News roundup, 5 Dec 2024

- The number of homicides in rural and small-town Manitoba has surged in the last year. A total of 55 have been reported so far this year in jurisdictions policed by the RCMP; by comparison there were only 30 confirmed homicides and 3 suspicious deaths in the entirety of last year.

- A location has been tentatively selected for Manitoba's first supervised consumption site (not counting bars of course). The location is on Disraeli near Henry Street; concerns are being raised by some about the proximity of Argyle Alternative High School, but the government has assured the Winnipeg School Division that they will not proceed unless the site is secure.

- Former Conservative party leadership candidate (and current Brampton mayor) Patrick Brown has been summoned to testify before a parliamentary committee regarding allegations of Indian interference in Canadian politics. This includes the accusation that volunteers on Brown's leadership campaign, including MP Michelle Rempel Garner, were pressured to withdraw their support; according to someone connected to the campaign, Rempel Garner was approached by representatives of the Indian consulate who warned that it "was not in her best interest" to continue working with Brown. Rempel Garner denies this, however.

- French Prime Minister Michel Barnier's government has been defeated, as expected, in a non-confidence vote, though they are expected to remain in a caretaker position until a new government is appointed. President Emmanuel Macron is expected to address the nation today, but finding an actual solution to the problem may be difficult as France's parliament is split into three similar-sized blocs, none of which is keen to work with the others.

- Amnesty International has joined the ranks of those who condemn Israel's actions in Gaza as genocidal, while acknowledging that the attacks on Israel that were the immediate trigger for the attacks were also atrocities.

- The CEO of UnitedHealthcare, a division of the largest health insurer in the US, was shot dead outside the hotel where he was about to speak at a conference of investors in the company. The suspect currently remains at large.

- A nun is among those arrested in Italy in a crackdown on the country's most powerful mafia network. Prosecutors allege that she served as a conduit between the gang and its incarcerated associates while serving as a volunteer at prisons. Two former politicians from parties associated with the country's rightwing government were also caught in the net.

News roundup, 4 Dec 2024

- At Justin Trudeau's meeting with Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago this past Friday, the incoming president quipped that Canada should join the US if we can't handle the 25% tariffs being slapped on imports. Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc insists that Trump was joking, but he has previously expressed interest in our water, and as anyone who's read Richard Rohmer's novel Ultimatum or seen the miniseries H₂O knows, these things should not be taken lightly.

- South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol is facing possible impeachment following the short-lived imposition of martial law overnight. Yoon says his move was necessitated by "North Korea-sympathizing anti-state forces" and accuses the opposition of "attempting to overthrow the liberal democratic system through legislative dictatorship", but the fact that he's facing serious corruption allegations that were being investigated by the opposition is probably the real reason.

- French prime minister Michel Barnier, appointed by President Emmanuel Macron only 90 days ago, is facing a motion of non-confidence, after using executive powers to push a budget through without parliamentary support.

- The Auto Trader website forecasts that the number of gasoline-powered cars in the UK will fall by over 40% over the next decade.

- Several businesses in Winnipeg are no longer accepting cash, apparently to deter robberies. This has become somewhat common elsewhere as well, and has raised concerns. Some are calling for legislation to limit this, since it discriminates against people who don't have a bank account or credit card, and from a certain point of view this could be seen as discrimination on the grounds of "social condition", which is prohibited in some jurisdictions. Some cities and states in the US have adopted or are considering such legislation.

- More than six weeks after a BC man, Jim Barnes, went missing on a hunting trip, a dog believed to be his has been found alive. The dog is not tattooed or microchipped, but appeared to recognize Barnes' partner and other people that it would have been familiar with.