TREE HOUSE NEWS 🏡

NEWS AGGREGATION & COMMENTARY

May Great Spirit bless 🙏

It's a beautiful, mild, sunny morning 🌅 with an expected high of 35°F here at the Tree House and partly cloudy skies. It will be overcast with temperatures of 37°F on Christmas Day. Who needs to go to Florida? Save your money, break out the cocktails, put on a light jacket, and sit out on your balcony at a patio table in the sun, under a fake coconut tree for emphasis, and voila! Why waste all that money to go to Florida? 🌴 Look at all the money you save on airfare and motel rooms.

Or how about visiting the Okanogan Valley 🛤️, which also offers temperate winter temperatures and plenty of sightseeing. And if you are a winter enthusiast, 🌨️ ❄️ 💨, there are just as many grand places to visit in the BC or Alberta mountains as you would elsewhere in any other European or other mountain range in the world, with grand skiing lodges. Skiing and snowmobiling are probably the most popular winter activities in Canada ⛷️ 🏂 🏒 🛷 🏍️ Even winter camping has become popular, especially with the advent of tents designed and built for cold weather. An example is shown below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WmLN8UbKqQM

It's like having all the comforts of home somewhere in the middle of the wilderness, if that's your bag. If I were ten years younger, I would be out and about looking for one of those tents, then throw the tent and the provisions in the back of the Jeep, and wave bye-bye for a couple of weeks, or more ⛺️

TODAY'S DISCUSSION:

Well, folks, the sun is still up and bright, and when I was out a little while ago, it felt more like early April than nearly the end of December. Sighhhhhh!

Interprovincial tariff change in Canada:

Canada has recently implemented significant changes to reduce interprovincial trade barriers, which act as de facto "tariffs" by increasing business costs and complexity. These efforts, spurred by the Federal Free Trade and Labour Mobility in Canada Act and the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA), aim to create a more integrated national economy.

• Key Changes and Initiatives:
• Impact and Future Outlook:

Read More: - Google Search -

Changing Federal Laws and Regulations

Canada frequently updates its laws and regulations through a democratic legislative process to reflect evolving societal needs and government priorities. Significant recent and upcoming changes in 2025 and 2026 include new citizenship rules, a push to reduce "red tape" for businesses, and updated provincial regulations on matters such as driving and taxation.

• How Old Rules and Regulations are Changed:
• Key Recent and Upcoming Changes (2025-2026):

Read More: - Google Search -

I see our turtle... 🐢 er, federal government, has just squeaked past one rusty cog in the gear. So much for the cockroach that just got caught in the notch, I hope it was orange and was wearing a blue suit and red tie. Even without the orange cockroach, the previous system needed a good update in the Laws and Regulations Department; it needed a good shaking out, which, in my opinion, was around the same time we discovered that some weasels in some provinces in this country were actually putting tariffs on each other! I believe Carney put the kybosh to that one.

We had our quota of thieves in government and bloodsuckers on the outside taking up all of the feds' titties, and thank you, Carney, for putting some of those thieves out of commission, I hope with a Do Not Get Out Of Jail ticket. BIG PERIOD, that's it.

Most Americans don’t think Trump or Democratic leaders are listening. Here’s what they wish they could tell Washington

Most Americans don’t have faith that their political leaders care what they have to say.

But if they had the chance to tell Washington something, a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS finds, they’d say plenty, much of it about the economy. That was the most common response when Americans were asked to share in their own words what they’d tell President Donald Trump to make life in the US better.

*Many Americans want political leaders to hear about their economic concerns*

The responses below were the most frequently mentioned answers to the following question: If you could tell _________ one thing that would make life better in America, what would you tell them?

Most Americans doubt political leaders care about what they have to say

Q: How much, if at all, do you think that _____________ cares about what people like you have to say?

Read More:

Updated Dec 24, 2025, 9:47 AM ET - 1 hr 45 min ago

- CNN -

‘It’s perpetuated this news cycle’: Frustration mounts in Trump’s orbit about messaging on latest Epstein documents

When the Justice Department released a first batch of Jeffrey Epstein files on Friday that included photographs of former President Bill Clinton, White House officials raced to amplify the importance of the new documents. But days later, amid a second trove that contains several references to President Donald Trump, the White House is pushing a different view: Don’t believe everything you see.

Trump officials on Tuesday downplayed the latest disclosure of more than 30,000 files related to Epstein, dismissing the significance of the materials and suggesting that some that mentioned Trump were unverified or even outright fabricated. Even as the rest of Washington pored over records showing Trump repeatedly flew on Epstein’s plane, White House aides sought to highlight other matters the president is more eager to talk about.

The messaging shift — the latest in a largely unsuccessful effort by the administration to seize control of the story — has spawned frustration in Trump’s orbit and parts of the White House, where some saw the scrambled response over the last few days as just the latest stumble in a year of Epstein-related blunders and baffling communications mishaps...

Read More:

PUBLISHED Dec 24, 2025, 4:00 AM ET - 7 hr ago

- CNN -

Most Americans don’t think Trump or Democratic leaders are listening. Here’s what they wish they could tell Washington

Most Americans don’t have faith that their political leaders care what they have to say.

But if they had the chance to tell Washington something, a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS finds, they’d say plenty, much of it about the economy. That was the most common response when Americans were asked to share in their own words what they’d tell President Donald Trump to make life in the US better.

Many Americans want political leaders to hear about their economic concerns

The responses below were the most frequently mentioned answers to the following question: If you could tell _________ one thing that would make life better in America, what would you tell them?

What would Americans tell leadership if they could?

Q: If you could talk with _______ and tell them one thing that would make life better in America, what would you tell them?

Most Americans doubt political leaders care about what they have to say

Q: How much, if at all, do you think that _____________ cares about what people like you have to say?

Read More:

Updated Dec 24, 2025, 9:47 AM ET - 2 hr ago

- CNN -

Ukraine’s Zelensky offers peace concessions – and puts the ball in Putin’s court

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signaled new willingness to make concessions on several key negotiating points that have threatened to stall a nascent peace process with Moscow, effectively putting the ball in Russia’s court.

In an unusually candid and wide-ranging meeting with reporters Tuesday, Zelensky gave new details about a 20-point plan that he described as “a foundational document on ending the war, a political document between us, America, Europe, and the Russians.” The Ukrainian president also discussed specifics of security guarantees between Ukraine, the United States and European countries that would form a crucial part of any peace deal with Russia.

Zelensky said he expected to receive a response from Moscow Wednesday after the US side engages with the Kremlin. The draft 20-point agreement represents a slimmed-down version of an original 28-point plan the US previously discussed with the Russian side. In his remarks, Zelensky outlined what the Ukrainian side says would be an acceptable compromise for withdrawing its troops from portions of the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine that are currently not held by Russian forces...

• Key points of draft plan:

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Dmitriev gave Putin “a detailed briefing on the results of his trip to Miami

Read More:

Updated Dec 24, 2025, 9:41 AM ET - 2 hr ago

- CNN -

CANADIAN NEWS:

Be prepared in case of power outage in extreme cold, say Yukon officials

Territory's energy minister says power grid under 'significant strain' as prolonged cold snap continues

As Yukon continues to deal with a prolonged spell of extreme cold, emergency officials are advising people to be prepared in case of a power outage. Temperatures in Whitehorse have been hovering around -40 C and have dropped below -50 C in some communities. The mercury is expected to rise into the -20s in Whitehorse over the weekend.

On Tuesday, the territory's energy minister issued a statement saying the territory's power grid was under "significant strain," and suggested the potential for rolling blackouts in Whitehorse if the system were to buckle under that strain...

Whitehorse resident Barrett Horne's outdoor thermometer seemed to bottom out well below -50 C on Tuesday morning.

• ‘Safety is a shared responsibility’:

Posted: Dec 23, 2025 10:12 PM EST | Last Updated: 12 minutes ago

- CBC -

Can the answer to future flooding be found in resurrecting an ancient lake?

Before the 1920s, the Sumas prairies were covered by a lake

Following the recent floods in Abbotsford and on the territory of the Semá:th (Sumas) First Nation in British Columbia, some researchers are renewing their calls to bring part of the ancient Sumas Lake back to life. The idea could mitigate the growing risk of flooding in the region. However, the restoration of floodplains raises significant economic, political, and social implications.

Under heavy rain, Kwilosintun (Murray Ned), a member of the Semá:th First Nation, whose ancestral territory is located in the Abbotsford region of British Columbia, walks along the last vestige of an ancient lake...

• Recurring floods:
• An ancient lake:
• Rethinking climate change adaptation:
• Funding request refused:

Raed More:

Posted: Dec 24, 2025 10:00 AM EST | Last Updated: 2 hours ago

- CBC -

Canada needs to stand firm as trade talks approach, says Unifor president

Payne says she doesn't want to see Canada rushing into a deal

As Canada approaches a review of its key free trade deal with the United States next year, Unifor national president Lana Payne says it’s important to stand firm for a good deal.

Payne says she’s troubled by the views of some in the business community who have pushed to reach trade deals quickly. She says rushing into a deal at any cost is "absolutely the most terrible approach to negotiations," and Canada has to remember it has leverage in these talks...

WATCH | Lana Payne says she's concerned about Canada's approach to talks:

Trump trade rep targets Canada's beer and dairy rules in new CUSMA review conditions

Posted: Dec 24, 2025 9:53 AM EST | Last Updated: 3 hours ago

- CBC -

WHY DOESN'T TRUMP KEEP HIS FAT, UGLY, ORANGE, CREEPY FACE OUT OF THIS?

IT'S STUCK TO YOUR ANKLE!