Western Standard - August 17, 2025


CORY MORGAN SHOW： The horrors of communism are being forgotten


Episode Stats

Length

46 minutes

Words per Minute

198.21973

Word Count

9,182

Sentence Count

638

Misogynist Sentences

10

Hate Speech Sentences

27


Summary

Corey rants about communism and why it s time to get rid of the bureaucracy. He also takes a look at the impact communism has had on the modern world, and why we should be worried about it.


Transcript

00:00:00.000 Good day, welcome to the Corey Morgan Show.
00:00:29.760 As we hit the tail end of summer, even though in summer a lot of things slow down in the news, there's still plenty going on and we'll be covering a whole lot of that.
00:00:38.240 We've got a new fixture in the office. Jeremy, you can see over my shoulder over there.
00:00:42.460 We've switched some folks around and we'll have a little bit of a difference in the news check-in in a short time.
00:00:47.260 So be sure to send an email and say hi to Jeremy there.
00:00:50.680 We've got from the Taxpayers Federation, Franco Tarrazzano is going to come on and talk about some polling those guys have done
00:00:56.940 on whether or not Canadians want to get rid of the bureaucracy and we'll have a news check-in and some other things going on soon.
00:01:04.600 I do want to mention, so I was in Longview, well I was in for a short time in Longview last weekend
00:01:09.840 and we mentioned that with Dave during the news check-in.
00:01:12.440 Jane has a thing she sets up at farmers markets, things like that.
00:01:16.820 And I said on the show that I would be there, and I was.
00:01:20.080 I helped Jane set up and I helped her break down, but I didn't state it clearly enough, I guess.
00:01:24.520 A couple of folks actually came out to meet me at that and I wasn't there.
00:01:26.960 And I feel terrible about that. I didn't phrase it very well.
00:01:29.280 So please accept my apologies and honestly send an email to the Standard.
00:01:32.860 I know you drove all the way to Longview. It's a nice drive. I mean, a bit that.
00:01:35.720 But I'll grab you a coffee. Honestly, if you reach out, I'll make up for that.
00:01:39.360 I appreciate it. I'm flattered that you'd come that far just to try and say hi.
00:01:42.620 And I will be, I promise, I really will be at Mirror on September 1st for Alberta Day.
00:01:47.580 So it wouldn't be just a table carrying my honey there at that.
00:01:51.360 All right, let's get on with what I'm going to rant about today.
00:01:53.700 Yes, I see you guys in the comment scroll too. Tracy, Kim, Henry.
00:01:57.800 This is live. Be sure to share your thoughts, comments.
00:02:00.800 It's an interactive show that really helps with things.
00:02:03.620 So I'm going to talk about communism here, guys.
00:02:06.280 It's been 36 years. Yeah, some of it's great enough to remember it.
00:02:09.640 The world witnessed the fall of the Berlin Wall on their TV sets.
00:02:13.060 The wall was a symbol of the repressive nature of communism,
00:02:16.460 and its fall was the beginning of the end of communism in Europe.
00:02:19.700 The Soviet Empire crumbled soon afterwards.
00:02:22.500 And while Eastern Europe still struggles with some elements of freedom and democracy,
00:02:26.200 it's incontrovertible they're much better off now than they had been under communist leadership.
00:02:30.980 But unfortunately, as time passes, it's been forgotten just how odious communism was.
00:02:36.020 The siren call of a fantasy world of happiness and equality under an all-controlling, benevolent government
00:02:41.920 that's offering communism is actually starting to take hold on the younger generation.
00:02:46.240 And it's going to end really poorly for the Western world if this sick ideology isn't countered decisively and soon.
00:02:52.100 It's a mind rot that festers until fools manage to actually implement communism to prove yet again
00:02:57.000 that it's an untenable system that offers nothing but corruption, suffering, and death.
00:03:00.940 Without active communist states to serve, though, as an example to the West,
00:03:04.700 it becomes easier for people to forget the ills of the system.
00:03:07.980 Generation X, some of which I'm a part, grew up with the imagery of people risking their lives
00:03:12.980 as they climbed the Berlin Wall while being shredded with razor wire and fearing a bullet from a Soviet soldier.
00:03:18.540 We watched people desperately building ramshackle rafts and try to reach Florida from Cuba,
00:03:23.440 and many died on that trip.
00:03:25.180 The most effective voices against communism were those who'd actually lived in it and endured it.
00:03:29.960 They counseled their children about what they suffered and what they must never happen again.
00:03:34.640 They offered stories and experiences to help a generation visualize what it was like living in a system
00:03:39.320 where the state controlled every aspect of your life to the point where you're actually willing to risk your life to escape it.
00:03:45.280 Now those people are senior citizens, and their grandchildren are being indoctrinated
00:03:48.580 by an education system dominated by privileged idealists who speak of the ills of capitalism
00:03:53.560 while earning six-figure incomes and living in gated communities.
00:03:56.580 The education system doesn't tell students how communism killed 148 million people between 1917 and 1987.
00:04:04.060 Instead, it rails against capitalism, which created the highest standard of living within the most peaceful and free nations on earth.
00:04:10.140 Polling is now indicating that younger North American people are assuming an increasingly negative view of capitalism.
00:04:15.520 They really don't know where their bread's buttered.
00:04:17.300 They've been taught that capitalism is responsible for all the ills from social inequity to financial inequity to unhappiness.
00:04:22.780 They really need to try a little time on a Soviet breadline.
00:04:25.660 The consequences of this shift are dangerous and real.
00:04:29.280 Socialist Zoran Mamdani easily won New York City's Democratic mayoral primary on a platform of state-run grocery stores in a rental freeze.
00:04:38.060 He may very well become the mayor of one of the largest cities on earth, and his policies are going to be a catastrophe.
00:04:42.780 Socialism is the kissing cousin of communism.
00:04:46.100 Socialist policies are used as incremental steps towards communism.
00:04:50.060 And as socialism creeps in more deeply, authoritarianism always follows.
00:04:54.280 China began reforms to move from pure communism in the late 70s.
00:04:57.260 That led to economic growth, but they never shed the authoritarianism.
00:05:00.780 Governments never willingly grant new freedoms.
00:05:03.040 Those have to be taken back by citizens.
00:05:05.400 People who value freedom, people with talent, people with ambition, all chafe under socialism, and they try to flee it.
00:05:10.440 That's why it's only communist countries that actually have to block citizens from leaving their nations.
00:05:14.860 We never saw people trying to move into North Korea, and folks aren't taking rafts from the United States to make a new life in Venezuela.
00:05:21.400 Communism only works in theory.
00:05:23.200 And when those who have experienced it fade away, the theorists dominate again, and they're in academia, and they're dominating the discourse.
00:05:30.300 Universal basic income policies.
00:05:32.640 That's the latest thing the socialists are pushing.
00:05:34.340 They're using the excuse of AI impacts on the economy to pitch making every single citizen dependent upon the state through welfare payments in a UBI scheme.
00:05:42.260 Some claim that economist Milton Frieden supported a UBI system, but they're misrepresenting what he was pitching.
00:05:47.660 His vision involved a negative income tax system with a vision of a shrinking government, the size and scope of it getting ever smaller.
00:05:54.740 And it's not going to happen.
00:05:55.680 His approach is as unrealistic as the contemporary proponents of the system.
00:05:58.920 What it will do is create a massive class of parasites, while the productive will be squeezed harder to sustain them until the system collapses.
00:06:05.920 Survivors of communism didn't just teach us about the economic failures of communism.
00:06:10.420 They related the life of fear, living within an authoritarian society, the secret police, the lack of personal freedoms.
00:06:16.860 But look at it now.
00:06:17.560 Many of today's youth didn't think twice when complying to COVID reactions.
00:06:21.020 The state learned how easily compliant citizens have become, and authoritarians now even ban citizens from not walking in the woods.
00:06:26.180 40 years ago, movements like that would have led to a mass protest from the young, who learned at the feet of their parents what the dangers of authoritarianism are.
00:06:33.560 Now they just shrug and stay confined to their quarters, play video games, without question as ordered by the state.
00:06:38.620 Young, ambitious people who value freedoms are supposed to be our bulwark against creeping authoritarianism.
00:06:44.560 Now they're docile and compliant.
00:06:46.900 You should be reaching out to the survivors of communism to speak one more time.
00:06:49.780 Get out there, guys.
00:06:51.900 There should be a public education push to remind every generation that no matter how appealing communism might appear, to the vacuous at a glance, it has a 100% failure rate.
00:07:00.680 It's a part of history that we can't afford to repeat.
00:07:04.460 All right.
00:07:05.480 That's where I wanted to go, guys.
00:07:07.000 Communism is like herpes.
00:07:08.800 It's never gone.
00:07:09.780 At best, it goes into remission for a little while.
00:07:12.040 All right.
00:07:13.200 So I've got today a substitute, Dave, and that's Dave Winnick from the newsroom coming in to speak for the other day.
00:07:18.800 How's it going?
00:07:19.380 Not too bad.
00:07:19.920 How are you doing, Corey?
00:07:20.560 Right on.
00:07:21.180 Good, good.
00:07:21.800 So you've moved from back, you know, we've got Jeremy back there now.
00:07:25.600 Your claim to fame was the acuity and skill with which you destroyed the Shanghai noodles back there while that.
00:07:32.620 Finally on this side of the glass for a change.
00:07:34.160 There you go.
00:07:35.140 And you raised some excellent news stories, and you've been very prolific since coming here not too long ago.
00:07:40.440 So welcome to the show, and looking forward to your updates.
00:07:44.720 So what's happening in the newsroom right now?
00:07:46.160 Well, I guess starting off the bat, Dave Naylor, our editor-in-chief, he's going to, or actually he's in Vancouver at the moment.
00:07:53.580 And I think he's there for about a week or two, I think.
00:07:56.060 And apparently Air Canada now, starting, I think it's going to be tomorrow, is going to start canceling flights going forward for the weekend.
00:08:01.860 I think there's going to be about 10,000 flight attendants that are ready to walk off the job.
00:08:05.420 Apparently they're talking about poverty wages, and I guess talks with the union in Air Canada broke down.
00:08:10.080 So we'll see if Dave's going to be back in two weeks or not, I guess.
00:08:13.080 He could have driven out there, though, didn't he?
00:08:14.500 I have no idea.
00:08:15.340 He could have driven back.
00:08:16.480 Nobody even knew if he was even out there for two weeks or if it was just a week, but I guess it's two now.
00:08:20.940 Wait, no, he'll take that excuse.
00:08:22.780 He could have got his car there.
00:08:24.220 But I think those flight attendants were offered something like a 38% raise, and they still said no.
00:08:31.200 Well, I think it was, too.
00:08:31.960 It was kind of weird as well because they aren't getting paid for anything except when they're airborne.
00:08:35.080 And so it's like, you know, when they're boarding and that, they don't even get paid, apparently, they were saying.
00:08:38.160 That's what they claimed, yeah.
00:08:39.060 Yeah, I have no idea, but I guess we'll find out and talk sort of resume, I guess, whenever that's going to be.
00:08:43.480 Yeah, so the government's going to have to step in probably on that one.
00:08:46.860 But that's the joys that come when the government says, okay, we're going to take away the ability to have replacement workers.
00:08:51.160 Well, then all of the federally regulated areas, what means that the feds are going to have to step in pretty much every time there's a strike.
00:08:56.440 Well, you would assume as much, yeah.
00:08:57.740 Oh, well, I hope too many people don't have flying plans this week.
00:09:00.660 I sure don't, that's for sure.
00:09:01.620 Yeah, I'm not going anywhere.
00:09:03.380 Anyways, in other news, you know, our Christian artist, Sean Foyt, that's been causing a bunch of controversy or whatnot recently with sort of his mega affiliations and whatnot,
00:09:13.180 and let us worship concert all over the country.
00:09:16.560 Apparently, he's going to be doing one at the Alberta Legislature Grounds on the 22nd, which is only the second one that hasn't been canceled so far in the whole country.
00:09:23.100 I think the first one that wasn't also canceled was in Saskatoon on the 21st.
00:09:26.640 So I guess we'll see what happens there, if there's going to be protesters or what the deal is.
00:09:29.860 Well, you know, carry on, guys.
00:09:31.820 You've taken a guy who nobody had really heard of aside from chasing him all over, but I'm sure it's probably going to be packed at what a fence he manages to hold.
00:09:39.420 Well, you would assume as much because it is apparently supposed to be free.
00:09:41.720 I don't know if the other ones were, but this one is, according to what data we've gotten.
00:09:45.160 Well, hopefully if it gets stupid, it's still safe.
00:09:47.600 At least we don't need the nutcases getting too...
00:09:49.300 Well, hopefully it's a turning point.
00:09:50.460 Yes, we don't have any...
00:09:51.260 Yeah, exactly.
00:09:51.720 People getting rambunctious.
00:09:52.680 And also, lastly, speaking of communism, China, tariffs on Canadian canola apparently are going to start on Thursday, 75.8%.
00:10:00.100 What do you think about that?
00:10:02.720 Well, you can get me going.
00:10:04.400 Might as well.
00:10:05.180 Well, it says a lot.
00:10:06.180 It's the usual thing because this is all coming about because Carney, I think it was under Trudeau, actually.
00:10:11.520 They put a 100% tariff on Chinese electric vehicles to protect an electric vehicle manufacturing market that Canada doesn't actually have.
00:10:17.860 And meanwhile, now, Western Canadian farmers are paying the price for it as China retaliates at us.
00:10:24.740 So, good move, Mr. Carney.
00:10:26.380 You're really shaking up things without your fine diplomacy and economic work.
00:10:30.840 And as usual, Westerners pay the bill.
00:10:32.780 Yeah, exactly.
00:10:33.380 Well, you were saying it had to do with electric car tariffs or something whatnot from China.
00:10:37.200 Do we even import that many electric cars from China?
00:10:39.540 No.
00:10:39.820 I don't think so.
00:10:40.380 That's why I don't really understand what the whole deal is.
00:10:42.680 And we don't manufacture many into Canada either.
00:10:45.180 You know, we've failed.
00:10:45.880 We keep pumping money into battery plants and everything.
00:10:47.660 I guess they figure if they could just ban enough competition, ban the production of regular cars, starve the Western farmers enough, suddenly the market will blossom for this Canadian-made electric vehicles.
00:10:59.000 Hopefully.
00:10:59.760 Hopefully.
00:11:00.500 Oh, my breath.
00:11:01.680 We're going to be like Cuba.
00:11:02.620 You know, we're going to have those old, old combustion engine vehicles that would be worth a lot.
00:11:06.040 Oh, yeah.
00:11:06.660 Because we can't get into it.
00:11:07.980 Either way, I do feel for our farmers suffering under that.
00:11:10.280 I mean, it's harvest time.
00:11:11.540 That's our prime, prime customer.
00:11:13.180 Oh, yeah.
00:11:13.400 Again, we export, I think it was $5 billion or whatnot in 2023.
00:11:17.180 I think it was $5 billion worth.
00:11:18.980 Oh, it's huge.
00:11:19.780 Between the U.S. and China, that's where most of it goes.
00:11:21.660 Yeah, I think it was, what was it?
00:11:22.580 I have, what is it?
00:11:23.560 4.5 million tons.
00:11:24.960 So that's $3.8 billion.
00:11:26.580 So that's crazy.
00:11:28.140 Yeah.
00:11:28.480 And it's not like farmers can change their mind at this point in the season and say, well, we'll see it's something else.
00:11:32.220 Yeah, exactly.
00:11:32.700 Kind of committed at this point.
00:11:34.760 Well, hope for resolution.
00:11:36.600 Anything else you're working on before I let you go?
00:11:38.360 What's coming up?
00:11:39.080 Oh, I've got a few things down the pipeline.
00:11:40.420 You'll just have to wait and see, Corey.
00:11:41.360 Oh, geez.
00:11:42.080 That doesn't help.
00:11:43.060 I'm not going to hand out teasers.
00:11:44.680 All right.
00:11:45.000 Well, thank you very much.
00:11:46.400 I appreciate the check-in.
00:11:48.000 I appreciate it as well.
00:11:48.680 I'll let you get back in there working on that news copy that you do so well.
00:11:52.160 We'll do it.
00:11:52.500 Thanks.
00:11:52.700 I appreciate it.
00:11:53.180 All right.
00:11:53.540 Thanks, Dave.
00:11:54.020 So, yes, this is why we can afford to have two Daves is because you guys have been subscribing and we don't take tax dollars.
00:12:02.000 We are an independent news outlet.
00:12:04.260 We are subscription-based, guys.
00:12:05.680 This is where I've got to nag you and remind you, please get on there, westernstandard.news slash subscribe.
00:12:10.980 Take one out.
00:12:11.580 It's $10 a month, $100 for a year, and it keeps us independent and accountable to you with these stories, with this stuff.
00:12:21.080 And as you can see, I mean, our staff is just expanding.
00:12:24.700 There really is an appetite for truly independent media out there.
00:12:28.800 So, if you've already subscribed, thank you very much.
00:12:31.800 And if you haven't yet, come on, keep subscribing.
00:12:34.360 You know, if we get enough subscribers, we could probably get a third Dave back there.
00:12:37.220 I mean, you can never have enough Daves in a newsroom.
00:12:39.340 So, let's just see what else is going on here out there.
00:12:44.660 Interesting things.
00:12:45.820 You know, the parliamentary session is going to be quite something when it comes up.
00:12:49.940 I see the Conservatives are really kind of coming out swinging.
00:12:52.900 You know, there's the Canadian Sovereignty Act that Pierre Polyev is going to put out there to kind of push and encourage, I imagine, Carney and the Liberals to move on things.
00:13:04.060 Because they really keep talking a big game, but they aren't doing anything.
00:13:07.320 And Bill 5 is all talk, but he always puts a caveat.
00:13:09.800 Oh, as long as we have consensus.
00:13:11.080 Well, in other words, then nothing's going to get done.
00:13:13.340 So, you know, the Sovereignty, Canadian Sovereignty Act for the Conservatives, it's not going to pass.
00:13:19.240 It won't.
00:13:19.800 That's the way it works in our parliament.
00:13:21.080 But at least, hopefully, it can dominate the discussion.
00:13:23.060 And I see Michelle Rempel-Garner, she's pushing out, saying they want to eliminate two-tier justice by, this will be interesting, prohibiting judges from factoring in a non-citizens' immigration status when determining sentences.
00:13:35.460 Sounds so bizarre, but we might remember that story not too long ago with that sick fellow.
00:13:42.480 And no, I didn't mean it sick in the sick sense.
00:13:44.280 I meant actually sick.
00:13:45.040 Because he tried to buy services from a 15-year-old girl and was charged with that.
00:13:50.780 And the judge said, well, we'll kind of lay off on that because I wouldn't want to mess with your potential citizenship application.
00:13:56.980 Like, what?
00:13:57.980 Now, isn't this kind of a no-brainer?
00:13:59.120 One of the people we would rather not have here?
00:14:02.720 Is that screwy to that point where I actually have politicians say maybe we actually have to make laws to stop judges from doing that?
00:14:09.600 But then you've got to think of the consequences.
00:14:11.120 We don't want legislators actually micromanaging judges.
00:14:15.960 That's a slippery slope to go into as well and could cause more damage than good.
00:14:22.560 But it just, I guess, is giving us an idea of what the flavor of the parliament is going to be in a month when it reopens.
00:14:29.000 And I got a feeling it's going to be a pretty lively one.
00:14:31.680 Good for guys like me anyways who are always looking for more rant-worthy material and stuff to cover.
00:14:35.620 We're in for interesting times, if nothing else.
00:14:37.840 All right, let's bring somebody else in who's no stranger to ranting and talking about common sense things for the most part.
00:14:43.560 He's got Franco Terrizano of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation on deck.
00:14:47.060 Hey, Franco, how's it going?
00:14:48.420 Hey, Corey.
00:14:49.320 Good to be with you, man.
00:14:50.360 Yeah, it's been a while.
00:14:51.360 It's about time.
00:14:53.040 Yeah, I love it.
00:14:54.020 Let's get into some ranting and raving.
00:14:55.860 Cool.
00:14:56.120 Oh, well, like one of the things you might have heard me ranting about a bit is Carney is good at talking but not really good at doing.
00:15:02.360 And they have hinted at possibly reducing the size and scope of the bureaucracy out there, though they haven't done anything yet.
00:15:09.560 But I see you guys have been more proactive.
00:15:11.680 You did some polling on what Canadians might think of that.
00:15:13.880 Yeah, I mean, look, like the federal bureaucracy is so bloated, right?
00:15:18.080 Okay, like the federal government added 99,000 extra government bureaucrats since 2016.
00:15:23.800 99,000 more federal paper pushers, right?
00:15:27.160 But it's not just the number of bureaucrats that have gone up.
00:15:29.840 Still have the cost, okay?
00:15:31.660 The cost of the federal bureaucracy has ballooned 77% since 2016.
00:15:38.080 It is outrageous.
00:15:38.880 Now, we asked Leger to do two polls for us, okay?
00:15:43.020 The first poll, very simple.
00:15:44.620 Ask Canadians, do you think the government should cut, increase, or maintain the size of the bureaucracy?
00:15:51.260 And, like, look, the polling results show that more than half of Canadians said it's time to cut the size and cost of the bureaucracy.
00:15:58.280 Only 4% of Canadians said that it should be increased.
00:16:02.120 So I guess even some of the government bureaucrats are looking around their offices and being like, yeah, there's some fat to cut.
00:16:06.860 But, like, look, if you remove people who are unsure or don't know, a total of 66% or two-thirds of Canadians are saying enough is enough, take out the scissors, it's time to trim the fat in Ottawa.
00:16:20.700 So, just to play a little bit of devil's advocate, I mean, if they cut too much, they cut too quickly, wouldn't everybody suffer and be under, you know, a terrible pressure due to all the lack of all those government services provided?
00:16:32.020 You mean the federal services could get worse than what they are now?
00:16:36.500 Is that what you're saying, Corey?
00:16:37.940 I don't know.
00:16:38.380 There's always room to get worse.
00:16:39.860 Look, it's a great segue into the next question that Leger asked, okay?
00:16:44.360 Because, you know, when I talk about the cost of the bureaucracy, I always got to say, like, ask yourself, are you getting 77% better services from the federal bureaucracy?
00:16:54.600 And it turns out the answer to that question is a big fat no, right?
00:16:57.780 So the Leger poll, the second question, found that 50% of Canadians think services have gotten worse since 2016, okay?
00:17:07.540 Only 11% said that services have gotten better since 2016, but even the majority of those people still say that services should be better than what they have.
00:17:18.500 So, you know, you asked me, well, if they cut off a bunch, you know, if they lay off a bunch of bureaucrats, fire a bunch of bureaucrats, will services get worse?
00:17:25.920 Well, you know, I got to put that question back to the government union bosses that are fear-mongering right now over potential savings and be like, hey, hold on a second.
00:17:33.740 You, the cost of the bureaucracy has gone up significantly for Canadian taxpayers, and yet services are still dismal, okay?
00:17:42.740 So I look at the numbers and I'm like, holy, like, this is such a bloated government, and clearly adding more bureaucrats doesn't mean better results for Canadians.
00:17:52.680 No, and a parallel to it, which is, you know, kind of, it's a different discussion, kind of, but it offers a good parallel.
00:17:59.120 Well, it can to post workers, whereas, you know, we are getting more postal service than we ever did.
00:18:03.860 In fact, we're using less than we ever have, but the cost of the institution is rising higher and higher.
00:18:09.120 And I've been a little vocal online about my thoughts on postal workers, and perhaps they should seek newer employment.
00:18:14.920 But the union types and everything keeps saying, well, you'll pay even more when they're all on welfare.
00:18:19.040 How could we lay them off? It would mess with the entire economy.
00:18:21.460 They contribute so much through their taxes.
00:18:23.840 You know that argument's going to come from the bureaucracies and their unions as well, right?
00:18:26.920 Well, hold on a second, though, right?
00:18:29.060 The average compensation for a federal bureaucrat, the average, is $125,000 a year.
00:18:37.080 So, no, we're not going to be paying more when and if the government cuts its bureaucracy, right?
00:18:42.960 Like, come on.
00:18:43.820 I mean, look, the bureaucracy is consuming more than half of the government's operating budget.
00:18:48.440 And, like, to a point that I think you're getting at, there's just certain things that we don't need the government to be doing, right?
00:18:53.900 We don't need to have, essentially, a government monopoly handing out mail, right?
00:18:58.660 Like, come on.
00:18:59.960 We've got email.
00:19:00.640 We've had email for a very long time.
00:19:02.220 We definitely don't need a government monopoly.
00:19:04.060 We don't need a government state broadcaster, okay?
00:19:07.860 We don't need the government losing hundreds of millions of dollars trying to operate a train company, i.e. via rail, right?
00:19:14.740 So, there's just so many different things that we don't need any government to be doing.
00:19:18.580 And we especially don't need a government in Ottawa to be doing.
00:19:22.460 So, what about areas?
00:19:23.700 I mean, one of the larger ones, and they just went on strike last year, I believe, was CRA workers.
00:19:28.240 That's a large section of the government.
00:19:30.740 I mean, arguably, that is an area where we will need a degree of bureaucrats.
00:19:34.940 And I think most people agree they don't really work very efficiently whatsoever.
00:19:39.000 But how do you begin cutting in there?
00:19:40.920 Well, look, one of the problems, and I mean, the CRA highlights the overall problem of the federal bureaucracy to a T, right?
00:19:49.720 Where the CRA has seen the second largest growth in its number of bureaucrats among all the different departments and agencies since 2016.
00:19:57.440 And yet, services are still poor, right?
00:19:59.440 You've heard the taxpayer ombudsperson talk about the fact that the office is flooded with complaints, right?
00:20:05.180 So, like, good luck trying to get the CRA on the phone when they inevitably mess up one of your tax returns.
00:20:10.900 You know what I mean?
00:20:11.340 So, this is, like, the pure example to show that more government bureaucrats does not mean better services.
00:20:16.440 Where you've seen the payroll of the CRA explode in recent years, like higher and higher costs of taxpayers.
00:20:23.880 And yet, the services have gotten no better.
00:20:26.040 I mean, Corey, let me also talk about another aspect here, right?
00:20:29.400 Because it's not just the number of government bureaucrats that has gone up, but the cost has as well.
00:20:34.160 Because over the last four years, the federal government has rubber-stamped 4 million, or sorry, over 1 million pay raises over the last four years.
00:20:42.980 The federal government has rubber-stamped $1.5 billion in bonuses since 2015.
00:20:47.900 And all these bonuses have been going on when departments can barely meet half of their own performance targets, right?
00:20:56.260 Like, that's like writing your own tests, getting a D-minus, and then giving yourself an $18,000 bonus check.
00:21:03.040 I mean, Corey, let's talk about, you know, probably the pinnacle of government waste over the last couple years.
00:21:08.880 Arrive Scam, right?
00:21:10.500 That simple app launched with a price tag of $80,000.
00:21:14.580 It ballooned all the way up to $60 million.
00:21:18.140 It became a national scandal.
00:21:20.560 And then government executives working on that failed app turned around and took home $340,000 in bonuses.
00:21:27.700 So it's not just talking about cutting the number of bureaucrats.
00:21:31.640 We've got to talk about cutting the perks and pay of government bureaucrats as well.
00:21:37.100 Oh, absolutely.
00:21:38.100 It's ridiculous when we start hearing some of those.
00:21:40.040 We've been beating up on the federal bureaucrats quite a bit so far here, and they've earned their beating thoroughly.
00:21:44.920 But, and I know most of that poll is focused on federal, but there's plenty of room for provincial governments and civic governments to cut their bureaucracy as well, isn't there?
00:21:53.340 Oh, yeah.
00:21:53.740 I mean, this is kind of the name of the game when you're looking at governments at all different levels, and I guess across provinces and even cities, is that government bureaucracies is what make up a huge chunk of each type of government's budget, right?
00:22:07.140 And, like, look, it all has to start at the top.
00:22:09.600 I know I've been focusing on federal the most part, but we really have to focus on one more element here, and that's the political level, right?
00:22:16.760 The politicians.
00:22:17.900 Look, in Ottawa, our members of parliament give themselves a raise every single year.
00:22:22.940 April 1, every year, they pad their pockets with higher pay from more of your money.
00:22:27.300 And, like, look, the government unions, before there was that major strike that happened back in 2023, like the government union bosses, they were pointing to the annual salary increase that members of parliament take every single year as a reason why bureaucrats should get more of taxpayers' cash.
00:22:45.360 So not only is the government bureaucracy a huge problem at all level of government, but so is the political out-of-touchness, so to speak, for lack of a better term, especially in Ottawa, where a backbencher, right, along with collecting dust in the House of Commons is collecting a $210,000 salary, a minister's, right, salary north of $300,000, the prime minister's salary north of $400,000, and every single year they're giving themselves salary increases that they don't deserve.
00:23:13.600 For example, why would a finance minister of Canada deserve a pay raise when every single year they're running deficits in the tens of billions of dollars?
00:23:23.560 It makes no sense.
00:23:25.220 Well, and I think, you know, something that happens with politicians in general at every level is they lose sight of whose money they're actually entrusted with, and it happens, there's a cross-partisan issue.
00:23:36.280 We saw that come up recently, and you guys have been critical of it.
00:23:38.660 The UCP government in Alberta decided that we don't deserve to see what their expenses are for MLAs and ministers.
00:23:45.560 What on earth is going on there?
00:23:47.280 What are they hiding?
00:23:48.740 That's a great question.
00:23:49.920 Like, what on earth is going on there?
00:23:51.540 Because they should know better, right?
00:23:53.320 Like, come on.
00:23:53.800 Like, they should know better.
00:23:55.120 How many people in that UCP government had made a career going after government accountability, right?
00:24:02.200 Come on, Corey.
00:24:03.260 Like, you and I have been around for a little while now.
00:24:05.540 Like, we all remember that you have different members within that government.
00:24:09.800 If another government would have done this, they would be losing their minds, and they would be right to do so.
00:24:15.560 Like, look, number one, to your point, what are you hiding, right?
00:24:18.440 If you remove the receipt requirement from being online, taxpayers have every right to be like, hey, what are you trying to hide from us?
00:24:26.720 But number two, and the heart of the matter is this, it is not those politicians' money.
00:24:32.520 It is the hard-earned money of Alberta taxpayers, and Alberta taxpayers have every right to know how their money is being spent.
00:24:40.320 They have every right to be able to go online and proactively look at the receipts.
00:24:44.440 So what we've seen from the Smith government on this issue here is completely the wrong move, and they have to come out, they've got to apologize for the mistake, and they have to right this wrong.
00:24:54.080 Yeah, no, I certainly hope they reverse them.
00:24:57.200 I just, I also wanted to bring up, just to remind people, I mean, yourself, myself, I mean, speaking for myself, I typically like most of what the UCP does,
00:25:04.220 but I'm going to hold them to account when they're wasting my money just as much as any other government, and we expect better of them.
00:25:11.920 You claim to be conservative.
00:25:13.180 You certainly were critical of them when the NDP was in power, and then it's just bizarre.
00:25:19.280 I mean, how did they not see the political mind they were stepping on when they pulled this off?
00:25:24.080 Well, hey, Corey, you know, before I came on the show, I called my colleague and a good friend of yours as well, Chris Sims, right, our Alberta director,
00:25:31.040 and I was talking to her about what's going on with this receipt scandal, and she was also telling me some of the bogus claims
00:25:37.640 that the government has been putting out there to try to defend its wrong decision, and she was telling me, like,
00:25:43.680 they're even saying that there's, like, safety issues, why they would take the receipts offline, right?
00:25:48.560 And I'm just sitting to myself, like, that does not pass the sniff test for one second.
00:25:54.200 Like, Corey, you and I have gone out to restaurants or whatever.
00:25:58.040 We've gotten receipts before.
00:25:59.540 Never once has my receipt shown my own personal address, right?
00:26:04.000 Number two, if you are worried about some type of security issue, well, I don't know,
00:26:08.840 get a Sharpie, black out the location of the place that you were staying.
00:26:12.800 It's that simple.
00:26:13.660 You know, all of this reminds me, that excuse reminds me of the Trudeau government, right?
00:26:19.220 You'll remember the $6,000 per night hotel suite, and the federal government didn't want to tell you
00:26:24.020 that it was Trudeau who stayed in that room.
00:26:26.120 What excuse did they give?
00:26:28.600 Security, right?
00:26:30.060 So, like, look, I think the Smith government, and really all governments across Canada,
00:26:34.280 should try to hold themselves to a much better standard than the Trudeau government
00:26:38.160 when it comes to transparency.
00:26:40.440 Yeah, and almost all stay on their case.
00:26:42.480 I mean, the absurdity of it, too.
00:26:44.640 It's not like the expenses were posted real time.
00:26:47.180 If it shows what hotel you stayed in, it shows that you stayed there a month ago, not today.
00:26:52.520 So people still don't know where you are right now.
00:26:55.660 It's just, as you said, it was the sort of thing I'd expect out of a liberal.
00:26:59.000 So it's pretty disappointing.
00:27:00.040 I hope they see the sense in this soon.
00:27:03.180 One more thing.
00:27:04.020 I see a press release came in that you guys have gotten something of a court win
00:27:07.980 when it comes to that capital gains tax shenanigans going on there.
00:27:11.500 Yeah, absolutely.
00:27:12.880 So, hey, you remember when the federal government, they wanted to move, well, really, the CRA
00:27:17.940 said that they were going to move forward with this multi-billion dollar capital gains tax
00:27:23.120 increase, right?
00:27:23.980 And the CRA was going to enforce it even before legislation was introduced in the House,
00:27:29.500 debated in the House, or even passed into law, right?
00:27:32.760 So immediately, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, we launched a legal challenge to fight the
00:27:38.320 undemocratic and illegal capital gains tax increase.
00:27:41.640 Now, a week after we launched our legal challenge, the federal government announced that it was
00:27:45.860 backing away from the capital gains tax increase.
00:27:48.260 But we decided to continue with this legal challenge because we want to set the precedent.
00:27:53.620 No taxation without representation, right?
00:27:57.400 Unelected bureaucrats shouldn't be deciding how much money to take from Canadians.
00:28:01.020 The power of taxation has to be within our elected representatives in Parliament.
00:28:06.980 Now, even though the federal government ultimately backed away from the capital gains tax increase,
00:28:11.400 we are continuing to pursue this in the court to set that precedent.
00:28:16.300 And, you know, the court just ruled, as the press release kind of says, is that they're
00:28:20.780 going to continue to hear our case, even though the other side didn't want that to happen.
00:28:25.380 So we're pushing forward with this challenge to set that very important principle of our democracy,
00:28:31.800 no taxation without representation.
00:28:35.080 Excellent.
00:28:35.680 Well, I hope it goes through as you hope, and at least make it a little tougher for these guys
00:28:40.320 to pull these kind of stunts.
00:28:41.360 It's sad that we always have to be reactive, you know, when they just won't act principally to begin with.
00:28:47.420 So you guys, I mean, again, the Taxpayers Federation,
00:28:49.720 you're great with holding their feet to the fire.
00:28:51.460 Before I let you go, where can people find what you're up to and support you guys if they want to?
00:28:56.720 Well, Corey, thanks so much for having me on, man.
00:28:58.740 Really appreciate it.
00:28:59.440 Always fun to chat with you.
00:29:01.020 Folks, head over to taxpayer.com.
00:29:02.900 That's our website.
00:29:03.700 Check out the newsroom.
00:29:04.640 Got a great, a bunch of great petitions on there.
00:29:07.100 And if you want to follow us on social media, I mean, just type in Canadian Taxpayers Federation,
00:29:11.280 and I'm sure you'll find us.
00:29:12.380 But the best place to go to support us is taxpayer.com.
00:29:16.820 Right on.
00:29:17.320 Thanks, Franco.
00:29:18.100 I appreciate you joining us today and the work you guys do.
00:29:20.680 I hope we get to talk again soon.
00:29:22.180 Hey, thanks, Corey.
00:29:23.520 All right.
00:29:23.880 Thanks.
00:29:24.620 So once again, that's Franco Tarazano with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.
00:29:27.800 They really are a great group, guys.
00:29:29.480 And what I do like is, as I pointed out, too, they don't play favorites.
00:29:33.880 They don't care if somebody's wasting your money, they're going to call them out.
00:29:37.480 It doesn't matter which party.
00:29:39.440 Perhaps some of them within them are a bit like me.
00:29:41.900 You get even more angry when it's a party you personally prefer than others.
00:29:45.860 So they are a nonpartisan organization.
00:29:48.120 So check them out if you want to keep up on things.
00:29:50.500 I mean, look at the things like the Teddy Awards they do and stuff just to expose the
00:29:54.720 amount of your money that's being wasted.
00:29:57.940 That's kind of what I was getting at a little, you know, when I asked, like with these politicians,
00:30:02.020 they honestly forget.
00:30:03.640 I mean, people call it dome disease or when we'd send them out federally, I'd call it auto
00:30:07.760 washed.
00:30:08.200 It doesn't take a politician long to forget that they're entrusted with our money.
00:30:13.940 It's not their money.
00:30:15.200 They should instinctively feel that, you know, they're the steward of it.
00:30:19.960 And that means that they should be as transparent as possible.
00:30:23.260 It's not hard to post your bloody expenses.
00:30:26.400 What on earth was the UCP government thinking?
00:30:30.120 As I said, I would expect that of the NDP.
00:30:32.000 I would expect that of the liberals.
00:30:33.340 I expected better of the UCP, but you know, it's not one of those things where I said,
00:30:36.920 I'm going to storm out of the room, quit supporting which party or that.
00:30:40.020 I don't know.
00:30:40.360 I'm not a member of any party, but you know, there's ones I, as I said, I prefer over others.
00:30:44.960 But guys, this doesn't look good.
00:30:46.380 And it was just so avoidable.
00:30:47.760 What on earth were you thinking?
00:30:49.740 Either way, welcome to politics, right?
00:30:51.480 As I said, none of them are immune from it.
00:30:53.820 And I know a lot of politicians, even on the left, some of them honestly do feel they're
00:30:57.460 doing the service.
00:30:58.000 I just think when they're in a little too long, they kind of lose vision of what they
00:31:02.880 began with.
00:31:04.000 I'm mixed on that.
00:31:05.580 You know, term limits is something that's talked about a lot because I think, you know,
00:31:09.340 there's been a recognition that leaders, particularly if they're in too long, they
00:31:12.880 get too stale.
00:31:14.160 They've lost what they were there for.
00:31:15.780 Ralph Klein used to refer to it as the fire in his belly.
00:31:17.720 I mean, he was arguably one of the most successful politicians in Canadian history, but his last
00:31:22.540 few years, he was just kind of mailing it in.
00:31:25.180 His term for it was that he'd lost, you know, he had the fire in the belly, but he didn't
00:31:28.440 have it later.
00:31:29.820 And it would have been probably better if he'd have just had eight years as premier
00:31:34.940 and then been done.
00:31:37.260 But at the same time, you know, it's a discussion worth having.
00:31:41.580 Shouldn't that decision be up to the electors, though?
00:31:43.380 Do you force it?
00:31:44.540 The problem with a term limit is if you've got a politician, you see that in the states
00:31:48.160 and they, you know, it's the president and they're on their second term, that final
00:31:51.180 year they're in, they know they're done.
00:31:53.080 And if they aren't a principled person, boy, if you really want to see somebody at the
00:31:56.540 trough or somebody who doesn't care what the voters think any longer, have somebody
00:31:59.660 when they know they have absolutely no way to come back into that office.
00:32:04.740 So when they got nothing to lose, then they can become even more dangerous.
00:32:09.260 Lots of discussions worth having anyways.
00:32:11.660 But part of it, hey, just keep holding their feet to the fire.
00:32:14.100 So I think, again, talk to your UCP MLA.
00:32:16.160 If those guys, I honestly, this one is so stupid.
00:32:19.320 I think they're going to reverse on that really quickly.
00:32:22.040 I think.
00:32:23.240 But if they don't, call your MLA, call whomever and just say, guys, what the hell's the matter
00:32:27.600 with you?
00:32:28.480 I do not want to see Premier Nenshi.
00:32:31.880 If you pull stunts like that, that's how you're going to do it.
00:32:34.320 Okay, let's get on to some more idiocy.
00:32:36.320 Where our tax money gets wasted and spent.
00:32:39.060 The Toronto International Film Festival.
00:32:40.940 And it's a big one, guys.
00:32:42.740 Among film festivals, you know, there's some massive ones out there.
00:32:46.180 The ones in Cannes and Sundance Film Festival down in the States.
00:32:51.700 The Toronto International one is a big one.
00:32:54.340 And it gets millions and millions and millions of tax dollars from all three levels of government
00:32:58.700 out there.
00:32:59.680 Federal, provincial, civic.
00:33:01.140 And, you know, it brings a lot of people, brings a lot of attention.
00:33:04.400 Should bring some responsibility too, though.
00:33:07.180 So there was an entrance that was into it.
00:33:10.060 And it was a documentary about an Israeli hero.
00:33:12.700 A man who, you know, saved people from Hamas on October 7th, October, you know, 2023.
00:33:19.660 And it was a documentary of it.
00:33:21.560 And the documentary, it wasn't a theoretical thing.
00:33:24.120 It used footage from October 7th.
00:33:27.100 It used footage from the cameras of the Hamas terrorists.
00:33:32.140 Because those terrorists were so proud of themselves as they murdered everybody and attacked
00:33:36.140 a music festival and murdered families and household pets and everything else they did.
00:33:39.540 They actually shot footage of it and shared it with everybody.
00:33:42.980 They were proud of it.
00:33:45.060 But apparently they've decided, well, we didn't get permission from Hamas to use that footage.
00:33:50.320 So we're not going to allow that documentary to appear at this music festival.
00:33:55.740 No, the reason they don't want it at the music festival is because it's something that's
00:34:00.540 sympathetic to Jews.
00:34:01.600 Let's quit beating around the bloody bush with these arseholes.
00:34:04.260 All right?
00:34:05.280 How much more of this have we got to see?
00:34:07.200 I mean, they backed off enough at the Montreal Pride March where they actually banned Jewish
00:34:12.820 Pride marchers from the group.
00:34:14.580 They did.
00:34:15.340 This isn't stuff to be made up.
00:34:17.840 The extreme left has embraced, embraced the movements of Germany in the late 30s.
00:34:26.340 They really have.
00:34:26.960 They're targeting and attacking businesses.
00:34:28.620 They're excluding Jewish people.
00:34:30.160 We're not talking Israel.
00:34:31.320 We're talking Jewish people in Canada.
00:34:33.480 And it's being unchecked.
00:34:36.820 We saw it recently with a Jewish man attacked on the streets, beaten in front of his own
00:34:42.620 kids.
00:34:43.440 The Kippah pulled from his head and thrown down.
00:34:45.900 A number of politicians certainly spoke up to condemn it.
00:34:48.280 A bunch didn't.
00:34:49.700 And then we still see the same liberals condemning Islamophobia over perceived things happening
00:34:53.940 here and there.
00:34:54.400 While we're seeing the number one group in Canada being assaulted, the number one hate
00:34:58.940 crime charges in Canada are Jews by a long shot.
00:35:02.760 But the extreme left that's in control of everything, well, they're feeding that.
00:35:06.760 This bunch of clowns at the film festival.
00:35:09.320 If they're going to take stances like that, there shouldn't be any bloody tax funding going
00:35:14.540 to them.
00:35:15.020 Fund yourself.
00:35:16.300 Go to Hamas.
00:35:17.040 Ask them for some money.
00:35:18.560 See if they'll pay for your crap.
00:35:20.820 This Canada is just turning into an embarrassment.
00:35:23.860 And, you know, where do you go with it?
00:35:27.280 Well, I'll tell you one area to go with it.
00:35:29.180 I mean, that's going to be something interesting here.
00:35:30.940 Tomorrow, there's going to be the court ruling for some who have been watching Alberta news
00:35:37.180 on, you know, the dueling referendum questions.
00:35:40.640 The applications to petition to get a question on a referendum to be put in front of Albertans.
00:35:46.820 We had Fabio, the disgraced Redford-era MLA, has his nothing burger question that he's
00:35:53.280 putting forward to say, hey, Albertans, do you all just want to keep things the same?
00:35:57.280 Really kind of wasting time and abusing the system.
00:35:59.820 But I guess he's got the right to try and waste that time and do so.
00:36:02.440 He's going to get 300,000 signatures within, now it's going to be two and a half months.
00:36:06.820 I doubt he's going to do it, but who knows?
00:36:08.740 But on the other end, the real petition from the Alberta Prosperity Project, or the real
00:36:12.900 question, where it's talking about asking Albertans if they want to leave and become
00:36:16.740 a sovereign province.
00:36:17.940 The question isn't whether or not Albertans should or shouldn't, you know where I stand
00:36:21.580 on that, but whether the question should even be put to Albertans.
00:36:25.880 The chief electoral officer of Alberta said, ah, I've got to put that to a judge to see
00:36:31.140 if we're allowed constitutionally to ask that.
00:36:33.060 What?
00:36:34.880 So, cowardice on the chief electoral officer's part, but whatever.
00:36:38.220 So, that's gone before a judge, and they made the case last week as to whether or not
00:36:42.340 we're even allowed to ask the question.
00:36:43.900 Tomorrow, he's going to say whether or not we're allowed to ask Albertans on that.
00:36:49.360 You know, I don't think it's going to stop the referendum, no matter which way that judge
00:36:53.160 rules on this.
00:36:55.120 The segment of Albertans, which is 30% or more, that's a significant amount who want to go,
00:37:00.120 and they're dedicated, and they're working on it.
00:37:02.420 They're not going to rest without having a referendum on it.
00:37:05.800 And bottom line is, if it doesn't go through that route, I mean, we can hold it, even if
00:37:12.000 he doesn't rule it's constitutional.
00:37:13.580 We can fight that out after the question is held.
00:37:17.260 But I'm wondering if this judge is taking this into account.
00:37:20.760 Because if he tells Alberta that we are not allowed to have the question on independence,
00:37:30.100 it's also telling Quebec they aren't allowed as well.
00:37:32.120 And we know in Canada, it's been kind of widely accepted since the 80s, that Quebec has every
00:37:38.600 right to ask their citizens whether they want to stay or go in a referendum.
00:37:43.940 That's their right as Quebecers.
00:37:46.780 Fair enough.
00:37:48.740 But is a judge in Alberta ready to poke that hornet's nest?
00:37:52.080 You can bet the independence movement in Quebec, and they are not gone,
00:37:55.240 are watching this very, very closely.
00:37:59.900 I strongly suspect the judge is going to say the question can go ahead.
00:38:03.420 But we'll see.
00:38:03.860 We're going to find that out tomorrow.
00:38:05.500 Elaine, a commenter saying,
00:38:06.640 Montreal Pride re-invited the gay Jewish community group.
00:38:08.820 Yes, yes.
00:38:09.400 I'm sorry if I didn't clarify that.
00:38:11.060 I mean, they did exclude them.
00:38:13.680 And then, of course, once the backlash hit hard enough,
00:38:16.040 they changed their mind and said,
00:38:18.120 oh, okay, okay, we'll let the Jewish LGBTQ group march with us.
00:38:23.620 You know, I understand people distinguishing or claiming to distinguish
00:38:28.020 between Israel and Jews and Zionists.
00:38:31.800 You know, they love using that to cloak it with just saying Jew.
00:38:34.460 And especially when you see some of the hate coming out.
00:38:35.960 Just say Jew.
00:38:36.560 Don't try to pretend it's a Zionist thing.
00:38:38.260 Well, we saw that with Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek
00:38:42.060 when she boycotted the traditional Hanukkah lighting in Calgary over this
00:38:49.040 because she didn't want to look like she's supporting Israel.
00:38:52.200 Guys, Hanukkah has been going on a lot longer than the current incarnation of Israel.
00:38:55.600 It was a local religious observance of Jews, not Israelis.
00:39:00.620 Difference, okay?
00:39:01.840 Very tightly connected to Israel and Jews, of course.
00:39:05.680 But for her to boycott that, no, her problem was with the Jews.
00:39:08.380 Let's not beat around that bush.
00:39:10.280 Because it was a Hanukkah lighting, not a, you know, a menorah lighting.
00:39:15.760 Not anything to do with Israel.
00:39:17.040 These guys are a cloak.
00:39:18.360 If nothing else has come out from the horrors that were pulled off by Hamas,
00:39:23.960 those vile terrorists,
00:39:25.920 is it really exposed that you don't have to scratch that hard
00:39:28.920 on the extreme left and the extreme right to find the Jew hater underneath.
00:39:32.440 The Venn diagram of hate overlaps in there.
00:39:36.320 And neither of them can claim to be the bigger hater of the other
00:39:39.720 because they both do a very fantastic job of it.
00:39:43.480 But these games that are going on,
00:39:46.160 quit pretending it's about Israel, guys.
00:39:48.800 It's this group that wanted to march in that parade were just Jewish people,
00:39:53.220 many of whom were born in Canada, never been to Israel,
00:39:55.340 had no interest in being in Israel.
00:39:56.800 But they happened to be gay and they wanted to take part in the pride thing.
00:40:01.840 And you guys stopped them for a while.
00:40:03.280 You thought you could get away with stopping them without that much backlash.
00:40:06.960 And likewise, I mean, the absurdity of this film festival,
00:40:09.960 they used that shaky excuse.
00:40:11.700 Oh, we didn't get Hamas's permission to use that footage,
00:40:14.080 so we can't put it on.
00:40:15.620 They put it out on themselves in public, guys.
00:40:19.080 And who cares?
00:40:20.660 Hamas, they're a terrorist group.
00:40:23.580 That's absurd.
00:40:25.280 Let's see.
00:40:25.880 Back in the independence end of things, though.
00:40:27.440 So the PPC, Maxime Bernier, has endorsed the yes side
00:40:33.340 if there's going to be a referendum held in Alberta
00:40:35.300 and condemns what he called imperial federalism.
00:40:40.160 So it's interesting.
00:40:42.520 It's a new policy.
00:40:43.920 There's some policy that sounds interesting.
00:40:45.160 They would abolish all federal programs and regulations
00:40:47.340 intruding on areas of provincial responsibility.
00:40:50.240 We have a lot of that problem, you know, the Health Act, things like that.
00:40:53.080 The feds are really getting into a lot of things they shouldn't.
00:40:56.280 But would endorsing the yes side be a better way to go?
00:40:59.400 I got to admit, like, I liked a lot of things that Bernier did.
00:41:02.200 I like a lot of things he stood up for.
00:41:03.940 He was one of the only ones that stand up against supply management,
00:41:06.780 things like that.
00:41:08.000 But it really seems like the PPC to a degree now is just treading water
00:41:11.000 and just trying to find stances to stay on to keep, well,
00:41:14.140 funding themselves and keep Maxime with a job.
00:41:18.600 I mean, not that I oppose their supporting independence.
00:41:21.080 I'm supportive of independence too.
00:41:22.520 But where are you going?
00:41:24.140 What I think I see is that they see most of their donors are in Western Canada
00:41:30.060 and tend to be independent supporters, so they want to keep them happy
00:41:34.800 and keep their donations coming.
00:41:36.060 They're just not making an impact or a mark in any elections.
00:41:39.600 The by-election is coming up pretty soon.
00:41:41.040 I guess I should note that.
00:41:42.160 That's been going on in Alberta.
00:41:43.740 That's where Pierre Polyev is running to get himself a seat after having lost one.
00:41:51.160 And it's funny, the hypocrisy again of the left.
00:41:54.060 They were pretty quiet when they had Ninchy bounced up into Edmonton to a safe seat
00:41:57.620 where he doesn't live to get himself a seat as a party leader.
00:42:01.380 But now that Polyev is doing it, it's outrageous.
00:42:03.880 It's wrong.
00:42:04.860 I understand that, yes, he lost his original seat.
00:42:07.360 So what?
00:42:07.680 Does that mean that you are not allowed to pursue another one?
00:42:09.680 Guys, you haven't read much political history.
00:42:11.280 You've seen how the parliamentary system works.
00:42:13.720 And he is the leader of the opposition.
00:42:15.380 He needs to see that sort of stuff happens.
00:42:17.640 Is it the most democratic thing?
00:42:18.740 No, I don't think it is.
00:42:20.080 Is it really totally fair to the local constituents that they lose a local representative?
00:42:23.920 No, not really.
00:42:25.600 But it's also not the outrage some people are making of it.
00:42:28.740 But I read a CBC article.
00:42:30.440 You know, yeah, I know.
00:42:31.900 I read these things, but I got to keep up on stuff.
00:42:33.900 I mean, most of my week is reading and consuming and watching and bringing stuff up
00:42:38.120 so I can write about it and do these shows on it.
00:42:40.160 And the CBC went up there and really worked hard because they sought out to find a few
00:42:45.280 farmers who actually said, yeah, I don't like PolyEv and I think I'm going to vote for
00:42:48.780 a different party this time around.
00:42:50.980 Look, guys, the Conservatives win in that riding with like 80% support numbers.
00:42:57.000 It's not going to change.
00:42:59.680 You know, even if somehow it's a by-election and nobody comes out and the long ballot annoyed
00:43:04.080 enough people, he might drop to 75%, maybe 70.
00:43:08.460 It doesn't matter.
00:43:09.340 It really doesn't.
00:43:10.840 But it shows as well that the CBC went to so much trouble to assign somebody for such
00:43:14.840 a long hit piece, just trying to find somebody in the farm community who didn't like PolyEv.
00:43:20.300 I wonder how many doors they had to knock to find that.
00:43:23.360 Speaking of fools in Canada and being ethically broken, you know, we've been watching and
00:43:28.560 this is fair enough, you know, some degree debate on whether or not, not too much, whether
00:43:32.580 or not it's a bright idea to ban everybody from the woods, from the forests in Nova Scotia
00:43:36.380 and New Brunswick, because the fire hazard is very high.
00:43:38.400 Apparently people fart fire and it might just spark one up if they let people walk in there
00:43:42.180 unsupervised.
00:43:42.840 So they just closed it off.
00:43:44.560 It's public land, guys.
00:43:45.820 Public.
00:43:46.940 Yes.
00:43:47.240 Hours.
00:43:47.520 I can understand shutting down ATVs, you know, vehicles, campfires, of course, things like
00:43:52.900 that.
00:43:53.040 Even banning smoking in there, any lit.
00:43:56.020 Yeah, I can see that.
00:43:56.880 Bring down some rules.
00:43:57.740 It's dangerous.
00:43:58.300 Fine.
00:43:58.660 But people can't even walk in there.
00:44:00.900 Oh, wait.
00:44:01.240 Unless you're Indigenous.
00:44:04.420 Ah, yes, of course we should have known.
00:44:06.720 They're not going to, this is a, it applies to everybody but the First Nations.
00:44:10.340 As usual, there's going to be a Mi'kmaq-led play in a park, a park that nobody else is allowed
00:44:16.100 into right now.
00:44:17.320 But since they're Indigenous, well, we'll look the other way on that ban.
00:44:20.160 We'll let them in.
00:44:22.080 Race-based policy, guys.
00:44:24.760 It's wrong.
00:44:26.560 100% of the time.
00:44:28.460 Always.
00:44:28.820 There used to be a bunch of race-based policy that was wrong and it was oppressing Native
00:44:35.340 people in Canada.
00:44:36.460 There used to be people weren't allowed to leave their reserves without the authority
00:44:40.620 of an Indian agent.
00:44:41.720 They weren't allowed to vote until later on.
00:44:43.440 This was all wrong.
00:44:44.880 But turning it around to make preferential race-based policy for them later doesn't undo
00:44:49.880 the wrongs of the past.
00:44:51.000 It's just committing more wrongs for the future.
00:44:53.520 It's dividing us further and it's making a damn mess.
00:44:57.420 And you better hope these morons with their play don't start a fire or you'll really
00:45:01.160 look like idiots, won't you?
00:45:03.140 This is nuts.
00:45:04.280 Yes, this is so important.
00:45:05.700 We're going to lock Canadian citizens away from all public areas in the trees and bush
00:45:10.180 except for a theater troupe of Indigenous people.
00:45:13.560 Oh my God, you wimps, you pussies.
00:45:15.660 Look, if you're really going to step on right, step on all of ours.
00:45:19.940 Don't racially, selectively do it, you idiots.
00:45:22.960 Either way, I can leave off on that bright note.
00:45:25.500 But there's lots of bright stuff to look forward to.
00:45:27.820 Guys, watch the pipeline tonight.
00:45:29.080 We'll be on with a panel there.
00:45:31.200 Nigel has stepped back.
00:45:32.820 He's not full-time anymore, but he's still going to be doing column.
00:45:34.860 He's going to be on the pipeline.
00:45:35.800 He's doing his show.
00:45:36.860 And, you know, thank you for tuning in today and supporting us and supporting the growing
00:45:43.500 number of Daves we have in our newsroom.
00:45:45.620 So we will see you again next week at this time.
00:46:06.860 Sous-tit граф comes to me.
00:46:16.200 Sous-titrage Société Radio-Canada
00:46:17.220 Sous-titrage Société Radio-Canada
00:46:17.700 Sous-titrage Société Radio-Canada