'Drift is not destiny' - We keep acting like all of this just happened TO us, like it's weather. But it's decisions. Decades of small, tiny decisions that added up to this.
In the healthcare reality, I have a cousin who waited 6 months for a procedure that should've been urgent. She lives in Toronto. Systems stopped working for people a long time ago.
'The next chapter will be built by those who choose to show up. Let that be us.' Simple closer but doable. Let's get to work, Leni. I wish you all the best in 2026!
Love this framing of “drift” as a political choice, not a natural law. The series lines up with what Ottawa is now trying to brand as “fairness for every generation” – Budget 2024 literally carries that title and leans on higher capital gains revenues to fund housing and youth‑facing programs. The open question is whether that kind of intergenerational language actually reorders priorities in cabinet and Parliament, or if it just puts a new story on top of the same fiscal habits.
Thanks — that’s a really useful distinction. I agree that naming “drift” as a political choice matters, especially when intergenerational fairness is being foregrounded rhetorically.
Where I remain cautious is that after decades of underbuilding, shifting from drift to deliberate capacity-building isn’t just a matter of narrative or fiscal intent. It’s harder to execute in a world that’s more volatile, more fragmented, and less forgiving than the one we drifted through.
In that sense, the test isn’t whether the language changes — it’s whether priorities actually reorder under pressure, and whether institutions are willing to stay with long, place-based projects when conditions get uncomfortable.
'Drift is not destiny' - We keep acting like all of this just happened TO us, like it's weather. But it's decisions. Decades of small, tiny decisions that added up to this.
In the healthcare reality, I have a cousin who waited 6 months for a procedure that should've been urgent. She lives in Toronto. Systems stopped working for people a long time ago.
'The next chapter will be built by those who choose to show up. Let that be us.' Simple closer but doable. Let's get to work, Leni. I wish you all the best in 2026!
Welcome back Neela. You are so right! I hope your break was a good one. All the best in 2026 to you as well.
It was a good one, thanks.
I was in Las Vegas, where it rained ughhhhh.
It was all good, though.
Now …back to the grind.
Love this framing of “drift” as a political choice, not a natural law. The series lines up with what Ottawa is now trying to brand as “fairness for every generation” – Budget 2024 literally carries that title and leans on higher capital gains revenues to fund housing and youth‑facing programs. The open question is whether that kind of intergenerational language actually reorders priorities in cabinet and Parliament, or if it just puts a new story on top of the same fiscal habits.
Thanks — that’s a really useful distinction. I agree that naming “drift” as a political choice matters, especially when intergenerational fairness is being foregrounded rhetorically.
Where I remain cautious is that after decades of underbuilding, shifting from drift to deliberate capacity-building isn’t just a matter of narrative or fiscal intent. It’s harder to execute in a world that’s more volatile, more fragmented, and less forgiving than the one we drifted through.
In that sense, the test isn’t whether the language changes — it’s whether priorities actually reorder under pressure, and whether institutions are willing to stay with long, place-based projects when conditions get uncomfortable.