The Invasive Species We Can Blame On Shakespeare
There are 200 million European starlings in North America, and they are a menace
If you live in North America, you probably recognize European starlings, those little black birds with white polka dots that chirp and chatter and, in the winter, hang out in flocks of thousands. There are 200 million of these birds on the continent, and they can be found as far north as Alaska and as far south as Mexico. Numerous though they are, starlings are actually non-native invasive species. And we can blame Shakespeare for their arrival in America.
Steven Marche explains in How Shakespeare Changed Everything:
On March 6, 1890, a New York pharmaceutical manufacturer name Eugene Schieffelin brought natural disaster into the heart of completely without meaning to. Through the morning snow, which congealed at times to sleet, sixty starlings, imported at great expense from Europe, accompanied Schieffelin on the ride from his country house into Central Park—the noisy, dirty fulfillment of his plan to introduce every bird mentioned by Shakespeare into North America
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/the-invasive-species-we-can-blame-on-shakespeare-95506437/
New drunk driving test allows police to administer breathalyzers without reasonable suspicion
Alberta RCMP hope new rules that allow them to demand a breath sample from any driver they pull over will deter drunk drivers from getting on the road.
The mandatory alcohol screening that comes into effect on Dec. 18 means officers can approach every car they pull over with a portable Breathalyzer for screening.
RCMP traffic services Supt. Gary Graham and Sgt. Brent Robinson, an impaired driving specialist with the RCMP traffic unit, demonstrated the test Monday at K Division headquarters.
Graham said on Dec. 1, RCMP officers took part in National Impaired Driving Enforcement Day. Out of the 11,895 vehicles checked by the Alberta RCMP on that day, 23 charges were laid for alcohol-related impairment and two were laid for drug-related impairment.
https://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/new-drunk-driving-test-allows-police-to-administer-breathalyzers-without-reasonable-suspicion
The Trudeau government wants to censor your social media
Global News is reporting today that the Trudeau government is considering forcing social media to remove “extremist” content. Ralph Goodale, the Public Safety Minister, has declared his intentions to purge your Twitter and Facebook feeds of content the government deems problematic or toxic
https://www.thepostmillennial.com/the-trudeau-government-wants-to-censor-your-social-media/
Trudeau Really Does Admire China’s “Basic Dictatorship,” And He Wants That Power For Himself
China’s Communist government exerts ruthless authoritarian control over social media, to ‘preserve social harmony.’ Does anyone doubt that Trudeau wants to see the same thing happen here?
The Liberals tried passing off Justin Trudeau’s comments praising China’s “Basic Dictatorship” as a ‘joke.’
But we know it wasn’t a joke.
Trudeau really does admire the ruthless control China exerts over their population, and he wants that same power for himself.
In fact, the arguments being used by the Trudeau Liberals in their effort to control what news can be seen by Canadians on Facebook, and in their attempts to shut down Twitter accounts they don’t like, are disturbingly similar to the ‘social harmony’ argument used by Communist China to suppress free expression.
https://www.spencerfernando.com/2018/06/28/trudeau-really-does-admire-chinas-basic-dictatorship-and-he-wants-that-power-for-himself/
Big Tobacco Companies to Pay $15B Settlement in Canada’s Biggest Class Action Suit
A Quebec judge just issued a historic ruling, ordering three big tobacco companies to pay $15B settlement in Canada’s biggest class action suit. Andre Lesperance, an attorney for the plaintiffs, said, “These three companies lied to their customers for 50 years and hurt their right to life. It’s a great victory for victims as well as for society in general.”
The suit began as two separate actions that were later merged. One was filed by widow Lise Blais soon after her husband, Jean-Yves, succumed to lung cancer. Mrs. Blais was present at a press conference in Montreal where she asked people to quit smoking. While holding photographs of her late husband, she said, “Your health is completely lost.”
The ruling was issued by Quebec Superior Court Justice Brian Riordan after years of testimony and six months of deliberation. The opinion in 276 pages long and orders the three defendants – Imperial Tobacco, Rothmans, Benson & Hedges and JTI-Macdonald – to share payment responsibility.
https://www.legalreader.com/big-tobacco-companies-to-pay-15b-settlement-in-canadas-biggest-class-action-suit/
