Thursday, April 14, 2022

'A huge rift': COVID-19 response strains relationships in northern Alberta county

Mackenzie County is part of the High Level LGA, the least
vaccinated region in Alberta

THIS IS A MENNONITE COMMUNITY, WHICH THE ARTICLE FAILS TO MENTION
Fakiha Baig · The Canadian Press · 
Public health measures to try to curb the spread of COVID-19 have sown a stark divide in Mackenzie County, the least vaccinated region in Alberta. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press

The mayor of High Level, a town in Alberta's far northwest corner, says she has not spoken to the county government for several weeks.

"We're not at each other's throats, but it's a very estranged relationship," say Crystal McAteer.

"There is a fracture between us. We already had problems, but it's come to the forefront in the last two years."

Public health measures to try to curb the spread of COVID-19 have sown a stark divide in Mackenzie County, the least vaccinated region in Alberta.

Residents and local leaders say friendships have ended, arguments have erupted in shops, and government projects have been unable to move forward amid disagreements over masking, vaccines and other pandemic responses.

"It's like the Hatfields and McCoys," High Level real estate agent Sylvia Kennedy says in a nod to the famous feuding families of 19th-century American lore.

Real estate agent Sylvia Kennedy compared the friction in the county to the Hatfields and McCoys, the famous feuding families of 19th-century American lore. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press)

"I've been accosted about my wearing a mask. It's really sad ... This silliness is [creating] a huge rift in our region."

Mackenzie County is larger than New Brunswick and has abundant oil, gas and agriculture. In addition to High Level, it is home to the hamlets of La Crete and Fort Vermilion as well as to four First Nations.

The Alberta government says just under one-third of the county's residents are fully vaccinated and about 38 per cent have had their first dose.

The province could not provide a breakdown of vaccination rates for individual towns and First Nations. High Level's mayor, after speaking to several businesses and health workers, estimates three-quarters of the town is fully vaccinated.

The Beaver First Nation says 60 per cent of people living on the two reserves it manages are fully vaccinated.

McAteer says her town has become "a pariah" because it enforced public health measures — sometimes through its own bylaws when the provincial government lifted rules — while businesses in neighbouring towns made headlines for defying them.

The Chamber of Commerce in La Crete, an hour's drive from High Level, organized a bus to Ottawa as part of the so-called freedom convoy challenging government restrictions. Some protesters stopped in High Level for a few days to demonstrate against local restrictions.

The animosity between High Level and the county peaked in February when the county's council passed a motion to stop working with subcontractors and businesses that had a vaccination policy for employees. A letter stated that those businesses would not be permitted to enter county premises.

McAteer says she hasn't spoken to the county since.

"To protect our workers, High Level's employees had to be vaccinated, including the fire department," McAteer said.

"They've proposed that we can't enter their places of work."

Reeve Josh Knelsen says the county, La Crete and High Level "obviously" have their differences.

In an interview at his La Crete office, Knelsen said businesses have appreciated the county's decision. He couldn't say how many are not working with the county anymore.

"It used to always be where it didn't matter your political stance," said Knelsen, who added he has not been vaccinated against COVID-19.

"I can appreciate what they do as long as they don't expect us to do the same...The biggest frustration that I've seen through this all is the division that it's caused."

He said he and many others in the area he was born and raised in believe "health is a personal choice" and the government shouldn't be telling people how to take care of themselves.

He and some in La Crete had COVID-19 early in the pandemic, he said, but they were able to recover, although some didn't.

"They have a brain. Everybody has their own mind and they're very capable of using it. If you want to live up north, you have to be somewhat resilient and tough. If you're too stupid, you don't survive."

'It used to always be where it didn't matter your political stance,' said Mackenzie County Reeve Josh Knelsen, pictured in La Crete, Alta. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press)

Even without a government order, and since he was a child, he has never gone to a family member's home if someone was sick, he said.

"I love my family. I will not jeopardize them."

Knelsen said he is ready to move on from the pandemic.

"This will be a bad memory in a very short time."

McAteer says projects High Level has been working on with the county haven't moved forward. The town has been waiting since December for the county to sign an agreement to recognize their "inter-municipal co-operation."

"I'm hoping we come together," McAteer says.

"What goes on in the north is good for all of us, and to stay together, we have to work together."

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ALBERTA'S CHIEF UCP COLLABORATOR
Hinshaw sidesteps question about COVID-19 sixth wave in Alberta
KEEPS TELLING US THE DOG ATE HER RESEARCH

By Paula Tran 770 CHQR
Posted April 13, 2022 

Alberta's chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw said Wednesday, when asked about her own mask-wearing, that she considers where she is when deciding whether to mask. She said it is still "prudent" to wear masks, especially as COVID-19 cases and related numbers rise, but did not appear to indicate if the province might bring back masking mandates.

Alberta’s chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw will not say if Alberta is in a sixth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

During a press conference on Wednesday afternoon, Hinshaw did not directly answer a reporter’s question if Alberta is in the sixth wave of COVID-19. Instead, she said there are many questions the province does not have the answers to.

“What is the magnitude of this rise (in transmissions)? How long will it last? Those are the questions we don’t know the answers to yet,” Hinshaw said.

READ MORE: Alberta doctors call for more COVID-19 pandemic transparency

CONSERVATIVE SELF REGULATION RIGHT WING DIY

She also recommended Albertans mask up in public and take extra steps to protect themselves and others as COVID-19 transmissions rise.

“I would encourage people to consider their own risk factors and the risk factors of those around them… To be a part of protecting our communities right now,” she said.

“Our actions impact other people as well.”

1:28 Alberta’s top doctor says it is ‘prudent’ to still wear masks

Hinshaw also urged Albertans to take precautions if they are thinking of gathering for the Easter weekend. Indoor social gatherings create a higher risk for transmission, she said.

“We know that people gain benefits from spending time with people they care about,” Hinshaw said. “I would recommend people consider who they’re going to be gathering with and consider what precautions are appropriate for those individuals.”



Hinshaw’s response comes after chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam confirmed Canada is in a sixth wave of COVID-19 on Tuesday.

It also comes after Alberta reported an increase in hospitalizations and ICU admissions, something Health Minister Jason Copping said was not unexpected.

3:25 Alberta pauses use of COVID-19 antibody treatment Sotrovimab

As of Wednesday, 1,503 people in hospital have COVID-19. Of those, 48 are in the ICU.

According to provincial data, 37 COVID-19 deaths have been reported since last weeks update. Hinshaw said the province experienced of an average of five deaths per day during the week of April 5 to 11.


During the same time period, the province recorded 8,191 new lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 from 23,399 tests. The data breaks down as follows:

April 5: 1,039 cases, 3,867 tests completed
April 6: 1,014 cases, 3,619 tests completed
April 7: 929 cases, 3,862 tests completed
April 8: 945 cases, 3,633 tests completed
April 9: 822 cases, 3,385 tests completed
April 10: 590 cases, 2,221 tests completed
April 11: 842 cases, 2,812 tests completed

Health officials warned the total number of Albertans with COVID-19 is likely far higher than what is being reported due to limitations on who is eligible to receive a PCR test in the province.

1:34Alberta’s top doctor advises people think about Easter gathering precautions as COVID-19 numbers rise


Copping said in a statement last Wednesday that while the number of COVID-19-positive patients in hospital remains stable, the Omicron subvariant BA.2 now makes up about 80 per cent of new cases in Alberta.

READ MORE: County divided: COVID-19 response strains relationships in Alberta’s least-vaccinated region

He urged Albertans to get their booster doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, especially since Alberta’s health-care system is still at capacity.

“The whole system is busy and we’re working to increase capacity across our entire system,” he said at Wednesday’s press conference.

“We’re going to see some increased pressure from BA.2 for a few weeks, but likely not what we saw in December and in January.”

NDP Health Critic David Shepherd criticized Copping’s statement, accusing the UCP of mismanaging public health care. He pointed to Dr. Verna Yu’s departure from Alberta Health Services as an example.

“At a time of severe strain and challenges in frontline care, the UCP’s answer is more chaos and upheaval. This is the wrong direction,” Shepherd said in a statement on Wednesday.

© 2022 Global News
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UCP COVID COVER UP
Alberta top doctor’s claim of cabinet confidentiality challenged in court

By Paula Tran 770 CHQR
Posted April 7, 2022 
Alberta’s chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw in Edmonton on Thursday, Sept. 23, 2021. 
Credit: Chris Schwarz/Government of Alberta

Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Barbara Romaine will decide next week whether or not a question regarding cabinet ever ignoring public health recommendations would infringe on cabinet confidentiality.


The decision is part of a civil trial that began on Monday. Several individuals and churches launched a constitutional challenge in December 2020, accusing the provincial government of violating Albertans’ rights by imposing public health orders and restrictions at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Throughout the trial, Alberta’s chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw maintained that public health restrictions were necessary to protect the province’s health-care system during the pandemic.

Hinshaw also repeatedly said she provided recommendations to elected officials and used their policy decisions to inform subsequent public health orders.



During cross-examination on Wednesday afternoon, lawyer Jeffrey Rath asked Hinshaw if the premier or his cabinet ever rejected her recommendations related to COVID-19 public health restrictions.

Nick Parker, a lawyer for the province, objected and raised concerns about cabinet confidentiality.

Nicholas Trofimuk, another lawyer for the province, presented a certificate from the executive council to the court. The certificate states Hinshaw was involved in confidential, high-level discussions with Premier Jason Kenney and his cabinet about the province’s COVID-19 response, Trofimuk said.

These discussions must be kept confidential because COVID-19 is still a politically sensitive policy issue and publishing details could interfere with cabinet decisions, Trofimuk and Parker argued.


READ MORE: Alberta’s top doctor takes stand during civil trial regarding response to COVID-19

Rath disagreed. He also said the public deserves to know if Hinshaw’s decisions were being presented as public health orders instead of political policies. He also accused the government of interfering with the civil trial, saying the timing of the objection needs to be questioned.

Rath then accused the government of promoting Hinshaw’s orders under the Public Health Act instead of the Emergencies Act.

“This is like the premier picking up the phone in the middle of a judicial proceeding and telling the administrative decision-maker how to decide the matter,” Rath said during cross-examination on Thursday morning.

“Any professional acting ethically or competently, when faced with that situation, would resign. We are entitled to ask those questions.”

Romaine to ask Hinshaw questions privately

At the end of cross-examination on Thursday, Romaine took Hinshaw aside to ask three questions privately. These questions will form her decision around the cabinet confidentiality issue, she said.

The questions were:

Did the premier and cabinet, including the priorities implementation cabinet committee and the emergency management cabinet committee (loosely referred to as cabinet), ever direct you to impose more severe restrictions in your CMOH orders than you had recommended to them?

Did cabinet ever direct you to impose more severe restrictions on particular groups such as churches, gyms, schools and small businesses than you had recommended to them?

 

Did you ever recommend that restrictions should be lifted or loosened at any time and that recommendation was refused or ignored by cabinet?


READ MORE: COVID-19 in Alberta: 990 people in hospital as of Wednesday

The answers to those questions will only be submitted to the public record if Romaine decides they are relevant to the civil trial. Otherwise, they will remain confidential.

Both lawyers agreed that they will not present closing arguments until Romaine makes her decision next week. Parker said the Crown counsel reserves the right to ask for additional time to get further instructions and file an urgent appeal due to the precedent-setting nature of the decision.

The trial will continue next week.
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'Ultra-Low-Cost Carrier' Flair Airlines Could Get Shut Down For Not Being Canadian Enough

Canada Edition (EN) - Tuesday
Narcity

Canada's "ultra-low-cost carrier" Flair Airlines could be shut down for not being Canadian enough and that could ground travel plans.

Flair could lose its right to operate in Canada because of concerns that too much of its operations are controlled by a U.S. partner, according to a preliminary review from the Canadian Transportation Agency obtained by Global News.

The review is said to be largely about 777 Partners, a major partner in Flair's operations that is Miami-based, which invested in the airline in 2018.

The American company also owns the fleet of planes that Flair leases for its flights and has members on the airline's board of directors, according to Global News.

On March 3, 2022, the Canadian Transportation Agency issued a preliminary determination that Flair might not be controlled by Canadians and therefore might not actually be "Canadian."

"Flair holds licenses authorizing domestic, scheduled international, and non-scheduled international air services. Pursuant to the [Canada Transportation Act], Flair must be Canadian to provide these air services," the agency said in its preliminary determination.

Flair has been given 60 days from when the determination was issued to respond.

At the end of the review process, the Canadian Transportation Agency will put out a final public determination.

The decision on whether or not the airline's operating licence will be suspended could come at the beginning of May.

If that happens, that would mean Flair is no longer allowed to operate in Canada and any plane tickets people have would be invalid.

Currently, the airline has flight routes to more than 30 Canadian and North American destinations including Cancun, Nashville, Las Vegas, Hollywood, Chicago, New York, Orlando and Los Cabos.

According to Global News, Flair is seeking an exemption to the rule set out in the Canada Transportation Act.

Flair Airlines could be grounded in Canada over foreign control concerns

By Craig Lord Global News
Posted April 12, 2022 

Ultra low-cost carrier Flair Airlines could lose its right to fly in Canada over concerns that too much of its operations are controlled by a U.S.-based partner, according to a preliminary review from the country’s transportation watchdog obtained by Global News.

The decision, for which Flair is seeking an exemption, could see the airline’s operating licence suspended on May 3, leaving Canadian air travellers with summer travel plans stranded at the gate.

Some air industry observers are watching the proceedings skeptically, wondering about the lack of transparency around the review, while others say the airline has long been playing too loose with Canadian ownership requirements.

“If you’re buying a ticket for travel beyond May 3rd… buy insurance and make sure you’re ready for some turbulence along the way,” says John Gradek, a professor with McGill University’s aviation management program who’s following the case.


Airline analyst on the growing pains Flair Airlines is going through as an ultra-low-cost carrier – Feb 20, 2019



Why is Flair’s licence in jeopardy?

Flair Airlines is based in Edmonton, Alta., but operates routes connecting many smaller markets in Canada to other North American destinations.

Though it technically began operations in 2005, it was in 2018 that Flair formally joined the emerging crop of ultra low-cost carriers (ULCC) in Canada including WestJet’s Swoop and Lynx Air. Flair offers a no-frills travel experience but appeals to consumers with eye-grabbing deals such as $69 flights from Toronto to Vancouver.

Flair currently operates a fleet of 13 Boeing 737 aircraft, but has stated plans to scale up to 50 aircraft by 2025. The airline has even received federal support to do so, having gotten $11 million in grants through the Regional Air Transportation Initiative to help expand its operations.

READ MORE: Flair Airlines to expand fleet by 30 aircraft by mid-2023


But despite its long-term ambitions, the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) — the federal watchdog that oversees the airline industry — launched a review in late 2021 based on concerns that Flair does not meet Canadian ownership requirements under the Canada Transportation Act.

The review is largely tied to a major partner in Flair’s operations, Miami-based 777 Partners, which invested in the airline in 2018. The U.S. company also owns the fleet of planes Flair leases for its operations and has members on the airline’s board of directors.



Flair Airlines unveils its first Boeing 737 MAX – Jun 10, 2021

The agency came out with a short statement announcing its preliminary decision on March 3, 2022. Its findings said then that Flair indeed “may not be controlled in fact by Canadians.”

It then gave Flair 60 days to respond to its ruling before the decision is finalized.

Global News obtained a redacted copy of the CTA’s preliminary decision, which included the basis for its findings.

The CTA wrote that Flair’s non-Canadian ownership does not exceed the 49 per cent allowed under the Act. Additionally, 777 Partner’s overall ownership stake of Flair does not exceed the 25 per cent allowed by a single non-Canadian entity.

However, the CTA found that 777 influence over the company’s day-to-day or strategic operations likely constitutes “control in fact” — another key factor determining whether a firm is Canadian enough to qualify for a licence.

Since 777 has more than half of the seats on Flair’s board, and the airline is effectively financially dependent on its Miami-based investors for the leasing of its jets, the CTA found that 777 has more sway in the company’s operations than the balance of its Canadian shareholders.

READ MORE: Canadian airlines adding flights, capacity in bid to recover COVID-19 losses

“After considering all of the facts together, the agency finds that 777’s influence over Flair is dominant and that 777, therefore, may have control in fact of Flair,” the decision reads.

Since the CTA’s ruling is redacted, it leaves out information about who, specifically, the shareholders and board members of Flair are, as well as entire points contained in final analysis.

Global News reached out to 777 Partners for comment but did not receive a response before publishing.

The CTA confirmed in a statement to Global News that if Flair Airlines fails to remedy the watchdog’s concerns, it could have its licence suspended.

“Should Flair’s licences be suspended, Flair would be precluded from operating any flights,” the statement read.

The CTA said it has not yet received a response from Flair Airlines regarding its concerns.

In an emailed statement to Global News, the airline’s CEO, Stephen Jones, said Flair is working “very cooperatively” with the CTA and he “expects that the majority of the issues raised will be resolved in the very short term.”

Flair says it’s Canadian — but asks for time to meet regulations

In the meantime, Flair has sought relief elsewhere — through Canada’s Minister of Transportation, Omar Alghabra.

The company is requesting an 18-month exemption to the rules for Canadian control until it can make certain changes to address the CTA concerns, according to a letter sent from Flair to the minister obtained by Global News.

Flair cites the COVID-19 pandemic as a significant drag over the past two years, which caused it to lean more heavily on 777 Partners as a source of financing.

The company says it is actively looking for more Canadian sources of investment, which could skew control north of the border again, but says the May 3 deadline is too soon for it to secure such deals. Flair does claim the “majority” of the other issues identified by the CTA can be resolved by that deadline.

Flair also argues that denying its exemption would amount to grounding the airline, which serves airports in many secondary markets such as Abbotsford, B.C., Waterloo, Ont., and Deer Lake, Nfld.

0:22 Flair Airlines to add routes between Winnipeg and Regina, Saskatoon in 2022Flair Airlines to add routes between Winnipeg and Regina, Saskatoon in 2022 – Oct 28, 2021


Such a move would ultimately cost jobs, reduce competition in the market and cause economic damage to the country, Flair claims, as well as leaving thousands of Canadian air passengers with summer travel plans stranded.

“This clearly runs against public interest,” the letter reads.

Flair says in the letter it will be responsible for 1,000 “direct jobs” by mid-2022, if it remains a going concern, with thousands more jobs sustained as a result of its operations.

Gradek says Flair’s apparent strategy of “enamouring” itself with the Canadian public and smaller airports has been “very dangerous.” He argues the company has been building up “political clout” while “flaunting the regulations when it comes to Canadian ownership.”

“This was a willful act by Flair to attempt to circumvent or bust through the regulations. They knew exactly what the regulations are,” he tells Global News.

“They’re trying to basically play this out in the game of public opinion.”

READ MORE: Flair Airlines to train staff on human trafficking signs as part of #NotInMyCity program

While Transport Canada confirmed to Global News it received the letter asking for an exemption, it said it was still in the midst of collecting feedback from industry stakeholders on the proposal and would not comment on whether it would grant Flair’s request.

“Such consultations are designed to support the rigour of the Minister’s assessment of the request, as well as transparency and accountability. It would be premature to speak in terms of conditions associated with any potential exemption,” the ministry’s senior communications adviser, Hicham Ayoun, said in an emailed statement to Global News.

Why is this coming up now?

The CTA’s preliminary ruling does not say why it launched a review of Flair’s ownership and the agency declined to provide specifics when asked by Global News.

Gábor Lukács, president of the Air Passenger Rights consumer protection group, says he is concerned about the lack of transparency surrounding the investigation.

The CTA’s preliminary decisions are normally released publicly with the full analysis document. The short statement posted on its website on March 3 and the redacted copy reviewed by Global News do not present a full picture of a scenario that the agency is now soliciting industry feedback on.

READ MORE: Did a federal agency try to use privacy laws to hide a complaint about an airline?

“What the government has done is put out this innuendo that something might be wrong with Flair without allowing the public, the experts, the media, to form meaningful opinions on whether that has any legs,” he says.

“Perhaps it does. Perhaps it doesn’t. But right now, this is causing harm to Flair’s reputation.”

That’s not to say Lukács is a big fan of Flair’s standard operations — he tells Global News he’s fielded numerous complaints about instances of Flair cancelling flights and failing to promptly rebook passengers on other airlines.

In fact, he says he would rather see the CTA go after those glaring violations of air passenger rights than foreign ownership concerns, which, in the short term, do not have a great bearing on consumers.

Singling out Flair, which has filed Competition Bureau complaints against WestJet’s Swoop over allegations of undercutting competitors, reeks of unfair targeting, Lukács says.

“Why are they making such a … dog-and-pony show over one airline for a requirement that, in the short run, strikes me as marginal, posing no risk to consumers, when the practice of cancelling flights and then not rebooking people properly and immediately does affect consumers?” he says.

“Now that would be something important to focus attention on, against all our airlines, Flair, WestJet, Sunwing, Air Canada, Air Transat, all of them.”

Gradek says that if the CTA ultimately decides Flair does not meet the licensing requirements, the airline could appeal the call, maintaining its right to fly until a secondary ruling is made. If that fails, exact penalties and rectification is up to the watchdog.

“It’s complicated. It all depends how forceful the CTA wants to be with Flair,” Gradek says.

The CTA says that if Flair does lose its licence, it would have to meet its obligations under the “contract of carriage” — the agreement struck between air carrier and passenger.

According to Lukács, case law has shown passengers would have a right to claim refunds against an airline if the company did go out of business before their trip. “But the question is whether there is any money left to refund,” he notes.

More practically, anyone who bought airfare via credit card can get a refund via a chargeback, which puts the onus on the card issuer to recoup their payments.

But Jones said in his statement that the company is anticipating continuing to grow its operations this summer, with a fleet of 20 aircraft expected to take to the skies by mid-June.

“Flair is here for the long term and is committed to finally bring sustainable, affordable airfares to all Canadians, and to every destination we serve now and in the future,” he said.

“Customers can absolutely book with confidence, and we look forward to welcoming them aboard this summer.”

— with files from Global News’ Ross Lord
   

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RIOT CONTROL AGENTS ARE CHEMICAL WEAPONS

Russia could mask chemical munitions with riot control agents: Pentagon update 

Yesterday 

Russia could use riot control agents to mask chemical weapons

A defense official said the U.S. cannot confirm whether Russia has used any chemical weapons in Mariupol or elsewhere in Ukraine, but the Defense Department has seen evidence Russia could consider disguising use of chemical weapons by making them look like more benign riot-control agents.

"In the past we've had indications that that could be one thing that the Russians look at, is the potential mixing of agents with the with the idea that they could disguise a more serious attack by using the vehicle and the techniques of riot control agents," the official said.


© Felipe Dana/APResidents stand outside their apartments as shops burn after a Russian attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine, April 11, 2022.

Pentagon press secretary John Kirby put out a similar statement Monday night addressing social media reports claiming Russia used a chemical weapon in Mariupol.

"These reports, if true, are deeply concerning and reflective of concerns that we have had about Russia's potential to use a variety of riot control agents, including tear gas mixed with chemical agents, in Ukraine."

Kirby, like the official on Tuesday, emphasized the U.S. cannot confirm the allegations.

On Tuesday, Kirby told reporters the U.S. is looking into the matter.

"We're obviously taking it seriously and we're monitoring it," Kirby said. "We're trying to do the best we can to figure out what, if anything, happened."


Fact check: It's true tear gas is a chemical weapon banned in ...






Practice Relating to Rule 75. Riot Control Agents

https://ihl-databases.icrc.org › docindex › v2_rul_rule75

Some countries consider that the use of tear gas (CS gas) conflicts with the 1925 [Geneva] Gas Protocol. This poses inevitable problems for the peace force when ...

1925 Geneva Protocol – UNODA - the United Nations

https://www.un.org › disarmament › wmd › bio › 1925...

Protocol for the Prohibition of the Use in War of Asphyxiating, Poisonous or Other Gases, and of Bacteriological Methods of Warfare. The 1925 Geneva ...

Tear gas is banned in war, but police can use it on crowds at ...

https://www.cnn.com › military-tear-gas-protesters-trnd

Jun 8, 2020 — The military is banned from using tear gas on the battlefield, but police can use it on crowds at home. Here's why. By Harmeet Kaur, CNN.

Tear gas has been banned in warfare. Why do police still use it?

https://theworld.org › stories › tear-gas-has-been-banne...

Jul 31, 2019 — Right, the Geneva Convention bans the use of tear gas from war. Why is that not mandated for civilians? ... It really goes back to the Chemical ...
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NDP blasts province over lack of hot water at northern Manitoba hospital

Monday

A Manitoba MLA says he wants to know why one of the busiest hospitals in northern Manitoba continues to deal with a lack of hot running water in some areas of the facility, and why the province isn’t showing more urgency and doing more to get the problem fixed.

“It’s unthinkable that a large hospital like Thompson would be left without hot water for any length of time,” Flin Flon NDP MLA Tom Lindsey said last week while speaking in the Manitoba Legislature.

Lindsey’s comment, which were directed at Health Minister Audrey Gordon, were made after reports surfaced recently that some parts of the Thompson General Hospital have been without hot water for more than a week because of plumbing and mechanical issues.

Lindsey said he does not believe a lack of hot water is something that would be allowed to continue for more than a week at any Winnipeg hospital, so he can’t understand why it continues in Thompson, a city of about 13,000 residents that sits more than 750 kilometres north of Winnipeg, and is the largest city in northern Manitoba.

“Imagine the Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg trying to operate with no hot water,” Lindsey said.

“What makes Thompson General Hospital any less important to this minister and this government?”

Gordon responded last week to Lindsey’s comments in the legislature by stating she believed health officials in the north would work to get the problem fixed as quickly as possible.

“I have full faith in the staff at Thompson General Hospital,” Gordon said. “The regional health authority has a strong leadership team, and I’m sure it’s being looked at as we speak.”

But on Monday morning, a Northern Health region spokesperson told the Winnipeg Sun that the hot water issues continue in sections of the Thompson General Hospital including in the emergency room, and that they could not say for sure when those issues would be fixed, although it would likely not be any time soon.

“Our best estimate is about a month for the Emergency Department, and by the end of April for the wards/rooms affected,” the spokesperson said.

“Due to equipment failures, two separate systems involving hot water delivery are having intermittent issues in specific areas of the Thompson General Hospital. Temporary hot water solutions are being implemented as part of contingency planning.

“In a separate issue, some patient areas have low, poor or no hot water. Parts are shipping from the Manitoba supplier on April 19th. Contingencies are underway to address all of these areas while we await parts and have them installed.”

The spokesperson said that delivery of some of the needed parts has been “abnormally slow due to well-documented supply chain issues.”

The spokesperson also claimed the hot water issues are having no negative effects on levels of service and patient care at the hospital, but they did admit they have caused “inconvenience” for some patients.

“Hospital operations have not been impacted,” the spokesperson said. “Northern Regional Health Authority acknowledges and regrets that some patients have been inconvenienced; however, safe patient care remains our priority as a health region.”

On Monday, NDP leader Wab Kinew reacted to the hot waters issues at Thompson’s hospital in a statement to the Winnipeg Sun, and like Lindsey, he questioned if that kind of issue would be allowed to persist for that long if it were happening in Winnipeg.

“Hot water is a basic service and it's essential for a hospital to function safely,” Kinew said. “If this happened in Winnipeg, there would be a major outcry. We should be just as concerned when it happens in northern Manitoba.

“Northern families deserve a government that fixes problems and makes their health care a priority.”

— Dave Baxter is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of the Winnipeg Sun. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.

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For the record: Re-contextualizing Canada's history


The ways in which the general public understands the historical record are transforming. Canadians are increasingly engaging in conversations about new historical perspectives that are changing how the nation’s past is understood and remembered.

It is often said of history that it’s written by the victors, but there has been a growing push to interpret significant figures in their historical context using multiple perspectives. Manitoba offers unique examples of this phenomenon in how communities can talk about the past positively and productively.

In the public sphere, people are investigating and trying to learn more about different aspects of their community and country, said Max Hamon, associate professor in the department of history at Brandon University.

Their curiosity can be piqued by the mundane things they encounter in their community, such as a historical plaque or street sign they walk by each day.

As the public re-discovers and re-contextualizes what were once commonly accepted historical narratives, he said, they are starting to push back against what was once accepted academic "truths."

He described this process of learning as "public history." The National Council on Public History describes this concept as a movement promoting collaborative study and engagement with history. The goal of the practice is to make unique insights accessible and useful to the public, helping them better understand their past.

As people learn more about Canada’s history using multiple perspectives, the traditional focus on French and English settlements in the country can often leave people feeling like other narratives are missing from the past.

"The national narrative it’s simply not satisfactory," Hamon said. "Canada is not just French and English. Canada is so much more than those things and, in many ways, Canada is insufficient to explain the complexity of all these things. It’s a good thing to start recognizing the work that goes into this."

Hamon cited Louis Riel as an example of a trans-national history. Historians continue to expand the narrative surrounding the Métis icon to better establish his place in Canadian history.

As a historical figure, Riel exemplifies the deep divide that can exist when people are interpreting historical records, Hamon said. While he is now widely accepted and celebrated by Canadians as the father of Manitoba and a critical figure in Canadian Confederation, this interpretation is relatively new.

"It’s hard to understand how people saw it differently in the past," Hamon said. "If we’re thinking about the evolution of Riel, I do think that it’s simplified and I am always shocked to hear a historian try to say Riel is ‘such a controversial figure’ — it’s no longer controversial to recognize Riel’s significance, but that has changed through work. People have worked to better understand who he was."

Born in St. Boniface in the Red River Settlement in October 1844, Riel played a pivotal role in bringing Manitoba into Confederation. His direction of the Red River Rebellion led to the Canadian government at the time labelling him an "outlaw." In 1884, Riel was asked by Saskatchewan Valley settlers to lead them in protest against the Canadian government resulting in the North-West Rebellion in 1885.

Following the rebellion’s defeat, Riel was tried for treason and hung in Regina in November 1885.

The example of Riel demonstrates how history can be seen in a different light by embracing additional historical perspectives. Studying the historical icon over the years has helped Hamon understand Canada and its history in new ways.

"We often say history is told by the victors, by those who were able to grab and hold onto power. All the other voices and perspectives, the views of the other side … are drowned out — whether it’s women, whether it’s poor, whether it’s marginalized communities," said Kelly Saunders, Brandon University political science professor. "We only see one story and that is the story that our government institutions choose to tell us."

In Canada, there has been a carefully crafted historical and cultural narrative largely based on the country being more diverse, peaceful, respectful and civil compared to other jurisdictions such as the United States.

Using multiple viewpoints to examine Canadian history shows that it can be viewed as a country "built on genocide," she said.

"This is what history tells us, and historians, the experts who are studying what actually happened in this country and the story of how we came to be from multiple perspectives and not just what the British Crown or what the Canadian government wanted us to know, but the true history told by the voices that have been shut out — that is our story."

These nuanced conversations that take into account various historical experiences are becoming increasingly difficult to participate in and facilitate in the public sphere, because there has been a loss of trust in and respect for authority — political experts, senior experts, elected officials, historians, scientists, among others — and the insights they can provide to the historical record.

"We just dig our heels in and come at it from a very emotional point of view and that everybody is a ‘self-styled’ expert. When you add those two things together, it ends up where we are today — it’s just butting heads and there’s no sense of talking our way through and reaching consensus anymore."

Saunders saw a break from this trend after children’s bodies were rediscovered in unmarked graves at former residential schools across the country. She said these histories were known by Indigenous communities for generations and documented by the government. However, the facts about residential schools had not significantly entered the sphere of public history and discourse prior to the 215 unmarked graves located near the Kamloops Residential School in 2021, which gained international attention.

The unearthed bodies of these children broke through Canadians’ mental discomfort when it came to viewing the country’s past atrocities. Difficult conversations have forced Canadians to engage with the traumatic legacy of residential schools and the disenfranchisement of Indigenous communities and people for decades.

"We could no longer deny it because it was in front of us," Saunders said. "I noticed the conversations that started happening. People that just went about their lives, not very knowledgeable or very caring about these issues, were now texting me and saying, ‘I want to talk about this … I want to learn more.’"

Growing up, Louis Riel was spoken of with admiration in his family home and was a celebrated figure for his impact in Manitoba, said John Fleury, Minnedosa-based Manitoba Métis Federation (MMF) minister of the Indigenous skills and employment training strategy.

"But, then, of course, we heard the English version that he was a traitor and everything else. But, from our own people, he was always doing something good," Fleury said. "They [would] talk about Louis Riel and he was a traitor in the war against Canada, but they didn’t talk about how he secured the Métis’ future; he tried to protect their language, and not only the Métis language but the French language and English. He was protecting all peoples."

The new understanding of Riel as a crucial figure in Canada’s history slowly began to shift in the mid-1960s, he said, aided by the formation of the MMF. The organization was able to share views from all areas of the province with the common thread of speaking to Riel as a hero and protector of people, a father of Confederation and the father of Manitoba.

Non-Métis were not always open to this historical perspective but over time, minds slowly began to change, he said. It has been powerful and uplifting to see the monumental place Riel holds in Canadian history gain acceptance by the general public.

"It was a big shift, and I think that’s when society began becoming more open to another person’s point of view. They allowed us our point of view whether they liked it or not, and then they began accepting another point of view."

Regardless of how it is presented, people will formulate opinions based on what they have been told by their families, teachers and others in society. He said when up against these experiences, changing opinions is a slow process — but they can be transformed.

The MMF remains committed to promoting truth and education to open minds. Fleury encouraged people to push boundaries and learn as much as they can, because reconciliation cannot take place without truth.

"That’s what we need more of — more educated opinions. We all need to do our part," Fleury said. "We are now living in a new era, and education and communication is the key."

The namesake of Rosser Avenue came under scrutiny after John Simpson appeared before Brandon City Council in September 2020, requesting the name of the thoroughfare be changed. Simpson said a rechristening of the street was essential given the tainted history of its namesake.

The avenue bears the name of former late-19th-century Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) chief engineer and Confederate General Thomas Lafayette Rosser. According to the Manitoba Historical Society, Rosser worked for the railway for less than a year before departing the company "amid accusations, recriminations and scandal."

Rosser served as a Confederate general during the American Civil War and his family engaged in slavery.

"I’m not so sure that this is such a glorious, glorious past that we are looking for, particularly as I began to learn more and more about him," Simpson told the Sun. " I’m not sure that he’s someone who is really worthy of our attention and our honour here in Brandon."

The Manitoba Historical Society described Rosser as a complex figure who was "almost ruthless, action-oriented approach to getting a job done, and his ever-present eye on the possibilities for profit, are amply demonstrated through his actions during his short time with the CPR."

Simpson pushed for the Rosser Avenue name change out of a sense of indignation.

He expects these discussions around how historical figures are honoured will only broaden as the public has been forced to reckon with truth and reconciliation since the rediscovery of hundreds of unmarked graves in former residential school sites across Canada. These graves are prompting a re-examination of Canadian history.

Simpson proposed alternative names for Rosser Avenue that could honour Westman’s Indigenous history, including Tommy Captain, the first child who died at the Brandon Indian Residential School in 1896.

"Tommy and all those children who died represent lost potential, potential never realized," Simpson said. "I really hope for the sake of inclusivity, for the sake of reconciliation, for the sake of all people who don’t fit the traditional mould that Brandon has grown from, I really hope that we change and we continue to change. We can do that one way through the symbols that we proclaim within our boundaries."

It can be challenging for people to learn and accept new historical facts that challenge what was once widely accepted views. It is a positive case when it comes to Riel, Fleury said, but Rosser’s legacy stands in stark contrast.

Rosser’s motivation for coming to Canada was, in Fleury’s opinion, centred on "greed."

"He wanted to make a name for himself and he didn’t care how he did it," Fleury said. "After all of his manipulations on the railroad and elsewhere, he went out of here to the States because he was found out to be a bit of a shyster."

History shows Rosser departed Brandon with a "stain on his name."

There is a stark contrast between Riel and Rosser’s experiences in Canada. It was at a time when Indigenous people were being chased off their lands and facing the expansion of the settlers across the prairies, Fleury said.

Rosser profited during this era of Canada, while Riel fought for the future of his people.

It can be hard for people to reassess and adjust perspectives as they learn new historical facts, Fleury said, but it is even worse when people do not take the time to learn the true history of their nation.

These debates about history come down to education, especially because stories like the history of Rosser are not taught, he said.

Debates over the historical legacy or shame should be treated with care, because they can distract from more urgent and contemporary community issues. Indigenous people in Canada have experienced cultural genocide, land disposition, residential schools and other acts of trauma for the past 150 years.

The discussions around Rosser Avenue’s name need to be discussed carefully with civility and understanding, said Kris Desjarlais, Brandon Urban Aboriginal Peoples’ Council vice-chair. The name "Rosser" has largely been decoupled from the individual, and most people are unaware of the Confederate General’s controversial legacy.

It can be difficult to make a definitive decision when it comes to sites, streets or statues named after historical figures. Desjarlais cautioned there is a need to be careful in how far these conversations are pushed when looking at historical figures from a modern-day perspective.

"Where do we draw the line?" Desjarlais said. "I think in order for us to wrap our heads around these issues collectively, we need to have the dialogue. I don’t think we can just say [it’s] ‘because it’s the right thing to do.’ We need to bring people along with us to get to that place."

Seemingly trivial conversations like Rosser Avenue’s name can only increase divisions in the community. Desjarlais said there are more important things to do to support marginalized populations.

Support for First Nation, Métis and Inuit peoples needs to be centred on systemic changes that directly help and provide equity and equality for contemporary populations. This can include improving outcomes around education, health and employment, reforming child and family welfare and returning power and control to Indigenous communities.

"You end up risking fighting [for these changes] over window dressing," Desjarlais said. "I’m more interested in important things, because changing Rosser Avenue to an Indigenous name is not going to employ anybody, it’s not going to reduce the anxiety of a single mom in Brandon who is Indigenous and struggling to make ends meet."

Desjarlais is hopeful for the future of Canada. He cited how Brandon’s inaugural Truth and Reconciliation week saw around 1,000 people participate in the Orange Shirt Day walk. It was an amazing experience, he added, because it included meaningful conversations around truth and reconciliation.

"This could be a turning point in Canada … You start and you plant the seed, it creates slow and incremental gains. It’s not going to be a sea of change," Desjarlais said. "It is different than it was 25 years ago — we are making inroads, but we have a long way to go."

Rosser is not the first figure to have newly recognized historical records transform their legacy, Prof. Hamon said. Riel has been a fluid figure throughout Canadian history, with his significance and legacy gaining a positive light as he became better understood outside the traditional Western historical narrative.

"If we’re going to tell the story of Rosser and make it meaningful, it’s going to be a lot more complicated than just a road sign," Hamon said. "These local histories which focus on specific communities, they’re so rich and they’re so filled with detail, the problem is they don’t connect it to the broader context always."

The presence or lack thereof, of a statue or street name, does not change history, he said. Instead, it impacts the types of conversations being initiated based on what is in the world around you.

People need to understand the constructed nature of their worldview and how it is influenced by their life experiences, he said.

One of the most important steps is moving away from the binaries and to stop thinking in terms of settler versus Indigenous, he added. Canadians need to understand how to talk about the countless different cultures, including Indigenous, as a whole and their unique experiences in the country.

Some members of the public may choose to portray symbols like Rosser Avenue as extremes, Saunders said, but most controversies are not as polarized as presented.

"To say that we have to keep the name to honour our history — well, what history do we want to honour?" Saunders said. "What history do we really want to privilege and whose history do we want to privilege and what does that say about who we are as Canadians?"

Conversations are taking place across Canada that unpack colonialism’s ongoing role in society and how it reproduces itself in new, more nuanced and indirect ways. Saunders said a key aspect of breaking this cycle is talking and working with Indigenous communities involving them in the decision-making process and allowing them to exert power.

People are learning history is an intersectional experience, and she can see people are changing, giving her hope for the future.

"Just by having conversations, you can really change one person at a time. We just have to be open-minded and be willing to look at the world a little bit differently than what we have done before [and] ask the big questions that have to be asked."


Chelsea Kemp, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Brandon Sun


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Lots of broadband money, but US expansion finds speed bumps

By WILSON RING and MARK GILLISPIE


Trevor Haskins, of Waitsfield and Champlain Valley Telecom, works to run fiber fiber optic cable to a home in Concord, Vt., Thursday Feb. 10, 2022. The nationwide need to connect homes and businesses to high-speed broadband services was highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic and officials say that while there is lots of money available, supply and labor shortages are making the expansion a challenge. (AP Photo/Wilson Ring)


VICTORY, Vt. (AP) — For the 70-or-so people who live in the remote Vermont community of Victory, Town Clerk Tracey Martel says she’s regularly frustrated watching a spinning circle on her computer while she tries to complete even the most basic municipal chores online.

“Fast internet would be really good,” said Martel, whose community was one of the last in Vermont to receive electricity almost 60 years ago. The DSL service she has now works for basic internet, but it can be spotty and it doesn’t allow users to access all the benefits of the interconnected world.

About 5 miles (8 kilometers) away as the bird flies in the neighboring community along Miles Pond in the town of Concord, a new fiber optic line is beginning to bring truly high-speed internet to residents of the remote area known as the Northeast Kingdom.

“I’m looking forward to high-speed internet, streaming TV,” said Concord resident John Gilchrist, as a crew ran fiber optic cable to his home earlier this year.

The fiber optic cable that is beginning to serve the remote part of Concord and will one day serve Victory is being provided through NEK Broadband, a utility of nearly 50 Vermont towns working to bring high speed internet service to the most remote parts of the state.

NEK Broadband Executive Director Christa Shute said the group’s business plan calls for offering services to all potential customers within five years, but given current supply constraints and the shortage of trained technicians, she’s beginning to think that goal isn’t achievable.

“I think our build will take seven to 10 years,” she said.

Congress has appropriated tens of billions of dollars for a variety of programs to help fill the digital gap exposed by the pandemic when millions of people were locked down in their homes with no way to study, work or get online medical care.

The first of those funds are reaching municipalities, businesses and other groups involved in the effort, but some say supply chain issues, labor shortages and geographic constraints will slow the rollout.

The demand for fiber optic cable goes beyond wired broadband to homes and businesses. The cable will help provide the 5G technology now being rolled out by wireless communications providers.

But there’s a bottleneck in the supply. Michael Bell, senior vice president and general manager of Corning Optical Communications based in Charlotte, North Carolina, says the issue lies with supply of the protective jacket that surrounds the hair-thin strands of glass that carry information on beams of light.

Currently, some working to expand broadband say delays in getting the fiber optic cable they need can exceed a year.

“Based on the capacity we’re adding, and the capacity we see our competitors adding, wait times will start going down dramatically as the year progresses and into next year,” Bell said. “And I think as we get into next year, the lead time for most customers is going to be well under a year.”

Meanwhile, there’s a labor shortage for installing the cable. Many in the industry are setting up educational programs to train people to work with the fiber, said Jim Hayes, the president of the Santa Monica, California-based Fiber Optic Association.

“It needs to be done now,” said Hayes. “We’re going to need to train probably ten techs for every tech that we’ve got who’s competent to lead them.”


Jason Morisseau, hands only, an installation and maintenance technician with Waitsfield and Champlain Valley Telecom, uses a fusion splicer to install fiber optic cable that is being run to a home, in Concord, Vt. (AP Photo/Wilson Ring)

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the $1.5 trillion infrastructure bill passed last fall, says that areas that receive broadband speeds of less than 25 megabit downloads and 3 megabit uploads are considered unserved. To qualify for different federal grants through the infrastructure bill and other programs, most finished projects must offer speeds of at least 100 megabits per second for downloads. Upload speeds differ, but most federal grants have a minimum of 20 megabit uploads.

For comparison, it takes 80 seconds to download a 1 gigabyte video at the speed of 100 megabits per second. It takes four times as long — 320 seconds, or more than 5 minutes — at 25 megabits per second.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration, a part of the Agency of Commerce, which is funding broadband projects across the country through the infrastructure law, is neutral about about how internet service providers reach the speed requirements. Many providers say the key to bringing true high-speed internet service to the entire country is to install fiber optic cable to every nook and cranny.

Deploying high-speed internet in tribal communities and rural areas across the western United States where distances dwarf those of rural northern New England will be even more of a challenge.

Broadband access on the Navajo Nation — the largest reservation in the U.S. at 27,000 square miles (69,930 square kilometers) in Arizona, New Mexico and Utah — is a mix of dial-up, satellite service, wireless, fiber and mobile data.

The U.S. Department of the Interior, which has broad oversight of tribal affairs, said federal appraisals, rights-of-way permits, environment reviews and archaeological protection laws can delay progress.

The argument against the wireless options currently being used in some areas is they can’t offer speeds needed to qualify for the federal grants.

Mike Wendy of the Wireless Internet Service Providers Association said wireless technology is getting faster and more reliable and wireless connections could be the only way to reach some of the most remote locations.

“The challenge of all this money is to make sure that the unserved are served,” said Wendy, whose organization represents about 1,000 fixed wireless internet providers. “Our guys are in those markets right now and they’re growing.”

Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted said $233 million in state dollars will be used in his state to expand broadband to over 43,000 households. Other internet service providers have agreed to expand broadband to another 51,000 households. Ohio is expected to receive an additional $268 million in federal funding to further broadband expansion in the state.

Husted said Ohio is focused on infrastructure while groups and organizations are needed to provide computers and to help people adapt to the fast-growing digital age.

“We’re building the road,” Husted said. “Access to broadband is like the highway system. That’s where we’re focused. It doesn’t mean there are people who don’t need cars or need driver’s licenses.”

There are still scattered locations across the country that rely on dialup and some people in remote locations use satellite internet services. Some people have no internet options whatsoever.

Victory Town Clerk Tracey Martel takes a phone call at the town clerk's office, in Victory, Vt.
 (AP Photo/Wilson Ring)

Martel, the Victory town clerk, said that when the people from NEK Broadband visited the community they told residents it would be five to seven years before fiber optic cable would reach the community.

But Shute says her organization is hoping to get a grant to connect the most rural areas, which could move the timeline for Victory up to three years.

Meanwhile, back in East Concord, after having the service for several weeks, Gilchrist said he and his daughter Emily, who is 19 and headed to college in a few months, no longer have to go to the local diner to use the internet. He canceled his expensive satellite TV service, his daughter and her friends have been using it to play online video games and in a few months she will be using the connection while doing college studies.

“It’s been working great, as far as I’m concerned, all I do is check email,” Gilchrist said. “I don’t watch TV, but my daughter loves it.”

___

Gillispie reported from Cleveland. AP Correspondent Felicia Fonseca contributed to this report from Flagstaff, Arizona.
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