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henry cotto's mustache
NFL Picks - Week 17
Tampa Bay @ Atlanta
Congratulations to the Falcons who have clinched the top seed in the NFC. It's probably a good idea for them to rest their players this week to allow the team to get as stale as possible so that they come out and sleepwalk through their home playoff game. Of course, that's the nightmare scenario for every Atlanta fan, but it's ok because I've never met an Atlanta fan and neither have you, so if that does happen you won't have anyone in your life that you'll need to feel bad for. I expect the Falcons' starters to play for about a half in an attempt to keep some semblance of a rhythm going and maintain their undefeated record at home. And against a Buccaneers team that appears to be giving no effort, half an effort should be enough to get the job done.
Falcons 20-17
New York Jets @ Buffalo
Greg McElroy had a good run as the Jets starter, but after one week on the job he's back to the bench as the result of a concussion. Little did you know that McElroy gave himself the injury on purpose by doing this after experiencing life as the starting quarterback of the 2012 New York Jets. I can't blame the guy, in fact, I'm surprised Sanchez hasn't done the same thing yet, though I guess running directly into your lineman's ass is in the same vein.
Bills 17-13
Baltimore @ Cincinnati
If everything shakes out correctly this could be a preview of a wild card playoff game. And if everything plays out incorrectly, the teams will come to the field and play baseball. But if I had to stake my reputation on one of the aforementioned scenarios happening, I'd go with the former. Coincidentally, the Bengals were involved the last time there was a Week17/Wild Card rematch, it took place in the 2009 season when it happened an astounding three times! It was such a remarkable repeat of the prior week that I, for one, remember believing that I'd traveled backwards in time. I attempted to warn my past self about the Lincoln assassination in an effort to prevent it from happening, but alas, I learned that one cannot change what has already happened, especially if it happened in 1865, and no actual time travel was involved to begin with. Cincinnati has nothing to gain with a victory, except for their pride ...
Ravens 19-16
Chicago @ Detroit
The Bears need a win to have a shot at the playoffs while the Lions need a loss to keep themselves in position for a top 5 pick in the draft. If Chicago agrees to throw in at least 108 yards receiving for Calvin Johnson to get him past 2,000 I don't see any reason that the Lions won't just roll over. Well actually the one good reason is that you've been training that damn lion for the last three months and he still won't roll over. Sure he'll sit, or speak, or even fetch you the morning paper, but for whatever reason that son of a bitch will just not roll over! Other than that though it should be an easy win for the Bears.
Bears 28-17
Jacksonville @ Tennessee
A more cowardly writer might be afraid to remind you that he picked the Titans to make the playoffs before the season started; well I'm not that writer! Though I should note that that more cowardly writer is much better than I am, I mean week in week out he's offering up fabulous insight about the game without fail, really a top-notch read. What went wrong for Tennessee this year is easier to figure out than what I thought might have gone right. But with a Jaguars team desperate for a loss coming to town the Titans should be able to salvage a 6-10 record, for which I would like to congratulate them mockingly. But when it comes right down to it, I'm the one who should be mocked for believing in them. They should throw a dunce cap on me and banish me to the corner where I'll be able to look up and see this game playing on THE CORNER SCREEN AT THE SHACK!
Titans 23-16
Houston @ Indianapolis
The Texans' playoff position within the AFC is still very much up in the air. If they win they're #1, but if they lose, look out. Wins from the Broncos and Patriots would leave Houston as the #3 seed and without a first round bye. It's safe to say that they'll need a better effort than they had last week when they lost 23-6 at home to the Vikings. The Colts, meanwhile, are locked into the #5 seed, so why would they bother to give it their all? For the game, damn it! For integrity! For every guy that didn't quite have what it took to make it. For every child who still dares to dream. That's why the Colts will come out on Sunday and give 100%. Anyhow, I'm going with Houston.
Texans 23-20
Carolina @ New Orleans
The fight is on for 2nd place in the NFC South. Who wants the slightly tougher schedule next year? We're going to find out on Sunday. My guess is that the Saints will come out on top to finish their season at an even 8-8, which this intrepid writer is not afraid to remind you is exactly what he predicted they would be before the start of the season. I can feel your pats on my back as I type; some of you are patting too low; seriously, knock it off.
Saints 34-24
Philadelphia @ New York Giants
The Giants are still clinging desperately to their playoff hopes, like a man overboard gripping a piece of wreckage just to stay afloat. However, I get the feeling that New York will somehow pull a Billy Zane and just force their way onto a lifeboat at gunpoint. A lot of things have to fall right for the Giants, but first things first, they must beat the Eagles in Andy Reid's likely finale as head coach. New York has the look of a team that's given up, but Philadelphia has the look of a team that gave up two months ago. So, with all due respect to the Giants, why don't you leave it to the experts on this one.
Giants 31-23
Cleveland @ Pittsburgh
The wheels have come off for the Steelers who started the season 6-3 and now sit at 7-8 with no hope of weaseling their way into the playoffs. A win on Sunday would get them to .500 for the year and save a little bit of face (maybe the nose? Yeah, they'll save nose). And that shouldn't be too much for Pittsburgh fans to ask considering the Browns will likely have to start Thad Lewis, a guy who doesn't even have a number listed by his name on the espn.com roster. Oh, and he also went to Duke, so c'mon.
Steelers 24-6
St. Louis @ Seattle
What happens when an unstoppable force meets a fairly movable object? We'll find out on Sunday when the Rams travel to the CLink to face the wrecking ball that is the Seattle Seahawks. Of course, after such an unreal three game stretch it might be natural to expect a letdown from the Hawks, but that would require Russell Wilson to let me down, which I'm just not ready to accept. The Hawks are in a full sprint towards the playoffs and they're only getting stronger.
Seahawks 34-10
Oakland @ San Diego
Yuck, I just caught a whiff of this game and I could use a courtesy flush. I find it more than a little hilarious that when the Raiders' opened the season at 3-4 it wound up qualifying as a hot start. I'm really hoping that the San Diego fans don't sell this game out so that I don't have to bother looking at it.
Chargers 31-13
Arizona @ San Francisco
This week will really test the mettle of Jaw Sweatshirt and his 49ers. After a total, complete decimation in all phases of the game will they be able to look themselves in the mirror, let alone play a competent football game? Can San Francisco muster enough will power to fight back after they were utterly dominated last week in the deafening and poo-pants inducing noise of CenturyLink Field? No.
Cardinals 17-16
Playoff implications abound in this NFC North finale. If the Packers win they earn the #2 seed and a first round bye. If the Vikings win they will be the #6 seed and probably be facing Green Bay again next week. Need some more intrigue? Jeez, you really like your intrigue don't you? Adrian Peterson needs 208 yards to break Eric Dickerson's single season rushing record. While that's a tall order, it should be noted that he amassed 210 yards in these teams' first meeting four weeks ago in Green Bay. If Peterson does top that you can expect a Vikings victory, however, I expect neither of these things to happen.
Packers 24-20
Miami @ New England
All of a sudden the Patriots seem off their game. They gave up 41 points at home in a loss to the 49ers two weeks ago and they eked out a win over the Jaguars last week. Most coaches would say, "A win is a win." But this team is coached by Bill Belichick who says, "A win is a win, I guess, you pussies." Clearly some things have to get straightened out for New England before the playoffs, but even a shaky effort should be enough this Sunday.
Patriots 27-17
Kansas City @ Denver
The Broncos are on fire. If that image of a burning horse isn't frightening enough, consider that they've won 10 in a row, with no game being closer than seven points. While it has been a fairly easy schedule for them, that kind of consistency is still impressive. A win here coupled with a Texans loss will give Denver the #1 seed and make them the prohibitive Super Bowl favorite, if they aren't already.
Broncos 38-10
Dallas @ Washington
Who will win the NFC East? One of these teams, that's for sure. RG3 didn't seem to be at full strength last week, but even if he's 75% as good as he was during his Thanksgiving Day dismantling of the Cowboys it will probably be enough to get the win on Sunday night. I feel like this is the third or fourth time that Tony Romo's been involved in a win and you're in situation in Week 17, and if memory serves he hasn't been very successful in the past. There's no time to actually research that, so let's just roll with the lessons of my (mis)remembered history.
Redskins 27-20
Posted by Erik at 8:55 PM No comments: Links to this post
Labels: NFL Picks
Atlanta @ Detroit
The Falcons need one more win to clinch home field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs, and for a team that's currently undefeated at home, that is quite the incentive to get a victory in Detroit. As for the Lions, their only incentive to win is to save Turbo Redface's (Jim Schwartz's) job. So in other words, the Detroit players will try their damnedest to lose, which is what they appeared to do last week against the Cardinals when they gave up 38 points to a team who'd averaged less than 11 over their previous nine games (all losses). So clearly there's something wrong in Detroit, and I don't just mean the city, because everything is wrong with that, no I'm referring specifically to the football team. I don't see things getting turned around now.
New Orleans @ Dallas
The Cowboys have won five of their last six and are oddly close to being a consistent football team, which means they're due for a big letdown. And you know what they say, way too much, "Everything's bigger in Texas!" so this letdown will be one to behold. However, we should consider that they also say, "Don't mess with Texas," in fact they print it on giant billboards, billboards that are much bigger than ones in say, New Hampshire, because as we all know, everything's bigger in Texas. But if there's one man that can mess with Texas it's Drew Brees, a native Texan with a big arm, an arm so big it could only be from Texas, because everything's bigger in Texas.
Tennessee @ Green Bay
The Packers ground out another victory last week and now they sit at #3 in the NFC with a 10-4 record and a chance to get a first round bye when all is said and done. But would that be such a good thing? The Packers had a playoff bye last season and they were one and done, while the previous season they were the #6 seed and managed to win the Super Bowl. Now I know what you're thinking, could we see Green Bay purposefully lose a game to ensure that they get some first round action? "First round action?" Why did you phrase it like that? I get that it was supposed to sound slick, but you just came off like a real lame-o, I mean a first rate jerk, a bona fide dweeb. Anyway, the answer is yes they'll try to lose on purpose, but the Titans will see right through them and, in the interest of protecting the integrity of the game, try even harder to lose. Nice try Packers, but you have to wake up pretty early in the morning to lose to Tennessee, just ask Mark Sanchez, he got up at like 4:30 in the morning last Monday.
Indianapolis @ Kansas City
The Chiefs were shut out last week by the Raiders. That's like getting turned down by a prostitute, and not one of those high class numbers either, I'm talking real low-rent. Consider that Oakland had given up 31 points per game before last week. Now re-consider it. While you're considering you might as well consider that Kansas City only managed 7 first downs and 119 total yards in that game. In other words, the Week 15 effort from the Chiefs is getting my award for Worst Offensive Performance of the Year. Congrats Brady Quinn, you've finally won something.
Colts 27-9
Buffalo @ Miami
It's a divisional showdown being played in Miami, the southeast corner of the United States. Fitting, because this game will be playing on the Corner Screen at the Shack.
Dolphins 23-16
San Diego @ New York Jets
The Jets' season officially came to a merciful end Monday night when Mark Sanchez unfurled a masterpiece of futility. I'm sure it was made all the more uncomfortable with the judgmental eyes of Tim Tebow staring into his soul from the sideline. Hopefully Tebow makes Sanch realize that his carousing with various New York socialites has led him down a path of moral corruption and career destruction. If Sanch listens to him there's a chance he can return to a starting role next season. Just look at what happened with Greg McElroy, Tebow warned him that too much masturbating makes your hand grow scales, and now he's QB1.
Washington @ Philadelphia
Look out for the Eagles, they've only lost one in a row. These days in Philly that qualifies as a hot streak. If you're looking for more of a real hot streak, look no further than the Redskins, who have won five in a row and seemingly can't go wrong at QB. But if you're looking for really hot streaks, just go back and watch any game Pam Oliver worked for the first few months of the season. P.O.'s 'do totally popped with some red highlights that really had to be seen to be appreciated.
Cincinnati @ Pittsburgh
This is the critical game in the race for the final AFC wild card spot. If the Bengals win they clinch a playoff berth, but the Steelers control their own destiny and all they have to do is win this game and their Week 17 match-up against Cleveland to get in. So it's safe to say that this is the critical game in the race for the final AFC wild card spot. In fact, I feel like I already said that. Yep, I just read over the last couple sentences, and I did, in fact, say it. Well good, it's a factual statement, I'm glad I brought it up and reiterated it. Pittsburgh is reeling, having dropped four of their last five while Cincinnati has won five of their last six. But if you look closer at the Bengals' hot streak four of their wins came against awful opponents, so I'm not sure it proves their mettle. Surprisingly the Steelers have the top defense in the league yardage-wise, and I think that will be the difference in a close game. So just to be clear, yardage will be the difference, which I guess means that the Bengals won't get into field goal range at the end of the game ... I guess.
Steelers 16-13
St. Louis @ Tampa Bay
The Rams are still technically alive in the playoff race, which is somewhat ironic because three players on their current roster graduated from ITT Technical Institute. To be fair, St. Louis is vastly improved over their 2011 incarnation even if it appears that it will take a minor miracle to get them into the playoffs. But hey, if there's one thing Jeff Fisher knows about it's miracles. Not only was he coaching the Titans when they pulled off the Music City Miracle, but his favorite movie is the 2008 Spike Lee joint Miracle at St. Anna. By all other accounts that was a mediocre film, but don't tell that to Jeff Fisher, and don't tell him his Rams can't still make it to the postseason. By the way, I'm picking the Bucs.
Buccaneers 20-16
Oakland @ Carolina
Cam Newton and the Panthers offense is on fire! And it only took until December. It's a classic case of too little too late. Actually it's more like too much too late. But let's just focus on the too late part, that's the operative phrase here. Hopefully for their sake Carolina can get things in gear a lot quicker next season or else it could cost Ron Rivera his job ... Just kidding, he'll be gone by New Year's.
Panthers 38-20
New England @ Jacksonville
The Jaguars are locked in a neck and neck race with the Chiefs for the first pick in the 2013 draft. Both teams currently stand at 2-12 (though I suppose 'stand' is too dignified a word to use for teams that are 2-12, maybe they lay at 2-12? Or better yet, cower! Yeah, both teams cower at 2-12) and with the next worst team at 4-10 it will almost assuredly be one of those aforementioned squads selecting first come April. Jacksonville gets a favor from Howard Katz this week as a pissed off Patriots team comes to town looking to get a bad taste out of its collective mouth; and for once it has nothing to do with Vince Wilfork farting on the plane ride, though I imagine that can only make the taste in their mouths worse.
Minnesota @ Houston
This is the only morning game to feature two teams with winning records (way to go Katz). It's also a match-up of two of the game's top running backs, three if you include Toby Gerhart, which I would consider doing. Even though both of these teams need a win to improve their playoff situations the main storyline heading into this game is Adrian Peterson and his quest to break Eric Dickerson's single season rushing record. If he averages 147 yards per game over the Vikings last two he'll have it. Maybe it's not smart to doubt him at this point, but I don't think he'll get that against a Texans team who's 5th against the run and will hopefully be challenging Christian Ponder to beat them down the field. I say hopefully because it's always funny to watch Christian Ponder try to beat teams down the field.
Cleveland @ Denver
The Broncos are operating like a well-oiled machine, but sometimes a machine gets too oiled and ends up creating a huge mess. This is exactly what happened to Green Bay in the playoffs last year. They were an overly-oiled machine. I think Denver still fits into the well-oiled category but there's no telling when a spill might happen, and when it does it will cause problems for the Broncos; and not just for their offense, Peyton Manning's favorite duck will probably die too. When can the drilling stop? When will it be enough CalStar!? (Boy this one came off the rails pretty quickly, maybe I've become an overly-oiled machine!)
Chicago @ Arizona
The Bears are in full-blown free-fall mode. Which, in case you're wondering, looks like this. But, much like that clip, this game against the Cardinals could provide something of a soft landing. Of course, it's only a matter of time before the Bears come crashing back to earth, just like that clip. For now they'll keep their playoff hopes alive because Ryan Lindley.
New York Giants @ Baltimore
Speaking of free-falls, the Ravens have dropped three in a row, however, free-falls aren't such a big deal for them because they're Ravens. The Giants have also come upon hard times, losing four of their last six, and if the playoffs started today they would not be involved. But isn't this exactly what they want? Now that we're all questioning them they'll inevitably sneak into the playoffs and win another Super Bowl. What a bunch of vondrukes.
San Francisco @ Seattle
Let's throw out the analysis (What!? On this blog?). I've had enough of losing to the 49ers, it's official. The Seahawks need to put a stop to it Sunday night. And with Russell at the helm, now is the time. I've heard a lot of talk about people jumping on the "Russell Wilson bandwagon" over the last month or so; well there's no longer a Russell Wilson bandwagon, it's a fucking tank. Jump on or get flattened. KAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWW! (that was a Seahawk shriek)
Posted by Erik at 8:05 PM 1 comment: Links to this post
New York Giants @ Atlanta
You know what we've got here? My favorite alliterative late-season cliche: Possible. Playoff. Preview. We also have a definite playoff rematch. These two met in last year's Wild Card round with the Giants prevailing by the hilarious score of 24-2. Low scores with safeties involved make me happier than just about anything in this life, which you might find pretty sad; well I would agree, so screw off. The only thing that would have made that score funnier is if the Falcons had kicked a field goal to make it 5. Don't get me started on 5s, or we'll be here all day. Atlanta is coming off of what can only be described as a disappointing effort at Carolina, a game in which you could describe the Falcons effort as lackluster. Will that sub-par effort follow Atlanta into this game? I think not. They're playing at home, which means that after effing around for most of the day they'll probably find some way to pull it out in the end. That's the game plan at least.
Minnesota @ St. Louis
Here we have two teams firmly situated on the fringes of the playoff picture. The Vikings had an impressive victory over the Bears last week, but that was at home, and the Vikings are a much different team on the road. I have no respect for teams that play well at home but can't duplicate their performance on the road, none ... er uh oh, forget I said that. Adrian Peterson is clearly having a remarkable season, but when it comes right down to it I just can't trust Christian Ponder away from home, and what's more is I don't want to and I don't have to. Of course, this might have something to do with my trust issues, which is a problem I've been working on with Dr. Berg for months now. It's a slow process, but I think we're making progress; I just ask you all for your patience and understanding as I see this through.
Rams 17-16
Jacksonville @ Miami
It's time to settle this once and for all: Who's the best team in Florida? The answer is Tampa. But hey, we've got a nice little battle for 2nd place here. The Jaguars have been competitive lately, which is actually an improvement over their normal status of lousy. Chad Henne will be looking for revenge against his former team, while the rest of the country will say, "Oh, Henne played for the Dolphins? Ok, yeah, I think I remember that now." Unfortunately for Chad I don't think he'll get his vengeance this week, which actually might work better because, as we all know, revenge is a dish best served cold. Cold like a frosty beer fresh from the tap at the Shack, where you can watch this game, on the corner screen. #CSATS.
Green Bay @ Chicago
The Bears' season is quickly slipping away from them, like a season slipping away from a football team. And while I may not know how similes work, I do know that Chicago is struggling, and a visit from the Packers at this point is about as bad as a pretty good team coming to town to play you in a football game. Green Bay hasn't been overly impressive in the last month or so, but they've won 7 of their last 8 and perhaps that's all that matters. It's just like famous Packers coach Vince Lombardi said, "Winning isn't everything, it's perhaps the only thing."
Washington @ Cleveland
Ever since Redskins coach Mike Shanahan said that he was already looking towards next season his team has won four straight. What a master motivator! If I were him I'd say I was looking towards retirement or even death and see just how well the Skins would do then. My guess is they'd start beating teams by 50 (just kidding, only super azz-kicker teams do that). But the key question in this game is not how much longer Mike Shanahan has to live, but rather who will start at quarterback for the Redskins. Everyone and their uncle is hoping it's not Kirk Cousins. But even if RG3 plays, he won't be the weapon he normally is. At best he'll be semi-automatic.
Browns 19-17
Denver @ Baltimore
The Ravens have now been beaten in consecutive weeks by Charlie Batch and Kirk Cousins. To put it another way, things ain't so good. And to put it even another, more proper way, things are not so good. To make matters worse, Baltimore has to face yet another quarterback who didn't make an NFL start last season. And to make matters even worser, that quarterback's name is Peyton Manning. A lot of folks say the jury's still out on Manning, but I'm willing to state for the record right here and now, Peyton Manning is not a draft bust. The Ravens are normally unbeatable at home, but like I said earlier, Charlie Batch did it, so it's clear things aren't normal right now.
Indianapolis @ Houston
It's hard to believe that this is the first time these teams are meeting this season. It's also stupid. Don't make me come after you again Howard Katz, I will if I have to. Because of this scheduling anomaly the Colts still have a realistic shot at winning the AFC South; all they have to do is win the two against Houston and beat the Chiefs in Kansas City in between. However, beating the Texans in Houston is easier said than done. For instance, I just said it, but I have not actually done it, so there's some proof for ya right there. The Texans may be a bit demoralized after a blowout loss to New England, but with a chance to clinch the division with a win I believe they'll come out inspired and get the job done. And if that's not enough inspiration for them they need to do no more than turn their TVs to HBO and watch War Horse, a movie about a horse that is above average pretty much across the board. There's this one part where the war horse jumps far; I know it gave me chills so I can only imagine what kind of fire it will light under this Houston team.
Tampa Bay @ New Orleans
It now appears that neither of these teams will make the playoffs, but hey, the Super Bowl will be played in New Orleans in February, so maybe this can be their own little Super Bowl! They can do a media day on Tuesday, wear special patches on their jerseys, and schedule an extra long halftime to accommodate a fantastic musical performance. It's short notice so the only musician they'll be able to book is Harry Connick, Jr.; but hey, it's not every week you're able to see the narrator of My Dog Skip belt out some tunes (I'm merely guessing here, there's a decent chance he actually does play at every Saints' halftime). All of this would provide the teams with the feeling of playing in the big game even if they won't be getting there this year. And wouldn't it just be a hoot to watch?
Seattle @ Buffalo
I'm willing to bet that the Bills coaching staff turned to Tarvaris Jackson this week to give them inside info on just how the Seahawks' offense operates. I'm also willing to bet that the Bills coaching staff will be shocked come Sunday when the Seattle O doesn't feature automatic check downs and ill-advised decisions late in the game
-"You lied to us T-Jack!"
-"Hey, that's what we did when I was there."
But enough of the petty, uncalled for digs at Turdvaris, he's moved on and so have the Hawks. In case you haven't heard, this game is being played in Toronto, which means that it will be attended by tens of thousands of drunk hosers, and dozens of sober hosers. It's tough to tell if the ongoing NHL lockout will make the crowd extra rowdy or cause them all to weep uncontrollably. So tune in to Fox on Sunday around 3pm to see a full-blown riot, or hear the sound of 60,000 people crying simultaneously. Either way it oughta be interesting!
Detroit @ Arizona
Oh boy, what's left to say about the Arizona Cardinals that hasn't already been said? You know things are going bad when your QB and center are botching their practice snaps on the sideline (something that actually happened last Sunday). At that point they should have just looked at each other, nodded their heads and walked back to the locker room, they probably would have lost by less. The visiting Lions are also on a losing streak, having dropped 5 straight to sink to 4-9, however, they're hovering on the edges of respectability with their largest margin of defeat being only 10 points. Detroit has a little something to play for as Calvin Johnson continues his quest for 2,000 yards receiving, while Arizona's Larry Fitzgerald approaches 2,000 potential yards in incomplete passes that were intended for him. Both are truly astonishing feats that we should take a moment to celebrate ... like right now. I was referring to this particular moment.
Lions 28-10
Carolina @ San Diego
The Panthers and the Chargers are both coming off upset victories in Week 14, which came just in time to hurt their draft position. Just give up already! There's nothing left for you in this season! Go on, get out of here! As I watch both teams slink away with their heads down and their proverbial tails between their legs I get the sense that I may have been too hard on them, but I know it was necessary, they're going to a better place now.
Pittsburgh @ Dallas
This classical match-up figures to attract even the most casual football fan. And while watching he'll probably make insufferable comments like, "This is one of the only games I watch every year" even though the last time the Steelers and Cowboys played was 2008. Or maybe, "Is this the Super Bowl?" I mean, I could understand if he were watching the Tampa/New Orleans game, for obvious reasons, but c'mon man, get your head out of it. Hopefully you avoid the company of such a dolt this Sunday, but if you're forced to endure his presence just kick his ass. Violence solves most things.
Kansas City @ Oakland
Oh, really funny guys, what is this one of those goof games? No? They're actually going through with this? Well if there's one thing you can say about this game it's that the loser has a good shot at the 1st pick in the draft. If there's a second thing you can say about this game it's BAAAAARRRRRFFF!
Raiders? 34-24
San Francisco @ New England
Tom Brady has the Patriots' offense rollin'. I'm not sure anybody could shut him down at this point, but could someone slow him down? Possibly. Could it be an NFC West team? Quite possibly. Tom Brady has thrown 4 interceptions all season, 3 of those came against teams from the NFC West. The Patriots have had 3 losses all season, 2 of those came against teams from the NFC West. The team that Tom Brady and the Patriots will face on Sunday night is from the NFC West. Of course, the 49ers defense isn't quite up to the standard of the Seahawks or Cardinals, but they're pretty solid in their own right, and New England's patchy record against their division this year suggests that this will be a close one. The aforementioned losses came in the first 6 weeks of the season, however, and since then The Patriots have won 7 in a row, averaging just over 40 points per game in the process. In other words it's hard to pick against them right now, so I won't.
New York Jets @ Tennessee
The Jets made a large step towards the playoffs last week and they are now only one game out. This shouldn't be reality, but it is, and I don't blame the Jets, I blame us. If a team like this has a chance to make the playoffs it's time that we all take a long look in the mirror and try to figure out what we're really doing here, and what's really important. We can do better than this, we can be better; I'm gonna keep trying if you guys keep trying.
Jets 17-13
NFL Picks Week 15 - Thursday
Cincinnati @ Philadelphia
Just when you thought Andy Reid and the Philadelphia Eagles were out of it, they pull off a dramatic road victory over Tampa. And now ... (hold on just checking the standings) ... oh, they're still out of it, by a good margin. Oh well, better luck next year Andy with whatever it is you'll be doing, I'm guessing less standing will be involved. The Bengals blew a good chance to beat the Cowboys last week and as a result they're still on the outside of the AFC playoff picture looking in (it would be weird if they were on the inside looking in, right?). Cincy should be desperate with only three games left to play, while Philly should be eager to play those last three games and get the hell out of this season. That adds up to a Bengals win.
Bengals 23-21
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St. Louis @ Buffalo
The Rams are now 4-0-1 against the NFC West and 1-6 against the rest of the league. This shows that the Rams are only comfortable against familiar foes, they're afraid of anything new or different. It's a classic case of xenophobia. I wouldn't be surprised to see the whole team just shut themselves inside the Edward Jones Dome and refuse to come out. It would be interesting to see how the NFL would handle that, I'm guessing they'd either force St. Louis to forfeit all of their road games or simply make every other team on the schedule play in St. Louis. You might think that would be a decided advantage for the Rams, but that would only be because you've probably never seen nor heard the crowd at the Edward Jones Dome. Either way, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it, which won't be this Sunday. The Bills aren't in the NFC West, so the result here should be obvious.
Dallas @ Cincinnati
Both of these squadrons are hovering on the precipice of a playoff berth. If football is a game of inches then these teams' postseason dreams may be slapped away by the space of a mere foot-long ruler, like the guilty hands of many a catholic schoolboy. So tenuous is the grasp that one has on success in today's NFL that it makes you pause to appreciate it when it arrives. Though one should not linger in smelling those roses, for another hungry competitor will surely be nipping at their heels like an icy wind sweeping in off the Ohio River.
Kansas City @ Cleveland
Don't look now but the Cleveland Browns have won back to back games! And you won't be able to look now, because there are 10 early games and only 8 screens at the Shack, which means this one won't even make Corner Screen. But in terms of the true spirit of the title this one has CSATS written all over it. Both teams won last week, which is an encouraging sign, but trust me this game will blow harder than an icy wind sweeping in off the Cuyahoga River.
Tennessee @ Indianapolis
Andrew Luck cannot be stopped! Well, he was stopped on 30 passes last week, going 24-54, but that's beside the point. The bottom line is that he brought his team back to win in a nearly miraculous fashion. Especially miraculous when you consider that he managed to do it after throwing 3 interceptions and completing only 44% of his passes, however those stats are inconsequential. A win is a win is a win. And when a win is won like the one the Colts won one week ago you have to take notice.
Colts 23-19
Chicago @ Minnesota
What happened to the Bears defense last week? This happened. When you take that into consideration it's tough to blame them for surrendering back to back long touchdown drives in the 4th quarter and overtime. This week they'll face another formidable offensive force in the form of Adrian Peterson. I phrase it that way because it's highly possible, perhaps even likely that Peterson is an alien or some sort of cyborg programmed to run the football and occasionally fumble. Remember when he tore his ACL last season? You guessed it: anterior cyborg ligament. Peterson has the ability to shred any team he faces, unfortunately for him his quarterback is Christian Ponder. CP, as I've taken to calling him, has averaged 144 yard passing over the last six games, and while he's apt to play much better in home games I just don't think CP will get the job done.
Philadelphia @ Tampa Bay
Will the Eagles win another game this season, or will they finish on a 12 game losing streak? It's a question that needs to be asked. And if you're not asking it then you're just not spending enough time thinking about the Eagles. What's your deal? Anyhow, the answer is yes, they will finish the season on a 12 game losing streak, and I'll be watching with morbid curiosity; pretty messed up huh? This game will give the Bucs' playoff push a push in the right direction, however, remaining road games against the Saints and the Falcons will shove the Bucs' playoff push back from whence it came, which is Tampa, so that's gonna suck.
Baltimore @ Washington
The Ravens' defense is dropping like flies and the Redskins' offense is flying like drops. Hmm, that didn't work. Baltimore's defensive end/linebacker Terrell Suggs suffered a torn biceps last week and now joins Ray Lewis and Lardarius Webb on the sidelines, along with a lot of other people, like the sound guy who has that plastic dish and a bunch of little goobers who got special access passes. That dwindling defense could spell disaster for the Ravens as they head to D.C. to take on the red-hot Redskins. But the major question mark going into Sunday is Will the Ravens take a bus to get to this game? My guess is yes. It seems like it would be a waste to fly right? Maybe they'll all just meet up outside of their facility and call a bunch of van cabs. But that presents another question, Will the front office foot the bill? If not, those players better have cash on them because sure most taxis have the capability to take debit or credit cards but most drivers get real pissy about it.
Atlanta @ Carolina
When you look at the records for these two teams you might assume that this game will be a blowout. Well, sometimes records lie; like they say they'll be somewhere and then they don't show up. Look, I get it you're busy, but just call me and tell me you can't make it so I'm not standing outside the restaurant like an idiot. What's more is I made a reservation, they were holding a table for us that two other (honest) people could have used. So yeah, records aren't always so reliable. The Falcons have won repeatedly in close games this season but I think it might be time for their luck to run out in an upset loss.
New York Jets @ Jacksonville
Somehow after all of the calamity of their first 12 games the Jets are only two games out of the playoffs. Of course, there's only four games left to go, so if they want to have a chance they'll have to win them all. That's a slate of @ JAX, @ TEN, SD, @ BUF, so a winning streak isn't out of the question ... for a good team, or even a decent team, neither of which is something I would refer to the Jets as. So yeah, they're screwed, I don't know why I spent all that time considering their chances, or why you read this, hopefully you didn't. Sorry old boy!
Jaguars 19-13
San Diego @ Pittsburgh
I know what you're all thinking: rematch of the 1995 AFC Championship Game! You just know that Stan Humphries and Natrone Means will be tossing back a few Molson's and talking about the good ol' days while watching this one. They'll probably leave out the part where they got pasted in the Super Bowl, because depression and Molson's is not a good combo, just ask millions of Canadians waiting for the NHL lockout to end. Word out of Pittsburgh is that Ben Roethlisberger will play which is good news for every player on the Steelers, especially Charlie Batch who won't have an opportunity to lead the team to a win and embarrassingly weep afterward. Just think, if every quarterback who beat the Chargers this year cried as much as Charlie Batch did last week we'd probably all be knee deep in saline right now.
Miami @ San Francisco
The Miami Dolphins are visiting San Francisco this Sunday, which is good news for the 49ers, because the Miami Dolphins are not the St. Louis Rams. Though I haven't seen those two teams in the same place since they played each other in Week 6, so can we really know that there isn't some sort of team swapping conspiracy going on? Look, I'm just saying we don't know that there's not. Assuming these Dolphins really are the Dolphins I don't give them much of a chance on Sunday.
49ers 23-9
New Orleans @ New York Giants
If you employ simple algebra to this game the New's will cancel each other out leaving us with a match-up of Orleans vs. York. And as we all know York owns Orleans historically. Coming off a 5 interception game Drew Brees should be eager to redeem himself, perhaps too eager. Expect to see the Orleans QB to force a lot of throws down field again this week, and while the results may be better than they were against Atlanta they still won't be good enough.
Arizona @ Seattle
Ryan Lindley has officially been benched by Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt. Thanks a pantload! Man I was really looking forward to big Ry taking snaps at the CLink, unfortunately the Hawks will have to deal with John "Bones" Skelton instead. Will this, combined with the absence of Brandon Browner lead to Arizona ending their 8 game losing streak? Well there you have it. With the emergence of Russell Wilson as the most dominant force in all of sport look for a Hawks win.
Detroit @ Green Bay
The Packers have played twice on Sunday night so far this season. The first time they gave the Texans their first (and, to date, lone) loss of the season, beating them by 18 in Houston. The second time the Giants blew them out by 28 in New York. So what should we expect from their third foray into Sunday night? Expect the unexpected. Of course, if the unexpected is what you expect then it becomes the expected, in kind the unexpected would become what one would normally expect; so I'll just tell you what I expect and then you can choose whether to expect or unexpect that.
Houston @ New England
Buckle up your chinstraps, we've got a good one here! And I have just one question for you: What are you doing with a helmet on? Is this how you always watch football games, or is it just for Monday nights? Either way it's pretty lame. The Texans have answered every challenge they've had placed before them this season, except for when they faced Aaron Rodgers. This week they have to face Tom Brady, another elite quarterback whom I expect to give Houston plenty of trouble. It's not likely that he'll match the 6 TDs that Rodgers dumped on the Texans, but how about 3? Does that float your boat you sick, helmet-wearing freak?
Denver @ Oakland
The Raiders have lost five games in a row giving up an average of 37.8 points per game in the process. But this week they get Darren McFadden back, which should help their defense. "What? He's an offensive player!" You most likely just exclaimed, while drooling all over your keyboard. Look, if Oakland can control the ball better with their running game it should keep their D from being on the field so much. Get it now? C'mon! Of course, I don't expect the Raiders' defense to spend a lot of time out there because Peyton Manning will be able to score in three plays or less on most drives. In fact, I say they'll have the ball for a total of 21 minutes and score double that amount in points. Pretty bold eh? No? Well how about this: Pretty bold eh?
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Scorned lovers can name a cockroach after their ex then have it fed to a meerkat
Jeremiah Rodriguez, CTVNews.ca Staff
Published Saturday, February 9, 2019 12:33PM EST
If you're a scorned lover looking for a pick-me-up on Valentine's Day than a zoo in Texas might have the perfect gift for you.
The El Paso Zoo is offering to name its cockroaches after people's exes and then feed them to a meerkat live on video this Valentine's Day.
Up until the day of, people can message the zoo on Facebook with their ex's name as part of the zoo's "Quit Bugging Me" event.
Zoo employees will then feed the roaches to the zoo's meerkats — which will be live-streamed on the zoo's website and Facebook page on Feb. 14 at 2:15 p.m. local time.
Starting on Feb. 11 — as part of the lead-up to the event — the zoo will also put up the names of people's exes on social media and on the walls of its meerkat exhibit.
The zoo is calling its offer: "the perfect Valentine's Day gift." But they're not the only zoo doing this.
As part of its annual adoption program, the Bronx Zoo will let people name their Madagascar hissing cockroachs whatever they want.
The zoo said it can be a way for people to show others that they're thinking of them — essentially letting them seal their love with a hiss.
Because they're next to impossible to kill, that zoo is promising a gift that will "remain thriving and triumphant."
For $15, people can name the roach whatever they want and receive a certificate.
But they're also offering a wide variety of packages that range between $35 and $70, which can include beanies, novelty mugs and even a "roach broach."
Related Topics:cockroachfedloversmeerkatScorned
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Nobody would give this teen with autism a job, so he started a business
A 17-year-old Australian teen with autism started his own business cleaning garbage bins after he was rejected for other jobs.
"I searched and applied for jobs for two years and did not get one interview," Clay Lewis told CTV News Channel from his home in Brisbane, Australia.
As of January, his business, Clay's Bin Cleaning, has made more than AUS$6,000 and has roughly 70 clients.
He charges AUS$10 for the first bin and AUS$5 for each additional bin. He regularly offers free bin cleaning to local charities.
"I'm very proud of him," his mother Laura Lewis told CTV News Channel. "I knew that he could do it."
She added that employers were unable to "see past their own judgments" and made "unfair assumptions" about Clay's competency because of his disability.
Clay said that he is looking forward to attending his high school prom and may put some of his earnings toward funding a trip to Abu Dhabi to watch his first Formula 1 race.
Lewis said that Clay's story has given hope to a lot of people, particularly parents of children with autism.
"All Clay is doing is living a 17-year-old's ordinary life: working, going to school, having a girlfriend and hanging out with friends," she said.
Meet Jelly Bean, the deaf canine contender for World's Most Amazing Dog title
CTVNews.ca Staff, with a report from CTV London's Sacha Long
Published Friday, February 22, 2019 7:50PM EST
A deaf Ontario dog is in the semi-finals of the World's Most Amazing Dog competition, an interactive Facebook Watch show where dogs compete for a US$100,000 prize.
Jelly Bean, a three-year-old Australian cattle dog who lives in London, Ont., can catch and pass a ball with his front paws and jump on a stranger's back. He follows the instructions of his handler, Melissa Mellitt, by sight because cannot hear.
"He is so highly intelligent," Mellitt told CTV London. "He has no idea that he's deaf. He doesn't care. He's just as happy as any other dog."
Mellitt adopted Jelly Bean from the Deaf Dog Rescue of America when he was five months old. He has since gone on to travel across Canada as a professional stunt dog and works with Mellitt as an assistant to help rehabilitate fearful dogs.
"We knew that he had this potential," she said. "This is exactly what I knew he was going to be."
Mellitt hopes that Jelly Bean's performance in the competition will help shatter some of the stigma around deaf dogs, who are often believed to be ill tempered and incapable of being trained. Mellitt said breeders euthanize many of them at birth, but she believes that Jelly Bean's inability to hear is his "cool factor."
If Jelly Bean wins the competition, Mellitt said that she plans to give half of the winnings to the Deaf Dog Rescue of America.
Viewers of the World's Most Amazing Dogs competition get to vote on who should move to the finals.
"I think he could go all the way," Mellitt said.
Funeral held for sailor in V-J Day Times Square kiss photo
NEWPORT, R.I. — The sailor photographed kissing a woman in Times Square at the end of World War II was mourned Friday at a funeral in Rhode Island.
George Mendonsa's funeral was held at St. Mary's Church in Newport, and he was buried at St. Columba Cemetery in Middletown.
Mendonsa died Sunday after he fell and had a seizure at an assisted living facility, his daughter said. He was 95 and leaves behind his wife of 72 years.
Mendonsa kissed Greta Zimmer Friedman, a dental assistant in a nurse's uniform, on Aug. 14, 1945, known as V-J Day, the day Japan surrendered.
The two had never met.
Alfred Eisenstaedt's photo of the kiss became one of the most famous photographs of the 20th century. First published in Life magazine, it's called "V-J Day in Times Square," but is known to most as "The Kiss."
Another photographer, Victor Jorgensen, who was in the Navy, also captured the moment in a similar photo. The moment has been shared widely and is often seen on posters.
Several people later claimed to be the kissing couple, and it was years before Mendonsa and Friedman were confirmed to be the couple.
Mendonsa enlisted in the Navy in 1942, after high school. He served on a destroyer during the war.
Mendonsa was on leave when the end of the war was announced. When he was honoured at the Rhode Island State House in 2015, Mendonsa said Friedman reminded him of nurses on a hospital ship that he saw care for wounded sailors.
On Monday, a statue depicting the kiss in Sarasota, Florida, was vandalized. The phrase ".MeToo" was spray-painted on the leg of the statue.
Friedman said in a 2005 interview with the Veterans History Project that it wasn't her choice to be kissed.
"The guy just came over and kissed or grabbed," she told the Library of Congress.
She added, "It was just somebody really celebrating. But it wasn't a romantic event."
Friedman fled Austria during the war as a 15-year-old girl. She died in 2016 at age 92 at a hospital in Richmond, Virginia, from complications of old age.
After the war, Mendonsa became a commercial fisherman, like his father, and worked until he was 82. He died two days before his 96th birthday.
Survivors include his wife, Rita; and his children, Ronald Mendonsa and Sharon Molleur, and their families.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Towards a more secure Europe
Guest post by Hristiana Grozdanova and Anna Maria Barcikowska.
Since the autumn of 2008, the financial crisis and its implications has dictated the EU policies. The pressures on EU governments to control expenditure continue to be enormous. Defence has not remain immune raising important questions how Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) of the EU can function in this new environment and even if it can survive austerity. Some commentators see it only as a question of choices – how much does defence matter and where does it stand in national priorities, missing a critical point: without a strong security and defence policy in the EU, underpinned by credible military capabilities, Europe risks becoming a marginalized, second-tier player.
On March 29, in his speech on Polish Foreign Policy for 2012, Radek Sikorski, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland, painted a bleak scenario: "A divided Europe loses its chance to remain a key player in international trade and politics. Tired with defence spending stinginess and a general European inefficiency, the USA opt out of NATO. Russia fills the void left by the West in the East; China fills the void in Asia. The Arab world is engulfed by transformation crises. Europe is no longer a role model for anyone".
This is evidently a worst-case scenario, but if EU wants to contribute to promoting and preserving peace and stability and use actively and effectively instruments at its disposal for crisis management and conflict prevention, European leaders will have to rethink their commitment to CSDP.
Radek Sikorski observed, based on the experience of the Polish Presidency of the EU (July – December 2011), that CSDP is unfortunately impossible to implement in a group of 27 member states and stressed that the EU must initiate tighter cooperation between willing countries.
This is perhaps the solution. Europe's role in the world can only be sustained through enhanced defence cooperation and a group of like-minded Member States ready to drive CSDP forward can be much more effective. It can act as avant-garde that others will, hopefully, follow.
In December 2010, Poland together with France and Germany launched the "Weimar Initiative" making it clear that there is need to give a fresh impetus to CSDP and take bold decision to make it more cost-effective and cost-efficient at the same time. One of such bold decisions considered under Weimar Initiative was the proposal to establish permanent civil-military planning and command structures for EU operations. Infrastructure, personnel and expertise for planning, command and control exist in all countries and military organizations in the form of military headquarters. Those headquarters are the link between the political decision-makers and military organizations.
Unlike NATO, the EU has no permanent military headquarters and specific structures and responsibilities are split between the Union and its Member States. In practical terms, this means that when a military operation is to take place, the EU has to activate different entities ad hoc and bring them together. Therefore, having EU headquarters would help to overcome the present shortage of the system where to launch an operation and activate an Operational Headquarters (OHQ) a Council Decision is required each time. It would also significantly improve operational efficiency of EU crisis management and facilitate more effective use of resources. What is more, the EU can use the HQs of five of its Member States, or NATO structures or activate Operations Centre in Brussels.
This proposal, advocated vigorously for during Polish Presidency of the EU, failed to muster sufficient support, in particular due to strong opposition from the UK. However, it was not an entirely wasted effort as it led to a compromise agreement to activate the EU's dormant 'operations centre'. For the first time since it was created in 2007, the dormant operation centre has been put in practice to help conduct the EU's operations in the Horn of Africa.
The difficulties to take forward the Weimar Initiative exposed the inherent problems of CSDP and the fragile balance between the need to collectively improve military capabilities and the concerns over national sovereignty and power. The Weimar initiative is not a new idea for the European Union. Similar initiatives have failed in the past due to lukewarm political support. If the EU wants to remain engaged in crisis management and carry – out complex civil-military tasks, European leaders have to finally pull their weight on security and defence.
The new US Defence Strategic guidance while reorienting towards Asia-Pacific suggests that Europeans have to do more not less, making clear that there will be no more free rides. If Europeans want the US to remain engaged and committed, they need to demonstrate a greater willingness to assume a larger share of the security and defence burden. To do so in the midst of the worst economic crisis in decades is a real challenge for CSDP and will require a serious effort and continuous political momentum to get it back on track.
Common Security and Defence Policy can only be as effective and ambitious as Member States want it to be. Rethinking CSDP in times of austerity and strategic shifts will require revisiting approaches and ideas that might previously have seemed politically unacceptable but now are a necessity. Radek Sikorski concluded in his foreign policy speech that stronger EU means offloading past burdens and past inhibitions. This is the way forward for CSDP.
Hristiana Grozdanova is an EU policy advisor at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria, working on issues related to Common Foreign and Security Policy of the EU.
Anna Maria Barcikowska is a Senior Officer at the European Defence Agency. The views expressed here are the author's and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Defence Agency.
Both are members of the Atlantic Council's Young Atlanticist Working Group.
This article was also published here.
English, EU, Guest post
EU says:
We can see that it is possible for the French Presidential Elections to be influenced by Kosovo.
Angela Merkel made known that she wanted French President Nicolas Sarkozy elected as the next French President rather than any of the other Candidates for French President.
It could be that Germany really does not care, because the Franco-German alliance is the way for France and Germany to proceed, regardless of who forms the Government.
If another Candidate should become French President, then Germany can deceptively have others think that Germany is disappointed, and that there will be no Fourth Reich to menace and exploit the smaller Continental European Countries, but the reality will be different.
The other Candidate appears to not be saying much, except the Me Too to the popular Policies of Sarkozy, and only saying the minimum, because he may know that these Videos on Kosovo in the French Language a week before the first round of Voting will tell the French People that Sarkozy has Dishonoured France and the French People.
It will however, affect Sarkozy and his Political Party, even if it does not affect the Franco-German domination of Continental Europe.
We all know that there will be a Presidential Election in France soon, and that the French People are Honourable people, and that they value their Honour, because the French People are not Nazis as Sarkozy and Merkel think.
There could be certain groups who will put a Video in the French Language of Kosovo on the Internet to prove to the French People that President Sarkozy has Dishonoured France and he has Dishonoured the French People.
These groups may not necessarily be European Governments of the smaller Countries, because many of them could be Puppets of Germany, but they could be ordinary citizens who do not like the menace or exploitation of the Fourth Reich.
I basically think that the time to judge the Government is during their time in Office, and not during the Campaign Election.
The Politicians know that Most People have short memories, and that they will only concentrate on the smoke and mirrors of what the promises of different Parties and Candidates are.
I know that it is extremely difficult for Voters to not be influenced by Election Promises, because History proves that People are not as experienced in the ways of deceptive Politicians, as they really should be.
Sarkozy said late last year and before the Presidential Elections, that France must be more like Germany.
However, now that it is the Election Campaign, and a time to lie and lie big, Sarkozy says that he wants a Europe that protects its citizens, and that he no longer wants this savage competition.
The possible group or groups who make this Video in the French Language, and place it on the Internet would want Sarkozy to lose on the first round of Voting on 22 April 2012.
They would want this because, they think that they might be able to have Angela Merkel and her Party lose the next German Election, because of using a German Language Video of Kosovo on the Internet during the next German Elections.
They may be right, but they should realize that it will not change Germany regardless of who the Government is.
This is because German interests define German policy, but they may be satisfied with taking the credit for Angela Merkel and her Party lose the Election, because the German People cannot have blatant Nazis in power, and they need the Opposition Parties who are more subtle, and not stained by the Kosovo affair.
It could be that French President Nicolas Sarkozy, may say that France wants the Kumanovo Agreement scrapped, and Germany may also ask America to do them this favour as a NATO Ally, but will Sarkozy and Merkel mean it after the French Presidential Election, and even the upcoming Serbian Elections.
We know that in the past, France did actually leave NATO, because of a disagreement, and we know that France later rejoined NATO, and the French left NATO over a matter concerning Honour.
We know that America and the European Union will do a lot to help Tadic and Dacic win the Elections, because they are there Puppets.
It could that they may scrap the Kumanovo Agreement to help their Puppets win the Elections, because they know that even as things can be done before the Elections, they can also be undone after the Elections.
There are Many People who hope that the French Voters ignore all promises made by all Political Parties during their Election Campaign.
This is because the real truth of the Political Parties is their attitudes and actions between Election Campaigns, and not at the Election Campaign, because Election time that is the time they lie big, and only during Government or Opposition is when they are more honest, as History repeatedly proves.
This is because the Wise will assume that they will all be unable to fulfil their Economic Policies, and this Election Theme, is: It Is Time For A Change.
The French Voters should know that Sarkozy may dishonour France and they may dishonour the French People, because of their attitudes concerning Serbia's Province of Kosovo.


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Risse takes a refreshingly different approach to understanding the important and topical debates in the subject through the lens of issues of global reach such as justice, human rights, fair trade and immigration, focusing on normative questions that arise about globalization.
Illustrations note VIII, 218 p.
Mathias Risse is Professor of Philosophy and Public Policy at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, USA. He is the author of On Global Justice (2012). His main research area is political philosophy, but he has also published on social choice theory, on ethics, and on the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche. Before coming to Harvard, he taught at the Department of Philosophy at Yale University.


text:
Join CADA-ON
Membership Eligibility
Professional Standards for Dance
Training Subsidy Program
Joint Membership with Canadian Dance Assembly
Free Studio Space
Creation & Production
Touring & Presenting
Contracting & Negotiating
Other Forms of Support
Advocacy, Facts & Figures
Mission & Mandate
AGMs & Annual Reports
PSD - Appendix C - Canadian Artist Code
Appendix C - Canadian Artist Code
-> Back to Table of Content
A professional Artist is recognized as one who meets a combination of four of the following criteria, one of which must be d., e., f or g.,:
a. The fact that an Artist has presented his/her work to the public by means of exhibitions, publications, performances, readings, screenings or similar representative appropriate to the nature of his/her work;
b. The fact that an Artist is represented by a dealer, publisher, agent, or similar representative appropriate to the nature of his/her work;
c. The fact that an Artist devotes a reasonable proportion of his/her professional time as an artist to promoting or marketing his/her work, including, but not limited to, presenting himself/herself for auditions, seeking sponsorship, agents or engagements, or similar activities appropriate to the nature of his/her work;
d. The fact that an Artist receives or has received, compensation from his/her work including, but not limited to, sales fees, commissions, salaries, royalties, grants and awards, any of which may reasonably be included as professional or business income;
e. The fact that an Artist has a record of income or loss relevant to the exploitation of his/her work and appropriate to the span of his/her artistic career;
f. The fact that an Artist has received professional training either in an educational institution or from a practitioner or teacher recognized within his/her profession;
g. The fact that an Artist has received public or peer recognition in the form of honours, awards, professional prizes or by publicly disseminated critical appraisal;
h. The fact that an Artist has membership in a professional association appropriate to his/her artistic activity whose membership or categories of membership, is or are, limited under standards established by the association;
CADA-ON gratefully acknowledges the generous support of:
CADA-ON would like to thank the following
Local Businesses and Services:
© 2018 Canadian Alliance of Dance Artists, Ontario Chapter (CADA-ON).
CADA-ON, 476 Parliament Street, 2nd Floor | Toronto, ON M4X 1P2
Email: office@cada-on.ca | Website: www.cada-on.ca


Tesla Inc's chief financial officer will leave the company as the automaker on Wednesday promised cheaper Model 3 sedans, the launch of Chinese production this year and profits in every quarter in 2019.
The departure of Deepak Ahuja as well as missing Wall Street profit targets for the end of 2018, sent Tesla shares down nearly 6 per cent after hours. Zach Kirkhorn, Tesla's vice president of finance, will replace Ahuja, who is about 56 years old.
"We have to be relentless about costs in order to make affordable cars and not go bankrupt," said Musk on a conference call with analysts.
Musk announced a 7 per cent workforce reduction earlier this month, saying it was crucial to cut costs to roll out a lower-priced, yet still profitable, Model 3.
Tesla said it expected lower S and X deliveries in the first quarter, given a "pull-forward in demand" in 2018 for those vehicles when the full subsidy was still available. Tesla recognises revenue once a vehicle is delivered.
Tesla's total revenue rose 5.9 per cent to $7.23 billion, beating the analyst average estimate of $7.08 billion.


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Archdale, N.C. Man Is Sentenced To Almost Three Years In Prison For COVID-19 Relief Fraud
Oregon Man Sentenced to Federal Prison and Ordered to Forfeit Over $18 Million in Stock and Properties After Stealing Millions in Covid-Relief Funds
Three Men Charged For COVID-19 Unemployment Insurance Benefits Fraud
LAS VEGAS – Three men made their initial appearances in federal court today for their alleged roles in a conspiracy to apply for and use Nevada and California unemployment insurance benefits debit cards — approved for over $900,000 — that were issued in other peoples' names.
Salem Man Pleads Guilty to Small Business Loan Fraud and Filing Fraudulent Tax Returns
BOSTON – A Salem man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston in connection with two fraud schemes involving COVID-19 relief funds and tax returns for other individuals.
Georgia Woman Sentenced to 41 Months in COVID-19 Fraud Scheme
A Georgia woman was sentenced today to 41 months in prison for her scheme to fraudulently obtain more than $7.9 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Charlotte Pastor Pleads Guilty To Tax and Wire Fraud
Department of Health & Human Services OIG
COVID-19 Tests Drove an Increase in Total Medicare Part B Spending on Lab Tests in 2020, While Use of Non-COVID-19 Tests Decreased Significantly
Medicare Part B spent $1.5 billion on COVID-19 tests in 2020, while at the same time, spending on non-COVID-19 tests declined by $1.2 billion. The result was a net spending increase of 4 percent, but the decrease in utilization of non-COVID-19 tests raises questions about the potential impacts on beneficiary health.
Full Details: Oversight.gov Report Page for COVID-19 Tests Drove an Increase in Total Medicare Part B Spending on Lab Tests in 2020, While Use of Non-COVID-19 Tests Decreased Significantly
Inspection / Evaluation | 12/30/2021
South Florida Man Charged with Covid-19 Relief Fraud, Buying Lamborghini, Rolex, and Louis Vuitton with Loan Money
A Florida man charged with fraudulently obtaining COVID-19 relief loans under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) made his first appearance today in federal magistrate court in Ft. Lauderdale.
Apache Tribe of Oklahoma's Use of Coronavirus Relief Fund Payment
Full Details: Oversight.gov Report Page for Apache Tribe of Oklahoma's Use of Coronavirus Relief Fund Payment
1-1 - Open
Department of the Treasury (Treasury) Office of Inspector General (OIG) requires that $500,000 of Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) proceeds, used to secure the loan with Liberty National Bank, be returned to the Apache Tribe's CRF account to be used for eligible obligations by December 31, 2021.
District Court Orders New Jersey Defendants to Stop Distributing Unapproved 'Nano Silver' Products Touted as COVID Treatment
A federal court permanently enjoined a New Jersey entity and its principals from distributing unapproved and misbranded drugs touted as a treatment for COVID-19.


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wooden and masonry farm buildings, the former monastery garden.
The ensemble was connected to the Giedraičiai manor in Zizyavia through the pond system.
choir Inside the church in the 18th century In the first quarter, 5 baroque altars were built, as well as remained in the 17th century.
the founder MM Giedraičius and the first monastery leader I. Žepnickis.
unveiled in the town of 650 anniversary stone.


text:
Гаяна
 Гаяна — цикл фантастических романов Гая Петрония Аматуни.
 Гаяна (итал.) — река в Италии.
 Гаяна (польск.) — женское имя.
 Гаяна — ошибочное в русском языке написание государства Гайана.

См. также
 Гаянна — буква сингальского алфавита.
 Каяна (значения)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


When it comes to water stewardship, there is growing concern among investors, especially now that climate change is becoming a focal point for investors and companies alike. There is a strong concurrence of both corporates and investors that risk exposure is key and therefore needs to be properly captured. Risk exposu re has typically been seen as a function of water dependency and directly connected to water security, 2 crucial issues for sustainable portfolio management.
Eurosif spoke to CDP's Head of Water, Morgan Gillespy about the obstacles to efficient and comprehensive water risk disclosure. As CDP's Head of Water, she leads the development and implementation of products and services relating to water as well as the analysis of CDP's water data.
Eurosif: Which do you deem to be the biggest challenge between having companies report better about water risks or investors truly grasping the relevance of that risk for their portfolios?
MG: Our latest report shows that company reporting is a bigger challenge. We see increasing investor concern on water issues and growing expectations for companies and suppliers to disclose. On the other hand, while half of our Water A List companies are based in Europe, bridging the growing gap between these leading companies and the rest will require more companies to disclose, as the majority still do not do so. Likewise, while in Europe companies are well ahead of global averages on key metrics like water governance, less than half of companies report taking a comprehensive risk assessment beyond their direct operations. Without more detailed disclosure, investors cannot adequately assess their portfolio risk. Given the threat that both companies and investors see from water-related risks, we urge greater disclose on this topic.
Eurosif: What are the main triggers that motivate companies to improve their reporting?
MG: There is a massive business case for better reporting and managing water. One goal of corporate attention to water stewardship is in enhancing shareholder confidence, particularly given the large and growing number of investors seeking disclosure. Investors are looking to ensure the companies in which they invest are behaving responsibly, prepared for challenges and well-positioned to generate sustainable returns. However a significant trigger for improvement is the benefits and opportunities companies realise as a result. 68% of company respondents report that they have identified opportunities by responding to water stewardship issues. These opportunities come via improved water efficiency, cost savings, sale of new products, increase brand value, business resilience and competitive advantage.
Eurosif: How do you think the European Commission can help in this regard?
MG: The European Commission has stated its commitment to implementing the 2030 Agenda by looking to integrate the SDGs into its policy framework. SDG Goal 6 calls for the sustainable management of water for all, and two targets under this goal speak directly to the private sector and requires their action in order to achieve it. This EU-level prioritization is a major step towards greater water stewardship. Increasing regulatory requirements present major incentives for companies to disclose and manage their risk; companies that can give solutions can seize these opportunities, improve their reputation with investors and customers, and win business. Policy integration of the SDGs provides investors and other stakeholders with consistent information about the sector against which they can measure risk accurately.
Eurosif: What do you esteem to be the missing link within companies and the interaction between departments to work towards better water management/reporting? What would you want to see more of?
MG: European companies perform well in terms of governance and strategy, with three quarters including water issues at board-level and 80% in business strategy. Most respondents have identified water-related opportunities. The next stage of stewardship involves more a proactive response; only 42% of the companies to have identified opportunities have strategies in place to realize them. This report also shows the need for greater engagement with suppliers, regulators, local communities and other key stakeholders in the river basin beyond companies' direct operations, with only 32% extending their risk assessments to this scale.
Eurosif: Where do you see the trends for investors going in the way they look at water ?


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Portland FUMC makes, donates 10,000 masks to front-line workers
More than 10,000 masks were made by members of Portland First UMC for front-line workers during the pandemic.
Floral prints, polka dots, cat prints, flannel, and fabric with sequins were all put to use by the sewists at Portland First United Methodist Church. Beginning in late March and continuing through October, Sonja Connor and other church members sewed 10,000 cloth masks for the frontline workers of Portland and other areas.
"It felt good to do something to make a positive difference," Connor said.
The project started with a conversation Portland First UMC member Darin Honn had with a colleague whose wife is a resident physician at Oregon Health Sciences University hospital. Honn heard about the severe shortage of personal protective equipment the hospital staff was experiencing, especially the shortage of masks. He learned that cloth masks were being used over the top of N95 masks in clinics so that they could be changed between patients. He and his wife Linda were moved to help. They got a pattern and Darin went out to buy fabric and elastic while Linda got to work sewing.
Honn contacted Rev. Donna Pritchard who put him in contact with church members who liked to sew. About 20 people joined the effort using their favorite patterns and their fabric stashes and started sewing from their homes. Church members donated more fabric and funds and several volunteered to pick up the masks and deliver them where they were needed.
A white plastic kitchen bag held 85 cloth masks. Bag after bag was filled and delivered.
Darin Honn, left, delivers a bag of masks. PDX FUMC's masks went to hospitals, non-profits working with vulnerable populations and more.
Soon they had given masks to the Veterans Administration hospital, Portland Clinic, first responders, homeless service providers, medical clinics, hospice organizations, and Central City Concern. A connection to the Navajo Nation resulted in a large box being sent there.
When Linda Phillips-Honn's son Tyler came home from college for spring break, he pitched in too.
Connor joined the project and committed to sewing 12 masks a day. She kept making them faithfully day after day. Within six months, Connor made more than 2,000 masks. She stressed that it was a church-wide project. It seemed the need was so great, the sewists and helpers continued into the fall.
"People liked helping do something at a time when you didn't know what to do to be helpful," she said.


Practical jokes are nothing new when April Fools is just around the corner. Some might receive a laughing response, while some will get scrutiny. This last couple of days, Justin Bieber, a world-famous singer made a prank that triggered a lot of people around the world.
The apology seems honest and heartfelt enough. It somewhat showed us how he got the idea of the said "insensitive" prank. As most of you would know, a newlywed couple who wanted to get a big reaction to someone close to them would be "that false pregnancy" prank.
Not really defending the guy, but it does sound like he didn't have a clue on the would-be reactions of people who are watching his every move. The intention of the prank was all in good fun, but of course being a famous person, he had millions of followers that wouldn't totally agree with the idea.
It really goes to show how public figures fit into this world of ours. As if they aren't allowed to do anything that a person would normally do that could potentially appear as an insensitive act. Just one of the costs of being a world-famous person I suppose.
The prank started with a post in Instagram, showing the result of a sonogram that revealed a fetus somewhere around 12-20 weeks old. There were no captions, but it did receive a lot of congratulatory remarks, alongside comments showing skepticism.
By then, the comments were coming in like crazy. Some were laughing, some were disappointed, and others were furious. There were a lot of big words being thrown in the comment section, from racism, stupidity to insensitivity.
But taking from only the sensible ones that do have a point, it was really about the thought of being an insensitive prank to those other women who aren't able to conceive or someone who lost their baby.
Maybe if we were still in the 80's or 90's, it wouldn't be news-worthy at all, but now that we're living in a society full of white knights and social justice warriors, you're going to have to take the fall and be done with it.


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MSME Super-app, HostBooks raises $3Million in Series-A Funding from Razorpay; Plans to Strengthen its Product Suite
June 11, 2022 Caroline Hansley
Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME)-focused fintech start-up HostBooks today announced that it has raised $3 Million in a Series-A funding round led by Razorpay, one of India's Leading Full-Stack Financial Services Company. HostBooks plans to utilize the fund to not only add new features to its existing product suite but also to develop innovative products including a deep learning-based Business Intelligence System and an AI-based Posting and Recommendation System.
Hostbooks intends to utilize the Series-A funding to further scale its operations and enhance its existing product suite with the launch of new products supporting order management, neo-banking, advanced inventory & production management and AI-based business decision making tools to better support its wide customer base in the country. With this, HostBooks will be a step closer to becoming a one-stop shop for all Business and Finance Operations needs of MSMEs in India.
Commenting on the announcement, Kapil Rana, Founder, HostBooks said "We are simplifying and automating the entire business process by focusing on the sources of the transactions, banking, accounting, and tax compliances with an integrated end-to-end business management solution. With the growth in the economy combined with tax norms, the process of accounting and statutory compliance has become more complex. HostBooks, with its large range of services like billing, accounting, inventory management, payroll, compliance management, banking, and advanced business reporting, envisages making the whole process automated, easy to understand, hassle-free, and efficient."
"We share a common vision with Razorpay, which is to build the financial backbone for businesses in India and enable them to thrive. This funding is a major step forward in that direction. Through Razorpay's support and expertise, we would not only be able to make business processes simpler for entrepreneurs but also give them the tools they need to fast track the growth of their business," added Biswajit Mishra, Co-founder, HostBooks.
HostBooks has transformed tedious backend business processes including accounting and compliance for MSME/SME through a single sign-on collaborative platform. With over 250,000 businesses on its platform, HostBooks has been able to reduce costs of business operations by up to 70%. Along with many features, HostBooks also offers an in-built e-Document Management System with free cloud storage.
Commenting on this funding Harshil Mathur, CEO & Co-founder, Razorpay said, "Small businesses are a major driver of the Indian economy and we, at Razorpay have been on a mission to enable them in every step of their growth journey. It is promising to see that companies like HostBooks are playing a critical role in creating a thriving growth environment for small businesses. It gives me immense pleasure for Razorpay to be a part of HostBooks' growth journey. With our shared vision of fostering growth for businesses with our unified financial management solutions, we would work together towards building a stronger, frictionless business operations SaaS and banking ecosystem for millions of MSMEs in India."
HostBooks was founded by Kapil Rana in 2017 and was joined at an early stage by Biswajit Mishra. HostBooks is an innovative cloud-based financial platform that offers end-to-end solutions that cater to the complete value chain of businesses and enable them to automate their business processes. The platform caters to the complete value chain of business functions – be it handling F&A, Tax, GST, e-Way Bills, e-Invoicing, Banking, Inventory Management, Order Management, Billing & Invoicing, Cash & Bank Management, Business Intelligence, BP Portal, Procurement & Payroll.
Fino Payments Bank partners exclusively with Go Digit for shop insurance policy
Qualcomm captures 44% of the smartphone AP/SoC and Baseband revenues in Q1 2022
Microsoft completes acquisition of Nuance, ushering in new era of outcomes-based AI
March 4, 2022 Caroline Hansley
IBM Report: Consumers Pay the Price as Data Breach Costs Reach All-Time High
Akshaya Patra and Huawei Collaborate to Distribute 9,130 Family Happiness Kits
April 19, 2022 Caroline Hansley