NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Alicia Keys attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Nick Cannon attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Sean Diddy Combs attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Ariana Grande attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Larry Busacca/Getty Images for MTV)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Bebe Rexha attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Larry Busacca/Getty Images for MTV)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Social media star Baddie Winkle attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
Hailey Baldwin arrives at the MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on Sunday, Aug. 28, 2016, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Cassie attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
Farrah Abraham arrives at the MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on Sunday, Aug. 28, 2016, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
Winnie Harlow arrives at the MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on Sunday, Aug. 28, 2016, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Model Taylor Hill attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Kanye West and Kim Kardashian West attend the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Nicki Minaj attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: JoJo attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Jaden Smith attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Nick Jonas attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Rita Ora attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Britney Spears attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Jenni "JWoww" Farley attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Naomi Campbell attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 28: Ashley Graham attends the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on August 28, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
Beyonce and daughter Blue Ivy arrive at the MTV Video Music Awards at Madison Square Garden on Sunday, Aug. 28, 2016, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
The MTV Video Music Awards have given us some of the most memorable red carpet looks - good and bad. This year was no disappointment. From feathers to turbans, sparkle and more see the most daring looks from the 2016 MTV VMAs red carpet.
NEW YORK -- Accompanied by daughter Blue Ivy sporting a big tulle train, Beyonce was angel-winged and green-feathered Sunday night on the white carpet of the MTV Video Music Awards, one of the wildest celebrity fashion parades of the year.
Sparkling from head to toe in the shade of mint, huge green jewels hanging from her ears, the queen wore her hair back and braided. Her hive of fans was pleased, breathless on Twitter, as her 4-year-old princess walked in gold, high top sneakers on, showing off a dainty jeweled head band worn at the front with two long braids.
From sparkly Superman T-shirts to bejeweled high top kicks, the VMAs is an anything-goes carpet, an opportunity for names large and smaller from TV, music and elsewhere to strut and clown for throngs of cameras live from Madison Square Garden.
Beyonce and Blue posed with Sybrina Fulton, Lezley McSpadden and Gwen Carr, the mothers of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown and Eric Garner, among others. Collectively, they're in the Mothers of the Movement, women of colour who lost children to violence and appeared in Beyonce's "Lemonade" visual album holding photos of their lost sons.
Nicki Minaj slayed in sexy royal blue, a clingy mermaid-style gown with a crisscross front and huge side cutouts. Walking in the tight outfit proved a challenge. Her accessory was Meek, wearing a black zip jacket with red rose appliques and a huge rectangle diamond necklace.
More subdued was Amber Rose in a black, double-breasted pantsuit, bra top out. Kim Kardashian also opted for black as she posed with hubby Kanye West, casual in a white short-sleeve T-shirt and white pants.
Britney Spears was in black, too, a form-flattering dress with a long open slash from the shoulder to the hip, her blonde locks long and loose.
Swinging her famous high ponytail, Ariana Grande blew kisses at the cameras in a tiny, flirty lace top off the shoulders with a pair of wide black trousers and black choker. Speaking of walking, Rita Ora had no trouble in towering platform shoes with a sheer black skirt with red feather accents and a black leather motorcycle jacket.
The impersonating cast of "RuPaul's Drag Race," meanwhile, did what they do best, walking as Lady Gaga in her meat dress, Spears and her famous snake (this one a fake) and Lil' Kim with one nipple covered only by a blue pastie.
The guys represented. Rapper Desiigner was bare-chested in a salmon suit, his eternally huge smile on his face and glittery chains around his neck. Nick Cannon was in white, including a turban, to go with his sleeveless T and long shorts, while 2 Chainz wore a red and green stripe bandanna scarf with a tasseled white long-sleeve shirt.
One of the evening's hosts, DJ Khaled, wore a sharp David August black suit.
The VMAs attracted many in MTV's reality stable, including "Teen Mom OG" Farrah Abraham as full-on Wonder Woman. The night also attracted a few supermodels, including Naomi Campbell in a short ivory dress and Joan Smalls in a clay red crop top.
Four of the Final Five gymnastics stars from the Rio Olympics also walked the carpet -- Simone Biles, in a sequined red mini by designer Sherri Hill, Aly Raisman, in a girly floral overlay dress, Laurie Hernandez in blue and Madison Kocian in aqua.
Teammate Gabby Douglas was in a hospital for treatment of a mouth infection from a previous injury, said her publicist, Lesley Burbridge.
Historic multi-gold winning Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps was chill in a simple pair of black pants, white shirt and a black jacket as photographers shouted, "Where are your medals?"
Later, he introduced Future, revealing it was the Atlanta rapper and singer he was listening to when making his now-famous Phelps face, a grimace before a race that went viral on social media.

MTV VMAs: The most daring looks from the red carpet


NEW YORK -- Has Col. Sanders' nephew inadvertently revealed to the world the secret blend of 11 herbs and spices behind KFC's fried chicken empire?
The company says the recipe published in the Chicago Tribune is not authentic. But that hasn't stopped rampant online speculation that one of the most legendary and closely guarded secrets in the history of fast food has been exposed.
KFC's secret recipe revealed? Tribune shown family scrapbook with 11 herbs and spices https://t.co/k0ieLSbcPI pic.twitter.com/gg3NygwFqN — Chicago Tribune (@chicagotribune) August 19, 2016
It all started when a reporter visited with Joe Ledington, a nephew of Kentucky Fried Chicken founder Col. Harland David Sanders.
The reporter was working on a story for the Tribune's travel section about Corbin, Kentucky, where the colonel served his first fried chicken. At one point, Ledington pulled out a family scrapbook containing the last will and testament of Sanders' second wife, Claudia Ledington.
On the back of the document is a handwritten list for a blend of 11 herbs and spices to be mixed with two cups of white flour. While Joe Ledington initially told the reporter that it was the original recipe, he later said that he didn't know for sure.
KFC -- which is a subsidiary of Yum Brands Inc. -- calls its recipe "one of the biggest trade secrets in the world." It says that the recipe the reporter saw is not the real thing.
"Many people have made these claims over the years and no one has been accurate -- this one isn't either," KFC said in a statement.
The Louisville, Kentucky-based company says that the original recipe from 1940 handwritten by Sanders is locked up in a digital safe that's encased in two feet of concrete and monitored 24 hours a day by a video and motion detection surveillance system.
Joe Ledington could not immediately be reached for comment on Friday.
THE COLONEL'S FAMOUS RECIPE (maybe, maybe not)
Social media is lighting up on the possibility that, at long last, Col. Sanders' 11 herbs and spices have been revealed. KFC says it hasn't, and the original source, a relative, now says he doesn't know. Anyway, here it is.
The 11 spices:
2/3 tsp salt
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp basil
1/3 tsp oregano
1 tsp celery salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp dried mustard
4 tsp paprika
2 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp ground ginger
3 tsp white pepper
Method
Mix spices above with 2 cups of white flour

The colonel's secret recipe revealed? Not so fast, says KFC


NEW YORK -- Has Col. Sanders' nephew inadvertently revealed to the world the secret blend of 11 herbs and spices behind KFC's fried chicken empire?


Everyone knows that people often pair up at work.
You can attribute the phenomenon to shared interests, career parallels, proximity or simple laziness, but people who work together often fall in love.
That goes for celebrities, too.
Look at Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, or, more recently, Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander. There seem to be a lot of actors who fall in love with fellow actors at work.
Or with grips or directors or cinematographers — guess there are all kinds of likely romantic prospects on a movie set.
A lot of musicians fall in love at work, too, but they don’t seem to have such good results.
Which brings us to Drake and Rihanna … and how their on-again/off-again relationship seems switched back to ‘on’.
So we have to ask: What is it about the world o’ music that has it littered with so many ruined relationships? Jennifer Lopez and Mark Anthony used to be a couple and so did Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez, and we all know where that went.
Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale no doubt aimed for happily-ever-after, as did Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert; those plans changed for everybody somewhere along the way.
(As for the busted-up Shelton and Lambert, country singers are in a special category all their own. It may be related to composing and singing songs about heartbreak, cheatin’, d-i-v-o-r-c-e, and hurtin’ in general, but start with Tammy Wynette and George Jones and move along to Shania Twain and Mutt Lange or Trisha Yearwood and Robert Reynolds and then to the former relationships of singers such as Kenny Chesney, Randy Travis, Leann Rimes, etc: It’s like an epidemic.)
In music, there’s no end to spectacular failures — Carly Simon and James Taylor, Stevie Nicks and Lindsay Buckingham, Kris Kristofferson and Rita Coolidge, J. Lo and Puffy, Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears, John Mayer and Taylor Swift, Calvin Harris and Taylor Swift, Calvin Harris and Rita Ora, Demi Lovato and Joe Jonas, Rihanna and Chris Brown. Remember all that?
Beyonce and Jay-Z appear to be the exception in this, although her songs about his infidelity on Lemonade will continue to keep everyone guessing.
Meanwhile, if we had to guess the origin of all that couple wreckage, we’d say irreconcilable similarities. You can only have so many swelled heads under the same roof.
But back to Drake and Rihanna. These two have collaborated on a few tunes — What’s My Name, Take Care, Work, Too Good.
Ever since the New York Post reported them kissing in a bowling alley bar seven years ago, Drake and Rihanna have certainly seemed to have had something going on. They have plenty of history.
If you’ve seen them on-stage together then you know their chemistry is undeniable. And yet, nothing permanent ever seems to materialize. Remember the donnybrook between Drake and Chris Brown in that New York club in 2012? There was plenty of speculation about what they were fighting over.
Drake keeps turning up in Rihanna’s concerts, in Miami, in Manchester, in L.A. Then she was onstage for his OVO Fest in Toronto this summer, where she called him “baby.”
Is that her face tattooed on his arm?
Things have seemed to be heating up for over a year now.
And now everybody heard him speak of his feelings earlier this week at the MTV VMAs:
“She’s someone I’ve been in love with since I was 22 years old. She’s one of my best friends in the world. All my adult life, I’ve looked up to her even though she’s younger than me.”
Later that night Drake posted an Instagram of the two of them together, with the CN Tower in the background.
Rihanna posted videos on her Snapchat of Drake hanging backstage with her and her family, including her mom and her grandfather.
It all looks very cozy.
A lot of young people we know think Drake and RiRi are the greatest couple since Romeo and Juliet.
Others are not so sure. There are interesting differences between people who grow up where there are four seasons (and snow) with which to contend and those who grow up where the sun is always shining. We just made that up, but still.
And then there’s that bleak music world landscape, littered with broken hearts — which everyone will tell you is the ideal atmosphere for song-writing. Alas.
Nobody writes songs when he or she is happy.
May all concerned proceed with caution.
Twitter: @LizBraunSun
LBraun@postmedia.com

Drake and Rihanna and the pitfalls of being a celebrity couple


Everyone knows that people often pair up at work.


Police are searching for a convicted robber who escaped Monday from Edmonton's Stan Daniels Healing Centre.
A warrant has been issued for Carlos Tecomba, who is serving a sentence of five years and nine months for robbery with threats of violence and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose.
Tecomba is 20 years old, five-foot-eight and weighs about 200 pounds. He has brown eyes and black hair.
Correctional Services Canada is working with the Edmonton Police Service to locate Tecomba and is conducting an internal investigation about the circumstances of the escape.
The Stan Daniels Healing Centre is located at 9516 101 Ave. in Edmonton.
On Aug. 22, Killam RCMP arrested a dangerous offender who disappeared Aug. 13 while on leave from the Pe Sakastew minimum security facility. Darrell Peter Moosomin, 54, had been granted day leave from the facility in Maskwacis, south of Edmonton, to attend the Samson Powwow under the supervision of an elder.
sxthomson@postmedia.com
twitter.com/stuartxthomson

Warrant issued for man who escaped Edmonton minimum security healing centre


Police are searching for a convicted robber who escaped Monday from Edmonton's Stan Daniels Healing Centre.A warrant has been issued for Carlos Tecomba, who is serving a sentence of five years and nine months for robbery with threats of violence and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose.


Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s spin doctors need to think back to when they were kids.
And to recall if it ever worked to complain to Mom and Dad, when they were caught doing something stupid, that “all the other guys were doing it, too.”
Remember what Mom and Dad used to say, Liberal spin doctors?
They would say: “And if all the other guys jumped off a cliff, would you do that too?”
That’s why their latest attempt to bury the limo and vanity photographers’ expense controversy involving Liberal cabinet ministers, by claiming the Conservatives did it too, and they were even worse, is so dumb.
First, feeding this information to The Hill Times just keeps the story alive.
Second, of course the Tories spent more. They were in power for almost a decade, compared to nine months for the Liberals.
Third, the New Democrats have compiled a helpful record of quotes from Liberals reacting to Tory ministerial spending when they were in power.
On Bev Oda’s $16 orange juice:
“It reveals a government that’s off its game, quite frankly, and taking liberties with the public’s patience and the public’s purse.” (Then Liberal deputy leader Ralph Goodale, April 23, 2012, Postmedia News.)
On Conservative cabinet ministers using photographers:
“The money spent by Conservatives on vanity photographers could have kept the Veterans Affairs office in Cape Breton open.” (Liberal MP Mark Eyking, iPolitics, Feb. 19, 2015)
On what type of vehicles Conservative cabinet ministers were using:
“They’re afraid to roll into Parliament in their black little limos today.” (Liberal MP Scott Andrews, Huffington Post, May 3, 2012).
Do the Liberals -- the party that gave us former cabinet minister David Dingwall unforgettably saying he was “entitled to my entitlements” regarding his job at the Royal Canadian Mint -- really want to drag this out?
Is their argument the Lexus ES 300 luxury sedan Health Minister Jane Philpott was being chauffered around in isn’t a limo, really the hill they want to die on?
Or that Environment Minister Catherine McKenna saved taxpayers’ money by spending $6,600 for a photographer in Paris, instead of bringing one from Canada?
Seriously, federal Liberals. Seriously.
We can almost hear Mom and Dad sending you to your room without supper, right now.

Liberals: Have some cheese with that whine


Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s spin doctors need to think back to when they were kids.


JACUMBA, United States — An American border guard steps out of his vehicle onto a dusty desert road, seeking to chat with the strangers he sees milling about the mesquite bushes a few metres from Mexico.
His team catches a dozen migrants crossing here illegally each day, he says. A few dozen others slip through, he figures. Evidence lies in the sand, in the discarded bits of cloth desert-walkers placed under their shoes to hide their footprints.
The conversation turns to Donald Trump. He’s asked whether Trump’s proposed border wall would halt the flow of migrants crossing through California’s Yuha Desert. He doubts it. There’s already a wall across almost one-third of the border — people still get over.
“You’d need to get rid of all the ladders in Mexico,” he says.
“If you build a bigger wall, they build bigger ladders... They’ve got fine engineers in Mexico, I have no doubt.”
Trump is now wrestling with difficult realities for his immigration plan. Some are political. His new attempt to soften his message for a general-election audience risks fracturing his own base, which was largely built on his immigration stance.
Some involve practical questions: Does Trump plan to cut off U.S. access to the Rio Grande? A wall already covers part of the border; the rest is mostly river. Does he actually intend to deport 11 million people in the U.S. illegally? If so, what’s the plan to prevent the collapse of industries that rely on migrant labour? And, if not, does that mean breaking his pledge against granting legal amnesty?
A sombre monument nearby belies the idea of simple solutions here.
A cemetery of unmarked graves is filled with people who perished crossing the border. Thousands have died — their numbers grew the last time politicians tried fixing the border, during the Clinton administration in the 1990s.
A partial wall went up in the populated areas near San Diego and Tijuana by the ocean, built from old scraps of metal that belonged to the military. As steel sheets and poles rose in the west, migration routes moved east, toward new threats: the desert, the river, and the human smugglers.
Enrique Morones leads a group praying in the cemetery. They’re volunteers with his organization Border Angels, which deposits jugs of water in the desert to keep people from dehydrating or roasting to death in the scorching desert sun.
Migrants generally cross when it’s cooler, he says — especially at night. Yet accidents happen constantly. People get lost and disoriented. The water bottles run empty — sometimes vandals cut them.
“When we say, ’I’m dying of thirst,’ it’s just an expression. For them it’s real,” says Morones, who used to work in marketing for baseball’s San Diego Padres before turning to full-time work as an activist and public speaker.
“Every summer there’s more deaths because of that wall than in the entire history of the Berlin Wall.”
Hugo Castro is among the volunteers dropping water. He usually works in the fields — numerous crops grow in the valley near the Holtville cemetery, including cantaloupe, lettuce, watermelon and cabbage.
He said many workers go back to Mexico at night because they can’t afford lodging in California. He said many make $40-$50 for a 10-hour day in the field, head south, wake up before 2 a.m., and return in the morning: “They cross daily.”
He said many workers have legal papers to cross — himself included.
Many don’t.
The effect of undocumented labour extends all the way to Canada’s kitchen tables. Whether or not they’re aware of it, Canadians have a distant personal connection to the migrants who’ve become a major U.S. election issue.
In a literal sense, Canada eats the fruits of their labour. Dennis Nuxoll of the Western Growers farming association said of the 400,000 farm workers in California alone, the majority are believed to have falsified work documents.
They pick delicate crops that can’t be harvested by machine — especially grapes, tomatoes, strawberries and lettuce.
“If these workers disappeared tomorrow, we could not harvest many of the crops that Canadians consume,” Nuxoll said.
These workers are unnerved by the election.
The sound of a transistor radio crackles in the vineyards, in an elegant winery near Napa. The owner says staff have been listening to Spanish-language political radio lately, not music, while they work.
She admits she’s unsure whether they all have legitimate documents. There’s such a labour shortage in the area, she says, that she’s grateful for the workers she has: “I don’t know what we’d have to do if we had to hire.”
Trump’s immigration plan, meanwhile, is in flux. Where he once promised to deport all illegal migrants. he now says he would force them out — then allow an unspecified number back in, require them to pay back taxes, and grant legal status.
A shift in tone won’t mollify Morones.
“I don’t want anything to do with him,” he said of Trump. “He represents the worst of the American spirit, and in my eyes he’s not welcome here.”

'You’d need to get rid of all the ladders in Mexico'; Donald Trump’s border wall


An American border guard steps out of his vehicle onto a dusty desert road, seeking to chat with the strangers he sees milling about the mesquite bushes a few metres from Mexico.


Nathan Deslippe was an ambitious entrepreneur with a thriving career and promising future.
William Joles was looking for work and a place to crash after returning to London after an unsuccessful stint out West.
The two men, both 27, had known each other for years, bonding over a shared passion for leadership and life coaching.
Joles sometimes showed up for dinner at the Deslippe family home, where he earned a reputation for having a huge appetite, while Deslippe had some of his friend’s furniture in his downtown apartment.
Deslippe’s parents weren’t surprised when their son opened his home to Joles and tried to get him a job with the technology company he worked for.
But the friendship took a tragic turn when Deslippe was found dead inside his downtown London apartment over the weekend and Joles was charged with killing his roommate.
“He refused to give up on his friend,” Deslippe’s mother, Mona Lam-Deslippe, said Monday.
“He had so many friends because he cared for so many people. It was unfortunately this caring that caused this situation.”
The homicide — London’s third of the year — left Deslippe’s family, friends and colleagues in shock.
“We’re just not able to make any sense of it,” said Deslippe’s father, Tim Deslippe. “It just seems like such a senseless death.”
Police found Deslippe’s body in his 18th-floor unit after receiving a 911 call to 323 Colborne St. Sunday around 10 a.m. Joles was arrested at the scene and charged with second-degree murder Monday.
Lawrence Field, a friend of both men, said Joles called him Sunday morning, asking him to come to Deslippe’s apartment.
Field said he arrived around 6:30 a.m. to find Joles and a woman in the lobby. The three started to go upstairs, but when the elevator didn’t work Field opted to go home rather than climb the 18 flights.
As he was leaving, Field said Joles, who smelled like alcohol, embraced him.
“He was like, ‘This is the last hug you’re going to get,” said Field, whose boss called him a few hours later, saying police had showed up looking for him.
Field said he met with investigators and turned over his phone.
Joles is also charged with forcible confinement, assault and uttering threats. The charges stem from a related event at the same location, London police said.
A woman who lives in the unit directly below Deslippe’s said she didn’t hear anything strange Saturday and Sunday morning, but saw men hanging out and drinking on the balcony sometime during the night.
Police hadn’t revealed how Deslippe died and were awaiting the results of an autopsy.
Friend Amir Farahi said he last talked to Deslippe shortly before midnight Saturday.
“He was just telling me he’s chilling,” said Farahi. “It seemed like he was just settling down, relaxing.”
Friends remember Deslippe as a community-builder who was close to his father, a principal with the London District Catholic school board, and his mother, the founder of MLD Solutions Inc., a technology and consulting company, and a prominent member of London’s technology community.
“Her son was a heck of a lot like her,” technology analyst Carmi Levy said of Deslippe. “He was a good soul.
“Things like this don’t happen to people like him.”
A graduate of Catholic Central high school, Deslippe worked as an account manager at Voices.com, a London technology company, where his co-workers covered his desk with flowers and messages scrawled on Post-it notes Monday.
“He was dearly loved . . . Every time you go by his desk, there’s more things piled on his desk. It’s sad,” said company spokesperson Trisha Beausaert, who confirmed Joles had interviewed with the company.
Moving back to London nearly two months ago, Joles was staying with Deslippe but had found his own place for October, said Deslippe’s family.
Joles, who attended Central secondary school, studied police foundations at Fanshawe College before enrolling in criminology at King’s University College for two years. He worked as a security guard for private companies and at a London bar before going to Western Canada.
Visitation for Deslippe is Wednesday from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., and 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Forest Lawn Funeral Home and Cemetery.
The funeral is 10 a.m. Thursday at St. Peter’s Basilica in London
— With files by Free Press reporter Jennifer O’Brien
dcarruthers@postmedia.com
twitter.com/DaleatLFPress
--- --- ---
Nathan Deslippe of London is remembered as an ambitious young man who hoped to open a business combining yoga and craft beer
Dreamer found dead “was going to go far”
A dreamer who made things happen.
That was Nathan Deslippe, say those who knew him.
Besides working for a London tech company, teaching yoga, running two of his own start-ups and volunteering in the community, Deslippe was toiling away at his most ambitious project yet.
The 27-year-old, found dead Sunday in the downtown London highrise where he lived, had planned to open a wellness centre that offered a yoga classes, life coaching and served craft beer.
He was busy developing a business plan with his mother, Mona Lam-Deslippe, and even had yoga instructors lined up.
“He was a big vision guy,” said Arthur Gonzales, a friend since high school. “We need to have more people like Nathan.”
Networking came easy to Deslippe, whom friends say was at ease mingling with young professionals as he was with politicians and business leaders.
“He lit up the room, that’s why he was good at networking,” said friend Rob Anderson, who had planned to work out with Deslippe at the gym on Monday.
“He offered so much to London. He was proud of this city,”
News of Deslippe’s death prompted a massive show of support on social media Monday.
A sharp dresser with a taste for bow ties, Deslippe devoured self-help books by gurus like Tony Robbins. His social media feed was peppered with inspiration quotes.
But Deslippe’s top passion was yoga.
“He literally tried to get everyone into yoga,” said friend Amir Farahi.
Deslippe had recently started teaching a Thursday night yoga class at Anderson Craft Ales, where participants gathered for drinks in the brewery’s bar after their sessions.
“He wanted to test it there and prove the concept,” Anderson said of his friend’s idea to pair yoga and suds.
Lam-Deslippe, an accomplished London businesswoman, had complete confidence in her son’s concept of building a culture around nurturing the body and mind.
“It was a very well-rounded holistic approach,” she said. “That’s why I believe that he could have made it work by building that culture.”
Deslippe was even ambitious when it came to pet ownership. He created social media accounts for his beloved Gyzmo, a chihuahua- pomeranian mix, in the hopes the dog would become the next online star.
The word friends and family used most to describe Deslippe? Inspiring.
“He always tried to motivate people to do their best,” said father Tim Deslippe.
“He was going to go far.”
Dale Carruthers, Free Press Reporter

'Such a senseless death'; Friendship takes tragic turn as roommate charged with


Nathan Deslippe was an ambitious entrepreneur with a thriving career and promising future.


Drake has stunned his rumoured girlfriend Rihanna by buying a Los Angeles billboard to congratulate the singer on her MTV Video Music Awards honour.
The Umbrella hitmaker is slated to open the ceremony on Sunday, and will also receive the prestigious Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award, and Drake wanted to let everyone know how proud he was of her achievement by having the billboard unveiled on Friday.
“Congratulations to Rihanna from Drake and Everyone at OVO (his record label),” it read.
Rihanna proudly shared a photo of Drake’s over-the-top gift on Instagram on Friday, with the caption, “When he extra”, alongside a heart and trophy emoji.
The Hotline Bling hitmaker’s grand gesture has further fuelled rumours the pair is secretly dating. The couple was romantically linked for a brief period in 2010, but the stars have been spending more time together over the last few months, and have shared several steamy sessions on stage together as they performed their collaboration Work during Rihanna’s ANTI World Tour. The singer even bared her breasts for the risque video shoot for the track, in which she danced seductively against Drake wearing a sheer mesh top, leaving little to the imagination.
Meanwhile, Drake, who is continuing his Summer Sixteen tour with fellow rapper Future, is reportedly looking to cash in on the success of musicians releasing short films to accompany their albums, following in the footsteps of Beyonce and Frank Ocean.
A project called Please Forgive Me will feature music from his recent album Views, as well as an original soundtrack by his longtime producer Noah Shebib, reports PageSix.com.

Drake congratulates Rihanna on MTV Video Music Awards honour with billboard


Drake has stunned his rumoured girlfriend Rihanna by buying a Los Angeles billboard to congratulate the singer on her MTV Video Music Awards honour.


SEATTLE -- Authorities say the husband of Heart lead singer Ann Wilson is being held on investigation of assaulting two relatives during the group's show in suburban Seattle.
The Seattle Times is reporting that 65-year-old Dean Stuart Wetter appeared in King County District Court on Monday. Bail was set at $10,000.
The paper says that according to court records, the two boys were watching the show from backstage when they left to walk around. They were walking past the tour buses when they saw Ann Wilson's new tour bus and wanted to look inside.
Documents say Wetter started yelling after they left the door open and allegedly punched one of the boys in the back of the head before grabbing him by the throat.
When the other boy stepped in, Wetter allegedly also grabbed his throat.
Wetter is scheduled to appear in court again Wednesday. He married Ann Wilson in 2015.

Husband of Heart singer Ann Wilson arrested for assault


Authorities say the husband of Heart lead singer Ann Wilson is being held on investigation of assaulting two relatives during the group's show in suburban Seattle.


BERLIN — Swiss media are reporting that a wingsuit flyer who fatally crashed in the Alps on Friday was broadcasting live on Facebook when the accident happened.
A video posted online shows a man readying his wingsuit before pocketing his phone and taking off. After a few moments, a shout can be heard and the sound of impact.
The video couldn’t immediately be verified.
The Zurich daily Blick reports that followers watching the video reacted with horror. Some sent messages asking that he “write or say something.”
Bern cantonal police said the body of a 28-year-old Italian citizen was recovered near Kandersteg, a popular BASE jumping location. Police spokeswoman Jolanda Egger declined Saturday to confirm the man’s identity, citing privacy rules. She said the cause of the accident was still being investigated.

Wingsuit flyer’s death live-streamed on Facebook: Report


Swiss media are reporting that a wingsuit flyer who fatally crashed in the Alps on Friday was broadcasting live on Facebook when the accident happened.


Last year, Albertans tossed the Progressive Conservatives from office.
The PCs had bet Albertans’ jobs on a never-ending boom, then abandoned them in the bust.
They emptied their Heritage Fund.
Fixed rules so CEOs pay the same tax rate as secretaries.
Spent public money flying friends and family.
Cut education and health care.
That gang wants back. And they’ve written their play – “Jason Kenney, Alberta Uniter.”
After 26 years in Ottawa, Kenney’s shed his Ottawa power suit and minister’s car.
He’s in new jeans, driving a bright blue Dodge Ram pickup – and talking about uniting Albertans behind the PCs, with him as leader.
But it’s not going according to script.
How can it? His entire life, Kenney – anti-abortion crusader, anti-tax lobbyist, social conservative – has been a polarizing and divisive politician.
Kenney’s political life hasn’t been dedicated to unifying anything except power.
No summer script can erase what’s been burned into voters’ psyche over 26 years.
Kenney polarizes Albertans and has little room to grow.
So says a recent poll by ThinkHQ.
Only 4% of NDP supporters approve of Kenney, 74% disapprove. No growth there.
Compared to Kenney, about 75% of Wildrose supporters prefer current Wildrose Leader Brian Jean – who Kenney aims to depose. So blocked there.
Overall, Kenney holds a 2% net approval rating, albeit higher than any other potential PC leadership contender.
But a Kenney-led PC party would still run third. Rachel Notley’s governing NDP would hold first.
Even if thunder bolts wiped out all memory of Kenney’s 26 polarizing years, this summer’s script creates new doubts.
In past provincial elections, Kenney cheered for Wildrose.
Now he’s switched to the PCs, the party he wants to lead, then destroy by merging it with Wildrose.
The PC leadership campaign officially starts in October and candidates can’t register until then.
But Kenney’s found a way to give himself a head start.
He’s set up Unite Alberta Inc., a corporation which can take donations and spend money.
Elections Alberta says there’s nothing they can do about it.
There’s the hypocrisy.
Kenney used to denounce double-dipping politicians.
But he’s going to keep taking his $12,000 per month MP paycheque until October, even though he spends his days campaigning across Alberta.
He doesn’t need the money.
He’s a single guy with none of the costs of raising kids.
Elected at 29, for 20 years he’s been an MP – for 10 of them as minister, who are currently topped up to $240,000 a year.
He already qualifies for a potential $6.3 million in pension payments to age 90.
Then there’s his Trump-like policy inconsistency.
Kenney’s against deficits, but voted for 10 of them as a Conservative minister.
He wants pipeline development, but his and the federal Conservative government’s climate-denying approach didn’t build one mile of it.
He doesn’t want a price on carbon, but once suggested a “small sales tax” in Alberta.
He favours more trade deals, but cheered Brexit.
He was strongly against abortion and gay marriage, now doesn’t want to talk about them.
Kenney polarizes because he feels like a slick huckster.
This isn’t about uniting Alberta.
It’s a play to return the old gang to power – the crew who dug a deep hole, took anything valuable from it, shoved Albertans down it, and now criticize them as they try to climb out. Kenney’s their man.


Last year, Albertans tossed the Progressive
Conservatives from office.


LOS ANGELES — The horror movie Don’t Breathe has reason to let out a big sigh of relief. Audiences turned out in droves for the late summer thriller, which brought in US$26.1 million, according to studio estimates released Sunday.
That’s more than double the early predictions for how the scary pic would perform and far above the modest production budget, which was reportedly less than $10 million. Stage 6 Films produced and Sony’s Screen Gems oversaw distribution.
Don’t Breathe is about a group of Detroit teens who chose the wrong house to rob — that of a blind, vengeful veteran. It stars Jane Levy and Dylan Minnette and was directed by Fede Alvarez, who is known for the Evil Dead remake.
Sony Pictures Marketing Chief Josh Greenstein noted how rare it was for a film in this genre to have resonated so deeply with critics. The current Rotten Tomatoes score is a very fresh 86%. It also continues Sony’s summer of seeing successes with original films that cost very little to make.
“This marks a string of very profitable hits for Sony with very modest budgets. The Shallows, Sausage Party and now Don’t Breathe were all incredibly profitable because they were made for modest budgets and did incredibly well at the box office,” Greenstein said.
It’s also the latest horror success for Hollywood this summer, which has seen films like Lights Out, The Conjuring 2, and The Purge: Election Year thrive while their bigger budget, spectacle-driven counterparts flailed.
“As it turns out horror is the least scary genre this summer, especially to the bean counters in Hollywood,” said Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for box office tracker comScore. “(They) can almost always be counted on to make money.”
Horror films, Dergarabedian said, perform very well on home video too.
Don’t Breathe effectively unseated Suicide Squad from its three-week run atop the box office. This weekend, the comic book film Suicide Squad grossed $12.1 million, bringing its domestic total to $282.9 million.
Laika’s Kubo and the Two Strings took third place in its second weekend in theatres with $7.9 million. The $60 million film has now earned $24.8 million domestically.
Sausage Party, meanwhile, continued to have a ball at the box office, earning $7.7 million for a fourth place finish and an $80 million domestic total.
The poorly reviewed Jason Statham-led sequel “Mechanic: Resurrection,” meanwhile, placed fifth in its opening weekend with $7.5 million, according to Lionsgate. The first film opened to $11.4 million in 2011.
Among specialty releases, the Barack and Michelle Obama first-date movie Southside With You launched in 813 theatres to an estimated $3.1 million, while The Weinstein Company’s Roberto Duran boxing biopic Hands of Stone opened in 810 theatres to $1.7 million.
Overall the box office was up 32 per cent from this weekend last year when Straight Outta Compton opened. Next weekend closes out the summer movie season with the release of the sci-fi film “Morgan” and the romantic drama The Light Between Oceans.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theatres, according to comScore. Where available, the latest international numbers for Friday through Sunday are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. Don’t Breathe, $26.1 million ($1.9 million international).
2. Suicide Squad, $12.1 million ($19.6 million international).
3. Kubo and the Two Strings, $7.9 million ($1.5 million international).
4. Sausage Party, $7.7 million ($1.6 million international).
5. Mechanic: Resurrection, $7.5 million ($6.1 million international).
6. Pete’s Dragon, $7.3 million ($3.5 million international).
7. War Dogs, $7.3 million ($5.3 million international).
8. Bad Moms, $5.8 million ($6.3 million international).
9. Jason Bourne, $5.2 million ($56.8 million international).
10. Ben-Hur, $4.5 million ($6.3 million international).
———
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at international theatres (excluding the U.S. and Canada), according to comScore:
1. Jason Bourne, $56.8 million.
2. Ice Age: Collision Course, $50 million.
3. The Secret Life of Pets, $24.6 million.
4. Suicide Squad, $19.6 million.
5. Lights Out, $9.6 million.
6. Bad Moms and Ben-Hur, $6.3 million.
7. Mechanic: Resurrection, Finding Dory, and The Shallows, $6.1 million.
8. Tunnel, $5.7 million.
9. War Dogs, $5.3 million.
10. Line Walker, $4.8 million.
———
Universal and Focus are owned by NBC Universal, a unit of Comcast Corp.; Sony, Columbia, Sony Screen Gems and Sony Pictures Classics are units of Sony Corp.; Paramount is owned by Viacom Inc.; Disney, Pixar and Marvel are owned by The Walt Disney Co.; Miramax is owned by Filmyard Holdings LLC; 20th Century Fox and Fox Searchlight are owned by 21st Century Fox; Warner Bros. and New Line are units of Time Warner Inc.; MGM is owned by a group of former creditors including Highland Capital, Anchorage Advisors and Carl Icahn; Lionsgate is owned by Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.; IFC is owned by AMC Networks Inc.; Rogue is owned by Relativity Media LLC.
———

'Don't Breathe' scares away the competition


The horror movie Don't Breathe has reason to let out a big sigh of relief. Audiences turned out in droves for the late summer thriller, which brought in US$26.1 million, according to studio estimates released Sunday.


Alberta schools should have counsellors at the ready when they begin teaching students the dark history of Canada’s residential schools, says one of the architects of the Northwest Territories’ curriculum.
As the Alberta government begins training 42,000 teachers how to teach First Nations, Inuit and Métis history and perspectives, schools in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut already require high school students to spend 25 hours learning about residential schools’ devastating effects on indigenous people.
All 800 teachers in the Northwest Territories must participate in aboriginal cultural awareness training, said John Stewart, director of instructional and school services with the territory’s education, culture and employment department. Teachers covering residential schools in class must complete a three-day in-service first.
“These are hard issues. I think a lot of people would rather not talk about them. For the future of your province, and the future of the country, we need to,” Stewart said.
In July, Alberta Education Minister David Eggen met with his N.W.T. counterpart, Alfred Moses, at a national meeting of education ministers in Toronto, Eggen’s press secretary, Larissa Liepins, said. Eggen may travel to the N.W.T. near the end of September — the details are still being finalized, Liepins said.
The Northwest Territories and Nunavut introduced mandatory residential school lessons four years ago. As the Truth and Reconciliation Commission held hearings across Canada, a previous territorial education minister announced in 2011 the territory would adopt mandatory teacher training and a high school unit addressing the legacy of residential schools.
The commission spent six years collecting stories and evidence of systemic assimilation, and physical, sexual and emotional abuse of indigenous people at the schools. The institutions were complicit in governments’ attempt to isolate indigenous children from their families and eliminate their culture and languages.
The required 25 hours of instruction are part of the northern studies class, which is typically taught in Grade 10, Stewart said. Teachers from Nunavut and the Northwest Territories developed the curriculum together, in conjunction with people who attended residential schools. Lessons began in both territories in fall 2012.
When asked what advice he’d give to the Alberta government, Stewart said developing the lessons in partnership with residential school survivors is “essential.”
When notes went home to parents and guardians cautioning them about the sensitive material to come, some parents had questions — particularly those who had attended residential schools themselves. When parents heard from the survivors involved in developing the lessons, they felt reassured, Stewart said.
“In this kind of issue, if aboriginal people are not involved in the development of it, is it just another thing that is going to be done to them?”
During the truth and reconciliation process, trauma counsellors were trained in communities throughout the north, Stewart said. Those who work in schools are at the ready, around the clock, when students learn about residential schools.
Stewart also recommends both teacher training and residential schools curriculum be mandatory.
It’s too early for any research gauging whether the course has shifted northern students’ attitudes or knowledge toward indigenous people, Stewart said. Early exit surveys and teacher feedback suggest it does.
More time dedicated to First Nations, Métis and Inuit history is just one of many changes expected as Alberta Education overhauls the province’s K-12 curriculum in both English and French during the next six years.
To complement the rewrite, the government is spending $5.4 million over the next three years to prepare 42,000 Alberta teachers to deliver lessons on indigenous history and perspectives. That training is optional for teachers, and will also be offered to teachers with independent and federally run First Nations schools, and other school and school board employees.
jfrench@postmedia.com
Twitter.com/jantafrench

Be ready with trauma counsellors after residential school lessons, N.W.T. educat


Alberta schools should have counsellors at the ready when they begin teaching students the dark history of Canada’s residential schools, says one of the architects of the Northwest Territories’ curriculum.


LOS ANGELES -- The famous human ancestor known as Lucy walked the Earth, but it was her tree climbing that might have led to her demise, a new study suggests.
An analysis of her partial skeleton reveals breaks in her right arm, left shoulder, right ankle and left knee -- injuries that researchers say resulted from falling from a high perch such as a tree.
Lucy likely died quickly, said John Kappelman, an anthropologist at the University of Texas at Austin, who published the findings Monday in the journal Nature.
"I don't think she suffered," Kappelman said.
But several other researchers, including Lucy's discoverer, disagree. They contend most of the cracks in Lucy's bones are well documented and came after her death from the fossilization process and natural forces such as erosion.
How Lucy met her end has remained a mystery since her well-preserved fossil remains were unearthed more than four decades ago. Her discovery was significant because it allowed scientists to establish that ancient human ancestors walked upright before evolving a big brain.
Lucy was a member of Australopithecus afarensis, an early human species that lived in Africa between about 4 million and 3 million years ago. The earliest humans climbed trees and walked on the ground. Lucy walked upright and occasionally used her long, dangling arms to climb trees. She was a young adult when she died.
Tim White, a paleoanthropologist at the University of California, Berkeley, called the study's conclusion a "misdiagnosis." The Texas researchers "appear to have focused only on the cracks that they could attribute to an imagined fall, ignoring the additional abundant cracks," White said in an email.
The split highlights the difficulty of pinpointing a cause of death from fossilized remains. Scientists rarely know how early humans died because skeletons are incomplete and bones tend to get crushed under sand and rocks.
Over the years, Lucy's discoverer Donald Johanson has tried to solve the mystery.
Lucy's skeleton, which is 40 per cent complete, was recovered in Ethiopia in what was an ancient lake near fossilized remains of crocodiles, turtle eggs and crab claws.
"There's no definitive proof of how she died," said Johanson of Arizona State University.
The Texas team examined Lucy's bones and used high-tech imaging. Kappelman said the scans revealed multiple broken bones and no signs of healing, suggesting the injuries occurred around the time of death.
He reconstructed her final moments: The 3-foot-6-inch (1.06-meter) Lucy fell from at least 40 feet and hit the ground at 35 mph. She landed on her feet before twisting and falling. Such an impact would have caused internal organ damage. Fractures on her upper arms suggest she tried to break her fall.
Kappelman theorized that Lucy's walking ability may have caused her to be less adept at climbing trees, making her more vulnerable to falling from heights.
Not everyone agrees that her tree-climbing skills were lacking. Other scientists point out that there have been documented falls by chimpanzees and orangutans, which spend more time in trees than Lucy's species.
"Without a time machine, how can one know that she didn't just get unlucky and fall?" William Harcourt-Smith of the American Museum of Natural History said in an email.

Did fall from tree kill famous human ancestor Lucy?


The famous human ancestor known as Lucy
walked the Earth, but it was her tree
climbing that might have led to her
demise, a new study suggests.


TORONTO -
There is no licence needed to own one.
No training required to shoot one. There’s no registry. No need to show identification or even write down your name.
Just put down your cash (between $300 and $1,300) and legally walk out of a sporting goods store in the GTA with a lethal killing machine called a crossbow.
Of course, they are designed to kill legally regulated wild game in appropriate hunting seasons. But like all weapons designed for something else, they can be commandeered for murderous purposes on humans, as Toronto experienced Thursday.
It’s not Toronto’s first crossbow-related slaying scene and one wonders how many more will be tolerated by the public, and those who govern, before there is a move to make them more difficult to buy and kept better track of.
Right now, cigarettes are a more onerous task to purchase. A trip on Hwy. 407 asks for more personal information.
Toronto Police were not confirming very much of what happened in this blood-curdling triple homicide in Scarborough where a crossbow was found and that later had them dealing with a suspicious package at a downtown condo building.
The whole thing is bizarre. Scary.
But this business of a crossbow being used went viral around the world because it sounded different. Still, it was not clear to me at deadline if a crossbow was fired in one or more of the three slayings, or if a bolt (arrow) with a sharp star head was plunged into people.
Forensics was trying to put all that together at the scene near Kingston and Markham Rds. Either way, there are three dead.
Talking to crossbow enthusiasts in the hours after this frightening incident, a few things became clearer. The weapon is not designed for quantity hunting but more quality.
“It’s all about the one shot,” a crossbow owner told me and Sun photographer Dave Thomas at the incredible Bass Pro Shops store in Vaughan. “You can reload if you are strong and fast, but the emphasis on this kind of hunting is the accuracy of your main shot.”
So for someone to have the opportunity to get off potentially three shots that all proved fatal is no easy task.
“They are very quiet,” adds Dave, who has used them for target shooting in the past. “There is no pop like with a gun, so it is conceivable a person could reload without detection.”
In time we will get a clearer picture of what happened. Police sources tell both myself and colleagues Chris Doucette and Terry Davidson that the investigative theory is the players in this disturbing scene are part of a family unit. But that has not been confirmed, and I have an open mind on where this ultimately goes. It all seems pretty strange.
No matter how it’s sorted, there are three dead and one in custody.
If homicide charges are laid, it will have been Toronto’s second triple homicide in 2016 — the first was by gunfire in Chinatown in the spring. It will also push Toronto’s 2016 homicide number to 47 — a shocking 12 more than the 35 at this time last year.
But none of that seems to be the focus. People want to know about the crossbow and bolts.
From all the people I talked with at Bass Pro Shops, crossbows are not a menace to society or a concern in the proper hands.
But in the wrong hands, there can be a whole lot of a carnage. Perhaps that is what happened in Scarborough.
Either way, authorities need to ask the question about how these weapons should be accessed before we see many more examples of how deadly they can be.
jwarmington@postmedia.com
RULES FOR CROSSBOWS
When it comes to buying a crossbow in Toronto or across Canada, it turns out that bigger is better, legally speaking.
According to the Canadian Firearms Program as published by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, crossbows with an overall length of 500 mm or less are prohibited across the country.
However, the program states that no licence or registration is required for crossbows longer than 500 mm and that Criminal Code provisions making it an offence to acquire a crossbow without a valid licence were never brought into force.
Here are more guidelines for crossbows, according to Paul Hunkin, from Al Flaherty’s Outdoor Store on Dufferin St. in Toronto:
Age and use restrictions:
You must be 18 years of age or older to purchase one.
Crossbows may not be fired anywhere inside the boundaries of the City of Toronto.
Different types of crossbows that are available in stores:
There are only two types: Prohibited and non-prohibited.
Prohibited are crossbows that are 500 mm in length or smaller, which can be held and fired with one hand, similar to a handgun.
Both are classified as “firearms” for legal purposes.
Locations where crossbows are sold and how much they cost:
Retailers such as Al Flaherty’s, Canadian Tire, Sail, and Bass Pro Shops all sell a wide range of crossbows.
Prices range from around $400 to well over $1,000.
Purpose of crossbows sold in stores:
Commonly used for a wide variety of hunting.
The crossbow hunting seasons do not overlap rifle and shotgun seasons and typically run for a longer period, making them popular among hunters.
Moose, deer, bears, and sometimes turkeys are hunted with crossbows.
- Daniel McKenzie


Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre is at it again, demagoguing against the Energy East pipeline.
Back in January, the former federal Liberal cabinet minister said he couldn’t support the $15-billion pipeline from Alberta’s oil sands to refineries and ports in New Brunswick.
It was too environmentally risky, he opined, and didn’t carry enough economic benefits for his city.
Now the Montreal politician is joining with three dozen radical environmental groups in calling for an indefinite suspension of the National Energy Board’s hearings into the pipeline, which are scheduled to begin in Montreal on Monday.
Coderre and the eco-activists insist the board’s impartiality has been compromised because NEB officials met with Jean Charest.
A former federal Conservative cabinet minister who became the Liberal premier of Quebec from 2003 to 2012, Charest had a business relationship with TransCanada, the company seeking to build Energy East, at the time of his meeting with the NEB’s chairperson and two of its commissioners.
The NEB explains it met with plenty of Quebec politicians (including Coderre) while preparing for the opening of its hearings.
Craig Loewen, an NEB spokesperson, insists the meeting was set up “with the purpose of asking Mr. Charest for his thoughts on how the NEB could effectively engage in Quebec and which stakeholders the NEB might consider meeting ...The NEB was not lobbied in any way during this meeting and the Energy East proposal was not discussed.”
A spokesperson for Charest also insists “it was an informal discussion that didn’t last a long time.” Gregory Larroque told the National Observer “from their perspective it was a way of taking advice on how to approach Quebec.”
Still, the optics are bad.
How could the NEB not know Charest had an arrangement with TransCanada? How come Charest didn’t disclose it when the NEB rang him up to invite him?
Even if there is no actual conflict of interest on Charest’s part and no bias or favouritism on the NEB’s, there definitely could be the perception of an ethical violation.
And such a perception could be as damaging to the Energy East approval process as a real conflict of interest.
This is not enough to delay or compromise the hearings, but it does neither the NEB nor TransCanada any good.
If the NEB now decides it must postpone its hearings while new commissioners are found, that’s bad for TransCanada and Alberta, to say nothing of the national economy.
If the NEB proceeds with its hearings and ultimately decides to recommend Ottawa approve the line, Energy East’s many opponents can then lobby the federal Liberal cabinet to reject the line, despite the board’s approval, arguing the impartiality of the NEB’s decision is suspect.
Don’t doubt for a minute that the Trudeau cabinet is looking for any excuse to reject Energy East.
For all his rhetoric about supporting environmentally sustainable pipelines, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is just another kneejerk “green” urbanite with an hysterical concern about climate change and almost no understanding of economics or the modern energy industry.
But isn’t it also inappropriate for a sitting politician to call into question the professionalism and impartiality of an expert panel such as the NEB?
If a Conservative Alberta politician had weighed in on some independent Quebec initiative, the push back from Quebecers and from central Canadian journalists would be deafening.
I don’t think Coderre really cares about the NEB’s reputation or the validity of its upcoming hearings.
He appears to be doing nothing more than pandering to “green” voters.
It looks as if Coderre saw an opening to damage the NEB and Energy East, as well as stop the pipeline, purely for political gain. So he took it.
The potential damage to the country’s economy be damned.

Coderre’s pipeline politics all for show


Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre is at it again, demagoguing against the Energy East pipeline.


TORONTO -- The union representing workers at the Canadian operations of the major American automakers has received a strike mandate from its members as it prepares to negotiate contracts.
Unifor says its members at General Motors, Ford Motor Company and Fiat Chrysler Automobile voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action to back contract demands.
Unifor President Jerry Dias says the clear mandate shows full support for the union's bargaining committees.
He says the union won't accept deals with any of the three automakers unless they show a commitment to invest in Canada's auto sector.
The union is threatening job action if it doesn't get an agreement before midnight on Sept. 19.
Dias says the three companies have done well financially since the last contracts were negotiated four years ago and it's time to reward workers.
"Our demand for new investment is not just about us. It is about maintaining and creating good paying jobs, it's about our communities and it's about the next generation," Dias says in a statement released Sunday.
Last month, Dias said that negotiating wage increases and other benefits would be moot if there are no plants in Canada to employ the workers.
The union will select one of the automakers to start negotiations and use the contract reached with that company as a pattern for negotiations with the other two companies.
Unifor says it will announce which company will be first up in negotiations on Sept. 6.
Unifor represents some 23,000 workers at the three companies and is Canada's largest private sector union boasting more than 300,000 members in all.

Canadian workers at Detroit Three automakers give union strike mandate


The union representing workers at the Canadian operations of the major American automakers has received a strike mandate from its members as it prepares to negotiate contracts.


Police say they've finally captured an elusive Chinese serial killer who killed 11 women and girls who were all targeted because they wore the colour red.
The killings all happened between 1988 and 2002 in northern China. The youngest victim was eight years old.
Police say the killer would find a woman dressed in red, follow her home, rape her and then kill her, often by slitting her throat.
He often mutilated the bodies -- disembowelling some of his victims, or cutting off various body parts -- earning him the reputation as China's Jack the Ripper.
"The suspect has a sexual perversion and hates women. He's reclusive and unsociable, but patient," police said in 2004, the first time police had linked all the killings to the same suspect.
Gao Chengyong, 52, was arrested Friday in a grocery store in Baiyin, home to nine of the killings.
A new round of DNA testing using modern techniques reportedly allowed police to re-examine their evidence and list of suspects.
The China Daily newspaper reports Chengyong confessed to all 11 murders.
Neighbours and friends were shocked to learn the quiet father of two is suspected of being the monster that had women fearing to walk the streets alone at night.
Gao's youngest son told the South China Morning Post that he was shocked, but that his father experienced "bitter suffering" when he couldn't train to be a pilot in his youth due to "political reasons."
The sister of one victims -- Cui Jinping, who was stabbed 22 times, her throat cut and her hands cut off -- told China Daily she'd feared her sister's killer would never be found.
Cui Xiangping said her mother couldn't stop trying upon hearing of Goa's arrest.
He now faces 11 murder charges, each punishable by death if found guilty.

China's 'Jack the Ripper' targeted women who wore red


Police say they've finally captured an elusive Chinese serial killer who killed 11 women and girls who were all targeted because they wore the colour red.


It’s almost September, and you know what that means: Summer’s over. Time to go back to school. Time to get back to work. And time for me to crank out another Fall Music Preview intro. But here’s the thing: After nearly 20 years, I’ve used every fall pun, harvest quip and seasonal metaphor in the book. So how about we just cut to the chase? As always, artists of all styles and stripes are dropping albums between now and December. So here are the most-anticipated additions to your playlist, plus some finger-crossers, reissues and more. Naturally, it’s all subject to change without notice. Just like autumn weather. (Sorry; old habits die hard.)
SURE THINGS
Metallica | Hardwired … To Self-Destruct
Lars Ulrich says the hard rock heroes’ return after eight years will be leaner, tighter and less frenetic. The thrashing three-minute title track is a good start. (Nov. 18)
Beck | TBA
Giddy up! Based on wide-eyed cut Wow, Beck’s back in an upbeat mood on the followup to 2014’s introspective Grammy-winner Morning Phase. (Oct. 21)
Green Day | Revolution Radio
It’s not American Idiot 2 — but Billie Joe and the boys are back in rabble-rousing form on their politically charged dozenth disc and single BANG BANG. (Oct. 7)
Nick Cave & Bad Seeds | Skeleton Tree
Little more than a year after the tragic death of his son, the British singer-songwriter delivers what is likely to be a deeply personal and dark work. Even for him. (Sept. 9)
Bon Iver | 22, A Million
Remember when Justin Vernon and co. were an indie-folk band? Based on the glitchy experiments of this third set, those days are gone forever. (Sept. 30)
Leonard Cohen | You Want it Darker
Everybody’s favourite 82-year-old folk-poet laureate returns with the third album in his latest lauded comeback — and it’s produced by son Adam. (TBA)
Kings of Leon | We Are Like Love Songs
Album No. 7 from the southern rockers reportedly includes songs about Caleb Followill’s supermodel wife and haunted hotels. You know, common-man stuff. (TBA)
Wilco | Schmilco
Wilco’s pendulum always swings — and after the freewheeling fun of 2015’s Star Wars, it’s swung back to their softer, more introspective side here. (Sept. 9)
Danny Brown | Atrocity Exhibition
The idiosyncratic rapper’s fourth album takes its title from a Joy Division song and a J.G. Ballard novel. Based on the track Pneumonia, that sounds about right. (Sept. 30)
M.I.A. | A.I.M.
The button-pushing British rapper has claimed this fifth full-length will also be her “last LP.” If that’s true, here’s hoping she goes out with a bang. (Sept. 9)
Drive-By Truckers | American Band
If the half-mast flag on the cover isn’t clear enough, titles like Surrender Under Protest tell you what to expect from these mighty southern rockers. (Sept. 30)
Van Morrison | Keep Me Singing
Will the mercurial Belfast Cowboy’s 36th album be a return-to-form classic, another self-indulgent sojourn, or a phoned-in toss-off? The answer may surprise you. Or not. (Sept. 30)
Pixies | Head Carrier
Black Francis and his reconstituted Pixies didn’t wow fans with 2014’s Indie Cindy. Lucky they’ve still got enough goodwill to get another kick at the can. (Sept. 30)
Sting | 57th & 9th
El Stingo claims his 12th album will be “rockier than anything I’ve done in a while.” Well, it would have to be. (Nov. 11)
Bon Jovi | This House is Not For Sale
Maybe not — but Jon Bon Jovi and co. have rented out Richie Sambora’s room to Canadian guitarist Phil X on this 14th disc. (Oct. 21)
Michael Bublé | Nobody But Me
The title single from Mr. Bubble’s ninth album updates his sound with Mark Ronsonesque production and a rap verse. Hope mom can handle it. (Oct. 21)
Shawn Mendes | Illuminate
The men don’t know, but the little girls understand. (Sept. 23)
DEFINITE MAYBES
Rolling Stones | TBA
Keith Richards has said the World’s Greatest Rock ’n’ Roll band will release a bluesy album — their first since 2005 — “in the autumn some time.” From his lips to Mick’s ears.
Lady Gaga | TBA
Mother Monster hasn’t announced her new disc yet, but with the new single Perfect Illusion due in September, could an album really be far behind?
U2 | Songs of Experience
Depending on which report you believe, Bono and co. could be force-feeding music into your iTunes sometime before the end of the year.
Iggy Azalea | Digital Distortion
The Aussie rapper and alleged cultural appropriator has said her sophomore album is finished. Then again, she’s also said it would be out in August, so tick-tock, Ig.
REISSUES & BOX SETS
Pink Floyd | The Early Years 1965-1972
“I’d quite like to have a go at (reissuing) the early years,” Nick Mason told me in 2014. Based on this 27-disc box, he wasn’t kidding. (Nov. 11)
The Rolling Stones | The Rolling Stones in Mono
Mono versions of the Stones albums up to Let it Bleed — plus a comp of rarities — in a 15-CD box. (Sept. 30)
David Bowie | Who Can I Be Now? (1974-1976)
The Thin White Duke’s mid-’70s output in a 12-CD box that includes unreleased album The Gouster. (Sept. 23)
Led Zeppelin | Complete BBC Sessions
The original 1997 compilation has been expanded to three CDs. (Sept. 16)
Bruce Springsteen | Chapter and Verse
A companion piece to The Boss’s Born to Run memoir, the 18-song comp includes five unreleased oldies. (Sept. 23)
Jack White | Acoustic Recordings 1998-2016
Album tracks, B-sides, and alternate takes from The White Stripes, Raconteurs, and Jack’s solo catalog. (Sept. 9)
Big Star | Complete Third
Every demo, rough mix and finished master of Alex Chilton and the Memphis cult heroes’ final album. Say thank you, friends. (Oct. 14)
The Beatles | Live At The Hollywood Bowl
The Fabs’ collection of 1964 and ’65 L.A. performances makes its CD debut — with previously unreleased extras. (Sept. 9)
David Bowie | The Man Who Fell To Earth
The soundtrack to Bowie’s 1975 film reappears for the first time in decades. (Sept. 9)
Oasis | Be Here Now
Liam and Noel’s 1997 outing gets updated with two discs of B-sides, extras and demos. But no reunion tour — yet. (Oct. 7)
Creedence Clearwater Revival | 1969 Archive Box
LPs and CDs of Bayou Country, Green River and Willie & The Poor Boys, plus three EPs, a 60-page book and more. (Sept. 9)
Fleetwood Mac | Mirage (Deluxe)
Mac’s 1982 offering is their latest disc to get the makeover treatment with a slew of rarities, live recordings and more. (Sept. 23)
My Chemical Romance | The Black Parade (10th Anniversary Edition)
The New Jersey emo-punks’ magnum 2006 opus returns, augmented with plenty of demos and outtakes. (Sept. 23)
Eric Clapton | Live in San Diego With Special Guest JJ Cale
Slowhand and the man who penned hits like Cocaine team up in this 2007 concert. (Sept. 23)
Jimi Hendrix | Machine Gun: Fillmore East First Show 12/31/1969
You’ve heard it all before on bootlegs and various compilations — now hear it again in sequence and newly mixed by Eddie Kramer. (Sept. 30)
Temple of the Dog | 25th Anniversary Reissue
The Pearl Jam/Soundgarden supergroup regroup for the silver anniversary of their sole album. (Sept. 30)
ALSO ON THE WAY
Sept. 2
• Izzy Bizu | A Moment of Madness
• Chatham County Line | Autumn
• Frightnrs | Nothing More To Say
• Goblin C**k | Necronomidonkeykongimicon
• Jamie T | Trick
• James Vincent McMorrow | We Move
• Angel Olsen | My Woman
• King Crimson | Radical Action to Unseat the Hold of Monkey Mind
Sept. 9
• Jason Aldean | They Don’t Know
• Bastille | Wild World
• Billy Ray Cyrus | Thin Line
• Dear Hunter | Act V: Hymns with the Devil in Confessional
• Gavin DeGraw | Something Worth Saving
• Grouplove | Big Mess
• Head and the Heart | Signs of Light
• Okkervil River | Away
• Pansy Division | Quite Contrary
• Joshua Redman & Brad Mehldau | Nearness
• Dex Romweber | Carrboro
• St. Paul and the Broken Bones | Sea of Noise
• Teenage Fanclub | Here
• Time Jumpers | Kid Sister
• KT Tunstall | KIN
• Chely Wright | I Am the Rain
Sept. 16
• Against Me! | Shape Shift With Me
• Michael Chiklis | Influence
• Chixdiggit! | 2012
• Dawes | We’re All Gonna Die
• Deap Vally | Femejism
• Die Antwoord | Mount Ninji and Da Nice Time Kid
• Handsome Family | Unseen
• Keaton Henson | Kindly Now
• Ian Hunter & The Rant Band | Fingers Crossed
• Kool Keith | Feature Magnetic
• Lang Lang | New York Rhapsody
• Aaron Lewis | Sinner
• Mac Miller | The Divine Feminine
• Meat Loaf | Braver Than We Are
• Willie Nelson | For the Good Times: A Tribute to Ray Price
• Madeleine Peyroux | Secular Hymns
• Phantogram | Three
• Preoccupations | Preoccupations
• Royal Canoe | Something Got Lost Between Here and the Orbit
• Southern Culture on the Skids | The Electric Pinecones
• Taking Back Sunday | Tidal Wave
• Tinie Tempah | Youth
• Touché Amoré | Stage Four
• AlunaGeorge | I Remember
• Petula Clark | From Now On
Sept. 23
• Airbourne | Breakin’ Outta Hell
• Devendra Banhart | Ape in Pink Marble
• Billy Bragg & Joe Henry | Shine a Light: Field Recordings from the Great American Railroad
• Every Time I Die | Low Teens
• Skylar Grey | Natural Causes
• Kansas | The Prelude Implicit
• Hamilton Leithauser Rostam | I Had a Dream That You Were Mine
• Idina Menzel | idina.
• Randy Newman | Songbook Vol. 3
• Operation: Mindcrime | Resurrection
• Passenger | Young as the Morning Old as the Sea
• Lee (Scratch) Perry | Must Be Free
• Reckless Kelly | Sunset Motel
• John Scofield | Country for Old Men
• Dwight Yoakam | Swimming Pools, Movie Stars …
Sept. 30
• Herb Alpert | Human Nature
• Banks | The Altar
• Doyle Bramhall II | Rich Man
• Crowbar | The Serpent Only Lies
• Craig David | Following My Intuition
• Amy Lee | Dream Too Much
• Marillion | F E A R
• Opeth | Sorceress
• John Prine | For Better, or Worse
• Regina Spektor | Remember Us To Life
• Suicidal Tendencies | World Gone Mad
• S U R V I V E | RR7349
• Bob Weir | Blue Mountain
• Yellowcard | Yellowcard
• New English Beat feat. Ranking Roger | Bounce
Oct. 7
• Alter Bridge | The Last Hero
• Colbie Caillat | The Malibu Sessions
• Devil Wears Prada | Transit Blues
• Melissa Etheridge | MEmphis Rock and Soul
• Barry Gibb | In the Now
• Norah Jones | Day Breaks
• Kaiser Chiefs | Stay Together
• Meshuggah | The Violent Sleep of Reason
• NOFX | First Ditch Effort
• Pitbull | Climate Change
• Seasick Steve | Keepin’ the Horse Between Me and the Ground
• Shovels & Rope | Little Seeds
• Todd Snider | Eastside Bulldog
• Sum 41 | 13 Voices
• Dean Ween | The Deaner Album
• Glen Phillips | Swallowed by the New
Oct. 14
• Bell X1 | Arms
• Dillinger Escape Plan | Dissociation
• Justin Hayward | All the Way
• Colin James | Blue Highways
• Jamie Lidell | Building a Beginning
• French Montana | MC4
• Conor Oberst | Ruminations
• Two Door Cinema Club | Gameshow
Oct. 21
• David Crosby | Lighthouse
• KoRn | The Serenity of Suffering
• Madness | Can’t Touch Us Now
• Pretty Reckless | Who You Selling For
• Rumer | This Girl’s In Love (A Bacharach & David Songbook)
• John K. Samson | Winter Wheat
Oct. 28
• Kenny Chesney | Cosmic Hallelujah
• LeAnn Rimes | Remnants
• Dee Snider | We Are the Ones
• Testament | The Brotherhood of the Snake
• Tove Lo | Lady Wood
Nov. 4
• Lambchop | FLOTUS
Nov. 11
• Enigma | The Fall of a Rebel Angel
Twitter: @darryl_sterdan
dsterdan@postmedia.com

Must-hear albums from Metallica, Green Day and Beck top


It’s almost September, and you know what that means: Summer’s over. Time to go back to school.


Next year’s federal budget is months away but budget consultations will soon start in earnest.
The deadline for pre-budget submissions to the parliamentary finance committee is the end of this month.
Stakeholders, consultants, and special interest organizations are scrambling to make the case for why their industry, region, or client deserves federal dollars.
Expectations are high. And for good reason.
With the government seemingly over “this whole balanced budget thing” as the finance minister recently put it, these groups are reasonably expecting their own piece of the deficit-financed largesse.
But taxpayers should be concerned. Special interest budgeting is a recipe for more rent seeking, ongoing deficits, and rising debt.
It was roughly one year ago that then-Liberal leader Justin Trudeau promised “a modest short-term deficit” of $10 billion per year to “kick-start” economic growth. Voters were assured these temporary deficits were to be rooted in fiscal anchors that would protect against ongoing red ink.
And then things changed. Modest deficits soon became nearly $30 billion per year. Short term changed to the entire fiscal planning period.
And its predecessor’s balanced budget legislation was repealed.
Soon the fiscal anchors were washed away and all that was left was the government’s commitment to increase spending.
Program spending is now poised to grow by 15% between 2014-15 and 2016-17 and that doesn’t even account for any new spending to inevitably come in the 2017 budget.
Cue the special interests. It’s no surprise that lobbying activity is up in Ottawa.
More government rents invariably attract more rent seekers.
Economist Milton Friedman famously said that “nothing is as permanent as a temporary government program.”
What he meant was that new spending creates powerful constituencies with strong interests in maintaining and growing government programs that benefit them and their members.
It thus becomes politically challenging for governments to hold the line. Temporary becomes permanent.
And the consequence is more spending and more deficits.
Timelines for balancing the budget are continuously pushed off and taxpayers are saddled with rising government debt and eventually higher taxes to pay for it all.
It’s a story that Canadians know all too well from the spendthrift experiences of the 1970s and 1980s.
The solution is to ensure taxpayers are represented in the budget process rather than “selected groups and individuals” as the finance committee’s call for pre-budget submissions stipulates.
Taxpayers must be protected from the profligate mix of rising government spending and special interest appetites.
One solution is to restore balanced budget legislation that puts statutory limitations on government spending.
Of course such legislation isn’t a silver bullet.
Political will ultimately matters.
But a clear and simple balanced budget law can buttress political will by managing expectations not only for external demands on government spending but also among the departments and agencies clamouring for their share of the pie.
It would make abundantly clear the baseline assumption is government won’t spend beyond its means simply because it can.
As pre-budget consultations commence in Ottawa, Canadians will be watching to see if anyone is protecting their interests in the face of voracious special interest demands for more government spending.
The safest plan is for fiscal rules that preclude deficits for the sake of deficits. That’s the only way for taxpayers to have confidence that their interests come first.
-- Speer is a Munk senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute

Trudeau budget good for everyone but taxpayers


Next year’s federal budget is months away but budget consultations will soon start in earnest.


OLDS -
After missing his chance as a raw recruit in the air cadets, a Calgary pilot finally got behind the stick of the plane he has been thinking about for 75 years.
Looking back on a flying career that spanned two wars, and saw him help found Calgary-based airline Westjet, 93-year-old Herb Spear on Sunday got to soar in an aircraft he’s been waiting for his whole life.
A glider.
“It was a great experience. I’ve often thought of doing it, but I never got around to getting into one of these things.” Spear said, as he took part in the Air Cadet League of Canada’s 75th anniversary celebration in Olds, about 100 km north of Calgary.
Born in 1924, Spear took a liking to flying before he could walk, as his father was training to be a pilot prior to the Great Depression.
But like many other dreams, the devastated economy put an end to that.
It wasn’t until 1941, after Spear joined the Air Cadets based at Currie Base in Calgary, did he get his first shot at flying.
“We had, I’m guessing, about 300 ragtag cadets. No uniforms, no officers, NCOs running it,” he said.
“In most cases, they (the cadets) went from the cadets to the air force”
Spear, and thousands of others like him, wanted to do their part to help Canada in the Second World War, but because of the length of training, which took him from Calgary to Montreal with a handful of stops in between, he never got the opportunity to fly a mission.
“After the war, the Air Defence Command put up several Mustang (fighter plane) squads across Canada,” he said.
“They had one in Calgary, the 403 squadron, so I joined. I was there until 1964.”
Perhaps the most fascinating part of a 93 year old who has seen a lot of the world from both the air and the ground, Spear seems far more comfortable while in the cockpit.
“You break the surly bounds of earth. When you’re flying something like a Mustang, and you have a bunch of cumulus clouds around. You can go up into the clouds and out of the clouds.” Spear said
“There’s nobody there to tell you to do or what not to do. It’s a great profession.”
mlumsden@postmedia.com
On Twitter: @LumsdenNews

Calgary veteran, 93, soars in glider for first time in 75-year aviation career


After missing his chance as a raw recruit in the air cadets, a Calgary pilot finally got behind the stick of the plane he has been thinking about for 75 years.


Alex Ovechkin got hitched.
The Washington Capitals superstar on Sunday tweeted a photo of two hands with wedding bands displayed on the appropriate fingers
The photo is accompanied by a caption, which, when translated from Russian, reads "This is happiness."
Ovechkin, engaged to Russian model Nastya Shubskaya for roughly a year, will play in the World Cup of Hockey next month for Russia.
The wedding was reportedly small and private.
After the international tournament wraps up in Toronto, the 30-year-old goal-scoring machine will start his 12th NHL season.

NHLer Ovechkin, model Shubskaya announce marriage


SALT LAKE CITY -- A mother was enjoying a family boat trip across Lake Powell when she heard a scream and splash. Her 2-year-old son had slipped off their houseboat and into the water.
Chelsey Russell, a 35-year-old mother of two from Lakewood, Colorado, jumped in to rescue her son. She managed to keep the toddler above water for five agonizing minutes until a relative pulled him safely back onto the boat.
But by that point, Russell was unconscious. She was pulled from the water and rushed to shore at the nearby marina, where bystanders and officials performed CPR Tuesday afternoon.
After about 30 minutes, they determined they couldn't save the woman who just rescued her son.
Officials with Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, which encompasses the 186-mile-long lake along the Utah-Arizona border, said the boy was in stable condition and flown to a hospital about 200 miles away in Flagstaff, Arizona, as a precaution.
The houseboat had been travelling about 8 mph toward shore when the boy, playing with another child, somehow fell off, San Juan County Sheriff Rick Eldredge said Friday.
After Russell jumped in, her brother stopped the boat and hopped in after his sister, leaving Russell's mother and at least one other child aboard.
The boat had kept moving after Russell went in and the man realized he was too far away from her and the child, Eldredge said. So he returned to the vessel to retrieve a motorboat they had been towing. The knots tethering it were so tight that he had to cut them with a knife.
Russell was in the water for at least five minutes before her brother could reach them and take the conscious toddler from her chest. Throughout that time, she kept her son above water, her family told authorities.
"She was holding the baby out of the water the best that she could," Eldredge said.
The sheriff said neither Russell nor her son wore life jackets. They are required for boaters under 12, according to Glen Canyon National Recreation Area.
The sheriff's office was waiting for the Utah medical examiner to determine Russell's cause of death, but Eldredge said it was suspected to be drowning. He did not know when the medical examiner would make a ruling.
"There are no words to convey the tragedy of losing a loved one like this," Teri Tucker, acting superintendent for the recreation area, said in a statement. "Our hearts are with the family and friends of the victims during this time of unexpected pain and loss."
It's the sixth death at the recreation area this year.
Russell's co-workers at a Denver law firm remembered her as a "superstar" attorney, mother and marathon runner who competed in a 100-mile race last year.
"She was a talented lawyer, loved by everyone in this firm," attorney Keith Tooley said Friday. "She was just a rock star here. Her passing has just crushed us all."

Mom who died saving son kept him above water until rescue


As a Colorado mother enjoyed a family boat trip across Lake Powell's summer waters, she heard a scream and splash as her 2-year-old son slipped off their houseboat and into the water.


A vain jailbird on the lam asked an Australian TV station to use a more flattering photo of her.
Amy Sharp triggered a social media brouhaha with her hilarious request.
The teenager broke out of a Sydney correctional facility on Aug. 19. Cops released a bulletin along with two photos of the wayward 18-year-old.
But when the alert and photos were uploaded to the city's Channel 7 Facebook page, Sharp took exception to the rather plain pix where she donned a glum expression, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.
And on the Facebook page, the first person to comment was, ta da, Amy Sharp who added a new photo with her post.
She wrote: "Can you use this photo please, and thank you. Yours truly Amy Sharp XX"
Her post was liked an astonishing 47,000 times and was accompanied by a smiling emoji sporting a halo.
Bec Sackville posted on the page: "Haha that's a classic. Think the cops have found a new way to catch crims. Just put out an ugly photo and the crim will be in touch to give you a better one lol."
Sharp was jailed for property offences and was not a danger to the public. She has been recaptured.

Teen fugitive disapproves of mug shot, gives TV station new pic


A vain jailbird on the lam asked an Australian TV station to use a more flattering photo of her.


Back to school means an avalanche of emotions for those gearing up for their first day back to hitting the book. Or those getting ready to enter college and university, not to mention that first day on the job. It's an exciting time of year for everyone, but if there's one area of concern, it has to be food planning.
It's one of the biggest worries on a variety of levels - and you'd be surprised to know back-to-school lunches aren't the biggest headache facing many families. A recent survey conducted by Leger Marketing on behalf of Walmart Canada revealed that, in addition to juggling schedules and arranging after school activities, 78% of parents admitted that rushing to get dinner on the table is an ongoing challenge.
The survey showed that meal planning and preparation takes at least 30 minutes for most parents (82%) with dinner taking the most time followed by lunch. And for many - that dinner doubles as tomorrow's school lunch. What to do? Don't stress yourself out with complicated dishes. Try for one-dish wonders, and dishes that can do double-duty as a meal for the next day. Invest in a slow-cooker where nothing beats the pleasure of coming home to the aromas of home-cooked meals ready when you walk in.
Re-purposing key ingredients will help keep the weekly menu interesting and also helps parents maximize meal prep, says Paul Del Duca, senior vice president of fresh foods at Walmart Canada. “Time is the new currency and we understand that saving time wherever possible is so important for families,” added Del Duca. And get the whole family involved in everything from the shopping to kitchen duties. Get the lunches out of the way as soon as you finish dinner and buy yourself some precious morning time.
Here's a selection of easy, delicious dishes courtesy of Walmart Canada and its Twice as Tasty guide.

These recipes add fuel to back-to-school lunches


ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- It was in early morning darkness that officers scrambled to sort out the chaos at an Albuquerque apartment complex where a couple had reportedly been attacked, the woman bleeding from a head injury and the man sporting a black eye and wearing blood-stained shorts.
The woman told officers her 10-year-old daughter was still inside apartment number 808 from which they had escaped.
What the officers didn't know was that the child was already dead, her battered and dismembered body partially wrapped in a blanket and set ablaze.
With the fire alarm blaring, they busted in the front door and searched the smoke-filled apartment for Victoria Martens. In the bathroom, the real crime began to come into focus.
Investigators took into custody the girl's mother, her boyfriend and his cousin.
The community was left struggling to understand how a blossoming elementary school student who loved swimming and gymnastics could have been the target of such violence.
Details of what New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez and law enforcement officials described as an unspeakable crime emerged in a criminal complaint made public Thursday. Police said Victoria was injected with methamphetamine, sexually assaulted, strangled and stabbed before being dismembered.
The killing happened on the day Victoria was going to celebrate her 10th birthday.
"This homicide is the most gruesome act of evil I have ever seen in my career," Albuquerque Police Chief Gorden Eden Jr. said.
The girl's mother, 35-year-old Michelle Martens, her 31-year-old boyfriend, Fabian Gonzales, and his 31-year-old cousin, Jessica Kelley, face charges of child abuse resulting in death, kidnapping and tampering with evidence. Gonzales and Kelley also face charges of criminal sexual penetration of a minor.
Gonzales denied having involvement with Victoria's death while reporters yelled questions at him as he was led out of the police station in handcuffs late Wednesday. The girl's mother said nothing as she was taken from the police station to a police cruiser and driven away.
Police said Kelley was hospitalized and will be booked after she's released. No details were disclosed about why she was hospitalized.
Bail was set at $1 million each for Martens and Gonzales at their first court appearance Thursday afternoon. The two did not speak in court, and the public defence lawyer who represented them did not comment about the allegations.
As news spread about Victoria's death, neighbours and friends built a makeshift memorial under a tree near the apartment complex, adorning it with stuffed animals and candles. Some hugged while others cried and prayed.
In the evening, dozens of people gathered for a candlelight vigil and the shrine grew.
Christie Zamora said Victoria attended her gymnastics class every Saturday and always seemed happy.
"She was incredibly social," Zamora said. "It's just so tragic."
Another shrine was erected at Petroglyph Elementary School, where Victoria had just started the new school year.
School officials said in a statement that, like the rest of the community, their hearts ache. "Victoria is in our thoughts and prayers as we hold our children just a little tighter on this sad day," the statement read.
Neighbours said Victoria's mother worked at a nearby grocery store deli and they were shocked to see a mugshot of her in an orange jail jumpsuit.
Mugshots of Martens and Gonzales released by police showed them with bruises on their faces. According to the complaint, Gonzales said his cousin hit him and Martens with an iron, prompting him to jump over the balcony and run to a neighbouring apartment for help. Martens also found her way outside.
Police initially went to the apartment complex early Wednesday after the neighbour reported the disturbance.
Victoria's mother told police she met Gonzales online about a month ago and that he drugged the girl so he could calm her down and have sex with her, the complaint said.
Gonzales has a New Mexico arrest record stretching back to 2004, including a felony child abuse charge, driving while intoxicated and resisting arrest. He pleaded no contest to a charge of child abandonment in 2015.
Kelley's record includes battery, domestic violence and drug charges.
The Albuquerque Journal reported that in one case, Kelley acted as a lookout while a woman allegedly raped another inmate at the Metropolitan Detention Center in September 2012. Kelley pleaded no contest to conspiracy to commit criminal sexual penetration and was sentenced to three years in prison minus nearly a year for time served.
Martens told police Kelley had recently got out of prison and that she allowed her to stay at the apartment.
Online court records show no criminal history in New Mexico for Martens.

'The most gruesome act of evil I have ever seen'; Neighbours shocked by girl's '


It was in early morning darkness that
officers scrambled to sort out the
chaos at an Albuquerque apartment
complex where a couple had reportedly
been attacked, the woman bleeding from
a head injury and the man sporting a
black eye and wearing blood-stained
shorts.


With the summer of 2016 drawing to a close and the school days set to begin again, enjoy one last blast of summer with your family on a late summer, Labour Day or early September getaway. Find the top 10 travel deals and packages in our gallery.
CasaMagna Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa, Mexico: Squeeze in a little R&R in Mexico before summer ends with the Sunsets, Spa and Savings package from CasaMagna Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa, located on the beach near downtown Puerto Vallarta. The package includes a $50 food and beverage credit per night, free WiFi and access to the Ohtli Spa wellness areas, including sauna and whirlpool. Rates start at US $119 per night. Book by Sept. 30, 2016 for stays through Dec. 22. Visit marriott.com for more information or to book with code P91. (Courtesy CasaMagna Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa)
Sea to Sky Gondola, Squamish, B.C.: Driving up the Sea to Sky Highway this weekend? Stop in Squamish on a Saturday and ride the Sea to Sky Gondola for 50% off -- or CDN $20.97 for an adult ticket. Offering beautiful views of Howe Sound, this gondola ride is a unique way to experience some of B.C. most beautiful vistas. Offer ends Sept. 10, 2016. Mention "50 after 5" at the ticket window to receive the discount. See seatoskygondola.com for details. (Victoria Revay/Postmedia Network)
1000 Islands Harbor Hotel, New York: Located on the St. Lawrence River, just south of the Canadian border, the 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel is a great place to experience a number of outdoor activities before the summer weather comes to an end. Kayaking, river cruises, whitewater rafting and fishing are all available at this AAA Four Diamond-rated hotel. Book the Bed & Breakfast package and receive a breakfast voucher for use at Seaway Grille. Rates start at US $219. See 1000islandsharborhotel.com for more information. (Courtesy 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel)
Bermuda: There are nearly a dozen ways to keep summer going in Bermuda, thanks to the Bermuda Tourism Authority's Splash Sale. Eleven hotels on the island are offering up to 30% off rates when booked by Sept. 12, 2016. Participating properties include the Hamilton Princess & Beach Club, Rosewood Tucker’s Point, Fairmont Southampton, Royal Palms Hotel, and Coral Beach & Tennis Club. Book at gotobermuda.com. (Courtesy Bermuda Tourism Authority)
Westin Calgary: Working on your fitness? The Westin Calgary is here to help travellers keep their fitness goals this summer -- even when away from home. Join trainers from CrossFit Ramsay Calgary for sessions on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 6 a.m. or 7 a.m. The CrossFit classes for Westin Calgary have been developed as overall workouts that enhance areas of fitness including cardiovascular and respiratory endurance, stamina, strength and flexibility. Sessions are available at a cost of $20 per person and guests can register for the program at the front desk. Room rates start at CDN $159. See westincalgary.com for full details. (Courtesy Westin Calgary)
Hampton Inn Chicago Downtown/N Loop/Michigan Ave: Heading to the Windy City? Book a stay at the Hampton Inn Chicago Downtown/N Loop/Michigan Ave -- located in the historic Chicago Motor Club building -- for a getaway that's close to all the attractions Chicago has to offer. The hotel is offering the Park & Stay package this summer, which includes complimentary valet parking service, free WiFi and free breakfast. Accommodations, a tour of the preserved historic elements of the hotel and a photo op with the famous 1928 Ford Model A in the lobby are also included. Rates start at US $159. Visit hamptonchicago.com for full details. (Courtesy Hampton Inn Chicago Downtown/N Loop/Michigan Ave)
Atlantis, Paradise Island, the Bahamas: Escape to paradise at the luxurious Atlantis, Paradise Island in the Bahamas. The resort is offering a tempting all-inclusive package to travellers, with rates starting at CDN $385 per adult, per night for a stay in a Beach Tower Terrace View room. Included in the all-inclusive package is all meals at select restaurants, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, gratuities, WiFi and select activities. Book now through Dec. 16, 2016 for travel until Dec. 20. For full details, see atlantisbahamas.com. (Nicole Feenstra/Postmedia Network)
Muskoka Steamships & Discovery Centre, Ont.: The whole family will love a swashbuckling adventure on one of the Muskoka Steamships & Discovery Centre's steamships this summer. Board the Wenonah II or North America’s oldest operating steamship, the RMS Segwun, for the Pirate Cruise or other themed kids' cruises, like the Intergalactic Adventure Cruise, Noah's Ark Adventure or Ice Queen and Snow Princess. Muskoka Discovery Centre -- celebrating its 10th anniversary this year -- also has a variety of exhibits on display. Rates for the pirate cruise start at CDN $11.50 for kids ages two to five, $22.95 for kids ages six to 12 and $39.95 for adults. See realmuskoka.com for additional pricing information and cruise details. (Courtesy Muskoka Steamships & Discovery Centre)
Buena Vista Palace Resort & Spa, Orlando: Located within walking distance from Disney Springs and a short drive from Walt Disney World, this hotel is a family-friendly destination for a late summer trip. Kids can watch nightly theme park fireworks from their rooms or meet Disney characters at the Disney Character Brunch every Sunday. Rates start at US $99. See buenavistapalace.com for more information. (Courtesy Buena Vista Palace Resort & Spa)

Last blast of summer: Top end-of-summer travel deals - 2016


Find the top 10 travel deals and packages in our gallery.