Anglais

Jagmeet Singh and the NDP look to change the narrative in 2019

Published

5 années ago

décembre 26, 2018

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OTTAWA—The leader of the New Democratic Party is talking about fear and insecurity.

Not his own, mind you; nor that of his party. Perched on a couch in his Parliament Hill office, Jagmeet Singh is in his usual high spirits, his ebullience by now a well-known characteristic.

It’s almost enough to mask the starkness of his talking points. Singh is making the case that, behind the rosy economic statistics held aloft by Justin Trudeau and the Liberal government, “real people, real Canadians” are struggling.

Look at the General Motors shutdown in Oshawa, he says. Hundreds laid off in Cape Breton. Workers protesting wage cuts at the Montreal airport. On the cusp of an election year, “this insecurity, this fear” pervades Trudeau’s Canada, Singh says. People are worried about precarious work, the cost of living, the looming scourge of climate change — and the NDP is here to assuage that fear.

“The reality is that, for everyday people, things aren’t going well,” Singh told the Star early one evening in December.

“Our mission is to make sure we stand up for those people who don’t feel like there is anyone in their corner.”

Singh might know something about being on the ropes.

More than a year since his dominant campaign to clinch the federal NDP leadership, Singh has had — by his own acknowledgement — some “political ups and downs.” Fundraising has tanked since the days when the New Democrats were the official opposition in Ottawa. A parade of sitting MPs have decided to sit out the 2019 federal election, including veterans from the NDP’s front bench (though Singh points out at least one former parliamentarian is vying for a comeback, Toronto’s Andrew Cash). Through it all, Singh has been forced to quell controversies like the furor last spring over his attendance at Sikh separatist events and allegations of inappropriate behaviour against two of his MPs.

Now Singh is looking to turn the page on all that in the new year, when the NDP leader has not one, but two all-important elections on the calendar.

First, at some point in February, Singh will get his chance to enter the House of Commons for the first time. The former Ontario MPP from Brampton has never held a federal seat. But in his search for a vacancy, the NDP leader decided in August to relocate to British Columbia so he can run in Burnaby South, a riding that was held by New Democrat Kennedy Stewart until he resigned to run — successfully — for the Vancouver mayoralty.

If all goes well for Singh in Burnaby — and one poll conducted this fall suggested the riding is by no means a lock for him — Singh will then turn to the larger battle: the general election slated for October.

Farouk Karim, a former NDP press secretary who campaigned with Quebec MP Guy Caron in the 2017 NDP leadership race, said there’s no doubt Singh and his party are in a slump. The party was roundly defeated in each of the eight byelections held since Singh became leader, posting a lower share of the total votes in each contest compared to the general election in 2015.

Singh himself has foregone a salary from the NDP while the party has struggled to fundraise. Donations have dropped to less than $5 million in 2017 from $18.6 million in 2015, according to filings with Elections Canada. Quarterly reports so far in 2018 don’t look any better.

Meanwhile, the party’s standing in national polls has stalled in third place, well behind the Liberals and Conservatives and not that far ahead of Elizabeth May and the Green party.

The challenge for the NDP, Karim said, is to make the case to voters on the progressive side of the spectrum that Trudeau’s Liberal government has failed to deliver on their priorities. That might be hard, given that the Liberals are still governing on their first mandate from voters. Voting for change is like trying to convince a family to buy a new household appliance after only a few years, he said.

“It’s easier to make the case that there are ‘manufacturing defects,’” Karim said.

Karim hears this when Singh attacks the Liberals for nationalizing the Trans Mountain Pipeline, a $4.5-billion purchase that the NDP contends will undermine Canada’s commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions under the Paris Agreement. The party is also rolling out new rhetoric about how the NDP is “on your side,” a message that Karim said is meant to highlight the party’s traditional association with unions’ and workers’ rights, versus the Liberal government that passed legislation to force striking Canada Post employees back to work.

At the same time, some have argued the political field has shifted with the prevalence of populist nationalism in Europe and the United States. Frank Graves, president of the EKOS Research Associates, said the same forces that draw people to anti-elitist rhetoric from the likes of Donald Trump could be a major factor in Canada’s 2019 election.

That could present another opportunity for the NDP, if it can position itself as the champion of those who feel left out of wider economic success by pursuing policies such as more aggressive taxation of the rich, Graves said.

Indeed, Singh has already unveiled a suite of proposals to close tax loopholes for corporate leaders and stop the rich from hiding their money, but left-wing critics such as Avi Lewis — co-author of the environmental and social democratic treatise, the Leap Manifesto — are calling on him to sharpen his demands with attention-grabbing proposals like “free transit for all.”

“One of the answers could be to tap this populist vein,” said Graves. “(Singh) could definitely be a magnet for people who find it thrilling to hear these things spoken in a more direct way.”

Political strategies aside, Singh’s first hurdle is the February byelection in Burnaby South. For Karim, victory there is the only way to spark a brighter 2019 for the social democratic party — or put Singh’s leadership in question.

“People are counting out the NDP, so there is a lot of room to surprise people in 2019,” he said.

“And people love a comeback kid story.”

Alex Ballingall is an Ottawa-based reporter covering national politics. Follow him on Twitter: @aballinga

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Anglais

Nostalgia and much more with Starburst XXXtreme

Published

3 années ago

août 10, 2021

admin

Get a taste of adventure with Starburst XXXtreme based on the legendary NetEnt Game. The nostalgic themes are sure to capture fans of the classic version as they get treated to higher intensity, better visuals, and features. The most significant element of the game is its volatility. Patience will not be an essential virtue considering the insane gameplay, and there is a lot of win potential involved. It retains the original makeup of the previous game while adding a healthy dose of adrenaline.

Starburst Visuals and Symbols

The game is definitely more conspicuous than before. The setting happens over a 5-reel, 3-row game grid with nine fixed win lines, which function if a succession from the left to the right reel is present. Only those players that that attain the highest win per bet line are paid. From a visual standpoint, the Starburst XXXtreme slots illustrates lightning effects behind the reels, which is not surprising as it is inherited from the original version. Available themes include Classic, Jewels, and Space. The game is also available in both desktop and mobile versions, which is advantageous for players considering the global pandemic. According to Techguide, American gamers are increasingly having more engaging gaming experiences to socialize to fill the gap of in-person interaction. Starburst XXXtreme allows them to fill the social void at a time when there is so much time to be had indoors.

Starburst XXXTreme Features

Players get to alternate on three features which are Starburst Wilds, XXXtreme Spins, and Random Wilds. The first appears on reels 2,3, or 4. When these land, they expand to cover all positions while also calculating the wins. They are also locked for a respin. If a new one hits, it also becomes locked while awarding another respin. Starburst XXXtreme offers a choice between two scenarios for a higher stake. In one scenario with a ten times stake, the Starburst Wild is set on random on reels 2,3, or 4, and a multiplier starts the respin. The second scenario, which has a 95 times stake, starts with two guaranteed starburst wilds on reels 2,3, or 4. it also plays out using respin game sequence and features. The game also increases the potential with the Random Wilds feature to add Starburst Wilds to a vacant reel at the end of a spin. Every Starburst Wild gives a random multiplier with potential wins of x2, x3, x5, x10, x25, x50, x100, or even x150.

The new feature is sure to be a big hit with the gaming market as online gambling has shown significant growth during the lockdown. AdAge indicates the current casino customer base is an estimated one in five Americans, so Starburst XXXtreme’s additional features will achieve considerable popularity.

What We Think About The Game

The gambling market has continued to diversify post-pandemic, so it is one of the most opportune times to release an online casino-based game. Thankfully Starburst XXXtreme features eye-catching visuals, including the jewels and space themes. These attract audience participation and make the gameplay inviting. The game also has a nostalgic edge. The previous NetEnt iteration featured similar visuals and gameplay, so the audience has some familiarity with it. The producers have revamped this version by tweaking the features to improve the volatility and engagement.

That is characterized by the potential win cap of 200,000 times the bet. Starburst XXXtreme does not just give betting alternatives for players that want to go big. The increase of multipliers also provides a great experience. If the respins in the previous version were great, knowing that multipliers can go hundreds of times overtakes the game to a new level.

Players should get excited about this offering. All of the features can be triggered within a single spin. Whether one plays the standard game or takes the XXXtreme spin route, it is possible to activate all of the features. Of course, the potential 200,000 times potential is a huge carrot. However, the bet size is probably going to be restricted and vary depending on the casino. It is also worth pointing out that a malfunction during the gameplay will void all of the payouts and progress. Overall, the game itself has been designed to provide a capped win of 200,000 times the original bet.

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Anglais

‘We’re back’: Montreal festival promoters happy to return but looking to next year

Published

3 années ago

juillet 23, 2021

admin

In downtown Montreal, it’s festival season.

In the city’s entertainment district, a musical act was conducting a sound check on stage Friday evening — the second day of the French-language version of the renowned Just For Laughs comedy festival. Tickets for many of the festival’s free outdoor shows — limited by COVID-19 regulations — were sold out.

Two blocks away, more than 100 people were watching an acoustic performance by the Isaac Neto Trio — part of the last weekend of the Festival International Nuits d’Afrique, a celebration of music from the African continent and the African diaspora.

With COVID-19 restrictions continuing to limit capacity, festival organizers say they’re glad to be back but looking forward to next year when they hope border restrictions and capacity limits won’t affect their plans.

Charles Décarie, Just For Laughs’ CEO and president, said this is a “transition year.”

“Even though we have major constraints from the public health group in Montreal, we’ve managed to design a festival that can navigate through those constraints,” Décarie said.

The French-language Juste pour rire festival began on July 15 and is followed by the English-language festival until July 31.

When planning began in February and March, Décarie said, organizers came up with a variety of scenarios for different crowd sizes, ranging from no spectators to 50 per cent of usual capacity.

“You’ve got to build scenarios,” he said. “You do have to plan a little bit more than usual because you have to have alternatives.”

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Anglais

MELS new major movie studio to be built in Montreal

Published

3 années ago

juillet 23, 2021

admin

MONTREAL — MELS Studios will build a new film studio in Montreal, filling some of the gap in supply to meet the demand of Hollywood productions.

MELS president Martin Carrier said on Friday that MELS 4 studio construction will begin « as soon as possible », either in the fall or winter of next year. The studio could host productions as early as spring 2023.

The total investment for the project is $76 million, with the Quebec government contributing a $25 million loan. The project will create 110 jobs, according to the company.

The TVA Group subsidiary’s project will enable it to stand out « even more » internationally, according to Quebecor president and CEO Pierre Karl Péladeau. In the past, MELS Studios has hosted several major productions, including chapters of the X-Men franchise. The next Transformers movie is shooting this summer in Montreal.

Péladeau insisted that local cultural productions would also benefit from the new facility, adding that the studio ensures foreign revenues and to showcase talent and maintain an industry of Quebec producers.

STUDIO SHORTAGE

The film industry is cramped in Montreal.

According to a report published last May by the Bureau du cinéma et de la télévision du Québec (BCTQ), there is a shortage of nearly 400,000 square feet of studio space.

With the addition of MELS 4, which will be 160,000 square feet, the company is filling part of the gap.

Carrier admitted that he has had to turn down contracts because of the lack of space, representing missed opportunities of « tens of millions of dollars, not only for MELS, but also for the Quebec economy. »

« Montreal’s expertise is in high demand, » said Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante, who was present at the announcement.

She said she received great testimonials from « Netflix, Disney, HBO and company » during an economic mission to Los Angeles in 2019.

« What stands out is that they love Montreal because of its expertise, knowledge and beauty. We need more space, like MELS 4, » she said.

There is still not enough capacity in Quebec, acknowledged Minister of Finance, the Economy and Innovation Eric Girard.

« It is certain that the government is concerned about fairness and balance, so if other requests come in, we will study them with the same seriousness as we have studied this one, » he said.

Grandé Studios is the second-largest player in the industry. Last May, the company said it had expansion plans that should begin in 2022. Investissement Québec and Bell are minority shareholders in the company.

For its part, MELS will have 400,000 square feet of production space once MELS 4 is completed. The company employs 450 people in Quebec and offers a range of services including studio and equipment rentals, image and sound postproduction, visual effects and a virtual production platform.