- Sio Silica is exploring their legal options following the Manitoba government's decision to disallow the sand mine in Springfield. The government, however, may well come out ahead because of their handling of the issue.
- A resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza will be voted on by the UN Security Council tomorrow; the US is expected to veto it, however. Meanwhile Israel has been accused of opening fire on civilians rushing towards aid trucks, while Egypt seems to be building containment facilities for potential refugees. And the International Court of Justice is now looking at the broader question of the consequences of the half-century long occupation of the West Bank and Gaza.
- Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is facing what could be his last shot at avoiding extradition to the US; the UK's High Court will hear arguments tomorrow on whether he can ask an appeals court to block his extradition; his wife claims that he would not survive incarceration. Not sure what his chances are given the fabled "special relationship" between the US and UK.
- Volodymyr Zelensky is in a rather tight spot, since Ukraine's summer offensive produced no significant gains and the Russians have a numerical advantage that favours them in a war of attrition. Gwynne Dyer suggests that the calculation Zelensky has to make is "how much more territory Ukraine would lose in a ceasefire in 2025 than it would lose by making some kind of peace right now." Not an easy judgment to make.
- The new Polish government is trying to undo years of far-right control of the country's public broadcaster, TVP. It won't be easy or clean.
- A man in Cumberland, BC was killed in a hit and run while cycling last week; now a suspect has been charged, not only with failure to remain at the scene but with first degree murder. The details of why this charge was laid have not been stated so far, but a charge like that normally means that the death was intentional and preplanned. Even a typical road rage incident would likely only have led to a charge of manslaughter, or second degree murder at most.
- When Jake Moffatt's grandmother died, he asked the chatbot on Air Canada's website about bereavement rates for such travel, and was advised that he should pay the full fare for the ticket and claim reimbursement after the fact, contrary to Air Canada's actual policy. The airline tried to argue before a small claims tribunal that the chatbot was a separate entity and thus not their responsibility, but the tribunal wasn't having any of it and ordered them to pay Moffatt the difference.
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