This Week's Just A Minute Thoughts

JAM Thoughts From This Past Week - May 5th - May 9th 2025. Follow the Daily JAM at justcaws.ca

May 5th

Congrats to the Winnipeg Jets for winning game 7 in double OT. Winterpeg doesn’t have much, so good for them.

But no matter where in Canada hockey is certainly part of this country’s DNA. We have 7 teams in the NHL. 2 of them are named after us and 3 have a maple leaf on their sweaters (we don’t say jersey Americans).

The other thing that many Canadians point to in defining this country is our healthcare system. Sad part is that universal healthcare is not all that unique among developed countries not named the USA. Our system also at the risk of sounding unpatriotic, is not that great. It’s not a slam dunk that it’s even better than the American system. Ours is cheaper, but you do get what you pay for.

In the States your health insurance for most Americans is a benefit provided by your employers private insurance. As long as you stay employed you’re going to be fine. The problem in their system is what happens when you lose your job and you or one of your kids get sick. The other issue occurs when a condition or disease is discovered while employed. You should be covered under your existing plan, but all bets are off if you change jobs and insurance companies. It’s also risky for sick or injured young Americans who turn 25 and are kicked off their parents' plan before finding stable work like Luigi Mangione. Where the scales tip to favouring the American system over Canada’s is when you hit 65 - when most people will lean heavily on the healthcare system.

At 65 and older Americans are entitled to heavily subsidized insurance (Medicare) by the federal government and full coverage by the feds and states for low income Americans (MedicAid).

The Canadian system is great for acute care coverage no matter your employment status or pre existing conditions. But our drug and rehab coverage is quite limited compared to what American seniors will receive.

So whose system is better - it depends, but now all those Albertans wanting to leave Canada can decide.

May 6th

Mark Carney’s job as PM really begins today with his meeting with Trump in Washington. It will be must-see TV at least for Canadians on how he is received and whether there is a reset in tone from Trump and our relationship with our number one trading partner. Trumps does seem to revel in yanking our chain so the idea that everything will get back to normal after this get together does feel like wishful thinking. Even yesterday, he was telling reporters he wasn’t sure why Carney was coming, so get your popcorn as this meeting will probably shape the Canadian news cycle for at least a few days.

Yesterday ended with an Alberta separation comment. I don’t see it happening, but I do believe the sentiment to leave is louder and in greater numbers to be easily dismissed. This will be the other big test for Carney in seeing if he and his government is in fact a departure from the other guy. I don’t believe most eastern Canadians give Alberta it’s due for the wealth that province shares with others in confederation. Listening to the Albertans I know who live there, it doesn’t sound like they are going to leave, but they would like a little more respect for paying the bills - especially from Quebec, a perennial freeloader. Transfer or equalization payments between provinces are a cornerstone of our nation building to create a level playing field of prosperity. But I am not sure many younger Canadians are aware of their existence and chronic imbalance they try to counter. If the Wexit movement does catch hold expect this to be one of the main complaints they want addressed.

May 7th

Well in terms of tangible results or announcements the meeting between Trump and Carney delivered very little. I guess the fact that Carney didn’t get ambushed like Zelensky is a good thing, but it doesn’t sound like going back to the way things were. Trump was rather assertive that he doesn’t want Canadian made cars, steel or aluminium in America. This is going to hit Canada’s economy very hard, but at least we have as much clarity as can be expected from a Trump administration.

Carney will now have to shift focus to our response and see if he can actually get digging and fast track the resource development projects he promised during the campaign. That should appease Alberta and take the lid off any separation steam building.

I must say right now, my biggest concern is the tension arising between the on-off-