The mystery of being an ‘associate member’ of the EU; charges dropped in Pearson Airport gold heist; and more

It’s Wednesday, September 16. Here are the top stories we’re following today.

Several members of European parliament interviewed by National Post were elated at the push between the EU and Canada to deepen their relationship unlike any other non-European country. But as to what that actually looks like, no one seems to know beyond Prime Minister Mark Carney and EU President Ursula von der Leyen.

The men were accused of helping to move and melt the stolen gold after a heist in which a shipping crate containing $22 million in gold and cash was stolen from an Air Canada cargo warehouse in April 2023. Amid additional evidence and new details of the theft, prosecutors have concluded there was no longer a reasonable prospect of conviction.

To the chagrin of many medical groups who argue there is no sufficient evidence that full-body MRI scans are effective at prolonging life, the pricey scans are gaining popularity. For roughly $2,500 to $3,000 at private clinics — the scans are marketed as a tool to detect diseases and abnormalities lurking inside asymptomatic bodies.

An analysis of grants found that the federal government’s Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council has been using some of the money to fund research into unusual topics such as ancient temple brewers, Arctic climate comics and low-carbon videogames. All while a government website says that SSHRC-funded research provides “insights on the issues that matter most to Canadians.”

Rapper Macklemore’s ouster from an Ed Sheeran tour over his “very anti-Israel” outbursts “is a victory for cancel culture, and that is never good for our social — let alone cultural — health,” Goldstein argues. “I fail to understand how people who complain whenever someone they agree with is cancelled can suddenly start cheering when the cancelling happens to someone they find objectionable.”