I must admit that the number of hate posts I see on social media, here in Canada, is alarming. There are lots of anti-Liberals messages. That reminds me a lot of the "own the Libs" messages we saw in the U.S. before their elections. I was not a fan of Trudeau myself, but do we absolutely need to go all the way to fascism to make our voices heard? There are already a lot of negative posts on Carney. Why? Carney has infinitely more experience and expertise than Poilievre will ever have. I am already sick and tired of the Maple MAGA idiots we have here in Canada. Why don't they all move to Russia where they belong?
I wonder whether these negative posts are really from Canada or Russian troll farms. I completely disagree with Canadians who like Trump, but I sat down with one recently and had a good chat. I could see some of his views, and he could see some of mine. I still think he's misguided, of course. Remember that the Maple MAGA people are people -- just misguided ones. We have a right to our opinions, and to express these. Of course, if that turns into actions against other people or Canada, that's another matter.
Agreed. A security clearance is a must. It is for every members of the military and most government workers. It makes absolutely no sense to have a PM/commander in chief without a clearance. Why would any other country share classified information with such a PM in time of crisis/war? With his incompetence and populist propaganda, Poilievre is a magnet for idiots.
I agree it is a must, so anyone unwilling to undergo the process should be disqualified from running. Does that mean the election can't be called until every duck is in a row. If we delay, we may be dead in the water. Keep the momentum and build as we go.
50.7% of those who voted elected trump. This is not a tiny majority of all Americans. It is a minority. He did not win by a landslide. Consider all the citizens who were disenfranchised or votes simply negated by gerrymandering and various forms of voter suppression, especially the last minute lists of challenges to people based on nothing more than their perceived ethnicity. Then votes discarded at the polls or never made it from post office to election machines or machines that this time may actually have been tampered with. Then there are the people paralyzed by fear of bloody civil war and/or nuclear war, as threatened by trump, who never made it to vote.p. Now add the maga voters who have suddenly woken up when they or a family member lost jobs or Veterans benefits or access to other services and supports.
It's a bad time for an election, but the Liberals really didn't have a choice -- they had to change leaders because of Trudeau's unpopularity, and the new leader has to win an election to prove he has a mandate from the people.
As a totally disgusted and embarrassed American, all I can say is I'm sorry that 50.7% of Americans voted to elect this orange faced, sociopath President. I hope Canada doesn't give an inch to this madman and sheds any thought of diplomatic engagement with trump. Engaging with his BS only emboldens the idiot. All sane Americans want nothing to do with this guy and his anti Canada ramblings.
Thanks and yes, we are quite aware of the situation most Americans find themselves in. I say "most" because I am sure a large number of pro Trump voters now have regrets. I can't help thinking that unconditional free speech is largely responsible for what's happening right now. At the minimum, large media outlets and influential individuals should be held accountable for knowingly spreading lies and misinformation. The consequences of their actions are way too serious to let that happen.
I fully agree with a full ban of X and Tesla Inc platform and products during this age of techno-fascism. I strongly believe that we need Canadian made and regulated versions of all American tech giant platforms and services, Stay strong Canada and continue the boycott.
I agree with you on banning Twitter/X and Fox propaganda outlet. X has become owner, Elon Musk's personal propaganda machine and he uses it prolifically to propagandize not just Americans, but Canadians and whoever is within X's reach. Magas and Maple Magas lap this stuff up and they spread it around like a cancer-causing pesticide aimed at killing democracy along with any hopes of diversity or acceptance.
Canada has no amendment right guaranteeing free speech when it's hate speech and lies. Fact-
checking has done nothing to quell the tide of hate speech or lies We should be stopping both.
I say Trurh Social, owned by Donald Trump and the social media platform he uses dozens of times daily and nightly for his lies and propanda should be completely banned from use by Canadians too. Extremist Conservatives already complain constantly that their freedom of speech and freedom of choice has been taken away. Why not give them a real reason to complain.
It is because of social media that monsters like Trump managed to get where he is today. It's the
influence of American news, movies, TV shows, and social media that has far too many Canadians believing we either are or we should be Americans living by American laws, rules and government. Get rid of some of that influence and at least some of the fascism we see trying to take hold in Canada will dissipate.
All of this is true, but the sooner we have the election, the less opportunity for interference and disinformation there will be. Since we don’t seem to be prepared to fight it, best to move fast.
This a very good point. A sad state of affairs if we are not ready but the question of whether the threat will be worse the longer we wait is a really good one. And maybe our agencies really do have things under control re Russia etc as the CSE claims. Maybe Trump and Musk have too many other fish to fry right now than to try to interfere in way they surely must know will not help any candidate known to be the one they are assisting.
But I am all the same inclined to believe it is a travesty - of even our highly flexible Westminster system of democracy - not to at least call the current Parliament back as promised by the time of prorogation or before it ends. Parliament needs to hear what the preparations are and — through the parliamentary proceedings - Canadians need to receive reasonable assurances that measures are in place to detect, combat and alert parties and Canadians about social media disinformation and foreign interference.
Being a former MP myself, I also feel for the MPs who have been completely sidelined by the former PM’s prorogation. To add to that by adding a dissolution on top of prorogation without Parliament sitting again seems to me not just something worthy of empathy for MPs but also a sign of disrespect for our own system’s (supposed) placing of Parliament at the centre of our democracy. That it is perfectly constitutional for a PM to pile a dissolution on top of a prorogation — and keep Parliament silent for close to 6 months — it is hardly edifying and I worry about the longer- term signal that this sends. That longer-term signal is that an executive (Cabinet with a powerful PM) can govern just fine, thank you very much, without the bother and hassle of a Parliament for as often as the government wishes. We already see how gutted a lot of provinces’ democracies are by how infrequently the legislature convenes; we don’t need this nationally as well. Add to that the fact MPs don’t even need to be in Ottawa to vote in many cases (I am. It up on the precise rules) and things look increasingly unhealthy for the future of an in- person Parliament.
And the more we see of the spectacular mess south of the border, as the executive branch takes over more and more power and overrides the legislature and (it looks increasingly likely) the courts, the more important it is to make sure that our legislature is not overridden in the same way.
I would be in favour of recalling the legislature for 2 days (or similar) for an update. Then dissolve for an election.
IMHO, Rushing into a fight without knowing what weapons and how strong your enemy is puts Canada at a disadvantage. MAGA'S strategy has been to "flood the zone" with misinformation/ disinformation. Banning the method by which they do this is the most important step we can take.
Once it takes root you cannot change the minds of those affected with logic, reason and facts. MAGA AND MAPLE MAGA exist in a bubble where emotions and feelings Trump facts. I am speaking first hand. One of my older brothers now proudly signs his emails, MAGA. HE NOW ONLY LISTENS TO FOX and tells me that media outlet is the only one speaking the truth.
AGAIN I SAY, BAN THEM, BAN THEM ALL.
LET THEM FIGHT US IN COURT. If they win we can use the "not withstanding" clause.
We in Canada are in a fight for our very existence and the opposition isn't playing by the rules. Remember that.
The time for lengthy debates is over. We are not living in normal times.
Keep up your great work in finding vital articles/videos on what's happening, so that we can let our voices, and awareness of what's going on, be heard.
No, we need to see 2 bills passed first. Both are working their way to legislation and enactment and would demand registration for all foreign lobbying efforts and funding and would enforce major penalties for making false claims. Canada is extremely vulnerable to foreign interference in our election process. See Duff Conacher co-founder of Democracy Watch. An immediate election call is a disastrous mistake.
We have truth in advertising, truth in broadcasting; however, there is a currebtly a need to use AI in some way to separate truth in digital media in both news, opinion and social streams from dishonest rhetoric. There need not be censorship; however, some manner of indicating factual sources of information or opinion for all media sources, private and public, is vital moving forward. I realize segments of the population resist regulation, but with freedom comes justice. Lies, misinformation and disinformation cannot be freely candied about to confuse the public while ignoring truth and facts. The ignorant repetition of 'alternative facts and propaganda is an injustice to intelligent, critical-thinking Canadians who need to make their own independent judgements and vote according to accurate information that the entire population understands and trusts.. This total "Freedom of Speech" without any regulation is what led the USA into the gutter and continues to keep that country there. I want Canada to exert a "Freedom from Stupidity". It is vital and central to a successfully functioning democracy.
AI totally depends on the information and attitudes that are inputted. Garbage in, garbage out. If all the inputting is by white, male technos that is not a database you can depend on to give a balanced, representative response. I asked Meta AI how I could remove it from Messenger and Copilot how I could remove it from Office, both having appeared in my apps without my consent, and got programmed defensive responses.
Thanks all - excellent and chilling article. This is clearly our biggest challenge. Charlie Angus' letter is bang-on & hope it finally gets our leaders to the threat with the seriousness that's required. We should work with and consult with other free states to find solutions - particularly learning from the experiences of the one's who have been targeted in the past.
I agree with others all politicians must have security clearance no excuses. I don’t feel it’s the right time for an election either. Canadians have a lot to deal with right now I feel all the Election rhetoric will show a weaker side to us and I’m sure Trump will use it against us. I feel one party is pushing it agenda and not looking at the bigger picture. Which shows a lack of solidarity and will play into Trumps hand.
I would suggest an all party committee, all with security clearance, to work TOGETHER to unify Canada, and its defence against unlawful tariffs by Trump. We have seen Doug Ford cooperate with federal ministers on trips to Washington, and provincial premiers of different parties joining to try to deflect the POTUS.
I'm pretty sure four of the five parties in Ottawa would agree, with the CPC a question mark. Time to see if they can put country before party as has been said.
Greg, I agree with the unity point being as important as the issue of why substantive protections need to be in place before an election. I tried (only partially successfully) to get a debate going back in January 13 with this opinion piece: https://www.readtheline.ca/p/craig-scott-an-admittedly-unlikely?utm_campaign=posts-open-in-app&triedRedirect=true Adapting its principles and concerns for where we are now, I still believe it still is relevant — both before and during an election, and for a government afterward. Highly unlikely Poilievre Conservatives would want to be involved — some behind the scenes reactions to my Jan 13 piece made that clear back then — and also unlikely other parties would want his style and ideological fixations to be part of things ( instead of unity with and through diversity, we are as likely to get unity riven with division). One exception: all parties must bloody well come together in a (true) war cabinet — of the focused inner-cabinet kind Churchill ran despite not having to (he had a majority of the seats) from 1940 to 1945. I say « true » to distinguish this from some glib and irresponsible assertions by at least one newly sworn government minister that this fresh single-party cabinet was a war cabinet.
I agree with you Craig, but I hope for an advisory panel least. We see how the various parties act in the House committees, a true political circus most of the time!
It will be interesting to see if Poilievre is as anxious for an election, since polls are now showing him not winning, and one actually putting the Liberals in a majority! Mr.Singh has backed himself into a corner where he has no choice but to vote for dissolution, and the Bloc is always ready fro a fight, no matter when, or with whom.....
I must admit that the number of hate posts I see on social media, here in Canada, is alarming. There are lots of anti-Liberals messages. That reminds me a lot of the "own the Libs" messages we saw in the U.S. before their elections. I was not a fan of Trudeau myself, but do we absolutely need to go all the way to fascism to make our voices heard? There are already a lot of negative posts on Carney. Why? Carney has infinitely more experience and expertise than Poilievre will ever have. I am already sick and tired of the Maple MAGA idiots we have here in Canada. Why don't they all move to Russia where they belong?
I wonder whether these negative posts are really from Canada or Russian troll farms. I completely disagree with Canadians who like Trump, but I sat down with one recently and had a good chat. I could see some of his views, and he could see some of mine. I still think he's misguided, of course. Remember that the Maple MAGA people are people -- just misguided ones. We have a right to our opinions, and to express these. Of course, if that turns into actions against other people or Canada, that's another matter.
Not time for an election now.
Time for all members of parliament both federal and provincial to have the same CSIS CLEARANCE AS THE PRIME MINISTER OF CANADA 🇨🇦 BEFORE THEY RUN .
Agreed. A security clearance is a must. It is for every members of the military and most government workers. It makes absolutely no sense to have a PM/commander in chief without a clearance. Why would any other country share classified information with such a PM in time of crisis/war? With his incompetence and populist propaganda, Poilievre is a magnet for idiots.
I totally agree with you.
I agree it is a must, so anyone unwilling to undergo the process should be disqualified from running. Does that mean the election can't be called until every duck is in a row. If we delay, we may be dead in the water. Keep the momentum and build as we go.
50.7% of those who voted elected trump. This is not a tiny majority of all Americans. It is a minority. He did not win by a landslide. Consider all the citizens who were disenfranchised or votes simply negated by gerrymandering and various forms of voter suppression, especially the last minute lists of challenges to people based on nothing more than their perceived ethnicity. Then votes discarded at the polls or never made it from post office to election machines or machines that this time may actually have been tampered with. Then there are the people paralyzed by fear of bloody civil war and/or nuclear war, as threatened by trump, who never made it to vote.p. Now add the maga voters who have suddenly woken up when they or a family member lost jobs or Veterans benefits or access to other services and supports.
You are stronger than you think.
I wrote my MP to cancel the F-35 sale!!! The plane has flaws and we need to go euro now for everthing!!!
Saab
That is more like it...Just checked out the web site.....Scrap the F-35 immediatly
Thank you , our son was a submariner he was!
It's a bad time for an election, but the Liberals really didn't have a choice -- they had to change leaders because of Trudeau's unpopularity, and the new leader has to win an election to prove he has a mandate from the people.
Thank you
As a totally disgusted and embarrassed American, all I can say is I'm sorry that 50.7% of Americans voted to elect this orange faced, sociopath President. I hope Canada doesn't give an inch to this madman and sheds any thought of diplomatic engagement with trump. Engaging with his BS only emboldens the idiot. All sane Americans want nothing to do with this guy and his anti Canada ramblings.
Thanks and yes, we are quite aware of the situation most Americans find themselves in. I say "most" because I am sure a large number of pro Trump voters now have regrets. I can't help thinking that unconditional free speech is largely responsible for what's happening right now. At the minimum, large media outlets and influential individuals should be held accountable for knowingly spreading lies and misinformation. The consequences of their actions are way too serious to let that happen.
Stop apologizing and pretending you have "nothing to do with this guy". He is your President and only Americans can fix this.
I fully agree with a full ban of X and Tesla Inc platform and products during this age of techno-fascism. I strongly believe that we need Canadian made and regulated versions of all American tech giant platforms and services, Stay strong Canada and continue the boycott.
WE need to ban X/Twitter. It is a threat to our National security ( at least till the Elections are over). Same for FOX propaganda Network
Don't rush into an election until we have this foreign interference thing under control.
ELBOWS UP.
I agree with you on banning Twitter/X and Fox propaganda outlet. X has become owner, Elon Musk's personal propaganda machine and he uses it prolifically to propagandize not just Americans, but Canadians and whoever is within X's reach. Magas and Maple Magas lap this stuff up and they spread it around like a cancer-causing pesticide aimed at killing democracy along with any hopes of diversity or acceptance.
Canada has no amendment right guaranteeing free speech when it's hate speech and lies. Fact-
checking has done nothing to quell the tide of hate speech or lies We should be stopping both.
I say Trurh Social, owned by Donald Trump and the social media platform he uses dozens of times daily and nightly for his lies and propanda should be completely banned from use by Canadians too. Extremist Conservatives already complain constantly that their freedom of speech and freedom of choice has been taken away. Why not give them a real reason to complain.
It is because of social media that monsters like Trump managed to get where he is today. It's the
influence of American news, movies, TV shows, and social media that has far too many Canadians believing we either are or we should be Americans living by American laws, rules and government. Get rid of some of that influence and at least some of the fascism we see trying to take hold in Canada will dissipate.
All of this is true, but the sooner we have the election, the less opportunity for interference and disinformation there will be. Since we don’t seem to be prepared to fight it, best to move fast.
This a very good point. A sad state of affairs if we are not ready but the question of whether the threat will be worse the longer we wait is a really good one. And maybe our agencies really do have things under control re Russia etc as the CSE claims. Maybe Trump and Musk have too many other fish to fry right now than to try to interfere in way they surely must know will not help any candidate known to be the one they are assisting.
But I am all the same inclined to believe it is a travesty - of even our highly flexible Westminster system of democracy - not to at least call the current Parliament back as promised by the time of prorogation or before it ends. Parliament needs to hear what the preparations are and — through the parliamentary proceedings - Canadians need to receive reasonable assurances that measures are in place to detect, combat and alert parties and Canadians about social media disinformation and foreign interference.
Being a former MP myself, I also feel for the MPs who have been completely sidelined by the former PM’s prorogation. To add to that by adding a dissolution on top of prorogation without Parliament sitting again seems to me not just something worthy of empathy for MPs but also a sign of disrespect for our own system’s (supposed) placing of Parliament at the centre of our democracy. That it is perfectly constitutional for a PM to pile a dissolution on top of a prorogation — and keep Parliament silent for close to 6 months — it is hardly edifying and I worry about the longer- term signal that this sends. That longer-term signal is that an executive (Cabinet with a powerful PM) can govern just fine, thank you very much, without the bother and hassle of a Parliament for as often as the government wishes. We already see how gutted a lot of provinces’ democracies are by how infrequently the legislature convenes; we don’t need this nationally as well. Add to that the fact MPs don’t even need to be in Ottawa to vote in many cases (I am. It up on the precise rules) and things look increasingly unhealthy for the future of an in- person Parliament.
And the more we see of the spectacular mess south of the border, as the executive branch takes over more and more power and overrides the legislature and (it looks increasingly likely) the courts, the more important it is to make sure that our legislature is not overridden in the same way.
I would be in favour of recalling the legislature for 2 days (or similar) for an update. Then dissolve for an election.
@ADHD Academic….I agree. Election interference and disinformation is only going to steam roll.
IMHO, Rushing into a fight without knowing what weapons and how strong your enemy is puts Canada at a disadvantage. MAGA'S strategy has been to "flood the zone" with misinformation/ disinformation. Banning the method by which they do this is the most important step we can take.
Once it takes root you cannot change the minds of those affected with logic, reason and facts. MAGA AND MAPLE MAGA exist in a bubble where emotions and feelings Trump facts. I am speaking first hand. One of my older brothers now proudly signs his emails, MAGA. HE NOW ONLY LISTENS TO FOX and tells me that media outlet is the only one speaking the truth.
AGAIN I SAY, BAN THEM, BAN THEM ALL.
LET THEM FIGHT US IN COURT. If they win we can use the "not withstanding" clause.
We in Canada are in a fight for our very existence and the opposition isn't playing by the rules. Remember that.
The time for lengthy debates is over. We are not living in normal times.
Keep up your great work in finding vital articles/videos on what's happening, so that we can let our voices, and awareness of what's going on, be heard.
Thanks for that, stay tuned
No, we need to see 2 bills passed first. Both are working their way to legislation and enactment and would demand registration for all foreign lobbying efforts and funding and would enforce major penalties for making false claims. Canada is extremely vulnerable to foreign interference in our election process. See Duff Conacher co-founder of Democracy Watch. An immediate election call is a disastrous mistake.
Thank you for that very precise point about a vulnerability we have if Parliament does not return.
Deepfakes already circulating for the upcoming Canadian election. Notice its origin...
https://pressprogress.ca/this-photo-of-mark-carney-and-tom-hanks-on-epstein-island-is-going-viral-the-photo-is-completely-fake/
We have truth in advertising, truth in broadcasting; however, there is a currebtly a need to use AI in some way to separate truth in digital media in both news, opinion and social streams from dishonest rhetoric. There need not be censorship; however, some manner of indicating factual sources of information or opinion for all media sources, private and public, is vital moving forward. I realize segments of the population resist regulation, but with freedom comes justice. Lies, misinformation and disinformation cannot be freely candied about to confuse the public while ignoring truth and facts. The ignorant repetition of 'alternative facts and propaganda is an injustice to intelligent, critical-thinking Canadians who need to make their own independent judgements and vote according to accurate information that the entire population understands and trusts.. This total "Freedom of Speech" without any regulation is what led the USA into the gutter and continues to keep that country there. I want Canada to exert a "Freedom from Stupidity". It is vital and central to a successfully functioning democracy.
AI totally depends on the information and attitudes that are inputted. Garbage in, garbage out. If all the inputting is by white, male technos that is not a database you can depend on to give a balanced, representative response. I asked Meta AI how I could remove it from Messenger and Copilot how I could remove it from Office, both having appeared in my apps without my consent, and got programmed defensive responses.
Three weeks ago I sent an email to Elections Canada about my concerns about Foreign Interference. Yes, I included our neighbours to the South.
All I got was PR blah, blah, blah, Blah blah...
I can't say I was impressed
Me too. No reply. Just a confirmation my letter was received.
The PCs need a new party leader, Poilievre is failing to lead the party to any significant accomplishments.
We should sign a petition to make it a requirement
Thanks all - excellent and chilling article. This is clearly our biggest challenge. Charlie Angus' letter is bang-on & hope it finally gets our leaders to the threat with the seriousness that's required. We should work with and consult with other free states to find solutions - particularly learning from the experiences of the one's who have been targeted in the past.
I agree with others all politicians must have security clearance no excuses. I don’t feel it’s the right time for an election either. Canadians have a lot to deal with right now I feel all the Election rhetoric will show a weaker side to us and I’m sure Trump will use it against us. I feel one party is pushing it agenda and not looking at the bigger picture. Which shows a lack of solidarity and will play into Trumps hand.
I would suggest an all party committee, all with security clearance, to work TOGETHER to unify Canada, and its defence against unlawful tariffs by Trump. We have seen Doug Ford cooperate with federal ministers on trips to Washington, and provincial premiers of different parties joining to try to deflect the POTUS.
I'm pretty sure four of the five parties in Ottawa would agree, with the CPC a question mark. Time to see if they can put country before party as has been said.
Greg, I agree with the unity point being as important as the issue of why substantive protections need to be in place before an election. I tried (only partially successfully) to get a debate going back in January 13 with this opinion piece: https://www.readtheline.ca/p/craig-scott-an-admittedly-unlikely?utm_campaign=posts-open-in-app&triedRedirect=true Adapting its principles and concerns for where we are now, I still believe it still is relevant — both before and during an election, and for a government afterward. Highly unlikely Poilievre Conservatives would want to be involved — some behind the scenes reactions to my Jan 13 piece made that clear back then — and also unlikely other parties would want his style and ideological fixations to be part of things ( instead of unity with and through diversity, we are as likely to get unity riven with division). One exception: all parties must bloody well come together in a (true) war cabinet — of the focused inner-cabinet kind Churchill ran despite not having to (he had a majority of the seats) from 1940 to 1945. I say « true » to distinguish this from some glib and irresponsible assertions by at least one newly sworn government minister that this fresh single-party cabinet was a war cabinet.
I agree with you Craig, but I hope for an advisory panel least. We see how the various parties act in the House committees, a true political circus most of the time!
It will be interesting to see if Poilievre is as anxious for an election, since polls are now showing him not winning, and one actually putting the Liberals in a majority! Mr.Singh has backed himself into a corner where he has no choice but to vote for dissolution, and the Bloc is always ready fro a fight, no matter when, or with whom.....