Fossil Fuel Advocates Spread Disinfo About Canada’s False Advertising Bill

Some First Nations and environmentalists are dismayed by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission’s approval of a proposed storage facility for radioactive waste that will sit a stone’s throw from the Ottawa River.

The approval of the controversial project has left critics and some Algonquin First Nations reeling because their environmental concerns fell on deaf ears, while proponents of the project maintain the facility is needed to address decades of legacy waste.

Kebaowek First Nation and Kitigan Zibi Anishnabeg were quick to condemn the decision. Both said their legal teams and environmental experts are reviewing the 160-page decision to determine their legal course of action.

The “near-surface disposal facility,” referred to as the NSDF, will hold up to a million tonnes of radioactive and hazardous waste about one kilometre from the Ottawa River, where the land slopes away from the river. It will mainly store low-level legacy waste from Chalk River Lab’s 65 years of operations, including debris from decommissioned buildings, contaminated equipment such as protective shoe covers, clothing, rags and equipment, and more. The Ottawa River holds great cultural importance for Algonquins and supplies drinking water to over a million people downstream. |Read more https://www.desmog.com/2024/02/09/fossil-fuel-advocates-spread-disinformation-about-canadas-false-advertising-bill/| desmog.com/2024/02/09/fossil-f…

#cdnpoli #environment #falseAds #FossilFuels #BillC372

Radioactive waste site ‘shoved down our throats,’ critics say

Some First Nations and environmentalists are dismayed by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission’s approval of a proposed storage facility for radioactive waste that will sit a stone’s throw from the Ottawa River.

The approval of the controversial project has left critics and some Algonquin First Nations reeling because their environmental concerns fell on deaf ears, while proponents of the project maintain the facility is needed to address decades of legacy waste.

Kebaowek First Nation and Kitigan Zibi Anishnabeg were quick to condemn the decision. Both said their legal teams and environmental experts are reviewing the 160-page decision to determine their legal course of action.

The “near-surface disposal facility,” referred to as the NSDF, will hold up to a million tonnes of radioactive and hazardous waste about one kilometre from the Ottawa River, where the land slopes away from the river. It will mainly store low-level legacy waste from Chalk River Lab’s 65 years of operations, including debris from decommissioned buildings, contaminated equipment such as protective shoe covers, clothing, rags and equipment, and more. The Ottawa River holds great cultural importance for Algonquins and supplies drinking water to over a million people downstream. |Read more https://www.nationalobserver.com/2024/01/11/news/radioactive-waste-site-shoved-down-throats-critics-say| nationalobserver.com/2024/01/1…

#cdnpoli #ChalkRiver #nuclearWaste #radioactive #indigenous #environment

Canada’s productivity has been declining. Why that’s a problem for the economy

Canadians feeling like they weren’t as productive as they could’ve been in 2023 can take solace. Neither was Canada’s economy.

Labour productivity — a broad measure of real gross domestic product by hours worked across the economy — has declined nationally in six consecutive quarters, Statistics Canada said last month.

Economists who spoke with Global News say this metric is critical for improving Canadian quality of life, and recent declines will be particularly worrying to the Bank of Canada as it gauges where to set its benchmark interest rate next.

“What it really boils down to is a sense that if we are able to generate more income with each hour worked, then we’re better off for it,” says Pedro Antunes, chief economist at the Conference Board of Canada.

What’s dragging down Canada’s productivity?

Russia’s war in Ukraine is stymying supply chains and among the factors that have contributed to stalled global productivity. A boom in working from home post-pandemic hasn’t delivered the productivity gains that some economists predicted.

Why productivity is falling in Canada specifically, however, is not straightforward.

Steve’s note

Hard to feel productive when your wages aren’t keeping up to the cost of living. It’s demoralizing — nobody wants to spend money. So, less products and services are required.

|Read more https://globalnews.ca/news/10206774/wages-productivity-canada-economy/| globalnews.ca/news/10206774/wa…

#cdnpoli #productivity #politics #economy #wages #growth

Lewis’ UN conspiracy theories no aberration for Conservative Party

Far-right Conservative MP Leslyn Lewis amplified a petition on social media that is calling for Canada to withdraw from the UN.

“Over 60,000 Canadians have now signed a petition calling on Canada to protect our national sovereignty by withdrawing from the UN and its subsidiary organizations,” Lewis stated in a tweet on X.

Sweeping, unsupported statements included in this petition on Lewis’ official government page include things like “Canada’s membership in the United Nations (UN) and its subsidiary organizations, (e.g. World Health Organization (WHO)), imposes negative consequences on the people of Canada, far outweighing any benefits,” and that “the UN/WHO comprehensive ‘Agenda 2030’ undermines national sovereignty and personal autonomy.”

The petition makes further conspiratorial claims that UN programs are damaging children through the “normalization of sexual values and activities,” and claims these programs are being imposed on Canada in secret without the knowledge of Canadians or elected officials.

None of the claims made in the petition are accompanied by any explanation or evidence.

NDP MP Charlie Angus slammed Lewis and her leader Pierre Poilievre for the growing extremism in their party.

In September of 2023 Lewis was quoted as saying that the WHO could impose travel restrictions on Canadians within Canada and that the pandemic was a step toward “global government.”

She has also amplified the conspiracy theory that the World Economic Forum (WEF) is planning to subjugate humanity through a world government and has implied that the Liberal Party is controlled by the WEF. |Read more https://rabble.ca/politics/canadian-politics/lewis-un-conspiracy-theories-no-aberration-for-conservative-party/| rabble.ca/politics/canadian-po…

#X #cdnpoli #extremism #UN #WHO #Poilievre #LeslynLewis #Conservatives
#politics #conspiracy

How Verified Accounts on X Thrive While Spreading Misinformation About the Israel-Hamas Conflict

With the gutting of content moderation initiatives at X, accounts with blue checks, once a sign of authenticity, are disseminating debunked claims and gaining more followers. Community Notes, X’s fact-checking system, hasn’t scaled sufficiently.

“My sisters have died,” the young boy sobbed, chest heaving, as he wailed into the sky. “Oh, my sisters.” As Israel began airstrikes on Gaza following the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack, posts by verified accounts on X, the social media platform formerly called Twitter, were being transmitted around the world.

Days later, a video posted by an account calling itself “ISRAEL MOSSAD,” another “verified” account, this time bearing the logo of Israel’s national intelligence agency, claimed to show Israel’s advanced air defense technology.

And following an explosion on Oct. 14 outside the Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza where civilians were killed, the verified account of the Hamas-affiliated news organization Quds News Network posted a screenshot from Facebook claiming to show the Israel Defense Forces declaring their intent to strike the hospital before the explosion. It was seen more than half a million times.

None of these posts depicted real events from the conflict. The video of the grieving boy was from at least nine years ago and was taken in Syria, not Gaza. The clip of rockets exploding was from a military simulation video game. And the Facebook screenshot was from a now-deleted Facebook page not affiliated with Israel or the IDF. |Read more https://www.propublica.org/article/x-verified-accounts-misinformation-israel-hamas-conflict| propublica.org/article/x-verif…

#X #twitter #verified #lies #deceit #misinformation #ElonMusk #garbage #technology #SocialMedia