The Passing of Dr. Gerry Wilson

The Winnipeg Jets lost an integral part of their proud legacy when Dr. Gerry Wilson passed away on Tuesday, March 22, 2011.

For those of you who are not aware of the impact that Dr. Wilson had in the Jets' formative years, it was he who discovered Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nilsson while he was studying in Stockholm. He helped convince the pair of Swedes to turn down more lucrative offers elsewhere and come to Winnipeg, where the Jets were on the verge of being sold and moved until the team was rescued by its citizens during the drive to turn the team over to a community ownership group, a first in the annals of pro sports.

Dr. Wilson was also responsible for many other Swedes coming to the Jets and together, they had an enormous impact on both the Jets and the game.

The Jets were struggling on the ice and at the gate and the prolific and talented Swedes transformed the Jets from also-rans into perennial contenders in the WHA. The "Hot Line" of Hedberg, Nilsson, and Bobby Hull became one of the greatest lines in the history of the game. The Jets would likely not have survived through the WHA years were it not for this infusion of talent from Europe.

Other teams then followed suit in bringing many other talented Europeans over to North America and hockey fans continue to enjoy the benefits of the fast-skating style the Europeans brought with them to this day.

For these reasons, in my capacity as a member of the advisory board of the WHA Hall of Fame, I voted for Dr. Wilson's induction in the Builder category.

Please join me in expressing my condolences to Dr. Wilson's family. It is my hope that Dr. Wilson's contributions to the legacy that we remember so fondly are ultimately recognized properly.

A Stabber from Outer Space

A violent alien boards an Earth-bound ship

It speeds through the galaxy with lots of zip

He makes it our planet with incredible speed

Now he wants to make Earthlings bleed

He hooks up with a street gang right away

From their side he does not stray

With a knife he becomes an expert with the blade

Stabbing innocent victims is his trade

Impressing his partners in crime with his zest

“Take me to your leader”, he says while taking a rest

They all board a plane for a secret destination

Where the stabbers have their congregation

“Prepare for landing”, says the pilot, a friendly sort

“We are beginning our descent at Winnipeg International Airport”

Winnipeg Logic Test

I heard from a friend recently that prospective students for the CAP (Computer Analyst Programmer) program at Red River College now have to write a logic test before being accepted. If the test is designed for Winnipeg logic instead of computer logic, here are some questions that might be appropriate:

 

1. You are an attention-starved Winnipeg jogger. You are running on a busy roadway and a car makes repeated attempts to hit you. Do you:
1. Turn off onto a side street.
2. Run in the pedestrian pathway especially designed for joggers.
3. Return to the roadway and give the car another opportunity to hit you.
2. Refer to Question 1. You are hit on the roadway by a stolen car driven by a juvenile thief. How should the authorities handle the situation?
1. Issue you a citation for illegally running on the roadway.
2. Hail you as a hero and use you as the poster child for the need to deter auto theft.
3. Block traffic within a five-mile radius of the accident for a week and do not lay charges against either you or the thief.
3. There is an election campaign in progress and a political party has promised to give you a large sum of money from government revenue if elected. What will you do in the election?
1. Vote for the party because I will get free money.
2. Vote for one of the other parties that will not bribe me with my own money.
3. Spoil my ballot.
4. Do not vote.
4. You are a thrifty Winnipegger. You need to purchase an item that costs $5.00 at a store across the street from you, but a store at the other end of town sells the same item for $4.95. What do you do?
1. Purchase the item at the store across the street from you.
2. Spend $10.00 worth of gas to drive across town to purchase the item and save $0.05.
3. Try and bargain with the manager at the store across the street from you.
4. Wait until the item goes on sale.
5. You are a Winnipeg police officer. A cyclist two blocks from you fails to stop at several stop signs. Do you:
1. Stop the cyclist and issue citations for failure to stop.
2. Turn down a side street.
3. Speed up and pass the cyclist.
6. You are a Winnipegger who works in the private sector. Which statement below best describes you?
1. A liar, since it is commonly known that all Winnipeggers work in the public sector.
2. A member of a visible minority, since private sector workers are persecuted members of society, particularly on Easter Monday when they must travel alone to work.
3. Self-employed working on a government contract.
7. You are a dog owner in Winnipeg who lives on a busy street. You let your dog routinely run loose and after the dog runs into the roadway, it is tragically killed by a passing motorist. What should happen next?
1. You should be issued a citation for failing to control your dog and be forced to reimburse Manitoba Public Insurance for any damages incurred to the motorist’s vehicle.
2. You should call a reporter from the local newspaper bemoaning the fact that the motorist did not stop and apologize for hitting your unleashed dog.
3. The motorist should be incarcerated and also lose his or her driving privileges for one year or more.