I found this piece of great writing last summer, when we were in the midst of our own heartbreak, and it was just so thoughtful and meaningful: Cole Haddon / 5 am Story Talk We’re All Made of Horrible, Beautiful Scars Australian rocker …

Well, I don’t know whether Trudeau will leave or not, but I for one would really miss him:

Genuinely one the funniest jokes I’ve seen played on Trudeau.[image or embed]— Steve Boots (@steveboots.bsky.social) January 1, 2025 at 10:49 AM

If Trudeau was…

An epic book forward, by Caimh McDonnell in his book Disaster.

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Actually, this probably applies to 2025 also:The eerie strip I published at the end of 2019, just before the pandemic. pic.twitter.com/uqbgCxQEpa— Stephan Pastis (@stephanpastis) December 29, 2024

Looks like (almost) all Cana…

I’ve been calling Trump’s presidency “Trump 2: The Revenge Tour” and that is exactly what it will be. There is nothing so trivial that Trump can’t feel insulted about it. This is a guy who insisted the National Parks Service endorse his “bigg…

Here’s some funny stuff I found recently, as I was looking for something else:   

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crazy how fast photography progressed https://t.co/AgsFf9lCGX— Emo Philips (@EmoPhilips) D…

Trudeau is speaking softly, playing the long game with Trump. This is his only response to all the “51s5 State” bluster from Trump:Some information about Canada for Americans:https://t.co/EnI8CrF4cB— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) December 26, 2024

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In honour of Canada’s posties – I’m so glad they’re back, but I hope they can get the deal they deserve:
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An outstanding story:
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This is a fascinating tour — oh, how much we will all miss Joe Biden:
…

So now Trump is talking about the United States invading Mexico, buying Greenland and taking over the Panama Canal as well as Canada. Its nuts.For one thing, this: View on Threads
It seems like a joke:Trump thinks he can buy Greenland, anne…

America fucked around and they’re already finding out what they really elected:Can we just start using WTYS for “We told you so” to save character space over the next 4 years?— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) December 19, 2024

They thought they wer…

#IStandWithTrudeau2025 is trending tonight:
Good job. Now carry on fighting the good fight at least until we see where we’re at with the Trump/Musk situation by Inauguration Day and have the foreign interference report in hand at the end of January. No…

The government shutdown talk in the United States shows Trump for what he really is — a weak clown Oliver Willis / Daily Kos Billionaires lead GOP revolt against critical spending bill …Led by billionaires who have been appointed…

Rough math, Canada’s deficit is at like 2.1% of gdp….. A little context: The U.S is at like 6%, The EU guardrail is 3%.

The sky is in fact; not falling

#Cdnpoli

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— booth4scartown.bsky.social (@booth4scartown.bsky.social) December 16, 2024 at 1:36 PM

Correct, don’t let anyone tell you $61B is a terrible deficit. Canada has a larger population and much higher GDP than when Harper was PM.

There are reasons for Trudeau to step down. The budget isn’t one of them.

#cdnpoli #bcpoli #onpoli

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— elcanaco.bsky.social (@elcanaco.bsky.social) December 16, 2024 at 7:59 PM

 …last year’s deficit was larger than expected because the government booked a bunch of legal settlements—primarily for the Indigenous communities—onto last year’s books (which is probably also why the Public Accounts have been delayed). These were one-time costs, so that means the deficit can continue to decline in the future, and economist Armine Yalnizyan noted that this was essentially a gift to the next government because it’s off their books, and they can make it look like they were more prudent managers when that’s not necessarily the case. Nevertheless, the government didn’t try to tease or hint that this was coming, which really makes you wonder about whoever is trying to decide on their communications strategy.

With all the goings on, there’s probably no interest in why the 2023-24 deficit grew from $40B to $62B.

Just in case: ~75% due to contingent liabilities related to Indigenous rulings/awards; rest due to lower tax revenues.

Details: https://t.co/0VvSbWBIh9 #cdnecon #cdnpoli pic.twitter.com/UlWIpKDJQW

— Trevor Tombe (@trevortombe) December 16, 2024

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The biggest ticket item in the FES is the extension of the Accelerated Investment Incentive. This is a huge deal.

This allows companies to save taxes when they invest, and only when they invest. It will cost $17.9B in foregone revenue over the next 6 fiscal years.

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— Kevin Milligan (@kevinmilligan.bsky.social) December 16, 2024 at 3:44 PM

Next, debt to GDP. We put on some debt during the pandemic. (Which was the right thing to do!) We have now knocked a few points off it. (Which is the right thing to do!). I’m hoping to see this trend continue in the FES. (It’s the right thing to do!)

We are nowhere near 1995 levels. This is fine.

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— Kevin Milligan (@kevinmilligan.bsky.social) December 16, 2024 at 1:00 PM

Finally, here’s the deficit to GDP. As a rough line, I’m pretty comfortable so long as the defict is under 2% of GDP. (We can run deficits of that size forever and still have Debt/GDP fall. Sustainable fiscal policy is about Debt/GDP.)

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— Kevin Milligan (@kevinmilligan.bsky.social) December 16, 2024 at 1:14 PM

And remember this, too:

Final report on foreign interference in Canada will be released no later than January 31, 2025.

Early election? sure, but not before the release of that inquiry. Too many rumors about Chinese, India, Russian interference & foreign countries wanting Pierre Poilievre elected.

— J Hunter🍁 (@MrJoKeR604) December 17, 2024

After a day of breathless anticipation, Trudeau is still Prime Minister tonight. But tune in tomorrow….Here’s Scrimshaw’s liveblog of what happened through this afternoon and caucus meeting: Liberals In Crisis LiveBlog: Freeland Resigns On The …

Enjoy some of the funny stuff and the words of wisdom that I have been collecting lately:

I passed it too, did you? pic.twitter.com/98U7kI62Ob— Jerseygirl #FBR 🟧 (@gggirl924) December 4, 2024

pic.twitter.com/pQfcrLu3Ua— Eric Alper 🎧 (@ThatEricAl…

So how does one prepare for a dictatorship?— Rocket’s Bitch (@Cheezydork74) December 11, 2024

Is everyone just whistling past the American graveyard right now?I’m seeing a lot of coverage of Trump’s incompetent, unqualified toady nominees for this …

This gentleman is spot-fucking-on. The assassination of United Healthcare’s CEO by a highly intelligent Ivy League graduate dealing with chronic pain is a watershed moment in our history and an example of the Republican deregulation machine attacking i…

I was looking at X tonight, and saw that Maple MAGA is just delighted with the “Governor Trudeau” insult.Jerks!Here’s what I think happened: Trump saw all the praise in Canada for Trudeau’s dinner initiative, and saw how Trudeau charmed the other…

Today’s edition of “Christ, What An Asshole” (CWAA):Donald Trump is once again “joking” about annexing Canada into the United States, this time calling Justin Trudeau the “Governor” of the “Great State of Canada.”

Totally normal and not crazy at all[i…

In the category of “things I didn’t know”:First, isn’t this interesting:Next, I found out today that the United States still has hundreds, maybe thousands, of soldiers at bases sprinkled around the Middle East including military now active in Syria:Sig…

You know how it feels when someone puts into words something you felt but couldn’t describe? Well, here’s an article from George Washington University professor Dave Karpf that describes exactly why the media have such problems covering politica…

The Syrian rebels are winning.The Washington Post provides this timeline article:

The shocking speed of Syria’s rebel advance against Assad: A visual timeline
Videos, photos and maps show how Syrian fighters mounted a stunning offensive against t…

Once again, Trump is shooting himself in the foot. I think that he and his minions thought it would be terribly ballsey to make a whole bunch of controversial nominations right away for Cabinet positions and directorships, so he could swagger arou…

Following Poilievre’s apparent rejection of Trudeau’s request for a united front against Trump, I’m reading some commentary about Poilievre and it ain’t pretty:Andrew Coyne / The Globe and Mail

Poilievre fumbles the Trump crisis: a missed opportunity …

On Tuesday, Trudeau told the opposition leaders to man up and fly in formation. I think the message was received loud and clear:  …Trudeau met with opposition leaders in his office on Parliament Hill on Tuesday to brief them on the sit…

On October 1st 2022, the Government of Canada removed all COVID-19 border measures such as required proof of vaccination, random testing, and mandatory isolation for high-risk travelers. For the first time since early 2020, the Canadian border is operating under “normal” conditions. For example: Americans interested in visiting Canada no longer need to download the […]

As of April 1st 2022, the Canadian border will no longer require a pre-arrival negative COVID-19 test from fully vaccinated travellers entering or returning to the country. Previously, a rapid antigen test or a PCR test indicating a person does not have COVID was required by border authorities. This rule change should encourage Canadians to […]

After being closed for nearly 19 months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, on November 8th 2021 the United States land border officially opened to all fully vaccinated Canadians. US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has announced they will be staffing their border at pre-pandemic levels, but warns that wait times may be longer than in […]

On August 9th 2021, Canada opened its border to all fully vaccinated Americans allowing tourists from the United States to visit the country once again. The US border remains closed to Canadians, however, and American authorities recently extended the border closure until September 21st citing COVID-19 transmission rates south of the border as well as […]

Most Canadians are now fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Consequently, Canadians are starting to think about international travel again, and are beginning to research possible vacation destinations. This leads to the question, which countries can a fully vaccinated Canadian visit? As of July 2021, Canadian citizens who have received two doses of the Pfizer, Moderna, or […]