Passion Power

The US reached a stark milestone this month of 100,000 people dying of drug overdoses in one year. That is 275 overdose deaths every day.   In Canada, 20 people die every day from overdose. It is considered immoral in some circles to demand anything from an addict which helps not the addict or the city.   In Michael Shellenberger’s book, San Fransicko, why progressives ruin cities he writes that calling the problem homelessness rather than open air drug scenes you neglect the fundamental problem which is lack of a system and planned strategy for helping people off the streets. The homeless have a life on the streets high on meth, shooting heroine and smoking fentanyl.   No one can coerce them into getting treatment because they don’t want treatment and public intoxication isn’t a crime anymore because they don’t want addicts in jail.   Public officials are finding out quickly that ignoring the problem doesn’t make it go away. Shelters have rules and cities shou...

The labour movement has ignited and for the first time in a long time the balance of power has shifted. It’s the great reset and one that I support. Years ago, companies and workers were cooperative alliances. The almighty dollar wasn’t the most important thing. Now it’s dog-eat-dog and every man for himself.  Most working-class people are just trying to put food on the table for their families and sock some away for the future.  Can I do better is not a bad question to ask and in a tight labour market now is the time.   There is burn-out among healthcare and frontline workers, essential workers, and food services and retail.    The pandemic has created a whole host of issues; supply chain disruptions, backs logs and labour shortages to name a few.    Corporations are demanding extra time and effort, something people aren’t necessarily heartened to give. Companies need to sweeten the pie if they wish to keep their employees. The game is stille...

With genuine curiosity I had to google why the Bloc Quebecois leader, Yves-Francois Blanchet was at the federate debate on September 10 th .  He has no intention or desire to be Prime Minister of Canada. I doubt Mr. Blanchet has any interest in unifying Canada and said as much in the debate. I found information on the Meech Lake Accord agreement and understand how and why the Bloc got official party status in 1991. It’s an insult to our democracy to have Mr. Blanchet at the federal debate as he represents one province.   We really don’t need more of what’s good for Quebec.   We need more of what’s good for Canada. Am I the only one?   We must work together across all regions to restore our democracy and unify the country. Candidates at a federal debate should presumably be willing to represent all Canadians.   The last thing Canada needs is self-serving federal leaders speaking on behalf of one province.     Why were people apologetic to Mr. Bl...

I’m happy to be vaccinated.   Vaccines are the best approach for preventing the spread of Covid and significantly lower your risk of death, so they say.  Vaccines downgrade the infection to a mild seasonal virus.   96% of the hospitalizations were the unvaccinated population according to the Centre for Disease Control, so they say.  Avoid vaccine but do so at your own risk. There is a certain percentage of people with vaccine hesitancy and the rest of us will just have to deal with that.   Instead, the Covid thought police are out in full force.   Don’t speak out or question anything.   Trust the pharmaceutical industry wholeheartedly.   Block anyone that goes against the current narrative-be afraid.   Nothing has disturbed the order, arrangement, or function of a free society like Covid has. People are suffering from covid derangement syndrome. Wearing a mask to your table but not at your table is comical. Wearing a mask outdoors is dumb too...

My siblings and I were raised in a no-pain-no-gain, fix your own mistakes blue collar home. Nobody was catering to us and, although my parents might argue that, coddling our feelings was absolutely off the table.   I made a lot of mistakes and course corrections along the way, but I put myself out there and developed some valuable life lessons, resiliency, and much-needed grit to live in this world.    So, it is no wonder that I am a strong proponent of personal agency and delayed gratification as the keys to a satisfying life. Are we playing it too safe?   Some people need to be reminded that we live in a free society. We have a lot of different choices available to us.   If you don’t feel free one has to ask themselves why? While I empathize with those who are less fortunate, we shouldn’t be blind to that fact that practical philosophy for physical, mental, and financial health do exist.   We must always believe we can write our own destiny. I know ...

Progressivism claims to be a movement that aims to represent the interests of ordinary people.  I’m not so sure about that. We are living in an era with more fences and security, more protests, and clashes.  The media separates us into different camps.  The working class versus elites, left versus right, black versus white. It’s a profitable strategy to have us pitted against each other where we hate and blame each other for things the ‘ordinary’ person has not participated in like systemic racism, indigenous residential schools, or islamophobia. If you disagree with the mainstream narrative, you’re a bigot. If you call it out, you’re a racist.  They shut down voices of reason that are contrary to what they subscribe to. Where is the open-mindedness and tolerance in that?  These virtue signallers have a hidden agenda. To prop up “group think” and clusters of mobs like Black Lives Matter and the LBGTQ communities to sell discourse and create division. They like t...

I used to tell my kids that watching too much TV will make their brain turn to mush.   I wonder what parents are telling their kids these days when it comes to their devices.   Keeping kids off technology is next to impossible.   I applaud every parent who is trying to do so, especially during Covd where, a year later we are still stuck in our homes — and increasingly stuck behind our screens.   We must be flexible enough to evolve with the technology but choose how to use it right. Apple is hands down, my favourite company in the world.   It has made our lives better, easier, and more efficient and we cannot overstate how useful these devices are.   Yet for every plus there is a minus. When we spend too much time on our phone, we miss what’s happening in front of us and lose connection with our surroundings.   The average screen time in 2020 was 7 hours a day.   Technology overload is detrimental to a person’s mind. Establish some “house rules”...