While information on Walmsley is limited, Bissonnette says he has absolutely no history fighting against women in Canadian tournaments, suggesting his identification into women’s sport was recent" Officials would have allowed a woman to go into a match without any hint that she was up against a male if her coach didn't tell her ONE HOUR before the match

By Anna Slatz November 15, 2023

A female boxer withdrew from a provincial championship in Quebec after learning that her opponent was biologically male, leading to him winning the competition by default. Dr. Katia Bissonnette of Saguenay says she was matched against transgender fighter Mya Walmsley with no notice.

The 2023 Provincial Golden Glove Championship took place on October 27 and 29 in Victoriaville, Quebec, hosted by the Quebec Boxing Federation in collaboration with the KO-96 boxing club. But the tournament, which intended to give novices the opportunity to qualify for the Canadian Championship in December, attracted controversy after Bisonnette announced her withdrawal.

Speaking to Reduxx, Bissonnette, who works as a psychologist in Jonquière, explains that she learned Walmsley was male one hour before she was set to step in the ring.

“I came down from my hotel room to head towards the room where all the boxers were warming up. My coach suddenly took me aside and told me he received information by text message, which he had then validated, that my opponent was not a woman by birth. We did not have any other additional information,” she says.

While information on Walmsley is limited, Bissonnette says he has absolutely no history fighting against women in Canadian tournaments, suggesting his identification into women’s sport was recent. Walmsley is originally from Australia, but moved to Canada around 2 years ago to attend Concordia University.

“[Walmsley] would have boxed as a man in Australia,” Bissonnette says. “In Quebec, on his file, it is mentioned that he had 0 fights as a woman.”

Since moving to Canada, Walmsley has been involved in political activism at the University-level as a Master’s student and teaching assistant in the philosophy department. Recent interviews with Walmsley show he has an overtly masculine appearance.

Following Bissonnette’s withdrawal, Walmsley issued a statement to the press accusing her of “outing” him and warning that similar actions would have a negative impact on female athletes.

“Rather than turning to me, my coach or the Quebec Olympic Boxing Federation for more information, she decided to turn directly to the media to out me,” wrote Walmsley. “This kind of behavior puts athletes at risk of being excluded or receiving personal attacks based on hearsay … I am afraid that this type of accusation could eventually be used to delegitimize athletes in the women’s category, and justify arbitrary and invasive regulations.”

Walmsley went on to assert that the best policy for gender self-identification in sport was for athletes to “trust” each other, and defer to coaches and policies in assumption that matches were made fairly.

But Bissonnette rejects Walmsley’s apparent call for handshake-based policies, noting that even under established guidelines it was unclear how he had been allowed to enter the match.

“The rule issued from Boxing Canada to the Quebec Boxing Federation was not to reveal that the opponent was transsexual, so that the latter would not be discriminated against. However, after confirmation, this policy only applies when a sex change has taken place before puberty,” she explains, noting that because Walmsley is a foreign national, his transition history is entirely unclear.

Following Bissonnette’s withdrawal, the competition was unable to find another woman in the super welterweight category (165lbs) to match against Walmsley, and he won by default.

The Quebec Boxing Federation was reportedly aware of Walmsley’s biological sex, but justified the fight by stating they had chosen an appropriate referee for the match. Ultimately, Bissonnette says her decision to withdraw came down to safety.

“According to a study, a male blow has 163% more impact than a women’s, even adjusted for weight,” she says, referring to a 2020 study on strength published by researchers at the University of Utah. “In the group studied, the weakest man remains physically superior to the strongest woman.”

Bissonnette goes on to note that women’s participation in combat sports is relatively recent, but may not last much longer if females are continuously paired up to fight males.

“Women shouldn’t have to bear the physical and psychological risks brought by a man’s decisions regarding his personal life and identity,” she continues. “There should be two categories: biological male and female.”

Bissonnette’s decision to refuse to fight Walmsley comes on the heels of several instances of similar protests by women across the sporting world.

As previously reported by Reduxx, women abandoned a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournament in Georgia last month in protest of the participation of multiple trans-identified males. As a result, one of the men took home four gold medals in the women’s category, and, in one of the divisions, only males were on the winner’s podium.

Female martial artists Jayden Alexander and Ansleigh Wilk spoke out against the North American Grappling Association (NAGA) for their gender self-identification policy, sparking a wildfire of backlash that ultimately resulted in NAGA fully segregating the divisions based on biological sex with “no exceptions.”

On November 13, a female pool player in England caused similar controversy after walking away from the table during a tournament in Wales in apparent protest of a trans-identified male who was competing.

With four federal byelections set in three provinces next month, one of those provinces, in particular, will likely draw the attention of political analysts.

“All eyes will turn to Manitoba on election night,” said Darrell Bricker, CEO of Ipsos Public Affairs.

On June 19, voters in the Manitoba ridings of Portage—Lisgar and Winnipeg South Centre will choose their next members of Parliament, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Sunday. Voters in the Ontario riding of Oxford and Quebec’s Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount will also head to the ballot box that night.

Full article

Tagging: @politicsofcanada

First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston

Evie Porter has everything a nice, Southern girl could want: a perfect, doting boyfriend, a house with a white picket fence and a garden, a fancy group of friends. The only catch: Evie Porter doesn’t exist. Evie can’t make any mistakes, because the one thing she’s worked her entire life to keep clean, the one identity she could always go back to—her real identity—just walked right into this town.

Monday, April 1, 2024

African Immigrants Have Revived a Remote Corner of Quebec (NYT) Not long ago, the handful of African immigrants in Rouyn-Noranda, a remote city in northern Quebec, all knew one another. There was the Nigerian woman long married to a Québécois man. The odd researchers from Cameroon or the Ivory Coast. And, of course, the doyen, a Congolese chemist who first made a name for himself driving a Zamboni at hockey games. Today, newcomers from Africa are everywhere—in the streets, supermarkets, factories, hotels, even at the church-basement boxing club. A couple from Benin has taken over Chez Morasse, a city institution that introduced a greasy spoon favorite, poutine, to this region. And women from several corners of West and Central Africa were chatting at the city’s new African grocery store, Épicerie Interculturelle. “Since last year, it’s like the gate of hell or the gate of heaven, something opened, and everybody just kept trooping in—I’ve never seen so many Africans in my life,” Folake Lawanson Savard, 51, the Nigerian whose husband is Québécois, said to loud laughter in the store.

Half of senior staffers in Congress are so fed up that they may quit (Washington Post) When it comes to job satisfaction, members of Congress aren’t the only ones considering calling it quits. Only about one in five senior aides on Capitol Hill believe that Congress is “functioning as a democratic legislature should,” and about the same margin believe that it is “an effective forum for debate” on key issues. Given those assessments by the people who live and breathe these issues, this particularly glum finding should not come as a surprise: Almost half of senior congressional aides are considering leaving the Hill because of “heated rhetoric from the other party.” These are just some of the findings from an investigation by the Congressional Management Foundation, a nonprofit that aims to improve both lawmaker effectiveness and constituent engagement.

Baltimore Bridge May Trigger Historic Marine Loss, Says Lloyd’s of London (Bloomberg) Insurance payouts for Tuesday’s collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore could be among the largest ever in marine insurance, according to Lloyd’s of London Chief Executive Officer John Neal. “This has the potential to be one of the largest marine losses in history,” Neal said in an interview with Bloomberg News on Thursday. “It’s a multi-billion dollar loss. I think it has to be but I think it is a little too early to say what you actually think it’s going to cost.” Insurance claims for damage to the bridge alone could reach $1.2 billion, Barclays said in its note, predicting further potential liabilities of $350 million to $700 million for wrongful deaths and yet-to-be-determined amounts for business interruptions while access to the city’s port is blocked.

The Baltimore collapse focused attention on vital bridges. Thousands are in poor shape across the US (AP) After a yearlong closure, a bridge over the Puyallup River reopened in 2019 with a sturdy new span and a brand new name. It even won a national award. But today, the Fishing Wars Memorial Bridge is closed again after federal officials raised concerns about a vintage section of the nearly century-old bridge that carried about 15,000 vehicles a day. It has no timetable to reopen because the city of Tacoma, Washington, first must raise millions of dollars to clean and inspect it. Bridges fulfill a vital function that often goes overlooked until lives are lost or disrupted by a closure or collapse, like that of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore early Tuesday. That bridge crumpled when struck by a cargo ship, not because of poor maintenance. But thousands of others stand in worse shape. About 42,400 U.S. bridges are in poor condition, yet they carry about 167 million vehicles each day, according to the federal government. Four-fifths of them have problems with the legs holding them up or the arms supporting their load.

Gunmen in Ecuador kill 8, injure 8 others in attack in coastal city of Guayaquil as violence surges (AP) rmed gunmen attacked a group of people in Ecuador ’s coastal city of Guayaquil killing eight people and injuring eight others, the Interior Ministry said, the latest in a string of violent incidents in the South American country. It was the second mass killing in as many days. On Friday, five people who had been kidnapped were killed execution style in the coastal province of Manabi by an armed gang. Police said there were signs the victims were tourists mistakenly caught up in a local drug-trafficking dispute.

When 18 nuns walk into a Spanish bar... (Reuters) A congregation of Catholic nuns has reopened a bar in an ancient sanctuary in northern Spain, pulling pints of beer in the hopes of spreading the word of God to thirsty guests visiting the 11th-century Romanesque site. “I think plenty of people would think it’s unusual, because they’ve never seen it. But you know, it’s not a sin to drink a beer,” said Miami-born Sister Guadalupe, adding that the bar constituted an “open door for us to evangelise”. The sisters, who belong to the Pilgrims of the Eucharist order, have taken over operations at the bar in the Sanctuary of Estibaliz outside the Basque city of Vitoria from its previous owners, a cadre of Benedictine monks, who had let a local association run the bar. The monastic brothers had lived there since 1923 but left in September 2022 due to dwindling numbers and old age. Last year, 18 nuns—most of them Colombian—moved in to look after the sanctuary and its pilgrims. “I love it because I always see them so happy and with a smile, they transmit a lot of peace and joy,” Maria Elena Saez, who expects to become a regular, said of the nuns.

Troop-Starved Ukrainian Brigades Turn to Marketing to Attract Recruits (NYT) Skyscraper-sized billboards show assault troops in battle gear emerging from a ball of flames. On street posters, soldiers urge passers-by to enlist, proclaiming that “victory is in your hands.” Take a seat on a high-speed train and chances are high that a television will be advertising jobs for drone operators. Slick recruiting campaigns brimming with nationalist fervor have become ubiquitous in Kyiv, the capital, and other Ukrainian cities in recent months. They are perhaps the most visible sign of a push to replenish Ukrainian troops depleted by more than two years of a brutal war—an effort that experts and officials say is crucial for fending off relentless Russian attacks. But most of the campaigns are not the work of the country’s political and military leadership. They are the initiatives of troop-starved brigades that have taken matters into their own hands, shunning an official mobilization system that they say is dysfunctional, often drafting people who are unfit and unwilling to fight.

Chinese ad for under-30s triggers outcry from older job-seekers (Reuters) A job advert from a Chinese grocery store seeking cashiers aged 18 to 30 has triggered a flood of anguished social media posts from older people scrambling to find work in a sluggish economy. Some said the ad highlighted the plight of a huge middle-aged section of the population as the government focuses on fighting high youth unemployment and finding positions for another record year of college graduates. There is no specific law against age discrimination, though state media last year criticised employers for “discriminatory” hiring practices, including seeking younger and cheaper workers, in what became widely referred to as the “Curse of 35”. “I’m 29,” one commenter wrote on Weibo. “I’ve been laid off three times since I graduated. Now, no one has replied to my resume even if I (write) I am unmarried and do not have a child.”

Dispute Over Conscription for Ultra-Orthodox Jews Presents New Threat to Netanyahu (NYT) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing his most challenging political threat since the start of the Gaza war because of a disagreement among members of his coalition about whether ultra-Orthodox Jews should retain their longstanding exemption from military service. An unwieldy right-wing alliance of secular and ultra-Orthodox lawmakers, the coalition’s members are divided about whether the state should continue to allow young ultra-Orthodox men to study at religious seminaries instead of serving in the military, as most other Jewish Israelis do. If the government abolishes the exemption, it risks a walkout from the ultra-Orthodox lawmakers; if it lets the exemption stand, the secular members could withdraw. Either way, the coalition could collapse. Criticized by many Israelis for presiding over the October disaster, Mr. Netanyahu is trailing in the polls and faces growing calls to resign. But until now, there were few obvious ways in which his coalition might collapse.

U.N. observers hurt in Lebanon blast (Washington Post) Four members of a United Nations peacekeeping team were injured in a blast in southern Lebanon, near a contentious demarcation line shared with Israel, the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) said in a statement. “The targeting of peacekeepers is unacceptable,” UNIFIL said, adding that it was “investigating the origin of the explosion.” The Israel Defense Forces denied any involvement. According to UNIFIL, an explosion happened Saturday when three military observers from the U.N. Truce Supervision Organization and an interpreter were conducting “a foot patrol along the Blue Line” near the Lebanese town of Rmeish. They were evacuated for medical care, UNIFIL said. Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said the military observers were from Australia, Chile and Norway and said they had been “targeted by an Israeli drone.” Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Manar TV also said there was “preliminary information” that an Israeli drone was behind the attack, citing its correspondent. Neither provided any evidence for the claim, and The Washington Post could not immediately verify the reports.

Extreme drought in southern Africa leaves millions hungry (AP) Delicately and with intense concentration, Zanyiwe Ncube poured her small share of precious golden cooking oil into a plastic bottle at a food aid distribution site deep in rural Zimbabwe. “I don’t want to lose a single drop,” she said. Her relief at the handout—paid for by the United States government as her southern African country deals with a severe drought—was tempered when aid workers gently broke the news that this would be their last visit. Ncube and her 7-month-old son she carried on her back were among 2,000 people who received rations of cooking oil, sorghum, peas and other supplies in the Mangwe district in southwestern Zimbabwe. The food distribution is part of a program funded by American aid agency USAID and rolled out by the United Nations’ World Food Programme. They’re aiming to help some of the 2.7 million people in rural Zimbabwe threatened with hunger because of the drought that has enveloped large parts of southern Africa since late 2023. It has scorched the crops that tens of millions of people grow themselves and rely on to survive, helped by what should be the rainy season.

Pope presides over Easter Vigil (AP) Pope Francis presided over the Vatican’s somber Easter Vigil service on Saturday night, delivering a 10-minute homily and baptizing eight people, a day after suddenly skipping the Good Friday procession at the Colosseum as a health precaution. The Vatican had said Francis skipped the Good Friday procession to ensure his participation in both the vigil service Saturday night, which usually lasts about two hours, and Easter Sunday Mass a few hours later. In his homily Francis referred to the stone that the faithful believe was removed from Christ’s tomb after his death. Francis urged Catholics to remove the stones in their lives that “block the door of our hearts, stifling life, extinguishing hope, imprisoning us in the tomb of our fears and regrets. Let us lift our eyes to him and ask that the power of his resurrection may roll away the heavy stones that weigh down our souls,” he said.

A female boxer withdrew from a provincial championship in Quebec after learning that her opponent was biologically male, leading to him winning the competition by default. Dr. Katia Bissonnette of Saguenay says she was matched against transgender fighter Mya Walmsley with no notice.

The 2023 Provincial Golden Glove Championship took place on October 27 and 29 in Victoriaville, Quebec, hosted by the Quebec Boxing Federation in collaboration with the KO-96 boxing club. But the tournament, which intended to give novices the opportunity to qualify for the Canadian Championship in December, attracted controversy after Bisonnette announced her withdrawal.

A look at CHARIOTS, 2 ways.

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The Neo-Anarchist’s Guide to North America for Shadowrun (1st Edition). Final Summary.

Introduction

California Free State

San Francisco

Confederated American States

Atlanta

Dallas/Fort Worth

Republic of Quebec

Quebec City

United Canadian and American States

Federal District of Columbia

Chicago

Chicago (2050) Google Maps overlay

New York City

The many checkerboards of Rick Harris

Along with Seattle Sourcebook and the Native American Nations Volumes One and Two, the NAGNA covers most of the rest of the North American Continent. The gaps, of course, would be filled in by future supplements, though not until 2nd edition:

Tir Tairngire, aka, Oregon goes Elven, gets an eponymous sourcebook 

Aztlan, aka, Mexico goes Corporate, also with an eponymous sourcebook

Denver, the treaty city, gets a boxed set in 2nd edition (Denver: City of Shadows)

Carib League is covered in Cyberpirates

Which means we are indeed getting to the end of 1st edition. 

No need to despair. Still a lot of Shadowrun to talk about.

Convoy organizers determined to stay, thank Ottawa residents for 'support'

Some of the main organizers for the “Freedom Convoy” decried Thursday that they had been painted as “racists, misogynists…and even terrorists,” and that no one from the federal or provincial government had met with them.

Tamara Lich, one of the leaders of the convoy, read a prepared statement “calling on all levels of government to lift all COVID-19 restrictions and mandates,” and vowed to stay on until there is a “solid plan” to see action on their demands.

Speaking at a press conference, Lich said lawyers for the convoy had sent GoFundMe “all the details they had asked for” in regards to the money raised for the truckers' protest on the platform and how it would be dispersed.

“We want to thank the hundreds of residents of Ottawa who have stepped forward to show us support, provided accommodations, food and just plain friendship to members of our convoy,” she said. “This love of community is what Canada is all about.”

Convoy lawyer Keith Wilson answered reporters' questions regarding the suspension of the convoy’s GoFundMe funds, saying the bulk of the money is still held by the fundraising platform, but that the group has taken “appropriate steps” to ensure the legal and accounting boxes are checked, including audit procedures, and that they hope to open the flow of donations again soon.

The group did not answer reporters’ follow-up questions. 

READ MORE: MPs agree to call GoFundMe to testify over trucker convoy fundraiser

Meanwhile, Ottawa is bracing for the upcoming weekend and the possibility of an influx of trucker convoy protesters as the demonstration enters another day in the nation’s capital.

Parts of Ottawa’s downtown core remain inaccessible to the public as a scaled-down, core group of protesters continue to occupy the areas surrounding Parliament Hill, with transport trucks and personal vehicles encamped on the streets.

Ottawa Police Service estimates the remaining group of protesters includes approximately 250 people.

In a statement issued Thursday, police said officers have issued 30 traffic tickets and charged one man criminally in relation to the protest.

“Police laid eight charges for unnecessary noise (honking horns), one for transporting dangerous goods (insecure fuel cans), one for improper muffler, four for disobeying signs, two for driving the wrong way in one way traffic, one unsafe lane change, one distracted driving, six speeding, one running a stop sign and five document offences,” the statement said.

One driver was charged for allegedly driving while criminally prohibited, and had their vehicle impounded for 45 days.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters on Thursday that he has no plans to call in the military to help Ottawa police contain or disperse the protest.

“One has to be very, very cautious before deploying military in situations engaging Canadians,” Trudeau said.

Read more: No plans to call in military, or meet with trucker convoy protesters: PM

The organizers of the convoy have scheduled a news conference Thursday at 1 p.m. EST to “address various issues surrounding their protest.”

A tractor convoy is being planned from Alexandria to Ottawa on Saturday in support of the truckers, according to a Facebook group with more than 1,900 followers.

Similar convoys are allegedly being planned this weekend in Toronto and Quebec City.

At a Wednesday briefing, Ottawa Police Service Chief Peter Sloly said the situation is “intolerable” and “unprecedented,” and that “all plans are on the table” to remove the protest: from a court injunction, to calling in the RCMP, and potentially requesting the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF).

However, in a statement emailed to CTV News late Wednesday, a spokesperson for the minister of national defence said “the Canadian Armed Forces are not involved in this situation, and there are no plans for such CAF involvement.” 

Recap: Day five of the trucker convoy protest

The director of communications for the minister of public safety has said that “the federal government has financial support available for the City of Ottawa in these types of situations through the Nation’s Capital Extraordinary Policing Costs Program.”

The program sets aside $15 million over five years to help cover policing costs incurred in the course of duties specific to Ottawa.

Deputy Chief Steve Bell said the remaining demonstrators were “highly volatile,” signalling a shift away from initial “demonstration-based activities.”

Residents of Ottawa fed up with the disruption have begun counter-protesting, aiming their frustration at the city, the police and the trucker convoy.

More serious reports of residents being harassed and threatened with rape and violence for wearing masks or being physically assaulted while walking in their neighbourhoods have caused uproar on social media and led to tense questions in Wednesday’s briefing between city councillors, the police and Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson.

Watson slammed several Conservative politicians on Twitter for supporting the convoy, calling their actions an “absolute disgrace.”

The Cornerstone Emergency Shelter for Women released a statement Wednesday outlining the trauma their clients and front-line support staff are facing due to the protest.

“Women and staff are scared to go outside of the shelter, especially women of colour, being able to go outside is the only reprieve many women experiencing homelessness have and they cannot even do that,” the statement reads. “The incessant honking and noise from the trucks have caused significant anxiety and distress for staff and shelter residents. Women have admitted themselves into hospital due to the increased trauma from the noise and fear.”

On Wednesday, Chief Dylan Whiteduck posted a statement on Twitter on behalf of the Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation and the Kigitgan Zibi Anishinabeg about the convoy and protest taking place in their traditional and unceded territory, calling it “unacceptable.”

“For those who are participating in these actions, the Algonquin Nation does not support the set up of a teepee, the pipe ceremony and a sacred fire in Confederation Park in support of the “Freedom Convoy.” 

There have been several instances of protesters either claiming to be a part of a First Nation, wearing regalia and lending their support to the convoy, or using sacred items like drums and taking part in ceremonies that have caused significant backlash on social media.

The statement said the Algonquin Nation did not give consent for their ceremonial practices to be used and warns those actions could cause more harm to “who we are as First Nations [and] Algonquin People.”

The statement was echoed by the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN) on Thursday. They said the convoy is “an insult to our Chiefs, our communities and to the hundreds of loved ones we’ve lost through this pandemic.”

Citing the “ignorant acts of cultural appropriation of First Nations culture and spirituality,” the statement decried the disrespect of “traditional drums, pipes and medicines” used by protesters.

“It’s a disgrace to see our culturally sacred items being used improperly, without proper protocol, in support of anti-vaccine protests” FSIN Chief Bobby Cameron said in the released statement. “The FSIN condemns such open acts of racism and ignorance which are being committed across our traditional Treaty territories.”

Speaking on CTV’s Your Morning Thursday, Liberal MP Greg Fergus decried the hate symbols that have been on display throughout the protest.

“It is totally unacceptable to me, it was shocking, it was frightening to see people who would carry those symbols…we have to go beyond calling it a symbol,” Fergus said. “The swastika and the Confederate flag really represent probably two of the worst eras in human history -- how we killed people through state-sponsored terrorism, to really dominate one group of people over another – it’s an unacceptable demonstration of that symbol in a public space and on Parliament Hill.”

Fergus said that while he thinks it is a very small minority of protesters who carry and believe in those symbols, it “disturbed” him that there was “no condemnation of those symbols while they were being carried and proudly displayed on the Hill.”

Fergus said the events left him wondering who would come to his rescue if adherents to those hate symbols decided to “act out” on him.

TRUCKER CONVOY GOFUNDME SUSPENDED

Online fundraising platform GoFundMe has suspended the “Freedom Convoy” fundraiser for the second time and is now under review, according to a pinned post on the fundraiser Wednesday night.

“This fundraiser is currently paused and under review to ensure it complies with our terms of service and applicable laws and regulations,” the post said.

Last Thursday, an initial $1 million was released to the organizers by GoFundMe after they received a plan for the money’s distribution to truckers to cover the cost of gas for the Parliament Hill protest.

By Wednesday, the fundraiser had attracted more than $10 million in pledges.

Donations for the convoy are still being collected through other platforms, but it is unclear who receives the money and how it is being spent. 

COUTTS BLOCKADE PARTIALLY LIFTED – ANOTHER APPEARS

Meanwhile in Alberta, the RCMP managed to negotiate a partial lifting of the Canada – U.S. border blockade at Coutts Wednesday night, with many of the protesters remaining in the area, but moving their vehicles to the side of the highway.

After that partial reopening, however, a second blockade was set up 18 kilometres to the north near Milk River.

"The RCMP have made some progress to re-open Hwy 4 from Milk River to the border. Currently travel is impeded at the north part of Hwy 4 where motorists can expect an RCMP escort to the border," the Alberta RCMP said in a tweet.

------

With a file from the Canadian Press and CTVNews.ca writer Alexandra Mae Jones

Joint Press Release Re: the Confederation Park and Truckers Convoy pic.twitter.com/rXv5wYB4g7

— Chief Dylan Whiteduck (@DylanWhiteduck) February 2, 2022

from CTV News - Atlantic https://ift.tt/2McGZKTxm

2020 World Championships in Montreal Cancelled

News roundup regarding the cancellation of the 2020 World Championships in Montreal. Please follow our twitter for real-time updates.

Skate Canada announcement:

With the uncertainty surrounding the spread of the COVID-19 virus, Skate Canada and the International Skating Union (ISU), were informed today by the Government of Quebec that they have cancelled the ISU World Figure Skating Championships® 2020. The event was scheduled to take place from March 16-22, 2020 in Montreal at Centre Bell.

Skate Canada and the International Skating Union (ISU) have closely monitored the provincial and federal health authorities position on the spread of the virus and fully respect the difficult decision made today.  Like the authorities, Skate Canada and the ISU are committed to the health and safety of the athletes, coaches, officials, volunteers and spectators.

Many stakeholders have been affected by the cancellation of the world championships, and Skate Canada and the ISU will be communicating directly with each group in the coming days. Any fan who has purchased tickets directly from the official ticket provider Evenko will receive details on the refund process in due course.

Skate Canada, in partnership with the local organizing committee, Patinage Quebec and all our partners, looked forward to hosting figure skating’s flagship event in Montreal. We thank you all for your efforts and commitment as we prepared to deliver a world-class event.

ISU announcement (excerpt):

Considering the current uncertain developments surrounding the Coronavirus pandemic, a rescheduling and/or relocation of the above-mentioned Championships within the current season, even if the season would be extended by several weeks after its normal end in early April, cannot be reasonably considered. During the coming weeks, the ISU will evaluate in cooperation with all stakeholders whether the ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2020 could possibly be held later in the year, but in any case not before October 2020. Before taking a final decision, the ISU will remain in close contact with Skate Canada and ISU Members.

Evenko regarding ticket refunds:

Clients that purchased via http://evenko.ca or by phone will automatically receive a refund on the credit card used to make the purchase. Please note that refunds can take up to ten (10) business days depending on the financial institution.

Customers that purchased their tickets in person must return to the Bell Centre Box office to obtain their refund.

Thanks to all skaters for the 2019-2020 season, and thanks to our followers for their support! We wish everyone a safe and healthy off season.

Liberal Party requests recount in tight Quebec race it lost to Bloc | CBC News

Liberal Party requests recount in tight Quebec race it lost to Bloc | CBC News

The Liberal Party is requesting a recount in the federal riding of Châteauguay-Lacolle after Elections Canada reported what it called a “potential anomaly” in the count that saw the Bloc Québécois candidate defeat the Liberal by 286 votes. Elections Canada confirms it detected a possible issue with one of the ballot boxes after the results had been finalized. The agency did not…

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Canada Set to Deliver Verdict in Testy Vote as PM’s Cakewalk Becomes Nail-Biter

Canada Set to Deliver Verdict in Testy Vote as PM’s Cakewalk Becomes Nail-Biter

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Canada Set to Deliver Verdict in Testy Vote as PM’s Cakewalk Becomes Nail-Biter

Canada Set to Deliver Verdict in Testy Vote as PM’s Cakewalk Becomes Nail-Biter

TORONTO (Sputnik) – Canada will choose its next government on Monday, putting an end to an inflammatory campaign in which Liberal Party leader Justin Trudeau… 20.09.2021, Sputnik International

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2021-09-20T06:27+0000

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At The WireOn Monday, all 338 of Canada’s House of Commons seats will be up for grabs with the winner of the election declared based on a much maligned first-past-the-post system, where candidates with the highest number of votes win without any further runoff ballots.At the time Governor General dissolved parliament, the governing Liberals held 155 federal seats – 15 fewer than the number needed for a majority government. Most analysts believe Trudeau triggered the election to reclaim the majority mandate lost in the 2019 federal election.However, despite the opportunistic timing of the election call – most pollsters had Trudeau several points ahead of the nearest competition at the time of the writ drop – the substantial lead quickly dissipated, and the governing Liberals have been forced to fight from behind throughout most of the campaign.The race comes down to Trudeau and and Conservative Party leader Erin O’Toole, with most projections showing the Liberals and Tories in a virtual tie.The Liberals holds a slight 30.8 percent to 30.5 percent lead over the Conservative Party of Canada, which is within the margin of error, according to a Nanos Research-CTV News-The Globe and Mail poll.Similarly, the latest Angus Reid Institute, Abacus Data, Ipsos, Leger and Mainstreet polls show the Liberals and Tories within two percentage points of each other.However, some are seeing the incumbent Liberals pulling away from the pack – EKOS Research has the Liberals nearly 3 points up on the Conservatives and a full 7 percent points clear in the vote-rich province of Ontario.Trudeau Brand CrumblesTrudeau’s ascension to world leader status began on 2 May 2011. The son of one of Canada’s most renowned political figures, former Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau, the younger Trudeau was one of only 34 Liberal parliamentarians elected in the 2011 federal election.The Liberals’, often referred to as Canada’s “natural governing party,” historic defeat at the polls opened the door for Trudeau, who was tasked with resuscitating the party at the party convention in 2013.Trudeau lived up to expectations, winning a majority government in 2015.The now Canadian leader’s meteoric rise is often attributed to his personal “brand.” The Montreal, Quebec native was young, charismatic, bold – participating in antics such as a 2012 charity boxing match with a Conservative senator – and an international media darling, breaking the mold of traditional Canadian politicians.However, since his election the Prime Minister has been involved in a myriad of scandals, including several high-profile allegations of corruption, turning a blind eye to sexual misconduct allegations – despite his claims of being a “feminist” – and the infamous “blackface” controversy.Throughout the campaign Trudeau, who leaves few people indifferent, has been dogged by protests, including some wild scenes of the Canadian prime minister being subjected to obscenities and in one instance pelted with gravel.Cory Morgan says that Trudeau rode the coattails of his famous family name and a personal appeal into office but is increasingly becoming a burden to the Liberal Party.“Trudeau’s tougher task will be convincing the party to keep him after the election even if he maintains his minority government,” Morgan added.Conservatives Shift to Center in Bid to Unseat TrudeauThe Conservative Party, meanwhile, has increasingly shifted to the centre in a bid to unseat Trudeau.O’Toole, who was elected party chief just one year earlier, has presented himself as a centrist and strong leader able to steer the party away from renewed conversation around social issues including same-sex marriage and abortion rights, which are considered to be settled in Canada, to policies where the Tories do well, such as the economy.However, the shift has not gone according to plan is not resonating with voters, analysts told Sputnik.Jacqueline Biollo, a Principal Consultant with Aurora Strategy Group, purports that Tories move to the centre has not been well received by potential voters.“They haven’t handled it well at all,” political strategist and columnist Clinton Desveaux said, speaking about the attempted shift.Desveaux said O’Toole has flip-flopped on several key issues, including gun control and the country’s carbon emissions pricing plan. The political strategist added that the Conservatives have been unable to substantively explain their position on vaccination mandates, including proposed plans to introduce proof of immunization documents, better known as “vaccine passports.”Spoilers AplentyThe 2021 federal election has been difficult to project for pollsters and analysts because of the various vote splitting scenarios in play.The Conservatives face a challenge from the populist conservative People’s Party of Canada (PPC), which could hinder the establishment Conservatives bid to unseat Trudeau’s Liberals come election day, political strategists told Sputnik.Support for the PPC ranges between 5 and 9 percent, most pollsters say, with the party led by Maxime Bernier eating just enough into Conservative Party support to cost them the election.The PPC surge has the Conservatives in “panic mode,” according to Desveaux. The political strategist believes that in Conservative strongholds such as Alberta, where the People’s Party commands as much as 19 percent support, there may be enough of a vote split in closely contested areas – usually in the cities of Calgary and Edmonton – to see the Tories lose important seats to rival Liberals and New Democrats.Meanwhile, the Liberal Party has its own vote-splitting concerns.Trudeau faces a stiff challenge from the left-wing New Democrat Party, led by Jagmeet Singh. Throughout the campaign Singh has presented his party as the authentic “progressive” party, hitting Trudeau for consistently missing climate targets, the federal government’s purchase of the Trans Mountain Pipeline project and the Liberals mixed results on reconciliation with the country’s indigenous community.In addition to the NDP, the Liberals have to be weary of the Bloc QuebecoisThe Liberals and the Bloc Quebecois are locked in a tight battle in Quebec, with the former holding a slight edge in the province. Trudeau’s Liberals and the Bloc often fight for the same voters in Quebec, and it is widely believed that the Prime Minister’s path to re-election runs through the province.While the Bloc struggled out of the gate, a debate question posed to leader Yves-Francois Blanchet about his party’s support for the “discriminatory” Bill 21 and 96 legislations has changed its political fortunes.The moderator’s characterization of the pieces of legislation, which opponents say limits the rights of the English-speaking population and religious minorities but are generally popular among Quebeckers, ignited a political firestorm in French-speaking Quebec drawing angry responses from provincial leaders and breathing new life into the Bloc Quebecois’ campaign.Greens in Survival Mode After Civil WarThe Green Party of Canada, which many predicted to be a rising force in the country’s political landscape after receiving nearly 1.2 million votes in the 2019 federal election, has been a shell of its former self during the 2021 campaign.The Party has been embroiled in civil war since the spring, allegedly triggered by differences over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict earlier this year, which couldn’t have come at worse time, political insiders tell Sputnik.The Party’s internal strife began with leader Annamie Paul, who was elected party leader less than 12 months ago, adopting a more conventional response to the renewed hostilities between Israel and Palestinian groups – calling for restraint on both sides.The approach did not sit well with the Party membership, Dimitri Lascaris, a former Green Party leadership candidate told Sputnik, explaining that Green Party supporters have overwhelmingly embraced the international movement to oppose Israel’s actions with respect to Palestine — Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS).The dysfunction was exacerbated by Paul’s former advisor, Noah Zatsman, who vowed to work to defeat Green Party parliamentarians and candidates, who criticized Israel and the defection of Jenica Atwin to the Liberals, citing the Party’s muted stance and Zatsman’s comments. Atwin was one of only three Green Party parliamentarians at the time of her defection.However, a source close to the party said in an interview that the Israel-Palestine conflict was the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back. The division within the Green Party are longstanding and stem from differences between politicians seeking actual political gains and dogmatic activists, seeking moral “wins,” the source said.Ahead of the election the Greens descended into a full-fledged civil conflict, with Federal Council openly at odds with Paul and court documents revealing that the party and Paul filed lawsuits against each other.The internal hostilities significant impaired the functioning of the Greens ahead of the election, the source said, revealing that fundraising and volunteer recruitment is significantly down.Desveaux said the Green appears to be functioning as a loose band of individual candidates, calling the Party’s campaign an “unmitigated disaster,” and predicting that Paul’s days as leader are numbered. Key Issues For VotersThe ongoing COVID-19 pandemic appears to be the issue on voters’ minds as the country enters election day.Other key priorities include the environment and the economy, although concrete policy discussion hasn’t featured heavily during the campaign. Issues including the country’s reconciliation with its First Peoples and affordability – acute topics ahead of the election – have featured far less frequently in the past 35 days.Meanwhile, PPC leader Maxime Bernier, whose party has become one of the top stories of the election, believes that Canadians’ apathy towards their political system is driving the talk of the campaign.Bernier, whose party has vehemently opposed mandatory vaccination measures, adds that Canadians are “fed up” with mask mandates, which are still in place in most parts of the country despite its high vaccination rates, as well as talk of mandatory vaccination and vaccine passports.Others may not have an issue close to heart and vote for a specific candidate, Nelson Wiseman, a political science professor at the University of Toronto, said.Canadians Increasingly Voting ‘Against’ Not ‘For’Desveaux also notes that Canadians are voting for “against” policies, issues, parties and candidates as opposed to voting for positive change.“Voters are voting ‘against’ something across all party lines,” Desveaux said, highlighting PPC supporters’ contempt for vaccination mandates, centrists’ concerns about the Conservative Party and left-wing backlash against the governing Liberals. Foreign PolicyRegardless of the election results, Canada’s foreign policy, which has received very little attention throughout the campaign is likely to remain the same after 20 September, foreign policy experts told Sputnik.While questions about Canada’s messy withdrawal from Afghanistan dominated discussion during the first few weeks of the campaign, other foreign relations priorities have largely been ignored and in the final days ahead of election day discussion has almost entirely shifted to domestic issues.Reflective of Canada’s foreign policy discussion shutout is the lack of international media attention to the country’s national election.Paul Robinson, a political science professor at the University of Ottawa, told Sputnik that the lack of foreign interest in the election is indicative of the fact that Canada is not seen as a major player on the global stage, a sentiment expressed by Blanchet during the national debates, and that the country isn’t seen as an independent actor.Bringing Together a Divided CountryWhoever comes out on top on 20 September, faces a tall order in uniting a country after a 36-day campaign marked by protests, partisanship and, at times, personal attacks.The sentiment is reflected in the polls, where most voters say that none of the parties deserve a majority and are holding out hope for a minority government.

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At The Wire

On Monday, all 338 of Canada’s House of Commons seats will be up for grabs with the winner of the election declared based on a much maligned first-past-the-post system, where candidates with the highest number of votes win without any further runoff ballots.

At the time Governor General dissolved parliament, the governing Liberals held 155 federal seats – 15 fewer than the number needed for a majority government. Most analysts believe Trudeau triggered the election to reclaim the majority mandate lost in the 2019 federal election.

However, despite the opportunistic timing of the election call – most pollsters had Trudeau several points ahead of the nearest competition at the time of the writ drop – the substantial lead quickly dissipated, and the governing Liberals have been forced to fight from behind throughout most of the campaign.

The race comes down to Trudeau and and Conservative Party leader Erin O’Toole, with most projections showing the Liberals and Tories in a virtual tie.

The Liberals holds a slight 30.8 percent to 30.5 percent lead over the Conservative Party of Canada, which is within the margin of error, according to a Nanos Research-CTV News-The Globe and Mail poll.

Similarly, the latest Angus Reid Institute, Abacus Data, Ipsos, Leger and Mainstreet polls show the Liberals and Tories within two percentage points of each other.

However, some are seeing the incumbent Liberals pulling away from the pack – EKOS Research has the Liberals nearly 3 points up on the Conservatives and a full 7 percent points clear in the vote-rich province of Ontario.

Trudeau Brand Crumbles

Trudeau’s ascension to world leader status began on 2 May 2011. The son of one of Canada’s most renowned political figures, former Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau, the younger Trudeau was one of only 34 Liberal parliamentarians elected in the 2011 federal election.

The Liberals’, often referred to as Canada’s “natural governing party,” historic defeat at the polls opened the door for Trudeau, who was tasked with resuscitating the party at the party convention in 2013.

Trudeau lived up to expectations, winning a majority government in 2015.

The now Canadian leader’s meteoric rise is often attributed to his personal “brand.” The Montreal, Quebec native was young, charismatic, bold – participating in antics such as a 2012 charity boxing match with a Conservative senator – and an international media darling, breaking the mold of traditional Canadian politicians.

However, since his election the Prime Minister has been involved in a myriad of scandals, including several high-profile allegations of corruption, turning a blind eye to sexual misconduct allegations – despite his claims of being a “feminist” – and the infamous “blackface” controversy.

Throughout the campaign Trudeau, who leaves few people indifferent, has been dogged by protests, including some wild scenes of the Canadian prime minister being subjected to obscenities and in one instance pelted with gravel.

Cory Morgan says that Trudeau rode the coattails of his famous family name and a personal appeal into office but is increasingly becoming a burden to the Liberal Party.

“While the Trudeau brand may be losing its shine right now, the Liberal brand itself is as strong as ever. People are supporting the party rather than the leader at this time and it likely will maintain the status quo in this election,” Morgan, a political commentator and a columnist with the Western Standard, told Sputnik.

“Trudeau’s tougher task will be convincing the party to keep him after the election even if he maintains his minority government,” Morgan added.

Conservatives Shift to Center in Bid to Unseat Trudeau

The Conservative Party, meanwhile, has increasingly shifted to the centre in a bid to unseat Trudeau.

O’Toole, who was elected party chief just one year earlier, has presented himself as a centrist and strong leader able to steer the party away from renewed conversation around social issues including same-sex marriage and abortion rights, which are considered to be settled in Canada, to policies where the Tories do well, such as the economy.

However, the shift has not gone according to plan is not resonating with voters, analysts told Sputnik.

Jacqueline Biollo, a Principal Consultant with Aurora Strategy Group, purports that Tories move to the centre has not been well received by potential voters.

“These efforts have seen [disingenuous] and the undecided voters may not step up to the plate to support the Conservatives in numbers that would substantially help the party win the election,” Biollo told Sputnik.

“They haven’t handled it well at all,” political strategist and columnist Clinton Desveaux said, speaking about the attempted shift.

Desveaux said O’Toole has flip-flopped on several key issues, including gun control and the country’s carbon emissions pricing plan. The political strategist added that the Conservatives have been unable to substantively explain their position on vaccination mandates, including proposed plans to introduce proof of immunization documents, better known as “vaccine passports.”

Spoilers Aplenty

The 2021 federal election has been difficult to project for pollsters and analysts because of the various vote splitting scenarios in play.

The Conservatives face a challenge from the populist conservative People’s Party of Canada (PPC), which could hinder the establishment Conservatives bid to unseat Trudeau’s Liberals come election day, political strategists told Sputnik.

Support for the PPC ranges between 5 and 9 percent, most pollsters say, with the party led by Maxime Bernier eating just enough into Conservative Party support to cost them the election.

The PPC surge has the Conservatives in “panic mode,” according to Desveaux. The political strategist believes that in Conservative strongholds such as Alberta, where the People’s Party commands as much as 19 percent support, there may be enough of a vote split in closely contested areas – usually in the cities of Calgary and Edmonton – to see the Tories lose important seats to rival Liberals and New Democrats.

Meanwhile, the Liberal Party has its own vote-splitting concerns.

Trudeau faces a stiff challenge from the left-wing New Democrat Party, led by Jagmeet Singh. Throughout the campaign Singh has presented his party as the authentic “progressive” party, hitting Trudeau for consistently missing climate targets, the federal government’s purchase of the Trans Mountain Pipeline project and the Liberals mixed results on reconciliation with the country’s indigenous community.

“The reality of vote-splitting on the left is more crucial for the Liberals to consider their messaging to their base and differentiate themselves from the NDP if they want to secure a majority, or even minority government win at this point,” Biollo said.

In addition to the NDP, the Liberals have to be weary of the Bloc Quebecois

The Liberals and the Bloc Quebecois are locked in a tight battle in Quebec, with the former holding a slight edge in the province. Trudeau’s Liberals and the Bloc often fight for the same voters in Quebec, and it is widely believed that the Prime Minister’s path to re-election runs through the province.

While the Bloc struggled out of the gate, a debate question posed to leader Yves-Francois Blanchet about his party’s support for the “discriminatory” Bill 21 and 96 legislations has changed its political fortunes.

The moderator’s characterization of the pieces of legislation, which opponents say limits the rights of the English-speaking population and religious minorities but are generally popular among Quebeckers, ignited a political firestorm in French-speaking Quebec drawing angry responses from provincial leaders and breathing new life into the Bloc Quebecois’ campaign.

Greens in Survival Mode After Civil War

The Green Party of Canada, which many predicted to be a rising force in the country’s political landscape after receiving nearly 1.2 million votes in the 2019 federal election, has been a shell of its former self during the 2021 campaign.

The Party has been embroiled in civil war since the spring, allegedly triggered by differences over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict earlier this year, which couldn’t have come at worse time, political insiders tell Sputnik.

The Party’s internal strife began with leader Annamie Paul, who was elected party leader less than 12 months ago, adopting a more conventional response to the renewed hostilities between Israel and Palestinian groups – calling for restraint on both sides.

The approach did not sit well with the Party membership, Dimitri Lascaris, a former Green Party leadership candidate told Sputnik, explaining that Green Party supporters have overwhelmingly embraced the international movement to oppose Israel’s actions with respect to Palestine — Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS).

The dysfunction was exacerbated by Paul’s former advisor, Noah Zatsman, who vowed to work to defeat Green Party parliamentarians and candidates, who criticized Israel and the defection of Jenica Atwin to the Liberals, citing the Party’s muted stance and Zatsman’s comments. Atwin was one of only three Green Party parliamentarians at the time of her defection.

However, a source close to the party said in an interview that the Israel-Palestine conflict was the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back. The division within the Green Party are longstanding and stem from differences between politicians seeking actual political gains and dogmatic activists, seeking moral “wins,” the source said.

Ahead of the election the Greens descended into a full-fledged civil conflict, with Federal Council openly at odds with Paul and court documents revealing that the party and Paul filed lawsuits against each other.

The internal hostilities significant impaired the functioning of the Greens ahead of the election, the source said, revealing that fundraising and volunteer recruitment is significantly down.

Desveaux said the Green appears to be functioning as a loose band of individual candidates, calling the Party’s campaign an “unmitigated disaster,” and predicting that Paul’s days as leader are numbered. 

Key Issues For Voters

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic appears to be the issue on voters’ minds as the country enters election day.

Other key priorities include the environment and the economy, although concrete policy discussion hasn’t featured heavily during the campaign. Issues including the country’s reconciliation with its First Peoples and affordability – acute topics ahead of the election – have featured far less frequently in the past 35 days.

“The two defining issues are: Who is best positioned to handle the [pandemic] and who is best positioned to open up our economy, while dealing with the COVID problem,” Desveaux said.

Meanwhile, PPC leader Maxime Bernier, whose party has become one of the top stories of the election, believes that Canadians’ apathy towards their political system is driving the talk of the campaign.

“I believe that people want to send a strong signal to these establishment politicians – they don’t want more government control. I believe they want more freedom,” Bernier said in an interview with Sputnik. “I believe that some of our candidates will be elected and we will have a real freedom voice in Ottawa, a common sense voice in Ottawa that will be ready to fight for all Canadians.”

Bernier, whose party has vehemently opposed mandatory vaccination measures, adds that Canadians are “fed up” with mask mandates, which are still in place in most parts of the country despite its high vaccination rates, as well as talk of mandatory vaccination and vaccine passports.

Others may not have an issue close to heart and vote for a specific candidate, Nelson Wiseman, a political science professor at the University of Toronto, said.

“Different voters cite different issues. Some don’t cite issues at all, they refer to the leader they trust or like more,” Wiseman told Sputnik.

Canadians Increasingly Voting ‘Against’ Not ‘For’

Desveaux also notes that Canadians are voting for “against” policies, issues, parties and candidates as opposed to voting for positive change.

“Voters are voting ‘against’ something across all party lines,” Desveaux said, highlighting PPC supporters’ contempt for vaccination mandates, centrists’ concerns about the Conservative Party and left-wing backlash against the governing Liberals.

“It is a mix. Some vote to keep the Conservatives out, others vote to keep the Liberals in. Some may say they are voting for a particular party because it is more sympathetic to enriching social policy programs like health care and education,” Wiseman said, noting that the possibilities are infinite.

Foreign Policy

Regardless of the election results, Canada’s foreign policy, which has received very little attention throughout the campaign is likely to remain the same after 20 September, foreign policy experts told Sputnik.

While questions about Canada’s messy withdrawal from Afghanistan dominated discussion during the first few weeks of the campaign, other foreign relations priorities have largely been ignored and in the final days ahead of election day discussion has almost entirely shifted to domestic issues.

“The reason there isn’t much discussion is that there isn’t much to disagree about,” said Radhika Desai, a professor of political studies at the University of Manitoba. “Neither the Liberals or the Conservatives have anything to gain by creating a controversy around foreign policy… it is very hard to see light between the two of them.”

Reflective of Canada’s foreign policy discussion shutout is the lack of international media attention to the country’s national election.

Paul Robinson, a political science professor at the University of Ottawa, told Sputnik that the lack of foreign interest in the election is indicative of the fact that Canada is not seen as a major player on the global stage, a sentiment expressed by Blanchet during the national debates, and that the country isn’t seen as an independent actor.

TORONTO (Sputnik) – Canada will choose its next government on Monday, putting an end to an inflammatory campaign in which Liberal Party leader Justin Trudeau was expected to coast to a majority government but finds himself in a tight race as voters head to the polls.“What’s the interest? Why should they cover it? Especially when so much else going on around the world,” said Desai.

Bringing Together a Divided Country

Whoever comes out on top on 20 September, faces a tall order in uniting a country after a 36-day campaign marked by protests, partisanship and, at times, personal attacks.

The sentiment is reflected in the polls, where most voters say that none of the parties deserve a majority and are holding out hope for a minority government.

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The name.

Why this name "nurse project"? On second thought, it shouldn't be since the project of being a nurse is already in the final stages, in a year I'm graduated in nursing at the federal university. However, at the same time, it couldn’t be another. It's through nursing, because it's so in demand that I'm going to immigrate. Immigration for nurses is facilitated in Canada, mainly Quebec, a pity that I prefer Ontario. My biggest hindrance with Quebec is simply the language.

But that's it, that's the name. Just being "Project Canada" wouldn't be so cool.

Oh sure, this project wouldn't be possible without my boyfriend. He really wants to go out, and without his support I don't think that would even be possible. And to think that a year ago I wouldn't even think about leaving, I was studying for residency. Well, life is a box of surprises! Glad he showed up in mine. Thank you God!

Great Inventors: They called Marconi a lunatic

It was during the summer of 1894 when an unknown twenty-year-old Italian by the name of Guglielmo Marconi called his parents into a room to show them how he could make a bell, on a far wall, ring by simply pressing a button. He had done so by using electromagnetic radiation, first introduced by the German physicist Heinrich Hertz in 1888.

Once Marconi’s father, a wealthy landowner, had checked for trickery (there were no wires) he handed over the contents of his wallet; enabling his son to buy the equipment he needed for some even more ambitious experiments. Within a year Marconi was able to send and receive electronic signals over a distance of two and a half kilometres, both around hills and through buildings. Convinced of the value of his invention, particularly to the military and the telegraph companies who were busy stringing wiring all over the world, Marconi wrote to Pietro Lacava, the Italian politician who had become the Minister for Post and Telegraphs in 1889, outlining his ‘wireless telegraph’ and requesting funding. Marconi never received a reply although the document did turn up much later at the ministry with the words ‘to the Longara’ scrawled across the top; a reference to the infamous lunatic asylum on Via della Lungara in Rome. Meanwhile the young Italian continued with his experiments, achieving ever improving results over longer distances and decided to travel to England in 1896 where he presented his ideas to William Preece, the Chief Electrical Engineer of the British Post Office, who had himself been experimenting with wireless transmission since 1892. Preece immediately recognised the value of Marconi’s new technology and introduced it to the Royal Society during a lecture called ‘Signalling through Space without Wires’ which was given in London on 4 June 1897, the very same year that the President of the very same Society, Lord Kelvin, had piously announced ‘Radio technology has no future.’ However, by early 1899 Marconi was transmitting wireless messages between Cornwall and France and in November of that year he was invited to America to demonstrate his equipment. On the return journey aboard the SS St Paul, Marconi and his assistants set up a transmitter and the passenger liner became the first in history to report its estimated arrival time from a distance of sixty-six miles short of the English coast. By 1902 Marconi had managed to transmit and receive messages between North America and Europe, he had built a station at South Wellfleet in Massachusetts and on 18 January 1903 famously connected the American President, Theodore Roosevelt, with the English King Edward VII in what was the first ever transatlantic wireless communication, using Morse Code, between America and mainland Europe. Within a decade Marconi’s company had built powerful transmitters on both sides of the Atlantic and was responsible for nearly all of the communication between ship and land, even establishing a nightly news service for Captains to relay to their passengers. It was a Marconi wireless telegram that alerted the British police to the likelihood that the notorious murderer Dr Crippen was heading for Quebec aboard the Canadian Pacific Liner SS Montrose, allowing detectives to board a faster ship and arrest him on his arrival on 31st July 1910. Albert Jack's 'AWESOME INVENTIONS' It was the first time wireless communication had ever been used to catch a killer. Marconi’s wireless telegram station also received news of the sinking of the Titanic in April 1912, allowing messages to be relayed to other ships in the area and saving countless lives in the process. As hard as it is to imagine now, it is quite possible that, without Marconi’s technology, all lives would have been lost and the sinking of the Titanic may, today, remain a mystery as nobody would ever have known why she failed to arrive in New York.  In the same way that had the equipment been developed a little sooner then the fate of the Mary Celeste would not be a mystery. Ironically, the inventor himself had been offered free passage aboard the Titanic’s maiden voyage but had instead chosen to travel three days earlier on another ship. Back in the Marconi Station an employee called David Sarnoff was co-ordinating the rescue efforts and listing the names of the known survivors. Apparently he alone manned the station for seventy-two hours without a break, or so he claimed, but this was not how Sarnoff would secure his place in wireless radio history. Sarnoff has an even better story than that. For it was David Sarnoff, an ambitious Marconi employee, who realised there was a much greater potential for the use of wireless radio waves than simple point to point communication. The telephone had already been providing that service since 1892, albeit with the use of wires that limited its reach. Sarnoff, on the other hand, recognized that the same message could be picked up by multiple receivers, if they were all using the same radio wave frequency. If he could have one listener, he reasoned, then why not one hundred, or one million, or even ten million, for exactly the same cost to the broadcasting company? But he had to be cautious as in 1913 an inventor called Lee de Forest (1873 – 1961) who worked at the Federal Telegraph Company was being sued by the United States Federal Attorney, on behalf of shareholders who felt they had been defrauded by his own plans to develop wireless radio. The Prosecuting Attorney is recorded claiming that, ‘Lee de Forest has said in many newspapers and over his signature that it would be possible to transmit the human voice across the Atlantic before many years. Based on these absurd and deliberately misleading statements, the misguided public has been persuaded to purchase stock in his company.’ de Forest was later acquitted but nearly bankrupted in the process. Sarnoff learned the lessons and, instead of making public announcements, he quietly experimented until he hit upon the idea of broadcasting music, from a gramophone player. It was the first time the radio wave technology had been thought of as a medium for entertainment, rather than for transmitting information. His colleagues were less than impressed and one famously commented, ‘The wireless music box has no imaginable commercial value. Who would pay for a message sent to nobody in particular?’ Undeterred, in 1916 Sarnoff outlined his ideas in a memo to Edward J Nally, a vice president and General Manager at Marconi who, whilst recognising the potential, deferred the idea as the company was already stretching their resources thanks to the ongoing First World War. In 1919 The General Electric Company of America bought Marconi and Sarnoff again submitted his memo, this time to Owen D. Young the new Chief Executive who had formed the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) during the same year which had dealt primarily with military communications. Again Sarnoff was ignored but with the increase of amateur radio enthusiasts, using self-built receivers all across America, Sarnoff finally demonstrated the potential of his idea by arranging commentary of a heavyweight boxing match between the legendary Jack Dempsey and the French war hero Georges Carpentier on July 2nd 1921. It was billed as the fight of the century and the first with a million dollar ticket sales as nearly 100,000 people turned up to watch. Meanwhile a staggering 300,000 people listened to Sarnoff’s radio commentary on crackling, home-made receivers all across the country. By the end of that year the demand for home radio equipment had become so large that transmitting stations were popping up in every state and the radio industry had been born, despite the predictions of esteemed American inventor Thomas Edison who claimed, in 1922, that ‘the radio craze will soon die out in time.’ Sour grapes for Mr Edison? In truth, in modern times nearly 85% of Americans still listen to the radio at some point in each day, as do more than 90% of all Europeans. So, whatever happened to the Italian politician Pietro Lacava who had suggested Marconi was a lunatic as a twenty-year-old? Well, he went on to enjoy spells as the Minister for Trade and Industry and Minister for Finance in successive Italian Governments. No wonder the Italians never achieved meaningful anything after the Renaissance. I thought it was because they were all too busy having sex and watching football. Instead it seems to be because they had men like Lacava in charge. He died peacefully on Boxing Day in 1912, three years after the lunatic Marconi had been awarded a Nobel Prize for his work. – Albert Jack Albert Jack AUDIOBOOKS available for download here  

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Migrate To Canada under Skilled Visa? Begin Your Journey Today.

1) Canada Express Entry Program

 Canada has gained notoriety for its diversity and economic development. It has made a society of blended dialects, cultures, and religions. Are you looking for a Canadian immigration consultancy in the UAE?

 It can be a hassle-free process for you with the expert assistance of the best immigration consultant in UAE. Yellow Box the Canadian visa experts are well aware of the entire process and guide you from the applying process to the time till you secure a visa to live in Canada.

 The competent and dedicated team of Yellow Box Consultants will help you to immigrate to Canada by guiding you with the required documentation and the complete procedure. Our teams' proficiency will improve your chance of securing a visa. For more information about the skilled workers, visas contact us.

  Canada Permanent Resident Visa

 Canada Immigration allows immigrants across the world to enter and settle in Canada permanently and enjoy the rights and privileges in the country without being its citizen.

 Benefits of Canada permanent resident visa

 Receive most social benefits that Canadian citizens receive, including health care coverage. 

Live, work or study anywhere in Canada.

Apply for Canadian citizenship.

Get protection under Canadian law and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

  Canada Permanent Resident

As a Canadian permanent resident, you and your dependents cannot

Vote or run for political office.

Hold certain jobs that have a high-level security clearance requirement.

Remain in Canada if you are convicted of a serious criminal offense and have been told to leave the country.

To maintain permanent immigration status, you need to stay at least 2 years within a 5 year period.

 PR for Canada

There are many categories to choose from to apply PR for Canada. They are :

Federal Skilled Worker

Federal Skilled Trades Program

Quebec Selected Skilled Workers

Canadian Experience Class

Investors Entrepreneurs and Self Employed

Family Sponsorship

Live-in Caregivers

PNP programs.

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  Eligibility

 To be Eligible to Apply You Require:

Language Proficiency of CLB 7 or more

Be eligible to work in Canada

You must have proof that you have enough money to support yourself and your family after you reach Canada

Having at least 1 year of full-time skilled work experience

A diploma or degree certificate

 2) Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program

The region of Canada comprising the four provinces located on the Atlantic coast, – New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island – Newfoundland, and Labrador. The population of the four Atlantic provinces in 2016 was about 2,300,000. The provinces combined had an approximate GDP of $121.888 billion in 2011.

The Atlantic Immigration Pilot helps you hire qualified candidates for jobs you haven’t been able to fill locally. These candidates can be overseas or living in Canada temporarily. There are 3 programs you can use to hire someone :

Atlantic International Graduate Program

Atlantic High-skilled Program

Atlantic Intermediate-skilled Program

Each program has requirements that the designated employer & the candidate must meet. If the designated employer and the candidate meet all the requirements, the candidate gets permanent resident status in Canada

 Below Four Provinces comes under the Atlantic Program :

 New Brunswick – (NBPNP) is a provincial immigration program made possible through an agreement with the Government of Canada. As an economic program, the NBPNP selects and nominates, qualified business people and skilled workers from around the world who will live in New Brunswick and contribute to the local economy.

Newfoundland and Labrador - (NLPNP) can provide an alternate and quicker entry into Canada. It allows NL to nominate applicants who qualify under provincially established criteria for permanent residence (PR). The NLPNP offers:

Nova Scotia - (NSPNP) The Nova Scotia Demand: Express Entry stream selects highly skilled individuals who wish to live in Nova Scotia permanently. Applicants must have a good chance of quickly finding a job in Nova Scotia’s labor market.

Prince Edward Island – (PEI PNP) The Prince Edward Island Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) nominates individuals to the federal government for permanent residency.

 3) Provincial Nominee Program

Are you planning to immigrate under the (PNP) Provincial Nominee Program?

Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) plays a very vital role for your migration process as they need to cover nearly 200,000 immigrants to obtain Permanent residence visa via Provincial Nominee Program by the end of 2021. Every province having its own government and each province having a set of criteria of selection for individuals or families who wish to settle down in Canada through the Provincial Nominee Program. To get nominated under PNP the applicant must approach a Canadian province or a territory.

The provinces are:

Alberta

British Columbia

Manitoba

New Brunswick

Newfoundland and Labrador

Nova Scotia

Ontario

Prince Edward Island

Quebec

Saskatchewan

 Territories:

Northwest Territories

Nunavut

Yukon

An applicant must show their interest to the designated province government or territory by submitting their application online.

 4) Rural And Northern Immigration Pilot

The Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot is a community-driven program. It’s designed to spread the benefits of economic immigration to smaller communities by creating a path to permanent residence for skilled foreign workers who want to work and live in one of the participating communities

North Bay, ON

Sudbury, ON

Timmins, ON

Sault Ste. Marie, ON

Thunder Bay, ON

Brandon, MB

Altona/Rhineland, MB

Moose Jaw, SK

Claresholm, AB

Vernon, BC

West Kootenay, BC

 Eligibility Criteria for Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot Program:

 Employment Requirements: You need 1 year of continuous work experience (at least 1,560 hours) in the past 3 years. The hours must be in 1 occupation, but they can be with different employers.

  English Language Requirements:

 NOC O and A: CLB/NCLC 6

NOC B: CLB/NCLC 5

NOC C and D: CLB/NCLC 4

Educational credential assessment (ECA): A report from a designated organization or professional body, showing that you completed a foreign credential that’s equal to Canadian secondary school (high school).

Moving to Canada can be complicated. Navigating the Canadian immigration and citizenship application process can be challenging. Yellow Box Immigration, a highly experienced professional, We will navigate your Canadian Immigration process on your behalf. You can rely on our expertise.

"Summer Ducks" by Gary Helm Without question, the Wood Duck (Aix sponsa) is one of the most colorful of all North American waterfowl. It has a striking mixture of iridescent blues, greens, and purples contrasted by white stripes and patches. Its coloration has made it the most sought-after duck by hunters and birdwatchers. It is known in Florida as the "summer duck" and the "acorn duck." By the early 1900s, this highly desirable species was near extinction because of improper hunting regulations and habitat loss. With the Federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act in 1918, hunting of these birds was restricted. Also, wildlife officials developed a management program to increase wood duck numbers. This program consists of yearly monitoring of the population, appropriate hunting regulations based on monitoring data, captive breeding, and the use of nest boxes. Due to the success of this program, the wood duck is now one of the most abundant waterfowl species in North America. Both drake (male) and hen (female) wood ducks can be distinguished from other flying ducks by their relatively large head, short neck, and long square tail. These ducks also have a long, slicked-back head crest. Male wood ducks have larger chins than female wood ducks, and they have finger-like extensions on the chin and neck. Like most duck species, the male is more colorful, with a red bill and eyes. Females are mostly gray and brown with a white ring around their eyes. The drake's high-pitched whistle, "jeeeee" and the hen's low, owl-like "whoo-w-eet" call can be heard as they fly. Wood ducks are commonly found throughout North America from British Columbia and Quebec, Canada, as far south as Mexico and Florida. The wood duck is one of the few duck species that breed and nest in Florida. In addition, wood ducks that nest in higher latitudes migrate south and overwinter in Florida and other states bordering the Gulf of Mexico. Some individuals migrate to Mexico and Cuba. Migration back north occurs in mid-March. I found this Hen and Drake in Lake Pierce. Polk County, Florida. https://flic.kr/p/2kQpY6E