This was Trudeau legalizing marijuana, dealing with the convoy, responding to the Portapique shooting, etc. We like to blame Trump for everything, but we have our own politicians doing this shit. I wish we could stop obsessing over Trump and start paying more attention to our own governments in Canada (at all levels).
You make a very good point but it would be INFINITELY easier to focus on our own challenges if we didn’t have to pay attention to the crazy whose every move surprises, startles, and threatens us.
It’s interesting that the current and previous Liberal govs have adopted Trump’s way of doing things rather than doing things by consensus in parliament. And most Canadians seem okay with that.
That is a laughably sweeping exaggeration. You can't compare deporting people arrested on sight for their skin colour to concentration camps in other countries to the carefully measured and reluctant steps Trudeau used to get the Convoy out of Ottawa. Pierre Poilievre's obstructionism effectively paralyzed Parliament for his last four years as an MP, though.
There is zero to compare between the two. Trudeau was useless; the Convoy should have been removed from Ottawa on the first Sunday, but he never tried to overthrow his government. said nothing of any substance, so you couldn't tell if he was lying. But Trudeau had 10 years to turn us into a fascist dictatorship., He never made the attempt.
And yet here we are, not batting an eye when our government bypasses parliament and governs by order in council. Tell me nothing has changed in the last 10 years—that orders in council have always been the way our parliament has operated.
Authoritarianism is tailored to its host society. We look for bronze eagles and torch rallies, concentration camps and jackboots, and when we don't find them we breathe a sigh of relief. But authoritarianism in Canada would come with a wide smile, a heavy veneer of faux-niceness and a smug condescending attitude that only big government knows what the people really want.
As it stands, Parliament and elections have become mere inconveniences to be managed by our one-party state and all its various organs. I seriously think we are in very immediate danger of becoming a so-called "hybrid regime". Featuring a kind of soft "competitive authoritarianism" where we hold theoretically fair elections but the TV man tells you who to vote for and the equivalent of a $1000 cheque shows up in the mail that can only be cashed if the Party wins.
But authoritarianism in Canada is more about maintaining a parasitic elite than keeping law and order so it co-exists with a growing sense of on-the ground anarchy despite stifling rules and taxes for those who try to comply ("anarcho tyranny"). Best of both worlds!
You'll get my attention when someone tries screwing with Elections Canada. We have free, fair, functional elections without government involvement; the complete opposite of the US.
If the Conservatives want to win, they might want to think about picking an honest platform that appeals to Canadians while not having a complete asshole as leader. Pierre is why you lost.
What could be more honest than "OMG Trump is going to destroy our economy and our entire way of life as a prelude to military invasion which is totally a real thing and also Poilievre is exactly like Trump and will somehow collaborate with him to make all this happen more and faster!"
Canadian media: "Yes this checks out we will accept all this uncritically and talk about nothing else all election except maybe other ways Conservatives are unacceptable and publish EKOS polls that show a 15-point pro-Liberal swing in a two day period"
Well, when economists shot it full of holes for being overly optimistic with the numbers, a platform released so late the advanced polls were already finished, you had to think they hoped people wouldn't notice. When you've been begging for an election for a year, and have no platform to show, it looks kind of ropey.
Got it. It's good government when the Conservatives do, but authoritarianism by anyone else. I still don't understand how you guys keep complaining about the media while you're on a media site that you're paying for.
I never heard of anyone suggesting a US military intervention. That's your own creation. And you're in denial of reality if you don't think a partner we do 75% of our trade with can't destroy us economically if they're willing to take the pain. They can do it without firing a shot.
Like I said, the window is shifting. What was once a rare thing is a regular occurrence, but we’re all just frogs in the proverbial pot of water. The fact that you and others seem absolutely fine with the increase in orders in council merely proves my point.
The speed of change in change itself has left Overton a yesterday metaphor. Trump's speed of change is perceived as refreshing to many, and the occasional backtrack is considered acceptable.
Seeking consensus amongst Canada's typical "obsticalists" (Quebec, First Nations, Environmentalists, et al) hinders necessary accountability and forward motion. A little bit more Trump and a lot less Overton is being welcomed.
Trump almost certainly hasn't found a way to circumvent the need to build popular support or acceptance for policies - it's just that the thermostatic political backlash hasn't hit him yet. What looks like Trump successes is momentum and a temporary first mover advantage.
Significant parts of Trump's agenda are being scrutinized by US courts, and while his administration superficially seems to have avoided defeat in recent Supreme Court rulings on the "emergency docket", they're still in real jeopardy as the full legal cases are adjudicated (not just temporary injunctions.) Trump has also benefited from control of both houses of Congress by supine and spineless Republican majorities - that could change dramatically after November 2026.
What Trump's approach *does* seem to have accomplished is a variation on the Steve Bannon strategy of "flooding the zone with s#!t". There are so many controversies, so many scandals, so many errors that critics, opponents, and the public are overwhelmed responding to them. Again, it's a transient phenomenon: Trump's also giving people all sorts of reasons to dislike him. Eventually, he'll pay the price in an election.
I like the article. But I think everything that is happening in the US is in Trump's name only. I'm not sure he's doing much of anything outside of embarrassing his country with lies every time he opens his mouth. This is the Stephen Miller show, with Russell Vought and a few others in supporting roles. The only question is whether his "American Fascist Party", as European media are calling it, feels confident enough in the Supreme Court-supported centralising of power that they can now use Epstein to cut him loose as the massive liability that he is. Mike Johnson wanting Epstein released is a big change from his usual ass-kissing. Regardless, America as we knew it is gone until the next revolution.
I like the metaphor of a swinging door. That it should be a saloon door is even more delicious.
Carrying further that metaphor, DJT announced the tariffs on pretty much the whole world (door being kicked in) and he shortly thereafter announced a "pause" on the tariffs (door swinging out). The metaphor works with so many of his policies.
And, of course, as pointed out, our government is now doing some - repeat, some - of the same. The difference is that the policies pointed out (e.g. the carbon tax) had previously been popularized by PP and the Overton Window had moved to support that change so the PM simply kicked open the door. Sorry, that metaphor is getting out of hand!
So, what to do? As the article points out, we have to simply watch for proposed/actual changes and respond quickly. A very different world.
Trump can have a Door because he has both Houses under his control. Also US courts are inclined to side with him.
See the AFN reaction to Bill C5 and decide if Carney has a little window opening let alone a free swinging door. Canada's courts are still operating under Trudeau practises: their base position is no, you may not change government practises.
Trump also DOGE'd the bureaucracy. They are all keeping their heads down. Canada's fed bureaucrats will continue their no-risk, go slow approach until someone gets fired for missing a deadline.
I agree that governments need to take more care to discover unanticipated outcomes before acting or legislating; examples are in the paragraph below. Listening and analysis should not take a lot of time if done well, especially in the age of AI that shortens the writing process.
But the examples in the article may not be relevant examples. It's likely that voters for Trump were not surprised by the actions listed since those actions could reasonably be predicted based on the Republican campaign. Fulfilling promises made in a hard fought campaign may in itself be a Overton window. It's also possible that Trudeau's GBA was more a tactic to get unwise but Liberal leftist items through than any thing else. Wearing people down in lengthy discourse and media fatigue worked.
Selected examples of lack of care over many decades include 1) easier divorce without provision for child support 2) expanded marriage without provision for divorce among the expanded groups 3) easier bail with no consideration for public safety from repeat violent offenders.
We are reacting to Trump like he is a petulant child refusing to eat his veg. The man is scum. A liar. A convicted felon 34X. There is little point in negotiating when the man-child changes his mind every five minutes. Then changes it again. Or maybe while he's sitting on the can and twitting a rant. Polarization calls for leadership and as we have seen in Ottawa for the past ten years (yes, I know Harper was a knob and still triggers some the way Trudeau triggers a lot of people in the Conservative party.) there has been nada. So, the convoy get the emergency act and antisemitic protests are targeting jews here at home to the point of firebombing synagogues. Fascinating to me how many in Ontario are traumatized by the trucker convoy when jews are being targeted in schools, universities, and the NDP.
Back in 1972, a paper titled,"A Garbage Can Model of Organizational Choice" written by Michael D. Cohen, James G. March, and Johan P. Olsen outlined an anarchic style of decision making within organizations that thrives on chaos. Whether the Trump Door or the Trump Garbage Can, we are living in an age of move fast and break things. Not sure if the Canadian government is up to the task. Trudeau thought he had the ultimate crystal ball. The Democrats down south had provided the Liberals with a game plan. In 2016 Trump came in and upended the entire game board. Trudeau thought his Liberal government would take the helm for the progressive West and Canada would be ground zero. Once again Canada is a little late to the party but it looks like Carney has brought his dancing shoes. The question is who will be his dancing partner? My hope is Canadians.
Your hope is wrong. Carney's dancing partner is his own pocket. The longer he stays on as a PM the more it will become obvious. Canada just happens to be a country where the electorate is dazed enough and spaced out enough to be a convenient partner for his kind of a dance.
You offer nothing but libel, and then you chooose to follow up with personal insult. I’ve attempted to report your abusive behaviour, but I was unable to do so. So I call you out here.
Seems the author believes the Overton window floats over only left wing ides.
Trudeau was big on "social license" when he cancelled Energy East but where was the Overton window when he imposed bills C-69 and C-48? How about his carbon tax, did he seek public approval for that?
Not much precedent for the Emergencies Act? Overton window anywhere to be seen? I think that's where Trump got his idea to send National Guard troops to LA; must have thought if Trudeau can do it surely I can.
Personally I prefer an Overton Window that hovers over right wing ideas!
A rambling, senile old con man with 34 felony counts and who changes his mind five minutes ago isn't smart enough to smash the window. I see no strategic moves by this imbecile and I see our leaders here in Canada as being only slightly smarter than he is. His presidency is a nuclear armed sham and we are playing in his world. Heaven knows what it will look like four years from now.
On policy shifts, I don't think Trump is doing anything unusual. Free trade as an ideology has been critiqued for half a century but the popular press pretty much supported it. Similarly, the immigration issues have been around for about the same time. What has changed is that for a great number of Americans, the popular press does not represent their views.
Trumps actions on the problems are chaotic of course, but if they are key problems to you, any action is better than inaction.
A lot of the actions of the Liberal government I would argue have also been ineffective when you look at the results 4 years later. Government regulation of marijuana has been chaotic and climate change regulation has had a significant backlash. Carney is doing the right thing to cement support: don't be ideological, be pragmatic. In the process though you have to throw some of your previous supporters under the bus.
Surely such tactics could be described as an attempt to see what one can get away with?
Whatever catchy metaphor is used to dress-up what Trump (and our own political parties) indulge in, these behaviours underscore the failure of modern political process.
The approach would almost certainly not work in a society where elites were more able to marshal public support AND leaders were not “over-empowered” (and thus able to cow opponents into submission).
- - - - -
I have my own ideas about how we might rectify some of these problems (some sort of “blind” sortition process to select political leaders and representatives, one that prevents elites and political leaders from gaming the system).
Whether this could be managed is debatable (those who have a strong interest in perpetuating the current arrangements would likely fight reforms of that sort, tooth and nail).
This was Trudeau legalizing marijuana, dealing with the convoy, responding to the Portapique shooting, etc. We like to blame Trump for everything, but we have our own politicians doing this shit. I wish we could stop obsessing over Trump and start paying more attention to our own governments in Canada (at all levels).
You make a very good point but it would be INFINITELY easier to focus on our own challenges if we didn’t have to pay attention to the crazy whose every move surprises, startles, and threatens us.
It’s interesting that the current and previous Liberal govs have adopted Trump’s way of doing things rather than doing things by consensus in parliament. And most Canadians seem okay with that.
That is a laughably sweeping exaggeration. You can't compare deporting people arrested on sight for their skin colour to concentration camps in other countries to the carefully measured and reluctant steps Trudeau used to get the Convoy out of Ottawa. Pierre Poilievre's obstructionism effectively paralyzed Parliament for his last four years as an MP, though.
I didn’t.
He does this because he recognizes how woefully unprepared we are for anything.
There is zero to compare between the two. Trudeau was useless; the Convoy should have been removed from Ottawa on the first Sunday, but he never tried to overthrow his government. said nothing of any substance, so you couldn't tell if he was lying. But Trudeau had 10 years to turn us into a fascist dictatorship., He never made the attempt.
And yet here we are, not batting an eye when our government bypasses parliament and governs by order in council. Tell me nothing has changed in the last 10 years—that orders in council have always been the way our parliament has operated.
Authoritarianism is tailored to its host society. We look for bronze eagles and torch rallies, concentration camps and jackboots, and when we don't find them we breathe a sigh of relief. But authoritarianism in Canada would come with a wide smile, a heavy veneer of faux-niceness and a smug condescending attitude that only big government knows what the people really want.
As it stands, Parliament and elections have become mere inconveniences to be managed by our one-party state and all its various organs. I seriously think we are in very immediate danger of becoming a so-called "hybrid regime". Featuring a kind of soft "competitive authoritarianism" where we hold theoretically fair elections but the TV man tells you who to vote for and the equivalent of a $1000 cheque shows up in the mail that can only be cashed if the Party wins.
But authoritarianism in Canada is more about maintaining a parasitic elite than keeping law and order so it co-exists with a growing sense of on-the ground anarchy despite stifling rules and taxes for those who try to comply ("anarcho tyranny"). Best of both worlds!
You'll get my attention when someone tries screwing with Elections Canada. We have free, fair, functional elections without government involvement; the complete opposite of the US.
If the Conservatives want to win, they might want to think about picking an honest platform that appeals to Canadians while not having a complete asshole as leader. Pierre is why you lost.
If the Conservative platform was so “dishonest “ why was Carney’s first decision to”axe the tax”
What could be more honest than "OMG Trump is going to destroy our economy and our entire way of life as a prelude to military invasion which is totally a real thing and also Poilievre is exactly like Trump and will somehow collaborate with him to make all this happen more and faster!"
Canadian media: "Yes this checks out we will accept all this uncritically and talk about nothing else all election except maybe other ways Conservatives are unacceptable and publish EKOS polls that show a 15-point pro-Liberal swing in a two day period"
Well, when economists shot it full of holes for being overly optimistic with the numbers, a platform released so late the advanced polls were already finished, you had to think they hoped people wouldn't notice. When you've been begging for an election for a year, and have no platform to show, it looks kind of ropey.
Enjoy the shitshow as everything continues to get worse and the media makes the next election about the existential threat of Murder Hornets.
Got it. It's good government when the Conservatives do, but authoritarianism by anyone else. I still don't understand how you guys keep complaining about the media while you're on a media site that you're paying for.
I never heard of anyone suggesting a US military intervention. That's your own creation. And you're in denial of reality if you don't think a partner we do 75% of our trade with can't destroy us economically if they're willing to take the pain. They can do it without firing a shot.
And look. A Trump-like order-signing photo https://www.narcity.com/mark-carney-carbon-tax-april-rebate-payment
Yes, that never happened before the Liberals. Remind me again how we got FIPA?
Like I said, the window is shifting. What was once a rare thing is a regular occurrence, but we’re all just frogs in the proverbial pot of water. The fact that you and others seem absolutely fine with the increase in orders in council merely proves my point.
So OIC and proroguing are good government when the conservatives do it.....Yes, change happens.
I didn't say that. David, you are too much of a hyper-partisan for me to take seriously. Good-bye.
The speed of change in change itself has left Overton a yesterday metaphor. Trump's speed of change is perceived as refreshing to many, and the occasional backtrack is considered acceptable.
Seeking consensus amongst Canada's typical "obsticalists" (Quebec, First Nations, Environmentalists, et al) hinders necessary accountability and forward motion. A little bit more Trump and a lot less Overton is being welcomed.
Trump almost certainly hasn't found a way to circumvent the need to build popular support or acceptance for policies - it's just that the thermostatic political backlash hasn't hit him yet. What looks like Trump successes is momentum and a temporary first mover advantage.
Significant parts of Trump's agenda are being scrutinized by US courts, and while his administration superficially seems to have avoided defeat in recent Supreme Court rulings on the "emergency docket", they're still in real jeopardy as the full legal cases are adjudicated (not just temporary injunctions.) Trump has also benefited from control of both houses of Congress by supine and spineless Republican majorities - that could change dramatically after November 2026.
What Trump's approach *does* seem to have accomplished is a variation on the Steve Bannon strategy of "flooding the zone with s#!t". There are so many controversies, so many scandals, so many errors that critics, opponents, and the public are overwhelmed responding to them. Again, it's a transient phenomenon: Trump's also giving people all sorts of reasons to dislike him. Eventually, he'll pay the price in an election.
QUOTE
Eventually, he'll pay the price in an election.
END QUOTE
Or, perhaps, removal from office through impeachment, and then years in court attempting to dodge jail…
I like the article. But I think everything that is happening in the US is in Trump's name only. I'm not sure he's doing much of anything outside of embarrassing his country with lies every time he opens his mouth. This is the Stephen Miller show, with Russell Vought and a few others in supporting roles. The only question is whether his "American Fascist Party", as European media are calling it, feels confident enough in the Supreme Court-supported centralising of power that they can now use Epstein to cut him loose as the massive liability that he is. Mike Johnson wanting Epstein released is a big change from his usual ass-kissing. Regardless, America as we knew it is gone until the next revolution.
I like the metaphor of a swinging door. That it should be a saloon door is even more delicious.
Carrying further that metaphor, DJT announced the tariffs on pretty much the whole world (door being kicked in) and he shortly thereafter announced a "pause" on the tariffs (door swinging out). The metaphor works with so many of his policies.
And, of course, as pointed out, our government is now doing some - repeat, some - of the same. The difference is that the policies pointed out (e.g. the carbon tax) had previously been popularized by PP and the Overton Window had moved to support that change so the PM simply kicked open the door. Sorry, that metaphor is getting out of hand!
So, what to do? As the article points out, we have to simply watch for proposed/actual changes and respond quickly. A very different world.
Trump can have a Door because he has both Houses under his control. Also US courts are inclined to side with him.
See the AFN reaction to Bill C5 and decide if Carney has a little window opening let alone a free swinging door. Canada's courts are still operating under Trudeau practises: their base position is no, you may not change government practises.
Trump also DOGE'd the bureaucracy. They are all keeping their heads down. Canada's fed bureaucrats will continue their no-risk, go slow approach until someone gets fired for missing a deadline.
I agree that governments need to take more care to discover unanticipated outcomes before acting or legislating; examples are in the paragraph below. Listening and analysis should not take a lot of time if done well, especially in the age of AI that shortens the writing process.
But the examples in the article may not be relevant examples. It's likely that voters for Trump were not surprised by the actions listed since those actions could reasonably be predicted based on the Republican campaign. Fulfilling promises made in a hard fought campaign may in itself be a Overton window. It's also possible that Trudeau's GBA was more a tactic to get unwise but Liberal leftist items through than any thing else. Wearing people down in lengthy discourse and media fatigue worked.
Selected examples of lack of care over many decades include 1) easier divorce without provision for child support 2) expanded marriage without provision for divorce among the expanded groups 3) easier bail with no consideration for public safety from repeat violent offenders.
We are reacting to Trump like he is a petulant child refusing to eat his veg. The man is scum. A liar. A convicted felon 34X. There is little point in negotiating when the man-child changes his mind every five minutes. Then changes it again. Or maybe while he's sitting on the can and twitting a rant. Polarization calls for leadership and as we have seen in Ottawa for the past ten years (yes, I know Harper was a knob and still triggers some the way Trudeau triggers a lot of people in the Conservative party.) there has been nada. So, the convoy get the emergency act and antisemitic protests are targeting jews here at home to the point of firebombing synagogues. Fascinating to me how many in Ontario are traumatized by the trucker convoy when jews are being targeted in schools, universities, and the NDP.
Back in 1972, a paper titled,"A Garbage Can Model of Organizational Choice" written by Michael D. Cohen, James G. March, and Johan P. Olsen outlined an anarchic style of decision making within organizations that thrives on chaos. Whether the Trump Door or the Trump Garbage Can, we are living in an age of move fast and break things. Not sure if the Canadian government is up to the task. Trudeau thought he had the ultimate crystal ball. The Democrats down south had provided the Liberals with a game plan. In 2016 Trump came in and upended the entire game board. Trudeau thought his Liberal government would take the helm for the progressive West and Canada would be ground zero. Once again Canada is a little late to the party but it looks like Carney has brought his dancing shoes. The question is who will be his dancing partner? My hope is Canadians.
Your hope is wrong. Carney's dancing partner is his own pocket. The longer he stays on as a PM the more it will become obvious. Canada just happens to be a country where the electorate is dazed enough and spaced out enough to be a convenient partner for his kind of a dance.
On what grounds do you accuse the current Prime Minister of self-dealing and corruption?
On what grounds do you choose to remain deaf and blind ?
You offer nothing but libel, and then you chooose to follow up with personal insult. I’ve attempted to report your abusive behaviour, but I was unable to do so. So I call you out here.
Guess your cancellation order against my pointed words was denied.
I could just as easily observe that you seem keen to hide behind faux claims of censorship to cover for illegal actions and bad manners.
Seems the author believes the Overton window floats over only left wing ides.
Trudeau was big on "social license" when he cancelled Energy East but where was the Overton window when he imposed bills C-69 and C-48? How about his carbon tax, did he seek public approval for that?
Not much precedent for the Emergencies Act? Overton window anywhere to be seen? I think that's where Trump got his idea to send National Guard troops to LA; must have thought if Trudeau can do it surely I can.
Personally I prefer an Overton Window that hovers over right wing ideas!
When I flipped to the credentials of the author and read "ESG" I switched off. Another Woke Warrior.... 😵💫
A rambling, senile old con man with 34 felony counts and who changes his mind five minutes ago isn't smart enough to smash the window. I see no strategic moves by this imbecile and I see our leaders here in Canada as being only slightly smarter than he is. His presidency is a nuclear armed sham and we are playing in his world. Heaven knows what it will look like four years from now.
On policy shifts, I don't think Trump is doing anything unusual. Free trade as an ideology has been critiqued for half a century but the popular press pretty much supported it. Similarly, the immigration issues have been around for about the same time. What has changed is that for a great number of Americans, the popular press does not represent their views.
Trumps actions on the problems are chaotic of course, but if they are key problems to you, any action is better than inaction.
A lot of the actions of the Liberal government I would argue have also been ineffective when you look at the results 4 years later. Government regulation of marijuana has been chaotic and climate change regulation has had a significant backlash. Carney is doing the right thing to cement support: don't be ideological, be pragmatic. In the process though you have to throw some of your previous supporters under the bus.
Surely such tactics could be described as an attempt to see what one can get away with?
Whatever catchy metaphor is used to dress-up what Trump (and our own political parties) indulge in, these behaviours underscore the failure of modern political process.
The approach would almost certainly not work in a society where elites were more able to marshal public support AND leaders were not “over-empowered” (and thus able to cow opponents into submission).
- - - - -
I have my own ideas about how we might rectify some of these problems (some sort of “blind” sortition process to select political leaders and representatives, one that prevents elites and political leaders from gaming the system).
Whether this could be managed is debatable (those who have a strong interest in perpetuating the current arrangements would likely fight reforms of that sort, tooth and nail).
What do others think?