Editorials - Oct. 3, 2025
A decade in the making
The Toronto Blue Jays, now the only Canadian team in Major League Baseball, are division champions, winning the American League East.
This pennant was not on the radar of many fans, but, around the All-Star break, we began to believe. But at that time there was still a lot of road ahead and the team just kept winning. On Sunday, when the Jays held their fate in their hands with a win-and-you’re-in scenario, scenes and anecdotes of past Blue Jays brilliance dominated television broadcasts. George Bell falling to his knees and high-fiving Tony Fernández in 1985. “The Terminator” Tom Henke striking out Larry Sheets in 1989. Joe Carter’s bloop single to drive in Roberto Alomar in 1991. Duane Ward forcing a pop-up to John Olerud in 1992. A 6-4-3 double-play from Fernández to Alomar to Olerud in 1993. LaTroy Hawkins striking out Ryan Flaherty in 2015. Now we can add to that Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to Eric Lauer at first base in 2025.
Importantly, the focus has been on clinching division titles, not the Jays’ postseason success because the players know that this is not the end, but the beginning. They now await the winner of the divisional series between the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees, both divisional nemeses, and championship-starved Toronto sports fans will soon know which colour banner will hang at the Rogers Centre.
Time will tell how far the Jays will go in 2025, but there is reason for optimism. And, at a time when national pride is soaring to new heights, this team could mean something special not just to baseball fans or Torontonians, but to all Canadians, capturing the hearts and minds of a nation in a way we haven’t seen since the early 1990s. – SL
Glorious and clear
Canadian Conservatives, led by Pierre Poilievre, are attacking Prime Minister Mark Carney for his international travel schedule. It is a poor line of attack, especially at this moment, because it ignores the very real necessity for the leader of Canada to cultivate relationships with foreign counterparts in the face of rising and reckless protectionism in the United States. At a time when the U.S. is increasingly turning inward, Canada cannot afford to adopt an insular posture. To mock Carney for stepping onto the world stage mistakes optics for substance and diminishes the very nature of leadership.
But while the Conservatives fixate on Carney’s footprint abroad, a far more legitimate attack lies closer to home: the erosion of transparency in government. The Globe and Mail recently published an article showing that the Liberal government is delaying responses to access-to-information requests and too often refuses to disclose records by hiding behind the “advice to ministers” exemption, even in cases where that protection is plainly misapplied.
If Poilievre is looking for a meaningful contrast with the Liberals, he should seize on this. He should pledge that any government he leads would reverse the culture of secrecy and commit to narrowing the scope of “advice to ministers” exemptions, enforcing strict deadlines and changing internal practice so that access-to-information requests are seen not as annoyances, but as duties to the public.
The real choice for Canadians is not whether their prime minister boards a plane; it is whether their government hides in the shadows. A campaign to restore transparency is a fight worth fighting. – SBS
Now more than ever
President Donald Trump has declared that he will impose 100 per cent tariffs on films produced outside the United States, claiming that foreign incentives are undermining America’s film industry. The plan is vague on implementation, but the message is clear: Trump intends to tilt the playing field in favour of U.S. studios. To Canadians, this is more than a trade threat. It is a signal that we must become more self-reliant in shaping our cultural narrative. It is an invitation to double down on Canadian creativity rather than shrink from the border pressures.
Matt Johnson is one filmmaker who has bet on Canadian stories. His film BlackBerry told the tale of a Canadian tech icon, and it resonated here with audiences. It broke records at the Canadian Screen Awards, winning 14 of 17 nominations, including Best Motion Picture. It also crossed the million-dollar mark at the Canadian box office.
Now his new film, Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie, edited in Goderich, has become a festival sensation. It premiered at SXSW, captivated audiences at TIFF’s Midnight Madness, and won the Midnight Madness People’s Choice Award. Soon Canadians across the country will have a chance to see it in theatres. That matters. Every ticket bought is support for Canadian imagination.
Governments and film funding bodies should invest boldly in Canadian cinema and theatre chains, broadcasters and streaming platforms should commit to showing Canadian films. And Canadian viewers must play their part. Let every sale, every conversation, every social media post signal that Canada cares about its own stories. – SBS