Wednesday Night #2300

Before addressing the depressing, not-encouraging, downright awful news, let us celebrate the excellent outcomes of Artemis II; the Hungarian elections; Canadian by-elections; and the swearing-in of Christine Fréchette, new Premier of Québec and surely an improvement on Legault.

Artemis II
What a thrill to follow the re-entry of Orion; the splashdown and recovery of the Artemis crew; and the celebrations at Mission Control. I am sure everyone was a bit nervous during the descent. But everything went off perfectly. Artemis II’s moon-traveling astronauts return home to cheers after a record-breaking trip“. AP noted: Their homecoming was poignant: They returned to NASA’s Houston base on the 56th anniversary of the launch of Apollo 13, whose “Houston, we’ve had a problem” refrain turned a near-disaster into triumph.
As this was essentially a test flight, the success bodes well for Artemis III.
Happy follow-up story in Wednesday’s Globe & Mail Artemis II astronauts: What are they doing now and have they reunited with their families?. There will be many more focused on science, data and perfecting of future missions – including the plumbing.

Hungary
We know that Tony and Ron are cheering from WN in The Cloud, as they break out a bottle of Hungaria to celebrate the routing of Mr Orban and his gang of thugs. We can say that at least he conceded quite graciously (unlike the White House current occupant). Orban’s defeat has prompted Tasha Kheiriddin to examine whether far-right populism has peaked in Europe (see Long reads below).

Speaking of Tony, his son-in-law Alexandre Catta has just been appointed Deputy Director for the U.S., Mexico, and the Americas at Natural Resources Canada. Alexandre, whose expertise is in Energy and Mineral Trade, has recently returned from South Korea where he was participating in the Canada Korea Forum and the Team Canada Trade Mission. I am encouraging him to Zoom in from Ottawa to tell us about the Korea trip and his new post.

It was wonderful to see so many Wednesday Nighters at the Celebration of Ron’s life. It was indeed a most convivial celebration and he would have approved. As the market goes wild with each new rumor about the resolution -or not- of the Iran war and the Strait of Hormuz, we will all feel Ron’s absence as he resolutely insists that technical analysis has it covered.

Canada government & governance
While we had expected Monday’s positive byelection results in the two Ontario ridings, we were cautious about predicting the outcome in Terrebonne, and waited up anxiously as the lead changed back and forth between the Liberal and the Bloc candidates. All’s well that ends well – and it ended well, with a Liberal sweep of the three contests, thus an assured (slim) majority of 174. Among all the media coverage, it was fun to see Politico’s positive (and lengthy) spin What the left can learn from Mark Carney
Our preoccupation with by-elections, defectors from the Conservative Party, extensive travel by the PM, and some worthy trade missions, prevented us from paying proper attention to Ottawa’s $3.8-billion nature strategy, laying out path to protect 30% of lands and waters by 2030, which has been praised by
Stewart Elgie, Jarislowsky Chair in Clean Economy and Innovation at the University of Ottawa.[Mark Carney gets it right with bold new nature strategy] He says “The plan charts a bold course to conserve the health of Canada’s forests, fields and waters, and support the people and industries that depend on them.” This deserves our attention, once we have had time to read and absorb the plan.
Québec
Christine Fréchette was sworn in at 4pm on Wednesday and one can only hope that she stays true to her first messaging which seems positive.

Gulf War III and Donald Trump 2.1
As another round of U.S.-Iran talks is being negotiated by Pakistan, the behaviour of Donald Trump becomes more and more bizarre, A number of influential voices are questioning the state of his mental and physical health, especially in the wake of his latest war – this time on American Pope Leo xiv. And JD Vance, ever the faithful Trump follower has now said it is “very, very important for the pope to be careful when he talks about matters of theology”.. That’s the Pope he is referring to! Vox got it right Donald Trump messed with the wrong pope – Trump fought with Pope Francis before. He’s finding Pope Leo XIV to be a tougher foil. (See Trump’s incredible shrinking tent in Long reads below.)

Meanwhile, Israel continues to ruthlessly attack Lebanon, refusing to agree that the Iran war ceasefire has any reference to the situation in Lebanon. And, although Israel and Lebanon have agreed to continue  talks,  Israel and Hezbollah continue attacks after Israel-Lebanon talks in US 

Given our preoccupation with Gulf War III, we have recently spent little time on Putin’s War, so I was very pleased to be introduced by a neighbour to Danish military analyst and Naval Captain Anders Puck Nielsen whose view on Ukraine’s role in European security is refreshingly positive: “Ukraine’s significance in European security is often overlooked in discussions about the future of NATO. …both Ukraine’s military strength [second largest army in Europe] and its geography make it an attractive alliance partner. In an age when there is uncertainty about U.S. commitment to European security, it is important to find other strong allies who are willing to stand up to Russia.” (See Long reads and videos below for the link)

Sudan marks a grim milestone Wednesday:
Another milestone for a bleak civil war
three years of a civil war widely described as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
At least 59,000 people have been killed. There have been multiple accusations of genocide in Darfur. Fourteen million people – roughly a quarter of the population – have been forced from their homes, while 19 million face acute hunger. Now, the Iran war is driving up food and fuel prices in an already devastated economy.
And yet, there is still no end in sight to the fighting between the Sudanese army and its former ally, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Drones have also expanded the battlefield, with those living far from the frontlines also facing threats – unmanned aerial vehicles have killed nearly 700 people so far in 2026, per the UN.
The conflict has grown more complicated due to murky foreign involvement. Three of the same countries that pushed for a humanitarian truce in November – the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt – along with Russia, have been accused of trying to shape the conflict through a mix of weapons transfers, financial and logistical support, and diplomatic backing.
Despite the international entanglement, the war in Sudan has drawn far less attention than the conflicts in Ukraine and, more recently, Iran.

Very sad to read of the death of Donald Tarlton, better known as Donald K Donald. Another of the greats who made Montreal a thriving community in the 1980s and ’90s.
Brownstein: Legendary promoter Donald K. Donald loved music, and loved Montreal even more
Impresario nonpareil Donald K. Donald died Monday, a month before his 83rd birthday. But his legacy will last eons among music fans of a bygone era.

Although we were aware that Sandy’s alma mater, Hampshire College was struggling financially, we were shocked to read that Hampshire College Will Close Amid Student Enrollment Declines – Other small private colleges like Hampshire have closed in recent years as financial pressures and competition for students increase, but Hampshire offered its students a unique approach to education. Thank you, Lisa Napoli, for reminding us of the Hampshire motto, NON SATIS SCIRE: To Know is Not Enough.

Events:
Book Launch
Thursday, April 16
5:00 PM to 7:00 PM
1210 Sherbrooke East, the Atrium of the Montreal Arts Council
NB This building was originally a library, and one of the most beautiful in the city.
What We Choose To Forget Filmmaker and author Guy Rex Rodgers documents a three-year tour to 55 communities across Quebec among Anglos, allophones and other immigrants, in every region of Quebec, as they struggled with the effects of this new conflict [thanks to Bill 96] between French and English, language and culture, immigrants and de-souche Quebecers.

Three outstanding forthcoming sessions of the Atwater Library Lunchtime Series.
Thursday, May 7 from 12:30 to 1:30 pm
IN PERSON AND BY ZOOM: GABRIEL SAFDIE on CHINA – Photographer and writer Gabriel Safdie gives an illustrated presentation on his new book of photographs and reminiscences of his many years doing business in China.

Thursday, May 14 from 12:30 to 1:30 pm
IN PERSON AND BY ZOOM: STORIES OF QUEBEC ANGLOS – See above Book Launch April 16.

Thursday, May 21 from 12:30 to 1:30 pm
IN PERSON AND BY ZOOM: ESSAYS on AGING – Janet Torge discusses and reads from her new book of essays on aging, I Can’t Believe I’m Old, written “with a wink and a smile” to quote Josh Freed.

Long reads/videos
When diplomacy disappears (podcast)
What do countries lose when they no longer have diplomats on the ground? Louise Blais, Jeremy Kinsman and Peter Donolo examine how the absence of embassies and diplomatic relations can distort judgment, weaken consular protection and leave governments relying on weaker intelligence, intermediaries and guesswork.
Using the long American absence from Iran and Canada’s own experience closing missions abroad, they ask what is really lost when states withdraw their diplomatic presence, and whether a country that wants to matter in the world can afford to keep hollowing out its foreign service.

Trump casts a shadow over elections abroad | Two Blocks from the White House (YouTube)
Is U.S. President Donald Trump’s touch backfiring — both at home and abroad? Trump loomed large over two recent international elections in Canada and Hungary.
On Monday, Prime Minister Mark Carney clinched a majority government, a win being attributed in part to widespread anti-Trump sentiment among Canadian voters. And over the weekend in Hungary, Trump’s close ally and fellow right-wing populist leader Viktor Orbán was defeated after 16 years in power in a landmark election. CBC’s Washington correspondents Willy Lowry and Katie Simpson, along with Radio-Canada’s U.S. correspondent Louis Blouin, report on the volatile value of Trump’s brand.
Peter Frise forwarded the link with the comment: This is a very interesting look at the coverage of the White House by three Canadian journalists – two from CBC and one from Radio-Canada.
Tasha Kheiriddin: Has far-right populism peaked in Europe?
Hungary is not alone. Over the past decade, far-right parties have made electoral gains across Europe, including Poland, Italy, France, and Germany. But in the past few years, the far right has also experienced setbacks.
Ukraine’s role in European security with Anders Puck Nielsen, military analyst at the Royal Danish Defence College with a specialty in Russia, the war in Ukraine, and military command.
Trump’s incredible shrinking tent
Donald Trump is torching the coalition that made him president… Over the last two weeks, Trump has tested the loyalty of MAGA’s Christian base with a series of extraordinary provocations. … On Sunday night, Trump attacked Pope Leo XIV — the first American-born pope — as “WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” furious that Leo had condemned his threats against the people of Iran. … Catholics, who make up roughly a fifth of the U.S. population, are America’s most powerful swing religious bloc. Trump’s attacks on the pope — who is far more popular than he is — could prove self-destructive in the midterms.