Business Owner

Ontario premier threatens US energy cut-off over Trump tariffs [Video]
►
Categories
Home Based Business

Ontario premier threatens US energy cut-off over Trump tariffs [Video]

The premier of Canada’s most populous province said Wednesday he will cut off energy to the United States if President-elect Donald Trump imposes sweeping tariffs on all Canadian products.Trump has threatened to impose a 25% tax on all products entering the U.S. from Canada and Mexico unless they stem the flow of migrants and drugs.We’re going to put our list together, and I’m sure the other provinces will as well. But we will go to the full extent, depending on how far this goes. We will go to the extent of cutting off their energy, Ontario Premier Doug Ford said after meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and other provincial premiers.Ford said he didn’t want this to happen but wasn’t optimistic Canada could avoid tariffs.This fight is 100% coming on Jan. 20 or Jan. 21, he said, referencing to the date of Trumps inauguration.We will use every tool in our tool box to fight back. We cant sit back and roll over. We just wont as a country. And isnt this a shame, our closest friends and allies.”About 60% of U.S. crude oil imports are from Canada, and 85% of U.S. electricity imports as well.It wasn’t immediately clear if Ford was talking about all Canadian provinces cutting off energy exports to the U.S. or just his province. But a spokeswoman for Ford, Grace Lee, said it was raised in the call between Trudeau and the provincial premiers.Premier Ford can only speak on behalf of Ontario, but its an area of provincial jurisdiction that we would certainly look at, Lee said in an email.Lee noted Ontario powered 1.5 million homes in the U.S. in 2023 and is a major exporter of electricity to Michigan, Minnesota and New York.Trumps transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the threat.Canada is also the largest foreign supplier of steel, aluminum and uranium to the U.S. and has 34 critical minerals and metals that the Pentagon is eager for and investing for national security.Canada, of course, will respond to unjustified tariffs, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said after the meeting.Freeland said a number of provincial premiers voiced support for a robust response to the tariffs and said that included critical minerals that are exported to the U.S.She didn’t specifically mention oil but said obviously other ideas were discussed as well when asked if Canada is considering cutting off oil exports to America.About a third of Canada’s trade to the U.S. is energy.Nearly $3.6 billion Canadian (US $2.7 billion) worth of goods and services cross the border each day. Canada is the top export destination for 36 U.S. states.Canada has promised more border security spending to address Trump’s concerns. Ford said that will include more border and police officers as well as drones and sniffer dogs.A priority will be to share details of this plan with the incoming Trump administration and with Canadians in the coming days, Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc said.Trudeau said this week tariffs would be absolutely devastating for the Canadian economy, but it would also mean real hardship for Americans.Economists say companies would have little choice but to pass along the added costs, dramatically raising prices for food, clothing, automobiles, alcohol and other goods.The Produce Distributors Association, a Washington-based trade group, has said tariffs will raise prices for fresh fruit and vegetables and hurt U.S. farmers when the countries retaliate.Canada imposed duties in 2018 against the U.S. in a tit-for-tat response to new taxes on Canadian steel and aluminum.Canadas central bank, meanwhile, lowered its key interest rate by half a percentage point on Wednesday and called Trumps threat to impose sweeping new tariffs on Canada a major source of new uncertainty.We did underline that the threat of new tariffs on Canadian exports, particularly at the level suggested, that is a major source of new uncertainty, Bank of Canada Tiff Macklem said at a press conference. But the reality is we don’t know if those tariffs are going to be implemented.”We don’t know if exemptions are going to be agreed on some parts, we don’t know at what level, we don’t know if Canada will take retaliatory measures.Trudeau, meanwhile, got the attention of billionaire Elon Musk, a big supporter of Trump, with comments he made Tuesday lamenting that U.S. voters selected Trump over Kamala Harris as president.We were supposed to be on a steady if difficult sometimes march toward progress. And yet, just a few weeks ago, the United States voted for a second time to not elect its first woman president, Trudeau said at a event sponsored by Equal Voice, an organization dedicated to improving gender representation in Canadian politics. Everywhere, womens rights and womens progress is under attack overtly and subtly.Musk called Trudeau insufferable” in a post on X. Won’t be in power for much longer, he wrote.Ford also criticized Trudeau for the remarks.They are not helpful at all. It was brought up a couple of times in our meeting, Ford said. Donald Trump was elected democratically. If you like him or you dont like him thats not our issue. We elect Canadians and it was not helpful whatsoever. Im sure the prime minister got the message loud and clear.

It’s one of America’s biggest party cities. So why is New Orleans banning shiny balloons and confetti? [Video]
►
Categories
Home Based Business

It’s one of America’s biggest party cities. So why is New Orleans banning shiny balloons and confetti? [Video]

New Orleans, known for its celebrations and festive spirit, is now banning the release of metallic balloons a decision that follows repeated disruption to the city’s electrical services and sewer systems caused by stray and discarded balloons.Related video above: In November, New Orleans City Council banned the release of Mylar balloons in cityThe city council passed an ordinance last month banning the release of Mylar balloons and all those coated in metal or other “conductive material.” It doesn’t prohibit buying the balloons.Over the summer, a wayward cluster of metallic balloons triggered a widespread power outage in Orleans Parish after coming into contact with a power line. The brief outage caused the city’s water pumps to be “tripped offline,” according to area energy provider Entergy, leading to a disruption of the city’s water treatment plant and even causing serious injury to a Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans employee.”For almost a 24-hour period, the world thought our water supply could be knocked out by a Mylar balloon,” Council Member JP Morell said at a meeting in August.A vocal public safety advocate, Council Member Joseph Giarrusso began pushing this summer for the ban on metallic balloon releases in New Orleans to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future.”We simply cannot afford to have power outages and hurt ourselves unnecessarily,” Giarrusso told city council in a meeting last month. “And unfortunately, Mylar balloons, those foil balloons, conduct electricity, they cause power outages and they make things unsafe for residents and harder for us to live here.”Giarrusso’s concerns extend beyond the incident in August, he told CNN; he was motivated by a series of similar events throughout the state and across the nation, all stemming from the mishandling of electrically conductive party decorations.”I actually spoke to a former state senator who told me that in another part of the state, somebody had fired a (metallic) confetti cannon at a power line and the electricity arced back to the float and almost caught the float on fire,” he said.In February 2023, officials said, a confetti cannon may have played a role in a brief power failure during a Carnival celebration in New Orleans. Video posted on social media shows the power going out at the parade moments after a confetti cannon was fired from a float.The city council passed an ordinance in July that included a ban on confetti cannons and confetti at parades.Desiree Ontiveros, founder of New Orleans based Badass Balloon Co., said she supports the ban on metallic balloons but argues city efforts should focus on upgrading outdated infrastructure instead.”There’s just better ways for City Council to be spending their time than banning balloons,” she said, calling for investments that would more effectively tackle the root of the problem.”Yes, balloons shouldn’t be released it’s littering, at the end of the day,” Ontiveros said, pointing out her company has long discouraged releases, even including a policy against releases on its website. Badass Balloon Co. specializes in biodegradable latex balloons and air-filled installations designed for creative displays rather than soaring into the sky.It’s not only a problem in New Orleans. While balloon releases can be a symbolic act for people either celebrating or mourning, they also pose significant environmental risks. In places like the University of Nebraska, the practice has become commonplace during the school’s homecoming game when students, upholding a decades-long tradition, release thousands of balloons into the sky.But even Cornhuskers with their long-standing tradition are facing a balloon ban of their own. The Association of Students for the University of Nebraska passed a bill last month opposing the release of “red balloons at home football games after Nebraska’s first touchdown,” according to the Daily Nebraskan. Improperly disposed-of balloons can also end up in the ocean and along shorelines, becoming part of marine debris, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Marine Debris Program.Discarded balloons that enter the ocean can then become mistaken for food and eaten by wildlife, causing internal injury, starvation and even death, NOAA says.

It’s one of America’s biggest party cities. So why is New Orleans banning shiny balloons and confetti? [Video]
►
Categories
Home Based Business

It’s one of America’s biggest party cities. So why is New Orleans banning shiny balloons and confetti? [Video]

New Orleans, known for its celebrations and festive spirit, is now banning the release of metallic balloons a decision that follows repeated disruption to the city’s electrical services and sewer systems caused by stray and discarded balloons.Related video above: In November, New Orleans City Council banned the release of Mylar balloons in cityThe city council passed an ordinance last month banning the release of Mylar balloons and all those coated in metal or other “conductive material.” It doesn’t prohibit buying the balloons.Over the summer, a wayward cluster of metallic balloons triggered a widespread power outage in Orleans Parish after coming into contact with a power line. The brief outage caused the city’s water pumps to be “tripped offline,” according to area energy provider Entergy, leading to a disruption of the city’s water treatment plant and even causing serious injury to a Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans employee.”For almost a 24-hour period, the world thought our water supply could be knocked out by a Mylar balloon,” Council Member JP Morell said at a meeting in August.A vocal public safety advocate, Council Member Joseph Giarrusso began pushing this summer for the ban on metallic balloon releases in New Orleans to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future.”We simply cannot afford to have power outages and hurt ourselves unnecessarily,” Giarrusso told city council in a meeting last month. “And unfortunately, Mylar balloons, those foil balloons, conduct electricity, they cause power outages and they make things unsafe for residents and harder for us to live here.”Giarrusso’s concerns extend beyond the incident in August, he told CNN; he was motivated by a series of similar events throughout the state and across the nation, all stemming from the mishandling of electrically conductive party decorations.”I actually spoke to a former state senator who told me that in another part of the state, somebody had fired a (metallic) confetti cannon at a power line and the electricity arced back to the float and almost caught the float on fire,” he said.In February 2023, officials said, a confetti cannon may have played a role in a brief power failure during a Carnival celebration in New Orleans. Video posted on social media shows the power going out at the parade moments after a confetti cannon was fired from a float.The city council passed an ordinance in July that included a ban on confetti cannons and confetti at parades.Desiree Ontiveros, founder of New Orleans based Badass Balloon Co., said she supports the ban on metallic balloons but argues city efforts should focus on upgrading outdated infrastructure instead.”There’s just better ways for City Council to be spending their time than banning balloons,” she said, calling for investments that would more effectively tackle the root of the problem.”Yes, balloons shouldn’t be released it’s littering, at the end of the day,” Ontiveros said, pointing out her company has long discouraged releases, even including a policy against releases on its website. Badass Balloon Co. specializes in biodegradable latex balloons and air-filled installations designed for creative displays rather than soaring into the sky.It’s not only a problem in New Orleans. While balloon releases can be a symbolic act for people either celebrating or mourning, they also pose significant environmental risks. In places like the University of Nebraska, the practice has become commonplace during the school’s homecoming game when students, upholding a decades-long tradition, release thousands of balloons into the sky.But even Cornhuskers with their long-standing tradition are facing a balloon ban of their own. The Association of Students for the University of Nebraska passed a bill last month opposing the release of “red balloons at home football games after Nebraska’s first touchdown,” according to the Daily Nebraskan. Improperly disposed-of balloons can also end up in the ocean and along shorelines, becoming part of marine debris, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Marine Debris Program.Discarded balloons that enter the ocean can then become mistaken for food and eaten by wildlife, causing internal injury, starvation and even death, NOAA says.

Box Office Report; ‘Invincible’ S3 Trailer, Date; Alan Moore Endorses Adaptation Deal; ‘Nyaight of the Living Cat’ Trailer; ‘Infinity’ Studio Acquired; TV Rights for Masked Republic, Massive Comic [Video]
►
Categories
Home Based Business

Box Office Report; ‘Invincible’ S3 Trailer, Date; Alan Moore Endorses Adaptation Deal; ‘Nyaight of the Living Cat’ Trailer; ‘Infinity’ Studio Acquired; TV Rights for Masked Republic, Massive Comic [Video]

Daily coverage of the pop culture products industry, including toys (action figures, models and statues), anime (anime, manga, and Japanese imports), games (collectible card and roleplaying games or ccgs and rpgs), comics (comics and graphic novels), and movie and TV (licensed) merchandise. We feature business news, and in-depth analysis for retailers, publishers, manufacturers, distributors. Trade properties we cover include Star Wars, Star Trek, X-Men, Gundam Wing, Dragonball Z, Pokemon, Akira, Lone Wolf and Cub, Magic the Gathering, Dungeons and Dragons, Mage Knight, Superman, Spider-man, JLA, Batman, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, J.R.R. Tolkien, Sailor Moon, Sandman, Harry Potter. Genres we cover include fantasy, science fiction, horror.

Israel strikes Gaza hospital, neighbors close borders with Syria [Video]
►
Categories
Home Based Business

Israel strikes Gaza hospital, neighbors close borders with Syria [Video]

Palestinian officials say at least 29 people were killed, including four medical staff, when Israeli strikes pummeled the area around one of the last remaining hospitals in northern Gaza.Related video above: Biden admin brokers ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon-based militants, Hezbollah (11/27/24)Elsewhere in the region, Lebanon said it is closing all its land border crossings with Syria except for a main one that links Beirut with the Syrian capital, Damascus. Jordan also closed a border crossing with Syria because of the security situation on the Syrian side.Syrian insurgents have entered the central towns of Rastan and Talbiseh, just north of the central city of Homs, bringing them closer to Syria’s third largest city. A day earlier, jihadi-led opposition fighters captured the central city of Hama, Syria’s fourth largest.Israel’s war against Hamas has destroyed vast areas of Gaza and displaced 90% of the population of 2.3 million, often multiple times. The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel in October 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 250 people hostage.Israel’s blistering retaliatory offensive has killed at least 44,600 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were combatants. Israel says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence.Here’s the latest:Qatari prime minister sees movement in Gaza cease-fire negotiationsDOHA, Qatar The prime minister of Qatar says he has seen new momentum in Gaza cease-fire efforts since the U.S. presidential election, with the incoming Trump administration seeking an end to the conflict before it takes office.Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, a key mediator in the cease-fire efforts, declined to give specifics of the negotiations but told an international conference in Doha that the gaps between the sides are not large.Qatar, which has served as a mediator throughout the 14-month war, suspended its efforts last month in frustration over the lack of progress. But Sheikh Mohammed said his government has re-engaged in recent days after determining a new willingness by both parties to reach a deal.”We have sensed after the election that the momentum is coming back,” he told the Doha Forum on Saturday.He said has been in touch with both the outgoing Biden administration and the incoming Trump administration and found that while there are some differences in approach, both are committed to the same goal of ending the war.”We have seen a lot of encouragement from the incoming administration in order to achieve a deal, even before the president comes to the office,” Sheikh Mohammed said.He declined to discuss details, saying he wanted to “protect the process,” but expressed hope for a deal “as soon as possible.””If you look at the gaps and the disagreements, they are not something substantial that really affects the agreement,” he said.Israeli strikes kill at least 29 at hard-hit Gaza hospitalCAIRO At least 29 people were killed, including four medical staff, when Israeli strikes pummeled the area around one of the last remaining hospitals in northern Gaza, Palestinian officials said.The situation in and around the Kamal Adwan Hospital is “catastrophic,” according to Dr. Hussam Abu Safia, the director of the hospital. The dead included five children and five women, according to the hospital casualty list, which was obtained by The Associated Press.Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahiya is one of the few hospitals still partially operating in Gaza’s northernmost province, where Israeli forces are pressing an offensive that has almost completely sealed off the area from humanitarian aid for two months.Israel’s military denied that its forces had struck the hospital or operated inside it. The army said that in the past few weeks, “coordinated efforts with international organizations have been underway in order to transfer patients, companions, and medical staff to other hospitals.”An Indonesian medical team which had been assisting in Kamal Adwan for the past week was forced to evacuate on foot after the area was surrounded by Israeli soldiers, according to a statement from the team. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the medical team’s expulsion.Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, the World Health Organization representative in the Palestinian territories, said an Israeli tank approached the hospital at around 4 a.m. Friday. Although no official Israeli evacuation order was issued, “people started to climb the wall to escape, and this panic attracted IDF (Israeli) fire,” he said. He spoke by video from Gaza to journalists in Geneva.Kamal Adwan Hospital has been struck multiple times over the past two months since Israel launched a fierce military operation in northern Gaza against Hamas militants. In October, Israeli forces raided the hospital, saying that militants were sheltering inside and arrested a number of people, including some staff. Hospital officials denied the claim.Saudi Arabia calls for an end to Gaza war and attacks Israel’s actionsMANAMA, Bahrain Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister has reiterated the kingdom’s call for an end to the war in the Gaza Strip.Prince Faisal bin Farhan described Israel as acting with “impunity and is getting away without punishment” in its war on Hamas there. The prince said that any permanent solution requires a two-state solution, with the Palestinians having east Jerusalem as their capital.After the speech, Prince Turki al-Faisal, a prominent royal in the kingdom who led Saudi intelligence for more than two decades and served as ambassador to the U.S. and Britain, took the stage. He harshly criticized Israel’s conduct in the wars.”Israel has become an apartheid, colonial and genocidal state,” Prince Turki said. “It is about time for the world to address that issue and take the necessary steps to bring those who are thus charged by the International Criminal Court to justice.”Israeli officials could not be immediately reached for comment on Prince Turki’s remarks. The Saudis spoke at the International Institute for Security Studies’ Manama Dialogue in Bahrain.After 15 months of abandonment, hostage homes are empty memorials KIBBUTZ NIR OZ, Israel After 15 months of war, the homes of Israeli hostages are like time capsules of a war zone. There’s a small blue bicycle flung to the ground outside the house of the Bibas family all of whom, including two young boys, Kfir and Ariel, are still in captivity. Nearby, the walls of Oded Lifshitz’s home are singed, the ceilings have partially collapsed, scars of the initial Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023, in which the elderly man and his wife, Yocheved, were abducted.Portraits of the hostages have been affixed to the doors of their homes. Someone has laid a sunflower next to a photo of David Cunio, who remains in Gaza after his wife and twin girls were released in a hostage exchange a year ago.Many are marked by graffiti left by Israeli forces during the days or sometimes weeks of fighting that followed the militants’ attack, to show houses cleared of fighters. Some are marked for eventual demolition because they are extensively damaged.One hundred hostages remain in Gaza, at least a third of whom Israeli officials say are dead. There’s a glimmer of hope that negotiations on a Gaza ceasefire, restarted this week after months of failed efforts, might be able to bring them home. A new video released last weekend by Hamas showed Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander, still alive.But there’s also deep fear. This week, troops brought back to Israel the body of Itay Svirsky, who was killed in the initial Hamas attack and whose body was taken to Gaza.The abandoned homes stand as a testament to growing grief among families who still don’t have their loved ones home after more than a year and wonder if they ever will.