Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Stewart Prest @stewartprest.ca · 8h

It's an irony of politics that the level of government that most directly affects how you live on a daily basis gets the least attention.

Go vote, Calgary! Same goes for the rest of Alberta, too.

Jason Markusoff @markusoff.bsky.social · 9h

Bracing for bleak election turnout.
Is everyone distracted? Too busy? Are people turned off by the candidates? Or do all of the above contribute to Calgary voters' current none-of-the-above mindset? www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

ANALYSIS | Calgary's 2025 meh-lection: how low can turnout go? | CBC News

With a mix of inattention and indecision tamping down excitement, advance voting has plunged. Will Calgarians' decision be to not bother?

www.cbc.ca

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Stewart Prest @stewartprest.ca · 23h

Spoke with Lyndsay Duncombe for CBC The National about the dangerous turn in pipeline rhetoric. To be Canadian is to be able to disagree on the direction of the country. We delegitimize opponents at our collective peril. youtu.be/8Cbk9T5mRak?...

Why the Western pipeline fight is different this time

YouTube video by CBC News: The National

youtu.be

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Reposted by Stewart Prest

Daniel Drezner @dandrezner.bsky.social · 1d

Are you fucking kidding me.

Scott Horton @robertscotthorton.bsky.social · 1d

Trump said he deserved a cut for brokering the TikTok deal, and at once there was agreement that his son Baron would have a top executive slot... though he hasn't asked for it, and has no apparent qualifications to hold it. This is how Trump 2.0 works. www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2025...

Barron Trump tipped for top TikTok job

US president’s 19-year-old son could be appointed to the app’s board

www.telegraph.co.uk

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TrustedReveler @trustedreveler.bsky.social · 4d

LA: we will fight you.

Chicago: we will fight you.

PDX: we will make you endure week after week of of improv theater.

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John Sipher @johnsipher.bsky.social · 1d

“Few commentators have considered how Trump v. United States has changed the distinction between lawful and unlawful orders.”

www.justsecurity.org/121919/milit...

The Crisis in Uniform: The Danger of Presidential Immunity for the U.S. Military

Military personnel are increasingly aware that they may be asked to prioritize loyalty to an individual over their rights and responsibilities

www.justsecurity.org

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Ryan J. Reilly “paints a vivid and urgent portrait of… disarray” @ryanjreilly.com · 1d

PORTLAND, Ore. — A small group of federal agents in camouflage and face masks watched from atop the immigration processing center Thursday night as a unicorn, peacock, dinosaur and raccoon danced to Cher’s “If I Could Turn Back Time.” www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...

Costumed protesters in Portland defy description of the city as a 'war zone'

Dancing frogs, peacocks and unicorns outside the federal immigration building present a joyful contrast to the Trump administration's portrait of the Oregon city, they say.

www.nbcnews.com

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The Tennessee Holler @thetnholler.bsky.social · 1d

Imagine that

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Costa Samaras @costasamaras.com · 2d

Picture how big the Hoover Dam is. An absolute unit. The Hoover Dam has a power capacity of 2 gigawatts (GW).

The solar farm that the Admin just cancelled could have produces 6.2 GW of power. That's more than 3 Hoover Dams.

jael holzman @jael.bsky.social · 2d

SCOOP: The Bureau of Land Management says the largest solar project in Nevada — the Esmeralda 7 mega-farm — has been canceled

The news was quietly dropped via a sudden website update with no public word from any of the companies involved or a statement from the agency

@heatmap.news

Esmeralda 7 Solar Project Has Been Canceled, BLM Says

It would have delivered a gargantuan 6.2 gigawatts of power.

heatmap.news

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Andrea Woo @andreawoo.bsky.social · 2d

‘Everlasting peace’ not guaranteed:
Palestinians and Israelis, poring through Trump’s Gaza peace deal, find reasons for hope but few details on their future, writes @markmackinnon.bsky.social
www.theglobeandmail.com/world/articl...

Trump’s Gaza deal is brimming with hope but short on details and long-term solutions

Both sides agree it’s a first step toward peace, but only the beginning of the path toward resolving the broader Israeli-Palestinian conflict

www.theglobeandmail.com

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Ron Deibert @rondeibert.bsky.social · 2d

For over a decade, we @citizenlab.ca have documented extensive abuse of NSO Group's spyware, including being used to target political opposition, journalists, activists, human rights defenders and US govt officials.

*This sale should not be permitted*

techcrunch.com/2025/10/10/s...

Spyware maker NSO Group confirms acquisition by US investors | TechCrunch

NSO Group confirmed to TechCrunch that an unnamed group of American investors has taken “controlling ownership” of the surveillance tech maker.

techcrunch.com

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Jacob Shamsian @jayshams.bsky.social · 3d

I've been wondering why Dominion Voting Systems suddenly reached settlements with Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell, and One America News.

Turns out, it's been purchased by a Republican-owned election tech firm that insisted on it, per Axios.

www.axios.com/2025/10/09/d...

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Felipe De La Hoz @felipedlh.bsky.social · 4d

You cannot be fucking serious

SCOOP: Apple Quietly Made ICE Agents a Protected Class

Internal emails show tech giant used anti-hate-speech rules meant for minorities to block an app documenting immigration enforcement.

migrantinsider.com

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Stewart Prest @stewartprest.ca · 4d

Works on multiple levels rn.

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Stewart Prest @stewartprest.ca · 5d

Irony is sitting this one out.

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Bruce Arthur @brucearthur.bsky.social · 5d

When you are flirting with separatism, anything can be un-Canadian

Stewart Prest @stewartprest.ca · 5d

This is dangerous rhetoric. Attempts to delegitimize opponents' right to take part in a conversation inevitably undermine respect on both sides.

It polarizes our politics, undermining trust in democracy, which depends on expressing disagreement.

www.ctvnews.ca/politics/art...

Danielle Smith meets with PM Mark Carney, calls B.C. premier ‘un-Canadian’

Prime Minister Mark Carney has committed to reaching an agreement regarding Alberta’s pitch for a proposed bitumen pipeline to the West Coast by next month, according to Premier Danielle Smith.

www.ctvnews.ca

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Stewart Prest @stewartprest.ca · 5d

This is dangerous rhetoric. Attempts to delegitimize opponents' right to take part in a conversation inevitably undermine respect on both sides.

It polarizes our politics, undermining trust in democracy, which depends on expressing disagreement.

www.ctvnews.ca/politics/art...

Danielle Smith meets with PM Mark Carney, calls B.C. premier ‘un-Canadian’

Prime Minister Mark Carney has committed to reaching an agreement regarding Alberta’s pitch for a proposed bitumen pipeline to the West Coast by next month, according to Premier Danielle Smith.

www.ctvnews.ca

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Stewart Prest @stewartprest.ca · 5d

In a democracy, we must accept the possibility we might lose, whether it's a policy debate, or an election.

I wrote this piece during the 2024 US election, but the principle applies more broadly.

theconversation.com/to-the-loser...

To the loser go the spoils? Hats off to the politicians who accept defeat — despite Trump’s precedent

In Canada, the recent provincial election in British Columbia shows just how important it is for losing politicians to accept defeat. regardless of the example set by Donald Trump.

theconversation.com

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Stewart Prest @stewartprest.ca · 5d

This is dangerous rhetoric. Attempts to delegitimize opponents' right to take part in a conversation inevitably undermine respect on both sides.

It polarizes our politics, undermining trust in democracy, which depends on expressing disagreement.

www.ctvnews.ca/politics/art...

Danielle Smith meets with PM Mark Carney, calls B.C. premier ‘un-Canadian’

Prime Minister Mark Carney has committed to reaching an agreement regarding Alberta’s pitch for a proposed bitumen pipeline to the West Coast by next month, according to Premier Danielle Smith.

www.ctvnews.ca

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Reposted by Stewart Prest

Emmett Macfarlane 🇨🇦 @emmettmacfarlane.com · 5d

Separation-stoking pot calls kettle un-Canadian.

National Newswatch @nationalnewswatch.com · 5d

Danielle Smith meets with PM Mark Carney, calls B.C. premier ‘un-Canadian’ www.ctvnews.ca/politics/art...

Find out more at nationalnewswatch.com

Danielle Smith meets with PM Mark Carney, calls B.C. premier ‘un-Canadian’

Prime Minister Mark Carney has committed to reaching an agreement regarding Alberta’s pitch for a proposed bitumen pipeline to the West Coast by next month, according to Premier Danielle Smith.

www.ctvnews.ca

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Reposted by Stewart Prest

Human Rights Index 💙 @humanrightsindex.bsky.social · 8d

📍 Portland, Oregon 🐸✊🏼✊🏾

A demonstrator dressed in an inflatable frog costume stands infront of law enforcement officers during a protest outside of the ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) headquarters in south Portland, Oregon, U.S., October 3, 2025. REUTERS/Carlos.

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Erin Lockwood @erinkaylockwood.bsky.social · 5d

Community member was surprised there weren't more protests at UCI and I was like, last spring the admin called in multiple police forces, arrested a couple dozen students and subjected them to an insulting student conduct process for completely peaceful protest; that was a pretty effective deterrent

Jake Grumbach @jakemgrumbach.bsky.social · 8d

Pretty incredible own goal by liberal institutions and many Democratic electeds to crush the exact type of protests in 2024 that would’ve been the most effective way to slow or stop ICE incursions into American cities in 2025

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Stewart Prest @stewartprest.ca · 5d

December 24th, naturally.

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Clara Jeffery @clarajeffery.bsky.social · 5d

Uh maybe this is happening even quicker than I thought it might www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

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Gillian Brockell @gbrockell.bsky.social · 6d

Claim: 10 cars rammed ICE
Truth: No cars rammed ICE

Claim: She boxed ICE in
Truth: ICE boxed her in

Claim: She shot a rifle at ICE
Truth: She did not have a rifle

Claim: ICE returned fire
Truth: Only ICE fired

Claim: She drove herself to the hospital
Truth: Paramedics found her

Chicago Sun-Times @chicago.suntimes.com · 6d

Body-camera video appears to contradict the government’s claim that Marimar Martinez, 30, drove toward officers before one of them opened fire at her late Saturday morning in Brighton Park, her attorney claimed.
trib.al/9Sxu9IN

Attorney for woman shot by Border Patrol claims officer said 'Do something b-----' before shooting

Body-camera video appears to contradict the government's claim that Marimar Martinez, 30, drove toward officers before one of them opened fire at her late Saturday morning in Brighton Park, her attorney claimed. A judge ordered Martinez and a co-defendant released pending trial.

trib.al

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Stewart Prest @stewartprest.ca · 5d

As concerning as the trouble the US is in is how hard it is for many to recognize it.

This is a problem that will only get worse, as those who do understand also realize the risks that come from speaking out. A unified opposition becomes both more important and harder to build the further we go.

Brendan Nyhan @brendannyhan.bsky.social · 6d

Danielle Allen fails the Lando test / lives out the Arrested Development meme: "A deal on the core principles in a compact could then become a framework for negotiating on legislation." Come ON. With this administration and this Congress?
therenovator.substack.com/p/why-im-exc...

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