Wednesday Night #2215

Paris 2024 Paralympic Games
28 August – 8 September
Paris has done it again!
Paris inaugurates Paralympic Games with ‘never seen before’ opening ceremony in city’s heart

After obsessively watching last week’s coverage of the DNC to the exclusion of almost all other events, we will continue to avidly follow the U.S. campaign, while noting global -and Canadian- news.
But, first:
It was a delight to have Peter Frise rejoin WN last week after any months’ absence. We promised him that we would resurrect the topic of electric vehicles (EVs) in his honour and lo! the Feds did it for us.
Ottawa to impose 100-per-cent tariff on Chinese-made EVs Canada said it will impose major tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles and steel and aluminum products to protect a fast-growing domestic EV industry while joining forces with the United States and Europe against what Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called China’s “unfair” trade approach. John Ibbitson reflects: Global warming isn’t as important to Ottawa as cheap Chinese cars

U.S. – China
Meanwhile, U.S. National security adviser Jake Sullivan’s meeting with top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi seems to have achieved its aim of keeping communication channels open amid strained relations (China, U.S. agree to a leader call in top White House aide’s Beijing visit). …as military tensions with China have spiked in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, including issues raised at the Pacific Island Forum leaders meeting where Geopolitical rivalry and policing will take the spotlight

Israel/Middle East
No resolution to the stalled/stymied Gaza peace talks (What’s blocking a ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza?) and on Wednesday, Israel launched a major operation in the West Bank and in response, US imposes sanctions on extremist Israeli settlers in West Bank
Despite encouraging snippets like Progress made in Gaza ceasefire talks but still work to do on ‘final details,’ US official says it is hard to believe that an end is in sight. Is either party negotiating in good faith?
Simon Tisdall says it best: With Israel’s attack on Lebanon, the prospect of peace is moving even further out of reach – Both Netanyahu and Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar gain from stoking the fires of war.

Stalemate in Venezuela
Maduro clings to power 1 month after disputed Venezuela presidential election
Nicolás Maduro continues to insist he won the Venezuelan presidential election despite evidence showing he lost in a landslide.

The U.S. election campaign
Jeremy Kinsman’s Policy essay is enthusiastic Kamala Harris, For the People (see Long reads), but reminds us all “the felt increase in inflation, the cost of living, at the supermarket, for housing, and for everyday life, is for many people the crux of the economic issue. Kitchen-table home economics, and James Carville’s 1992 war-room adage, “It’s the economy, stupid,” remain top of mind.”
Robert F. Kennedy suspends his independent presidential campaign and backs Trump
Add him to the list that includes Elon Musk, Tucker Carlson [Tucker Carlson and Donald Trump Jr. lobbied RFK Jr. to drop out and endorse Trump] and Tulsi Gabbard.
Compare and contrast with the long list of illustrious public figures who have endorsed Kamala and the Harris-Walz ticket, as well as More than 200 former Republican presidential staffers sign open letter endorsing Harris over Trump
Trump suggests he might skip ABC debate with Harris
“Our understanding is that Trump’s handlers prefer the muted microphone because they don’t think their candidate can act presidential for 90 minutes on his own,” Fallon said.
Heather Cox Richardson raises the concern that according to reports from the Brennan Center for Justice, voters in at least 28 states this year will face new restrictions that were not in place in the 2020 presidential election. Varying by state, these laws do things like shorten the time for requesting an absentee ballot, make it a crime to deliver another voter’s mail-in ballot, require proof of citizenship from voters who share the same name as noncitizens, and so on. August 26, 2024

Speaking of Elon Musk, Any comment from Marc Nicholson re reactions to his recent praise of former Singapore PM Lee Hsien Loong’s critique of ‘wokeness’ — the wokeness movement leads to ‘extreme attitudes and social norms’

The economy
An audible sigh of relief followed Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s speech at Jackson Hole. Paul Krugman commented “…even though his speech was rigorously apolitical, it had important political implications. For what we’re seeing, I’d argue, is inflation fading away — not just in the data, but also as a political issue. And that, of course, is very good news for Democrats. Inflation Is Fading, Statistically and Politically
All well and good, but the outlook for the global economy The risks that could push our debt-riddled economy over the edge is not so rosy.
We look forward to on-going analysis of Kamala Harris’ “Opportunity Economy” program by our WN economists – impact on Canada’s economy?

Pavel Durov and Telegram
Telegram founder Pavel Durov was arrested late Saturday at an airport outside Paris, accused of complicity in illegal online behavior and refusing to disclose information to authorities. The arrest is casting a spotlight on the messy global status of a messaging app whose sprawling reach and commitment to free speech have earned it a rotating cast of friends and enemies in the political arena, and whose multinational structure raises tough questions about enforcing digital rules in the age of social media.
Can Tech Executives Be Held Responsible for What Happens on Their Platforms?
The indictment of Pavel Durov, Telegram’s founder, as part of an investigation into illicit activities on the messaging app set off worries about the personal liability of tech executives.

Worried your attention span has shrunk? Five tips to fight distractions and stay focused
…brain researchers are divided on whether our actual cognitive capabilities have shrunk or if our attention is much more divided than it once was, because of information overload, says Faria Sana, a cognitive scientist and professor of psychology at Athabasca University. … When attention is divided, information is less likely to be encoded and stored effectively in your brain for later, says Sana: ”So, if you’re having trouble focusing, you’re also going to have trouble retrieving the information later.”
Test Your Focus: Can You Spend 10 Minutes With One Painting?
Focus Is a Skill. We’ll Help You Practice

Andrew Caddell traces his love of radio back to early childhood and praises the memoir of Marc Denis, Mais Oui Tell You Some Stories?—also published in French, as On jase, Mais Oui. He laments that “as advertising dollars dry up, and the internet and podcasts dominate, stations like CHML in Hamilton, Ont., have been closed for good, and others will likely follow. It is a sad commentary on the changes in the media, but at least there are books like this one by Marc Denis to remind us of the time when radio was king.”
The power of Wheel of Fortune
Andrew’s cousin, Jeff Jackson, an outstanding candidate running for Attorney General in North Carolina, writes that “there is one – and only one – way to introduce myself to millions of voters in North Carolina: Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy, Law & Order, N.C.I.S., Family Feud, Chicago Fire, Judge Judy, etc. The commercials that run on big television shows – like those – are the single biggest way to reach new voters at the scale you need to have an impact on an election.” There is something terribly wrong with the system.

Cuteness abounds at The Juniper Wildlife Refuge
…we take in animals that can no longer return to their wild roots due to human interference or medical disabilities and provide a home where they can live the remainder of their lives safe and loved.
Meet the animals

Varia
Italian prosecutor opens manslaughter probe in yacht sinking
An Italian prosecutor has opened a manslaughter investigation into the deaths of British tech magnate Mike Lynch and six other people who were killed when a luxury yacht sank in stormy weather off Sicily this week. ….while the yacht had been hit by a very sudden meteorological event, it was “plausible” that crimes of multiple manslaughter and causing a shipwreck through negligence had been committed.
The Guardian makes the point that “Being put under investigation in Italy does not imply guilt and does not mean formal charges will necessarily follow.”

How London’s Olympic Legacy Reshaped the Forgotten East End
As Paris takes stock of its post-Olympic future, London assesses 12 years of rapid change.

He won Olympic gold for Pakistan. He got $1 million. And … a buffalo!?!
Arshad Nadeem of Pakistan won gold, set an Olympic record for the men’s javelin throw — and reaped lots of prizes, including a buffalo from his father-in-law. It’s all about the milk!

Long reads
A glimpse of the new ‘Great Game’ between the U.S. and China
The competition between the United States and China has seen geopolitical and economic flash points sprawl across continents.

The Unpunished: How Extremists Took Over Israel
After 50 years of failure to stop violence and terrorism against Palestinians by Jewish ultranationalists, lawlessness has become the law.
This story is told in three parts. The first documents the unequal system of justice that grew around Jewish settlements in Gaza and the West Bank. The second shows how extremists targeted not only Palestinians but also Israeli officials trying to make peace. The third explores how this movement gained control of the state itself. Taken together, they tell the story of how a radical ideology moved from the fringes to the heart of Israeli political power.

Jeremy Kinsman: Kamala Harris, For the People
Vice-President Harris was a blank slate for most Americans. But among Democrats there was a massive surge of enthusiasm. In days, her introductory performance in her new role turned their despondency into hope that she could beat Trump. Trump, with typical implausibility, tried to define her as a person of confused identities, and limited intelligence. Harris laughed, making clear what she stood for, and who she is, underscoring the contrast between the two.

How collaboration from across Canada, and the world, is helping fight the Alberta wildfires
Hundreds of firefighters from as far afield as Australia, New Zealand, Mexico and South Africa are being deployed to western Canada to help fight wildfires. … Australian fire managers have arrived in Lac La Biche, Alta. while other experts from Australia and New Zealand were deployed to British Columbia to assist with wildfires there. Meanwhile, over 200 firefighters and two helicopters from Ontario headed to Alberta to lend a hand. But, why do these kinds of exchanges happen and how are they co-ordinated?

The fugitive prince, the diamond tycoon and the secret plot to snatch €145M of royal land
Romania struggles to bring runaway royal to justice in sprawling European legal drama.

Is Democracy Really in Retreat?
Is state capacity sufficient to deliver consistent improvements in quality of life, even in the absence of robust democratic accountability? While Westerners long insisted that the answer must be no, China and other socioeconomically successful autocracies have demonstrated that the question is far from settled.
No, the world isn’t heading toward a new Cold War – it’s closer to the grinding world order collapse of the 1930s
The 2008 financial crisis and its fallout, the COVID-19 pandemic and major regional conflicts in Sudan, the Middle East, Ukraine and elsewhere have left residual uncertainty. Added to this is a tense, growing rivalry between the U.S. and its perceived opponents, particularly China.

A couple of surprises:
Who’s next? The contenders to replace a troubled Justin Trudeau
The PM’s chances of winning a fourth term range from slim to none. Here’s(sic) 10 who could step up if he steps down