
I just returned last night from a ski trip to Searchmont, Ontario. The skiing was fun (until freezing rain made the slopes treacherous, and my son and I bailed out early). However, dealing with the Canadians' anal COVID-19 restrictions was a major pain-in-the ass, and I don't think I'll be returning to our northern neighbor for a long time.
Details shortly, but first let me say that my disillusionment with Canada is profound, and quite a bummer. Because, for many years, I've admired Canada and Canadians.
I have cousins in Ontario, and have attended several family reunions near Markdale, Ontario, a small town about 110 miles northwest of Toronto. Or "aboot 150 kilahmetahs," to imitate the Canadian accent. My great grandparents emigrated from Benbecula, Scotland to Ontario in the 1800s. Moreover, in 2007-2008, I held a government contract job that called for me to work at an office in downtown Windsor, Ontario several days a week. I got to know and like many Canadians. We had great conversations, and I benefited tremendously from hearing new perspectives.
It's true that most Canadian people seem laid back, slow to anger, down-to-earth, and friendly. By extension, Canadian culture as a whole has long appeared to represent the people. But a caveat: In Quebec as well as in many parts of Ontario, and to a lesser extent other provinces, there are many people of French descent. And even 15 years ago, I noticed that there are elitists in Canada whose religion is green this and sustainable that and Mother Earth. They have a one-track, condescending mind that's not grounded in reality -- one that parallels their heritage across the Atlantic. I suspect this French strain is responsible for the excesses of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and many of his Liberal Party cohorts.
And regrettably it seems that, like a cancer, the left has infiltrated Canadian society thoroughly -- institutions, schools and universities, government, nonprofit foundations. What else could explain the country's paranoid obsession and Soviet like police state when it comes to COVID-19 tests, masks, social distancing and tracking citizens in an Orwellian manner? The truckers' protests have been labeled as primarily against vaccine and mask mandates, but in fact they are against heavy-handed, nanny state government in general -- a grim reality that grows worse by the day.
For the record, I've received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine -- partly because of my age (62). But now that I've learned -- too late -- that it's not as effective as advertised, and may pose long-term health risks, I do not plan to get any booster shots. I foresee a scenario where they will string us along forever, with new boosters coming out every 6-8 months. The government is full of misinformation and lies, and I've decided to cut my losses.
My son, who is 29, only got vaccinated because his employer required it. He landed a great job a year ago and is doing well, with a bright future. He didn't want to lose his job, so I don't blame him for taking the jab.
We both did some research prior to this trip to determine what we needed to get across the border. A Department of Homeland Security website I reviewed stated that to drive across, all I needed was an enhanced Real ID driver's license and COVID-19 vaccination card, which I have. My son has the same, plus a passport. My son thinks he saw the same information on a Michigan Department of Transportation website, but he wasn't certain.
When we arrived at the Canadian customs booth on the north side of the Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge, the woman in the booth asked us if we had uploaded info using the "ARRIVE CAN" app. We didn't know what it was or what info needed to be uploaded. She explained that we'd need to return to the United States, get a rapid molecular PCR test, then upload the results (available within 1-2 hours), plus pictures of our driver's licenses and COVID-19 vaccination cards.
So we did a U-turn and headed to a Meijer pharmacy in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. They were booked up for appointments, but allowed us to circumvent their software by signing up for appointments on future dates at other locations. Then we drove up to the pharmacy window, they handed us the test kits, and we did the nose swabs in the car, packaged them, and returned them to the clerk.
My son received his emailed "negative" results within a half hour. But after a couple hours of waiting, mine didn't come through. I called an 800 number, got transferred around a few times, and everyone was pretty clueless about what happened to my test results (despite giving them my DOB and voucher number). So I obtained a new voucher number (via email), retook the test, then got the results within 45 minutes or so.
We had left our homes early Thursday morning and hoped to get to the resort area by noon for 3 1/2 or 4 hours of skiing Thursday, then a full day on Friday. But this rigamarole took up so much time, we knew we couldn't ski Thursday. So we planned for Friday skiing, but decided to skip Saturday even though our hotel reservations were for both Thursday night and Friday night. Why? Because a cold front was coming through, with a forecast of -15 Fahrenheit overnight (-10 F. at 9 a.m., when we would've begun skiing), and a "high" temp of 5 degrees. We are not masochists. Anyone who has ever skied will attest that the most bone-chilling time is on the chair lift ride up the mountain!
So for the second time, we arrived at Canadian Customs, showed the inspection officer our phones with the uploaded info she needed, and she nodded her head saying everything looked good. But before we departed, she pulled out a COVID-19 test kit and informed me I had been "randomly selected" to take a COVID-19 test while in Canada. I needed to take it within 24 hours, and mail the swab inside a Purolator envelope she provided.
That night at the hotel, I was reading the instructions, and it said to log onto a web site and do the nose swab while a nurse watched, just to be sure I did it right. I tried, but was kept waiting for so long, I gave up and performed the nose swab, then sealed the specimen in a biohazard bag which I placed inside the envelope to mail the next day.
We had looked forward to using the sauna, hot tub and pool, but all were closed due to the COVID-19 hysteria. Masks were required when you walked around the hotel and into the restaurant. We needed to show our vaccination cards and sign in at the restaurant. The employees seemed rude and uptight, as if this were East Germany ca. 1982.
The resort, about 25 miles way, was also Orwellian. I've posted a photo I took of a couple of warning signs at the entrance to the resort. Inside, chairs were atop tables (no place to sit), drinking fountains were covered and closed, and it was dead as a doornail. But to walk in and use the restroom, be sure to wear a mask!
We saw a few fanatics wearing COVID masks while skiing, but most people did not wear any kind of face mask, as the temperature was moderate (high 20s to low 30s). I did notice one teen in line at the chair lift who was wearing a "Green Forever Environmental" snow suit. Underneath the logo were the words "Think Green, Act Green, Live Green." And while you're at it, why not join a cult? This is truly their religion.
By Friday morning, before leaving for the resort, we had decided to head back home the same day, not knowing we would knock off early due to conditions. Driving around the confusing, pothole-laden streets of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario trying to find a Purolator drop box that was on Google Maps but still difficult to locate, was like the final indignity.
We both heaved a sigh of relief as we re-entered Michigan. We made a couple stops on the way to where my car was parked near Houghton Lake. (It made sense for us to each drive separately and meet up since we were coming from different parts of the state.)
We took a restroom break and also stopped to grab a Subway sandwich. We relished in the fact no one in northern Michigan was wearing masks. While I rode in my son's SUV, I did a little reading about the Canadian protests and Justin Trudeau. It didn't surprise me at all to learn that Trudeau had received harsh criticism back in 2013 when he was heaping praise on China and its dictator Xi Jinping.
Trudeau has also engaged in the same demagoguery as his progressive peers in the United States: He denounces the truckers as racist white supremacists, fascists and bigots. (Never mind that the protesters include numerous blacks and other minorities including Asians, Hispanics, persons of Middle Eastern descent and representatives of First Nations tribes.) I am hoping Canada's Parliament will oust the petty dictator from power in the near future.
Canada is a mess right now, and I feel sad for their people. But I am also encouraged by the fierce pushback. We even saw a few protesters standing on a Sault Ste. Marie street to greet vehicles coming off the International Bridge from the States.
The pushback is essential -- in Canada, the United States, Australia, Europe and everywhere else. This is a crucial juncture in the struggle to preserve individual liberty, because the totalitarians are relentless in their arrogance and lust for power. And once we lose our liberty, we'll never regain it. That's just the way it works.
The progressive elitists rage against and mock anyone who dares challenge their frequently inaccurate groupthink. But we're on to them and their rubbish.
It's often been said that "Truth is the new hate speech." I'd like to close by quoting the great George Orwell: "In a time of deceit, telling the truth can be a revolutionary act." Amen.
Recent Comments