Don’t be guilted into hasty decisions on future

Minister faces calls to resign over St. Boniface soil contamination

Sustainable Development Minister Rochelle Squires faced calls for her resignation Tuesday, amid claims she lied in her handling of a recent report on soil contamination in Winnipeg's St. Boniface neighbourhood.

"Minister Squires should resign," Manitoba Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont said.

"The government and Minister Squires withheld a report confirming toxic contamination of soil, and then tried to use the (St. Boniface) byelection blackout to justify withholding it, when they actually had it before the election."

NDP Leader Wab Kinew echoed Lamont's claims, but stopped short of calling for her immediate resignation.

Oscar Moments: The night emotion won, for better and worse

Also streaming: “How to Survive a Pandemic” and “When We Were Bullies” on Crave, “Revenge of the Black Best Friend” and “Topline” on CBC Gem.

Proposed Transcona development — which could add 20,000 people — gets thumbs down from residents

Dozens of Winnipeggers fear plans to make way for up to 20,000 more people to live in south Transcona would dramatically alter their neighbourhood and tie hefty fees for new services to their property titles.

If city council adopts the proposed South Transcona secondary plan, all future development applications would need to conform to its goals. The affected area is located south of Dugald Road, north of St. Boniface Road, east of Plessis Road and west of Murdock Road.

Homeowner Virginia Page Jähne fears the plan could add a massive tab to the title of her 4.3-acre property to cover services required for the development.

“My main concern is that they are wanting to put $1.4 million onto my title to pay for this. Now, they say that I will not have to pay it unless I subdivide. But if a person comes by and wants to buy from me … and they see that $1.4 million … what’s the first thing (they’re) going to do?” said Page Jähne, in an interview.

Musk tweets link to an unfounded conspiracy theory

WASHINGTON (AP) — Elon Musk on Sunday tweeted a link to an unfounded rumor about the attack on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband, just days after Musk's purchase of Twitter fueled concerns that the social media platform would no longer seek to limit misinformation and hate speech.

Musk's tweet, which he later deleted, linked to an article by a fringe website, the Santa Monica Observer, an outlet that has previously asserted that Hillary Clinton died on Sept. 11 and was replaced with a body double.

In this case, the article recycled a baseless claim that the personal life of Paul Pelosi, the speaker's husband, somehow played a role in an intruder's attack last week in the couple's San Francisco home, even though there is no evidence to support that claim.

Musk did so in reply to a tweet by Hillary Clinton. Her tweet had criticized Republicans for generally spreading “hate and deranged conspiracy theories” and said, “It is shocking, but not surprising, that violence is the result.”

Doctor’s departure stressful for teen

Morgan Walker is a typical teen — but only because a piece of his brain the size of a deck of cards was removed four years ago.

Walker, who had seizures multiple times a day before his surgery, fears other people might not be so lucky.

That’s because his surgeon, Dr. Demitre Serletis, is leaving the province and Health Sciences Centre. Serletis will start practising at the Cleveland Clinic in the new year.

“I was kind of shocked, but I understood why,” Walker said from his home in Brandon. “The government really hasn’t been respecting doctors.”

Pallister appears determined to run on not-quite-done record

He is so going to do this.

Premier Brian Pallister wrapped up the current session of the Manitoba legislature with his most unequivocal statements to date that Manitoba will have a general election this summer. And this time, he actually provided some details about when we might expect the writ to drop.

Pallister told reporters at a news conference Tuesday that beginning in a few days, his government will begin restricting all government announcements and advertising that might contravene the 90-day communication blackout contained in the Election Finances Act. By confirming that he is effectively beginning the blackout, he is also confirming that a campaign will begin in early August for an election day sometime in early September, about a month before a federal election is scheduled.

Manitoba election campaigns run between 28 and 35 days, and the voting must be held on a Tuesday. If, for example, Pallister were to begin a blackout on Tuesday June 11, he could set an election for as early as Tuesday, Sept. 10. Although that would still be more than a full year earlier than the October 2020 date specified in law, he could claim with full justification he had honoured the spirit of the communications blackout.