[rescuers continue to look for survivors in Oklahoma after one of the biggest tornadoes in modern US history struck. Image via georgetowndemoc[/caption]
LOCAL
Toronto city council voted 40-4 to oppose a downtown casino. This ends a year-long debate between American gambling firms and citizen-led campaigns against them. [Globe & Mail]
Rob Ford remained silent Tuesday about allegations surrounding the video Gawker and two Toronto Star reporters claim shows the mayor smoking crack cocaine. Doug Ford said over the weekend the allegations would be addressed, but the Mayor dodged reporters at Tuesday’s council meeting. [National Post]
Former Blue Jay Yunel Escobar angered fans Monday when, after his hitting a home run, he made an exaggerated “safe” sign after touching home plate. His ninth-inning home run cut the Blue Jays lead to 7-5, and, Escobar’s heroics and idiocy notwithstanding, the Jays went on to win by that score. [Toronto Star]
NATIONAL
Family members flew to join the search for a Canadian man with extensive survival training who has been missing for more than a week in Australia’s Gold Coast region. Prabhdeep Srawn, a 25-year-old from Brampton Ontario, is in the Canadian and the Australian military reserves, and is considered an avid bushwalker. [National Post]
A mountie is suing the national police force, alleging she was sexually assaulted, harassed, repeatedly doused in cold water, and, for good measure, dragged through horse feces by colleagues. In a statement she submitted to the Ontario Superior Court, the cruel behaviour she suffered during the 1980’s left her with post-traumatic stress disorder, led to a marriage breakdown, and stunted her RCMP career. [National Post]
Prime Minister Harper addressed the Mike Duffy and Nigel Wright scandal in a nine-minute public address where he said he was “very upset about…the conduct of some parliamentarians, and the conduct of my own office,” but refused to answer reporters’ questions. He left Tuesday on a trade mission to Latin America. [Globe & Mail]
INTERNATIONAL
Rescuers continue to look for survivors amid the destruction in an Oklahoman suburb after it was hit by one of the most powerful tornadoes in modern US history. It destroyed hundreds of shops and homes, wiped out two schools and a hospital, killed 24, and injured 240, including 60 children. [The Guardian]
Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, Iran’s leading opposition-backed candidate, was disqualified from entering the presidential election on Tuesday. Iranian state-run television broadcast a statement by the interior ministry listing the final candidates–Rafsanjani and Ahmadinejad’s close ally, Esfandiar Rahim Mashei, were not included. [The Guardian]
Apple CEO, Timothy D. Cook, defended his company in a Senate panel Tuesday against claims the company is sidestepping paying billions of dollars in taxes. Not only aren’t they cheating taxes, but Apple is apparently the victim of an outdated tax system. [The New York Times]
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