Just another day - some short takes on Canada's so-called recession, Poilievre, Pride Month, Alberta "rednexit", and so on

I'm not an economist, thank god, but I think I understand what the Financial Post writer Pamela Heaven is saying here:

Posthaste: Recession, what recession? Canada's economy is doing better than it has in years by this measure
GDP per person is once again on the rise
Canadian economic data made international news Friday as the latest reading of gross domestic product earned mentions from everyone from investing guru Mohamed El-Erian to the Wall Street Journal.
Canada’s GDP doesn’t often attract such attention, but this time a second quarter of contraction raised the red flag of “technical recession.”
Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre seized on the data, accusing Prime Minister Mark Carney of being the only G7 leader to send his country’s economy into recession and calling for an emergency debate.
The numbers were certainly a surprise. The 0.1 per cent decline in GDP in the first quarter shocked observers who had been expecting growth closer to 2 per cent. ‘Historically unusual,” is how Nathan Janzen, assistant chief economist at the Royal Bank of Canada, described it.
Luckily, economists say there is more to a recession than just two quarters of negative growth — namely the 3 Ds — depth, duration and dispersion.
This decline is not even close on depth — amounting to just 0.6 per cent annualized over the two quarters, “barely a scratch in GDP terms,” said Robert Kavcic, senior economist at BMO Capital Markets in a note.
In the past three Canadians recessions, outside the pandemic, the average decline at the weakest point was 5.3 per cent.
Nor is weakness widespread across the economy. The trade war has hit manufacturing, trade and real estate hard, but other sectors like finance, resources and health care are growing, said Kavcic.
Though exports are down, domestic demand has been climbing, and consumer spending has continued to rise.
Duration, he concedes, is getting close. The Canadian economy has been soft since the start of the trade war in early 2025, posting three negative quarters out of four.
However, there is one key variable in this equation that should not be overlooked and when viewed through its lens paints a very different picture of Canada’s economy, say economists — population.
Since the federal government cracked down on immigration after the post-pandemic boom, population has actually declined in Canada over the past two quarters.
So while the overall GDP reading is slipping, GDP per person is on the rise, a welcome change from a few years back when the per capita measure was nose-diving....

So naturally, Poilievre is in a panic. And I guess he thinks Canadians are stupid and easily bamboozled, doesn't he.

Q: Polls show that despite the bleak picture that you're painting, Canadians trust Mark Carney to deal with the economy. Why do you think that despite what you're saying, your pitch is not resonating with them? Pierre Poilievre: THE ILLUSION

- Scott Robertson

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Here are more unhinged remarks:

“The Mexicans” Pretty much Pierre. What an asshole.

- JBO

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I had to check to make sure Poilievre had actually posted this drivel. Yes, he did.

🔴 In case anyone needs a reminder of why this toxic, Trumpian, MAGA agitator will never be Prime Minister of Canada... Here he goes again, just today. 👇🏻 This type of toxic, dishonest and immature "leadership" is why his Conservative MPs crossed to the Liberal Party ... and why those who remained are miserable.

- Fun Tom

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When you know, you know

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And of course, the other person who seized on the "Canada recession" news was....you guessed it...

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Thanks, Pierre...can't tell you how much we all appreciate getting Trump's attention again. 

In other news:

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It is Pride Month. Throughout this month, I will be sharing the stories of Canadians who fought for LGBTQ rights. Today it is the story of John Damien, a man fired from his job for being gay.

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— Canadian History Ehx (@cdnhistoryehx.bsky.social) June 1, 2026 at 8:02 AM

Unfortunately, we are in the midst of a plague of moustaches and mullets, and far too many gays are guilty of perpetuating absolute travesty.

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— Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social) June 1, 2026 at 9:56 PM

Here's the latest on Alberta separatism - first, let's call it Rednexit:

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Sounds like Smith has finally picked a side:

calgaryherald.com/opinion/colu...

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— Duane Bratt🇨🇦 (@duanebratt.bsky.social) June 1, 2026 at 8:54 PM

And Stephen Harper is going to say something - someday - any time now ...

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Moving on, Mamdani shows everyone how to be a mayor:

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AOC shows everyone how to be a politician:

Whenever I need a pick-me-up I watch this clip.

- I Fucking Love Australia

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Monday was just another Trump day:

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Here's what's happening:

Trump’s problem is no longer that Democrats hate him. That was always part of the deal. His voters expected it. They were trained to dismiss it. Every attack from the outside made the contract feel more valid. The problem now is different. The people who helped sell Trump to working-class America are starting to read the fine print out loud. Joe Rogan says voters feel betrayed. Tucker Carlson says the Iran war is not America First. Marjorie Taylor Greene says the administration is gaslighting Americans on prices. And in an Ohio bar, a three-time Trump voter says she may not vote at all. That is not a normal polling problem. That is a breach-of-contract problem. The promise was simple: lower prices, fewer wars, America First. Fifteen months later, the tariffs have landed in the checkout line, the war has landed in the Persian Gulf, and the people who were told they would finally be heard are being asked for patience by a movement that trained them to despise excuses. The MAGA base is not becoming liberal. It is becoming impatient. And impatience, in a midterm year, can be enough. Read the full essay:

- Gandalv

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