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Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania — Local caterers get ready for big business, as almost three thousand fans converge on the David L. Lawrence Convention Center over the Independence Day weekend for the world’s largest ever furry convention, Anthrocon 2007.

Many hope to renew acquaintances, or meet new friends. Others look to buy from dealers and artists, or show off new artwork or costumes. Some attend to make money, or even learn a thing or two. But one thing unites them: They’re all there to have fun.

Monday, December 3, 2007

At Thanksgiving dinner David Shankbone told his white middle class family that he was to interview Reverend Al Sharpton that Saturday. The announcement caused an impassioned discussion about the civil rights leader’s work, the problems facing the black community and whether Sharpton helps or hurts his cause. Opinion was divided. “He’s an opportunist.” “He only stirs things up.” “Why do I always see his face when there’s a problem?”

Shankbone went to the National Action Network’s headquarters in Harlem with this Thanksgiving discussion to inform the conversation. Below is his interview with Al Sharpton on everything from Tawana Brawley, his purported feud with Barack Obama, criticism by influential African Americans such as Clarence Page, his experience running for President, to how he never expected he would see fifty (he is now 53). “People would say to me, ‘Now that I hear you, even if I disagree with you I don’t think you’re as bad as I thought,'” said Sharpton. “I would say, ‘Let me ask you a question: what was “bad as you thought”?’ And they couldn’t say. They don’t know why they think you’re bad, they just know you’re supposed to be bad because the right wing tells them you’re bad.”

Thursday, July 17, 2008

A man shot and killed a Broward County Sheriff’s Office police dog in Miami Beach after a two-county chase in Florida early Thursday morning.

The shooter, Delvin Lewis, 27, was firing shots at his girlfriend during a domestic dispute in Oakland Park. When police arrived, the suspect got into his car and fled, engaging roughly 20 cruisers in a 30-mile chase which ended near Mount Sinai Medical Center’s emergency room in Miami Beach. An exchange of gunfire followed in which Lewis reportedly killed the dog. ER doctors tried to save the animal but it was too late.

The shooter was also struck and has been taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital where he remains with no life threatening injuries.

According to a Mount Sinai spokeswoman hospital facilities are now accessible after the authorities locked down the area for three hours following the shooting.

Lewis has been arrested 26 times by Florida authorities including one in July 2003 in which he injured a police dog striking him repeatedly on the head with a cellphone. The suspect has been charged with aggravated assault with a motor vehicle on a law enforcement officer, aggravated fleeing and eluding, resisting an officer with violence and principal in the death of a police dog.

Hitting a police dog is a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in jail, while killing a police officer is a capital offense which can lead to the death penalty.

Miami-Dade Police Department is handling the investigation which involves Broward Sheriff Office and Miami Beach police.

Lewis has been in and out of jail since 2000 and had been arrested for domestic battery in 2000 and 2004, when he beat a pregnant woman.

The dog, whose name was Oozi, was a 7-1/2 years old Belgian Malinois assigned to BSO’s Cooper City district. He was trained in narcotics and helped in hundreds of arrests in his career, including 35 this year.

Oozi and his partner, Deputy Gerald Wengert, were named BSO’s Employees of the month in May for their role in the apprehension of three burglary suspects.

Friday, April 10, 2009

On Monday, April 6 Saskatchewan Premier, Brad Wall, signed the proclamation that April 13 shall be declared “Corner Gas Day” to honour six seasons of the award winning sitcom, Corner Gas the hit television comedy which will air its last episode “Good Night, You’ve Been Great” April 13, 2009. Lead comedian, producer and writer, Brent Butt was recognised at the signing ceremonies for developing what is called the most successful Canadian show made.

“For six great seasons, Corner Gas has welcomed people from across Canada and around the world to our province, and made short work of the misconception that there’s ‘not a lot going on’ in Saskatchewan. We want to thank Saskatchewan’s own Brent Butt, the Corner Gas producers, cast and crew for many hours of laughter.” said Wall, “Their stories have really captured the spirit of this great province, and shown off Saskatchewan to the world.”

Corner Gas has an audience of 1.4 million in Canada since first airing in January 2004. The show has been honoured with over 80 nominations, and diverse accolades and awards such as six Gemini awards, one of which was Best Comedy Series.

“I’m honestly humbled by this. It’s a wonderful and much appreciated gesture by my home province to honour us in this way. It’s the type of honour you don’t even think about happening, so when it does, it makes you stand up and think: ‘Wow, maybe we really did something here’,” said Butt.

Joking with Wall, Butt suggested that “Corner Gas Day” should be a statutory holiday, if not for everybody then at least for service station attendants. The proclamation signing was aired on CTV the same Monday that Wall was featured in a cameo appearance on the Corner Gas series episode, “Get the F Off my Lawn”. Wall was filmed in a scene in which he was getting his gas tank filled up at the Corner Gas service station.

Susanne Boyce, President, Creative, Content and Channels, CTV Inc said “It’s farewell, not goodbye. While April 13 marks the series’ finale, the memories and the legacy it leaves behind will live on forever. A heartfelt thank you goes out to everyone who have made this history-making series a juggernaut success, and to the millions of fans who visited Dog River weekly.”

The Canadian comedy series is aired by CTV Television Network in Canada and is distributed to 26 countries worldwide.

The popular sitcom, Corner Gas is filmed about 40 kilometers (25 mi) south of Regina in the tiny farming community of Rouleau. CTV will air tributes on April 13 in honour of Corner Gas and Dog River which feature the cast and behind the scenes footage.

Wednesday, September 14, 2016

Wikinews on Sunday interviewed Deepa Malik, India’s first female Paralympic medalist, who won the silver medal in the Women’s Shot Put F53 event finals, at the 2016 Summer Paralympics being held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Malik lost the gold medal to Bahrain’s Fatema Nedham, who had the best throw 4.76 metres, setting a new regional record in paralympic women’s shot put.

Arriving in Rio, Malik had initial trouble due to the airline losing her luggage; it didn’t all arrive until three days later: clothes, opening ceremony outfit and equipment including competition belts.

In early August there was a possibly that Malik might lose her spot on the Indian team going to Rio, with fellow female para athlete Karam Jyoti challenging Malik’s selection and the Sport’s Authority of Indian’s selection process at the High Court of Delhi. The high court ruled against the plaintiff.

Both of these events occurred against the wider backdrop of the Paralympic Committee of India being suspended by the International Paralympic Committee. The Sports Authority of India took final authority over the Paralympic Committee of India for sending a team to Rio, with agreement from the International Paralympic Committee; this arrangement allowed India to compete under their own flag at the 2016 Summer Paralympics.

((Wikinews)) Congratulations on your result.

Deepa Malik: Thank you so much.

((WN)) Even though you are currently waiting in terms of the end result of the protest.

DM: Absolutely, but I’m happy with my performance, I’m happy that I could improve and I could prove myself, there were a lot of questions back home on my selection and on my hard work. My single-minded focus that I had put into this journey of being a Paralympian. Well, I am just so anxious about the results.

((WN)) So how much did the court case and KLM losing your luggage impact on your preparations and your result today?

DM: Yes, but I’m happy that my husband was my coach here, and, so, I had huge moral support in terms of keeping my mind and everything in peace. Most of the equipment was available in the gym, we had to alter the training a bit like the throw days couldn’t happen, so we instead exercised. No, I think that is what sports teaches you, you can’t live on excuses, I never lived on excuses.

((WN)) You work around things.

DM: Yes, that’s what we do, that’s what a sportsman is suppose to do, rise again, and then fall and rise, and run, and I did exactly that.

((WN)) What message should other Indian women take away from your participation and result in Rio?

DM: This is going to be the first female medal that India would have ever won in Paralympics and as it is I’m working aggressively towards transforming this entire concept of empowerment for the women, especially the women in disabilities in my country. So I’m really happy that this medal give my voice more value, more strength, and I’ll be able to impact even more, though on the ninth of September the Prime Minister’s jury has awarded me with the award of Women Transforming India, I’m so happy that within three days of getting that award, I have added another feather to it and proved that yes this journey of ability beyond disability. And not just disability, this is a universal message that if women put their minds to their dreams they can balance it; age, gender, disability, is all a state of mind. If you put your passion and hard work, you can get it, and in the Indian scenario were they say infrastructure is a challenge, women participation that are taboo, religiously and psychologically, disabilities taken as a curse, dependability[?] increases because of lack of infrastructure, well, time to get rid of the excuses. We have to start erasing the excuses and believe your own self and that’s the message I’m carrying with all the activities that I do whether it is car rallying, motorbiking or swimming across a river, every record or every unique activity that I’ve undertaken and just below paralysis has been aimed at changing the stereotypical image of a women and also a women in disability. ?

((WN)) Will you and your daughter both be trying to represent India at the 2020 Games in Tokyo?

DM: I’m very sure about myself, but my daughter, though, she’s a Paralympian, yes, which again was considered a huge taboo in my society that oh my god both the mother and the daughter both have a physical disability, what is going to happen to these two, but we did good and she is working as a youth council representative in the Commonwealth countries, for the Paralympics specially, and her work though her foundation called Wheeling Happiness has earned her the young leader award from the Queen of England, so I guess her focus is now shifting to more on community service and empowering others and not just herself. And she is leaving on first of October to Loughborough to do her PhD doctorate programme in disability sports psychology, I’m very sure Loughborough is going to give her a huge amount of sports [inaudible] but how much time she going to decide to devote to sports and studies is her decision entirely. That’s her dream, her journey. 

((WN)) How helpful was the Sports Authority of India in preparing and supporting your Rio ambitions??

DM: I think 100 per cent, because the biggest challenge we have back home is a customised training, or the infrastructure for that matter, so we were given the ability and the funds to train the way we wanted to train, and the funds were huge which were given to us, out accommodation, food, diet, physical therapist, psychologist, trainer, gym, everything was paid for, and customised, you want it and they give it. So I guess this was easy financially this time, because every expenses was taken care of, my husband could also take a sabbatical from his job and join my journey, and having him twenty-four seven and coaching me because he himself is an athlete, and have the best diet and counselling. I think it’s worked wonders, so I give shout out and a huge applaud.

((WN)) How important was it for you to have a carer in Rio?

DM: Yes, again we really have to appreciate the sports authority of India and also Paralympic Committee of India, which is going to start to function post-Rio in India. They were very very quick, they were very very adamant in giving the wheelchair people escorts. And I need help twenty four seven, I’m just below paralysed so it was really huge, emotionally, mentally, psychically training-wise, every way I think the situation was perfect.

((WN)) Thank you for your time.

DM: Thank you.

Wednesday, September 7, 2016

The 22nd Fan Expo Canada took place at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre this weekend, attracting thousands to the event, one of the most popular in North America. Crossing between the genres of science fiction, horror, anime, fantasy and comics, the event sprawled throughout all corners of the facility. Hundreds of vendors offered products new and old, joined by celebrity guests like Stan Lee, Mark Hamill, and Margaret Atwood. Various local fan organizations were there in a charitable capacity, and thousands of fans donned costumes, many of which they themselves created.

Atwood, a Booker Prize-winner, was there to launch her graphic novel Angel Catbird, with illustrator Johnnie Christmas. Lee was making his final Canadian convention appearance, part of a larger farewell tour. Hamill’s schedule included a panel with Kevin Conroy, the voice of Batman in Batman: The Animated Series, in which the Star Wars lead played the Joker.

Ubisoft, Microsoft, and PlayStation VR all had large areas set up for attendees to try their latest games. In the 20-minute PlayStation VR demonstration of Batman: Arkham VR, players are dropped down a secret elevator in Bruce Wayne’s manor, to the Bat Cave, to suit up. From there, the demonstration took players to investigate the murder of Nightwing.

The Northern Arena Esports Championship ran throughout the weekend, facing off teams of video gamers in a packed hall. Even in early rounds, the event was well attended, with the stands full of gamers, watching the matches with live colour commentary. The finals saw US team Cloud9 and Immortals, from Brazil, face off in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. Both unbeaten teams going in, the Brazillian team won the championship and $50,000.

Gameplay was delayed during the “third map” (third round) of the finals, when one Immortals player was caught with their headset off. After nearly half an hour, the team was deducted a point, leading to a sudden but temporary rush of success by the US team.

The Canadian garrison of 501st Legion returned with their setup of photo-ops, with proceeds to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Volunteer organization Comic Corps of Canada collects donations of comics, to distribute to children and youth in the hospital. Along with collecting comics on-site, the group was fundraising through raffles and button sales.

Other charitable fan-based groups included The Ontario Ghostbusters, Doctor Who Society of Canada, and Klingon Assault Group.

• Brampton Spider-Gwen and Symbiote Spidey pose at the Comic Corps booth.Image: Nick Moreau.

• A showdown at the 501st Legion booth.Image: Nick Moreau.

• Successful Stormtroopers share a high-five.Image: Nick Moreau.

The thousands of cosplay outfits on parade around the various halls offered a tremendous cross-section of genres and eras of pop culture. The majority of outfits involved at least some elements made from scratch, a fantastic display of craftsmanship. Of the thousands, Wikinews spoke with a cosplayer going by the name “The Katherinator”. She was outside the building in the gardens, waiting for a photographer she had arranged to shoot her new Epic Mickey costumed character-style outfit. With shoes as wide as a forearm, and a rigid torso of carved foam, she remained exuberant even when caught in the traffic between halls, many hours into wearing the outfit.

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