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Monday, July 7, 2025

Ottawa Capital Pride joins boycott against Israel

The group in charge of organizing Ottawa’s annual Pride parade pledged to join a boycott of Israel in support of Palestine.

In a statement published on their official social media, Capital Pride accused Israel of committing genocide and of using gay rights to hide alleged “human rights violations” against Palestinians.

The statement released on Tuesday disavowed Israel and pledged to adopt the Palestinian Boycott Divest Sanction movement’s list of organizations to boycott. It also pledged to “recognize the ongoing genocide against Palestinians” in the opening remarks of its events this year while working with partners to bring an end to the Israel-Hamas war.

The term genocide is a legal term in international law involving mass killings with the intent to eradicate a people. To this day not a single international court has found that Israel has committed a genocide against Palestinians.

“While our mandate is focused on queer and trans communities in the region, the violence and instability we are witnessing around the globe have had far-reaching impacts on many members of our local communities. These issues demand our collective attention,” the statement said.

Dan Pujdak, a senior fellow at the Macdonald Laurier Institute, is Jewish and a part of the LGBT+ community in Ottawa. He thinks picking sides in a foreign conflict falls well beyond Ottawa Pride’s mandate as an organization. 

“The Pride parade is supposed to be a protest for LGBTQ rights and not a protest against Israel. By reframing pride to be about foreign matters instead of the safety and inclusivity of the Ottawa community…it does so at the risk of excluding the Ottawa community,” Pujdak told True North. 

“If they want to get engaged in foreign matters, there are other avenues to do so other than a parade that’s supposed to be about celebrating the local community, which is their mandate.”

Capital Pride did not respond to True North’s questions or request for comment. However, its statement argued that the rising prevalence of hate crimes in Canada affects all minority groups which historically have been targets of hate.

“We are deeply concerned by the rising tide of antisemitism and Islamophobia we are witnessing here in Canada,” the statement said. “As a community facing rising levels of hate-motivated crimes, we know all too well how hate erodes our security. In this climate, we reaffirm that intolerance has no place in our events.”

Pujdak said that their statement points to a rise of antisemitism as a problem and then says nothing in their commitments to address the issue.

“The list of actions that pride Ottawa says that they are going to undertake don’t actually touch on antisemitism at all,” Pujdak told True North in an interview. “Antisemitism is a very real problem in Ottawa. It’s a very real problem across Canada right now. I would commend the organization if they undertook efforts to address it during Pride. But sadly, it’s just a floating statement with no action attached to it.”

Pujdak noted that 70% of all religiously motivated hate crimes reported in Canada in 2023 were against the Jewish community, according to Statistics Canada, a 71% increase from the previous year, bringing the total to 900 reported hate crimes against Jews.

There was a 94% increase in reported hate crimes against Muslims according to the same stats from the previous year, reaching a total of 211, just over 16% of all the religiously motivated hate crimes reported last year.

“I understand that people are upset about the war overseas. It’s tragic. It’s difficult to watch, but that has nothing to do with Pride,” said Pujdak.

Aside from accusing the Jewish state of committing genocide, the Ottawa-based gay rights group claims that Israel is guilty of “pinkwashing,” saying that Israel gives human rights to gay and trans people so that it could “draw attention from its abhorrent human rights abuses against Palestinians.”

However, Capital Pride did not mention that homosexuality is criminalized under Hamas-controlled Gaza.

Pride events in Toronto, Vancouver and Victoria were derailed by anti-Israel protests in July and Winnipeg Pride faced a blockade in June. One host backed out of a Pride event in St. Johns Newfoundland due to the local pride organization’s boycott of Israel, with one of the local business sponsors being forced to back out due to ties to Pepsico – one of the organizations boycotted by the movement.


Pujdak thinks the group’s board of directors should “take a step back” and engage with the Jewish community quickly before the parade in two weeks’ time. He thinks they should reassess what they are “really trying to achieve” and positively work towards that.

He said if they are genuinely dedicated to “getting it right” they still have time to take those steps.

Liberal MP blames “far-right,” Trump after women victims stormed out of committee 

Source: Facebook

Liberal MP Anita Vandenbeld has penned a lengthy screed blaming the rise of the “far-right” and claiming she doesn’t feel safe after two survivors of abuse stormed out of a committee meeting in tears when the Liberals derailed their testimonies. 

Vandenbeld is one of eleven MPs on the House of Commons status of women committee which met for a summer session last week that descended into chaos. 

In an over 2,500-word op-ed published to the news aggregator National Newswatch, Vandenbeld claimed she was the one targeted with abuse as a result of the incident and went on to blame the far-right and populism. 

“The traps that are being set by the far-right, their willingness to use anyone’s pain to achieve political ends, and a capitulation by the media to click-bait have made it impossible to protect and defend parliamentary processes or basic fairness,” wrote Vandenbeld. 

Vandenbeld also went on to accuse the Conservatives of adopting “Trump’s playbook” in reference to former president Donald Trump.

“Following Trump’s playbook, since becoming Conservative Party Leader, Pierre Poilievre has put out a narrative that Parliament is broken, and the institutions are rigged.” 

True North reached out to Vandenbeld’s office to ask whether she thinks extreme rhetoric against conservative politicians can have a similar effect but did not receive a reply. Last month, Trump survived an assassination attempt on his life during a political rally. 

As reported by True North, the meeting in question saw witnesses Cait Alexander from End Violence Everywhere and Megan Walker abruptly leave the room. 

Things became heated when Vandenbeld shifted the discussion to abortion rights, prompting Alexander and Walker to leave in frustration. Alexander’s mother later accused Liberal MPs of revictimizing the victims and using their testimonies to score political points.

Despite the witnesses’ efforts to keep the focus on their testimonies, the discussion veered off track. Vandenbeld moved to resume a different discussion about abortion rights, leading to heckling from the witnesses. Alexander, in a final attempt to make her point, displayed graphic photos of her wounds, while Walker, visibly upset, questioned if Vandenbeld had listened to any of the testimonies that morning.

“This is the problem. Did she listen to anything that was said this morning?” Walker said during the committee meeting. 

Now, Vandenbeld claims that she’s been the victim of online abuse and threats to her safety since the controversy erupted. 

“But this week, I closed my constituency office because I fear for my safety and that of my staff,” said Vandenbeld. 

The Liberal MP also decried “headlines in mainstream media” reporting on the incident. 

“It is not even the only Parliament where this is happening. It is also not accidental. This is part of a much larger global rise in authoritarian, anti-democratic, misogynist movements that are undermining democracies everywhere,” wrote Vandenbeld. 

In her op-ed Vandenbeld wrote that she “deeply regretted” the fact that the victims suffered as a result of the committee proceedings.

“It was a trap, and as I said in the media, I deeply regret that it was the witnesses who suffered for it. It broke my heart to see what was once a safe and victim-centric committee cause such distress to the witnesses and their families,” she wrote.

The Faulkner Show | Mass immigration is pushing Britain to the brink | Calvin Robinson

On the latest episode of The Faulkner Show, Harrison is joined by UK political commentator, priest and the host of Calvin’s Common Sense Crusade on the Lotus Eaters podcast network, Calvin Robinson. Robinson accuses British police of two-tier policing in its treatment of British protesters while turning a blind eye to masked and armed Muslim thugs. Robinson believes that these riots were inevitable in the UK, ever since Tony Blair opened the flood gates to record levels of mass immigration in the 90’s.

Listen to the full conversation on the latest episode of The Faulkner Show.

“Don’t be pooping on the beach,” Ford warns public as rumours swirl of beach defecation problem

Source: Facebook

Ontario Premier Doug Ford has asked people attending beaches this summer not to defecate on them, amid claims of such behaviour becoming a problem on a number of Ontario beaches. 

Ford was speaking with reporters on Wednesday when he was asked what his response was to the Town of Wasaga Beach formally asking for his help to clean up Wasaga Beach Provincial Park.

The town’s request was linked to several social media posts that are claiming visitors to Wasaga Beach are using tents to defecate into holes dug into the beach sand.

A local TikToker went viral last month after posting a video claiming that the problem can no longer be ignored and that something needed to be done.

“People with that mentality will not change it, so people need to stop arguing with me and acting like this isn’t happening,” said the woman in the video.

She went on to say that as a local and a mother, she will not let her kids dig in the sand at Wasaga Beach. 

However, Wasaga Beach town authorities as well as some provincial officials have derided her claims and those of others as disinformation.

Ford also leaned into the notion that such claims were disinformation but said that separate to that potential problem, that the Ontario government had already given the Town of Wasaga Beach $1 million to build bathrooms along the beach.

“I have no proof that people are pooping in the park per se, but it’s pretty bad if they are,” he said. 

The town has proposed banning tents on the beach as a means to deal with the issue, however, Ford said that kind of solution “just doesn’t cut it.”

“I think people are respectful enough,” he added.

Wasaga Beach Mayor Brian Smith said last week that no formal complaints have been received by town officials regarding people defecating on the beach.

“If any evidence comes to light, I assure you that we will be quick to act,” said Smith in a statement.

“We have no proof of it, either,” Ford told reporters on Wednesday, but added an off the cuff order, should it be true.“Folks, don’t be pooping on the beach — it’s as simple as that.”

Additionally, an Ontario Environment, Conservation and Parks Ministry spokesperson told Global News that no such claims have been reported by residents or park staff either regarding the issue. 

Doug Ford defends Toronto police officer caught on camera giving middle finger

Source: X

Ontario Premier Doug Ford has jumped to the defence of a Toronto police officer featured in a viral video where she gave the middle finger to a civilian, describing the interaction as “harassment.” 

Speaking at an unrelated news conference Wednesday morning, Ford emphasized that people should support the police instead of harassing them.

“Let’s support our police. Let’s thank them rather than getting Google glasses and trying to harass our police. That’s what I call it — harassment,” said Ford. “Why don’t you say thank you, shake their hands and keep going. And by the way, next time you’re at a coffee shop, I’ll run in and buy you a coffee.”

The video was originally posted to TikTok in three parts, with over 800,000 cumulative views as of Wednesday morning. The first part alone has over half a million views. 

The three videos were filmed from different angles using various devices, with the footage seemingly being recorded with a phone, glasses camera, and a bodycam.

In the video, a man approaches two Toronto police officers and confronts them for parking illegally to get their coffee. 

“I get where you’re coming from. But, at the end of the day, we work 11 hours. We need caffeine,” said the female officer before asking whether he preferred that they park on the sidewalk. 

The three argued for a while before the third part of the series of videos cut to a new location, where the man was arguing with the police, who were now in their vehicle. 

“We’re doing our job, bro,” said the female police officer. 

“I’m not your bro. It’s a green light. You guys just missed the whole light cycle,” said the man recording.

No more words were exchanged, but the female police officer appeared to give the man recording the middle finger immediately before the video ended.

“It’s kind of creepy, the guys walking around with these Google glasses… Imagine some guy walking down the street videotaping everything he had, not they’re using the glasses,” said Ford. “I support our police, and as far as I’m concerned, they did nothing wrong today. I absolutely love them.”

Ford wasn’t the only person to jump to the officers’ defence. 

Jon Reid, the president of the Toronto Police Association, said that he understands the public’s frustration when seeing police parked illegally but that the police are constantly subject to surveillance and judgment from the public.

He said that people approaching officers and trying to bait them into interactions to elicit negative reactions is “absolutely terrible.” 

“Our officers are frequently recorded and provoked, and insults and confrontations are all too common. The hostility and disrespect our members endure are unacceptable,” said Reid. “These men and women are human and do not deserve the constant provocation while they do their jobs. We stand with our members, empathizing with the immense pressure they endure each and every day.” 

LEVY: Kamala Harris panders to anti-Semities with VP pick

It’s not just that Democrat Presidential nominee and San Francisco progressive Kamala Harris snubbed every Jew in America and pandered to the anti-Semites within her party and beyond by not selecting Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro as her running mate.

But her choice of Minnesota governor Tim Walz has sent a message that under this team, destructive radical woke ideologies and diversity are the priority over a safe, economically stable and well-functioning United States. 

So much for tackling divisiveness. Harris, with her pick, threw more gasoline on the fire.

This is despite a cringeworthy video Tuesday in which the two — who appear to be soulmates when it comes to their ideology — claim they intend to unify the country.

Shapiro is not just Jewish but reportedly the better candidate.

It is clear that Harris picked Walz over Shapiro to pacify the Jew-hating squad in her party. The legacy media will never admit that. Still, openly anti-Semitic members like Ilhan Omar, Rashida Talib, Jamaal Bowman and other Israel haters were quick to applaud the pick.

She has shown her true colours by refusing to attend Bibi Netanyahu’s recent speech to Congress, taking a page from the Barack Obama playbook.

CNN commentator Van Jones claimed the pick appeals to the darker parts of the Democratic party:

Anti-Semites here in Canada echoed the same nonsense about Shapiro’s ties to Israel.

The legacy Canadian media painted Walz as a “folksy progressive” governor from the heartland — with white Midwestern values — leaving out all the reasons he’s easily considered a far-left nut bar.

Folksy, my foot.

I have a dear friend who lives in Minneapolis and the first thing she said to me Tuesday was that at least they were getting rid of him as governor — a governor who caters to all the “useful idiots on the left.”

One might note that Walz first coined the term “weird” for Trump.

He’s already being called “Bernie Sanders in hunting gear.”

Let’s talk about what the former schoolteacher turned politician did during violent BLM riots that set Minneapolis ablaze, burned down a police station and led to widespread looting and vandalism in the wake of the George Floyd death.

Reports say about 1,000 properties were torched and vandalized and at least 100 destroyed.

He did not call in police. He did not protect his citizens. According to reports he waited three long days to bring in the National Guard, stating that the protesters needed space to express their fury.

He later admitted his lack of action and the city’s response was an “abject failure.”

During COVID he created a mask mandate and a snitch hotline to allow people to report neighbours who weren’t social distancing.

Over that same period Walz and his education department administrators completely dropped the ball on what has been called the Feeding our Future case, reportedly the largest COVID-19 fraud scheme in the U.S.

Some 70 Minnesotans were charged in the $250-million fraud scheme which exploited two programs that were supposed to deliver nutritious food to needy children during COVID. 

Instead it is reported that the perpetrators used the funds to purchase luxury cars, houses, jewelry and resort properties.

A total of five of seven defendants were found guilty in the first trial in early June. Another 18 have pled guilty.

Walz signed a bill protecting the rights of minor LGBTQ Minnesotans and those from other states to receive gender-affirming care — turning Minnesota into a “trans refuge state.” He put into law an order to put tampons in every public school washroom — male or female.

He is such a fan of open borders and giving undocumented immigrants all kinds of services and rights, he signed a bill last year allowing undocumented immigrants to get a driver’s license.

Walz has legalized recreational marijuana for adults and signed a bill banning police chokeholds and neck restraints.

According to Newsweek, Minneapolis has been known for years as “Little Mogadishu” but Walz has not plugged the tap of migants coming into the state.

Under the radical governor’s reign, Newsweek says the once safe state has become a “war zone” with violent homicides up 71%.

His ideology has led to the decline in the state of Minnesota, just like in progressively-run states such as Harris’s home state of California and cities like Seattle and Portland.

The radical duo now want to spread their progressive rot right across the country.

In many ways they have the media in their pockets.

It will be fascinating to watch from Canada especially considering we have a Prime MInister who has spread the same woke rot across this country, who has enabled the rise in anti-Semitism and considering that Canadian cities in decline (Toronto included) are headed by far left socialists like Walz.

We also have the same kind of  legacy media in Canada who prop up the Liberal agenda and foment hate against Conservatives.

It will be an interesting exercise to see if American voters cut through the noise and vote with their heads, not their hearts.

Saskatchewan to restrict students’ cellphone usage in classrooms

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The government of Saskatchewan is clamping down on cellphone usage in schools, joining a growing list of provinces placing restrictions on devices in the classroom.

Premier Scott Moe’s government announced that they would be banning K-12 students from using cellphones during class time in schools starting in the 2024-25 school year.

In a video posted to social media, Education Minister Jeremy Cockrill said that the province has received overwhelming support from parents and teachers for a school cellphone ban.

“Over the past number of months we have heard loud and clear from parents, teachers, and students that cellphones in classrooms are distracting our kids from learning and making teaching more difficult for our educators,” said Cockrill. 

The province is only making limited exceptions for students who need to use their cellphones to accommodate medical or special learning needs. 

The Moe government is delegating the responsibility of drafting enforcement procedures for the cellphone ban to school boards, who will ensure their respective schools are observing the policy. School boards are also instructed to draft plans to allow parents to get in contact with their child in case of an emergency.

Minister Cockrill touted the government’s “back-to-basics” approach to education.

“Getting back to basics by limiting cellphones in our classrooms will help our students focus and ensure they are well equipped with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in school, succeed in life, and to reach their full potential,” said Cockrill.

The Saskatchewan NDP’s education critic Matt Love said that the government should be focusing on bigger issues facing the province’s education system, namely funding for the education system.

“Cellphones have certainly become a distraction in classrooms, but cellphones are not the number one issue in Saskatchewan schools — it’s lack of funding,” said Love.

“Saskatchewan used to have the best funded schools in the country but under Scott Moe, we’re now last. It’s time to properly fund our classrooms and get Saskatchewan out of last place in education.”

While specific policies vary from province to province, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia have also limited student cellphone usage in schools. 

Provinces like Ontario have instituted a cell phone ban that gives a great deal of discretion to teachers to enforce such a ban, while New Brunswick’s policy requires students to place their phones in a designated area of the classroom on silent. 

In a comment to True North, Paige MacPherson, Associate Director of Education Policy for the Fraser Institute said that Saskatchewan’s ban is a good first step towards improving student achievement.

“Saskatchewan’s policy appears to be a positive step forward. A provincewide ban empowers teachers to impose the policy in their classrooms without constantly having to monitor and nag students — provided students need to lock their phones away during this time, rather than keep them buzzing in their pockets or desks,” said MacPherson.

MacPherson said that the Moe government could improve their cellphone policy by making the restrictions against cellphones more stringent.

“Leading researchers on this issue like Jonathan Haidt say that smartphone bans for the entire school day rather than just during classroom time make for better policy,” said MacPherson.

“This is because the presence of smartphones during the school day creates such anxiety in youth, with deleterious effects on mental health and cyber bullying that creates distraction which bleeds into classroom time. Leaving the door open for exceptions for learning purposes can be reasonable but in grades 9-12, could also be abused, so should be used mindfully.” 

According to her, an ideal cellphone ban would be uniform and require students to lock their cellphones away in their lockers or in lockable pouches where they will not be a distraction.

“PISA research shows that smartphone distraction in classrooms, whether from a child’s own phone or one of their classmates’ phones, significantly decreases math scores in particular, and creates anxiety in young people. It’s these reasons that a uniform ban with almost no exceptions (aside from medical needs like monitoring blood sugar) is the best policy in K-12 government public schools.”

RCMP arrest Ontario man for alleged threats against Trudeau

Source: Facebook

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police charged an Ontario man for allegedly uttering threats against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in an online video.

According to RCMP, the 33-year-old man allegedly “posted an on-line video making violent threats towards the Prime Minister, the Police and any security personnel who might attempt to interfere with his plans.”

RCMP’s Integrated National Security Enforcement Team in the Greater Toronto Area opened an investigation after becoming aware of the alleged threats.

Once identified, Dawid Zalewski, 33, of no fixed address was taken into custody and charged with two counts of uttering threats.

“The RCMP GTA INSET and York Regional Police were able to swiftly locate and arrest this individual, resulting in the reduced risk to the Prime Minister, other police officers, and to the public. I am grateful for the collaboration with our policing partners to advance this investigation.” said Supt. James Parr, Officer-in-Charge, GTA/SW INSET in a press release.

Public Safety Minister Dominic Leblanc said that security and law enforcement officials have been exercising increased vigilance in the wake of the assassination attempt on U.S.-presidential candidate Donald Trump last month. 

The incident comes a little over a month after Liberal MP and former Justice Minister Marco Mendicino was also spit on by an angry pedestrian during an Ottawa street interaction in June.

Additionally, two Alberta men were charged with uttering threats against Trudeau and other Canadian political leaders last month. 

“We are aware of the heightened security environment for public officials and the danger this presents for all Canadians. Our number one priority has been, and will always be, the safety and security of Canadians,” said the RCMP in a press release.

True North contacted the RCMP for further information on the case, however, they said “as this case is now before the courts, the RCMP will not be sharing any further details.”

“The security environment in which public figures operate continues to evolve both within Canada and abroad, and we recognize this is a time for increased vigilance,” an RCMP spokesperson told True North. 

“The level of protection and/or nature of security measures are determined by the RCMP, based on the latest risk and threat assessments, ongoing security considerations and a number of other factors.”

The Prime Minister’s Office did not reply to True North’s request for comment.

No charges for driver arrested after driving through protest blockade in Toronto

Source: X

Police arrested a driver who drove through and around protesters during a blockade-style protest on the Gardiner Expressway.

According to Toronto police, the driver was arrested after a demonstration involving approximately 40 people attempted to shut down the northbound and southbound lanes on Jarvis Street near Lake Shore Boulevard but no charges have been pressed.

A video circulating online shows a driver passing through the blockade, pushing one activist to the ground before continuing to drive away – after being surrounded by protesters attempting to prevent the driver from moving.

“The driver was arrested a short time later, but no charges have been laid at this time,” Shannon Eames, a media relations officer for the service, told True North. “An ambulance was called for the protestors, who refused medical attention and refused to provide a statement to police.”

Police did not answer further questions or confirm the purpose of the protest or the driver’s identity. But from videos of the protest, it appears it was an anti-police demonstration calling for “justice for Tylor Maxie Coore,” an Afro-Indigenous man who was shot by police during a call to service involving a person wielding a knife.

According to other reports, Coore, who suffers from schizophrenia, was shot and remains in the hospital with severe injuries. He was charged with two counts of allegedly assaulting a police officer in connection with the incident.

Lawyer and independent journalist Caryma Sa’d reported that one of the blockaders, the man who can allegedly be seen hitting the vehicle with a flag featuring a black thunderbird with a red background, is a frequenter of the Toronto protest circuit. 

Sa’d claims he was the same man spotted wearing a hat that displays an inverted red triangle, a symbol used in Hamas propaganda videos to indicate their Israeli Defence Force targets before shooting at them.

“It is absolutely disgusting that the person arrested is the driver of the car, an innocent person on a highway being blocked by people on a roadway, which is in and of itself illegal,” Lawyer and political commentator Ari Goldkind told True North in an interview. “There should be a lineup of defence lawyers happy to assist the driver of this truck for free, should he (or she) be charged.”

Goldkind thinks the police’s apparent inaction is part of a larger trend with protests on the streets of Toronto and other major Canadian cities.

He said all levels of government and police have submitted to intimidation from protest movements, including by pro-Hamas protests, in a way that would have been unimaginable in the days following a terrorist attack such as the events of Oct. 7 or 9/11.

Goldkind noted the driver in the video is not driving at a high rate of speed and appears to try not to harm the protesters while still trying to escape them as they surround the vehicle.

“Some of these thugs are masked or disguised. What if this is a mother taking two or three kids to daycare or childcare? Are they supposed to sit around and hope for the best that these people are simply there to wash their windshield or wish them good cheer,” he said. “In my view, this is no different than self-defence. What about this car was so special that they had to box in and scare, if not terrorize.”

Goldkind said that if the law is against the driver in this case, then the law ought to be changed.

“I think (the driver) acted prudently, reasonably, and any injuries that would have resulted from that incident are completely self-inflicted on the part of the thugs,” he said.

He noted that some laws aren’t being used against protesters who intimidate and limit the movement of others. The Criminal Code prohibits anyone intent on committing an indictable offence from wearing face masks.

It also states that anyone who “wrongfully and without lawful authority” to compel another person to abstain from doing anything that he or she has a lawful right to do” is guilty of an indictable offence. 

Police did not respond to True North’s requests about whether protesters broke any laws by holding vehicles on the road hostage.

The Daily Brief | Could Online Harms bill result in arrests for social media comments?

Source: Facebook

Critics of the Liberal’s online harms bill claim that a video of a UK man being arrested by police for social media comments foreshadows what could happen in Canada.

Plus, Venezuelans across Canada are protesting the shady election of incumbent President Nicolas Maduro’s socialist regime and they are not happy with Canada’s official statement on the fiercely contested ballot results.

And 47% of Canadians think it’s time that the federal government downsized and reduced the number of public sector workers.

Tune into The Daily Brief with Cosmin Dzsurdzsa and Lindsay Shepherd!

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