HeadLines

I joined this forum hoping for real discussions. I hoped to understand people who have different opinions than me. I thought I might learn something to change my opinions. This forum has been disappointingly similar to other discussions taken over by trolls. Ad hominem comments tell me the writer has nothing to add to a discussion but his/her own negative feelings and enjoys seeing his own sarcasm in print rather than participating in respectful, intelligent discussion.

Can you list reasons you don't like him that are not about his personality or looks?

I like Trudeau. He has to be careful what he says because he is under constant barrage by an opposition party that has forsaken what is best for Canada. Since recovering from the shock of losing the election to the Liberals the Conservatives one consistent goal has been to reduce the popularity of the PM rather than offering better alternatives . Like all PMs Trudeau has goals he hopes to achieve while he is our PM. He has clearly stated these his goals. The economy and jobs are important. Improving work equity for women is important. Paying attention to aboriginal complaints is important. The environment is important. Canada's position in the world as a trading partner, a human rights advocate and a defender of weaker countries is important. A government working together is important to him and I really agree here. A back stabbing workplace wastes time that could be used more productively. It seems every leader ends up with an unexpected problem to manage. Donald Trump's tariffs and the world chaos he has created need real diplomacy and strength to keep fair trade and Canada's human rights in balance.

I like Trudeau. He has his own agenda as any PM does. Equity for working women is important. Taking aboriginal complaints seriously is the only way to end the complaints. Balancing the needs of ten diverse provinces, Donald Trump chaos, a deteriorating environment, unfair tariffs and being placed in the path of an angry Chinese government are all very important serious considerations. A little internal sabotage that got out of hand was surprising. Any other PM would have ousted JWR and Jane Philpott immediately. Dealing with an opposition party with one goal Trudeau has cleaned up a lot of messes previous governments swept under the rug. The plastics are being dealt with now.

I was responding to this: The political, academic and media elites in their tight, incestuous bubble are all fully supportive of mass immigration. Even the idea that Canada has a culture or values that we ought to protect is anathema to them. None will dare express a contrary view to the prevailing narrative that mass immigration is an unparalleled benefit - though none will produce any evidence of that, nor need any. As for what ordinary Canadians think or want? They couldn't care less. They don't hear it. They live in a self-contained bubble where they reassure themselves that everyone believes as they do. I am not elite, I don't live in a bubble. Immigrants/refugees will learn the language they need to learn. The values test is a really big problem. Just in this conversation people obviously have different values. Will the values test begin to apply to people born in Canada?

But the rise in hate crimes is true. The rise in politicians appealing to peoples fear is true. Something is happening.

Well if we get the trade deal it's all good. We need lots of trade partners for times when our American neighbors lose their minds.

I have had neighbors who escaped dangerous government sanctioned murder in their homeland. They worked so hard. My family of three lived in a three bedroom townhouse. Their family of eight aged four to sixty five lived in a two bedroom townhouse. Everyone but the four and seven year old worked. They all spoke Spanish and English. Proud Canadian that I am, born in bi-lingual Canada , I spoke English only. They were saving money to bring a second set of grandparents to Canada as well as an adult brother who had escaped to a different country.

Have you ever been polled? I have never been polled. Since Donald Trump was elected I don't trust polls. I think they are used to sway opinion not share opinons.

I guess it depends where you get your news. National Post is owned by Postmedia - financial backing from a U.S. private equity firm, the Manhattan-based hedge fund GoldenTree Asset Management—which owns 35 per cent Canada owns CBC: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/wilson-raybould-philpott-snc-lavalin-trudeau-1.5076998 https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/liberals-wilson-raybould-philpott-caucus-1.5080880 Regarding the right to have her say each new government decides on a few basic rules when they take over. The Liberals decided not to follow the Chong Reform Act. Jane Philpott had the chance to "speak her truth". She was part of a team and she did not agree with the team. This does not make her right and the others wrong. https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/wilson-raybould-philpott-snc-lavalin-trudeau-1.5076998

Fair enough. The biography I referenced has historical references and indicates the predominant industry that gained from removing the Japanese was fishing. The Japanese Canadians were successful fisherman. Regarding the Italian apology we (Canada) are working on a trade deal with Italy. WWII is part of Canadian history that surfaced again. Part of any negotiation is give and take. Even though most of the world was unfair during WWII apologies for past behavior, when sincere, can smooth conversations in the present. Selling Canadian goods is part of the PM job.

This is happening because people are afraid and politicians with no worthy platforms capitalize on fear to get elected.

So many labels, how do you keep it all straight?

I did not know Italians were interned in Canada during WWII. I am familiar with the Japanese internment and the hardships faced by the people whose businesses were confiscated. Many were shipped to southern Alberta. They worked for farmers. They worked really hard and rebuilt their lives successfully. It took a long time for some to let go of their anger and hurt. I know the formal apology made by the government of Canada was something they waited for a long time. Mark Sakamoto wrote a biography called Forgiveness that tells the story of his family's experience being interned if you are interested. Recognition that Canada allowed a bad thing to happen is not too hard for Canada and really important to the people who lived through such unfair treatment.

An anonymous source leaked information to the press. The leak was reliable. The leak said the PM spoke with JWR and tried to find a way to keep her in the cabinet, but she wanted to have control over who was appointed to the AGM role and how SNC would be handled. That was not a victim speaking. Did you wonder why the media stopped reporting JWR every 20 minutes after that leak? They knew they had been used by her from the beginning and stepped away from the headline grabbing position quickly and silently. Just for giggles imagine the situation with the PM being honest and JWR lying. There is so much more than SNC Lavalin going on in Canada.

There are 35 cabinet members. They met with the PM to discuss what to do. All agreed that Wilson and Philpott should be removed. The PM did not need to make the announcement but he did. No one else chose to quit their job to support Wilson and Philpott. The PM actually said very little. Perhaps he wanted to understand what went wrong before speaking out? What do you think the PM could have said? He was her boss. If he put on a Trump show would you believe what he said? Perhaps the biggest mystery to me is why she quit. If she quit because she was no longer in the powerful legal position she wanted she seems more like a disgruntled employee than an ethical hero.

Ottawa did not take away jobs in Alberta. The Alberta economy grew strong because of the petroleum industry but there are no guarantees. The gold ran out in the Klondike. The cod left the Maritimes. US tariffs and environmental concerns cut the BC forest industry in half. Free trade knocked the booming garment industry in Montreal to its knees. The "bread basket" of Canada has not been able to feed the world for over thirty years. Things change. Adapt or die.

The Raptors.

Canada made it through a global recession because of the Canadian banking system. PM Harper had an advantage other leaders did not. PM Trudeau gets to deal with Cheeto Man and the chaos a world power is creating everywhere. I am not sure the other party leaders would do as well as he and his government are doing.

I guess the MMIWG report is even more important because it is predominantly directed by indigenous women AND men with assistance from people who can help make something happen. There will never be the consensus you mention because indigenous people are people. Like all groups of people there are leaders and followers, self serving and community-minded, greedy and needy. Most that I know are doing the best they can for their families. All of them have lost family members to violence or addiction and they push on for a better life.

JWR never struck me as someone who would be intimidated by pressure from a co-worker. She might be annoyed, angry, vengeful...but intimidated? Who leaked to the press? What legal decisions did JWR make that benefited aboriginal rights? Did she maintain equal consideration for the needs and rights of Quebec workers? Her decision was made months in advance, could she have just stayed open to discussion longer? Why did JWR talk to the press over and over and over while the PM and her colleagues said nothing? Is it possible that , as her employer, the PM needed to move her to a different position because of performance issues? He would not be able to talk about that with anyone but her. Why did people automatically assume JWR's truth is the truth?

Money was the driving force for European settlers and became the government answer for "aboriginal problems". Canadians have allowed our government to spend enough to quiet the noise without addressing the real problems. Now we complain about how much money is spent because we see little return on the investment. We see our own hardships as equal to theirs. Who would thrive when forced to forfeit an active family based culture and live on a reservation? Who would improve themselves when their way of life is replaced with a welfare check? We do not see our responsibility for breaking a successful culture that was different from ours. Indifference and avoidance have created additional, modern problems that have become obvious to people all over the world.Throwing money at people who were treated badly was never the answer needed. Tolerance, respect and acceptance from Canadians are needed by ALL Canadians. And there is a "return on the investment". Aboriginal Canadians are gradually overcoming the difficulties. Many have fully assimilated, some will continue to struggle for a few more generations. Some are learning to keep the positive, historically significant Canadian aboriginal culture alive while embracing the positive modern Canadian life. The current government is the first Canadian government to try to find a realistic answer to end the horror of Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG). If voters allow it the work will continue and a solution will be found that will transition to a solution that benefits all Canadians.