Daily Archives: December 9, 2014

In politically incorrect language, Jonathan Bernier may very well be the sports version of an idiot savant.

Brilliant at the thing he does but obtuse oblivious about stuff thats widely known to everybody else.

This is an affliction not uncommon among elite athletes, who grow up so intently focused on themselves the drive to succeed, where 99.9 per cent fail that the rest of the world slides right by. Its a kind of blinkered detachment. Many live in a bubble un-penetrated by matters of substance.

That said, Bernier is a nice guy, a kind person from what Ive seen in the dressing room, soft-spoken and still not entirely adept in English.

What the Toronto Raptors did to him over the weekend however inadvertently was just plain rotten.

His blunder on the red carpet last Friday was cringe-inducing, yet spontaneous.

Their role in the affair was careless.

The No. 1 Maple Leaf goalie has been absolutely roasted in recent days for obviously not knowing who Nelson Mandela was. Thats shocking, given that Madiba was arguably the most famous prisoner on the planet and global icon for human rights, a lifetime spent fighting against the apartheid horrors of South Africa before becoming its president, and a beloved statesman until his death a year ago.

The anniversary of Mandelas passing was beautifully marked by the Raptors in The Giant of Africa tribute incorporated into their game against the Cavaliers. Mandela was himself an athlete a boxer in his younger days who believed passionately in the power of sport to transform society. The event drew luminaries such as Magic Johnson and Charles Barkley to the Air Canada Centre to celebrate the man and his legacy.

Bernier and several teammates were among those in attendance. He was also, I dare say, the only person there who evidently had never heard of Mandela.

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Raptors lost some class as result of Bernier incident: DiManno

Stella Young was a diminutive comedian whose "searing honesty" made her a giant of disability advocacy.

Politicians, disability support groups and others paused on Monday to remember the feisty 32-year-old who labelled herself a "proud crip" and who used humour to challenge Australians to think differently.

Young passed away unexpectedly on Saturday, and a private funeral is being planned.

Her former employer, ABC Managing Director Mark Scott, said Young's advocacy liberated Australians to have a more frank and honest conversation about the issues people with disability faced, and the kind of support they needed.

"She spoke and wrote with a searing honesty and ... gave us insight into the lives of people with disabilities in a way that I don't think we'd really experienced before."

Young was the outspoken editor of the ABC's Ramp Up website, which recently ran out of funding.

"We set up that website with special government funding and that funding didn't continue ... but we kept an engagement with Stella because we knew what an important figure she had become," Mr Scott said.

She was due to record more ABC radio this week.

Political leaders joined in paying tribute to the comedian, who railed against the notion that disabled people were an inspiration.

"Stella dreamt of a society where people with a disability who studied, worked and achieved great things were conventional, even ordinary," Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said.

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Stella Young spoke with 'searing honesty'