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Canada’s Trucker Convoy Challenges the Elites
Over the last two years, Canada has descended into the kind of mass-surveillance state you read about in dystopian novels. In December, the country’s public health agency admitted it has tracked data from 33 million devices monitoring people’s movement and activity during the lockdowns — and plans to continue doing so for the next five years.
In a country of only 38 million people, that’s an extraordinary number. Other disturbing anecdotes of government overreach have emerged, from Canadian citizens being detained for weeks when entering the country with no ability to contact anyone, to Alberta police issuing tickets at unpermitted Christmas gatherings.
Now, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his state-sponsored media would have you believe that a fringe group of miscreants have hijacked the Canadian trucking industry.
But none of this is true. In reality, the tens of thousands of truckers who traveled in a 45-mile-long “Freedom Convoy” to Ottawa have been overwhelmingly peaceful, well-organized and politically moderate when interviewed.
Truckers’ Bridge Blockade Forces Shutdowns at Auto Plants
The truck blockade by Canadians protesting the country’s COVID-19 restrictions is tightening the screws on the auto industry, forcing Ford, General Motors and other car companies to shut down plants or otherwise reduce production on both sides of the U.S. border.
The bumper-to-bumper demonstration by the self-proclaimed Freedom Truck Convoy entered its fourth day Thursday at the Ambassador Bridge connecting Windsor, Ontario, to Detroit, disrupting the flow of auto parts and other products between the two countries.
Meanwhile, U.S. authorities braced for the possibility of similar truck-convoy protests across the United States, and authorities in Paris and Belgium banned road blockades to head off disruptions there too.
Biden Faces Possible Trucker Threat
President Biden is facing the possibility of truck driver protests mirroring those in Canada over vaccine mandates that would come as the administration works to combat supply chain disruptions, vaccinate more Americans and strengthen the U.S. economy.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Wednesday warned police partners of protests similar to those in Canada that it said could even disrupt the Super Bowl or the State of the Union address.
DHS “has received reports of truck drivers potentially planning to block roads in major metropolitan cities in the United States in protest of, among other things, vaccine mandates.
Appeals Court Refuses to Reinstate Federal Employee Vaccine Mandate While It Reviews Case
A federal appeals court said Wednesday it would not reinstate President Joe Biden‘s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for federal employees while it reviews a lower court’s order putting the requirement on hold — potentially setting the stage for the case to go to the Supreme Court.
The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals did not explain its reasoning in the unsigned order that said the court was expediting its review of the case. The court said the Biden administration’s request to put the lower court’s ruling on hold was being “carried with the case,” signaling that the appeals court would not rule on the request until it had conducted a fuller review of the case.
Last month, a federal judge in Texas blocked the administration from enforcing the requirement, calling the mandate an overstep of presidential authority and citing a Supreme Court decision to strike down a separate administration mandate that had applied to private-sector workers.
U.S. Navy Discharges 240 Service Members for Refusing COVID Vaccine
The U.S. Navy said Wednesday that it has discharged 240 service members for refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine as required by the Pentagon’s vaccine mandate. All of those service members received honorable characterizations for their discharges from service, meaning they are still eligible to receive veteran benefits.
As of Wednesday, the Navy has granted 10 permanent medical exemptions, 250 temporary medical exemptions and 50 administrative exemptions to the military’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for active-duty service members, according to the release.
The Navy said it has received 3,348 requests for religious exemptions from active-duty service members and nearly 800 such requests from Navy Reserve members. So far, no requests for religious exemptions have been granted.
Citing Religious Beliefs, Lawsuit Challenges NYC Vaccine Mandate
Five Orthodox Jewish New Yorkers have joined a suit challenging the city’s vaccine requirements for indoor spaces.
Two of the plaintiffs are rabbis at yeshivas. The suit, filed Feb. 7 in New York, challenges the “Key to NYC” program and a recent COVID vaccination mandate for religious and private school employees. The mandate was opposed by many haredi Orthodox yeshivas and groups representing them, including Agudath Israel of America.
Three of the Jewish plaintiffs are parents suing on behalf of a total of 12 of their children, all minors, whose COVID vaccination they oppose on what they claim are religious grounds.
The unnamed plaintiffs allege an “unprecedented abuse of power” in regard to COVID vaccine requirements for indoor spaces in the city. The plaintiffs, who also include a Catholic resident of New York, object to the vaccine on religious and constitutional grounds.
White House Faces New Pressure to Back Lifting Mask Rules
The White House is facing pressure to revise its position on wearing masks, as declining COVID-19 cases and pandemic fatigue among voters leads an increasing number of Democratic states to lift requirements on public masking.
Some governors and local health officials are calling for the White House and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to release guidance for an off-ramp for mask usage.
Mask requirements are one of the only remaining COVID-19 restrictions in place in many areas of the country. But agency director Rochelle Walensky is insistent that it’s not yet time to lift mask requirements anywhere.
Texas and Missouri Are Investigating GoFundMe for Blocking Donations to Ottawa’s Freedom Convoy
The attorneys general of Texas and Missouri have opened investigations into GoFundMe for blocking donations to the “Freedom Convoy” protesters in Ottawa.
The organizers had set up a GoFundMe fundraiser, which raised $10 million in donations to finance the protest and buy fuel but GoFundMe shut it down on Saturday.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced Wednesday that he had sent a civil investigative demand to GoFundMe, instructing it to look into whether it had violated a Texas act on deceptive trade practices by withholding the funds from protesters.
“GoFundMe’s response to an anti-mandate, pro-liberty movement should ring alarm bells to anyone using the donation platform and, more broadly, any American wanting to protect their constitutional rights,” Paxton said in a statement.
Oscars 2022 Ceremony Won’t Require COVID Vaccinations
This year’s Oscars ceremony will not require in-person attendees to provide proof of vaccination against COVID-19, Variety has confirmed.
After a 2021 ceremony that saw the Academy Awards downsize to a smaller gathering at Los Angeles’ Union Station, the Oscars will return to its traditional setting in the Dolby Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard for its upcoming ceremony on Mar. 27. It is not yet known if the audience size might be reduced this year.
Although the Academy will suggest attendees to be vaccinated, the 2022 Oscars ceremony will also require attendees to be tested prior to attending, with unvaccinated guests having additional and more stringent testing requirements.
Paris and Brussels to Ban ‘Freedom Convoy’ Inspired by Canadian Protest
Authorities in Paris and Brussels said Thursday they will block convoys from entering both cities, potentially thwarting European plans for the type of demonstration that has paralyzed Ottawa, closed border crossings into the United States and inspired copycats.
Paris police said in a statement that convoys now en route to the French capital from across the country will not be able to enter the city for planned rallies this weekend “because of a risk to public order.” Penalties for blocking public roads include prison time, fines and driving bans, the statement noted.
Not long afterward, the mayor of Brussels, where several groups planned to converge on Feb. 14, announced that a procession modeled on Canada’s so-called “Freedom Convoy” would not be allowed in. Vehicles arriving to protest will be “diverted,” the mayor said.
New Zealand Police Move in to Break up Anti-COVID Vaccine Mandate Protests
New Zealand police on Thursday arrested 120 people as they attempted to forcefully remove hundreds of protesters camped outside parliament to protest COVID-19 vaccine mandates and tough coronavirus restrictions.
Inspired by truckers‘ demonstrations in Canada, several thousand protesters this week blocked streets near the parliament in capital Wellington with trucks, cars and motorcycles.
It has been three days since the protesters blocked roads and set up camp at the parliament grounds.
Facebook and Spotify Face Complementary Nightmares
The two developing tech dramas of early 2022 — the struggle of Meta Platform Inc.’s Facebook to retain users as surveillance-based advertising becomes more difficult and Spotify Technology SA’s Joe Rogan controversy — are really about one thing: Finding the right balance between ad-based and subscription-based monetization models on the internet.
My Bloomberg Opinion colleague Parmy Olson pointed out recently that Alphabet Inc. and Meta Platforms Inc. (Google and Facebook) are finding it hard to remain primarily ad-funded, and that diversification makes other tech giants, such as Microsoft Corp. and Amazon.com Inc., less vulnerable.
Yet, unlike Amazon and Microsoft, both Google and Facebook, with 81% and 97% of revenue, respectively, coming from advertising, are at their core content companies, or, narrower still, media companies. They don’t produce the content, but provide platforms for it and ways of locating it.
Apple to Address AirTag Stalking Problem With Upcoming Features
Apple today is announcing a series of upcoming updates for AirTag and the Find My network aimed at addressing the problem of AirTag accessories being used to stalk individuals or people’s property without their knowledge or consent.
Following the AirTags’ spring 2021 introduction, numerous media reports and updates from local police departments have warned of incidents where AirTags were being used for unwanted tracking, including of people and valuable property — like cars thieves intended to steal. This resulted in a growing PR nightmare for Apple, which had positioned itself as a consumer privacy-focused company.
Today, Apple is responding to feedback from consumers, safety experts and law enforcement agencies with plans to change how AirTags work.
