Blacklock's Reporter

1968 is so layered in mythology it takes a surgeon’s scalpel to cut to the facts. Historian Paul Litt of Carleton University deftly slices and trims until the truth emerges in Trudeaumania. Even in death Pierre Trudeau remains a polarizing figure. Professor Litt traces the phenomenon to that long-ago campaign.

Yes, Trudeaumania was invented by media, writes Litt: “Yet the media could not have made Trudeau without a complicit audience.” Most strikingly, it could never happen exactly the same way again. The ’68 phenomenon was a collision at the intersection of time and place. Many political fixers have schemed to recreate the experience, and many have failed.

“For those caught up in the mania, 1968 was a historic turning point in which Canada left its dowdy colonial past behind and assumed a new autonomous identity as a model modern liberal democracy,” writes Litt. “They may have been deluding themselves, but since nations are fictions with real-world effects, Trudeaumania had lasting influence.”

Cabinet advisor Amira Elghawaby lobbied government managers to install Muslim prayer rooms in federal buildings though only two percent of employees self-identify as Muslim, records show. Failure to accommodate Muslim prayers in business hours was “Islamophobia in the workplace,” she wrote in notes disclosed through Access To Information: "Islamophobia is a clear and present danger to our social fabric."

The CBC in a Federal Court filing says disclosing the number of paid subscribers to its $72-a year Gem streaming video service is too “commercially sensitive.” MPs have challenged the network to confirm ex-CEO Catherine Tait’s public boast that “millions of Canadians” subscribe: "It might be that Gem is useless and should have been torched a long time ago."

The Premier of Prince Edward Island yesterday called in the RCMP to probe provincewide allegations of corrupt practices by Chinese foreign agents. Premier Rob Lantz sidestepped calls for a judicial inquiry under the federal Inquiries Act: "I share your concerns and I believe you deserve answers."

The Department of Veterans Affairs 35 years after the outbreak of the Persian Gulf War says it will rewrite regulations to pay full benefits to soldiers, sailors and air crew who served in Operation Desert Storm. MPs on the Commons veterans affairs committee complained “legal semantics” meant reduced disability benefits available to 4,458 Canadian volunteers: "The government agrees."

Prime Minister Mark Carney yesterday reannounced the hiring of 1,000 new RCMP but appeared to shelve a 2021 Liberal Party promise to create a $200 million Canadian Financial Crimes Agency. Cabinet will leave it to the Mounties, he said: "We are delivering."

Cabinet advisor Amira Elghawaby used her office to advocate for federal employees “speaking out on Palestinian issues” and lobby against B’nai Brith, records show. Censored documents detailing activities of the $191,300 Special Representative on Combating Islamophobia were disclosed yesterday through Access To Information: 'Racism takes various forms including failing to acknowledge Palestinians as an Indigenous people.'

Canada’s airports are petitioning the Commons finance committee to introduce digital identification for domestic travelers. Current regulations require only that air passengers carry government-issue photo ID like a driver’s license: 'It will enhance security.'

Industry Minister Mélanie Joly yesterday called Canada a world leader in artificial intelligence. A Commons committee says Canada actually ranks 21st: "Canada ranked 21st out of 38 OECD countries."

Keeping the lights on “could be a reliability challenge” as utilities attempt to meet climate targets, the Canada Energy Regulator said yesterday. The federal agency invoked an energy alert in Alberta in the winter of 2024 that saw the province narrowly avert rolling blackouts in -40°: "Higher electricity consumption could make it difficult."

Parliament would pass regulations against lying public office holders under a Commons petition yesterday sponsored by Liberal MP Yvan Baker (Etobicoke Centre, Ont.). A similar petition sponsored by a Liberal colleague in July drew more than 34,000 signatures: "Disinformation and manipulation by public officials and political figures at all orders of government erode trust and degrade informed debate."

Forty-three investigations of misconduct from bullying to forgery are confirmed by the Privy Council, Treasury Board and Department of Finance. “We need to hold ourselves to the highest standard,” said Privy Council Clerk Michael Sabia.

The Commons health committee has voted for the first time to investigate immigration’s impact on medicare. Hearings proposed by Conservative MP Dan Mazier (Riding Mountain, Man.) coincided with a Department of Immigration marketing campaign that asked foreigners, "Did you know Canada has public health care?" 

The Canadian Muslim Lawyers Association is protesting federal restrictions on protests outside synagogues, religious schools and community halls. The measure could lead “to politicized arrests,” counsel wrote the Commons justice committee: "We have serious concerns."

Road safety regulations have failed to keep pace with hazards posed by weighty electric vehicles, says the Department of Transport. Large batteries add tonnes to the weight of a motor vehicle representing a “key factor” in collisions, said a report: "It can get to a point where they’re not even subject to the requirements anymore."