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IP: New York mob torched anthem singer's Maple Leaf
From: Dave Farber <dave () farber net>
Date: Fri, 03 May 2002 07:36:38 -0400
------ Forwarded Message From: Robert Guerra <rguerra () privaterra org> Date: Thu, 02 May 2002 16:16:51 -0400 To: Dave Farber <dave () farber net> Subject: New York mob torched anthem singer's Maple Leaf New York mob torched anthem singer's Maple Leaf May 2, 2002 New York mob torched anthem singer's Maple Leaf Bruce Arthur National Post Days after being cheered as he sang the Canadian and American anthems before an NHL playoff game in Toronto, Robert Pomakov watched, horrified, as unruly New York hockey fans burned his Canadian flag in the parking lot of Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Mr. Pomakov, an opera singer, saw both his Canadian and his Toronto Maple Leaf flags torn from his car and set on fire by a crowd chanting "U.S.A! U.S.A!" in the moments before Sunday's Game 6 between the Leafs and the New York Islanders. "We lost four of our soldiers and they were basically defending these idiots," said an outraged Mr. Pomakov. "If patriotism is what drives these people and their ignorance, then I am ashamed to have our soldiers defending them." Four Canadian soldiers were killed in Afghanistan on April 18 when a U.S. fighter plane mistakenly bombed them. Mr. Pomakov, 21, is working on his masters of opera degree at the world-renowned Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, from where he drove to Long Island for Sunday's game at the Coliseum, which is named in honour of U.S. war veterans. He and fellow Torontonian Patrick Magee, also 21, decked themselves in Team Canada and Leafs jerseys and attached one regular-size Canadian flag and one Maple Leafs flag to broomsticks on their rental car. After being heckled as they pulled into the parking lot before the game, they could only look on as both flags were set alight. "I was just shocked," he said. "There's a line that needs to be drawn, and this was so far across. You can't believe that you're watching the Canadian flag burn. "There wasn't much we could do. There were a lot more of them than there were of us." Mr. Pomakov felt the Americans' treatment of the Canadian flag was disgraceful. Mr. Pomakov said the flags incident has not soured him on life in the United States. Still, he was pleased to see Toronto's Game 7 win on Tuesday, which set up a second-round Battle of Ontario series with the Ottawa Senators that begins tonight in Toronto. Whatever the feelings of Torontonians toward the seat of federal government, or of Ottawans toward the seat of national commerce, the anthem is quite unlikely to be booed during the series. barthur () nationalpost com ------ End of Forwarded Message For archives see: http://www.interesting-people.org/archives/interesting-people/
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