I’m Will Dove and this is the nightly news for Thursday, May 15th.
Alberta lawyer Roger Song is challenging the Law Society of Alberta's authority to promote "wokeness" in the profession through certain rules and codes.
Song argues that these rules, including those related to Continuing Professional Development plans and harassment-discrimination, compel lawyers to adopt specific ideological beliefs and suppress dissent.
The challenge, supported by the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, claims that the Law Society's actions violate Charter rights, including freedom of expression and conscience, and seeks to defend the rule of law and uphold lawyers' independence from politically motivated perspectives.
Ben Cohen, co-founder of Ben & Jerry's, was arrested during a US Senate protest over military aid to Israel and humanitarian conditions in Gaza.
He was charged with a misdemeanour offence, while six other demonstrators face more serious charges, including assaulting a police officer.
The protest occurred during a hearing where Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr was testifying, with Cohen stating that Congress's actions harm kids in both Gaza and the US.
France's Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Jean-Noël Barrot, today proposed a 500% tariff on countries that purchase Russian oil.
The plan would disproportionately harm EU member nations like Hungary and Slovakia, which rely heavily on Russian oil imports.
The proposed tariff is part of the EU's efforts to impose stricter sanctions on Russia, despite concerns from some member states that it could lead to economic hardship and instability.
Iran has indicated that it is willing to sign a nuclear deal with the US, committing to never making nuclear weapons and allowing international inspectors, in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions.
A top advisor to Iran's Supreme Leader, Ali Shamkhani, stated that Iran would agree to sign an agreement immediately if the conditions are met.
The development comes as President Donald Trump is touring the Gulf, emphasizing deal-making and stability in the Middle East, and has already announced the lifting of sanctions on Syria.
Germany's wind power production has dropped significantly due to a 50-year low in wind speed, with the average wind speed below 5.5 meters per second in the first quarter of 2025.
Wind energy producers, such as PNE, are facing millions in losses, with a 31% decrease in nationwide electricity generation compared to the same period last year.
The drop in wind power production has led to extremely high energy prices, prompting Germany to import energy from neighboring countries and consider building 40 large gas-fired plants by 2030 to deal with fluctuations in renewable energy.
The green energy movement took another hit today with the release of a new study on the relative costs of energy generation. Natural gas is the most affordable, reliable, and clean electrical power source, according to two recent analyses by Northwood University and The Heartland Institute.
Wind and solar power are the most expensive and unreliable sources, with wind power being seven times more expensive than natural gas and solar power being 10 times more expensive.
Despite being emissions-free, wind and solar score poorly on other environmental factors, requiring large land areas, disrupting ecosystems, and directly killing many animals, including protected species.
A 2020 study claiming white doctors show "spontaneous racial bias" leading to worse outcomes for black newborns has been debunked due to major methodological flaws.
Despite the flaws, the study remains widely cited to support diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, including affirmative action in medical school admissions.
The study's influence is evident in its citation by prestigious journals and even a US Supreme Court justice, Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, with Ian Kingsbury of Do No Harm criticizing its use to promote a policy goal.
In what has to be the most shocking case of woke insanity yet, the UK national health service is now treating nursery-age children who “identify” as transgender, removing the previous minimum age limit of seven years old.
Children of any age are eligible for specialist gender clinics, with 157 children aged nine or younger having been referred, and they receive counselling and therapy along with their families.
The decision to remove the age limit was made after the NHS "caved to the pressure" of trans activists, according to a source, with the new guidance aiming to provide support and guidance to parents and children.
I’m Will Dove and that’s the news for today, Thursday, May 15th.
