I am back after a (well-deserved) month long holiday abroad that included attending Tom Waits’ gig in Prague. I somehow ended up a few rows from the front, dead centre, seated between Vaclav Havel and a famous Hollywood actor. Life in Vancouver can seem pretty pedestrian after an experience like that…

I also went to Lord’s for the third day of England’s test against South Africa, which ended in a draw, and to a bunch of golf courses around Royal Birkdale, where I was fortunate to be able hoist Paddy’s Claret Jug…

News is coming in that yet another young man has died after being blasted by a police TASER. By my count, this latest fatality is the 355th TASER-related death in North America.

It is difficult to come to any conclusion but that a TASER is like a 50,000 volt lightning bolt: in the majority of cases the recipient experiences enormous shock and excruciating pain but sometimes, as with lightning, the victim’s heart stops and he can’t be revived.

It is unbelievable to me that this weapon was introduced to Canadian police without any public consultation or independent safety testing and that policy-makers continue to dither about whether to remove it from the police arsenal until adequate testing and research has been done. One thing is certain; as long as police use the weapon, more people will die.

Billy Bragg, the Bard of Barking, delivered a rousing sermon on the importance of keeping the faith and defeating the cynicism within to a capacity crowd at St. Andrews Wesley Church last night. He also played a fine selection of his politically charged and humorous tunes for the appreciative audience. Bill was in good form on this night, the first concert on his North American tour. Seattle tonight…

As expected, Manchester United has won the Champions League title after drawing Chelsea 1-1 and winning on penalties in Moscow. This win bookends the League title (see below).

Manchester United has won the Premier League title, defeating Wigan 2-0 away. Ryan Giggs came off the bench to tie Sir Bobby Charlton’s record of 758 appearances for the Red Devils. Giggsy’s second half goal clinched the win and nosed United ahead of Chelsea, which drew Bolton 1-1 at home.

The Canadian Medical Association Journal has just published the results of research concluding that Tasers may have harmful effects on the heart, as well as a sardonic and hard-hitting editorial bemoaning the lack of independent scientific study of the weapon’s safety.

The editorial can be linked here:

EDITORIAL – CMAJ – May 1, 2008