In The News for Feb. 14: Gun control group looks to convince MPs about disinformation

PolySeSouvient includes students and graduates of Montreal’s École Polytechnique, where a gunman killed 14 women with a Ruger Mini-14 in 1989.

The federal Liberals banned the gun, along with some 1,500 other firearm models and variants, through an order-in-council in May 2020, saying they have no place in sport shooting or hunting.

Ottawa moved last November to build on the ban by including an evergreen definition of such firearms in a gun-control bill that also contains measures on handguns, licence revocations and smuggling operations.

But the Liberals withdrew amendments outlining the definition earlier this month, after criticism from Tory MPs and firearm advocates who said it would prohibit commonly used hunting rifles and shotguns.

—

Also this …

As Toronto Mayor John Tory prepares to step down after admitting to an “inappropriate relationship” with a former staffer, experts say preparation is key to protect both employees and employers from the risks such relationships create.

There are no laws in Canada against workplace relationships, so it comes down to company policies to set ground rules, said Lior Samfiru, national co-managing partner at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP.

Guidance about relationships between subordinates and supervisors is especially important because of the inherent power imbalances involved, which can open the possibility that actions may fall under human rights laws.

The moment there’s an imbalance of power, there’s a presumption under the law that the relationship is not fully consensual, said Tumarkin.

He said his understanding is that there was no City of Toronto policy dealing directly with the issue of a relationship between a mayor and staff member, but that a number of municipalities have taken a hard look at their policies in recent years.

—

What we are watching in the U.S. …

A gunman opened fire Monday night at Michigan State University, killing three people and wounding five more, before fatally shooting himself miles away after an hours-long manhunt that forced frightened students to hide in the dark.

Police announced the man’s death early Tuesday, four hours after shootings broke out at Berkey Hall, an academic building, and later nearby at the MSU Union, a popular hub to eat or study.

Hundreds of officers had scoured the East Lansing campus, about 145 kilometres northwest of Detroit, for the suspect, whom police described as a short Black man with red shoes, a jean jacket and a ball cap.

The 43-year-old man was confronted by police off campus before killing himself with a “self-inflicted gunshot wound,” said Chris Rozman, interim deputy chief of the campus police department.

His name was not immediately released, nor were any details about the gun or what police found at the scene. Rozman said the man was not a student or employee and had no affiliation with Michigan State.

The school has about 50,000 students, including 19,000 who live on campus. All classes, sports and other activities were cancelled for 48 hours.

—

What we are watching in the rest of the world …

The United States has renewed a warning that it will defend its treaty ally if Filipino forces come under attack in the disputed South China Sea.

The statement came after the Philippines accused a Chinese coast guard ship of hitting its patrol vessel with a military-grade laser that temporarily blinded some of its crew. U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price says China’s “dangerous operational behaviour directly threatens regional peace and stability.”

The Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila sent a strongly worded diplomatic protest to the Chinese Embassy. China claims the South China Sea virtually in its entirety, putting it on a collision course with other claimants. Chinese forces have been accused of using lasers previously against Australian military aircraft on patrol in the South China Sea and other spots in the Pacific.

The latest incident took place Feb. 6. when the Chinese coast guard ship beamed high-grade lasers to block the Philippine patrol vessel BRP Malapascua from approaching Second Thomas Shoal on a resupply mission to Filipino forces there, according to Philippine officials.

Despite friendly overtures to Beijing by former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and his successor, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who met Chinese leader Xi Jinping in January in Beijing, tensions have persisted, drawing in a closer military alliance between the Philippines and the U.S.

—

On this day in AD 270 …

Tradition holds that Valentine, a priest in Rome during the reign of Claudius II, was beheaded. A reason for his later relationship to the romantic holiday: Claudius, seeking to more easily recruit troops, nixed family ties by forbidding marriage. Valentine ignored the order and performed secret marriages — an act that led to his arrest and execution.

—

In entertainment …

Actor Idris Elba says he’s going to stick with being the tormented detective John Luther — not James Bond.

Speaking Tuesday to the World Government Summit in Dubai, Elba brought up the persistent discussions about him taking over as Ian Fleming’s famed British spy.

Those had grown louder after Daniel Craig’s demise as Bond in the 25th film in the franchise called, “No Time to Die.”

Asked about his upcoming film based on the British series “Luther,” Elba clearly took himself out of playing 007.

He added: “You know, a lot of people talk about another character that begins with ‘J’ and ends with ‘B,’ but I’m not going to be that guy.”

—

Did you see this?

Drummers and dancers helped reawaken the spirit of a totem pole Monday in preparation for a lengthy repatriation journey to its ancestral home more than 100 years after it was taken from a British Columbia First Nation.

The totem, which has been on display at the Royal B.C. Museum, will be placed on a truck Wednesday and followed by a convoy of vehicles on its way to Bella Coola, located almost 1,000 kilometres northwest of Vancouver.

About 50 Nuxalk people from Bella Coola travelled to Victoria for two days of ceremonies and will journey back to the central coast with the totem.

Part of the ceremonies on Monday involved the transfer of the totem by museum and B.C. government officials to Victoria-area Songhees and Esquimalt Nations, who then transferred the pole back to the Nuxalk.

Chief Deric Snow said the totem was carved by his great-grandfather Louie Snow in the mid-1800s as an entrance pole to a longhouse and later was designated as a grave marker for a member of his family.

The Nuxalk Nation has been trying to get the totem and other artifacts back since 2019, he said.

—

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 14, 2023

The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

In The News for Feb. 14: Gun control group looks to convince MPs about disinformation

Pro Tips