It's Canada's 150th Birthday And Here Are 50 Things We Really Need To Talk About
Hey Canada,
It's coming up to your 150th Birthday this week. As a citizen of this beautiful country, there are a lot of things to celebrate. Your beautiful landscapes, bill C-16, and fairly great health care (er...I'll get to this later).
But, Canada, I think we need to have a talk. There are a whole lot of things that I can't stop thinking about things that make it difficult for me to feel in a "party" mood. Things like our disproportionate suicide rates among Indigenous youth, or racial profiling, or our cruddy sex worker laws, to name a few.
The historical moment we will commemorate on July 1st is the year of Confederation (1867) — "a bunch of old white guys signing a document that bound a loose collection of provinces controlled by the British Empire into a vague and discontented unity without the slightest consideration of or participation by the First Peoples."
Resistance 150, an indigenous political movement, is planning to disrupt the anniversary itself.
No matter how much Avril Lavigne I blast through my apartment, I can't help but feel a pit in my stomach about this whole Canada 150 thing.
I know that it is hard to think about these things, especially when we are known for being polite and kindhearted. To look ourselves in the mirror and say, "crap, we've been doing this all wrong," is never an easy thing.
But, Canada, I don't think I'm alone when I say that I wish this party was going a little bit differently. Instead of shouting our pride, I want to be the ones who lean over and listen to the quietest voice in the room. So, I've made a list of 37 things that I think we ought to be thinking about, talking about, prioritizing.
This is going to be a tough conversation, Canada, but I hope it will be the beginning of something good.
1. Canada 150 is a lie
Let's get this big thing out of the way. Canada 150 is catchy, sure, but it certainly doesn't do proper justice to our Indigenous population, who have called this land their home for 15,000+ years.
The year we are celebrating, 1867, is the year of Confederation. The day that we are celebrating, July 1st, is the day when a bunch of white settler men signed a document that "bound a loose collection of provinces controlled by the British Empire into a vague and disconnected unity without the slightest consideration of or participation by the First Peoples.
Since then, we have "celebrated" 150 years of cultural genocide aimed at our Indigenous populations.
150 years ago, genocide. Not acknowledged.
http://torontoist.com/2017/04/...
(http://www.cbc.ca/news/busines...)
(http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...)
2. Support of cultural appropriation in the literary scene
https://www.thestar.com/news/g...
Something I'm proud of: Props to the crew that started the Indigenous writers award to counter the award. http://www.cbc.ca/news/indigen...
3. People just can't seem to understand why uniformed police weren't welcome to march in Pride this year
http://www.knowable.com/a/reve...
4. Our corrupt correctional system. Prisons are the new residential schools
http://www.macleans.ca/news/ca...
5. Our drug problem
Fentynal. Drugs treated like law, not mental health or recreational.
https://www.theglobeandmail.co...
6. Our treatment of seniors
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
7. our prime ministers ability to charm his way out of responsibility by looking good
8. Racial profiling
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/m...
9. Transphobia
http://www.cbc.ca/news/opinion...
Something I'm proud of: The passing of bill ofidofj
10. Our improper way of addressing pedophilia
https://www.thestar.com/news/i...
11. Food waste
http://www.cbc.ca/news/busines...
(we waste more food every year than is necessary to solve world hunger)
12. Homelessness
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
13. Our lassaiz-faire treatment of white collar crime is a testament to our privileging of certain classes of people
(http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...)
14. Cultural appropriation on the commercial level
https://thewalrus.ca/on-cultur...
15. Racism in our LGBTQ community
http://www.independent.co.uk/v...
16. The growing cost of post-secondary tuition and young adult debt
http://globalnews.ca/news/2924...
17. Home grown terrorism
18. The number of bankrupt Canadians is rising
http://globalnews.ca/news/3336...
19. Our sex worker laws are crud
(http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...)
20. There are over 50 endangered species in Canada
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Wildlife_Species_at_Risk_(Canada)
21. Our foster care crisis
https://www.theglobeandmail.co...
22. Gay men STILL can't donate blood
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2...
23. A lack of diversity on board of directors (and in leadership in general)
https://www.boarddiversity.ca/...
24. We still have a wage gap ...and it's getting wider
https://www.theglobeandmail.co...
http://www.cbc.ca/news/busines...
25. Our health care that we're so proud of? It's not that great
26. Suicide rates among Indigenous youth
(http://www.cbc.ca/news/opinion...) (http://www.cbc.ca/news2/intera...)
27. Mental health resources for university students
https://www.thestar.com/news/c...
http://www.macleans.ca/educati...
28. Our literacy and numeracy rates are nothing to be proud of
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2...
29. Even our best and brightest struggle to find work
http://www.macleans.ca/economy...
30. 4 of our major cities have dangerously high air pollution
http://www.besthealthmag.ca/be...
31. Toronto is having a housing crisis
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2...
32. We treat veteran PTSD as a joke
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
33. The church is still involved in major decisions about our country
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/d...
34. We're at a demographic tipping point
http://www.cbc.ca/news/busines...
35. Tampons and pads are still not government subsidized
https://www.thestar.com/news/g...
36. Many Canadian towns still can't afford to have a recycling program. Most cities and towns don't have a green bin program
http://www.buschsystems.com/en...
37. The 13th month for Canadian refugees
http://www.macleans.ca/news/ca...
38. Our pipe line
http://www.cbc.ca/news/politic...
39. Xenophobia
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/m...
40. The pinkwashing of Pride
http://canadianart.ca/features...
corporate opportunism at it's finest!
41. The way our courts handle sexual assault cases (and sexual assault survivors)
42. The exclusivity of academia
43.
Hard as we might try, not everyone is meant to be friends with one another.
Sometimes, people have just basic compatibility issues that prevent them from ever becoming particularly close.
Which doesn't mean they necessarily dislike each other... most of the time.
In some cases, people find others so resistible that the word "hate" comes swiftly to mind.
When asked why people hate certain individuals or types of people, however, they find themselves at a loss for words as to why.
Likely owing to the fact that they don't have a single justifiable reason.
"Who do you irrationally hate for no good reason?"
...Oxymoron?...
"Nobody. I have good reasons for everyone I irrationally hate."- PrudentOwlet
You Meet All Kinds...
"People at the airport."- slapmewithabrick
Might Pose A Problem In The Office
"Sandra from HR."- Waste_Drop8898
There Were Literally Two Possible Answers!
"People that make an easy yes or no answer into a long conversation."- Gods-little-mistake
Driving Too Slowly Is Also Dangerous...
"People who walk or drive slightly slower than my preferred speed."
"Especially if they cut me off first."- Dragon_wryter
All Those Years In Bed, He Could Have Been Working...
"Grandpa Joe."
"I hate him."
"And not just because he went to the chocolate factory."
"He was an a**hole from the beginning to the literal end of that movie."
"Every chance he had not to be a d*ck, he was a d*ck."
"Smoking while your family eats cabbage water?"
"Complaining about cabbage water?"
"A kid falls into a river of chocolate or turns into a blueberry?"
"F*ck that get 'we getting all that chocolate.'"
"Got caught for stealing, and his solution is to go to Slugsworth."
"I mean everything this dude did was so f*cking selfish."
"I have been ranting about this for 20 years and can through the movie point by point."
"All the f*cking around he did and this dude NEVER found out."
"Nah he just got to live on a chocolate factory, still smoking and still rent free."
"I hate him with a burning, fiery passion."- Strange-Courage-8602
Is That The Only Speed They Come In?
"People who talk really really slowly."
"No idea why but it SCRATCHES MY BRAIN to the core when someone talks slowly or takes FOREVER to get to the point of their story."
"Need a fkn fast forward button."- Kittypie01
They're Probably No Better At Wordle
"Wheel of Fortune contestants who buy the last vowel 'I’ll go ahead and buy the A'."
"Why, you dummy?"- firematika
Sidewalks Are A Shared Space
"Slow walkers or group walkers, like move you fkn idiot."
"Ppl have places to be."- Heretoconfirmrumors
Not A Word
"Those who say 'irregardless'."- TaxidermiedToddler
Either No Self Worth, Or Way Too Full Of Themselves
"Nearly everyone on any of these shows."
"Married at first sight."
"Love Island."
"Big Brother."
"Bachelor / Batchelorette."
"Nearly everyone called an 'influencer'."- Loose_Sun_169
Old Grudges Die Hard...
"It started a long time ago, but that doesn't matter."
"Just thinking about him still pisses me off."
"Dan from 8th grade."
"Maybe it was just his hair, or that stupid look on his face."
"I don't think we ever said one word to each other."
"Doesn't really matter."
"FU, Dan! "
"I hope your cats attack you and your dogs are all incontinent."
"I hope geese angrily flock to your every approach."
"I hope your wife likes spicier food than your soft weak midwestern palate can comfortably tolerate."
"I hope you get a mild case of food poisoning every time you travel so that you become subconsciously averse to the idea of traveling beyond whatever sad little town you call home."- PeteyMcPetey
Some people are just impossible to comprehend, for reasons we just can't quite put our fingers on.
But rather than try and figure it out, sometimes it's easiest just to say "I hate them", and leave it at that.
Sometimes we can all be a little oblivious.
The signs are there, and so are the red flags.
For instance, women are brilliant at throwing out subtle hints.
I feel like it's actually an art form they've mastered, and I've studied for my own villainous choices.
But for anyone interested in getting to know a woman, Reddit has got your back.
Redditor Sleepwithsockson7 wanted all the gents and ladies to fess up to the signs they were oblivious to, so they asked:
"What was the most obvious hint a girl gave you that you missed?"
I'm bad with signs.
I always miss them.
Think Hard
"She said that she was feeling different about me and that she couldn't stop thinking of me."
"My answer was 'Are you mad at me?'"
NotCopernicus
No Thanks
"I was on a hiking trip with my college, you paid like $40 and they gave you all the equipment and you spent a week or so with 15+ people and a few guides. We went to a hot spring, my tent got ripped, the guides had a spare but we hadn’t set it up yet. A lady sat in the hot spring with me, at night, and decided to go naked while I was in the spring with her."
"She then asked if I wanted to stay in her tent rather that put up the spare one. I said 'nah I can put up the spare one, I’m okay.' Took me 3 months to realize that she was literally naked and asking me to sleep with her."
Woodhouse_20
Oh Rochelle
"Back in college I was working with a girl named Rochelle. We both got off work around three am. I always walked her out to her car. One night she invited me to come to her apartment for 'pancakes.' Told her I appreciated it but I wasn't hungry. I didn't understand the weird, hurt look she gave me until years later."
JacksEmptyWallet
"It's 3 am after a long shift. I wouldn't have blamed you for being kind of dumb from tiredness and just wanting to go home after that."
LazarusKing
Broken
"I had this little penis dinosaur thing a friend 3-D printed. I had a girl over for dinner and she was playing with it and broke the tail. I was like 'you broke my penis!' And she said 'if only there was another one I could play with' she finished dinner, I walked her to her car, and I went inside. The moment my head hit the pillow I realized."
peter_piper_pecked
Seriously?
“'You know, I’ve never kissed a man with a beard.'”
My literal response was 'Yeah, me neither.'”
_Bearded_Dad
Wow. Really?
Perfect Loss
"We were at a sleepover and she played with my hair for like an hour and I woke up in her arms."
aUwUreliyasss
Just a Smile
"She ran after me to introduce herself at the end of class. The only interaction we had before was an across the room smile. I'm such as idiot."
"Also, during my first job, the boss made me check that the restrooms were clean. Well, one of my female coworkers decides she wants to 'help' me. She entered the men's restroom with me, making sure we were alone."
"I fumbled both times. Both of them were cute too."
Avix_34
Idiot
"I used to drive this girl to school. She lived on the other side of the district. Had to go past the school to pick her up everyday. Prom was coming up. She kept ‘complaining’ that she didn’t have a date. I told her not to worry, that she was really pretty, and someone was bound to ask her. I’m an idiot."
drink-beer-and-fight
Comfort Level
"Went to her place after a night out at the bar with a big group of friends. I thought she was just being nice and offering me a place to sleep closer to the bar, as it was winter and my house was far away."
"'Are you sure you wanna sleep on the couch? My room's more comfortable.'"
"'I'm good on the couch.'"
"Stupid me..."
PreviousTea9210
Figures
"Ages ago I was looking for a rare action figure and I asked this really hot goth sales clerk if they had it. She was totally into the line of toys as well and told me they usually get one per shipment so call on their delivery day to see if they got one. We then spent like 15 minutes talking about various comic and anime things before I had to leave."
"She stopped me and said 'if you call the store you might not get me so call me directly' and gave me her phone number. This was before cell phones so it was her home number and clearly would be useless for having her check if something was in stock.
"I found the figure the next day at a different store so I never called her."
DeaddyRuxpin
It's ME!
"One day, in class, a girl I was friends with told me there was a girl in her class that was into me."
"She said if I could guess who it was, she’d tell me. I proceeded to list just about every girl in her class before she caved and said 'Me! It’s me you idiot!' Maybe a normal person would have caught on before naming the 15th girl, lol."
TheCyrcus
Oh people. Open your eyes!
Have you ever missed a super obvious hint? Let us know in the comments below.
People are crazy on dates.
The words I have heard uttered could send shivers down a dead person's spine.
Which is so mind-boggling.
Shouldn't we be putting our best foot forward?
Or maybe it's best when they just give you the whole crazy upfront to weed people out.
Is there such a thing as being too comfortable too soon anymore?
Redditor batmanstitty asked:
"What’s the worst thing a person has said to you while on a date?"
I once had a guy tell me he owned me.
Because of a Cosmo and a steak.
It wasn't even the temp I wanted.
You Know
"'I don't mind that you're... you know.' Waves hand vaguely at my body."
StrangersWithAndi
Flawed
"'I can tell you are an only child because you have major personality flaws.'"
OliveVizsla
"OH MAN. My parents had just the 1 kid. But to some ppl, I guess that marks me as some kind of socially demented freak. I don't think I'd be wrong in saying that is the very start of the very social problem they're talking about--and those vain pieces of trash are welcome to stay out of my orbit."
myflippinggoodness
Just 2?
"Wistfully after 2 wines... 'God, you are so amazing, such a shame you look like that.'"
bonjelascott
"I don't understand why people go on dates with people they aren't physically attracted to. Hell I don't understand why anyone stays in a relationship with someone they aren't physically attracted to."
juukkkkekr
"Blind dates, tinder dates where they don’t look like their pictures, dates where you love the personality so much that you assume over time you won’t care about physical attraction anymore."
S7WW3X
Over
"We had a fun night having a personal date and then we pull up to his house for his birthday party, where I’m about to meet his family for the first time. He turns to me and says, 'Oh btw my parents don’t like Mexicans.' I am Mexican."
"I was like, What do you want me to do with that information? He was like, just be yourself. I was like, no sh*t. I can’t be anyone else?? It was wild. They were polite but patronizing AF. Needless to say, that ended quick."
LosNava
"Been there before. Her dad looked at me like I was gonna rob the place. Didn’t last long, turns out it was just a rebound thing."
tuotone75
Maybe after dinner...
"'So, aren't you going to invite me to your place? I bought you lunch. You kind of owe me.' from a guy I met ONCE and had breath so bad I am surprised it didn't melt the fork."
randommusicfan
There is no lunch that requires payment after. Bye.
Lies
“You know that cancer is a hoax perpetuated by big pharma and the government preying on the uneducated, right!?!?' He says to me, a cancer survivor who’s life was f**king derailed by cancer."
AccomplishedCow9133
No big deal...
"First date from a dating app. I could tell he was maybe a touch too desperate based on the texts we exchanged. However, he was also whip-smart and almost finished with grad school, so I still agreed to go out. We didn’t have a spark, which I noticed immediately. On the other hand, he was oblivious to it. No big deal. Then, he suggests a walk after dinner. I agree like an idiot."
"On that walk he proceeds to tell me that his ex girlfriend cheated on him, that he thinks he’ll always love her, even though she cheated on him with his best friend, and she gave him an STD. And the worst thing I ever heard on a date was, 'But don’t worry- it’s one of the ones that clears up on its own.' NOPE."
thedivinemissemm
Trash Talk
"Not exactly a date, but at a dance when I was a teenager, I sat down for a breather after I'd been dancing for a long time. Right then a slow song started, and a couple girls came up, one of them introduced me to her friend and asked me to dance with her because nobody had asked her to dance yet."
"I felt really bad for her and said heck yeah, everybody deserves to dance. She spent the whole time talking about how I'm such a piece of garbage for sitting down when there are girls like her who haven't been asked to dance. I kept trying to change the subject, she just ignored me and kept trash talking me, so I walked away mid-dance."
ParkityParkPark
Wow, romance certainly as easy as they make it look in the movies!
Do you have any stories to share? Let us know in the comments below.
People Explain What They Would Do If They Instantly Got $30,000
Many of us have come into financially hard times, especially since the pandemic hit and the economy took a turn.
"Depression food" and "suffer food" have become popular topics on social media as people attempt to do more with fewer ingredients, and that's for good reason.
It makes perfect sense that people would want to daydream about what they would buy or invest in if they suddenly came into some money.
Pondering, Redditor positive-oceans asked:
"What would you do with $30,000 cash right now?"
Feel the Relief
"Get eight full hours of sleep."
- iDrGonzo
Looking Forward to That Taco Bell Order
"Pay off my credit card loans and maybe go get fast food for the first time in five years."
- Cautious-Marker-3131
Care for a Mother
"I'd help my mom out so she wouldn't be losing her home."
- Randyh524
A Slight Indulgence
"Buy 30,000 worth of bean burritos."
- Disastrous-Purpose-8
Back in Order
"Sadly, erase all my debt and move to a cheaper rental house. Yeah, that's pretty much all it would take to set everything back in order."
- SuperJohnBravo
Finally Debt-Free
"I have roughly 30k in debt between my car and student loans so that amount would be pretty awesome for me. I’d be debt free for the first time in my adult life."
- silverr90
Beat Cancer
"Get a reliable vehicle, stock up on stuff for the house, and not worry for a bit while I beat cancer."
- sugarandspice27
A Perfect Balance
"$15,000 on my mortgage, $10,000 into my savings, $5,000 on petty indulgences."
"Invest, save, treat yourself. A perfect balance."
- TheMightyGoatMan
Private Home Care
"Pay off my house and pay for a nurse for my dad who is dying on a ventilator so he can come home."
- DickeTittenn
Keep It Simple
"Save it."
- ZiggyStardustEP
Time to Downsize
"I'd put new windows and siding on my very large, 100-year-old house, sell it and buy a much smaller house. I live alone in this place and I never even go in half the rooms."
- OrwellWasRight101
Financial Security
"Pay off my debt and put 5K in savings so that I can finally be financially comfortable and never make the same financial mistakes (that I made in my twenties) ever again."
- DrewDiggles
Providing for Children
"Give it to my son so he can pay off his debts. The kid never had a break and he deserves it."
- Jealous_Resort_8190
Dental Makeover
"Get a dental makeover, had an accident as a kid and broke several grown teeth and while I don’t look too bad I still feel self-conscious about smiling."
"The current crowns that I have were put on in Guatemala, I know that traveling to Latinoamérica is cheaper but it’s hard especially when you have two little ones and a full-time job. Maybe when the little ones are older and more independent, I will give it another go in Guatemala, funny enough the dentist I saw there was a USC graduate."
- PauPauMoe
While it's fun to talking about winning the lottery and buying a million-dollar mansion, most of our needs and wants are far simpler.
Based on this thread, people just desperately want some financial security, less debt, a little more sleep at night, and maybe some occasional tacos or burgers.