News roundup, 28 Jan 2026

- Over 97% of all new cars registered in Norway last November have been electric. The government is now removing some of the initiatives it introduced to encourage people to buy them, as they seem not to be needed anymore.

- US ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra is warning that more American aircraft will need to enter Canada's airspace to address perceived threats if Canada goes ahead and buys planes from those dirty Swedes instead of from Lockheed-Martin. Denmark, on the other hand, is warning us not to listen to the Americans; they're in the position of having previously done what they were told and replaced their entire fleet with F-35s, and now fear that the US could cut off access to replacement parts if the Greenland crisis reescalates.

- Ilhan Omar was sprayed with an unknown substance at a town hall meeting in Minneapolis. The assailant was removed by security; Omar refused to end the meeting and continued, not wanting to give the enemy a success.

- The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists has moved the Doomsday Clock to 85 seconds to midnight in response to increasing risks of war as well as climate change and artificial intelligence. Particularly concerning is the increasing breakdown of international cooperation which, as flawed as it is, has managed to prevent nuclear war since 1945. Meanwhile, in the UK a national security assessment released following a freedom of information request paints a pretty dismal picture, warning of possible threats to the country's food security unless there are major dietary shifts away from meat, and of growing risks of international conflict. The version initially released had some redactions, including fears that the loss of glaciers in the Himalayas could lead to conflict between the nuclear powers of India, Pakistan, and China. Evidently the government wanted the report suppressed because it was overly negative, and because it calls attention to the government's own failures.

- A lawyer says she was viciously assaulted by Durham Regional Police while finishing up some post-trial work in an interview room at the Oshawa court house. Apparently they thought a black woman in a hijab didn't look like she belonged there, and expressed their displeasure in the way that cops so often do.

News roundup, 4 Nov 2025

- The Carney government is initiating a dispute resolution process with Stellantis after the company, which had received subsidies for the retooling of its plants in Brampton and Windsor, announced that they will be moving production of the Jeep Compass to a plant in Belvidere, Illinois. Stellantis claims that no jobs are being lost as a result of the move, and that the plant is "paused" rather than closed.

- Zohran Mamdani remains the front runner in today's municipal election in New York City. Donald Trump has endorsed former governor (and suspected sexual harrasser) Andrew Cuomo in the race and is threatening to withhold federal funding to the city if Mamdani wins, calling him a "communist".

- Norway's sovereign wealth fund, the largest in the world, is also the seventh largest shareholder in Tesla. The fund plans to vote against a pay package for Elon Musk that could make him the world's first trillionaire. Several other large shareholders, including the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CALPERS) and the American Federation of Teachers, also plan to vote against the package. The company's chair claims that the package is necessary to retain Musk as CEO, and that the share price could drop significantly if he leaves.

- A Ukrainian citizen awaiting extradition to Germany on charges of sabotaging the Nord Stream pipeline is now on a hunger strike in Italy. Poland, meanwhile, has blocked the extradition of another suspect and ordered his release.

- The display of municipal politicians hanged in effigy in the RM of Tache has been removed; no charges are expected. 

- Doug Ford claims that Mark Carney asked him to pull the anti-tariff ad that ran in the US during the World Series. The Prime Minister's office has not commented directly on the matter.

- A police car hit a suspect and arresting officer in Toronto on the weekend after the driver apparently neglected to put it in park. Neither was seriously injured.

News roundup, 10 Oct 2025

- The Israeli government has ratified a ceasefire agreement with Hamas, calling for a "suspension of hostilities" between the two regimes within 24 hours, and the release of 20 Israeli prisoners as well as the remains of 28 others. Of course, Gaza is pretty much uninhabitable now, which presumably suits the Israelis fine, since they'll probably just send in a bunch of settlers to rebuild the place for themselves. Trump is of course talking a lot about this, presumably hoping to convince the Nobel committee to give him the Nobel Peace Prize. Speaking of which, many Norwegian politicians and journalists are seriously concerned about how Trump will react to not receiving the prize, now that it's been awarded to someone else. One columnist and analyst doesn't even rule out the possibility of Trump declaring Norway an enemy.

- Mark Bray, the Rutgers University historian who is moving to Europe to escape death threats, showed up at Newark International Airport with his family on Wednesday night, only to be told at the boarding gate that their flight had been cancelled. They were able to rebook a flight for Thursday night, which suggests that this was not the action of the regime but of one of its overly enthusiastic supporters. No doubt the MAGA crowd would still like us to believe that they aren't fascists, but they aren't making a very good case for themselves.

- FBI director Kash Patel has disbanded a working group studying corruption and fired several agents, saying that they had "weaponized law enforcement against the American people". This comes after the group had placed several Republican senators under investigation.

- Vyacheslav Leontyev, a former editor of the Russian newspaper Pravda, has died after falling from his fifth floor apartment in Moscow. Authorities have ruled his death a suicide; as we know, depression is a very common affliction among those with insider knowledge of the Russian state.

- Elections BC has ruled that signs that billionaire Chip Wilson, founder of Lululemon, violated third-party advertising rules when he posted signs in front of his Vancouver mansion declaring the NDP to be "Communist" during the last election campaign. He was fined $600; for perspective, the signs themselves cost him over $1,600 and the maximum penalty for a violation is $10,000.

- A licensed counsellor in Colorado is challenging the state's ban on "conversion therapy" for LGBT* minors on "free speech" grounds. Not surprisingly, the Supreme Court is widely expected to rule in the counsellor's favour.

- Researchers in Switzerland are growing human neurons from stem cells in order to make artificial brains that can be integrated into computer systems.

- The mayor-elect of the German town of Herdecke suffered serious injuries in a stabbing on Tuesday. Given the current political climate around the world, an assassination attempt is the first thing that comes to mind, however she has apparently pointed the finger at her adopted daughter.

News roundup, 5 Sept 2025

- At least 16 people were killed on Wednesday and 21 injured, five seriously, when one of Lisbon's funicular trams went out of control and derailed, colliding with a building. Two Canadians are among the dead. Initial reports suggest a problem with the cable; a full investigation of an accident like this can take quite some time, however. As an odd side note - in the course of browsing Wikipedia about funicular railways, I learned that the classic Italian song "Funiculì, Funiculà" was written to celebrate the opening of such a railway in 1880.

- A stabbing rampage and ensuing police chase in Hollow Water First Nation has left two people dead, including the suspect, and eight people, including an RCMP officer, with serious injuries.

- The Norwegian government, along with a consortium of oil companies, has launched the world's first large scale carbon capture and storage (CCS) operation, injecting CO₂ into the seabed 2,600 metres beneath the North Sea. I'm not opposed in principle, but even if it works as well as advertised it's a stopgap, not a solution; the storage capacity may well run out before fossil fuels do.

- While condos are a good idea in principle, a disproportionate number of condos built in Canada in recent decades were built as something to invest in more than something to live in. As a result, many of them aren't really good to live in for the long haul, and sales have cratered recently to the point where many investors are now underwater on their mortgages. Not mentioned in the article, but suggested by folks in this Reddit thread, is the role of the short-term rental industry in the whole matter; apparently many condos built since the advent of Airbnb were built more like hotel rooms than actual apartments.

- Donald Trump intends to sign an executive order that will rebrand the Department of Defense as the Department of War. To be fair, there was a time when most countries gave their defense ministries such a name, but that was mostly before WWII, after which it became less fashionable to treat war as if it were some kind of goal (or at least to advertise yourself as doing so by naming an entire government department after it). For a while, at least; now that the Americans are going back that way we'll have to see if the rest of the world follows their lead.

- Self-styled "Queen of Canada" Romana Didulo was released without charges on Wednesday, only to be rearrested on Thursday for violating conditions of her release. The owner of the decommissioned school where she and her followers were based was also rearrested; the two had been ordered not to communicate with each other.

- Human remains found in Algonquin Provincial Park in 1980 have been identified using genetic genealogy as being from a Cleveland man who disappeared in 1973. Eric Singer had fled the US after being drafted.

News roundup, 19 June 2025

- The Trump regime plans to deploy another 2,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles in response to anti-ICE protests. Governor Gavin Newsom points out that these troops are being diverted from critical roles in managing wildfires and, ironically enough, patrolling the border; evidently Trump considers sticking it to California to please his base more important though.

- An Iranian missile hit the main hospital in the Israeli city of Beersheba this morning; no deaths are reported but a number of people were injured. The Israelis are outraged; evidently they can dish it out but can't take it themselves (not that anyone should be targeting hospitals, of course). Donald Trump is apparently still not sure whether he wants to join Israel in the war on Iran. I guess Netanyahu is pushing him one way, and Putin is pushing him the other way. Meanwhile Ted Cruz got a grilling from none other than Tucker Carlson over his hawkish stance towards Iran.

- The Trump regime wants Canada to increase its tariffs on China in return for the US lowering its tariffs on Canada. While Melanie Joly was open to this idea earlier this year, a recent poll finds that a plurality of Canadians are opposed.

- Conservative MP Damien Kurek, who represents the Alberta riding of Battle River-Crowfoot, has resigned his seat to allow Pierre Poilievre to run in the resulting byelection and thus reenter Parliament. This will not stop a leadership review from occurring at the next Conservative Party convention, scheduled to occur in Calgary next January, but he seems unlikely to be removed unless he somehow loses the byelection, which is highly improbable unless an even more extreme candidate (like, say, Maxime Bernier) is able to capture the attention of the voters in that riding.

- Norway has introduced new regulations for cruise ships, prohibiting them from coming closer than 500 metres away from polar bears in order to minimize interference with the bears. Predictably, the cruise industry is up in arms, with one expedition leader saying ships are sailing "empty" as a result and calling the policy "conservation fascism". Doesn't really look like fascism to me; I must have missed the part where tour operators get put into concentration camps. The remark seems especially tone-deaf given what looks very much like the rise of actual fascism in places like the US.

- Czech authorities have charged three people with running a fake dental office in which an unqualified, self-taught individual conducted root canals, extracted teeth, and even used anesthesia.

News roundup, 3 Jan 2024

- A warrant has been issued for the arrest of South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol. The president, who is suspended from his duties pending his impeachment trial, faces corruption charges; thousands of his supporters have vowed to protect him. 

- The FBI believes with a high degree of confidence that the man behind the truck attack in New Orleans was inspired by ISIS, though they believe he acted alone.

- The man who set off an improvised explosive device in a Cybertruck in front of the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas was a US military veteran who served in Afghanistan. His motives have yet to be determined; he will not be available for questioning due to his having shot himself.

- The Manitoba government is working on legislation to address improve the integrity of elections, including a ban on disseminating false information about election officials and on the use of cryptocurrency, gift cards, or money orders for campaign donations.

- Nearly 90% of all new cars sold in Norway in 2024 were electric; EVs are expected to represent 50% of all vehicles on the road in that country within a couple of years.

- An appeals court has struck down the FCC's net neutrality regulations, saying the agency lacked the authority to regulate internet service providers as utilities.

- Winnipeg Police are investigating after six dead cats, showing clear signs of abuse, were found under a bridge in northwest Winnipeg. Disconcertingly, there is no indication that this is related to the cat killings in Point Douglas or the ones in Lord Roberts.

News roundup, 26 July 2024

- An estimated 30-50% of the structures in Jasper have been burned in the wildfire that hit the town yesterday. Surprisingly one of the videos embedded in that article shows that parts of the town survived with no apparent damage; on the other hand the iconic Jasper Park Lodge has been damaged, although the main building is apparently intact. While the destroyed parts of the town will doubtless be rebuilt, some on this Reddit thread fear that when it does come back it will be more like Banff than like the Jasper they knew and loved. One thing that should definitely be considered, though, is replanting burned areas of the park with different tree species, in particular broad-leaved trees from further south that are both less flammable and better adapted to a warmer climate. This would probably be at odds with Parks Canada's philosophy, because they'd doubtless like to bring the park back to the way it was before, but primeval conditions are probably gone irrevocably no matter what, so better to plant something that's good for the longevity of the park in the long term (not to mention the safety of the people living in Jasper itself).

- In California, the state's largest wildfire so far this year has been attributed to someone pushing a burning car into a gully. The fire has burned more than 500 km² near the city of Chico in the Central Valley. An arrest has been made but there is no information about the suspect or their motives so far.

- The Democrats will be holding a virtual vote on the presidential nomination as soon as Aug 1. Candidates will have until July 27 to declare their candidacy. A convention will still be held later in August, but it will be symbolic only. This is necessary to minimize the risk of the nominee being kept of the ballot in some states.

- Saboteurs damaged high speed rail infrastructure at multiple locations in rural France in what is believed to be an attempt to disrupt the opening of the Olympics. Many high-speed routes are out of service, and the situation is not expected to be fixed until early next week.

- While Norway is a leader in the reduction of fossil fuels at home, they seem to be betting on the rest of the world continuing to burn them. They continue to issue new licenses for fossil fuel exploration; they argue, though, that if they don't drill someone else will anyway.

- The mayor of Wasaga Beach, Ontario is addressing rumours of people defecating on the beach. According to the mayor, the town has seen no actual evidence of this occurring; I suspect that the folks in this Reddit thread are correct in saying that the stories are being circulated by far-right extremists trying to play up stereotypes of immigrants.

News roundup, 23 May 2024

- Norway, Ireland, and Spain have announced that they will be recognizing a Palestinian state. Not surprisingly the Israelis are up in arms; they're withdrawing their ambassadors from those countries as well as summoning those countries' ambassadors and making them watch video of female Israeli captives seized in the October attack. They're thus implying, not so subtly, that support for a Palestinian state necessarily means support for such atrocities. Some would say that tarring the entire Palestinian people with one brush that way is, well, racist, but I guess we're not allowed to say that.

- The University of Manitoba is getting pushback for their decision to remove the video of Dr. Gem Newman's valedictory address; many are understandably a bit uncomfortable that a single hissy fit from a billionaire donor is enough to get something like this done. Meanwhile both Newman and others have weighed in on the donor's comments.

- Julian Assange will get the opportunity to appeal his deportation to the US. Apparently the court was asking for written assurances from the American authorities that Assange would be accorded the same rights as a US citizen under the First Amendment, and the Americans were unwilling to provide that.

- A family medical practice in Ottawa is discharging all of its out-of-province patients, citing administrative difficulties with referrals and the like. The thing is, Ottawa lies on the provincial boundary, and forms a single metro area with its neighbouring city of Gatineau, Quebec. Many people live in one city and access services in the other, so some flexibility on this matter would have been nice.

- The team at OpenAI who were focused on long-term AI risks has been disbanded. The team had been plagued with resignations for months, however due to a "non-disparagement agreement" in the documents that you have to sign when leaving there have been few details of why. There are suspicions, though, mostly associated with CEO Sam Altman.

- Some residents in Newmarket, Ontario are going bananas over a proposed condo building - because they're worried about its impact on the local Tim Hortons. You can't make this stuff up, can you.

- An 18 year old student at the University of Victoria has died of a fentanyl overdose. Her parents believe that the 911 operator and campus security did not act fast enough; the province has ordered a coroner's inquest.

- A bear that climbed a tree in Winnipeg's Wildwood neighbourhood was successfully tranquilized and transported out of the city.

- The apartment complex in west Winnipeg that was evacuated last week due to structural concerns is fenced in and is supposed to have 24 hour security. One evacuee found out the hard way how reliable that security is - someone cut through the fence and stole her motorcycle, damaging another bike in the process. Meanwhile, people who live in houses behind the building have been warned to be ready to evacuate as well in case the worst happens.

- A woman in Dauphin, Manitoba has been arrested after stealing a septic truck from nearby Ebb and Flow First Nation and leading police on a chase, at times veering into the oncoming lane. Happily nobody was hurt in this little impromptu bit of real-life GTA.