Paris is Burning

"[We urge French authorities to] ensure use of force by police to address violent elements in demonstrations always respects the principles of legality, necessity, proportionality, non-discrimination, precaution and accountability."

Spokesperson, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights 

"France, and its police forces, fight with determination against racism and all forms of discrimination."

"There can be no doubt about this commitment."

"The use of force by the national police and gendarmerie is governed by the principles of absolute necessity and proportionality, strictly framed and controlled."

French Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Protesters clash with riot police in Marseille, southern France, on Friday. (Christophe Simon/AFP/Getty Images)

"What they are trying to do is seize this moment as an opportunity to open a wider debate about what they see as systemic police abuse, particularly in the working-class suburbs."   

"There's long been complaints of police brutality and discrimination in these areas, especially against lower-income households and racial minorities."

"Last year, there were 13 people killed after being stopped for traffic violations."

Reporter Rebecca Rosman, Paris

Three nights of urban violence have rocked the French government following the shooting by police of a 17-year-old teen driving a flashy Mercedes with a Polish license plate. Two motorcycle police attempted to stop the young driver because, they explained later, he had been seen by them to drive into a crosswalk endangering a pedestrian and a bicyclist. He sped away from them, but was soon caught up in traffic and was unable to move. And that is when the police drove up alongside him, ordering him to exit the vehicle and he refused. 

The two officers claimed the reason they both took out their guns was for the distinct purpose to “dissuade him from restarting (the vehicle) by asking him to turn off the ignition”. In the event, matters swiftly got out of hand, the driver's recalcitrance spurred the police to action deserving of a war scene. A video a witness had taken picked up the voice of one person threatening to shoot the teen, and another responding: "shoot him!" If the purpose was to teach him a lesson it was lost, since a bullet stopped his heart.

That event set off a tsunami of outrage resulting in a spontaneous outpouring of public grief and anger, and the subsequent protests that were anything but peaceful. Tens of thousands of police have been unsuccessful in their attempts to make a dent in the public resolve to vent their smouldering rage at the police, accusing them of sustained violence against minorities. The teen in question, Nahel, was of Algerian parentage. Spurring young people primarily from public housing projects called banlieues -- considered disadvantaged and violent neighbourhoods -- to come out in droves.

 

Protesters gather at the Lyon Terreaux square in Lyon, southeastern France, on Friday. (Jeff Pachoud/AFP/Getty Images)

 

Appeals for calm have only resulted in accusations and more rioting. Warnings that the violence that has injured dozens of police, damaging hundreds of public buildings would not be allowed to go on without repercussions have had little effect. Across France more riots have erupted, with looting and torching of cars and buildings. The destruction has in fact, destroyed the very places where the rioters live. "The professionals of disorder must go home", announced Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, who advised that up to 45,000 police would be deployed to put down the riots.

France is no stranger to riots and violent protests. This one, anticipating a fourth night of violence, may yet result in the government calling an emergency and resorting to stronger measures to attempt to restore the peace. The police officer who shot the teen has been arrested and charged with manslaughter; 'voluntary homicide'. The public prosecutor in Nanterre, where the shooting took place, stated he was led to conclude "the conditions for the legal use of the weapon were not met", through his initial investigation.

When dusk falls, protesters shoot fireworks, hurl rocks at police, who return fire with repeated volleys of tear gas. Police and firefighters struggle to contain protesters and to extinguish the blazes. Public buildings, from schools to police stations, town halls and other infrastructure of civilized life have been damaged, from Toulouse in the south, to Lille in the north. Most of the damage has taken place in the suburbs of Paris.

Vandalized public buildings have taken the fury of the people who live in the banlieues who from time to time emerge to set fire to parked vehicles on roadways as an expression of their discontent. Their lives are often circumscribed by the area in which they live, so crime-ridden and hostile to the presence of non-residents that police and fire fighters dare not enter to restore order or extinguish blazes. 

 

The French government's more recent investment in upgraded public transit to service the banlieues, in encouraging higher education for young banlieue residents in response to claims of neglect and  high unemployment among the ethnic minorities seems yet to bear fruit.

 

This screengrab from video posted on Twitter shows the moment when police interacted with a 17-year-old teen during a traffic stop in a Paris suburb.

 

Defending the Arctic

"The importance of these issues has been rising steadily over time, due to increased access to the region, competing interests, and changing geopolitical dynamics."

"Canada's armed forces are highly skilled and fiercely dedicated, but they remain below complement, under-resourced and stretched to the limit. They deserve our support."

"More than ten [previously abandoned Soviet-era far-north military bases] are operational. Nuclear-powered submarines are stationed there."

"Russia also has an arsenal of hypersonic missiles, which combine the maneuverability of cruise missiles with the range and speed of intercontinental ballistic missiles."

"Our report emphasizes the urgency of procuring and activating these new defensive systems."

Senator Tony Dean, committee chair, Senate national security, defence and veterans affairs committee, Parliament of Canada

"The importance of the Arctic in military defence and security cannot be overstated."

"However, it is equally important to note that while the Arctic is viewed as a strategic location, it is also my home and the home of the Inuit people."

"During committee visits to Inuvik and Iqaluit, we were reminded of the tangible presence that the military once had in these communities, and the desire for their return."

"The Canadian Rangers and Coast Guard remain visible connections to the military, yet the pervasive challenges posed by the vastness, elements and obstacles persist."

Senator Margaret Dawn Anderson

Master Cpl. Enoki Irqittuq from 1 Canadian Ranger Patrol Group is pictured in Nunavut  (Sergeant JF Lauzé/Canadian Forces Combat Camera)

 

A fact-finding mission that took place in 2022 has resulted in a report recently issued and under discussion, focusing on the state of Arctic defence. The Senate national security, defence and veterans affairs committee found that much work must be undertaken to meet the challenges reflecting contemporary geopolitical conflict. These link to the issues that persist regarding Canada's and NORAD's capacity to monitor still-subtle but very real aggression from Russia, from across the Arctic Circle.

Sites in Canada's far north visited by the study group included Iqaluit and Cambridge Bay in Nunavut, Tuktoyaktuk and Inuvik in North West Territory. There they spoke extensively with military and government officials as well as local Indigenous leaders and members of their communities. The condition of Canada's defence forces is rather grim, stretched as thin as they can be without snapping. The Canadian Army is vastly understaffed. Its Navy is short of vessels as is its Air Force, with current stock at the end of their useful life.

 

Initiatives like Operation UNIFIER in support of Ukraine's military defence against the Russian invasion, along with Canada's battle group in Latvia under NATO and the deployment of an additional warship to the Indo-Pacific through Operation HORIZON -- at the same time being called on domestically to aid in handling the unprecedented wildfire season throughout Canada, has drained its military reserves.

Senators observed Canadian military commanders at work "seamlessly" with their American counterparts during their tour of NORAD headquarters in Colorado Springs. NORAD is described as the "world's only binational military command structure". NATO's northern flank has come under increased scrutiny in relation to ongoing Russian aggression. The longer navigation seasons as a result of the dwindling ice packs have sparked concern among Arctic nations, with northern defence back on the agenda.

Chief of Defence Staff General Wayne Eyre has warned that Russia is in the process of reoccupying far north military bases abandoned at the end of the Cold War. Those old war bases have undergone extensive upgrades in refurbishment in preparation for reestablishing them as actionable military bases. Serious questions have arisen whether NORAD has the required capacity to monitor and thwart emerging threats that require modern space-based surveillance systems in operation alongside ground-based, over-the-horizon radar networks.

 

Canadian Rangers are seen here conducting search and rescue training near Moose Factory, a community in Northern Ontario, in 2017. Photo by Sgt. Peter Moon 

 

Senator Margaret Anderson, who was raised in Tuktoyaktuk, her community part of the now-dismantled Distant Early Warning radar station of the Cold War era, states the importance of including local, Indigenous voices in northern defence must not be overlooked. Tuktoyaktuk's ports are seeing increased traffic, with current resources making it impossible to track those aboard incoming ships, representing a serious national shortcoming for security purposes; increased visits result in opportunities for espionage.

Issues of note, she pointed out, include a lack of basic and secure infrastructure and continuing reliance on outdated equipment, and even that is frequently in short supply. China's increasing interest in the north, along with Beijing's growing warmth with Moscow represented another issue the committee drew attention to. "We have to keep an eye on this. China's 'belt-and-road' infrastructure funding initiatives might eventually emerge as a competitor in the absence of an accelerated homegrown Arctic investment strategy", pointed out Senator Dean.

The North Sea provides handy transport routes east for Russia which currently draws about 80 percent of its natural gas from its Arctic gas fields. The impacts of climate change on the north -- melting permafrost, receding shorelines and deteriorating infrastructure -- pointed out the senator, pose immense challenges.

 

Earlier this year, Defence Minister Anita Anand said Canada had recovered Chinese surveillance buoys from Arctic waters, and had been monitoring such activities since at least 2022. Photo by Sean Kilpatrick / The Canadian Press

"Our relatively low population density up there, it's not inconceivable that our sovereignty may be challenged."

"We've got to have capabilities in place that can protect that sovereignty, going decades into the future."

General Wayne Eyre, Chief of Defence Staff

Here Comes the Sun!

"The sun would appear green if your eyes could handle looking at it."

"Basically, when you look at the sun, it has enough of all the different colours in it and it's so bright that everybody's eyes are firing like crazy and saying, 'It's too bright for me to tell you what colour it is'."

"That's why the sun looks white to us."

"Essentially, it's a green star that looks white because it's too bright, and it can also appear yellow, orange or red because of how our atmosphere works."

"The sun is at its mid-life, and it still has quite a lot of years before it changes colours. It still hasn't dimmed out one bit."

"When astronomers say colour, they really mean temperature. But to anyone in the public, colour just means the colour you see and how you make sense of the world."

W. Dean Pesnell, project scientist, Solar Dynamic Observatory, NASA 

"We think of perception and vision as being really straightforward, with this idea of 'I have my eyes and see'. And, actually, it's not like that at all. It's influenced by where you grow up, when you grow up and who you grow up around."

"When you're a kid, you don't necessarily pay that much attention to these deep philosophical questions about the nature of colour and light in the way you might start to when you're sitting in your office looking out the window on a sunny day, so perhaps you just override your memory with the learned association of 'yellow equals sun', which you leaned on heavily as a child."

"This is just another neat example of how life paints colour."

Alice Skelton, researcher of developmental colour science, University of Sussex, Britain

Do you know what color the sun really is? solarsystem.nasa.gov

 

While children in Japan might colour a circle red to represent the sun, in alignment with their national flag [Land of the Rising Sun], those in North American have a tendency to sketch a yellow circle. Adults are now debating the colour of the star at the centre of our solar system, some of whom feel it has changed hues since the time of their childhood. Weeks back, writer Jacqui Deevoy tweeted her opinion that the round yellow sun of her childhood had turned white and looks wonky. Her post amassed 6 million views.

Some of those had responses with people either agreeing with Deevoy's observation or those who claimed the sun had always appeared white. And as far as science is concerned, it's neither -- while being a bit of both. The sun from its 150 million kilometre distance generally appears a white spot in the sky, while the yellow tint perceived by some people is related to how light is scattered. Molecules in the air redirect sunlight's blue and violet wavelengths, and this directs more yellow and red to meet our eyes.

Sunlight passes through a thicker atmosphere as day transforms into night, so more molecules scatter its blue hues and lead to displays of oranges and reds at sunset. The sun's hue is really light bouncing off surfaces. With stars, colour equals temperature; the hotter a star, the more blue light it gives off. Cooler stars appear red. The sun at its core has a temperature topping 15 million degrees Celsius; "somewhere in the middle, in this weird space where we can't perceive its colour", observed Dr. Pesnell. In the distant future the sun is expected to change hues.

 

The sun appears different depending on who’s looking. From left, NASA’s NuSTAR sees high-energy X-rays; the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Hinode mission sees lower energy X-rays; and NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory sees ultraviolet light. NASA/JPL-Caltech/JAXA

The source of all the light and heat that makes flowers bloom, birds sing and people smile emanates as a result of the conversion of hydrogen to helium taking place deep inside the sun's core. The hydrogen gas will -- in a vast stretch of time run out. The sun will enlarge exponentially and take on a deep red shade then ingest all the planets surrounding it and finally it will glow bright blue for a while, and then dim to such a low temperature its colour will become imperceptible ... but no one will be around by then to perceive it.

That colossal event won't take place for at least four billion to five billion years into the future. The sun has some people convinced it has become whiter, but this is connected with the brain's perception more than with astrophysics, according to Dr. Pesnell. Perception itself differs from person to person. Colour, in its most physical sense is what people see when a wave length enters the eye and specialized cells send signals to the brain which translates waves into the colours we see. Everyone may be receiving the same information, but individual life experiences and backgrounds dictate what we make of it.

In the Arctic Circle for example, where some children are born during its long periods of darkness and others experience prolonged sunlight, colour looks different, depending on those life-beginning circumstances. As adults, research shows time of birth influences abilities to distinguish different shades. Language and culture may also play a role, with some not having a specific word to differentiate between blue and green, as an example. Dr. Skelton points out that people's upbringing and how they learn to associate colours with objects can affect perception.

The Sun from space... the color should be obvious. Image credit: NASA

21st Century Updated School Sex-Health Curricula

"The material in question — as Minister of Education, frankly as a parent — is completely inappropriate to be in a classroom."

"We want to make sure that material is not going to be a part of the resources that will be provided to students …"

"I want to make sure that the Ministry of Education, also, is undertaking a review of our own information to ensure that it is appropriate — and age-appropriate in particular."

Saskatchewan Education Minister Dustin Duncan 

 

"Sex from A-Z is a set of cards intended for gay, bi and queer young people. This is a fun and accessible resource that facilitates humorous and frank discussion among young people about sexuality and HIV and STI prevention. It can also be used by service providers as a discussion tool in workshops and training sessions."

"[The cards target young people as a] discussion tool [in workshops, with the instruction to] affirm [and be] sex positive [about every one of the sex acts depicted]."

"Do not make fun of any of the topics, including ones you personally enjoy. Affirm choices, theirs and other people’s who might be into the topic."

"A lot of people think that's really hot" [sample phrase on how to react 'properly' to some of the cards]." 

"If you do decide to go condomless, use lots of lube and get tested regularly for HIV and STIS."

Planned Parenthood/CATIE ABC Card instructions

 

Saskatchewan's Minister of Education has taken steps to ban Planned Parenthood from presenting their version of healthy sex education in the province's schools. On June 19 at Lumsden High School, the major secondary school in Lumsden, Saskatchewan, a community of 1,800 residents north of Regina, a Planned Parenthood coordinator delivered a Grade 9 presentation billed as a standard course on sex education. One student -- the students were 14 and 15 years of age -- left the presentation carrying home with him a complimentary deck of cards. 

That deck of cards led to a shock and outrage for their content detailing extreme sex acts some of which carry the potential for danger to anyone's health. The deck: "Sex: From A-Z" has 26 cards each with a sexual term (and cartoon) for every letter of the alphabet. Targeted toward young people as a "discussion" tool. Several cards detail acts of sex revolving around domination and risky sex, including urine and fecal matter: "Yellow and brown showers", describing  urinating and defecating on a sex partner. With instruction to "keep them on the outside of your body".

 

The under-18 targets of the card game, under "raw sex" are informed that although unprotected sex leaves them vulnerable to HIV, it remains a matter of personal preference. Produced and distributed by CATIE (Canadian AIDS Treatment Information Exchange), a Toronto-based non-profit almost entirely funded by government grants, they have a Disney-like flair to them. 

The same type of cards produced some controversy in British Columbia when they were distributed to children by a public health nurse, but this time the cards that CATIE had produced in that instance had focused on "safer snorting", as a guide to drug consumption. 

In the Lumsden instance focusing on sex, following a complaint by a parent, the high school administration sent an email to parents explaining that the cards were not a core component of the presentation, but rather were placed on a table of "secondary resources" accessible by students. "Staff do preview resources, but one of the resources consisted of an A to Z sexual vocabulary which was not in the scope of the Grade 9 Health curriculum", the email conveyed to some incredulous parents.

Samples of A - Z Sex education cards

Global City Livability Index

"The removal of covid-related restrictions has overall boded well for global liveability in 2023."

"Education has emerged stronger with children returning to schools alongside a significantly reduced burden on hospitals and healthcare systems, with some notable improvements in cities across developing economies of Asia and the Middle East."

"As the world’s political and economic axis continues to shift eastwards, we expect the cities in these regions to move slowly up our liveability rankings."

Upasana Dutt, Head of Liveability Index at EIU

 

"Of the five categories covered by our index, only stability has seen a decline."

"Strains on public order and economic headwinds have also increased instances of crime in some cities, and this will continue to be a risk for the future."

"All of this suggests that stability scores in our Liveability Index are unlikely to recover quickly."

Barsali Bhattacharyya, Industry Research Manager, EIU

 

"None of these cities has seen a particularly sharp decline in their index scores, but they have failed to make the gains that many other cities – particularly those in Asia – have made in the past year."

"Strains on public order and economic headwinds have also increased instances of crime in some cities, and this will continue to be a risk for the future. All of this suggests that stability scores in our Liveability Index are unlikely to recover quickly."

"Education has emerged stronger with children returning to schools alongside a significantly reduced burden on hospitals and healthcare systems."

EIU (Economist Intelligence Unit) Report

Vienna has been ranked as the most liveable city in the world on EIU’s Global Liveability Index once again. Vladislav Zolotov/iStockphoto/Getty Images

The Economist Intelligence Unit has issued its annual report on the livability of the globe's large cities by ranking 173 cities on measurements in over 30 qualitative and quantitative factors in five broad categories that include: stability, health care, culture and environment, education and infrastructure. Critical categories for assessment include access to health care, green space, cultural and sport activities, crime rates and infrastructure; factors considered in establishing the competitive rankings. 

The list varies from year to year with some high ranking cities slipping a few notches and others rising in reflection of their improved living conditions. The years of the coronavirus pandemic had a distinct impact on the livability of cities everywhere in the world as they became less 'livable' given the series of lockdowns, the move to remote learning in the education system, the breakdown of health care systems flooded with COVID patients, and the business world turned inside out.

Now that global economies are back on track, cities have re-opened, airlines are back in business, people are finding new employment and quality of life has improved immeasurably, normalcy has resumed with the reopening of cultural facilities, students returned to the classroom, and hospitals catching up to the countless cancelled or delayed surgical procedures throughout the stressful years of confinement and emergency strategizing. The Economist, compiler of the list, this year saw the highest average score on all counts in 15 years.

Vienna took the title of world's most livable city for the second year in a row, based on a wide range of indicators. Copenhagen, Sydney and Melbourne leaped upward to claim third and fourth places in a reversal of their descent down the ladder of livability while coping with the strains of the coronavirus threats. The compilation and ranking of the list saw the most improvement in Asia-Pacific countries. Eight of the ten most active upward risers were from the Asia-Pacific region. Wellington, New Zealand rose 35 places to shift upward to 23rd. Auckland rose 25 places to number 10, while Hanoi moved up 20 places to achieve the 129th placement.

 

Calgary was one of three Canadian cities to make it into the top 10 on the 2023 list. jenifoto/iStockphoto/Getty Images

Three cities in the United Kingdom -- Edinburgh, Manchester and London -- and two in the U.S. -- Los Angeles and San Diego -- slipped the furthest of the top-ranked cities. As for China, most of its cities were identified as "broadly stable when compared to last year's results". Unsurprisingly Damascus, Syria and Tripoli in Libya remain at the very bottom of the list. The obvious results impacting their livability that of internal deadly conflict, social unrest and terrorism. Factors that included Kyiv's ranking.

The cities in the top ten in 2023 are:

1. Vienna, Austria
2. Copenhagen, Denmark
3. Melbourne, Australia
4. Sydney, Australia
5. Vancouver, Canada
6. Zurich, Switzerland
7. Calgary, Canada
8. Geneva, Switzerland
9. Toronto, Canada
10. Osaka, Japan
11. Auckland, New Zealand

Both Calgary and Geneva actually took 7th spot ranking, while Osaka and Auckland both took 10th ranking.

Those cities at the bottom ten in ranking are:

    164. Douala, Cameroon

    165. Kyiv, Ukraine

    166. Harare, Zimbabwe

    167. Dhaka, Bangladesh

    168. Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea

    169. Karachi, Pakistan

    170. Lagos, Nigeria

    171. Algiers, Algeria

    172. Tripoli, Libya

    173. Damascus, Syria

What an airport looks like in Singapore image: Getty Images

 

The Messy Divorce Proceedings Between Ottawa and Beijing

One legislation can change your life. Tomorrow when you get up, your life will be different. Nothing belongs to you anymore."

"This could affect thousands of Canadians with benign links to China because of their familial, commercial, educational, or civil society relationships in the mainland [China]."

"It seems very likely to me that these individuals will be seen in an unfavourable light. In the current context of extreme suspicion about all things Chinese, the risk of stigmatization is real."

"Your name goes on a list, whether  you are guilty or whether you are in fact a foreign agent. Once your name goes on the list, you will have a mark on your head and you will be stigmatized and that can affect your career and your life prospects."

Canadian Senator Victor Oh

"This is straight out of the CCP's [Chinese Communist Party] playbook, using racism as a deflection from the proper issue at hand."

"It's downright offensive."

Cheuk Kwan, Toronto Association for Democracy in China

"[The anti-registry push is similar to the disinformation campaign that targeted me in the 2021 election]."

"They are using the fear of newer immigrants."

"It's fertile ground for misinformation and they're exploiting the opportunity."

Former Conservative MP Kenny Chiu

Marco Mendicini, Minister of Public Safety: "Today, we launched consultations on the creation of a Canadian Foreign Influence Transparency Registry. We invite Canadians to share their views on this important tool to protect our institutions." Twitter

 

That Beijing has been infiltrating Canada at every conceivable level for years is well known. Agents loyal to the People's Republic of China have inserted themselves in academia, science, business and politics; their purpose to gain influence for China. During the mainland takeover of Hong Kong and the persecution of democracy activists those same activists cojoining forces with the Chinese missions in Canada and enlisting the support of Chinese students on study visas championed Beijing.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, Chinese Canadians of Hong Kong background deplored Beijing's dashing of Hong Kong's freedom to lean into democracy, imposing on the city Beijing's heavy hand of communist-style justice. The Confucius Institute chapters that were opened in many universities to foster friendship with China, to feature its heritage and promote its language was recognized as a propaganda tool and lost favour in Canada. 

Above all, the harassment of Chinese-Canadians by Chinese agents working out of Canada, some in the confines of shadowy Chinese police stations that threatened those who rebelled against Beijing's line finally received attention by investigative reporters who revealed the role that Beijing played in the last federal elections, spreading false information and attempting to influence the outcome of elections, which in fact resulted in two anti-Beijing Members of Parliament losing their seats, and led to a proposal for a foreign agent registry.

Canada has an ugly past with respect to its white European heritage that wanted to keep its citizens of European derivation and white. In 1923, the Chinese Immigration Act barred Chinese from migrating to Canada and installed a head tax of $500, an unheard-of-sum. At the same time Jewish Canadians faced discrimination as did Indigenous Canadians. Today, Canada welcomes Chinese immigrants that represent one of two top sources of new Canadians. But this Liberal government denied any knowledge of Beijing's interference despite being informed years ago by its own intelligence services.

Now, in the face of real and proven interference on many levels from industrial espionage to cybersecurity, and proven political interference, controversy has arisen over the pending legislation for a foreign agent registry. Senator Yuen Pau Woo of British Columbia conflated the installation of a registry with the former immigration act, that a registry could become "a modern form of Chinese exclusion". Both he and Senator Victor Oh often speak in the senate in support of Beijing.

Cheuk Kwan and lawyer Dora Nipp argue a registry would be welcomed by Chinese-Canadians since it would "prevent an entire community from being singularly labelled as a threat" as well as its function acting as a reminder to other nations to refrain from intimidating diaspora members. Activist Bill Chiu of Vancouver dismissed any link between legislation for a foreign agent registry and the former Chinese head tax: "If they are so gung-ho about modern forms of Chines exclusion, shouldn't they be jumping up and down when the PRC's draconian policies exclude equal participation of countless [people] in China?"

The bill, if passed would require anyone acting for a foreign government or related entity to register if planning to communicate with a member of Parliament or a senior official on government business. To prevent "malign" influence as Public Safety Canada calls it, where someone acts for a foreign power without disclosing their connection. Senator Woo opposed a Senate motion calling China's treatment of its Uyghur minority genocide; he advised government to release Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou and co-authored a report that Chinese-Canadians were largely impervious to foreign interference, while recommending closer ties with China.

Debate on a bill that would identify foreign agents lobbying those in public office was opened in the Senate. Photo by iStock /GETTY IMAGES

Senator Pau Woo

Yuen Pau Woo

@yuenpauwoo

100 years ago, as part of the #ChineseExclusionAct, Canada forced all Chinese people in the country to register or face deportation. How can we prevent this registry from becoming a modern form of Chinese exclusion? S-237 & the former C-282 are not the answer. Time to speak out

The Conflagration-Battling Hero Class Among Us

"They said they'd be meeting in Bangor Friday night and I had my graduation Friday night, so I graduated and got my diploma, and headed to Bangor and met with the rest of the crew, and then we headed to Nova Scotia."

Hunter Sousa, 18, Maine

 

"Despite the fact that we have our feet in the water, it's burning."

"Since there are immense trees, the fire takes on inconceivable views very quickly because once the fire starts to come out of the soil, it attacks the trees, it rises to the top and you have trees of 30, 40 metres and that's how you have big fires that start very, very quickly."

Eric Flores, head, French firefighter team

"We could see multiple plumes of smoke in the local area and for us, we could tell from the fire behaviour we could see, and the smoke we could see, they were fairly intense fires moving at a rapid, rapid rate through the forest in high fuel loads."

"From that, we knew we're going to have some significant days ahead of us."

"I think [my family was] excited and nervous at the same time. They've seen the extreme fire behaviour and crazy videos getting around social media and our news platforms in Australia, but they're very proud that our family can come and support Canada and represent Australia in providing bushfire support."

"We tend to use a lot more fire trucks with water to extinguish hot spots. I found here that we're using a lot more machinery and hand tools and hand crews to extinguish fires, which has been a change of mindset for us but it's still been really effective on the fire line to control these fires." 

Andrew Stewart, South Australian Country Fire Service

Australian firefighters have been deployed to Edson to fight an out-of-control wildfire. (Alberta Wildfire)

"Our crews are used to being deployed when there is a need, in terms of the intensity of the fire and the strength. We know how to manage our fatigue and we know how to work very professionally."

"Canadians are warm, welcoming people. We're enjoying to learn because what we do on the operations — we sing before we start our day. We sing, we pray and do our national anthem." 

"They've seen the crowning fires. We learned it in classes [but] we actually got an opportunity to see a crowning fire. We've learned something different. And also, the mop up — the way it's done here, you make sure there's a lot of water … it's something different from home in that regard."

"They [her three children] don't cry if I'm leaving. They understand. They are my first supporters in everything."

Antoinette Jini, firefighter, Working on Fire, South Africa 

South African firefighters work on a wildfire burning near Edson, Alta. (Credit/Alberta Wildfire)

 

Canada's forests are being consumed by wildfires, in an earlier-than-usual wildfire season, and greater numbers of wildfires than could be handled by Canadian fire-fighting crews. Given hot, dry temperatures and high winds, the fires spread quickly, some of them caused by lightning. Many, however, are caused by human carelessness, tossing lit cigarette butts out of car windows, failing to properly douse campfires, and in a more sinister assessment, some deliberately set.

Several days back, there were no fewer than 1,477 foreign firefighters working alongside their Canadian counterparts to control 400 out-of-control fires in Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia and Alberta. They're deployed through the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre. There are firefighters that have arrived in Canada to answer the appeal for international help from Mexico, Portugal, Australia, New Zealand, Chile,Costa Rica, Spain and the United States.

There are 400 firefighters from South Africa, one of the largest foreign firefighting contingents, deployed to Alberta, working shifts of 14 days straight, with four days off between working shifts. South Africans have had to learn how to fight fires in a country with different vegetation and climates than their own, explained strike team leader Vincent Lubisi, working in Edson, Alberta. Their focus is on securing the perimeters of the fire, slowly working inward.

"In South Africa, they fight the fire more directly", he said. Co-ordinators like Antoinette Jini, helping to organize teams on the ground are included. They make certain assignments are understood, and information is conveyed properly. She counts their experience in Canada as mutually beneficial since it allows them to learn of North American resources and techniques, like mapping fires. "We have built the relationship and we've learned many things while we're engaging and collaborating", she explained.

 

Flores and his team are tasked with saving the northern Atikamekw village of Obedjiwan from a 150-square kilometre fire that is burning out of control. His team is focusing on holding the southern line close to the village with fire breaks, hoses and digging out smouldering embers to stop them from reaching surface vegetation. His firefighters were successful in holding back the flames from the community. They have also become acquainted with an "incredible number" of blackflies and mosquitoes: "Sometimes they're getting eaten alive", he said.

 

As for Hunter Sousa who just celebrated his high school graduation, he is one of many firefighters from the United States giving aid as Canada fights its worst wildfire season in memory. From five continents, the firefighting personnel from ten different countries have been battling flames, fatigue and mosquitoes. Hunter Sousa's main duty at the Barrington Lake Fire in the southwest of Nova Scotia is to map the extent of the fire, walking around the edge of the burned sector, marking the perimeter in an app on his phone, and putting out the occasional hot spot.

 

Eric Flores and his team of French firefighters were dispatched to Quebec where he says, the fires are much larger and more challenging that what he usually is confronted with at home. He and his team are in the Mauricie region -- an area near a remote First Nations village, accessed only by helicopter. The area is described by Flores as wet and swampy, the fire travelling through underground root systems, and even under water. 

 

MAID Efficiency Ending It All

"I am a 33-year-old quadriplegic single mom raising three kids with [my] disabilities."

"Every Ontarian that is paying taxes and paying into social programs thinking that one day should they ever need the supports they would be available to them, I'm here to let you know that's not actually the case."

"My life as it is, without support as a quadriplegic is far more deadly than me even exploring the MAID [Medical Assistance in Dying] process."

"It's not what I want. But if I don't receive the support that I need, the outcome is the same. If I get to a point where I am really sick and basically terminally ill anyways, I would like to have other options."

"We [disabled people] need able-bodied allies willing to rally for us and with us to create change. While these issues may not affect you today, it's very likely that it will affect you or someone close to you in the future."

"I've been very ill. I've been bedridden for the last year so my quality of life has significantly decreased."

Rose Finlay, Bowmanville, Ontario resident

Rose Finlay, pictured with one of her three sons, says it's easier to access medical assistance in dying than the Ontario Disability Support Program. (Submitted by Rose Finlay)

Her personal situation is so dire that this woman is waiting to access medical assistance in dying, Canada's version of state-sanctioned and -assisted suicide. The service that the government provides to offer a timely end-of-life solution to the terminally ill, to those sick of life, to the mentally insecure, to children judged to be sufficiently aware of both their options and their medical conditions, in a steadily widening array of potential recruits to this new on-call death-delivery industry. Ms. Finlay does have alternate options -- trouble is they're not quite as readily accessible as aid in dying. 

The eligibility assessment for MAID takes 90 days to conclusion, while applying for disability support requires patience in awaiting a response that can take up to eight months. A mother of three, Finlay suffered a spinal cord injury at age 17. To the present the former Torontonian has been capable of providing for her family independently through operating her own business, Inclusive Solutions, focusing on disability advocacy work. The last year-and-a-half, however has seen her with increased illness.

No longer able to work, she is unable to pay for her own support workers. Living in Bowmanville for the past 17 years, some 80 kilometres east of Toronto, the search for adequate personal care support is difficult. She finally applied for the Ontario Disability Support Program only to be informed it would take at the very least six to eight months for her application to be approved. Leaving her, she felt, with little option but to move toward MAID. Her illnesses include acute kidney pain, extreme nausea, body tremors and muscle spasms.

She had posted messages on Facebook outlining her situation, that government "has created the perfect storm for disabled people here in Ontario. Starve them, cut them off from participating in society and then offer them death", she wrote. The post was seen by a complete stranger who was moved to begin a fundraising campaign for Finlay on GoFundMe. Finlay referenced the Canada Emergency Response Benefit program that was rolled out during the coronavirus pandemic to give practical financial aid to people who lost employment, when government determined that Canadians require a minimum of $2,000 monthly to live.

Ontario Disability Support Program's benefits are such that individuals, on approval, can receive up to $1,228 monthly; "forced poverty", she labelled it. The director of media relations with the Ontario Disability Coalition in an interview stated that ODSP needs to be doubled in financial assistance, so people "can get out of legislated poverty and be in more of a position to be able to thrive".

"Not having support for the last year has made it so that I’m getting sick more often and I think it’s just better to have it as an option, have MAID as an option, should I get really, really sick."

"Smaller communities just don’t have the resources available to have proper infrastructure in place for disability services … here in Durham [Region], I fought the good fight, I’ve lived here for the better part of the last 17 years, and it’s always been a challenge to find adequate personal care support. We don’t have transportation accessibility."

"Many people turn a blind eye when it comes to disability issues … the average Canadian spends 8 to 11 years of their life with one or more disability and so while this may not be their fight today, it’s not a fight that you want to have to fight when you are in a position of need."

Rose Finlay

In place of financial support, Finlay is trying to raise money on social media to move her family to Toronto where she says there are more support services available. (Submitted by Rose Finlay)

Canada's "Birth Tourism" Industry

Macleans

"[It's a] sorry state of affairs [that women in Canada face wait times of 18 months or longer for treatment for pelvic pain, uncontrolled bleeding and other women's health issues."

"The thought that even ONE patient seeking birth tourism would potentially take either an obstetrical spot out of our allocated hospital quota, or even worse, a spot on the gynecologic waiting list, should be enough to unite all in a position that anything that in any way facilitates this practice should be frowned upon."

"These are non-Canadians getting access to health care, which we haven't got enough of for our own Canadians."

Dr. Jon Barrett, professor, chief, department of obstetrics and gynecology, McMaster University

"In a system that is tight and stretched, it does become an issue at the hospital level."

"It appears like a short cut, a loophole that people are abusing in order to obtain longer-term benefit for their offspring."

"It sends the wrong message that basically we're not very serious in terms of how we consider citizenship and its meaningfulness and its importance to Canada."

Andrew Griffith, former senior federal bureaucrat, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada

"The principal motivator is just soli."

"Sometimes it's veiled under, 'I want to get better medical care', but, interestingly, they fly over several countries that can give them the equivalent care to Canada to get here."

"[Denying care is a dangerous and unrealistic] gut reaction [some hospitals have taken]. Let's be very clear: they won't let them through the front door, or they send them on to another hospital."

"You cannot have zero tolerance for patients. You can't do that because that leads to maternal and fetal complications."

Dr. Colin Birch, obstetrician and gynecologist, Calgary

A Calgary study shows the unpaid hospital bills of birth tourists can cost the system hundreds of thousands of dollars. (Ann Rodchua/Shutterstock)

 

Dr. Birch is co-author of a new study on 'birth tourism', considered the first in-depth analysis of birth tourism in Canada where 102 women who gave birth in Calgary were involved as part of the study. Most of the women arrived in Canada on a visitor visa for 87 days on average before their due date. Birth tourists were most frequently from Nigeria, the Middle East, China, India and Mexico. 77 of the total gave their reason for coming to Canada was to give birth to a "Canadian baby".

Denial of care, wrote Dr. Birch in his counter editorial for the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canada, is a dangerous and unrealistic "gut reaction". But the question remains, should Canada deny care to pregnant women who visit Canada for the specific purpose of having their babies delivered in the country, given that automatic citizenship is conferred on any baby born in Canada. Canadian hospitals and doctors should have "absolutely zero tolerance" for birth tourism, according to a leadling expert in preterm and multiple births.

Birth tourism has become a practise for years, with pregnant women entering Canada for the sole purpose of giving birth in the country, and its prevalence is rising again, with COVID travel restrictions dropped. Babies can end up spending weeks in intensive care when planned low-risk births become complicated, leaving hospitals with hundreds of thousands in unpaid bills. Almost $700,000 was owed to Alberta Health Services over the 16-month study period.

According to Professor Barrett, the women are at risk of being "fleeced" by unscrupulous brokers and agencies that charge hefty sums upfront for birth tourism packages that include help in arranging tourist visas, flights, "maternity, or "baby hotels" and pre- and postpartum care. "Tempted by large sums of money, even the best of us can be tempted into poor practice", wrote Dr. Barrett. It's been acknowledged for some number of years that 'birth tourism' has become an industry in Canada.

Canada's rule of jus soli -- Latin for "right of soil" citizenship is automatically conferred to any who are born on Canadian soil.And birthright citizenship paves the way to the next step, of when the child becomes 18 they can sponsor their parents. Additionally such citizenship as 'birthright' allows the child access to a Canadian education and health care. At least one parent is required to be a citizen or permanent resident by other developed nations, to confer citizenship at birth.

In pre-COVID years, non-resident births accounted for up to 25 percent of all births at a single hospital in Richmond, British Columbia as well as at a handful of other popular destination hospitals in Ontario and Quebec which approached five to ten percent of all births. Nationally, however, the numbers are more modest with "birth tourism" accounting for roughly one percent of total births. In 2019, for example, nation-wide 4,400 foreign births were recorded.

While doctors cannot deny care to a woman in labour, doctors and  hospitals pre-birth could decline to provide care. "Eventually, if you create this unfriendly environment, if everybody said we are not looking after you and not facilitating this, eventually people will not come", explained Dr. Barrett. Another useful strategy, of course, is to change Canada's jus soli law to match those of other advanced countries.

The number of non-residents giving birth in Alberta more than tripled between 2010 and 2016. (Dragan Grkic/Shutterstock)

Titan to Titanic ... The Atlanic Ocean's Secrets

"[We are] exploring and mobilizing all options to bring the crew back safely."

"Our entire focus is on the crew members in the submersible and their families."

"[We are] deeply thankful for the  extensive assistance we have received from several government agencies and deep sea companies in our efforts to re-establish contact with the submersible."

OceanGate Expeditions

"[A catastrophic implosion could be heard for thousands of miles and could be recorded]".

"[An implosion would likely trigger signals in military hydrophones, devices used in the world’s oceans for recording or listening to underwater sounds.]"

"To me it sounds like the sub’s pressure hull is intact, but it’s demobilized from power."

"One of the reasons I suspect the sub may not be able to surface after dropping a release weight could be that it may be partially flooded … If you have water in the pressure hull, it’s quite a large volume. The drop weights usually aren’t that big, and that could be what’s keeping it on the bottom."

"It also means that if the occupants are sitting in a half-flooded pressure hull, that could also be catastrophic. They could become hypothermic. I don’t know how well the CO2 scrubber systems would work if they’re wet."

Ron Allum, deep-sea engineer and explorer

The Titan submersible operated by OceanGate Expeditions dives in an undated image. Photograph: Oceangate Expeditions/Reuters

 

Is there irony being expressed by fortune that a submersible built 70 years after the catastrophic sinking of the world's largest passenger vessel on its maiden voyage holding well over two thousand people on board -- the object of both sadness and curiosity attracting the world's attention generation after generation -- would itself be in a deadly perilous situation of forlorn dimensions in a remote area of the Atlantic where it had submerged with five passengers who may now join the 1,500 who perished that fateful day of 15 April, 1912...?

The submarine was reported on Sunday as being overdue, about 700 kilometres south of St. John's Newfoundland. The U.S. Coast Guard out of Boston responded, along with the Canadian Coast Guard and the search effort remains ongoing, with hope fading as the days go by. It was known that the availability of oxygen on the research sub was sufficient to last four days. The estimate by experts is that by Thursday morning oxygen will have been exhausted.

The ship from which the submersible is launched is owned by the Labrador Mi'kmaq band operated by OceanGate Expeditions which takes explorers and paying passengers of the public to the Atlantic Ocean's depths at a cost of $250,000 each passenger. The submersible can seat up to five people. And the list of its passengers on this trip included a Pakistan businessman and his son, along with two others with scientific credentials and the steersman.

"A weather window has just opened up and we are going to attempt a dive tomorrow [Sunday, 4:00 am]."

We started steaming from St. John's, Newfoundland Canada yesterday and are planning to start dive operations around 4am tomorrow morning. Until then, we have a lot of preparations and briefings to do."

Hamish Harding, Chairman Action Aviation

The Titan submersible is seen launching from a platform in an undated photo. Photograph: OceanGate Expeditions/AFP/Getty Images

Hamish Harding, 58-year-old British businessman, is known internationally as an adventurer--- he was involved in Blue Origin's fifth human space flight, holds the world record for the fastest circumnavigation of the Earth via the North and South Poles by an aircraft which took 46 hours, 40 minutes, and 22 seconds. Another world record he holds is for the longest time at the bottom of the Ocean in 2021 when he spent over four hours on the sea floor of Challenger Deep in a submergence vehicle, at a depth of 10,930 metres in the Mariana Trench.

The pilot of the Titan on this voyage is Paul-Henri Nargeolet, 73, considered the world's leading expert on the Titanic wreckage, director of underwater research for Experiential Media Group and RMS Titanic Inc. He has spent more time in dozens of submersible dives to the Titanic wreckage than any other explorer. He took part in the Five Deeps expedition in 2019, exploring the deepest parts of all five of Earth's oceans.

"If you are 11 metres or 11 km down, if something bad happens, the result is the same. When you're in very deep water, you're dead before you realize that something is happening, so it's just not a problem."

"You stand down four, five, six, seven-eight hours, which is the longest, and even then you don't really want to come back up."

"Sometimes I go to the end of the [sub] batteries and sometimes even more than to the end. Indeed, I've been told off for doing so several times. Then the resurfacing takes just as long, so one can be down between ten to 12 hours."

Paul-Henri Nargeolet

The Titan submersible, as seen in an undated handout photo issued by OceanGate Expeditions. Photograph: OceanGate Expeditions/PA

St. John's, Newfoundland is the jumping off point each year for the 10-day OceanGate Titanic expedition. When six "mission specialists" are recruited to view the Titanic wreck and its debris field, covering 25 square nautical miles. The Titan is reported to be the size of a mini-van. The Titanic itself is at a 3,800 metre depth at the bottom of the Atlantic. Since its discovery in 1985, it has gradually succumbed to the effects of metal-consuming bacteria; predictions are the ship could dissolve in a matter of decades given huge holes in the hull as sections disintegrate.

Anyone on board the submersible must be at least 18 years of age and "be comfortable in dynamic environments where plans and timetables may change". They must be possessed of basic physical strength, balance, mobility and flexibility. The submersible's high-resolution cameras provides those on board with a live view of the wreck. The dives are projected with a view to serving science through its observations.

CBS journalist David Pogue had once boarded the submersible, remarking that he "couldn't help noticing how many pieces of this sub seemed improvised, with off-the-shelf componentism". A video game controller, he pointed out, was used to pilot the vehicle. This, balanced with preparations for the undersea trips, where mission specialists receive training in navigation, piloting, tracking and communications. Crews typically spend "three to five hours" exploring the Titanic wreckage while seated in the submersible.

The CEO of OceanGate, Stockton Rush, became the youngest jet transport-rated pilot in the world at 19 with his captain's rating at the United Airlines Jet Training Institute in 1981. He has a degree from Princeton University in aerospace engineering. Now in his early 60s, he worked with Boeing Co. on an early design of the Titan carbon-fibre sub, then with NASA. He originally looked to space for a career, then changed his target to exploring the world's oceans. He is now, with the four others, in his submersible.

The OceanGate 22-foot carbon fiber and titanium vessel called the Titan is driven with a PlayStation remote control