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Thursday, May 22, 2025

Ontario Securities Commission approves first bitcoin ETF in North America

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
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Canadian traders will soon be able to invest in bitcoin after Ontario’s security regulator gave North America’s first bitcoin ETF a green light.

The Ontario Securities Commission Thursday approval means investors will effectively be able to buy and sell bitcoin without needing a digital wallet.

An exchange-traded fund, or ETF, is security similar to a mutual fund, except it trades on a stock exchange like conventional securities. The new bitcoin ETF will be trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol BTCC.B.

A fact sheet on the ETF describes potential investors as those willing to take on considerable risk considering the volatility of cryptocurrency markets. 

“The ETF invests in bitcoin. Given the speculative nature of bitcoin and the volatility of the bitcoin markets, there is considerable risk that the ETF will not be able to meet its investment objectives. An investment in the ETF is not intended as a complete investment program and is appropriate only for investors who have the capacity to absorb a loss of some or all of their investment,” writes Purpose Investments, the firm managing the ETF.

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have entered the spotlight in recent weeks after several institutional announcements and investments. 

Recently, Mastercard announced it would allow vendors to support cryptocurrency purchases on its network. 

“Our philosophy on cryptocurrencies is straightforward: It’s about choice,” said Mastercard executive vice president Raj Dhamodharan. 

“Mastercard isn’t here to recommend you start using cryptocurrencies. But we are here to enable customers, merchants and businesses to move digital value — traditional or crypto — however they want.”

Earlier this week, an institutional purchase of $1.5 billion worth of bitcoin by the electric vehicle company Tesla also gave further legitimacy to investing in cryptocurrencies. 

According to some crypto enthusiasts, the purchase by Tesla could prompt other companies to consider adding the cryptocurrency to their investment portfolios. 

Senate spends $150,000 on desks for staff working at home

By
True North Wire
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Source: Senate of Canada

A senate committee has decided to allocate $150,000 of taxpayers dollars so that senate employees can buy desks for their homes.

According to Blacklock’s Reporter, the Senate committee on internal economy voted 9 to 6 to approve the funding. It remains unclear how many employees will receive funding or how much each desk will cost.

Senators voting against the funding said that they have been able to work from home just fine during the pandemic without expensive desks.

“Many of us are also sitting at home and doing a lot of our work from our living rooms and our dining rooms,” said Conservative Senator Donald Plett.

“I have been using a dining room table for an awful lot of work in the Senate, and my dining room chair, a hard-back chair.”

Senator Raymonde Saint-Germain was also vocal in her opposition to the funding.

“I am totally opposed to this proposal,” she said.

“I feel first of all it is premature, and is based on something permanent when we are in a temporary situation.” 

The senate has around 600 employees who are currently working from home most of the time. The director of property at the Senate Caroline Morency said that “employees could benefit from better equipped work setups at home.”

Staff have already taken their computers and office chairs home. Committee Chair Senator Sarabjit Marwah said that once the $150,000 is spent the senate administration can discuss additional funding with the committee.

As of November, the federal government spent $36.26 million on desks, computers, printers, monitors, office supplies and other items for staff working from home.

The Department of Public Works has defended the spending while federal workers have been complaining about their “repetitive” and “uninspiring” workload. 

Pillows and Politics: Mike Lindell on faith, business and cancel culture

By
Andrew Lawton
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A “laundry list” of companies, including Canada’s home shopping channel, have stopped carrying MyPillow products, which the company’s founder and CEO Mike Lindell says is cancel culture at work. Yet in a wide-ranging interview on The Andrew Lawton Show, Lindell says the company is doing better than ever.

Tune in as Lindell and Lawton talk about faith, business and politics, and Lindell’s memoir, “What Are The Odds: From Crack Addict to CEO.”

Watch the full episode of the Andrew Lawton Show.

CBC argues that CPC election ad “degraded” broadcaster’s reputation

By
True North Wire
-

The CBC is continuing its push to sue the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) for allegedly infringing on the Crown corporation’s copyright after the party used the broadcaster’s news footage in an election advertisement. 

In a submission made to the Federal Court on Thursday, a lawyer representing the CBC claimed that the Conservatives exploited the broadcaster’s reputation for trustworthiness when it used the footage and degraded its reputation. 

“The works in issue are the products of CBC’s skill and judgment; they reflect its high journalistic standards, practices, efforts and ethics. The use and the unfairness of the use poses a real risk of eroding CBC’s trustworthiness and reputation in the eyes of the public,” said CBC lawyer Andrea Gonsalves. 

“That’s antithetical to the very reason that material was created in the first place. The use of the materials here degrades CBC’s journalistic work by deploying it to partisan ends.”

During the 2019 federal election, the Conservatives published a political advertisement criticizing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s record in office. 

Originally, the lawsuit named CBC journalists Rosemary Baton and Jon Paul Tasker as applicants but the broadcaster has since removed the two journalists claiming that the Crown corporation “was the driver of this process, not the journalists.“

The CBC has since argued that the use of the clip was “sensational and one-sided” and that they had concerns that the ad made the public broadcaster look pro-Conservative. 

In response to the latest legal argument, the CPC has claimed that the broadcaster’s targeting of the party is selective considering the fact that other parties have also used CBC content in their ads. 

“Despite the concern that CBC professes for its journalistic integrity, only the CPC faces legal action for the use of CBC content,” argued the CPC in response to the claims. 

“That strongly suggests that this case amounts to little more than CBC’s selectively enforcing its copyrights to distance itself from one — and only one — political party.”

Resisting the Big Tech Purge (feat. Mike Lindell)

By
Andrew Lawton
-

The pro-life Canadian publication LifeSite has been kicked off of YouTube with its entire catalogue vaporized. Yesterday, Facebook made a vague announcement about how it will be undertaking steps to reduce the political content that users see. True North’s Andrew Lawton talks about the latest in Big Tech’s purge of conservative voices, and shares highlights from a True North/Civitas Canada panel on Big Tech censorship.

Also, MyPillow founder and CEO Mike Lindell joins the show to talk about his walk in faith, business and politics – and his own censorship at the hands of Big Tech companies.

“Very real risk” of third lockdown in Ontario: Health officials

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

The co-chair of the Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table Adalsteinn Brown said during a Thursday afternoon briefing that there was a “very real risk” of a third lockdown for the province in the coming months. 

“Without the ability to respond quickly and effectively, without the ability to control spread in the community, we face the very real risk of a third wave and potentially a third lockdown,” said Brown.  

During the press conference Brown was joined by Ontario’s chief medical officer of health Dr David Williams. 

According to Ontario’s projections, a third wave of the virus is possible due to the recent detection of COVID-19 variants in the province. Currently, Ontario has 236 cases of the U.K. variant, making it hold the largest share of the 393 cases detected nationwide. 

“The impact of this third wave will be as inequitable as the first two waves with case and death rates highest in our racialized and low socio-economic status neighbourhoods. There will be little time to react quickly because of how fast the variants spread. We are–let me be clear–operating with uncertainty, that is the nature of a new disease with new variants. We need to do much as we can to reduce that uncertainty,“ said Brown. 

Health officials stated that a stay-at-home order and an aggressive vaccination campaign is necessary to combat the incoming wave caused by the variants. 

The new models come just as Premier Doug Ford announces an easing of the province-wide lockdown. 

This week, the Ford government moved to gradually reopen Ontario’s economy and announced an end to the state of emergency declared in January. 

Stay-at-home orders were also lifted for a few parts of the province including the Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington region, Renfrew County and Hastings and Prince Edward Counties. Stay-at-home orders are also expected to be lifted in other parts of the province next week.

“Our number one priority will always be protecting the health and safety of all individuals, families and workers across the province,” said Premier Ford in a news release. 

“But we must also consider the severe impact COVID-19 is having on our businesses. That’s why we have been listening to business owners, and we are strengthening and adjusting the Framework to allow more businesses to safely reopen and get people back to work.”

Mike Lindell says MyPillow pulled from Canada’s home shopping channel

By
Andrew Lawton
-

The Canadian home shopping network Today’s Shopping Choice (TSC) has yanked MyPillow products from its catalogue, according to company CEO Mike Lindell.

In an interview on True North’s The Andrew Lawton Show, Lindell said he has always had a “great relationship” with the network, formally called The Shopping Channel, but accused it of succumbing to “cancel culture” by severing ties with his Minnesota-based pillow company.

TSC has joined what Lindell says is a “laundry list” of retail brands no longer carrying his products, which include pillows, mattress toppers, towels and bedsheets.

“We lost probably fourteen box stores, (Today’s Shopping Choice) in Canada, which I’ve got a really great relationship with,” Lindell said. “They did that. I mean, I couldn’t believe it. I’m going, ‘They’re not even in the United States.’”

A search for “MyPillow” on TSC’s website yields only results for competitor products, and pages for MyPillow products still listed in Google’s search results direct users to empty pages.

In recent weeks, MyPillow has faced growing backlash as a result of Lindell’s support for former US president Donald Trump’s claims that the 2020 election was rife with fraud. Last week, Lindell released a documentary titled “Absolute Proof,” which he claims lays out definitive support for the claims, which have not been proven in court.

Twitter suspended Lindell’s account, and later suspended the MyPillow account as well after Lindell sent a tweet from it.

Despite the controversy, Lindell said he is not backing down, noting the company is still expanding even with the retail challenges.

“Is it affecting my business? I have a laundry list of box stores where they attack them and they succumb to the cancer culture. They’re trying to cancel me out,” said Lindell. “We’re busier now than we’ve ever been. Ever. People are getting behind us, and we’ve hired 150 more people in two weeks. MyPillow is at an all-time high.”

Today’s Shopping Choice is owned by Rogers, which did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.

Lindell, a recovering drug and alcohol addict, founded MyPillow in 2009 after inventing the company’s flagship pillow design. The company has sold 41 million units to date, thanks in part to a marketing campaign that has heavily targeted talk radio and cable news stations.

NDP MP says impeachment “the least of what should befall Donald Trump”

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

NDP MP Charlie Angus tweeted on Wednesday implying that former US President Donald Trump deserved a fate worse than impeachment. 

Currently, the former president is facing his second impeachment trial in the Senate for allegedly inciting an insurrection during the January Capitol Hill riots. 

“This video is a must watch. It is the prosecution video of the horrific violence that took place in Washington. It is truly shocking. Impeachment is the least of what should befall Donald Trump,” tweeted Angus linking to a heavily edited video of the event. 

Republican Sen. Rand Paul has indicated that the Democrat-led impeachment effort has “zero chance” of conviction.

According to Paul, 45 Republicans have pledged to stop the proceeding in its tracks. The US Constitution requires two-thirds of the Senate to vote in favour of impeachment for a conviction to succeed. 

“Zero chance of conviction. Forty-five Republicans have said it’s not even a legitimate proceeding so it’s really over before it starts. As far as witnesses, I think unlikely to be witnesses; if they do want witnesses, there’s going to be so much evidence that the president had nothing to do with this,” said Paul. 

As exclusively reported on by True North, nearly two weeks after Trump lost the 2020 election, the NDP continued to obsess over the president on social media. 

On the eve of  election night, NDP MP Peter Julian went so far as comparing the Republicans to Hitler and the Nazis in the 1930s. Julian also claimed that “Donald Trump represents fascism,” “white supremacy” and “unbelievable patriarchy.” 

YouTube deletes account of Canadian media outlet LifeSiteNews

By
True North Wire
-

YouTube has deleted the account of socially conservative news outlet LifeSiteNews.

On Wednesday, LifeSiteNews reported that YouTube permanently deleted their account, along with every video. LifeSiteNews claims to have had over 300,000 followers on YouTube.

LifeSiteNews was founded by the Campaign Life Coalition in Toronto in 1997. The outlet gives a voice to social conservatives and emphasises “traditional Judeo-Christian principles” in its reporting.

Speaking to Breitbart, LifeSiteNews VP Gualberto Garcia Jones said that the move by YouTube was expected given the increasing censorship across mainstream social media platforms.

“The truth is, we’ve been anticipating this for some time. YouTube, along with other Big Tech corporations, are simply not interested in allowing anyone to dissent from their state-approved, liberal ideology,” he said.

“Fortunately, we’ve already taken preemptive measures to ensure the truth will continue to reach the ears of those most in need of it in these dictatorial times.”

LifeSiteNews has moved its videos to Rumble and promises to grow their presence on alternative social media platforms.

In a statement, YouTube said LifeSiteNews repeatedly published content surrounding coronavirus which it considers misinformation.

“In accordance with our long standing strikes system, we terminated the channel LifeSiteNews Media for repeatedly violating our COVID-19 misinformation policy, which prohibits content that promotes prevention methods that contradict local health authorities or WHO,” said the spokeswoman.

“Any channel that violates our COVID-19 misinformation policy will receive a strike, which temporarily restricts uploading or live-streaming. Channels that receive three strikes in the same 90-day period will be permanently removed from YouTube.”

Among recent videos about coronavirus published by LifeSiteNews include citizens opposing lockdowns in the United States and medical professionals expressing skepticism surrounding coronavirus vaccines.

Beijing 2022 Olympics boycott “should be on the table”: MP Michael Chong

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

Foreign affairs critic and Conservative MP Michael Chong said that the federal government needs to consider all options, including a boycott, when it comes to the upcoming 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.

In recent months, the opposition has pressured the governing Liberals to act on the issue of China’s ongoing genocide being perpetrated against the country’s Uyghur and Turkic Muslim minority. 

“Conservatives are deeply concerned about the genocide of Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims in China. We strongly urge the Liberal government to work with Canada’s allies to take action,” Chong wrote in a statement made to True North. 

“All options should be on the table, including a boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics in 2022 as part of a wider plan to work with our allies to reset relations with China.” 

In recent weeks, the call for a boycott has gained popularity across party lines. The latest Canadian politician to join in on the effort to stop Canada from attending the event was Green Party leader Annamie Paul who demanded that the federal government pull out of the occasion. 

“If an ongoing genocide is not reason enough to relocate a sporting event, then my question is, what is?” said Paul during a press conference earlier this week.

“China has proven itself to be incredibly resistant to liberalization of human rights and fundamental freedoms. here is no reason to credibly believe that the celebration of the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, alongside a genocide, will produce any such results.”

Paul is joined by nearly two dozen MPs and Quebec MNAs who penned an open letter earlier this month comparing the Communist Party of China’s treatment of the Uyghurs to the Nazis in the 1930s. 

“Some may argue that sports and politics should not mix. We would respond that when genocide is happening, it is no longer a matter of politics, but of human rights and crimes against humanity. We cannot accept the current status quo,” said the letter. 

“We want to ensure that the medals they win in 2022 are not tainted by what will no doubt go down in history, like the 1936 Berlin Games, as The Games of Shame.”

It is estimated that a million Uyghurs including men, women and children are being held in concentration camps where they are subjected to torture, rape and other horrid treatment. 

According to the editor-in-chief of the state-backed publication The Global Times, the Chinese regime will respond to any country that boycotts the Olympics with serious sanctions towards them.

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