It’s that time of year again: candy time. Or, as others call it: Halloween. You may have already bought a big box of fun-sized candy bars, eaten the whole thing yourself, and gone back to buy more for the actual holiday. (Just me?) If that's you, be prepared to feel it in your wallet: Due to climate troubles in cocoa-producing countries, candy prices went up as much as 15% in 2025 and are currently up again this year. 

– Tyler Haw, Audience Engagement and Education

The takeaway: The major US indices started the week near record highs, but by Thursday had come down again. Rates were mostly to blame: inflation’s up and Treasury yields are at multi-decade highs. That’s rough on AI and chip stocks – when it’s more expensive to borrow money, building all those data centres gets a lot harder (which Canadians might actually prefer – more below). Blah blah, oil prices, blah blah, US-Iran conflict, blah blah. Canadian markets were closed Monday for Thanksgiving, but the American markets still affected them: the TSX was down on Wednesday due to losses in banking and gold miners, which are sensitive to rates and gold prices. But the index rebounded slightly on Thursday, partially thanks to the energy sector. 

Canada is looking to double its number of data centres, and Canadians of all political stripes can agree on one thing: we don't want 'em. 

According to the The Globe and Mail, there are currently 193 active data centres in Canada, many of which predate the AI boom, processing and storing information such as “banking transactions, health information and government files.” But to support the generative AI buildout, another 210 are on the way – even though, as a new Angus Reid poll reveals, 64% of Canadians want their provincial government to limit data centre development. 

Some are worried about water usage and the impact of data centres on the climate crisis. Others are nervous that their electricity bills might increase. And some simply don’t support building more AI infrastructure. Only 28% of Canadians actually see AI as a force for good – not totally surprising, given that Big Tech has yet to beat the “gambling with our lives” allegations.

As municipalities scramble to pause data centre construction and lobby provinces to step in, the federal government remains bullish. The Carney government sees data centres as “critical infrastructure” that “will give Canada greater resilience and choice.” Carney’s AI enthusiasm doesn’t seem to have hurt his popularity yet – maybe because, with tariff tensions between Canada and the US, Canadians value owning their own infrastructure. But public sentiment can change: south of the border, data centre concerns are pushing voters towards the Democrats in November's midterm elections. 

What this means…

The bottom line: Canadians across the political spectrum want limits on data centres, but Ottawa's betting we'll tolerate them in the name of sovereignty. However, it's easy to be patriotic from a distance, and rising public opposition in the US shows how quickly political winds can change.

by Michael Ganley

This is an excerpt of an article originally run in full on The Margin.

By most measures, Alberta is the wealthiest province in Canada, leading the country in GDP per capita, highest median after-tax incomes, and greatest fiscal capacity, to name but a few indicators. The province is also pumping more oil than ever before and is enjoying higher royalties and tax revenues thanks to the market access provided by the Trans Mountain and LNG Canada pipelines.

But to listen to the leaders of Alberta’s separatism movement, you’d think the province is the sad, mistreated offspring of Confederation. In their telling, it’s subjected to unfair financial burdens, inhibited in its natural-resource management and generally trod upon by the rest of the country. Alberta’s referendum on Oct. 19 will indicate how deeply those sentiments have penetrated Albertans’ minds; the fact that it’s happening in the first place shows they’ve already settled in.

And yet, many of the numbers don’t add up. Here’s how ideas, plans, and dreams of money are driving Alberta’s referendum, and the real consequences they may have on Canada.

Read more

Tyler Haw, Audience Engagement and Education: I was told vampires weren’t real. But Canadians have been living with real-life blood-takers who, once they get a taste, will not stop until they get more: Canadian Blood Services. You know the motto – "Blood: It’s in you to give.” Oh, is it?? Because I’m fairly certain it’s in me to LIVE. 

And I get it: blood regenerates, so aside from a bit of lightheadedness and time, there is very little downside to donating blood. As someone who has donated 20 times (yes, I'm bragging), I understand the importance of donating blood regularly if you can. But please, do they really need to call me every few weeks about it? And then do they have to leave a voicemail, forcing me to (ugh) sign into my voicemail system to delete it?! I promise I haven’t forgotten about blood donation – I’ve donated 20 times already! I'll return again soon!

But my beef with Canadian Blood Services is actually more like small potatoes compared to the grudge my wife has against them. She has the special blood, you see – Type O negative, the universal blood type they can give to anyone. Unsurprisingly, she deals with about three times as many calls. 

There is hope, however: I just found out I can delete my phone number as a contact method from my Canadian Blood Services profile. Results pending.

From The Margin group chat:

If you liked this newsletter, hated this newsletter, or are totally indifferent to it, hit the reply button and tell us why! We’re so lonely.

This week’s contributors: Michael Ganley (writer), Tyler Haw (audience engagement), Amarah Hasham-Steele (staff writer), Shazia Khan (social media strategy manager), Anthony Milton (content lead), Martin Molpeceres (social video producer), Kat Angus (deputy editor), and Eric Wainwright (editor in chief).

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