Public Funds, Private Gains 🤑

Where news meets rational thinking

Good morning, It’s Friday, November 8th. In today’s news, Manitoba drops math and English requirements for teachers, another Liberal Minster gets caught in a corruption scandal, federal contracting fraud exposed, RFK Jr’s plans to overhaul the FDA, and much more.

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Manitoba’s NDP Drops Math and English Requirements for Teachers

Welcome to Canada: where the teachers responsible for ensuring your child understands math and English are no longer required to know either subject themselves. Canada is facing a growing crisis of declining competence, and Manitoba’s NDP government has just worsened it by lowering teacher training standards. Recently, the government removed mandatory math and English requirements for new teachers, making Manitoba the province with the weakest teacher qualifications in the country. Many fear this move will compromise the quality of education students receive, exacerbating Canada’s broader challenges in cultivating competent leaders in critical fields.

Critics argue that the NDP’s decision will ultimately harm students more than it helps teachers. University of Winnipeg math professor Dr. Anna Stokke, a longtime advocate for stronger education standards, has expressed alarm over this change. Reflecting on her efforts to raise math requirements in 2015, she observed, “The math skills of the students we saw at university were incredibly weak, and they still are.” She added, “The people who are going to suffer here are the children,” pointing out that unprepared teachers will lead to poorly educated students.

The NDP government claims this decision addresses a teacher shortage by lowering barriers to entering the profession. But critics argue this approach sacrifices the quality of education students receive for political expediency. As Dr. Stokke put it, “They’re removing barriers for adults… and they are going to create barriers for the students that they teach.”

This trend is troubling. Manitoba’s choice mirrors a broader crisis in Canada, where declining competence is met with lowered standards rather than systemic improvements. Instead of recruiting qualified educators, the government risks undermining the future of its education system. Education isn’t just about filling positions—it’s about empowering the next generation, and compromises like these suggest we’re heading in the wrong direction.

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Public Funds, Private Gains: The Real Cost of Canada’s “Inclusive” Liberal Government

Another day, another corruption scandal from the Canadian government. Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault embodies the ultimate hypocrisy in a regime that champions “equality” while exploiting it for personal gain. Global Health Imports, a company with close ties to Boissonnault, falsely claimed he and the company were indigenous while bidding on lucrative federal contracts. The very people who push “equity” by favouring some groups over others are lying about their heritage to benefit from the discriminatory policies they’ve created. Orwell’s words ring painfully true here: “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”

Further complicating matters, text messages obtained by Global News reveal Randy Boissonnault’s business partner, Stephen Anderson, coordinating with someone named “Randy” to secure a $500,000 wire transfer for a shipment of nitrile gloves in September 2022. Although Randy denies being this “Randy,” Anderson has refused to clarify the mystery identity. This raises a troubling question: how many times has Boissonnault deceived the public to line his pockets with taxpayer dollars?

This is just another chapter in the Liberal government’s relentless hypocrisy. They preach inclusivity and equality while quietly stacking the deck for themselves. Telesat was handed $2.14 billion without a single accountability measure. Nearly a third of the Green Slush Fund’s billion-dollar budget flowed into companies mired in conflicts of interest. The common thread? This reckless spending consistently enriches those closely tied to the government. Our leaders cloak themselves in the language of virtue while siphoning public funds and exploiting programs—all at the expense of the very people they claim to serve.

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Public Works Official: Seven Cases of Federal Contracting Fraud Found Since 2022, More Expected

The federal public works department has recently identified seven instances of fraud in federal contracting. Deputy Minister of Public Services and Procurement, Arianne Reza, confirmed that the department conducts 400,000 procurement transactions annually and that further cases of overbilling are expected to be uncovered in the coming months. One official actually said it would be “inconceivable” for more cases not to surface in the coming months.

The fraudulent billing practices typically involve subcontractors taking advantage of the lack of oversight from prime contractors, who are often unaware that their subcontractors are billing for the same work across different contracts. Public Works Minister Jean-Yves Duclos, acknowledging the problem, downplayed its scale, attributing it to outdated systems that made it difficult to coordinate information between government departments. However, this excuse fails to address the broader issue of systemic mismanagement and lack of accountability within the federal procurement process, particularly when it comes to the oversight of billions in taxpayer money.

The scale of the fraud is troubling, with some estimates indicating that millions of dollars have been overbilled, including a recent case where a federal consultant was found to have overbilled the government by $250,000 between 2020 and 2021. Duclos announced in March 2024 that the procurement department had referred three additional cases to the RCMP, involving overbilling across 36 government departments between 2018 and 2022, with attempts to recover approximately $5 million in misappropriated funds.

This scandal is part of a broader pattern of incompetence and corruption under the Trudeau government, which has been unable or unwilling to properly manage taxpayer money and ensure proper oversight. The situation is further compounded by the earlier ArriveCan app debacle, which wasted $59.5 million on a poorly managed, over-budget project that lacked the necessary contracting oversight. Both the fraud in procurement and the mismanagement of the ArriveCan app illustrates a troubling lack of accountability at the highest levels of government, where public officials are either complicit in or negligent about the misuse of taxpayer dollars.

The Liberal government’s failure to address these issues, despite repeated warnings and evidence of widespread corruption, shows a pattern of enabling fraud while Canadians bear the cost. This ongoing scandal reveals not only incompetence in managing federal contracts but also raises serious concerns about the integrity of government operations under Trudeau’s leadership. Source

RFK Jr.'s Plan to Reform the FDA

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a likely political appointee in Trump’s second administration, has announced plans to overhaul several federal agencies involved in health, food, and medicine, including the FDA, CDC, NIH, and USDA. He believes that certain departments, such as the FDA’s nutrition division, are failing to protect public health, particularly children. Kennedy advocates for reforming these agencies rather than eliminating them, aiming to remove corruption and improve their functions. He has also suggested taking a critical look at the presence of ingredients in food products and plans to advise local water districts about fluoride's legal liabilities without mandating its removal. Though he remains cautious about proposing changes that require congressional approval, Kennedy is focused on enhancing the agencies’ accountability and efficiency. More

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Prayer Ban Still in Effect for Military Chaplains Ahead of Remembrance Day

Military chaplains in Canada are once again barred from reciting prayers at Remembrance Day ceremonies under a directive introduced in October 2023 that replaces traditional prayers with “spiritual reflections.” This policy, which emphasizes inclusivity and religious neutrality, allows chaplains to deliver reflections without faith-specific language, aligning with diversity principles. Despite backlash last year and a promised review, no changes have been made, and chaplains were reminded to follow the policy this week. Critics, including Bishop Scott McCaig and MP James Bezan, argue the ban undermines the spiritual tradition of Remembrance Day. More

Tiny Thought: If you abandon your culture, another will be assigned to you.

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Putin Calls for a New World Order

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Poll: Singh's Party Support Shows 'Concerning' Drop in NDP-friendly Regions - More

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Trump Names Susie Wiles as the First Woman Chief of Staff in White House History - More

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NATO Chief: Cooperation Between China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia Threatens US Security - More

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Putin Congratulates Trump on Election Win, Welcomes Opportunity for Renewed Dialogue - More

Majority of Provinces Have More Combined Debt Than GDP

The Fraser Institute warns that seven out of ten Canadian provinces now have a combined debt exceeding their economic output, which will hinder economic growth. The study shows that high debt-to-GDP ratios slow growth, especially when exceeding 100%. Senior fellow Jake Fuss explained that high government spending can "crowd out" private investment, raise interest rates, and increase inflation, ultimately stalling economic growth and lowering Canadians' living standards. Fuss recommended that both federal and provincial governments reduce spending to stabilize debt, proposing a 2.3% spending cut to balance the budget by 2026. More

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X/Twitter Becomes Canada’s Number One Ranked News App - More

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Former TD Employee Indicted for Distributing Customer Data on Telegram - More

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Federal Reserve Cuts US Interest Rates for 2nd Straight Meeting - More

Western University Symposium: 'It's Really Hard to Keep People Healthy and Alive in Space'

Western University’s symposium on astronaut health explored the extreme challenges of keeping people alive on long space missions, focusing on issues like zero gravity, radiation, and limited medical resources. Microgravity causes bone and muscle loss, while cosmic radiation and nuclear exposure raise cancer and organ damage risks. Experts highlighted Canada’s expertise in remote medicine and discussed innovations such as artificial gravity, protective gear, and even food production from asteroid materials, all aimed at sustaining astronaut health during future Moon and Mars expeditions. More

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Research Shows Caterpillar Fungus Can Slow Down Growth of Cancer Cells - More

Argentinian Officials Charge 3 in British Musician Liam Payne’s Death

Three people have been charged in Argentina in connection with the death of former One Direction member Liam Payne, who fell from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires on October 16. On November 7, Prosecutor Andrés Esteban Madrea announced charges of “abandonment of a person followed by death” and “supply and facilitation of narcotics” against the suspects. One, who accompanied Payne, faces charges for abandonment, while a hotel employee is alleged to have provided cocaine. A third person faces charges for additional narcotics distribution on October 14. More

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Here Are All the Hollywood Stars Vowing to Leave the US Over Trump’s Presidential Election Win - More

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Kylian Mbappé Dropped From Latest France Squad - More

Pythons Climb Up Man’s Toilet Twice in One Week: ‘Not the snake you want to crawl all over you’

Over 40 Monkeys Escape From Research Lab and Are On the Loose in South Carolina

Life Savings of an Entire Small Town Recovered from the Depths of Crypto-Scam, Thanks to FBI