Yes! The Habs made the playoffs!

Earlier this month we asked "Are the Habs going to make the playoffs?" Instead of making a prediction, we reposted an article by Brian Wilde in which he said the Canadien rebuild was coming along just fine, but... didn't answer the question.

This morning we are pleased to report that the answer is a big, fat YES / OUI!  For the first time in four years, les Glorieux have earned that nickname, clinching an NHL playoff berth -- second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference -- with a 4-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes at Le Centre Bell last night.

The last time the Canadiens made the playoffs in 2021, they advanced all the way to the Stanley Cup final before losing to the Tampa Bay Lightning. But that was the COVID-19 shortened season when teams only played 56 regular-season games and the Canadiens had a 24-21-11 record, which ranked 18th in the overall NHL standings. 

The Habs' first home playoff game this year will be the first post-season game at a full Bell Centre since April 20, 2017, when they lost 3-2 in overtime to the New York Rangers in Game 5 of a first-round series. The Canadiens were eliminated in Game 6 two nights later at Madison Square Garden, losing 3-1 to the Rangers. The only member of the Canadiens who played in that series against the Rangers who is still with the team is Brendan Gallagher, the little warrior. 

Walt will be seeing Poor Len Canayen (our National Sport As Long As It's Hockey Editor) over the Easter weekend and will consult with him before opening a book. Odds of la Sainte Flanelle advancing past the first round are likely to be long. However, with another little warrior, Lane Hutson, continuing to amaze the opposition, and yet another, Ivan Demidov, joining the ranks just this week... 

But wait, there's more. Captain Nick Suzuki emerged this season as one of the top three centres in the entire league. And yet another little warrior, Cole Caufield, had a career-high 37 goals and 70 points, playing in all 82 games. With guys like that hitting peak performance this month, les Canadien seront là!

Canadians no longer welcome American tourists. Sorry!

Poor Len Canayen reports that the booing of the Star-spangled Banner at hockey games held in Canada has abated. This is due to ritualized announcements before the fat lady sings [Wut? Cheralyn Toca "fat"? Hardly! Ed.] urging the fans to forget about "the current unpleasantness" and show some respect for the game and those who play it, no matter what sweaters they wear. 

Nevertheless, visiting Americans, whether hockey players or tourists, are noticing a distinct cooling in Canucks' attitudes to their guests. Seems the frostbacks don't like being insulted by the Donald, with all his "51st state" bullshit. And there's always been that kind of smugness about being better educated and less parochial than the average American. You know, the kind you see on Judge Judy.

Our suspicions that they really just want Americans to come to their country to "Keep Canada green! Bring US dollars!" were confirmed when Len passed along this leaked copy of a memorandum from the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, which instructs Canucks in how to "get even" with the Yankee invaders while still taking their greenbacks.

Eleven ways for Canadians to annoy Americans 

1. Talk really slowly, enunciating every syllable. 

2. Refer to the United States as "the eleventh province". 

3. Frisk them for weapons. 

4. Intentionally mispronounce rapper Jay-Z's name "Jay-Zed". 

5. Flash your all-inclusive Free Health Card. 

6. "Maple syrup or grits? Yeah there's a tough choice." 

7. Tell them they couldn't possibly be American; they're not obese enough. 

8. When in conversation, ask them to repeat themselves, saying, "I'm sorry ,I just can't understand your accent". 

9. "The next 'Bachelor' is Canadian. Now you'll see how a real man deals with the ladies". 

10. "New York? Where is that exactly?"

11. When they commend your politeness, tell them to fuck off. 

It's possible this document might be bogus, or that Len has already started celebrating the Habs' gaining entry into the NHL playoffs for the first time in years, but, dear American readers, if you visit Canada this summer, don't expect an unequivocal welcome.

Common sense immigration policy

Walt will return when he has something to say.

VIDEO: Would you buy an iPhone or sneakers made by these guys?

President Trump has said that the point of all these tariffs on foreign-made goods is to not only address unfairness in the global trading system, but to bring jobs and factories back to America. Soon (he says) there will be lots of good jobs in factories like those to be found in places like Xinjiang province, in the Worker's Paradise that is China.

What would winning the trade war with China look like? Something like this, perhaps?

 

Yes, that's Chinese Communist propaganda, but it has got a lot of people thinking... even the Donald, who yesterday announced that smartphones and computers will be exempt from reciprocal tariffs, including the 125% levies imposed on Chinese imports. 

The apparent flip-flop comes after concerns from Amerian tech companies that the price of such gadgets could skyrocket, because many of them are made in China or use Chinese-made parts. The exemptions also include other electronic devices and components, including semiconductors, solar cells and memory cards. 

Some estimates suggested iPhone prices and other electronic goods in America would have gone up three times if the costs of the tariffs had been passed on to consumers. The US of A is a major market for iPhones, while Apple accounted for more than half of its smartphones sales last year. As much as 80% of Apple's iPhones intended for sale in America are made in China, with the remaining 20% made in India. 

Along with fellow smartphone giants such as Samsung, Apple has been trying to diversify its supply chains to avoid over-reliance on China in recent years. India and Vietnam emerged as frontrunners for additional manufacturing hubs. As tariffs took effect, Apple reportedly looked to speed up and increase its production of India-produced devices in recent days. 

President Trump had planned a host of steep tariffs on countries around the world set to go into effect this week. But on Wednesday, he quickly reversed course, announcing that he would implement a 90-day pause for countries hit by higher US tariffs - except China - whose tariffs he raised to 145%.

Trump said the Chinese tariff increase was because of the country's readiness to retaliate with its own 84% levy on US goods. In a dramatic change of policy, Trump said all countries that had not retaliated against US tariffs would receive a reprieve – and only face a blanket US tariff of 10% – until July. The White House then said the move was a negotiating tactic to extract more favourable trade terms from other countries.

Says Walt (pulling at the outside corners of his eyes to make them look kinda slanty), rotsa ruck with that.

A meme for Canadians deciding how to vote

Regular readers know that we run a lot of memes from the Memesters Union at the Patriot Post. Today we have something from north of the World's Longest Partially Defended Border (TM), which we're sure expresses the feelings of a great many Canadians.

You're not likely to see this in the Canuck social media though. It's not "social" enough for the oh-so-polite frost-backs. More like ANTI-social, the lamestream media say. Thanks to all at Blazing Cat Fur.

While we digest the latest on the Trump tariffs...

...here's something completely different.

Tom Swift was a character, in pre-war books for boys like Tom Swift and His Electric Flying Machine". Tom never just said anything. He said it in a certain way, defined by an adverb. Examples: 

"Where's my favourite newsmagazine?" said Tom timelessly. 

"Who publishes Time and Life?" asked Tom loosely. 

Here's more.

I hope Walt will return soon, said Ed. shorthandedly.

Canadian voters: Don't say you weren't warned!

Dear Canadian friends, please don't be snowed [Geddit? Ed.] by all the paid advertising -- 

and propagands from the lickspittle media, who are also bought and paid for -- about the new Dear Leader of the Liberal Party and unelected Prime Minister of Canada. 

His apologists are trying to paint him as a soft, sensible, middle-of-the-road statesman, an ultra-nice Canuck kid with no agenda other than saving the Great No-longer-white North from the evil Orange Man. Walt calls BS on all that!

The truth about Mr Carnage's plans to finish the job started by the Trudeaus (père et fils) and make Canada a part of the Davos gang's New World Order are to be found in his own words in his book Values.

Values reads like a sermon from a high priest of globalism... which, come to think of it, it is. It's "polished, preachy, and packed with ideas that should send shivers down the spine of anyone who cares about Canada’s economy, especially Western energy producers.

"Writing as the former Bank of Canada governor and a darling of the Liberal elite, Carney pitches a vision of 'sustainable finance', net-zero absolutism, and heavy-handed regulation. To the National Citizens Coalition, it's clear: this isn't a roadmap to prosperity, it's a wrecking ball aimed at the heart of Canada’s resource sector and the West's economic lifeline."

Those quotes (and the graphic) are taken from "Carney's 'values' the wrong ones at the wrong time", posted on Blazing Cat Fur today. Opening the link will take  you to the original article by the National Citizens Council's Alexander Brown, which appeared in the Western Standard yesterday. Thanks to all concerned.

DEAR READERS, please pass this on! Click on the headline to make this post appear in a new tab. Then copy the URL and send it to all the Canadians you know. The rule of the loony Liberal globalists has to stop!