Friday, November 6, 2026
The Niagara Independent
Friday, November 6, 2026

Joan Tintor

Columnist
National

Renovation realities

I am too cheap to subscribe to HGTV or the DIY network, but they are usually available for free once a year, when their various programs make for viewing that is gripping, inspiring and self-shaming at the same time. Like most people, while watching I will sometimes say to myself: “I should do that.” Unlike most people, however, I then remember that I nearly had a nervous breakdown while preparing my last house for sale, and the biggest changes I did there were new paint and flooring. Canada’s most famous fixer upper is in the news again, thanks to a Canadian Press story about the Prime Minister’s non-residence at 24 Sussex Drive. Justin Trudeau declined to move in after being elected in 2015, and has been living in a house on the grounds of the Governor General’s residence across the road. Nonetheless, all his family’s meals are prepared in the kitchen at 24 Sussex.

Joan Tintor
National

Trudeau has disarmed himself on gun control

Everyone is predicting that the Prime Minister Formerly Known as Sunny Ways will be waging an ugly and negative re-election campaign over the next three months. As a tarnished golden boy dragging a cape now soiled with broken promises and ethics scandals, it would seem he has no other choice, and will have to add “positive politics” to his long list of unfulfilled pledges. And some of the mud may well stick. No one likes to admit they were influenced by any party’s ads or messages, let alone the negative ones. But if attacks on opponents are not effective, why are they deployed by almost every party, in every election? So, Justin Trudeau and the Liberals will go negative, especially against the main threat to their hold on power: the Conservatives and their leader Andrew Scheer.

Joan Tintor
Uncategorized

Bombardier and Unifor: Axle of Evil

“Hey, I can pay” the bespectacled boy boasts, to the watchmaker whose specialized tools he wants to buy. You may recognize this scene from the Heritage Minute devoted to Joseph-Armand Bombardier, the founder of the company that bears his name. Not only does this heritage minute honour the founding of Bombardier, it also memorializes a long-forgotten era in which Bombardier spent its own money, instead of taxpayers’. A cynical view, admittedly, but one that is understandable given Bombardier’s long history of sole-sourced government contracts and taxpayer-sourced loans.

Joan Tintor
National

Our not-so-swift mandarins

Many political junkies are fans of the British comedy Yes Minister and its follow-up, Yes Prime Minister. It never seemed to air often enough for me to catch it more than once or twice, so I can’t say I am a fan (hopefully it will come to Netflix someday). Nevertheless, the gist of the show seemed to be that administrative affairs minister (and later prime minister) James Hacker was a well-meaning but naïve politician, while his department secretary (and later cabinet secretary) Sir Humphrey Appleby was much smarter. It was Appleby’s experience and knowledge of government and public affairs that prevented the hapless Hacker from embarrassing himself and the government, often after Sir Humphrey’s ruthless-but-deferential argument proved that Hacker’s desired plan would be impossible to implement.

Joan Tintor
National

G20 delivered no relief for our China headaches

“Many of you have worried that Canada has lost its compassionate and constructive voice in the world over the past 10 years,” Justin Trudeau told an Ottawa crowd hours after his 2015 election victory. “Well, I have a simple message for you: on behalf of 35 million Canadians, we’re back.” Trudeau has certainly tried to fulfill that pledge. He has practiced the touchy-feely internationalism the Liberal party thinks it invented. He flew 300 people to Paris to sign the climate change treaty named after the French city. He increased the number of Syrian refugees admitted to Canada. He tweeted that Canada would welcome anyone turned away from the US by Donald Trump’s so-called Muslim ban. He announced that Canada would seek a temporary seat on the UN Security Council, and diligently set about all the sucking-up involved. This included signing Canada on to the UN’s compact on migration (but don’t worry – it’s non-binding!).

Joan Tintor
National

Ethics, pharmacare and the environment may shape the election campaign

Members of Parliament are set to close the books on Canada’s 42nd Parliament this week, but only a handful of them can look forward to a summer of cottaging or travel. Most will be campaigning full time, in the hopes of returning as Members in Canada’s 43rd Parliament in October. To make predictions today, about what will be the decisive election issues when the ballots are counted four months from now, is setting oneself up for failure. But then failure is somewhat of hobby of mine, so here goes.

Joan Tintor
National

The election ad battle has already begun

Pity the poor man (or woman), seeking to forget the stresses of life and this crummy non-spring for a few hours by watching a basketball or baseball game. Not wanting to miss any of the action, he is reluctant to channel surf during commercial breaks. Maybe it’s not so bad: some of those beer, truck and razor ads are actually kind of funny. Sorry, sports fans. Your next five months of TV sports – baseball, football, even the start of the NHL season – will be so polluted by political ads, you may find yourself feeling nostalgic for adult diaper commercials.

Joan Tintor