Canadian Crossing

Canada election 2019: Diary of an 'insurance broker'

Andrew Scheer has a funny way of saying “I lied about being an insurance broker”#cdnpoli #elxn43 pic.twitter.com/njwpW9No4G

— Canadian Poli 🇨🇦 (@cdnpoli_memes) October 2, 2019

Andrew Scheer self-identified as a former "insurance broker." Saskatchewan doesn't legally allow people to say they are a broker if they aren't licensed. If you need a licence to be a broker, and you leave before you get the licence, you aren't a broker.

Scheer worked in an insurance office for 6-7 months and definitely not as a broker. The Globe and Mail published the original story.

The Toronto Star reported Scheer only completed one of four courses to become a broker, according to the Insurance Brokers Association of Saskatchewan.

We also found out that Scheer is a dual citizen with the United States and Canada. Scheer said he started the process in August to renounce his citizenship.

In 2005, Scheer sent out a questionnaire to his constituents about whether they would be concerned that Michaëlle Jean had Canada-France citizenship. The follow-up question was whether they would feel better if her other citizenship was in the United States. Jean was a candidate for Governor General, which she later became.

His party attacked Stephane Dion (Liberal leader in 2008) and Tom Mulcair (NDP leader in 2015) for having dual citizenship with France. The party also attacked Michael Ignatieff (Liberal leader in 2011) for working in the United States.

Being a dual citizen isn't the issue; hiding that information and waiting too late to rescind the U.S. citizenship are significant concerns.

We don't know if Paul Wells, MacLean's, or Rogers/Citytv were watching Wednesday night. If not, they missed how a debate should run.

TVA did a great job of running a debate with good lively chats, working to get everyone involved, no commercials and lame cutaways. 

The debate covered 3 different topics: immigration and social policies; economy and the environment; and gouvernance and Quebec within Canada.

We heard a lot of class moyenne (middle class) in the debate. 

There was talk of a "Netflix tax" on web giants. There seemed to be a consensus between all the leaders on the stage. Yves-Francois Blanchet (Bloc Quebecois) talked about a penalty as opposed to a tax, according to the translation. 

I learned that Quebec fills in 2 tax returns while other provinces only 1 return. Andrew Scheer and Blanchet were in favour of 1 return; Justin Trudeau and Jagmeet Singh were not, but not sure why either way.

Scheer said the Conservatives, who have been ranting against how Trudeau negotiated NAFTA 2.0, would ratify the deal.

We learned that Scheer was the only one who didn't purchase carbon offsets for his campaign plane.

Marijuana came up as a question. The highlight ended up being Scheer once again accusing the Liberals of wanting to decrminialise harder drugs. “Not right away,” Trudeau responded (translated) focusing on expanded safe injection sites and harm reduction.

As we noted last week, Canada still doesn't have legal edibles.

Blanchet was the best French speaker in the bunch. Could not tell from the translation whether Blanchet was struggling or whether the translator couldn't figure out what he was saying.

Scheer made a lot of faces in reaction shots. Wasn't sure if he didn't know there would be reaction shots or he did know and that is why he made faces. Trudeau, Blanchet, and Singh had good reaction shots.

Trudeau is stronger speaking in French than English. His pauses in English weren't there in the French debate. 

Scheer's French was easier to follow. Credit to him for being as good as he is. Forced him to speak more plainly, which works well for his speaking style.

I did see Tom Mulcair on the TVA panel before the debate. Mulcair was the NDP leader in 2015.

I watched the debate live on TVA Nouvelles and later on tape delay on CPAC.

Canada election 2019 is underway and food policy should be discussed

New Canada Food Guide offers true steps to better nutrition and eating

BalanceofFood.com Canada food policy coverage

Our sibling blog, BalanceofFood.com, helped us out with a look at food policy and how that applies to the Canadian election. Food policy almost never comes up in debates.

Canada doesn’t have a national school lunch program. Is that good or bad? What about Nutrition North? What about obesity levels and health care costs to the provinces?

The story talks about opportunities to ask MP candidates about these and other food-related questions.

Canada election 2019 debates preview

The Leaders Debates Commission debates are on tap with the English debate on Monday and the French debate on Thursday. The format will be slightly different with 5 different moderators (all female) in the English version and moderator and 4 questioners in the French debate.

You can stream the English language debate over a CBC property. As for the French version, CBC News Network should have an English translation as well as CPAC.

Even if you can't follow along, I do enjoy listening to the party leaders en Francaise. If you know a little French, you might understand some of what they are saying.

CBC tried something different in getting to know the major party leaders. Each of the party leaders talks with 5 undecided voters for 5 minutes. Host Rosemary Barton then asks follow-up questions based on what the voter has brought up.

Debates have their place but you really get a sense of the leader when no one is trying to take a shot or talk over someone.

Maxime Bernier aka People's Party of Canada was invited but declined due to scheduling issues. Seems like a difficult opportunity to pass up for Bernier.

Each segment takes about 45 minutes. CBC ran highlights on The National but ran the the full-length version after the local news. We linked to the YouTube versions.

• Justin Trudeau session
• Andrew Scheer session
• Jagmeet Singh session
• Elizabeth May session

Scheer and May got undecided voters that were thisclose to voting for the party. Neither was particularly challenged by the voters but Barton made up for that lack of uncertainty.

Trudeau got challenged pretty well but that is the legacy of running on a record. 

Scheer got voters who didn't seem all that undecided or challenged the Conservative leader. A softball characterization undersells how easy the questions were for Scheer.

Trudeau has a voter who wondered if governments cared about single voters. We would agree with that question. Trudeau mentioned the Canada Workers Benefit. He also got an intriguing questioner on supply management. That was tougher than any person who addressed Scheer or May.

The pattern kept questioners to areas that weren't in their wheelhouse. Trudeau got no questioner east of Toronto. Scheer didn't get any from the prairie provinces. 3 of the 5 for May came from Ontario. Singh got 3 from Toronto as well as Abbotsford B.C. and Montreal.

 

Trudeau addresses single voters Canada Workers Benefit; first 4 Vancouver, 2 Alberta, Manitoba (supply management), Toronto (no east people)

Scheer New Brunswick climate change very friendly to Scheer; St. George, QC immigration; First Nations in Ontario fiscally conservative; British Columbia housing affordability; suburban Toronto has voted, wanting to vote Conservative (softball city)

Singh small business child care [location] stick butter $7??; international reputation; cost of living Abbotsford;

May Scarborough, ON child care; Saskatchewan grain farmer trade agriculture in fight for climate change; Yukon climate change and food security; Toronto software developer 21; retired teacher Ontario

 

As part of our running series, we are posting ads from the major parties. This is a Conservative ad.

Canada election 2019: The impact of Tout le monde en parle

Canada election 2019: Make room for 6 at the commission debates

Canada election 2019: MacLean's, Citytv big losers in the first debate

Jagmeet Singh was at the Atwater Market in Montréal before the TVA debate. Singh was talking to a older man who told Singh to "cut off his turban." In the exchange, Singh deals well with the disturbed individual. 

This man should have known he will be caught on camera with such deplorable behaviour. Asking Singh to remove the turban would have been bad enough, but the act of cutting the turban added a violent element. 

This sample shows us why we need a larger conversation. The leadership commission debates are also in Quebec in Gatineau, across the river from Ottawa. Bill 21 was a shadow over the TVA debate in Montréal. 

2019 Canada election preview

Looking back at 2015 before the 2019 Canadian election

We didn't have a foreign policy debate on Tuesday. The USMCA | CUSMA topic deserves some debate. The Liberals are defending an awful agreement for Canada. The Conservatives would have done worse. The NDP and Green Party would want changes made to the document.

Given the U.S. House push toward impeachment, the Dem-led House won't be focused on passing the trade agreement. U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi says they are going forward. A number of Dems in the House want changes to the trade deal.

The urgency is lessened because NAFTA still exists.

Andrew Scheer announced on Tuesday that a Conservative government would cut foreign aid by 25%. Scheer promised to redirect $700 million to countries that he said would need it most. Canada currently has a $6.1-billion foreign aid budget.

NDP leader Jagmeet Singh wants foreign aid set at 0.7% of gross national income. Currently, Canada stands at 0.28% of gross national income.

This analysis refutes Scheer's charge that the Trudeau Government sends $2.2 billion of foreign aid to middle- and upper-income countries.

Daily Show explores why refugees are fleeing U.S. for Canada

We talked earlier in the campaign about the numbers of refugees crossing at illegal border crossing points. This article focuses mostly on the Roxham Road crossing (the one highlighted on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah).

There are overall statistics of note.

"Of the more than 50,000 who've come into Canada at irregular crossings since 2017, about one-third have been processed under the national refugee system. About half — 55 per cent — who have had their cases heard have been accepted as refugees. The other 45 per cent have been rejected. But two thirds of the applicants' cases are still pending."

This has resulted in about 8,000-9,000 new refugees in Canada since 2017 and 7,000-8,000 applicants turned away. Whatever you might think of the numbers, we should have the information to make more viable arguments.

Canadians will feel loss of satirists such as Rick Mercer in the 2019 Canadian election

Laura Lynch to take over The Current through the federal election on CBC Radio One

Tom Power on Q pointed out that the 2019 election was the first time in 26 years and 8 federal elections that Rick Mercer wasn't on television. Mercer was on Q talking about how the voting age should be lowered to 16.

"You can join the Canadian military at 16 … you can drive farm equipment, we expect you to follow the laws of the land and to understand them, so 16-year-olds have responsibility."

Mercer was part of Two Shows, One Stage, Your Vote where Q combined with The Current for an election town hall in front of a live studio audience in the Glenn Gould Studio in Toronto.

"Voting is a learned behaviour and it's addictive," Mercer said.

Just Ask is a way for Canadian content creators to talk to politicians

Justin Trudeau (Liberal) and Andrew Scheer (Conservative) have tax proposals to save money on the bottom portion of what Canadians make.

Trudeau says Liberals would raise the personal income tax deduction from $12,069 to $15,000 for people earning less than $147,000.

Scheer says Conservatives would cut the rate on the lowest income tax bracket from 15% to 13.75%. However, the 13.75% wouldn't kick in until 2023.

CBC business reporter Peter Armstrong pointed out that 66% of Canadians make less than $46,000/year and that 91% are in the lowest 2 tax brackets.

Factoring in that $46,000 goes farther in Red Deer than Edmonton or Calgary, those numbers sound depressing. No wonder Canadians think and feel that they are financially struggling. A 2-income household would be a requirement in most urban settings.

CanadianCrossing.com Canadian politics coverage

Vote Compass got a couple of CBC promos on last night's Hockey Night in Canada game with the Montréal Canadiens in Toronto. The game was available on CBC, NHL Center Ice free preview, and the NHL Network. Vote Compass is a CBC News service where you could log on to see how your views compared to party leaders at votecompass.cbc.ca.

Twitter capture: @cdnpoli_memes
photos credit: Andrew Scheer; TVA, TVA, CBC News
video credit: YouTube/Conservative Party of Canada

Canadian notebook: Celebrating Victoria Day 2019

Editor's note: The column was updated to reflect the impact of the detention of Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig in China in the struggle with Canada and the United States.

Happy Victoria Day 2019. The day theoretically applies to Queen Victoria's birthday falling on the Monday before the actual birthday (May 24). In reality, this is the start of Canadian summer.

CanadianCrossing.com NBA coverage

Staying up later to watch the Toronto Raptors win their first game of the NBA Eastern Conference finals 118-112 in double overtime was easier if you didn't have to go to work today. The Raptors are now 1-0 in double OT in the NBA playoffs.

This was Milwaukee's first road loss in the playoffs. Milwaukee only has 2 playoff losses this season. Game 4 is Tuesday night at 8:30 pm Eastern on TSN in Canada and TNT in the United States.

The New York Times introduces Americans to butter tarts and more Canadian food

IFC should applaud the unique drink that is a Caesar

Celebrating the Caesar

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Caesar. Dan Aykroyd in the Toronto Sun video above talks about how the Caesar is Canada's drink and you would have a tough time arguing otherwise.

Read the stories above. Watch the video. Google a recipe or two. You don't have to be at the cottage to enjoy a Caesar. The drink is a taste of Canada.

The opposite of that might be Mayochup, a combination of mayonnaise and ketchup from Kraft Heinz. The U.S. product recently came into Canada.

The product doesn't sound all that great. You could combine the two without having to buy a specific separate product.

The funny part comes with the name Mayochup, which in the Cree language isn't so funny. The rough translation of Mayochup is "shitfaced" or "shit is on my face."

If you are having a picnic, bring both condiments separately and let your guests make up their own minds.

Trump threat to withdraw from NAFTA should lead back to original Canada-U.S. free trade agreement

NAFTA 2.0, er, USMCA is a nightmarish trade deal for Canada

Despite childish threats by Donald Trump, Canada should hold out for a good NAFTA deal

Deal in place to (finally) lift damaging #steel #aluminum #tariffs on #Canada. Do not let that be a reason to consider ratifying #CUSMA #USMCA https://t.co/Y8mPU8cl8K #cdnpoli #cdntrade

— Chad Rubel (@canadian_xing) May 17, 2019

Let's start with the good news: the U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs — 25% on imports of steel and 10% on aluminum — are gone as are Canada's retaliatory tariffs.

Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland is still worried about future tariffs from the United States. "Eternal vigilance is required."

The steel and aluminum industries aren't the only ones to feel the wrath of the angry toddler. There were the 292% tariffs against Bombardier over its C-Series aircraft. The only reason why that isn't an issue any more is that the U.S. International Trade Commission ruled unanimously that "100- to 150-seat large civil aircraft from Canada do not injure U.S. industry."

Boeing has had other issues lately rather than fighting the Canadian airplane industry.

The softwood lumber tariffs are the centre of a battle Canada is fighting with WTO and NAFTA.

The Trudeau Government is going "full steam ahead" — in Freeland's words — to ratifying the new USMCA | CUSMA trade deal. Canada was diligent in not considering the approval of the trade deal without the lifting of the steel and aluminum tariffs.

Parliament almost certainly won't approve the deal before the summer recess. We argue that Canada should receive considerable concessions to consider ratifying the trade deal, despite the lifting of the specific tariffs, especially when there isn't a guarantee that the tariffs won't return.

A long-term softwood lumber deal would be a start. The deal would have to be thorough and reasoned, traits that haven't existed in the U.S. trade delegation.

A no-more-tariffs promise would be ideal, though the current U.S. administration can't be counted on to keep a promise. A name change to the deal would help symbolically. An apology for the steel and aluminum tariffs is less likely than a pipe dream.

Though a short-term deal isn't a lot against long-term trade damage, the U.S. putting pressure on China to release Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig would be helpful. The United States is the reason why Meng Wanzhou was arrested in Canada and the reason why Spavor and Kovrig were essentially kidnapped.

Canada's passage means nothing if the Democratic legislators in the U.S. House don't approve the deal. Canada's passage of the deal, even if it doesn't go into effect, shows tremendous weakness. No one will come along to bail Canada out of the horrible USMCA | CUSMA trade deal.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. brings a lot of excitement to Toronto Blue Jays

CanadianCrossing.com MLB coverage

I saw Vladimir Guerrero Jr. for the first time in person. His fourth HR of his career, the first one not to dead centre field, gave the Blue Jays a 3-1 lead on the way to a 5-2 win. I saw his father play for the Montréal Expos in the same ballpark on the South Side of Chicago. Good memories on both sides of the family equation.

Billy McKinney (solo HR) and Danny Jansen (2-run HR) contributed to the offence to give Toronto a split in that series. MLB Network in the United States will have the Blue Jays this afternoon at 1 pm Eastern; Rogers Sportsnet carries the game in Canada.

Xavier Dolan is back with a new film at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival

La femme de mon frère | A Brother's Love has already played at Cannes. Xavier Dolan's Matthias et Maxime makes its world debut Wednesday at 4 pm local time. (10 am Eastern).

photo credit: me
video credit: Toronto Sun
Twitter capture: @canadian_xing

New Canada Food Guide sidesteps food lobbyists for better nutrition perspective

The revision of the Canada Food Guide took 12 years but brought some significant changes. The new guide focusing on protein options and de-emphasizes meat and dairy. The guide encourages water as a beverage of choice. More importantly, the approach also doesn't suck up to food interests, either from growers or food companies.

Cooking at home is also encouraged.

The Trudeau Government has promised that revisions won't wait another 12 years.

The meat and dairy people aren't thrilled with the new guide. You can consume meat and dairy and lentils and tofu. You can even get protein from vegetables and plant-based foods.

The fruit juice people aren't thrilled with the new guide. Doesn't mean you can't get an occasional glass; just be more conscious about your fruit juice consumption. One of my favorite tricks is to mix 50-50 of water and juice. A great way to get flavor with your water and less juice consumption.

BalanceofFood.com Canada food coverage

For more on this topic, check out the story from our sibling blog, BalanceofFood.com.

photos credit: Health Canada; CTV/Health Canada

The art of the double double

We are sorry if you came to this article looking for NBA basketball or if you were chasing an In-N-Out burger with 2 beef patties with 2 slices of cheese.

This double double is about something truly Canadian. For those not familiar, a double double is a coffee with 2 creams and 2 sugars at Tim Hortons. The fun part is that they put in the cream and sugar so you get the drink without the extra work.

During the 2018 Windsor International Film Festival, I decided to be a part of that Canadian experience. To give some perspective, I am not a coffee drinker. If you are looking for someone to tell how great anyone's coffee is, you are on the wrong blog post.

I ordered the Simply Sausage biscuit, 2 chocolate Timbits, and a small double double. I did order the drink to get the hockey trading cards too.

Canadian ads from fall 2018 NHL Center Ice free preview

My double double was quite hot. I opened the little flap but couldn't get it to close properly. I brought the drink into my first film of 6 films that day, so the caffeine would be helpful.

I did let the coffee cool off a bit. When I went back to the coffee, the drink was warm but not hot.

The double double was pretty satisfying though a bit on the sweet side. I could drink the coffee, which isn't always true for a black coffee. In the future, I might want to play with getting a double single (2 creams, 1 sugar) or a double (2 creams). The Double Double did accomplish what few cups of coffee can do: mask the taste of coffee so I could drink it.

Tim Hortons poutine donut serving up bad Canadian stereotypes to Americans

There are non-coffee ways to feel Canadian. They don't always involve donuts or poutine or donair but often they do. Eating ketchup chips or all-dressed chips or having fries with gravy are gateways to feeling Canadian. Lamb burgers seem Canadian. A double double might be the quickest and cheapest way to feel Canadian.

photo credit: me

Canadian ads from fall 2018 NHL Center Ice free preview

Jon Hamm is not Canadian but Hamm does play someone who thinks he's Canadian in an ad for Skip the Dishes. As you might guess, Skip the Dishes is a Canadian app for ordering food from restaurants.

In the ad, Hamm is lying around going through a to-do list while his young worker is polishing chopsticks. Hamm teases him about being American; the young man responds that Hamm is also American. "Then why do I like hockey so much." Hamm also teases the young worker for not knowing poutine.

Hamm, who is actually from St. Louis, has a fancy to-do list: Rename vintage yacht; Call eyebrow consultant; Take fashion risks; Get a price check on Capri; Polish chopsticks; Question reality!

Cigarette ads are banned in the United States. The Go Vype ads that ran on CBC aren't selling nicotine but rather the device to consume nicotine. Even if CBC appears on a few U.S. cable systems, these are not technically cigarette ads. Still, they would be a surprise to U.S. audiences who aren't used to this kind of advertising on television.

The ad is certainly inviting, a lifestyle ad as opposed to showing young people coughing rather loudly with physically exhaustive gestures.

Canada didn't wait until October 17 to run public service announcements (PSA) against driving high. In this PSA, kids are going to a party. A young woman is taking a selfie with an app to change her appearance. The teenage driver looks a little out of it. The PSA ends with a car crashing into them.

Don't get high and drive.

Sidney Crosby and Nathan MacKinnon return as Tim Hortons spokespeople. In their latest adventure, Crosby is driving a zamboni in the Tim Hortons drive-through, ordering 2 double-doubles, a chocolate dip, and NHL trading cards, available with a drink purchase.

A separate ad noted that Tim Hortons now serves breakfast all day, something to consider on a Canadian road trip.

Whistler is rather famous for skiing so that would explain why I haven't been to Whistler. The area does look pretty. The distance is quite far, about 2½ hours up Highway 99 aka the Sea to Sky Highway.

CanadianCrossing.com advertising coverage

videos credit: individual companies and organisations

Canadian ads from 2018 MLB Extra Innings free preview

We don't usually get too much Canadian advertising bounty from the Rogers Sportsnet feed of Toronto Blue Jays games. Most of the ads are for non-Canadian entities and self-serving Rogers promos. The small amount we got in the 2018 MLB Extra Innings free preview is worth sharing.

This pro-pipeline ad from the government of Alberta was very upbeat, matching a solution for every potential problem. There was the nice dig about "being less reliant on the U.S." This ad ran a couple of times during the 6 Blue Jays games available in the free preview.

While Canadians have a single-payer health care system, prescription drugs costs are not covered. The Ontario Drug Benefit (ODB) primarily covers those 65 and older in the province. This Shoppers Drug Mart ad centres on this demographic offering to add $2 in savings to the ODB.

A $30 double bucket from KFC Canada sounds alarming compared to the $5 "meals" in the U.S. version. As we have noted before, even fast food is more expensive in Canada. This ad is also a contrast because the people in it are having fun as opposed to having various comedians badly impersonate the creator of Kentucky Fried Chicken. This is the time that we remind people that the real Harlan Sanders moved to Canada in his later years and ran KFC Canada even after he sold the U.S. business.

CanadianCrossing.com advertising coverage

videos credit: Rogers Sportsnet/MLB

How to celebrate Canada Day 2018

Canada Day is Sunday: the 151th anniversary of the agreement of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia to form the Dominion of Canada. This is also why older people might refer to Canada Day as Dominion Day.

This will be a long weekend for Canadians with most places taking Monday off to acknowledge the holiday.

For those who thought marijuana would be legal on Canada Day 2018, there was never an official announcement. The date is October 17. Canada Day 2019, just not Canada Day 2018.

So how should you celebrate Canada Day 2018? Here are a few suggestions and thoughts:

Trade battles have opened eyes to pros and cons of Canada supply management

Where in the world is Kelly Knight Craft?

G7 summit in Charlevoix, Quebec comes on heels on tariffs from Donald Trump

The Canadian tariffs in retaliation for the steel and aluminum tariffs by the United States will kick in on Sunday. Canada has been dealing with tariffs on softwood lumber and the Bombardier tariffs before the newest tariffs. Donald Trump is threatening to blow up the auto industry on both sides of the border. Maybe you should consider buying an automobile while you have the chance.

If you are planning to sell your used car, you might want to hang on to your car a bit longer. Used car prices should significantly go up if people can't afford new cars.

Americans should stock up on Canadian maple syrup and other Canadian products that will get more expensive starting on Sunday.

Yes Georgia, Canadian drivers licenses are valid in the United States

If you're in Canada and are considering travel to the United States, you might consider that you could get caught up in a traffic stop with border patrol officers searching for foreigners. That includes Canadians.

We've heard reports on stops along Interstate 93 in Woodstock, New Hampshire and Interstate 95 in Maine. This is one of the many crackdowns we've seen as the rules are interpreted to mean Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers can addresses anyone within 100 miles (160 km) of the U.S. border. The border mark is also defined as an ocean and, in a bizarre interpretation, the Great Lakes.

The checkpoints are clearly a violation of the 4th Amendment to the United States Constitution. Given the current power structure, the Constitution isn't seen as a deterrent.

As we are reminded by the case in Georgia, Canadians should travel with their documents while driving in the United States. Understand your rights is helpful and don't be intimidated by the officers.

If you think you can avoid them by driving, CBP officers have also been boarding buses.

Jogging along the border won't be as severe for Americans and Canadians as what happened to Cedella Roman, the French woman who was visiting her mother in White Rock, BC. Roman inadvertently went over the border during her job and spent 2 weeks at a U.S. detention centre. This is also a reminder that when jogging or even walking, you should have your travel documents.

Our guide to legal marijuana in Canada

Outside of Quebec, Manitoba, and Nunavut, Canadians could take the time to figure out how viably they can grow up to 4 marijuana plants when marijuana becomes legal on October 17. Your province might be open in terms of numbers of outlets (sorry, Ontario) but growing the product at home makes a lot more sense. Your hydro bill will go up significantly.

Quebec thinks of July 1 as Moving Day. Newfoundland and Labrador celebrate Memorial Day on July 1. The province was dealing with snow this week at the end of June. Other Canadians are dealing with temperatures higher than 30°C (86°F).

Balanceoffood.com Canada food policy coverage

You don't have to celebrate Canada Day with poutine. Really. Not a requirement. Ketchup chips and all-dressed chips are a great way to add Canada to the plate. Learn how to make a tourtière, or meat pie. Enjoy Beaver Tails in Canada and certain U.S. markets. Drink a Canadian beer. Canada has more than just Labatt's. Molson, and Moosehead.

United Shades of America focuses on Canada

CanadianCrossing.com film reviews

CanadianCrossing.com film coverage

We have a lot of Canadian films to recommend for spending time on the long weekend. They can also be helpful on the U.S. side with its holiday on Wednesday.

Americans can watch Private Eyes on Ion and X Company on Ovation. You can find old Schitt's Creek episodes on Netflix as well as Meditation Park and other Canadian films.

You can catch up with the United Shades of America episode on Canada.

ESPN2 has a CFL doubleheader tonight. The CFL doesn't play on Canada Day this year but there are plenty of games this weekend.

The CBC will have Canada Day celebrations from Ottawa. Most of them are on TV but some are radio-based. There are Canada Day celebrations throughout Canada and in select cities in the United States.

photo credit: Town of Huntsville, ON

Trade battles have opened eyes to pros and cons of Canada supply management

"And they buy our milk at Sam's because Canadian milk is very expensive. True story."

This quote came from a Detroit-area woman who commented on Canadians for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart in 2013 as Al Madrigal hosted a segment on the (now-named) Gordie Howe bridge.

I haven't bought much milk in Canada but I can tell you Canadian milk, in bags or in jugs, is expensive. Canadian eggs and poultry are also quite expensive.

Doug Ford will be the new premier of Ontario

Andrew Scheer is the new Conservative Party leader

I knew the high prices were due to Canada's supply management policy, which limits production and ensures good prices for farmers. Funny how Doug Ford campaigned in Ontario on lowering prices for average people on gas taxes and beer, but never mentioned dairy, eggs, and poultry.

Conservative MP Maxime Bernier ran for his party's leadership race on getting rid of supply management. Bernier narrowly lost to Andrew Scheer; Bernier got removed from the shadow cabinet after his views resurfaced on his Web site. Even among conservatives, Bernier is in the minority.

Where in the world is Kelly Knight Craft?

G7 summit in Charlevoix, Quebec comes on heels on tariffs from Donald Trump

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue went out of his way to say Canada's supply management system wasn't the issue. "The United States is not about trying to get Canada to ditch its supply management system." Donald Trump's tweets scream otherwise.

The supply management system, like softwood lumber, was never a part of the NAFTA deal.

Let's be clear that American farmers are also subsidized, a fact you rarely hear in U.S. media coverage of the Canadian supply management system.

For the Trans Pacific Partnership, Canada did allow for more imports on dairy, but only 3.3%. The United States pulled out of the Trans Pacific Partnership.

While the supply management system has felt like a third rail in Canadian politics, we have had discussions about the policy itself and whether that policy is still relevant.

How Canada's supply management system works (cbcnews.ca)

The supply management system keeps smaller Canadian farms in business. Contrast this to Wisconsin, a state that lost 500 dairy farms in 2017. Another 150 have quit milking cows so far in 2018. The overall numbers of milk-cow farms rests at around 7,600 — down 20% in the last 5 years.

The Canadian system is designed for internal consumption, so Canadian exports aren't a significant number.

The American subsidies help consumers more than farmers; the Canadian subsidies help farmers more than consumers. The surprise is the Canadian approach isn't supply management or subsidies, but that they make average Canadians pay. No wonder Canadians cross the border for cheaper American milk.

CanadianCrossing.com Canadian politics coverage

CanadianCrossing.com Donald Trump coverage

One drawback to the supply management system in living in Canada is the difficulty in finding European-style butter in Canada. According to this article, Canada allows a limited supply of European butter that is usually grabbed up by bakers. That is good news for consumers buying Canadian baked goods but not good news if you want to use the richer butters at home.

The Canada CETA trade pact with the European Union is currently held up by Italy with its own food issues. Hopefully, that deal will involve more European butter for Canada.

Balanceoffood.com Canada food policy coverage

There are definitely drawbacks to Canada's supply management on dairy, eggs, and poultry. The U.S. system has a lot of flaws, as the folks at our sister blog BalanceofFood.com know all too well.

Canada did negotiate slivers of trade in the TPP and likely will in CETA. The fact that supply management has been outside NAFTA speaks to the difficulty with negotiating these trade concerns. The U.S. has an advantage in that its media will only cover outrageous figures from its government instead of comprehensive trade policy. Canada has an advantage in that there is no way they can compromise on supply management, no matter its flaws. Standing up to the bully isn't easy but way better than capitulating because the bully will then come back for more.

video credit: YouTube/pincstuff
photo credit: Dairy Farmers of Canada

Anthony Bourdain takes CNN's Parts Unknown to the mysterious land of Newfoundland

"We're surrounded by water and we're not really a seafood-eating place." — Dale Jarvis, Intangible Cultural Heritage Development Officer for the province of Newfoundland and Labrador

Anthony Bourdain does his best to eat the seafood and wild meat of Newfoundland in the latest chapter of Parts Unknown on CNN. Newfoundland is the second province in Canada to be featured on Parts Unknown, besides Quebec. Bourdain reaches into his knowledge base of Quebec to bring in Joe Beef's Frédéric Morin and David McMillan. Joining these masterful eaters are head chef Jeremy Charles and restaurant manager and sommelier Jeremy Bonia from Raymonds in St. John's.

"How Canadian is Newfoundland?" Bourdain asks Jarvis. Jarvis spoke of the history of Newfoundland before joining Canada in 1949. He talked about the perception of the "goofy Newfie" and how there is a real shift as to how Newfoundlanders perceive themselves.

Bourdain goes into the history of cod and then the cod moratorium back in 1992.

Bourdain points out one crucial difference between Newfoundland and Quebec: In Newfoundland, you can shoot wild game and served that in restaurants where that "would get you arrested in Montréal."

The 5 of them go off to hunt moose in Buchans, over 300 miles (500 km) from St. John's. The weather starts out good but turns quickly "4 seasons in one day." They don't get to shoot a moose but there is an already dead moose being savored including moose ribs. They also enjoy a cured ham from Martin Picard of Au Pied de Cochon in Montréal.

As the crew is enjoying moose, cans of jellied foie gras, and other wild game, the Joe Beef gentlemen confess that they have never been to Newfoundland before this trip. "It's not a prime travel destination." Bourdain told Anderson Cooper in a separate interview that Morin and McMillan encouraged him to visit the island.

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CanadianCrossing.com travel coverage

They do spend time on a boat catching fish and diving for scallops. They return to Raymonds to feast on a local seafood tower. They also had heart of caribou tartare, rabbit, partridge, a reinvented Jiggs Dinner (more on this later) as a pasta dish, and chanterelle ice cream. We will get our share of sea urchins along the way in this episode and even fried swim bladder of a cod.

Your humble narrator has been to Newfoundland so I had already discovered scrunchions, which is salted pork fat that are crisped up. Bourdain was very excited to discover scrunchions with the fish stew. He has taught us much but I could have taught him the joy of scrunchions.

They sat down to a Jiggs Dinner at the Big R diner in St. John's. The Jiggs Dinner was described as boiled salt beef, cabbage, turnips, potatoes, and pease pudding with lots of gravy on top.

That meal also included fried bologna, liver and onions, fried clam strips, and pan fried cod tongues. I've also had cod tongues though they were less tasty than scrunchions. They didn't identify Newfoundland dressing, but I did recognize the fine seasoned bread crumbs.

The crew have a segment where they throw axes. Bourdain and the Joe Beef guys are really not good at throwing the axes.

The show ends with a screech ceremony. I wondered about this because I didn't participate (timing never worked out). You get the story of how the ceremony works. They get a taste of Newfoundland steak, which turns out to be fried bologna. The bartender tells the story of John Cabot landing in Newfoundland. The story of screech stems from the trading of cod with Jamaica for rum, essentially screech. The final part of the ceremony is the kissing of the cod and then downing a shot of screech. Would be rather difficult to include an hour on Newfoundland and not mention screech.

They do take part of the hour to stop off at Saint Pierre and Miquelon, a French archipelago south of the Newfoundland. Flying there from St. John's takes about 45 minutes. They enjoy a feast on the island featuring stuffed squid.

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The show is only an hour but some missed moments: Cape Spear, the eastern most point in North America; Gander or some mention of what happened on 9/11 now featured in the Broadway play Come From Away; places such as Dildo and Paradise that really exist; eating seal meat; and George Street, home of the most bars per block of any street in North America.

videos and photos credit: Parts Unknown/CNN

Canadian ads from 2017-2018 NHL Center Ice free previews

The NHL Center Ice free preview normally gives the U.S. audience 3 hearty time periods to sample Canadian ads. We only had a week in October instead of 3 weeks. The midseason preview was hidden during the Olympics so we don't know when the preview started and thanks to glitches, have no idea when it officially ended. Springtime brought 8 days worth with a glitch on the last day of the season.

So we decided to combine bits of ads from all 3 previews. The CBC Comedy Tuesday promo ran last fall but seeing the promo does give fans a chance to honour the "I'm not retiring" Rick Mercer Report.

McDonald's made a pair of ads that are artistic but have little to do with its fast food core. We saw an ad for milk that still leaves us scratching our heads.

The newest Tim Hortons Roll up and Win ad (above) is the latest reincarnation of a game Canadians know where Americans have no clue.

The Smirnoff Canada ad promotes that Canada is for everyone. Canada prides itself as a multiculturalist country. Drinking spirits is not the usual path for a common denominator, but I love the spirit (pun intended) of the ad.

Swiss Chalet reminds me of restaurants growing up where you got fed a lot of food, even if it wasn't gourmet. The idea that a fairly boring family would get excited about Thursday ribs at Swiss Chalet might be a friendly poke within by the chain.

Cross-promotion is rarely funny even with funny people. If the CBC Comedy Tuesday team were going to convene, they would meet at Kim's Convenience. The folks from This Hour Has 22 Minutes are buying a gift for Shaun Majumder. Mr. D is sampling a bottle of water. Appa is yelling at Rick Mercer because he can hear Mercer's rants behind the store.

The winter version would have Schitt's Creek looking for gourmet mustard and Workin' Moms trying to find a more adult type gift.

I don't know Kelsey Roadhouse or its food. Being around 40 years is nice but not a big deal. I do love the time travel back to 1978. The time travel feels Canadian, though I can't say why.

McDonald's Canada offers a Big Mac with Bacon. We've seen ads before but these avant-garde ads in black and white are outstanding and totally irrelevant to the product. Adding bacon always sounds better than it is, especially coming from a mainstream fast food chain. Why are McDonald's Canada ads so much more interesting than the ones from McDonald's in the United States?

McDonald's Canada picked up the cowboy theme when promoting Angus beef in earlier ads. To introduce Montréal Steak Spice BBQ Angus, the cowboy is on a horse moving the puck down what looks to be a frozen St. Lawrence River in Montreal. The goalie has Montréal on the mask though he is definitely not a Hab. The Montréal goalie stops the cowboy's shot with a great save. I want this to be a short film instead of a commercial for a burger I will never likely eat.

CanadianCrossing.com advertising coverage

We love the humour of previous Dairy Farmers of Canada ads, but this kiss cam ad feels weird but not in a good way. This ad seems racist in that the large woman prevents a mixed-race couple from kissing for the kiss cam. But the ad seems to be about the woman preventing young people from kissing in public. Because the young man kisses the large woman as does the young girl, you have enough indirect kisses to probably still be okay except that the kisses are non-consensual. What does this have to do with milk? Can't solve that dilemma. The other ads from the Dairy Farmers of Canada are sharp and on point. Tried to find this ad on the Dairy Farmers of Canada YouTube page. To no one's surprise, the ad isn't there.

Sidney Crosby and Nathan MacKinnon are back together to help out Jeff from Kelowna in the latest Tim Hortons ad. Jeff from Kelowna just netted the OT winner in Game 7. The three of them are in the locker room. MacKinnon gives him the A for alternate to the captain. Crosby gives him the C for captain. Then Jeff from Kelowna wakes up at Tim Hortons.

Dad was a Molson brewer. Now his son is a Molson brewer. Dad says you should work hard. Dad is proud of his son.

Springtime is a good time to plant the seeds for summer travel in places such as Newfoundland and Labrador as well as Prince Edward Island. They don't look this good now but in a few months, they will be beautiful and peaceful.

video credits: companies and organisations in the ads