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Well it was a busy weekend for the city’s emergency services workers, as they had to field scores of calls about the swine flu.  In fact, a spokesperson for the fire fighters association says they got about 220 calls from people…all with suspected cases of the flu. 

The province is looking at opening up all its adoption records going back to 1925.  Some adoptees say they deserve to know their heritage and wonder why it’s taking the province so long to make all records open.  Back in 1999, Manitoba did pass legislation that opened up its adoption records to birth parents and adult adoptees….but the access was not retroactive.

Very busy weekend for city police, thanks to a number of gun calls.  The most serious happened late Saturday night, when a 28 year old man was shot and killed on Manitoba Avenue.  So far, police have no suspects and no weapon was recovered.  This was the city’s 12^th homicide so far this year.

Canadian Forces are mourning the loss of yet another one of their own in Afghanistan.  35 year old Corporal, Martin Dube was killed yesterday while trying to defuse a roadside bomb.  Dube is now the 120^th Canadian soldier to die on the Afghan mission since 2002.

For those who like a “Vegemite Sandwich”……Kraft Foods says they’re giving the product a bit of a make-over.  The company says it’ll put a creamier version of the iconic Australian vegetable spread on store shelves next month.  The new version will be creamier because it’ll contain a bit of cream cheese.  The original salty and slightly bitter spread made from brewer’s yeast, will still be available though.

It’s decision day for Michael Ignatieff.  As we told you last week, the Liberal leader will announce today whether or not he supports the government’s latest budget update.  If he rejects it, we’ll probably be heading off to the polls sometime this summer.

Well you know times are tough when…..Amusement park giant 6-Flags in the U.S. is bankrupt.  The company says it’s almost 2 billion dollars in debt.  But some critics are wondering how that is, given that in 2008, the company had record visitors and record revenues.

More swine flu cases have been confirmed. The province says there are now another 22 new cases of the flu.  Right now, there are 24 people in intensive care with the flu, and two thirds of them are aboriginal.  But, Dr. Joel Kettner, the province’s chief medical officer of health says, despite this little outbreak, and the fact that the W-H-O has declared this a pandemic, he says there really is no reason for people to panic.

NASA says all is going smoothly leading up to tomorrow’s planned launch of the shuttle Endeavor.  Blastoff is set for 6:17 Winnipeg time tomorrow morning, as the bird heads to the space station for a 16 day mission.  Endeavour’s 7 person crew, will include by the way, Canadian Julie Payette. 

Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff says it won’t take long for him to decide if he’ll try to bring down the government over its handling of the economy.  Both the Bloc Quebecois and the NDP say they’ll vote against the government’s recent budget update, and if the Liberals also vote no…well looks like we’ll be facing a summer election.  By the way, we have had 3 federal elections in slightly less than 5 years.

After hitting its highest close in 8 months yesterday, the price of oil is down just a few cents this morning.  Right now, oil is trading at 72.35 cents U.S. a barrel.  According to GasBuddy.com, the average price of regular gas across the country has risen to 1.03 a litre.  That’s up one more cent from just a week ago.

Here’s some interesting health news.  Fewer Canadians are dying from heart attacks after being admitted to hospital.  A new report shows the hospital admission rate for heart attack patients actually dropped 13 per cent over 5 years.  The study also found that death rates in hospital within 30 days of admission, they’re down 11 per cent during the same time frame.

A proposed holiday for manliness….next Monday….has drawn thousands of fans on Facebook, but all for naught.  The 2 U.S. brothers who declared Monday, “National Man Day” found out that June 15^th is also “Sneak a Kiss Day.”  Joel and Aaron Longanecker, have more than 260 thousand pledges to stand up and do manly things on Man Day.  They urged everyone to take part in manly activities like football, hunting or watching Rocky movies….and claim that real men don’t “sneak” kisses.

Leaders in some aboriginal communities in northeastern Manitoba say they are now in full pandemic mode.  An outbreak of what appears to be the swine flu has closed schools, cancelled public events and people are now scrambling to find masks.  Travel into some of the areas is also now being restricted.

The case of a missing Manitoba woman is now a murder investigation.  24 year old Amber McFarland was last seen in October of 2008.  She had been leaving a nightclub in Portage la Prairie.  Yesterday, Mounties searched the home of one of the men last seen with her.  The forensic unit also seemed focused on the backyard of the Portage home.  So far though, police are not saying what they’re looking for, or, what they know.

So the latest poll on the country’s political parties gives the Liberals a slight lead over the governing Tories.  The survey done last week shows the Liberals have the support of 35 per cent of voters asked, while the Conservatives have 31. 

The now former Miss California U.S.A. is denying she was derelict in her post pageant duties.  That was the reason cited by Donald Trump for firing her yesterday.  Carrie Prejean told reporters that she’s been co-operating and doesn’t understand why this is happening.

Prison has given Phil Spector a startling new photo to add to his collection.  It’s a mug shot from June 5^th as he began serving time in the California prison system for 2^nd degree murder of actress Lana Clarkson.  The photo shows the legendary record producer without any of his flamboyant wigs.  In fact, he’s completely bald on top, with just a few hairs hanging from the side and back.

The mayor of New Orleans suffered through Hurricane Katrina, but says being held in quarantine in China over concerns of the swine flu….is “pretty surreal.”  Ray Nagin, his wife and a security guard were finally cleared for release yesterday.  The 3, and other passengers on a flight to China, spent days in quarantine after 1 passenger displayed flu like symptoms.

It’s report card time against for the feds.  Today, Prime Minister Harper will release a 2^nd progress report on what’s been happening since the budget was introduced back in January.  The Liberals of course demanded quarterly reports as a condition for supporting the minority Tory government’s budget.

The province has said tough luck to drivers who already paid their tickets for speeding in construction zones when no workers were present.  The government has been pressured to repay the fines, because a judge ruled that signage in those zones was not correctly placed.  But, NDP members voted unanimously against the idea yesterday.  Justice Minister Dave Chomiak says the province is not legally bound to fork out the money to drivers….so they won’t.

There are more signs that poor, remote aboriginal communities are being hit especially hard by the swine flu.  It’s now prompted some aboriginals to accuse the feds of leaving them with little help.  Chief David Harper says housing is one issue, but he says health care on many reserves is absolutely unacceptable.

The World Health Organization says it’s close to announcing the first flu pandemic in 41 years.  The W-H-O says it’s because the swine flu virus has infected more than 26 thousand people in 73 countries, and has caused 140 deaths.  In this country, there’ve been 2100 cases in total with 4 deaths….none of those in Manitoba though.

There are reports that Chrysler’s planned partnership with Italy’s Fiat, could happen as early as today.  Chrysler crept another step closer to emerging from bankruptcy protection last night, when the U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way for the sale of most of the automaker’s assets to Fiat.  And, earlier in the day, a bankruptcy judge approved Chrysler’s plan to cancel 789 dealer franchises.

A new index is under construction that vows to better measure Canadians quality of life.  This new index will measure 8 areas, including health and education, standard of living, environment and even the way Canadians use their time.

After a year of nasty infighting, members of the Screen Actors Guild have decided by a large margin that the show must go on.  It says 78 per cent of voting members decided to ratify a 2 year contract covering movies and prime time shows made by the major Hollywood studios.

Some pretty startling numbers on the swine flu to tell ya about today.  Provincial officials say there are over 25 people in intensive care in Wpg. hospitals, suffering from what they think is the H1-N1 virus.  Manitoba’s chief medical officer says the average age of those affected is around 35, and most are aboriginal.  As of yesterday, there were 40 confirmed cases of the swine flu in Manitoba, but fortunately nobody has died.

An NDP MLA has introduced legislation that’ll fine people who interfere with service animals on the job.  Under Sharon Blady’s bill, people who touch, feed or impede service animals, could soon face a fine of up to 5 thousand dollars for a first offence.  Blady calls the bill an effort to protect the animals and the people who use them.

The discovery of important debris is helping searchers narrow their hunt for the black boxes from that Air France Flight.  Part of the tail section of the plane was found yesterday.  And those black boxes?  Well, they’re housed in very same area.  A total of 24 bodies have also been found so far. 

After 5 weeks of breakneck-speed bankruptcy proceedings, Chrysler’s sale to Italian automaker Fiat is now on hold.  The sale came to a screeching halt yesterday when a U.S. Supreme Court Justice ordered it halted until a review is done. 

A tentative deal has been reached between cash strapped Air Canada and 3 of its unions representing more than 16 thousand workers.  Late last night, the airline announced an agreement had been reached with the unions, which will now see employees become part owners of the airline. 

Canadians may spend more of their vacation dollars at home this year.  Tourism experts are predicting that “staycations” will become popular again this year.  Recent survey’s showed that over 50 per cent of Canadians will take their vacation time around or near their home.

Prime Minister Harper is extending the country’s condolences to the family of the 119^th Canadian soldier lost in this Afghan mission.  Yesterday, a roadside bomb took the life of a 20 year old man based out of Valcartier, Quebec. 

North Korea is warning fishermen and boat captains to stay away from the country’s east coast.  The warning is seen as a sign that the country is planning to test fire medium range missiles in the area. 

An annual health conference in the city has been told a vaccine for the H1-N1 virus, or swine flu, should be ready and available for the next flu season this fall.  Canada has seen more than 2 thousand confirmed cases of swine flu since the outbreak began.

More bodies have been found and officials say search ships are picking their way through a sea of debris from that Air France flight.  15 more bodies were found in the mid-Atlantic yesterday, bringing the total to 17.  But, that’s still only a fraction of the 228 lives lost in the crash a week ago.  And, the plane’s black boxes are still nowhere to be found.

Things are not looking good for many airlines these days.  The International Air Transport Association says the industry is expected to lose 9 billion dollars U.S. this year.  That number is nearly double a previous estimate released just a couple of months ago. 

2 men were stabbed and 3 others were injured after a brawl in the Exchange District early yesterday.  Cops say the fight broke out after 2 groups of men got involved in an argument inside a bar on Notre Dame.  After the group got kicked out of the bar, the fight then carried on outside.  So far no arrests have been made, and police continue to investigate.

And we thought our weather was bad.  This weekend, parts of both Alberta and Saskatchewan got nailed with snow.  In fact, Calgary saw over 10 centimeters fall on Saturday.  And, down south it wasn’t much better.  Snow fell in parts of western North Dakota in June for the first time in 60 years. 

The World Bank is looking for some extra help from Ottawa.  Reports this morning say the Bank is facing an unprecedented demand for aid, and will soon ask numerous rich nations for more cash to lend to poor countries. 

Yesterday we told you how a flu was running rampant around St. Theresa Point reserve, north of Winnipeg.  Today, we can tell you that 2 of the cases have been confirmed as H1-N1, or the swine flu.  Officials are now focused on finding how these people got that flu, and, making sure it doesn’t spread.

The mayor’s of the country’s 22 biggest cities, little frustrated today that there’s still no sign of the 12 billion dollar stimulus package promised by the feds.  At their meeting in Whistler, B.C. the mayors say the summer construction season is slowly slipping away.  And, they’re calling on the Harper government to get the cash flowing.

Some discouraging economic news is expected this morning when Ottawa releases the unemployment numbers for May.  The consensus among economists is that the national jobless rate will increase to 8.2 per cent.  That would be a 10 year high. 

One of the country’s big banks is now suggesting that there’s some light at the end of this recession.  Economists with the Bank of Nova Scotia say they think things will start turning around as soon as this summer.  And, predict the Canadian economy will actually grow by 2.5 per cent next year.

The price of oil is up a little in trading this morning.  It’s sitting at 68.96 cents U.S.  GasBuddy-dot-com says the average price of regular across the country is now 1.02 a litre….up almost 2 cents in the past week.  And for those wondering if it’s cheaper to fill up in the States?  Well, it is.  A litre down south will now cost ya only 74.4 cents.

Police in Thailand say actor David Carradine may have accidentally suffocated.  The body of the 72 year old was found yesterday hanging in the closet of his Bangkok hotel room.  Although an autopsy was done today, Thai police say it’s unclear if Carradine died of suicide, suffocation or a heart attack.

Prime Minister Harper leaves Ottawa today for France, where he’ll take part in tomorrow’s ceremony marking the 65^th anniversary of D-Day.  Harper will be joined by U.S. President Barack Obama, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and other allied leaders. 

A Manitoba review board says Vince Li will be sent to the high risk ward at the Selkirk Mental Health Center, as soon as a bed is available.  Li, who killed fellow passenger Tim McLean on that greyhound bus last summer, is, for now, under 24 hour supervision at a secure ward at HSC. 

Manitoba health officials aren’t saying much about a mysterious flu that’s hit St. Theresa Point First Nation, north of the city.  The illness has sent at least a dozen people to hospital so far.  And more than 200 others on the reserve are sick.  Health officials are now investigating.

The inventor of the flood fighting tool called the Sandbagger, can’t get the province to loan him one of the machines he created.  CBC’s reality show, “Dragon’s Den,” had invited 79 year old Guy Bergeron of Elie, to appear on the program, but when he asked provincial officials if he could borrow back one of his machines to take to the show?  They said no.  Dragon’s Den by the way is a show for entrepreneurs, where they get to pitch their ideas to 5 wealthy business people who may give them more development money.

U.S. President Barack Obama is reaching out to the world’s 1.5 billion Muslims with a speech in Egypt.  Today’s high stakes speech at Cairo University is being billed as a “truth telling address” and is meant to ease long held Muslim grievances against the U.S. 

Officials investigating the crash of that Air France jet, are now considering the theory that the jetliner broke apart in mid air while flying into a storm.  Yesterday, searchers were able to find even more debris from the plane on the surface of the Atlantic Ocean.  However, they are not holding out much hope they’ll ever find the plane’s black boxes.

A massive police presence is ringing China’s Tianamen Square, on this, the 20^th anniversary of the bloody crackdown on pro democracy activists.  The government is continuing its overwhelming drive to muzzle anyone and everyone who is planning on commemorating the event.  In fact, sites like Twitter, My Space and Facebook have all been shut down since yesterday.

A bill that would’ve made booster car seats for kids up to the age 8, mandatory, won’t become law.  Under the proposal it would’ve been illegal to not use a seat for children under the age of 8, unless they were at least 4 foot-9 inches tall, or weighed at least 80 pounds.  But, Transport Minister Ron Lemieux says education, not legislation is the way to go.

A Winnipeg record company has accused the widow of the late musician, Jeff Healey, his former publicist and an Ontario radio talk show host, of defamation.  In a lawsuit, Arbor records claims the trio conspired together to encourage the public to not buy a 3 disc set of previously unreleased music, which the company launched last fall.  Healey’s widow, Christie, says the music was not authorized by his estate.

A monumental search and recovery effort is expected in the wake of that Air France plane which went down Sunday night in the Atlantic Ocean.  Debris and a fuel slick from the Airbus jet was spotted yesterday.  But one of the top priorities is finding the plane’s black boxes….and they could be in water that’s 7 kilometer’s deep.

Top officials from G.M. and Chrysler will testify before a U.S. Senate Committee today.  They’ll be discussing their restructuring while under bankruptcy protection.  With thousands of jobs and dealerships about to disappear, the executives can expect to face some pretty tough questions.

Well we should know next week whether the Liberals will try to bring down the Harper government and plunge the country into a summer election.  Leader Michael Ignatieff says he’ll decide what to do after the government’s second progress report on the budget comes out next week.

Most of the country’s big banks are boosting mortgage rates.  Effective this morning, T.D., Royal, Scotia, BMO will all increase their long term fixed rate mortgages to 5.45 per cent.

A warning is being made this morning that the country’s prison system is stretched to the breaking point.  Howard Sapers, a correctional investigator says the country’s 58 institutions are barely coping with more than 13 thousand inmates…and putting more people behind bars could soon tip the scales towards disaster.

Well some pretty severe weather ripped through southern Manitoba yesterday.  A thunderstorm dropped pea to quarter size hail all over the city.  And there were reports of a funnel cloud just north of town.  The weather office is investigating to see if touched down anywhere around the city.

Victim impact statements have been read to the Criminal Code Review Board, which is looking at the case of Vince Li.  Li of course killed fellow Greyhound Bus passenger, Tim McLean last summer.  The board is now expected to decide this week whether Li should stay institutionalized, be given a conditional release or granted an absolute discharge.

Canada’s kids are still getting a failing grade when it comes to day to day physical activity.  For a 3^rd straight year, a survey found that a large majority of Canadian kids and teens are failing to meet recommended daily guidelines.  The survey found that 87 per cent of kids are not getting in the recommended 90 minutes of physical activity everyday.

France is asking the U.S. for satellite help in its search for a missing Air France Airbus.  The jet vanished over the Atlantic late Sunday night after flying into thunderstorms.  All 228 people on board, including one Canadian, are now feared dead.

Well “The Tonight Show” is all his now, and Conan O’Brien jokes that he’s time his relocation to Los Angeles perfectly.  In his opening monologue last night, Conan sarcastically noted that now he’s moved to a bankrupt state, to take over a show sponsored by a bankrupt General Motors on a last place network.

Now that G.M. is under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, it says it wants to get out of it as soon as possible.  G.M. is hoping to emerge in 2 to 3 months as a much leaner automaker with potential again for profit.  To that end, G.M. will close 9 more plants in the U.S., shed another 21 thousand jobs and close several more dealerships.