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Oct 24 2023

Chinese Spamouflage. Hamas atrocities. MPP out. The Roundup

Oct 24, 2023
David Akin's Roundup
Clippings of #cdnpoli, #media, and #tech content aimed at those with an interest in Canadian politics and policy. And sometimes Canadian postage stamps.
Canada
Spy director says Canada ‘blocked’ Chinese acquisitions over espionage concerns
CSIS Director David Vigneault says China-backed groups have attempted to purchase “locations” close to sensitive sites over concerns of spying. [Global]
Spamouflage networks are largely contained within their own echo chambers of fake users and rarely garner organic engagement from real users, Global Affairs Canada said. [Global]
The disruption at the St. Lawrence Seaway comes after a major strike by B.C. port workers earlier this summer that halted the movement of cargo worth billions. [Global]
The St. Lawrence Seaway strike has led to various industry groups calling for a swift resolution. In Manitoba, farmers are left worrying about the fate of their grain and exports. [Global]
'I don't think that Indigenous peoples were at large opposed with this bill, and I don't think hunters or sports groups oppose this legislation,' the public safety minister told senators Monday. [National Post]

MPs were about to hear from top RCMP officials on why they did not pursue a criminal investigation in relation to the SNC-Lavalin affair. [National Post]

Surveillance aircraft that Canada wants to purchase in $8 billion deal facing problems with supply of parts and reliability. [Ottawa Citizen]
The Crown stayed a bail breach charge against "Freedom Convoy' organizer Tamara Lich linked to a photo with Tom Marazzo last summer, despite a no-contact order. [Global]
Enterprises in eight countries account for about 90 per cent of foreign-controlled assets in Canada, with a little more than half located in the United States. [Global]
Israel-Gaza
Hamas posts video of Israeli woman's murder on victim's Facebook profile
New details are emerging about some of the atrocities Hamas has committed, as the Israeli government releases bodycam video taken by Hamas fighters who went on murderous rampages.  Global News has also spoken with the heartbroken daughter of Nir Oz resident Bracha Levinson, 74, whose lifeless body was captured on a video uploaded to her Facebook profile. [Global National]
The release of the two women was confirmed by the International Red Cross as the U.S. sought to delay a ground offensive into Gaza in order to secure more captives. [Global]
The Times’s initial accounts of the blast attributed the claim of Israeli responsibility to Palestinian officials, and noted that the Israeli military said it was investigating the blast. However, the early versions of the coverage relied too heavily on claims by Hamas. [NYT]
On coverage of the Gaza hospital blast. “I’m really proud of the way we’ve covered this event,” Jehl said. The Post went with the headline “Hundreds feared killed in strike on Gaza hospital, Palestinian authorities say” on its original story. “It’s vital that we report what we know and what we don’t know,” Jehl said. [Nieman Journalism Lab]
From the provinces
Ontario NDP leader Marit Stiles says she has removed rookie legislator Sarah Jama from caucus after the member had been under fire for comments about the Israel-Hamas conflict. [Global]
Ontario is reversing its expansion of urban boundaries for several communities after finding that processes used by the previous housing minister's office did not meet the government's standards, the new housing minister said Monday. [TorStar]
Housing Minister John Lohr announced the province will make $1-billion in investments over the next five years “to create the conditions” for additional housing. [Global]

Premier Blaine Higgs says he welcomes his Liberal opponent’s new criticism of the federal Liberal carbon tax but he doesn’t take it very seriously. [CBC]
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Elsewhere

The leaders of three opposition groups that collectively won the most votes in Poland’s recent elections say they have agreed to form a government together. [AP]
China’s Age of Malaise
Party officials are vanishing, young workers are “lying flat,” and entrepreneurs are fleeing the country. What does China’s inner turmoil mean for the world? Very good long read. [New Yorker]

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is set to meet with Secretary of State Antony Blinken and national security adviser Jake Sullivan over a range of issues, U.S. officials said. [Global]

A list of closed airports in Southeast Asia, and which airports you can still visit. [Nomadic Notes]
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Sci/Tech
Here's a handy little bookmarklet/browser extension to quickly share a link to Mastodon. Bonus functionality: You can also share a snippet of selected text. I've used it successfully on Safari on MacOS and on Edge and Firefox on Windows 10 - DA
I'm using a Windows 10 machine more and more these days (not by choice, I'm afraid) and need to replicate some of the productivity tools I have in my MacOS computing environment. On my Mac, for example, I've been using Copy 'Em for years as my clipboard manager. Where to find the same functionality on the Windows? Namely being able to assign a hotkey to frequently used text snippets. This article pointed me at ClipClip for Windows but if you've got a favourite, please reply to this newsletter and let me know. - DA [Lifehacker]
The Calendar
  • 0900 ET: C128 Senate Building -  Meeting of the Senate Committee on National Finance : C-241 and C-29
  • 0900 ET: B30 Senate Building -  Meeting of the Senate Committee on Transport and Communications : Study the impacts of climate change on critical infrastructure in the transportation and communications sectors
  • 1000 ET: West Block - PM Trudeau will meet with his cabinet.
  • 1030 ET: 135B West Block - CPC MPs Blaine Calkins , Gerald Soroka and Senator Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu speaks about Noah's Law.
  • 1100 ET: 315 Wellington - Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans (FOPO) | Meeting  83 - Drafting report
  • 1100 ET: 225-A West Block - Standing Committee on Public Accounts (PACP) | Meeting  79 - Report 3, Rehabilitation of Parliament’s Centre Block—Public Services and Procurement Canada, of the 2023 Reports 1 to 4 of the Auditor General of Canada
  • 1100 ET: 025B West Block - Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs (PROC) | Meeting  90 - Question of Privilege Related to the Intimidation Campaign against the Member for Wellington—Halton Hills and other Members - Testimony from Defence Min Bill Blair
  • 1100 ET: 330 Wellington - Standing Committee on International Trade (CIIT) | Meeting  77 - Drafting report
  • 1100 ET: 420 Wellington - Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development (ENVI) | Meeting  79 - Freshwater
  • 1200 ET: 425 Wellington - Subcommittee on International Human Rights of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development (SDIR) | Meeting  36 - Situation of the Hazaras in Afghanistan
  • 1330 ET: Ottawa - Environment Min Steven Guilbeault speaks about new conservation measures.
  • 1530 ET: 315 Wellington - Standing Committee on Industry and Technology (INDU) | Meeting  91 - C-27
  • 1530 ET: 330 Wellington - Standing Committee on National Defence (NDDN) | Meeting  76 - Review of the Impact of Canada’s Procurement Process on the Canadian Armed Forces
  • 1530 ET: 410 Wellington - Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration (CIMM) | Meeting  78 - Briefing from Immigration Min Marc Miller on Priorities and Objectives for the Department of Citizenship and Immigration
  • 1530 ET: 415 Wellington - Standing Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs (INAN) | Meeting  78 - Restitution of Land to First Nations, Inuit, and Metis Communities
  • 1530 ET: 025B West Block - Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates (OGGO) | Meeting  80 - ArriveCAN Application
  • 1600 ET: 425 Wellington - Standing Committee on Veterans Affairs (ACVA) | Meeting  66 - Experience of Women Veterans
  • 1600 ET: 420 Wellington - Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights (JUST) | Meeting  79 - Committee business
  • 1830 ET: B45 Senate Building -  Meeting of the Senate Committee on  Agriculture and Forestry : C-234
Issued this day ...
... in 1995: Scott #1584: United Nations - 50th Anniversary. Design: Les Holloway and Richard Kerr.

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