We all know the reasons, I was happy to know the inflation rates though. I also knew we were doing better than our southern neighbours since I have family & friends living there. It may not feel like we are doing better, but, facts are facts, we just have to walk through the storm. Cheers & have a great day :)
Inflation keeps me awake at night. As a retiree with no pension plan other than cpp and oas and a modest amount of rif and investment income I get by. But the future looks far less comfortable and more uncertain than it was when U retired. A small nest egg saved for my grabdkids is shrinking and that makes me sad.
Please, please, please be sure Canadians know your pain was caused by the orange Caligula south of the border, not by the Carney team north of it! You *can't* let your people by conned into thinking anything resembling MAGA will ever make their lives better!
There’s no question a lot of what Canada is dealing with is tied to global forces outside our control... energy shocks, tariffs, conflicts, supply chains,
and what happens in the U.S. economy absolutely spills over the border.
My goal is just to follow the facts and help people understand what’s actually driving the pain... wherever it’s coming from.
Common to both countries and the globe is the economic system that supports monopolies. It's possible for Canada to execute policy that works to constrain monopolies - especially in the food business. Carney's gov is also doing trade deals with many countries that will introduce a great deal more competition on many products.
Great post Fred! Yes, we all know what & why, but, good to have it broken down. I have family & friends in the USA, so, I can see exactly what you are saying. We are doing better than our friends to the South, some have to choose between buying food to feed their family, OR, buying gas to keep going to work. Canadians, we see it & feel it, we shop less, we ONLY BUY what's on special. We still travel around, but, shorter distances. We are managing a little better. Oh, another thing, everything you buy doesn't have to be brand named like most families think. "Our Compliments brand is often tastier, for instance, while being cheaper at the cash register. We just have to use more common sense :)
Exactly Fred! If things get worst, we WILL have a party! A soup party for instance, I can start with a soup stone. Remember the song? I thought that was sweet. Everyone bring one ingredient for the soup, we can visit with each other while the soup cooks, "shoring" each other up & reminding everyone, we will get through this cause that is who we are! Canada Strong!!!!!
Did all these people think that with all the things that are going on in the world today that are impacting Canada there would be no pain felt by anybody? All that tells me is there’s an awful lot of people in Canada who are not particularly bright if that’s the way they were thinking.
Sadly Fred this morning on another social media site I was attacked for supporting Carney because he has implemented a 15% funding cut across the board for scientific research.
The one issue folks are going nuts saying this is worse than what Harper did, and I can guarantee you that none of them who are making this comparison were even out of high school then.
And NONE of them seem to understand that EVERY part of our country and all of US are going to be impacted by what’s going on in the world. They don’t see any shooting or any bombs so they don’t understand the danger our little country is in!
You left out the cause for that energy inflation. Also a US creation, the Iran war.
Fair point Kalyrn... and I didn’t leave it out intentionally.
The energy spike is absolutely tied to the Iran conflict and the pressure it put on global oil markets.
That part matters because energy costs don’t stay at the pump...
they ripple into groceries, shipping, fertilizer, and pretty much everything else.
My focus in this piece was the downstream impact Canadians are feeling day to day.
I report the news. I don’t make it. 🙂
We all know the reasons, I was happy to know the inflation rates though. I also knew we were doing better than our southern neighbours since I have family & friends living there. It may not feel like we are doing better, but, facts are facts, we just have to walk through the storm. Cheers & have a great day :)
Exactly Patsy... sometimes “doing better” just means getting hit by less flying debris. 😄
Not perfect, but facts are facts.
We’ll get through the storm one step at a time. Cheers my friend 🙂
Inflation keeps me awake at night. As a retiree with no pension plan other than cpp and oas and a modest amount of rif and investment income I get by. But the future looks far less comfortable and more uncertain than it was when U retired. A small nest egg saved for my grabdkids is shrinking and that makes me sad.
I hear you! The only thing that is helping us is that we paid off our mortgage last year. But it did take a lot of our savings.
That mortgage payoff is huge, Sandi... even if it came at the cost of some savings.
I suspect a lot of Canadians are feeling that same mix of relief and “okay… now what?” right now.
Owning the roof over your head matters a lot when life gets expensive.
Larry, I think a lot of retirees quietly feel exactly what you just said.
You do the right things, save what you can, try to leave something for the grandkids… and suddenly the math feels shakier than it used to.
That sadness makes sense. So does the worry.
You’re definitely not alone in feeling it, my friend.
Please, please, please be sure Canadians know your pain was caused by the orange Caligula south of the border, not by the Carney team north of it! You *can't* let your people by conned into thinking anything resembling MAGA will ever make their lives better!
There’s no question a lot of what Canada is dealing with is tied to global forces outside our control... energy shocks, tariffs, conflicts, supply chains,
and what happens in the U.S. economy absolutely spills over the border.
My goal is just to follow the facts and help people understand what’s actually driving the pain... wherever it’s coming from.
Common to both countries and the globe is the economic system that supports monopolies. It's possible for Canada to execute policy that works to constrain monopolies - especially in the food business. Carney's gov is also doing trade deals with many countries that will introduce a great deal more competition on many products.
Great post Fred! Yes, we all know what & why, but, good to have it broken down. I have family & friends in the USA, so, I can see exactly what you are saying. We are doing better than our friends to the South, some have to choose between buying food to feed their family, OR, buying gas to keep going to work. Canadians, we see it & feel it, we shop less, we ONLY BUY what's on special. We still travel around, but, shorter distances. We are managing a little better. Oh, another thing, everything you buy doesn't have to be brand named like most families think. "Our Compliments brand is often tastier, for instance, while being cheaper at the cash register. We just have to use more common sense :)
Exactly Fred! If things get worst, we WILL have a party! A soup party for instance, I can start with a soup stone. Remember the song? I thought that was sweet. Everyone bring one ingredient for the soup, we can visit with each other while the soup cooks, "shoring" each other up & reminding everyone, we will get through this cause that is who we are! Canada Strong!!!!!
Patsy… now that sounds like Canada. ❤️🇨🇦
Everybody brings a little something, we look after each other, tell a few stories, maybe laugh more than we planned to...
and somehow the soup tastes better because nobody’s carrying the load alone.
Canada Strong indeed, my friend.
Exactly Patsy... that’s the real-world version of inflation right there.
People adapt. Fewer extras. More specials. More common sense. Less “brand loyalty” and more “what actually works.” 😄
And yes... compared to many south of the border, Canadians are still managing a little better, even if nobody’s exactly throwing a party about it.
Did all these people think that with all the things that are going on in the world today that are impacting Canada there would be no pain felt by anybody? All that tells me is there’s an awful lot of people in Canada who are not particularly bright if that’s the way they were thinking.
I think some people hoped Canada would somehow dodge the storm completely, Alexis.
But between global conflicts, tariffs, supply chain issues, and energy shocks… somebody was always going to feel some pain.
The bigger question is whether we manage it better than others...
and so far, at least on paper, Canada is holding up better than many expected.
Sadly Fred this morning on another social media site I was attacked for supporting Carney because he has implemented a 15% funding cut across the board for scientific research.
The one issue folks are going nuts saying this is worse than what Harper did, and I can guarantee you that none of them who are making this comparison were even out of high school then.
And NONE of them seem to understand that EVERY part of our country and all of US are going to be impacted by what’s going on in the world. They don’t see any shooting or any bombs so they don’t understand the danger our little country is in!
And that blindness is driving me crazy!
I hear the frustration, Alexis.
I think a lot of people are scared, stretched thin, and looking for someone to blame which makes conversations harder than they should be.
The reality is we’re living through global economic and geopolitical pressure that Canada doesn’t get to opt out of.
People may disagree on policy choices, but pretending none of this affects us just because the bombs aren’t landing here isn’t realistic either.
Hang in there. The noise online can make anybody crazy some days. 🙂
🥰