Could be tricky being upfront with intimate setup

DeKalb victory adds Team Ackland to list of province’s top curling teams

MORRIS, Man., — Don’t forget about Abby Ackland.

Disturbing rise of the cult of hard-line anti-vaxxers

The serious long-term threat from this anti-vax cult is its ability to spread disinformation to their followers via social media and other outlets.

From footnote to martyr: execution altered Scott’s place in history

When Thomas Scott was marched outside the walls of Upper Fort Garry and executed by firing squad, it forever changed how history would treat Louis Riel and the Red River Resistance. The killing of Scott, whether a misguided error by Riel or an unavoidable step to prevent further bloodshed, would turn out to be one of the most pivotal events of the resistance.

Only a month after the Irish-born Canadian was condemned to death in March 1870, Riel opponents in Ontario used Scott’s execution to whip up anti-Métis sentiment in an effort to sabotage negotiations between Ottawa and the Red River Settlement. It nearly worked. Two of three Red River delegates sent to Ottawa to negotiate the terms of Manitoba’s entry into confederation were arrested on arrival (but later released) for Scott’s death. At the same time, Prime Minister John A. Macdonald was under increasing political pressure to send military troops to quell the resistance in Red River, rather than engage in peaceful negotiations.

Scott’s death didn’t just complicate matters for the Red River delegates. It undermined their efforts to bargain with Ottawa.

Scott was tried and convicted by a “military council” on March 3 for rebelling against the provisional government and attacking a Métis guard at Upper Fort Garry, where he and other political prisoners were held. The trial wasn’t conducted under normal court rules, even by 1870 Red River standards. Scott had no defence counsel and wasn’t present for much of the proceedings, which were conducted in French (a language he didn’t understand). Riel, one of the chief witnesses in the case, had to act as translator. The military council was not unanimous in its decision to sentence Scott to death. Some felt the penalty was too harsh.

Hot topic: mayor considers max temp for rental properties

Mayor Scott Gillingham says he’s open to exploring a call to set a maximum temperature for indoor rental units.

“I think we should be looking at that, as far as what the specifics would be … (In) our overall body of work, recently, we have been addressing the heat and making sure people have places to get out from under the heat,” said Gillingham.

Tenant and environmental groups have called for a maximum indoor rental unit heat limit that doesn’t exceed 26 C. A city bylaw does require landlords to maintain a minimum daytime temperature of 21 C during cold weather.

Gillingham noted the city has added 24-7 safe spaces, extended spray pad hours, opened libraries as cooling spaces and added drinking water stations to provide relief on very hot days.

‘Wild, wild summer’: storms produce all-time number of damage claims at MPI

More than 40,000 storm-related claims have been opened with Manitoba Public Insurance stemming from summer storms, marking a historic high.

The June 9 storm in Winnipeg and the surrounding area drove a record-setting volume, making it the largest single claim event in MPI’s history.

The data is still rolling in, but the losses from the weather are likely in the hundreds of millions of dollars, according to MPI’s vice-president and chief claims officer John Bowering.

“In my career here a storm in 5,000 to 10,000 (claims) was considered a major storm… so to have a single storm at 34,000 and a summer where we’re going to exceed 40,000 is monumental and quite hard to wrap my head around,” he said Tuesday.

Hydro board members visit First Nation communities to discuss damage from past developments

Members of the Manitoba Hydro board visited Misipawistik Cree Nation and Chemawawin Cree Nation last week to learn more about the impacts of the Grand Rapids Generating Station and strengthen relationships with communities affected by hydroelectric development.

The two-day visit included spending time at culturally significant sites and discussions with leadership and community members, and a tour of generating stations and Grand Rapids fish hatchery, a Manitoba Hydro news release said.

The visit is part of Manitoba Hydro’s ongoing engagement with Indigenous communities affected by hydroelectric development, the release said. In 2024, the Manitoba Hydro board visited Gillam and met with First Nations that partner in the Keeyask Generating Station.

Last week’s visit to Misipawistik and Chemawawin came just weeks after the Federal Court on Sept. 3 ordered Ottawa pay Opaskwayak Cree Nation $27 million over damages suffered due to the construction of the Grand Rapids hydro dam in the 1960s.