Kirk LaPointe, publisher/editor-in-chief:
As if we don’t have enough to concern ourselves, this piece argues the U.S. banking system is about to collapse and there is little to avert it. Seems the banks went all-in on bets they couldn’t afford to lose. – The Atlantic
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/07/coronavirus-banks-collapse/612247/
The author of an excellent new book on autocracy argues here that journalists are frightened of moral clarity. It’s a provocative piece in these important times for the craft. – The New Yorker https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/why-are-some-journalists-afraid-of-moral-clarity
We can expect many take-downs of Donald Trump in the months ahead, but few will set the stage for the election campaign’s issues the way this does about the “unpresident.” – The New York Review of Books
https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2020/07/23/trump-unpresident-unredeemed-promise/
Mark Falkenberg, deputy managing editor
In a blow to U.S. tech giants, which rely heavily on imported talent, the Trump administration suspended several kinds of employment visas this week. But Canadian success story Shopify Inc. sees a potential windfall.
“If this affects your plans consider coming to Canada instead,” Shopify CEO Tobias Lutke tweeted Tuesday. “If getting to the U.S. is your main objective you can still move on south after the H1-B rules change. But Canada is awesome. Give it a try.” – Bloomberg
B.C.’s official tally of old-growth forests paints a false picture, a team of scientists has found. Research for the province’s Old Growth Strategic Review suggests that while the estimate that 23% of B.C.’s forests are old growth is technically correct, that doesn’t tell the whole story.
“They are mixing in bog forests where the trees are no taller than me, and I am 5 feet tall, and they are mixing in high-elevation tiny trees,” said report co-author Rachel Holt. “They are old and valuable but they are not what you, or I, or anyone else thinks of when they think of old growth.” – Seattle Times
Timothy Renshaw, Managing Editor
An update on who is leading the horse race to find a COVID-19 vaccine – Seeking Alpha
https://seekingalpha.com/article/4354802-ahead-in-finding-covidminus-19-vaccine?
For the sake of an economic recovery and a return to life as we used to know it, here's hoping there's an odds-on favourite in that horse race, because outlooks akin to this one from the International Monetary Fund are not getting any brighter
https://blogs.imf.org/2020/06/24/reopening-from-the-great-lockdown-uneven-and-uncertain-recovery/
Meanwhile, Mother Nature might be looking to enlist robots as reliable soldiers in the fight to save what's left of the natural world and its growing list of endangered species. Lord knows, humans are proving to be subpar performers at best – Robotics Research
Tyler Orton, reporter
"Investors’ love affair with commercial property is being tested": Once a safe asset class for investors, commercial properties are approaching crisis mode — The Economist
“With Meng Wanzhou’s extradition, Canada must be laser-focused on the national interest”: Canada's former top spy breaks down the perils of a quid pro quo with China — Globe and Mail
