As we stand on the eve of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, it behooves us to take stock not only of ourselves, but of what is happening around us. And in Canada, that means confronting the ugly, as yet unchecked reality of antisemitism. We didn't have to look very far. Today’s National Post was filled with articles on the subject, a disturbing snapshot of just how deeply antisemitism has embedded itself in Canadian life. That, in itself, should tell us something. Canada is

We felt that this blog is too lengthy to include it in our regular blog tomorrow, so we are sending it out today, standing on its own. *** As the horrific events of 9/11 unfolded, the television news media made a decision that, in ways no one could possibly have imagined at the time, reverberates to this day. At some point during the day, they decided that they would stop showing the planes flying into the World Trade Center, nor would they show the over 100 people jumping fr

Twenty-five years ago, September 11 fell on a Tuesday, a beautiful, crystal-clear fall morning that gave no hint of the horror about to unfold. We were working in our synagogue, then located in Decarie Square. Looking back, it was a time when we took a certain innocence about the world for granted. Computers were only beginning to become part of our everyday lives. News did not follow us everywhere. There were no smartphones in our hands, no constant stream of alerts and beep

The pea-brains running quebec's CAQ party just gave the separatist party of quebec almost enough ammunition to win the election coming up in October. People thought Christine Frechette of the CAQ was fair, she was different than her predecessor. That she truly cared about English speaking quebecers. Alas, everyone was wrong. She's just like the rest of them. Petty and small-minded. We are referring to a little yellow card that comes to every house in quebec before an election

Seems there was a glitch with tonight's blog. If you got it twice, we apologize. If you didn't get till now, we also apologize. *** We are not dumping on Poilievre but...the recent by-elections, especially the one in Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, which, as you can guess by the name, is in quebec, doesn't bode well for him or the party in general. Let's start with the number of people who went out to vote in these three by-elections, held across Canada. Usually, about 20% of the popula

Seems there was a glitch with tonight's blog. If you got it twice, we apologize. If you didn't get till now, we also apologize. *** We are not dumping on Poilievre but...the recent by-elections, especially the one in Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, which, as you can guess by the name, is in quebec, doesn't bode well for him or the party in general. Let's start with the number of people who went out to vote in these three by-elections, held across Canada. Usually, about 20% of the popula

We watched a very interesting interview done by the CBC with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. He disputed, very clearly and very succinctly, almost every reason Mark Carney gave for the trade talks blowing up. It is to be noted that we are far from fans of the CBC, but in this case, they got it right. Greer is of the same ilk as Carney. A suit. One of the backroom boys. Unflappable. Doesn't utter an extra word. And so, without theatrics or bluster, he directly contra

One of the things Trump said after Lutnick blew up the tariff talks was that quebec's Bill 96 language requirements affecting product labels, trademarks and commercial information are a“technical barrier to trade". Good morning America. Do politicians in quebec think that no one knows what's going on here? Trump is 100% correct. Carney's response was fake and he was lying through his teeth. He said Quebec's language laws are not an irritant to business. Who exactly does he th

***Facebook did not allow us to post this blog as we wrote about the rot in the CBC and they consider that going after the government. It's on LinkedIn and X.*** *** Both Canadian and Israeli Jews are very familiar with the CBC's stance on Israel and Canadian Jews. It is openly antisemitic on both counts. In case you don't know, the Canadian Broadcasting Company is Canada's national public broadcaster. In other words, what goes on the air carries some weight. They are known t

In the grand scheme of things, the province of quebec is less than a pimple on a horse's behind. The person running for the separatist party in quebec, Mr. Plamondon, is an egostitical, arrogant moron. Does he think for a millisecond that holding a referendum for quebec to separate from the rest of Canada is good for anything except crowning himself as king? We'll tell you. It's not and with G-d's help will never happen. Even suggesting it is an exercise in breathtaking arro

The consul general of Israel in Toronto and Western Canada, Idit Shamir is one very smart, very quick Israeli. First read what our idiot of a foreign minister posted then...relish Idit's response. ...Canada condemns the ongoing violence in the West Bank. The expansion of settlements in the West Bank must stop. These settlements are illegal under international law and undermine prospects for peace, security and stability. Now enjoy this response: Israel condemns the ongoing vi

Finally we are not the lone voice in saying that the firebombing of the kosher restaurant Noam in Montreal may not be antisemitism and it is the owners themselves who are saying this. Speculating without confirmed facts serves no purpose. Here is what the restaurant manager said: “We are trying to be guided by truth rather than fear … We know people are scared and feel the inarguable tear in the social fabric of the Montreal Jewish community, but until we know that this is

The question still remains whether or not the firebombing of Noam, the beloved kosher restaurant in Montreal, was an act of antisemitism or something else. One thing is certain. After watching the video of the person who set the fire, he knew exactly what he was doing. The accelerant was placed perfectly so that the instant it was lit, the fire literally exploded, totally engulfing the restaurant in less than a minute. It was a hit job, but by who? Someone with a grudge or ye

This title is, believe it or not, directed at B'nai Brith Canada. One of their spokespeople sent out a communiqué following the vicious arson attack on Noam, Montreal's most popular (by far) kosher restaurant on Friday night. The second paragraph begins with: "The community is shaken". Stop it. Do not make us sound like frightened children cowering in a corner. Jewish communities around the world are not 'shaken' by antisemitic attacks. Shaken means we are unable to function

We read the op-ed piece by Chrystia Freeland in the NY Times and what her approach would be to Trump's tarrifs. She believes if you stand up to a bully, they back down. Mark Carney, who is running the country believes the exact opposite. He believes the tactic of ignoring Trump will work much better, ergo we are like mushrooms, being kept entirely in the dark when it comes to the negotiations. And now these two opposite modes of dealing with Trump are being battled out pu

A few months ago, we wrote about Pierre Poilievre and how we felt he was never going to be able to beat Carney in an election. We received major pushback from those who very rightly said that from October 7 until the present day, Poilievre has supported the Jews in Canada, often the lone voice to do so. Unlike Carney who has basically thrown us under the bus. Given that, we are going to reveal the elephant in the room: Yes, he supports the Jews in Canada but what good has it

The bureaucrats who run the province of Quebec are either very short on brains or they are very short on brains. The new train called the REM which loosely translated means Metropolitan Express Network is anything but express. In fact, it is turning out to be so unreliable and now dangerous, that we are guessing people are going to stop using it. This past Friday a train lost power in the middle of two stations, a very common occurance. According to their media spokesperson,

Last week Harley Finkelstein, president of Shopify and proud, loud Jew, was at the startupfest in Montreal when a known antisemite, who has been jailed and fined for his filth, managed to infiltrate the event. He had a cameraman with him as he tried to berate Finkelstein with disgusting antisemitic slurs. Nobody bit. In fact, he was roundly booed out the door. What emerged from that altercation was a personal revelation. A wakeup call. Following that event, Finkelstein gave

There was a yearly event in Montreal yesterday which was was abruptly stopped by one of the most antisemitic losers around. We won't mention his name as we will not give him a second of notoriety on social media. He is one of those who thrives on an unproductive, useless life. Shopify hosts a two-day event called startupfest. It functions like a music festival for entrepreneurs, featuring immersive experiences like the "Startupfest Shop," where emerging brands can showcase a

When is it time to leave? This question has been brought up in many articles, podcasts and around many Shabbos tables. For Jews in Canada, the answer is not simple. Antisemitism has become the darling of protesters. Before that, it was climate change. Before that it was the death of George Floyd and police brutality. Then it was calls to defund the police. There were protests over COVID restrictions and vaccine mandates. There were demonstrations over indigenous issues, pipel