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Wednesday, November 17, 2021

2 men convicted of murdering Malcolm X to be exonerated

File Photo by Ezio Petersen/UPI | License Photo

Nov. 17 (UPI) -- The Manhattan district attorney plans to exonerate two men convicted of killing civil rights leader Malcolm X in 1965, the Innocence Project and the men's lawyers announced Wednesday.

District Attorney Cyrus Vance, Shanies Law firm and the Innocence Project are expected to file a joint motion Thursday vacating the convictions of Muhammad A. Aziz and Khalil.

Vance's office began a review of the case in January 2020, finding new evidence indicating the two men's innocence. The Innocence Project said investigators found FBI documents that were available at the time of their 1966 trial, but were withheld from both the prosecution and defense.

"It took five decades of unprecedented work by scholars and activists and the creation of a Conviction Integrity Program at the Manhattan District Attorney's Office willing to engage in a true joint re-investigation for these wrongful convictions to be officially acknowledged and rectified," Vanessa Potkin of the Innocence Project said in a statement emailed to UPI.

RELATED UPI Archives: Newsman present during Malcolm X's assassination

"The recently unearthed evidence of Mr. Aziz and Mr. Islam's innocence that had been hidden by the [New York Police Department] and FBI not only invalidates their convictions, it also highlights the many unanswered questions about the government's complicity in the assassination -- a separate and important issue that, itself, demands further inquiry."

Malcolm X was shot to death Feb. 21, 1965, while preparing to give a speech at the Audubon Ballroom in Manhattan. Nation of Islam members Mujahid Abdul Halim (then known as Talmadge Hayer), Aziz (then known as Norman 3X Butler) and Islam (then known as Thomas 15X Johnson) were arrested and convicted of murder in 1966.

Halim confessed to the shooting but refused to identify Aziz and Islam as his co-conspirators, instead saying members of a Newark, N.J., mosque helped him in the attack on Malcolm X.

U PI Archives: Muhammed Ali, Malcolm X's friendship detailed in new 'Blood Brothers' trailer

Aziz was paroled in 1985, Islam in 1987 and died in 2009, and Halim in 2010.

Two reporters, including UPI correspondent Stanley Scott, were present at the Audubon Ballroom during the attack on Malcolm X. He wrote that one of Malcolm X's lieutenants told him press wouldn't be allowed to attend the "action program" that day.

"As a Negro, you can come in as an interested citizen," the lieutenant said. "But you will have to remove your press badge."

Scott wrote that he watched Malcolm X walk to the microphone and begin his speech, when he heard a commotion and someone yell "get out of my pocket." Malcolm X, he said, tried to ease the tensions.

"Take it easy. OK now, take it easy," Malcolm X said.

"Those were his last words. What sounded then like 20 or 30 shots rang out," Scott wrote. "Men and women, clutching small children, ducked to the floor and crawled under tables as the rapid firing continued in what seemed like an eternity."

Scott said a stretcher took Malcolm X to a hospital half a block away as his guards guarded his body and his wife followed, "still hysterical."

Companies bid $192 million in 1st Gulf oil sale under Biden

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Energy companies including Shell, BP, Chevron and ExxonMobil offered a combined $192 million for drilling rights on federal oil and gas reserves in the Gulf of Mexico on Wednesday, as the first government lease auction under President Joe Biden laid bare the hurdles he faces to reach climate goals dependent on deep cuts in fossil fuel emissions.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

The Interior Department auction came after attorneys general from Republican states led by Louisiana successfully challenged a suspension on sales that Biden imposed when he took office.

Companies bid on 308 tracts totaling nearly 2,700 square miles (6,950 square kilometers). It marked the largest acreage and second-highest bid total since Gulf-wide bidding resumed in 2017.

Driving the heightened interest are a rebound in oil prices and uncertainty about the future of the leasing program, industry analysts said. Biden campaigned on pledges to end drilling on federally owned lands and waters, which includes the Gulf.

“Prices are higher now than they've been since 2018," said Rene Santos with S&P Global Platts. “The other thing is this fear that the Biden administration is here for another three years. They're certainly not going to accelerate the number of lease sales and they could potentially have fewer sales.”

It will take years to develop the leases before companies start pumping crude. That means they could keep producing long past 2030, when scientists say the world needs to be well on the way to cutting greenhouse gas emissions to avoid catastrophic climate change.

Yet even as Biden has tried to cajole other world leaders into strengthening efforts against global warming, including at this month’s UN climate talks in Scotland, he’s had difficulty gaining ground on climate issues at home.

The administration has proposed another round of oil and gas sales early next year in Wyoming, Colorado, Montana and other states. Interior Department officials proceeded despite concluding that burning the fuels could lead to billions of dollars in potential future climate damages.

Emissions from burning and extracting fossil fuels from public lands and waters account for about a quarter of U.S. carbon dioxide emissions, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

“The thing that is really bedeviling people right now is this conflict between the short term and long term when it comes to energy policy,” said Jim Krane, an energy studies fellow at Rice University in Houston. “We still need this energy system that is basically causing climate change, even as we’re fighting climate change.”

Wednesday's livestreamed auction invited energy companies to bid on drilling leases across 136,000 square miles (352,000 square kilometers) — about twice the area of Florida. Federal officials estimated prior to the sale that it could lead to the production of up to 1.1 billion barrels of oil and 4.4 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

Shell Offshore Inc., the largest leaseholder in the Gulf, said the 20 tracts on which it successfully bid $17.9 million could offer development opportunities near existing platforms or new areas.

“The need absolutely continues for continued competitive leases in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico,” said Shell spokesperson Cindy Babski.

Chevron USA was the top bidder, offering almost $49 million for 34 tracts. BP Exploration and Production had $30 million in high bids on 46 tracts, and Anadarko US Offshore had almost $40 million in high bids — including the day's highest bid, $10 million — on 30 tracts.

ExxonMobil bid nearly $15 million in two areas off the Texas shoreline in the northwest Gulf.

Those 94 tracts are in shallow water — less than 656 feet (200 meters) deep — where oil has mostly played out and there are few active leases.

Not far away in the Houston Ship Channel, Exxon is pursuing a government-industry collaboration that would raise $100 billion to capture carbon dioxide from industrial plants, carry it away in pipelines and inject it deep under the floor of the Gulf of Mexico, a process known as carbon capture and sequestration, or CCS.

“The Exxon bids have to be a play on their proposed CCS project,” said Justin Rostant with industry consulting firm Wood Mackenzie.

Image: britannica.com

On April 20, 2010, the oil drilling rig Deepwater Horizon, operating in the Macondo Prospect in the Gulf of Mexico, exploded and sank resulting in the death of 11 workers on the Deepwater Horizon and the largest spill of oil in the history of marine oil drilling operations. 4 million barrels of oil flowed from the damaged Macondo well over an 87-day period, before it was finally capped on July 15, 2010.

ExxonMobil spokesperson Todd Spitler declined to say if there was a link between its bids and the carbon capture proposal. The company is evaluating the subsurface geology for ”future commercial potential" and will work with the Interior Department on its plans after leases are awarded, he said.

Shallow waters have typically been more attractive to smaller oil firms with less to spend on costly deep water exploration, said Rice University's Krane. As managing carbon becomes more viable, he said, shallow tracts will become attractive for things beyond oil production.

Environmental reviews of the lease auction — conducted under former President Donald Trump and affirmed under Biden — reached an unlikely conclusion: Extracting and burning the fuel would result in fewer climate-changing emissions than leaving it.

Similar claims in two other cases, in Alaska, were rejected by federal courts after challenges from environmentalists. Climate scientist Peter Erickson, whose work was cited by judges in one of the cases, said the Interior Department's analysis had a glaring omission: It excluded greenhouse gas increases in foreign countries that result from having more Gulf oil enter the market.

Federal officials recently changed their emissions modeling methods, citing Erickson’s work, but said it was too late to use that approach for Wednesday's auction.

An attorney for environmental groups challenging Wednesday's sale in federal court said it was based on “incorrect data” that doesn't reflect its impact on the environment.

“It's basically a giveaway to industry of millions of acres of the Gulf of Mexico so they can lock in production for years, at a time when we need to be shifting away from fossil fuel development," said Earthjustice attorney Brettny Hardy.

The Gulf of Mexico accounts for about 15% of total U.S. crude production and 5% of its natural gas.

Federal officials have 90 days to award or reject the bids.

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Brown reported from Billings, Montana.

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Follow Matthew Brown on Twitter: @MatthewBrownAP

Matthew Brown And Janet Mcconnaughey, The Associated Press

Appeal Court reserves injunction decision in Fairy Creek old-growth logging protests

VANCOUVER — A panel of three judges in British Columbia's Court of Appeal reserved its decision Tuesday on the future of an injunction against old-growth logging protests on southern Vancouver Island after a two-day hearing.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

While the judges didn't set a date for the release of their ruling, they did say a temporary injunction stopping old-growth logging protesters from interfering with Teal Cedar Products Ltd. actions remains in place.

The company appealed the B.C. Supreme Court decision in September that denied its application to extend an injunction against protest blockades in the area for one year.

More than 1,100 people have been arrested at ongoing protests over old-growth logging in the Fairy Creek area on southern Vancouver Island.

A lawyer representing the protesters, known as the Rainforest Flying Squad, said Teal Cedar Products has the right to defend its economic interests, but others also have right to lawful protest and freedom of expression and movement.

Malcolm Funt said there are limits to a company's economic and private-industry rights.

"The central question in an injunction application is what is just and equitable," said Funt.

In September, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Douglas Thompson refused to extend the injunction, saying police enforcement led to serious infringements of civil liberties, including impairment of freedom of the press.

He also said the factors in favour of extending the injunction do not outweigh the public interest in protecting the court's reputation.

Funt said the lower court weighed the harm the company could suffer by denying the application to extend the injunction but decided to rule in favour of the other interests and the court's reputation.

"That's what he is supposed to do and that is what he did do," he said.

Teal Cedar lawyer Dean Dalke told the panel Monday the court must uphold the rule of law at the protest sites.

He said the company has been the victim of an unlawful, highly organized protest campaign to disrupt it from accessing legal timber rights in the Fairy Creek area.

"Mr. Dalke says it's fundamentally unjust Teal Cedar is left holding the bag, so to speak," said Funt. "There is no doubt Teal Cedar has rights in this case, but in my submission the court's defence of economic and private (industry) rights is not limitless and there are other interests at stake."

Funt faced questions Tuesday from the Appeal Court judges about the lower court's reasons not to grant the injunction extension, especially the suggestion the court's reputation was damaged by police conduct during the arrests of protesters.

"It raises the question of whether the judge erred in principle in suggesting the reputation of the court is damaged by police conduct," said Justice Lauri Ann Fenlon.

— By Dirk Meissner in Victoria

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 16, 2021.

The Canadian Press

CLIMATE EMERGENCY MON AMOUR

Thousands of animals dead in 'agricultural disaster,' says B.C. government

Thousands of farm animals have died in an "agriculture disaster" in British Columbia set off by floods that swamped an area of the province known for its prime farming industry.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

Agriculture Minister Lana Popham said many farmers attempted to move their animals by boat as their properties flooded but were forced to abandon them, "as the roads were disappearing beneath them."

Even the animals that were successfully moved are in poor health and some may need to be euthanized, she said.

"The animals that are getting moved through those water flows have been able to make it to a safe spot, but to tell you the truth, they're not in good shape when they get there," she said Wednesday during the same news conference where the B.C. government declared a state of emergency.

She said hundreds of farms have been affected by flooding, many of them in the Fraser Valley, about 100 kilometres east of Vancouver.

"And we have thousands of animals that have perished. We have many, many more that are in difficult situations and we're seeing an animal welfare issue develop," Popham said.

There will have to be euthanizations, while there are also animals that have survived that will be in critical need of care, the minister said.

The government is working to get safe access for veterinarians to those farms as soon as possible.

The animals that survived will be in critical need of food for the next 24 hours as flooding wiped out access to feed, said Popham.

Dozens of the farms under evacuation orders in the Fraser Valley region are poultry farms, says the national group that speaks for chicken farmers.

Lisa Bishop-Spencer, the communications director with Chicken Farmers of Canada, said of the 310 chicken farms in B.C., 61 farms are being evacuated, 22 of which are broiler farms, where chickens are raised for their meat.

"Everyone's still trying to make sure that themselves and their families are safe and taking as best care of their birds as possible, but we don't have any specific information on losses yet," she said.

It's fair to expect some losses as farmers were faced with challenging conditions trying to move animals to safety, she said.

Dairy and chicken farms cover the Sumas Prairie area of Abbotsford, the same location that residents in 1,000 properties were told to evacuate on Tuesday.

Farmers spent hours Tuesday working to transport their animals to safety, in some cases relying on boats and other watercraft.

B.C. is the third-largest chicken-producing province in the country, said Bishop-Spencer, but their organization is working to ensure there are no supply issues once help has been given to all farmers and animals.

"We're working with federal and provincial partners just to deploy support and assistance wherever," she said.

The mayor of Abbotsford said he does not know how many farm animals may have been lost as floodwaters washed over the city Tuesday.

Sumas Prairie is part of Abbotsford, which was deluged by water over a 72-hour period starting Saturday.

Mayor Henry Braun said he watched farmers trudge through water that was 1.5 metres deep to get the livestock out.

"We have no numbers. There's a lot of birds out there too. I saw barns that looked like they were half full of water. I can't imagine that there are any birds left alive, but we don't have those numbers."

Braun said Tuesday he knew the farmers wanted to protect their animals.

"Many would give their lives for their animals," Braun said.

The situation grew more frantic Tuesday night when it appeared a crucial water pump station would be overwhelmed.

Braun urged those farmers who had ignored the evacuation order to leave their animals and get out.

By Wednesday, the pump station had been surrounded by sandbags and Braun said he felt better about the situation.

Holger Schwichtenberg, chair of the board for the BC Dairy Association, took in 30 milking cows at his own farm in Agassiz Tuesday from a farm in the Fraser Valley.

He says the move was stressful for the cows but they've managed to integrate them with his 110 animals.

"Some are a little unhappy. They're doing a lot of mooing because this is new and different, and cows love routine ... but they fit in very nicely," he said Wednesday.

The association is aware of losses, but it's unclear how many are milking cows, he said.

The B.C. Milk Marketing Board has advised dairy farmers in areas like Abbotsford, Chilliwack and the B.C. Interior to dump any milk into manure piles because mudslides and road washouts have made it impossible to transport.

Many B.C. dairy producers have no road access at all to their farms right now. In other cases where milk can be picked up from the farm, there is nowhere for it to go.

Schwichtenberg said this week's flooding has put a strain on the industry, which is still reeling from a disastrous summer.

"We had a long, hot summer, we had a very poor growing season unless you had irrigation, the ongoing effects of COVID, and now we have this situation," he said.

"It's testing the resilience of dairy farmers, that's for sure."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 17, 2021.

Brittany Hobson, The Canadian Press

RUSHING THE IDES OF MARCH

Braid: UCP heading for a rough convention as another MLA challenges Kenney

This goes far beyond MLAs being encouraged to speak their minds on policy. These MLAs fear the collapse of their party under Kenney's leadership

Author of the article:Don Braid • Calgary Herald
Publishing date:Nov 16, 2021 •

Premier Jason Kenney in Edmonton on Monday, Nov. 15, 2021.

PHOTO BY DAVID BLOOM /Postmedia

MLA Peter Guthrie stood up in a UCP caucus meeting Monday and read Premier Jason Kenney a letter.

The premier listened. His reaction isn’t recorded — there’s still a lingering scrap of confidentiality in this group — but he must have been furious.

The letter started leaking a couple of hours later. Guthrie, the MLA for Airdrie-Cochrane, tells me he knew it would go public. He’d sent the text to the premier and all caucus members.

Why do it? For starters, Guthrie said Tuesday, he believes UCP caucus members are “treated more like an opposition party” than an essential part of government.

His letter accuses the party and the premier’s office of meddling in local affairs, taking over ridings and even improperly funding the convention fees of Kenney loyalists from PAC funds.

“They are doing this to assist you in retaining the UCP board with the intent of controlling the (leadership) review process,” said Guthrie.

“This may not be illegal, but it is certainly unethical.”

He demands an independent investigation immediately “to hold any culprits accountable.

“And if you are complicit, then premier you need to step down here and now.”

As of Tuesday afternoon, Guthrie hadn’t heard a word from the premier’s office about whether he will be disciplined.

Neither has Chestermere-Strathmore MLA Leela Aheer, who recently said the premier knew of internal harassment allegations and should resign.

Ever since the caucus voted to kick out two critical MLAs, Todd Loewen and Drew Barnes, everybody seems free to say anything.

This goes far beyond MLAs being encouraged to speak their minds on policy. These MLAs fear the collapse of their party under Kenney’s leadership.

Guthrie and other MLAs are angry about a rule for the looming UCP weekend convention that says only the premier can bring new business to the floor.

Airdrie-Cochrane UCP MLA Peter Guthrie.

PHOTO BY PATRICK GIBSON /Postmedia

Then there’s the contentious resolution from the Edmonton-Northwest riding, where the president, Dave Prisco, is the paid communications director for the party.

It calls for raising from 22 to 29 the number of identical riding resolutions needed for an early leadership review.

“The bar is set too low and opens up the party to troublemaking by a small minority of CA (constituency association) boards,” says the riding’s rationale.

Late Tuesday afternoon, both the premier’s office and the party began mounting defences. They’ve been a long time coming. Dealing with this uprising in silence clearly isn’t working

First, the premier’s office denied any wrongdoing by people employed in Kenney’s legislature operation, while acknowledging that they’re often politically active.

“People who happen to work at the legislature are often involved in party politics, and that is true of every party and government,” Christine Myatt, the premier’s director of government communications, said in a statement.

“However, party politics functions are relegated to off-hours (i.e. not during the daytime while working for the taxpayers).”

On that hugely controversial motion to change rules for forcing a special meeting, a source familiar with the Edmonton-Northwest motion says it was written last spring, when Kenney’s leadership wasn’t such a hot issue. It was then vetted by party members for ranking at this weekend’s convention.

At that time, a review appeared set for the 2022 annual general meeting. The riding board had no thought of affecting the convention.

As for Kenney being the only person allowed to bring a new resolution, a party statement says “floor-dropping” new business has never been permitted. There’s no explanation of why Kenney has that power, however.

The party also says “financial assistance to defray the costs of attending a political convention is not unusual.

“CAs may choose to provide financial assistance to local members. We know the NDP encourages sponsorship to their conventions and, given their rules and history, it is likely done by unions.”

There’s no mention of Guthrie’s charges about PAC funding.

Without compromise — agreeing to a leadership review early next year, for instance — the party is heading for a tense and angry convention this weekend.

But so far, it seems the premier would rather fight than bend.

Don Braid’s column appears regularly in the Herald

Twitter: @DonBraid

Facebook: Don Braid Politics

Kenney defends use of third-party money to buy tickets to upcoming annual general meeting

Author of the article: Ashley Joannou, Lisa Johnson
Publishing date:Nov 17, 2021 •

Premier Jason Kenney speaks about the Alberta Jobs Now program during a press conference at the Hudsons pub in Calgary’s Beltline on Tuesday, November 9, 2021

. PHOTO BY GAVIN YOUNG/POSTMEDIA

Alberta Premier Jason Kenney is defending the right of third-party organizations to pay entrance fees to this week’s United Conservative Party annual general meeting, amid allegations that the deck is being stacked in his favour ahead of a fight over an early leadership review.

The claim, made by UCP backbencher Peter Guthrie earlier this week, has led both independent MLA Todd Loewen and the NDP opposition to ask Alberta’s chief electoral officer to investigate if that breaks the laws related to political contributions.

Guthrie, the MLA for Airdrie-Cochrane, claims that third-party advertisers, or PACs, are paying for tickets to the meeting, scheduled to begin Friday, specifically for Kenney loyalists.

At an unrelated news conference Wednesday, Kenney said while he’s not involved in third-party political organizations, those groups are within the law to be involved in politics. He said groups often pay for youth, for example, who could not afford to register for an AGM otherwise.

“And my understanding is that, for example, delegate registration fees are not considered a (political) contribution, but I would expect and insist that any group carefully acts within the regulations,” he said.

Tickets for the UCP AGM members cost $349, for youth under 25 years old, $149, and for observers, $999.

Loewen told reporters in the legislature Wednesday that Guthrie’s allegations were “alarming,” and warrant an investigation. He countered Kenney’s claim, saying it doesn’t matter if the purchase of tickets is considered a political donation or not, election finance rules still prohibit the move.

“This is an administrative activity of the party, and as such (the Election Finances and Contributions Disclosure Act) applies,” he said, adding as a member of the UCP planning to attend the meeting, he hopes chief electoral officer Glen Resler is able to at least provide clarity on the issue before the AGM.

NDP Opposition democracy and ethics critic Thomas Dang similarly told reporters the move is prohibited under the Election Finances and Contributions Disclosure Act.

“If Jason Kenney is so desperate that he needs to pay people to clap for him and vote for him, that’s between him and the UCP membership, but funnelling money from a PAC into a registered political party is illegal,” said Dang, adding if the allegations are true, it violates democratic principles and opens the door to “big money” in politics.

Pamela Renwick, acting deputy chief electoral officer, said in an emailed statement Elections Alberta “is unable to comment about investigations that we may or may not be conducting,” but it publishes any findings or decisions whenever any investigation is concluded.

In question period Wednesday, Dang asked Kenney about the allegations, but House Leader Jason Nixon answered instead, denying any wrongdoing and pointing to a statement from the party.

In a statement to Postmedia Wednesday, UCP spokesman Dave Prisco said registration fees are not legally considered a contribution.

“Financial assistance to defray the costs of attending a political convention is not unusual. For example, CAs (constituency associations) may choose to provide financial assistance to local members,” he said.

“We know the NDP encourages sponsorship to their conventions and given their rules and history, it is likely done by unions.”

Dang said the claim that third parties, including unions, sponsor attendees at NDP events in similar ways is false.

“There may be people with financial hardship that need additional assistance to access the convention and and we often do work with them or their constituency associations to waive some of those fees on the party side,” he said.

The UCP meeting will see a vote on a contentious resolution calling for the threshold to go up to 29 from 22 constituency associations needed to speed up Kenney’s leadership review to within the next three months, from April’s currently-scheduled review. Already, the threshold of 22 has been met.

Loewen said he hopes members turn down the special resolution.

“Any attempt to change the goalposts at this time I think is obviously a self-serving move,” said Loewen.

Breakenridge: Haven't we learned not to be too hasty in easing Alberta's pandemic restrictions?

Author of the article: Rob Breakenridge • for the Calgary Herald
Publishing date: Nov 16, 2021 •

Students, most of them wearing masks, leave William Aberhart High School at the end of the day in northwest Calgary on Oct. 5, 2021.

PHOTO BY JIM WELLS/POSTMEDIA

As the Kenney government resists efforts to further scrutinize its handling of Alberta’s fourth wave of COVID-19, one can at least hope that some lessons were learned through that ordeal, chief among them, the dangerous folly of prematurely declaring victory.

After some very difficult and painful weeks, Alberta has seen some steady improvement in our pandemic situation over the last month or so. The rate of decline seems to have levelled off somewhat, however, and there is still pressure on the health-care system, but we do still appear to be coming out of that fourth wave.

Moreover, that improvement has occurred alongside restaurants, bars and gyms being open, large crowds attending sporting events and concerts, and many other aspects of life resembling something closer to normal. The proof-of-vaccination system that the government was so reluctant to introduce has certainly paid dividends.

It was probably inevitable that as Alberta’s situation improved, there would be calls to ease up on some of the measures that helped to bring about that very improvement. These restrictions are not intended to be permanent, of course, and it’s reasonable to wonder what the threshold might be for lifting or easing

Other Canadian provinces have seen an uptick in cases in the last couple of weeks. So, too, have a number of American states. Cases have surged in a number of European countries. This is not necessarily Alberta’s fate, but it would be foolish to think we’re immune from a resurgence of the virus.

We know from our second-wave experience last year just how difficult the late fall and winter months can be. The daily case count from a year ago was half of what we ended up seeing as the peak of the second wave.

It’s no secret that some members of the UCP caucus have opposed the various health measures introduced by the government, including those implemented in response to the fourth wave. With Premier Jason Kenney facing all kinds of internal leadership pressure, there’s surely a temptation to claim victory over the fourth wave and serve up some sort of easing of restrictions to that crowd.

Some in that crowd are growing antsy enough to go public with their frustrations. For example, Calgary-South East UCP MLA Matt Jones has penned a letter to the premier calling for an end to mandatory masking and school cohorts, arguing that youth are less vulnerable to the virus and need some “normalcy” restored to their lives.

It’s easy enough to find some sympathy for that perspective, as young people have indeed suffered in many ways through this pandemic. However, if prematurely ending the measures we now have in place means ushering in a fifth wave, then that would only compound that suffering.

As it stands now, schools are open for in-person learning and youth sports and extracurricular activities are operating, as well. Let’s not put all of that in jeopardy, especially over something like masking, which is minimally intrusive.

While children are indeed less vulnerable to the virus, they aren’t invincible. The more cases we allow, the more likely we are to see those more rare serious outcomes. Children can also spread the virus, of course, which can lead to higher rates of overall community infection.

We are on the cusp of opening up vaccinations for those aged five to 11, which, combined with more widely available booster shots, should go a long way in setting us up for success in the new year. The case for patience is quite compelling in that context.

The gains we’ve made in recent weeks could easily be lost if we act too rashly — something the government should have learned by now. Hopefully we can avoid the mistakes that got us into previous messes.

“Afternoons with Rob Breakenridge” airs weekdays 12:30-3 p.m. on 770 CHQR rob.breakenridge@corusent.com Twitter: @RobBreakenridge

As Alberta’s COVID-19 numbers plateau, Hinshaw warns of fifth wave

Alberta’s chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw. PHOTO BY DAVID BLOOM /POSTMEDIA

There’s the possibility of a fifth wave of COVID-19 cases with more people moving indoors, Alberta’s top doctor said Tuesday.

Chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw said the pandemic numbers that have dropped dramatically in Alberta in recent weeks after a late September peak have plateaued.

“While over the past few weeks have begun to come down the other side of the fourth wave, we have seen before how fast things can change,” she said.

“I would like to remind Albertans that we must stay vigilant, especially as temperatures drop and we head into winter.”

U.S. officials accused Russia of creating more than 1,500

pieces of space junk after destroying old satellite

The Associated Press · Posted: Nov 16, 2021

The International Space Station is photographed by Expedition 56 crew members from a Soyuz spacecraft after undocking in 2018. Russian officials say a Russian missile test this week poses no threat to astronauts aboard the station, countering accusations from the U.S. and NATO. (NASA/Roscosmos/Handout/Reuters)

Russian officials on Tuesday rejected accusations that they endangered astronauts aboard the International Space Station by conducting a weapons test that created more than 1,500 pieces of space junk.

U.S. officials on Monday accused Russia of destroying an old satellite with a missile in what they called a reckless and irresponsible strike. They said the debris could damage the space station, an assessment backed by NATO's chief.

Astronauts now face four times greater risk than normal from space junk, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson told The Associated Press. The defunct Russian satellite Cosmos 1408 was orbiting about 65 kilometres higher than the space station.

The test clearly demonstrates that Russia, "despite its claims of opposing the weaponization of outer space, is willing to … imperil the exploration and use of outer space by all nations through its reckless and irresponsible behaviour," U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.

White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said Tuesday that Russia's action demonstrated its "complete disregard for the security, safety, stability and long-term sustainability of the space domain for all nations."

"This debris will continue to pose a direct threat to activities in outer space for years to come and puts at risk satellites all nations rely on for national security, economic prosperity and scientific discovery."

He said the United States would work with its allies "as we seek to respond to this irresponsible act."

Russia decries 'hypocrisy'

The Russian space agency Roscosmos wouldn't confirm or deny that the strike took place, saying only that the "unconditional safety of the crew has been and remains our main priority," in a statement Tuesday.

Russia's defence ministry on Tuesday confirmed carrying out a test and destroying a defunct satellite that has been in orbit since 1982, but insisted that "the U.S. knows for certain that the resulting fragments, in terms of test time and orbital parameters, did not and will not pose a threat to orbital stations, spacecraft and space activities."

It called remarks by U.S. officials "hypocritical."

WATCH | How astronauts coped with the emergency:

NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei thanked mission control for helping those aboard the International Space Station handle orbiting debris fields of space junk, calling it a great way for the crew to come together. Four of the seven crew members arrived at the orbiting outpost Thursday night. 1:07

Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said the strike was carried out "with surgical precision" and posed no threat to the space station. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also charged that it is "hypocrisy" to say that Russia creates risks for peaceful activities in space.

Russian weapons test resulted in debris now threatening space station, U.S. says

SpaceX crew arrives at International Space Station

Once the situation became clear early Monday morning, those on board the International Space Station — four Americans, one German and two Russians — were ordered to immediately seek shelter in their docked capsules. They spent two hours in the two capsules, finally emerging only to have to close and reopen hatches to the station's individual labs on every orbit, or every one and a half hours, as they passed near or through the space debris.

Even a fleck of paint can do major damage when orbiting at 28,000 km/h. Something big, upon impact, could be catastrophic.

'A reckless act': NATO head

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg agreed that Russia's actions endangered the space station.

"This was a reckless act by Russia to actually shoot down and destroy a satellite as part of a test of an anti-satellite weapons system," which created a lot of space debris, Stoltenberg told reporters in Brussels.

He said it was of additional concern "because it demonstrates that Russia is now developing new weapons systems that can shoot down the satellites, can destroy important space capabilities for basic infrastructure on Earth, like communications, like navigation, or like early warning of missile launches."

In this image from video provided by NASA, the Expedition 66 crew poses for a photo on Thursday after SpaceX delivered four new crew members to the International Space Station. (The Associated Press)

The German Foreign Ministry also said it was "very concerned" by the test, which it said resulted in "additional risks" for the astronauts on the ISS.

"This irresponsible behaviour carries a high risk of miscalculations and escalation," it said, adding that the test underlines the urgency of an international agreement on rules for the peaceful use of space.

NASA Mission Control said the heightened threat could continue to interrupt the astronauts' science research and other work. Four of the seven crew members only arrived at the orbiting outpost on Thursday night.

A similar weapons test by China in 2007 also resulted in countless pieces of debris. One of those threatened to come dangerously close to the space station last week. While later the risk it posed was dismissed, NASA had the space station move anyway.

Anti-satellite missile tests by the U.S. in 2008 and India in 2019 were conducted at much lower altitudes, well below the space station, which orbits about 420 kilometres above Earth.

Powerful Webb space telescope featuring Canadian instruments set for Dec. 18 launch

Scientists will be able to see some things for 1st time, like

stars and galaxies from the early universe

Sidhartha Banerjee · The Canadian Press · Posted: Nov 16, 2021

After the successful completion of final tests in August, the James Webb Space Telescope is being prepared for shipment to its launch site. Webb is now planned for launch on Dec. 18, 2021. (Chris Gunn/NASA via Canadian Space Agency)

In just over a month, the world's largest, most advanced telescope will be launched into orbit from a spaceport in South America, and among those eagerly watching will be Montreal physics professor René Doyon.

The James Webb Space Telescope is scheduled to blast off Dec. 18 aboard the Ariane 5 rocket from the Guiana Space Center in French Guiana. The orbiting infrared observatory, a collaboration between NASA and the European and Canadian space agencies, will be 100 times more powerful than its predecessor, the Hubble Space Telescope launched in 1990.

It will feature two Canadian components: a fine guidance sensor that will help it stay locked on target, and an instrument called a Near-Infrared Imager and Slitless Spectrograph, or NIRISS, that will help study astronomical objects, from exoplanets to distant galaxies.

Doyon, a physics professor at Université de Montréal, is the principal investigator of the Canadian-built tools and has been working toward this for 20 years. He said it's both an exhilarating and a fretful time.

Before the massive telescope starts to work, there will be plenty of tense moments. The two weeks immediately after launch will be critical as the telescope unfurls in an elaborate sequence described by NASA engineers during a recent briefing as an origami exercise.

NASA's next-generation space telescope beset by more delay, cost

"It's what we call the 14 days of terror — the time it takes to deploy the telescope — but I'm very confident," Doyon said in a recent interview. "We've tested this and retested, so there's good reason to believe everything is going to be fine."

Webb arrives at Pariacabo harbour in French Guiana from California on board the MN Colibri. (ESA/CNES/Arianespace)

The telescope, named after the former NASA administrator who led the Apollo lunar exploration program, has been folded compactly for launch, and thousands of parts must work to allow it to unfold properly. It will be operated at a distance of 1.5 million kilometres from Earth, too far to be serviced as was possible with Hubble, which was just 500 kilometres away.

The instruments on the Webb telescope can only function properly at a very low temperature — minus 233 degrees C — so one of its components is a sunscreen the size of a tennis court that will shield it from the heat of the sun and the light of the Earth and moon.

10 Canadians will get to use telescope

Canada's contribution means that when the telescope is ready to operate — expected around the middle of next year — the country is guaranteed at least five per cent of the telescope's available observation time. Of 286 proposals accepted worldwide for the first year of use, 10 will have Canadians as the principal investigators.

Many have been waiting eagerly for Webb's launch, which has been delayed several times. Doyon said Webb's infrared wavelength viewing capabilities mean scientists will be able to see some things for the first time, like the first stars and galaxies from the early universe after the Big Bang. It will also represent a huge leap for the study of exoplanets — planets outside our solar system — to probe their atmospheres for clues of early life.

Sarah Gallagher, science adviser at the Canadian Space Agency, said it's an exciting time.

"It's the culmination of decades of work by really talented people, and I'm so proud of our Canadian contribution, the scientific one and the industrial one. I think it really showcases the strength of our community," she said in an interview.

"We have people who want to study bodies in our solar system, planets around other stars, galaxies in the very early universe and all sorts of different topics."

Among them will be Loic Albert, who will be able to continue his work on brown dwarfs — essentially failed stars. The project involves looking for companions for about 20 of them, and he will use Webb's sensitivity to his advantage.

"In my case, James Webb opens the possibility of studying some specific types of brown dwarfs, the coldest and the least massive brown dwarfs. They are so faint that you can't observe them from the ground," said Albert, a researcher at Université de Montréal and a scientific instrument expert for Webb.

Albert says scientists who've been studying exoplanets using Hubble's limited capability should reap the rewards of Webb.

"For the exoplanet community, it's going to be a game changer," he said in an interview. "It's going to allow measuring exoplanet atmospheres for a large number of planets and at exquisite detail."

Doyon, who is planning to travel to French Guiana for the launch next month, said the prospect of unintended discoveries is the most exciting part ahead of Webb's launch.

"Every time a new telescope is started, history shows that after five or 10 years, you ask the question, what was the biggest discovery the telescope did. It's something that was not planned," he said. "I'm sure Webb will be the same."