Category: Chairman’s Desk

It’s a startling thought that it’s been over half a century since Neil Armstrong and his fellow explorers bridged the lunar frontier in an event that captivated the world.

This week, as NASA prepares for its Artemis II mission — the first to carry humans around the moon since 1972 — it was announced that the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) will play a significant role, with Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen selected as one of its four crew members.

For members of my generation, the moon landing was a seminal moment. One that truly ushered in a new era. But the half-century since has seen few comparable, equally cinematic, or paradigm-shifting endeavours in outer space.

So, Artemis II, which promises to finally revisit this frontier, will be keenly anticipated. What’s more, Canadians will and should be proud that one of our own has been selected for such an important mission. As the prime minister noted, Hansen will be the first non-American to observe the full sphere of the Earth.

Canada has a proud history of space exploration, exemplified by none better than Marc Garneau, the first Canadian in space, long-time MP and former cabinet minister, who announced his retirement from Parliament earlier this year.

But our parliamentarians must realize another important lesson from this Canadian success story: Canada can, and should, punch above its weight. And when we do, it is good news because exploration and technology development have positive implications for two areas where Canada is badly lagging our peers: innovation and defence.

In both domains, we are only offering limp-wristed flails.

First, on innovation. The CSA has limited resources compared to other agencies, yet it holds a commanding presence on the International Space Station (ISS) and in the astronautical community. Incomprehensibly intricate robotic arms, developed by the CSA, are deployed on the ISS to conduct repairs and other automated tasks, and several Canadian aerospace companies are on the rise building rovers and other equipment to be used in future missions.

These examples can help signal to the world that Canada has what it takes to be an innovation economy. While the recent federal budget contained lots of talk about innovation, its disparate tax incentives are unlikely to make a meaningful difference in any specific industry or help grow and protect Canadian intellectual property. Further, we lack a national strategy to bolster private sector research and development spending.

Our success in space shows that R&D is essential to innovation, yet we continue to rank among the lowest of G7 and OECD peers in this regard.

Our defence capabilities are, frankly, even more embarrassing. This week, as Finland’s flag was raised at NATO headquarters in Belgium, we gained yet another multilateral ally who is willing to proportionately outspend us in shared defence commitments and do more to protect global rules-based interests.

Despite pressure after Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine to step up to the plate, our defence spending remains well below the two per cent of GDP required by our commitment to NATO and is forecasted to only be 1.43 per cent by 2025. This is an indictment on our multilateral credentials and gives others good reason to consider us a pipsqueak.

Space is an important ingredient in improving our defence credentials. The war in Ukraine has highlighted, among other things, the growing consequence of satellites in warfare. It’s no secret that Russia and China have territorial ambitions in the Arctic and respectively have begun integrating satellite systems to increase their surveillance and navigation capabilities in the region. Unless we sharpen up and leverage our partnership with the Americans in aerospace to include greater defensive capabilities, we will be at severe risk.

Ultimately, this Canadian victory needs to propel ambition in other areas, namely innovation and defence. Canada’s presence on this historic mission shows the power of daring to dream. I hope it can motivate our politicians to unleash our capabilities for other critical policy imperatives.

This article first appeared in the Toronto Star on April 9, 2023.

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Donald Trump carries a deep personal appeal for many millions of Americans. An appeal that not even criminal charges can or will erase.

Thank goodness. We can all stop worrying. Finally, we can sleep soundly at night.

A Manhattan grand jury has indicted Donald Trump.

Hallelujah.

Surely, that ought to do it. Surely, his spell over the MAGA horde has been broken. Surely, the Republican faithful will now see him for who he truly is and, collectively, turn away.

Yeah. Right. If only things were that easy. Sadly, they’re not. And Thursday night’s historic announcement means only one thing: the road ahead for American democracy just got a whole lot bumpier. Buckle up.

And yet, despite all the warranted hoopla — we should not forget there’s still an ongoing race for the Republican party’s presidential nomination. So the million-dollar question becomes: what impact will this latest development have?

Well, if you think these charges will do anything to dampen Trump’s support, think again. Even before charges were formally announced, Trump was effectively fundraising off just the threat of this legal action. But now that this threat has materialized and Trump’s victim narrative is approaching its climax, his devotees will be doing much more than opening their wallets.

Indeed, I believe that only if Trump is behind bars will he lose the Republican party’s nomination race. A race in which he faces one serious challenger: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Though he’s not formally declared his candidacy, DeSantis has distinguished himself in national and state-by-state polling as the lone player who can release Trump’s stranglehold over the GOP. With two new polls showing DeSantis running competitively in the key early primary states of Iowa and New Hampshire, pundits claimed his camp had strong reasons for optimism and hope — even weeks ago.

But here’s the rub: weeks ago, I’m pretty sure they were dead wrong. Dead wrong because DeSantis’s strategy left him with only one realistic road to victory — Donald Trump’s arrest and, crucially, conviction. So it’s only after this past week’s events that they might be somewhat correct.

Still, that strategy has been and is flawed in two fundamental respects.

First problem. With DeSantis, Trump is not taking any chances. Diving into his usual bag of tricks, he’s branded DeSantis a traitorous lackey. Both Trump and DeSantis understand their support significantly overlaps, but only Trump, thus far, has been willing to bet his is stronger. And it is. Meanwhile, DeSantis has, far from criticized Trump, only defended him.

Second problem. The greater one. To date, DeSantis’s sales pitch has amounted to this: I’m Trump, but without the baggage, and therefore more electable.

You need only consult the myriad documentary evidence of DeSantis plagiarizing Trump’s every move, to appreciate the pupil is copying his master. But it’s a political rule that when voters are presented with the choice between the real McCoy and a copycat, they’ll go for the genuine article — essentially every time.

It’s not because voters can’t imagine the alternative might be preferable. Instead, experience tells us voters go with what they know as opposed to what they don’t.

And this is where DeSantis and his strategy “Trumpism without Trump” crumbles. It fails to account for a truth that so many try and wish away: that Trump carries a deep personal appeal for many millions of Americans. An appeal that not even criminal charges can or will erase.

So, don’t get confused, the GOP is still the party of Trump. What better proof than the fact the sole realistic challenger to Trump is Trump-lite, the wannabe, the counterfeit? Indeed, so long as Trump is a free man and therefore a choice in the primaries, most Republicans will back the King, not the pretender to the throne.

However, if Trump’s candidacy goes up in legal flames, as it well might, DeSantis will be perfectly positioned as his heir apparent. But, in the meantime, no matter how much he practices in the mirror, the student won’t be dethroning the master any time soon.

This article first appeared in the Toronto Star on April 2, 2023.

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Generative AI represent a threat different from those posed by social media, the internet and other innovations we have failed to adequately legislate

Like any good tourist, U.S. President Joe Biden was only searching for an authentic Canadian experience. And here they are, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and thrill-seeking Joe, white water rafting on the Ottawa River. A six-pack of Canadian dangles over the raft’s edge and Biden’s wearing that trademark toothy grin. Just a couple of buddies enjoying the outdoors. Even the beavers are applauding.

Is it a scene from the latest Monkman? Fantasy or a nightmare? Dream or reality? Can’t tell? Welcome to 2023, ladies and gentlemen.

If you think the image I describe cannot be generated then you haven’t been paying attention to the menace that is deepfake technology.

And here’s your news flash: while we can be amused by the fun such a picture can create, there is nothing funny in the least about its threat to people’s privacy, safety, sanity, and our very way of life.

Some moments in history demand a comprehensive public policy response to extinguish nascent, but dangerous, developments.

We are at that moment.

Make no mistake, the latest advancements in generative AI represent a threat entirely different from those posed by social media, the internet, and other innovations we have failed to adequately legislate over the last two decades.

Case in point. As rumours swirled that Donald Trump was to be arrested in New York this week, hyperrealistic images of him being aggressively detained circulated on social media. They were provocative, jarring, totally fake and precisely the kind of thing that has the potential not only to kick-start a virtual media storm but genuine civil unrest.

These developments also give numerous crimes, including doxing, extortion, and intellectual property theft a frightening upgrade — imperilling the livelihoods of not just politicians or celebrities but all of us.

The bottom line? Canadian institutions must move with urgency, and develop policies that lead, rather than wait, on this critical matter.

While we can’t put the genie back in the bottle, there are important steps that should have been taken yesterday. First, we must enhance our legal framework. Legislation should be clearly amended to criminalize malicious deepfake creation and distribution. Here we should follow Quebec’s lead. Quebec’s Civil Code already provides a remedy for invasion of privacy using a person’s name, image, likeness, or voice, and this concept should be broadly implemented.

Public-private collaboration is paramount. Partnerships between government, tech companies, and academia focused specifically on improving deepfake detection and prevention technologies, will help combat the threat. Internet companies have been using sophisticated AI to combat deepfakes on their platforms for years now. Our government needs to lean on the expertise of the tech sector which, frankly, knows this issue better than they do.

Education is also vital. Implementing digital literacy and public awareness campaigns about deepfakes and their potential consequences will empower Canadians to play an active role in combating them. News and social media sites should be encouraged to implement systems for flagging doctored images that will help users distinguish between genuine and manipulated content.

Finally, we must seek out international co-operation. Shared norms and strategies for combating deepfakes will ensure a more effective and co-ordinated response to the borderless nature of the deepfake threats. By advocating for global standards that address the deepfake challenge, we make it harder for malicious actors to exploit jurisdictional differences to evade consequences. Here Canada can play an important role and, jokes aside, I hope the topic was raised between Biden and Trudeau this week.

Deepfakes underscore the necessity for government intervention during times of great technological change.

Safeguarding our democratic institutions, protecting individual privacy, and maintaining social cohesion are fundamental responsibilities of government. Tackling the deepfake threat is critical to preserving the integrity of our political discourse and building a more secure future for all citizens, so they feel safe not only in their everyday lives but in cyberspace too.

This article first appeared in the Toronto Star on March 26, 2023.

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“To fully exploit the opportunities, we must be prepared to spend not millions, but billions. Not on broad subsidies, but on laser-targeted incentives.”

By these numbers alone, it’s clear that Canada cannot aim to simply duplicate such programs. But although we cannot match the U.S. dollar for dollar, we can and should focus our limited resources on specific areas where we know we can contribute an indispensable component in newly forming supply chains. Though we will never be Goliath, surely we can be David.

Therefore, third and finally, we must find and loudly trumpet where we punch above our weight.

Case in point. Last week’s announcement that Volkswagen will construct its first North American “gigafactory” in St. Thomas, Ont., for battery cell manufacturing is a major victory. This is not an anomaly but a road map.

A recent Clean Energy Canada report highlighted that Canada, with the right approach, can become an electric vehicle battery powerhouse — with $48 billion flowing into our economy annually.

Why? Because all the indispensable ingredients are right here in the True North, Strong and Free. A domestic supply of necessary critical minerals. A highly educated workforce. Political stability. Free trade agreements. Low carbon electricity in our manufacturing heartland. It’s a golden opportunity, and irrespective of Biden’s vast carrot patch south of the border, businesses like VW have taken notice.

To fully exploit these opportunities, we must be prepared to spend not millions, but billions. Not on broad subsidies, but on laser-targeted incentives. And let’s be clear: this kind of bold and committed action, the kind our reality demands, is exactly what government is for.

In the biblical tale of David and Goliath, diminutive David understood that he had one advantage, not size or strength, but his sling. If Canada intends to avoid being trampled by our competitors, we must pick up our rocks, aim high and start slinging.

This article first appeared in the Toronto Star on March 20, 2023.

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The party desperately needs a winning message, a big idea that animates voters, especially young voters.

Its funny how some things take on the ability to solve all kinds of problems. The Ontario Liberal Party’s decision to adopt a one-member-one-vote system is one of those things.

Talking to Liberals, one member, one vote will single-handedly usher in an electrifying new era for their party. Like a snake shedding its worn skin, it will allow the Liberals to emerge as an exciting and vibrant new player in provincial politics. It will end the insularity that has plagued them for years. And, oh, it will allow its members to feel optimistic and hopeful about their future.

Wow, that’s a lot of heavy lifting for one procedural amendment.

Well, at the risk of being a skunk at a garden party, I don’t think this is going to have the intended effect. In fact, I think there is a good chance it will come back and bite them in the you-know-what (this is a family newspaper, after all).

Here’s why.

The party desperately needs a winning message, a big idea that animates voters, especially young voters. Millennials and Gen Z represent an increasingly significant voting bloc. Those voters are looking for policies and ideas that excite them. That hold the promise for a better life for them. For their families. For those around them. For the planet.

And a new voting system isn’t an idea those voters are looking for. And in any case, the Liberals are late to the party. This isn’t a new idea; every one of their major competitors beat them to the punch.

But more than that, this system is nothing but trouble for centrist parties. Whilst at first glance it seems to be more inclusive and welcoming — and in many ways it is — on second and third glance, it causes more problems than it solves.

That’s because the one-member-one-vote systems blows open the door to outside activist movements and special interest groups who have no connection to the party or to its long-term interests.

So while one-member-one-vote will likely break up the current insider hegemony that has not served the party well, it increases the risk that those running to lead the party will be drawn to proposing policy options that are designed to attract narrow segments of the voter base.

Under the new rules, while this may be an effective — even a winning — campaign strategy, it’s not likely to be in the best long-term interests of a party that has “centrist” as core to its DNA.

Determined to win, the urge to think short-term will be hard for candidates to resist. But there’s nothing short-term about the challenge the party faces. And therein lies the tension between the needs of the party and the needs of the campaigns of those who seek to lead it.

Given that, as Bismarck said, politics is the art of the possible and given populist, grassroots activism is how the game is played nowadays, the shift may have been inevitable. But it won’t alone move the needle, and will put the Liberals’ centrist, moderate credentials to the test.

I have not only battled the Grits many times, I’ve lost to them more times than I care to recount and I know the party is at its most formidable when it presents voters with a plan that couples economic prosperity with a view of social progressivism.

Striking that balance just got harder.

The last federal Conservative race was a bitter one and one candidate was disqualified for improper campaigning. In British Columbia, the most recent NDP leadership race saw an outsider activist candidate eventually disqualified. The Ontario Liberal’s brand can hardly afford to take such hits.

All that said, the leadership race has shown some signs of life with several credible candidates rumoured to be about to jump in. Only time will tell if any of them bring forward that audacious, inspiring idea that will turn the party’s fortunes around.

 

This article first appeared in the Toronto Star on March 12, 2023.

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