Your World Tonight - Puerto Vallarta violence aftermath, Canadians in Mexico, AI’s memory chip famine, and more

Episode Date: February 23, 2026

The mood across Mexico remains one of shock and fear after waves of weekend violence hit Puerto Vallarta and other regions. One of the country’s most notorious drug kingpins was killed in a military raid, immediately triggering widespread retaliation from the Jalisco New Generation cartel. More than 70 people are dead — most were soldiers or gang members.Also: The violence has trapped many Canadians in Puerto Vallarta and its surrounding areas. Puerto Vallarta is under a shelter-in-place order, and a number of airlines have cancelled flights to and from the region. Some Canadians are frustrated with Ottawa’s response to the crisis. Global Affairs is telling people to register with GAC. Officials also say at least two Canadians reported non life-threatening injuries.And: Lost memory. How consumers could take the hit from big tech’s global need for microchips to power AI data farms.Plus: Tariff backlash, new protests in Iran, the push to ‘prescribe’ blueberries, and more.

For years, I've sounded like a broken record. I do not want kids. I do not ever want to have kids. I don't want to have a kid. Don't want to have a kid. Don't want to have a kid. I'm in my 40s now. The door is almost closed. And suddenly, I'm not so sure. The story has always been, no. I'm just wondering to what degree it's just a story.

From CBC's personally, this is Creation Myth. Available now on CBC Listen or wherever you get your podcasts. This is a CBC podcast. People were screaming, and it was just a question of dodging from bush to tree to get myself home. Thousands of Canadians live or vacation in Mexico, and many have spent the last day sheltering in place, especially in and around Porto Vallarta, after deadly fighting erupted between the government and the Halisco New Generation drug cartel. Welcome to Your World Tonight.

I'm Susan Bonner. It is Monday, February 23rd, just before 6 p.m. Eastern, also on the podcast. The walls are closing in on President Trump, no matter if you saw him lose the vote, six Republicans crossed the floor with Congress. Then you saw the Supreme Court decision. Doug Ford can list the recent blows to Donald Trump's tariffs, but the U.S. president says he doesn't care. He calls a Supreme Court.

Court decision on tariffs ridiculous. He promises consequences for Republicans who vote against them, and he keeps imposing them. The latest and across the board tariff of 15 percent, with a threat to go even higher for any countries that, in his words, want to play games. Signs of Mexico's simmering drug violence are there alongside the beaches, bars, and hotels. From heavily armed officers patrolling in pickup trucks to whispers from locals. Yesterday, it exploded to the surface in a tourist hotspot after a military hit on a Mexican cartel leader. Now authorities are trying to regain control and keep travelers safe. Paul Hunter has more. With airlines beginning or preparing to resume flights from the Portoviarda Airport the day after Sunday's stunning violence,

those who ventured back out onto city streets encountered a kind of hellscape, burnt out cars and buses dotting the scarred roads trashed by one of Mexico's most feared cartels in a rampage that left more than 70 dead, mostly, soldiers and cartel members. All of it, after the death Sunday of a notorious cartel leader known as El Mentiono, who died en route to hospital after a shootout with Mexican authorities. El Mentiono was one of the most wanted, criminals in Mexico and the United States for trafficking massive amounts of fentanyl, methamphetamine,

cocaine, and other drugs into the U.S. Cartel members responded to his death by blocking roads, burning whatever they could find, filling the sky with smoke, the streets with terror. American tourist Travis Dajunay. It really did look and feel like a war zone. And I think that feeling of anxiety, that feeling of what does happen next or what could happen next is driving what a lot of people are feeling. right now. And that's the worry. Now what? Will the cartel, an extremely powerful force in that region, now step up the violence or step away? The U.S. participation said Mexican President Claudia Schenbaum was in providing intel. The operations, she said, was by Mexico,

adding, today there is already more calm, peace, security, and normalcy being maintained in this country. Still, though the takedown of El Mentiono is a big step for Mexico. U.S. President Donald Trump, who's been pressuring that country to do more to stop the flow of drugs north, seem to suggest he wants more. Posting on social media, Mexico must step up efforts on cartels and drugs. Still, from a former top official with the U.S. drug enforcement agency, Mike Vigil, the death of El Mentiono may well signal that Mexico's powerful cartels... ...can no longer operate with the impunity of the past. as the fear remains, they may well try.

Paul Hunter, CBC News, Washington. They were looking for relaxation and sunshine, but for thousands of Canadian tourists, what they got was stress and danger. Jennifer Ewan has that story. It's scary. For Alberta and Denise Wicillik, the start of a sunny vacation to Playa del Carmen upended by violence in Mexico.

My girlfriend and I were just talking about whether or not we should consider packing up and leaving. Wicillik says she, tried to do as the Canadian government asked and register with global affairs. But the site kept glitching for hours yesterday and well into the morning. And I understand websites are going to get busy and, you know, things are going to take time. But it's frustrating. About 8,000 Canadians did manage to register with the government yesterday through today. The total now, 26,000. There are likely many more in Mexico who haven't registered with the government. Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anon

says it's the best way to receive updates and guidance from the government and that global affairs is working on the system. With the surge in volume, there was initially technical difficulties. Our system is working well. And where there are kinks, we are addressing them. Onond is adding staff to handle phone calls, too, after a surge in the past 24 hours, including two Canadians reporting non-life-threatening injuries, though Anand would not give more details.

Canada is advising against non-essential travel to some parts of Mexico and to exercise a high degree of caution everywhere else. The safety and security of Canadians abroad remains our highest priority. In some parts of Mexico, like Puerto Vallerta, Canadians have been told to shelter in place. Many uncertain about their next move and how they're eventually going to get home. She's very stressed. Catherine Vellon is trying to get her daughter out of Puerto Rican.

to Vallerta. Many airlines, including Air Canada, Porter, WestJet, and Flair have cancelled flights in and out of the city today. A travel agent by trade, she's trying to work her industry connections. I was speaking with Air Canada and Air Canada's flight is still supposed to fly tomorrow. Air Canada told CBC it's still monitoring the situation. Air transit said, it plans to resume operations starting tomorrow. Bellin is also keeping an eye on her client's upcoming trips to Mexico. unsure if this unrest will lead them to cancel spring getaways. So far, Valen says, no one has canceled. I do manage to keep myself pretty calm.

Those who are already stuck in Mexico, like Wicilik, are keeping a close eye on the situation, waiting for more information and staying put for now. Jennifer Yun, CBC News, Toronto. Another country that's been a favorite destination for Canadians, Cuba is facing a much different crisis. And today, the federal government said it is, planning to help. There are severe fuel shortages and blackouts due to a U.S. oil embargo

and the loss of Venezuelan oil. Because of a lack of jet fuel on the island, Canadian airlines have cancelled flights, cutting off critical tourism revenue. Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand confirmed an aid packages in the works. We are preparing a plan to assist. We are not prepared at this point to provide any further details of an announcement. The NDP is called on the government to send aid to Cuba. Mexico has delivered shipments of food, cooking oil and hygiene products. The United States is threatening tariffs on any country that sells oil to Cuba. Coming right up, Donald Trump has called tariff, the most beautiful word in the English language.

And he's vowing to keep imposing tariffs even after a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court. Also, protests in Iran have not ended with students leading. the latest calls for reform and facing the latest crackdowns. Later, we'll have this story. What does the boom in AI data centers have to do with the price of your next gaming console or laptop? It all comes down to the chips. What most people have been surprised at is how this AI spending has really soaked up all the demand and created shortages.

I'm Nora Young in Toronto. Later on Your World Tonight, why just three companies are struggling to meet the global demand for memory chips. The global economy is preparing for another tariff hit. As of midnight, the latest U.S. levy is set to go into effect. It's in response to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling last week and adds a new layer of uncertainty for trading partners. Tom Perry explains. Foreign countries that have been ripping us off for years are ecstatic.

They're so happy. And they're dancing in the streets, but they won't be dancing for long. I can assure you. Donald Trump's threats began Friday in a rambling, angry rant, soon after the Supreme Court struck down his tariffs. The U.S. President followed that up with a stream of equally bitter and sometimes hard to follow social media posts, claiming he didn't need the U.S. Congress to levy more tariffs, that the court's decision had actually given him more power, and warning America's trading partners that any country trying to play games with the court's ruling would face higher tariffs or worse, all the while vowing to jack up the global tariff, he announced Friday

in response to the Supreme Court ruling from 10% to 15%. Our decision has not changed. The tariffs are unjust, and we stand by that. Thank you. On Parliament Hill today, reaction from government members like international trade minister, Menendor Sidu, was muted. Canada is mostly exempt from Trump's new global tariff, but opposition conservatives and their House leader Andrew Shear are continuing to attack the Prime Minister for not striking a deal to eliminate ongoing tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminum, lumber, and autos. He promised Canadians, he made it the signature central plank of his campaign that he knew how to handle the U.S. President and that he...

It was, of course, Trump, who ended trade talks with Canada after he took offense to a television ad paid for by the government of Ontario, criticizing his trade policies. I think it's the walls are closing in on President Trump. Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who launched that ad, says given last week Supreme Court ruling, going slow on a trade deal, may end up being the right approach. Yeah, I believe in not rushing this deal. You know, no deal is better than a bad deal.

Two examples. He said, you know, countries getting screwed. Japan's a good example. UK is another good example. they all rushed in to get a deal and all of a sudden he turned on him like a rattlesnake. Along with trying to reach a deal on steel, aluminum, lumber, and autos, the federal government is also looking ahead to talks this year on reviewing Kusma, the free trade agreement between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico.

How last week's ruling affects those talks remains to be seen for now. Trump's bluster and threats show no sign of restraint. Tom Perry, CBC News, Ottawa. Executives from tech giant open AI will be in Ottawa tomorrow. They were summoned by the Carney government to discuss safety protocols following the mass shooting in Tumblr Ridge, BC. Evan Solomon is the Minister for Artificial Intelligence. Canadians expect, first of all, that their children, particularly and are kept safe

and that these organizations act in a responsible manner. We have to hear from Open AI and their children. protocols. We have to hear their escalation thresholds, and we are going to get more details on that. But again, all options are on the table. Last week, OpenAI confirmed it had banned the chatbot account of the Tumblr Ridge shooter in June of 2025. The U.S. company said the teen described scenarios involving gun violence. However, employees chose not to tell Canadian police. In Iran, a new wave of protests erupted on university campuses. the latest internal challenge to the ruling government.

At the same time, pressure is building from outside, with a war of words between Tehran and the United States that could tip into actual war at any time. Senior international correspondent Margaret Evans has more. Protests that Iran's governing clerics will have hoped we're over, finding their way back to life on university campuses in Tehran, reportedly for the third day in a row. Video posted on social media shows many of the students dressed in black,

a sign of mourning for thousands killed by regime forces in early January. Clashes between pro and anti-government supporters broke out at some locations. But even on conservative campuses where women are heavily monitored, defiance was on clear display. At Al-Zahra University for Women, they chanted, We'll fight, we'll die, we'll reclaim Iran. The renewed protests add to the pressure Iran is already facing from the military build-up ordered by U.S. President Donald Trump. A second aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford,

the world's largest carrier, is en route to the region, spotted today near the island of Crete in Greece. Trump has said he's considering both a limited strike and a wider attack with regime change in mind, depending on the next round of talks on Iran's nuclear and weapons programs. Ismail Bakai, spokesman for Iran's foreign ministry, said there is no such thing as a limited strike. An act of aggression would be regarded as an act of,

aggression period. Any state would react as part of its inherent right of self-defense ferociously. So that's what we would do. Iran's deputy foreign minister, Kazim Haibabad, appealed to UN nations to prevent further escalation. The consequences of any renewed aggression wouldn't remain confined to one country. And responsibility would rest with those who initiate or support such actions. a not so thinly veiled reminder that war with Iran could have surprises for the whole region. A fear shared by the European Union's top foreign policy diplomat, Kayakalas. We don't need another war in this region, so we have stressed the diplomatic way out of this.

If there is one, no one's embracing it so far. Both Iran and the United States sticking to their red lines, at least publicly. They are expected to meet in Geneva on Thursday for a third round of negotiations. Margaret Evans, CBC News, London. The global outbreak of measles shows no signs of slowing down. New hotspots include the southern U.S., Mexico, and Manitoba.

Karen Pauls has that story. Digging for dinosaurs at a popular tourist attraction. We haven't seen any teeth so far, but this looked like this. Gulf al-Qoeterra hopes scientists and tourists will keep coming amidst a measles outbreak in Manitoba. He's the executive director of the Canadian Fossil Discovery Center. There is no way we can know if someone is not coming because of that reason,

but obviously it's a concern because this problem, the health problem. Canada lost its measles elimination status last November after sustaining an outbreak for more than 12 months. Cases are now concentrated in the... western provinces and Manitoba is a hotspot. Dr. Oleni Galanis is in charge of emerging in respiratory infections and pandemic preparedness at the Public Health Agency of Canada. In the last couple of weeks, we've had an increase of the number of people with measles and reported in Canada and most of those have come from Manitoba. This latest outbreak fueled by a super spreader event last month,

Ag Days in Brandon, Canada's largest indoor farm show. And a Winnipeg Jets game on February 4th. Dr. Brent Rusen is Manitoba's chief public health officer. We have to be aware that the risk of transmission is quite high in these areas. Attending these large events, if you're unvaccinated, is putting you at increased risk of being exposed to two measles. This whole pandemic isn't real. People in these rural parts of Manitoba protest.

tested public health mandates during the pandemic and had among the lowest COVID-19 vaccination rates in the country. Andrew Fraser is Winkler's deputy mayor. I'm not sure if a lot of people in Winkler are concerned about other people stereotyping them. They believe what they believe and they live how they want to live. Still, he hopes the tension now doesn't erupt like it did during the pandemic. There may be some with pushback. Hopefully they stay home when they're sick. The vaccinations is a whole separate thing.

that's people's personal choices. Ask folks on the street and they don't seem too concerned. I think we're okay there actually, the first time I'm hearing about it. I think people are making a little bigger deal of it than it actually is. You get it, you get better, you get the antibiotics and you're good to go. But that's not entirely accurate. Your measles symptoms could be limited to a rash and fever, but experts say it can also cause pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling, even death. And they say it's preventable. Two doses of the vaccine. are 99% effective. Karen Paul's, CBC News, Winnipeg. Eat right and exercise. We know we should. We also know it can be hard.

What if a doctor could give you a prescription for broccoli or blueberries? The idea is called food prescribing. And as Kayla Hounsel reports, Canadian researchers are studying the potential health impact of prescribing fresh food. Every day Jim Grove makes a blueberry smoothie. The 67-year-old says he loves blueberries, and it's a good thing. He's now required to eat a cup every day for a year. I'm up to 35 pounds now, I think, of blueberries. That's what I've eaten since the stairs.

Big breath in. Grove is a participant in a new study at Dalhousie University in Halifax. He's undergone a number of physical tests, including flexibility, strength. And big squeeze. And cardio endurance. Keep going. Almost done. Researchers are also testing his cognitive capacity.

So now I'm going to ask you to start at 70 and take six away. And at the end of all of that, the research coordinator hands him a large box. Here are your blueberries for the next two weeks, Jim. Researchers are examining whether providing personalized workouts three times a week and blueberries and 30 grams of protein every day will improve frailty and heart health, in older people. We wanted to keep them stronger for longer. Dietitian Leah Cahill is the principal investigator. She hopes providing the food and custom monitored workouts will decrease the mental load of having to figure it out alone.

Does that increase the chances of them consuming and those foods and doing the workouts? And does that help to get them stronger? If the study here at Delhousie shows that eating blueberries every day does help, researchers hope that will bolster the argument to have doctors prescribe them. Yes, we're talking about actually writing prescriptions for berries. It's part of a larger trend known as food prescribing, providing access to subsidized or free healthy foods. Not a lot of people have heard about it. Matthew Little is a professor at the University of Victoria who has studied food prescribing. He says clinicians in Ontario and Alberta are already prescribing fresh food, but only in small pockets. Early results show it does decrease food

insecurity, but he cautions people might still fall through the cracks. And so would this actually exacerbate some of the health inequities that exist in the Canadian context if we're basically only providing these types of food prescription services to people who have access to primary care providers?

He also says more research is needed to determine the cost efficiency and long-term effectiveness. Grove has diabetes and arthritis. I already noticed to change myself and I just think if I improve, and it's only going to help me down the line.

As he sits down to drink his daily smoothie, he says if food is medicine, it seems to be working for him. Kayla Hounsel, CBC News, Halifax. Global tech giants are spending billions building AI data centers, and those demands are luring memory chip manufacturers away from their core business. As Norie Young explains, that could cause a chip shortage and spike the price of every.

everyday consumer electronics. In the last few months, the memory market has just gone totally wild. Nirov Patel is the founder of Framework, a niche U.S. company that makes repairable, upgradable computers. And even for us, as a manufacturer, being able to source memory from suppliers has obviously become both much more challenging and much more expensive. Because of that global memory chip shortage, they've started selling memory at their purchase cost.

Rather than trying to mark up and capture margin here, we're really just making sure that consumers can get a working computer at all. AI data centers need something called high bandwidth memory chips. And the memory chip industry is dominated by just three major players. You have to have a strong heart to be in these business. Willie Shee is a management professor at the Harvard Business School and an expert in chip supply chains. He says as the demand for those AI chips skyrockets...

The major memory chip manufacturers have reallocated their manufacturing capacity from the traditional memory that they use to support personal computers, notebook computers, all kinds of other devices that use memory. Including game consoles. And that has manufacturers nervously biding their time, according to Cleveland-based video game reporter Jeffrey Grubb. Now, a big reason they're able to wait is these companies purchase their RAM modules in bulk way ahead of time. There's certainly formulating multiple strategies right now.

and a lot of those strategies will involve price increases. That same logic applies to companies that make laptops or phones, Harvard's Willie Shee. We've seen even companies like Apple, who has contracted for a lot of their memory needs in advance, even them saying on their earnings call that, you know, they're going to be exposed to higher prices. Memory chip giant SK Heinex has reportedly already sold out of its memory chips for 2026. So if those three memory chip companies are facing increased demand and increased price, profits, why don't they just make more memory chips? To build a new memory factory, it don't take you two years to build it and bring it on stream.

I think what most people have been surprised at is how this AI spending has really soaked up all the demand and created shortages. Chipmakers are boosting capacity. US-based Micron, for example, is reportedly building two new chip factories, but they won't be operational until late 2028. And what are the ongoing demand for the? those AI-specific chips? That depends on whether it's an AI building boom or a bubble. Norie Young, CBC News, Toronto. Finally, the Winter Olympics are over, but the boys of summer are just getting started. Some with the

Olympics still on their mind. That's Blue Jay's outfielder, George Springer, a big hockey fan walking around in his cleats at the team's field in Florida, moments after the USA won gold over Canada in men's hockey. He was sporting a USA hockey jersey. He even kept it on for batting practice. Jay's fans can decide whether to cheer or boo when he bats in Canada next month. FYI, there were other members of the team, including Jay's manager John Schneider, also American, rooting for Canada. Yes, spring training is underway. Even the stadiums have some kinks to work out. A sewage pipe broke in New York's Steinbrenner Field, filling the Yankees dugout with smelly sludge. Jay's fans can

insert their own jokes here. And at San Francisco's facility, someone started smoking inside a bathroom, which caused this. A number of fans and players headed for the exits, but the umpire said, play ball, and ordered them back. It was all part of the loosey-goosey nature of spring training where players who've been mostly idle for months try to work out the rust,

and some are very rusty, even forgetting the rules. Like, you need to keep standing on the base, once you reach it? And now the runner at third leaves the base, and he's going to be tagged out. It's a triple play to end the inning. Boneheaded, rookie mistake there. Unbelievable. On a base hit to right.

What an idiot. Thanks to MLB.com for that audio. Luckily for Chicago's match, Shaw, these games don't really matter. And if the Olympics wet your appetite for international rivalries, the World Baseball Classic gets underway March 4th, Canada opens up against Colombia a couple of days later. You'll have to qualify for the playoffs for a shot at the team from the U.S. Thank you for joining us on your world tonight for Monday, February 23rd.

I'm Susan Bonner. Talk to you again. For more CBC podcasts, go to cbc.ca.ca slash podcasts.