NEWS
1. Freedom from information
Stephen Kimber recounts Tim Houston’s flirtation with giving the information and privacy commissioner independence and enforcement power, starting when Houston was in opposition and sued the McNeil government to get details of the Yarmouth ferry deal:
After the decision, Houston told reporters he now knew why the government had fought so hard to keep the information secret. It wasn’t to protect the ferry operator’s proprietary information. “I think what we now know is the number is embarrassing.”
Fast forward to a still celebrating Premier-designate Houston five days after his party had won a free-to-do-whatever-he-decreed majority government:
“I know that there’s lots of Nova Scotians that have put in legitimate information requests that have got a lot of pushback, a lot of hurdles,” he [told CBC].
“We’re going to work with the privacy commissioner to make sure that the proper authority is there so that Nova Scotians have access to the information that they rightly should have access to.”
Uh…
How’s that working out? For Houston? For the concept of transparent and accountable government? For us?
Click or tap here to read “Houston government prefers freedom from information to freedom of information.”
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2. Union steps up against Pete’s Frootique
“As workers from the Halifax location of Pete’s Frootique head into week four of their strike, other local unions are asking Nova Scotians to support the workers during an upcoming day of action,” reports Suzanne Rent:
The workers from the Halifax grocery store went on strike on Nov. 18. Since then, workers have been picketing and holding rallies outside the store on Dresden Row. They have also started hosting information pickets at Sobeys locations elsewhere in the city.
Sobeys, which bought Pete’s Frootique in 2015, has closed the store indefinitely. The Bedford location is not unionized and remains open.
The 100 striking workers at the Halifax store make $15 an hour, the minimum wage in Nova Scotia. In negotiations, Sobeys offered the workers a five-cent raise.
[Danny Cavanagh, president of the Nova Scotia Federation of Labour] called Sobeys’ offer of a nickel above minimum wage “a heartless insult.”
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3. Tent fire
“Three residents of a tent that caught fire at a downtown Halifax encampment narrowly escaped, said the volunteer who responded to the blaze,” reports Lyndsay Armstrong for the Canadian Press:
No injuries were reported in the Saturday morning fire at the Grand Parade, said the Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency Services.
About 20 people experiencing homelessness are living in tents and ice-fishing shelters at the square, directly across from Halifax City Hall.
Steve Wilsack, a volunteer who has spent weeks supporting the encampment’s residents, said he was at the city square when the three people staying in the tent that caught fire “narrowly escaped.”
Wilsack said he doused the fire with an extinguisher before it reached a nearby propane tank. Halifax firefighters arrived and fully extinguished the blaze.
“This was a close call,” he said, adding that it could have resulted in an explosion. With scarce access to electricity, some people living outside rely on heaters that use propane for warmth as the temperature dips.
While temperatures are going up today, they’ll be accompanied by rain and very strong winds. This is no way for people to be living, and we can’t normalize it.
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4. COVID
Sixteen more Nova Scotians were reported to have died from COVID during the week of Nov. 26-Dec. 2. Fifteen of the deceased were aged 65 or over, and one was aged 45-64.
Additionally, 82 people were newly hospitalized because of COVID in that week.
There’s a lot of COVID out there in the community. Some elderly people close to me, people whose outings are limited to masked trips to the grocery store, have come down with the disease (thankfully, they’re mild cases). A lot more people seem to be masking up.
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5. Recent cases of mistreatment of animals
Two recent Nova Scotia Animal Welfare Appeal Board decisions illustrate just how badly some people treat their animals.
The first involves a Halifax man, D.M., who appealed the SPCA’s seizure of two dogs, named Sushi and Cooper, and one cat in his possession. D.M. said the animals were actually owned by C.C., but C.C. couldn’t be contacted. The board’s decision describes their treatment:
On August 1, 2023, two separate complaints were received by SPCA regarding the dogs at unit 1 in the building at a specific address Halifax. Both complainants stated that dogs were kept in the small bathroom or in kennels in the back yard. The dogs lacked access to adequate space, food, and water. One complainant also stated that she had seen the dog being abused by its handler while out on the street. The other said that the apartment and animals were actually owned by C. C.
…
Inspector C. S. went to the apartment on August 24, 2023. The dogs, Sushi and Cooper, were there. Cooper was closed inside the bathroom. A cat was also there. The litter box needed to be cleaned. The food bowl was empty. The water container had a small amount of water in it, but it had a pink film and needed to be cleaned. The apartment was very messy and there were hazards on the floor such as dirty laundry, chewed cables, and garbage. The inspector issued Orders to Comply, and educated the Appellant on safe and sanitary care of animals.
Inspectors C. S. and S. W. went to the apartment for a recheck on September 7, 2023, and found that there had been no compliance with the Order. Cooper was not confined to the bathroom. No dog food was available. There were additional hazards on the floor, including a small plastic bag of what looked like marijuana, which can be very dangerous for dogs. While there, inspectors witnessed the Appellant mishandling the dogs. The Appellant grabbed Sushi tightly around the muzzle in an effort to make the dog be quiet. The Appellant also picked up Cooper, an adult Golden Retriever, by the scruff, lifting his feet from the ground. Inspectors told the Appellant several times to release the dog, as it was not a proper safe way to handle a large animal. The Appellant was not quick to comply, and stated this was the method his mother taught him. Inspectors tried again to educate him about proper handling. Arrangements were made to help the Appellant with dog food.
The Inspector went to the apartment for a recheck on September 12, 2023, and brought dog food. The apartment and dogs were all tidy and in good shape. The Appellant had been complying with the Orders. The dogs were healthy and happy and their nails had been trimmed. They did not show any fear of the Appellant. The inspector decided to close Investigation #2023-1251. She advised the Appellant that if there were further calls she would come back.
On September 27, 2023, a new complaint was received, stating that the Appellant had been seen abusing a dog while out on a walk.
Investigation #2023-1632 was opened.
On October 2, 2023, inspectors C. S. and S. W. went to the apartment and spoke with the Appellant. Cooper urinated a large volume on the floor, suggesting he had not been taken outside for a long time. The inspectors discussed safe handling practices again with the Appellant. There was no food or litter for the animals but the Appellant stated he would get some that evening.
On October 6, 2023, a fourth complaint was received. This complainant said they had seen the Appellant being abusive and aggressive toward his dog, then enter a specific address in Halifax.
Inspector C. S. felt she had exerted all her options. She tried education, and she gave him food. Based on the statements from the four complainants as well as the inspectors’ own first hand knowledge of the Appellant’s improper handling of the dogs, Inspector C. S. sought a warrant to seize the animals, citing physical abuse and lack of general care. The warrant was granted on October 9, 2023.
On October 10, 2023, Inspectors C. S. and K. R. attended the property along with three HRM police constables to execute the seizure. The apartment was once again in disarray, and there was no food or water available to the animals. The two dogs and one cat were seized.
D.M gave some weak excuses, but the board ruled that the seizure was warranted.
Incidentally, judging by the case numbers, it appears that between Aug. 1 and Sept. 27, there were 381 different investigations of animal mistreatment started.
Another case involves T.O., a man who appealed the Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture’s (NSDA) seizure of 14 cattle and 13 turkeys. Previous to that seizure, NSDA had seized 17 sheep and one chicken from the same property, but T.O. had missed the deadline for appealing. From the board’s narrative:
Inspector G. H. stated that he attended the Appellant’s property on September 19 and 29, 2023 in response to anonymous complaints that cattle were at large…
M. W. attended the property of the Appellant on October 5, 2023. She found thirteen turkeys ranging free, seventeen sheep, eight sheep carcasses, and one chicken. The live sheep and chicken had no access to water or adequate food. The sheep had low body condition scores and matted, unshorn fleeces….
M. W. returned on October 6 for the 24 hour recheck. Because the conditions were unchanged, and the directive was undisturbed, she contacted the acting manager for Farm Animal Welfare, Dr. A. S. and the decision was made to seize the animals. Seventeen sheep and one chicken were transported to a foster farm. No cattle or turkeys were located during this visit; the property behind the barn was inaccessible due to flooding…
On October 12, M. W. returned to the Appellant’s property with Inspector N. C. and staff from the foster farm…
The cattle were located in an electric fence enclosure. They had access to still water, and the hay in the feeder was yellow and coarse. Fourteen head of cattle were loaded in trailers and transported to the foster farm. As the inspectors were leaving, the turkeys were seen on the neighbour’s property; they were gathered and also transported to the foster farm. A new seizure notice was taped to the barn door.
Shortly after the seizure of the cattle and turkeys, the Appellant contacted M. W. by phone to discuss the seizure of the sheep. It was at this time that he was informed of the seizure of the cattle and turkeys.
When the cattle and turkeys arrived at the foster farm on October 12, N. C. noticed that one of the lambs seized on October 6 was moribund. The lamb was euthanized and submitted for necropsy.
A. N. then interviewed Dr. A. S., veterinarian for the NSDA and acting manager for Animal Welfare.
A. S. explained that his role is to gather and summarize case information, and combined with his personal observations, present it in an unbiased way. He presented extensive information regarding the sheep seized on October 6, including the necropsy results for the lamb euthanized on October 12, fecal analyses, population ages, sexes, body condition scores, and FAMACHA (parasite burden) scores. In summary, the sheep were generally emaciated and anemic, had significant parasite burdens, and matted, dirty fleeces. Two had evidence of caseous lymphadenitis, an infection similar to tuberculosis. The lamb that was necropsied was emaciated, anemic, had fluid in its body cavities, parasitism, and a broken rib.
In this case, the board ruled that the cattle and turkeys should be returned to T.O. because there was no evidence that those animals in particular were in distress.
I don’t know why people have animals if they can’t tend to them properly.
It’s a truism that our society should be judged by how we treat the most vulnerable among us — the poor, the sick, the otherwise marginalized. But the same holds true for the animals we care for.
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VIEWS
1. Carbon tax analysis
“It was good to see this week that someone in the media is finally doing their homework and debunking much of the federal Conservatives’ carbon tax posturing,” writes Richard Starr:
Just in time to throw shade on Poilievre’s boast that he will “win the carbon tax election” and “axe the tax” comes a news report highlighting how getting rid of the tax and the rebates that come with it will leave many households worse off.
I wrote about this back in June and now the CBC’s Robson Fletcher, with help from the University of Calgary economist Trevor Tombe has come out with some additional analysis to further establish the case. As a headline on the CBC story puts it: “High-income households would tend to be the biggest winners, lower-income households hurt the most.”
According to the CBC report, Tombe used specialized software developed by Statistics Canada to analyze data on things like income, taxation and spending from Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta. Those four provinces have been subject to the federal carbon levy and rebate system since its inception. Tombe concluded that getting rid of the program “would harm a much larger fraction of lower- and middle-income households.”
The explanation for that is simple. The more you spend – either directly on fossil fuels or indirectly through carbon tax costs that businesses pass on through their products – the more tax you pay. And people with higher incomes generally spend more money. But because the size of the rebate is unaffected by income or expenditure, lower-income and lower-spending households will come out ahead.
By Trevor Tombe’s reckoning, 94 per cent of households with incomes below $50,000 would receive rebates exceeding their direct and indirect carbon tax costs. About 45 per cent of households with incomes above $250,000 would pay more in tax than they get back in rebates, with five per cent of those absorbing a net loss of $100 a month. Those high-income households would gain the most if the Conservatives eliminate the tax.
Tombe’s analysis essentially supports what the Liberal government has been saying all along – that 80 per cent of households will get back more in rebates than they pay out through the carbon levy. The Liberals have not been very successful in selling that message. Maybe they would have more luck with a slogan saying something like ‘axing the tax will hurt the poor and help the rich’ (not to mention the oil companies).
The Liberals lost the argument when they exempted fuel oil from the tax. That move undermined the entire carbon tax program.
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2. Freeze peach and the slaughter of Gaza
I’m so old I remember when free speech meant we had to take Nazis speaking on campus seriously and stroke our chins while debating whether Richard Spencer might have a point.
Of course anyone advocating for the wholesale murder of any population should be condemned — and lots of people who should know better seem incapable of saying such expression is not acceptable — but it’s so despairing how quickly the script got flipped.
Remember when SMU prof Peter March was celebrated in some circles as a “free speech” champion for giving a platform to white supremacist Jared Taylor and by posting Prophet Muhammad cartoons on his office door? Where are those very same free speech advocates today as university students across North America are being silenced for mostly saying that continued slaughter of innocents must stop?
We live in stupid times. The world’s richest and arguably most powerful man, self-identified free speech promoter Elon Musk, files defamation lawsuits against organizations stating the simple truth while he endorses the overtly antisemitic ‘replacement theory.’ Meanwhile, university presidents get hauled before Congress for their failure to control powerless 18-year-old students, a handful who say ugly and stupid things but most of whom are just horrified by war crimes and genocide.
And on the one hand there’s a depraved terrorist organization that cares nothing for human life and was able to pull off a horrific one-day attack, and on the other side is a nuclear state that sells itself as a democracy and can maintain a months’ long bombardment of defenceless civilians, so both sides.
Whatever you think about the morality of the situation, it may be the case that Israel can defeat Hamas militarily, may be able to kill all its leaders, may be able to cut off its funding, but this continued slaughter in Gaza is leaving hundreds of thousands of children who watch their families and communities get killed, experience horrors that will certainly later manifest themselves as PTSD, watch as the the world takes no meaningful action to intervene on their behalf, and so know nothing but anger. This is making Hamas, or some successor organization, stronger, not weaker.
Well, unless the aim is to kill all the children.
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Government
City
Today
Special Appeals Standing Committee (Monday, 10am, City Hall) — agenda
North West Community Council (Monday, 7pm, City Hall and online) — agenda
Tomorrow
Budget Committee and Halifax Regional Council (Tuesday, 10am, City Hall and online) —
Budget Committee agenda; Regional council agenda
Province
Today
No meetings
Tomorrow
Health (Tuesday, 1pm, One Government Place and online) — ER Closures and Doctor Retention; with representatives from Nova Scotia Health, Department of Health and Wellness, and Doctors Nova Scotia
On campus
Dalhousie
Dept of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology Seminar (Monday, 2:30pm, Theatre A, Tupper Building and Room 102, DMNB) — Stanley Ibeh will present “The Role of Neuronal Cholesterol Turnover on Synaptic Plasticity;” Cédric Blais will present “Examining patterns of viral lateral gene transfer in the genome of Acanthamoeba castellanii”
In the harbour
Halifax
17:00: Tropic Hope, container ship, sails from Pier 42 for West Palm Beach
20:00: Oceanex Sanderling, ro-ro container, sails from Autoport for sea
Cape Breton
10:00: Euro, crude oil tanker, arrives at Everwinds 1 from Southwold Anchorage, UK
Footnotes
I had a very productive day with Original Sin research yesterday. The plot thickens. Which is to say, there are so many different threads I’m not sure how to tell them all in one coherent narrative. My hope is to spend the next two weeks heavily into research, and then do some actual writing in the dead time between Christmas and New Year’s.
The mistreatment of animals ranges deep, far, and wide in our society. Maybe do an investigation on any of the chicken farms or pig operations in the province and see what you discover between the pen and the grocery store. Instead we delude ourselves that meat animals are raised and treated humanely. It’s much easier that way.
The problem with Liberal “Trust the Science” style messaging on things like the carbon tax is that without data to show the real cost of the carbon tax, the Conservatives can spout whatever bullshit they want. Everybody knows that it is not just a tax on gas and electricity because just about everything we do involves fossil fuels at some step in the process.
I encourage everyone to boycott Pete’s in Bedford, and all Sobeys & Lawton’s locations. The exception is their pharmacies, if medication is required. I was very happy when I heard that Pete’s employees had formed a union, but disgusted when I
heard of Sobeys 5 cents an hour offer.
Thank you for continuing to cover Covid and bring us the numbers that no other news agency seems interested in any more. I have shared and posted and urged people to mask up.
Your take on the Hamas-Gaza war bothers me, though. I hope that you mean Hamas when you write “of course anyone advocating for the wholesale murder of any population should be condemned?” If yes, obviously agree.
After that though, university students are doing much more than calling for an end to the war, Tim. They’re intimidating, threatening and harassing Jewish students to the point of many of them wanting to leave their campuses. They’re ripping down photos of Israelis who were taken hostage. They’re denying what happened in the murderous rapes, burnings and beheadings on October 7, in some cases calling for genocide against Jews and disturbing peaceful vigils for hostages and name calling when Jewish student observe Hannukah.
Implying that Israel wants to kill all the children in Gaza is an irresponsible comment that I can’t really believe you believe. Hamas started this war, with what you call a “horrific one-day attack”; imagine the PTSD of the Jewish children taken hostage, after watching their parents being murdered (and made to watch videos of it again in captivity, at gunpoint), the raped young women (and men) and the images parents will never be able to forget since Hamas took the time to videotape their cruel torture and butchery and send it to them. War is hell, and Hamas got exactly what it wanted, which is the opportunity to continue to use Gazans as human shields so the world will scream ceasefire.
As Gold Meir said, “When peace comes we will perhaps in time be able to forgive the Arabs for killing our sons, but it will be harder for us to forgive them for having forced us to kill their sons. Peace will come when the Arabs will love their children more than they hate us.”
That hate is very much on display right here in Halifax, when praying for peace Jews lit candles in a vigil for the remaining hostages (10 month old baby did what?) and were harassed at and jeered at by name-calling Gazan supporters.
Please show more awareness that you take pot-boiling antisemitism seriously in these seriously scary times.
“of course anyone advocating for the wholesale murder of any population should be condemned”
The operative word is “any”
That’s why I figured you meant Hamas, since Israel doesn’t advocate for the wholesale murder of any population; they are trying to stop Hamas. Although many Gazans interviewed seem to think Israelis should just “leave.”
Clearly all the civilians dying in the attack on Gaza are not Hamas.
Thank you for covering the lock out at Petes. Nothing would make me happier than a full boycott of Sobeys/Lawtons groceries stores across the province right now, before Christmas. We should never be purchasing from a company profitting by paying Maritimers poverty wages.
Thank you, SPCA workers, for keeping at it.
You should elaborate on your modest proposal a la Jonathon Swift.
Tent fires are no doubt terrifying for everyone involved. Luckily, there is no chance the nearby propane tank would have exploded. They have safety valves for that exact reason.
Is the same true for the smaller (16 oz) cylinders that many of those living in tents are given by the street navigators and/or others providing them with support? Someone I know that is sleeping rough has multiple cylinders inside their shelter. . .
The 16 oz tanks have release valves as well.