Can you imagine if, on his last days in office, Donald Trump called for strict and nationwide lockdowns?
If this was the case, a large swath of people – particularly people on the left – would support opening up the economy simply because it’s the opposite of what Trump says.
Anthony Furey hopes with Trump out of office, political leaders can take a more rational approach to the virus.
A Canadian drone company is currently in talks with federal and provincial governments to potentially deliver coronavirus vaccines to remote communities using drones.
According to a news release issued today by Drone Delivery Canada (DDC), the company hopes to be approved in Canada’s vaccine distribution effort.
“The Company is in discussions with various Federal and Provincial Government agencies and Canadian logistics providers and is hopeful to commercially participate with its advanced, patented drone delivery as the vaccine distribution plans start to roll out across Canada, and potentially internationally,” claimed the news release.
True North reached out to DDC for comment on the status of the discussions and what departments are currently involved.
“Unfortunately that is confidential at this point. Meaningful discussions continue and we’re hopeful we’ll commercially be involved as the programs roll out,” said DDC President and CEO Michael Zahra.
The Toronto-area company has been in operation since 2014 and specializes in the development of commercial drone logistics systems meant to service various industries including healthcare.
DDC drones are already doing daily pandemic support deliveries in two First Nation communities and past research has proven the technology capable of delivering temperature-controlled supplies, including blood tests.
According to Zahra, the technology could be implemented beyond servicing remote locations and reach into urban areas in the near future.
“We already operate a commercial project in a suburban area. The market is mostly B2B today in remote, rural and suburban. Not yet en masse in urban [areas], but expected in the future,” Zahra told True North.
In Canada, a total of 765,100 vaccines have been distributed nationwide as of January 14, 2021 according to official public health data.
True North reached out to the Public Health Agency of Canada for comment on the announcement but did not receive a reply in time for publication.
While US President Joe Biden was being inaugurated on the steps of the Capitol, Canadian mainstream media journalists could barely contain their excitement on Twitter.
Journalists and columnists from mainstream media outlets such as the CBC, the Toronto Star, Global News and CTV all sang President Biden’s and Vice President Kamala Harris’ praise as they took their oath of office Wednesday afternoon.
True North has rounded up 11 different times that mainstream journalists gushed over the new US president.
CTV News pundit admits to still having PTSD over Trump
While the inauguration was ongoing, CTV News pundit and correspondent Scott Reid indicated that his Trump-induced PTSD “will take some time to fade.”
Maclean’s bureau chief interrupts her children’s education to dump on Trump
Maclean’s Ottawa bureau chief Shannon Proudfoot tweeted that she interrupted her children’s education so that they could wave goodbye to Trump and embrace Harris.
CBC journalist “crying” at inauguration performance
CBC business reporter Meegan Read emphasized her overjoyment by tweeting the hashtag #crying in response to a performance of the national anthem by country music artist Garth Brooks.
Toronto Star columnist reminisces about meeting “kind” Joe Biden
Toronto Star columnist Susan Delacourt reminisced on Twitter about having the opportunity to meet Joe Biden and shared her impression of how kind and knowledgeable about Canada he was.
Global News reporter in awe at Harris for being first black female, south asian VP
Global News reporter Rachel Gilmore marked the “moment” of VP Harris’ oath of office by pointing out that she was the “first female, first Black and first South Asian vice president.”
CBC editor gushes over mask-wearing
CBC radio anchor and editor Kristy Snell took the opportunity to claim that her 17-year-old was enthusiastic about the amount of mask-wearing happening at the inauguration.
Toronto Star columnist shares her two “fave moments”
Toronto Star columnist Shree Paradkar shared her “two fave moments” including an embrace by Harris and former first lady Michelle Obama.
TV anchor and CTV panelist shares photo of daughter saluting Harris
Newstalk 1010 anchor and CTV panelist Lucas Meyer marked the occasion by tweeting out a photo of his daughter allegedly saluting VP Harris without prompt as she took the oath of office on Wednesday.
Toronto Star reporter hopes Biden speech reaches future generations
In a thread reporting on the inauguration, Toronto Star reporter Tonda MacCharles praised Biden’s speech as being a prayer and said that she hopes that its message would reach future generations.
TV pundit and columnist overjoyed at “sanity” of Biden inauguration
TV pundit and frequent mainstream media columnist Andrew MacDougall showed his support for the “sanity” of the new president on Twitter.
Hill Times columnist calls inauguration address “amazing”
Hill Times columnist Les Whittington praised Biden’s address and “benediction” as “amazing” while the inauguration was unfolding.
The Conservative caucus voted to eject former leadership candidate Derek Sloan today after a lengthy meeting and secret vote. Conservative leader Erin O’Toole initiated the process Monday after it was revealed Sloan unknowingly received a campaign donation from a white supremacist, though O’Toole now says it was because of a “pattern of destructive behaviour.”
Sloan joined True North’s Andrew Lawton moments later to explain what happened, and what comes next.
Despite Justin Trudeau’s promise that the federal carbon tax would give Canadians a “cleaner environment and more money in their pockets,” that amount is only about $4 per week.
Under the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act, Canadian taxpayers ponied up $2.81 billion in extra costs on groceries, fuel and home heating in 2018. According to access to information records obtained by Blacklock’s Reporter, the Climate Action Incentive rebates returned to Canadians amounted to only $1.95 billion, or an average of $4 per week.
There was significant variation depending on province, however.
– $174.28 per claim in New Brunswick – $3.35 per week.
– $202.85 per claim in Ontario – $3.90 per week.
– $231.12 per claim in Manitoba – $4.44 per week.
– $422 per claim in Saskatchewan – $8.12 per week.
Almost nine million Canadians filed for the rebate in 2018. The kickback would be dependent on factors like location and number of household members, but the government’s own report shows the tax clearly collected more from Canadians than was returned, despite assurances of revenue neutrality.
The Canada Revenue Agency has yet to release the figures for the 2019 carbon tax rebates.
The Act capped the carbon tax at the equivalent to 12 cents per litre for gasoline, but the government recently said that the cap would be lifted to 38 cents per litre by 2030. The carbon tax is currently priced at $30 per tonne, but that figure will be pushed to $50 by next year and will be as high as $170 per tonne by 2030.
If Canadians spend even $20 on gasoline per week, the $4 rebate does little to mitigate the rising cost of goods due to the carbon tax.
This widespread tax was explored in-depth in True North’s exclusive documentary Green Hypocrisy.
Embracing policies to broaden free speech in Canada could actually make Canadians wealthier, according to a new study from the Montreal Economic Institute. Looking at countries around the world, the MEI report suggests GDP and freedom of speech are clearly correlated, laying out recommendations for how Canada can do better. MEI economist Maria Lily Shaw joined True North’s The Andrew Lawton Show to explain.
Watch the latest episode of The Andrew Lawton Show.
Derek Sloan has been booted from the Conservative Party of Canada’s caucus.
In a day-long caucus meeting Wednesday, Conservative MPs voted to remove Sloan two days after it was revealed a white supremacist donated $131 to his leadership campaign last year.
Conservative leader Erin O’Toole announced Monday night that Sloan would be barred from running as a Conservative in the next election, though the Reform Act gives caucus members the final say over whether an MP can continue to sit with them.
Sloan is officially an independent member of parliament now, though he may choose to join another party.
O’Toole initiated the removal process Monday after a Press Progress story revealed the donation from white supremacist Paul Fromm.
The donation, one of 13,000 made to Sloan, was made under the name “Frederick P. Fromm,” a name Fromm is not known by publicly.
Sloan had said that the attempt to remove him was unfair, promising to fight it.
“If I am guilty of something, they are guilty of something. This is ridiculous,” Sloan said in a Facebook video on Monday.
“I’m not going to go down without a fight.”
Sloan notes that Fromm must have registered as a member of the Conservative Party, something the party should have noticed long ago. He added that no one from the party ever mentioned the donation to him before they announced he was being removed.
Peter Nygard, the Canadian fashion executive accused of sex trafficking underaged girls, has donated numerous times to the Liberal Party of Canada, a review of Elections Canada records shows.
As early as 2004, Nygard donated to the federal Liberals under his own name as well as that of his company, prior to the ban on corporate political donations. Most of the donations were over $1,000.
In 2005, Nygard held a party at his private mansion in the Bahamas. One Finnish newspaper reported that the event was so depraved and lewd that actress Jessica Alba walked out in disgust. Nygard donated $5,000 to the Liberal Party shortly after.
According to Elections Canada, the most recent contribution was for $354.34 in September, 2018.
Within a year of Nygard’s last donation to the Liberal party in 2018, both the FBI and police in the Bahamas were investigating Nygard for rape and sex trafficking.
The U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan is accusing Nygard of running a sex trafficking ring, targetting young women and girls. The alleged crimes go back as far as 1995.
In 1980, Nygard was charged with the rape of an 18 year-old girl in Winnipeg, though the charges were eventually dropped after the victim refused to testify.
In December, Nygard was arrested in Winnipeg under the Extradition Act. U.S. authorities have charged Nygard with sex trafficking and racketeering. Nygard is currently in jail and trying to get released on bail until a decision is made on his extradition.
Earlier this week, Conservative Party Leader Erin O’Toole began the process of removing Derek Sloan from caucus after it was revealed that Sloan’s leadership campaign received a donation from known white supremacist Paul Fromm.
However, Sloan said it’s absurd to expect that any politician to be familiar with the names of every single one of their donors. Fromm’s donation of $131 was one of 13,000 donations to Sloan’s leadership campaign.
In 2020, the Liberal Party of Canada pulled in $2.6 million in individual donations.
Two city councillors in Victoria, BC are pushing the federal government to regulate a “safe supply” of hard drugs and decriminalize possession.
Councillors Marianne Alto and Sarah Potts recently put forward a motion that is set to be debated during a committee meeting this upcoming Thursday.
In their motion, the two councillors demand “that the Mayor, on behalf of the City of Victoria, writes to the federal Minister of Health calling on the Government of Canada to declare the overdose crisis a national public health emergency.”
The motion calls for a “pan-Canadian overdose action plan” that could potentially include “legal regulation of illicit drugs to ensure safe supply of pharmaceutical alternatives to toxic street drugs, and decriminalization for personal use.”
According to the latest national data on the opioid crisis, there have been exactly 17,602 deaths as a result of opioid toxicity since January 2016.
The COVID-related government-mandated lockdowns are exacerbating the problem. According to the Government of Canada, “1,628 apparent opioid toxicity deaths occurred between April and June 2020, representing the highest quarterly count since national surveillance began in 2016.”
Victoria joins several other major Canadian cities that have called for decriminalization in recent months.
Alto told True North that she has not been aware of any collaboration between local governments or councillors to push for decriminalization.
“I’m aware that some Saanich councillors are considering similar motions, but I’ve not been in contact with them,” said Alto. Saanich is a neighbouring community with Victoria.
On Tuesday, Montreal city councillors Marvin Rotrand and Christian Arsenault put forward a similar motion, asking the federal government to issue a legal exemption for simple drug possession.
Late last year, Vancouver city council unanimously voted through a motion asking Ottawa for the same thing. If granted, Vancouver will be the first city in North America to decriminalize possession of street drugs.
According to Alto, Vancouver has more options than Victoria when it comes to this matter and she doesn’t believe that decriminalization in Vancouver would set a precedent for other cities in BC.
“Vancouver has its own Charter, which allows it to take actions unavailable to other BC municipalities,” Alto told True North.
Despite broad support for decriminalization among public health advocates and local governments, some are warning that the effects on public safety are unclear.
According to a July 2020 report by the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police (CACP) the impact decriminalization could have on communities remains murky.
“While research on decriminalization exists elsewhere, it has primarily been conducted through a public health lens rather than public safety. The potential impacts of decriminalizing all drugs on policing in Canada is unknown,” said the CACP.
For the time being, the federal government has been non-committal on the issue of decriminalization. Although the Liberals have proven to be in favour of providing cities like Vancouver with a controlled supply of drugs, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said that his government doesn’t consider decriminalization to be a fix for the opioid crisis.
Toronto City Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam accused Ontario Premier Doug Ford of threatening to sexually assault the CEO of Pfizer after Ford made a strangely-worded statement during his COVID-19 update on Tuesday.
On Thursday, Ford used colourful language to express how he would treat the CEO of Pfizer if he were prime minister. Pfizer recently informed Canada that they will be delaying their shipments of the coronavirus vaccine.
“If I was in [the Prime Minister’s] shoes, I’m sure he is doing it, but I’d be on that phone call every single day,” Ford said.
“I’d be up that guy’s ying yang so far with a firecracker, he wouldn’t know what hit him. I would not stop until we get these vaccines.”
In response, Wong-Tam claimed that Ford was openly threatening to sexually assault the CEO of Pfizer because “he doesn’t get what he wants.”
Wong-Tam’s office later doubled down on the claim, saying “She meant what she tweeted.”
“Absolutely not a joke. The language he used is threatening to rape someone, and perpetuating the worst kinds of rape culture.”
In response to Wong-Tam, the premier’s office said they are not going to take the accusation against Ford seriously.
“We are not going to dignify this repugnant and divisive claim with a response.”
Wong-Tam was one of the two city councillors that introduced a motion to defund the police by slashing the Toronto Police Service budget by 10%.
Due to Pfizer’s delay, Ontario will receive 5% fewer vaccine doses this week. Next week, Ontario is expected to receive zero new doses of the vaccine.
