Glazed and confused: Dissecting the Tim Hortons merger

To hear stock market analysts and industry gurus gush over the proposed US$12.5-billion merger between Tim Hortons and Burger King this week, one might wonder if they were hopped up on double-doubles and honey crullers. What started with a shocking late Sunday news report that the two food chains were in talks quickly rose to a swelling of adulation for the corporate union and what it might mean to Tim Hortons’ future. The deal offers “huge upside” for the coffee chain’s U.S. expansion, noted one management prof. Consultants were soon envisioning Tim’s kiosks in Burger King’s thousands of restaurants across the U.S. But why stop there? “Could you have a Tim Hortons and a Burger King across the street from each other in South Africa?” a person close to the merger talks mused to Forbes. “Absolutely.”

World domination, Timmy’s style.

More chance of dying from work than going to war - Intl Labor Organization

Going to war may seem one of the most hazardous ordeals on the planet, but perhaps not. The International Labor Organization (ILO) says there is more chance of dying from work than fighting for your country on the battlefield.

The admission was made by Guy Ryder, the ILO’s director-general, who was speaking at the 20th World Congress in Frankfurt to participants from 141 countries in what is the world’s largest occupational safety event.

Mayor Forces Man To Leave Public Meeting Because He Won’t Stand During Prayer

A Florida mayor ejected one of his constituents from a City Commission meeting on Thursday because he declined to stand during the invocation and pledge to the flag at the beginning of the meeting.

Winter Garden Mayor John Rees, a nonpartisan official leading an Orlando suburb of about 37,000, was caught on video demanding that an audience member stand for a prayer, which thanked God for “allowing us to live in a country where we’re free to believe, think, and pray.”

China: No Open Nominations For Hong Kong Leader

BEIJING (AP) — China's legislature on Sunday ruled out allowing open nominations in the inaugural election for Hong Kong's leader, saying they would create a "chaotic society." Democracy activists in the Asian financial hub responded by saying that a long-threatened mass occupation of the heart of the city "will definitely happen."

B.C. teachers' strike: Vince Ready walks out of talks

Vince Ready has left talks between the B.C. teachers' union and the provincial government in Richmond, B.C., saying the sides are too far apart to come to a resolution anytime soon.

"I don’t see a resolution here before the start of school given the positions of the parties. They are a long, long ways apart," the veteran mediator said.

He has been working as a facilitator since Thursday, when talks resumed after a summer of stalled negotiations.

EU leaders deliver sanctions ultimatum to Russia over Ukraine

European Union leaders have given Russia a week to reverse course in Ukraine or face a new round of sanctions as Kiev warns it is on the brink of full-scale war with Moscow.

Fears are growing that the confrontation on the EU's eastern borders could engulf the whole continent after Russia sent troops to back a new offensive by pro-Kremlin rebels in south-east Ukraine.

The EU president, Herman Van Rompuy, said the 28 leaders meeting in Brussels had agreed to take "further significant steps" if Moscow did not back down.

St. Louis County Police Officer Dan Page Retires Following Inflammatory Video

The St. Louis County police officer who pushed a CNN journalist on live television in Ferguson, Missouri, and was earlier suspended from duty after a videotape surfaced in which he threatened to "kill everybody," has retired.

St. Louis County police officer Dan Page, a 35-year police veteran, had his last day with the force on August 25th, MSNBC reported on Friday night. A representative of the St. Louis County Police Chief told MSNBC that Page is expected to receive a his full pension.

Page fell into the national spotlight when he pushed CNN's Don Lemon who was in Ferguson covering the unrest stemming from the killing of unarmed teen Michael Brown by a police officer. The engagement between Page and Lemon was shown on CNN.

Lemon would later uncover a video of Page where he threatens violence and also says disparaging things about President Barack Obama, Muslims, and LGBT people. Page was suspended from duty on August 22, St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar saying that the comments Page made in the surfaced video, "deeply disturbed me immediately."

Original Article
Source: huffingtonpost.com/
Author: The Huffington Post | By Andrew Hart

Canada looks to join NATO force of 10,000 troops meant to keep Russia in check

Canada is interested in joining a NATO joint expeditionary force of at least 10,000 troops that is being created to bolster the alliance’s eastern flank in an effort to check Russia’s creeping military takeover of eastern Ukraine, according to Britain’s Financial Times newspaper.

The British-led division-sized force will include troops from at least six countries. It will be comprised of air, sea and land components as well as special forces, the British business daily said Friday in the lead story on its website. The as yet unnamed force would exercise frequently and be maintained at a very high state of readiness, according to NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, who spoke of its creation for the first time in interviews with European journalists earlier this week.

Texas National Guard Troops At Border Can't Afford Food

WASHINGTON -- National Guard troops deployed to the border in Texas are visiting a food bank because they can't afford food and gas ahead of their Sept. 5 payday, according to a report Friday by local station Action 4 News and a state senator.

Action 4 News reported that a Rio Grande Valley food bank had been contacted about 50 Texas National Guard troops who needed assistance. The troops are reimbursed for their meals, but pay for them upfront, stretching the finances of some troops who were called to southern Texas earlier this month to address an increase in unaccompanied minors crossing the border illegally.

NATO Chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen Urges Canada To Boost Defence Spending

NATO's outgoing secretary general is repeating his call for member countries like Canada to boost their defence spending in response to the "wake-up call" of recent crises like the one unfolding in Ukraine.

In an interview airing Saturday on CBC Radio's The House, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, who will preside over his final NATO heads of government summit Sept. 4-5 in Wales, said that after 25 years of "relatively calm weather" the alliance now needs to reinforce its collective defence and adapt to what he calls "a profound climate change."