Editorials - Oct. 16, 2026
Staying civil
As the fall municipal election reaches high gear, we have seen something not typically seen in our local political scene: mudslinging and negative campaigning. Some local municipal elections have turned ugly, with supporters of candidates resorting to name-calling and bullying each other in social media comments.
The tone of the campaign has degraded to the point where several candidates have made video statements, pleading with citizens to stop the bullying and negative commenting.
Respectful disagreement is expected in an election, with a wide range of opinions on how to improve our community without breaking the taxpayer bank, but there is no upside to the vitriol that has appeared on campaign posts. Candidates who can garner consensus rather than dissension are bound to have a more successful political career.
In a small town or a rural community, people are bound to have differing opinions and support opposing politicians, but at the end of the election, when the votes are tallied and one mayor or councillor prevails over another, everyone is still going to be living on the same street, with the same neighbours, shopping in the same stores and hanging out with the same people at the local Legion’s meat draw. – DS
Flying the flag
Going into last week, the headline-making Canadian with a shot at a Nobel Prize was Prime Minister Mark Carney. Far from a lock - he had been garnering one per cent odds, but the news-making aspect was that his odds were greater than those of U.S. President Donald Trump, who so deeply covets the award, despite being the greatest disrupter of peace, perhaps, in a generation - Carney was the countryman to whom Canadians pinned their hopes. Then along came Anne Carson.
An esteemed poet and essayist, Carson can now add this most prestigious prize to her list of accomplishments. This comes 13 years after Huron County’s own Alice Munro was similarly celebrated. Uncomplicated at the time, Munro’s legacy has been since clouded by the writings of her daughter Andrea Robin Skinner detailing abuse at the hands of Gerald Fremlin, Munro’s second husband, and Munro’s decision to stand by him after she was told of the abuse.
Carson’s win is a good one for Canada. Her reputation is ironclad - at least as this is written - and her writings can be a beacon for the young, aspiring Canadian writers. Like a Toronto Blue Jays’ World Series title or the excitement when the Raptors joined the NBA caused a ripple effect 15 or 20 years later with surges in youth baseball and basketball, perhaps a renewed interest in Carson’s work - book sales have swelled since her win - will buoy the Canadian poets of tomorrow.
Canadian culture has been a talking point as of late and one of our purveyors of literature and culture has won one of the most important international awards. At this point in time, that’s significant. – SL
Protest without protesting
Sometimes the most effective protest requires no placards, slogans or organizing committee. Canadians have demonstrated as much by reconsidering where they spend their money and the consequences are now becoming an election issue in Nevada. For a country accustomed to welcoming Canadian tourists and their considerable spending power, this is an uncomfortable lesson in the value of goodwill.
Donald Trump’s hostility towards Canada, from punitive tariffs to his “51st state” talk, has changed the atmosphere surrounding cross-border travel. Many Canadians are reconsidering American holidays, choosing domestic destinations or taking their money to countries where they feel more welcome. These decisions need not form part of a co-ordinated boycott to have an economic impact. When enough individuals change their plans, businesses notice.
There is little reason to celebrate the prospect of Nevada hotel workers losing shifts, restaurant staff receiving fewer tips or small businesses struggling to attract customers. Ordinary Americans are not responsible for every decision made in Washington, and many have welcomed Canadian visitors for generations. Nevertheless, sympathy for American workers does not oblige Canadians to keep spending money in a country whose leadership has repeatedly antagonized its neighbour.
Nevada’s predicament illustrates the connection between international relations and local prosperity. Tourism depends not only on attractions, accommodation and entertainment, but also on visitors feeling welcome. Perhaps American politicians should consider this before treating friendship with Canada as an entitlement. Goodwill is valuable precisely because it is freely given, and it cannot be sustained indefinitely through insults and economic threats.
Canadians need not issue ultimatums or organize elaborate campaigns. They can simply decide where to spend their hard-earned money. If those ordinary decisions become an election issue in Nevada, the lesson is unmistakable: staying home sends a message. – SBS