Four stories in the news today, July 4

Four stories in the news today from The Canadian Press:

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CALGARY GEARS UP FOR STAMPEDE

The Calgary Stampede gets underway this week and the event’s CEO says the landscape has changed a lot in the past two years. Warren Connell notes that when he took on the job in 2014, oil was at $105 a barrel and Conservative governments had ruled Alberta for 44 years. Connell has been tasked with steering one of Canada’s largest festivals through one of the worst economic downturns Calgary has ever experienced. He says the Stampede is fortunate in that it formed partnerships that were really not economy-driven.

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armed robbery

Knife-wielding man robs south Nanaimo liquor store

3h ago

Shorthanded

Clippers fall short hosting Bulldogs

9h ago

off the schedule

BC Ferries preemptively cancels early Saturday sailings

16h ago

STAMPEDE PARK A YEAR ROUND OPERATION

Organizers are gearing up for the Calgary Stampede, which starts this Friday, but the city’s Stampede Park is always busy. From the Cirque du Soleil to the Global Petroleum Show, the 65 hectares of land on the edge of downtown Calgary hosts about 1,800 events annually. And Stampede CEO Warren Connell says plans are in the works to make it even more of a year-round space so that Calgary can attract large conferences to help blunt the economic impact of depressed oil and gas prices.

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OBAMA PREPARES TO BLAST TRUMP

U.S. President Barack Obama is preparing to enter the 2016 U.S. presidential race, but in a supporting role. Obama will appear at his first rally Tuesday with his would-be successor Hillary Clinton. By coincidence he has trotted out some of his most strident attacks on Republican Donald Trump with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau standing beside him. The first was during Trudeau’s visit to Washington earlier this year and the second was last week during Obama’s visit to Ottawa.

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CANADIAN TEENS PLAN ON CHANGING THE WORLD

A program for gifted high school students starts taking in another 700 over achievers today. The Shad Program is in its 37th year. Shad spokesman Teddy Katz says the program believes developing the minds of the best and the brightest cannot be left to chance.  Through the program, students travel to universities to hear lectures by prominent university professors and business leaders. They also work in groups to come up with a business proposal for a new product or service to solve a social problem.

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The Canadian Press