Good morning!
Spud glut: Thanks to two consecutive years of yield records, Manitoba potato farmers have 100 million pounds of potatoes with no immediate buyer. That’s the equivalent of 1,300 semi-trailer loads of excess potatoes. Bill Redekop digs deep. READ MORE
Your forecast: Winter’s weak arrival this week continues today with a 30 per cent chance of flurries. Fog patches will dissipate late in the morning. The high will be 1 C. Tonight, there is a 40 per cent chance of flurries with a low of -4.
In case you missed it
JOE BRYKSA / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILESThere were 22 homicide victims in Winnipeg 2015, down from 27 in 2014
Murder capital no more: Once known as the murder capital of Canada, Winnipeg has passed off that unwelcome title. New data released Wednesday show Winnipeg’s homicide per capita rate is now behind Regina, Saskatoon and Edmonton. READ MORE
Spotlight hunting: The slaughter of big game and livestock by night hunters who use spotlights to blind the animals isn’t abating despite a crackdown by authorities. “It’s almost like the Wild West show in areas of rural Manitoba,” one administrator told reporter Bill Redekop. READ MORE
Up next
Memory tree: As a choir sings, the Palliative Manitoba Memory Tree will be erected today at St. Vital Centre in front of The Bay. This poignant 24-year Christmas tradition encourages visitors to remember their loved ones by writing their personal messages on beautiful cards, which are hung on the tree. A total of 1,874 people placed messages last season.
Basic income: The wide-context advantages of guaranteeing poor people a basic income will be discussed this morning at Winnipeg Harvest by experts from around the globe. It will be presented as a solution to poverty that will be outlined in today’s release of the Child and Family Poverty Report Card 2016.
Around the water cooler
TREVOR HAGAN / FREE PRESS FILESTravellers to town to see the summer games will also be able to visit the Journey to Churchill exhibit at the Assiniboine Park Zoo.
Welcome here: Winnipeg is expected to host a larger number of tourists in 2017 thanks to the city’s role as host of the 2017 Canada Summer Games, according to statistics released on Wednesday. The multisport games are expected to draw about 20,000 visitors in addition to 4,000 athletes and coaches. READ MORE
Fat shaming: Weight discrimination must end, speakers told a rally on the steps of the Manitoba legislature Wednesday. Overweight people say they are mocked by other people, and their size can be the reason they are denied a job or promotion. “People are made to feel uncomfortable at the gym or at the store,” said New Democrat MLA Andrew Swan. Nick Martin reports. READ MORE
Trending now
#WhatIWantForChristmasIn4Words: From the practical “Books, books, and books!” to the political “Recount shows Hillary won,” to the personal “Just to be appreciated,” this hashtag on Twitter is certainly bringing out the wish lists.
On this date
On Nov. 24, 1986: The Winnipeg Free Press reported that Canada Post was considering major reductions in its rural postal service. Canada’s role in spiriting five Soviet army deserters out of Afghanistan would affect Canada’s relationship with the U.S.S.R., a Soviet official said. In the Phillippines, a coup attempt against president Corazon Aquino was foiled. Winnipeg’s Remand Centre was one of the worst and busiest in the country, according to a recent federal report. READ MORE
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