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Jan 10 2024

Halifax homeless. Worst economy. X suspensions. The Roundup

Jan 10, 2024
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
RCMP to start collecting race-based data for new pilot project this month
The national police force said data about use of force, arrests and routine checks will provide evidence-based information to help improve how officers serve a diverse population. [Global]

Maria Kartasheva said she had been blocked from taking her oath after Canadian officials said a Russian conviction for criticizing the war in Ukraine may resemble Canadian law. [Global]
The selling of sex in Canada is legal but military police allege she broke the law with the “unlawful use of military uniforms": police docs. [Ottawa Citizen]
From the provinces
Former MP Peter Stoffer refutes DND denial of military homelessness in Nova Scotia
Recent comments from the Department of National Defence disputing reports that Armed Forces personnel in Nova Scotia are unhoused or living precariously “don’t hold water,” says a former member of Parliament from the province. [SaltWire]

A new emergency shelter is opening later this month at the Halifax Forum, the latest in a number of new shelters popping up as the region struggles with rising homelessness. [Global]
Universities in Ontario are pleading with the Ford government for more funding as they feel the pinch of a freeze on tuition fees. [Global]
L’ancien maire de Montréal et ex-ministre fédéral Denis Coderre envisage de se porter candidat au poste de chef du Parti libéral du Québec. [La Presse]

About 200 people are diagnosed with cervical cancer a year in the province, Premier David Eby said Tuesday morning at a press conference. [Global]
Elsewhere

While higher interest rates appear to be controlling inflation without a serious financial crisis, the global economy’s performance is lagging, according to the World Bank. [WaPo]
Gabriel Attal named France's youngest prime minister
Attal, 34, who has served as the French government's Education Minister since July 2023, is France's youngest and first gay prime minister. [Le Monde]

The incident comes amid the kidnappings of at least seven police officers and a series of explosions, a day after President Daniel Noboa declared a state of emergency. [Global]

The U.S. army deal to buy three Global Express 6500 jets, it could be worth up to $224.6 million for Bombardier at aircraft list prices. [Global]
Review Essay: The authors ask what four recent works on iconoclasm add to an already extensive literature. What do they bring to the debates around history, memory, politics and public monuments?  We conclude that what is missing from these works is a global and comparative approach to the destruction of racist statues that also considers struggles against colonialism in national independence and Indigenous resistance movements throughout the modern and early modern periods. [The English Historical Review]
Media
X, formerly known as Twitter, on Tuesday temporarily suspended the accounts of multiple prominent journalists and left-leaning commentators and comedians, many of whom were critical of X owner Elon Musk. The social media platform gave no explanation for the sudden purge.[New Republic]

Substack is removing some publications that express support for Nazis, the company said today. The company said this did not represent a reversal of its previous stance, but rather the result of reconsidering how it interprets its existing policies. [Platformer]

“After a period of deep reflection and consultation with those closest to me following the sudden passing of my husband this past summer, I have concluded that I am at a time in my life when I need to fully step away from my professional commitments and focus on my family, which includes our four children,” Barin told CRTC staff. [CARTT]
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Sci/Tech
China Says Cracked Apple AirDrop to Identify Message Sources
A Chinese state-backed institution has devised a way to identify users who send messages via Apple Inc.’s popular AirDrop feature, Beijing’s government claims, as part of broader efforts to root out undesirable content.[Bloomberg]
The Wi-Fi Alliance is now offering certification of Wi-Fi 7 devices, ensuring full interoperability of the latest version of the wireless network protocol. [The Verge]
Here's a list of the best Wi-Fi extenders you can buy right now, as chosen by Engadget editors. [Endgadget]

We find that papers and patents are increasingly less likely to break with the past in ways that push science and technology in new directions. This pattern holds universally across fields and is robust across multiple different citation- and text-based metrics1,13,14,15,16,17. Subsequently, we link this decline in disruptiveness to a narrowing in the use of previous knowledge, allowing us to reconcile the patterns we observe with the ‘shoulders of giants’ view. [Nature]
The Calendar
  • 1200 ET: Halifax - Health Min Mark Holland , Mental Health Min Ya'ara Saks and Housing and Infrastructure Min Sean Fraser make a funding announcement. 
  • 1330 ET: Waterloo, ON - FEDDEV Min Filomena Tassi and LPC MPs Bryan May, Bardish Chagger, Tim Louis and Valerie Bradford make a funding announcement. 
  • 1400 ET: Atikokan, ON - LPC MP Marcus Powlowski makes a funding announcement. 
  • 2045 ET: Sidney, BC - GPC MP Elizabeth  May attends a meeting of a Beavers Troup.
  •  Toronto,  - PM Trudeau and Deputy PM Chrystia Freeland will attend the funeral service for former MP John Godfrey.
Issued this day ...
... in 2012: Scott #2495: Lunar New Year (Series 2) — 4: Year of the Dragon - Dragon. Design: Louis Fishauf/Charles Vinh

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