- The wildfire situation is not improving. The entire population of Cranberry Portage, a community of about 600 people, have been evacuated; the fire in the area could take weeks to put out. In BC the fire threatening Fort Nelson is getting closer to the town and adjacent reserve, forcing more evacuations, while in Alberta the entire municipality of Wood Buffalo, which includes Fort McMurray, remains on evacuation alert.
- BC's measures restricting short term rentals like Airbnb are upsetting people who hoped to make money renting out their properties. A new organization, calling itself the "West Coast Association for Property Rights", has formed to fight this; of course their executive director declares that restricting short term rentals won't solve the problem, but then he would say that, wouldn't he. The organization is seeking an injunction to stop the enforcement of the law.
- Teresa Ribera, Spain's deputy prime minister, is hoping to be appointed the EU's commissioner for the Green Deal. She is not pulling her punches in criticizing EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen for her deference to the far right and the rural dinosaurs in particular.
- In recent years many corporations have at least gone through the motions of being concerned about environmental, social, and governance (ESG) and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) matters. However, corporations aren't generally a reliable ally on such matters, especially when there's a very aggressive push in the other direction from the far right. Even companies that remain (somewhat) forward thinking on these matters are a lot quieter about it than they were a few years ago.
- David DePape, the man who showed up at Nancy Pelosi's home with a hammer in 2022 and then beat her husband with it upon finding that she wasn't there, is set to be sentenced on Friday. Prosecutors are asking for a 40 year sentence.
- Deomcratic Senator Bob Menendez goes on trial on Monday for accepting large amounts of money in bribes. Of course, he represents New Jersey, a place whose corruption makes Quebec seem like Norway in comparison; he's just one of the unlucky ones to get caught.
- An 8 month old child in the UK, who was born deaf, is now able to hear without any assistance, thanks to gene therapy. It will be interesting to see the reaction of the folks who call themselves Deaf with a capital D and who have at times characterized cochlear implants as genocide.
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