Hard Numbers: Ontario Liquor Strike Looms, Scientists Predict ‘Mega-Surge’ Site, Arrests at Canada-U.S. Border Skyrocket, Cannabis Pardons Compared, LA Schools Angeles plans to ban cell phones

685: Workers at the 685 liquor stores operated by the Liquor Control Board of Ontario could go on strike as of July 5, because their union has not yet reached a new labor agreement with the government agency. The union representing store workers is calling for better job protections after the provincial government decided to allow convenience stores and grocery stores will sell alcohol starting this fall.

900: Predicting earthquakes is, of course, a fragile affair – but scientists think now that the next “Big One” of the Far North could come from a 900-kilometer fault line off the west coast of Canada. The tectonic drama in the Cascadia subduction zone — as those in the know call it — could generate two ferociously destructive things at once: a “mega-thrust earthquake” and a massive tsunami.

5,600: Between January and April, border agents apprehended more than 5,600 undocumented migrants are trying to enter the United States through Canada. That’s already higher than the totals for all of 2021 and 2022 combined. Human smuggling networks, which charge thousands of dollars per person, are particularly active along Canada’s border with New York.

845: In the five years since Canada created a pardon program for people convicted of marijuana offenses, only 1,300 people having applied, and only 845 were granted. Critics say the program is difficult to administer and the requirement to prove there are no other recent violations poses a barrier. The challenges of the Canadian program were highlighted this week when the governor of the US state of Maryland pardoned 175,000 cannabis offenders in one fell swoop.

429,000: The Los Angeles school district, responsible for more than 429,000 young minds, voted Tuesday to approve the use of cell phones and social media platforms during school hours. The announcement from the nation’s second-largest school district (after New York City) coincided this week with the U.S. surgeon general’s call to add cigarette-style warning labels to social media platforms, in a context of what he considers a mental health emergency among young people. The Los Angeles school system has 120 days to develop a policy which will come into force in January 2025.