Tag: Canada Covid-19 pandemic

‘I Got This Wrong’: Shopify Announces Major Layoffs

Canadian eCommerce company Shopify Inc. informed employees on July 26 that it is laying off about 1,000 workers, effectively immediately. “Shopify has to go through a reduction in workforce that will see about 10 percent leave by the end of the day,” said CEO and founder Tobi Lütke in the email, posted on the company’s…


The Scary Ramifications of Making COVID Vaccination Compulsory for Everyone

Commentary If we don’t have the right to bodily autonomy, we have no rights at all. There is no right more sacred than that of the individual to choose what may or may not be imposed upon their physical being. Two years ago it would have been unimaginable to consider any developed nation violating this…


An Attitude of Change Is What’s Needed as We Enter 2022

Commentary The common salutation at the turn of the year is to wish somebody a happy New Year. It will be hard to find happiness if 2022 doesn’t actually provide us with something new, however. The most striking thing that can be said about 2021 is how little different it was from 2020. The year…


Vaccine Mandates: How ‘Moral Panic’ Has Diminished Our Civil Liberties

Commentary Call me a bit slow off the mark, but it wasn’t until toward the end of September when I sensed the shift of COVID-19 from a medical pandemic to a moral panic. The obvious catalyst was the advent of vaccine mandates, which turned the “miraculous” prospect of protection from the virus into a means…


Alarmism in Journalism Reiterating Government Line Leads to ‘Intrusion’ on Liberties: Veteran Journalist

Canadian journalism is undergoing an institutional shift, says a veteran in the industry, noting that this has led to a reluctance on the part of journalists to challenge talking points from the government, which he argues in some cases are meant to garner compliance from the populace through fear. A journalistic institution that keeps journalists…


B.C. Police Say They Take ‘Exception’ to Conducting Roadblocks Limiting Travel

VANCOUVER—British Columbia’s solicitor general says the government will release details of what is considered essential travel this week as the province looks at using roadblocks to limit the spread of COVID-19. Mike Farnworth described the checkpoints as a type of “counterattack,” often used to find drunk drivers, but this time meant to discourage recreational travel…


Ontario to Postpone March Break Until April

TORONTO—Ontario is postponing March break until the week of April 12 in an effort to reduce COVID-19 spread as students return to in-person classes. Education Minister Stephen Lecce said postponing the break—a decision based on the advice of the province’s chief medical officer—is an important way schools can help limit community transmission. “I recognize this…


Will the Home-Schooling Trend Continue Post-Pandemic?

When Alberta mom Tina Teerling decided to home-school her five children this past fall, her goal was to give them back a sense of normalcy and “remember what life was like before the pandemic.” But now, after nearly five months of home-schooling under her belt, she’s considering continuing even after the pandemic is over. It’s…


Questions Remain Over Canada’s Vaccination Drive Amid Delays and Fresh Applications

Canada’s national vaccine rollout seems poised to dominate COVID-19 discussions in the coming week as Canada enters the 11th month of life during a global pandemic. The federal government, which is overseeing the nationwide effort, has been facing strong criticism as it struggles to ensure there are enough immunization doses to go around. The two…


Canada Cancels Flights to Mexico and Caribbean, More Travel Restrictions Coming: Trudeau

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced new travel restrictions on Jan. 29, including the cancellation of flights to certain regions. More measures will be announced in the coming weeks that will enforce mandatory quarantine in hotels for all international travellers, as the transmissible variants of the COVID-19 virus continues to spread. The federal government has reached…