Wednesday Night #2282

Carols by Candlelight
With brass and percussion ensemble
Saturday, December 20, 2025, 4:00pm
Sunday, December 21, 2025, 4:00pm
Corner of Sherbrooke & Bishop, Montréal QC
Chœur A&P Choir
Léa Moisan-Perrier, conductor
Isabelle Demers, organist
A tradition going back more than fifty years, Carols by Candlelight at the Church of Saint Andrew and Saint Paul is a highlight of the Christmas season in Montreal. Originally based on the Anglican service of Lessons & Carols, this service balances the serenity and peace of a candlelit procession with the jubilation and exuberance of a trumpet descant. Become a part of this joyous Christmas chorus by lending your voices to sing favourite carols with the renowned A&P Choir, led by conductor Léa Moisan-Perrier, with organist-in-residence Isabelle Demers, and brass and percussion ensemble.
Alongside traditional Christmas hymns by British greats like Sir David Willcocks and Ralph Vaughan Williams, and former A&P directors of music, Jonathan Oldengarm (Once in Royal David’s City; Away in a Manger), and Patrick Wedd (Silent Night; Hark! the herald angels sing), this year’s edition features a cappella works new to The A&P Choir by Cree composer Andrew Balfour and British composer Cecilia McDowall. Also on the programme are two new commissions; a congregational arrangement of Il est né le divin enfant by Montreal-based composer Simon Bourget; and an exciting cantata by Robert Ingari for choir, brass, and percussion, Cantata Natalis.

Now that American Thanksgiving is over, we are prepared to fully embrace bright lights, cheery Christmas tunes and even some of the over-the-top outdoor decorations that mar the landscape.
However, this year it is extremely difficult to do in light of the gloomy news emanating from South of the border. We are particularly concerned by the confrontation between the U.S. and Venezuela which on Wednesday afternoon had culminated in the seizure of a Venezuelan oil tanker by the U.S. The events leading up to this are only magnified by the publication of America’s new National Security Strategy.
Robert Reich asks What Will Trump Do to Divert Attention from His Mounting Failures? He -and we- are getting the answers all too quickly.

As Montreal honours Polytechnique victims, Carney says progress on women’s safety is not enough
“A beautiful ceremony, but a tragedy,” the PM said as about 100 people gathered at Mount Royal to commemorate the 36th anniversary.
For the 12th straight year, the City of Montreal in collaboration with the Comité Mémoire and technical assistance from Moment Factory, lit up the Montreal sky with 14 beams of light projected from the Mount Royal lookout in Montreal on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, during a memorial for the Polytechnique massacre victims. At 5:10 p.m., the time the first shots were fired on Dec. 6, 1989, the 14 beams were illuminated one by one, every few seconds, as the names of the 14 women are called out. As happened for the first time last year, a 15th beam was lit in memory of all victims of femicides.

December 6 is also the anniversary of the devastating 1917 Halifax Explosion that claimed some 1,782 lives.
Now, Some Halifax Explosion artifacts pulled from the harbour will have a new home
A car-size chunk will be placed on display outside the Naval Museum of Halifax
Almost a year and a half after pieces of the Mont-Blanc were discovered during dredging in Halifax harbour, plans are taking shape for what to do with some of the wreckage from the famed ship involved in the Halifax Explosion.
The pieces came from the present-day location of what would have been home to Pier 6 on Dec. 6, 1917. This is the area where the Mont-Blanc, a French munitions ship, drifted to and exploded after a collision with the Imo, a Norwegian steamship carrying Belgian relief supplies.

Good news!
Indigenous cultural belongings return to Canada from Vatican after long journey
62 items arrived at Montreal airport on Saturday after 3 years of negotiations

US Economy, Tariffs & Trade
‘Only so long’ before Trump’s tariff costs hit consumers, businesses warn
Corporate executives are telling investors that prices will rise as soon as January as pre-tariff inventory runs thin and holiday discounts disappear.
The Trump administration is touting record Black Friday shopping as a sign the president’s tariffs haven’t hurt the economy the way some predicted.
Economists and businesses say: Just wait.
Retail giants have proven more adept than expected at cushioning the blow of President Donald Trump’s steep tariff hikes over the spring and summer, keeping prices for consumer goods from surging this year by as much as many economists anticipated. But business executives and corporate analysts are warning they can’t do that forever.
“In the first half of next year, we are concerned that consumers are going to start to see the price increases become a little more broad based
NAFTA/USMCA – Three Amigos 2.0
Lawmakers to meet with Canadian ambassador ahead of free trade review
A bipartisan group of lawmakers will meet this week with Canada’s ambassador to the U.S. ahead of a deadline for the review of a key trade agreement between the two countries.
Lawmakers on the House Ways and Means Committee are set to sit down Thursday morning for a round-table conversation with Kirsten Hillman, outgoing ambassador of Canada to the U.S.
USMCA Review 2026 (See Long reads)
Pathways, Risks, and Strategic Considerations for North America’s Economic Future
(Center for Strategic and International Studies CSIS) The United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA), the backbone of North America’s competitiveness, will undergo a formal review starting in July 2026. What was once expected to be a routine assessment aimed at improving implementation is now likely to become a high-stakes negotiation.

Donald Trump Wars & Peace

Quebec
We simply do not have the strength or fortitude to deal with Quebec matters this Wednesday, but will yield the floor to those who wish to address the evil Constitution proposals (Bill 1), the débacle of the Quebec Liberal Party, the treats to Quebec healthcare of citizens of all linguistic preferences (Bill 2), …
Libman: Fair or not, Rodriguez must step down
I believe him when he says he wasn’t aware of improprieties. But suspicion and doubt have splattered the Liberal party and its leader.

A postscript to CP30
Sumatra’s flood crisis: How deforestation turned a cyclonic storm into a likely recurring tragedy (See Long reads)
Cyclone Senyar hit South and Southeast Asian countries in late November. In Indonesia, the island of Sumatra, especially its northern parts, took the worst hit.
The storm set off flash floods and landslides that tore through towns, killed hundreds of people, and pushed thousands of families out of their homes. Many houses were submerged to their rooftops or swept away entirely, while rivers turned into sudden, violent torrents.
… The real damage occurred when extreme rainfall collided with an already weakened ecosystem.
The result was a deadly catastrophe.
When forests are cleared and the land is degraded, the ecosystem loses its natural ability to act as a “sponge.” Rainwater that once slowly seeped into the forest floor now rushes over the land, turning into torrential runoff that crashes into people’s homes.

Of course they did!
From one corrupt outfit to the Granddaddy of corruption
Trump finally got his peace prize—from a soccer federation widely known for corruption
President Donald Trump was awarded the new FIFA peace prize on Friday at the 2026 World Cup draw — giving the spectacle to set matchups for the quadrennial soccer tournament even more of a Trumpian flair
Trump, who has openly campaigned for the Nobel Peace Prize, had been heavily expected to receive the newly created FIFA prize. FIFA president Gianni Infantino, a close ally of Trump, has said he thought Trump should have won the Nobel for his efforts to broker a ceasefire in Gaza.
The award came a little more than a decade after the Department of Justice shocked the sports world and beyond with a sweeping corruption case against FIFA that played a part in Infantino coming to power, ending the reign of his predecessor, Sepp Blatter. The American soccer official who was indicted, Chuck Blazer, rented several apartments in Trump Tower, one for himself and one for his large collection of cats. Blazer also had close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin and voted for Russia to be awarded the 2018 World Cup, years before he pleaded guilty to tax evasion, money laundering, racketeering and wire fraud. (Putin once reportedly commented on Blazer’s resemblance to Karl Marx.)
How FIFAgate, soccer’s biggest scandal, became ‘a missed opportunity’ for reform (See Long reads)
Ten years after the U.S. rocked global soccer with its corruption takedown, some wonder if soccer’s governing body every really cleaned itself up

Trumpian Corruption Is Worse Than Ukrainian Corruption (See Long reads)
The people of Ukraine want an honest government, even as American and Russian kleptocrats circle their country.
… Last month, The Wall Street Journal revealed that these three businessmen met in Miami Beach in October to discuss not just Ukraine but also future Russian-American business deals. Russian businessmen who are known to be close to Putin have been “dangling multibillion-dollar rare-earth and energy deals” in front of American companies, the Journal explained, to “reshape the economic map of Europe—while driving a wedge between America and its traditional allies.” Some of the companies have connections with Donald Trump’s family. …

Varia
Sandy wonders who (aside from her) follows the appalling and dangerous overcrowding of Mount Everest. Is there no way that better/stricter controls can be enforced?
Mount Everest hikers describe ‘extreme’ conditions as huge rescue effort continues
At least 200 people still stranded after unseasonally heavy snowfall during China’s Golden Week holiday
Mount Everest Climbing Crisis: Overcrowding, Deaths and Danger at the Summit
Mount Everest’s enduring appeal, seven decades after Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay’s pioneering ascent, has created a mounting crisis. Despite deadly natural hazards and pandemic disruptions, the increasing accessibility of the mountain, driven by ever-improving equipment and commercial expeditions, has resulted in severe overcrowding and pollution.
In 2019, viral images of queues to the summit circulated on social media. Meanwhile, the ‘world’s highest junkyard’, as mountaineer Barry Bishop dubbed it decades ago, is now littered with tonnes of discarded waste. In a bid to mitigate this, Nepal’s Supreme Court mandated permit limits in 2024. A newly announced US$15,000 (£12,180) peak-season permit fee, a substantial 36 per cent rise (the first in ten years), also came into effect in September. However, given that climbers already invest upwards of US$100,000 for the experience, it’s uncertain whether the price hike will help to curb demand.

New study shows how your brain changes at four key ages: 9, 32, 66 and 83 (See Long reads)
New research finds that brain development is not linear. There are distinct phases with unique characteristics.
The human brain has four distinct turning points where its structure changes, according to a study published in the journal Nature Communications, demonstrating that brain development is not as linear as you might think.
“It’s easy to fall into this belief that there’s a ‘good’ or ‘bad’ way for a brain to be structured,” said lead study author Alexa Mousley at the University of Cambridge. “And that’s not really the case. What this study is emphasizing is the brain is expected to be doing something different at different ages.”

Peter Frise comments?
Tiny Cars: ‘AMAZING!!!’
Why are America’s city streets clogged with enormous SUVs and trucks when we could instead have the Suzuki Hustler?
An adorably rugged little box of a car, the Hustler looks something like a Hummer, but is closer in size to a Smart car. The U.S. has nothing like it, especially not for the cost. The Hustler has four-wheel drive, a hybrid engine, and a shocking amount of storage space for your gear—not bad for about $12,000.
The Hustler, and others like it, is a kei car: short for kei-jidosha, meaning “light vehicle.” Kei cars (pronounced kay) are a category of Japanese cars restricted to small dimensions and engines. They come in all shapes and configurations in Japan: tiny delivery vans, hatchbacks, pickup trucks, even sports cars with gull-wing doors. They’re an indelible part of Japan’s automotive culture, with a reputation for enchanting foreign visitors.

How AP took the latest photos of the White House ballroom construction
More photos and videos show the Ballroom construction underway at the White House, on the site where the East Wing once stood.

We LOVE Happy endings!
Lost for 5 months in the Northern Rockies, this cat is heading home to Oklahoma for Christmas
Named Shadow, the cat will be flown to Winnipeg before being driven the rest of the way home

Long reads
Sumatra’s flood crisis: How deforestation turned a cyclonic storm into a likely recurring tragedy
When forests are cleared and the land is degraded, the ecosystem loses its natural ability to act as a “sponge.” Rainwater that once slowly seeped into the forest floor now rushes over the land, turning into torrential runoff that crashes into people’s homes.

New study shows how your brain changes at four key ages: 9, 32, 66 and 83
New research finds that brain development is not linear. There are distinct phases with unique characteristics

Trumpian Corruption Is Worse Than Ukrainian Corruption
The people of Ukraine want an honest government, even as American and Russian kleptocrats circle their country.
By Anne Applebaum

USMCA Review 2026
Pathways, Risks, and Strategic Considerations for North America’s Economic Future
The United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA), the backbone of North America’s competitiveness, will undergo a formal review starting in July 2026.

How FIFAgate, soccer’s biggest scandal, became ‘a missed opportunity’ for reform
Ten years after the U.S. rocked global soccer with its corruption takedown, some wonder if soccer’s governing body every really cleaned itself up