Category: NGO/CS

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Bluink Ltd: Developing Digital Identity & Vaccine Certification

Bluink is a company that’s working on systems of digital identification and verification of identify. The rationale is that this will ultimately be more secure than having physical documents. This could have potential uses both in the private and public sector. Of course, things get a bit more disturbing when you realize their latest project: a nationwide vaccine passport system. The Federal Lobbying Registry states that they’re in talks with Ottawa over the 2 subjects.

(a) Development of alignment between provincial vaccine certifications and federal standards
(b) Development of digital identification and verification standards.

According to their website, Bluink is able to run their system with driver’s licenses and service cards in all Provinces and Territories. They are also able to do Canadian, Chinese, French and U.S. passports.

Now, Bluink is also working on “aligning provincial certifications and federal standards”. In short, this means compiling a national vaccine passport system. In fairness, being in talks doesn’t mean the papers are signed, but this would be just the company to do it.

Think about it: a company that is already able to do digital ID for all Provincial and Territorial ID (and passports) is also quite likely to build a national vaccine certification system. The obvious question is that what stops this company — or any user — from simply combining the systems? How hard would it be to attach your vaccine status to a driver’s license, health card, or passport? Even if this isn’t the company to do it, Ottawa could always bring in someone else to take that last step.

If you have the full name and birthdate of every health card and vaccine record, how much work would it be to merge them into a single record?

This is also another case of “funding your own demise”, as we will get into. Taxpayers are on the hook for this creeping erosion of privacy.

No, surprise. Bluink is listed with the C.R.A. as having received the CEWS, or the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy. And if they are getting that, then the rental subsidies are likely thrown in too. Really, at this point, what company “hasn’t” been getting them?. Real capitalism seems non-existent, as everything is nationalized. And it keeps going.

According to the Lobbying Registry, it received nearly $2 million in the year 2020 from: (a) Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA); (b) Canada Post Corporation (CPC): and (c) Shared Services Canada (SSC). More is expected to get more money in 2021 and beyond. Some information about the lobbyists is given later on.

The choice of granting institutions is interesting. The CBSA won’t stop people illegally entering the country, but at least we’ll be able to given them a digital ID. That’s great.

TIME PERIOD INSTUTITION GRANTING AMOUNT
May 2, 2012 National Research Council $50,000
Apr. 15, 2013 National Research Council $40,000
Apr. 15, 2013 National Research Council $500,000
Oct. 30, 2013 National Research Council $30,000
Jun. 25, 2015 National Research Council $87,500
Sep. 29, 2015 National Research Council $47,500
Mar. 4, 2016 National Research Council $25,500
Sep. 6, 2016 National Research Council $205,750
Sep. 6, 2016 National Research Council $148,750
Jul. 1, 2018 National Research Council $50,000
Oct. 21, 2018 National Research Council $50,000
Jan. 1, 2019 National Research Council $48,200
Jun. 1, 2019 National Research Council $150,000
Apr. 1, 2020 National Research Council $152,460

According to the NSERC listings, Bluink was involved in a 2013 project for a Algorithmic approach to dynamic scheduling, which netted a $22,500 grant. Another one was in 2016, worth $25,000 for child Login Research using FIDO public key authentication.

So, this has actually been in the works for about a decade. The average person probably had no idea that this was going on. Now, who was pushing for vaccine certification at the Federal level?

One lobbyist for Bluink was Lindsay Stevens. Several years back, she was a “Government Affairs Intern” with Johnson & Johnson (who makes vaccines in Canada). The next year she became a legislative assist at Queen’s Park. Interesting career trajectory. Another is Adam Yahn, who has ties to both the Ontario Conservatives, and to the Federal Party. Katlyn Harrison worked briefly as a Parliamentary Assistant before going into lobbying. All are employed by the firm Summa Strategies.

Summa is Chaired by Tim Powers, long time Conservative Party of Canada operative and talking head on the Canadian news.

It has been derided as an insane conspiracy theory that this “pandemic” is being used to bring about societal change, including digital ID. On the other hand, that appear to be exactly where this is heading. And Bluink will be in a position to deliver a combined system soon, if it can’t already.

Attaching vaccine status to something like a driver’s license will make it an actual movement license (credit to RoadToSerfdom), and not just a moniker. Haven’t taken your shots — and boosters — just yet? You won’t be allowed to leave your zone. Considering that Transport Canada is also involved, this isn’t hyperbole.

When Provinces decide that there will no longer be physical service cards, or when Ottawa phases out passports, what will be used to fill the void? S.I.N. card (the white plastic ones) stopped getting produced years ago. This is just an expansion of that idea.

Worth a reminder: The Vaccine Credential Initiative includes the Ontario Ministry of Health. It’s quite possible that this is where it will be launched first.

Bluink themselves explain how their technology works. Tying a medical record to it wouldn’t be a stretch.

(1) https://lobbycanada.gc.ca/app/secure/ocl/lrs/do/vwRg?cno=370321&regId=917076
(2) https://bluink.ca/about
(3) https://bluink.ca/eid-me/id-documents
(4) https://apps.cra-arc.gc.ca/ebci/hacc/cews/srch/pub/bscSrch
(5) https://search.open.canada.ca/en/gc/
(6) https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Results-Resultats_eng.asp
(7) https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindsay-e-stevens/
(8) Lindsay Stevens LinkedIn Profile
(9) https://www.linkedin.com/in/adam-yahn-79a98446/
(10) Adam Yahn LinkedIn Profile
(11) https://www.linkedin.com/in/kate-harrison-a1a61822/
(12) Kate Harrison LinkedIn Profile
(13) https://summastrategies.ca/about/team/
(14) https://twitter.com/roadtoserfdom3/status/1378893370421043204
(15) https://canucklaw.ca/vaccine-credential-initiative-passports-digital-health-passes-ontario-ford/
(16) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8IMLBW2N4k

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OMERS And The Questionable Contracts With LifeLabs

June 23, 2021, LifeLabs received a $66.3 million contract from the Public Health Agency of Canada. It was originally for $28.8 million, but the terms were amended. The company had certainly negotiated other arrangements before, but this was big. The purpose of this one was testing kits for the “virus” that’s terrorizing the world. The Minister of Public Services and Procurement would oversee the issuing of such agreements.

It’s not just the vaccine contracts that are worth a lot of money. Testing kits may in fact be worth even more, given for frequently they are used. As such, it’s important to do a little due diligence on who’s being awarded these deals.

OMERS, the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, and some of its organizations have been in the spotlight before, but this most recent time needs to be discussed. It has to do with certain contracts that Ottawa had awarded. Unsurprisingly, Global News hasn’t addressed this.

The federal government has awarded three companies with contracts worth up to $631 million in total for COVID-19 border testing and other screening services.
.
Public Services and Procurement Canada says Switch Health, LifeLabs and Dynacare are carrying out testing of international travelers entering Canada at airports and land border crossings.

Last week, the Federal Government announced some $631 million to be spent for virus testing kits. Notwithstanding that the pandemic is a hoax, and the tests useless, something else is noteworthy.

Anita Anand used to be the Minister of Public Services and Procurement. In short, it was her job to oversee large purchases made by the Canadian Government. Naturally, this requires a great deal of transparency and integrity. However, things may not be so simple.

Specifically, her husband, John Knowlton, helps run OMERS. As the name implies, it manages the pension plans for many Provincial workers. Unsurprisingly, it owns stocks and bonds in other companies.

Conflicts of interest — or even the apparent conflict — must always be avoided. And this one looks far too cozy to simply be an oversight. In fairness, it could be legitimate, but does raise real questions.

Knowlton’s position is awkward, to say the least. While he’s now a Director at OMERS, he held similar roles in LifeLabs and Teranet. OMERS has interests in both of them. His company will directly profit from extra contracts awarded for testing equipment. Blacklock’s reported on this issue earlier, and it was denied that there was any insider dealing involved.

Something else happened Provincially a few months back that requires our attention. It involved engaging in some influence peddling of Doug Ford by a longtime ONPC operative.

On August 5, 2021, Jim Burnett of the Pathway Group lobbied the Ontario Government on behalf of OMERS, his client. What was the nature of the lobbying? According to the Ontario Registry:

Ongoing discussions in connection with investment in LifeLabs, Teranet, and other related OMERS investments relating to diagnostic lab sector reforms and proposals for alternative service delivery models for statutory registries and associated particular government services as they arise.

In short, this meeting was about getting the Ontario Government to pump money into certain companies and by extension, OMERS. However, Burnett has quite the connected past.

  • Deputy Campaign Manager (2020, O’Toole CPC run)
  • Targeted Seat Manager (ONPC, Ford 2018)
  • Deputy Campaign Manager for Christine Elliott (ONPC run)
  • Campaign Chair for Kevin O’Leary (2016 CPC run)
  • Campaign Organizer for Patrick Brown (2015 ONPC run)
  • Working for Tim Hudak (ONPC 2000 to 2001)
  • Working for Ernie Hardeman (ONPC 2000)

In all honesty, this looks shady as hell. Burnett used his considerable political ties in order to advance the business interests of his new client. The fact that he was a handler for Erin O’Toole may be the reason that the CPC doesn’t seem to object to such procurement deals.

While Anita Anand seems to influence the purchasing Federally, there’s some activity going on in Ontario as well. Glad to know that everything is done above board. This happens elsewhere as well.

For what it’s worth, LifeLabs has been lobbying in B.C. as well, seeking more contracts. The company openly admits that OMERS may be impacted by the outcome there. The lobbyist, Michael Gardiner, is a former Provincial Director of the BCNDP. In case anyone is unaware, the NDP is currently in power in this Province.

In February 2021, Teranet paid the Saskatchewan Government a visit, to talk about purchasing a land registration system. This was done by Kory Teneycke, who currently acts as a handler for Doug Ford.

Whenever political connections are intertwined in purchases like these, it’s always beneficial to start asking questions. Now, this last subject is off topic, but needs a mention:

It’s never a good sign to be featured by the World Economic Forum. OMERS also plays along with the climate change scam. It claims that such considerations will be factored into all future decisions.

Climate change is one of the defining issues of our time. We believe that as institutional investors, we have an important role to play as the world transitions to a lower carbon economy. We are focused on growing sustainably, by developing partnerships across our portfolio and finding new investment opportunities that support the transition

OMERS has endorsed the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) as it believes it is a helpful standard to deliver the information investors need to assess climate risk. We believe that engaging with our portfolio companies where climate change presents material risks, and striving to improve overall reporting and transparency, will enhance our understanding of the financial risks posed by climate change on our portfolio.

Like with other pension funds and investment companies, there appears to be a deliberate effort to embrace the green agenda laid out by Governments and their handlers. This happens even when it’s not necessarily what’s best for the plan holders.

Things are rarely as simple as they appear.

(1) https://www.blacklocks.ca/anands-husband-is-director/
(2) https://www.linkedin.com/in/anita-indira-anand-9857b229/
(3) https://globalnews.ca/news/8428125/covid-border-testing-rules-canada/
(4) https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-knowlton-aa0a55153/
(5) John Knowlton LinkedIn Profile
(6) https://www.linkedin.com/in/blake-hutcheson-55403218b/
(7) https://www.linkedin.com/company/borealis-infrastructure/
(8) https://www.omersinfrastructure.com/investments
(9) Knowlton OMERS Infrastructure – Investments
(10) https://www.omersinfrastructure.com/sustainable-investing
(11) https://www.weforum.org/organizations/omers
(12) Knowlton OMERS _ World Economic Forum
(13) https://www.sec.gov/comments/s7-05-18/s70518-3647325-162406.pdf
(14) https://lobbycanada.gc.ca/app/secure/ocl/lrs/do/advSrch
(15) https://lobbycanada.gc.ca/app/secure/ocl/lrs/do/vwRg?cno=16669&regId=911599
(16) https://lobbyist.oico.on.ca/Pages/Public/PublicSearch/SearchResults.aspx
(17) https://www.linkedin.com/in/jim-burnett-583a436b/
(18) Jim Burnett LinkedIn Profile
(19) https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-gardiner-3b11726/
(20) Michael Gardiner LinkedIn Profile
(21) https://www.sasklobbyistregistry.ca/search-the-registry/registration-details/?id=18429fcc

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Trudeau Using Taxpayer Money To Subsidize “Opposition” Parties, Liberals Too

Ever wonder why Erin O’Toole, Michelle Rempel-Garner, and the other so-called “Conservatives” never really push back on Trudeau? Isn’t it strange that the “Official Opposition” does next to nothing in the way of being an opposition? There may be another reason for this. Specifically, it may be that the CPC has been a recipient of CEWS, the wage subsidy. The Conservative Fund is essentially the fundraising/financial arm of the Conservative Party of Canada.

This isn’t just on the right. The New Democratic Party (NDP) of Canada also gets the same financing from the Liberal Government it claims to hate.

And who exactly is the the Federal Liberal Agency of Canada? Well, if you go on the Liberal Party of Canada website, at the bottom they explain that they are the registered agent for the LPC. This is another registered corporation.

Copyright 2021 Liberal Party of Canada. All Rights Reserved. Authorized by the Federal Liberal Agency of Canada, registered agent for the Liberal Party of Canada

In other words, the group that runs the financial operations of the Liberal Party are financially benefitting from policies like the CEWS Program, which Trudeau enacted. Talk about a conflict of interest.

The United Conservative Association, as is obvious, is the group that runs the UCP in Alberta. This is headed by Jason Kenney, a globalist ex-Bilderberger, and current Premier of Alberta. Interestingly, the Alberta Liberals are also on the dole.

Out in B.C., the Green Party (which used to be in a coalition with John Horgan’s B.C. Liberals) has also been getting CEWS.

This is pretty screwy, isn’t it? As politicians are forcing people to shut down their businesses, they enact policies which profit their own parties. Of course, this is in addition to rules which allow donors to write off the bulk of their contributions with the Canada Revenue Agency.

Also worth a review is the previous article. It outlined how several Bar Associations, and hundreds of law firms in Canada were getting bailed out by Trudeau. Just a thought, but perhaps they don’t want this to end anytime soon.

Just to reiterate, the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy is just one program that these organizations would be eligible to collect from.

Where’s the independent media on this? Turn out many of them, such as True North, are getting the subsidies as well. So does the National Citizens Coalition, which employs Spencer Fernando. Naturally, mainstream outlets like Postmedia, Bell, Rogers, and Torstar are pocketing these funds, and others. Perhaps this is why no one will come clean with the public on how widespread it is.

Moral of the story: if you’re not following the money, you’re flying blind as to what’s really going on.

(1) https://canucklaw.ca/law-firms-bar-associations-receiving-canada-emergency-wage-subsidy-cews/
(2) https://apps.cra-arc.gc.ca/ebci/hacc/cews/srch/pub/bscSrch (see new link)
(3) https://www.ic.gc.ca/app/scr/cc/CorporationsCanada/fdrlCrpDtls.html?corpId=4207246&V_TOKEN=null&crpNm=conservative%20fund&crpNmbr=&bsNmbr=
(4) https://www.dnb.com/business-directory/company-profiles.conservative_fund_canada.bf182781d80aa3a6f5fa6d597acaed27.html
(5) https://opengovca.com/corporation/2105128
(6) https://www.ownndp.ca/wp/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/model-federal-constitution.pdf
(7) https://albertacorporations.com/united-conservative-association
(8) https://static.unitedconservative.ca/United-Conservative-Party-Bylaws-Approved-October-17.-2020.pdf
(9) https://liberal.ca/
(10) https://www.ic.gc.ca/app/scr/cc/CorporationsCanada/fdrlCrpDtls.html?corpId=929085&V_TOKEN=null&crpNm=liberal&crpNmbr=&bsNmbr=
(11) https://www.can1business.com/company/Active/The-Federal-Liberal-Agency-Of-Canada

RESOURCES FOR MEDIA ACTING AS COUNTER-INTELLIGENCE
(A) https://canucklaw.ca/media-subsidies-to-counter-online-misinformation-groups-led-by-political-operatives/
(B) https://canucklaw.ca/taxpayer-grants-to-fight-misinformation-in-media-including-more-pandemic-bucks/
(C) https://canucklaw.ca/counter-intelligence-firms-to-influence-elections-canada-and-abroad-registered-as-charities/
(D) https://canucklaw.ca/more-pandemic-bucks-for-disinformation-prevention-locally-and-abroad-civix/
(E) https://canucklaw.ca/disinfowatch-ties-to-atlas-network-connected-to-lpc-political-operatives/
(F) https://canucklaw.ca/phac-supporting-science-up-first-online-counter-misinformation-group/
(G) https://canucklaw.ca/rockefeller-spends-13-5-million-to-combat-misinformation-in-u-s-elsewhere/
(H) https://canucklaw.ca/poynter-self-claimed-factchecking-group-funded-by-media-giants/
(I) https://canucklaw.ca/journalism-trust-initiative-trusted-news-initiative-project-origin-the-trust-project/
(J) https://canucklaw.ca/coalition-for-content-provenance-and-authenticity-c2pa-project-origin-content-authenticity-initiative/
(K) https://canucklaw.ca/public-media-alliance-brussels-declaration-protecting-journalists-media-freedom/
(L) Institute For Strategic Dialogue: Partners, Funding

EVEN MORE MEDIA SUBSIDIES
(A) https://canucklaw.ca/media-1-unifor-denies-crawling-into-bed-with-government/
(B) https://canucklaw.ca/media-in-canada-obedient-to-govt-covid-narrative-largely-because-of-subsidies/
(C) https://canucklaw.ca/postmedia-subsidies-connections-may-explain-lack-of-interest-in-real-journalism/
(D) https://canucklaw.ca/postmedia-gets-next-round-of-pandemic-bucks-from-taxpayers-in-2021/
(E) https://canucklaw.ca/nordstar-capital-torstar-corp-metroland-media-group-more-subsidies-pandemic-bucks/
(F) https://canucklaw.ca/aberdeen-publishing-sells-out-takes-those-pandemic-bucks-to-push-narrative/
(G) https://canucklaw.ca/many-other-periodicals-receiving-the-pandemic-bucks-in-order-to-push-the-narrative/
(H) https://canucklaw.ca/cv-37i-tri-city-news-pulls-article-where-bonnie-henry-admits-false-positives-could-overwhelm-system/

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IMM #5(D): Remittances – Where Is The Money Actually Going?

It’s one thing to talk about remittances being sent abroad, but where is it going? A quick look at the top recipients shows an unsurprising result. The largest amounts of money are sent to places which bring the most people to Canada annually. This has China, India and the Philippines at the top of the list.

The exact formula for these projections isn’t released, but it’s likely due to limited surveys, information from financial institutions and organizations, and some extrapolation. The numbers can’t be taken as exact, but just a rough idea of what’s going on. StatsCan also has its own estimates.

Pew Research On Remittances From Canada In 2017 (Top 60)

RANK DESTINATION ESTIMATED AMOUNT RUNNING TALLY
1 China $4,144,000,000 $4,144,000,000
2 India* $2,877,000,000 $7,021,000,000
3 Philippines $2,370,000,000 $9,391,000,000
4 France $1,297,000,000 $10,688,000,000
5 Italy $1,072,000,000 $11,760,000,000
6 Vietnam $953,000,000 $12,713,000,000
7 Lebanon* $853,000,000 $13,566,000,000
8 Germany $810,000,000 $14,376,000,000
9 United States $662,000,000 $15,038,000,000
10 United Kingdom $569,000,000 $15,607,000,000
11 Pakistan* $562,000,000 $16,169,000,000
12 Sri Lanka $488,000,000 $16,617,000,000
13 Belgium $459,000,000 $17,076,000,000
14 Hungary $436,000,000 $17,512,000,000
15 Nigeria $436,000,000 $17,948,000,000
16 Portugal $409,000,000 $18,357,000,000
17 Poland $341,000,000 $18,698,000,000
18 South Korea $327,000,000 $19,025,000,000
19 Jamaica $315,000,000 $19,340,000,000
20 Bermuda $285,000,000 $19,625,000,000
21 Egypt $269,000,000 $19,894,000,000
22 Netherlands $181,000,000 $20,075,000,000
23 Czech Republic $177,000,000 $20,252,000,000
24 El Salvador $157,000,000 $20,409,000,000
25 Mexico $156,000,000 $20,565,000,000
26 Japan $153,000,000 $20,718,000,000
27 Haiti $144,000,000 $20,862,000,000
28 Guatemala $142,000,000 $21,004,000,000
29 Romania $139,000,000 $21,143,000,000
30 Hong Kong $136,000,000 $21,279,000,000
31 Austria $133,000,000 $21,412,000,000
32 Kenya $123,000,000 $21,535,000,000
33 Croatia $119,000,000 $21,654,000,000
34 Morocco $114,000,000 $21,768,000,000
35 Colombia $113,000,000 $21,881,000,000
36 Ukraine $108,000,000 $21,989,000,000
37 Spain $107,000,000 $22,096,000,000
38 Denmark $101,000,000 $22,197,000,000
39 Australia $98,000,000 $22,295,000,000
40 Switzerland $91,000,000 $22,386,000,000
41 Iran $90,000,000 $22,476,000,000
42 Ghana $82,000,000 $22,558,000,000
43 Thailand $79,000,000 $22,637,000,000
44 Bangladesh $78,000,000 $22,715,000,000
45 Uganda $76,000,000 $22,791,000,000
46 Israel* $71,000,000 $22,862,000,000
47 Sweden $66,000,000 $22,928,000,000
48 Serbia $62,000,000 $22,990,000,000
49 Slovakia $62,000,000 $23,052,000,000
50 Guyana $59,000,000 $23,111,000,000
51 Russia $59,000,000 $23,179,000,000
52 Peru $57,000,000 $23,227,000,000
53 Tanzania $57,000,000 $23,284,000,000
54 Qatar $54,000,000 $23,338,000,000
55 South Africa $52,000,000 $23,390,000,000
56 Jordan $48,000,000 $23,438,000,000
57 Algeria $45,000,000 $23,483,000,000
58 Bosnia-Herzegovina $41,000,000 $23,524,000,000
59 Ecuador $39,000,000 $23,563,000,000
60 Finland $38,000,000 23,601,000,000
n/a All Others $958,000,000 $24,559,000,000

*Indicates not all transactions between certain countries can be estimated.

Pew Research is just one group that tracks and estimates remittances by country in a particular year. They put that figure for money leaving Canada in 2017 to be about $24.6 billion. To be fair, these are calculated to a large degree by computer modelling, so take it with a grain of salt. Still, it’s a starting place to look.

Pew and the World Bank openly admit that remittances are used by many countries to prop up their economies to a large degree.

Now, an argument “could” be made that these remittances have an overall benefit globally, and there’s the poverty reduction aspect. But in that case, public officials should just be honest about it, and not pretend that the aim is all to benefit the host country.

The United States is believed to be the largest source of remittances, with about $150 billion sent abroad annually.

The World Bank has written in opposition to the idea of taxing remittances. They openly admit that it would significantly cut into the amount of money the destination country receives.

There’s more to it than simply sending money abroad. Keep in mind, restaurants and hotels are among the largest users of programs like for Temporary Foreign Workers. For the last 2 years, they have been heavily subsidized by the taxpayers. Chains are included in this list as well.

As for agriculture workers, Ottawa has been using public money to subsidize the quarantine costs of people entering the country. Now, we’re not going to actually stop the entry of people coming in during a “deadly pandemic”, with high unemployment levels. The Government will just use tax dollars to offset a financial burden imposed on employers.

Why would businesses be supporting these programs for all these years? It’s economical to. Simply put, increasing the supply of labour drives down the relative value, or wages. Also, it’s much easier to support a family in a country with a lower cost of living, even with the remittance fees.

Anyhow, just something to think about when it’s reported that we need more and more people to come here. There are other factors at play.

(1) https://www.statcan.gc.ca/en/blog/cs/sending-money
(2) https://www.pewresearch.org/global/interactives/remittance-flows-by-country/
(3) https://apps.cra-arc.gc.ca/ebci/hacc/cews/srch/pub/bscSrch
(4) https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/01/29/remittances-from-abroad-are-major-economic-assets-for-some-developing-countries/
(5) https://search.open.canada.ca/en/qp/id/aafc-aac,AAFC-2021-QP-00003
(6) https://blogs.worldbank.org/peoplemove/why-taxing-remittances-bad-idea
(7) https://canucklaw.ca/imm-5c-remittances-remain-high-even-as-unemployment-rates-soared-in-2020/
(8) https://canucklaw.ca/imm-5b-global-remittances-hidden-costs-of-immigration/

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Ottawa Doling Out Grants For Development Of Artificial Intelligence, Job Market To Be Crushed

An issue that isn’t covered often enough is the role of automation and artificial intelligence on the labour market. While employment rates rise and fall, the prevalence of these new technologies is certain to have devastating effects on the amount of jobs available.

What happens when large numbers of people find that their fields no longer exist? What happens when professionals who have spent decades learning a trade or skill see it evaporate almost overnight? The long and short term effects of this are something essential to cover.

It should be noted that many who champion this next industrial revolution are also advocates of open borders and mass economic immigration. They also support so-called free trade, or globalization, which sees companies outsourced simply to reduce production costs. What happens when these are combined? In terms of supply and demand, this isn’t difficult to figure out.

[1] Continue high levels of immigration
[2] Outsource work to 3rd world to reduce costs (where possible)
[3] Slash available jobs and industries to work in locally

It gets even worse. Not only is this happening in Canada, but large amounts of taxpayer money are used to accelerate the collapse of the job market. The examples below are just a portion of what is being handed out under the title of “artificial intelligence”.

ORGANIZATION DATE AMOUNT
AbCellera Biologics Inc. Apr. 14, 2020 $175,631,000
AIMS Global Secretariat Aug. 26, 2020 $2,500,000
Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute Jul. 12, 2019 $2,750,000
Algolux Inc. Mar. 1, 2021 $667,000
AltaML Inc. Nov. 23, 2020 $1,000,000
Apollo Machine & Welding Ltd. Apr. 1, 2021 $581,500
Association des médecins vétérinaires practiciens Apr. 9, 2021 $998,456
Ayogo Health Inc. Oct. 2, 2018 $1,730,740
BoG of NorQuest Col & Concordia Uni Dec. 30, 2019 $1,150,000
CAE Inc. Jul. 16, 2018 $150,000,000
CAE Inc. Jan. 28, 2021 $190,000,000
Canadensys Aerospace Corporation Oct. 8, 2020 $2,498,664
Canadian Agri-Food Automation and Intelligence Network Inc. Jul. 6, 2020 $49,500,000
Canadian Agri-Food Automation and Intelligence Network Inc. Jul. 7, 2020 $30,000,000
Canadian Forage and Grassland Association Jul. 3, 2020 $996,032
Carleton University Aug. 15, 2019 $1,500,000
Circle Cardiovascular Imaging Inc. Nov. 19, 2020 $2,647,000
COENCORP Consultant Corporation May 1, 2021 $600,000
Cognitive Systems Corp. Aug. 22, 2018 $7,268,261
COREM Aug. 8, 2019 $860,000
Council of Canadian Academies Jan. 7, 2020 $1,147,956
Eddyfi NDT inc. Nov. 9, 2018 $1,550,675
Ecoation Innovative Solutions Inc. Aug. 24, 2020 $3,875,000
Element AI Inc. Jun. 10, 2020 $20,000,000
Enns Brothers Ltd. Jul. 1, 2020 $660,000
Fluidigm Canada Inc. Jun. 1, 2018 $650,000
Giatec Scientific Inc. Oct. 1, 2018 $800,000
Genov, Roman Apr. 1, 2017 $1,136,025
Governors of the University of Alberta Oct. 29, 2018 $2,500,000
Governing Council of the University of Toronto Aug. 3, 2018 $25,000,000
Governing Council of the University of Toronto Mar. 30, 2019 $17,000,000
Governing Council of the University of Toronto Dec. 1, 2020 $1,254,375
Imagia Cybernétique Inc. Aug. 31, 2018 $1,000,000
Information Technology Association of Canada Nov. 1, 2018 $1,980,358
Linamar Corporation Jul. 6, 2018 $49,000,000
Lytica Inc Nov. 6, 2019 $1,080,000
Mckee Demczyk, Debbie Mar. 7, 2018 $2,000,000
McMaster University Oct. 18, 2019 $1,479,441
MindBridge Analytics Inc. May 1, 2019 $14,500,000
Miru Smart Technologies Corp. Apr. 1, 2021 $600,000
Mission Control Space Services Inc. Feb. 3, 2021 $3,042,959
Montréal International Jul. 9, 2020 $9,480,000
North Inc. Nov. 8, 2018 $24,000,000
North Inc. Oct 31, 2018 $24,000,000
Octopusapp Inc. Sep. 1, 2020 $3,000,000
OCED Aug. 27, 2020 $982,000
Purdie, Thomas G Apr. 1, 2013 $651,061
Savormetrics Inc. Nov. 30, 2018 $867,000
Scale.AI Mar. 15, 2018 $229,765,127
Sheikhzadeh, Mehdi Mar. 7, 2018 $2,000,000
SSIMWAVE Apr. 1, 2019 $4,232,550
Sunnybrook Research Institute May 21, 2019 $49,000,000
Tangent Design Engineering Ltd. Feb. 1, 2017 $600,000
Tangent Design Engineering Ltd. Aug. 1, 2021 $700,000
Technologies Numetrix inc. Jun. 8, 2021 $608,288
Teledyne Digital Imaging Inc. Jul. 15, 2020 $1,000,000
Terry Fox Research Institute & Imagia Cybernetics Inc. Aug. 28, 2020 $49,000,000
Tessonics Inc. Apr. 1, 2021 $600,000
University of British Columbia Jan. 1, 2020 $1,203,433
University of Manitoba Mar. 5, 2021 $1,603,078
Valacta Limited Partnership Dec. 2, 2019 $566,617
Vineland Research and Innovation Centre Apr. 1, 2018 $4,138,197

This is by no means all of the grants, just the larger ones listed.

Keep in mind, while Canada continues to bring record numbers of people into the country, we are automating entire industries. This will lead to massive losses of employment for those already here. The result is far more people, competing for far fewer positions. This sort of thing typically leads to much lower wages and benefits.

Getting artificial intelligence into aerospace and highly technical fields seems harmless enough, but it’s not going to stop there. Proponents of the AI trend never seem to realize that their jobs can also be automated out of existence as well.

This AI push will also impact the low skill market as well, and nothing is off the table. One such grant involves spending over $4 million to implement AI into the agricultural industry, and to automate a lot of the more “low skill” work. Another grant was for $30,000,000. Depending on the locations, this could mean the lack of any other options for many.

Far from being hyperbolic, automation replacing jobs has happened for decades, and will continue to do so. The service industry seems to be next on the list. Does anyone seriously think that workers will be hired back once replaced by robots? What happens to the people who can’t find work as a result of this?

Without an alternative in place for the people impacted by these drastic changes, expect chaos and instability to result from this initiative.

An interesting side note: the “political left” typically opposes free trade and globalization for the reason that it undercuts wages, and sees jobs shipped overseas. In short, decent work disappears. Mass automation will have much the same effect, and yet, silence from those same activists. How strange.

As for the “political right”: how exactly does gutting entire industries help secure an economic recovery? This trend is surely going to get worse.

Seriously, who thought this was a good idea for society?

(1) https://search.open.canada.ca/en/gc
(2) https://search.open.canada.ca/en/gc/?sort=agreement_start_date_s%20desc&page=1&search_text=artificial%20intelligence
(3) https://search.open.canada.ca/en/gc/id/csa-asc,003-2020-2021-Q4-04881,current
(4) https://search.open.canada.ca/en/gc/id/aafc-aac,235-2018-2019-Q3-00066,current
(5) https://search.open.canada.ca/en/gc/id/ic,230-2021-2022-Q1-0143,current
(6) https://www.cnbc.com/2021/10/22/restaurants-looking-for-labor-and-speed-turn-to-robots-.html

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True North Needs To Update Its Disclaimer About Being Independent….

The following is attached to the bottom of every article. There’s nothing inherently wrong with asking readers, clients, customers, etc…. for money for providing a product or service. After all, bills do need to be paid, and it’s reasonable for people to be compensated for their time. This isn’t an argument against this practice.

All of that being said, if your organization is funded by the Government, be honest about it. Don’t lie, especially when it’s so easy to check out.

We’re asking readers, like you, to make a contribution in support of True North’s fact-based, independent journalism.
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Unlike the mainstream media, True North isn’t getting a government bailout. Instead, we depend on the generosity of Canadians like you.
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How can a media outlet be trusted to remain neutral and fair if they’re beneficiaries of a government handout? We don’t think they can.
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This is why independent media in Canada is more important than ever. If you’re able, please make a tax-deductible donation to True North today. Thank you so much.

CEWS, the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy Program, has been around since the Spring of 2020. As the name implies, it pays a large part of a company’s wages. This is typically the biggest expense businesses have. This would be especially true for an online media company.

This may be a reference to the infamous $600 million media bailout Trudeau announced back in 2018. However, that was just one of many schemes going back decades to subsidize and prop up Canadian media. There are plenty of these handouts, documented extensively on this site.

It’s worth pointing out that many True North contributors also either work for or have worked for the Postmedia empire. This conglomerate has subsidized long before CEWS came along. And about those “tax deductible donations” they are asking for…

In 1994, a charity called the Independent Immigration Aid Association was formed. It was a resettlement program for people wishing to get to British Columbia. In 2017, this was repurposed as a media outlet called True North Centre for Public Policy. Press Progress covered it in detail. The most likely reason for doing this — and not starting a charity from scratch — was that it would involve less work, costs, and scrutiny from Revenue Canada.

While claiming not to get Government bailouts or handouts, True North has been subjected to a much more favourable tax scheme with its charity setup. One might view that as milking the taxpayer.

It seems the mainstream and alternative medias are just 2 sides of the same Trudeau-funded coin.

(1) https://tnc.news/2021/11/22/trudeau-re-opens-roxham-road-to-illegal-border-crossers/
(2) https://apps.cra-arc.gc.ca/ebci/hacc/cews/srch/pub/bscSrch
(3) https://ic.gc.ca/app/scr/cc/CorporationsCanada/fdrlCrpDtls.html?corpId=2643260&V_TOKEN=null&crpNm=true%20north&crpNmbr=&bsNmbr=
(4) https://apps.cra-arc.gc.ca/ebci/hacc/srch/pub/dsplyRprtngPrd?q.srchNmFltr=true+north+centre&q.stts=0007&selectedCharityBn=132703448RR0001&dsrdPg=1
(5) https://pressprogress.ca/right-wing-media-outlet-accredited-for-leaders-debate-is-also-registered-as-a-charity-for-immigrants/