Polarized views don’t make good bedfellows

Hockey’s long-overdue #MeToo movement

ANAHEIM -- As much as we celebrate the game in this country, as much as we romanticize it, there is a cold, hard truth -- hockey culture can be extremely toxic at times. And as we're being reminded again this week, the claim that "Hockey Is For Everyone," while certainly an admirable goal, remains a major work-in-progress.

Like all forms of abuse -- physical, sexual, mental -- it often starts at the top of the proverbial food chain and targets those who are seen as the weakest, which is how the perpetrators get away with it so long.

Just ask Akim Aliu, the Nigerian-born former pro who dropped a bombshell this week that current Calgary Flames coach Bill Peters hurled racist remarks his way a decade ago, while both were in the American Hockey League.

The revelation, which Aliu first disclosed on his Twitter account, will likely spell the end of Peters' tenure behind the bench. It hasn't happened yet, as the Flames along with the NHL and NHLPA conduct an ongoing investigation which I suspect includes plenty of lawyers pouring over contract law, but the writing appears to be on the wall. And justifiably so.

Police resuming drug-enforcement crackdown, working with outreach community

Winnipeg police are relaunching a drug enforcement campaign in some neighbourhoods Friday after they say a 10-day sweep led to more than 100 arrests and a drop in reported crime earlier this summer.

Police said the renewed initiative, targeting open drug use and trafficking, will continue into November with an outreach-first approach and a partnership with a coalition of community groups in response to criticism of the initial campaign.

“While there was a great deal of support for the enforcement actions we undertook to address public safety issues, there was also criticism about the lack of collaboration,” Winnipeg Police Service Chief Gene Bowers told reporters.

“At that time, I acknowledged that community organizations should have been part of our efforts. Hence, we’re here today.”

Canada players say team belief is strong ahead of World Cup opener against Belgium

UMM ŞALĀL ‘ALĪ, Qatar - While Canada may be diving into the deep end against No. 2 Belgium on Wednesday at the World Cup, the team belief appears strong on the eve of its plunge.

"We don't hope no more, we believe," veteran midfielder Jonathan Osorio told reporters after training Sunday. 'And we're very confident in ourselves."

"We want to show that we are a football nation, that we can compete with the best in the world," he added. "We want to surprise people because I think people still see us as underdogs and things like this, and Canada and the World Cup, they should just be happy to be here. But that's not our mentality. We're here to compete — to compete at a high level.

"We believe within our group. With the quality that we have and our brotherhood we can go as far as we want to go."

Poilievre’s lips moving, but Canadians aren’t interested in what he’s saying

Pierre Poilievre’s biggest political challenge right now isn’t Prime Minister Mark Carney’s popularity.

It’s the fact that he still seems to be campaigning against a political landscape that no longer exists.

More than a year after the 2025 federal election, the Conservative leader is still relying on the same message, the same themes and the same attacks that defined his party’s campaign before voters went to the polls.

And Canadians appear to be tuning it out.

Appiah hopes to crush winter athlete stereotype

One in five Canadians live with disabilities — a number likely to grow as the pandemic presses on. Advocates share how leaders should plan ahead.