News roundup, 5 Feb 2026

- Jeff Bezos has ordered massive layoffs at the Washington Post, affecting a third of the newspaper's workforce. Among other things, the entire Middle East desk will be gone, as will be the paper's Ukraine bureau chief and correspondent. Former Executive Editor Marty Baron condemns this and previous decisions by Bezos, which he calls "ill-conceived". The thing is, though, they're only "ill-conceived" if you're thinking in terms of the greater good; if you're thinking in terms of Bezos' personal interests they aren't ill-conceived at all, especially in light of how Donald Trump is making new threats regarding the broadcast licenses of major networks in the US.

- The Trump regime appears to be issuing selective exemptions to tariffs for companies with which he has a good relationship. Nothing suspicious about that at all...

- Alberta NDP leader Naheed Nenshi is warning federal leadership candidates to treat Alberta with kid gloves so that he has a chance of defeating Danielle Smith next year. Meanwhile, leadership candidate Rob Ashton singled out Avi Lewis for "turning New Democrats against each other".

- The Winnipeg Regional Health Authority is taking over the Golden Door Geriatric Centre, a personal care home in the Fort Garry district of the city whose private owners had announced plans to close the facility. Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara says that the province is working to fill the numerous beds that the owners had been leaving vacant in order to prepare for the closure.

- A little known fact - ICE actually has offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal. Their agents don't have the power of arrest in this country; they claim that these agents (who are not armed) assist in the investigation of international crimes. NDP MP Heather McPherson is calling on the Carney government to close those offices "until the human rights crisis is resolved"; whether the government will do so remains to be seen.

- Manitoba Hydro is hiring institutional safety officers for its downtown office tower following a seemingly random attack by a methed up teenager with a knife. Manitoba Housing is also hiring such officers for its downtown office. Unlike run-of-the-mill security guards, these officers have specialized training; they are equipped with handcuffs and pepper gel and are empowered to make arrests. CUPE, which represents Hydro employees, is calling for the officers to be deployed as soon as possible.

- Manitoba currently has the highest incidence of measles in Canada. To the surprise of few, these cases are concentrated mostly in the Southern Health Region, and in particular a church in Winkler, though some people were infected in Winnipeg after people from the province's Bible Belt were hospitalized at HSC. 51 confirmed and three probable cases have been reported in the province as of the 24th of January. This compares to 319 confirmed cases of measles and 29 probable cases last year, and only 18 cases between 2000 and 2024. At least 86% of the cases were in unvaccinated people; another 6.2% were in people of unknown vaccination status.

- Following the drowning death of a 12 year old student at a scuba school in Texas, her family sued the school. One thing that has come up in court is the fact that the school's owner had been caught on video bragging about the number of fatalities he'd gotten away with, which does not inspire confidence.

News roundup, 19 Sept 2025

- Denmark held a large military exercise in Greenland this week, the largest in the territory's history. They invited several NATO allies, but pointedly left the US off the invite list.

- Alberta premier Danielle Smith's approval rating has declined to 46%. Despite this, other polling indicates that Smith and her United Conservative Party would win handily over Naheed Nenshi's NDP if an election were held today.

- The New York Times reports that the Trump regime approved the export of advanced computer technology to the United Arab Emirates only two weeks after the UAE invested $2 billion in World Liberty Financial, a cryptocurrency startup founded by Trump, his Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, and their families.

- Elon Musk spoke at the gigantic anti-immigration rally held in the UK by far-right activist Tommy Robinson over the weekend, and declared that "violence is coming" to the country. This brings to mind the notorious "rivers of blood" speech given by MP Enoch Powell in 1968. Musk also called for a change of government, and it's a safe bet that he will do his utmost to ensure that happens.

- Insiders reporting on the executive meetings following the Jimmy Kimmel episode that got the show cancelled say that multiple executives acknowledged that Kimmel hadn't said anything that crosses a line, but that senior execs feared retaliation from Trump. The fears may not have been unfounded; FCC chair Brendan Carr had hinted in an interview that ABC affiliates might have difficulty renewing their broadcast licenses if something wasn't done to "take action" on Kimmel.

- Two Utah men were arrested after an incendiary device was placed under a vehicle owned by a media outlet in Salt Lake City. The device did not go off. And a Texas man was arrested for making threats against New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. I guess they're all counting on getting a presidential pardon.

News roundup, 24 June 2025

- Iran has launched attacks on American bases in Iraq and Qatar in retaliation for the US attacks on their nuclear sites. They now say they want to avoid further escalation. There is speculation, however, that they could close off the Strait of Hormuz, which would have significant effects on the availability and price of fossil fuels as about 20% of oil and gas globally is sent through that strait. There were some reports indicating that there might be a ceasefire in the works but this remains in doubt and the two countries continue to exchange attacks despite Trump's admonitions not to.

- Ukrainian and Polish authorities say that they have uncovered a plot to assassinate Volodymyr Zelenskyy on a state visit to Poland. The plot allegedly involved a "deep cover" agent who was recruited decades ago. This follows the discovery of another such plot last year, which apparently involved insiders in Ukraine's State Guard Department.

- The state of emergency issued in Manitoba at the end of May due to wildfires has been lifted due to improvements in conditions and success in containing the fires; however the situation remains volatile with several uncontained fires still burning in the north.

- Alberta NDP leader Naheed Nenshi will be entering the legislature after winning a seat in the constituency of Edmonton-Strathcona in one of three byelections held in the province yesterday. Gurtej Singh Brar also appears to have won Edmonton-Ellerslie for the NDP, while the UCP's Tara Sawyer has been elected in Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills.

- Following the police-involved death of a Saulteax teenager, Neil Stonechild in 1990, someone named Candis McLean self-published a book entitled When Police Become Prey which disputed the findings of an inquiry into Stonechild's death. McLean has just won a defamation lawsuit against University of Regina professor Michelle Stewart who called the book "racist garbage". The judge may have been bound by some sort of legal precedent to make that finding, however it's worth noting that instead of the $165,642 in damages sought by McLean, he awarded her only $6,450.

News roundup, 24 June 2024

- An outbreak of violence in the Russian republic of Dagestan has killed 15 police officers and several civilians. An affiliate of ISIS has claimed responsibility, but that's not stopping the Russians from making oblique references to Ukraine. No question this is good news for Ukraine of course; if anything is going to stop the Russians it's internal divisions.

- Research on geoengineering continues. This is probably necessary, unless we manage to convince millions of people to fly a lot less and billions to eat a lot less meat, but the potential for unintended consequences is great. One recent study concluded that seeding clouds with sea salt could enable them to reflect more sunlight away from the Earth. The problem is, their modelling concluded that while this could be useful to cool the western US, it could have the side effect of causing heat waves elsewhere (Europe in this case) as well as disrupting rainfall in the US as well as in far-flung places such as the Sahel region of Africa. Now imagine a geoengineering project by one country that negatively impacts a hostile country, or is perceived as having done so. Best hope the countries involved aren't nuclear powers.

- A scientist working for the federal government is alleging that the federal government, along with the provincial government of New Brunswick, has shut down an investigation into the cluster of cases of a mysterious degenerative brain disease. This follows similar allegations from another scientist; one has to conclude that the governments are trying to protect someone (one is inclined to suspect that it's a company whose name begins with I).

- An investigation has concluded that Winnipeg councillor Markus Chambers (St. Norbert - Seine River) violated conflict of interest rules by failing to recuse himself on a motion concerning changes to a residential development recommended by city planners. Chambers, who also serves as deputy mayor and chair of the police board, had also failed to reveal his personal connection to one of the owners of the property involved.

- Naheed Nenshi has won the Alberta NDP leadership in a landslide, receiving over 86% of the vote.

- A byelection in the federal riding of Toronto-St. Paul's is being held today. The riding has been a Liberal stronghold for decades, so if they lose, or even if they win by a narrow margin, the pressure on Justin Trudeau to step down is expected to increase. That would probably be the best outcome actually; a new leader probably won't be enough to save the Liberals, but it might offer some slim hope for a hung parliament rather than a Conservative majority next year.

- Calgary has been having serious problems with its water distribution network for over two weeks. Many are pointing out that this problem is not limited to Calgary; I would add that it's not limited to water distribution either. The approach most North American cities have taken to growth, with low-density suburbs, means that there isn't enough tax base to maintain the infrastructure needed to support said suburbs. Curiously, though, the CBC article avoids using words like "sprawl" and "density", but that's the real issue here and elsewhere.

News roundup, 27 March 2024

 - The Manitoba government is reviewing a contract signed by the previous government in August with a staffing agency that was supposed to bring 150 doctors to the province. So far the agency has recruited none at all.

- This year is not expected to be a bad year as far as flooding in Manitoba. Wildfires, though, may be another story.

- The latest Abacus poll indicates that former Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi is the most favoured candidate for the Alberta NDP leadership, but even under his leadership the party would have a hard time winning an election. Because Albertans gonna Alberta I guess.

- A report from Environmental Defence has concluded that the Trudeau government is still subsidizing fossil fuels with billions of dollars. It's kind of a mystery; the kind of people who they're trying to win over aren't going to vote Liberal no matter what, because of their irrational hatred of everything Trudeau and the Liberals represent. And by doing this they're giving sensible, rational Canadians a good reason to hate them.

- The University of Winnipeg had to cancel classes Monday and is still struggling, after what was described as a "cyber incident" shut down the school's networks. Apparently professors have forgotten how to deliver a lecture without computers.

- Across the country, school attendance has failed to recover to pre-pandemic levels. The long term impact of this remains to be seen. Meanwhile in Manitoba drug-related deaths have skyrocketed since 2020 as well.

- A Toronto woman has been charged with multiple offenses, including criminal negligence causing bodily harm, after her dog, which was unlawfully off leash in a playground, attacked a child and caused injuries described as "life-altering". She allegedly then attempted to flee the scene rather than render assistance; what makes this especially galling is that she and her partner have been in trouble before over the same issue.

- Two men charged in the human smuggling case that led to an Indian family freezing to death on the Manitoba-Minnesota border have pleaded not guilty.

News roundup, 11 March 2024

- Israel's claim that the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) included Hamas militants apparently is based partly on "confessions" made when agency employees were subjected to what the Brits like to call "in-depth interrogation". In response, Canada is restoring funding to the agency after previously suspending it based on Israel's allegations. Meanwhile the US airdrop of aid supplies to Gaza appears to have actually caused more civilian deaths, as the parachutes on the aid packages failed to open. 

- Pope Francis has raised more than a few eyebrows with his suggestion that Ukraine should have “the courage to raise the white flag” and negotiate an end to the war with Russia. The most charitable interpretation is that he's viewing the conflict in pragmatic terms and has concluded that Ukraine can't win in the long run (which may well be true), but even by those criteria it's a questionable recommendation, since if Ukraine simply surrenders, rather than tying the Russians down in a long drawn-out guerilla conflict, Russia might possibly be motivated to have a go at someone else like Georgia or, much worse, the Baltic states. On the other hand, a drawn-out guerilla war would sap Russia's resources and make them less of a threat to the rest of the world (much as in the case of their attempt to conquer Afghanistan almost half a century ago). It'd be nice if there were a better role for Ukraine to play than as Europe's sacrificial anode, but that is the world we live in I guess.

- Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew remains popular with the electorate; a recent poll gives him a 63% approval rating, up six points since the last poll.

- Sarah Guillemard, the former Tory MLA for Fort Richmond, says that she was sexually assaulted by an "older former MLA" several years ago.

- Naheed Nenshi has made it official - he's off and running for the leadership of the Alberta NDP.

- At least 50 people were injured, 13 seriously enough to require hospitalization, when a Boeing 787 Dreamliner operated by the Chilean carrier LATAM Airlines suffered a sudden loss of altitude on the Sydney to Auckland leg of a flight to Santiago. The airline attributed the incident to "a technical event during the flight which caused a strong movement", though no more details about the cause were made available.

- Mahikan Bus Lines, a partnership owned by several First Nations and based in The Pas, has purchased a bus terminal in Brandon that had been mothballed following Greyhound's departure from the Canadian market a few years ago. 

- Joe Biden made it through his State of the Union address, described by David Shribman as "the most important speech in his political career", without any major gaffes. The same cannot be said for the response to the speech from rookie Republican senator Katie Britt, which was ridiculed by friends and foes alike.

- Donald Trump has posted a bond in the E. Jean Carroll case in order to be able to appeal the decision, after Judge Lewis A. Kaplan refused his request for a delay.

- The number of unclaimed dead bodies is on the rise in Ontario. According to the province's Office of the Chief Coroner, 1,183 bodies went unclaimed last year, compared to 983 in 2022 and 438 in 2019.

News roundup, 23 Feb 2024

- Donald Trump's legal and financial troubles continue. New York's Attorney General, Letitia James, is not shy about her willingness to start seizing assets if he doesn't come up with the $350 million in cash needed to cover the fine resulting from the civil fraud verdict. Since much of his fortune is tied up in real estate rather than liquid assets, this is a very real possibility. For his part, Trump seems to be trying to evade liability by changing his business address to one in Florida.

- At the opening of the Conservative Political Action Committee (CPAC) in Washington, yet another Trump booster, one Jack Posobiec, said the quiet part out loud by vowing to overthrow democracy. 

- The man convicted of driving his truck into a Muslim family in London, killing four of them, has been sentenced to life imprisonment with no chance of parole for 25 years. The judge also ruled that his crime constituted an act of terrorism, although the latter is largely symbolic, as is the concurrent life sentence given for the attempted murder of the fifth victim.

- The city's draft budget is winning plaudits from some activists for prioritizing trees over new roads, a sentiment I agree with. Less positive is the decision of city council to reject the motion from Councillors Matt Allard and Cindy Gilroy calling for all city staff, as well as employees of city contractors, to be paid a living wage by next year.

- It's sometimes said that ad hominem attacks (a direct attack on the person rather than their position or argument) used to be frowned on in politics. I'm not sure how much of this is true and how much is looking at the past through rose coloured glasses, but there's no doubt that it's rampant today. A couple of recent examples come from David Parker, founder of Take Back Alberta, who recently tweeted "The fact that a man as grotesque as [former Calgary mayor Naheed] Nenshi ever won 'sexiest man of the year' in Calgary (let alone four years in a row); tells you everything you need to know about the mainstream media in Calgary." Then he had a go at provincial NDP leadership candidate Sarah Hoffman in even worse fashion. The Take Back Alberta folks, of course, are following the lead of the likes of Donald Trump, and unfortunately this sort of thing works with the kind of rabble they're trying to rouse.

- Following recent legislation in Florida making it easier to get books removed from schools for "inappropriate" content, some activists have targeted the Bible (which, after all, contains plenty of stuff that many folks wouldn't consider child friendly - incest, torture, genocide, and the like). In response, legislators are planning to charge fees for complaints by people who don't have kids in the school system.

- A Catholic priest in Slovenia has been accused of sexual misconduct; among his sins, he is alleged to have pressured nuns into watching porn and then participating in a threesome with him. I don't think that's what most people have in mind when they think of the phrase "Holy Trinity".

News roundup, 6 Feb 2024

- Conservative Party supporters in Canada are increasingly of the view that Canada gives "too much support" to Ukraine. When polling Canadians overall, 25% of those polled agreed with the statement, compared to 13% a couple of years ago - and among Conservative supporters this has jumped from 19% to 43% over the same time period. It seems like the Cons are betting on the Canadian public hating Justin Trudeau so much that they'll blindly vote for whoever has the best chance of beating him; sadly, it's a pretty good bet. Not that there isn't reason to dislike Trudeau, quite the contrary (just look at his latest gaffe for instance), but the public's willingness to jump from the frying pan into the fire is unfortunate.

- Former Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi is said to be considering a run for the Alberta NDP leadership. This could make for a very interesting provincial election in 2027. Nenshi isn't that left by non-Alberta standards, but he'd certainly be an improvement on their current premier.

- Calgary's current mayor, Jyoti Gondek, could theoretically face a recall election - that is, if the petitioner is able to collect signatures from 40% of the city's nearly 1.3 million residents by the 4th of April. Reasons cited include a bylaw prohibiting stores from giving out free single use bags, as well as tax increases and a deal entered into by the city and the owners of the Flames, among others, to build an event centre. Don't know enough about the event centre issue to comment but the other two reasons reek of rightwing populism, and I suspect the petitioner will be able to get some support from the same kind of people who show up at city hearings talking about "neighbourhood integrity" out of fear that someone might build a duplex down the street from them. Meanwhile in the neighbouring city of Chestermere, the mayor and half the council have been ousted by the provincial government; I know essentially nothing about the place, but the folks on Reddit seem to think this move by the province is a case of a stopped clock being right twice a day.

- On Thursday the US Supreme Court will be hearing Donald Trump's appeal of Colorado's move to exclude him from the ballot. This will be the first time in history that the court hears a case related to the "disqualification clause" in the Fourteenth Amendment; it seems that it would take some pretty intense mental gymnastics for self-professed "originalists" like the conservatives on the court to keep Trump on the ballot, but they may well find a way.

- The International Code Council is a nonprofit dedicated to developing model building codes. Lately they seem to have been bending to every demand of the natural gas lobby, even hastily changing their own rules to give the lobbyists more favourable treatment.

- The European Union had a plan to cut pesticide use in half by the end of the decade, as well as setting carbon reduction targets for the agriculture sector, but is backing away in the face of an outburst of populist rage.

- Apparently those convoy protesters who went down to Texas to "defend" the border against the supposed "invasion" were disappointed to see that things weren't as they'd been led to believe. The convoy's leaders managed to crowdfund a lot of money though, so there's that.

- Pakistan International Airlines just had a flight attendant walk away in Toronto and not show up for their return flight. This would not be very newsworthy in itself, but the same thing has happened several times in the last few years, which is starting to look like a pattern.