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Aug 7 2023

Liberal lag. Festival headliners. Niger tension. [copy]

Aug 7, 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
‘Something’s changed’: Summer 2023 is screaming climate change, scientists say
In British Columbia, once the ‘wet coast,’ 28 out of 34 river basins were at the province’s top two drought levels. [Global]
The federal Liberal government has spent three years deliberating on an invitation to join a global body that designs vaccinations to protect the world's poorest from preventable diseases. [CP]
From the provinces
Premier cites feds in explanation for moratorium on new wind and solar projects
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says Ottawa is one of the reasons why her government has placed a moratorium on approving new wind and solar power projects, arguing the feds are preventing development of backup generation for renewable energy. [CP]
Winnipeg's annual cultural festival Folklorama kicks off Sunday evening and organizers are hoping to return to pre-COVID attendance levels. [Global]
A festival in Toronto was crashed by protesters, before skirmishes turned violent. Both the protesters and festival organizers say they hail from the Eritrean-Canadian community. [Global]
A wildfire near Princeton has caused the Under the Stars music festival to be evacuated Sunday evening, according to organizer Social Sound and Princeton Mayor Spencer Coyne. [Global]
Sunday's event, held at the Douglas Mental Health University Institute, was the 47th Montreal Highland Games - the successor to the Caledonia Games which started in 1855. [Global]
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Elsewhere
Niger’s junta shuts airspace and accuses neighboring nations of invasion plans
Niger’s mutinous soldiers have closed the country’s airspace and accused foreign powers of preparing an attack. [AP]

Ottawa has announced it will stop providing financial assistance to Niger's government in the wake of a military coup in the West African country. [CP]
Republican candidates for president are trying to present themselves as Donald Trump alternatives without acknowledging the GOP frontrunner and the new federal criminal charges against him. [AP]
Content creators engaged in covert political campaigning during the 2022 Philippines elections were paid a premium for their unique ability to deploy inflammatory speech to attack candidates, a new study on disinformation has found. [Philippine Star]
Tech
Threads users will soon get one of the most requested features for the text-based social network: A web version. [Endgadget]
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Media
Anne Marie Lipinski: As newsrooms hollow out and deepfakes become more prevalent, the need for mentors is greater than ever [NIeman Labs]
Issued this day ...
Issued this day in 1998: Scott # 1743: The Automatistes. Design: Raymond Bellemare. 
This is one of 7 stamps issued this day in 1998 to feature the work from a group of French Canadian artists and intellectuals that came to be known as Les Automatistes. Painter Paul-Émile Borduas wrote the group’s manifesto, “Refus global” which, among other things, denounced the paternalism and intellectual repression of of mid-20th century Québec institutions. The work feature on this stamp is Peinture, created by Jean-Paul Riopelle (1923-2002) in 1947-48. 

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