Nebraska Boy Attacked by Alligator in Florida
Authorities in Orlando, Florida, are still searching for a 2-year-old boy who was dragged into the water by an alligator near Disney's upscale Grand Floridian Resort and Spa and are hoping for the best.
Orange County Sheriff's spokesman Jeff Williamson said at a news conference this morning that it's still being considered a search and rescue operation and additional deputies will be joining the search.
The boy was with his family on vacation from Nebraska. The family of five was wading in the water of the Seven Seas Lagoon on Tuesday night when the alligator came out of the water and attacked.
Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings says the boy's father tried to rescue him but was not able to.
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Premier Concerned with Federal Aerospace Bill
Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister wants assurances from the federal government that the province's aerospace sector will not be hurt by changes at Air Canada and in defence contracting.
Pallister says a bill now before Parliament would weaken the requirement for Air Canada to keep maintenance jobs in Manitoba.
The bill would require that work be done in Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec, but would give Air Canada more flexibility to move work from one province to another.
Pallister says if work is moved out of Manitoba, he would like to see compensation in the form of job training or other investments in the province's aerospace sector.
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Gender-Neutral Washrooms for Manitoba Legislature Under Consideration
Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister says he is considering a request to have a gender-neutral public washroom in the legislature.
Pallister says he received the request while attending Winnipeg's annual Pride rally outside the historic building earlier this month.
He says if the Conservative government can do a better job of accommodating individual needs in the building, it should be looked at.
Pallister has faced accusations of being opposed to gay and lesbian rights and was called homophobic by former NDP premier Greg Selinger during the last election campaign.
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MGEU Prez Meeting with Members Across Manitoba This Week
With it being National Public Service Week, the president of the MGEU is making the rounds.
Manitoba Government and General Employees Union president Michelle Gawronksy was in Dauphin yesterday, following a stop in Swan River.
She says she's asking every other Manitoban to give a big thank you to public servants and the activists that represent them.
"Everyone out there, when you're being served by anybody else, any of your other fellow Manitobans, say hello to everybody and you know, thank them for the job that they do do. Oftentimes we hear the criticisms, rarely do we get a thank you. And they are very, very important."
Gawronksy has been in around the province this week, including Flin Flon, The Pas, Thompson, Swan River, and Dauphin. Today she hits Brandon, tomorrow Portage, and then it's back to Winnipeg.
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Motion to Declare ISIL Actions Genocide Defeated
Interim Conservative leader Rona Ambrose is accusing the Liberals of tarnishing Canada's record as a defender of human rights, after 166 mostly Liberal MPs voted against her motion to have the atrocities of the so-called Islamic State group declared a genocide.
Without much Liberal support, her motion was defeated. Prime Minister Trudeau contends that declaring the group's actions a genocide should be done objectively, if at all.
He says that's why the government has asked the UN to weigh in on the matter.
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Jury Still Out on Coffee/Cancer Link
Coffee lovers, take note -- The World Health Organization's research arm today has downgraded its classification of coffee as a possible carcinogen.
It has declared there isn't enough proof to show a link between coffee and cancer.
But the International Agency for Research on Cancer also says drinking "very hot'' beverages of any kind could potentially raise the cancer risk.