1/ As I received this news today here in British Columbia, the wildfire smoke blankets the sky, our eyes are burning and our kid is complaining of a sore throat from it. And we’re the lucky ones. Over the weekend, more than 5,000 British Columbians had to flee their homes in 24 hours, under evacuation from just two of the approximately 130 wildfires currently engulfing the province.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/carney-moves-to-list-alberta-pipeline-national-interest-9.7295932

#canada #cdnpoli #climateChange

Nice!

"Mastodon is currently considered *the* alternative to Twitter. SURF [the IT cooperative of Dutch education and research] and Universities of the Netherlands are therefore jointly exploring how a Mastodon environment for education and research in the Netherlands can take shape."

https://www.surf.nl/en/mastodon-pilot-for-research-and-education

#fediverse #mastodon #SocialMedia

The minimum wage should be tied in percentage to the maximum rent allowed for a one-bedroom apartment.

Someone working full-time should be able to cover all their minimal living expenses with their wage. It's a catastrophic society failure that this isn't the case anymore in many places around the world.

@mpjgregoire @pinhman nah, land value speculation is the big factor

I'm looking for people who attend the session to be interviewed afterwards. Please pass this along and get in touch with me here or on Signal @ JodyMacPherson.64 or via email at jlmacpherson363@gmail.com

The Alberta NDP wants to hear where you stand on AI data centres.

They are in St. Albert in Sturgeon County tonight (where Meta’s data centre is going) on a “listening tour” 6 p.m. at Red Willow Place, 7 Tache Street.

I had questions about the tour…I’d like to say I received answers but I did not.

And they backed out of an interview with me until after they finish their consultations.

https://www.albertandpcaucus.ca/ai-data-centre-consultations

#ableg #cdnpoli #AIDataCentres

Privatization of healthcare in Canada. A report by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
https://www.policyalternatives.ca/news-research/public-versus-private-health-care-spending-in-canada/

They're a good org.
#cdnpoli

Washington's wildfires are a warning for the entire U.S.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/spokane-washingtons-wildfires-are-a-warning-for-the-entire-u-s/?utm_source=flipboard&utm_medium=activitypub

Posted into Scientific American @scientific-american-SciAm

Despite promises, Mark Carney is deferring to Donald Trump
https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/mark-carney-promised-to-take-on-donald-trump-hes-done-anything-but/article_132eff09-b677-4190-8118-b37a6b6a2e1e.html

https://archive.ph/gzAGS

RE: https://flipboard.com/@cbcnews/canada-1akomc2pz/-/a-2T9jWpH7R06ynsVyD8J_ow%3Aa%3A107108217-%2F0

Elbows what?

Only about half of the data centre decision-makers surveyed said they were holding public forums or investing in local initiatives, while recent national polling shows that only 33% of developers are addressing grid reliability, and only 29% are responding to water consumption concerns.

The report authors suggest “a disconnect between engagement efforts and community priorities.”

You’d think data centre developers would pay attention to communities…but, no. I guess at least $64 billion, 18 state bills and 86 local moratoriums proposed across the U.S. isn’t enough to convince them?

#ableg #cdnpoli #emissions #electricitygrid #AIdatacentres #AIDataCenters #WonderValleyAlberta #wondervalleyUtah #stratos

https://open.substack.com/pub/jodymacpherson/p/community-pushback-blocks-64b-in

Oregon’s largest teachers union sued the city of Hillsboro last month over $84 million in tax breaks the city quietly handed NVIDIA, CoreWeave, and a handful of other tech giants to build 17 data centers.

Monday night the city council caved in front of everybody.

They called a special meeting and voted a 120-day pause on new data centers into effect on the spot. Any project that hadn’t already filed is locked out, and the council can extend the pause another six months when the clock runs out.

Mayor Beach Pace didn’t dress it up as anything but surrender to public pressure. “The Hillsboro City Council has heard the questions and concerns from our community about data centers in Hillsboro,” she said. #datacenters #datacenter #oregon #resist #resistance

https://www.oregonlive.com/silicon-forest/2026/07/hillsboro-bans-new-data-centers-in-surprise-city-council-meeting.html

It’s time for Pete “Chucklehead” Hoekstra, the American ambassador to Canada, to get the f**k out of our country.

1️⃣ Sign the House of Commons petition at https://b.link/chucklehead

2️⃣ Download this artwork at https://chucklehead.todmaffin.com and put it on shirts, signs, or whatever you want.

House of commons petition below

Thanks, @tod https://hci.social/@tod/117027103004694961
#cdnPoli #cdnPolitics

Canada’s FHSAs were meant to help new home buyers. Instead, they’re largely a $2-billion tax shelter for the rich
https://www.thestar.com/business/opinion/canadas-fhsas-were-meant-to-help-new-home-buyers-instead-its-largely-a-2b-tax-shelter-for-the-rich/article_cca6707a-4dc1-4f57-bb3a-f0ef8bc6f54d.html

https://archive.ph/fSMFe

The most important thing about a technology isn't just what it does: it's who it does it for and who it does it to. EFF is working to make sure AI serves everyone, not just those in power. Join us live on August 12!
https://eff.org/livestream-sai

This is a unique hand made cyanotype on watercolour paper (11" x 14") with an image of various alliums and dandelions which have gone to seed. Each have seeds radiating from a stem like exploding fireworks. I have embellished this with two of my linocut of native moths species: a virgin tiger moth and white underwing.

https://minouette.etsy.com/listing/4542238942

#linocut #cyanotype #sciart #moths #botanicalArt

RE: https://tomkahe.com/@GiftArticles/117014393966801859

"Researchers whose positions have been eliminated and employees who have already left the department are now being asked to identify the greatest scientific risks facing Canadian agriculture, the most urgent research gaps, and the areas where AAFC’s long-term expertise will be needed most. Those are precisely the questions the government should have asked when considering cuts to the people and programs responsible for answering them."

#Canada #Science #Agriculture

Time for Canada to stand up for Cuba

https://www.thestar.com/opinion/star-columnists/trumps-white-house-is-spinning-a-wild-conspiracy-tale-about-this-country-canada-needs-to-step-in-to-defend-it/article_a377063f-2744-427b-a03d-3cd5f92c03b6.html

“Canada, as a country familiar with Trump’s economic extortion, needs to step up. We are a rich country watching a poorer country in our hemisphere face imperial aggression from a common foe. We helped build many of the institutions of international law and global diplomacy that should avert this kind of bullying. We are awash in political capital which we seem unwilling to spend. We have a capable navy and ample oil. And, most relevant, we have a 66 year record of defying American blockades against Cuba.

It will anger the White House, no doubt — as have our wildfires and our audacious decision to maintain our own sovereign economy. Too bad. Trump’s delusions cannot keep dictating our foreign policy.” <-Justin Ling

https://archive.ph/7UXWR