Tory Redux

Category: Canadian politics

  • Vimy Ridge: The Defining Moment When Canada Became a Nation

    Vimy Ridge: The Defining Moment When Canada Became a Nation

    ghost at Vimy

    At first glance, Vimy Ridge was a brutal assault on a German-held escarpment in northern France, with mud, machine guns, and heavy sacrifice. But for Canada, it was far more: the crucible where our young dominion forged a proud national identity we still cherish today.

    I look to history because it still has something to teach us. Vimy Ridge wasn’t just another battle. It was the moment Canadians from every corner of the country stood together, showed real grit, and proved we could achieve something extraordinary through personal responsibility, courage, and collective effort.

    A Triumph of Unified Canadian Identity

    For the first time, all four divisions of the Canadian Corps fought as one cohesive force under Canadian planning and command. Regiments from coast to coast — Ontario farms, Prairie homesteads, British Columbia logging camps, and Maritime ports — advanced shoulder to shoulder.

    Veterans Affairs Canada rightly calls it “a distinctly Canadian triumph” that helped create “a new and stronger sense of national identity in our country.” English Canadians, French Canadians, recent immigrants, and Indigenous soldiers bled together on that ridge. The Vimy Foundation captures the spirit perfectly with Ernest Renan’s words: “Nations are made by doing great things together.”

    Our troops did exactly that. They rehearsed meticulously and captured an objective that French and British forces had failed to take. That success planted the seed of a shared Canadian pride that transcends regional lines, a pride built on freedom, determination, and getting the job done.

    Acknowledging the Challenges Without Diminishing the Achievement

    Some historians push back. The Global News article questions if Vimy was truly a “nation-building moment,” with experts claiming the idea “just doesn’t hold water historically.” They highlight the terrible cost — 3,598 Canadians killed and over 7,000 wounded in four days — and how those losses fueled the Conscription Crisis that divided the country, especially in Quebec.

    Active History says celebrating unity “obscures the complicated political context,” while Valour Canada notes that one battle can’t erase more than three hundred years of our history. The UNB Vimy Ridge legacy page rightly reminds us of the exceptionally high cost in Canadian lives.

    These facts deserve straight talk — war is hell, and conscription exposed real fault lines. But let’s apply some common sense here. The divisions that followed weren’t proof that Vimy failed to unite us. They were the growing pains of a young nation finding its strength. Despite the political storm, Canada held together. The shared experience and pride from fighting successfully as one distinct force created a resilient identity that endured.

    I’m proud our country didn’t fracture. The courage shown on that ridge carried us forward.

    The Enduring Legacy of Sacrifice

    Vimy earned Canada genuine respect on the world stage and helped secure our own voice at the Paris Peace Conference — a clear step toward greater autonomy. Outlets like TimminsToday highlight it as a galvanizing moment of “Canadian determination and grit.”

    This is our history, and it’s one worth celebrating without apology. Those men fought with ingenuity, resilience, and a willingness to sacrifice for something greater than themselves. They gave us one of our first powerful symbols of what free Canadians can accomplish when we pull together the values of personal responsibility and freedom that still matter today.

    From Dominion to Nation

    Vimy Ridge stands as a defining turning point. It wasn’t the sole birthplace of Canada, but it marked the moment our nation came of age moving from loyal dominion to a confident country with its own proud character forged in fire and resolve.

    Today, as we face our own challenges of unity, affordability, and purpose, Vimy reminds us of our true potential. It calls us back to the common-sense values that built this land: courage, hard work, personal responsibility, and the strength that comes from doing great things together.

    The legacy of Vimy lives not only at the majestic memorial on the ridge, but in the story we Canadians continue to tell about ourselves a diverse, determined people who rose to the occasion and proved what we are made of.

    I am proud of that heritage

    lest we forget.

  • When Common Sense Governed

    The legacy of Stephen Harper has dominated political discourse this week, and for good reason. As someone who came of age politically during Harper’s leadership, I’ve had time to reflect on what his tenure meant for Canada and what we’ve lost since.

    I first got interested in politics, like many in my generation, by Stephen Harper’s run for prime minister in 2004. By 2006, after 13 years of Liberal rule that had grown stale and directionless, it became clear that Harper’s vision offered the change our country desperately needed.

    That election year, I volunteered for Terence Young’s campaign in my riding, who went on to become our Member of Parliament. At university, I threw myself into grassroots activism as a Young Conservative, knocking on doors, organizing events, and learning a fundamental truth that still holds today: common sense wins elections. This week’s commemoration, including the unveiling of Harper’s official portrait in Parliament and Pierre Poilievre’s tribute in the House of Commons, has sparked a necessary conversation about what effective leadership actually looks like.

    The contrast between then and now is stark. By the early 2010s, Canada’s middle class had reached unprecedented strength. While after-tax incomes stagnated in the United States, they were rising here at home. Families experienced tangible tax relief through measures like the GST cut and the creation of the Tax-Free Savings Account. These weren’t flashy announcements; they were substantive policy changes that gave Canadians more room to save, plan, and build better futures for themselves.

    When the 2008 financial crisis struck, Canada emerged as the strongest economy in the G7. This wasn’t luck or a happy circumstance. It was the result of focused economic planning, disciplined fiscal management, and a commitment to returning to balanced budgets. Canada achieved the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio among G7 nations, positioning us as a model of economic stability during global uncertainty.

    Beyond our borders, the Harper government expanded Canada’s trade relationships beyond our traditional dependence on the United States, opening new markets in Europe and South Korea. Canada asserted its Arctic sovereignty, stood firmly with democratic allies, and led internationally on maternal and child health through the Muskoka Initiative. These weren’t performative gestures — they were concrete actions that advanced Canadian interests and values on the world stage.

    This week marked the 20th anniversary of that pivotal 2006 election, with Harper himself delivering Wednesday’s keynote address. Watching the commemorations, I couldn’t help but reflect on what we’ve witnessed in Canadian politics since. The current government has given us soaring rhetoric and progressive branding, but where are the results? Housing has become unaffordable for an entire generation. Inflation has eaten away at family budgets. Our debt has ballooned while productivity has stagnated.

    The Harper years remind us that governing isn’t about crafting the perfect tweet or staging photogenic moments. It’s about making tough decisions, managing the public’s money responsibly, and delivering measurable improvements in people’s lives. It’s about building economic conditions where hard work actually leads to prosperity, not just more exhaustion.

    Some critics have dismissed this week’s events as nostalgia or partisan cheerleading. I see it differently. This is about establishing a standard for what constitutes serious governance. It’s about reminding Canadians that we’ve experienced better — that a strong, stable, confident government focused on results rather than slogans is not only possible but something we’ve achieved in recent memory.

    As we reflect on the Harper legacy, the question isn’t whether we agree with every policy decision made during those years. The question is whether we want a government that prioritizes results over rhetoric, substance over style, and the economic well-being of everyday Canadians over virtue signalling to international audiences.

    This week has been more than a commemoration of one man’s service. It’s been a reminder of what Canadian governance can achieve when leadership is focused, disciplined, and committed to delivering for the middle class. As we face mounting economic challenges and an increasingly unstable world, perhaps the most significant lesson from the Harper years is simply this: serious times demand serious leadership.

    The real test is whether we’ll demand that standard again.

  • Canada is leading the G7 in food inflation. 

    Stock image of a person buying groceries

    In 2025, Prime Minister Mark Carney told Canadians to judge his government by the price of groceries. It was a bold promise and a fair one. Food is the most honest economic indicator there is. No spin. No press release. Just the bill at the till.

    The average Canadian family is now forced to spend more than $1,000 extra a year. This expense is just to put food on the table.

    With food inflation soaring, this is no longer about affording niceties. People are struggling to afford essentials. Canada now has some of the worst food inflation in the G7. Europe and the United States can lower prices. Why can’t Canada do the same? The burden falls hardest on those who can least afford it. Unsurprisingly, food bank use has surged across the country in recent years.

    For generations, the Canadian deal was simple: a modest life built around simple meals, meat and potatoes on the table. Even that fundamental promise is breaking down. Canadians are being priced out of essentials, and our country is topping all the wrong lists. According to recent agri-food data, staples like coffee and beef were once everyday items. Now they are among the products most affected by food inflation.

    This isn’t just an economic problem. It’s a societal one. When people can’t afford the basics, they lose faith that hard work will ever get them ahead. And when healthier food options become unaffordable, families are pushed toward cheaper, highly processed alternatives.

    That has real consequences. Poorer diets lead to worse health outcomes, more chronic illness, and greater strain on an already overburdened health-care system. Food prices are effectively a shadow tax. This tax hits low- and middle-income Canadians the hardest. It reduces quality of life and cuts productive years short.

    When Canadians can’t afford to eat well, the cost doesn’t disappear. The effects later in hospitals. There is also lost productivity. Additionally, there is a growing sense that it is no longer working for them.

    When governments tax production, transportation, and energy, families pay at the checkout. If other G7 countries can bring prices down, Canada can too—but only if affordability becomes a priority again