" In the final hours before Dec. 25, Canadian roads were blocked, overpasses were barricaded and malls were swarmed by screaming crowds as anti-Israel demonstrators attempted to make good on a promise to cancel Christmas."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/cancel-christmas-protests-canada
For five straight quarters, Canada’s GDP per capita has fallen. This metric is used to measure living standards.
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/canada-immigration-per-capita-gdp
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada-food-bank-international-students
Canada's international student visa is a complete racket. Is anyone checking credentials? Are the students even attending legitimate schools - or working all day? Do they have the financial supports REQUIRED as per the student visa program? Clearly not. And somehow 900,000 foreign students are in Canada where the total amount of spots for post secondary students - either Canadian or foreign - doesn't even add up to anywhere near 900,000.
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/foreign-student-crackdown-canada
You don't say, "colleges catering to foreigners have popped up in strip malls and temporary buildings, most notably in the Toronto suburb of Brampton.". The NDPLiberal government eliminated the maximum 20 hours part time work limit for students and now college aged entrants to Canada are able to enter as a "student visa" (does that mean a real college/university or a bogus one?) and work 40 hours at Uber deliveries, 60 hours at a Fiat Chrysler auto factory line, etc. Meaning, there's barely any hours left in a day to study or in other words, where's the "student" in "student visa"? Canada's immigration system needs a serious review, inquiry, study and overhaul.
And why are 1 in 6 entrants to Canada from India? That is not very diverse.
Ha! "Prime Minister Jagmeet Singh". At least someone has figured out the "center" Liberal Party has been hijacked and the steering wheel turned so aggressively to a hairpin left. The center of Canadian politics is so wide open any political party could choose to drive their own bus through it. (Facebook does not allow link to article)
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/jesse-kline-trudeau-could-easily-cut-grocery-prices-on-his-own-heres-how
https://www.barrietoday.com/local-news/column-some-of-aviations-best-minds-designed-built-arrow-7557902
https://financialpost.com/news/economy/missing-million-not-reason-strained-housing-infrastructure
https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/international-student-cap-immigration-system-integrity-1.6948733
This just does not add up. It is difficult to believe in a country the size of Canada there are even 900,000 total spots open for all students in Canada's universities, colleges and post secondary institutions (undergraduate, graduate and/or doctorate). Nevermind a subset of 900,000 foreign students. Even assuming that each program is average three to four years, that would imply ~250,000 to 300,000 foreign students a year graduating, yet in a "tight labour market" Canada has an unemployment level 57% higher than the US (3.5% in US, 5.5% in Canada)!!! And chronically a "skills shortage" (tech, agricultural workers, trades/construction...). It begs the questions: i) are foreign students not sticking around after graduation, as such, Canada is the larget world educator on a per capita basis? ii) are foreign students not working at all afterward? iii) what kind of "schools" are foreign students registering with and ARE THE SCHOOLS ALL LEGITIMATE???
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/the-often-ignored-truth
https://globalnews.ca/news/9891112/quebec-roxham-road-closure-asylum-seekers-arriving-by-air/
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/record-international-students-straining-housing-supply
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/justin-trudeau-government-cabinet-shuffle
The closest to being fired for incompetence Mendicino will ever get under a NDPLiberal government as well as Emergency Act deception for the conniving Lametti. Too bad the previously arrested,environmental terrorist Guilbault was not shuffled out. Nor the invisible, yet nonsensical when they do make an appearance, Jean Yves DuClos and Marie Claude Bibeau.
"...Former justice minister David Lametti, former Treasury Board president Mona Fortier and former public safety minister Marco Mendicino were removed from cabinet but had not indicated they were planning to step down..."
https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/canadas-immigration-creates-mirage-economic-prosperity-economists-2023-07-26/
Well that wss quick, but we will see how long it takes for the NDPLiberals to transfer funds (currently on summer break, trying to bury an election interference story and what Mendicino knew and when regards to prisoner transfer)
"...Officials have said that the number of asylum seekers in Toronto’s shelter system grew by 500 per cent in 20 months and the city has had to turn them away from at-capacity shelters toward federal programs. Mayor Olivia Chow has asked for Ottawa to cover the $157 million Toronto is spending for existing refugee shelter spaces, and support with additional housing, shelter space and personnel. Sean Fraser, the minister of immigration, refugees and citizenship announced the new funding today, saying it will ensure Toronto and other cities can keep a roof over the heads of people fleeing violence, war and persecution..."
https://nationalpost.com/news/federal-government-announces-212m-funding-boost-for-housing-asylum-seekers
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/chris-selley-canadians-dont-need-tolerance-lectures
Dropping education requirements, reducing points thresholds on various entry programs to Canada, citizenship through a " click" rather than showing up in person....and somehow Canada's chronic "skills shortage" and "aging population" issues continue...
"...But immigration pathways for Hong Kong residents that have allowed thousands to settle permanently in Canada excluded Wong because it has been more than five years since he graduated.
That will change from August 15, after Ottawa announced on Tuesday it would remove all educational requirements for people with at least a year of work experience in Canada..."
https://globalnews.ca/news/9834593/canada-lifts-education-requirements-hong-kong-immigrants/
500,00 isn't the true number
"...Canada’s immigration targets soared to 500,000 a year, not including the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, which totalled over 200,000 new approvals in 2022, or international student visas, which are limitless and counted just over 550,000 new students last year. That’s well over a million new people entering Canada per year..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/housing-and-health-crises-eroding-canadas-pro-immigration-consensus
"... Jagmeet Singh, who has publicly indulged in a conspiracy theory proposing an Indian intelligence-agency plot behind the Air India bombing, has asked Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino to look into the case in light of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s national security adviser’s identification of India as a source of foreign interference in Canada..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/killers-poster-points-to-canadas-failure-to-crack-down-on-khalistani-extremism
What the....?!?!
“We were not celebrating her assassination,” Brar said in an interview that took place before Nijjar’s death. “Sikhs were celebrating the martyrdom of the two people that assassinated her.”
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/joly-concerned-for-safety-of-indias-diplomats-calls-protest-poster-unacceptable
https://financialpost.com/news/economy/immigration-canada-high-tech-workers
Another example of decades demonstrating how broken our immigration system and how far behind economic conditions and demographics the Ministry of Immigration, Refugeess and Citizenship is in determining immigration policy (if there is one). Always reacting, never planning. Result: i) chronic "aging population" that CPP will find difficult to fund pensions and retirements, ii) chronic "skills shortage" even though Canada is one of the most educated countries in world, iii) not to mention housing, health care, infrastructure impacts. Are programs like these part of the 500,000 PRs per year, or in addition? Are there similar and more targeted programs coming? Resulting in how many?
"...On Tuesday, CSIS director David Vigneault told the committee his agency’s report on the Chong affair was sent directly to Blair’s office, apparently contradicting Blair’s claim that CSIS never brought it to his attention. Johnston, in his report, offered the excuse that Blair didn’t see damning reports written for him specifically because he and his chief of staff “do not have access to the Top Secret Network email on which it was sent.”
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/terry-glavin-national-security-in-shambles-under-justin-trudeau
"...Canadians are going to be left with a largely Trudeau-skewed court which is sure to last well beyond Trudeau’s leadership...."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/jamie-sarkonak-russell-brown-quits-condemning-canada-to-trudeaus-supreme-court
https://spencerfernando.com/2023/06/06/the-liberal-carbon-tax-wont-stop-wildfires-but-it-will-make-you-poorer/
A cohort of environmental groups have asked the Competition Bureau to reject Royal Bank of Canada’s proposed takeover of HSBC Canada, arguing the sale would limit green choices in the banking sector and expose Canada’s economy to more climate risks.
https://www.bnn.ca/1.1926516.1685462993
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-engineer-regulations-1.6851909
https://financialpost.com/real-estate/nova-scotia-most-real-estate-investors-out-of-province
https://financialpost.com/real-estate/nova-scotia-most-real-estate-investors-out-of-province
"...It was less than eight years ago when the world learned that, instead of working on making their vehicles less polluting, the very brightest minds in German engineering were conspiring to commit a massive global fraud.
"...Lazy reporters simply parrot corporate press releases that “giga” — meaning billion, as in “gigabyte” — refers to the size of the factory. No. It refers to the units in which taxpayer cash is shovelled into the accounts of the world’s largest companies. Climate change is, for the rich, a giga business..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/canadas-galling-bribe-to-climate-supervillain-volkswagen
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/bland-passport-redesign-a-symptom-of-a-culture-in-decline
"...Canada’s new passport design, which was unveiled on May 10, replaces images of a number of historic symbols and moments — the Terry Fox statue, Vimy Ridge memorial and Niagara Falls, for example — with a set of graphics meant to evoke “Canada’s diverse people, landscapes and wildlife across the four seasons.” Unfortunately, the visuals are incredibly generic and uninspiring.
...when considered alongside other recent political developments related to Canada’s essential national identity and culture — including Bill C-11’s effort to promote online Canadian content, the coronation and the new Canadian Royal Crown — the new passport evokes a damning picture of where we are as a society..."
Canada's immigration system is broken and has been for decades. When drawing comparisons to +14,000 "Canadians" evacuated from Lebanon...
"...One person with knowledge of the situation said that as those people have been processed, it has emerged that as many as half of the 175 Canadian citizens and permanent residents are refugees who were granted status in Canada and then returned to Sudan, with some continuing to claim welfare and child benefits. A small number are refugees in the process of becoming Canadians, which suggests they shouldn’t have been in Sudan in the first place.
“There has been a loss of integrity in the Canadian immigration process,” said the source, who has been granted anonymity because they are not authorized to speak publicly. “Most of these people have been living in Sudan for years. Sometimes they never really lived in Canada and don’t speak English or French.”
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/sudan-rescue-canadians-of-convenience
"..When it comes to climate, the federal Liberals spend too much time thinking up new taxes and too little time actually working toward change. They’re all too happy to reach into Canadians’ pockets in the name of reducing carbon emissions, but strangely hostile to projects that could genuinelzy transform the way we create and consume energy.
The logic is simple: if we want to cut carbon emissions, we need viable alternatives. Yet Canada is about to lose a promising tidal power venture — one that’s already received millions in government grants in addition to investing $30 million of its own funds — because the feds either can’t or won’t get their act together issuing permits..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/in-trudeaus-canada-even-green-energy-projects-cant-get-permits
"...Incredibly, neither the gatekeeper-slaying federal Tories (who at least used to position themselves as against corporate welfare while in opposition before abandoning any such pretense once in office) nor the federal NDP (whose former leader David Lewis coined the term “corporate welfare bums”) bothered to raise the Volkswagen deal in Question Period on Thursday after the scale of largesse had been leaked to the media. If even politicians like Pierre Poilievre and Jagmeet Singh — who in their respective ways never stop telling us how they’re fighting for the little guy — can’t muster the outrage to speak out against such a massive raid of the public treasury, who will?.."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/aaron-wudrick-13b-for-volkswagen-shows-trudeau-has-no-confidence-in-canadian-innovation
Scotiabank Says Federal Strike Is Poised to Hit Canada’s Growth https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-04-19/scotiabank-says-federal-strike-is-poised-to-hit-canada-s-growth
Martine Richard, who has worked in the commissioner’s office as a lawyer since 2013, took over the top job last month for a six-month stint.
Richard is the sister-in-law of Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc, who was found to have breached conflict-of-interest rules in 2018 for approving a lucrative fishing licence for a family member while he was fisheries minister.
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/liberal-cabinet-ministers-sister-in-law-resigns-as-federal-interim-ethics-commissioner
Trudeau again "not knowing"
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/trudeau-admits-dozens-visits-jamaican-villa
"Trudeau also confirmed on Wednesday that he was not aware of the reportedly large donation the Green family made to the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation in 2021, a scholarship named after Peter Green’s late wife, Mary-Jean Mitchell Green, who died of breast cancer in the 1990s.
“As I have said, I have had no engagement direct or indirect with the Trudeau foundation in close to 10 years. So that includes not knowing about what donations they are taking, what decisions they’re making or what my brother is doing on the foundation,” he said."
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/ethics-commissioner-resignation-halts-investigations
"...Though it was left unsaid, the clear subtext is that schools have become obsessed with critical race theory, radical gender ideology and climate alarmism, and have dropped the ball when it comes to educating our children. Yet it’s amazing how this managed to go over the heads of so many..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/educators-shocked-doug-ford-wants-students-to-learn-to-read-and-do-math
https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/environment-demonstrator-detained-after-pink-paint-splashed-on-pmo-office-doors
Reduced mandatory sentences for serious crimes based on appeasing certain racial groups; unmatched supports in a world recognizing and encouraging prolific mental health issues; loss of border control; record amounts of legal and illegal entrants to Canada with no justification of targets; significantly reducing qualifying scores for permanent residents (skills, ofgicial languages capabilities, assets, qualifying time spent in Canada, employment status, legal status from background checks) to meet these most aggressive immigration targets at all costs; government induced inflationary policies, and you have...
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/canadas-violent-crime-wave
"...No one was hurt in the fracas, but there were more displays of anger in the days that followed. Strikers snarled traffic in downtown Ottawa and Hull, closed the Portage Bridge for 90 minutes and disrupted transit services by picketing Transitway stations.
Back to work legislation was passed late on Oct. 1, 1991, effectively ending the strike and suspending the collective bargaining process. The Treasury Board held firm on its proposal to freeze public servants’ wages in 1991 and kept the 1992 increase to three per cent.
Many striking workers returned on Oct. 3 having gained little and feeling bitter towards both the Public Service Alliance of Canada and the government. The workers lost three weeks’ wages, not a small thing for the clerks and secretaries who earned $24,000 a year at the time. The strike cost the union about $16 million, which then had to borrow money from other unions and banks. Union members got a $60-a-year dues increase to rebuild PSAC’s strike fund. Hundreds of PSAC members who crossed picket lines were suspended by their union...."
https://ottawacitizen.com/feature/what-happens-if-155000-federal-public-service-workers-go-on-strike
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/conservative-favourite-party-of-unionized-canadians
"...After decades of being one of the most reliable voting blocs for left-wing parties, Canadian union members appear to be leaning Conservative for the first time anyone can remember. A recent poll by Abacus Data found that the Conservative Party under Pierre Poilievre is now the leading choice for unionized workers. Among members of private sector unions, 36 per cent declared their intent to vote Tory against the 34 per cent who still supported the Liberals. More surprising still, the Conservative showing was even better among public sector workers; 34 per cent supported the Conservatives, while the NDP and Liberal total stood at 26 per cent each..."
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/liberal-mp-asks-for-second-look-at-carbon-tax-report
At first when you don't get the answer you want from an independent body (Parliamentary Budget Office), ask them to do it again, with "a broader perspective, arguing the PBO wasn’t factoring in the cost of climate inaction."
"...the economic impact of the tax would drive down wages and raise costs. “We estimate that most households will see a net loss, paying more in the federal fuel charge and GST, as well as receiving lower incomes, compared to the Climate Action Incentive payments they receive,” Giroux wrote...."
https://nationalpost.com/news/budget-canada-1-billion-asylum-claimants
"...The illegal border crossing at Quebec’s Roxham Road may be closed, but the Liberal government’s recent budget indicates it expects to spend dramatically more on temporary housing and health-care for asylum-seekers and refugees over the next year.
The $1 billion for short-term accommodation and temporary health-care coverage for asylum-seekers and refugees listed in the budget, released March 28, is significantly more than what the federal government has transferred to provinces in recent years for those provisions..."
"...Identity-based hiring for the coast guard, tens of millions for Black employees in the public service and mandatory diversity reporting at Canadian banks were some of this year’s identity-politics-infused budget measures.
Instead of diversity, marketing for this year’s budget has focused on infrastructure, jobs and the idea of “balance” — despite the whopping $493 billion in total spending, $59.5 billion in new spending, a $43 billion deficit, and $34.5 billion to be spent on interest (rising to $50.3 billion in 2027)..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/jamie-sarkonak-chrystia-freelands-budget-is-woke-by-stealth
"...Yet it needs to be said, because too many judges, politicians and left-wing voters have leaned so far into the soft-on-crime, defund-the-police rhetoric, they fail to see that the lack of deterrence in our justice system is contributing to a culture of lawlessness on our streets....
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/progressive-criminal-justice-policies-have-made-canada-less-safe
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/investing/personal-finance/carrick-on-money/article-rob-carrick-these-dividend-stocks-beat-inflation-two-ways/
Sunny ways.
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/new-ethics-commissioner-salary-cut
"...During his tenure, he found five senior Liberals in violation of ethics laws, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, cabinet ministers Dominic LeBlanc and Mary Ng, former minister Bill Morneau and parliamentary secretary Greg Fergus.
In an interview during his last week in office, Dion lambasted the government for failing to take ethics seriously.
“The public has to believe that ethics are taken seriously, and they have yet to have any big evidence of that since 2018,” Dion told the Post..."
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/nova-scotia-mass-shooting-inquiry-lays-blame-on-rcmp
Hopefully change occurs at the top as the door slams on Brenda Lucki's untimely departure (earlier retirement). We will see what the next soft on crime Liberal appointee brings (if anything or more of the same). Meanwhile Duheme takes the interim reins who similarly has not shown well during inquiries and committees, notably the Emergency Act Inquiry.
"...During the commission’s hearings, senior RCMP officers in Nova Scotia said then RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki had pressured them to release information publicly about the types of weapons used.
Lucki had reportedly told officers that then Public Safety Minister Bill Blair wanted the information made public. The commission received audio recordings of the call between Lucki and RCMP in Nova Scotia and found she was generally frustrated about the information being shared..."
I realize the NDPLiberals are all about ever higher and higher taxes. But now they are going for "double taxation". They're running out of things before they finally start taxing gains on principle residences
"...Until now, dividend income from Canadian equities has generally not been taxable for the banks since the companies that pay these dividends do so with after-tax income. Tax law is generally constructed to avoid tax being paid twice on the same funds..."
https://financialpost.com/fp-finance/banking/federal-budget-dividend-tax-would-hit-insurers
During the initial phase of the scandal, in mid to late February, the CBC provided relatively little coverage of China’s election meddling. Articles from that time disproportionately focussed on Justin Trudeau’s rebuttals to his critics, including claims that the intelligence leaks detailing Beijing’s interference campaigns were allegedly “inaccurate.”
At the same time, the CBC seemed to frame the scandal as just a Conservative hit job. This narrative was, at first, integral to the Liberals’ attempts to discredit the story: ”We did nothing wrong. The Conservatives are just blowing things out of proportion to manipulate you.”
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/cbc-keeps-coming-to-trudeaus-defence-over-interference-scandal
None other than, RCMP Head, Brenda Lucki, who had faced three inquiries (Emergencies Act, Nova Scotia Mass Shooting and Canada-China relations special committee identifying four "police" stations operated by China). It is shocking to see after careers of +30 years the lack of competence from ill- suited people in such "leadership" roles
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/senior-mounties-n-s-mass-shooting-accountability
Is this a joke? In order to pay government workers like the federal government has done for over a century and a half, Liberals need to....
"...The 2023 federal budget released Tuesday outlines about $1.38 billion in money — $517 million this year and $521 million in 2024-25 — for Public Services and Procurement Canada to keep up with its current staffing level within the federal pay centre to work on pay system transactions..."
https://ottawacitizen.com/news/feds-spending-1-billion-on-maintaining-public-servant-pay-system-over-two-years-as-it-tries-to-fix-phoenix-issues
Clean teeth and clean tech. It's official, the NDP and Green Party had a baby and it is called the Liberal Party. The political center is completely wide open to whoever wants to occupy it as at least three Canadian political parties are now vying to "out left" one another.
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/chrystia-freeland-brings-canada-back-to-deficit-adding-50-billion-in-debt
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/canada-federal-budget-breakdown-everything-you-need-to-know
https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/public-service-strike-could-have-major-political-impacts-experts
Oh great, another example of the "magic" of unions.
I still do not know why being an employee with own benefits, own performance review, own bonus structure and own pay increases is such a bad thing rather than a recurring Olympic cycle of contract negotiations and strike threats.
"...“We would certainly be setting up strategic picket lines where it’s going to hurt the government the most, and if that means airports and border crossings, then unfortunately, that’s what we’re going to have to do.”
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/letters-not-a-good-look-for-david-johnston
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/raymond-j-de-souza-while-americans-declassify-china-info-the-liberals-keep-hiding-it
"... Then there is the still mysterious story about the sudden removal in 2019 of scientists Xiangguo Qui and Keding Cheng from the vaccine development and antiviral therapies section at Canada’s National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg. That lab collaborated with the Wuhan lab. Their removal, just months before the virus began circulating in Wuhan, was due to “policy breaches.” Whatever they did, the federal government was eager not to say much about it.
Between their removal and the outbreak of the pandemic, China supported Trudeau in the 2019 federal election, through illegal donations to multiple Liberal candidates, according to intelligence leaks reported by Global News..."
Canada Falls Short on Oil Promise It Made After Russia Started War in Ukraine https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-03-17/canada-falls-short-on-oil-promise-it-made-after-russia-started-war-in-ukraine
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-64825197
"It is becoming increasingly difficult to receive asylum seekers with dignity," he said in February.
Migrants also face a growing backlog of refugee claims, which grew from 56,300 in January to almost 71,000 by December - a 26% increase. Claims can now take up to two years to process. Around 28% of all claims were rejected last year, meaning success is not guaranteed.
There are also lengthy waits for work permits.
It used to take a week to get a social insurance number for a new asylum seeker. Now, the wait for an appointment for the ID document is nearly two years, said Maryse Poisson, who works at the Welcome Centre, an organisation assisting newcomers in Montreal.
TO EDIT
As part of a conference in mid-June, I took my first flight since January 2020. Although a short one. Airports were in the throes of bad baggage handling, security and customs management, so I unusually headed to the aiport four hours before my departure. I avoid cabs and traffic if I can so took the GO Train downtown to Union then the punctual Union Pearson Express. Ironically, from the point of stepping off the Union Pearson Express train, walking down the platform, down the stairs, into Terminal 1, to the back for security, through security and grabbing my wallet, laptop, phone and carry on was a total of 13 minutes! Regardless, the random people en route to the airport just stopped in areas that you would not normally see was bewildering (and stressful). So I had some more time than I expected which meant wander around the terminal to notice any changes, buy some needed socks appropriate for a suit (didn't have the laundry completed in time) and a beer and something to eat (expensed to the company) at Mill St. After receiving the wrong BBQ chicken sandwich (although good) in place of a pulled pork I discovered the next door shop of Johnson and Murphy. I passed by their TD Centre location hundreds of times but never really knew what kind of store it was. Impressed.
Arriving in Quebec was as expected...late. We sat on tarmac for about an hour (for an hour and a half flight) while watching the remnants of a Colorado/Tampa Bay Stanely Cup final game. In Quebec, it appeared we were one of the last flights. With no checked luggage I immediately marched past the luggage carousel and outside to find the taxi line. It had been about 10 years since my last time in Quebec City so remembered the then-new Jean Lesage Airport. Lucky I had no checked baggage as there were only about three cabs available. With most people still inside waiting for their luggage, I managed to obtain one of them with a driver that claimed to know where he was going and after confirming he accepted Visa or American Express, requested cash and proceeded to talk to his mate on speaker phone in Arabic.
I arrived late at the Hilton which I had known from previous trips for half marathons. The renovated lobby was a nice surpriese after a delayed flight. I checked in, went upstairs, put things away, checked schedule for the next day and conked out around 2:00am.
The inagural conference started on Fathers' Day Sunday. One reason why the turnout had been low in addition to its inaugural status. Regardless, I was happy to walk the sunny, hilly streets of Quebec past the Assemble National, past the Chateau Laurier Hotel where I could see the St. Hubert restaurant that I knew I would be going for a hot chicken sandwich, and arrivign at a building I had never visited before - the Armoury or Manège militaire. A beautiful barracks style building that had a stunning roof structure unfortunately due to the fire that burned in 2008.
After the friendly registration and schedule printed off, I enjoyed the different kind of breakfast serving for a conference - especialy the coissants!!!! the usual eggs, and grilled vegetalbe offerings with pastries and muffins. BUT THE BAKED GOODS AT A QUEBEC CITY CONFERENCE - INCROYABLE! Lunch, the same. As it was an inaugural year, there was no main or feature luncheon with a guest speaker, but the usual offerings of quartered sandwiches but with some fantastic seafood pasta offerings, mini-buffet style. Whethere covid related or not - packaged nuts, trail mix, etc - this lunch was made for guys like me! Then, the evening events happened on the Sunday and Monday. A sponsored event in the grand rooms of the Cheteau Frontenac. But again, the food offered, a la mini-buffet style was incredible. The first night had the selecion of mini lobster tacos, hors d'ouevres but also a poutine bar! This conferenc was made for guys like me! The next night, the same with a carvery in place of the poutine! I joined some attendees that just hung out at the end by the carvery and ate the perfectly cooked prime rib. Forgetting the vegetables. Drinks were all from the sponsored group both evenings with a unique drink for both events. Then of course, attendees go out afterward. First night involved a stop at Mixology for "cocktails" which became local beers anyway ending up at St. Patrick. The next night involved staying at the Chateau Frontenac in the 1608 bar, where we enjoyed a drink together sitting down at the "round bar" overlooking the St. Lawrence River - ONE OF MY FAVOURITE VIEWS OF CANADA.
Afher the conference was finished Tuesday afternoon, and a succesful one (not just for an inaugural one), I remained in Quebec City for three days to see what happens during a St. Jean Bapiste day (June 24th) in the province's capital city. By this point my ear was warmed up discerning the rhythm of Quebecois French and I had an enthusiasm with every interaction whether it was checking into a hotel or ordering a drink or asking where the bathroom was or asnwering "a table for how many" or ordering from a menu.
From Wednesday (Rather than fly back anyway) to Thurday I "worked from home/hotel", while at night I enjoyed aimlessly wandering the loop around old Quebec from inside the wall at -- down to the Chateau, around to Pub St. Patrick and up to Paillard and Chocolats as well as the Grand Allee. Looking at my Garmin watch afterwards, I was averaging well above the 10,000 steps/day, and cracked 25,000! Needless to say, the glutes and hamstrings were feeling sore after this little jaunt
On the Wednesday I
June 22
shopping - 12:12 Simons
12:43Pm Plaisirs Saveurs (fudge? Champlain?)
9:08pm Murphy's pub
Juen 23
beers/food
9:55pm chocolat favoris
June 24
shopping - Maison Smith (old square, lower town?)
8:54 pm Pantoute bought phrase books
beers/food
- resto le Repaire 6::09pm
11:12 pm st patrick (avalanche)?
June 25
drinks/ food
12:53am snack bar Saint Jean ,
3:18pm chez ashton
12:44pm 1884 (croissant, old square in lwoer town? )
shopping - Magasin P A Gagnon (2:06pm)
12:25 Simons -shorts
12:36pm - Kiosque Frotnenac (waiting for tour?)
12:36pm parks Canada tour of original chateau
4:44pm - Boutique t-Dingue
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/carson-jerema-trudeau-family-friend-david-johnston-not-the-man-to-restore-election-confidence
Whoever writes the book titled "Corruption Canada: The 2015 to 20?? Liberals" the book just became larger by AT LEAST one chapter (likely into its second volume). Let's see how this Rapporteur's findings will be delayed until 2025 - at least a one year timeline like Emergencies Act Inquiry followed by prorogued Parliament? Maybe so bold as a snap election? A counter inquiry launched into CSIS? More goodies for NDP to prop them up?
"...The position is a pointless distraction, created for the nakedly self-serving and partisan reason of delaying Trudeau having to answer questions, perhaps until Canadians have stopped paying attention.
Johnston’s connections to the prime minister should have disqualified him from being appointed, not because the former governor general is incapable of performing his duties objectively, but because reasonable Canadians will find it difficult to accept Johnston’s conclusions were not influenced in some way..."
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/behind-the-multi-million-dollar-business-of-roxham-road
Between this unsecured border issue and the Chinese election interference, is this enough to topple Justin's NDPLiberals? Or will they solve the border issue at thr 11th hour of an election? Will he skate on side at the last second thanks to his "rapporteur" referee?
"...The taxis are part of a chain of several lucrative private interests that appear to be profiting handsomely from what some now call the business of migrants passing into Canada from the U.S. via Roxham Road.
It’s an industry worth hundreds of millions, or more, with the cost only growing for Canadian taxpayers.
As soon as the migrants cross the U.S.-Canada border illegally at Roxham — a small road just a few minutes east of the official St-Bernard-de-Lacolle, Que. border crossing — most will be transported to hotels, where they will be fed and sheltered, all at government expense..."
Hmmmmm, I wonder what the outcome of the rapporteur's report will be ?
"...He also said the rapporteur will be able to recommend a public inquiry if they feel that is the best course forward and the government will abide by that recommendation..."
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/trudeau-election-interference-review
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/trudeau-family-close-to-communist-china
Of course!
" ..we have no information on how many government devices have TikTok installed — it could be zero. The federal government doesn’t appear to have any official accounts on TikTok, either, though politicians certainly do. But our tax dollars support the platform. Last year, the government spent $1.7 million advertising on TikTok. Perhaps we should commit to pausing this expenditure in light of these new, but undisclosed, concerns...."
https://financialpost.com/technology/canada-tiktok-ban-government-devices-distraction
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/dont-worry-about-getting-up-to-become-canadian-just-check-this-online-box
https://financialpost.com/news/economy/canada-economic-growth-stalls-recession-possible
"Bill 4 read, in its entirety: “The Constitution Act, 1867 is amended by inserting the following section after section 128: ‘Section 128 does not apply to Quebec’.”
In one sense, it’s now law:
In another sense, though, it’s not law at all: You won’t find Quebec’s unilateral amendment included in any copy of the Constitution, online or off. It’s bizarre..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/quebecs-flamboyantly-unconstitutional-move
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/first-reading-the-liberal-defences-against-chinese-interference
https://nationalpost.com/news/world/gamal-ali-faraj-alamri-muammar-gaddafi-revolutionary-guard-libya
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/canadian-citizenship-ceremonies-optional
How much more can Canada dilute or erase its defining institutions of history (Sir John A.), strong financial institutions (all banks have dropped "Royal", " Doninion", "Imperial" from names), national Anthem (lyrics have changed and now further "artistic license" taken at a basketball game), founding French language (after +400 years) and the institution of bilingualism, a country formed and fought for in the name of the Monarchy (Assemblee Nationale replacing swearing in with an optional mention of King Charles III now, other Canadians lacking any respect whatsoever for the Commonwealth), and now this - an optional or a trivial on line oath to Canada. I suppose Canadians and new Canadians only want healthcare and a border to say "we're not American" (again, a border fought for originally in the name of Monarchy) as their defining institutions. Everything else is being pulled down. Remembrance Day likely the next or future target to be erased.
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/liberal-mp-han-dong-uyghur-genocide-votes
Due to differing definitions of "emergency" and " threat" between RCMP , CSIS, etc. Emergencies Act was controversially enacted.
Now, due to election interference definitions being " vague" we have...
"An independent review into the system that protect Canada’s elections found it worked as designed and there was not widespread interference in the 2021 election, but also found the definitions in the system are vague and the threat is growing.
During elections, intelligence agencies and the RCMP report regularly to a panel of senior bureaucrats about attempts to influence the election. Those bureaucrats make the final decision on whether or not to alert the public to that interference.
Morris Rosenberg, a former deputy minister under both Liberal and Conservative governments, was tasked with doing an independent review of the bureaucrats’ work and his review was released late Tuesday afternoon.
Even before the report was released Conservatives dismissed it, because Rosenberg also served as the CEO of the Pierre Trudeau Foundation during which time the foundation took a controversial donation from a Chinese-Canadian businessman.
Rosenberg said while the system worked as designed and there doesn’t appear to have been widespread foreign interference in the election, he said the definitions the system uses are “vague,” and leave the decision up to the judgement of civil servants."
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/independent-review-interference-2021-election
The "language spin" from the NDPLiberals on this Chinese election interference allegation has reached a new intensity, even for this party, for apparently something NDPLiberals claim is not true. After trying to throw it back at the opposition ("how dare they ask questions of election integrity" and "Trump style tactics" after the media actually raised the issue), the latest is (and, of course)....
"...Trudeau also suggested that allegations of China’s interference involving Dong that put the MP’s loyalty into question could be linked to “racism.”..."
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/trudeau-liberal-mp-chinese-interference
Well there's an idea (likely under the guise of "transparency" and selectively "prove" Liberals' aggressive goals, but whether it will do anything before 2025's election is probably moot)
https://www.cicnews.com/2023/02/ircc-will-now-allow-canadians-to-directly-influence-future-immigration-policies-and-programs-0233349.html
Digging a deeper hole.
"...Prime Minister Justin Trudeau claims there are “many inaccuracies” in the leaked documents from Canada’s national intelligence agency in recent days about China’s attempts to influence the 2021 federal election, but didn’t specify what exactly was inaccurate.
Trudeau made those comments during a press conference Thursday in Halifax to highlight his government’s efforts in signing health care deals with the provinces, but reporters raised once again the issue of Chinese interference and those leaks presumably coming from CSIS..."
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/trudeau-claims-inaccuracies-in-leaked-documents-about-chinese-interference
The Liberals will never learn
"...The Parliamentary Budget Office has just released its analysis of the final Supplementary Estimates for the fiscal year, through which the government requests Parliament’s permission for money to satisfy its spending requirements.
The estimates reveal a rudderless ministry that is living beyond its means.
The first thing that catches the eye is that the government has requested another $800 million to outsource professional services, which takes the total for the year to an eye-popping $21.4 billion..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/spending-estimates-offer-reality-check-liberals
"...Such a level of incompetence has been achieved by Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion.
This summer, Hussen learned that his department gave $122,661 to raging antisemite and ethnostate advocate Laith Marouf through a grant to his de-facto employer, the Canadian Media Advocacy Centre (CMAC).
Hussen took more than a month to recall the money. Months later, the money still hasn’t been repaid and Marouf appears to be living in Beirut, the capital of Lebanon. Hussen still hasn’t confirmed whether formal legal action will be taken, or if the matter will be referred to the RCMP. He’s still relying on five failed attempts to retrieve payment, as well as the still-fruitless efforts of a collection agency..."
The gall to have such an answer...
"...Prime Minister Justin Trudeau downplayed the CSIS reports and said the leaked documents are a sign that the organization needs to review its internal security measures.
To say this is pathetic is an understatement. Unless Trudeau takes immediate and decisive action to stop this interference, he will not only fail to rebuild his tattered credibility on national security, he will undermine the very democracy he purports to serve.
There are three measures that should be taken immediately. First, Parliament should establish a foreign agents registry similar to the one adopted by Australia, to require anyone acting on behalf of a foreign government to register their lobbying activities — a measure that has high levels of support among Canadians..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/trudeau-shrugs-as-evidence-of-chinese-electoral-interference-mounts
"...The Truth and Reconciliation Commission highlights that this deplorable situation was well known, quoting documents in the National Archives of Canada that said: “As many as half of the aboriginal children who attended the early years of residential schools died of tuberculosis, despite repeated warnings to the federal Government that overcrowding, poor sanitation and a lack of medical care were creating a toxic breeding ground for the rapid spread of the disease.”
The TRC’s historical documentation is a damning indictment of Canada’s treatment of students at residential schools. However, it does not record any lurid stories of murder or torture.
Children in the schools died at a far higher rate than school-aged children in the general population, due largely to high rates of disease, particularly tuberculosis.
“Failure to establish and enforce adequate standards, coupled with the failure to adequately fund the schools, resulted in unnecessarily high death rates at residential schools,” reads the TRC’s Missing Children and Unmarked Burials report.
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/michael-higgins-truth-ignored-as-teacher-fired-for-saying-tb-caused-residential-school-deaths
https://nationalpost.com/news/conservatives-trump-election-interference
Based on a Liberal judge presiding as Commissioner that has used "reluctance"in his decision and concluding the evidence was not deemed "overwhelming"; an incompetent police leadership from RCMP, OPP and Ottawa Police and even CSIS including various heads of threat assessment, strategic and tactical "specialists" within these various police forces; differing legal definitions of "emergency" and "threat" from both the RCMP and CSIS that lead to the Liberals seeking their OWN definition and "legal opinion" (undisclosed to the public) and having it conveniently blessed by them; the "independent" privy council siding with the Liberals in all their meetings, agenda setting, schedules, input, recommendations and info gathering; MP of Public Safety Mendicino who was all too friendly with the Windsor mayor in seeking same Ottawa measures only seeking the Liberal sponsored methods as opposed to independent thinking under the Act for legal solutions; a mute Brenda Lucki, head of the RCMP, that had a "plan" the night before yet never communicated it at the final meeting to avoid all of this. Yes, I suppose it was "justified".
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/public-order-emergency-commission-emergencies-act-freedom-convoy
https://nationalpost.com/news/rouleau-blames-policing-failing-freedom-convoy
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/emergencies-act-definition-modernized
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/emergencies-act-report-important-figures
https://nationalpost.com/news/weekend-posted-everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-emergencies-act-report
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/emergencies-act-report-damp-squib
https://nationalpost.com/news/freedom-convoy-legitimate-emergency-act-report
https://nationalpost.com/news/emergencies-act-justified
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/emergencies-act-report-provides-little-protection
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/the-only-emergencies-act-threshold-is-incompetence-apparently
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/freedom-convoy-report-sets-dark-precedent-on-freezing-bank-accounts
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/emergencies-act-report-a-slap-in-the-face-to-canadians
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/canadas-democracy-died-a-little-friday-afternoon
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/the-convoy-was-the-prologue-the-election-will-be-the-play
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/trudeau-expresses-regret-for-denouncing-freedom-convoy-protesters-as-fringe-minority
Well this will be an interesting read...
No more distractions ("...nothing to see here, move along...") as NDPLiberal MPs' and Trudeau's appearances were timed the same week of World Cup, Canada's first world cup game in 36 years, US thanksgiving and Black Friday sales, US college football that go with it, Grey Cup week, not to mention Trudeau's coincidental timing on Canada's Drag Race that evening
Well now we will have the report after a bunch of cabinet confidence claimed at inquiry.
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/emergenices-act-report-due-date-unclear
"...The public has to believe that ethics are taken seriously, and they have yet to have any big evidence of that since 2018,” Dion said in an interview with the National Post shortly after announcing he was leaving his post for health reasons
...Over that period, he completed nearly two dozen more investigations into Liberal ministers (including Trudeau two more times), MPs and an assortment of top public servants and government agency administrators who are subject to the Conflict of Interest Act. The only parliamentarians beholden to the act are ministers and parliamentary secretaries.
Since 2018, Dion found no less than five senior Liberals in violation of ethics laws, including Trudeau (again), cabinet ministers Dominic LeBlanc and Mary Ng, former minister Bill Morneau and parliamentary secretary Greg Fergus. The latter three occurred within the last three years..."
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/ethics-commissioner-trudeau-liberals-lapses
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/federal-ethics-commissioner-finds-another-liberal-broke-ethics-laws-calls-for-mandatory-training-for-all-mps
Look out...And becoming additional to any job description
"...And therein lies another problem with committing to DEI: there isn’t really an endpoint — further inclusion and diversification is always necessary.
Mandatory commitments to DEI in academia are unlikely to disappear on their own. Administrators often like growing the bureaucracy, and you aren’t likely to hear protests from academics themselves. Professors are either too cautious to speak out, or they agree with DEI and don’t see a problem. (The Macdonald-Laurier Institute has demonstrated that right-leaning professors fear negative repercussions for their opinions on such issues at a much greater rate than their left-leaning colleagues.)
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/jamie-sarkonak-canadian-universities-using-dei-statements-to-force-conformity-of-thought
https://www.castanet.net/news/Canada/411014/Trudeau-pushing-softer-approach-to-temporary-visas-less-focus-on-risk-of-overstaying
"...Among them are children as young as 10. Children are showing up now “more than ever,” La Presse reported Tuesday. A foster family for some migrant children told La Presse of a 17-year-old from the Middle East whose parents sent him on a mission to Roxham Road, “which was known even in his small village”:
“After flying to Mexico, the youth crossed the Rio Grande on foot and was incarcerated in Texas. Once he was released, a bus dropped him off in Plattsburgh, then a taxi (to Roxham Road).” If he gains permanent residency and then citizenship, eventually he can send for his family members..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/canada-roxham-road
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/rcmp-disruption-china-canada
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/catholic-school-has-student-arrested-for-expressing-catholic-beliefs
Your "data, science and evidence" based NDPLiberals
"...The CCA itself is a federally registered non-profit, but works like a government entity. It’s governed by a board of directors, one-third of which is appointed by the Minister of Innovation, Science, and Economic Development. Its research agenda is largely driven by the federal government — the feds give the CCA’s board a list of research proposals, from which the board chooses five to pursue. The board also picks which experts to convene for each project.
The science department serves as the CCA’s financial backbone, giving grants that average $3 million per year (these grants form the bulk of the organization’s annual revenue). These federal grants come with substantial annual reporting to the responsible minister — financial plans, work schedules, and even policies for diversity, equity, and inclusion all must be disclosed. The CCA might not be a crown corporation, but it walks and talks like one..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/liberal-funded-misinformation-study-itself-full-of-misinformation
"...News that the City of New York is providing free bus tickets to migrants heading north to claim asylum in Canada highlights an urgent need to address the situation at the border, Quebec’s immigration minister said Monday.
Speaking to reporters in Montreal, Christine Frechette called the report “surprising.” She said Ottawa needs to “solve the problem of Roxham Road,” which is an unofficial border crossing south of Montreal used by tens of thousands of people last year to claim asylum..."
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/quebec-minister-surprised-asylum-seekers-given-free-bus-tickets-from-new-york-city
"...the prime minister declared that “Quebecers are not racists.” He went on to explain, “Quebecers are among the people who are the strongest defenders of individual rights and freedoms, along with a lot of other Canadians.” But, just three years ago, in 2020, Trudeau was quite clear in his view that Canada, including Quebec, is racist. “Systemic racism is an issue right across the country, in all our institutions, including in all our police forces, including in the RCMP,” Trudeau stated after two RCMP officers arrested a First Nations Chief in Alberta. He is speaking out of both sides of his mouth..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/jamil-jivani-quebeckers-expose-trudeaus-anti-racism-performance-art
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/sabrina-maddeaux-trudeau-liberals-have-given-judges-license-to-go-easy-on-rapists
And the impact to employment levels (almost 50% higher than the 3.5% in the US), average wage levels, housing, healthcare services, ongoing inflation, etc. from our transparent, facts, evidence and science based NDPLiberals?
"...Between January and October 2022, Canada issued over 645,000 work permits. This is nearly four times more than the 163,000 issued over the same period in 2021.
The measure will last for the next two years and includes working-age children, 16 and older, of principal applicants of all skill levels. This includes families of workers in healthcare, trades, and hospitality. It is estimated that this program will make it possible for the families of more than 200,000 foreign workers to enter Canada’s workforce..."
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/committee-recommends-hybrid-parliament-remains
Another example of speaking out of two sides of their NDPLiberal mouths. Funds are identified and allocated and budgetted for such, so vote for them. But NDPLiberals won't actually spend what they said they would accomplish.
"...The federal government failed to spend tens of billions of dollars in the last fiscal year on promised programs and services, including new military equipment, affordable housing and support for veterans.
Federal departments are blaming a variety of factors for letting a record total of $38 billion in funding lapse in 2021-22, including delays and disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
They also say much of the money remains available for future years..."
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/federal-departments-failed-to-spend-38b-on-promised-programs-services-last-year
The Globe and Mail: Politics Briefing: Trudeau wants Amira Elghawaby to clarify remarks about Quebeckers.
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-politics-briefing-trudeau-wants-amira-elghawaby-to-clarify-remarks/
https://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/politique/2023-01-26/trudeau-nomme-une-militante-qui-a-depeint-les-quebecois-comme-antimusulmans.php
"...les Canadiens français ont été victimes de discrimination et d’injustice ? On pense à la pendaison de Louis Riel, la déportation des Acadiens, la fermeture des écoles françaises en Ontario, au Manitoba, en Saskatchewan…"
https://financialpost.com/real-estate/mortgages/renewals-homeowners-precarious-position
Oh Rex!
"...We practised “handwriting.” A technical term, I know, It means the formation of letters by hand manipulation of an instrument called a pencil (or pen, or in even older days a “quill”) so that others may recognize them.
Then there were the multiplication tables, and another thing called — spelling..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/thank-goodness-woke-education-is-saving-our-kids-from-learning-how-to-spell
The New York Times: Inside a Nuclear War Bunker Built to Save Canada’s Leaders.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/25/world/canada/diefenbunker-museum-ottawa.html
https://financialpost.com/news/economy/canadian-housing-market-castle-built-on-sand-david-rosenberg
"... The Business Development Bank is a 75-year-old Crown Corporation that provides venture capital to small and mid-sized Canadian entrepreneurs. Reporting this week by the CBC found that as soon as Trudeau appointee Isabelle Hudon took charge of the BDC in 2021, one of her first orders of business was to hire McKinsey on a $5-million contract to completely remake the bank “from scratch.”
Hudon was also found to have incurred exorbitant expenses, such as a $320,000 event held for only a few dozen employees to mark the “new chapter” of her leadership. She also insisted on travelling with her own driver, adding thousands of dollars in costs to otherwise routine trips..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/bdc-trudeau-mckinsey
U "...the federal government spent no less than $22.2 billion in 2021-2022 on contracts across all public service departments, agencies and organizations – but only those that proactively disclose their contract spending.
For instance, the “Big 4” consulting firms (Deloitte, Ernst Young, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers) earned a combined total of approximately $141 million in federal contracts in 2018-2019, $216 million in 2019-2020, $338 million in 2020-2021 and $354 million in 2021-2022..."
https://nationalpost.com/news/outsourcing-contracts-mckinsey-billions
"...and this year aims to admit 465,000 new residents, which will be another 7.7 per cent increase over 2022. These numbers don’t include temporary foreign workers or international students, which are also rising at record rates...."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/sabrina-maddeaux-liberals-bring-in-influx-of-immigrants-without-a-plan-to-support-them
".. Trudeau’s document was withdrawn a year later. Far from contrite, he delivered one of his patented insults: “We’ll keep them in the ghetto as long as they want,” he shrugged. If Sir John A. Macdonald is to be condemned, certainly Trudeau and Chrétien deserve no less, given they had an additional century of history and experience to draw on, and the knowledge, learning and insight that presumably entailed. Macdonald acted on the best advice available at the time, as did those who followed him. His thinking was rooted in 19th century cultural mores. What was Trudeau’s excuse?"
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/kelly-mcparland-turning-a-blind-eye-to-pierre-trudeaus-unseemly-indigenous-assimilation-plan
"...Canadians should be upset with this [economic ranking], especially considering that the country has one of the world’s greatest resource endowments and enjoys the protection and opportunities afforded by living next door to the United States. Like a sputtering corporation, Canada limps along thanks to a mediocre and bloated federal government that overtaxes, overspends, relies on expensive management and environmental consultants, and is run by amateurs who cling to power as the result of a deal made after the election with the country’s spendthrift socialist party until 2025..."
https://financialpost.com/diane-francis/liberal-canada-sore-need-change-management
Yet another fund, another program, another waste...
"...At the time, the CIB administrative budget was $41 million for an office of 74 staff, yet it had committed to just 13 projects, finalized only two and completed none..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/john-ivison-the-15-billion-experiment-ottawa-cant-afford-to-mess-up
I suppose the nearly 2 million applicants backlog will be looking to become construction workers now.
With extra 500 workers, that translates into 2,500 new Entrants? Part of the 500,000 or not?
"...the government said it is doubling the annual number of available spots in the program from 500 workers — plus their family members — to 1,000, as part of its plan to ease the labour shortage in skilled trades...."
https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2023/01/20/canada-expands-immigration-program-for-undocumented-construction-workers-in-gta.html
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/ncc-set-to-announce-next-step-in-renaming-of-ottawas-sir-john-a-macdonald-parkway
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/jagmeet-singh-says-party-will-hold-minority-liberals-accountable
Inflation is not going away soon, with no increase in efficiencies nor extra duties, many unions blindly demandung such...
"...The union representing 35,000 Canada Revenue Agency employees is seeking wage increases that total almost 30 per cent over three years.
The Union of Taxation Employees has asked the CRA for a three-year wage increase of 20.5 per cent, in addition to a one-time wage adjustment of nine per cent to account for a long-standing wage imbalance with Canada Border Services Agency employees who administer the Excise Act.
The union’s proposal calls for annual increases of 4.5 per cent, eight per cent and eight per cent during a three-year contract.
“We want to keep up with inflation,” Marc Brière, national president of the Union of Taxation Employees (UTE), said in an interview..."
https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/cra-workers-seeking-wage-increase-of-almost-30-per-cent-over-three-years
"...But their plan is so universal, and the outcome so undefined, that even the most ardent advocates of climate action should feel some serious doubts.
Late Monday afternoon, Wilkinson’s office said the memo was taken out of context and is not policy. An official said the program is all about creating sustainable oil and gas jobs, not eliminating them.
Legislation to enact all this is coming soon. That’s when we’ll know more about specific Liberal intentions..."
https://calgaryherald.com/opinion/columnists/braid-federal-memo-shows-heavy-impact-of-just-transition-on-alberta
National Post: Quebec group launches private prosecution against Trudeau over illegal Roxham Road border crossings.
https://nationalpost.com/news/trudeau-private-prosecution-roxham-road-border
Your science, evidence, facts, data based NDPLiberals. Well, where is the science, evidence, facts, data?
"...As Canada plans to significantly ramp up its immigration levels in the coming years, some policy experts are worried about potential effects on health care, housing and the labour market..."
Global News: Immigration minister says more newcomers needed amid mixed reviews on targets - National | Globalnews.ca.
https://globalnews.ca/news/9408224/canada-immigration-targets-sean-fraser/
National Post: 'Slow and broken' immigration system leads 'desperate people' to Roxham Road, Poilievre says.
https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/bloc-ndp-criticize-tory-mp-over-refusal-to-help-quebec-family-of-illegal-refugees
https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/parents-in-disbelief-after-isis-flag-sent-out-by-toronto-school-principal-in-email-1.6225147
"...As has often been noted, we have a prime minister who once boasted of his lack of interest in monetary policy, doubled the debt in just seven years, insisted there was “no business case” to sell liquid natural gas to Germany — which faced a frigid winter thanks to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine — only to see Berlin sign a 15-year deal with Qatar, and agreed to a dental program at a potential cost of billions of dollars solely to win temporary NDP support for the Liberal’s minority government..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/kelly-mcparland-bill-morneau-says-justin-trudeau-was-a-self-centred-terrible-boss
On top of leniency for those that have committed multiple murders.
https://nationalpost.com/news/court-urges-ottawa-to-consider-moral-debt-owed-to-pandemic-workers-when-deciding-immigration-status
"....Employment insurance programs in Atlantic Canada are exacerbating the issue because the rules encourage people to stay in seasonal positions even though there are full-time jobs available, says the report.
Each year, the number of employed people in Atlantic Canada falls by almost 60,0000 between August and December. Meanwhile, EI claims during that period spike by more than 20,000. This seasonal disparity appears to be out of whack with employment patterns in the rest of Canada.
The report calls for major changes to the EI program..."
The Globe and Mail: Employers, Ottawa must change approach to temporary workers, experts warn.
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/careers/article-employers-ottawa-must-change-approach-to-temporary-workers-experts/
https://www.cicnews.com/2023/01/the-national-response-to-quebecs-french-language-preserving-bill-96-0132350.html
As a sign of just how prevalent birth tourism has become in Vancouver, the city’s first baby of 2023 was born to a birth tourist. Hana Amr Fouad was born just before 3 a.m. on New Year’s Day at Vancouver’s St. Paul’s Hospital, according to a profile in Vancouver Is Awesome. Baby Hana’s parents are both Egyptian nationals who have never previously been to Canada, but they arranged for a Vancouver birth so that the baby would obtain instant Canadian citizenship under the country’s “jus soli” laws. “We chose Canada because the Canadian passport is better,” said Hana’s father Amr Fouad, explaining that it was a choice between Canada or the U.S. Several hundred such births occur in the Vancouver area every year. Richmond Hospital, in particular, has reported that as many as one quarter of its birthing mothers are non-residents looking to secure Canadian citizenship for their baby.
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/u-s-consultancy-behind-canadas-immigration
Another reason to render independence to the Ministry of Immigration (similar to the Bank of Canada, Courts) from whimsical, reckless government policies and virtuous vote buying.
"...McKinsey & Co. — a multi-billion dollar global consultancy firm with five locations in Canada —only scored the occasional contract with the Canadian federal government in the years preceding the 2015 election of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. In the seven years since, Radio-Canada investigators uncovered $66 million in mostly sole-sourced McKinsey contracts, including $24.5 million to provide “management advice” to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.
The number of new Canadians coming in each year had steadily risen throughout the 2000s, ultimately peaking above 250,000 in 2015, the last year of the Conservative government of Stephen Harper. But that figure has since expanded considerably, reaching 431,645 new permanent residents in 2022. It’s a quantity of immigrants that surpasses even the meteoric heights seen during the years immediately preceding the First World War, when hundreds of thousands of European immigrants were moved in to homestead the prairies..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/u-s-consultancy-behind-canadas-immigration
"...These numbers don’t include temporary foreign workers or international students, which are also rising at record rates.
This sort of rapid swell isn’t just historic for Canada, it makes us the fastest-growing country in the G7. This would be great news, if not for the fact that we’re also among the least equipped to accept a mass influx of new people..."
National Post: Sabrina Maddeaux: Liberals bring in influx of immigrants without a plan to support them.
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/sabrina-maddeaux-liberals-bring-in-influx-of-immigrants-without-a-plan-to-support-them
"...RCMP intercepted 34,478 asylum seekers who did not use official ports of entry to enter Quebec between January and November of 2022, according to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. That’s compared to 4,095 interceptions for all of 2021, and 3,189 in 2020, when Roxham Road was mostly shut down because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The checkpoint was reopened in November 2021..."
https://nationalpost.com/news/mans-body-found-near-roxham-road-unofficial-border-crossing-in-quebec
Five years in the making now another $500 million needed. Canada's 2.6 billion government employees payment system.
"...The Phoenix pay system debacle was quite rightly called “an international embarrassment” by a Senate report five years ago. Most Canadians probably assume the failures that resulted in pay problems for 80 per cent of the federal government’s 300,000 public servants have been resolved.
But that is not the case. In fact, things are getting worse.
Sources tell the Post that Public Services and Procurement Canada, the department responsible for Phoenix, has asked for an extra $500 million to “stabilize” the problem in the face of a rising backlog of cases. Last year, government expenditure on Phoenix was $713.7 million across all departments, according to Treasury Board’s departmental results report. In 2019, the Parliamentary Budget Office estimated the cost of correcting Phoenix’s data problems at $2.6 billion. That now looks like an underestimate..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/phoenix-payroll-civil-servants
"...What’s in store for Canadian politics in 2023? It’s impossible to say with any certainty, but there are surely a few clues lying in wait....To begin with, don’t hold your breath for a federal election. The chances of this happening seem highly unlikely.
The Conservatives have been leading the Liberals in the polls since late August (with the exception of two November-based Nanos Research polls). Poilievre has consistently outshone Trudeau in the House of Commons, and continues to increase his personal appeal. The Liberals have tried everything in their power to dissuade Canadians about Poilievre’s momentum..."
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/whats-in-store-for-canadian-politics-heres-some-clues
Scary. From striking g to assisted suicide to cross border beer sales to absence of consecutive life sentences and weak "catch and release" bail laws
"...if there’s a massive political controversy gripping the country, there’s a good chance that the Supreme Court of Canada had something to do with it... But in just the last 10 years, Canada’s top court has been on an activist streak that has begun to profoundly affect Canadian daily life. Below, a not-at-all comprehensive list of the times that a new Charter right discovered by the Supreme Court of Canada has yielded a cascade of unintended consequences for Canadian society..."
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/canada-most-activist-supreme-court-world
