Facebook and Instagram users in Europe could get ad-free subscription option, WSJ reports

Don’t buy U.S. booze if, when it’s back on Liquor Mart shelves: Kinew

Manitoba hasn’t agreed to put American liquor back on shelves despite Prime Minister Mark Carney’s request while his government finalizes a trade deal with the U.S. to stop new tariffs.

Sisters among 137 to begin doctor journey at U of M

Not everyone enters medical school with a built-in study buddy.

Sisters Maya and Dana Jalal joined 135 of their classmates to don white coats and mark the beginning of their journey through the University of Manitoba’s Max Rady College of Medicine Wednesday morning.

Maya, 22, and Dana, 21, were accepted into medical school at the same time.

“Thankfully, we both got accepted in the same area, same time. So we decided we’d rather go together than apart,” Maya said. “It’ll be nice seeing different perspectives during our studies. We are siblings, but we each have our own perspectives, our own lived experiences.”

Legal aid underfunding violates Charter, lawsuit claims

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association is taking the provincial and federal government to court, alleging that decades of underfunding for criminal legal aid violates Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

“Whether you are rich or poor should never determine whether you are found guilty of a crime,” Shakir Rahim, co-counsel in the case and director of the CCLA criminal justice program, said in a news release.

“Legal aid is supposed to protect that principle, ensuring that every person receives adequate legal representation.”

Funding for legal aid is woefully insufficient and has been for decades, the non-profit organization said.

Facebook and Instagram users in Europe could get ad-free subscription option, WSJ reports

LONDON (AP) — Meta plans to give Facebook and Instagram users in Europe the option of paying for ad-free versions of the social media platforms as a way to comply with the continent’s strict data privacy rules, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.

The company wants to charge users about 10 euros ($10.50) a month to use Instagram or Facebook without ads on desktop browsers, the newspaper reported, citing unnamed people familiar with the proposal. Adding more accounts would cost 6 euros each.

Prices for mobile would be higher, at roughly 13 euros a month, because Meta needs to account for commissions charged by the Apple and Google app stores on in-app payments, the newspaper said.

Meta reportedly is hoping to roll out paid subscriptions in the coming months as a way to comply with European Union data privacy rules that threaten its lucrative business model of showing personalized ads to users.

Low-income residents of 114-year-old downtown block staggered by proposed rent hikes

Marcel Blanchette’s life has not travelled down a smooth road.

In 2014, he was violently assaulted in his home, an unprovoked attack that left him with severe injuries, including permanent brain damage. He underwent months of hospitalization and rehabilitation. During that time, he learned his possessions had been sold off when the Office of The Public Guardian and Trustee took over his affairs.

Twelve years later, he finds himself in another fight. This time, it comes in the form of a proposal from the new owners of the Conway Court apartment block that would nearly double his monthly rent. While he’s been able to live in the Kennedy Street unit with the support of disability income assistance for nearly five years, the sudden spike, he said, could leave him homeless.

“To go through that, and now I’m going through this, it’s another obstacle,” Blanchette told the Free Press. “I fought the Public Guardian and Trustee, and I’ll fight this too, with whatever I have.”