Construction of a new overpass on the Trans-Canada and Highway 5 will start in 2027 and take two-and-a-half years to finish, this from Premier Wab Kinew at a public meeting in Carberry on Thursday. He says it’ll cost about
$100-million. The intersection was the site of a crash in 2023 that killed 17 people.
———-
Around 70 people took part in a gathering at Brandon’s Knox United Church on Thursday marking Transgender Day of Remembrance. The names of 300 transgender, non-binary or gender-diverse people, who’ve died as a result of violence, were read aloud. More than 100,000 people have reported being transgender or non-binary in Canada.
———-
The province plans to expand a law that protects people whose explicit or nude photos and videos are shared without their consent. New legislation would broaden the law to include ‘nearly nude images’, and would make it illegal to threaten to share images, even if that doesn’t happen. Victims can currently sue perpetrators and get support getting images removed.
———-
Manitoba’s French language school division is asking teachers to limit homework wherever possible in response to the use of artificial intelligence and instead promote nightly reading. Administrators want to ensure that AI isn’t being used as a tool for copying homework.
———-
With holiday shopping well underway, there’s a warning about some new toys hitting the shelves. Parents groups say toys that contain Artificial Intelligence chatbots could be dangerous, in fact sales of a toy called ‘Kuma Teddy’ have now been suspended. Researchers found the bear openly discussed sexually explicit and hazardous content with kids including how to light a match. The bear also told them to go find objects including potentially unsafe knives and pills.
———-
A growing number of Canadians think creationism should be taught in classrooms and it’s mostly young people, aged 18 to 34, who support the idea. A new survey found nearly half of respondents said creationism should definitely be taught in schools, while 35% disagreed. Those in Ontario were most likely to endorse the idea – British Columbians the least.
———-
Prime Minister Mark Carney reportedly secured $70 billion in investments from his visit to the United Arab Emirates. He also personally invited Emirati investors to visit Canada, to help kick-start more major projects. Ottawa is also working on a billion dollar critical minerals venture aimed at expanding processing capacity in Canada.
———-
Maybe this is something the City of Brandon should consider – naming its snowplows? Winnipeg recently opened an online page and is looking for suggestions for its fleet of 12 big machines. Some snowplow names from other cities include ‘Buzz Iceclear’ and ‘Snowbi-Gone Kenobi’.
