Good evening,
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Ottawa plans to stand by assisted-death law, despite Halifax woman’s deathbed plea
Despite a plea from Halifax woman Audrey Parker, who ended her life Thursday with medical assistance, Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould said the government feels the assisted-dying legislation strikes the appropriate balance between the protection of people’s autonomy and safeguards for vulnerable people. Parker, a terminally ill woman who had Stage 4 breast cancer, was approved for an assisted death, but said the restrictive nature of the law that forces a person to be lucid when they give consent forced her to end her life sooner than she would have liked. An early draft of a report prepared for the federal government by the Council of Canadian Academies says allowing Canadians to request medically assisted death weeks or even years ahead of time would be less ethically fraught if limited to patients who have already been approved to receive the procedure imminently.
New Brunswick’s Liberal government falls after Throne Speech defeated
New Brunswick’s Liberal government has fallen after losing a confidence vote on its Throne Speech today. Premier Brian Gallant resigned and suggested Progressive Conservative Leader Blaine Higgs be given the opportunity to form government. “Their success will be New Brunswick’s success,” Gallant said. This comes after the Liberals won just 21 seats in the September election – one fewer than the PCs – while the Greens and People’s Alliance each won three seats. Gallant sought to survive with a minority government by adding many of the opposition’s campaign promises to his party’s Throne Speech, but both the Tories and People’s Alliance said they’d vote to defeat it. (For subscribers)
Supreme Court sides with Hydro-Québec in dispute with Newfoundland and Labrador’s Churchill Falls generating station
The Supreme Court of Canada sided with Hydro-Québec in a 7-1 ruling Friday morning, in its bitter dispute with Newfoundland and Labrador’s Churchill Falls generating station. The ruling means Hydro-Québec will be able to continue buying energy at fixed prices, decreasing over time. The deal was made in 1969, and Hydro-Québec has brought in more than $26-billion in profits by reselling the energy to other markets. “The evidence does not show that Hydro-Québec is acting in bad faith or refusing to accommodate CFLCo’s situation,” Justice Clément Gascon wrote for the majority. The only judge that voted for the public utility to renegotiate was Justice Malcolm Rowe, the Supreme Court’s first and only member from Newfoundland and Labrador, who said the two sides entered into a “relational” contract. The Globe’s Barrie McKenna writes on why the curse of Churchill Falls will continue to haunt Newfoundland.
Canada adds 11,200 jobs, unemployment rate dips
The Canadian economy added 11,200 jobs in October on higher full-time hiring, and the unemployment rate dipped to 5.8 per cent, although wage growth was sluggish, Statistics Canada data indicated on Friday. Analysts in a Reuters poll forcasted a gain of 10,000 positions and for the jobless rate to remain at 5.9 per cent. July marked the last time the rate hit 5.8 per cent, equalling a 40-year-low. The labour participation rate dropped to 65.2 per cent, its lowest since October, 1998.
This is the daily Evening Update newsletter. If you’re reading this online, or received it from someone else, you can sign up for Evening Update and all Globe newsletters here. Have feedback? Let us know what you think.
MARKET WATCH
Hopes of a trade deal between the United States and China led stocks up and then dashed them back down on Friday.
In Toronto, Canada’s main stock index erased early gains, with the Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index down 0.2 per cent, or 30.87 points, at 15,119.28.
The Canadian economy added 11,200 jobs in October on higher full-time hiring, and the unemployment rate dipped to 5.8 percent.
Separate data showed that Canada’s trade deficit in September shrank to $416-million as imports fell at a faster pace than exports, while August imports had been almost $1-billion higher than initially reported.
In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 111.34 points, or 0.44 percent, to 25,269.4, the S&P 500 lost 17.6 points, or 0.64 percent, to 2,722.77 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 77.06 points, or 1.04 percent, to 7,356.99.
Got a news tip that you’d like us to look into? E-mail us at tips@globeandmail.com. Need to share documents securely? Reach out via SecureDrop.
WHAT’S TRENDING ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Nov. 2 is the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists. While international eyes have been fixed on the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, his case is but one of dozens in recent years in which journalists have been killed with impunity, and to which governments and powerful figures have turned a blind eye. Nine out of 10 murders of reporters, photographers and their counterparts go unpunished. At least 45 journalists have been killed this year alone as a result of their work, along with 17 others killed without a confirmed motive.
TALKING POINTS
Vile social media erupts into real violence – and women aren’t surprised
“Online abuse has long spilled into women’s offline lives. Look at what happened to pop-culture critic Anita Sarkeesian in 2013, after she released a YouTube series about how age-old gender stereotypes play out in modern video games. The furious result included rape threats, death threats, endless social-media harassment and a “response” game, in which players got to beat her up. Years later, when we were on a panel together at a conference, she was accompanied by two security guards. For all I know, she still employs them.” – Denise Balkissoon
Getting old is worse than you think
“Being pushed into this world has also made me think about death. A lot. I maintain that when it’s time to go, I want it to end like it did for my Uncle Artie. He was a handsome, outgoing man right to the bitter end. He died, at 80, of a massive heart attack, under a gorgeous old oak tree in his backyard, while on his way for a swim. I know what I don’t want. I don’t want to exist simply for the sake of existing, living in a strange place alongside others who are very much surviving in the same manner, with more misery in their lives than joy. The moment I find myself heading into that situation is the moment I want out, by whatever means possible.” – Gary Mason
How to pull voters back from the far-right brink? Look to Germany
“The Greens … are soaring in popularity. In two recent important state elections and in this week’s national opinion polls, they have become the country’s second-ranked party, approaching the levels of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s dwindling Christian Democrats and far exceeding any other party. At this rate, they will very likely be partners in the next national government.” – Doug Saunders
LIVING BETTER
As you head into your weekend, you may be planning to get some extra sleep before the time changes. Our exhaustive (but not exhausting) guide to getting a good night’s rest can help you achieve the best slumber before clocks turn back on Saturday night. Get rid of distractions that make it hard to sleep (that means you, cellphone). Create a regular routine. Get the right pillow for your sleep style. Settle your mind before you lie down in bed. Within the stories we’ve written about sleep over the past few years are tricks and tips that may help you on your journey to a full night’s rest. And, when all else fails, have a laugh with our First Person essay writers who’ve been there, snored through that and found novel ways to get to bed (boring podcasts for the win). (For subscribers)
CELIA KRAMPIEN
LISTEN AND LEARN
In an age of convenience, Ritual is revolutionizing the lunch rush. On this week’s episode of The Globe’s podcast I’ll Go First, CEO Ray Reddy talks about the origins of his takeout app, coming to Canada as a teenager and looking at failure differently.
LONG READS FOR A LONG COMMUTE
Munk Debates: Stephen Bannon and David Frum, set to spar on the future of Western politics, speak to The Globe on their views
Politics is undergoing a sea change. Long-held notions of the role of government are being challenged by populist thinkers and movements. Does this populist agenda signal a permanent shift in our politics or is it a passing phenomenon?
At Friday’s Munk Debate at Toronto’s Roy Thomson Hall, Stephen Bannon, a former strategist for U.S. President Donald Trump, and David Frum, a senior editor at The Atlantic magazine, will debate the following resolution: Be it resolved, the future of Western politics is populist, not liberal.
Bannon will argue for the resolution, while Frum will argue against. The two men sat down with The Globe and Mail before the debate, looking at the current state of politics and what is to come.
One way to keep language real: Reconfigure our figures of speech
One evening last week, author Mark Abley scrolled through The Globe and Mail’s website. He wasn’t searching for news: He was looking for idioms. And the headlines he found were abuzz with them.
An article about BeauChapeau, a specialty store in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont., had the headline, “This shop boasts a skilled sales team that wears many hats.” A story about one of Doug Ford’s policies appeared below: “Red flags raised as Ontario reinstates doctor’s note requirement for sick workers.” And a reassuring article on personal finance was headlined, “There’s no reason to be too spooked by the prospect of a bear market.”
“Bear market,” “wearing many hats” and “raising a red flag” are familiar idioms – phrases that convey well-understood meanings that differ from the meanings of their individual words. They are vivid artifacts of our imagination. On the lips of a skilled speaker or writer, they can be precise, evocative and fun. They are also intrinsic to the language. But idioms are not always innocent. If you look at the patterns of meaning they convey, you see how much they reveal about the power structures that English has developed over the centuries.
Illustrations by Graham Roumieu
Evening Update is written by Shelby Blackley. If you’d like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday evening, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.