News roundup, 24 Aug 2026

- Trade talks between Canada and the US, which showed signs of going somewhere at one point, collapsed at the last minute, with the US slapping 50% tariffs on a wide range of products. Mark Carney says that he suspended talks after the Americans brought in new conditions that Canada considered unacceptable in the final hours before the deadline. Reportedly these conditions included relaxing the laws concerning French-language requirements for appliances and instruction manuals, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick had expressed dissatisfaction with the proposed agreement, which may be a factor. Carney says that the tariffs will be matched dollar for dollar; his full speech following the collapse of negotiations may be found here. US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy responded to Carney's vow to match tariffs by saying that this was "foolish" because "Canada doesn't have a military".

- This year's El Niño appears set to be the strongest in living memory, and next year is likely to be the hottest in recorded history as a result. Panama is already limiting transits through the Panama Canal as the lakes that replenish the canal aren't getting enough rainfall.

- Russia is experiencing fuel shortages as a result of Ukraine's recent strikes on oil refineries. People are crossing the border into Kazakhstan to fill their tanks; Kazakhstan has prohibited exports of gasoline but their border guards have found hundreds of attempts to smuggle gasoline back into Russia in everything from jerry cans to tanker trucks. Kazakhstan is relatively fortunate in having their own oil reserves. Other central Asian states have a bigger problem - Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan have been heavily dependent on Russia for their fuel supply, and are now facing severe shortages.

- Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1505, which represents Winnipeg Transit drivers, is again calling for full shields after a someone threatened a driver with a hatchet for not going fast enough. The city has promised to install full shields, but has been slow to implement this; meanwhile 64 drivers are currently on stress leave, amounting to 225,000 hours of lost time.

- Research from China indicates that the batteries in electric vehicles last considerably longer if you drive reasonably than if you always accelerate aggressively. Worth noting that the kind of people who tend to hate EVs also tend to drive in the latter way.

News roundup, 8 April 2026

- Donald Trump has agreed to defer the annihilation of Iran's infrastructure for two weeks, following negotiations brokered by Pakistan. The Israelis are making it clear that they don't consider this to apply to Lebanon, and have continued to bomb that country, ostensibly in an attempt to root out Hezbollah.

- Some 25% of Pakistan's households now have solar power, meaning that the country has suffered a lot less from the surge in energy prices than most countries.  

- There are warnings that this summer's expected El Niño could be a big one, possibly a "super El Niño". Weather impacts in various parts of the world could be significant; in Canada it could mean a mild winter, but possibly more lake effect snow in southern Ontario if the Great Lakes don't ice up.

- Manitoba PC leader Obby Khan has been scolded by the Speaker of the legislature for a hateful comment made against Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara. Khan had initially denied making the remark as reported but a recording indicated otherwise; he has apologized.

- The Somali community in Minnesota is feeling more than a bit uneasy about living under the Trump regime. Many are seeking asylum in Canada; unfortunately new (and controversial) legislation may limit their ability to do so.

- New legislation in the UK will prohibit "no-fault evictions"; there has been a surge in such evictions in the leadup to the legislation taking effect next month.