Torrential rains unleash landslides that kill 7 in southern Philippines

Province to fund livestock cop to cut down on theft

BRANDON — The Manitoba government will fund a new RCMP position dedicated to investigating livestock theft.

The announcement is expected to be made today at the annual lunch for the Manitoba Beef Producers at the legislature.

Agriculture Minister Ron Kostyshyn said the investigative role will fill a pressing need.

“Personally speaking, I think this has been a long time waiting for this to come to reality,” the Dauphin MLA said Wednesday. “We are doing a great thing for the industry.”

Today’s horoscope

MOON ALERT: Caution. Avoid shopping (except for food and gas) and important decisions all day. The moon is in Virgo.

ARIES (March 21-April 19)

You might have to put your own emotional considerations second to those of someone else because an element of service is a theme for you. You also might explore ways to improve your health, especially through diet. Be aware there’s a moon alert all day.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20)

Jets trending in right direction after picking up points in first three games

Welcome to a small sample size season, when sweeping observations and hot takes can quickly become outdated and — occasionally — out of touch.

With that as a cautionary backdrop, the Winnipeg Jets are off to a 2-0-1 start that has them temporarily occupying top spot in the Central Division.

“We were optimistic that we’re a better team than we showed last year,” said Jets captain Adam Lowry. “We want to play fast. We want to compete hard, and we want to give ourselves a chance to win every night, so I think we’ve done that.”

As the Jets welcome the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday to open a three-game homestand, they’ve gotten off to a fast start in a season that required one.

Israeli election once again up for grabs

The next general election in Israel will be held on Oct. 27. Needless to say, like most elections in the country’s modern and fraught history since 1948, it is a critical contest between right and left, secular and orthodox, and left, moderate, right and extreme.

Also, given Israel’s complex proportional representative political system, which allocates a seat in its 120-seat Knesset (parliament) for winning only 3.25 per cent of the national vote, this election is nearly impossible to predict.

Even before 1948, Israelis’ ardent faith in democracy, their differing points of view and penchant for arguing led to the establishment of a multitude of political parties representing a smorgasbord of almost every conceivable position on the political spectrum.

Because no political party has ever won the 61 seats required to form a majority government, the major parties have frequently had to rely on fringe parties to hold power.

Klein claims he was offered PC party position to exit 2022 mayoral race to help Gillingham win

Mayoral candidate Kevin Klein said he was offered a position with the provincial Tories if he pulled out of the 2022 mayoral race that saw then-city councillor Scott Gillingham defeat former mayor Glen Murray.

Amazon in the weeds over damage to tall grass reserve

Patricia Dutchak was devastated when she first saw the wide swaths of crushed grass and upturned soil at Winnipeg’s Rotary Prairie Nature Park, a municipal heritage site.

“This is a very rare ecosystem, a remnant of tall grass prairie, there’s barely any left in the world, and to come here and see all this damage was heartbreaking,” Dutchak, chair of the Transcona Rotary Club’s parks committee, says.

The club is responsible for maintaining the protected green space, which was significantly damaged this summer when a fence between the park and the neighbouring Amazon distribution centre was relocated.

The 20-acre nature preserve is situated on a narrow tract of land on Regent Avenue West in the commercial heart of Transcona. The park received its municipal heritage designation in 1992 and is, today, surrounded by high-traffic streets, industrial warehouses and car dealerships.