News roundup, 3 Sept 2026

- The latest person to enter the Winnipeg mayoral race, Kevin Klein, used to work for convicted sex offender Peter Nygard. This point is being raised by provincial cabinet minister Nahanni Fontaine as well as incumbent mayor Scott Gillingham. Klein, for his part, argues that thousands of people have worked for Nygard's company and that he had no idea of the crimes Nygard was committing, but Gillingham points out that Klein worked as a "political fixer" for Nygard in the Bahamas, which raises questions about the veil of ignorance that he's claiming.

- Manitoba Hydro's plan to install build a new natural gas powered generating station in Brandon is coming into question following the revelations that the turbines for the plant would be built by US manufacturer GE Vernova. Environmentalists had already questioned the plan; now the premier is raising doubts about it as well. There's still a good chance the plant will still be built, of course, but some are calling for the turbines to be bought for the European manufacturer Siemens rather than from the American company (which, as some have pointed out, contributed money to Trump's inauguration).

- A Maltese businessman who had been implicated in the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia has been acquitted. Caruana Galizia was killed by a car bomb in 2017; several people have already been convicted in her death, but Yorgen Fenech, suspected by many of being the mastermind in the killing, managed to convince the jury otherwise.

- Former UK prime minister Keir Starmer has resigned his parliamentary seat. Green Party leader Zack Polanski intends to run in the resulting byelection.

- A 32 year old woman who rescued two people, including a toddler, from the Red River in Winnipeg's St. John's Park last week says she is uncomfortable with being called a hero.

- Noted feminist Gloria Steinem has died at the age of 92.

News roundup, 1 Sept 2026

- Three federal byelections were held yesterday, in the ridings of Vancouver-Capilano, Beaches-East York, and Chicoutimi-Le Fjord. All three were won by the Liberals. In the case of Chicoutimi-Le Fjord, the byelection was necessitated when the Conservative incumbent Richard Martel was "kicked upstairs" earlier this year, so this is a net gain for the Liberals.

- Kevin Klein, a former councillor and Tory MLA (and current CEO of the Winnipeg Sun's parent company) has entered the race for mayor of Winnipeg. Hopefully this means there will be a split in the rightwing vote between him and Mike Vogiatzakis (and maybe also Brad Gross) but this remains to be seen.

- Russia has responded to Ukraine's strikes on the warehouses of online retailers by hitting food distribution centres, leaving many grocery store shelves empty. 

- Another tornado has been reported in Manitoba. This one touched down near the community of Elkhorn in the RM of Wallace-Woodworth.

- A pedestrian was killed after walking in front of Waterloo's ION LRT over the weekend. The victim has not been identified and it is unclear if this was an accident or a suicide.

- Montreal's former anti-racism commissioner is suing the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) for defamation after the organization allegedly compared her to Hitler. Bochra Manaï says that the comparison was made in materials published by the organization; she is asking for $125,000 in damages.

- A 68 year old man has been charged with arson following a fire that destroyed a church in St. Simon, New Brunswick. Several social media posts subsequently made false allegations about the suspect, some saying that he was Israeli while others said he was Palestinian.

News roundup, 11 Aug 2026

- Water levels in the Danube River are now so low due to drought that the wrecks of warships scuttled by the Nazis during WWII are resurfacing. More seriously, the situation is impacting irrigation as well as power generation.

- The Launchpad, a yacht owned by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, apparently failed to respond to a call for assistance as required by maritime law. A skiff that had run out of fuel had made a mayday call; its occupants were rescued by a cruise ship despite the fact that Zuckerberg's yacht was closer. A representative for Zuckerberg claims that the crew of the Launchpad initially didn't hear the call and that by the time they did, the cruise ship had already responded.

- Leftwing candidates will again be challenging the Democratic establishment in primaries this week. Francesca Hong, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, is leading in the polls for the Democratic primary for Wisconsin governor against establishment choice David Crowley, while Minnesota's left-leaning lieutenant governor Peggy Flanagan is facing the more centrist House member Angie Craig in the primary for the Senate seat vacated by Tina Smith.

- There are now a total of 11 candidates in the running for mayor of Winnipeg in this fall's municipal election. The latest person to enter the race is Brad Gross, a realtor notorious for having the buildings he's listed burn down. These include the Sutherland and Manwin hotels as well as a Main Street apartment building. Some folks on Reddit also think Winnipeg Sun owner and former Tory MLA Kevin Klein is considering a run, based on the fact that they're suddenly getting polled on his potential candidacy.

- Manitoba Hydro CEO Allan Danroth's claim before the Public Utilities Board that new gas turbines are essential to maintain a reliable supply, already disputed by critics, is being further called into question with revelations that the existing Brandon gas plant underperforms during cold weather. As I've indicated before, Danroth previously worked for private energy companies in Alberta, so there's a good chance that he has friends and investments in that province's natural gas industry. I do hope the PUB digs deeper into these matters.