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Globe and Mail
a day ago
- Lifestyle
- Globe and Mail
Father of slain Montreal girl indicted for murder by grand jury
Life and Culture Meet Zosia Bielski Follow Zosia, The Globe's time use reporter, as she explores how we use our minutes, hours and days at paid work, unpaid labour, in community and at leisure.
Globe and Mail
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Globe and Mail
Boomers, millennials, Gen Beta: Why do we name generations?
What's in a name? For the past century, people have clamoured to categorize people by their age and the life events they've gone through – but how and why did we get so preoccupied with generations? The Globe's Generations Reporter Ann Hui joins the show to break down where the names came from and how they play out online and in popular culture. Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@
Politico
4 days ago
- Business
- Politico
Tariff roulette
Presented by Send tips | Subscribe here | Email Canada Playbook | Follow Politico Canada Welcome to a week that could define Canada's economic future — or deepen its trade crisis. In today's edition of Canada Playbook: → As Canada hopes for an August deal, Trump is chasing trade wins elsewhere. → A midsummer dollop of news on interest rates and economic growth. → Why EU Ambassador GENEVIÈVE TUTS is hawkish on transatlantic bonds. Trade war SUMMER BLOCKBUSTER — Aug. 1 approaches, the day Canada and the U.S. are expected to strike a new economic and security deal — or not. Prime Minister MARK CARNEY and President DONALD TRUMP have recently sought to temper expectations. — He's just not that into you: The White House has informed Canada that it is not the priority at the moment, Playbook has learned. Trump, who is in Europe, is focused on securing agreements with other countries, like India. — Get in line: In Scotland on Sunday, Trump struck a trade deal with the European Union, locking in a 15 percent tariff. It follows his deal with Japan last week, though there are questions about that one. → Trump's Canada take: 'We haven't really had a lot of luck with Canada,' the president told reporters outside the White House on Friday. 'I think Canada could be one where they'll just pay tariffs, not really a negotiation,' he said. — State of play: The president is unpredictable, and Canadian officials don't often know what he's going to do until he does it. — For example: Trump caught Canada off guard when he paused negotiations over the digital services tax. He blindsided them again when he sent Carney a letter to say tariffs on Canadian goods would increase to 35 percent on Aug. 1. — The devil in the details: The White House is playing coy about whether the 35 percent tariff would exempt goods that comply with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. While the U.S. has suggested that would be the case, the decision ultimately lies with Trump. Canada will view the lack of an exemption as a serious setback at the table. → Why it matters: That exemption would mean most Canadian businesses would retain tariff-free access to the U.S. market. 'The vast majority of Canadian goods and services are tariff-free,' Carney told reporters last week in Hamilton, Ontario. — In related news: The Globe's JASON KIRBY and MARK RENDELL explain why in a world of tariff pain, USMCA gives Canada an edge — for now. — But, but, but: Trump's tariffs are hammering four Canadian sectors: steel, aluminum, autos and lumber. Another could soon be hit: Trump said a new 50 percent tariff on imported copper will take effect Aug. 1. — Where we go from here: Canada is looking for certainty, so it can provide relief for impacted sectors and stability to investors. So far, officials have been dodging questions about further retaliation, but the Liberal government previously promised to match Trump's tariffs on aluminum if they don't reach a deal. — Worth noting: The Globe's NOJOUD AL MALLEES reports that the government collected about C$1.5 billion more in import duties in April and May over the same period last year, a 180 percent increase thanks to countertariffs. — Trump insists: He will negotiate with 'three or four other countries' before Aug. 1. Others will have just his letter. 'Most of the others are going to be a certain tariff and we're going to keep it as low as we can. They're generally smaller countries or countries we don't do much business with, but they've already received, to a large extent, they've received a letter,' Trump said Sunday. → Coming up: Trump said countries that don't get a deal will receive a confirmation letter this week. Commerce Secretary HOWARD LUTNICK said other countries can keep talking to Trump beyond that date. 'I mean, he's always willing to listen. And between now and then, I think the president's going to talk to a lot of people. Whether they can make him happy is another question,' Lutnick said on 'Fox News Sunday.' Negotiators on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border will keep talking. — In related reading from POLITICO: 'Donaldddddd': Foreign leaders schmooze Trump on his personal cell. THREE THINGS WE'RE WATCHING ECONOMIC INDICATORS This week's data could reinforce fears Canada is tipping into recession: — On Wednesday, interest rates: Most bank economists think TIFF MACKLEM will hold the Bank of Canada's policy rate steady at 2.75 percent. Macklem also stood pat in June and April announcements after seven consecutive cuts dating to 2024. 'At this point, there is a bit less than a 50% chance of even one cut priced in for the rest of 2025,' BMO's DOUG PORTER wrote in a lookahead note. In their own note, RBC's CLAIRE FAN and ABBEY XU sized up the impact of stubbornly high core inflation measures, a 'weakening but relatively resilient economic backdrop' and the potential for increased federal spending amid the threat of permanent tariffs. Their conclusion: 'We do not expect the [bank] will cut again in this cycle.' — On Thursday, GDP data: Most bank economists are projecting a slight turn to the negative for month-over-month May numbers. Porter raised the specter of an economy that shrinks in the second quarter of 2025. A decline in consecutive quarters meets the technical definition of recession. (But remember: Q1 GDP grew by 2.2 percent — exceeding expectations.) THE EPSTEIN CRISIS Scandal dominates U.S. newscycles as fallout continues: The president failed to move the news cycle past JEFFREY EPSTEIN last week, and the narrative shows no sign of fading. — In related reading: ANKUSH KHARDORI, a senior writer for POLITICO Magazine and a former federal prosecutor at the Department of Justice, annotates shifts in the Trump administration's rhetoric in response to the scandal. INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE TO GAZA Canada continues to recalibrate its foreign policy: Foreign Affairs Minister ANITA ANAND is in New York today for a United Nations conference on achieving a Palestinian state, The Star reports. Prime Minister MARK CARNEY has called Israel's 'denial of humanitarian aid' in Gaza 'a violation of international law.' The PM has stopped short of following France, which will recognize a Palestinian state in September, the first G7 nation to do so. Trump is also due to meet with British PM KEIR STARMER today to talk about the need for a ceasefire in Gaza. THE ROOMS THAT MATTER — PM Carney will make an affordability announcement in Prince County, Prince Edward Island at 9:30 a.m. — Former PM STEPHEN HARPER will deliver a keynote at the Midwestern Legislative Conference annual meeting in Saskatoon at 9:30 a.m. local time. Topic: The importance and future of the Canada-U.S. relationship. PLAYBOOK'S ONE-ON-ONE 'NOT JUST … BLAH BLAH BLAH' — As the PM talks a big game about reducing Canada's dependence on the United States, the European Union's top envoy in Canada insists transatlantic bonds are tightening between Ottawa and Brussels. 'Something is happening now, very concretely, not just political blah blah blah,' GENEVIÈVE TUTS told Playbook in an interview in her office on Friday. — Seriously: Tuts described June's EU-Canada summit as 'not just symbolic,' but a 'crucial' and 'historic' moment for the longtime allies in the face of geopolitical uncertainty and global tariff tension. 'I felt a real commitment to deliver on very concrete topics.' — Once more, with feeling: 'This was not a show,' said Tuts, whose note-taking tic — we all have one — is repeatedly drawing circles around her scribbles. 'This was a strong willingness, and this was sincere.' — More trade, please: Tuts was hawkish on expanding business takeup on the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement — Canada's free-trade deal with the EU first applied provisionally in 2017. 'It's good, but we could go from good to great,' she says. The 'main challenge' is making sure businesses that do trade are aware of CETA, Tuts said. She points to a new EU-Canada industrial policy dialogue, as well as nascent negotiations on a digital trade agreement, as opportunities to get the word out. → There's an app for that: Tuts nodded to creative solutions to 'matchmaking' companies on opposite sides of the Atlantic. 'I had a discussion in Brussels with one of my colleagues who was even talking about having an app, a sort of Tinder CETA, to organize this matchmaking process,' Tuts said. — Let's talk: Our colleagues in Europe have reported on formal talks between the European Commission and Canada, as well as Japan, to coordinate responses to Trump tariffs. → Well, d'uh: Tuts described those conversations as a no-brainer. 'This is not surprising that people facing the same challenges, people who are allies and friends, talk to each other,' she told us. 'The relationship between President von der Leyen and Prime Minister Carney is very good. They know each other. They speak the same language. They understand each other. And they talk to each other on a regular basis.' — ICYMI: HBD +2 to Tuts, who celebrated Saturday. MORNING MUST-CLICKS — 'There's no shortage of people in Ottawa trying to think big thoughts. I think if there's a problem it's at the service delivery,' author and scholar DONALD J. SAVOIE tells AMNA AHMAD in a National Post Q&A. — From AARON WHERRY over the weekend: Can Mark Carney move fast and not break things? — The NDP has released the rules for its leadership race. Via DAVID BAXTER of The Canadian Press: 'They're telling candidates they must gather specific numbers of signatures from supporters in diverse regional, racial and LGBTQ+ groups.' — Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami President NATAN OBED told the Globe's EMILY HAWS that in the next decade Inuit are looking to build 79 projects, totaling about C$30 billion. — The PM sat with APTN's DENNIS WARD for a one-on-one interview. — In his latest missive, PAUL WELLS observes 'there is a notable droop to the once proudly waving Canadian elbow.' LOBBY WATCH Our daily check-in on federal lobbyist registrations and notable meetings around town: — Westport Fuel Systems, a fuel delivery component supplier, posted a July 24 meeting with PMO policy coordinator JOSHUA SWIFT. The company is advocating for federal programs that 'encourage the adoption of alternative fuel vehicles — specifically vehicles that use natural gas and/or hydrogen as a primary fuel.' PLAYBOOKERS Birthdays: HBD to MARCO MENDICINO, former Cabmin who served briefly as Carney's chief of staff. Greetings also to Sandstone Group senior associate, longtime Liberal staffer and Playbook trivia regular GEORGE YOUNG. Birthdays, gatherings, social notices for this community: Send them our way. Movers and shakers: NATAN OBED told the Globe he'll be seeking reelection as president at the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami's annual general meeting in September. Alberta MP HEATHER MCPHERSON says she is 'considering' entering the NDP leadership race. 'I've certainly had lots of folks ask me to.' ANDREW WING is now the executive assistant to Northern and Arctic Affairs Minister REBECCA CHARTRAND. Spotted: Retired teacher YOLAINE MUNTER, mother to Canadian Medical Association CEO ALEX MUNTER, scoring a shoutout from GABRIELA DABROWSKI as the Ottawa-born tennis star received a key to the city. 'There's no greater thrill for my mom Yolaine than to celebrate the success of former students,' Munter posted on social media. A visiting teenager, telling Playbook on Friday that he'd dreamed for years of visiting the House of Commons — and, when he finally took a tour, was overwhelmed enough that he nearly fainted on entering the chamber. Noted: AILISH CAMPBELL has wrapped up her time as Canada's EU ambassador. Manitoba Premier WAB KINEW has called a by-election in Spruce Woods for Aug. 26. Elections Canada deregistered the Edmonton Riverbend Green Party Association, effective July 31. Via DARREN MAJOR of CBC News: As of Sunday evening, 209 candidates had registered to run in the Battle River-Crowfoot by-election. BRUCE ANDERSON has returned to 'Good Talk' after stepping away from the pod during the federal election campaign. The Canadian Coast Guard isn't monitoring that Chinese research vessel, but the U.S. Coast Guard did. PROZONE For Pro subscribers, our latest policy newsletter. In other news for Pro readers: — Commerce triples anti-dumping duties on Canadian softwood lumber. — Tesla barred from offering autonomous rides in California. — USDA chief says potentially half of its DC staff may not relocate for reorganization. — EU plan to offshore climate action not grounded in analysis, commission admits. — Whale entanglements decline but still threaten survival. TRIVIA Friday's answer: In 2013, HULK HOGAN arm-wrestled then-Mayor ROB FORD to help promote the Fan Expo convention in Toronto. The other 1980s wrestler who challenged Ford to an arm wrestling match — but never got one — was the IRON SHEIK. (Thanks to DARREN MAJOR for the submission.) Props to PATRICK DION, DAVID GRANOVSKY, RAY DEL BIANCO, JEFFREY VALOIS, BOB GORDON, DARRYL DAMUDE, JOHN PEPPER, DAVE PENNER, AIDEN MUSCOVITCH, ELIZABETH BURN, CAMERON PENNER, MALCOLM MCKAY, ROBERT MCDOUGALL, AXEL RIOUX and ADAM SMITH. Today's question: In celebration of the birthday of CAMILLA, the royal family shared a portrait of the queen consort. What Canadian novel was she deep into reading in the photo? Send your answer to canadaplaybook@ Canada Playbook would not happen without: Canada Editor Sue Allan, editor Willa Plank and POLITICO's Grace Maalouf.
Boston Globe
6 days ago
- General
- Boston Globe
Kids still aren't going to school. Here are six big ideas to get absenteeism under control.
At that rate of decline, it will take another 21 years for the state's students to show up at their pre-pandemic rate. Related : Advertisement Is there any hope to turn things around? The Globe went looking for big ideas that might work. Here's what we found: Pay students for attendance Boston School Committee member Brandon Cardet-Hernandez has called for Think that's extreme? This approach has been The Detroit program, which officials recently decided to extend, caps out at $1,000 per student per year. That may sound exorbitant, but Massachusetts spends more than $21,000 per student per year; spending a fraction to make sure those students actually attend school could be worth it. Advertisement Cardet-Hernandez said it was missed opportunity to not use the state's federal pandemic relief funds on paying for attendance. Doing so would be an 'upfront investment' in the future of the region's students and economy. 'When we have young people who are years behind in literacy and math skills, is there an opportunity for us to think differently about our values and to create a financial incentive to grow those skills?' he asked. Related : Make kids get some sleep Tim Daly, chief executive officer of the education nonprofit EdNavigator, pointed to Sleep is a hard problem for schools to address — it happens when children are at home — but Daly had one idea for how schools could help: disabling school-issued devices. 'Sometimes when kids stay up too late, they're using the devices to 'do homework' but really they're using them to stream,' Daly said. 'Not only would [disabling them] prevent them that, [schools] can message to parents, when that goes off, it's time to go to sleep.' Some school-issued devices have restrictions on non-academic uses, but often those only apply on district internet, and committed children can get around them. Even if the devices are being used for homework, staying up late working on homework is bad for sleep. Parents can also restrict screentime, whether schools step in or not. 'The most important thing we need to do is help kids with their nighttime routines,' Daly said. Some districts have also moved high school start times later to better align them with adolescent sleep cycles. Advertisement Focus on the neediest students Lawrence Public Schools, a high-poverty district that serves large numbers of immigrants, has made major gains from its peak in 2022, when the majority of students were chronically absent. Its overall rate is higher than the state, but rapid progress has continued. As of March of this year, absenteeism was down to 21 percent, a 4.5 point improvement from 2024, and many groups — low income students, English learners, and Black students — have lower absenteeism rates than peers statewide. Ralph Carrero, the superintendent, said the district's Homeless/Newcomer Coalition was the key intervention. The coalition brings together more than a dozen of the city's social service agencies and nonprofits — housing, healthcare, transportation, food, and more. The members meet monthly to individually discuss every homeless or new-to-the-country immigrant student in the district and make sure their needs are being met, in and outside of school. 'It's not a formula, it's not a secret, it's paying attention,' Carrero said. The district has about 500 homeless students each year and many recent immigrants, so focusing on meeting their needs has a big impact on attendance. Get pediatricians involved Mary Beth Miotto, a pediatrician and former president of the state chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, encourages her colleagues to consider school attendance a 'vital sign,' just like blood pressure. Because pediatricians are not part of the school system, Miotto has found she can have positive conversations with parents without unintentionally invoking the specter of truancy. Advertisement Absenteeism is highest among high-needs populations, including low income students, who may not have primary care physicians, so Miotto said everyone in the medical profession, including ER and urgent care doctors, should be asking about school attendance. 'We can pour all the money into schools and teachers, but if kids aren't showing up, it's not helping,' she said. Restructure schools around relationships Hedy Chang, founder and director of the nonprofit Attendance Works, praised Providence's Nathanael Greene Middle School, which cut its absenteeism rate from more than 50 percent in 2021-22 to 30 percent in 2023-24, about equal to its pre-pandemic level. Attendance experts swear by relationship-building, as students have to believe people will miss them when they're gone, but just deciding to build relationships isn't necessarily enough. The school's principal, W. Jackson Reilly, 'reorganized the school so relationship-building was built into how it operated,' Chang said. Students are divided into cohorts, with a specified team of teachers sticking to one of them, Chang said. Each cohort also had classrooms close to each other. Related : This meant that the students were face-to-face with the same group of classmates and teachers, every day, rather than bouncing around to far-flung parts of the school. Districts need to design schools so relationships don't depend on 'happenstance,' Chang said. Robert Balfanz, the director of the Everyone Graduates Center at Johns Hopkins University School of Education, suggested bringing in outside mentors, such as local college students, for a similar reason. 'If you're a school with 200 or 300 chronically absent kids, you're going to have to form some partnerships,' he said. 'Get more adults in the school.' Advertisement Even tutoring, which can be hamstrung by high absenteeism, In some cases, incentivize through consequences Absenteeism has risen in every type of district since the pandemic, and in some places, 'negative nudges' could help, Balfanz said. For example, he said, many high schoolers play hooky regularly but still turn in the assignments posted online by their teachers so their grades aren't negatively affected. Some of those students might attend regularly if their grades were on the line for attendance or if the homework wasn't online. 'The benefits of being in school are more than just the assignments,' Balfanz noted. 'If I'm on a four-day-a-week plan and think I can skate by, a more negative nudge might get me to make that fifth day.' But he warned the approach has risks: if a student is avoiding school due to bullying, for example, punitive options might instead drive them further away. Christopher Huffaker can be reached at
Boston Globe
24-07-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Worcester city councilor pleads not guilty to assaulting police during chaotic ICE interaction
'As both a mother and an elected official, I will always stand up for my constituents, particularly women and children,' Haxhiaj told reporters outside court, per footage that MassLive Advertisement Supporters erupted in cheers as the councilor spoke, but police framed her actions differently in an incident report filed with the court. The report said Worcester police on May 8 responded to the area of 36 Eureka St. for a report of a large group 'surrounding federal officers.' Responding city officers learned federal agents had made an arrest and that members of the large group were yelling at them and 'interfering' with their efforts to safely leave the area with the person they'd placed into custody, the report said. The incident report didn't identify the federal agencies involved in the arrest, but Haxhiaj, the report said, was allegedly seen 'pulling the restraints of the arrested as they were being escorted to the transport vehicle.' Advertisement She also allegedly 'continued to obstruct the federal officers as they attempted to leave the area,' the report said. Worcester Police Officer Shauna McGuirk approached Haxhiaj as the councilor held onto the side mirror of the transport vehicle, telling her 'several times' to move away, according to the report. It said Haxhiaj 'ignored several verbal requests' and allegedly pushed the officer away by 'striking P.O. McGuirk in the chest.' A few minutes later as McGuirk was arresting someone else, the report continued, Haxhiaj 'approached P.O. McGuirk from the side and pulled at P.O. McGuirk's arm.' That alleged act of civil disobedience 'interfered with the arrest and caused officers to divert their attention to Haxhiaj and away from the arrest,' the filing said. The Globe Outside court Wednesday, supporters of Haxhiaj cheered when she said she'd entered a plea of not guilty, according to the YouTube footage. 'I am resolute and unapologetic in maintaining my innocence,' Haxhiaj said. 'The overwhelming number of Worcester residents and Americans across the country are opposed to armed, masked men snatching our people off our streets and neighborhoods, terrifying mothers, children, fathers, families, and whole communities.' She said that while it's 'disappointing and disheartening to invest time, effort, and resources fighting these charges, it is absolutely nothing compared to Worcester families living in fear of being torn apart.' Haxhiaj also said she would 'always, now and forever, stand up and stand by our immigrant brothers and sisters, our neighbors, who are facing a horrific regime.' Advertisement Her next court date is scheduled for Sept. 25. Material from prior Globe stories was used in this report. Travis Andersen can be reached at
