More protest arrests in Ottawa, first COVID census findings : In The News for Feb. 9

Deputy Chief Steve Bell says officers are focused on hardening the perimeter around downtown and preventing fuel from getting to the trucks parked there, saying the 1,800 additional officers Ottawa has requested would help that effort.

He says police are greatly concerned that almost 25 per cent of the 418 large vehicles still blockading Ottawa’s streets are occupied by families with children.

Bell says the Children’s Aid Society of Ottawa has been called in to assess the situation, pointing out the frigid temperatures, access to sanitation, and risk to the children’s safety should there be a police operation in the area.

Police are not looking to remove the children, but rather want advice from the society about whether further steps are necessary.

The demonstration has seen the downtown capital shut down, with businesses closing out of safety concerns and residents complaining of harassment by protesters.

Federal officials have been talking with City of Ottawa and provincial representatives to find solutions to end the protest that has sparked solidarity rallies across the country, some of which have blocked traffic at border crossings in Coutts, Alta., and Windsor, Ont.

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Also this …

A new survey suggests Canadians are less trusting of governments and politicians as the COVID-19 pandemic drags on.

The latest edition of the Proof Strategies trust index also shows almost half of those polled last month are still feeling anxious or stressed about COVID-19.

It finds that stress is making them less trusting in general, but particularly of the ability of governments and health officials to manage the Omicron variant.

Proof CEO Bruce MacLellan says the pandemic has been difficult for governments to manage but a pattern of contradictory decisions or reversing course on advice or health measures has shaken the public’s confidence.

Only one in five people surveyed said they trusted governments or politicians, compared with two in five who said they had such trust in May 2020.

MacLellan says governments need to think hard about how to restore that trust.

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And this …

Statistics Canada is scheduled this morning to release the first set of findings from last year’s census taken against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Today’s release will detail the population count on census day last year, outlining how quickly the population grew over the preceding five years and where that growth took place.

There will also be details on the population of the country’s downtown cores and rural regions, as well as dwelling counts.

The census provides the most detailed portrait of the Canadian population that is used by governments to plan for new schools, roads and hospitals, and also for calculating federal transfers to provinces to cover health-care costs.

Statistics Canada plans to add more flourishes to the paint-by-numbers exercise as the year rolls on to reveal more information about how the country has aged, changes among Indigenous populations, and working during the pandemic.

The pandemic is expected to have an effect on census results, although experts suggest the country may have to wait a few years to learn whether COVID-19 caused a permanent or temporary shift in the portrait of the population.

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What we are watching in the U.S. …

WASHINGTON _ Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell is criticizing the Republican National Committee for censuring two House GOP lawmakers investigating the “violent insurrection” on Jan. 6, 2021, saying it’s not the party’s job to police the views of lawmakers.

As former president Donald Trump has downplayed the attack by his supporters last year _ the worst attack against the Capitol in two centuries _ the RNC last week took a voice vote to approve censuring Reps. Liz Cheney of Wyoming and Adam Kinzinger of Illinois at the party’s winter meeting in Salt Lake City. The two Republicans sit on a Democrat-led House committee that is aggressively investigating the siege and has subpoenaed many in the former president’s inner circle.

The RNC resolution censuring Cheney and Kinzinger accused the House panel of leading a “persecution of ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate political discourse” _ words that drew outrage from Democrats and firm pushback from several GOP senators. The rioters who broke into the Capitol through windows and doors brutally beat law enforcement officers and interrupted the certification of President Joe Biden’s victory over Trump.

“It was a violent insurrection for the purpose of trying to prevent the peaceful transfer of power after a legitimately certified election from one administration to the next,” McConnell said Tuesday. He said he still has confidence in RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel, but “the issue is whether or not the RNC should be sort of singling out members of our party who may have different views than the majority. That’s not the job of the RNC.”

The dispute is the latest tug of war within the party over issues that McConnell and others see as politically beneficial and would prefer to talk about in an election year _ inflation, for example _ versus the discourse over the insurrection and Trump’s election lies.

The rioters who broke in to the Capitol were repeating Trump’s false claims of widespread voter fraud and a stolen win, even after election officials and courts across the country repeatedly dismissed those claims. McConnell and his closest allies have said for months that they want to look forward to November 2022, when they have a chance of taking back the Senate, and not back to January 2021.

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What we are watching in the rest of the world …

WELLINGTON, New Zealand _ Entrepreneur Elon Musk is helping reconnect Tonga to the internet after a volcanic eruption and tsunami cut off the South Pacific nation more than three weeks ago, according to officials, while repairs on an undersea cable are proving more difficult than first thought.

The tsunami severed the sole fibre-optic cable that connects Tonga to the rest of the world and most people remain without reliable connections.

A top official in neighbouring Fiji tweeted that a team from Musk’s SpaceX company was in Fiji establishing a station that would help reconnect Tonga through SpaceX satellites.

SpaceX runs a network of nearly 2,000 low-orbit satellites called Starlink, which provides internet service to remote places around the world.

Fiji Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum tweeted about the SpaceX work, saying the volcano’s shockwave “shattered Tonga’s internet connection, adding days of gut-wrenching uncertainty to disaster assessments.”

A spokeswoman for Sayed-Khaiyum said Wednesday she was waiting for more information about the Starlink project before providing further details. SpaceX did not respond to requests for comment.

Musk had earlier shown interest in Tonga’s plight. Less than a week after the eruption, he asked on Twitter: “Could people from Tonga let us know if it is important for SpaceX to send over Starlink terminals?”

As well as dealing with the aftermath of the tsunami, which killed three people in Tonga and destroyed dozens of homes, the nation of 105,000 is also in the midst of a two-week lockdown after experiencing its first outbreak of the coronavirus, which may have been brought in by foreign military crews aboard ships and planes that delivered aid.

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On this day in 1966 …

The NHL announced it would double to 12 teams for the 1967-68 season. The six new teams were the California Seals, Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota North Stars, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins and St. Louis Blues.

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In entertainment …

NEW YORK _ After a pandemic year that hobbled movie theatres and saw streaming services make new inroads into Hollywood, the Academy Awards put its strongest support Tuesday behind two films made with big-screen grandeur that were also streamed into homes: Jane Campion’s gothic western “The Power of the Dog” and Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi epic “Dune.”

Netflix’s “The Power of the Dog” led nominations to the 94th Academy Awards with 12 nods, including best picture, best director and recognition for all of its top actors: Benedict Cumberbatch, Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemons and Kodi Smit-McPhee.

Campion, a nominee for 1993’s “The Piano,” became the first woman to ever be nominated twice for best director. Last year, Chloe Zhao became just the second woman to ever win the award. Campion’s director of photography, Ari Wegner, also became the second woman ever nominated for best cinematography.

“Dune” followed closely behind with 10 nominations spread out largely in the technical categories that rewarded the gargantuan craft of Villeneuve’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s 1965 novel, yet unexpectedly bypassed Villeneuve’s direction. The Warner Bros. release debuted simultaneously in theatres and _ against the strenuous objections of its director _ on HBO Max.

With “The Power of the Dog” and “Dune,” the nominees for best picture were: “Belfast,” “CODA,” “Don’t Look Up,” “Drive My Car,” “Licorice Pizza,” “King Richard,” “Nightmare Alley” and “West Side Story.”

No streaming service has ever won best picture, but half of the 10 nominees were released by streamers. This year, the odds may be better than ever that Netflix _ which led all studios with 27 nominations _ or another service will finally break through.

And there were surprises all around. Lady Gaga, star of “House of Gucci,” was overlooked in the uber-competitive best actress category. Nominated instead were Jessica Chastain (“The Eyes of Tammy Faye”), Olivia Colman (“The Lost Daughter”), Penelope Cruz (“Parallel Mothers”), Nicole Kidman (“Being the Ricardos”) and Kristen Stewart for “Spencer” _ whose hopes for her first Oscar nomination were set back after she was snubbed by the Screen Actors Guild.

Will Smith, who plays the father of Venus and Serena Williams in “King Richard,” notched his third Oscar nomination. Also up for best actor are Cumberbatch, Andrew Garfield (“tick, tick … Boom!”) Javier Bardem (“Being the Ricardos”) and Denzel Washington (“The Tragedy of Macbeth”). Washington, a seven-time best-actor nominee, remains the most-nominated Black man ever.

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ICYMI …

OTTAWA _ Conservatives appear increasingly split over whether a protest against COVID-19 health restrictions in the nation’s capital should stay or go.

Many Tory members of Parliament have pledged full support to the protesters, including recently elected interim leader Candice Bergen and Pierre Poilievre, the first candidate to announce his bid for party leadership.

Entering the House of Commons Tuesday, Alberta Conservative MP John Barlow says he doesn’t think the protesters should leave and believes they have been respectful, adding some of his constituents are in the crowd.

“Let’s put this in perspective. This isn’t like you brought Ottawa to a screeching halt,” he said.

“I live right downtown when I’m in Ottawa. I’ve managed to get to work. I haven’t been kept up all night. Is it ideal? No. But this could be ended if the prime minister comes out and does his job.”

Conservatives contend that protesters need to feel heard by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his Liberal government, which imposed vaccine mandates for domestic air travellers and those working in federally regulated industries. Both the demonstrators and Tories are steadfastly against these policies.

Since protesters arrived nearly two weeks ago on Parliament Hill, the surrounding blocks have been clogged with idling semi-trucks and personal vehicles.

The protesters’ refusal to leave has prompted pleas from Ottawa’s mayor for more federal help and police resources and the city to declare a state of emergency.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 9, 2022.

The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

More protest arrests in Ottawa, first COVID census findings : In The News for Feb. 9

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