62% of Ontarians Believe a Lie – How Can This Be?
June 6th, 2025 - Exclusive to Substack
A recent poll by Pollara found that 62% of Ontarians believe Premier Danielle Smith of Alberta is a separatist. The truth is that Premier Smith – whom I’ve known personally for a long time – is not a separatist and has made that clear on numerous occasions to the public, the media, and anyone who asks her.
So how is it that 62% of Ontarians believe such an untruth ? The first reason is ignorance – ignorance particularly of anything political that is happening west of Kenora. The second reason is indifference – indifference that precludes making any effort to find out what is happening politically west of Kenora. And the third and greatest reason is misinformation – not so much misinformation transmitted via the social media because it is especially older Ontarians who believe the lie about Smith – but misinformation fed into the minds of Ontarians via the traditional media.
Misinformation on western politics propagated by the CBC of course – rumored to soon be renamed the Carney Broadcasting Company in appreciation for the $150 million bribe offered by the PM to the state broadcasting company during the recent election campaign - but also misinformation propagated by CTV and Global. And misinformation about western politics also propagated – inadvertently or deliberately - by the Toronto based, legacy print media.
What has particularly fueled the misinformation about Smith being a separatist is the fact that she is also a democrat. So, when a significant number of Albertans have expressed interest and even support for the secession option, Premier Smith has not attempted to censure or suppress it as adherents to the anti-democratic cancel culture philosophy would insist. Instead, as Alberta laws facilitate, she has supported the use of a referendum mechanism to determine the will of Albertans on secession – which I repeat, she opposes as do a majority of Albertans.
But, notwithstanding the vast intellectual and technological resources of the mainstream media, apparently it has been too difficult to inform their viewers and readers on the difference between a democrat allowing a vote on secession and a separatist in favor of that option. Hence 62% of Ontarians mistakenly believe the lie that Premier Smith is a separatist.
But then again, perhaps not surprising. Just earlier this week, the Premier of Ontario declared that he believes in Santa Clause and likened the Carney government with its sleigh of taxpayer financed goodies to jolly old Saint Nick.
Dear Doug: There is no Santa Claus, and Dear Ontarians, there is no separatist Premier in Alberta.