The Emperor’s New Clothes

Canada has been whipped into a frenzy over Donald Trump’s threats. It has given the current Canadian federal government a lot of wiggle room. Why bother passing legislation to keep us in line. All you need to do is beat that sovereignty drum 24/7. Canadians are left without much needed social programs relied upon by many, while the money pours out to corporations, foreign and domestic, as our money flows steadily to the south. It doesn’t seem to matter to at least 80% of Canadians who apparently seem to trust him, take his word, even though there is nothing to trust. He’s a banker. Buyer beware.

The threat of a Trump invasion has had Canadians become blind to everything else. That is why are spending an insane amount of money on weaponry we don’t need. It struck me that approval of spending 5% of GDP on Nato obligations, while harsh austerity continues to plague us (has been for 40 years), is that Canadians think that it will save us from Trump. Do they actually think Trump and Company are going to storm Canada by crossing over at the Ambassador Bridge? Considering it will take a decade before any of this money spend  delivers, it shows how fear makes people support a lot of things that they usually wouldn’t support. The word sovereignty is thrown around like candy, ensuring Canadians are filled with fear. It makes us compliant. It makes us nationalistic. We become our own worse nightmare. Regardless, there is no reasoning with an insane orange man.

“When you look at the power (imbalance) between the U.S. and Canada, an invasion would immediately result in the defeat of the Canadian Armed Forces,” said the University of Toronto political science professor, Aisha Ahmad, who last month published an essay on the subject in The Conversation.”

It is time for a reality check. Regardless of how much weaponry we own, it’s impossible to defend Canada to defend ourselves against the United States of America. At least not through military conflict We are tied to them by the economic umbilical cord. Sovereignty, foreign, and economic threat is all political theatre. I am certainly not inferring that we are safe from the big orange blob, the action being taken by the government rings of hollow words.

Border Sovereignty

The only real threat to Canada lies south of the border.  Canada will be flattened if it is in a military conflict with the US.  Canada can’t match America’s annual defence spending of $1 trillion dollars. We have ~ 310 M less people and lacks the US’s military superiority. 75% of Canada’s current weaponry was procured from the US and contrary to what Canadians are being told, our government is still buying defence from the United States, still subsidizing American corporations and now are partnering with the U.S.’s Department of Defense in some of the fast track major projects. The money still flows downwards to the United States. Nothing has changed, business as usual.

Our sovereignty was bought and paid for a long time ago. The expansion of fossil fuels are predominantly owned by the United States and foreign entities. America also owns a good share of Canada’s mining industry and AI is being developed by Google and Microsoft. fuel industry, We have no sovereignty, although we aren’t already the 51st State, we definitely are related.

I have some questions for the Prime Minister.

• • 1. 75% of Canada’s current weaponry is US born & bred;
    2. Why is Canada still procuring  our military defense from US defense contractors who are essentially the US gov’t;
    3. Why is Canada considering the Golden Dome, an US-led ballistic missile defense scheme, that defies called physics;
    4. Why is Canada still considering 62 additional F-35s, a bloated figure jet, that’s completely unsuitable for Canada’s Arctic & has been termed as the next widow maker;
    5. Why did Canada give into Trump’s (Nato) demand to increase military spending to 5% GDP agreed to;
    6. Why is the Canada attempting to increase info sharing with the United States through the proposed authoritarian legislation;
    7. Why is Canada re-writing it’s asylum laws that benefit US interests. We are all immigrants, yet we are flooding the moat and pulling up the drawbridge;
    8. Why are 300-400 border law enforcement agents on Canadian soil with powers to carry a gun, detain, search, question, copy & analyze electronic devices & confiscate  property?

Economic/Digital Sovereignty

Why doesn’t Elbows Up & Buy Canadian not apply to the federal government? America owns 59% of Canada’s fossil fuel industry, 100% of Canada’s crude oil & 70% of natural gas is exported to the US. Why didn’t we tariff that?

• • 1. Why is Canada subsiding US corporations;
    2. Why is Canada investing another major fast track project & deemed to be of energy sovereignty in Ksi Lisims LNG, owned & operated by Western LNG, an US corporation (documentation filed w/ BC gov’);
    3. Why is Canada expanding environmentally disastrous bitumen tar sands with 60% US owned (27% foreign owned);
    4. Why is Canada building a pipeline to transport the aforementioned tar sands;
    5. Why did Canada accept America’s DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE investment in the expansion of the Red Chris Mine for critical mining, deemed to be of national interest;
    6. Why is a US contractor & war profiteer, Bechtel, building the Prince Rupert Pipeline;
    7. Why was the United State’s Department of Defense allowed to invest in Canada’s Trilogy Metals, a critical mining company;
    8. Why did the government accept the majority of funding in the major fast tract project, the Sisson Mine Expansion from the United States;
    9. Why did Canada fund a major fast tract project, the Red Chris mine expansion that’s 70% US owned;
    10. Why did Canada remove the digital service tax;
    11. Why did Canada remove reciprocal tariffs;
    12. Why has Canada gone on spending binge, including including Bell, AVL Manufacturing Davie, as well as pension funds invested south of the border;
    13. Why is the largest supplier to the Canadian Navy & Coast Guard investing 1 billion (US) to purchase Gulf Copper & Manufacturing Corp, an US company to build ships for the US;
    14. Why did Canada cancel the under serviced Labrador high speed internet project in lieu of providing it to under serviced areas in the US;
    15. Why did Mark Carney have hand in the  Brookfield move to New York & then lied about it;
    16. Why is Canada’s AI development dominated by US corporations. That seems to be the opposite of digital sovereignty.

Fast Track Projects

• • • Ksi Lisims LNG – Texan company is the owner and operator of Western LNG, a Texan company which has been subsidized by Canadian taxpayers;
    • The Red Chris Mine expansion: Is foreign owned and also getting subsidies;
    • LNG Phase 2 – Shell (40%) – British multinational; Petronas (5%) – Malaysia; PetroChina (15%)- China; Mitsubishi Corp (15%)- Japan; KOGAS (5%) Korean; MidOcean Energy (20%) – US, also subsidized;
    • A pipeline for the Tar sands which 60% is owned by the United States;
    • Why is Canada allowing a war profiteer to build a pipeline;
    • Why is the United States DoD Sisson Mine investing $20.7M CAD, but Canada’s contribution $8.6

Recently Canada’s Defense Industry procured 26 HIMARS (Lockheed) $1.75B, Munitions for CF-18s, F-35s, drones – $3.8B, Light Force Vehicles – $22M all from the United States. The Prime Minister is very interested in the Golden Dome ($175 M – it.will be a lot more than that), a system that fail,  just as it has since Reagan introduced it with his Star War program. F-35s are still being considered by this administration. Currently it will cost $27 billion for non combat ready single engine fighter jets that are not only adverse to cold (2 crashes, one in 2025 in Alaska. This is a jet with 25 year old tech, modulated to the point of silliness, needs F-22s to accompany them (if agility is needed), their stealthy coating peels off when in supersonic flight… The list is so long, that the United States military is easing them out. None of this shouts out Sovereignty.

C-2, C-12, The Strong Borders Act – C-22

Canada’s Public Safety Minister admitted the C-12 (initially C-2 – spying on Canadians, warrantless searches, more information sharing)  was to sate “the concerns that have been posed by the White House. There were a number of elements in the bill that have been irritants for the US, so we are addressing some of those issues.”

Can someone to explain how any of this is distancing Canada from the United States? Canada has give America a very large gift. Subsidies, legislation written that is not very different than the things Trump is doing, but  only through executive order. Mark Carney has legislated it, which is much more difficult to quash. The constant sovereignty drumbeat never stops. Carney has sold out Canadians who are facing enormous budget cuts. Tariffs haven’t be reduced, much less completely removed.

 Canada’s Pension Plan

I recently read that Canadian’s investments, including our CPP. Much of it is invested in the United States capital markets. in 2023, 36% of CPP investments were in the American market. Since 2023, 47% is invested in the United States, CPP is current at a record $780.7 billion in assets. This is an increase of 11% that now flows to the United States. In February it was announced that TransAlta signed the Alberta data centre deal with CPP Investments and Brookfield. This should be concerning to all Canadians. CPP is not the only pension plan to invest in Brookfield.  Other major pension plans have also committed pension funds to Brookfield. Canadians now all own shares in Brookfield, the company Mark Carney worked for at the same time he was Justin Trudeau’s economic advisor. Brookfield touts its green credentials but invests heavily in fossil fuels. Fossil fuel investment is a risk enterprise, Countries, other than the United States and Canada have been transitioning to renewables. This is a risk to anyone. It is also an enormous conflict of interest.

All Things America

High Speed Internet

Bell Canada cancelled plans to build high-speed internet infrastructure in Labrador and, instead, cast its capital plans southward to “help bring high-speed internet to underserved communities south of the border. If that’s not capitulation

Davie – Shipbuilder

Quebec shipbuilding company Davie, a favourite of the Canadian Armed Forces,just madea $1 billion (US) deal to buy the Gulf Copper & Manufacturing Corp. in Texas as it looks to build more ships for the US, including icebreakers.

 Golden Dome 

More capitulation? The Prime Minister seems to be very excited about a “shared ballistic missile program”. I guess they are calling it that now, because they faced to much ridicule calling it the Golden Dome. Mark Carney is far from being a stupid man. I truly believe that this is another opportunity to line the pockets of pockets that need to be lined. I wonder if Brookfield has a stake in this. It seems that their tentacles seem to be everywhere. No one seems to remember that when Brookfield does well, Mark Carney does well.

Brookfield

Conservatives aren’t the only ones questioning Carney’s sincerity, after telling reporters the “formal decision of the board” to expatriate the head office was made after he left the board in mid-January to run for Liberal leader — a claim contradicted by a leaked Dec. 1 letter Carney himself wrote to Brookfield shareholders.

“When you look at the power (imbalance) between the U.S. and Canada, an invasion would immediately result in the defeat of the Canadian Armed Forces,” said the University of Toronto political science professor, Aisha Ahmad, who last month published an essay on the subject in The Conversation.”

Ksi Lisims LNG

Mark Carney’s, who as a candidate touted himself as the King Green Canada, has welcomed liquified natural gas as a defence of Canadian energy sovereignty. The Ksi Lisims LNG project being fast-tracked by his government is solely owned by Texas-based Western LNG with financial backing from Wall Street giant Blackstone.  Blackstone’s CEO was a prominent donor to Trump’s 2024 campaign and remains a key advisor to a president who continues to disparage Canada’s sovereignty.

One lesson Donald Trump has taught me, is that sovereignty isn’t just military power, borders and economics. It is also about the people who give their government legitimacy, who take pride in their country, but aren’t nationalistic and who welcome strangers with open arms. Mark Carney will stop being a cult hero once people start feeling the consequences of reckless military spending, deep cuts to already underfunded social programs, more austerity when there is nothing left to give. The United States with a military that outspends Russia and China combined, as well as, 31 nato countries combined by twice as much. Regardless of this, America is in decline and it precedes Donald Trump. When people have no faith in their government, military strength won’t save America. That is the lesson we should be learning from of all people, Donald Trump.

Military Procurement

• Mark Carny rallied the troops (Canadians) to “Buy Canadian”. The same doesn’t apply to the government. The federal government just recently purchased the following military equipment. The following have been recently purchased:
• HIMARS from Lockheed  for $1.75 billion
• JDAMs SDBs (munitions) for CF-18 -$96.4 million  (total procurement including prior commitments $2.68 billion USD)
• F-35s, drones – $3.8B
• 14 F-35s – C$27B
• Golden Dome 14 F-35s – experts say this would cost 1 to 3 trillion. Canada will have to buy a large portion of this.
• HIMARS – $580M
• 16 P-8A Poseidon Multi-Mission Aircraft – $10.4billion

Is this wise purchasing military weapons from the United States when the  Prime Minister has publicly said the relationship with the United States is “over”. It is clear the Canada is practicing his call for “Elbows Up” or claims that 75 cents of each dollar invested in the United States. This is nothing close to “Buy Canadan”.

Pension Plans