Worth noting: We don't actually know if Jabba the Hut is, or is not, overweight relative to the healthy lifestyle expectations of his species.

1. Fat shaming is mean, even when directed at fictional intergalactic gangsters.
2. My DMs are open, my email follows the Globe's pattern. Message me for my cell, then use that number to find me on Signal and WhatsApp. Let's chat!

Artemis II astronauts break distance record from Earth set by Apollo 13 in 1970 Crew, which includes Canadian Jeremy Hansen, sail beyond the 400,171-km mark set more than 55 years ago to become the most distant humans in history

Artemis II astronauts have set the record for furthest distance that humans have ever travelled from Earth, surpassing the distance of 400,171 kilometres set by Apollo 13 in April, 1970.
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/scien...

Alberta man launches legal action against province over closings of Calgary, Lethbridge drug-use sites Travis Peddie alleges the closures violate his Charter-protected rights and increase the risk of harm to himself and others

Alberta man launches legal action against province over closings of supervised consumption sites. Travis Peddie alleges the closures violate his Charter-protected rights and increase the risk of harm, by @alannasmith.bsky.social
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic... via @theglobeandmail.com

Alberta man launches legal action against province over closings of Calgary, Lethbridge drug-use sites Travis Peddie alleges the closures violate his Charter-protected rights and increase the risk of harm to himself and others

The Alberta govt is facing legal action over its planned closings of drug-use sites in Calgary and Lethbridge. The UCP has now faced five lawsuits related to its restrictions to harm reduction services. #ableg #yyc @theglobeandmail.com

Ontario should restore funding for supervised drug-use sites, former Toronto mayors say In the province, EMS calls for opioid overdoses increased by nearly 70% after site closings last April

Six former Toronto mayors are calling on the Ontario government to restore funding for supervised drug-use sites and repeal legislation that led to many site closings, arguing that deaths and public spending have increased in their wake. @theglobeandmail.com #onpoli

RCMP probe corruption allegations at Calgary city hall; warrants executed on current, former councillors | CBC News An RCMP-led corruption investigation is underway and at least one current and one former Calgary city councillor, as well as a business were subject to search warrants executed last week, CBC News has...

UPDATE: Not just Chabot, RCMP corruption probe search warrants on Sean Chu, too. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Is Mark Carney a shrewd strategist or just lucky? Both, say those who know him If the charming, meticulous and sometimes prickly economist lands the job of steering through a crisis, it wouldn’t be the first time

I’m delighted to be a National Newspaper Award finalist in the long feature category, for the Mark Carney profile I wrote last spring.
Here’s all the amazing work nominated: nna-ccj.ca/2025-finalis...
And here’s my Carney profile: www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/fed...

Honoured to be nominated in three categories with my amazing Globe colleagues. Congrats to all nominees! See you in Toronto 🥳

Alberta government to close Calgary’s only supervised drug-use site Mobile unit in Lethbridge to be shuttered as well, but sites in Edmonton and Grande Prairie to remain open for now, ministers say

Alberta government to close Calgary’s only supervised drug-use site. Lethbridge mobile unit also shuttered, but sites in Edmonton and Grande Prairie remain open for now, by @alannasmith.bsky.social, Jennifer Yang www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic... via @theglobeandmail.com

The Globe and Mail leads in National Newspaper Awards nominations Senior international correspondent Mark MacKinnon, Calgary reporter Carrie Tait and health reporter Alanna Smith are nominated in multiple categories

Very honoured to have been nominated for my reporting in Syria and Lebanon last year, along with superb colleagues @carrietait.bsky.social , @tomcardoso.bsky.social , @hoserlibrarian.bsky.social and @alannasmith.bsky.social

Accounting firm owned by Smith government appointee searched by RCMP Business owned by Sam Jaber, who was appointed to the board of Invest Alberta in 2023, searched in continuing probe

SCOOP: RCMP search accounting firm owned by appointee of Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, police attend home of former AHS procurement official
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic... w @tomcardoso.bsky.social @mattscace.bsky.social @janapruden.bsky.social @alannasmith.bsky.social

Alberta to restrict MAID, including for patients with incurable conditions Province also proposes changes that wouldn’t allow for assisted death when mental illness is the sole underlying condition

Alberta introduced sweeping legislation Wednesday to drastically restrict medical assistance in dying, which includes barring cases where patients have incurable conditions but their deaths are not reasonably foreseeable. With pal @kkirkup.bsky.social #ableg

When generic versions of weight-loss drugs arrive, public plans should cover them, experts say Price has been a major barrier to access for patients, but for public plans, the long-term savings may outweigh the cost

When generic versions of weight-loss drugs arrive, public plans should cover them, experts say Price of GLP-1 drugs is a barrier for patients, but for public plans long terms benefits may outweigh costs, by @alannasmith.bsky.social www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic... via @theglobeandmail.com

The Supreme Court of Canada announced in November that it would hear appeals of a Saskatchewan case around its pronoun law.

Canadian Medical Association applies to intervene in Supreme Court appeal of Saskatchewan's pronoun law www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-canadian-... ⦸ @alannasmith.bsky.social @theglobeandmail.com
↷ canadahealthwatch.ca 🍁

Manitoba outpacing other provinces in measles cases Sharp rise in infections hindering efforts to quell outbreak and earn back elimination status

Manitoba is now outpacing every other province in #measles cases, prolonging an outbreak that has persisted in Canada for roughly a year and a half. @theglobeandmail.com #cdnhealth

Evidence links Indian officials at Vancouver consulate to Nijjar killing New Delhi had long accused the B.C. Sikh leader of being a terrorist and called for his arrest

Canadian national-security officials were presented with evidence that Indian consular staff operating in Vancouver supplied information to assist in the assassination of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, @mikehager.bsky.social and Greg Mercer report:
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...

As the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran continues to spread around the Middle East, the Lebanese front might prove the most volatile of all.

My updated report from Beirut

What does health care coverage for newcomers cost Alberta? Experts weigh in on the potential effects of the province’s coming referendum on immigration

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has placed significant blame on immigration for the fiscal strain on the province's health system. But how much do newcomers actually cost? by @alannasmith.bsky.social www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/alber... via @theglobeandmail.com

Flu vaccine reduced risk of serious illness by about 40%, estimate says Research head says assessment was reassuring as it revealed jab still offered worthwhile protection despite being a mismatch for the dominant strain

ICYMI: While this fall’s influenza vaccine was a mismatch for the dominant strain, it still cut the risk of serious illness by roughly 40 per cent, according to a Canadian network that has long tracked the performance of the annual shot. #cdnhealth #fluseason @theglobeandmail.com

Alberta doctors speak out against move to broaden parent access to children’s health records Parent or guardian access to children’s medical information extended to age 18, up from 12

Alberta doctors say the provincial government’s decision to broaden parental and guardian access to their children’s medical records could put youth at risk of harm and infringes on their privacy, by @alannasmith.bsky.social www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic... via @theglobeandmail.com

Alberta doctors speak out against move to broaden parent access to children’s health records Parent or guardian access to children’s medical information extended to age 18, up from 12

Alberta doctors say the provincial government’s decision to broaden parental and guardian access to their children’s medical records could put youth at risk of harm and infringes on their privacy. #ableg @theglobeandmail.com

Death of premature Alberta baby with measles was not made public for months, documents show Alberta has the highest rate of cases per capita of any province or territory, and has been under scrutiny for its response

A premature baby in Alberta who contracted #measles in utero – the province’s only death linked to the current outbreak – died last July, but health officials did not make the public aware until October, documents obtained by @theglobeandmail.com show. #ableg

Opinion: The B.C. ostrich saga has come home to roost with a big bill The only reason it cost so much was the stubborn refusal of the farm’s owners to comply with the cull order

From @picardonhealth.bsky.social: $6,810,846. That’s roughly how much the seemingly endless B.C. ostrich saga has cost the federal government (read: taxpayers) so far.

Amid a wave of Canada-wide unity, Alberta’s separatism movement pushes back Alberta separatists are taking their message on the road, campaigning across the province for an independence referendum

Be wary of the notion that Alberta's independence movement is growing. But due to changes by the UCP gov't, a referendum might happen anyway, activating a full-fledged independence campaign.

My dispatch on the separatists' divorce pitch: #ableg #cdnpoli

www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/alber...

Alberta seeks court dismissal for lawsuit challenging opioid-prescribing rules Judge granted injunction in 2023 that exempted woman from rules, allowing her to continue using prescribed hydromorphone at home

The Alberta government is asking the court to dismiss a lawsuit that challenged the province’s opioid-prescribing rules on the basis of Charter violations. #ableg #abpoli

Opioid deaths have declined sharply in Canada. These five factors help explain why Overdoses, driven to new heights in the 2010s, are not killing as many Canadians as they did a few years ago. Health officials aren’t yet sure whether that’s cause for celebration

After a decade into Canada’s toxic drug crisis, recent data show death rates across the country are falling. But national averages can mask profound disparities, and experts caution that it’s too early to draw conclusions.

A look at the recent shift:
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...

Vancouver mogul Jim Pattison’s company under fire for proposed sale of U.S. property to ICE Canadians are organizing boycotts of businesses tied to the billionaire while Virginia residents are planning demonstrations

A suburban county in central Virginia is considering its legal options over a plan by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to purchase a warehouse property owned by Vancouver-based Jim Pattison Developments to use as a holding and processing centre
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...

Up to 89 percent of ambulances for overdoses concealed in record year, as Alberta health care careens into crisis The Alberta government says it has “the most transparent data reporting system in North America" for drug toxicity. In reality, internal data manipulation causes most emergency calls to go unreported.

Alberta Health Services docs obtained via freedom of information request show that up to 85 percent of provincial EMS dispatches for drug toxicity were not reported by the Alberta government, @drugdatadecoded.ca reports:
drugdatadecoded.ca/up-to-89-per...