Wednesday Night #2255

We received the devastating news early Friday evening that Marc Garneau has died. It seems impossible.
Marc Garneau, Canadian astronaut and former Liberal cabinet minister, dead at 76
His wife, Pam Garneau, has released a statement on Wednesday.
It reads: “It is with deep sadness that I share the news of my husband Marc Garneau’s passing. Marc faced his final days with the same strength, clarity, and grace that defined his life. He passed away peacefully, surrounded by the love of his family.”
The statement went on to say: “We wish to express our heartfelt thanks for the outpouring of support, concern, and kind words received over the past few days. We are especially grateful to the medical team who provided such dedicated and compassionate care during his short illness. We kindly ask for privacy as we grieve this profound loss and take time to reflect and heal.”
MPs rose for a moment of silence Wednesday evening following a request from government whip Mark Gerretsen.
In a statement on Facebook, Anna Gainey, the MP for Notre-Dame-de-Grâce–Westmount, expressed her condolences to Garneau’s family. She said Canada lost “a true pioneer and champion whose impact will never be forgotten.”
“His legacy is one of outstanding achievement and elevating Canada on the world stage. He inspired multiple generations of Canadians through his tireless work and unwavering dedication to public service. His leadership set a standard that continues to guide us today,” her statement reads.

Marc always seemed so healthy; he was in good physical shape and did everything in moderation.
Marc was not only my MP, he was a friend and often came to WN, even paid tribute in the House to his experience on the WN hot seat.
The last time I saw him was at his home when Kent and I dropped in during Kent’s quick visit to Montreal for Marc’s book launch.
I am so very sad.

Trump Tariffs
Trump doubles tariffs on steel and aluminum, raising ire of Canada and Mexico
Last week, we were introduced to the TACO concept and some of us may have thought it would apply to Trump’s threat to impose 50% tariffs on aluminum and steel. So far, not the case.
(Trump doubles metals tariffs, Carney tight lipped on Canada’s response.) Stay tuned.

Things get curiouser and curiouser
Meanwhile, Elon Musk having ‘left’ DOGE and his joined-at-the-hip relationship with the Trump administration, is now loudly criticizing Trump’s domestic policy bill aka “one big, beautiful bill” (Musk fight escalates with threat to unseat any Republican who backed Trump bill) joining forces with the Congressional Budget Office (Republican Policy Bill Would Add $2.4 Trillion to Debt, Budget Office Says)

With less than two weeks until the opening of the 2025 G7 Summit, hosted by Canada at Kananaskis, Alberta, the science academies of the G7 have taken an unprecedented step, releasing The Ottawa Declaration of the Science Academies of the G7
On a lighter note, ‘Bear birdie’: Golfers tee off with wildlife in Kananaskis– Safety top of mind as golfers share K-Country fairway with wild animals
Perhaps we should lure Trump to the golf course for a round with serious wild animals?

So much for Trump’s peacemaking talent
Putin’s War
Kremlin and Trump aides raise nuclear war fears after Ukraine drone strike
Vladimir Putin has warned Russia will respond to Kyiv’s attacks on nuclear-capable aircraft at airfields
Putin Intends to Respond to Ukraine Strikes on Russian Bombers, Trump Says
President Trump spoke with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia amid escalating attacks between Russia and Ukraine, even as their officials have been engaged in direct talks.

Israel/Gaza/West Bank
The situation simply becomes worse by the hour.
Israeli-Backed Aid Sites in Gaza Close Temporarily After Deadly Shootings
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation said it was working to improve operations, a day after health workers said at least 27 Palestinians were killed near a distribution center.
Israel kills nearly 100 people in Gaza in 24 hours, halts aid
We recently heard from a Scandinavian diplomat/friend who had met with two senior officers who were just back from Israel and Gaza. “They said that the situation there was worse than reported. It was hell on earth.The behaviour of the Israeli military was horrible. It was impossible to describe it and to believe that something like that is possible. Not since the Germans tried to annihilate the Jews has anything like this happened. Both are senior, experienced officers and were clearly deeply shocked.”
Gaza worse than hell on Earth, International Red Cross chief tells BBC as aid centres close for day

In case you wondered about what Stephen Lewis is up to: Avi Lewis posted this message on Facebook
… Like so many Jews who for decades adopted the dominant narratives of Zionism, he can no longer defend the current actions of the state of Israel.
He now regards Israel as a rogue state, committing genocide and other crimes against humankind, which ought to be opposed by every tool and tactic in Canada’s diplomatic arsenal.
To return to the personal, seven years ago my Dad was diagnosed with a vicious cancer and was given as little as 3 months to live. It’s a sublime understatement to say that he’s a fighter – but he has persevered in life with a tenacity familiar from his political, diplomatic and humanitarian pursuits.
Which brings us to this morning, when at 87 years old, he spent an hour standing at the side of the road in his old riding of Scarborough West. Standing up as a Jew against genocide. Standing up for justice for Palestine. Standing up on the right side of history, where the vast majority of humanity currently stands.

Pope Leo XIV wants to stop AI playing God
The freshly appointed pope is challenging the technocracy of artificial intelligence.
Pope Leo XIV has made curtailing the risks of runaway AI a defining mission of his pontificate.
In his first official address to cardinals, he warned of the dangers of AI to “human dignity, justice and labor.” Two days later, speaking to reporters, he lauded the “immense potential” of technology while cautioning that it requires responsibility “to ensure that it can be used for the good of all.”
Is Yoshua Bengio communing with Pope Leo?
Will AI go rogue? Noted researcher Yoshua Bengio launches venture to keep it safe (see Long reads)
Famed Canadian artificial-intelligence researcher Yoshua Bengio is launching a non-profit organization backed by close to US$30-million in philanthropic funding to develop safe AI systems that cannot deceive or harm humans, and to find ways to ensure that humanity remains in control of the powerful technology.
The Turing Award winner, whose work helped pave the way for today’s generative AI technologies, already holds multiple titles. He is a professor at the Université de Montréal, the scientific adviser at the Mila – Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute and recently chaired the first international report on AI safety.
His new venture will operate differently. “This is more like what a company would do to solve a particular problem. It’s much more top-down and mission-oriented,” he said.

Quebec’s Bill 96 came into effect on 1 June
From signs to packaging, here are Quebec’s new language rules
Businesses say they haven’t been given enough time to make changes that can be onerous and costly
New rules took effect in Quebec on Sunday requiring French to be the dominant language on store signs and imposing stricter guidelines for product packaging.
The changes are part of Quebec’s 2022 overhaul of its French-language law, known as Bill 96, which the government said was essential to protect French in the province.

An encouraging counterpoint
Doug Sweet is quite ecstatic (an unusual state for him) about the rebranding of QCGN as TALQ
English-speaking advocacy group QCGN rebrands as TALQ
A new name, a new website and a fresh look that is more representative of the organization’s identity as an English-speaking minority within a French-speaking majority in Quebec were needed, according to director-general Sylvia Martin-Laforge.
TALQ, pronounced “talk,” is not an abbreviation, but it carries meaning.
“Talking, advocating, living in Quebec. But the word talk is in itself what we want to be known for — talking to our community, talking to the majority community of Quebec, talking to the rest of Canada about the needs, aspirations, priorities of the English-speaking community of Quebec,” she noted.
Since Premier François Legault’s Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) was elected, the group has stepped up its efforts and taken a more assertive stance against policies that have impacted English-speaking Quebecers, such as Bill 40 and Bill 96.

The Liberal government (PM) gets to work
Premiers express optimism after pitching major projects to Carney
Request for a pipeline through northern B.C. could be a continued point of contention
Mark Carney is making himself the moonshot Prime Minister – for better or for worse
And so far, he has done fairly well. He got King Charles to deliver the Speech from the Throne – the first time a member of the royal family has done so in nearly 50 years. He charmed U.S. President Donald Trump during his visit to the White House (though not enough to win Canada an exemption to Mr. Trump’s recent doubling of tariffs on aluminum and steel). Mr. Carney won over the Premiers during this week’s first ministers meeting, after which many of them – including Alberta Premier Danielle Smith – expressed optimism about the future of nation-building projects in Canada. And he’s already tabled legislation on specific promises, including tightening up border controls and giving CSIS new powers to try to stem the flow of illegal goods to and from the U.S.
‘Best meeting we’ve had in 10 years’: Carney, premiers united on nation-building projects
Carney had asked the 13 provincial and territorial leaders to come up with major infrastructure and energy projects
Very pleased with PM Carney’s appointment of Marc-André Blanchard as Chief of Staff and former Liberal justice minister David Lametti as principal secretary, replacing Tom Pitfield.

Long reads
Will AI go rogue? Noted researcher Yoshua Bengio launches venture to keep it safe
Famed Canadian artificial-intelligence researcher Yoshua Bengio is launching a non-profit organization backed by close to US$30-million in philanthropic funding to develop safe AI systems that cannot deceive or harm humans, and to find ways to ensure that humanity remains in control of the powerful technology.
Be afraid. Be very afraid.
Why we should worry about nuclear weapons again
The Cold War prospect of global annihilation has faded from consciousness, but the warheads remain.
By Jon B. Wolfsthal is the director of global risk at the Federation of American Scientists. Hans Kristensen and Matt Korda are the director and associate director of the FAS Nuclear Information Project.
The last nuclear age was defined by two superpowers — the United States and the Soviet Union — poised to destroy one another in less than an hour. They both kept nuclear weapons locked and loaded to deter the other by threatening retaliation and certain destruction.
Today’s global nuclear landscape is far more complicated and, in many ways, more precarious. More countries and more advanced technologies are involved. Weapons can fly farther, faster, from more places. Information, accurate or false, can move even more quickly. Autocrats and extremists hold positions of power in nuclear-armed countries. Nuclear threats, once taboo, are now increasingly common. And the last nuclear arms control treaty still in force between Russia and the United States expires in February.
Mark Carney is making himself the moonshot Prime Minister – for better or for worse
… He says his government will build “the strongest economy in the G7”: the greatest transformation of the Canadian economy “since the Second World War,” he says. He will “remove federal barriers to internal trade by July 1.” His government vows to approve major infrastructure projects within two years, and meet the current NATO defence spending target of 2 per cent of GDP by 2030. It will bring the growth of the government’s operating budget down to 2 per cent from 9 per cent. According to the Speech from the Throne, Canada will build a new “economic and security relationship” with the U.S., “become the world’s leading energy superpower in both clean and conventional energy” and develop into the “world’s leading hub for science and innovation.” …