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Public service union to picket at locations with more impact as strike enters Day 6

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:18 GMT

OTTAWA — One of Canada’s largest labour disruptions has entered a sixth day as the union representing thousands of striking public-service workers looks to hamper access to ports.The Public Service Alliance of Canada says more than 100,000 of its staff remain on strike, some of whom will move their picket lines today to strategic locations more likely to have an impact on the federal government. National President Chris Aylward says Ottawa presented an offer Saturday afternoon, which the union countered with its own proposal that same day.Yet the office of Treasury Board President Mona Fortier says it made a second proposal Saturday that the union had not responded to by late Sunday.Earlier this weekend, the two sides accused each other of poor communication as bargaining teams sort out how much to increase wages to account for inflation and whether civil servants have a right to work remotely.The two parties have been at odds since negotiations began in June 2021, and the uni...

Program helping people to reconnect with traditional skills in Yellowknife

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:18 GMT

YELLOWKNIFE — By the shore of the still-frozen Yellowknife River, more than a dozen people gather to prepare fish for cooking over a crackling fire.Originating from different communities across the North, they share the unique ways they’ve learned to clean and cut them. Wildlife officers and trappers are reconnecting vulnerable people with on-the-land skills through a partnership between the Northwest Territories Department of Environment and Climate Change and the Yellowknife Women’s Society.“We’ve heard a lot of people talk about how it helps some of their journeys,” said Vincent Casey, education outreach co-ordinator with the department. “Certain people share with us a lot about their healing journeys themselves, as well as that connection back to lifestyles that they had when they were younger.”“I think for a lot of people, they really enjoy being able to do something different than what they have and having this opportunity to hav...

Oilsands emissions could be underestimated by current measuring methods, study says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:18 GMT

New federal research suggests greenhouse gas emissions from the Alberta oilsands may be significantly underestimated, adding to a growing pile of studies that say our understanding of what is going into the atmosphere is incomplete. In a paper published last week in a prominent U.S. science journal, Environment and Climate Change Canada researchers used new ways of measuring oilsands emissions that resulted in figures at least 65 per cent higher than those reported by industry. “We found that (emissions) are higher than the CO2 estimates that are reported in the greenhouse gas reporting program,” said lead author Sumi Wren of Environment Canada.The paper, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, describes how the researchers combined measurements from overflights, satellites and historical data to reach their conclusions.  In 2018, the team made 30 flights over the oilsands region to establish the ratio of nitrogen oxides to carbon dioxide in the...

Daily horoscope for April 24, 2023

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:18 GMT

Moon Alert: Avoid shopping or important decisions from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. EDT today (5 a.m. to 12 noon PDT). After that, the Moon moves from Gemini into Cancer.Happy Birthday for Monday, April 24, 2023:You’re relaxed, practical and entertaining. You put your own personal touch on things. This is a wonderful year for you, because you will receive acknowledgement and respect from your peers. Expect a promotion, an award or kudos of some kind. Bravo!ARIES(March 21-April 19) ★★★Today it’s easy to kid yourself about something, plus there’s a Moon Alert for a good part of this day. Think carefully, and think twice before you make decisions. Later in the day, a discussion with a female relative could be significant. Tonight: Get advice.TAURUS(April 20-May 20) ★★★This is a dicey day for financial decisions, shopping or anything to do with your money and wealth. Please note: Much of today is a Moon Alert, and it is taking place in your sign! Your judgment will be off. Know th...

Parliament adopts new law to fight global deforestation

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:18 GMT

No country or product will be banned. However, companies can only sell their products in the EU after 31 December 2020 if they have a "due diligence statement" from the supplier confirming that it does not come form deforested lands or has caused forest degradation. This includes irreplaceable primary trees.Companies will be required to confirm, as requested by the Parliament, that their products are compliant with the relevant legislation in the country of origin, including the laws governing human rights and the rights of indigenous people.CoveredAs per the original Commission's proposal, the products covered by this new legislation include: cocoa, coffee beans, palm oil, soya, and wood. This includes products that have contained, been fed these commodities, or were made with them (such as furniture, leather, and chocolate). MEPs added rubber, charcoal and printed paper products to the list of deforestation-free products during negotiations.The Parliament has also defined forest d...

Miss Manners: It bugs me that my mother-in-law complains about being old

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:18 GMT

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I don’t understand people who complain about getting old.My mother-in-law, who will soon turn 97 and is healthier than I am, is frequently heard to say that “getting old is not for sissies.” These types of comments really stick in my craw because my son passed away suddenly from a pulmonary embolism at the age of 25, while on his honeymoon.Many people are not afforded the luxury of living a long, healthy life. Instead of complaining, they should thank their lucky stars that they’ve lived long enough to see their children have families of their own, have grandchildren and even great-grandchildren.My son and his wife never had that joy. My daughter-in-law has not been the same since losing my son 21 years ago, and has never remarried.GENTLE READER: Lucky stars are rarely thanked.It is not necessary to have suffered a tragedy as terrible as yours to find someone who is better off — or worse.Related ArticlesAdvice | Miss Manner...

Dear Abby: I hear him scream at his little boy, and it worries me

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:18 GMT

DEAR ABBY: I live on the bottom floor of a duplex with my wife. My brother-in-law, his wife and their two sons, ages 4 and 2, are upstairs.Since the 2-year-old was born, he’s been very rambunctious and fussy. I consider my BIL a good parent overall, but for a while now, I hear him blow up, scream, curse and shout at the younger child.I don’t think it’s healthy. I have a hard time with it because of my upbringing, which left a mark. I grew up in a home ruled by intimidation.I am also a school counselor. The 4-year-old has a pronounced speech impediment that I’m hoping the school will help with. As an adult and someone who works with kids, it bothers me to hear this go on every day in our home.I wouldn’t dare to say anything to my BIL or SIL. I’m just worried about the boys. Will they be OK?Please, let me know what to do. We all want my nephews to be well, but I can’t blur the line between counselor and aunt. FULL OF CONCERN IN THE EASTRelated...

Stock markets today: Global stocks lower ahead of US data

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:18 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — Global stocks and Wall Street futures declined Monday ahead of a U.S. economic update that is expected to show growth slowing.London and Frankfurt opened lower. Shanghai and Hong Kong declined while Tokyo advanced. Oil prices fell.Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index gained 0.1% on Friday but ended with a small loss for the week.U.S. data this week are expected to show first-quarter economic growth weakened following interest rate hikes to cool business activity and inflation. That might encourage the Federal Reserve to postpone or scale down more possible rate hikes at its May meeting.France and Germany also report economic growth this week following surveys that show European factory activity declining.“There is no doubt that the global economy is weakening and vulnerable to further slowing,” Clifford Bennett of ACY Securities said in a report.In early trading, the FTSE in London fell 0.2% to 7,901.22 and the DAX in Frankfurt opened 0.1% lower at 15,860.3...

Pogacar undergoes ‘successful’ wrist surgery after crash

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:18 GMT

BRUSSELS (AP) — Two-time Tour de France champion Tadej Pogacar was expected to travel home on Monday after undergoing “successful” surgery on his fractured left wrist in Belgium.The 24-year-old Slovenian rider’s team said in a statement late Sunday that surgery to treat a scaphoid fracture in his left wrist went well and that Pogacar, who was injured in a crash during the one-day classic Liège–Bastogne–Liège, would now start “recovery and rehabilitation.”Pogacar was treated by a hand surgeon at a hospital in Genk immediately after his crash.The UAE Team Emirates did not say how long he would be sidelined and if the injury would affect his preparations for the Tour de France, which starts in July.Following his wins at Amstel Gold and Flèche Wallonne, Pogacar aimed to become only the third male rider to seal a hat trick of the Ardennes classics but had to abandon after 85 kilometers (53 miles). The race was won by world champion Remco Evenepoel, who put on an impressive attackin...

Drivers can expect delays on northern end of GW Parkway due to construction

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:18 GMT

D.C.-area drivers should expect some considerable delays on the northern end of the George Washington Parkway.As part of a $161 million restoration project, the National Park Service said it will closed the southbound lanes between Interstate 495 and Virginia Route 123. The work — which began Saturday, April 22 — was supposed to start a week earlier but was postponed due to inclement weather.This traffic pattern could stick around until late 2025. The project will last that long because work will include not only repaving the road, but also redesigning the Route 123 interchange, repairing stormwater systems, reconstructing stone walls and roadside barriers, and rehabilitating the parkway’s scenic overlooks.With the southbound lanes out of service, all traffic will share the northbound lanes, which now includes an additional temporary third lane built for the scheduled work.Drivers on the section of the parkway will encounter only one lane going north and one lane g...