Conrad Black: Middle East is on the brink of peace, thanks to Trump

Conrad Black: Middle East is on the brink of peace, thanks to Trump

Even after President Trump’s televised address on Wednesday night, the obtuseness and antagonism of the Napoleonic military geniuses in much of the world’s media think that the Iran War could be a quagmire and stalemate without a formal Iranian surrender. Trump repeated that his objectives are the permanent end of Iran’s nuclear military ambitions and of its support of terrorism in much of the world. In furtherance of that he will strike them “very hard” for another month or so. This can only mean that he will, if necessary use amphibious or airborne forces to take over the distribution of Iran’s oil, while destroying its power grid and closing its ports as tightly as its airspace. This is a logical conclusion of the war, in which the United States has incurred eight fatalities in combat and five others accidentally. Neither this small number nor the material cost of about $50 billion is onerous to the United States.

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Provincial frictions and bringing establishment onside present early tests for NDP Leader Lewis, say politicos

Provincial frictions and bringing establishment onside present early tests for NDP Leader Lewis, say politicos

NDP Leader Avi Lewis is already ruffling feathers among provincial leaders, and observers say they’ll be “watching closely” to see how he mends those fences, with some speculating his win was likely thanks to newer NDP members, not establishment votes.

“He would benefit from the wise counsel of people who have built the party up, who understand how to be successful as a third party,” said Lori Turnbull, a Dalhousie University political science professor and former Privy Council Office adviser.


God help us.

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#MilitaryTok reactions to Iran war stray from White House messaging: ‘Now I’m regretting everything’

#MilitaryTok reactions to Iran war stray from White House messaging: ‘Now I’m regretting everything’

As Trump’s administration aims to bring ‘warrior culture’ back to the military, young service members express anxiety and snark online over potential deployment

Iposts coming from the White House were to be believed, the US-Israel war on Iran looks something like scenes from Top Gun, Braveheart and Deadpool – or how a fifth-grade boy might imagine combat. The Trump administration has also presented Operation Epic Fury as a video game, borrowing gen Z parlance to describe the US armed forces as “locked in” on the conflict.

Such macho posturing squares with secretary of defense Pete Hegseth’s desire to bring “warrior culture” back to the military. The former Fox News host has railed against DEI, “fat troops” and “beardos” (troops with beards), and envisioned a military full of “the right people” who fit his imposed standards of virility and masculinity.


Only at the Guardian!

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Inside Ottawa’s most baffling international projects

Inside Ottawa’s most baffling international projects

From $18 million being spent on international LGBT groups to $25 million for gender-responsive nature-based solutions for climate change, the Western Standard has once again sifted through Global Affairs’ most eyebrow-raising international assistance projects funded by taxpayers.

Though some may actually be contributing to the greater good, others are questionable in their contributions.

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Muslim called Jewish family ‘dirty people’ in park then tried to tell cops that he had First Amendment right to do so, prosecutors say

Muslim called Jewish family ‘dirty people’ in park then tried to tell cops that he had First Amendment right to do so, prosecutors say

A Muslim man argued he had First Amendment rights to call a Jewish family ‘dirty people’ at a Miami Beach park, prosecutors said.

Ahmad Zeeshan, 32, was arrested on Thursday after he allegedly approached a Jewish family at Stillwater Park and shouted anti-Semitic slurs at them, NBC Miami reported.

‘Are you guys Jewish?’ he allegedly asked, according to Local 10 News. After confirmation, he allegedly yelled: ‘Get the f**k out of here, you f**king dirty people.’

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‘Dangerously escalating”: Jewish-owned Toronto restaurant becomes 12th target of antisemitic violence

‘Dangerously escalating”: Jewish-owned Toronto restaurant becomes 12th target of antisemitic violence

With heavily armed Toronto police guarding Jewish institutions during Passover, a Jewish-owned restaurant became the city’s latest target of antisemitic gunfire on Friday morning, prompting Israel’s ambassador to Canada to urge authorities to act “before it’s too late.”

Old Avenue restaurant in north Toronto was hit by gunfire around 1:30 a.m. on Friday. CTV reported surveillance video showing a man crossing Avenue Road and firing repeatedly into the restaurant, as well its own footage showing bullet holes in the door to the kitchen at the back of the restaurant.

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Trump has triggered a wave of European soul-searching

Trump has triggered a wave of European soul-searching

As world leaders grapple with Donald Trump’s second term, his war with Iran has accelerated European multipolarism, with leaders on the continent searching for alternative solutions to American isolationism. How far should Europe pool security and defence? Should there be a European version of the Anglo ‘Five Eyes’ alliance, as the Netherlands’s coalition government, led by their new prime minister Rob Jetten, has suggested? Is the proposal from Renew Europe – the European Parliament’s centrist grouping – for a Nato-like trade alliance between European countries and their democratic allies – like Canada, Japan and South Korea – realistic?

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Separatist movement in Canada’s Alberta province finds allies in Trump’s circle

Separatist movement in Canada’s Alberta province finds allies in Trump’s circle

In the middle of a trade war and Donald Trump’s threats to make Canada the 51st state of the United States, Canadians are watching in astonishment as figures close to the president embrace a minority separatist movement in the province of Alberta. Secret meetings with representatives of the U.S. State Department, the open support of figures from the MAGA movement, and the possibility of a referendum this fall — for which signatures are already being collected — paint a picture in which many see the shadow of foreign interference.

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Iran has 48 hours to make a deal, says Trump, or US will unleash ‘hell’

Iran has 48 hours to make a deal, says Trump, or US will unleash ‘hell’

US President Donald Trump on Saturday said Iran had 48 hours left to make a deal on opening the vital Strait of Hormuz or face “Hell”.

“Remember when I gave Iran 10 days to MAKE A DEAL or OPEN UP THE HORMUZ STRAIT,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

The waterway is vital to the global oil and gas trade.


Also …

Search for missing US crew member of downed fighter jet enters second day

US search and rescue efforts for the missing second crew member of the downed F-15E fighter jet continued into a second day as Iran came under heavy bombing and Israel extended the war in Lebanon.

A pilot had been rescued on Friday after the F-15E Strike Eagle became the first US plane to be downed over Iran during the five-week-long war, but the second of the two-strong crew has not been accounted for.

Iranian media released pictures of a wreckage, including a distinctive F-15 tail fin, and a used ejector seat on Friday, with state media and businesses in the country offering a bounty if the missing crew member could be captured

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Geoff Russ: Sorry, progressives, Canada wasn’t ‘built on slavery’ like the U.S.

Geoff Russ: Sorry, progressives, Canada wasn’t ‘built on slavery’ like the U.S.

Spurred on by the so-called reckonings over racism in the United States and its legacy of slavery, many Canadian activists have attempted to import America’s divisive racial politics into Canada. However, examining slavery in Canada on its own terms and in good faith does not result in an identical discourse.

A report released Wednesday by the Aristotle Foundation for Public Policy — titled, “Slavery in Canada: The Facts Rarely Told” — is a fascinating and grim study into the country’s dark history of trafficking in human beings.

 

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The Sticky Truth About Food Fraud

The Sticky Truth About Food Fraud

A recent investigation has shaken one of Quebec’s most iconic industries. Authorities are examining allegations that maple syrup sold in grocery stores—linked to a Quebec producer—may have been adulterated with cheaper sugars while still being marketed as “pure.” Products have been pulled, regulators are involved, and once again, Canadians are left asking a familiar question: how did this go unnoticed?

Maple syrup is not just another product. In Quebec, it is culture, identity, and economic pride. But this case isn’t really about syrup.

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