Ontario to ban government use and purchase of Chinese-made drones

The Brazilian election

“Flávio Bolsonaro is Trump’s candidate and what Trump wants is to colonize Brazil, take our riches, steal our future and leave us in the dust,” claims the latest video released by President Luiz Inácio ‘Lula’ da Silva’s re-election campaign. The weird thing is about half of Brazil’s voters would be okay with Trump running the country (through Bolsonaro).

Nobody in Brazil thinks that Flávio Bolsonaro is his own man. He is the son of Jair Bolsonaro, the hard right ex-soldier and former president who tried a coup after he lost the 2022 election. It was even clumsier and more half-hearted than Trump’s brief excursion in sedition after he lost the U.S. 2020 election — but Jair Bolsonaro went to jail for his attempt.

In a strange way Trump even recognizes the parallel, showing special sympathy for his imprisoned fellow traveler. He claimed that the senior Bolsonaro was the victim of a “witch-hunt” by the Brazilian Supreme Court and slapped 50 per cent tariffs on the country. And next Sunday (Oct. 4) the junior Bolsonaro faces Lula in another presidential election.

We already know that there will be a second round of voting on Oct. 25, when the other three candidates have dropped out and it’s a straight race between Lula and Junior. We have no idea what that outcome will be, because the two men have been only one or two points apart (i.e. ‘within the margin of error’) in every opinion poll for months.

Wab Kinew as ‘communicator in chief’

Premier Wab Kinew and his party have been riding high in the polls longer than normal for a government one year or less away from its first re-election contest. One reason is his ubiquitous, dominating communications presence as NDP leader and premier.

The argument here is that Kinew has supplemented his prerogatives as premier and party leader (such as appointing cabinet ministers and approving party nominations) with the skilful use of communications to advance his policy agenda, boost his personal popularity and maintain the competitive advantage of his party over the opposition Progressive Conservatives.

Communications has always been a significant part of politics and policy making. However, in the contemporary political and media environments, communications considerations have moved from the background to the foreground of decision-making by political parties, including when they are performing in the role of government. Campaigning and governing now overlap in what has been described as a permanent election campaign.

Political parties use communications strategies for several purposes: to establish an image of the leader which makes a positive emotional connection with voters; to promote a coherent message and to keep party members on message; and to gain favourable media coverage for its policies and other actions on almost a daily basis.

Is another goalie on Jets’ wish list?

Kevin Cheveldayoff and company are down to the short strokes.

With the opening-day roster due on Monday afternoon, the Winnipeg Jets took steps on the weekend to get down to the final number.

As it stood on Sunday, the Jets were down to 24 healthy players in training camp after centre Danny Zhilkin and defenceman Henry Thrun were placed on waivers.

With a maximum of 23 spots available, the only things left to determine are whether the Jets are interested in claiming a more experienced goalie to serve as the backup to Stuart Skinner and if centre Brayden Yager will break camp with the big club.

Horoscope

Moon alert: Avoid shopping (except food and gas) and important decisions until 1 p.m. After that, there are no restrictions to shopping or important decisions. The moon is in Gemini.

Aries (March 21-April 19)

A busy, chatty day. Your communication skills are excellent. Wait until the moon alert is over to commit to any important decisions or ideas. Tap into your creative talents. It’s also a lovely day to schmooze and enjoy sports and kids’ activities.

Taurus (April 20-May 20)

Legislation needed on vacant buildings

There is something deeply backwards about a system that lets a property owner keep a building boarded up indefinitely while neighbours are left to live with the consequences.

In Winnipeg, as long as the owner pays the taxes, follows the city’s vacant-building rules and pays the required fees, there is no hard deadline for the building to be dealt with.

The building can remain a neighbourhood eyesore. It can attract drug use and crime. It can become a fire hazard. And the people living nearby can be left wondering how long they are expected to put up with it.

Yet when Premier Wab Kinew was asked Friday whether his government would change provincial legislation to give Winnipeg the power to impose a time limit on such properties, he declined to answer.

What’s open, what’s closed, what’s up in Winnipeg on National Day of Truth and Reconciliation Sept. 30, 2026

The National Day of Truth and Reconciliation, or Orange Shirt Day, as it's known in Manitoba, happens Sept. 30 with many commemorative community events scheduled.