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Foreign interference shows need for Canada to get serious on media literacy: advocate

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 06:00:05 GMT

OTTAWA — As federal parties craft the scope of a possible inquiry into foreign interference, Canada’s media-literacy charity argues governments and schools need to do a better job of preventing citizens from being manipulated by hostile states.“We are going to need a media-literate populace,” said Matthew Johnson, education director with MediaSmarts, a non-profit aimed at boosting critical thinking among Canadians.“Whatever the source of disinformation, but certainly including foreign interference, digital media literacy really is both the first and last line of defence.”In May, as wildfires in Alberta hit a peak, images of blazes from years past spread on Twitter, with false claims that entire towns had been destroyed. That same month, a phoney image of the Pentagon on fire circulated, with fabricated claims that an explosion had occurred in Washington.The two claims could be easily disproven by simple Google searches, such as a reverse-image search. B...

UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace says he’ll quit government and stand down as a lawmaker

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 06:00:05 GMT

LONDON (AP) — British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said Sunday he plans to resign at the next Cabinet reshuffle after four years in the job. Wallace has served as defense secretary under three prime ministers and played a key role in the U.K.’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He told The Sunday Times his departure was due to the strain his job had put on his family. He also said he would stand down as a lawmaker at the next general election. Wallace is the longest continuously serving minister in government. He was security minister under former Prime Minister Theresa May, before being promoted to defense secretary by her successor Boris Johnson.Wallace drew criticism last week when he suggested that Ukraine should show “gratitude” for the West’s military support. He made the remark at the NATO summit in Lithuania after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed frustration about when his country could join the military alliance. British Prime Min...

Readers and writers: Summer paperbacks to relax with

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 06:00:05 GMT

It’s the time of year for easy reading so today we offer three well-written paperbacks that will entertain you on the screen porch, at the cabin or in a hammock.(Courtesy of the author)Kathleen Glasgow (Courtesy of the author)“The Night in Question”: by Kathleen Glasgow and Liz Lawson (Delacorte Press, $19.99)This is so Agatha Christie: a secret passage, a hidden staircase, sneaking around in the dark with a storm raging outside. A shiver of pleasure runs through me. — From “The Night in Question”Alice Ogilvie and Iris Adams, teenage devotees of author Agatha Christie — are back for their second adventure after last year’s “The Agathas.”It’s been four months since the first book, when this unlikely pair solved the murder of their friend Brooke Donovan in the northern California town of Castle Cove. Alice comes from a rich family and was a member of the Mains, the group that runs their high school. Iris is poor and liv...

John Zorn’s 70th birthday celebration to kick of Walker Art Center’s performing arts season

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 06:00:05 GMT

An all-day celebration of avant-garde composer John Zorn’s 70th birthday will kick off the Walker Art Center’s 2023-24 performing arts season on Sept. 9.Zorn, who has a long-standing history with the Walker, will collaborate with more than 20 musicians — including guitarists Bill Frisell and Julian Lage, the JACK Quartet, keyboardist John Medeski and percussionist Sae Hashimoto — to create a series of one-of-a-kind musical experiences that respond to works in the Walker’s collection. It will also include three evening concerts in the Walker’s McGuire Theater.The rest of the Walker’s season, which was announced Wednesday, includes a series of music, dance and theatrical events, all of which take place in the McGuire Theater unless otherwise noted. For more details, see walkerart.org. Season highlights include:Alabaster dePlume: 8 p.m. Sept. 14, the leader of the London jazz/new music scene makes his Minnesota debut.Dianne McIntyre Group: 8 p.m. Oct. 5-7,...

Cottage Grove officials close on part of former Mississippi Dunes Golf Course for park

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 06:00:05 GMT

For as long as Zac Dockter can remember, city officials in Cottage Grove have been wanting a substantial city park on the Mississippi River.They’re finally getting their wish.City officials closed late last month on a 20-acre parcel that was once part of the Mississippi Dunes Golf Course.“You don’t feel like you’re in the middle of a bustling suburb right now, do you?” Dockter, the city’s parks and recreation director, said during a recent tour of the new park. “We have more shoreline than any other community in the metro and minimal public access, so this is huge for us.”The city’s only other park on the river, the Hazen P. Mooers Park, is tucked away on Grey Cloud Island. It’s a popular spot for kayaking, fishing, picnicking and bird watching on the Mississippi River, but it covers just 1 acre, Dockter said.Increasing public access to the river has long been one of the city’s top priorities, said Dockter, a Cottage Grove native who started working for the city in 2001....

Skywatch: High-flying sweet music in the stars

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 06:00:05 GMT

It’s certainly not one of the most prominent constellations, but Lyra the Harp is a distinctive one with a super bright star. Vega is the third-brightest nighttime star seen around Minnesota and western Wisconin. This is a super easy time of year to locate Vega and the constellation Lyra in the early evening sky. Just look straight up.(Mike Lynch)Just after evening twilight, look for Vega, the brightest star in the high eastern sky near the overhead zenith. Unless you have a real problem with light pollution, you should be able to see a small parallelogram of much fainter stars hanging to the lower right of Vega. That’s about all there is to the constellation Lyra. You may see Lyra as a little harp with your imagination on overdrive. Good luck with that!Astronomically, it may appear that the stars that make up the parallelogram are close celestial neighbors but that’s not the case. The stars just happen to fall in the same general line of sight from Earth. Call it ...

Ask Amy: She got her master’s, all he got was a T-shirt

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 06:00:05 GMT

Dear Amy: I recently graduated with my master’s.My mother and mother-in-law flew separately to my graduation from the other side of the country.I am grateful they both came, but while my MIL was here she made repeated comments that I felt put down my degree.She said that my graduation ceremony was really for my husband because he supported me through school.While he did work full time to support us, I also worked while attending school full time.She gave him a graduation gift, as well as a shirt that said, “I survived my wife’s graduate degree.”I was shocked and hurt by this, and she kept encouraging him to wear it on my actual graduation day.I found the shirt offensive because it trivialized my accomplishments into something that was apparently extremely difficult for him.After the fact, I told my husband how I felt (through tears) but he told me that while he could see my point, it was just a joke.For the remainder of the visit, she continued to ask him to wear t...

Word Game: July 16, 2023

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 06:00:05 GMT

TODAY’S WORD — TRESPASS (TRESPASS: TRES-pass: Wrongful entry upon the land of another.)Average mark 42 wordsTime limit 60 minutesCan you find 55 or more words in TRESPASS?TODAY’S WORD — TRESPASS tape taper taps tare tear trap tress tsar rapt rasp rate reap repast rest east sass sate sear seat sept spar spare sparest sparse sparsest spat spate spear sprat star stare step strap strep stress pare parse part pass passe passer past paste pate pear peat pert pest prate press aper apse assert asset asterTo purchase the Word Game book, visit WordGameBooks.com. Order it now for just $5 while supplies last!RULES OF THE GAME:1. Words must be of four or more letters.2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed.3. Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. For example, if “bake” is used, “baked” or “bakes” are not allowed, but “bake” and “baking” are admissible.4. Proper nouns, slang words, or v...

Bridge: July 16, 2023

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 06:00:05 GMT

Cy the Cynic, being a cynic, is an observer of human behavior.“I’ve noticed,” Cy remarked to me in the club lounge, “that people who arrive somewhere late — assuming they show up at all — are in a better mood than the people who’ve been waiting for them.”“Astute of you,” I said.When I watched today’s deal in a penny game, Cy was declarer at 3NT after West had overcalled in clubs. (Cy upgraded his hand to open one diamond because he held three tens. West’s bid of two clubs over a one-diamond opening bid had obstructive value; good players often make that particular overcall with skinny values. Where North found his raise to 3NT is a mystery.)West led the deuce of hearts, and East took the king and switched to the jack of clubs. Cy’s king covered, and West won and continued with the queen and a third club, East threw a spade and Cy’s ten won.The Cynic then cashed the ace of diamonds — six, deuce,...

Horoscopes July 16, 2023: Will Ferrell, make peace of mind a priority

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 06:00:05 GMT

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Gareth Bale, 34; AnnaLynne McCord, 36; Corey Feldman, 52; Will Ferrell, 56.Happy Birthday: The sky’s the limit this year. Have more faith in your ability to turn your dream into a reality. Refuse to let others make decisions for you. Embrace what makes you happy, and everything else will fall into place. Learn from your mistakes, and you will discover how to turn your skills, knowledge and experience into something worthwhile. Make peace of mind a priority. Your numbers are 3, 11, 18, 26, 33, 35, 43.ARIES (March 21-April 19): Take your time, review details and be resourceful. Use your intelligence and experience to ensure your actions are not in vain. Exaggeration will lead to ramifications that can hinder your chance to reach your goal. Leave nothing to chance or up to someone else. 2 starsTAURUS (April 20-May 20): An investment can make or break you. Do your due diligence to ensure your decisions build equity and encourage a safe and secure futu...