After string of adventures, ancient gold ring back in Greece



ATHENS, Greece (AP) — A more than 3,000-year-old gold signet ring that was stolen from an Aegean island in World War II, crossed the Atlantic, was bought by a Nobel Prize-winning Hungarian scientist and ended up in a Swedish museum has found its way back to Greece.

It was the latest in a series of coups by Greek authorities seeking the return of works plundered from the antiquities-rich country — even though an initial effort by the Swedish museum to return the ring apparently fell between the cracks of 1970s bureaucracy.

The Greek culture ministry said Friday that the gold Mycenaean-era work from Rhodes, decorated with two facing sphinxes, was willingly returned by Swedish officials who provided full assistance with documenting the artifact and its provenance.

Greek experts confirmed the identification, and the piece was handed over in Stockholm by Vidar Helgesen, executive director of the Nobel Foundation, to which the ring had been bequeathed by the Hungarian biophysicist.

The foundation, which presents annual awards for outstanding achievement in several fields, had given it to the Museum of Mediterranean and Near Eastern Antiquities in Stockholm.

Greek Culture Minister Lina Mendoni thanked the Nobel Foundation and Swedish authorities for the repatriation, saying it “shows their respect for modern Greece and our constant efforts to fight the illegal trafficking of cultural goods.”

The ring, which would have been a status symbol for a local nobleman in the 3rd millennium B.C., was discovered in 1927 by Italian archaeologists in a Mycenaean grave near the ancient city of Ialysos on Rhodes. The southeastern Aegean island belonged to Italy until it was incorporated in Greece after WWII.

The Ministry of Culture and Sports said the ring was stolen from a museum on Rhodes during the war — with hundreds of other pieces of jewelry and coins that remain missing — and surfaced in the United States.

It was bought to the U.S. during the 1950s or 1960s by Georg von Békésy, a biophysicist and art collector whose collection was donated to the Nobel Foundation after his 1972 death and from there distributed to several museums.

The Nobel Foundation's Helgesen said there was no doubt where the ring belonged.

“To us, it was obvious that the ring should be returned," he said. "This artifact is of very great cultural-historical value for Greece.”

The Stockholm museum had initially identified the ring from Ialysos in 1975 and contacted Greek authorities, the ministry said.

“But it remained in Stockholm for reasons that are not clear from existing archives,” Friday's statement said. The artwork will now be displayed in a museum on Rhodes.

The Associated Press

TWO THINGS THAT HAVE BEEN COMING FOR 60 YEARS

Breakthrough in Fusion Energy as Fundamental Law Revised: 'Very Good News'

Ed Browne -
Newsweek


Physicists at a European nuclear fusion lab have worked out a way to obtain more energy from fusion reactors than previously thought possible, surpassing a limit that existing reactors had been adhering to.

Nuclear fusion is the process by which two atoms join together, producing a heavier element from two lighter ones. When this happens, energy is released.

Nuclear fusion happens all the time inside the sun, where hydrogen atoms combine under intense heat and pressure to form helium atoms. This releases even more energy which keeps the whole process going.

The idea of nuclear fusion power here on Earth is essentially to recreate this process, using the heat given off by the reaction to turn water into steam which can then power a turbine generator.

Recreating fusion on Earth has been one of the biggest challenges in modern science and promises a future of clean, easily sustainable power. Every so often scientists make little breakthroughs in research, though a reactor has yet to prove viable for electricity generation.

At the forefront of fusion research are machines called tokamaks, which heat hydrogen gas to extremely high temperatures to create a hydrogen plasma—a gas where electrons are stripped away from their atoms—in which fusion can occur.

The purpose of tokamaks is to keep this plasma flowing in a circle so that the fusion reaction can keep going. Two other things also need to be carefully controlled: temperature and the density of the fuel.

This week, scientists at the European research group École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland have found a way to significantly increase the limits of this hydrogen fuel density—known as the Greenwald limit—beyond what was previously considered possible. It means that reactors should be able to produce even more energy.

"Since the early days of fusion, we've known that if you try to increase the fuel density, at some point there would be what we call a 'disruption'—basically you totally lose the confinement [of the plasma], and plasma goes wherever," said Paolo Ricci, a professor at the Swiss Plasma Center, in an EPFL press release. "So in the eighties, people were trying to come up with some kind of law that could predict the maximum density of hydrogen that you can put inside a tokamak."

An EPFL team decided to revisit this limit, using supercomputers to model the fusion plasma. They found that the more fuel was added in, the cooler the plasma got. This meant the flow was more easily disrupted.

Using what they learned, Ricci and colleagues managed to work out a new equation for a new fuel limit inside a tokamak that was higher than before. Inside Europe's ITER tokamak, the limit can actually be nearly doubled.

The step forward means it will be possible to add more fuel density without limiting the output, Ricci said, adding: "And that is very good news."

Among those hoping for a nuclear fusion future is Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, who was asked for his thoughts on the future of nuclear power in an Ask Me Anything (AMA) threat on Reddit on Wednesday.

He wrote: "There is nuclear fission. If it can solve the cost, safety and waste concerns it can make a massive contribution to solving climate change. I am biased because I have been investing over a billion in this starting over a decade ago.

"Also promising is nuclear fusion. It is less clear if we will succeed but it has less safety and waste issues if it works.

"So I am hopeful nuclear will improve and be a huge help for climate."

Related Articles
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Scientists Baffled As Particle Experiment Threatens 'Fundamental' Theory

Take Note, Men: New Male Contraceptives Are on the Way

Manasee Wagh - 
Popular Mechanics

© Chitraporn Nakorn - Getty Images

One hormone-based, transdermal gel may be one of the earliest options on the market.

Research is well underway for multiple male contraceptive methods, including a topical gel, a pill, and an injection.

A transdermal gel could be developed for market in as little as ten years.

Other products will take longer, but birth control methods like a non-hormonal pill for men show promise in animal models.

Men usually rely on just two options to take control of their reproductive ability. The only male-specific contraceptive options available for generations have been condoms or the more invasive option—vasectomies.

But those limits may expand in as little as 10 years, as male contraceptive research over the past few decades has been building toward multiple lines of contraceptive methods, including pills, injections, and perhaps most promising of all, a simple gel that men can apply to their shoulders once a day. And over the past two years, human trials for a hormone contraceptive gel have proven so far to be an easy and effective solution for men, with few and minor side effects, according to new research in the journal Andrology.

In the recent trial, nearly 100 monogamous heterosexual couples recruited from all over the world tried out the gel in question: Combined Nestorone/Testosterone gel.

Each man who started the gel therapy—a metered pump dispensed exactly the right amount, a little more than 2 milliliters, to be rubbed on their upper arm or shoulder daily—registered lowering sperm counts within weeks. Once the count was less than 1 million sperm per milliliter, as opposed to the normal level of millions of sperm, the woman in the couple stopped her own contraceptive method. For a year, the couples relied only on the male side of contraception to avoid pregnancy. At the end of one year, the man stopped using the gel, and his sperm count bounced back to normal levels in about 16 weeks.

Most men in the study experienced little to no side effects when they used the gel properly, and those effects were minor and similar to side effects some women taking hormonal pills may experience, such as weight gain, acne, lowered libido and slight mood changes.

Researchers say the therapy worked because none of the couples became pregnant, and sperm counts stayed low while the men continued using the gel for the trial year. Men were monitored frequently for sperm count and overall health. Some of these couples chose to start families after they finished using the gel, and they have gotten pregnant. Researchers are now close to recruiting 350 couples out of the 420-couple goal, in order to expand their data set.

Christina Wang of the Lundquist Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center is involved in the gel development and trials and said she has seen men’s interest in family planning rise over the decades. “We feel that the man is more open in sharing an interest in family planning,” she tells Popular Mechanics. “I think the time has come, but we have to deliver the product, right?” It takes time to ensure a new drug is safe, so contraceptive development can’t be rushed, she says.

Male contraception research is sponsored by National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in collaboration with the Population Council, which developed the Nestorone. NIH provides the overall funding.

How does the gel work?

Nestorone/Testosterone gel is a combination of two hormones, a progestin and testosterone. The latter is known as the male hormone, because it is responsible not only for male reproductive function, including sperm production, but also for general good health in males. It affects bone mass, fat distribution, muscle mass and strength, and the production of red blood cells, according to the NIH.

When a person takes a dose of progestins, the resulting rise in the body’s progestin level shuts down the reproductive cycle before it begins. Adding back some testosterone maintains healthy levels in the body, as well as sex drive. For similar reasons, female hormonal contraceptives contain a progestin hormone and some estrogen, the “female” hormone that impacts health in myriad ways.

An oral version of testosterone has been tested, but because it adversely affects the liver, it’s not an attractive option. Plus, ingested testosterone breaks down too quickly and has to be taken multiple times a day, so it’s not very practical, Diana Blithe, program chief of the NIH Contraceptive Development Program (CDP) tells Popular Mechanics. A transdermal application, in which the body absorbs the hormones slowly through the skin, is easier to use and has shown to have fewer, if any, side effects.
A non-hormonal male contraceptive in the works

Debra Wolgemuth, a professor of genetics and development at the Columbia University Medical Center and associate director for research at the Institute of Human Nutrition, has been interested in gaining genetic control over sperm development for decades. That’s because from her view, it’s easier to work on sperm cells than eggs, she tells Popular Mechanics, because millions of new sperm are made each day. Females are born with about a million egg cells, but only about 300 to 400 eggs in a human female potentially can lead to pregnancy.

A second way researchers in Wolgemuth’s lab found to stop sperm production is through a pharmacological antagonist—a drug compound that inhibits a necessary chemical process in the body. In this case, the process the research team wants to prevent is spermatogensis, or the creation of new sperm cells.

Researchers like Wolgemuth and Sanny Chung, an associate research scientist in the Wolgemuth Lab, are looking for a drug that would prevent the body from using retinoic acid, a critical compound from vitamin A that’s necessary for sperm production.

Chung is testing possible drug compounds in mice. In a 2011 study published in Endocrinology, a drug compound successfully interfered with the signaling pathway of mouse cell receptors that are designed to pick up and use retinoic acid, making the mice sterile. At the same time, they experienced no bad side effects, Chung says.

Even though it was shown to work well in mice, future drug development steps will take time, Wolgemuth says. Since their mouse model studies began, the team has been able to lower the drug dose and still find it effective.

Hormonal treatments for women, like the pill, are blamed for side effects like weight gain, acne, and mood changes, to name a few. The same occurs to some extent in male hormone trials like the gel.

Blithe warns against thinking that a non-hormonal solution equals no side-effects. “I don't think anything that one takes systemically can be guaranteed to not have side effects. So we don't know… till we get into humans, but it's an exciting pathway. And I really think it’s going to work,” Blithe adds.
A Short History of Contraceptives

Condoms may date from the Bronze Age, with the first written mention of animal bladders and later, animal skins being used for protection against disease (but not necessarily pregnancy) during intercourse, according to an article in the Indian Journal of Urology. The modern condom was introduced in the mid-1800s, when inventor Charles Goodyear, of the Goodyear tire, introduced rubber vulcanization, whereby natural rubber and sulfur are combined under heat to create a durable, elastic material. By 1860, condoms were produced on a large scale, and were the earliest form of the latex condom we know today.

For women, a scientific and reliable method for prevention of pregnancy came much later. It wasn’t until around 1960 that “the pill” became the first well-known oral contraceptive method. It developed further, with several varieties of hormone combinations produced by different drug companies. Today, the pill is still exclusively a female method to prevent pregnancy, but women can also choose from several different methods, including the pill, the patch, the vaginal ring, the sponge, the injection, the intrauterine implant (IUD) and the diaphragm.

REVIVE NUKE PLANTS INSTEAD
Europe admits it'll have to burn more coal as it tries to wean itself off Russian energy

Anmar Frangoul - Yesterday 

CNBC

A document outlining the European Commission's aims for the REPowerEU plan was published on Wednesday.

It highlighted the importance of energy savings, the diversification of energy imports and speeding up what it called "Europe's clean energy transition."

The EU's desire to wean itself off Russian hydrocarbons means it will need to find oil and gas from other parts of the world to plug supply gaps.


© Provided by CNBC

A wind turbine and coal in Lower Saxony, Germany. The EU's desire to wean itself off Russian hydrocarbons means it will need to find fossil fuels from other parts of the world to plug supply gaps.

The European Commission has fleshed out details of a plan to ramp up the EU's renewable energy capacity and reduce its reliance on Russian fossil fuels, at the same time acknowledging that existing coal facilities may have to be used for "longer than initially expected."

A document outlining the Commission's aims for the REPowerEU plan was published on Wednesday, highlighting the importance of energy savings, the diversification of energy imports and speeding up what it called "Europe's clean energy transition."

In total, it envisages extra investment of 210 billion euros ($220.87 billion) between 2022 and 2027. When it comes to renewables' share in the EU's energy mix, the Commission has proposed that the current target of 40% by 2030 should be increased to 45%.

The Commission's proposals came on the same day the governments of Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium said they would aim for a combined target of at least 65 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity by 2030. By the middle of the century, they are aiming for 150 GW of capacity.

On the fossil fuel front, the situation is a challenging one. Russia was the biggest supplier of both petroleum oils and natural gas to the EU last year, according to Eurostat.

The EU's desire to wean itself off Russian hydrocarbons following the latter's invasion of Ukraine means it will need to find oil and gas from other parts of the world to plug supply gaps.

The Commission said as much as 1.5 to 2 billion euros of investment would be needed to secure oil supply. To import enough liquefied natural gas and pipeline gas from other sources, an estimated 10 billion euros will be needed by 2030.

All the above comes at a time when the EU has said it wants to be carbon neutral by 2050. In the medium term, it wants net greenhouse gas emissions to be cut by at least 55% by 2030, which the EU calls its "Fit for 55" plan.

The Commission said REPowerEU could not work without what it called "a fast implementation of all Fit for 55 proposals and higher targets for renewables and energy efficiency."

In this new reality, gas consumption in the EU would "reduce at a faster pace, limiting the role of gas as a transitional fuel," the Commission said.

"However, shifting away from Russian fossil fuels will also require targeted investments for security of supply in gas infrastructure and very limited changes to oil infrastructure alongside large-scale investments in the electricity grid and an EU-wide hydrogen backbone," it added.

"In parallel, some of the existing coal capacities might also be used longer than initially expected, with a role for nuclear power and domestic gas resources too," the Commission said.

During a press conference on Wednesday the EU's climate chief, Frans Timmermans, admitted that using less natural gas in a transitional phase would mean "you might use coal a bit longer — that has a negative impact on your emissions."

"But if at the same time, as we propose, you rapidly speed up the introduction of renewables — solar, wind, biomethane — you then have the opposite movement," he said.

Timmermans, who is the European Commission's executive vice president for the European Green Deal, went on to stress the importance of finding a middle ground.

"If we can actually do what I say — reduce our energy consumption in combination with a speedier introduction of renewables — we will bring down our emissions even quicker than before," he said.

"And then, of course we will have slightly higher emissions if people stick a bit longer to coal, but we need to strike the balance so that, on balance, we do not increase our emissions — we hopefully even decrease them more."

Coal has a substantial effect on the environment, with Greenpeace describing it as "the dirtiest, most polluting way of producing energy."

Elsewhere, the U.S. Energy Information Administration lists a range of emissions from coal combustion, including carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, particulates and nitrogen oxides.

The European Commission announcement drew criticism from a number of environmental organizations.

"These plans are supposed to fast-track the clean energy transition — but the European Commission's latest strategy gives with one hand and takes with the other," Eilidh Robb, an anti-fossil fuels campaigner at Friends of the Earth Europe, said.

"So-called REPowerEU contains useful and necessary strides towards renewable solutions but it simultaneously enables almost 50 fossil fuel infrastructure projects and expansions," Robb said.

Carbon removal technologies to get $3.5B federal investment



NEW YORK (AP) — The federal government is investing in machines that suck giant amounts of carbon dioxide out of the air in the hopes of reducing damage from climate change.

The Department of Energy said Thursday it will release $3.5 billion to groups developing direct air capture and other technologies that remove carbon dioxide, which when released into the atmosphere causes global warming.

Climate scientists say humans have already allowed too much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere to prevent dangerous rises in global temperatures. They say on top of curbing emissions we must also remove carbon dioxide from the air that's already been released.

“This past month we saw the highest levels of CO2 emissions in the atmosphere in history, underscoring the fact that our efforts to tackle climate change will be inconsequential if we don’t act now to manage the greenhouse gas emissions that are currently putting public health and our environment at risk,” said Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm in a statement.

Companies such as Carbon Engineering and Climeworks are building direct air capture facilities that use giant fans to suck carbon dioxide out of the air and store it underground, or capture it to make synthetic fuel, soft drinks or concrete. But the facilities built so far remove just a tiny fraction of the carbon dioxide that scientists say is necessary to make a difference.

Developers are hoping the investment can help boost an industry that will need to scale up.

“If you want to reduce long-run climate risks, we will need to take CO2 out of the air,” said David Keith, professor of environmental science and engineering at Harvard and founder of Carbon Engineering, which designed a plant that captures carbon dioxide and turns it into synthetic fuel. “The best way to figure out what these methods cost and what their environmental impacts might be is to actually go build hardware that can stand up to public scrutiny.”

Carbon Engineering is working with Oxy Low Carbon Ventures and 1PointFive to develop a facility in the Permian Basin which would capture 1 million tons of CO2 annually.

The DOE money will support four large-scale regional direct air capture hubs that will include a network of carbon dioxide removal projects that each have the capacity to remove 1 million tons of carbon dioxide annually. Those projects will prioritize community engagement and environmental justice, the DOE said.

“I expect the impacts on health and land use in communities will be an important consideration,” said Roger Aines, energy program chief scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Lab, noting that facilities would use land in communities and would run on renewable energy, which would mean placing solar panels or wind turbines around them.

“The time is right for this,” Aines said. “And the only way to really know whether we’re going to like this kind of approach is to try it out.”

Cathy Bussewitz, The Associated Press

THE REALITY IS THAT CCS IS NOT GREEN NOR CLEAN IT IS GOING TO BE USED TO FRACK OLD DRY WELLS SUCH AS IN THE BAKAN SHIELD IN SASKATCHEWAN
https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2014/10/the-myth-of-carbon-capture-and-storage.html

ALSO SEE https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/search?q=CCS

Joy Drop: Landmark U.S. soccer pay equity deal may be turning point for other federations

Shireen Ahmed - 
cbc.ca

Friends, as we dash towards the weekend I am happy to bring you some wonderful news. When the United States women's national soccer team reached a settlement with the USA governing body of Soccer (USSF) in February, it was contingent upon a collective bargaining agreement.


© Aaron Doster/The Associated Press

U.S. national men's and women's soccer team players will now receive equal prize money.

This week, it was completed. Both the men's and women's teams will be paid equally. Cindy Parlow-Cone is USSF's president and spoke highly of the different groups working to make it happen.

"I think the real turning point was when we finally were all in the same room sitting at the same table, working together and collaborating to reach this goal," she said.

This is important and creates a precedent for federations to pay their women's teams what they deserve. What is more joyous than celebrating and properly remunerating women athletes?

Working in a collaborative effort is essential and I am proud to say that a collaboration very dear to my own heart celebrated a milestone this week. The Burn It All Down podcast celebrated its 250th episode. As a co-creator and co-host, I am incredibly proud of this incredible project and overjoyed at the five years we have laboured and discussed sports and the important intersections. This team of incredible academics/journalists/creatives has taught me so much.

Dancing is something I enjoy. Be it in the car with my kids, in my kitchen, or at a wedding, it is fun and that's why I had so much fun when seeing this brilliant tweet by Nina Alston of Florida about her 88-year-old mother. Alston's mom was grooving to Jackson's All For You. Alston shared a video of her mother dancing to it over Twitter and tagged Jackson. What is even better is that of course, Miss Jackson replied.

In Canada, May is Asian Heritage Month. Simon Fraser University offered a great post about what to read, what to listen to and what to watch to increase knowledge from Asian Canadian authors and creatives. I found a wonderful article from writer Samantha Lui for ELLE magazine called Why Asian Heritage Month is About More Than Representation. Lui explores why this month matters and why education and cultural sharing is essential for anti-racism in society.

Although this is from last year, CBC music's Melody Lau offered a great list of 30 Asian artists to discover during Asian heritage month. The idea is not only to enjoy their music and respect their culture but to appreciate them all year round.

The New York Times offered a list of popular snack items to sample inspired by Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) month as it is known in the USA. Taking these ideas is always a tasty way to approach anti-racism and understanding.

In addition to food, what better way to celebrate Asian Heritage Month than at the Juno Awards? Host and Marvel superhero Simu Liu danced with Canadian performer Tesher to Jalebi Baby, a song that boosted into stardom via TikTok last year. The number was a hit and fans were raving about it online.

I hope your weekend is as sweet as jalebi, ras malai (my favourite), red bean buns or any other wonderful sweets.

Indigenous Cast Revealed For Marvel Origin Story Series ‘Echo’



Corey Atad - 5h ago

ET Canada
© Photos courtesy Marvel/Disney+

Marvel's next big series is under production and the Indigenous cast has been revealed.

The show, titled "Echo", centres on the character Maya Lopez, who made her MCU debut in the 2021 series "Hawkeye", played by Alaqua Cox.

In "Hawkeye", Lopez is a deaf gang leader who wanted vengeance on Ronin, aka Clint Barton.

The new series tells the origin story of Lopez's transformation into the superhero Echo, following her to her hometown as her actions back in New York catch up with her.

Facing her past, Lopez must reconnect with her Native American roots and embrace her community in order to become who she was truly meant to be.

Joining Cox in the series are "Wild Indian" star Chaske Spencer, "Reservation Dogs" actor Zahn McClarnon and Canadian Indigenous stars Tantoo Cardinal, Devery Jacobs, Cody Lightning and Grahame Greene.

The series will be directed by Sydney Freeland and Catriona McKenzie.

"Echo" is expected to premiere on Disney+ in 2023.

Entangled North Atlantic right whale spotted in the Gulf of St. Lawrence


The Canadian Press

TODAY


GASPÉ, Que. — Fisheries and Oceans Canada is searching for an endangered North Atlantic right whale that was spotted Thursday entangled in some kind of gear east of Gaspé, Que.

The whale is a 14-year-old female known as Sundog.

Federal officials say marine mammal rescue agencies are on standby, though a disentanglement mission won't be attempted unless sea conditions are favourable.

It remains unclear what kind of gear needs to be cut away or where it came from

Second minke whale spotted in Montreal area, marine mammal group says

There are about 336 North Atlantic right whales in existence, and many spend their summers feeding in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

Fifteen calves were observed earlier this year in waters off the United States.

The first right whale spotted entering Canadian waters this season was seen on May 4 by the crew aboard a surveillance aircraft as it flew over the gulf, north of Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Que.

The sighting triggered a 15-day fishing closure in specific fishing grids in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 20, 2022.

The Canadian Press

BUILDING TRADES ARE CONSERVATIVE

Michael Taube: Doug Ford's endorsements show unions and Conservatives can be allies

Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford has run a strong campaign in the provincial election. He’s ahead in the polls, has performed well in the leaders’ debates and has earned endorsements from likely sources as well as some unlikely ones.

© Provided by National PostOntario Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford makes an announcement with Stelco as a backdrop during an election campaign stop in Hamilton on May 18, 2022.

The most interesting endorsements of the lot? Four unions — the Laborers’ International Union of North America, International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, IBEW Construction Council of Ontario and the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) — have come out in support of Ford and the Ontario PC government. In the past, the words “Conservative” and “endorsed” have seldom passed the lips of union leaders and members in combination thereof.

Anti-Ford critics must surely be beside themselves. It’s one thing for former Mississauga mayor Hazel McCallion, a longtime Liberal, to endorse Ford. The influential municipal powerhouse has occasionally supported Conservative candidates, and endorsed Ford in the 2018 provincial election. But why would four labour unions support a Conservative politician who previously had issues with some public sector workers?
“I’m not gonna judge any other party. I’ll tell you, our families, be it my dad or my brother Rob or (nephew) Michael, we’ve supported the hard-working women and men in this province, the union members,” Ford said earlier this week at IUPAT’s headquarters. “We always have. I love ‘em.”

That’s really what Ford has always thought about unions and the working class. Like other politicians, he’ll agree and disagree with some of their views. He may fight like cats and dogs with them every once in a while, but sees it as being the same as having a small, short-lived tiff with your parents, siblings, neighbours or the grocer down the street. He ultimately knows that blue-collar workers play a vital role in society and the provincial economy — and he’ll defend them and their unions to the bitter end.

This isn’t the first time that union leaders have stood in solidarity with Ford in some fashion, either. When he announced the provincial minimum wage would be raised to $15 an hour starting in January, OPSEU’s Smokey Thomas and now-former Unifor national leader Jerry Dias flanked him at the press conference. All those whose mouths that were left agape at this stunning visual can maybe pick up their jaws at long last.

Alas, it’s yet another example of how progressives and liberal elites just don’t understand how Ford Nation works and succeeds.

As I’ve written before, Ford Nation combines populist rhetoric and conservative principles. Ontarians from all walks of life are fed up with Big Government, high taxes and regular interference in their daily lives. Ford, like other members of his family (including his late brother, former Toronto mayor Rob Ford), values individual rights, liberties and freedoms and wants to give more control back to the people.

This means Ford stands up for the little guy as much as he stands up for business and the free market economy. Moreover, Ford gets what matters most to them. He may come from a different financial background and lifestyle, but his plain-spoken language and folky mannerisms — which are genuine personality traits — are something they can identify with. It’s also why they don’t get worked up about things if he makes a mistake or has to change course on a policy. We’re not infallible, meaning that ordinary people and prominent individuals both screw up every so often.

To be sure, these union endorsements are more directed at Ford than the PCs. If a different PC leader was at the helm, these endorsements likely wouldn’t have been forthcoming. Or not as many of them, at the very least.

However, Ford’s ability to acquire union endorsements does hold some important lessons for today’s Conservative politicians and parties.

Most modern Conservatives think differently on issues than union leaders and card-carrying union members. Nevertheless, they’ve been able to find common ground in the past. Canada’s federal PCs and the Reform Party both acquired some significant blue-collar support in elections, and former federal Conservative leader Erin O’Toole tried to revive this last year. U.S.-based union members have supported House and Senate Republicans, as well as such presidential candidates as Dwight Eisenhower, Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison have rebuilt relations with working people and earned their votes. We also can’t forget former U.S. president Donald Trump’s successful 2016 pitch to the blue-collar element in the Rust Belt and the “forgotten men and women.”

Creating a labour-friendly atmosphere similar to the one Ford and Labour Minister Monte McNaughton have successfully achieved isn’t an impossible task for federal conservatives, either. Focusing on free markets, trade liberalization and private enterprise are all important and necessary, but they can be balanced at times with such labour-oriented concerns as economic security, good wages, job creation and workers’ rights.

Hence, conservatives and union leaders need to regularly sit down at the bargaining table or in a political office to discuss grievances, concerns and policies. Keeping the lines of communication open will help reduce anti-union and anti-business rhetoric, and enhance intellectual discourse and the ability to find common ground. There won’t always be an easy answer, but there will be far less obstacles between them than what currently exists.

Ford has clearly figured it out with unions. Federal conservatives need to follow his lead.

National Post
Michael Taube, a columnist for Troy Media and Loonie Politics, was a speechwriter for former Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper.

WAGES, PRICES, PROFIT MARX

ABOLISH THE MONARCHY

Two-Thirds of Canadians Polled Don’t Want Prince Charles to Be King

Robin Raven, RD.com - Yesterday 


A prince of the people?

Prince Charles is the longest-serving heir apparent in British history, but he hasn't enjoyed great popularity with the public since more private details about his marriage to Diana, Princess of Wales became public knowledge. 

An Angus Reid poll from April 2022 found two-thirds (67%) of Canadians opposed to the idea of Charles succeeding his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, as monarch.

 An earlier U.K. poll showed that the popularity of the man who is next in line to the throne is decreasing, while an Express poll revealed that people would prefer that other royals ascend to the throne.

 Harsh, we know, but it's not completely without cause. These are the reasons why many people throughout Canada and the United Kingdom aren't excited by the idea of Prince Charles becoming their new king.

Canada sees 25,000 unfilled cybersecurity jobs as hacking activity soars

MoneyWise - Yesterday 


With 25,000 cybersecurity jobs staying vacant in Canada, this growing market is hungry to shore up its recruitments by closing the gender gap, a female keynote speaker told an audience at the Canadian Women in Cybersecurity’s conference in Vaughan on May 4.


© Provided by MoneyWise Canada



Globally, there are 3.5 million unfilled jobs in cybersecurity, Gina Cody, first woman to receive her PhD designation in building engineering at Concordia University, added.

“This number for sure will go up,” said Cody, who made a historic $15 million gift to Concordia University’s faculty of engineering and computer science in 2018, said.

In North America, women fill only about 21 per cent of cybersecurity jobs and even fewer of them hold senior positions in the industry, Cody added.

“The math here is straightforward,” Cody said. “If they want to close the employment gap in cybersecurity, we need to close the gender gap.”
Increased spending

Governments around the world are expected to increase their spending on cybersecurity, and Canada is among them.

Canada’s minister of innovation, science and industry, François-Philippe Champagne, announced in February that the National Cybersecurity Consortium (NCC) will receive up to $80 million to lead the Cyber Security Innovation Network (CSIN).

NCC is a not-for-profit consortium, founded in 2020 by five Canadian universities with the goal of bringing together business and government research into cybersecurity. The consortium collaborates with more than 140 researchers from 35 post-secondary institutions, 16 large companies, 30 small and medium-sized firms, 26 not-for-profit organizations and eight governments and governmental organizations across Canada.

This spending on cybersecurity by the government is a boon for the economy too. According to Statistics Canada, the Canadian cybersecurity industry contributed over $2.3 billion in GDP and 22,500 jobs to the Canadian economy in 2018 alone.

But that’s a drop in the bucket compared to what will be coming globally. Research firm Cybersecurity Ventures forecast in a recent report that governments will spend around $1.75 trillion on cybersecurity between 2021 and 2025.
Cybersecurity jobs expected to grow even more

The number of unfilled jobs is expected to grow amid alarming projections that cybercrime is on the rise worldwide, and the pandemic only accelerated the trend, as more companies pivoted online.

In 2021, the Sophos State of Ransomware Report showed that 39 per cent of Canadian businesses were victims of ransomware the prior year, and 65 per cent of the businesses expect a future ransomware attack. Ransomware is a type of malware that threatens to publish the victim’s personal data or perpetually block access to it unless a ransom is paid.

Citing a figure from Cybersecurity Ventures’ Official Cybercrime Report, Cody said in 2021 alone, cybercrime is estimated to have caused more than US$6 trillion in damage, up from US$3 trillion in 2015.

“If cybercrime were measured as a country, it would [have] the third largest GDP in the world after the United States and China,” she added. “The world is beginning to realize just how important cybersecurity really is.”
All skill sets needed

In one panel discussing the “absolute joy of being a woman in cybersecurity,” women panelists sought to dispel some myths surrounding the industry. Those include having to be a math whiz.

“If you have more soft skills, like myself in communications and policy, there’s an area for you,” said Julia Le, a cybersecurity education and awareness manager at the government of Ontario.

“If you want to get into the ethical hacking team and break into systems really, ethically, and make sure that our software and programs are secure enough, well, yes, you will need a computer science background,” said Le, who has a master’s degree in public policy.

One of the panelists, Eman Hammad, cyber-physical security and resilience at PwC, told the audience that she sees the industry as “mosaic,” with people able to bring all their diverse experiences into the mix.

“Especially in cybersecurity, you can bring all [of] yourself, you can bring yourself as a technology expert, you can bring yourself as a people person, you are working with clients and trying to understand their challenges. You can bring yourself, all your skills,” Hammad said.

Most importantly, cybersecurity is not unlike police work; it’s about protecting the public.

“You wake up every morning and say that today is the day I can make a difference, even if it’s small,” Hammad said.

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.