Hotel beverage room in Shaunavon, Saskatchewan raided by RCMP on suspicion of card playing by patrons…. proprietor warned that no card games of any kind, including any and all types of poker, hearts, cribbage or go fish! are permitted in any establishment that serves alcohol… card playing ring has been in operation for years …. developing
Kate:
You were quite upset at those Conservatives who questioned Harper’s decision to nab Emerson if I recall correctly.
I look forward to seeing what you have to say about Harper’s very uninspiring commentary regarding the now infamous cartoons:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060214/wl_canada_afp/europeislammedia;_ylt=At8mII9DNxsQLczNjoiwnY5p9L4F;_ylu=X3oDMTBjMHVqMTQ4BHNlYwN5bnN1YmNhdA–
It would have been political suicide if Harper stood up and said “High-five for the Western Standard”, but he could have taken a smarter middle ground.
Instead, his comments are mostly pandering to the people like Elmasry, who as we know wants to now charge the WS with a hate crime.
I must admit I expected a more original and fresh approach from Harper than what we are seeing.
I know he has to behave like a Prime Minister, but with each passing day he seems less and less interested in his Conservative base.
That’s hilarious!
Man oh man this brings back memories of cribbage being played pretty well for the better part of a day, every day, at Seba Beach Alberta when I was a kid, with my Grandpa who enjoyed his occasional wobbly pop. Grandma used to do the fetching too, if I recall. Beer. Being served. On the beach. In Alberta. It’s a wonder we all didn’t end up in jail. Where do I send $ for the bail fund?
Good thing they didn’t find the Tiddly Winks game going on in the back!
And you know who is from Shaunavon, SK, Canadian Olympic Hockey player Hayley Wickenheiser. Hmmm, Wayne Gretzky is also part of the Canadian Olympic hockey team therefore the logical conclusion: Janet was doing all of her gambling in the Shaunavon bar playing cribbage at a penny at point. (Double if your skunked).
/sarc off
Sounds like an overzealous RCMP officer in charge of he detachment (Roly still there?): s/he must be bored! Sask has the highest crime rate of all the provinces, but I know that Shaunavon is a nice quit, sleepy corner of the province, witgh a much lower crime rate than the national average.
Geez, the RCMP has better not get wind of what going on in my Wabasca Alberta…
The town voted to remove all VLTs 5 years ago… Naturally, the no-limit hold ’em games(with alcohol) have spread like wildfire throughout town. People seem to be happy with a house advantage of 0…
I grew up near Shaunavon, I know that there are a LOT of Dipper/Liberano OPPOSERS that live there!! Check out the vote for David Anderson of Cypress Hills Grasslands – our new Wheat Board adviser. He has been on the Wheat board scandle(s) for years. They took out the RCMP detachment in that part of the country and David Anderson complained about that fact in the HC. (No back-up for unarmed border guards) They must have sent in some new recruits who had ‘their minds right’ to raid that bar!! I wonder how much that little foray into the outback has cost Canadian taxpayers?? The people in Shaunavon probably didn’t even move, they (the RCMP) were likely treated like flies in July. I would bet , if I were a card player, which of course I am not!, that those “Queens Cowboys’ won’t go back to SW Sask.
Jeez,someone tell me what Harper and Emerson have to do with the RCMP in Shaunavon.
Got a speeding ticket the other day. I am going to fight it, but that’s not my beef here. When the cop returned from the cruiser with my ticket after examining, among other things, my vehicle permit, he announced to me that he was going to do me a favor by not charging me with the $100+ offense of not signing that vehicle permit in ink no less. (Nevermind that my signature was there on my license.) Yes, thanks a lot.
At some point, which escapes me (I am a consistant conservative voter who has been deeply disappointed even when my vote helped elect someone) I, or a bunch or my fellow citizens, voted to allow assholes to take over the country. Either that, or the votes have elected a bunch of naifs who have allowed assholes to take over the country.
I give up. Who did we elect who says we can’t play cards while drinking, can anyone tell me.
Perhaps, if we started to stop electing people who do that (forget all the bigger issues the politicians like to distract us with) we might end up with a group of rulers who actually approached using their powers in a reasonable fashion that does not unduly burden the citizens with inane rules.
Sorry Spike, I accidentally posted on the wrong thread.
Please ignore it.
I live in the Shaunavon area. Recently the bar owners have been saying they’re having trouble with the police harassing their patrons. It got so bad that the bar in Cadillac (about 20KM away) closed their doors.
The hotel in Cadillac was like any other one in these small towns. They not only sold cold ones, but home cooked meals, and even some groceries since they were the last business still operating in their small town. So in essence, these places are more then just a “bar”
The managers (whom I know personally) told me the reason they closed their doors was because their customers were complaining the police would sit outside and harass them when they left the hotel. Those same customers eventually quit coming for the same reasons. When they confronted the police the answer they got from them was “We’re only doing our duty” and one even answered the question “Are you trying to make us all leave town?” with the answer “That’s the general idea.”
Just what the hell is going on around here?
Are you sure they weren’t filming a Corner Gas episode?
Hey Anon., it reminds me of another small town hotelier that I know: the provincial health cops (SK variety) made them stop serving meals because the kitchen was not licenced or inspected etc… bear in mind that this was a small town establishment, doing what it had always done, keeping its customers happy and staying afloat (barely): then along came mindless officialdom looking for something to do, someone law-abiding to harrass. result: kitchen closed, and bar closed soon after the smoking ban imposed.
thousands of illegal immigrants runnin loose , probly none in shaunovan though , an they bother crib players. maybe they figure once they get the criminal element there cleaned up they’ll get sent somewhere more hardcore and urban , like mepple crik
Is solitaire illegal, too? How about Old Maid? Surely the francophones would protest if Mille Bornes was outlawed while having a nice bier et snack? . . .
Agree with John. It seems these cops that get posted to small towns go over the line hoping that they get shipped back to the big city. It would be interesting to know how many of the RCMP recruits are actually from small town Canada and how many would like to stay there once posted. Too boring so they have to make up their own issues no matter what.
It’s the ‘broken window theory’. Bust everyone for something totally innocuous and no one will ever get a chance to snap a beer cap through a window…
My God, tell me it’s not true, people are playing cards in a bar!
In Shaunavon.
In Saskatchewan.
In Canada.
Did anyone call Jane Tabor? Get the National Press out there, this is an outrage! We must have a Judicial Inquiry, organize marches, burn embasies, flags, effigies, anything……..how could this happen…….this is terrible, oh my!
Poor Vicki 🙁
I remember her buying that old partially condemed hotel. She’s done a great job restoring it so far.
I think the cops in town are just getting bored, the Eastend detachment (1 guy) moved into help them in Shaunavon, and the Climax Detachment will close when the guy down there retires. You’d think they would have a rough time patroling the 5000 square KM down there with only one detachment and 3 people. I guess gas is too expensive to go out on patrol.
And one final question. Since it is illegal to play cards even without betting any money…. why does every bar I go into have a pool table??? I even remember betting on games with my buddy… But when we didn’t bet, isn’t the bar still getting a cut, the same with cards??
oh and jldill,…. we did elect someone…. Calvert… and the rest of the dippers who want to dip into any purse they can. Remember the firewood tax, or the PST on used vehicles??
Ahh yes Saskatchewan. Where cribbage and a brewski can get you in the crowbar hotel and “exotic” dancers cannot work lest drunken farmers with lust in their eyes go back and ravage the misses. Its no wonder the bridge club in Moose Jaw dug all those tunnels under River Street.
O/T I’m a little disappointed that PMSH wussed out to the cartoon nazis. (Yes, I said it. If Steinfeld can have a soup nazi…)
I don’t want to contemplate what the Climax Detachment investigates. Or how.
In Saskatchewan, do Climax jokes ever go stale?
Hey girl, I hit the Indigo link and the book image for “Satanic Verses” is gone now, check it out.
I was disappointed in the “regret” part of the Harper statement. The rest was fine under the circumstances.
But put yourself in his political shoes at the moment – imagine what the media would do in light of a stronger statement and a burning Canadian embassy? Or dead soldiers in Afghanistan? Do you think Canadian mainstream media would rally behind Harper in defence of press freedoms they’ve already signalled they’ll surrender?
These are dangerous times, and this is a fragile government. Be patient, and think twice before jumping to conclusions about why they do what they do. (And remember who he put in charge of Public Safety and Immigration and Citizenship.)
I have a hot tip for the RCMP – check out the Legions.
You have to love these old laws. Playing darts is just fine in a drinking establishment. So was dwarf throwing (at one time), strippers, mud/jello wrestling, wet t-shirt contests, pool tables …
I know in Alberta that they had a law that said you couldn’t even carry a beer from one table to another (you had to get a waiter to carry it for you) … BTW it was a waiter – I even remember the Men’s and the Ladies & Escorts sections.
I think the law about card playing came to life back then … the ladies (and the local preacher) didn’t forsee a day when you could actually carry a beer from one table to another (or to a pool table).
This thread brought back lots of memories of those strange & weird rules that probably made sense at one time but I never could understand.
I remember when I became legal (21!) in Northern Ontario. Had to go to a beer store for beer and then to the liquor store for the rest. Both of these establishments had nothing in the front of the store but counters with placards with a number, name of the beverage and the price. You wrote down the number of the beverage of choice and went to the counter where some old dowdy government worker took your slip of paper and money while a person from the back came out with your purchase.Almost crapped my pants when I went to BC and saw Offsales in the pub(mens side). Thought I was in heaven when I went to a corner store in Quebec and saw the beir et vin. and the beer was in BIG bottles too. Ahhh, memories.
Kate: fair points, and I agree 100% that the “regret” statement would have been best left out.
Time will tell…
Apologies for mixing up this thread with a different topic.
The province is full of senior citizens,of course they play cards. This can,t be tolerated send in the army!!!!!
Card playing in licensed premises is prohibited because the government isn’t getting a cut. The tax man wants the suckers to play the VLTs which guarantee a rich payout to big brother.
A friendly social activity has been banned in favour of an expensive, addictive, anti-social one-armed bandit.
The only thing that blows other than the wind in Shaunavon today are the Rotten Carrots & Mashed Potatoes.
And we all thought PMPM and his mentor PMJC were dips……welcome to Canada boy’s and girls.
Re: Kate’s take on PMSH’s statement, let’s not forget the rioting in Europe, and where do we have a bunch of amateur athletes? Munich, anyone? No thanks.
I can live with the “regret” part – these ARE dangerous times.
Roughly a million years ago I ran a campaign for a guy named Sonny Anderson, likley kin to David Anderson named above, in Shaunavon. Fell in love with the place and the 150 mile long riding.
Early in my stay I went with the campaign committee to the upmarket bar in town. “Rye,rye, rye, rye and seven, rye, rye, beer, rye and coke.” Then it was my turn. “Scotch and water.” The waitress looked at her watch. “What sort of scotch?” “Bar scotch.” “No, what sort?” I came up with Johnny Walker. “Back in a minute, I think I have time.” She shot out the door and down the street to the just closing liquor store and made it back in time with my bottle.
The Horsemen have no idea of what a jewel they are preserving and protecting. Time to buy a clue gents.
“Sounds like an overzealous RCMP officer in charge of he detachment (Roly still there?): s/he must be bored!”
Reminds me of the time we were camping at Touchwood Lake near Lac La Biche, Alberta.
11:00 at night..nearest campers were two stalls over. Ranger Rikie (female) stops and says my ACCOUSTIC guitar was too loud!! No-one had complained she admitted, but turn it down anyway.
snivel serphant.. sheesh
When did Karen and Davis transfer from the Dog River detachment to Shaunavon?
i am sure there are “real” crimes happening somewhere??? leave the Shaunavon bar patrons alone and let bthem have their fun…my mother lives in a Senior’s Home in Legal Alberta where every Sat. nite at 630PM sharp they play BINGO for 25 cents a game……MOM I promise to go visit you on weekends at the Edmonton Remand Centre during family visiting times if it gets to that
by the way my mom is a 91 year old french catholic senior and she “loves” bingo..I hope they let her play at the Remand Centre
The publications mentioned did not provide a current target to terrorists of the times.
Only to the author in Rushdi*s case.
Any cartoons, [no matter how worthless, at Muhammed expense], do provide a target to innocent persons at large today.
Besides, how could a *Robinson* ever be incorrect? TG
In Alberta recently the Gaming and Liquor Commission went after some seniors for their monthly crib tournaments. Governments do have to protect their monopolies, don’t they.
Personally, I don’t think they could prove this was gambling as cribbage could be classified as a game of skill.
Alberta seniors’ cribbage game called illegal gambling
“Authorities in Alberta say monthly cribbage tournaments for seniors at three veterans clubs amount to illegal gambling because they offer a cash prize.
“The warning from the province’s gaming and liquor commissioner comes as a result of a complaint from a person in Edmonton about cribbage tournaments at the Army, Navy and Air Force Veterans Clubs. There are three of the clubs in Alberta, one in Edmonton, another in Lethbridge and the third in Grande Prairie.
“As a result of an investigation, the commissioner ruled that even though the stakes are small, it still amounts to illegal gambling. The club in Edmonton contacted its other two branches and passed along the warning.
“Seniors in Lethbridge, about 250 kilometres south of Calgary, are upset about the warning. They pay $10 a couple to the club to enter the competition, covering all the coffee they can drink and a small cash prize for the winner � as much as $100.”
Wow. This just begs for a smarmy quote.
“Forget it, Jake – it’s Saskatchewan!”
— Polynesian Town
The only reason why card playing gambling is illegal is because the government cannot get its’ cut. But if the patrons bought those break open tickets and used them as chips, one could reason that the card playing is legal since the government has got its’ cut.
I think those people were smoking tobacco! In a town, In Canada. Were they smoking and playing cards? We don’t know. They just won’t say. They are headed for the crowbar hotel if they were smoking. Sask. just isn’t tolerant. Is this the kind of province you want?
Too bad a smartass Prime Minister wanted the govt out of the bedrooms of the nation. Now we have the Lifestyle Nazis in our livingrms, our dens, our bars, our Legions, blah blah, blah. Who would have thunk it?
i think the police in shaunavon should worry about all of the drug use and trade going on in shaunavon and eastend. i’m from shaunavon and the amount of drug users are growing and the age the users start is getting younger. why don’t they do anything? it’s called denial folks!