Good news, bad news: May. 17-24, 2012
By macleans.ca - Thursday, May 24, 2012 - 0 Comments
Good news
Nuclear breakthrough…
A decade-long effort to rein in Iran’s nuclear ambitions appears
Good news
Petros Giannakouris/AP
Nuclear breakthrough
A decade-long effort to rein in Iran’s nuclear ambitions appears to be finally gaining traction after Tehran tentatively agreed to allow weapons inspectors back into the country. Although some details still need to be ironed out, the pact with the UN’s nuclear watchdog raises hopes of a turning point in the West’s relationship with Iran. And if nothing else, the negotiations are light years ahead of the situation in the world’s other nuclear hot spot, North Korea, which this week vowed to “bolster its nuclear deterrent as long as the United States was continuing with its hostile policies.”
A spray of truth
It may only be a temporary triumph of science over sentiment, but an all-party committee of the B.C. legislature rejected a sweeping ban on cosmetic pesticides established as safe by federal regulators. “The scientific evidence does not warrant preventing British Columbians from buying and using approved domestic-class pesticides,” said committee chair Bill Bennett. He acknowledged that “chemo-phobia in society” made banning lawn chemicals an attractive political proposition (Premier Christy Clark promised such a ban during her leadership campaign). But the seeds of common sense ultimately prevailed.
-
Newsmakers: May. 17-24, 2012
By Ken Macqueen, Aaron Wherry, Colby Cosh, Richard Warnica and Patricia Treble - Thursday, May 24, 2012 at 5:31 PM - 0 Comments
Mark Zuckerberg gets hitched, Jackie Chan puts down his nunchucks and Rick Hansen rides again
Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa
Mega-investor Warren Buffett has seen the future, and it’s written on newsprint. The latest gift to a beleaguered industry by the billionaire chair of Berkshire Hathaway is a deal to buy for US$142 million some 63 papers owned by Virginia-based Media General Inc. This includes the flagship Richmond Times-Dispatch, and—no fool, he—all websites, mobile and tablet applications. His investment company already owns stakes in the Washington Post and the Buffalo News, and it recently purchased Buffett’s hometown paper in Omaha. “In towns and cities where there is a strong sense of community, there is no more important institution than the local paper,” Buffett said.
New status
Two Facebook executives updated their profiles last week. One day after the social-networking giant went public on NASDAQ, founder Mark Zuckerberg, 28, married his long-time girlfriend, Priscilla Chan, 27, in their modest, Palo Alto, Calif., backyard. The couple, who served the mouse-shaped chocolate truffles they ate on their first date for dessert, kept the nuptials secret by claiming the party was to celebrate Chan’s recent graduation from medical school. Zuckerberg’s updated Facebook status—used, of course, to announce the wedding—received almost one million “likes.” No such luck for Eduardo Saverin, Facebook’s original CFO, who earned nothing but scorn after announcing one day before the IPO that he’d renounced his American citizenship to live in low-tax Singapore. U.S. senators compared Saverin to a terrorist and have proposed an “Ex-Patriot Act” to confiscate the earnings of tax exiles. “Our plan is simple,” said Sen. Chuck Schumer. “If you renounce your citizenship to avoid paying taxes, you can’t set foot in America again, and any investments you have in America will be taxed in the future at 30 per cent.”
-
Week in pictures: May 16 – 23, 2012
By macleans.ca - Thursday, May 24, 2012 at 3:46 PM - 0 Comments
The week’s best photos from around the world
0Week in pictures: May 16 – 23, 2012
Bhubaneswar, India
A village boy leads his goat past a parched pond on the outskirts of the eastern Indian city on May 17, 2012. Huge swathes of rural farmland has turned dry as farmers await the annual monsoon rains which, according to the India Meteorological Department, are expected to fall on time this year. (Biswaranjan Rout/AP)
1 of 15 Photos
-
Good news, bad news: May 11-17, 2012
By macleans.ca - Thursday, May 17, 2012 at 4:00 PM - 0 Comments
South Sudanese refugees return home after months stranded in Sudan, while 1,500 Nepalese are homeless after an illegal slum is demolished
Good news
Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah/Reuters
Take it from us
It’s not polite to gloat, but we’ll still point out that Canada is the only country in the Americas—and one of the few in the world—that still has its triple-A bond rating. It was from this perch that Finance Minister Jim Flaherty took the opportunity to scold Europe this week, saying it needs to “show courage” to tackle its banking crisis and use taxpayer money to rescue weaker eurozone countries. He’s right, of course. Failure in Europe would slam the global economy, and after years of little progress, it’s time for bold, decisive action.
Bag it and tag it
Toronto’s embattled Mayor Rob Ford has a new cause: scrapping Toronto’s five-cent plastic bag fee. Retailers collect more than $5 million a year charging for bags and the money simply goes to the companies—it is not earmarked for green initiatives. The Retail Council of Canada says consumers “like doing their part.” But plastic bags are themselves easily recycled—more than 75 per cent of shoppers reuse their bags two or more times, according to Decima Research. The real effect of the fee is to hike grocery bills, and in these uncertain economic times, who likes that?
-
Newsmakers: May 11-17, 2012
By Jonathon Gatehouse, Alex Ballingall, Nicholas Köhler, Martin Patriquin and Michael Friscolanti - Thursday, May 17, 2012 at 4:00 PM - 0 Comments
Ashton Kutcher’s latest role, Irshad Manji is attacked, and Mitt Romney’s not-so-innocent prank
Andrew Testa/Rex Features
Students: 1, government: 0
In the first major political casualty of Quebec’s three-month standoff between students and the provincial government, education minister Line Beauchamp has resigned. Beauchamp, who also resigned as vice-premier and MNA, was the incarnation of government intransigence in the face of the strike, which students have waged over proposed university tuition increases. In April, after reaching a tentative agreement with the student associations, Beauchamp boasted how her government hadn’t backed down from its demands during negotiations—a move many saw as the reason the deal fell through. Perhaps more embarrassing, however, was La Presse’s recent revelation that mobster Domenico Arcuri had attended a Liberal fundraiser hosted by Beauchamp in 2009. Michelle Courchesne, who Beauchamp replaced as education minister in 2010, is now back in the hot seat.
Aging baller
Long before he was named general manager of the Toronto Blue Jays, Alex Anthopoulos was in charge of something else: opening fan mail for the Montreal Expos. On weekends. For no pay. Back in those days, most of the adoring envelopes were addressed to Vladimir Guerrero, an all-star outfielder entering the prime of a Hall of Fame career that would peak during his years as an Anaheim Angel. Today, a decade after being promoted from the mailroom, Anthopoulos is in charge of Canada’s other baseball team—and Guerrero is heading back to Canada. Hoping to inject some veteran wallop into the Jays’ lineup, Anthopoulos signed the aging superstar to a US$1.3-million deal. Now 37, Guerrero will spend a few weeks getting into game shape at the team’s minor league training complex in Florida. If all goes well he should be in the Rogers Centre batter’s box by June. No word yet on who will open his fan mail.
-
Week in pictures May 9 – 15, 2012
By macleans.ca - Thursday, May 17, 2012 at 3:48 PM - 0 Comments
This week’s best photos from around the world
0Week in pictures May 9 – 15, 2012
Waltham, Massachusetts
Women stand on a performer, who calls himself 'The Human Floor,' as he lays on a bed of broken glass at the Watch City Festival celebrating Steampunk--a movement that explores the notion of what the world might look like had modern technology been available at the turn of the 20th century--on May 13, 2012. (Jessica Rinaldi/Reuters)
1 of 14 Photos
-
Good news, bad news: May. 3-10, 2012
By macleans.ca - Monday, May 14, 2012 at 10:22 AM - 0 Comments
Good news
Never bin better…
One year after a special-forces mission killed Osama binGood news
David J. Phillip/AP
Never bin better
One year after a special-forces mission killed Osama bin Laden, his al-Qaeda network is looking downright defeated. In Guantánamo Bay, military prosecutors opened their landmark case—2,973 counts of capital murder—against the 9/11 ringleaders, including the brains of the operation, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. In Yemen, an air strike killed Fahd al-Quso, one of the terrorists behind the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole. And in Washington, intelligence officials are patting themselves on the backs after thwarting yet another “underwear bomber” who planned to target an American passenger jet.
Outswimming climate change
A ski resort in Aspen, Colo., hosted a race this week—minus the snow. The all-grass gimmick was one of hundreds of events around the world aimed at “connecting the dots” on global warming. “The main point is that climate change is already happening,” said one organizer. The good news? Polar bears are ready for the warm front. A new study has found that female polar bears are actually quite capable of swimming vast distances between ice floes; one animal, tracked with a GPS collar, swam an astonishing 354 km.
-
Week in Pictures: May 7th – 13th 2012
By Jonathan McKinnell - Friday, May 11, 2012 at 1:24 PM - 0 Comments
The week’s best in photography.
0Week in Pictures: May 7th – 13th 2012
International Motorsports Hall of Fame 250 ARCA
Zach Ralston (90) and Brett Hudson (11) drive past the flipping car of Mike Affarano (83) during the International Motorsports Hall of Fame 250 ARCA auto race in Alabama, on Friday, May 4. (Dave Martin/AP Photo)
1 of 15 Photos
-
Newsmakers: May. 3-10, 2012
By Nicholas Köhler and Chris Sorensen - Friday, May 11, 2012 at 1:24 PM - 0 Comments
Ben Mulroney has a big audition, Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s in trouble, again, and Justin Bieber gets in the ring
Disney/Andrew Bako
Still punching above his weight
Somehow, with little consequence except the continued appreciation of British children, the puppet Mr. Punch has managed to commit domestic abuse, infanticide and other slapstick crimes for 350 years now. On May 9, 1662, the diary of Samuel Pepys, notes that he witnessed at London’s Covent Garden piazza what he described as “an Italian puppet play . . . which is very pretty, the best that ever I saw.” With his red nose and squawks, produced by a “swazzle” sound-making device played by a “professor”—the puppeteer inside the booth—the anarchic Punch still enthralls, a disturbing testament to the comic power of senseless violence.
Tragedy of a ruined bruin
Captured mid-fall in a stunning snapshot by student photographer Andy Duann, a 280-lb.black bear tranquilized after stealing into a tree at the University of Colorado campus in Boulder became an instant celebrity last month. Not two weeks later the bear was dead, struck by two cars near the university. Authorities had hauled the slumbering animal to the mountains, but the wilds of Colorado are dry this spring and the bear was on his way back to campus when he was struck.
-
Good news, bad news: Apr. 26-May. 4, 2011
By macleans.ca - Monday, May 7, 2012 at 11:55 AM - 0 Comments
Ottawa’ s hanging on to its embassies’ artwork and al-Qaeda’s taste for porn uncovered
Good news
Lex Van Lieshout/AFP/Getty Images
Back at the table
U.S.-Iran relations are enjoying a welcome thaw this spring, as the threat of further sanctions appears to have renewed Tehran’s interest in diplomacy. The two sides met recently in Istanbul and have agreed to more talks next month in Baghdad, with senior clerics in Iran voicing support. Two short months ago, the prospect of Israel bombing installations in Iran looked real, as Tehran remained defiant about continuing its nuclear program. Ending the stalemate will require Iran to stop making weapons-grade nuclear fuel while agreeing to a new inspection regime. Still, this is a good start—and far preferable to the alternative.
Back in Black
After Stephen Harper’s government initially refused to give special consideration to a residency application by Conrad Black, Citizenship and Immigration Canada granted the former media baron a one-year temporary resident permit, allowing him to live here after his release from prison. The backlash was immediate, and expected, with critics accusing the government of a double standard, but Black’s crimes were not violent, he behaved well in prison, and it served no purpose to prevent him from returning home.
-
Newsmakers: Apr. 26-May. 4, 2011
By Richard Warnica - Monday, May 7, 2012 at 10:41 AM - 0 Comments
Vancouver’s pot-friendly mayor, Dr. Seuss’s trouble-making turtle, and Obama’s ‘really big stick’
John McDonnell/Getty Images
Double lucky
Winning a big lottery jackpot once is improbable. Twice? That’s near impossible. But don’t tell that to Virginia Fike. The Berryville, Va., woman bought two winning tickets to a single Powerball draw recently. Each one was worth a cool US$1 million. After taxes, Fike will take home about US$1.4 million—not a bad haul for what started as a stop at the gas station. Fike found out she’d won while visiting her mother in the hospital. She plans to spend the money on her parents and bills.
Pipelines, no. Pot farms, yes.
Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson has come a long way from the juice farm. The former organic smoothie magnate has an iron grip on city hall. Now he’s flexing his political muscle outside his own jurisdiction. Robertson wrote a comment piece for the Vancouver Sun urging the federal government to think twice about a proposed Kinder Morgan pipeline expansion that could nearly triple the number of oil tankers off Vancouver’s coast. Days later, he added his name to an open letter calling for the legalization and taxation of marijuana. Seven other B.C. mayors also signed the letter, but Robertson’s name was by far the most prominent on the page.
-
Week in Pictures: April 30th – May 6th 2012
By macleans.ca - Friday, May 4, 2012 at 2:38 PM - 0 Comments
The week’s best in photography
0Week in Pictures: April 30th – May 6th 2012
Tear gas
A protester runs from tear gas during clashes in the Manama neighbourhood of al-Bilad al-Qadeem, Bahrain on April 26, 2012. (Hamad I Mohammed/Reuters)
1 of 15 Photos
-
Good news, bad news: Apr. 19-26, 2012
By macleans.ca - Monday, April 30, 2012 at 1:55 PM - 0 Comments
Good news
Nice work, if you can get it…
The federal government wants toGood news
Sukree Sukplang/Reuters
Nice work, if you can get it
The federal government wants to make sure those collecting employment insurance benefits really are looking for work. For years, Canadian companies in certain sectors have been filling openings with temporary workers brought in from abroad. That’s true even in areas like New Brunswick’s North Shore, where local unemployment remains high. The Conservatives want Canadian workers to apply for those jobs. If they don’t, then under a new plan they could lose their EI benefits. It’s not clear yet how it would work, but something needs to be done in areas where constant cycling through EI is a fact of life.
Quiet riot
NHL minnows like the Phoenix Coyotes, St. Louis Blues and Nashville Predators thrived in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, showing that, for whatever else is wrong with the league, it has achieved remarkable parity in the salary-cap era. Unfortunately for the Vancouver Canucks, that parity came at a cost. The NHL’s best regular-season team for the last two years, the Canucks lost in the first round to the underdog Los Angeles Kings. But the unexpected defeat was greeted with more of a shrug than a meltdown in Vancouver, a welcome change from last year’s violent, and infantile, riots.
-
Newsmakers: Apr. 19-26, 2012
By Martin Patriquin - Monday, April 30, 2012 at 1:51 AM - 0 Comments
John Edwards heads to court, St. John’s mayor takes on Harper, and Lindsay Lohan returns to the big screen
Lyle A. Waisman/Getty Images
Fallen star
After years of tawdry headlines, tarnished Democratic Party golden boy John Edwards is going to court. The former senator and presidential candidate is accused of diverting $900,000 in contributions to his 2008 presidential campaign to cover up an affair with videographer Rielle Hunter, as well as the birth of their child. Edwards, whose wife, Elizabeth, died of cancer in 2010, contends that the funds weren’t campaign contributions; rather, the lawyers for the North Carolina politician say, the money was a gift from friends to help him out in his time of need. If convicted, he faces up to 30 years in prison and $1.5 million in fines.
The final frontier
After having a go at astrophysics, academia and the world of high tech, Cheick Modibo Diarra has moved on to something far more complicated: governing an African nation. Between 1989 and 2002, the Mali-born Diarra oversaw unmanned NASA missions to Mars, Venus, Jupiter and the sun. He then became president of one African university and co-founded another, before becoming head of Microsoft Africa in 2006. After launching a political party last year, Diarra was recently appointed interim prime minister of Mali following a coup d’état. His first challenge: quelling rebel uprisings in the country’s north. Getting a spacecraft to Mars may be simpler by comparison.
-
Week in Pictures: April 23 – 29, 2012
By macleans.ca - Friday, April 27, 2012 at 2:02 PM - 0 Comments
The week’s best photos from around the world
0Week in Pictures: April 23 – 29, 2012
Boston, U.S.A
A model wearing Ted Baker London rappels down the side of the 24-storey Revere Hotel Boston Common during a "vertical" fashion show held to commemorate the opening of the newly renovated hotel on April 18, 2012. (Steven Senne/AP)
1 of 15 Photos
-
Good news, bad news: Apr. 12-19, 2012
By macleans.ca - Monday, April 23, 2012 at 4:16 PM - 0 Comments
Canada and Denmark split Hans Island and etiquette lessons for unruly NFL fans
Good news
Charles Krupa/AP
Charter rights
Its 30th anniversary provides an opportunity to reflect on the many benefits of Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Building on an earlier bill of rights unveiled by prime minister John Diefenbaker, the Charter enshrined and protected the rights of individual Canadians from governments’ law-making powers. In doing so it created a society much more focused on issues of equality and legal fairness. The Charter’s mobility rights, for example, have allowed Canadians to tear down provincial employment barriers.
No to nukes
Last Friday, a North Korean satellite rocketed to 400,000 feet, splintered into harmless pieces, then fell into the sea. A successful launch would have demonstrated intercontinental ballistic know-how. Instead, even Pyongyang pronounced the missile a dud. Meanwhile, nuclear talks between Iran and six world powers, including the U.S. and China, were deemed “constructive and useful.” More talks are slated for next month. There’s much work still to be done, but we can all breathe a little easier, at least this week.
-
Newsmakers: Apr. 12-19, 2012
By Ken MacQueen - Monday, April 23, 2012 at 4:10 AM - 0 Comments
The Sutter boys’ diverging fortunes, the Obamas’ new best friends, and Britney Spears’ $15-million question
Joel Ryan/AP
Good eye, regular guy!
Somewhere in east Vancouver, the host of a recent garage sale weeps bitter tears. Two paintings he sold for a combined $100 were a tad undervalued. One is a watercolour by Group of Seven member Frederick Varley. The other appears to be an oil-on-plywood landscape by Tom Thomson. Kate Bellringer of Maynard’s Auctions told the Vancouver Sun the paintings were purchased on “impulse” by a “regular guy” who wants anonymity. Perhaps it was the barely discernible Thomson signature that caused him to haul both works to the auction house for appraisal. Smart move: Bellringer said expert consensus is the Thomson is authentic. The Varley has an estimated value of up to $6,000, while the Thomson may fetch as much as $250,000 at a May 16 auction.
The Flames’ blame game
Darryl Sutter has turned around the Los Angeles Kings since taking over coaching duties mid-season. His Kings have the Vancouver Canucks on the ropes in the first round of the NHL playoffs. Puck luck hasn’t been as kind to his brother Brent Sutter. The Calgary Flames announced last week that Brent has left as head coach by “mutual agreement” after the team missed the playoffs yet again. Darryl had kind words for his bro: “I think he’s a top coach in the National Hockey League and it may very well be that he’ll be coaching somewhere else soon, too.” Darryl speaks from experience. He, too, was punted from the flickering Flames in late 2010. He was GM there when Brent was hired in 2009.
-
Week in Pictures: April 16 – 22, 2012
By macleans.ca - Friday, April 20, 2012 at 1:20 PM - 0 Comments
The week’s best in photography
0Week in Pictures: April 16 – 22, 2012
Soccer celebration
Liverpool's Andy Carroll, left, celebrates his goal against Everton with teammate Martin Skrtel during their English FA Cup semifinal soccer match at Wembley Stadium in London, Saturday, April 14, 2012. (Tom Hevezi/AP Photo)
1 of 15 Photos
-
Newsmakers: Apr. 5-12, 2012
By Aaron Wherry and Brian D. Johnson - Thursday, April 19, 2012 at 4:20 PM - 0 Comments
Ashely Judd fights back, Kanye meets a Kardashian and Leonard Cohen confronts his stalker
INFphoto.com
Facial war
Ashley Judd went on the offensive this week after being ridiculed for going “from pretty to puffy,” as Radaronline.com lamented earlier this spring. In a furious article for the Daily Beast, she slammed the critical attention as a “misogynistic assault on women.” Media speculated that her “chubbier than usual cheeks” were the result of face fillers and weight gain. It was steroids, it turns out, used to treat a serious illness. She gave Us Magazine and Perez Hilton readers a taste of what it’s like to be scrutinized and endlessly belittled: “We are described and detailed, our faces and bodies analyzed and picked apart.” The Double Jeopardy actor also called out the double bind facing women in Hollywood over 35: have surgery or be consigned to mom roles forever.
Santorum suspends campaign
Rick Santorum suspended his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination Tuesday, having lasted in the race far longer than many observers initially expected. He reached the decision after spending the weekend with his ill three-year-old daughter, Bella, who was born with a rare genetic condition called Trisomy 18. Although she was released from hospital, the experience became “a time for prayer and thought,” and caused him and his wife to think about “the role we have as parents in her life,” Santorum told supporters in Gettysburg, Penn. The move paves the way for front-runner Mitt Romney to effectively clinch the nomination. But Santorum vowed we haven’t seen the last of him. He will continue to raise funds that will go toward unseating President Barack Obama in November.
Love in the time of reality TV
-
Good news, bad news: Apr. 5-12, 2012
By macleans.ca - Thursday, April 19, 2012 at 4:10 PM - 0 Comments
Good news
Happy and you know it…
All things considered, Canadians are a prettyGood news
Eric Cheng/Barcroft Media/Getty Images
Happy and you know it
All things considered, Canadians are a pretty blissful bunch. According to the UN’s first-ever “World Happiness Report,” Canada ranks fifth on a global scale of joyfulness, behind only Denmark, Finland, Norway and the Netherlands. Based on thousands of random surveys, the report measured such factors as family and friends, health, income and freedom. We probably would have landed a few notches higher if not for all the long faces in Toronto, where the Maple Leafs failed—for the seventh season in a row—to make the playoffs. At least the owners apologized this year, publishing an open letter to fans: “We take full responsibility for how this team performs on the ice, and we make no excuses.”
The skinny on fat
Yes, Big Macs and PlayStations deserve some of the blame for North America’s obesity epidemic. But so does our DNA. Researchers in the United States have discovered two key gene variants that appear to play a major role in predisposing some kids to obesity—a breakthrough that could lead to treatments for heavy children. It is encouraging news. In the meantime, though, there is another solution: leave the house. According to a separate study, only half of U.S. preschoolers play outside on a daily basis.
-
Week in pictures: April 9 – 15, 2012
By macleans.ca - Wednesday, April 11, 2012 at 4:50 PM - 0 Comments
The week’s best photos from around the world
0Week in pictures: April 9 – 15, 2012
Hong Kong, China
The 40,000-year-old carcass of a well-preserved baby mammoth named Lyuba is seen during a media preview on April 10, 2012. She will be exhibited at IFC Mall in Hong Kong on April 12. (Tyrone Siu/Reuters)
1 of 15 Photos
-
Newsmakers: Mar. 22-Mar. 29, 2012
By Cathy Gulli, Charlie Gillis, Patricia Treble, and Richard Warnica - Thursday, April 5, 2012 at 9:10 PM - 0 Comments
Jessica Simpson gets overly candid, Ricky Martin grabs the spotlight, and Rob Anderson wants a parking spot
Twitter/AP
Redemption sought
For Brian Miller, redemption will require a lot more than a stint on TV. The former contestant on Redemption Inc., a CBC reality series in which ex-convicts compete in business-related challenges, has been charged after a series of break-ins and an attempted car theft in Stittsville, Ont. His arrest followed a one-night crime spree in the Ottawa suburb, culminating in the theft of a vehicle belonging to DJ Race, a personality on a top-40 radio station in Ottawa. Race gave chase in her husband’s car, forcing the thief to stop and take off on foot, by which time police were on the scene. Miller, 27, had been first runner-up on Redemption Inc.’s inaugural season, and was described by host Kevin O’Leary as “one of the best salesmen I’ve seen.”
Too much information?
Jessica Simpson, who is expected to give birth to a girl this spring, told Jimmy Kimmel on his late-night show she is carrying so much amniotic fluid that when her water breaks it will be like “a fire hydrant.” Never short on colourful descriptions, Simpson also said she feels like a bowling ball is resting on her “hoo-ha.” Not everyone has found Simpson’s ebullient candour charming or refreshing. An Arizona grocery store has propped a piece of cardboard against the latest cover of Elle, which features Simpson in a tight red dress.
-
Good news, bad news: Mar. 22-Mar. 29, 2012
By macleans.ca - Thursday, April 5, 2012 at 9:00 PM - 0 Comments
Good news
Slick oil…
A British exploration firm has struck oil in Kenya, aGood news
Mark Humphrey/AP
Slick oil
A British exploration firm has struck oil in Kenya, a first for the East African nation. It is “the beginning of a long journey to make our country an oil producer,” said president Mwai Kibaki. The find is a big boost for the largest economy in a region that could use a little more good fortune, and a welcome discovery for the rest of the world. Despite persistent supply fears, oil firms continue to uncover new sources of light crude—at opportune times. Oil prices are soaring, up 15 per cent this year, and prices at the pump are following suit. Relief may be on the way.
The face of justice
The most chilling scene from Graham James’s sentencing was the sight of the convicted sex abuser’s face wrapped in a red scarf—the better, presumably, to avoid public opprobrium on release. So props to the rogue cop or prison official who leaked the former hockey coach’s mugshot. Yes, it’s a breach of privacy, but the court had justified James’s light, two-year sentence for assaulting two young players (including former NHLer Theoren Fleury) by saying he will face unusual punishment: namely, being identified as a notorious sex offender. He will be a lot easier to identify now that we know what he looks like.
-
Week in pictures: March 29 – April 5, 2012
By macleans.ca - Thursday, April 5, 2012 at 5:15 PM - 0 Comments
The week’s best photos from around the world
0Week in pictures: March 29 – April 5, 2012
Britain Olympics Penguins
A Humboldt penguin swims under water on March 29 after taking a dive from the new Olympic London 2012 style diving board installed in the penguin enclosure at the London Zoo. (Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP)
1 of 13 Photos
-
Week in pictures: March 26 – April 1, 2012
By macleans.ca - Wednesday, March 28, 2012 at 11:20 AM - 0 Comments
The week’s best photos from around the world
0Week in pictures: March 26 – April 1, 2012
In Mideast Yemen
An Ethiopian girl waits with her family to be evacuated at a departure center in the western Yemeni town of Haradh, on the border with Saudi Arabia and Yemen, Wednesday, March 21, 2012. (Hani Mohammed/AP Photo)
1 of 15 Photos
