Comment on Strongside/Weakside: John Wall

Japan’s Icom Inc., whose brand appears on walkie-talkies that exploded in Lebanon, said it halted production a decade ago of the model allegedly used in the attacks and is still investigating the situation. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Icom exported its IC-V82 two-way radio to regions including the Middle East until October 2014, when it stopped making and selling the devices, the Osaka-based company said in a statement Thursday.

A lot has changed since my last conversation with Anwar Ibrahim 10 years ago, when he jumped on a crackly phone call between court hearings to reveal his chances of beating a trumped-up sodomy charge “didn’t look good.” [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Things looked considerably brighter for Malaysia’s Prime Minister when we caught up last month at the opening of German semiconductor giant Infineon’s new Malaysia plant.

Pedestrian in transition, too little urgency and too many turnovers. The Colorado Rapids deserved every bit of their 4-1 loss at Sporting Kansas City. The nail in the coffin of SKC’s trio of goals summed the game up perfectly. The Rapids finally got out on a good-looking break in the 69th minute, but midfielder Cole Bassett ran out of time and options with his wingers breaking inward into SKC’s trap, leaving him triple-teamed and losing the ball. While Bassett expressed clear frustration with the lack of width, SKC swiftly counterattacked and substitute Erik Thommy scored his first of two goals on the night. The first three SKC goals came in some way off turnovers or mistakes by the Rapids.

Frontier Airlines flight attendants voted to authorize a strike over a business model change they say has resulted in less pay, the Association of Flight Attendants announced Wednesday. The vote was spurred by the Denver-based airline switching to a business model that includes more one-day trips and fewer multi-day trips for flight attendants, union leaders said in a news release. “Frontier flight attendants are struggling to earn a living because of management’s new ‘out-and-back’ model.

Open arms lead to broken hearts. The Avs held their media day Wednesday and if their power play is as on point as their messaging, the city should start planning a downtown parade in June. Val Nichushkin’s availability continues to hold this proud franchise hostage. When coach Jared Bednar and teammates addressed Nichushkin’s suspension in Stage 3 of the player assistance program, I wanted to ask them to blink twice to make sure they weren’t reading off a teleprompter. “We welcome him back with open arms,” Bednar said. “We welcome him back with open arms,” defenseman Devon Toews said. “We will welcome him back with the best of our abilities,” star Cale Makar said. So you are saying he’s welcome back? The Avs know they are a better team with Nichushkin.

It felt like déjà vu at media day for the Colorado Avalanche. A year ago, the most pressing questions for the Avs’ top players and coach Jared Bednar were about Valeri Nichushkin, after he left the team during its first-round playoff exit against the Seattle Kraken. Nichushkin isn’t alone among the key forwards who aren’t available at the start of this training camp, but he was yet again the key talking point Wednesday while he remains suspended from the team through at least mid-November. “The reports are that Val is doing well and he’s making progress,” Bednar said.