Terror Economy 📈

Where news meets rational thinking

Good morning, it’s Monday, September 8th. In today’s news, cars stolen in Canada help fund terror regimes, Canada’s Temporary Foreign Worker program has become a permanent crisis, Delores Umbridge from Harry Potter can teach us a lot about modern authoritarianism, US venture capital is quietly supercharging China’s military, and much more.

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Canada’s Stolen Cars, Fentanyl, and the Terror Economy

Imagine waking up in the middle of the night to armed thugs in your home. They aren’t just after your watch or wallet—they want your car keys too. By morning your vehicle is loaded into a container at the Port of Montréal, and shipped overseas. According to Ottawa’s own recent national risk assessment, many of those cars end up in Lebanon, where the proceeds directly finance Hezbollah’s global operations.

This is the same Hezbollah that helps fuel Canada’s fentanyl epidemic through its business ties with Latin American cartels. The drug money and car-theft profits flow through professional laundering networks, enriching organized crime in Canada while strengthening terrorist groups abroad. The result? Canadian families are devastated by overdoses, neighbourhoods are plagued by gangs, and global terror networks are emboldened—all facilitated on Canadian soil.

It gets worse. Sam Cooper’s reporting shows that U.S. law enforcement has repeatedly handed the RCMP live evidence—wiretaps, targets, and dirty calls—that should have sparked major operations. Instead, Canadian law enforcement walked away, citing disclosure rules and legal hurdles. As one American official put it, they were “dumbfounded” by the RCMP’s refusal to act. The message is clear: even when foreign allies drop the evidence into their lap, Canadian police won’t take on these networks.

For the average Canadian taxpayer, the insult is almost unbearable. You lose your car, worth tens of thousands. That money is laundered to bankroll terrorism. Your tax dollars are then sent overseas to fund aid for victims of the same regime that profited off your loss. Your allies fight costly wars against these groups, subsidized by your taxes. Refugees displaced by the violence arrive in Canada, where again, you pay for hotels, meals, and allowances. And all the while, your tax-funded police refuse to shut down the gangs and traffickers terrorizing your own community.

Canada has allowed itself to become the perfect node in a transnational narco-terror pipeline. Our ports, our financial system, and even our charities have been exploited. What Ottawa now quietly admits in its own documents is something investigative reporters have warned about for over a decade: Canadians are footing the bill for their own victimization—at home and abroad.

The question is whether we’ll continue to accept this cycle of negligence and betrayal, or finally demand that law enforcement and government do their most basic job: protect Canadians.

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How Canada’s Temporary Foreign Worker Program Became a Permanent Crisis

Canada’s Temporary Foreign Worker Program, once a modest scheme launched in 1973 to address short-term gaps in agriculture and healthcare, has quietly expanded into one of the country’s most contentious policies. What began with a handful of skilled professionals has morphed into a pipeline of low-wage labour, from fast-food counters in small towns to construction sites in booming cities. By 2021, the number of temporary foreign workers had surged to 845,000—more than double the figure from a decade earlier—fueling a political firestorm over who gets priority in Canada’s labour market.

The fault lines are now sharp. Prime Minister Mark Carney has pledged to rein in the program, capping temporary residents—including international students—at under five percent of the population by 2027, aiming to ease pressure on housing, infrastructure, and social services. Yet his government overshot its own 2025 forecasts within the first six months, even after promising to cut employers’ reliance on foreign workers to 10 percent. For many critics, even if that pledge had been fully met, the reforms would still fall far short. Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre has vowed to scrap the program outright, branding it “an exploitative system that drives down wages and drives out jobs.” He points to July’s 14.6 percent youth unemployment rate—up from just 10.9 percent last year—as proof that Canadians are being crowded out of entry-level work.

The pushback isn’t limited to the right. BC Premier David Eby, a New Democrat, has demanded the program be cancelled or overhauled, citing reports of LMIA fraud in Surrey, surging youth unemployment, and mounting pressure on housing. International bodies have also weighed in: the United Nations blasted the TFWP last year as “a breeding ground for contemporary forms of slavery,” pointing to wage theft, excessive hours, and the vulnerability of workers tied to employer-specific permits.

Supporters, however, insist the program is a lifeline. Small businesses in rural Canada say they cannot keep restaurants open or farms running without foreign workers. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business argues the program is anything but cheap labour, with employers covering hefty fees, airfare, and housing. “It protects jobs for Canadians,” CFIB president Dan Kelly insists, noting that many TFWs do the late shifts or difficult jobs that locals refuse.

Behind the politics lies a quieter truth: the TFWP has become an immigration back door. Roughly a third of those who arrived after 2010 had gained permanent residency by 2022, with transition rates far higher in critical sectors like health care. Provinces such as Manitoba and Saskatchewan have even retooled their nominee programs to funnel food service workers into permanent status, a tacit acknowledgment that “temporary” is often anything but.

Now, the debate has crystallized into a question of national priorities. Should Canada continue leaning on a vast pool of foreign labour to keep its economy humming, or should it shutter the program to protect wages and open doors wider to Canadians themselves? As the country grapples with lost jobs, a housing crunch, and rising youth unemployment, the answer may shape not just its economy, but the future of its social contract.

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What Delores Umbridge and Harry Potter Teaches Us About Modern Authoritarianism

When Hogwarts fell under Dolores Umbridge’s grip, it wasn’t through conquest or violence. It happened with paperwork — new titles, new forms, and a flood of rules from the Ministry. That’s how authoritarianism usually shows up. Not with tanks, but with memos, “safety” policies, and smiling officials who tell you it’s all for your own good. Rowling’s story reads less like kids’ fiction and more like a warning for how our institutions have gone rogue.

Umbridge didn’t arrive with soldiers. She walked in wearing a pink cardigan, hung kitten plates on the wall, and called herself “High Inquisitor,” a title invented by decree. That’s where real tyranny begins: in the administrative state, where power hides behind process. Once inside, she did what bureaucrats do best — multiply the rules. One decree after another turned normal behaviour into something punishable. That is a two-tier justice system in practice: villains roam while everyone else chokes on red tape. Look around and the rhyme is familiar — mandates and paperwork for citizens, indulgence for gangs, cartels, and well-connected insiders.

Education was the opening move. Defence Against the Dark Arts was neutered into “theory only,” stripping students of the skills to defend themselves. Then the Carrows turned classrooms into indoctrination halls. This is how totalitarians operate: capture schools, rewrite curricula, and shape the next cohort before seizing the true centres of power. A line often attributed to Lenin—"Give me four years to teach the children and the seed I have sown will never be uprooted"—captures the tactic. We feel it today in schools, universities, and hiring offices where slogans and box-ticking beat skill and courage.

Propaganda then seals the frame. The Daily Prophet denies Voldemort’s return, smears Harry, and prints only the official line. Language becomes a weapon: “Educational Decree,” “Undesirable No. 1” — euphemisms that soften reality while hardening control. Surveillance and informants follow as the Inquisitorial Squad deputizes students to police students. The objective isn’t truth; it’s fear and compliance.

And finally, humiliation. Umbridge’s blood quill makes Harry carve lies into his own skin. Real regimes do the same with forced apologies, public shaming, and required statements. Hannah Arendt called this “the banality of evil”: not monsters in capes, but regular people doing harm because “that’s the policy” and “those are the rules.”

That’s why the parallel hits home. Tyranny rarely marches in boots. It comes with clipboards and pleasant voices. The kittens on the wall are the point — it’s meant to feel normal. Hogwarts was saved because students refused to bow. That’s our cue: tell the truth, learn to defend, build parallel spaces, and push back early.

China’s Secret AI Army: US Venture Capital Quietly Supercharging the PLA

Over the past two years, China’s People’s Liberation Army issued more than 2,800 AI-related contracts, most awarded to “non-traditional vendors”—companies and universities with no obvious CCP ties. These firms, many founded in the last 15 years, are developing dual-use technologies that serve both civilian and military purposes, quietly accelerating Beijing’s AI capabilities under its military-civil fusion strategy.

The situation is especially alarming because US venture capital and research collaborations have indirectly fueled this growth. Some firms, like iFlytek—previously sanctioned for human rights abuses—received 20+ PLA contracts, highlighting how ostensibly civilian startups can strengthen China’s military power. Taxpayer-funded US research has also ended up in China’s civil-military apparatus, underscoring how difficult it is to contain Beijing’s rapid technological and military advances.

With dual-use technologies blurring the line between commercial and defence applications, the CCP is creating a nimble, competitive military-industrial ecosystem that is hard for sanctions or oversight to slow—a development that poses serious strategic and national security risks for the United States and its allies. More

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Treasury Will Be Forced to Refund ‘Half the Tariffs’ If Supreme Court Rules Against Trump

If the US Supreme Court upholds a lower court ruling that blocked a significant portion of tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, the Treasury Department may be required to refund approximately half of the tariffs collected since early 2025. This amount ranges from $70 billion to over $90 billion, based on estimates that over $180 billion in tariff revenue has been collected since August 2025. More

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent described the potential refunds as a "terrible" financial blow to the Treasury, highlighting the significant impact on federal revenue. The refunds would be required if the Supreme Court upholds the lower court's decision that the tariffs were imposed without proper authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

The administration has appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, seeking to overturn the ruling and maintain the tariffs. The Court is expected to hear arguments in early November, with a decision anticipated later in the year. More

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AI-backed Deepfake Impersonations Are Getting Harder to Detect, FBI Warns - Since 2020, the agency has received more than 4.2 million reports of fraud, amounting to $50.5 billion in losses. More

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South Korea Secures Release of 300-Plus Workers Detained by US in Georgia Hyundai Plant ICE Raid - More

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Close to 900 Arrested at a London Protest in Support of the Proscribed Terrorist Group, Palestine Action - Organizers of the rallies could be sentenced to up to 14 years if found guilty. More

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Microsoft Reports Cuts to Cables in Red Sea, Yemen’s Houthi Terrorist Group is Suspected - The damage disrupted internet access in Asia and the Middle East. More

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Trump Moves to Rename US Department of Defence as the Department of War, Saying Current Name is ‘Woke’ - More

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BC Ostrich Farm Granted Interim Stay Against Cull Order - More

Air Canada Flight Attendants Overwhelmingly Vote Against Wage Offer

Air Canada flight attendants overwhelmingly voted against the airline’s tentative wage agreement, with 99 percent of members opposing it and a record 99.4 percent turnout, according to CUPE. The deal offered a 12 percent raise for junior attendants and 8 percent for senior staff, with smaller increases in later years. According to reports, even with the proposed raise, many attendants would still earn less than the federal minimum wage.

The union highlighted progress on “partial pay” for ground duties but said major issues—including low wages and unpaid work—remain unresolved. Contract talks will now proceed with a mediator, while Air Canada and CUPE have agreed that flights will continue without disruption, and no strike or lockout will occur during ratification or arbitration. More

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Canadian Economy Bled 66,000 Jobs in August as Unemployment Rate at its Highest Since 'Pandemic Days' - More

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Anthropic Agrees to Settle Authors' AI Lawsuit for $1.5 Billion - More

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Tesla Offers Elon Musk an Unprecedented $1 Trillion Pay Package - More

Earth May Have Been Terraformed by "Advanced Extraterrestrials"

A new paper from Imperial College London explores the origins of life, concluding that the chances of life emerging purely by chance on Earth may be so slim that “directed panspermia”—the idea that an advanced extraterrestrial civilization deliberately seeded our planet—remains a possibility.

Professor Robert Endres developed an information-theory framework to assess how difficult it would be for structured biological information to arise under prebiotic conditions. He found that a purely random chemical soup was likely insufficient, suggesting some form of pre-existing informational structure was needed before evolution could take hold.

While acknowledging that the alien hypothesis violates Occam’s razor, Endres notes it cannot be entirely ruled out, likening it to the modern scientific discussions around terraforming other planets. Abiogenesis—life emerging naturally from non-living matter—remains consistent with physics, but the study leaves the door open for a far more exotic explanation. More

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Unexpected Discovery Hints We Might Be Inside A Black Hole - More

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3I/ATLAS: Four Telescopes Confirm There's Something Deeply Strange About the Mysterious—Alien-Like—Object Headed Into the Solar System - More

Neymar Named Sole Heir to Billion-Dollar Fortune in Brazil From Man He’s Never Met

In a rather odd move, a businessman from Porto Alegre has reportedly named soccer star Neymar as the sole heir to his estimated $1 billion fortune, according to local outlet GZH. The notarized document cites admiration for Neymar as the reason behind the unusual bequest, despite no known personal or professional connection between the two.

While the inheritance could further boost Neymar’s already massive net worth—estimated at nearly €900 million—his team has expressed caution, questioning the legitimacy and scope of the will. The announcement has sparked widespread curiosity and speculation over the motivations and potential impact of the windfall. More

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US Open Tennis Finals:

• Carlos Alcaraz Defeats Rival Jannik Sinner to Capture His Sixth Major at the US Open - More

• Aryna Sabalenka Retains US Open Title With Straight-sets Win Over Amanda Anisimova - More

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Blue Jays Drop 2 Out of 3 to the Yankees as New York Caught Up in Sign Stealing Controversy - More

80-Year-Old Woman Scammed Online by Fake Astronaut Who Claimed to Be Stuck in Space

New Zealand Woman Sets Record Running 100 Meters Barefoot Across Loose Lego Bricks in 24.75 Seconds

On This Day in 1504, Michelangelo’s Masterpiece, the Statue of David, Is Unveiled in Florence

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