The Canadian Dissident

If there's one thing that defines Canadian culture, it's that we always define and evaluate ourselves in contrast to the United States. This has been a constant theme throughout Canadian history. Rejection of the United States was even one of the biggest reasons for the creation of Canada in 1867. The United States is not a great benchmark, given the country's long history of imperialism, militarism, racism, extreme inequality, and violence that continues to this day. Compared to the rest of the world, the U.S.  is an outlier in many ways. For example, the U.S. has one of the highest incarceration rates in the world and spends far more on the military than any other country (more than China, India, and Russia combined).  An unfortunate result of our fixation on the United States is we have become adept at ignoring our own country's problems. “At least we're not as bad as the States,” we tell ourselves.  We rightfully condemn Trump’s violent crackdown on immigration....

Due to the Trudeau government's misguided attempts at internet regulation, Canadians can no longer share links to news articles on Facebook and Instagram. Google has announced they will follow suit in blocking news for Canadian users. Michael Geist, an expert in internet law, wrote , "It is difficult to overstate the harm that Bill C-18 will create for the media sector in Canada, with enormous losses that will run into the hundreds of millions of dollars." Who knew that government regulation of the internet could backfire? (Almost everyone) It is bizarre that Canadian users now have to find ways around government restrictions in order to share news, but here we are. Here are 5 ways it is still possible to share news stories on Facebook. 1. Share a screenshot This is not ideal, because few people will take the time to find the article and read it. However, if the headline is accurate and you're in a hurry, this does work. 2. Link via the Internet Archive   The Internet...

In June the Trudeau government pushed Bill C-10 through the House of Commons. The bill  aimed to classify online content as "broadcasting," thereby  granting the government sweeping new powers to regulate and censor the internet. Fortunately Bill C-10  died in the Senate as they didn't have enough time to pass the bill before Parliament's summer recess. Later this summer Justin Trudeau announced plans to further restrict free speech by expanding the legal definition of hate speech and creating a new bureaucracy in charge of "digital safety." The new Digital Safety Commissioner of Canada would have the power to regulate, spy on, and censor social media. On August 13th, only 2 days before calling a federal election, the Trudeau government made another divisive announcement. Vaccine passports would soon be required for everyone travelling by air and train within Canada, everyone working for the federal government, and everyone working in federally regulated in...