Financially Paralyzed
Where news meets rational thinking
Good morning, It’s Friday, July 11th. In today’s news, Trump announces 35 percent tariffs on Canada, Retired MPs pocket $81K a year while half of Canadians feel “financially paralyzed,” US government breaks silence on geoengineering and weather control, Canadian government told to brace for layoffs, Six secret service agents suspended over Trump assassination attempt, and much more.
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Trump Announces 35 Percent Tariffs on Canada
Late last night, President Donald Trump announced that the United States will impose a blanket 35% tariff on all Canadian imports, effective August 1, 2025. The declaration came via a letter Trump posted to his Truth Social platform, addressed to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
In the letter, Trump blamed Canada for contributing to America’s ongoing fentanyl crisis, accusing the country of failing to prevent the drug from flowing into the US. He wrote:
“As you will recall, the United States imposed Tariffs on Canada to deal with our Nation’s Fentanyl crisis, which is caused, in part, by Canada’s failure to stop the drugs from pouring into our Country.”
Trump criticized Canada’s decision to retaliate with tariffs of its own and said the 35% tariff will now apply to all Canadian products, on top of any existing sectoral tariffs already in place.
The announcement marks a major escalation in trade tensions between the two countries and could significantly impact cross-border commerce, particularly in industries like automotive, agriculture, lumber, and energy. The Canadian government has not yet officially responded to the new tariff threat. Source
Retired MPs Pocket $81K a Year While Half of Canadians Feel “Financially Paralyzed”
As millions of Canadians struggle to make ends meet, a different story is unfolding behind the gates of political privilege. According to new Treasury Board figures, annual pensions for retired Members of Parliament averaged a staggering $81,140 last year—and thanks to inflation indexing, those payments have increased 11.4% over just two years.
That’s right. The very inflation that’s hollowing out the bank accounts of everyday citizens is padding the retirement incomes of the political elite.
Canada is in the grips of a brutal cost of living crisis. Half of Canadians say they feel financially paralyzed, unsure of how to cope with rising food prices, soaring rent, and the compounding effect of inflation. Meanwhile, the average Canadian family pays 43% of its annual income in taxes—more than they spend on food, shelter, and clothing combined.
Yet while ordinary people are forced to make sacrifices, Ottawa ensures its own comfort. MP pensions are automatically indexed to inflation, meaning they not only keep up with the cost of living—they thrive on it. What devastates the working class becomes a built-in bonus for those who once held power.
It’s hard to imagine a clearer example of political insulation. The same government that tells Canadians to “tighten their belts” in the face of economic hardship has rigged the system to ensure that those belts never squeeze their own waists.
This is not just about numbers. It’s about trust and fairness. When inflation soars, Canadians are told it’s unavoidable. When taxes rise, we’re told it’s necessary. When programs are cut, we’re told it’s fiscally responsible. But when it comes to politicians' salaries and pensions, somehow there's always room in the budget for a raise.
Canadians are increasingly disillusioned—and rightfully so. This country is being divided into two economic realities: one for the public, where inflation means sacrifice, and one for the political class, where inflation means a pay bump.
Until that gap closes, don’t expect the anger to subside. A system that rewards the architects of crisis while punishing its victims is not just broken—it’s corrupt. And more Canadians are waking up to that every day.
US Government Breaks Silence on Geoengineering and Weather Control After Decades of Denial
After decades of denial, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has finally released a set of online resources addressing geoengineering and weather modification, topics long dismissed by government and media as fringe conspiracies. This shift in tone comes amid growing public scrutiny—especially following catastrophic floods in Texas, North Carolina, and New Mexico—and rising backlash against companies engaged in cloud seeding, one of the most visible forms of weather manipulation.
The tipping point appears to have come after Texas-based weather modification firm, Rainwater Tech, received death threats for conducting a cloud seeding operation just days before the floods. Although the company and its CEO, Augustus Doricko, deny any connection to the disaster, the public outrage was unmistakable. Doricko pleaded for rational discourse and stressed that the public lacks a clear understanding of how these technologies work—and more importantly, what their risks are.
In response, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin took to social media, stating bluntly:
“Americans have questions about geoengineering and contrails. They expect honesty and transparency from their government... This ends today.”
Zeldin pledged that the EPA would release everything it knows, including long-shrouded topics like solar radiation management (SRM)—the highly controversial idea of injecting sulfur dioxide or other particles into the atmosphere to reflect sunlight and cool the Earth. A new EPA webpage also directly tackles the long-standing “chemtrails” debate, offering explanations for what it calls “myths and misconceptions” surrounding visible aircraft emissions—what the agency insists are just harmless contrails, not deliberate chemical spraying.
However, the newly released EPA material doesn't sugarcoat the potential dangers of geoengineering. According to its summary, solar geoengineering could:
Damage the ozone layer
Alter global and regional weather patterns
Harm crop yields
Trigger acid rain
Disrupt ecosystems
And potentially entrench global inequalities if deployed unevenly
The EPA claims it shares “significant reservations” about these technologies and is now tracking private actors potentially engaged in weather modification or geoengineering without federal oversight.
Cloud seeding, which involves spraying silver iodide and table salt into clouds to trigger precipitation, is already used in over 50 countries. While it’s marketed as a tool to combat drought, it has poor oversight and limited public transparency. The new resources outline federal and state policies that exist—but critics argue that these are incomplete, inconsistent, and often shielded from scrutiny.
For years, citizens who raised concerns about atmospheric modification were branded as conspiracy theorists. But now, with real-world disasters intensifying and scientific institutions openly discussing ways to manipulate the climate, the conversation is shifting—and fast. In the end, nature is not a lab experiment—and the more we treat it like one, the more likely we are to face consequences we can’t undo.
Public Sector on Edge: Government Departments Told to Brace for Layoffs
The federal government has begun warning employees across multiple departments that job cuts may be coming, as Prime Minister Mark Carney pushes for aggressive spending reductions to rein in Canada’s ballooning deficit. Internal memos sent this week signal the beginning of a broad expenditure review—one that could see billions slashed from departmental budgets and major restructuring of government programs.
Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), which oversees everything from unemployment insurance to labor laws, informed its more than 36,000 employees that “adjustments to our workforce may be necessary.” The department has been tasked with identifying potential savings of 15% by fiscal year 2028-29.
Global Affairs Canada also issued a warning, noting that its share of the budget review may amount to $1.1 billion in cuts. “This review will require difficult decisions affecting our workforce,” read the internal memo. Similar alerts were issued at Indigenous Services Canada and other departments.
The move follows a directive from Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne earlier this week asking cabinet ministers to find billions in savings to help finance massive new investments in housing, infrastructure, and national defence. Carney appears to be scaling back federal operations to make room for long-term capital projects.
But not everyone is convinced the numbers will add up. The Parliamentary Budget Officer has warned that the government's spending promises—particularly on defence—may be impossible to fund through efficiency savings alone. Canada’s deficit is already projected to exceed $70 billion this year, far above the $42 billion forecasted in December. Some economists are now questioning whether the Liberals will be able to deliver on both fiscal responsibility and ambitious new investments.
While the full scope of the cuts remains unclear, the memos mark the clearest signal yet that the federal government is preparing for a significant internal reshuffle. Departments have been asked to submit “ambitious savings proposals” and target underperforming programs for elimination or restructuring. Source.
Six Secret Service Agents Suspended Over Trump Assassination Attempt
Nearly a year after the July 13, 2024, assassination attempt on President Trump during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, the US Secret Service has suspended six agents over what it calls an “operational failure.” The shooter, firing from a rooftop, grazed Trump’s ear, killed one attendee, and injured two others before being fatally shot by a sniper. A Senate report found major lapses in planning and intelligence, calling the attack preventable. In response, the Secret Service has introduced new security measures, including drones and upgraded communications. Leadership changes also followed the incident, including the resignation of Director Kimberly Cheatle. More
RCMP Clarifies Stance on ‘Traditional Values’ Being Aligned With Extremism
The RCMP is clarifying controversial comments made by Staff Sergeant Camille Habel, who linked a shift toward "traditional values" with radicalization. After backlash, including from legal experts and civil liberties groups, the RCMP emphasized it does not consider traditional values to be extremist. The comments came in the context of terrorism charges laid against four individuals—three with military ties—accused of plotting to form an anti-government militia in Quebec. The RCMP says true indicators of radicalization include behavioral shifts combined with a willingness to use violence. More
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On This Day in 2015, Mexican drug kingpin Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán escaped from the Altiplano maximum-security prison near Mexico City, vanishing through a specially built 1.5 km underground tunnel that led from his cell to a nearby house.
Your place or mine for some quick anal.