politics or party, as in my opinion both parties are responsible for the situation we are in as a country. This was about a choice I had to make as an INDIVIDUAL.
"This is the only public statement I will be making on this topic. TT"
Last night, during the team's first game after he declined the White House invitation, Mr. Thomas sat on the bench while his team lost 5-3 to the Washington Capitals. I wonder whether his coach was putting "team first" or politics when he decided to sit his team's most valuable asset?
Praise to you, Tim. You are a true patriot and whether or not you realize it – and I suspect you do – your statement couldn't be a bigger endorsement of another patriot with the courage to stand alone: Ron Paul.
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Posted by gitardood on 02/01/12 11:48 PM
I applaud all these non conformist types named "Tim". Whether it be Thomas or Tebow, these TT's are creating a lot of controversy in different ways for different reasons. I think if this goaltender's coach was sending a message to him by benching him, that he may have not only put politics before "best strategy" but may have just strengthened Tim's resolve to stand his ground - after all wouldn't he look like a coward and ass to suddenly "change" his position?
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Posted by seanmPWH on 01/28/12 09:40 PM
USA Today published a letter condemning Tim Thomas, saying among other things, "Mr. Obama was the man in the room"...
IMO Tim Thomas is doing what we all should be doing, i.e. denouncing the Federal government. Although I go much farther and condemn the very founding of the Federal government in the first place, it was a mistake to unionize the states, now we must all secede.
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Posted by Dilence Sogwood on 01/27/12 12:37 PM
A few years ago, when you heard stories like this, the theme was never "liberty" -- just goes to show things are changing.
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Posted by TimurTheLame on 01/26/12 10:43 AM
Bravo Tim!
A rare and inspiring moment! If Mr. Thomas shows this understanding of the current situation as it is then he surely understands the peripheral penalties he will be subject to, loss of endorsements, more TSA harassment, a possible trade and probably some violence on the ice from cement headed 'patriots'.
It is my hope that his fan base would actually increase due to his courageous stance. That would actually be a bellwether on what public opinion actually is, given that sports fans generally fall into the superficial distraction category. MSM of course is reacting predictably.
Most importantly this is an instance of actually walking the talk.
Cheers-
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Posted by Happyhippo on 01/26/12 05:05 AM
Its worse than that Terry. We were fleeced for1,250,000,000 Euro to pay the unsecured creditors of a defunct private company. This was done under threat and I quote from Minister Leo Varadkar that "a bomb would go off, not in Frankfurt, but in Dublin "unless these payments were made. This is what the Troika is really like..a bunch of banker thugs who threaten anyone who dares stand in their way. Their only interest in Ireland is to make sure their banker buddies are paid 100% on their reckless loans and then to asset strip the country before it descends into chaos. Another interesting side note is that Anglo Irish Bank won world bank of the year at the 2006 Davos summit. They were actually awarded for their reckless lending because this is the game plan of the banker elites.
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Posted by seer on 01/25/12 08:20 PM
A protest supported by the teams fans?????
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Posted by free on 01/25/12 07:57 PM
Good for him. Finally these idolized game players, heros they are called, (ridiculous calling athletes heroes) has someone with a brian who has done more in his life than chase a puck around.
Hopefully he turns this into a distraction from the silly game of Hockey and spread the word on his beliefs, maybe he can help save a kid or two form hoping to be a hockey player and find the wonderful world of knowledge.
I have met many hockey players not so bright.
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Posted by Mark Davis on 01/25/12 05:17 PM
Too many Americans no longer respect individual rights and have succumbed to collectivist thinking. I read about this on the Click to view link site and noticed that nearly all of the comments were of the "Love it or leave it" and "respect the office" variety and felt compelled to leave a comment in support of Mr. Thomas' actions and statement. Three tries were deleted. Sometimes I feel like I live in the defunct USSR. I'm a Lightening fan, but Tim Thomas is now my favorite hockey player.
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Posted by steveg on 01/25/12 01:49 PM
Well said Tim Thomas.A Most Valued Player(MVP) A Courageous and principled stand in a politically correct society. Tim Thomas for President.
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Posted by shakingfist on 01/25/12 01:30 PM
Mr. WIle,
Great post. We have some big hockey fans here in San Diego, CA of all places.
That said, I have always found that hockey strikes a great balance between individual excellence and cooperative team play. For me it is the most exciting spectator sport. I also don't buy that it is a sport of goons and brutes as Mr. Thomas demonstrates. In our household, we play music, study languages, read history (with a critical mind), and PLAY HOCKEY! Lastly, it is perhaps one of the oldest sports in the western world... Vikings played hockey afterall!
Keep your head up and keep playing with all your heart!
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Posted by HugoHolland on 01/25/12 12:19 PM
Here some stuff out of China. Even though I am not a China expert it fits quite well with the China thesis of the DB.
''Legislation should be made permitting the police to open fire at troublemakers, as police authority is now in decline,' said Liu Wei, a deputy of Guangzhou People's Congress, '
'At the same conference, held in Foshan, Guangdong Province, another official compared the 'common people' with spoilt children.'
'The mayor of Shantou revealed a similar attitude in remarks made after protests late last year in Haimen, arguing that people who have been 'influenced' by foreign media should be arrested.'
Click to view link
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Posted by Abu Aardvark on 01/25/12 12:06 PM
"Praise to you, Tim. You are a true patriot "
------------
That's right. Here's another one with the courage to speak out:
"Lew Rockwell interviewed me today. There's a back story to this interview that Lew isn't even aware of.
I did the interview over my laptop in the lobby of the JW Marriott Hotel in Washington D.C. It just so happened that the hotel was hosting some kind of national security conference. Janet Napolitano was the keynote speaker.
About half way through the interview, at the group of chairs next to me, three attendees to the conference sat down, police badges prominently displayed. You'll know the point in the interview because I really intensify my bashing of government intervention.
So they sit there through the rest of the interview, two men and one woman, and after the interview is over, the guy in the middle sort of waves at me and says "Hi." He's kind of a good ol' boy from, as I later learned, West Texas. So are the other two.
I got the sense that he knew I was doing an interview but really didn't get the gist of what I was saying. I said, "Oh I was just doing an interview about economics." But I couldn't hold back and I went on and said,"Actually, part of the interview is about you guys. The three of you seem like decent people but I think you are being used in a way where you could be used against Americans. I think you have us surrounded. You aren't using your powers against us in general now, but I think that could change."
I then went on to explain my theory of how even price controls could result in the police state turning against us.
The woman then said, "It doesn't sound like you think there is much role for government." I said, "Not much at all, but I think the three of you could do well as private sector security."
Click to view link
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Posted by steveg on 01/25/12 12:00 PM
Great article and right on the media manipulators. I quit buying "newspapers" years ago. The TV "news" is another mostly politically correct farce. I wrote this a number of years ago about the "media." See link below.
Click to view link
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Posted by goldandsilverbug on 01/25/12 11:35 AM
Tim you are doubly great!
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Posted by terrybee on 01/25/12 10:59 AM
er ,-15,000,000,000 was the figure .
..oop's i was too caught up in my rant.
The Irish have'nt the weather for rioting & are too lazy .
..& 'they' are threatening 'water-charges' on us now!!
Also social-welfare /police joint checkpoints on the streets.
That queens visit was a victory visit i'd say..eye'ing up the lovely real -estate their sq-Mile helpers & enforcers have foreclosed.
The media here is disgusting & bank controlled.
Vincent Browne is a Giant amongst all the treasonous lick-arses'.
thank' for airing my semi-rant DB.
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Posted by paradox on 01/25/12 10:54 AM
Tim Thomas did something extremely courageous. I am reminded of a hymn I learned as a small child:
"Dare to be a Daniel
Dare to stand alone
Dare to have a principle
And dare to make it known."
Very few of us have the strength to do this.
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Posted by Optout on 01/25/12 10:35 AM
Another sporting event ritual I find to be disturbing is the singing of the national anthem before the game starts. Everyone is expected to stand and honor the 'nation'. And also the presence of police all over, even at high school games. With Tim Thomas exercising his right to not attend the white house it makes me remember the Olympic athletes who refused to honor the flag when given their medals. Definitely takes a lot of courage and knowledge to stand alone.
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Posted by Bluebird on 01/25/12 09:32 AM
A big AMEN! Beautiful!
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Posted by terrybee on 01/25/12 08:46 AM
..speaking of 'Patriot's ' .
That feature was great on Vincent Browne .
The issue He was driving at (the Anglo Irish bank) has spiralled further down the gutter ,-with the mass' having been fleeced of 15,000,000 euro to-day.
The bankers run all the so opposing(sick-joke-'IT' -is) 'parties!'.
The entire country is famished & they just paid themselves this .
Somebody referred to Protestants & Catholics never on same Hymn -sheet other Day.
That's 'just the way the %..00001 want it.Divided and bitching about peanuts conquered :(
