Merry Christmas!
Canada column for Sunday, Dec.26/21
THE CANADIAN REPORT
By Jim Fox
It was the week before Christmas and all through the house, Canadians were canceling their travel plans and scaling down family visits as COVID-19 cases surge.
Surveys show that many people were heeding strong advice from medical officials and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to avoid all non-essential travel as the Omicron variant spread rapidly.
Hardest hit segments were airline and cruise ship travel to head off the virus wave.
“We are heeding the advice of the medical profession, our politicians and our leaders and we’re using our own common sense,” Mark Randle of Ottawa told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. as he canceled a long-awaited cruise vacation.
“It’s not the right time to go,” he said.
Dr. Theresa Tam, chief public health officer, offered some advice for the holidays: “Practically speaking, this means keeping gathering sizes as small as possible, such as limiting to just family and close friends who you know well.”
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In his Christmas address, Prime Minister Trudeau called on Canadians to help fight to end the pandemic and to continue helping each other.
“There is still reason for Canadians to be hopeful despite the ongoing crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said.
Among the best ways is to follow public health measures and “encouraging friends and family to get vaccinated and boosted,” he said, adding that “brighter days are ahead.”
His comments followed the news that six members of his staff and security detail had tested positive for COVID−19.
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News in brief:
- Canada is joining other countries in a diplomatic boycott of the upcoming 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing. Prime Minister Trudeau said no federal government officials will attend the games but Canadian athletes will still be allowed to compete. The decision is part of an international effort to send a message to China that its human rights abuses have not gone unnoticed and Canada is “extremely concerned,” Trudeau said.
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Facts and figures:
Canada’s dollar is steady at 78 cents U.S. while the U.S. dollar returns $1.28 in Canadian funds, before exchange fees.
The Bank of Canada’s key interest rate remains steady at 0.25 percent while the prime lending rate is 2.45 percent.
Canadian stock markets are higher, with the Toronto index at 21,248 on Friday while the TSX Venture index is933 points.
The average price for gas in Canada is higher at $1.40 a liter (Canadian) or $5.32 for a U.S. gallon.
Lotto Max: (Dec. 21) 13, 23, 26, 27, 28, 38 and 47; bonus 36. (Dec. 17) 9, 14, 16, 33, 39, 46 and 49; bonus 38.
Lotto 6/49: (Dec. 22) 1, 2, 3, 11, 15 and 43; bonus 46. (Dec. 18) 2, 10, 15, 16, 20 and 49; bonus 18.
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Regional briefs:
- Booster shots and rapid virus test kits topped the wish lists of many Canadians this Christmas.
Ontario went through millions of free test kits and shots as people in some cases lined up overnight to get them. There has been explosive growth of the Omicron variant, with Quebec leading with almost 10,000 cases in one day and Ontario with 5,790 as British Columbia topped 2,000 cases. Record numbers were also reached in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island.
- The Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto has on display a 310-million-year-old tree in its Dawn of Life gallery. The tree fell out of a cliff in Nova Scotia and is among a collection of fossils from UNESCO world heritage sites across the country. The tree remains were discovered at the fossil cliffs at Joggins. They are dated from the Carboniferous era when the cliffs that now line the Bay of Fundy were an equatorial swamp at the heart of the supercontinent Pangea. It traces life from the appearance of the first dinosaurs and mammals.
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thecanadareport.blogspot.com
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