For years, there were two producers of sports documentaries that were head and shoulders above […]
In this four-part series, I’ll explore where each of the Toronto pro sports teams stand […]
Whiskey & Cream for June 19th, 2021
Host: Ari Shapiro
0:38-8:15: “”Canada and Islamophobia: Hypocrisy lives here”
How quickly so many have forgotten that a deranged, hate-filled gunman stormed a Quebec City mosque back in January 2017 and brutally murdered six men while injuring 19 others, splintering a close-knit Muslim-Canadian community already grappling with xenophobic prejudice in their neighbourhoods. By March of that year, a Liberal MP (Iqra Khalid) tabled a crucial parliamentary motion following the attack that directly condemned the “fear of Islam” as a form of religious discrimination and source of racism across Canada. Although Motion 103 was subsequently adopted and heralded as a progressive triumph of social and cultural solidarity over political grandstanding, it also resulted in 91 Conservative and Bloc Quebecois members voting against it, including the current leader of the opposition Erin O’Toole.
Karim Kanji is a celebrated political and cultural podcaster whose “Welcome To The Music” show has earned him legions of fans who appreciate his disarming candor and real honesty with guests. For him, the London, Ontario attack on a Muslim family that left a nine-year old boy orphaned remains a powerfully tragic reminder that Islamophobia is alive and well in a country that’s always been high on good intentions and low on political results – especially when it comes to growing communities and embracing the multicultural nature of this country.
8:21-15:45: “A disease does not fully exist in America until it has a business model”
Biogen’s Aduhelm has arrived like a bolt out of the blue and changed the way the world is looking at Alzheimer’s disease. Suddenly, a horrific condition which has had little or no medical progress in treatment for decades and is the sixth leading killer in the United States has met its match and been challenged by the marvels of a pandemic world where science lifts us away from sheer futility and into the realm of endless possibility. However, three members of the FDA’s advisory board resigned in protest when it was discovered that the drug had been approved for far broader use and without any substantial consultation. In fact, 10 out of their 11 members voted to reject the application and yet here we are. At $56,000 a year for treatment that doesn’t even begin to address how badly a burden it will place on medicare or socialized medicine if you factor in physician, imaging and infusion center expenses that will more than double the overall cost. Many industry experts believe it’s only worth around $8,000 in raw manufactured costs, leading many to seriously wonder: is this the latest snake oil from big pharma?
Dr. Jason Karlawish is an American physician and researcher in the field of bioethics, aging and the neurosciences. He’s also written a series of critically-acclaimed books on the subject, including: Open Wound, Treating Dementia, and The Problem With Alzheimer’s – How Science, Culture and Politics Turned a Rare Disease into a Crisis and What We Can Do About It. For him, it all comes down to trusting and believing in medical regulatory agencies that have traditionally held the best interests of their patients in mind well before aggrandizing their voracious need for profits, and to have government protect their citizens from the exploitation of big pharma and the scourge of false hope.
15:23-21:02: “Say it ain’t so, Robby: the gradual extinction of the modern day baseball hero”
To be banned from Major League Baseball is a terrible thing – especially considering how morally, ethically and existentially the game has gone to rot. Fairly or not, the list of “undesirables” includes Shoeless Joe Jackson for dubiously cheating, Pete Rose for unrepentant gambling, Marge Schott for virulent racism, and Brandon Taubman for being a lying, cheating misanthrope whose conduct shamed the entire sport and a whole generation of disbelieving fans. And now we can add Roberto Alomar’s name to the list as a reminder that fame, fortune and influence is fleeting when humility and decency are lacking, leading us all to a place where the emperor has no clothes.
Shi Davidi is an MLB columnist and insider with Rogers Sportsnet. As someone who’s covered the Blue Jays legend for years, it comes as no surprise to him that fan nostalgia would cloud the reality of what unfolded to a man who’s become synonymous with those glorious World Series championship years. Alomar’s troubles are less about the “woke” culture we live in and more about a rapid disintegration of respect for the national pastime and their fans. For him, the struggle to reconcile a hero’s fall from grace is never easy when the game is running out of role models for the next generation.
21:11-28:30: “An inspirational league for inspired players”
Basketball in Canada might single-handedly solve our collective problems with bigotry and prejudice. That might sound like hyperbole, but when measured up against other professional sports leagues (and most contemporary western governments for that matter), there’s a community-first reality to the NBA that you don’t find with football, baseball or even hockey. It’s a business mentality that started with the belief that their players remain the most important facet of their success and that everything else is secondary when it comes to the welfare and integrity of the sport.
Dashawn Stephens is a Canadian journalist and social media influencer. In 2019, he founded PRSVRE, an athlete-empowered brand and sports-media platform based in Toronto that sheds light on the inspiration derived from collegiate sports and grass roots storytelling. In doing so, it’s shaped an appreciation for the trials and tribulations that underprivileged youth and marginalized athletes face in their quest for excellence and made him into a true crusader for the importance of community-oriented and culturally vibrant philosophies in life.
“Whiskey & Cream Theme” written and performed by Chris Henderson.
Whiskey & Cream for March 20th, 2021.
Host: Ari Shapiro
0:45-16:12: “Lincoln would be proud”
By now you’ve probably heard about that scrappily intrepid American political action committee known as The Lincoln Project. Formed in late 2019 as a bulwark against Trumpism while ultimately endorsing future President Joe Biden, this band of political brothers named after the illustrious Abraham Lincoln is essentially bent on preserving democracy by respecting the country’s constitution during a post-modern authoritarian wave that’s swept across the globe much like the virulent nature of the pandemic.
Fred Wellman (@FPWellman) is the executive director and co-founder of The Lincoln Project. As a veteran of both conventional and political warfare, he remains a crusader of free and truthful speech – something that’s in short supply across his country and over social media. That’s why his heart and soul is about being more than just an anti-Trump Republican but in representing a strong and heavily patriotic number of traditional economic conservatives who deserve a party that’s less about demagoguery and racism, and more about progressive agenda-building and the pursuit of real social justice.
16:13-23:51: “A species bent on psychological annihilation”
On some micro-level, it pays to be a human being. Our individualized, self-actualized thoughts offer a myriad of mental and physical realities that rely us to endorse a balanced measure of rational thought and primal instinct when it comes to dealing with everything from the coronavirus to which breakfast sandwich is worth your attention in the morning. But in the final analysis, an abdication of this characteristic of free will can also lead to a herd mentality resembling scared and desperate lemmings going over a cliff. And when the priority of the day is about educating yourself about health dangers and mitigating poor decisions with wise practices, you can imagine how frustrating it can be for the men and women of science.
Dr. Allen Frances (@AllenFrancesMD) is a writer, professor and America’s most prominent psychiatrist. Aside from writing a number of books and medical journals on the importance of how mental health and wellness is diagnosed and treated, he’s also become politically active in the fight against voter suppression and gerrymandering across the United States. In his view, our species doesn’t stand a chance for survival if we keep ignoring the most basic and elementary ways of treating everything from pandemics to climate change to the rise of stone cold authoritarianism.
23:51-39:45: “A basketball culture second to none”
It may seem like the Toronto Raptors won the NBA championship eons ago even if it’s been only a year and a half. I suppose throwing in the arrival of a dystopian plague mixed with revealing traces of institutionalized racism will do that to even the most hardy of basketball crusaders, and this team is no exception. Even as they continue their 2021 campaign in Tampa during these unusual times, it’s refreshing to know that the character and class of an organization that was built by Masai Ujiri and driven by Nick Nurse has continued to shine as a true example of human dignity during largely indignant times.
Eric Smith (@Eric__Smith) is the voice and host of the Toronto Raptors basketball team on Fan 590 and Sportsnet TV. In covering the team for over 20 years, he’s not only perfectly positioned to offer his perspective on the leadership and personnel nuances of the 2019 NBA champs, but to further elaborate on what’s been a positive cultural impact across an entire country that’s not only stood up to the pandemic but also challenged the conventional ways in which we look at athletes and their intangible contributions to society.
39:45-48:49: “Cosmic storms and our global reckoning”
There’s an electricity in the Ontario air that I haven’t felt since I was a very young boy. After years of assigning myself to an urbanized existence based around the notion that the city can protect us from the weather, I’ve come to appreciate why living in the country opens a small portal to the mind when it comes to understanding nature and why the symptoms of our organic existence are always on display around us – if we take the time to notice and analyze the sad and grim reality that is climate change.
Tom Eves (@EvesTom) lives in Barrie and is Canada’s Storm Chaser. His penchant for investigating volatile weather patterns and earth-shattering climate events has made him a popular authority over social medias and on this side of the pond. In devoting a life to understanding the elements, he’s endeared himself to tends of thousands over Facebook and beyond who seek a better awareness of the unpredictable reality that constitutes our cosmic storms and their global reckoning.
“Whiskey & Cream Theme” written and performed by Chris Henderson.
After an early season scare, it appears the Toronto Raptors are back on track for […]
Whiskey & Cream Round Table for February 26th, 2021.
Host: Ari Shapiro
Guests: Stephen Burns and Marshall Auerback.
Narratives: Toronto Raptors basketball; Adam Silver’s weaksauce apology to Masai Ujiri, Doug Smith and the tyranny of words when using social media, and why the sport itself is a blessing during dark times.
Duration: 31:47
WARNING: Listener discretion is advised. This podcast contains seriously blunt truths, excessively mature language, ruthlessly candid perspectives, and the kind of intellectual discourse that serves to enlighten, educate and punch through the darkness until it bleeds daylight.
Whiskey & Cream for January 19th, 2021
Host: Ari Shapiro
0:36-13:20: “On the outside and feeling betrayed”
The inauguration is almost upon us and most Americans are waiting with bated breath to usher in what should be a new era in US politics. But as the steam goes out on the Donald Trump presidency and the reality of losing a fair and democratic election sinks in, it isn’t a coincidence that anti-state and anti-law enforcement ideas are flourishing across all states of the union. The movement has taken on a decidedly militant turn across the board specifically because the outgoing administration crafted a brutal and convenient revisionist narrative that Trump supporters are stuck on the outside looking in on an election that was stolen and requires them to defend themselves and their honour. As a result, multiple forms of virulent militant activity ranging from The Oathkeepers to The Proud Boys are finding themselves with the kind of raison d’être that could end up creating a measure of public unrest not seen since the civil rights movement.
Brendan O’Connor (@_grendan) is freelance journalist and the author of Blood Red Lines: How Nativism Fuels The Right. He’s covered right-wing extremism since the end of the Obama administration and believes that overstating the danger of what may come can lead to poor analysis and even worse conclusions. But what he does believe is that what happens next will be a period of turmoil, and that The Biden administration will likely not be defined by healing and reconciliation. In his eyes, there will be a greater and far more spectacular reckoning of political violence in the US for the foreseeable future.
13:21-19:31: “When lightning strikes twice”
Most Canadians don’t realize how special and unique the Tampa Bay Lightning are as a professional NHL franchise, and with the return of hockey for a second season in a pandemic reality, there’s a great deal to be said for an organization which values their fans as much as their profit levels and industry achievements. In a market devoid of hypercritical fans and a vicious media backbite, the Lightning aren’t just winners on the ice – they are bona fide winners off it as well.
Dave Randorf (@DaveRandorf) is the play-by-play commentator for the Tampa Bay Lightning and a celebrated Canadian sports broadcaster. He’s never taken his success for granted and believes that in aligning his future with the Florida-based Stanley Cup champions, he can help fans of hockey feel better about their own personal struggles by enjoying a first class organization which has succeeded in winning the championship twice since the turn of the century. Which, for the record, is twice more than the Toronto Maple Leafs have accomplished since 1967.
19:32-26:21: “Coming back to normal, a little dark and colder”
It’s hard to keep your mind fresh and spirits high when the numbing reality of covid statistics exist to remind you that all is not normal. It makes one really wonder: how much of this can we take without going back to the normal things – you know, the simple things. Like enjoying a breakaway in overtime, an extra innings nailbiter or the last few remaining seconds of an alley-oop, centre court play to win the game in regulation. Having sports back, even under such abnormal conditions, is essentially a return to normalcy that gives us the kind of distraction needed to help absorb the hypocrisy of our times – the fact that politicians and corporate profiteers are treating this time as business as usual.
Tony Ambrogio (@Tony_Ambrogio) is a freelancer with TSN and teaches at the College of Sports Media in Toronto. He’s a highly respected sports journalist who finds himself becoming a colder, darker person when confronted with an endless barrage of pandemic statistics and political hypocrisies which make him pine for the simplicity of hockey, basketball or baseball. Amidst all the vitriol and hate associated with masks and vaccinations, he remains grateful that society can still rely on professional sports to bring us back to a time when arguing at the dinner table and mulling over the latest feats of athleticism were once the norm.
26:23-34:01: “The psychology of pandemic sports betting”
We’ve come a long way from the days when sports betting was frowned upon as a reckless or taboo indulgence. With 19 American states now legalizing the activity, it’s clear the appetite for gambling has reached a whole new level with the pandemic raging throughout the winter. In the first couple of months alone, Table Tennis became the seventh most wagered on sport as people sought to find ways to wager money on competitive spectacles that reminded them of something other than negative media news and gradual societal decay.
Ben Fawkes (@BFawkes22) is the VP of Digital Content at VISN The Sports Betting Network and has done work with ESPN. For him, the concept of sports betting is all about psychology and economics and shouldn’t be for the faint of heart. In a changing world of easy to use technology and unlimited access, his mantra of making informed decisions and playing within your boundaries is an absolute prerequisite for anyone who is serious turning this pursuit into a money-maker, and that having consistent success relies more on studying and learning the craft well before embarking on it.
“Whiskey & Cream Theme” written and performed by Chris Henderson.
Whiskey & Cream for December 23rd, 2020.
Host: Ari Shapiro
0:36-7:35: “A kinder, gentler brand of politics”
It always comes down to the fundamentals, that we’re different from them. That’s how it feels looking at the United States from a distinctly Canadian perspective. The pandemic has caused immeasurable harm to the very fabric of their society in ways that defies the imagination and begs the question: why isn’t more being done to help their citizens during a time when compassion is needed more than ever. And why does their culturally innate suspicion of government and resistance to being told what’s best for them – inevitably finds a way of steering them into the realm of greed, paranoia and conspiracy? Furthermore, one has to wonder if a correlation exist between populist and progressive governments when it comes to empathy in their political leaders?
Warren Kinsella (@kinsellawarren) is a celebrated Canadian lawyer, author and musician who has appeared in The Globe and Mail, the Ottawa Citizen and the National Post. He’s collaborated and interacted with numerous prime ministers and political bigwigs during his time, and when it comes to understanding the true merits of effective governance, his take on the differences between Canada and the United States during this global pandemic is squarely focused at our existential differences and how having trust in government is essentially what separates our two democracies.
7:44-13:48: “The men and women of science were correct”
Toronto is heading towards a lockdown on Boxing Day, an announcement that sent shockwaves through those living in Ontario and across Canada. A first wave that was met head-on by the conservative government in the province has long been forgotten in the face of a second wave that’s exposed a shocking level of excuses, pivoting and the passing of the coronavirus buck. With Ontario averaging over 28 deaths a day, the sense of urgency has never been greater even if the credibility of the messengers seems minimized by their tendency to speak out of both sides of their mouths.
Mary Ormsby (@MaryOrmsby) is one of Canada’s most respected journalists who has covered Olympic games, World Cups, and major professional leagues across North America for over three decades while writing for The Toronto Star. She’s spearheaded features about concussions, women in sports, homelessness and clergy abuse with award-winning features spanning over three decades of investigative journalism. For her, Doug Ford presents two phases – or “faces” as she calls them – that’s tested her limits when it comes to political leadership. Whereas she felt he was the right leader at the right time for the first wave of COVID-19, his foot-dragging disposition and chronic insistence of ignoring the men and women of science who were correct is making her wonder why a lockdown didn’t happen sooner.
13:51-18:22: “Always eliminate the window dressing”
Vaccine-hesitancy has quickly become one of the most controversial terms of the day, and when you eliminate the window dressing, it essentially bogs down to a tempting desire to reach for conspiracies over having the gumption to explore the real truth. Behind masks, behind social distancing, behind a vaccine to help keep us safe and healthy. But in an era where the written word has caused so much harm, are we perhaps underestimating the power of the spoken word?
Adam Corsair (@AdamCorsair) is a professional baseball and basketball podcaster whose literary passion for the Toronto Raptors and Blue Jays makes him an instant favourite here at Whiskey & Cream. His heart may be Canadian, but his family lives in Rhode Island – where faulty information and propaganda remains a daily battle for sweet, lucid sanity. His craft is reflected nicely in the gorgeous tonality and dissonant manner to which he passionately explains his plight in a world where fiction becomes fact in the click of play button.
18:35-22:44: “The Coronavirus Athlete”
Living during a global pandemic as a sports fan means settling for a new reality where your season, playoffs, rules and regulations seem permanently amorphous and subject to change. And that’s left some armchair fans scratching their heads and wondering if an asterisk needs to be deployed as a reminder that these achievements are happening during exceptional times. But as the business side of hockey, baseball, football and basketball continue to forge ahead amidst all this societal doom and gloom, there’s immense solace to be found in the astonishing power of sport and what it can do for a stir-crazy, cabin-fevered audience that can’t leave the house to enjoy Pascal Siakam, Auston Matthews or Bo Bichette.
Jim Lang (@JimLangSports) is Canadian sportscaster, writer and radio host who has covered major sports… For him, escapism is about savouring the real stories of courage and fortitude that exist to help soothe our burgeoning layers of anxiety and depression. That means embracing the notion that things will get better if we support those who train, excel and overachieve in pursuit of sporting excellence. In doing so, he tips his hat to the modern day coronavirus athlete.
“Whiskey & Cream Theme” written and performed by Chris Henderson.
Whiskey & Cream for December 18th, 2020.
Host: Ari Shapiro
0:35-6:51: “A Hill To Die On: The Future of the NHL”
It’s not hard to admire the way Gary Bettman and the NHL handled their season in the face of a global pandemic. Although they lost millions of dollars in playoff revenue, they ultimately succeeded in bringing their sport back to the masses in a way that made the Stanley Cup seem like a holy grail during dark times – and all you had to do was take one look at Victor Hedman’s face after the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Dallas Stars to win their second Stanley Cup to really understand what it meant to the players and their fans.
But now there’s trouble in paradise, as is the case with any league that has a profit-oriented group of owners who love real estate development taking on a powerful union of players who won’t back down after the lockout fiasco in 2004. With a healthy league growing in non-traditional markets and hockey related revenues firmly and fairly where they should be, it’s hard to fathom that the NHL could easily shoot themselves in the foot if they aren’t careful.
Luke Armstrong (@armstrongthings) is a Canadian sports blogger and writer whose work has been featured on Sports Illustrated and The Sporting News. His recent article entitled “COVID-19’s Impacts on the Future of the NHL” looks deeper at what sort of options exist for the NHL as they enter the daunting reality not trying to ruin a good thing.
7:03-11:55: “The Pandemic Never Ended In July”
It took Senator Republican leader Mitch McConnell six weeks to recognize the new President of the United States, and so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that, finally, after nearly 10 months, their Congress is on the verge of putting together bona fide economic stimulus legislation that’s presumably designed to take care of their weakest and most downtrodden citizens.
But considering that 40 million Americans are at risk of losing their homes due to an inability to pay their rent or mortgage, and that millions more are flocking to unemployment insurance and food banks, it’s hard to imagine that the world’s richest country has failed so miserably to help their own taxpayers – especially considering the way Canadians have witnessed their own federal government from the start of the year.
Emily Stewart (@EmilyStewartM) is a business and politics reporter for Vox News, and has been seen on MSN, CNBC, Yahoo Finance, to name but a few. Her recent articles on how the United States government is tackling COVID-19 from an economic perspective reveals a colder and harder reality where the concepts of empathy and fairness of leadership seems harder and harder to find as time goes by.
12:02-16:35: “The Tampa Raptors in the Land of COVID-19”
The Toronto Raptors basketball club will be spending their 2021 season in Tampa, and that means learning about COVID cases from afar and having to endure the physical loss of the only Canadian team playing in one of the worst pandemic outbreak states in the union. But that being said, it’s also a chance for the NBA to prove that their league is a cut above the rest – and that a harmonious relationship between players and ownership has commissioner Adam Silver and company to dream bigger and bolder than ever before.
Josh Weinstein (@joshhweinstein) is the NBA editor for The Score and has written for the Raptors Republic. For him, the team is embarking into uncharted waters with their new digs down south, but he’s optimistic that the league will continue to lead by example and show their fans that the future is bright and worth believing in.
16:48-21:35: “Profit over Practicality”
It’s not a stretch to think that Major League Baseball and the National Football League really blew it when it came to monetizing their seasons. Sure, they wanted to bring back their respective forms of entertainment and escapism, but in the end of just seemed like a stumbling, bumbling mess of execution. The end results were appalling; endless cases of infection, oddly disjointed travel schedules, and a sense of general calamity.
Sam Mendelsohn (@Mendy_Island) is an NFL writer and sports betting analyst for Odds Shark, and he understood early on why baseball and football were choosing profit over practicality when it came to ushering back their limited seasons.
“Whiskey & Cream Theme” written and performed by Chris Henderson.
Whiskey & Cream for November 26th, 2020.
Host: Ari Shapiro
0:28-5:31
Author and Montreal Expos historian Danny Gallagher (@dannogallagher7) talks about the resurgence of Montreal Expos memorabilia and what seems like a true renaissance of fan interest in the wake of his new book (Always Remember, New Revelations and Old Tales about the Montreal Expos).
6:50-8:01
Podcaster and AMI radio host Cam Jenkins (@NeutralZoneCamJ) offers his thoughts on the pandemic reality affecting disabled fans of spectator sports.
9:30-17:54
Writer and Pension Plan Puppets blogger Omar White (@TicTacTOmar) delivers an eloquent rant in his summation of the madness behind recent Toronto Maples Leafs free agent acquisitions and where this hockey team stands today.
18:42-20:23
Site expert of Editor-In-Leaf and writer James Tanner (@EditorinLeaf) chimes in with a brazen attempt to help digest the identity of this club after the surrealism of the Mike Babcock era and why he thinks fans need to have a more realistic perspective moving forward.
20:24-23:20
Texas Rangers assistant pitching analyst Richard Birfer (@richardbirfs) can’t quit baseball and believes that neither should you.
23:20-28:10
Excerpts from a recent Toronto Raptors round table with members of Shapiro’s League of Seven; lawyer and college basketball player Mick Sloniowksi (@MSloniowski), economist and writer Marshall Auerback (@mauerback) and producer and political consultant Jon Reid (@JReid416).
“Whiskey & Cream Theme” written and performed by Chris Henderson.
