Project 2025 took something from all of us.
This month, we start taking it back.
We are going to pick a town on the other side of the border. And flood it with kindness.
by Tod Maffin
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This week, the United States threatened military force against a NATO ally, Greenland. It’s also threatened Canada, in similar ways.
I hear a lot from our leaders about how the global community is reacting but not a lot about what you and I are supposed to do.
So, fellow Canadians, to get us through the next few year, I propose a plan: Five steps, that we each commit ourselves to, personally.
G - Get Serious About Your Next Vote
We’re in a razor thin minority government. Thus, we might be going to the polls this year. [▶️ Watch video: “Will there be an election?”] And if we do, we must vote like borders matter.
Ask candidates where they stand on NATO, American influence in media, and security. If they dodge those questions, as some already have, you’ll know which side they’ll stand with when the chips are down.
This might mean you vote for a party different than you usually do, a party that isn’t on board with everything on your wish list.
Let’s make sure our country is still here, and argue about the rest next time.
U - Unplug from Outrage Platforms
It’s time to stop feeding the social media algorithms that were built to amplify division. Platforms like Facebook and X are carefully engineered to keep you scrolling, angry, and reactive.
You don’t need to engage with posts and comments designed to provoke anger. Many of those accounts are bots or coordinated actors, not your neighbours. They’re automated or part of influence campaigns that are trying to destabilize public discussion one angry click at a time. That is partly how the U.S. fell.
Don’t let assholes dictate the tone of your politics.
Just don’t engage. Ignore them. Unfollow pages which just seem to be riling people up.
A - Anchor Your Spending in Canada
We must recommit ourselves to the American boycott with as much fervour as we did at the start of the tariffs.
Download Buy Canadian apps. Use them.
Take a moment in the store to check whether that brand is Canadian owned.
Can’t find exactly what you want? Try something new. Every dollar you keep circulating here weakens external leverage.
T O D B I T
In the last year, Canadian travel to the U.S. has fallen 24% by air 30% by land. That translates to USD$5.7 billion less in U.S. tourism revenue.
R - Reinforce Independent Canadian Media
Fourth, support independent Canadian news. A country that can’t tell its own story is easier to push around.
D - Distinguish People From Their Regimes
Finally, the most important. Don’t hate the rank and file Americans. Most of them didn’t vote for fascism either. Most of them see the parallels with the worst of what WWII brought. Most of them oppose their current regime.
The average American is just like you and me — caught in the middle, just trying to do right by their family and their community.
American citizens are not our enemy.
History teaches us that countries don’t always lose sovereignty all at once. They often lose it slowly, through complacency, distraction, and the comforting idea that “it couldn’t happen here.”
Czechoslovakia was dissected piece by piece. No invasion at first, just pressure, appeasement, and fatigue. The full occupation only came once resistance was gone.
Hungary was consumed slowly using arrests, propaganda, and control of institutions, not tanks on day one.
The difference between a vulnerable country and a resilient one starts with what ordinary people choose to take seriously, how they consume information, and how they vote.
The world entered a very dangerous phase this week. It’s been 214 years since Canada was at war with the US.
That's a record.
And records only stand if the people living inside them do the work to keep them intact.
Trivia
What is the name of Canada’s national intelligence service?
— 30 —
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Last Week:
What You Missed This Week
The Good News 💗
Tod’s new Just One Town project has launched — where we try to make the world a little better… by helping just one town. [Watch the video]
It’s working: Americans in healthcare are making the move. U.S. healthcare workers are finding a new home in Nova Scotia, with the province hiring 50 U.S. workers in the past year, and CBC reports on how our Healthcare Infusions are helping them settle in, navigate the process, and connect with local communities.
Humanity is not lost: For a decade, volunteer cuddlers at Toronto’s St. Michael’s Hospital have been quietly making a big impact, providing consistent human touch to NICU babies that supports healing, eases stress, and helps families through some of their hardest days.
The Nova Scotia government has announced a new LGBTQ+ action plan aimed at improving equity and community safety, including increased support for gender-affirming care and bias-reduction training for police, corrections, and victim services staff.
Community goals: A Nova Scotia couple has donated 46 acres near Sugarloaf Mountain in Antigonish to create an “intentional community” with affordable and transitional housing, including land for a medical clinic and support for local non-profits.
One pub to read them all: A St. John’s pub owner read The Hobbit aloud for nearly 11 hours straight on Tolkien’s birthday, raising more than $1000 for The Gathering Place, a local organization supporting the city’s homeless.
Canada’s wheelchair curling team is training for the Milano-Cortina Paralympics, and this year an Alberta-developed virtual reality program is aiming to help the athletes bring home gold by recreating the Italian arena and giving them a rare, fully immersive way to practice shots.
Wild Things 🐳
Nature’s belly rubs: A pod of killer whales was spotted rubbing their bellies on rocks off B.C.’s Sunshine Coast, surprising onlookers as they swam just feet from shore for about 20 minutes.
A dog was rescued after falling through thin ice on Alta Lake in Whistler, B.C., thanks to quick-thinking owners who called 911 and firefighters who stepped in to bring the pup back to safety.
In B.C.’s north Okanagan, female farriers are keeping massive working horses steady all winter, using custom shoes, snow pads, and even antique corks to tackle icy conditions.
Trade Tea 🫖
Ontario Premier Doug Ford confirmed plans to pull Crown Royal from LCBO shelves following the company’s decision to close its Amherstburg plant.
Not the hill to die on: A Manitoba Conservative MP is pushing back on Doug Ford’s plan to pull Crown Royal from LCBO shelves, calling it “misinformed,” stressing that the whiskey is proudly made in Manitoba, and remains Canada’s No. 1 export spirit.
Despite broader Canada-U.S. tensions, B.C. and Washington State are doubling down on being good neighbours, signing a “historic agreement" to create a new interparliamentary group aimed at strengthening cross-border dialogue, cooperation, and problem-solving on shared issues.
The First Peoples 🪶
Goodwill in motion: A Nuxalk grandfather in Bella Coola, B.C., is teaching his grandson the value of giving back to his community by clearing snowy driveways on his rez with his side-by-side for those who need help, free of charge.
Lakehead University in Thunder Bay is piloting a 90-minute guided “Two-Eyed Seeing Walk” that blends Indigenous and Western knowledge, inviting participants to reflect on more than 9,000 years of the land’s cultural and historical significance.
Fasten Your Seatbelts ✈
Gander, N.L., residents dropped everything to drive stranded air passengers to hotels, forming an impromptu volunteer shuttle service for about 200 passengers aboard two planes forced to land unexpectedly at the town’s airport.
WestJet or sardine can? You decide: A viral TikTok showing an Alberta family squeezed into ultra-basic economy seats on a WestJet flight is sparking debate over passenger legroom in Canada and whether federal regulation is needed.
Canadian airlines are retreating from the U.S. and boosting international routes, as Canada-U.S. flight volumes among the country’s five largest carriers fell more than 14% year-over-year, with no sign of a rebound.
Across Canada 📍
Surf’s up… even in the Canadian winter: While some Canadians hunker down in the snow, thrill-seekers are braving 3°C waters from Lake Superior to Tofino, chasing some of the biggest, wildest waves Canada has to offer.
A Toronto sex shop reportedly received a letter from the Pentagon after U.S. soldiers’ orders of adult toys were returned from Bahrain, warning the items were illegal in the country.
A No Frills shopper in Vancouver is calling out the grocery chain for a lack of transparency after a digital price tag showed a sale price without revealing the original cost, leaving her unsure how much she was actually saving.
Fans finally hitting back: The Quebec Superior Court has approved a class-action lawsuit against Ticketmaster, which accuses the American company of charging excessive service fees on ticket sales.
Canada’s Market This Week
Royal Bank | |
TD Bank | |
Enbridge | |
ScotiaBank | |
Bank of Montreal | |
CP Rail | |
Shopify | |
Canadian Tire | |
Loblaws | |
Tim Hortons (RBI) | |
Dollarama | |
Rogers |