Decades ago, Pierre Trudeau said, “There’s no place for the state in the bedrooms of the nation.”
The comment, originating from the Globe and Mail, pertained to his Omnibus Bill, which changed the Criminal Code of Canada to legalize sex acts performed by two consenting adults in private. Trudeau’s declaration vindicated many gay Canadians. Along with his pirouette behind Queen Elizabeth in 1977, it symbolized an end to the union of church and state in Canada.
But, a new church and state were rejoined in 2015 when his son Justin became prime minister. Pierre Trudeau rolled over in his grave.
Until the next federal election, when another Pierre may become prime minister, Trudeau’s ghost, burdened by the chains of irreverence, is relegated to pacing the hall outside his son’s Parliament Hill office.
Many people still haven’t noticed, but a growing megachurch has grafted itself into all levels of Canadian government — including indigenous governments. Originally called political correctness, the new movement incubated and hatched by intellectual laziness and apathy, is rebranded under the name ‘Woke-ism.’
Winnipeg’s homeless problem is out of control, says the executive director of a prominent outreach organization — while the mayor says taxpayers aren’t getting value for their money when it comes to managing the crisis.
There were around 1,256 people in various homeless situations in Winnipeg during the month of May 2022, according to End Homelessness Winnipeg (EHW) survey. The current estimate is 3,038 people.
“We are dealing with a level of social distress unlike anything I have seen in my 40-year career, and we don’t have the resources to address these things,” said Willis, who thinks the City and province are running low on funds to cover social programs.
“We are now living through this post-pandemic period, as though the pandemic ended and we are all just getting back to life as it was. There is no life as it was.”
According to the Government of Canada, supervised consumption sites save lives and help communities. They provide a safe, clean area for users to bring their own drugs to use, in the presence of staff.
“This prevents accidental overdoses,” says a government website. “Supervised consumption sites may offer a range of evidence-based harm reduction services, such as drug checking. The sites also provide access to important health and social services, including substance use treatment for those who are ready.”
SNELL: Trudeau, Singh and the great Canadian cow
“Canada is like an old cow. The west feeds it, Ontario and Quebec milk it and we can well imagine what it is doing in the Maritimes,” Tommy Douglas, the father of Medicare and former Saskatchewan premier once said of our economy.
Canadians elected a new livestock manager in 2015, Justin Trudeau, who didn’t know the difference between a teat and a tail. Like a city cousin showing up at the family farm, Trudeau donned jeans, a cowboy hat and spurs and began wreaking havoc. Canadians stood and watched as he leapt onto the cow’s back, shouted “sunny ways” and drove the economy straight through the nearest fence. Continue reading “SNELL: Trudeau, Singh and the great Canadian cow”
LNG ‘watchmen’: merging economic opportunity and environmental protection key for remote B.C. First Nation
There’s a good reason Chief Clifford White, a First Nations LNG Alliance board member and hereditary leader of the Gitxaala Nation near Prince Rupert, B.C., walks a fine line when it comes to resource development on or near his territory.
There’s a lot happening near the remote island village of Lax Klan (Kitkatla) – the $14.5 billion Coastal GasLink pipeline terminus, the $18 billion first phase of LNG Canada, and the proposed $3 billion Cedar LNG facility, 50 per cent owned by the Haisla Nation – all at the Port of Kitimat 120 kilometres east. To the north, the Nisga’a Nation and its partners have proposed the $10 billion Ksi Lisims LNG terminal on Pearse Island.
Once operating, the projects will deliver LNG by ship to Asian markets. A 2022 study by Wood Mackenzie found that Canadian LNG exports could reduce net emissions in Asia by 188 million tonnes per year through 2050 by providing a cleaner alternative to coal.
Kitselas First Nation language keeper helping monitor Coastal GasLink pipeline construction
With an eye on legacy, Edward Innes is helping maintain environmental standards along a section of the Coastal GasLink pipeline near Terrace B.C.
The 78-year-old Elder of the Kitselas First Nation has been a construction monitor and community liaison (CMCL) on the project since 2019 – observing people, projects, and wildlife. He has completed over 550 reports, which are uploaded to a community database.
“I tell these people who are working on the [Coastal GasLink] project – this is history, just like the highway and railway,” says Innes, adding he sometimes reports in Sm’algyax – the Kitselas language. He is one of the last language keepers in the community. Continue reading “Kitselas First Nation language keeper helping monitor Coastal GasLink pipeline construction”
Kitimat, B.C. thriving alongside emerging LNG industry
Even though Kitimat, B.C. receives around two metres of rain a year, nothing can dampen the spirit of its three-term mayor when it comes to the emerging liquefied natural gas (LNG) export industry and its benefits.
Phil Germuth is enthusiastic as he speaks about the west coast town of 9,000 permanent residents. There’s a lot happening – around 6,000 camp-based construction workers at the LNG Canada site within eyeshot of town and 6,000 in the region and beyond working to complete the Coastal GasLink pipeline. The proposed Cedar LNG terminal, 50 per cent owned by the Haisla Nation, will also create hundreds of construction jobs.
“Kitimat is a great example of Canadian industries that are at the leading edge of environmental protection,” says Germuth, who owns a local automotive repair business.
Continue reading “Kitimat, B.C. thriving alongside emerging LNG industry”