2006 AOPE Toronto

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Our genial host, Jim Atkins, who lavished us with great food (and drink) from beginning to end.

Vicki Fong, Penn State U. and Godmother of the AOPE

Often contentious panel comparing Canadian and US Health-care systems:

"From the left" Antonia Maione, Director, McGill Institute

"From the right" Brett Skinner of conservative think tank, Fraser Institute

...and, in the middle, Moderator, Carol Goar, Toronto Star columnist

Ken Sands, Spokane Spokesman-Review, national expert on newspaper websites.

Panel on comparing US and Canadian Culture, eh?

Wash Post writer Doug Struck

Sabrina Jalees, Comedian and youngest person ever to be hired at Second City (eat your heart out, Mike Myers)

Joe Fiorito, Author, Montreal Gazette columnist, and the funniest guy all weekend.

Leonard Pitts, Miami Herald columnist

Peace Activist, James Loney, who was kidnapped and held for several months in Iraq.

Haroon Siddiqui, Toronto Star columnist on how war is viewed by Canadians and Muslims

Michael Babad, business editor showed us the new online-printable afternoon StarPM edition

David Frum, the man who put the words, "Axis of Evil," in George W. Bush's mouth, spoke about how White Houses differ, and what went wrong in Iraq.

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(navel gazing... get it?)

A.O.P.E - 2006 Toronto

Below: Three pretty damn good doodles by Paul Lachine (or as they referred him on our hotel room invoice, Paula Sheen.

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Nighttime in Toronto

You can take the girl out of Palm Beach, but you can't take Palm Beach out of the girl!

l to r: Libby Rock, Carolyn Lumsford, her husband Francesco (up to no good), and John Timpane

Chris Van Es and Sarah Peterson.
Paul Lachine and his oldest, Katie, a freshman at U. of Toronto.

"Dad, this is something big cities have. It's called a Subway."

Saved the best for last -- Chris Van Es's amazing daughter, Saskia, 10, who gazed at me and said, "a little comb-over looks good."

Blasts from the Past:

2005 AOPE
St. Petersburg, FL

2004 AOPE
Philadelphia

A hotel room with a view: Dawn launch: Harbor of Toronto.

Looking out the other window.

Toronto skyline -- To the left, the Blue Jays sunken baseball stadium with the removable roof. Standing tall, The Tower. Chris says the thing he likes most about the tower is that when you go to the top of it you can't see the Tower.

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Eugene Robinson, Wash Post columnist, on covering Washington in the age of blogs

John Timpane, and Robinson

Timpane, Chuck Bernstein, and Robinson

l to r: Debbie Newby, Associated Press, her husband, Richard Halicks, Atlanta Constitution, and part-time Punk-Rocker, Dave Smally, Free Lance Star

Lou Ann Frala, Palm Beach Post, who got out of Palm Beach just as her congressman, Mark Foley, was checking into rehab.