ICYMI: May 11-18
I went on Shortcuts to speak to host Noor Azrieh about Alberta’s separatist movement, pipeline politics and the Centurion Project, as well as the risks of false antisemitism accusations.
Blogroll
Story of the Week
Oil Pipelines Align With Jesus, Danielle Smith Tells Christian Leaders, Mary Stuart and Geoff Dembicki, DeSmog (May 13)
The premier argued that a new pipeline would help meet growing global energy demand. But she also had a message specifically tailored to her Christian audience. “There’s another way to look at it,” she said. “I’m sure you remember the Parable of the Talents in the Gospel of Matthew — in it, Jesus teaches about stewardship.”
Smith said that particular biblical passage refers to humankind being entrusted with resources that must be managed carefully for the benefit of other people. This “fits with how Albertans feel about the resources that are beneath our feet,” she said.
It’s rare for a Canadian politician to explicitly link oil and gas expansion to the Bible. But there has long been an undercurrent of Christian theology surrounding Alberta’s oil patch, explained Darren Dochuk, a history professor at the University of Notre Dame and author of Anointed With Oil: How Christianity and Crude Made Modern America.
“Considering the fact she governs a province known both for its oil and religiosity, it is little surprise that Premier Smith tapped the New Testament for biblical justification of pipelines and extraction,” he wrote in an email to DeSmog.
Alberta
Alberta’s privacy watchdog concerned incoming law allows Crown to sell customers’ personal information, Janet French, CBC News (May 11)
Separatist leader accused of misusing Alberta electors list refuses to co-operate with investigators, Carrie Tait and Matthew Scace, Globe and Mail (May 11)
Whatsoever Things Get You a Job, Roberta Lexier, Alberta Views (May 2026 issue)
‘Seniors have become an ATM’; Union for continuing care workers calls on province to keep providers in check, Liam Newbigging, Edmonton Journal (May 15)
Canada
Carney Doubles Down On War On Drugs With Mail-Seizure Powers, Emma Paling, The Maple (May 14)
Organizers of Toronto Al-Quds Day rally sue Ford for defamation, Alina Snisarenko, CBC News (May 14)
Feds plan to weaken clean electricity regulations, Natasha Bulowski, Canada’s National Observer (May 14)
Carney and Smith agree on terms to build a new oil pipeline, Natasha Bulowski, Canada’s National Observer (May 15)
World’s largest carbon capture complex gets go-ahead in Ottawa’s oilsands ‘grand bargain’, Darius Snieckus, Canada’s National Observer (May 15)
Carney government proposal targets extinction protections for endangered killer whales off B.C. coast, Althia Raj, Toronto Star (May 15)
U.S.
The Old Guard, Samuel Moyn, Harper’s (May 2026 issue)
Miami Beach Official Hired Billboard Truck to Call Pro-Palestine Activist “Jew Haters,” Lawsuit Alleges, Noah Hurowitz, The Intercept (May 13)
Canadian Firms Putting Indigenous Rights At Risk In Nevada: Report, Alex Cosh, The Maple (May 15)
Alberta Separatist Group’s Controversial Voter ID App Has Links to US Ambassador, MAGA Influencers and Wealthy Michigan Republicans, Luke LeBrun, PressProgress (May 18)
We Are Bombarding America’s Forests With Roundup, Nate Halverson, Mother Jones (May/June 2026 issue)
Middle East
How Israel Turned Eurovision’s Stage Into a Soft Power Tool, Mara Hvistendahl and Alex Marshall, New York Times (May 11)
Israeli Forces Raid UNRWA Compound Near Jerusalem; IDF Says Palestinian Gunman Opened Fire, Nir Hasson, Bar Peleg and Rawan Suleiman, Haaretz (May 11)
The Silence That Meets the Rape of Palestinians, Nicholas Kristoff, New York Times (May 11)
Saudi Arabia floats Middle Eastern non-aggression pact with Iran, Andrew England and Henry Foy, Financial Times (May 14)
Tech
Elon Musk loses case against OpenAI after two hours of jury deliberations, George Hammond, Financial Times (May 18)
Culture
Can Drake reconnect with Toronto, the city that once loved him, with his new ‘Iceman’ album? Richie Assaly, Toronto Star (May 14)