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P:CA

Sunday, December 15, 2024

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Introduction

Flag and Arms of Canada

Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's second-largest country by total area, with the world's longest coastline. Its border with the United States is the world's longest international land border. The country is characterized by a wide range of both meteorologic and geological regions. With a population of just over 41 million people, it has widely varying population densities, with the majority residing in urban areas and large areas of the country being sparsely populated. Canada's capital is Ottawa and its three largest metropolitan areas are Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver.

Canada is a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy in the Westminster tradition. The country's head of government is the prime minister, who holds office by virtue of their ability to command the confidence of the elected House of Commons and is appointed by the governor general, representing the monarch of Canada, the ceremonial head of state. The country is a Commonwealth realm and is officially bilingual (English and French) in the federal jurisdiction. It is very highly ranked in international measurements of government transparency, quality of life, economic competitiveness, innovation, education and human rights. It is one of the world's most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration. Canada's long and complex relationship with the United States has had a significant impact on its history, economy, and culture.

A developed country, Canada has a high nominal per capita income globally and its advanced economy ranks among the largest in the world by nominal GDP, relying chiefly upon its abundant natural resources and well-developed international trade networks. Recognized as a middle power, Canada's strong support for multilateralism and internationalism has been closely related to its foreign relations policies of peacekeeping and aid for developing countries. Canada is part of multiple international organizations and forums. (Full article...)

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Extract of a 1744 map showing southeastern Newfoundland

The Newfoundland expedition was a naval raiding expedition led by English Captain John Leake between August and October 1702 that targeted French colonial settlements on the North Atlantic island of Newfoundland and its satellite, Saint Pierre. The expedition occurred in the early days of Queen Anne's War, as the North American theater of the War of the Spanish Succession is sometimes known. (Full article...)

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Arthur Albert Irwin (February 14, 1858 – July 16, 1921), nicknamed "Doc", "Sandy", "Cutrate" or "Foxy", was a Canadian-American shortstop and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB) during the late nineteenth century. He played regularly in the major leagues for eleven years, spending two of those seasons as a player-manager. He played on the 1884 Providence Grays team which won the first interleague series to decide the world champions of baseball. Irwin then served as a major league manager for several years. (Full article...)

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View of the far side of Pangnirtung, Nunavut

Credit: Slp1

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The coat of arms of Canada, also known as the Royal Coat of Arms of Canada or, formally, as the Arms of His Majesty The King in Right of Canada is the arms of dominion of the Canadian monarch and, thus, also the official coat of arms of Canada. In use since 1921, it is closely modelled after the royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom, with French and distinctive Canadian elements replacing or added to those derived from the British version. (Full article...)

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The prime minister of Canada (French: premier ministre du Canada) is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the confidence of a majority of the elected House of Commons; as such, the prime minister typically sits as a member of Parliament (MP) and leads the largest party or a coalition of parties. As first minister, the prime minister selects ministers to form the Cabinet. (Full article...)

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Barred Owl, Whitby, Ontario
Credit: Mdf

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Current events

December 11, 2024 – Russo-Ukrainian War: The Parliament of Canada approves the allocation of CA$764 million (US$587 million) in military aid to Ukraine. (Ukrainska Pravda)
December 3, 2024 – Red Sea crisis: The Government of Canada officially designates the Yemen-based Houthi movement as a terrorist organization due to the group's attacks on civilian and military vessels in the Red Sea. (Al Jazeera)
November 20, 2024 – November 2024 Northeast Pacific bomb cyclone: Two people are killed and more than 570,000 people are without power when a bomb cyclone makes landfall over the West Coast of the United States and British Columbia, Canada. (CNN) (NBC News)
November 15, 2024 –: The Canadian Union of Postal Workers go on strike after failing to renegotiate their contract with Canada Post. (AP)
October 25, 2024 –: A man fatally shoots two of his family members before killing himself in Huntsville, Ontario, Canada. (CTV News Barrie); Ontario Premier Doug Ford's government announces that Ontario is planning to ban international students from medical schools in the province beginning in 2026. (Pelham Today)

Past Canadian events

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... that Canadian poets Milton Acorn, Margaret Atwood, and Gwendolyn MacEwen performed at the Bohemian Embassy on the same bill as burlesque dancer Libby Jones?
... that Bethune: The Making of a Hero, once Canada's most expensive film, had a documentary about its troubled production shown at the 1988 Toronto International Film Festival instead of itself?
... that there is an East Quoddy Head Lighthouse and a West Quoddy Head Lighthouse on opposite sides of a bay, but one is in Canada and the other is in the United States?
... that journalist Jacques Poitras spent a month repeatedly crossing the "Imaginary Line" separating New Brunswick and Maine in order to publish a book about it?
... that Canadian pentathlon champion J. Howard Crocker introduced volleyball to China?
... that Sheila Egoff, Canada's first professor of children's literature, returned to her library work immediately after retirement?
... that Canadian microbiologist Patricia Taylor helped American diplomats hide in her house in Tehran during the Iran hostage crisis?

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Canada is a federation that comprises ten provinces and three territories. Its government is structured as a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary democracy, with a monarch as its sovereign and a Prime Minister as its head of government. Each of the country's provinces and territories also has a head of government, called premier in English. Collectively, the federal Prime Minister and provincial and territorial premiers are referred to as first ministers. In French, the term premier ministre is used in both the federal and provincial/territorial contexts. (Full article...)