Northern Canada is again beset by dangerous wildfires, including near Ft McMurray, a main center of tar sand oil extraction.

There is poetic justice in greenhouse-fueled wildfires burning Ft McMurray. I hope the people there reflect on what they have done to cause wildfires like these.

Wildfires in Canada damaged fiber optic cables and cut off communication with large areas. Without land lines and cash, everyone was screwed.

This is not one of my reasons for having cash on hand and always paying cash — I don't think fire damage to Boston's underground cables is likely. But in many places it is another good reason to make a habit of using cash. You can make sure that the stores you buy from are accustomed to cash payments and realize that they will lose business if they don't let you pay that way.

Israel closed the Rafah aid crossing from Egypt into Gaza, and is claiming that Egypt closed it. It says that reopening it is up to Egypt. But this is not true and Egypt vociferously denies it.

Who is this supposed to fool?

UNWRA has run out of food in southern 2/3 of Gaza, so it can't distribute any more. Israel is not letting in any more food, having captured and closed the Rafah crossing.

Israeli tanks have entered Rafah's residential zones. This could result in killing thousands soon enough.

A UN vehicle was attacked, with casualties. I wish we could identify who attacked it.