Opinion
What is Libertarianism?

Libertarianism has developed over the course of many centuries. It is a deep and rich philosophy that cannot be fully described in one short article. Rather than delving into history, I want to share some of the key concepts of Libertarianism, some questions to consider and how I think the concepts apply in 2021.
Individualism
Key Concept: Only individuals make choices and therefore should be responsible for those decisions.
Questions to Consider: Should government start mandating one hour of exercise per day? Should government ban alcohol and tobacco? Should vehicles be removed from the road as they can lead to injury and death? Should government be given authority to remove all risk from our lives regardless of the resulting consequences of a zero-risk strategy?
How it applies in 2021: Health decisions should be the responsibility of each individual based on their own risk assessment. This applies in all situations and under all conditions.
Individual Rights
Key Concept: Individuals have the right to be secure in their life, liberty and property. Government is not the grantor of rights, rather the protector of said rights.
Questions to Consider: Should government be able to suspend individual rights indefinitely whenever a “public health crisis” presents itself? Should government pursue “climate lockdowns” in an effort to meet emissions targets?
How it applies in 2021: There is no justification for government to suspend the lives of its citizens, their freedoms or their ability to earn a living and provide for their families.
Spontaneous Order
Key Concept: The actions of millions of people working together in order to achieve their individual objectives is the origin of a civil society. Central government is not required for the development of languages, law, markets or other complex institutions.
Questions to Consider: Governments across the world were given unfettered power in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, were they able to effectively navigate this complex situation? Given government’s track record on the pandemic and other major issues, what is the outlook for a government led economic relaunch, post-COVID? If climate change is an existential threat, is government the best mechanism to address it?
How it applies in 2021: Big government policies result in inefficiencies, cronyism and corruption. Individuals working together to overcome common challenges is the most effective way to advance civil society.
The Rule of Law
Key Concept: Individuals are free to pursue their own dreams as long as they respect the equal rights of others. Laws should protect individual liberty rather than pursue a particular outcome.
Questions to Consider: Should the federal government, specifically the Prime Minister, be able to appoint judges in Canada? Should there be greater separation between the three branches of government in order to ensure impartiality?
How it applies in 2021: Recently, Trudeau appointed four Liberal Party donors as judges. It is reasonable to consider that these appointments will lead to future bias as can be seen in the recent Supreme Court decision regarding the federal carbon tax. Judges must make decisions based on the law, not personal bias or political pressure.
Limited Government
Key Concept: “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely” – Lord Acton. Throughout history, those countries with limited central authority have resulted in greater individual liberty, economic success and better standards of living.
Questions to Consider: Will governments willingly relinquish the power that they have acquired in response to the COVID-19 pandemic?
How it applies in 2021: Despite comprehensive data showing that lockdowns and other non-pharmaceutical measures had little to no impact on the transmission of COVID-19, many provinces in Canada still enforce public health orders. Certain US states which pursued a response based on individual liberty have seen similar direct COVID-19 health impacts, but have faired significantly better in their economic recovery and saw reduced mental health impacts.
Free Markets
Key Concept: Property rights and free markets enable individuals to succeed. Less government intervention in the market, leads to greater prosperity for the individual.
Questions to Consider: What are the short and long term consequences of governments paying some Canadians to sit at home for 16+ months? If an individual is willing to accept the risks within the marketplace to create opportunities for him/herself, their family and their community, should the government be able to step in and say no?
How it applies in 2021: Over the past 16+ months, unprecedented government intervention in the marketplace has led to the largest transfer of wealth from the low and middle class to the wealthy in human history. Property rights and individual liberty must never be restricted in this way again as the measures put in place by governments harmed the very people they were intended to protect.
Virtue of Production
Key Concept: There is dignity in work. Libertarians believe that individuals should keep what they earn, rather than a central authority redistributing wealth through taxation.
Questions to Consider: What has been the impact of 16+ months of lockdowns on Canadians mental health? Were government subsidy programs effective in delivering funds from one taxpayer to another?
How it applies in 2021: Government programs, however well intentioned, never deliver the results that they initially intend to produce. If Canadians were afforded the ability to work throughout the pandemic, to maintain their employer/private health insurance and keep their hard earned money in their pockets, they would have been a much better position to fight a virus than if they transmitted the virus while unemployed, isolated and poor.
Harmony of Interests
Key Concept: One individual’s plans for employment, business or otherwise may conflict with someone else’s. In a free society, these individuals work together to find a solution that works for all parties. When government intervenes, political pressure leads to handouts and favours to small groups to the determent of others.
Questions to Consider: Aside from war times, has there ever been a period in history that resulted in as much lobbying activity as over the past 16+ months during the pandemic? Did the numerous handouts and favours help the average Canadian or connected insiders? Who ultimately pays for the handouts given to connected insiders?
How it applies in 2021: There have been a number of examples of private industry taken the initiative to create solutions to significant problems over the past 16+ months. One such example would be the COVID-19 testing program at the Calgary International Airport. This allowed the safe and free flow of people who wished to travel internationally. Instead of allowing the private sector to continue this program, the Federal Liberal government enacted the quarantine hotel program which led to division, inefficiencies and sexual harassment within the facilities. Which outcome is preferable for Canadians? I think the answer is quite obvious.
Peace
Key Concept: Free individuals have the right to defend their families, communities and property from foreign and domestic threats. The act of war however, leads to death and destruction and results in more power being transferred to the government.
Questions to Consider: Has the government fulfilled one of its basic duties in protecting Canadians from foreign threats, this one in the form of a virus? Why was the only acceptable solution for protecting Canadians against the virus to lock them up for 16+ months? Is the cure worse than the disease?
How it applies in 2021: War in the tradition description has not been seen by the Western world for a significant period of time now. Instead, we are directly involved in a war of ideologies. This is fought in the media, the classrooms, in businesses and in government. In order to preserve their Charter Rights, Canadians must be able to maintain freedom of speech, the most important Charter Right. The introduction of Bill C-10 and Bill C-36 by the Federal Liberal government strikes a significant blow to Canadians ability to speak freely. Government should be protecting our Charter Rights, not actively stripping them away.
Whatever the question is, liberty is the answer.
Sincerely,
Jared Pilon
Libertarian Party Candidate for Red Deer – Mountain View, AB
https://www.jaredpilon.com/
Business
Hudson’s Bay Bid Raises Red Flags Over Foreign Influence

From the Frontier Centre for Public Policy
A billionaire’s retail ambition might also serve Beijing’s global influence strategy. Canada must look beyond the storefront
When B.C. billionaire Weihong Liu publicly declared interest in acquiring Hudson’s Bay stores, it wasn’t just a retail story—it was a signal flare in an era where foreign investment increasingly doubles as geopolitical strategy.
The Hudson’s Bay Company, founded in 1670, remains an enduring symbol of Canadian heritage. While its commercial relevance has waned in recent years, its brand is deeply etched into the national identity. That’s precisely why any potential acquisition, particularly by an investor with strong ties to the People’s Republic of China (PRC), deserves thoughtful, measured scrutiny.
Liu, a prominent figure in Vancouver’s Chinese-Canadian business community, announced her interest in acquiring several Hudson’s Bay stores on Chinese social media platform Xiaohongshu (RedNote), expressing a desire to “make the Bay great again.” Though revitalizing a Canadian retail icon may seem commendable, the timing and context of this bid suggest a broader strategic positioning—one that aligns with the People’s Republic of China’s increasingly nuanced approach to economic diplomacy, especially in countries like Canada that sit at the crossroads of American and Chinese spheres of influence.
This fits a familiar pattern. In recent years, we’ve seen examples of Chinese corporate involvement in Canadian cultural and commercial institutions, such as Huawei’s past sponsorship of Hockey Night in Canada. Even as national security concerns were raised by allies and intelligence agencies, Huawei’s logo remained a visible presence during one of the country’s most cherished broadcasts. These engagements, though often framed as commercially justified, serve another purpose: to normalize Chinese brand and state-linked presence within the fabric of Canadian identity and daily life.
What we may be witnessing is part of a broader PRC strategy to deepen economic and cultural ties with Canada at a time when U.S.-China relations remain strained. As American tariffs on Canadian goods—particularly in aluminum, lumber and dairy—have tested cross-border loyalties, Beijing has positioned itself as an alternative economic partner. Investments into cultural and heritage-linked assets like Hudson’s Bay could be seen as a symbolic extension of this effort to draw Canada further into its orbit of influence, subtly decoupling the country from the gravitational pull of its traditional allies.
From my perspective, as a professional with experience in threat finance, economic subversion and political leveraging, this does not necessarily imply nefarious intent in each case. However, it does demand a conscious awareness of how soft power is exercised through commercial influence, particularly by state-aligned actors. As I continue my research in international business law, I see how investment vehicles, trade deals and brand acquisitions can function as instruments of foreign policy—tools for shaping narratives, building alliances and shifting influence over time.
Canada must neither overreact nor overlook these developments. Open markets and cultural exchange are vital to our prosperity and pluralism. But so too is the responsibility to preserve our sovereignty—not only in the physical sense, but in the cultural and institutional dimensions that shape our national identity.
Strategic investment review processes, cultural asset protections and greater transparency around foreign corporate ownership can help strike this balance. We should be cautious not to allow historically Canadian institutions to become conduits, however unintentionally, for geopolitical leverage.
In a world where power is increasingly exercised through influence rather than force, safeguarding our heritage means understanding who is buying—and why.
Scott McGregor is the managing partner and CEO of Close Hold Intelligence Consulting.
Bjorn Lomborg
Net zero’s cost-benefit ratio is CRAZY high

From the Fraser Institute
The best academic estimates show that over the century, policies to achieve net zero would cost every person on Earth the equivalent of more than CAD $4,000 every year. Of course, most people in poor countries cannot afford anywhere near this. If the cost falls solely on the rich world, the price-tag adds up to almost $30,000 (CAD) per person, per year, over the century.
Canada has made a legal commitment to achieve “net zero” carbon emissions by 2050. Back in 2015, then-Prime Minister Trudeau promised that climate action will “create jobs and economic growth” and the federal government insists it will create a “strong economy.” The truth is that the net zero policy generates vast costs and very little benefit—and Canada would be better off changing direction.
Achieving net zero carbon emissions is far more daunting than politicians have ever admitted. Canada is nowhere near on track. Annual Canadian CO₂ emissions have increased 20 per cent since 1990. In the time that Trudeau was prime minister, fossil fuel energy supply actually increased over 11 per cent. Similarly, the share of fossil fuels in Canada’s total energy supply (not just electricity) increased from 75 per cent in 2015 to 77 per cent in 2023.
Over the same period, the switch from coal to gas, and a tiny 0.4 percentage point increase in the energy from solar and wind, has reduced annual CO₂ emissions by less than three per cent. On that trend, getting to zero won’t take 25 years as the Liberal government promised, but more than 160 years. One study shows that the government’s current plan which won’t even reach net-zero will cost Canada a quarter of a million jobs, seven per cent lower GDP and wages on average $8,000 lower.
Globally, achieving net-zero will be even harder. Remember, Canada makes up about 1.5 per cent of global CO₂ emissions, and while Canada is already rich with plenty of energy, the world’s poor want much more energy.
In order to achieve global net-zero by 2050, by 2030 we would already need to achieve the equivalent of removing the combined emissions of China and the United States — every year. This is in the realm of science fiction.
The painful Covid lockdowns of 2020 only reduced global emissions by about six per cent. To achieve net zero, the UN points out that we would need to have doubled those reductions in 2021, tripled them in 2022, quadrupled them in 2023, and so on. This year they would need to be sextupled, and by 2030 increased 11-fold. So far, the world hasn’t even managed to start reducing global carbon emissions, which last year hit a new record.
Data from both the International Energy Agency and the US Energy Information Administration give added cause for skepticism. Both organizations foresee the world getting more energy from renewables: an increase from today’s 16 per cent to between one-quarter to one-third of all primary energy by 2050. But that is far from a transition. On an optimistically linear trend, this means we’re a century or two away from achieving 100 percent renewables.
Politicians like to blithely suggest the shift away from fossil fuels isn’t unprecedented, because in the past we transitioned from wood to coal, from coal to oil, and from oil to gas. The truth is, humanity hasn’t made a real energy transition even once. Coal didn’t replace wood but mostly added to global energy, just like oil and gas have added further additional energy. As in the past, solar and wind are now mostly adding to our global energy output, rather than replacing fossil fuels.
Indeed, it’s worth remembering that even after two centuries, humanity’s transition away from wood is not over. More than two billion mostly poor people still depend on wood for cooking and heating, and it still provides about 5 per cent of global energy.
Like Canada, the world remains fossil fuel-based, as it delivers more than four-fifths of energy. Over the last half century, our dependence has declined only slightly from 87 per cent to 82 per cent, but in absolute terms we have increased our fossil fuel use by more than 150 per cent. On the trajectory since 1971, we will reach zero fossil fuel use some nine centuries from now, and even the fastest period of recent decline from 2014 would see us taking over three centuries.
Global warming will create more problems than benefits, so achieving net-zero would see real benefits. Over the century, the average person would experience benefits worth $700 (CAD) each year.
But net zero policies will be much more expensive. The best academic estimates show that over the century, policies to achieve net zero would cost every person on Earth the equivalent of more than CAD $4,000 every year. Of course, most people in poor countries cannot afford anywhere near this. If the cost falls solely on the rich world, the price-tag adds up to almost $30,000 (CAD) per person, per year, over the century.
Every year over the 21st century, costs would vastly outweigh benefits, and global costs would exceed benefits by over CAD 32 trillion each year.
We would see much higher transport costs, higher electricity costs, higher heating and cooling costs and — as businesses would also have to pay for all this — drastic increases in the price of food and all other necessities. Just one example: net-zero targets would likely increase gas costs some two-to-four times even by 2030, costing consumers up to $US52.6 trillion. All that makes it a policy that just doesn’t make sense—for Canada and for the world.
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