Never mind the silly Canadian angle. The really sinister thing here is the embryonic hybridization of man and machine—a phenomenon we have already predicted. From the Canadian Press, May 5:

Canadian military looking for Iron Man-type suits for overburdened soldiers
OTTAWA — Iron Man Canuck may be appearing soon at a theatre near you. The Defence Department posted a contract tender Monday asking companies for proposals for high-tech body suits that could help Canadian soldiers carry bigger loads into battle.

Contrary to widespread media reports, BBC says May 9 that the man detained in Mosul is not in fact Abu Ayyub al-Masri, leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq. An earlier statement from the Iraqi defense ministry said that al-Masri had been captured. But an US military spokeswoman, Peggy Kageleiry, said confusion had arisen because a man with a similar name had been detained.

The US administration has finally seen fit to release another group of prisoners from Guantánamo, including the Sudanese AlJazeera cameraman Sami al-Haj. Despite claims from within the administration that it was hoping to scale down operations at Guantánamo, no prisoners have been released since December 2007, when two other Sudanese, 13 Afghans, ten Saudis and three British residents were released. Instead, one prisoner died—of cancer—and another prisoner was actually transferred into Guantánamo from a secret prison run by the CIA. (AlterNet, May 2)

Burmese soldiers and riot police opened fire at Insein Prison in Rangoon, killing 36 and injuring 70, after 1,500 inmates there rioted the aftermath of the devastating cyclone Nargis, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma (AAPPB). The facility, which houses many political prisoners, is described by former inmates as "the darkest hell-hole in Burma." AAPPB reported: "Even though prisoners requested prison guards to open the doors and move them to safety, the authorities ignored their request. Some prisoners set fire to the prison hall and a riot ensued." KAAPPB's Bo Kyi said: "The authorities are to blame for this situation. As soon as the storm hit, they should have moved the prisoners to safety." (The Telegraph, May 7)

The US Navy plans to re-establish its Fourth Fleet, disbanded in 1950, to oversee ships, aircraft and submarines operating in the Caribbean and Central and South America. Rear Admiral Joseph Kernan, current commander of the Naval Special Warfare Command, will lead the fleet effective July 1, Admiral Gary Roughead, chief of naval operations, said in a statement. The fleet will be based in Mayport, FLA, coordinating with the US Naval Forces Southern Command, which also is based there. "This change increases our emphasis in the region on employing naval forces to build confidence and trust among nations through collective maritime security efforts that focus on common threats and mutual interests," Roughead said. (Bloomberg, April 24)

Presidents Hugo Chávez of Venezuela and Rafael Correa of Ecuador warned of possible "contagion" in their countries by the autonomy movement in the eastern Bolivian province of Santa Cruz. "The central plan by the CIA and its lackeys in Venezuela is to take control of regional governments to carry out illegal referendums like the one held (Sunday in favor of autonomy) in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. But we will defeat that plan!" said Chávez.

From ElSalvadorSolidarity.org via Upside Down World, May 8:

On Friday May 2, Hector Antonio Ventura was assassinated in the community of Valle Verde, Suchitoto. Ventura was the youngest of the 14 political prisoners captured in Suchitoto on July 2, 2007. According to preliminary reports, Ventura was stabbed to death. Another victim, who was with Ventura, was attacked but survived. Reports say that the assailants were at least two men, who entered the back room of the house where Ventura and his friend slept and attacked them.

At an emergency food-security summit held May 7 in Managua, 14 Latin American and Caribbean nations convened under the umbrella of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA). Nicaragua's President Daniel Ortega called the food crisis an "epic problem" caused by the "tyranny of global capitalism." At the conclusion of the summit, all but two participating nations signed a joint resolution that incorporated specific language supporting ALBA. Costa Rica and El Salvador abstained from signing. (CSM, May 8)