Loria makes an attempt to address angry Marlins baseball fans

Former Expos owner Jeffrey Loria continues to feel the heat from fans of the Miami Marlins, the team he purchased in 2002 after dumping our Major League Baseball franchise and effectively killing it.

Loria's fire sale of some of his best and most well paid players recently caused a major stir in the Miami area, where I just spent the week. It enabled to  cut the team’s $90 million payroll in half.  This all comes a year after a brand new $600 million baseball only stadium opened in Miami.

Jeffrey Loria

Although his stay in Montreal was brief, Loria was so disliked by fans that he had to be escorted around Olympic Stadium by security.

Recently, Loria decided to take out full page ads in three different Florida papers to explain his moves. “As the owner of the ballclub, the buck stops with me and I take my share of the blame where it's due,” Loria said in the ad. "Losing is unacceptable to me. It's incumbent upon us to take swift action and make bold moves when there are glaring problems. The controversial trade we made with the Toronto Blue Jays was approved by Commissioner Bud Selig and has been almost universally celebrated by baseball experts outside of Miami for its value. We hope, with an open mind, our community can reflect on the fact that we had one of the worst records in baseball. Acquiring high-profile players just didn't work, and nearly everyone on our team underperformed as compared to their career numbers. Our plan for the year ahead is to leverage our young talent and create a home grown roster of long-term players who can win.”

On the new stadium he said: "The ballpark issue has been repeatedly reported incorrectly and there are some very negative accusations being thrown around. It ain't true, folks. Those who have attacked us are entitled to their own opinions, but not their own facts. The majority of public funding came from hotel taxes, the burden of which is incurred by tourists who are visiting our city, not the resident taxpayers. The Marlins organization also agreed to contribute $161.2 million toward the ballpark, plus the cost of the garage complex. In addition, the Marlins receive no operating subsidy from local government funding. The ballpark required that all debt service is paid by existing revenue. Furthermore, many are attacking the County's method of financing for its contribution, but the Marlins had nothing at all to do with that. The fact is, with your help, we built Marlins Park, a crown jewel in our beautiful Miami skyline, which has won over twenty design and architecture awards and will help make us a premiere ball club moving forward.

The Miami Herald did some fact checking on Loria's stadium claims and here are the results.

CRTC would be wise to accept TSN 690 marriage with Astral threesome

Well the folks at Bell Media finally have it right. As part of their bid to acquire Astral Radio and in particular English stations CJAD, Virgin Radio and CHOM (herein referred to as the triplets), Bell Media is telling the Canadian Radio-television Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to grant them an exception to own four English language stations in the same market - the fourth being TSN Radio 690. Precedent has already been set most recently with Cogeco Radio operating four French stations in Montreal.

This is good business for Bell Media and sports fans. TSN 690 is reportedly not profitable. Moving them out of their Greene Avenue headquarters in Westmount would first and foremost save a monthly raincheque and create instant synergy by having them cohabitate with the triplets in their new digs on Papineau and Rene-Levesque. That address, by the way, is directly across the street from CTV and the local bureaus of TSN, RDS and The Globe andMail.

Utimately a lot more savings could be introduced by the sharing of human resources.

If TSN 690 and CJAD, for instance, are under the same roof there are great possibilities. Broadcasts of the Alouettes and Impact could be moved to TSN 690, except in cases of a schedule conflict with the Canadiens.

Abe Hefter

Rick Moffat, Abe Hefter and Chantal Desjardins of CJAD Sports could all be made available to TSN 690

Ted Bird could finally be reunited with his pal Terrry DiMonte. Bird is now part of the TSN 690 morningshow. But could easily pop in from across the hall. I would love to see TSN 690's Tony Marinaro doing a morning commentary on CJAD.

Freeway Frank of Virgin Radio is a huge sports fan. I am sure he would love some kind of role on TSN 690.A back and forth with him and Marinaro would also be grand.

Mitch Melnick talks a lot of entertainment on his drive home show. It would be nice to have him connect with Natasha Gargiulo of Virgin or his old friend Anne Shatilla, CJAD's Hollywood correspondent.

Mitch Melnick and Wayne Bews

One thing I hope Bell Media takes into consideration is the future of Wayne Bews, the general manager of TSN 690 who has allowed this station to thrive under challenging circumstances since day one. He should retain a prominent role in the operation and would work well with Martin Spalding, the boss of the triplets.

Show your support for Bell Media's CRTC request by logging on to savetsn690.ca.

Montreal area Chabad chapters capture Purim spirit

Here is a report I received from Rabbi Leibel Fine on some Purim celebrations in town. I first met Leibel when he wa s just a little boy; his father Rabbi Ronnie Fine and mother Simcha would invite my friends and I to their home and the Chabad Lubavitch Organization headquarters on different occasions.

Teenage volunteers pack mishloach manot packages for Chabad of the
South Shore in advance of the community's Purim Celebration on Sunday,Feb. 24.

Chabad officials attribute record participation in dozens of events sponsored by its centres in Montreal to one-on-one outreach of its affiliates.

Renzo Paredes was driving with a friend this past Sunday afternoon, on the Jewish holiday of Purim, when a group of bearded young men dressed as clowns knocked on his window. Boisterously wishing him a “happy Purim,” they handed him a traditional Purim food package, known as mishloach manot, containing a bottle of grape-juice, some Purim pastries called hamantashen, and a note from the Chabad-affiliated Montreal Torah Center.

“I was very surprised to see something like that. It felt good. It felt very good to know that they want to share Purim with everybody,” said Paredes, a resident of Cote des Neiges.

Paredes’ experience is no exception.

According to Rabbi Berel Mockin, head of the Chabad Lubavitch Youth Organization and its affiliated Chabad Houses, these interactions are the key to Chabad’s outreach model. He cites internal numbers of over 7,000 participants in close to 30 large-scale Purim celebrations held all about Montreal this year. “We have big parties, Megilla readings, and programs in the established centres. They have been steadily growing for years. But the real surprise this year is the sheer numbers that are coming out of our smaller centres serving less-established communities. Places like Saint Lazare, Sherbrooke, Mount Tremblant, Brossard, Nuns’ Island and Old Montreal, where there was virtually nothing Jewish just a few years ago, now have regular programming and participation on par with the larger centres.”

Rabbi Nissi and Chanie Gansbourg pose with Josh sillver and Patrick
Chay Elfassy, who helped promote and plan their Purim Celebration for350 young people in Old Montreal.

Rabbi Leibel Fine of Dollard Chabad, who held five Megilla readings during the holiday, attributes this success to one-on-one interactions. “We do not just put an ad in the paper and wait for people to come.," he says. "Virtually every person who participates in our events was a guest in our home at one time or another. For us, the Shabbat table is our most important way to connect.”

Rabbi Nachum Labkowski, spiritual leader of Chabad of S. Lazare, concurs. “People are moving into town all the time, and many of them miss the sense of community that they had on the Island [of Montreal]. We make sure to have families over at our house every Shabbat, and they feel connected. In fact, now I am beginning to hear that some of our Shabbat guests are inviting guests of their own, and that is very gratifying for us.”

Labkowski estimates that most of the nearly-100 people who attended his circus-themed Purim carnival - which featured crafts, balloon-making, face-painting, and food - knew about it via word of mouth. “Some came from the ads we put in the papers, but face-to-face invitations were certainly what brought them through the doors.”

Rabbi Nissi Gansbourg of Chabad of Old Montreal, which serves the eclectic urbane community centered around the Old Port, says that personal invites and social media was what brought over 350 people to his Sunday afternoon event, featuring cocktails, an open bar, and a DJ, along with the traditional Purim rituals, in the Royal Bank building. “We had a committee of 8 organizers, dubbed the MTL Jew Crew, and they did a fantastic job at bringing people in.”

Rabbi Shmuli Weiss of Chabad at McGill says that a similar mix of social media and word of mouth brought over 600 people through the doors of the iconic Chabad House on Peel Street. Members of the Chabad student board called their friends and made sure that they knew that they were invited guests at Chabad’s Purim Around the World celebration, and those friends brought even more friends.

The MADA Community Centre, Chabad’s humanitarian arm, reported an overflow crowd of over 900 people, including MADA aid recipiants as well as volunteers, filling two halls in the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue. Miriam Sebbag, event coordinator at Mada, says that they made sure to tell people well in advance about the parties. “We encouraged our volunteers to spread the word among the people they help and to tell them that they would be there as well. That way, it was really a community-wide celebration where everyone felt welcome and included.”

Perhaps the strength of one-on-one interaction was most evident in Lasalle, where Rabbi and Mrs. Chaim and Chanie Brand had just founded their Chabad centre last December.

Held in a rented hall, their Purim celebration was their first event, and they spared no effort to ensure that everyone would feel welcomed. The Brands went door-to-door with mishloach manot gifts to personally invite everyone they knew to their celebration. With over 80 attendees, Chaim Brand was quite satisfied with the turnout.

“They knew that we really wanted them to come, and they came with their friends.”

When asked about what his next event would be, Brand was thoughtful. “We would really like to get a permanent building for our community centre, but for now I will be distributing matzahs for Passover.”

 

Purim brings out true Quebec Language Cop

At a young adult Purim party in Old Montreal last week, bilingual Côte Saint-Luc resident, Leslie Perez, sparked some humor as she disguised herself in an overzealous S.W.A.T. Quebec Language Police Purim costume. 

“It is ridiculous to see how our provincial government is prioritizing invasive language ethics especially considering there are more urgent matters to be tackled in our province,” comments Perez of last week’s OQLF (Officequébécois de la langue française) reactions over the use of the word "pasta" in a menu.

Leslie Perez in action. Take that Pauline!!

An Insider's Briefing with the man behind "the MK"

A few weeks ago I got a call from Larry Rosenthal, a community activist for the Jewish Community Council of Montreal, B’nai BrithCanada, The Young Israel of Chomedey Congregation and The Montreal Torah Centre.

“Have you ever met Rabbi Saul Emanuel?”  he asked about the man who heads the JCC and Canada’s Kosher Certifier, otherwise known as the “MK.”

 I had interviewed Rabbi Emanuel on a number of occasions, but never sat down with him before.

Larry was anxious to give the JCC, a.k.a. the  Vaad Ha’ir, some exposure. 

I suggested to Larry that he try to organize an Insider’s Briefing with Rabbi Emanuel and some of the local Jewish media. The idea was sold and on February 19 a number of us gathered quite appropriately at one of the city’s most popular kosher restaurants, Ernie and Ellie at Decarie Square where owners Roman Kreyzerman and Rabbi Israel Sirota not only sat with us, but took part in the dialogue.

Roman Kreyzerman, Rabbi  SaulEmanuel, Rabbi Sirota and Larry Rosenthal.

Rabbi Emanuel, a charismatic native of South Africa, has headed the JCC/Vaad Ha’ir of Montreal for 14 years. He told us how companies from across the country continue to source out MK Kosher certification. “We make running a kosher business easy, keeping all kosher data on a private database called Digital Kosher,” he explains. “This is an automated system for managing ingredients lists, updating to the latest kosher certificates, and ensuring that certified kosher products contain only kosher ingredients.

Last year the Canadian government entered into a partnership,   making an investment of   $763,650 in support of the Vaad’s efforts to strengthen food safety for kosher certified foods. “If one of our inspectors is going to visit a company and so is the government then we have some overlap,” reasons Rabbi Emanuel.  “This experience has gone very very well. The grant ends in April, at which time we will share our findings. The support we received from Agriculture and Agri-foods Canada allowed us to work with our partners across Canada to extend the benefits of the expertise in food quality and safety that exists in the kosher inspection network and to reinforce trust among consumers in Canadian food products. This project complemented the work of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, which already applies the strictest standards to our food supply, and will give Canadians even more reason for confidence in the safety and healthfulness of the food on their tables.”

As Rabbi Emanuel pointed out,  in the public’s mind, “kosher” tends to be associated with the Jewish people and the dietary rules governing the practice of our religion – most importantly, knowing what ingredients are in the food you eat and knowing how it has been prepared.  “But the appeal of kosher for modern consumers is much broader, extending, for example, to vegetarians and to individuals who have allergies or are lactose intolerant,” he explained.  “In fact, kosher is attractive to anyone who wants assurance that the food they are eating is safe, due to the vigorous maintenance and ongoing inspection of plants bearing kosher certification.”

Rabbi Emanuel said he wanted to clear up the common myth that the kosher certifier is responsible for the high price of kosher beef and meat. “It is a terrible misconception,” he said. “Our books are open. The cost of beef and meat in Canada is prohibitive.”

Kreyzerman agreed that it is not the Vaad which sets the prices. “It’s our suppliers,” he said.

Rosenthal shared a story about how dedicated an individual Rabbi Emanuel is. Having become aware of an elderly woman who could not access any kosher food at the Hôpital du Sacré-Cœur de Montréal in Cartierville, Rosenthal called Rabbi Emanuel.  After having no luck with the dieticians,  the rabbi reached the hospital ombudsman who promised to get back to him with an answer …in 45 days. “Ombudsman,”the rabbi responded, “she might not be alive in 45 days.” Taking the matter into his own hands, the rabbi accessed a dietician he knew at St. Mary’s Hospital who was able to help resolve the situation.

“What percentage of the  Montreal Jewish community keeps kosher?” he was asked.

While the rabbi said he could not give precise figures, noting he would love to see a formal study done on the topic, he estimated that as much as 25 percent are kosher in the strictest sense.

On vegetables, the rabbi said that many  in use today are likely to be infested by insects and/or worms. These pests are usually difficult to detect because they are often the same colour as the vegetable and/or they are extremely small - barely visible to the naked human eye. They can be as small as the period-dot at the end of a sentence. Due to this serious problem and the great effort required to check them properly, only certain vegetables are permitted for use in MK establishments. Others have restrictions and can only be used after the vigorous cleaning and checking procedures set forth below:
 
The  JCC has been in the business of kosher certification since 1922.   For more information about the Vaad, log on to www.mk.ca.
 

Le Journal de Montreal tells very sad stories of former Expos players

Le Journal de Montreal has an outstanding, yet disturbing look at a number of former Montreal Expos who have experienced very hard times. Pick up the February  23rd edition of the paper if you can.

Ron LeFlore

The main feature, by writer Jim Hawkins, is about Ron LeFlore. His life story was made into a TV movie while he was with the Detroit Tigers, depicting his move from prison to the ball field. LeFlore joined the Expos in 1980 and stole 97 bases. Ironically, the one-time speedster had one of his legs amputed a few years ago in 2009.

Besides Hall of Fame catcher Gary Carter, who lost his battle with cancer last year, the story focuses on a number of other ex-Expos: pitcher Pascual Perez, murdered last November; outfielder Ivan Calderone, murdered in 2003; pitcher Hideki Irabu, took him own life on July 27, 2011; outfielder Carl Everett, arrested for conjugal violence; pitcher Carolos Perez, accusations of sexual misconduct; pitcher Lary Sorensen, multiple drunk driving charges sunk his marriage and career as a broadcaster forcing him to seek work at a McDonald's restaurant; pitcher Terry Enyart, alcoholism led to him hitting his wife with a bottle, attempting to strangle the family dog and ultimately committing suicide; shortstop/outfielder Wil Cordero, conjugal violence, blew away millions of dollars and now works in a deli for $8.25 an hour; pitcher Ugueth Urbina, imprisoned on attempted murder charges after using a  machete  to attack five men he found on his ranch.

These days the best Expos coverage can be found Monday evenings on TSN 690 Radio on the Kaufman Show --with host Dave Kaufman. Matthew Ross and his Game Points on Sundays and Tuesdays also falls into this category.