Canadians must become aware of the horrible truth

   

Rally in Montreal  -  picture CTV News internet capture

The Christmas and New Year season is a time to reflect on our lives, give thanks for what we have, and make gestures for those who may have less.  Unfortunately, the ideological lefties use this emotional time to advance their guilt politics.  The stories of the plight of the people of Gaza are used as a device to advance the agenda of the anti-Semitic hate machine.

One ploy is to use the media to exploit the tragic pain and suffering stories of Gaza residents to obtain sympathy.  It is part of the overall strategy to de-legitimize and discredit Israel and deflect attention away from Hamas crimes.  False reporting of the war in Gaza fuels the internationally organized to obtain sympathy, money, and political support. 

The legacy media have done a poor job of “observing and reporting” as distinct from “opinion and analysis.”  Western journalism has a backdrop of unreliable propaganda manufactured by Hamas, and they have not made sufficient effort to sort fact from fiction.

In December 2024, Andrew Fox published an in-depth report entitled,

QUESTIONABLE COUNTING: ANALYSING THE DEATH TOLL FROM THE HAMAS-RUN MINISTRY OF HEALTH IN GAZA

https://henryjacksonsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/HJS-Questionable-Counting-%E2%80%93-Hamas-Report-web.pdf

He makes key findings that have received no coverage in the Canadian legacy media.

The issue for Canadians is to understand and admit the philosophical and religious base of Hamas.  Why do they exist, and what are their stated aims?  What have they done?

Hamas is an acronym of the Arabic phrase حركة المقاومة الإسلامية or Ḥarakah al-Muqāwamah al-ʾIslāmiyyah, meaning "Islamic Resistance Movement".  This acronym, HMS, was glossed in the 1988 Hamas Covenant by the Arabic word ḥamās (حماس) which itself means "zeal", "strength", or "bravery".

The 1988 Hamas charter proclaims that jihad (war) against Jews is required until Judgement Day.  On October 24th, Hamas leadership excused their October 7th attack: "Israel is a country that has no place on our land.  We must remove that country because it constitutes a security, military and political catastrophe to the Arab and Islamic nation.  We are called a nation of martyrs, and we are proud to sacrifice martyrs. We are the victims of the occupation.  Therefore, nobody should blame us for the things we do".

Canada, under the Jean-Chretien government, declared Hamas an illegal terrorist organization on November 27th, 2002.

Once the blood flowed on October 7th, 2023, Hamas launched its political cyber offensive of lies to feed its confederates in Canada and around the world.  Moreover, until now, their casualty counts have not been seriously challenged.

Andrew Fox says that Hamas listed men as women to inflate female fatalities to inflate the narrative that civilian populations, particularly women and children, bear the brunt of the conflict, thereby influencing international sentiment and media coverage.

Fox says: “This fatality analysis report recognises the immense toll of the war on Palestinians in Gaza.  Even as fatalities are discussed as quantifiable numbers, it is important to remember that innocent people are suffering, and each number represents a human life.  Many of those lives were innocent people caught in the middle of a brutal war started by Hamas on 7 October.  The suffering, death and destruction are very real for actual human beings.”

Adults were registered as children.  It inflates the number of child casualties, which is emotionally impactful in global reporting, and frames the conflict as disproportionately affecting children.  They also disproportionately report deaths of fighting-age men.  This evidence says that many fatalities classified as civilians may actually be active combatants.  They also include natural deaths.  Despite the typical annual rate of 5,000 natural deaths in Gaza, such practice inflates the civilian death toll.  Then there is the media underreporting of combatant deaths.  The omission creates a skewed narrative that portrays all casualties as civilians, thus shaping public opinion and international policy based on manipulated data.

In conclusion, the report says:

“Global media outlets have, understandably, focused on the number of deaths in Gaza as a lens of critique of Israeli operations.  Many media outlets give the proviso that the Gaza Ministry of Health is Hamas-run, but few give the same level of attention to IDF reports of the number of fighters killed as part of the overall Israeli fatality total.  Nor do media outlets give the methodology, reporting, or content of the lists of names the scrutiny they deserve.”

“A definitive figure of fatalities is impossible due to the lack of transparency from the Ministry of Health (MoH), a general lack of access to the Palestinian Population Registry, and the challenges of counting militants killed in combat.  However, this report finds numerous errors that cannot be explained by a lack of access to the Ministry of Health computer network that went offline in November 2023.”

“We have identified distortion of statistics, misreporting of natural deaths, deaths from before the war started, and a high likelihood of combatant deaths being included on the list.  This report also challenges the assumption that MoH fatality reports from previous conflicts are reliable and reveals evidence of efforts to hide militant fatalities.  We also identify critical differences in the demographic breakdowns reported by the MoH and the Hamas Government Media Office.”

Given the Fox report, it is not hard to surmise that Hamas lies about everything.  They exist on a false premise.  Their actions are murderous.  They will resort to anything to pursue their goal.  Sympathizing Canadians must become aware of the horrible truth.

 

Hon. Pierre Poilievre Dec. 16, 2024

Hon. Pierre Poilievre Dec. 16, 2024

The media is full of the unfolding chaos for the Liberal government in Ottawa.  In the minority Parliament, the deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister resigned her position.  The overdue financial report suddenly had no Minister of stature to deliver the traditional speech supporting the scheduled statement.  After much consternation, it was simply tabled in the Commons chamber.  Sadly, it revealed a much worse financial picture than anticipated, including a monstrous record-breaking deficit.  The media is full of commentary on the instability of this government, as well as economic analysis.

However, what won’t be reported is what I reveal here.  The Leader of the Official Opposition rose in response to the report tabling, and gave an amazing impromptu speech without notes, that accurately reflects the view of most Canadians.  These words are more important than all the talking heads growling in the legacy media.

Hon. Pierre Poilievre (Leader of the Opposition, Conservative Party of Canada) 

Mr. Speaker, I must admit that I am shocked to be rising in the House of Commons to announce this government's deficit.  Usually, the Liberals would be the ones to announce the deficit in their economic update.  However, they came to the House of Commons to table an economic update without even wanting to give a speech about it.  They do not even have a finance minister who is brave enough to talk about it.  He is hiding at Rideau Hall rather than doing his job.

There were three finance ministers today.  The former minister of finance and deputy prime minister stepped down.  Right after that, the Minister of Industry automatically became the finance minister under cabinet's system of delegation.  He immediately announced that he, too, was resigning because he did not want to take responsibility for the country's finances given what he had just learned about them.  The Minister of Public Safety, who was responsible for securing our broken borders in light of the U.S. president-elect's tariff threats, has now become the Minister of Finance.

However, he is nowhere to be found.  His whereabouts are a great mystery.  What is no longer a mystery, however, is the staggering size of the deficit.  We were promised that the federal deficit would not surpass the $40-billion guardrail.  The reality is that the deficit has reached $62 billion.  That is 55% higher than promised eight months ago.  It is out of control.

I will give the former finance minister credit for seeing, a few months ago, just how dangerous this government's deficit was.  It was threatening to increase inflation, slowing interest rate cuts, jeopardizing our social programs and slowing our economic growth.  That is why she said there would be a red line to prevent the deficit from going beyond $40 billion.  It was a guardrail.  Guardrails prevent buses from falling off cliffs.

Then the Prime Minister took the wheel.  He pulled to the left.  He hit the guardrail.  The bus is now falling off the cliff and is at the bottom of the ravine in a big pile of debt that threatens the future of Canadians.  That is why, today, we are announcing that we are going to vote against this plan.  We are calling on the NDP do its job, for once, and vote in favour of a non-confidence motion on this out-of-control, corrupt and costly government.  We need an election.  That is what we need.

Here is an astonishing fact.  My grandfather came to Canada from Ireland.  Why?  Because Ireland was poor.  Today, Ireland is twice as rich as Canada.  It has a GDP per capita of $100,000.  Ours is $50,000.  Although they have no oil or natural resources and lack the huge advantage of living next to the United States, which has the largest economy in the world, the Irish are now twice as rich as we are because they made good decisions.  I was told that there are only two kinds of people in the world: Irish people and people who want to be Irish.  From an economic perspective, that is true.

Ireland reduced taxes, cut the red tape to speed up big projects, and opened its economy to give entrepreneurs economic freedom and to reduce the size of government.  The Government of Ireland costs 23% of the country's economy.  Here, it costs more than 40%.  When the Irish government was cut in half, the wealth of its citizens doubled.

We know what to do.  We need to break down all the barriers that governments have put in place.  We need to cut back on bureaucracy, consultants and corporate nonsense, which is a big waste of money.  We need to reduce deficits and taxes, eliminate red tape, and allow freedom of competition and open-mindedness.  This will let us generate bigger paycheques that people will bring home to invest in their communities.  That will let us lower inflation and taxes and have a dollar that keeps its value.

That is what we are going to do to fight the threat that future President Trump and his tariffs pose.  We are going to bring investment back to Canada to build things and to become the freest economy in the world and the richest people in the world.  That should be our goal.

Enough with the chaos, division, poverty, homelessness and misery caused by the NDP-Liberal socialist government.  Now we need to get back to the principle of common sense, the basic principle.  We are going to bring home the promise that anyone, no matter where they come from, can work hard and fulfill their dreams, that people can earn a big paycheque or pension so they can pay for affordable food and housing in a safe community.  That is what common sense means.  That is what we are going to do to put Canada first.

I rise today, flabbergasted by the news that has just been made public.  The government has finally revealed its true deficit number.  Let us remember, the finance minister, this outgoing and now former finance minister told the world that she was putting in place guardrails to limit the damage that her deficits could do.  Her deficit plan was $40 billion, a mind-bogglingly large number, that was already contributing to rekindling inflation, again.

This $40 billion was too big.  It was out of control, as it was.  However, at least to her credit, she said, “No more than that.”  She decided she would have a guardrail.  We know a guardrail is meant to stop vehicles from flying off cliffs.  She was trying throughout the year to avoid going off the cliff.

There were two people on the bus who had other ideas, the Prime Minister and carbon tax Carney.  The two of them went to the front of the bus, they grabbed the wheel, they pulled it sharply to the left, smashing into that guardrail, and she tried to resist.  They pulled even further to the left, and they stepped on the gas.  The bus flew off the cliff, and now Canadians are at the bottom of the ravine in a big pile of debt.

However, instead of taking responsibility, the Prime Minister told her that she should take all the blame.  That when the ambulances, the police cruisers and the fire department arrived, she should take the blame for running the bus off the cliff, and that carbon tax Carney and the Prime Minister could innocently sit back.  The Prime Minister could then put carbon tax Carney in charge of driving the next bus.  The good old boys in the back room would protect themselves and make the then-finance minister take all the blame.

It reminds us of the way they treated the former Attorney General, (Jody Wilson-Raybould) a brilliant and brave first nations woman who refused to kowtow to corruption.  It reminds us of the way the Liberals treated Jane Philpott and so many other brave women who have dared question the self-described feminist Prime Minister.  Indeed, some feminist he is, throwing the bus off the cliff and throwing women under the bus.  That is his real record.

His real record on finance is yet another $62-billion deficit.  For context, outside the current government, no government in the history of Canada has ever run a $62-billion deficit.  Not even in the nineties, when The Wall Street Journal said we were a third world basket case, and not even during the massive global economic crisis did the deficit come anywhere close to that, yet here we are.

With the global economy growing, with the American economy booming in stable times, this deficit is 100% at the feet of the irresponsible Prime Minister and his personal economic adviser, carbon tax Carney.  Now Carney says he does not even want the job of finance minister.  He does not even want to try to drive the crashed-out bus after he helped run it off the cliff.  The Liberals could not find anyone all day.  In fact, no one will appear today to defend this incredible disaster of a budget.

We can look at the consequences in human terms: We have 1,400 homeless camps in Ontario and 35 homeless encampments in Halifax alone.  Two million people are lined up at food banks.  Scurvy is making a comeback.  The government admits that one in four children is going to school hungry every single day.  Unemployment is rising and, according to the budget, expected to exceed 7% by the end of next calendar year.  The gap between per capita GDP in Canada and the U.S. is now 30,000 Canadian dollars, although it was equal 10 years ago.  This is the worst gap since at least the Second World War, and some say it is the worst gap in a century.

Canadian workers are only getting 55¢ of investment for every dollar an American worker gets.  A half a trillion Canadian investment dollars, which works out to almost a quarter of our economy, has left, net.  It has gone to the United States to build pipelines, factories, warehouses and business centres; Canadian investment dollars are paying American wages while our workers go starving for investment and for salaries to pay their bills.

When I travel across this country, I consistently meet two types of people.  There are those who are a little better off.  I will be very blunt about this.  They tell me that if I do not win, they will leave the country.  They are very numerous.  I do not worry about them as much.  Do members know whom I worry about?  I worry about the ones who cannot leave.  Using very blunt language, they are the ones who tell me, "I don't know what the hell I'm going to do.  I have no idea how I'm going to pay my way."

I met a waitress at a restaurant not long ago.  She came up to me, grabbed me by the hand and said that I have to win.  I thanked her and said that I appreciated her support.  She said, no, it was not a compliment.  Then she told me her story.  She was working one full-time job and two part-time jobs just to pay her bills.  This is a single woman in her late fifties, and she was tired of working all the time.  She had cut everything out of her budget, every creature comfort and everything she enjoyed about her life, so that she could drop one of those part-time jobs.  One morning, she woke up, walked outside and her car was gone.  She called her insurance, and they said they were not going to cover the replacement value.  She had to take that job back because she simply cannot live her life without a car.

Colleagues can bet their bottom dollar that the guy who stole the car was probably out on bail.  This was not his first job.  This woman's taxes and heating bill have gone up.  Her wages have not gone up.  She is scared to go out in the streets, in places where they did not even lock the door not long ago.  These are the people we are fighting for.

These silly games over here are very entertaining, as is the soap opera that everyone is seized with today.  That is all fine, but there are real people whose lives are on the line.  We have a duty to work for them.

Quite frankly, this woman does not see me or any of us as any kind of saviour.  They see us all as a last hope.  In fact, she does not want to be saved; she just wants her life back.  She was taking care of herself just fine before her tax, her heat and her grocery bill went through the roof and her car went missing.  She was doing everything right.

I met a guy at the Labatt brewery a few days ago, and members can watch the video of me talking with him.  He walked up to me and said he works three jobs, but his family cannot make it.  They are renting.  They have no hope.  They have given up on ever owning a home.  They can barely make it.  He said to me that he feels ashamed when he talks to his kids because they ask why he is never around and why they can never have a house.  He feels like a failure.

He did not fail.  He has been failed.  He has been robbed of the promise of Canada.  It was a very simple promise: If we worked hard, we got a good life.  It was not fancy or extravagant, but we got a house with a yard, where we could have kids playing safely.  We could have a nice dog that we could afford to feed, along with the kids.  Our kids could play safely in the streets.  That was the promise.

Politicians break promises all the time, but do we know what was bad about this promise?  This promise did not belong to the Prime Minister.  It was not his promise to break.  It belonged to all of us.  Our purpose is to bring home that promise for that young man, that young father, and that older female worker, so that they can take back control of their lives once again and live in a safe country where their hard work earns them a good wage, where the rent and food are affordable and where, when they go to bed at night, they know that they will be safe throughout their sleep and that they will have their car in their driveway in the morning.  Our purpose is to have a country where people are proud to fly the flag again, where they know that the government is a servant and not a master, and where they understand that the Commons, this place, works for the common people every day, not for the ego of one man desperate to cling to his job.

We must remember that we are servants in this place.  We have a job to do on behalf of the people who sent us here.  Our personal dramas are not important.  The dramas that should seize all of our concern and imagination are the daily dramas of the working women and men who build this country.  We are in it for them.  We are going to give them control of their lives back in the freest country on earth, Canada.  Let us bring it home.

 

HEIGHTENED ANTISEMITISM IN CANADA AND HOW TO CONFRONT IT

Internet Image Ottawa

HEIGHTENED ANTISEMITISM IN CANADA AND HOW TO CONFRONT IT, is a December 2024 Report of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights from the Canadian Parliament.  Such a Report with recommendations for action was issued for significant social reasons.

The daily news cycle has reported hate and violence in Europe, Canada, and the USA, often on university campuses or in central-city public spaces.  Open democracies have been exploited by the dark side, where freedoms have become license for harm, and free speech is used as a cover for hate speech.

The Parliamentary Report opens with its rationale.

“Antisemitism in Canada has reached a crisis point. Jewish schools, community centers, and synagogues are being targeted by gunshots and Molotov cocktails. Swastikas are openly displayed, while mezuzahs are torn from the doorways of Jewish residences. Chants glorifying terrorist violence against Jews are heard on streets and campuses, without consequence. Jewish students are afraid to go to class. This crisis has emerged within a broader context of rising hate towards several minority groups, set against the backdrop of resurgent geopolitical tensions, the growing force of extremism online, and other polarizing forces. The common threads linking these bigotries cannot be ignored. And yet, antisemitism in Canada today is a distinct and especially pernicious form of hate—one that calls for its own, carefully tailored response.”

https://www.ourcommons.ca/content/Committee/441/JUST/Reports/RP13248912/441_JUST_Rpt27_PDF/441_JUST_Rpt27-e.pdf

Lengthy testimony was recorded from witnesses at three formal hearings on Parliament Hill, where experts, university students, representative organizations, and university administrations provided their experiences and advice.

The Committee’s report is welcome news for all Canadians, as Parliament is hearing Canadians in a specific manner, focussed on actual legal and social improvements to respond to the antisemitic challenge.

The Minister of Finance the Honourable Chrystia Freeland was urged for the next Federal Budget to include funding for programs to help the work of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) on antisemitism literacy on Canadian campuses.

One of the Report recommendations went to the local school level, that Governments should develop a strategy to equip students with an understanding of IHRA.

A needed review and coordination of funding programs in varied government departments was noted to ensure that broad access definitions do not permit subversive use, such as was cited where some grants given through the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) were misused to spread antisemitic propaganda.

The Parliamentary Report acknowledged that Zionism and Jewish indigeneity to the Land of Israel are inseparable from Jewish identity.

The B’nai Brith organization has developed a Policy for Counting Antisemitism on Campus (PCAC) to help universities respond to antisemitic incidents.  They would like to see institutions incorporate their work into the University policy frameworks.

Terrorist organizations pose significant threats not only globally but also within Canada.  Terrorist organizations have been directly or indirectly involved in activities that endanger Canadian citizens, promote violence, and spread extremist ideologies. Consequently, there needs to be concerted leadership from government to prevent the further spread of antisemitism on Canadian campuses.

B’nai Brith Canada says, “Canada has increasingly become a target for the importation of extremist ideologies and the exportation of terror from within its borders. Lax immigration policies and insufficient monitoring of individuals who promote or participate in extremist activities have allowed foreign hate groups to spread their ideology within Canada. This influence often extends into educational institutions, community organizations, and even political movements, undermining Canadian values and endangering the safety of Canadian citizens. At the same time, weak enforcement has permitted the exportation of radicalization and terror activities abroad. Strengthening laws and border security to prevent the import and export of hate and terror is critical for ensuring the safety of Canadians and preserving Canada’s values of tolerance and respect.”

“The current legal framework in Canada does not fully address the growing threat of hate speech and hate-motivated violence in public spaces. Loopholes in the Criminal Code, such as lenient penalties for hate-motivated crimes and the ability to conceal identity through mask-wearing at protests, have allowed individuals to evade accountability while engaging in harmful and illegal activities. Amending the Criminal Code to strengthen measures against all forms of hate-motivated offences will provide law enforcement with better tools to prevent and address these behaviours. By closing these gaps, Canada can more effectively combat hate and uphold the values of tolerance, safety, and respect for all its citizens.”

Image from Noble Horizons

In the past, I have been very critical of the mantra “Diversity-Equity-Inclusion” in the marketplace.

https://www.westernstandard.news/opinion/forseth-diversity-equity-inclusion-and-the-sleep-of-reason/article_4491ac8c-51c3-11ee-9c74-b7bade940d16.html

Now, as major corporations scale back their diversity, equity, and inclusion internal training programs, it's becoming increasingly evident that public sentiment is shifting against DEI. This is a clear sign of the growing awareness and critical thinking in our society.

The survey asked “When companies hire people, it is important for employers to take their cultural background (e.g., racial status / visible minority) into account”. – Yes Canada 28%  Yes United States 36%, and No Canada 57% and No United States 46%  Don’t know Canada 15% Don’t know United States 18%.

The trend is a growing awareness of disfavour in both Canada and the USA.  Despite millions spent on promotion as well as policy coerciveness, the subsequent evidence of application is socially negative.

https://acsmetropolisca-wpuploads.s3.ca-central-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/02152628/Equity-Questioned.pdf

New York Times Dec. 5, 2024 published how the University of Michigan has seen their policy error concerning their Diversity, Equity, Inclusion doctrine. The decision to end the practice of diversity statements was a watershed moment in higher education.  The University had originally championed diversity statements in the USA, but now it will represent a milestone in the movement to roll back this misguided practice, a clear victory for academic freedom.

Unfortunately, DEI remains central to Canada’s federal employment policy, particularly under the Employment Equity Act. It is part of the deep structural sickness of how the political left has infected general government operations. It is part of the deep malaise that is the consequence of the NDP-Liberal administration. The federal act mandates specific requirements for the degree of representation of women, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, visible minorities, and gender expression in the workforce before actual merit of performance or verified qualifications and credentials.

Most interestingly, the new Leger Marketing survey indicates that about 50% of Canadian participants who identify as immigrants, disagree that it is important for employers to consider their cultural background for advantage when hiring.

DEI is slick and deceptive. Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is a corporate concept that aims to create a welcoming environment that fosters better performance and employee morale. However, DEI training, which is defined as intentional ideological re-education, is causing significant harm. It identifies unconscious bias and then delivers the medicine that inculcates thought change, which is indeed a cause for concern. (scary)

On Monday November 25, the world's largest retailer, Walmart, rolled back its Diversity-Equity-Inclusion policies, joining other corporations that have done the same. It took a while for common sense and general public awareness to catch up to the insidious doctrine that formerly was a huge fad in the corporate training and consulting businesses. Fortunately, it is now relatively easy to find critical evaluation and deeper scrutiny on the follies of this cultural Marxism.

In the USA, we observe that Molson Coors, Ford Motor Co., John Deere, Lowe's, Harley-Davidson, Brown-Forman, Tractor Supply Co., Toyota Motor Corp., Caterpillar Inc., Boeing Co., and others have publicly announced the error of their ways. They have wasted millions and hurt their employees.

What had sounded reasonable in theory became the back door of opportunity for discriminatory Marxism dressed in 2025 clothes to poison the social landscape. Yet to the political lefties, the federal Government’s commitment to DEI in hiring is regarded as an important outcome in achieving government socialist goals, and is also often required among employers that hope to have contractual relationships with the Government. Nevertheless, there is pushback on the DEI dogma as the consequences sink into the general public awareness.

Equity was the foundation for ‘diversity’ and ‘inclusion’, as it claimed to identify systemic barriers to employment and rectify society through sometimes harsh and discriminatory means against unrepresentative hierarchies. Fair, defensible processes were torqued to produce artificial ideal outcomes that would align with mistaken ‘beliefs’.

DEI would not be a hotly contested part of the national discourse if it had not seen an exponential surge during the Black Lives Matter movement and similar ‘groupthink’ outrages. ‘Trainers’ and consultant entrepreneurs saw an opportunity to sell ‘old snake oil’ (worthless elixir) in trendy packages, which used cultural guilt preaching to reap fat consulting and training contracts from companies that were bilked for millions through both ‘shaming and enlightenment’.

Inequity, taken to its extreme, prompted many organizations to overreact to their own newly discovered internal inequality. But since operational reality has hit back, corporations with lots of ‘training money’ are retreating. Even as DEI investment has dwindled, debate about it keeps developing.

HR professionals try to push back and say the idea of a ‘DEI hire’ is a misrepresentation of their work. They claim that HR professionals are trained to hire the best candidate for the job. But they also admit that they discriminated to build a diverse slate of candidates to fit their bias of theoretical ideal outcomes. While they deny they work from a quota, or hire based on one aspect of identity, they repeat the well-documented doublespeak style of Marxism.

The significant lie from lefties is that in the long run, non-cooperating businesses risk organizational and ethical costs. Employees who are enthusiastic about DEI's goals will be disinclined to work for employers that don’t share their values, and businesses will miss out on the gains of supporting an equitable workforce. Without evidence, it is also claimed that enterprises with greater gender and ethnic diversity on their leadership teams are more likely to outperform less diverse companies financially.

The DEI movement spawned an entire industry of people who made big money being advisors, coaches, and marketing gurus, to learn the art of sly discrimination in the name of ending discrimination. DEI's hurtful bias leads to employment morale issues. In too many cases, the DEI candidate hired is not up to the job, which can result in an inferior customer experience or something dangerous in faulty products.

To cover themselves in virtue, DEI programs falsely associate with traditional historical ‘influences’ to help veterans and hire people with disabilities, pregnant women, and working parents for support. Wise businesses did not need the opportunistic late-comer DEI preachers to scold and train for new levels of discrimination. Every corporation has non-discrimination policies and generally polices itself fairly well to promote true innovation.

In the wake of legislative ‘rights’ that affronted against DEI programs, many organizations were faced with challenging questions about where to go with their DEI work. Leaders and shareholders are concerned over potential legal actions. In retrospect, too many good employees were harmed.

In response to these fears, some organizations have taken the approach of re-naming their DEI efforts with rebrands such as ‘Belonging’, ‘Employee Experience’, or ‘People and Culture’, Unconscious bias training, ‘Environmental Social governance’ (ESG) Training, Sustainability training, or ‘Inclusive Excellence’ as some of the variants. It is thought-reform, and is a social poison that is not harmless for anyone. Its purpose is to change who you are into an ideological construct.

However, employees forced to take the training are learning how to fight back. However, it is noted that the longer an ideology takes hold, the harder it is to fight back successfully, as is the story of the Soviet Union, or Putin’s Russia, Communist China, North Korea, Iran, Venezuela, and other ‘socially controlled’ environments.

Legal defenses can arise against diversity initiatives that blatantly include quotas or specific numeric goals for representation. In the face of these legal challenges, one must be aware of why and how these initiatives exist in an organization.

The big lie is the claim that guilt-based re-education is to improve the working lives of everyone, especially those at the margins of society.  Joseph Stalin said the same thing.

My point is that good ideas and freedoms matter and that we must defend and protect our political and social systems if we want to preserve their benefits. Groupthink contests and disputes favour those good at evoking emotion to win arguments.  I think it just took a long time for the opposition forces to understand how this works and respond rightfully.

 

Last Eras Tour Concert - Taylor Swift

Internet source Scott Eisen/TAS23/Getty

Taylor Swift's 'Eras Tour', a title that signifies the different phases of her career and the evolution of her music, became a cultural phenomenon as it spanned 149 shows across the globe for nearly two years. The tour was structured to showcase the distinct eras of Swift's music, from her country beginnings to her pop and more recent indie-folk influences. It finally ended Sunday December 8, 2024 in Vancouver BC. Swift's loyal fandom travelled from around the world to sold-out stadiums, where Taylor performed for about 3½ hours each night in a slick choreography of song, costume and lights.

The ‘Swifties' fans traded friendship bracelets and dressed in tribute costumes, and sometimes were so overwhelmed by the show that they had brief post-concert emotional trauma.

The multi-platinum, Grammy-winning artist took over the sold-out 65,000 BC Place on December 6, 7, and 8, but the show’s impact on the city goes far beyond the performances.

More than half of Eras Tour ticketholders were from outside the Vancouver area, including Bellinghamsters crossing the border from Washington State and some flying across the country for the concerts. City hotel rooms were sold out. The City Administration went into full security mode, blocking some streets and fully mobilizing police, security, and emergency response personnel. Fortunately, there were no reported incidents.

The Vancouver's Gastown steam clock temporarily changed its tune to "Shake it Off" and will play every 15 minutes until December 13.

The vibe at the Eras Tour was designed to be all about kindness, camaraderie, creativity, and catharsis. It was a safe emotional 'time-out' amid the reality of a stressful life. The object of worship was in the middle of the floor at BC Place—awash in glitter sequins and rhinestone bodysuits.

The political and social conditions that made the Eras Tour a memorable historic international phenomenon will inevitably fade. However, Taylor Swift and her cadre of 'Swifties' have demonstrated another mode of creating temporary joy amid distress. Some report that the songs and lyrical language have helped them through a dark time. The evolution of her songs over the years revealed her emotional life, which gave intimacy to her music and cultivated a feeling of closeness for her fans.

The cultural impact of Taylor Swift is explained at length at

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_impact_of_Taylor_Swift

Her leadership and ‘show-down’ bargaining on behalf of other performers to be properly compensated by promoters changed the industry. Displaying strength and resolve, she re-recorded several albums to gain legal control of her music -the Taylor Versions. The biggest concert series in history closes in her style -Taylor Version TV (Toronto-Vancouver).

Corporate America showed what it could manufacture with the latest technology of lights, sound, and stagecraft spectacle, all computer-timed and finessed to touch the emotions with the image of a personal icon.

The Eras Tour has broken numerous records. It was the first tour to gross over $1 billion. By the time the tour ended, it was expected to surpass $2 billion in sales, which do not include the millions made on the resale market.

We had ‘Beatlemania’ and now we have ‘Swiftymania’. The host cities of Toronto and Vancouver, which hosted six shows last month, brought hundreds of millions of dollars in economic activity to Canada. Swift was named Time Magazine’s Person of the Year, and Apple Music named her its Artist of the Year. Spotify revealed that she was the most streamed artist globally.

Yet such an event is bound to attract an unseemly side of human nature. The planner's decision to perform in Singapore but not in neighboring countries caused a brief diplomatic pout in Southeast Asia. In August, the tour was forced to cancel in Vienna because of an ISIS terrorist threat. In Germany, police arrested a 34-year-old man accused of stalking and threatening Swift and her boyfriend, Travis Kelce.

What could top the Eras Tour is anyone’s guess, but it will surely be remembered as a cultural remembrance marker, on par with ‘Woodstock’ or ‘Beatlemania’.

Vancouver had two of those markers, recalling the August 31, 1957, Elvis Presley concert at Empire Stadium, his last performance outside the U.S., and then the Beatles concert crowd stampede at Empire Stadium on August 22, 1964.

The Swift juggernaut has connected with millions from almost every culture, where at the personal level, there can be positive vibes between ‘besties’, mother-daughter adventure, and a happy time-out.

The concerts will be forever a “remember when”.

Blessed are Canada's young, for they shall inherit the national debt

Blessed are Canada's young, for they shall inherit the national debt

Most provinces have combined government debt burdens that exceed the size of their entire economies

After decades of balanced budgets, British Columbia's indebtedness has increased sharply over the last four years and now threatens its credit rating. Writer Paul Forseth points out that BC is not alone: Citing a Fraser Institute study, he points out that combined federal and provincial government debt in seven provinces has surpassed the value of all goods and services produced in those provinces — a dangerous development. Above, in a stunt earlier this year, Carson Binda, B.C. director for the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, parks the CTF's Debt Clock truck outside Premier David Eby's Vancouver-Point Grey constituency office to drive home the point.  Canadian Taxpayers Federation

 

The combined federal and provincial government debt in seven provinces has surpassed the value of all goods and services produced in those provinces. As revealed by a new study published by the Fraser Institute, this not only impairs economic growth but also directly impacts our daily lives and living standards.

Author Jason Childs says, “When government debt grows so high that it is larger than the entire value of the economy, not only does additional debt offer no benefit to growth, living standards stagnate.”

The study found that when government debt is above 100% of the Gross Domestic Product, further debt does not help to grow the economy. Justin Trudeau's frequently used phrase, "We are investing in Canadians," is an excuse that no longer covers wasteful mismanagement and massive deficit spending.

In fact, high levels of government debt crowd out private investment, which means that the government's borrowing reduces the amount of funds available for private investment. This, in turn, raises interest rates and drives inflation, which reduces economic growth and the standard of living for everyone.

Only British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and Alberta had combined federal and provincial government debt levels below 100%. However, there is great concern about BC's recent downward financial spiral. The Fraser Institute reports also notes that "Manitoba had the highest combined debt-to-GDP level, at 141.4%, followed closely by Quebec, at 141.3%."

We must understand the impact of enormous government debt burdens on our living standards. Policymakers must prioritize balancing their budgets and paying down debt, as this is the key to spurring more significant economic growth for the benefit of all Canadians. In contrast, deficit economics is a dream killer in the current economic cycle.

Finally, given the direct relationship between public debt and economic growth reflected in the unemployment rate, interest rates, and the cost of living, the additional debt accrued by governments has led to slow growth.

Canada has significantly fallen behind the development of even the poorest states in the USA. Deficits and accumulated debt make the burden more costly for governments and hinder the ability to provide healthcare, public safety, pensions, and the many services Canadians expect. The habit of borrowing more just to pay the interest on the money borrowed last year has consequences.

The wise and rational way forward is at the ballot box. Canadians must protect themselves from the financial miscreants.

Poor Karina Gould MP... she still believes in the Trudeau program

Poor Karina Gould MP... she still believes in the Trudeau program

On the other hand, she still has Harper derangement syndrome

If one wonders what the Liberal Party thinks about Leadership and the next election, their House Leader Karina Gould revealed it, when Liberal pundit David Herle sympathetically interviewed her on his podcast.

Their fantasy plan is to govern until the 45th Canadian federal election, which Liberals say will likely be October 27, 2025. Trudeau will lead and won’t be replaced. The Liberal Caucus are believers, for sensible Canadians appreciate all the good things the Liberal government has done. Canadians should also be reminded, just how fearful everyone should be about how Conservatives will destroy the Liberal dream.

Liberal House Leader Karina Gould, at 37 years old, appears to have ‘Liberal brain dysfunction.’ She admits still having Harper derangement syndrome.

Gould believes the myths about Harper taking away Canadians' rights. She still talks about “fighting climate change” as a top priority, even when Canadians know better. She has the naïve notion that as Trudeau leads in the election next fall, the government will survive despite the polls because elections matter. She oozes arrogant smugness that her Liberals have delivered beneficial government. She promotes the myth that Canadians should fear Pierre Poilievre, for he will cut away everything the wonderful Liberals have accomplished.

She comes with a ‘Liberal brain’ naturally, as a product of Liberal party education, being a Liberal Party Youth and a devotee of the Liberal version of Canadian history, such as the fawning over the legacy of Prime Minister Lester Pearson.

She still laments Prime Minister Harper’s accomplishments. “Imagine if Harper hadn’t ripped up those child-care deals, the Kelowna Accord, and opted out of the Kyoto Protocol, how much further ahead Canada would have been.” Thus she reveals the classic Liberal brain fog. And she has a Masters Degree!

After handling a couple of other ministerial portfolios, and now as Liberal leader of the government in the House of Commons, she says she manages the daily business of the House, decides the legislative agenda, is the Liberal coach of question period, and determines which Minister answers what questions.

She liaises and negotiates with the other party house leaders, Conservative Andrew Scheer, Bloc Alain Therrien, and NDP Peter Julian. She is the Liberal representative on the Commons Board of Internal Economy.

She concludes that the current impasse in the Commons is all the Conservatives' fault for gamesmanship. She would never admit that the un-redacted documents that Parliament has summoned and has an absolute right to have, might incriminate the government.

The government says it “cares," yet it has long talked about distractions and has not focused on what voters really care about. Most people in Western countries are not particularly concerned or worried about policies to address climate change. They dwell on more tangible things like affordability, the government's role in it and access to quality healthcare. The government has not been concentrating on matters directly affecting people's daily lives.

Despite what pollsters say, Gould says they are not going to turn away from who they are as a government, so their climate change policies will continue. However, she boasts about their financial incentives for new housing and the dental plan assistance for seniors.

Meanwhile, Canadians are worried about paying the rent, the mortgage, and the groceries.

The Liberals will continue the carbon tax because they believe it is a good policy. She still uses the dishonest phrase “a price on pollution.” (Carbon dioxide is what plants need to live and produce oxygen. It is not pollution.)

However, Canadians don’t think the green mandates are wise. It is impossible to make people believe that they pay money to the government and then get back more than they paid.

The carbon tax is a disincentive penalty fine for buying the wrong product, and thereby, it is intended for customers to buy more environmentally correct choices to green the planet. The Liberals provided rebate transfers directly to people to make the Liberals look good. They also were determined not to give the carbon tax as transfers back to the provinces “so that Doug Ford could build more highways or Jason Kenny build more coal plants.”

She believes Justin Trudeau should lead the Liberals into the next election because Pierre Poilievre is so scary. She said that even as contemptible as Harper was, he managed to keep the more extreme members of his party under the wing.

In contrast, Pierre Poilievre came to prominence directly because of extreme elements within the conservatives, and he is actually one of them. She says Canada needs an experienced leader who has successfully steered the country through some tough times and has the “energy and ability to fight for the Canada we need in the world.”

Despite the dismal polls, Gould believes that elections matter. During the next campaign, Trudeau will make the case for the Liberal vision. She deflects that people are not really paying attention right now to how dangerous and extreme the Conservatives are.

She says the choice in the next election will be clear. She consequently signals by inference that the Liberals will launch a smear campaign against Poilievre and the Conservatives in the election. She is hoping for a repeat of the miracle political change of 2015. “We have something good to offer,” she says. She believes the Liberals will have the best competitive plan to reveal to Canadians during the election.

Her theme was that Canadians must value Trudeau while learning to fear Poilievre. Gould claims Conservatives have a hidden agenda. The social conservative wing of the Conservative Party is to be loathed and feared. She says that Poilievre can’t do anything inconsistent with the radical social conservative wing, for they will "take him out," just like they did to Leader Erin O'Toole.

In her biased view, Poilievre will seriously change Canada as we know it. He will cut government programs and services. “It is going to be slash and burn in a way we haven’t seen before.” Poilievre will also be a threat to democracy. “He is all in, on taking peoples rights away”.

She is proud of their policies: "The legacy of our government, and history will be kind to us, is that we are building a more inclusive Canada that is enabling a more equitable society for all of us.”

“It is very satisfying to see people benefit from the law and policies we put in place."

Reflecting upon what she said and how she rationalized, it truly is derangement syndrome.

 

At our peril, we ignore the spiritual side of politics.

 At our peril, we ignore the spiritual side of politics.

Immigrants to Canada from Great Britain and France brought their Christian traditions and values, which made the supremacy of God an unspoken assumption in Canadian government. Here, "Where there is no vision, the people perish," taken from the Book of Proverbs Chapter 29, verse 18, is engraved upon the West window of the Peace Tower. We can lament that what the Bible says about politics is little regarded, to our detriment.

Canada recently held elections in BC, Saskatchewan, and New Brunswick and will hold elections in Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, and Labrador later this year. A federal election is nominally scheduled for October 27, 2025.

Observing these contests shows that we live in a political environment where facts no longer seem to matter.

The non-conservative political left has taken lying to such an extreme, that it appears like the Soviet zones of the 1950s, where no one believed or trusted anyone and where truth was most often entirely opposite for public conversation and the television news. This is the 'dark side' of politics, a realm of deceit and manipulation.

We understand that war does not end when it seems to end. Evil motives remain. For example, the Cold War seemed to end in victory for the free enterprise west, but we see the ideological war continue. The political left in Canada still spouts cultural Marxism. This hurtful ideology critiques and seeks to coercively mold society's cultural, political, and economic structure, but disguised in 2025 clothes.

DEI — diversity, equity and inclusion — are innocent words, but when applied by the lefties, they become the opposite. My main point is that voters should recognize at the deepest level, the political world is in an ongoing spiritual war. Relentlessly, evil strives to extinguish the good.

Remember that the ancient patriarchs fought against evil, the old prophets of Israel called out evil, and the law mitigated against evil. When God Himself later came to provide redemption for the souls of His creation, evil confronted and offered alternatives and made temptations from what the dark side could give.

The Bible itself says: “The devil took Jesus up on a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory splendor, magnificence, and excellence of them; and he said to Him, “All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me.”

Then Jesus said to him, “Go away, Satan! For it is written and forever remains written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.” Matt 4: 8

Jesus never said that Satan was not capable of giving Jesus the Kingdoms of the world. Apparently in some sense they were his to give. However, Satan is only defeated by the Holy Spirit and Christians who have that Spirit living in them. Evil cannot give what it does not possess or control.

This explains why the politics of this world tends to slide to the dark side. Unless great effort is made to defend the good and to have right triumph over wrong, the eternal contest between good and evil spirals downward.

The literature clearly explains the darker motivations of politics and where the negative energy and motivation come from. “We’re not waging war against enemies of flesh and blood alone. No, this fight is against tyrants, against authorities, against supernatural powers and demon princes that slither in the darkness of this world, and against wicked spiritual armies that lurk about in heavenly places.” Eph 6:12

However, evil keeps returning in economic and social forms in our political society with the deceptive covering of new clothes. So, do we have the spiritual sensitivity and maturity to recognize the varied shapes of evil that keep arising? Do we deeply understand the inner motivations of the tempters? We observe behaviours, unexplainable actions, and coincidences, but do we recognize their dark motivation? Do we understand why humankind is so treacherous with betrayal?

Canada has international enemies. They have openly declared themselves in proceedings at the United Nations. We sometimes even hear them from a protester's microphone in our streets. A relentless dark energy is bent on social and societal disturbance and discord. At the deepest level, the Canadian political contest is spiritual, arising from evil motives and energy waging a war against peace in one’s heart, order in family and social life, and good and wise governance.

Peace, order, and good government are meaningful to Canadians. This tripartite motto defines Canadian values in a way comparable to "liberté, égalité, fraternité” (liberty, equality, fraternity) in France or “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” in the United States.

War does not end when it ends. Evil dark motives endure to be politically and socially active. However, the written record repeatedly states that the light of God always defeats evil darkness.

Consequently, when we observe our Canadian elections, we see the inherent dangers of erroneous beliefs that become so rigidly fixed and defended, that even truth cannot penetrate it. Facts no longer matter.

Wisdom literature says: The intrinsically good man produces what is good and honourable and moral out of the good treasure stored in his heart; and the intrinsically evil man produces what is wicked and depraved out of the evil in his heart; for his mouth speaks from the overflow of his heart.

Out of the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. These things, should not be this way for we have a moral obligation to speak in a manner that reflects our fear of God and profound respect for His precepts. Does a spring send out from the same opening both fresh and bitter water? Can a fig tree, produce olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Nor can salt water produce fresh. Who among you is wise and intelligent? Let him, by his good conduct, show his good deeds with the gentleness and humility of true wisdom.

Righteousness, moral and spiritual integrity and virtuous character, exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people. Proverbs 14:34

Politics is the human struggle in the public forum. The wise will discern the deeper beliefs and motives of those who place themselves on the ballot.

At the deepest level, politics is spiritual. Are we equipped to face the challenge?

Tide is turning blue in BC

Tide is turning blue in BC

After years of woke-ism and political correctness, British Columbia's voters have had enough of the NDP.

As BC prepares for its October 19th election, the BC Conservatives continue to rise in popularity at the expense of the governing NDP.

Polling company Mainstreet posted yesterday that the BC Conservatives stand to win 48 seats with a likelihood of obtaining a majority government at 60%. The NDP stands at a projected 45 seats with a probability of obtaining a majority at 38%. The Greens are at 8.9% and might not elect anyone.

Pollster 338Canada has the BC Conservatives at 46% and the NDP at 44%.

Forty-seven seats are required for a majority; the analysis is that the leading parties are tied with a slight edge to the Conservatives.  I predict that the trend will continue, and the gap of the expanding Conservatives will widen over the lagging NDP.

A typical story for voters is that they have often voted NDP in the past, but this time, no. Their personal stories vary, but many recall being discriminated against, discounted, or observing cheating in their workplace and favouritism, all developed due to the cultural change arising from the NDP administrative philosophy that has filtered into the public service and the union shop.

Most do not follow the details of provincial politics and the weekly push-pull of competitive partisanship. However, there are some lasting general impressions of the current NDP government.  It appears as a general negative dark cloud about poor character.

The cost of everything has risen too fast.  Consequently, voters have hope for some relief by eliminating the ideological “carbon tax."  Voters understand that no matter how much the tax could rise, it will not change climate trends.  People are suffering the boomerang effect of the COVID-19 policies. They conclude that for now, there are more important priorities for basic living than paying outrageous penalty taxes for questionable climate outcomes.

There is social exhaustion from 'wokeism' and political correctness used by the federal Liberals and the NDP's Jagmeet Singh, and questions basic values and decency, symbolized by growing street crime and the debacle over “bail policy”. Despite the legislative retrenchment to respond to the national outcry over the consequences of the bail policy, the community evidence is still not seen as a sufficient response to street disorder, general public safety, and the mayhem around drugs.

The NDP record about street drug use, the so-called "safe supply," and the associated crime that comes with it is a negative mark on the government's character. The thought is that only a very ideologically bent politician would promote the radicalism that led to such degrees of community disorder.  The late flip-flop policy announcements by the NDP to respond are too little, too late, as the past record on street crime reflects deeply about who the government is in character.

Another character measure is the BC education policy, SOGI (Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity.)  It was a politically correct set of curriculum resource materials promoted by the education ministry.  When parents found out, they raised the alarm.  Thousands of Canadians turned out to protest gender diversity education in schools, and thousands also showed up for counter-protests in support of it.  SOGI became very divisive and a symbol of a top-down government-knows-best policy.

When parents began to wake up about the occasional gross excess that occurred with SOGI, the government doubled down, denying the problems and generally discounted the parental complaints. The whole episode was another measure for the public that the government leadership is of poor character. SOGI has become a symbol to voters of institutional ideological extremism, where children need to be protected from the government.

The NDP has traditionally wrapped itself in the blanket of “caring” and being a leader for healthcare. Again, on this file, the dismissal of healthcare workers because they objected to the unproven mRNA vaccine shots was a maneuver based on ideological belief rather than science.  When the NDP began to experience political backlash and negative polling, they ended their policy prohibitions for workers but added new rules, indicating they were unrepentant.

The provincial government's performance over COVID restrictions and its mismanagement of the healthcare system goes to character and trust for a government that presents itself as a healthcare champion and then devastates its own staff.  The reverberations are observed when hospital emergency rooms are closed across the province, and staff shortages occur in every region.  The delicate fragile system was needlessly disturbed by NDP ideology, and the bad outcomes are undeniable.  The whole healthcare subject has become another negative character mark of hypocrisy against the NDP.

The cost of housing is a topic everyone discusses, but solutions are not easy.  For several years, there has been a lot of rhetoric about what the government is doing or going to do, but not much improvement has been seen in the community.  The NDP recently announced a complicated social housing program to respond to needs.  If the program works, it will take years for people to be living in their new units. The amount of taxpayers’ money, $1.29 billion per year in financing, seems to be just another considerable giveaway scheme for the select few, and just one more socialistic NDP project of excessive cost for marginal benefit.

The general NDP attitude of envy and resentment eventually translated into an anti-business economic culture.  Although the details are not easily identifiable, the average voter knows that all is not well when government spending suddenly blooms into the uncontrolled red zone.

The NDP finance minister recently admitted that the provincial budget for 2023-2024 will likely run an $8.9 billion deficit and a debt of more than $129 billion.  So, economic stability and future progress are big issues.  They are borrowing a lot to pay the interest on the money they borrowed last year.  Voters know this is unsustainable, and the big red numbers go directly to the character of the government appearing profligate, untrustworthy, and irresponsible.

There are many personal stories about why voters are changing their traditional voting habits.  Voters are fed up and frustrated.  However, they now have a legitimate, viable choice that offers a return to normalcy with no extremism.  People have caught on, that the lefties who point out denialism and extremism for others, are in fact the real extremists.

BC socialists come face to face with reality on the carbon tax

Premier David Eby - NDP

BC socialists come face to face with reality on the carbon tax

The carbon tax started in BC and will end in BC. BC is only five weeks away from a provincial election, and the NDP government’s political fortunes have dramatically fallen. Desperate to appear to be the defender of the average person dealing with the devastating cost of living, Premier David Eby admits they will drop the carbon tax for consumers and shift the onus to "big polluters" if the federal government removes a legal requirement to keep the tax in place. 

This recent statement marks a significant shift from their previous staunch support for the carbon tax and their criticism of the BC Conservatives as "climate deniers." It seems the socialists have finally come face to face with reality.

Eby admits that residents are struggling with affordability, but a re-elected NDP government would make "big polluters" still pay to take action on climate change. There was no admission that carbon dioxide is a natural substance we breathe and is not a pollutant but necessary for life itself to survive on the planet. Their new scheme claims that the industry will still pay, but in reality, consumers will still pay some of the bill. The NDP keeps their myth of the climate change mitigation fairytale.

Eby says the federal government's approach to the carbon tax has "badly damaged" the political consensus on the issue. That is the slick rationalization that Pierre Poilievre has won the carbon tax debate with Canadians.

The BC Conservatives have pledged to end the carbon tax from the beginning. Consequently, in view of the polls, the NDP caved in. The economic devastation to average voters can no longer be denied.

Eby has always been a staunch supporter of the carbon tax. He previously said that the tax would stay in place even if the federal one was scrapped. Just a few months ago, they saw the challenge from the BC Conservative Party but felt comfortable that they would still win.

Despite the mounting pressure and the withdrawal of the BC United/Liberal Party, the NDP has remained steadfast in their defence of the carbon tax. However, the polls indicate that their position is now in jeopardy, and they may be heading towards a political defeat. Their once fervent rhetoric about climate change and the benefits of the carbon tax has evaporated.

In 2008, BC made history by becoming the first Canadian jurisdiction to implement a carbon tax under the previous BC Liberal government. Initially, it was a modest tax that aimed to be revenue-neutral by offsetting other taxes. However, when the NDP took over, the tax's true nature was revealed as it transformed into a "cash cow," with rates increasing in line with the federal carbon tax mandate. Notably, consumers in BC did not receive any rebates.

The federal Conservatives' push to end the carbon tax has been prominent. Poilievre again challenged to have a "carbon tax election." Consequently, it appears that the federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh has also caved on the tax, as he is facing two federal byelections in which the carbon tax is a big issue.

Singh’s way of wriggling out of his poor polling performance was to say that he wants to see an approach to fighting the climate crisis that doesn’t put the burden on the backs of working people. That is the primary point of both Conservative leaders Poilievre and Rustad from BC.

Deputy Conservative Leader Melissa Lantsman told the Western Standard, “No Canadian believes Sellout Jagmeet Singh for one second."

"Singh and the NDP have betrayed workers by voting for the carbon tax at least 24 times, making the cost of groceries, fuel, and home heating soar and forcing record numbers of Canadians to rely on food banks and live in homeless encampments," said Lantsman.

The federal carbon tax, also known as a price on carbon, came into effect at $20 per tonne in 2019. It has steadily climbed and is scheduled to rise from $65 per tonne to $80. It is scheduled to go up another $15 annually until 2030 when it reaches $170 a tonne.

The increases are meant to act as a financial incentive (penalty tax) for people and businesses to change their behaviour to burn less fossil fuel and transition to greener forms of energy such as electricity. A homeowner would be compelled to retrofit their home to save on heating, install a heat pump, or switch a gas-powered vehicle to an electric one.

There are many Western Standards articles about how the electrical grid cannot accommodate the mandated change schedule.

There are also two systems for pricing carbon in Canada: the fuel charge applied to consumers and another system applied to the industrial sector.

So, in both cases of policy reversal by the NDP, it is not administrative wisdom but rather polling that matters. The carbon tax hucksters have lost the debate in the public mind over the unrealistic punitive taxes meant to manipulate consumer behaviour.

BC. Conservative leader John Rustad says that Eby's reversal on the tax is a desperate attempt to salvage his sinking political ship. Eby is now campaigning against his own policy.

Singh also has felt the pressure. On September 16, there are two federal byelections: one in LaSalle—Émard—Verdun to fill the Quebec seat left vacant by the retirement of former Liberal cabinet minister David Lametti.

The second byelection is in Elmwood—Transcona to pick a successor for former Manitoba NDP MP Daniel Blaikie, who left federal politics to work with the provincial NDP government.

British Columbia goes to the polls on October 19.

In conclusion, BC Premier Eby is trying to duck the hated carbon tax by blaming the Feds. Yet previously he said ‘axe the tax’ was an idea from Poilievre and his ‘baloney factory’.  Who is making baloney now?  Jagmeet Singh has also backed down from his years of support of voting with the government to give Canada a carbon tax.  The whole mess is clear.  Conservatives both Federally and Provincially have won the carbon tax debate with Canadians, and it is reflected in the polls.