After Pierre Poilievre met with carbon tax protesters camped at the Nova Scotia border, Press Progress reported that some of the protesters had been "at events with 'Diagolon' influencers;" then CTV News claimed that they were "affiliated with ... the far-right group Diagolon;" then Justin Trudeau (see video) began calling them "members of Diagolon." Only one reporter bothered to visit the camp and ask the protesters.
April 26, 2024 - "Despite claims made by Press Progress and CTV News, protesters at the Nova Scotia and New Brunswick border have no connection to podcaster Jeremy Mackenzie’s fictitious meme country Diagolon. Justin Trudeau and some media corporations made the sensational claim after Pierre Poilievre visited a carbon tax protest while in between events in Atlantic Canada.... The protesters have been camped at Fort Lawrence, Nova Scotia, since Justin Trudeau hiked the carbon tax by 23% on April 1....
"Protest organizer Tommy Everett told True North in an interview that none of the approximately ten people who protest overnight at the camp support Mackenzie or have any connection to his fictitious country. 'Us being with Diagolon is just, grasping at soggy paper straws,' Everett said. 'Because they seen a drawing that somebody drew two or three years ago on the inside of a camper with numerous other signatures from people all over Canada.'
"He said the drawing of the flag ... was done in Ottawa during the Freedom Convoy. ''The person that owns the trailer was a mechanic at the Freedom Convoy. He had a diesel heater inside. So everybody (protesters) used that space to get warm while they were strolling up and down the streets,' he said. 'It was kind of a pop-in, you know, warm yourself up, get a cup of coffee, have a cookie, and then after you’re warm, continue on your way.' At the Freedom Convoy, it was popular for people to sign each other’s trucks, trailers, cars and flags....
"'That was the only time that (the person who drew the flag) stepped foot in the camper,' Everett said. 'They haven’t been in the camper since, nor have they been down here at any time. Since this protest has happened, they haven’t even stepped foot on the property nor the highway we’re protesting on.'
"Tommy said he was familiar with Mackenzie but hasn’t wanted 'anything to do with him' since he 'joked' about raping Poilievre’s wife. 'We don’t support the sexual assault of women. We support women being our equal counterparts. Anything that involves any kind of violence against anybody, we do not support,' he said. 'To reiterate, nobody here supports Jeremy. nobody at all.'
"The NDP aligned, Broadbent Institute funded, Press Progress’s report quoted from the Emergencies Act Inquiry which noted that law enforcement viewed Diagolon as a 'potentially dangerous organization.' The reporting did not include information from an 85-page investigative report co-authored by journalists Caryma Sa’d and Elisa Hategan, which found the Trudeau government and the legacy media reports overly relied on the same source of flawed information from the Canadian Anti-Hate Network, which receives funding from the Liberal government.
"Internal communications between Canadian officials showed they did not view Diagolon as an extremist threat or even an organized group were included in their report. The RCMP said Diagolon 'does not pose a criminal or national security threat'.... Canadian national security official Matthew Dejardins said 'Diagolon does not meet dictionary definitions of a group,' on March 16, 2022.
"When asked at the Public Order Emergency Commission, Tom Marazzo said Diagalon is a 'meme.' 'The vice president of Diagolon, being a time-travelling cocaine-addicted goat, that’s just an internet meme that has no meaning at all,' Marazzo said. At the inquiry, Mackenzie testified that the 'demonic goat figurine' is named Philip."
British Columbia's NDP government is asking Canada's Liberal government to recriminalize public drug use in the province, after its own attempt was suspended by a judge pending a constitutional challenge.
April 26, 2024 - "[T]he BC government is throwing up its hands at what it says are barriers to restricting where and how narcotics can be openly used in public — including hospitals and public health facilities. Jennifer Whiteside, BC’s minister for mental health and addictions, is meeting with her federal counterpart Ya’ara Saks in Vancouver on Friday, where she is reportedly asking the Liberal government to review exemptions that allow users to smoke meth in hospital rooms, among others. She’ll also reportedly be asking Ottawa to support more supervised drug consumption sites and request[ing] additional resources....
"BC’s NDP government faces increasing pushback from municipalities over open drug use in their communities. On Thursday, the City of Kamloops wrote a letter to Premier David Eby calling for the end of the three-year decriminalization pilot.... 'We want the same rules as smokers and drinkers have that we can enforce. This is just one more tool that we need,' wrote deputy mayor Bill Sarai.... He was joined by the mayor of Fort St. John, Lilia Hansen, who also called for an end to the program....'We don't want to stigmatize anyone, but we have to think about our entire community and their safety,' she said. 'I do not believe that the decriminalization is working.'
"But the provincial government says its hands are tied with respect to the decriminalization pilot that began on January 31 2023 because it falls under the Criminal Code. An attempt to pass laws to restrict open drug use in places such as beaches and public parks last November was suspended pending a Charter of Rights challenge to the Supreme Court.
April 18, 2024 - "Testifying before a House of Commons Health Committee in Ottawa, ... Fiona Wilson, president of the BC Association of Chiefs of Police and deputy chief of the Vancouver Police Department, told the committee on Tuesday [that] police were essentially powerless to stop drug use in hospitals because they aren’t exempted from public spaces like schools, airports and some types of playgrounds. 'When that happens, if it’s not in a place that’s an exception to the exemption, there is nothing police can do,” she said....
"The issue came to a head after nurses union members complained they are being exposed to fentanyl, crack and other illegal drugs from users who openly smoke them in their hospital rooms. Security staff complain that they’re not trained to deal with the problem, which is exacerbated by the fact many addicts also have weapons when they’re admitted.
"Wilson said police warned government officials before the policy was enacted in January, 2023. 'These are all things that we raised prior to decriminalization taking effect, that we don’t feel were adequately addressed, however we strongly support the notion of not trying to arrest ourselves out of this crisis. That is not going to save lives.'
"The BC government is trying to expand areas where open drug use is not permitted but is facing a court challenge from so-called ‘harm reduction’ advocates who argue it violates the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It’s essentially a federal issue because Ottawa had to allow the decriminalization from the Criminal Code at the request of a BC government that now finds its hands tied in the face of growing public opposition — and alarm — toward the policy." Read more: https://www.westernstandard.news/bc/half-of-illegal-street-narcotics-in-bc-from-safe-supply-cops-powerless-to-stop-drug-use-in-hospitals/53918
This past week, Justin Trudeau has been crossing the country warning about Pierre Poilievre's ties to something called "Diagolon". (For example, see video below, at 0:43-0:50). But how much do most Canadians know about Diagolon and its founder, Jeremy MacKenzie? Where can we learn more about them? No better place to start than this article....
September 19, 2023 - "The federal government believed Canadian Forces veteran Jeremy MacKenzie posed a threat to national security and media outlets labelled him as the leader of a dangerous militia group. But who is Jeremy MacKenzie, and is he just a comedian as he claims, or a security concern? MacKenzie’s supporters say he is a comedian known for his satirical and humorous takes on social and political issues and his controversial statements and actions are part of his comedic persona, rather than indicative of any real-world threats.
“'He's very good for morale,” said Dr. Matt Tucker, a military doctor who got to know MacKenzie when he was stationed on the same base.... 'He’s what we call a morale raiser. Not everybody's going to understand this kind of humour. Not everybody's going to appreciate it.' Likewise, Peter Kitto, a trauma counsellor for veterans, law enforcement, and emergency responders, and who is one of MacKenzie’s supporters, said his dark humour keeps many from putting a gun in their mouth....
"MacKenzie was a 15-year-old high school student when the airplanes crashed into the World Trade Center buildings in New York on 9/11. As he watched the terror unfold, that’s when he knew he wanted to join the army to protect his country.... At 17 he enlisted and by the age of 20 he was deployed to Afghanistan. He was an infantry non-commissioned officer and was with the elite Canadian Special Operations Forces Command.... Twenty-seven men were killed during MacKenzie’s deployment. Seven of them were his close friends....
"MacKenzie was stationed in Germany and the United Arab Emirates. He trained soldiers in Jamaica and participated in exchange programs with the U.S. Marines.... After 14-and-a-half years, Master Corporal MacKenzie retired from the military, a decorated soldier. He received the Sacrifice Medal, ... a general campaign star from the Afghanistan war and a Canadian Forces decoration for more than 12 years of service with a spotless record....
"After returning from combat, MacKenzie felt betrayed by the Canadian government and the Canadian Armed Forces for their treatment of veterans. That anger and rage is evident in his podcast under the name Raging Dissident. He jokes that listeners have to be f***** up to appreciate his humour.
"In 2020, MacKenzie came to Saskatchewan from Nova Scotia and had only planned on staying a couple of weeks but then COVID-19 lockdowns happened so he ended up living here for two to three years.... It was during this time that MacKenzie came up with the idea of ... 'Diagolon,' a fictitious country in a parallel universe and used it as an analytical commentary on current events and politics.
"He said he had noticed that Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Alaska, along with the Mid-Western states of Texas, Florida, South Dakota, formed a geographical diagonal line of states and provinces that resisted federal government-imposed mandates....'I kind of found it amusing that there was this kind of geographical divide,' he said.
"He then created the “Diagolon” flag on his cell phone and it became a symbol of his podcast. The vice-president of Diagolon was a cocaine-addicted, time-travelling goat named King Phillip. Diagolon was at war with 'Circulon.' Bees were bred to terrorize Diagolon’s enemies and a bee, Jeffrey, died in a kamikaze mission when he was swallowed by Doug Ford during a press conference. Diagolon had capital punishment. During game show hypothetical executions, in 'Dumpster Toss' someone is tossed from a tall building into a dumpster. Then there’s 'Torn Apart by Wolves' where the accused is put on an iceberg with hungry wolves. In 'Gun or Rope,' spectators get to choose between a firing squad or the gallows. The game show portions of MacKenzie’s podcasts ... were soon taken as 'evidence' that MacKenzie and Diagolon were promoting violence. MacKenzie, however, thought it was self-evident that Diagolon was a joke.
"It seems the RCMP didn’t perceive Diagolon as a group, a militia, or a security threat. 'Diagolon does not pose a criminal or national security threat,' said the RCMP. 'The Canadian Anti-Hate Network (CAHN) is cited as the main authority on the group by all mainstream media outlets; due to the fact that all information traces back to one source, triangulation and the verification of facts is almost impossible at the current time.'
"Before long, others not seeing that Diagolon was a joke became the joke, said investigative journalist and Ontario lawyer Caryma Sa’d. MacKenzie ... egged on the media to sensationalize Diagolon – and they took the bait. In November 2021, Jeremy circulated a group photo taken at a family barbecue in Viscount, Saskatchewan. The photo showed masked men with hunting rifles and the Diagolon flag.... MacKenzie posted it to social media and put “redacted” over everyone’s eyes.... He said he thought there was 'an outside chance' that someone in the media would take the photo, which they did and called it a militia training camp. 'No one's really interested in hearing my side of anything,' he said, adding that no media had ever called him to ask for his version. 'They just kind of played this crazy game of telephone. And it just got more and more insane as time went on.'
"And it did get more insane.... On Feb. 14, 2022, the federal government invoked the never-before used Emergencies Act largely because of Diagolon’s perceived threat to national security. After invoking the Emergencies Act, then Minister of Public Safety Marco Mendicino, told reporters: 'Several individuals at Coutts have strong ties to a far-right organization [ie, Diagolon] with leaders who are in Ottawa.'...
"Sa’d had attended the POEC inquiry and said that Diagolon seemed to play a big role in the use of the Emergencies Act. 'There were a number of factors that the commissioner identified as warranting the Emergencies Act but I do think (Diagolon) was a big part of it. Diagolon was a thread that appeared woven throughout.' Sa’d said that MacKenzie had never been to Coutts and wasn’t in communication with any of the accused leading up to their arrest.
"In fact, numerous videos played at the POEC inquiry showed MacKenzie urging all of his Diagolon fans to remain peaceful during the Freedom Convoy protests in Ottawa. At one point during the Freedom Convoy in Ottawa, MacKenzie said he became concerned about some individuals who could potentially become violent and he had called the RCMP to notify them, the inquiry heard. No one followed up on his concerns.
"In September 2022, a Canada-wide warrant was issued for MacKenzie’s arrest. He was arrested in Nova Scotia and flown back to Saskatchewan to face charges of assault, pointing a firearm, using a restricted weapon in a careless manner, and mischief. In August [2023], all of the charges were stayed in Saskatoon Provincial Court. MacKenzie believes that he was targeted and questions the timing of the charges being laid and flown to Saskatchewan on a national warrant. 'A lot of people's eyebrows were raised about that,” he said. 'And I was denied bail. Right? I have no record. And there's no reason to do this'....
"He said when he was arrested, the media acted like they had captured Osama bin Laden.... 'They flew me out to Saskatoon in ankle chains and wrist chains and belly chains on an RCMP flight with four or five cops like I’m Pablo Escobar,' said MacKenzie. 'It was crazy. And, you know, there was a stabbing, or killing at one of the clubs downtown in in Saskatoon where a woman killed another woman and she was out on bail the next day. It really felt like I was being treated a little differently than some other people.' It took two months before MacKenzie was finally granted bail....
"Kitto said that he spoke with MacKenzie several times while he was on remand at the Saskatoon Provincial Correctional Centre.... Kitto said that MacKenzie was falsely targeted as a white supremacist and housed with Indigenous street gangs. Kitto said white supremacy is so foreign to MacKenzie’s knowledge and experience.... Kitto said the term 'racist' is overused in today’s cancel culture and he doesn’t consider MacKenzie a racist. 'Everybody’s a racist. That’s the new tag right? If you have an opinion on something well you’re a racist. It’s just being created to divide'.
"When Dr. Tucker watched as the media portrayed MacKenzie as a terrorist and a security threat, he was flabbergasted. 'I thought it was a bit ridiculous. I was taken aback. I mean, listen, and can I say this? I'll be honest with you because I know you work for the media and I don't mean this to be offensive in any way, but I, like a lot of people who have been in the military, have not been a huge fan necessarily of the media at all times. But I never expected anything like that. You know what I mean? I just thought it was crazy. I was like, this isn't the person that I know'....
"Kitto said the media and the government needed a boogeyman and they found one in MacKenzie. 'It was just laughable,' said Kitto. 'It's just incredible to speculate that all these guys (Diagolon fans) have a hidden agenda, and they're just using humour to cover it up. Like, OK, where's the secret bases? Where's the training facilities? Where's the membership? It's just absolutely laughable. That's a joke in itself.'"
April 26, 2024 - "George Soros and his hard-left acolytes are paying agitators who are fueling the explosion of radical anti-Israel protests at colleges across the country. The protests, which began when students took over Columbia University’s Morningside Heights campus lawn last week, have mushroomed nationwide. Copycat tent cities have been set up at colleges including Harvard, Yale, Berkeley in California, the Ohio State University and Emory in Georgia — all of them organized by branches of the Soros-funded Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP).... The SJP parent organization has been funded by a network of nonprofits ultimately funded by, among others, Soros, the billionaire left-wing investor.
"At three colleges, the protests are being encouraged by paid radicals who are 'fellows' of a Soros-funded group called the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR). USCPR provides up to $7,800 for its community-based fellows and between $2,880 and $3,660 for its campus-based 'fellows' in return for spending eight hours a week organizing 'campaigns led by Palestinian organizations.' They are trained to 'rise up, to revolution.' The radical group received at least $300,000 from Soros’ Open Society Foundations since 2017 and also took in $355,000 from the Rockefeller Brothers Fund since 2019.... [USCPR] has three 'fellows' who have been major figures in the nationwide protest movement.
Nidaa Lafi, a former president of the University of Texas Students for Justice in Palestine, was seen at an encampment at UT Dallas Wednesday making a speech demanding an end to the war in Gaza. In January, she was detained for blocking the route of President Biden’s motorcade after he arrived in Dallas for the funeral of Johnson, her former boss.
At Yale, USCPR’s fellow Craig Birckhead-Morton was arrested Monday and charged with first-degree trespassing when SJP’s branch, Yalies4Palestine, occupied the school’s Beinecke Plaza, the Yale Daily News reported. Birckhead-Morton — also a former intern for a Democrat, Maryland rep John Sarbanes — emerged from custody to address a sit-in blocking traffic in New Haven.
The most high-profile of the fellows is Berkeley’s Malak Afaneh, co-president of the Berkeley Law Students for Justice in Palestine. She has been a serial speaker at an anti-Israel protest on the campus this week — which came after she first shot to prominence by hijacking a dinner at the law school dean’s home to shout anti-Israel slogans, then accused the dean’s wife of assaulting her when she asked the radical to leave.
Soros is paying agitators fueling the explosion of radical anti-Israel protests at colleges across the country. New York Post.
"The cash from Soros and his acolytes has been critical to the Columbia protests that set off the national copycat demonstrations. Three groups set up the tent city on Columbia’s lawn last Wednesday: Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) and Within Our Lifetime. An analysis by The Post shows that all three got cash from groups linked to Soros. The Rockefeller Brothers Fund also gave cash to JVP.... And a former Wall Street banker, Felice Gelman, a retired investment banker who has dedicated her Wall Street fortune to pro-Palestinian causes, funded all three groups.
"Both SJP and JVP were expelled from Columbia University in November for 'threatening rhetoric and intimidation.' JVP blamed Israel for the Oct 7 Hamas terrorist attack that left 1,200 Israelis dead. 'Israeli apartheid and occupation — and United States complicity in that oppression — are the source of all this violence,' JVP said in a statement on its website. SJP called the terrorist strike on Israel 'a historic win.'
"An analysis by The Post shows how Soros and Gelman’s cash made its way to the students through a network of nonprofits that help obscure their contributions. Soros has given billions to the Open Society Foundations which his son Alexander ... now controls. In turn, Open Society has given more than $20 million to the Tides Foundation, a progressive nonprofit 'fiscal sponsor' that then sends the cash to smaller groups. Those groups include A Jewish Voice for Peace [JVP], which between 2017 and 2022 has received $650,000 from Soros’ Open Society.... JVP has been a prominent part of the protests at Columbia and one of its student members was among a group expelled from the university for inviting the leader of a proscribed terrorist group, Khaled, to the 'Resistance 101' Zoom meeting.
"Soros has also donated $132,000 to WESPAC, called in full the Westchester People’s Action Coalition Foundation. The White Plains-based nonprofit was founded in 1974 to rally for civil rights and against the Vietnam War but is now a major funder of anti-Israel groups, including Within Our Lifetime and Students for Justice in Palestine. SJP has also received funding from the Sparkplug Foundation, a New York-based nonprofit run by Gelman and her husband, Yoram Gelman. The couple funneled their $20,000 donation to the group through WESPAC in 2022, according to public filings. Gelman was previously on WESPAC’s committee for Justice and Peace in the Middle East in 2009 when she was invited to Gaza by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, according to the group’s website. The UN group has been slammed for its support of Hamas.
"WESPAC president Howard Horowitz, a former Orthodox Jew, is a member of the New York chapter of JVP, which says it works for 'advocacy and public education for Palestinian human rights.' Horowitz said he embraced the Palestinian cause after time spent living in Israel, according to a report in the Israel Times. WESPAC has also given money to Within Our Lifetime, founded by the ubiquitous anti-Israeli protester Nerdeen Kiswani. Within our Lifetime uses a loophole in the law to avoid declaring how much it receives from donors by not being a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, meaning it is unknown how Kiswani has benefited. However, WESPAC is named as a fiscal sponsor of Within Our Lifetime.
"After The Post published our story, an Open Society Foundations spokesperson said: 'For the record, Open Society Foundations has a long history of fighting antisemitism, islamophobia and all forms of racism and hate. Open Society has funded a broad spectrum of US groups that have advocated for the rights of Palestinians and Israelis and for peaceful resolution to the conflict in Israel and the OPT. This funding is a matter of public record, disclosed on our website, fully compliant with US laws, and is part of our commitment to continuing open debate that is ultimately the only hope for peace in the region'.... None of the other groups responded to requests by The Post for comment."
April 24, 2024 - "An old-growth logging protester and deputy leader of the federal Green Party has been sentenced to 60 days in jail for her role in the Fairy Creek protests. Angela Davidson, also known as Rainbow Eyes, was convicted in January of seven counts of criminal contempt for breaching an injunction covering the Fairy Creek area and breaching her bail conditions for incidents spanning from May 2021 to January 2022.
"Davidson was initially arrested after blocking a road by chaining herself to a gate in the Fairy Creek injunction area. She was released on condition that she not return to the area. The subsequent offences involved returning to the injunction area, ignoring the terms of her house arrest.
"Davidson, 38, was sentenced in Nanaimo Wednesday to 60 days in jail, minus 12 days for time served pre-trial, and 75 hours of community service.... Green Party Leader Elizabeth May ... who sat next to Davidson’s parents during the hearing, said she was horrified by the length of the sentence.
"Davidson was appointed deputy leader of the Green Party in early 2022 by then interim leader Amita Kuttner and reappointed by May when she replaced Kuttner.
April 25, 2024 - "Angela Davidson — also known as ‘Rainbow Eyes’ — was convicted in January of seven counts of criminal contempt for breaching a court injunction and bail conditions for a series of protests at the Fairy Creek logging camp on Vancouver Island in the spring of 2021. On Wednesday she was sentenced to 60 days and 75 hours of community service for her role in the protests near Port Renfrew that saw more than 1,000 people arrested at the Teal Cedar Products logging camp where it had licences to cut old-growth timber.
"After her initial charge, Davidson was subsequently arrested six more times for returning to the area when she had been ordered not to and for breaching the terms of her house arrest.....
"In response to the sentence, May accused the courts of protecting corporate profits over the public interest. In a statement she said the party stands 'in solidarity with our brave deputy leader Rainbow Eyes who is to lose her freedom for the "crime" of trying to protect the old growth forest the provincial government had said it would protect from logging — and then did nothing.'” Read more: https://www.westernstandard.news/bc/green-partys-may-distraught-over-deputy-leaders-logging-protest-conviction-jail-time/54097
April 17, 2024 - "The Liberal government’s 2024 federal budget has sent shockwaves through Canada’s tech sector, with sweeping increases to capital gains taxes being the main cause for concern. Leaders within the industry are voicing criticism at the Liberals, suggesting that further taxation could drive businesses and talent south of the border. The budget, delivered by Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, raises the inclusion rate for capital gains tax from 50% to 66% for individuals on amounts exceeding $250,000. The amendments to the Income Tax Act will come into effect on June 25, 2024. The Liberals expect to make $19.4 billion over the next five years from [the move]....
"Benjamin Bergen, president of the Council of Canadian Innovators, explained in his organization’s response to the budget that the best way for the government to boost its revenue is to drive economic growth and productivity gains by helping Canada’s innovators. 'We hope that Minister Freeland and the Liberal government will listen to innovators and adjust this proposed tax hike before they do irreparable harm to the Canadian innovation economy,' he said....
"Local entrepreneur Boris Wertz ... felt that the Liberals had 'lost their plot on innovation and entrepreneurship.' His biggest concerns were 'trying to pick winners (e.g. superclusters); proposing very rigid AI regulations; dramatic increase of number of public sector employees; (and) increasing capital gain rate.' The budget promises to invest $2.4 billion in AI support, $5.1 million of which will be dedicated toward the Artificial Intelligence and Data Act — ensuring that AI is 'safe and non-discriminatory,' according to the Liberal government....
"Kim Furlong, CEO of the Canadian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association, said that her organization is 'baffled' by the Liberals’ decision to increase the capital gains tax. 'This measure, which effectively taxes innovation and risk-taking, will significantly dampen Canada’s entrepreneurial spirit, stifle economic growth in critical sectors of our economy, and impact job creation. Such policy change undermines Canada’s position to attract the talent needed to grow and scale companies here,' she said. 'CVCA will work tirelessly to reverse this decision,' said Furlong.
"The founder of a venture capital firm, Christian Lassonde, said that Canada is desperate for new investment dollars. 'What does this government do? Punish investing. You can’t make this stuff up,' he wrote in a post to X.
"President and CEO of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, Dan Kelly, said that the capital gains tax changes will demotivate Canadians from starting businesses in the first place. 'Several sectors of Canada’s (small and medium enterprises) community will be hit with higher capital gain taxes on business sales above $2.25 million, including restaurants, hotels, doctors’ offices, insurance brokers, real estate firms, recreation and arts and recreation firms,' said Kelly in a post to X.
"Armon Shokravi, co-founder of a software development business, explained in a post to X that the tax changes, of an inclusion rate from 50 to 66%, would increase the net capital gains tax from 27% to 36%, compared to the United States, who have a tax rate of 20%. 'In my conversations with Canadian entrepreneurs, it’s clear: They’re feeling less motivated to build businesses here when moving just a bit south could mean saving a lot more,' he said.....
"Independent MP Kevin Vuong shared a text message from a local business owner. The former founder, who works in the tech sector, said that they and their partner sat down last night and began the process of moving to the United States. 'We’re leaving to a country that celebrates entrepreneurs and innovation,' they said. 'The world is too competitive for talent and Canada is not competitive anymore.'
Thanks to an unidentified Liberal cabinet minister, foreign-funded eco-activist and serial blockader Muhammad Zain Ul Haq aka Zain Haq avoided being deported from Canada this week.
April 23, 2024 - "For years, every time a port, highway, work site or rail line was blockaded by B.C. activists, there was a good chance Zain Haq was not too far away. A Pakistani national who first came to Canada in 2019 on a study permit, he’s been arrested at least 10 times [and] convicted of mischief charges, and has been pretty open about his role in leading a foreign-funded 'rebellion' against the Canadian government. And now, after a years-long effort by the Canada Border Services Agency to secure Haq’s deportation, the 23-year-old’s removal was stayed at the 11th hour, potentially due to the intervention of the Trudeau government....
"Haq had been scheduled for deportation by no later than Monday, April 22 — and a last-minute appeal had already been rejected by a federal judge. But on Friday, Haq received a cryptic call from the office of .. the Liberal MP for his riding ... telling him to stay by his phone. He was soon contacted by a CBSA case officer telling him he could stay in the country.
"Haq’s lawyer, Randall Cohn, told Glacier [Media] that he suspected someone in the federal cabinet was 'listening and paying attention to the timing and decided to step in.'
"Haq wasn’t facing deportation because of his arrests or conviction.... Rather it was due to violations of his study permit. Haq was away from class for long periods, and at one point was put on academic probation by Simon Fraser University.
"Over the last five years, Haq has been at the centre of two of the province’s most extreme environmental groups: Extinction Rebellion and Save Old Growth, of which he’s a co-founder. Between them, the groups have been the singular cause of activist-led disruptions throughout the Lower Mainland through their chosen tactics of blockading roads, bridges and other infrastructure. They also both carry demands that cannot feasibly be met. Extinction Rebellion demands the immediate abandonment of all fossil fuels. Save Old Growth demands the immediate suspension of all old-growth logging.... The 'no old growth' demand, in particular, has been denounced by B.C. First Nations who say it ignores Indigenous land-use rights....
"A mischief case brought against him in 2023 detailed Haq’s central role in extended closures of bridges, intersections and — in October 2021 — a two-hour blockade of Vancouver International Airport. In July of that year, court documents said that Haq helped organize a road closure that 'interfered with emergency vehicles trying to access St. Paul’s Hospital.' 'Mr. Haq has shown disdain for the rule of law and he has publicly encouraged others to break the law while publicly celebrating his arrest,' read a 2023 decision convicting Haq of mischief. Although prosecutors sought a 60-day jail sentence, Haq was instead given 61 days of house arrest....
"Haq has routinely acknowledged he was breaking Canadian law and threatened to continue doing it until his demands were met. 'Every single day we will be disrupting the highways in multiple locations, both on the Island and in Vancouver,' he warned British Columbians at the start of the 2022 summer travel season.... In a 2020 Extinction Rebellion statement, he was quoted as saying 'occupying private and public spaces is an essential step towards truly understanding what a democracy looks like.' He added, 'it is impossible to frighten people who have declared a non-violent rebellion against the government.'
"He’s even admitted that his actions were foreign funded. In a 2022 New York Times interview, he said he’d received $170,000 from the California-based Climate Emergency Fund....
"Haq’s wife ... has applied to sponsor Haq for permanent residency, the CBC reported. However, it remains unclear how long he may be able to stay in Canada."
April 21, 2024 - "A Jewish Yale University student journalist reporting on an anti-Israeli protest at the Ivy League school Saturday night was stabbed in the eye with a Palestinian flag – while her assailant has gone unpunished.
"Sahar Tartak, the editor-in-chief of the Yale Free Press, was covering the protest – which saw hundreds of students camping at the campus in support of Palestinians – when she was suddenly surrounded by demonstrators. Tartak said she and a friend were singled out for wearing Hasidic Jewish attire as the crowd formed a blockade around them to interfere with their filming.
“'There’s hundreds of people taunting me and waving the middle finger at me, and then this person waves a Palestinian flag in my face and jabs it in my eye,' Tartak told The Post. 'When I tried to yell and go after him, the protesters got in a line and stopped me,' she added.
"Tartak, who was shopping for an eyepatch when speaking with The Post, said she tried to report the assault to campus police but that they told her there was nothing they could do. Instead, she just got an ambulance ride to the hospital to get her eye checked out....
"Stop Antisemitism, a nonprofit watchdog group, has shared an image Tartak took of the demonstrator who jabbed her in the eye, asking the public to help identify him. Yale officials said the university’s police department is investigating the assault and that the school tolerates no violence on its campus."
April 21, 2024 - "Tartak reported the assault to campus police, but she is unaware of any action taken besides calling an ambulance for her. She was discharged from the hospital and will not suffer permanent damage. Mentally, however, Tartak said, she was in an 'awful' state. Returning to campus has become a daunting prospect, as she says, 'All these students know who I am'....
"Tartak said that she told officers that they should disband the encampment, but they responded that they needed authorization. Tartak noted that the police were outnumbered, with only 7 officers to police hundreds of activists.
"Yalies for Palestine and American Muslims for Palestine Connecticut said on social media that they had succeeded on Saturday because no arrests had been made during their protests, which began on Friday in response to attempts to remove a similar encampment at Columbia University."
The head of the Canadian Dental Association says that more than 60% of dentists surveyed have said they will not participate in the Trudeau government's recently unveiled Canada Dental Care program.
April 19, 2024 - "Over 60 percent of dentists would not participate in the federal government’s $13 billion Canada Dental Care Plan, the head of the Canadian Dental Association told MPs.... Aaron Burry, CEO of the Dental Association, testified before the House Finance Committee on April 18, telling the committee a recent survey of 4,000 dentists found '61 percent of dentists said [they] will not participate in the program.'
“'Without the support of oral health providers this program will not succeed and the millions of patients signing up for the program will not be able to find a dentist,' he said, as first covered by Blacklock’s Reporter. He said that the dental association was not negotiating with the federal government regarding the plan but was testifying in order to provide advice about what the structure of the plan should be.
"He said dentists were concerned about the program’s extensive terms and conditions, fee schedules not being aligned with provincial rates, and overall bureaucratic demands. 'It is a complex government program. It involves more complex authorization processes we believe will disrupt patient care,' he said.
"Mr. Burry noted that the plan 'does not provide free dental care,' and only covers a portion of the usual fees, creating confusion among dentists on the boundaries of coverage.... '[D]entists don’t know how coordination of benefits with provincial programs is going to work. We also don’t know exactly what level of services will be preauthorized to meet patient needs. We just don’t know,' he said.
"Private insurance company Sunlife is the administrator of the program, which is currently only available to seniors. Children under 18 will become eligible to apply in June, while those aged 18 to 64 will need to wait until 2025.... To be eligible for the program, a household must earn less than $90,000 a year, not have access to dental insurance, be a Canadian resident for tax purposes, and have filed a tax return for the previous year....
"When it was initially proposed, the Dental Care Plan was expected to cost around $6 billion over five years but the costs were later adjusted to $13 billion, more than double the initial estimate....
"Health Minister Mark Holland announced this week that the government would be looking into tweaking the plan to make it more attractive to dentists and get more of them to sign up but noted at least 5,000 dentists have signed on so far.
"The Canadian Dental Hygienists Association has also voiced criticism of the plan, particularly the reimbursement guide which would pay significantly less to a private hygiene clinic as opposed to a dentist’s office. According to the association, that would mean that some provinces would see as much as a 20 percent difference in reimbursement rates."
April 19, 2024 - "Twelve jurors have found the Coutts Three guilty of mischief over $5,000 at a courthouse in Lethbridge, Alberta. Marco Van Huigenbois, Alex Van Herk and George Janzen will appear again in court on July 22 for sentencing. Van Huigenbois, Van Herk and Janzen were each protesting at the Coutts Blockade in 2022. A blockade of Alberta Highway 4 began on January 29, 2022, blocking traffic, on and off, on Alberta Highway 4 near the Coutts-Sweetgrass Canada-USA border crossing. The protests were in support of the Freedom Convoy protests in Ottawa. Protests began due to the vaccine mandates for truckers entering Canada, and lockdowns that bankrupted 120,000 small businesses....
"On the day of February 14, 2022, the three men spoke to Coutts protesters after a cache of weapons had been displayed by the RCMP. These were in connection with the arrest of the Coutts Four. Van Huigenbos and others persuaded the protesters to leave Coutts, which they did by February 15, 2022.
"During the trial numbers of RCMP officers conceded that the Coutts Three were helpful in their interactions with the law. As well, there didn’t seem to be any truth to the suggestion that Van Huigenbos, Van Herk and Janzen were leaders of the protest. RCMP officer Greg Tulloch testified that there were a number of 'factions' within the larger protest group. These factions had strong disagreements about how to proceed with the protest. The Crown contended the Coutts Three were the leaders of the protest....
"Tulloch recalled how Van Huigenbos and Janzen assisted him in getting past the 'vehicle blockade to enter Coutts at a time during the protest when access to Coutts from the north via the AB-4 highway was blocked.' Tulloch also testified that Janzen and Van Huigenbos helped with handling RCMP negotiations with the protesters. Tulloch gave credit to these two 'being able to help move vehicles at times to open lanes on the AB-4 highway to facilitate the flow of traffic in both directions.' During cross examination ... Tulloch stated that he noticed two of the defendants assisting RCMP with reopening the highway in both directions. Honner said in summary, '[Marco Van Huigenbos and George Janzen] didn’t close the road, they opened it.'
"Mark Wielgosz, an RCMP officer for over twenty years, worked as a liaison between law enforcement and protesters at the Coutts blockade. Taking the stand, he concurred that there was sharp disagreement among the Coutts protesters and the path forward with their demonstration. Rebel News video clips 'submitted by both the Crown and defence teams captured these disagreements as demonstrators congregated in the Smuggler’s Saloon, a location where many of the protesters met to discuss and debate their demonstration.' Wielgosz made several attempts to name the leaders of the protest in his role as a RCMP liaison with the protesters, but was unsuccessful....
"Canada’s Criminal Code defines mischief as follows in Section 430:
"Robert Kraychik reported that 'RCMP Superintendent Gordon Corbett … cried (no comment on the sincerity of this emoting) while testifying about a female RCMP officer that was startled by the movement of a tractor with a large blade during the Coutts blockade/protest.' This was the climax of the trial. A tractor moving some distance away from an officer in rural Alberta, with blades....
"No evidence was presented in the trial that Van Huigenbos, Van Herk and Janzen destroyed or damaged property. Officers testified they couldn’t identify who the protest leaders were. They testified the defendants assisted with opening traffic lanes, and winding down the protest.
"By volunteering to liaise with the RCMP, the Crown depicted the Coutts Three as the protest leaders. Who will choose to volunteer at any future peaceful, non-violent, protest to act as a liaison with the policing authorities? Knowing of the verdict handed down on April 16, 2024, in Lethbridge?"
April 16, 2024 - "Time and time again, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland have emphasized the importance of being fiscally responsible with federal finances. Unfortunately, this year’s federal budget ensures once again their rhetoric rings hollow due to their ongoing mismanagement of federal finances. This mismanagement is rooted in the government’s insatiable appetite for new and expanded programs or services, which has endured for nine years and will continue for the foreseeable future.
"The budget introduces billions of dollars in additional spending for a national school food program, housing initiatives and artificial intelligence. As such, program spending (total spending minus debt interest costs) is now expected to be $77.2 billion higher over the next four years than the government forecasted last spring. In 2024/25 alone, federal program spending will reach a projected $483.6 billion—an increase of $16.1 billion compared to the previous budget’s estimates.... The Trudeau government has already recorded the five (2018 to 2022) highest levels of federal program spending per person in Canadian history (inflation-adjusted).... This is despite recent polling data that shows the majority of Canadians (59 per cent) think the Trudeau government is spending too much. Nearly two-thirds (64 per cent) of Canadians are also concerned about the size of the federal deficit.
"As it has done nine times before, the Trudeau government will borrow to fund some of its spending spree, resulting in a projected budget deficit of $39.8 billion this year, which is $4.8 billion higher than previously forecasted. And it doesn’t intend to stop borrowing, with annual deficits exceeding $20 billion planned for the subsequent four years.... Simply put, there’s no plan for a return to balanced budgets any time soon. As a result, federal debt (net debt minus non-financial assets) is expected to climb $156.2 billion from now until April 2029....
"Growing federal debt leads to higher debt interest costs, all else equal, which eat up taxpayer dollars that could otherwise have provided services or tax relief for Canadians. For context, the government now spends more ($54.1 billion) on debt interest as on health-care transfers to the provinces ($52.1 billion). Accumulating debt today also increases the tax burden on future generations of Canadians who are ultimately responsible for paying off this debt. Research suggests this effect could be disproportionate, with future generations needing to pay back a dollar borrowed today with more than one dollar in future taxes....
"But again, it didn’t have to be this way.... [H]ad the government simply limited the growth in annual program spending to 0.3 per cent for two years, it could have balanced the budget by 2026/27.... Instead, the government chose to increase annual program spending by an average of 4.4 per cent over the next two years and kick the debt problem down the road for another government to solve.
"Yet for all this spending and debt, living standards have not improved for Canadians. In fact, inflation-adjusted GDP per person was actually lower at the end of 2023 than it was nine years prior in 2014. And going forward, the OECD predicts Canada will record the lowest growth rates in per-person GDP up to 2060 of any industrialized country....
"The combination of tax hikes and scale of spending and debt in this year’s federal budget demonstrate the Trudeau government has no interest in being fiscally responsible or improving living standards for Canadians. Instead of showing restraint, the government chose to repeat its mistakes and lead federal finances down an increasingly perilous path."
Protest organizers have accused Toronto police of trying "to criminalize and intimidate pro-Palestinian protesters off the streets," calling for an independent civilian investigation and for the police to be defunded.
April 1, 2024 - "Organizers of a pro-Palestinian rally in Toronto are calling for an 'independent civilian investigation' into what they allege was police brutality at a demonstration this past weekend. The demonstration, which occurred downtown on Saturday evening, led to three protesters being charged.... [P]olice alleged that ... protesters 'became aggressive and assaultive' toward officers.... But at a news conference on Monday morning, the organizers of the rally accused the officers of using excessive force in their interactions with protesters.
"'In the last two weeks we have seen dramatic escalations and violence at the hands of the Toronto Police Service. These escalations are in an attempt to criminalize and intimidate pro-Palestinian protesters off the streets,' Dalia Awwad, a member of the Palestinian Youth Movement – Toronto, told reporters. 'We are here today reaffirming our calls to defund the police because the police do not keep us safe… We are also calling for an independent civilian investigation of what took place and what’s more, we are affirming that these are the people’s streets and we will continue to come out and we will continue to mobilize.' The Palestinian Youth Movement – Toronto also shared videos of the demonstration on social media, where officers can be seen pushing protesters.
"In a statement released over the weekend, the Toronto Police Service said ... that their presence this weekend is consistent with what they have done with past demonstrations, adding the Mounted Unit was on standby for crowd control. 'The fundamental difference lies in demonstrators’ refusal to adhere to police directives despite clear forewarning,' Const. Stephanie Sayer wrote. A spokesperson for Toronto police told CP24 on Sunday that they did not receive any reports of injuries at the demonstration but added that formal complaints can be made through the Office of the Independent Police Review Director (OIPRD)."
April 10, 2024 - "Mayor Olivia Chow says she won’t condemn six councillors who criticized the Toronto Police Service’s handling of a recent pro-Hamas rally. Neither will the six councillors who signed the letter answer questions put to them by The Toronto Sun, detailing the links between the groups organizing the protests and support for terrorism.... On Monday, I wrote to Deputy Mayor Ausma Malik, and Councillors Gord Perks, Aljandro Bravo, Paula Fletcher, Amber Morley and Lily Cheng, and presented them with information about Samidoun and the Palestinian Youth Movement, two of the main organizers of the rallies ... presenting the six councillors with details of the ties between these groups and banned terrorist groups in Canada....
"Samidoun is a group which shows up at protests across Toronto with a large banner reading 'Long Live the Resistance.' The banner features an image of an AK-47 rifle firing bullets, with the butt of the rifle painted as the Palestinian flag.... The group’s Canadian-based international coordinator, Charlotte Kates, states explicitly that she supports Palestinian armed resistance in all forms and encourages everyone else to do the same. Samidoun has direct ties, visible on their website, to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a group listed as a terrorist entity by the Government of Canada since 2003....
"The Palestinian Youth Movement has spent years promoting members of Hamas, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and other terrorist groups as heroes. Immediately after the Oct. 7 terror attack by Hamas, the PYM began organizing rallies in support of 'the resistance,' including here in Toronto. Shatha Mahmoud, an organizer with PYM Toronto, gave an interview saying resistance is justified days after the brutal attack Hamas launched on Israel.
"After presenting the information to the councillors, I asked them if they supported Samidoun or the Palestinian Youth Movement, or if allowing groups that endorse banned terrorist groups to march through our streets is a good idea. I asked the councillors if they would denounce the groups for their support of terrorist organizations.... No response....
"We should be into condemning and distancing ourselves from groups that support, embrace and rejoice in terrorist attacks like Samidoun and the Palestinian Youth Movement have done. These are not groups that councillors or any elected official should be supporting in any way or be seen next to. Nor should these groups be given free rein on our streets."
Canada's Governor-General is officially non-partisan and apolitical, but hosted a symposium where Liberal cabinet minister Arif Virani promoted his Online Harms Bill C-63 to a selected group of influencers.
April 16, 2024 - "Governor General Mary Simon’s office insists she is 'non-partisan and apolitical' after she personally hosted a symposium in support of the Trudeau Liberals' Online Harms bill. The guest list was limited to Attorney General Arif Virani and supporters of internet regulation, according to Blacklock’s Reporter. No opposition members or critics of Bill C-63: An Act To Enact The Online Harms Act were invited....
"Simon’s office would not disclose the names of all invitees or explain why others were excluded from the April 11 event. Nor did Rideau Hall justify the pro-government event.
"Further, it refused to release any video or audio recordings of the conference or a transcript of speakers’ remarks.
"Some guests did include former CTV News anchor Lisa LaFlamme, Le Devoir columnist Emilie Nicolas, former Global News reporter Rachel Gilmore, Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam, gender activist Fae Johnstone and Ottawa school trustee Nili Kaplan-Myrth....
"Simon supported the bill publicly on her social media as well. 'Let’s transform these conversations into action,' the governor general posted to Twitter ('X'). 'Help us create a safer online world.' Virani on social media confirmed Simon’s private conference was intended to support Bill C-63. 'We know online harms have real world consequences,' Virani wrote. 'With industry experts at the Governor General’s symposium we discussed this and our Online Harms Act.'
"Bill C-63 would require that Facebook, YouTube and other social media platforms 'mitigate the risk that users will be exposed to harmful comment' with compliance monitored by a five-member Digital Safety Commission. The bill would also appoint a federal ombudsman to 'provide support to users of social media services.” The proposal follows a failed 2021 measure C-36 An Act To Amend The Criminal Code that went further in granting a 'digital safety commissioner' powers to block websites containing legal content deemed hurtful. Hate speech is already prohibited under 1970 amendments to the Criminal Code." Read more: https://www.westernstandard.news/news/non-partisan-apolitical-governor-general-hosts-event-in-support-of-online-harms-bill/53842
April 16, 2024 - "As well-intentioned as the Governor General’s symposium was, she should never have hosted it in this context, a conclusion that’s reinforced by the Minister of Justice publicly tying the event to bill C-63. As soon as the government tabled the bill, Her Excellency should have understood that the symposium was no longer appropriate and would present a risk to her office’s impartiality.... As the King’s vice-regal representative, the Governor General performs core constitutional functions. These demand that the Governor General not only act impartially but be perceived to be impartial. This isn’t just good form, it’s a fundamental part of the job....
"Turning back to the symposium, it’s important to clarify why it undermined her impartiality, or at least perceptions of it.... A full-on violation of constitutional norms isn’t the standard here. Instead, we should be asking why the Minister of Justice was even there, and why the Governor General decided to host the symposium, considering how contentious Bill C-63 has been already. Hosting the event allowed Her Excellency to get pulled into the partisan fray, a predictable outcome that she shouldn’t have risked.
"Those who participated in the symposium will counter that it was the Minister of Justice who made the connection with Bill C-63, not the Governor General. Her Excellency’s motives, and the importance of the cause addressed by the symposium, shouldn’t be impugned by a careless, partisan tweet. Alas, partisans are going to partisan and politicians are going to politick. This is precisely why vice-regal representatives should avoid wading into politically charged topics.... Defenders of the symposium offer another argument: as the sovereign’s representative, the Governor General should address important social problems that affect Canadians.... This is a fair point, though Governors General need to be careful about what causes they take up.... Anything that’s the subject of notable partisan and parliamentary debate, is ideologically fraught, or might be fought over during an election should raise red flags.
"Thankfully for the Governor General, the controversy surrounding her symposium hasn’t extended beyond the Ottawa bubble yet. She should keep it that way by abandoning her 'We Deserve Better' campaign while partisans battle it out over Bill C-63 and the courts review the Online Harms Act if it becomes law. This isn’t because the Governor General doesn’t deserve better; she does, as do all those who suffer online abuse. It’s because Canadians deserve impartiality from the Governor General, both real and perceived."
April 5, 2024 - " Toronto Police have warned pro-Palestinian protesters to behave, saying agitators are escalating tensions on Toronto streets in the wake of multiple arrests at a downtown demonstration last Saturday.
"Police have said that, during Saturday’s protest, they seized a truck to lay a charge of stunt driving, and that protesters then 'became aggressive and assaultive' toward officers. They said one woman threw horse manure at officers while another 'intentionally used a flagpole to "spear" at an officer.' Organizers of the rally later accused the officers of using excessive force.
"Lauren Pogue, deputy chief of Community Safety Command, told a news conference at police headquarters on Friday that two people were arrested Saturday for assaulting police officers with weapons, and a third arrest was made this week for spitting on an officer, while a fourth person was being sought for striking a police horse.
"Pogue said police have not changed the way they are responding to protests, but that they will not hesitate to respond to violence directed against their officers.
"'If they’re going to break the law, if they’re going to assault our police officers or assault our police horses, there will be consequences and people will be arrested,' she said.
"She also said police were aware of a number of 'agitators' who were present at multiple demonstrations in Toronto and who were stirring up violence."
The latest Abacus poll, conducted after the carbon tax increase on April 1, shows Canada's Conservative Party has opened up a 20-point lead over the governing Liberals.
April 12, 2024 - "[T]he CPC [Conservative Party of Canada] has opened its biggest lead yet over the Trudeau government. If an election were held today, the Pierre Poilievre-led party would gather 44% of the vote compared to 24% for the Liberals. That’s up three points from March 31, while the Liberal tally is up one....
"The NDP, at 17% is down 2% while the Bloc Québécois at 6% — 29% in Quebec — is down one point. At 5%, the Green Party gained a single point while the People’s Party lost a point to settle at 3%.
"According to Abacus Data, all of the interviews were done following the increase in the federal carbon tax on April 1 and in the midst of several pre-budget announcements by Trudeau and his various cabinet cohorts. 'Controlling for the independent effect of each of these is difficult but the before/after nature at least allows us to understand what has happened,'said Abacus Data CEO & Founder David Coletto. 'This 20-point lead is the largest we have ever measured for the Conservatives'....
"Conservatives are ahead everywhere except Quebec, where they are now statistically tied with the Liberals and BQ. Regionally, the Conservatives are well ahead in the Prairies, lead by 25 in BC and 19 in Ontario. In Atlantic Canada, the Conservatives are 18 points ahead of the Liberals....
"Abacus said the carbon tax increase on April 1 has not yet had any noticeable impact on Liberal support, but may have helped the Conservatives. \We will need a few more weeks of data to know this for sure. This means that political harm of the carbon tax may have run its course and things can't get too much worse for the Liberals.'”
April 14, 2024 - With the U.S. Libertarian Party (LP) national convention just six weeks away, here is a quick look at the leading candidates for the LP presidential nomination. It has not been easy to find: unlike each of the past three POTUS elections, when online libertarians wrote about it extensively, there has been little written on this year's race; and most of that little has been devoted to someone who is not even a declared candidate.
Wikipedia has a page on the 2024 party primaries with vote results, but little else. Per that source, only the following seven candidates have received 1% or more of the popular vote in Libertarian state primaries or caucuses. Note that all primary and caucus votes are non-binding, and the nominee will be determined solely by a free vote of the convention delegates
March 5, 2024 "The Libertarian Party as a whole promotes the protection of civil liberties over government programs or intervention in almost all matters.... Below is a breakdown of the candidates....
"Charles Ballay is a doctor who has practiced in Texas and Louisiana. He grew up in New Orleans and said the diverse ethnic and cultural communities there shaped his perspectives. Key pillars of Ballay’s platform are reducing the national debt, reforming the tax code, implementing merit-based immigration, allowing state-level drug policy decisions, and simplifying healthcare regulations. Click here for more information....
"Jacob Hornberger is a Texas native who opened a law firm in Dallas and taught law and economics at the University of Dallas. He previously ran for the Libertarian presidential nomination in 2000 and 2020. Hornberger wants to abolish numerous government organizations including the CIA, the FBI, the NSA and the IRS. He wants to repeal programs like Social Security and Medicare, and believes in open borders. Click here for more information....
"Lars Mapstead is a tech entrepreneur who grew up in California. He co-created FriendFinder Networks, a group of adult entertainment and online dating websites, which was later purchased by Penthouse Media Group. His slogan is to 'unrig the system' by creating a voters’ bill of rights, shutting down the Federal Reserve, reducing federal healthcare spending and regulations, and limiting presidential powers. Mapstead, who has dealt with addiction in his own life, believes the country should be focused on a path of rehabilitation rather than criminalization for drug offenses. Click here for more information....
"Chase Oliver is a Libertarian activist living in Atlanta. He ran for U.S. Senate in 2022, receiving enough votes to force Herschel Walker and Raphael Warnock into a runoff race. He believes in abolishing the death penalty, simplifying the country’s immigration system and ending mandatory minimum sentencing. If elected, Oliver said he would immediately remove all federal laws criminalizing cannabis and de-schedule it. He is pro-choice and believes in protecting bodily autonomy but also wants to prevent federal funding from going toward abortions. Click here for more information....
"Michael Rectenwald is an author and former professor at New York University. Rectenwald, who argues the country’s two-party system is totalitarianism, used the slogan 'Rec the Regime.' He believes in abolishing government agencies like the IRS, the FBI, the CIA, the Department of Education, ATF and TSA. He opposes emergency mandates issued during the COVID-19 pandemic and would seek to investigate all agencies involved in the response. He wants to eliminate Diversity, Equity and Inclusion criteria for federal jobs. [Note: Rectenwald has been endorsed by the LP Mises caucus, by far the largest party caucus.]Click here for more information....
"Joshua Smith is a veteran from California and former vice chair of the Libertarian National Committee. Smith believes in eliminating the Federal Reserve, all federal income taxes, the ATF, and the Department of Education. He describes the federal response to the COVID-19 pandemic as “tyranny” and calls for an investigation into members of the task force. Smith is pro-life and believes the government has a responsibility to protect the unborn. Click here for more information....
"Mike ter Maat is a former police officer from Florida and economist. He has a three-point plan for ending the Federal Reserve. He also wants to strengthen border protections while eliminating aid money sent overseas. The former officer advocates for private-sector policing organizations, arguing competition for government contracts could reform law enforcement. He calls for a complete separation of church and state and has expressed concerns about government use of artificial intelligence. Click here for more about Mike ter Maat’s campaign."
March 21, 2024 - "Despite calls from seven of Canada’s premiers ... to scrap the upcoming carbon tax hike, ... Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has doubled down as he tries to convince Canadians this tax, ... set to rise from $65 per tonne of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) to $80 per tonne on April 1, will really be good for them. Speaking with reporters in Calgary (not coincidentally Premier Danielle Smith’s backyard), the prime minister said, 'My job is not to be popular. My job is to do the right things for Canada now and do the right things for Canadians a generation from now' to 'deliver that better future one generation from now, two generations from now.'
"But Trudeau’s argument that somehow GHG reductions, which might stem from Canada’s carbon tax, will yield appreciable benefits of any kind — economic or environmental — now or in the future is nonsense....
"Canada’s share of global GHG emissions is slowly declining and small relative to the world’s larger emitters, particularly China. Indeed, in 2021 Canada’s emissions comprised 1.5% of global GHG emissions compared to 26% for China (in 2018). And since 2005, emissions from China increased by a staggering 71.7%. It’s absurd to think that, even if Canada could drive its GHG emissions to zero, there would be any measurable impact on the global climate. And no impact on climate means no improved environmental benefits for future generations.
"Economically, the prime minister’s argument is even less compelling.... According to a study published by the Fraser Institute, implementing a $170 carbon tax would shrink Canada’s economy by 1.8% and produce significant job losses and reduced real income in every province....
"Trudeau government policies, including the carbon tax and imposition of federal bills C-48 (which bans large oil tankers carrying crude oil off British Columbia’s north coast, limiting access to Asian markets) and C-69 (which introduces subjective criteria including the 'social impact' of energy investment into the evaluation process of major energy projects), combined with impending regulations such as GHG emission caps, are contributing to a collapse in business investment and ultimately economic stagnation in Canada. Per-person gross domestic product (GDP) — a broad measure of living standards — ... stood in 2014 at $58,162, which is $51 higher than at the end of 2023 (inflation-adjusted). In other words, living standards for Canadians have declined.
"Capital investment, which contributes to economic growth and higher living standards, is also declining. A 2021 Fraser Institute study showed that the growth rate of overall capital expenditures in Canada slowed substantially from 2005 to 2019 and the growth rate from 2015 to 2019 was lower than in virtually any other period since 1970.... [F]rom 2010 to 2019, Canada’s investment growth rate dropped substantially below that of the United States and many other developed countries. Corporate investment in Canada as a share of total investment was also the lowest among a set of developed countries from 2005 to 2019.
"Far from delivering environmental or economic benefits for Canadians 'one generation from now' or 'two generations from now,' Trudeau’s policies have thrown serious shadows over the future economic prospects of Canadians, who will find themselves less well-off and less economically capable of adapting to predicted climate risks, whether manmade or natural."
April 1, 2024 - German cannabis campaigners and aficionados lit celebratory joints at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate at midnight early Monday, gathering for a legal “smoke-in” to mark the nation’s newly liberalized law on marijuana coming into effect. Germany’s government passed legislation allowing adults to possess small amounts of the drug, making it the largest European Union country to legalize possession for recreational use.
"The purchase and sale of cannabis is still prohibited and can lead to fines and imprisonment. Adults can now carry up to 25 grams (nearly an ounce) of marijuana and keep up to 50 grams at home. They can also grow up to three plants for personal use under the law that was passed by Germany’s federal council last month and took effect Monday.
"Adults who don’t want to grow their own plants ... can join 'cannabis clubs' starting in July. They are licensed nonprofit growing cooperatives capped at 500 members who must 'actively participate in the cultivation' to access the club’s cannabis. 'The law does not provide for passive membership that is aimed solely at purchasing cannabis,” the Bundesrat, effectively Germany’s upper house, said in its announcement of the law.
"Marijuana has slightly more restrictions for young adults between ages 18 and 21, and it is still illegal for minors....
"Though the amounts permitted in Germany are relatively small — adults are allowed to possess up to three ounces of cannabis flower in New York, for example — the new law still makes Germany one of the most lenient countries on marijuana in the European Union."
