Julian Barnes’ latest novel, Elizabeth Finch, asks the question, what if civilization took a wrong turn in the 4th Century, by choosing Christianity over Hellenistic and Roman paganism?

Music has been part of the Franciscan tradition for centuries - but Friar Alessandro appears to be the first one with a big record deal.

Music has been part of the Franciscan tradition for centuries - but Friar Alessandro appears to be the first one with a big record deal.

Iain White’s mother says her son and other dietary aides are unsung health-care heroes of the pandemic because they plate, prep and serve food to residents while offering connection and companionship.

To mark the centenary of the birth of Primo Levi, the British writers join Eleanor Wachtel to reflect on the late Italian author's exceptional writing about the Holocaust, science and humanity.

The British novelist spoke with Eleanor Wachtel in 2022 about his book, The Great Passion, a fictional imagining of J.S. Bach as an ambitious, passionate musician and father.

The academic and author spoke with Eleanor Wachtel about his provocative new novel, Immigrant, Montana.

The American novelist spoke to Eleanor Wachtel in 2018 about her book New People.

A sandwich inspired water filter and 19 ways of looking at consciousness.

"The Einstein Show" marked 100 years since his publication of four papers that changed the laws of physics

For many of us, summer is the time for things like beaches, bike rides, and BBQs. For some scientists, however, summertime is also when they are at their busiest, travelling to remote locations to get up close and personal with nature.

The evolutionary biology of friendship and how digital tech has shaped our fundamental sense of togetherness.

Today on Q with Tom Power: lead singer Hayley Williams and actor Emma Mackey

Today on Q with Tom Power: saxophonist Lakecia Benjamin and author Lindsay Wong

Today on Q with Tom Power: musician David Harrington and actor Rakhee Morzaria

Today on Q with Tom Power: musicians Christian McBride and Tate McRae

Today on Q with Tom Power: director Chris Williams and actor Gabriel Luna

Myles Anderson and Sean Lecomber troll with the punches when they discuss whether kids should use social media. Then, are stripes superior to polka dots? Rob Pue and Kathleen McGee refuse to be clothed-minded with their patter on these patterns.

To honour the passing of Edmonton's wonderful and hilarious Kathleen McGee, The Debaters is re-airing one of her memorable debates from 2021. Featuring Kathleen McGee, Erica Sigurdson, Peter Brown and Ryan Williams in East Vancouver.

Hey folks,

Although they still have a few more numbers to crunch... Environment Canada is already saying... this has been the Warmest and Driest Winter in Canada since record keeping began.

Environment Canada's Senior Climatologist David Phillips says on average from Coast to Coast to Coast, from December through February, average temperatures reached an record high while precipitation levels dropped to a record low. EC's weather data goes back 63 years.

Here's a look at a graphic the CBC Weather Centre in Toronto has put together this morning.

You can see where most of the above average warmth was felt from Dec-Feb, through the North and into Quebec and Labrador. It's not really surprising to any of us in this Province, given the fact we've been talking about the crazy temperatures in Labrador since November.

NO SEA ICE

As we talked about a few weeks ago, all this warm weather has had massive impacts on the sea ice. From the Gulf to the North Atlantic to the Labrador Sea, officials are saying they haven't seen conditions like this in over 70 years.

Here are the latest ice charts.

You can see the big time lack of Ice in the Gulf...

And around the Island...

Up the Coast of Labrador there is some ice along the Coast... but not much into the Labrador Sea.

This graphic may show it best... the Departure from Normal Ice Map.

It's little wonder the Seal Hunt is in jeopardy this year.

Ryan

How protests in Iran threaten the country's regime; Chinese police have set up outposts in Canada; Kelly Clarkson's best Kellyoke covers; Becky Toyne reviews Iain Reid's new thriller, We Spread; The Linda Lindas drop by for an after-school hangout; and more.

Marian Engel’s Bear is one of Canada’s most controversial novels. But experts say it’s also one of the most daring and enduring.

The luggage ad started in the zoo and ended in the permanent collection at the New York Museum of Modern Art. But do you remember which brand was behind it?

It originated in Tibet. Then made its way onto a yacht. Then took over Canada. How the classic board game of Yahtzee came to be.

[Written by Stephen Wright] Bermudian amateur boxer Adrian Roach has described his two-week training camp in Las Vegas as a valuable learning experience. Roach rubbed shoulders with some of the top names in the sport during his training stint at the DLX Boxing Gym under coach Kay Koroma, who has worked with world champions such […]

[Written by Stephen Wright] Boxer Adrian Roach has enjoyed highly skilled sparring in Las Vegas in preparation for one of his toughest assignments when he faces Canadian Taverio Stewart at the Bermuda College on Saturday [August 10]. Roach spent three weeks in “Sin City”, training under coaches Kay Koroma and DJ Zamora, sparring with top […]

Bermudian amateur boxer Adrian Roach said he had to “dig deep” during his bout against Canadian Taverio Stewart in Fight Fest at the Bermuda College at the weekend. Roach earned a split-decision win in the headline contest on the card, which featured local fighters such as Jaylon Roberts, Bruce Perinchief and Ngai Franklin against Canadian […]

Patchy comeback collection from the Big Big World singer.

A new COVID-19 subvariant has now been confirmed in multiple provinces in Canada. The Omicron offshoot is also rising rapidly south of the border, and scientists say it could soon be a dominant strain in the U.S. and other countries.

T-Mobile heeft de bereikbaarheid van haar glasvezel dienstverlening deze week in één klap uitgebreid met meer dan 310.000 adressen. Nadat de provider eerder al een overeenkomst sloot met DELTA Fiber voor het leveren van glasvezeldiensten op elkaars netwerken, is nu een vergelijkbare deal gesloten met Glaspoort.

The most exciting and substantial Coleman release of the last few years.

If you want proof that dubstep still has a soul, start here.

The catalyst of creation located in the power of psychic persuasion.

A new chapter begins for Keys on this confident, assured album.

The greatest hip hop album of the 21st century.

A missed opportunity which leaves the listener wanting better.

Balances intensity and introspection well, befitting the game’s conflicted protagonist.

A perfect partnership of movie and music, albeit of the creepiest kind.

Supply Chain and Omnichannel Commerce Solutions provider Manhattan Associates Inc., has reported revenue of $266.7 million for the third quarter ended September 30, 2024. GAAP diluted earnings per share for Q3 2024 was $1.03 compared to $0.79 in Q3 2023. Non-GAAP adjusted diluted earnings per share for Q3 2024 was $1.35 compared to $1.05 in Q3 2023.

Shipster, a custom shipping integration platform, and Futura Retail Solutions, an advanced retail and warehouse management software, have announced a strategic partnership to target growing omni-channel retail markets.

By Georgia Leybourne, Chief Marketing Officer, Linnworks.

Success in ecommerce and retail today hinges on consumer convenience. It is fast becoming a powerful tool in the e-commerce industry, transforming the way businesses engage with their customers and increasing sales through social commerce.

With the holiday season fast approaching, retail payroll teams around the world are bracing for the strain of seasonal hiring.

The lineup is intended to spotlight party moderates while underlining a central theme of the Republican gathering: President Bush's response to the Sept. 11 attacks.

Some of the most significant corporate commitments have come from JPMorgan Chase, Microsoft, AMEX, Bank of America, PayPal, Salesforce and Chase.  These large corporate commitments do not account for the other minority-focused investments, such as JP Morgan's initiative to lend more openly to minority owned businesses and black and brown home purchasers.  The corporate giving trend is fueled by changing expectations of younger employees and progressive consumers that expect corporations to become serious about corporate responsibilities to social issues and causes.  Advocates argue that these corporate commitments will not be enough to achieve racial equity in housing, employment and policing, but acknowledge that if these corporations are serious about their commitments, that it can mark an important start.  "'The world is changing, and the expectations of how companies engage are changing,' said Brandee McHale, Citi’s head of community investing and development."

ABC News reports that "[s]ince late May, Grabois said, financial commitments by companies to racial equity causes have grown 'exponentially larger' than any other cause other than COVID-19. A report by McKinsey & Company, which tracked corporate responses from May to October, found that of the top 1,000 U.S. companies, 18% made internal commitments, like diversifying their hiring, and 22% pledged to promote racial equity through donations or other means."

Whether corporate giving to racial equity causes results in systemic change and reform remains to be seen.  Holding corporations to their commitments will likely be an important undertaking.

photo courtesy of wikimedia commons

The Tulsa Law Review will host a special symposium issue of the law review as part of a commemoration of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre with a one-day live/hybrid event on May 21 and publication of the papers in September 2021.

During the Tulsa Race Massacre, which occurred May 31–June 1, 1921, a white mob attacked residents, homes and businesses in the predominantly Black Greenwood district of Tulsa, Oklahoma. The event remains one of the worst incidents of racial violence in U.S. history and one of the least-known; news reports were largely squelched, despite the fact that hundreds of people were believed to have been killed and thousands left homeless.

May 21 @ 9:00 am - 5:00 pm

Virtual Event Free: Register Here

Suzette Malveaux, provost professor of civil rights law at the University of Colorado School of Law, will provide the keynote address. For six years, Malveaux served as pro bono counsel to the plaintiffs in Alexander v. State of Oklahoma, a suit filed against Tulsa by victims of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. As part of a team of attorneys, she represented the victims before the federal courts, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (Organization of American States) and the U.S. House of Representatives.

Other featured law professors will include Keeva Terry of Howard University School of Law; andre cummings of the Bowen School of Law at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock; Amos Jones, executive director of the African American Trust for Historic Preservation; Angela Addae of the University of Oregon School of Law; and many others. Confirmed participants include Dwight Eaton, a descendant and owner of Black Wall Street Liquid Lounge; TU Professor Kristen Oertel, who will present a talk titled Black Indians, Red Dirt: A Brief History of African Americans in Indian and Oklahoma Territories, 1840–1907; and Professor DeWayne Dickens, who will present a talk titled Learning from Greenwood: When Voices Are Silenced.

 On March 11, 2024, Donald Trump claimed that cutting Social Security and Medicare could help him cut the national debt tremendously. (See video above). On March 22, 2024, the House GOP announced cuts including a plan to raise the retirement age. This was the second straight year that the House GOP proposed a budget with deep Social Security and Medicare cuts. Trump started promising cuts to Social Security and Medicare in his second term before some audiences as early as January of 2020.  At a Fox News Town Hall in March of 2020, again promised to cut Social Security and Medicare.

All of this talk of cuts forms the prelude to last Thursday's debate which included a question about cuts to Social Security and Medicare. Biden gave a straight-forward answer saying that no cuts are necessary if we raise the Social Security tax to the same level for all. Currently, those making high incomes pay much lower rates than those making low incomes. As President Biden explained at the debate:

Right now, everybody making under $170,000 pays 6 percent of their income, of their paycheck, every single time they get a paycheck, [But] millionaires pay 1 percent – 1 percent. So . . . I would not raise the cost of Social Security for anybody under $400,000. After that, I begin to make the wealthy begin to pay their fair share, by increasing from 1 percent beyond, to be able to guarantee the program for life.

That provides a sensible and efficient means of securing Social Security. And, Biden never varies from that position.

Trump on the other hand, takes different positions with different audiences and covers the full spectrum of options. According to NBC News:

An NBC News examination found that Trump's views have zigzagged over the years — from calling Social Security a “Ponzi scheme” in 2000 to endorsing then-Rep. Paul Ryan’s plans to restructure Medicare in 2012 to positioning himself as the protector of those programs in 2016 to taking aim at some retirement spending in his White House budgets (which never became law).

Essentially we know Trump is lying because of his radically divergent positions over time. In fact, in 2016 he promised to preserve Social Security and Medicare, and then in his budgets he proposed cuts.

 In recent months, Trump opened the way for Social Security and Medicare cuts and refuses to disclaim the GOP plan to cut those programs as, shown above. Which brings us to the his debate comments in response to a question about entitlement cuts. While Biden gave a simple and clear statement of how he intends to save Social Security and Medicare, Trump attacked Biden's honesty and switched the topic to immigration, Russia, Ukraine, a mysterious laptop, the VA, and luxury hotels. Trump was incoherent. Remarkably, he never addressed his recent comments about Social Security and Medicare cuts, nor the GOP plan to cut Social Security and Medicare. Trump provided no explanation of his prior budget proposals including Social Security and Medicare cuts.  As stated in the Washington Post: "Protecting Social Security . . . was also a major theme of Trump’s 2016 campaign. His avowed stance, however, is at odds with Trump’s own record as president: Each of his White House budget proposals included cuts to Social Security and Medicare programs."

Trump has staked out so many positions on Social Security that no matter what he says he lies. The only thing we know for sure about Trump and entitlements is that despite campaign promises to the contrary he included Social Security and Medicare cuts in each of his annual budget proposals as President. Given the GOP commitment to cutting Social Security and Medicare a vote for any GOP candidate is a vote to slash your Social Security and Medicare benefits by about 30 percent. If Trump gets elected the GOP will have a clear path to gutting Social Security and Medicare as he promised to do in a second term in 2020, and regardless of any lies or gibberish he feeds the voters today.