Past issues Subscribe

May 8 2023

Expulsion record. Trusting Notley. Twitter politics.

May 8, 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
China will be emboldened to target more Canadians if diplomat not expelled: Chong
Conservative MP Michael Chong says he was 'shaken' to learn about an alleged Chinese campaign to threaten him and his family and wants to ensure more Canadians aren't targeted. [Global]

Despite evidence of diplomatic misconduct, more than five years have passed since Canada last ejected a foreign diplomat from the country. [Global]
Christopher Moore: In practice, in daily life, we have already abolished the monarchy in Canada. It means little to anyone now. For many years, Canada has been thoroughly disconnected from monarchist attitudes and British traditions. The monarchy no longer holds significant meaning for Canadians -- not positive meaning, at least. 
The study, published in the Journal of Hazardous Materials, looked at e-waste data going as far back as 1971. [Global]
Read for yourself. The 24 policy recommendations that made it out of the 2023 Liberal Party convention. They are presented in priority sequence. None of these policies, however, are binding on the Liberal government. Number 10 and 14 in this list are getting a fair amount of controversial attention. - DA [Liberal Party of Canada]
From the provinces
Notley seen as more trustworthy, but Smith's UCP closing support gap: Leger poll
Albertans perceive NDP leader Rachel Notley to be more transparent, and trustworthy compared to UCP leader Danielle Smith, a new poll says. [Calgary Sun]
Click to donate $3 a month to support this newsletter!
Elsewhere

Ukraine’s expected spring offensive is seen by U.S. and European officials as paving the way for negotiations with Russia. [WSJ]
The United States badly needs a new secrecy paradigm to protect classified information, and one that also improves government transparency. Our archaic system for keeping classified information secure is terminally flawed, and no amount of triage tinkering can hope to fix it. [RAND]
Media
Tucker Carlson ready to torch Fox News
The ousted host "knows where a lot of bodies are buried, and is ready to start drawing a map," said a Carlson source who wasn't authorized to speak publicly. [Axios]

CNN’s Wednesday town hall with the ex-president could be a warning bell for cable news to not repeat mistakes from 2016. [The Guardian]

Since Elon Musk's take over of Twitter, Republican users have more positive views of the site, while those of Democratic users are more negative. [Pew Research Center]

Ted Goia: From Upworthy to Buzzfeed, all the click chasing gimmicks have failed—but there is one sure option left. [The Honest Broker]
Click and donate $5 a month to support this newsletter!
Tech
Generative neural networks trained on huge amounts of data—terabytes and even petabytes—ingest enough information about people that they can answer survey questions as if they were members of the survey population. Researchers provide the machine with the rough profiles for the individuals they want to survey, and the AI will generate the survey responses. [RIPS Law Librarian Blog]
Issued this day ...
... in 1996: Scott # 1603: AIDS Awareness. Design: Gus Tsetsekas. Painting: Joe Average.
From the Vancouver-based artist, Joe Average (1957- ), about the work featured on this stamp, One World, One Hope (1996):
“This image was commissioned and designed for the 11th international conference on AIDS. What I wanted to express in this image with the stained glass feeling is that we are all fragile in the face of AIDS but working together with love (the heart in the centre) is what we need to do.”

Previous Issues

Load More