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Nov 19 2023

General’s concern. Canada’s queen. Political violence. The Roundup

Nov 19, 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
Top general worries about maintaining Pacific fleet on current budget 'trajectory'
Canada's top soldier says the military's ability to keep funding a "persistent presence" of warships in the western Pacific is facing challenges on the current budget. [CP]

The National Art Gallery's new director Jean-François Bélisle has lots of interesting things to say here. - DA [Paul Wells Substack]
From the provinces
The University of Alberta has fired the director of the Sexual Assault Centre after she signed a controversial letter regarding attacks on Israeli women. [Global]
 British Columbia's New Democrat government will focus on building more affordable homes and fighting climate change in the run-up to next year's provincial election, Premier David Eby said. [CP]
Self-proclaimed "Queen of Canada" Romana Didulo and her followers left a rural Saskatchewan school earlier this week after officials paid a visit about a heater propped up on a propane tank in the school — a fire code violation that was seen in one of the group's live streams. [CBC]
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Elsewhere
Hamas battles Israeli forces in north Gaza, hostage deal report denied
Hamas militants battled Israeli forces trying to push into Gaza's largest refugee camp on Sunday and Israeli air strikes to the south killed dozens of Palestinians, witnesses said, as a U.S. media report of a nascent hostage release deal was denied. [Reuters]

A new batch of people with ties to Canada desperate to flee escalating violence in the Gaza Strip has been approved to leave the besieged territory. [CP]

He's repeatedly falsely claimed that vaccines are not "safe and effective" and he even said, among other things, "I see somebody on a hiking trail carrying a little baby and I say to him, better not get them vaccinated." [NPR]
Experts on extremism fear that the threat of politically motivated violence will intensify as the 2024 presidential campaign heats up. Conspiracy theories that demonized Donald Trump’s enemies are morphing and spreading as the front-runner for the Republican nomination aims for a return to the White House. [AP]

One candidate offers continuity, the other pledges shock therapy from shutting the central bank to ditching the peso. [Reuters]
Media
The move from several companies and organizations to pause ads on X, formerly Twitter, comes after owner Elon Musk backed an antisemitic conspiracy theory. Civil rights groups have also reported a rise in antisemitism and hate speech on the platform. [Axios]
In just three years, the share of U.S. adults who say they regularly get news from TikTok has more than quadrupled, from 3% in 2020 to 14% in 2023. [Pew]
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Sci/Tech
How Sam Altman's ouster went down, according to OpenAI's ex-president
Microsoft, which has poured billions of dollars into OpenAI and is its most significant partner, was also blindsided by the moves. A person familiar with the situation told Axios that the company learned of Altman's ouster only a minute before the public. [Axios]
The Calendar
  • 800 ET: Kitchener, ON - GPC MP Elizabeth  May attends a church service.
  • 1225 ET: Victoria, BC - NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh speaks at the BC NDP convention
  • 1500 ET: Victoria, BC - NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and NDP MP Laurel Collins meet with the Mayor of Victoria.
Issued this day ...
... in 1971. Scott # 538. Maple Leaves in Four Seasons: Winter. Design: Alma Duncan.

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