Canada 2015-25 and Beyond: New Hope or Phantom Menace?

[Isgrimnur]

Canada is reinforcing the border with new choppers

[hepcat]

I honestly think Trump saw what a goddamn mess he was about to create and was anxious to accept ANY offer from folks so he could avoid it all.

What the heck are you smoking? I promise you he thinks he won and will have new demands in 30 days.

I think he WANTS everyone to believe he's always winning. That much is for sure.

[Max Peck]

I hope that Canadians, in addition to being outraged by Trump's trade war and ongoing sovereignty threats, are paying attention to what MAGA is doing to America and give some real thought about whether they want a right-wing populist like Poilievre taking control of the government here.

[Rumpy]

Mark Critch on 22 Minutes has been on fire with his Trump skits as of late.

[Unagi]

I hope that Canadians, in addition to being outraged by Trump's trade war and ongoing sovereignty threats, are paying attention to what MAGA is doing to America and give some real thought about whether they want a right-wing populist like Poilievre taking control of the government here.

I would like to caution you here, that watching Trump 'in action', for way too many people, isn't the turn-off you would hope it is.

As we know, 'outrage' is over measured, in the shadows lies quiet supporters and apologists... and let's be frank, Canada is quite famous for 'sorry'.

It's the bullies of your country that have found justification from all of this and I honestly don't see Canada pushing back on its bullies better than we did. Sadly. I hope I'm flat-out wrong.\

To the OP, clearly "Phantom Menace"

[IceBear]

I hope that Canadians, in addition to being outraged by Trump's trade war and ongoing sovereignty threats, are paying attention to what MAGA is doing to America and give some real thought about whether they want a right-wing populist like Poilievre taking control of the government here.

I would like to caution you here, that watching Trump 'in action', for way too many people, isn't the turn-off you would hope it is.

As we know, 'outrage' is over measured, in the shadows lies quiet supporters and apologists... and let's be frank, Canada is quite famous for 'sorry'.

It's the bullies of your country that have found justification from all of this and I honestly don't see Canada pushing back on its bullies better than we did. Sadly. I hope I'm flat-out wrong.\

To the OP, clearly "Phantom Menace"

I, unfortunately, agree with you. The only good thing is that with the imminent election coming, a lot of the focus has been distracted away from Poilievre by the tariff war, which *might* hurt him in the election. But to be honest, as pointed out previously, when the ruling party has been in power for a couple of terms, we tend to vote them out and not nearly enough people will vote NDP so it will be the PCs and Poilievre in power...the best we can hope for is that it's a minority government that will keep him from being able to enact some of the more outlandish shit

[Max Peck]

I hope that Canadians, in addition to being outraged by Trump's trade war and ongoing sovereignty threats, are paying attention to what MAGA is doing to America and give some real thought about whether they want a right-wing populist like Poilievre taking control of the government here.

I would like to caution you here, that watching Trump 'in action', for way too many people, isn't the turn-off you would hope it is.

As we know, 'outrage' is over measured, in the shadows lies quiet supporters and apologists... and let's be frank, Canada is quite famous for 'sorry'.

It's the bullies of your country that have found justification from all of this and I honestly don't see Canada pushing back on its bullies better than we did. Sadly. I hope I'm flat-out wrong.\

To the OP, clearly "Phantom Menace"

Generally only a little over a third of Canadians normally support the current incarnation of the federal Conservatives. Their path to power is always that the two thirds of voters that don't support them are splitting their votes between multiple parties in the center/left of the spectrum (Liberal, NDP, Green mostly). Divide and conquer, courtesy of first past the post, with small pluralities in a lot of ridings. My hope is that the majority that doesn't support them are awake and see what is happening in the world. In my ideal world the Liberals and NDP would have found a way to work together more closely (either a formal merger or by strategic campaigning where they pick and choose which of them will run a candidate in individual ridings based on who has the strongest local support), but there probably isn't a hope in hell that they can put their personal ambitions aside and do what's best for the country. That still leaves the opportunity for individuals to vote strategically. We'll see how it plays out.

In the end, we're all fucked as long the American people and their "leaders" just meekly go along with whatever insane shit Trump and his goons put in motion.

[Unagi]

My hope is that the majority that doesn't support them are awake and see what is happening in the world.

Please do me a favor the next time you see that hope. Tell them I say hello, and it was fun having them visit me last year. They left so fast, I didn't have a chance to say goodbye.

[hepcat]

Yeah, we also thought the fringe elements on the right were just that...fringe. Until we woke up one day and they weren't.

[Max Peck]

My hope is that the majority that doesn't support them are awake and see what is happening in the world.

Please do me a favor the next time you see that hope. Tell them I say hello, and it was fun having them visit me last year. They left so fast, I didn't have a chance to say goodbye.

It is what it is. I'll give up my last hope for the country when I'm being frog-marched into a detention camp.

[LordMortis]

Generally only a little over a third of Canadians normally support the current incarnation of the federal Conservatives.

That sound familiar. Hopefully your system fares better.

[Max Peck]

Yeah, we also thought the fringe elements on the right were just that...fringe. Until we woke up one day and they weren't.

Well, yeah, I just believe, still, that it's the American right that will be the end of us rather than the Canadian right. But like I said, we'll see in a few weeks or months how it plays out here. With a new Liberal leader nullifying the anti-Trudeau propaganda, it's possible that the current wave of anti-American sentiment will alter the political trajectory. It'd be some pretty irony if Trump's insanity derailed Poilievre's ascent to power.

For now, my lack of utter despair is almost entirely unshakable.

Fun fact: Last I heard, Leon still holds Canadian citizenship. While he can never be the actual PotUS (under current law, but times are a-changing), he absolutely could take a run at becoming the leader of political party here and enthrone himself as Prime Minister. Maybe even King.

[GreenGoo]

Yeah, we also thought the fringe elements on the right were just that...fringe. Until we woke up one day and they weren't.

Yeah, I'm no longer counting on the reasonableness of my fellow man to keep things sane. I all but guaranteed there was no way Drumpf could win in 2016, because I was aware of drumpf, who he was and how he operates. I was gobsmacked at the result. I was only mildly surprised in 2024, even though his terribleness was even more evident by then.

I am now incredibly pessimistic about politics in general.

[Max Peck]

Generally only a little over a third of Canadians normally support the current incarnation of the federal Conservatives.

That sound familiar. Hopefully your system fares better.

Traditionally, it fares worse (from a non-right-wing perspective) because we have multiple viable parties in the center/left and only one (increasingly extreme) party on the right. Except for Quebec, which has a nationalist party that is mostly orthogonal to the usual left-right orientation.

The one great failure that I lay at Trudeau's feet is that he didn't follow through on the 2015 promise of electoral reform. I don't know the details as to why it fell through, but I suspect that they couldn't reach a compromise with the NDP on an alternative system to first past the post. IIRC, the Liberals wanted a single-transferable-vote system while the NDP wanted proportional representation. And the Conservatives naturally wanted to stick with first past the post because it provides them with systemic advantages, so I guess they came out the winners.

[hepcat]

For now, my lack of utter despair is almost entirely unshakable.

I was you before 2016.

...well, with the addition of a Bea Arthur fetish.

[Max Peck]

I was a Rue McClanahan boy myself.

[Unagi]

My hope is that the majority that doesn't support them are awake and see what is happening in the world.

Please do me a favor the next time you see that hope. Tell them I say hello, and it was fun having them visit me last year. They left so fast, I didn't have a chance to say goodbye.

It is what it is. I'll give up my last hope for the country when I'm being frog-marched into a detention camp.

Heh, sure - yes. Same here. But, that is not the same hope that you spoke of before. I'm only saying I harbored that same hope a few months ago, and it was gone before I knew it.

[Rumpy]

We still have our democracy intact, so that's a start.

Traditionally, it fares worse (from a non-right-wing perspective) because we have multiple viable parties in the center/left and only one (increasingly extreme) party on the right.

You forgot to mention that before Trump, even our far right were fairly tame, compared to what it's become now. But that started to change around Covid and was seen in full display via the trucker encampment in Ottawa. But before that, I wouldn't have said our far-right was that closely aligned with that of the Republicans.

[Max Peck]

We still have our democracy intact, so that's a start.

Traditionally, it fares worse (from a non-right-wing perspective) because we have multiple viable parties in the center/left and only one (increasingly extreme) party on the right.

You forgot to mention that before Trump, even our far right were fairly tame, compared to what it's become now. But that started to change around Covid and was seen in full display via the trucker encampment in Ottawa. But before that, I wouldn't have said our far-right was that closely aligned with that of the Republicans.

Harper was boring and generally polite, but he was leaning hard into islamophobia at the end. The veer toward the nether regions of the right goes all the way back to Preston Manning and his Reform party, and there's a direct line from Manning to Harper to Poilievre.

[Rumpy]

Hmm, good point. I'd never seen it that way before. And Manning's party acronym was originally going to be literally crap... lol Looking back on that now, it doesn't seem too far off the mark.

[Rumpy]

So, with an Ontario Provincial election happening later this month, one thing that I've been noticing about the local PC candidates is that they seem to be getting told to skip interviews with the media. That's a dicey strategy, as how are people going to get to know you or what they stand for? They expect people to vote for them, yet won't put themselves out there and are limiting themselves going door to door. Which frankly doesn't speak well for how they could support the communities and allowing local citizens to contact them when they have issues. In the end, it makes them look so out of touch with the populace and it's another reason not to vote Conservative.

[Max Peck]

The provincial Conservatives are a populist party. My read on this strategy is that Ford will do the talking and they expect people to vote for The Leader rather than the individual candidates. It'll probably work, given that the Liberals and NDP seem to be nonentities at the moment. Anywhere I look all I see is Ford.

[IceBear]

Those PC ads where they are saying that Trudeau stepped back when needed and Doug stepped up really piss me off. Where's the Team Canada unified front now?

[Max Peck]

Man, now that the provincial election has been called, it sure would be unfortunate if something happened to remind voters about the Greenbelt scandal...

Lawsuit alleges former Ford staffers promised to use 'backchannel contacts' to get land rezoned

An Ontario property developer alleges two former Ford government staffers — including one at the centre of the Greenbelt scandal — promised to use their influence at Queen's Park to get several plots of land rezoned.

In exchange for access to their "backchannel contacts and political connections," the developer would pay the pair through a GTA construction management firm to "make their involvement less transparent," a statement of claim filed in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in December alleges.

Both men still worked for Ontario's Progressive Conservative government when the alleged agreement was made in the summer of 2023.

If I understand it correctly, dude thought he was bribing Ford government insiders to get his properties rezoned, but they took his money without delivering and now he's suing them.

[Alefroth]

I just got my Canadian citizenship certificate today!

Where do I sign up for the socialism?

[Rumpy]

The provincial Conservatives are a populist party. My read on this strategy is that Ford will do the talking and they expect people to vote for The Leader rather than the individual candidates. It'll probably work, given that the Liberals and NDP seem to be nonentities at the moment. Anywhere I look all I see is Ford.

I dunno. I feel like there's a chance the strategy could backfire. To me, they are currently perceived as distant and on the sidelines via this strategy, at least locally where they've never been popular. The fact that they're not making their case doesn't help them any in that respect.

[GreenGoo]

I just got my Canadian citizenship certificate today!

Where do I sign up for the socialism?

That's the beauty of socialism. The government has already done that for you!

[Rumpy]

I just got my Canadian citizenship certificate today!

Where do I sign up for the socialism?

Congrats! Where you plan on moving to?

[Alefroth]

I just got my Canadian citizenship certificate today!

Where do I sign up for the socialism?

Congrats! Where you plan on moving to?

No solid plans yet, but Victoria or Nanaimo are on the list. The milder the climate the better.

[Alefroth]

I just got my Canadian citizenship certificate today!

Where do I sign up for the socialism?

That's the beauty of socialism. The government has already done that for you!

[IceBear]

I just got my Canadian citizenship certificate today!

Where do I sign up for the socialism?

Congrats! Where you plan on moving to?

No solid plans yet, but Victoria or Nanaimo are on the list. The milder the climate the better.

Hmmm, Nanaimo bars

[Rumpy]

I just got my Canadian citizenship certificate today!

Where do I sign up for the socialism?

Congrats! Where you plan on moving to?

No solid plans yet, but Victoria or Nanaimo are on the list. The milder the climate the better.

Yeah, and I see that by your location, it wouldn't be all that far a move.

[LawBeefaroni]

Another problematic American import:

Oscar-winning songwriter and Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductee Buffy Sainte-Marie, known for the anti-war song “Universal Soldier” and stolen-land lament “Now That the Buffalo’s Gone,” has had her prestigious Order of Canada appointment terminated.

Sainte-Marie has frequently said she does not know where she was born and does not have her birth certificate, but was adopted by the Santamaria’s in America. In her early 20s, she was formally adopted into the Piapot family of the Piapot First Nation.

However, the investigation by Fifth Estate (a “60 Minutes”-style news program) unearthed information that alleges Sainte-Marie is Italian-American and that she threatened family members to hide that information when she launched her music career in the 1960s. Family members were interviewed as part of the CBC investigation.

[Isgrimnur]

[Max Peck]

I had forgotten all about that. The Fifth Estate story ran about a year ago:

[LawBeefaroni]

I had forgotten all about that. The Fifth Estate story ran about a year ago:

Great watch, thanks for posting.


(Though the way the presenter says "Massachusetts" makes me wince).

[Rumpy]

Another problematic American import:

Oscar-winning songwriter and Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductee Buffy Sainte-Marie, known for the anti-war song “Universal Soldier” and stolen-land lament “Now That the Buffalo’s Gone,” has had her prestigious Order of Canada appointment terminated.

Sainte-Marie has frequently said she does not know where she was born and does not have her birth certificate, but was adopted by the Santamaria’s in America. In her early 20s, she was formally adopted into the Piapot family of the Piapot First Nation.

However, the investigation by Fifth Estate (a “60 Minutes”-style news program) unearthed information that alleges Sainte-Marie is Italian-American and that she threatened family members to hide that information when she launched her music career in the 1960s. Family members were interviewed as part of the CBC investigation.

Yeah, that was big news last year when that surfaced.

I have mixed feelings on it. She's an amazing performer (saw her in concert a few years ago, and she was easily one of my fav concert experiences) that did a lot to promote indigenous culture in general through song, at a time when a lot of it was repressed. Some of her songs were blacklisted by the U.S government for having strong opinions and daring to speak out about certain issues. So, she paved the way for a lot of indigenous artists in Canada, and I don't think the industry would be quite the same for them without the success that she had. I'm not indigenous myself, so I can't exactly speak to the issues, but I've seen many say they've felt hurt by the reveal, kind of like a betrayal. And I can see that. But I also feel she did much good through her career to advance indigenous knowledge in general both as a singer and activist, so I don't feel it's all lost even though her identity was questioned.

[Max Peck]

A friend tipped this to me: Made In Canada

Made in CA was founded in 2018 out of frustration with the tariff battles with the U.S. and the unfair practices of other trade partners. As Canadians, we wanted to take action. That’s why we started compiling a list of products and services made in Canada—so consumers could feel confident that their dollars were making the greatest possible impact on the Canadian economy.

This initiative is entirely grassroots and currently run by just one person. There’s no large team or funding behind it. It’s a passion project that I work on in my spare time, driven by a deep commitment to helping Canadians support local businesses and make informed decisions. So, I appreciate your patience and kindness with any feedback!

We also recognize that how “Canadian” a product is can vary—whether it’s based on ownership, sourcing of raw materials, or where it’s manufactured. Our goal is to present as much information as we can find and let you decide. That’s why submissions from Canadians across the country are so important. Whether it’s a local business in a small town that sells online, or a national brand that produces in Canada, your contributions help us highlight products and services from every corner of Canada. It’s through this collective effort that we can truly represent and celebrate the diversity of Canadian businesses.

We encourage everyone to learn about the companies they support so they can make choices that align with their values. Together, we can strengthen local communities and ensure Canadian businesses thrive.

[IceBear]

So Trump said tonight that Canada isn't viable as a country and repeated his 51st state annexation threat. Thus dude needs to stop.

I was also saying people needed to shutup and let think Trump he won on the border because now we have this

In his interview with Fox News on Sunday, Trump was also asked about Canada’s border security plan.

Last week, Canada got reprieve for at least 30 days from Trump’s threat to impose a 25 per cent tariff on all Canadian imports except energy products, which would be subject to a 10 per cent tariff, after making new commitments to secure the shared border.

In addition to implementing the $1.3 billion border plan – which includes deploying additional personnel, drones, surveillance equipment and helicopters – Canada will appoint a “fentanyl czar” and list cartels as terrorists.

Asked by Baier whether the border plan is sufficient, Trump said, “No, it’s not good enough,” adding that “it’s not sustainable.”

In the last year of tracking, U.S. border agents seized less than 20 kilograms of fentanyl at the Canada-U.S. border compared to 9,500 kilograms seized at the border with Mexico.

[Rumpy]

A friend tipped this to me: Made In Canada

Thanks for that, Max. I've noticed that it's missing quite a few things though. For example, under beer, they have one of our local breweries listed, but it's actually the newest one as they're missing the one that has been in business the longest. Not sure why they would have one, but not the other.