i December 13, 2024 Stratford Times Trump’s not joking about Canada becoming 51st STEWART GRANT Publisher Well, that didn’t take long. Trump is still six weeks from officially being back in office, but already he is floating the idea of redrawing the North American map. Fox News reported Monday night that “when Trudeau told President-Elect Trump new tariffs would kill the Canadian economy, Trump joked to him that if Canada can’t survive without ripping off the U.S. to the tune of $100 billion a year, then maybe Canada should become the Sist state and Trudeau could become its governor.” Something we should know about Donald Trump by now is that he’s not known as someone who jokes. Mo- reso, he’s known as someone who says the quiet part out loud. Most of all though, he’s known for being an ex- treme narcissist; one who constantly seeks attention and STRATFORD Contribute to your local community newspaper! Send articles, sports or event recaps, and photos to stratfordtimes@gmail.com GRANT Restoring small-town HAVEN journalism, one community MEDIA at a time! STRATFORD Stewart Grant - stew@granthaven.com Local Jounalism initiative Reporter Connor Luczka - connor@granthaven.com Graphic Design / Sales inquiries Business Heather Dunbar « heather@granthaven.com Cindy Boakes « boakescindy1576@gmail.com Contributors Spencer Seymour, Betty-Jo Belton, Julia Schneider, Gary West, Paul Knowles, Emily Stewart, Lisa Chester, Fred Gonder, Sheila Clarke, Irene Roth, Lee Griffi, Lender, Thomas R. Verny, Sydney Goodwin, Kristen Parker, Alex Hunt, Hannah Kavanagh, Julia Paul 56 Water St. St. Marys, ON, PO Box 2510 N4X 1A2 state . one who considers himself to be of great importance. The thing that worries me most about a second Trump presidency is his first term, in the grand scheme of things, was not that historically important. Now that Trump has secured the first goal of his second term (staying out of jail), he can move on to doing something of equally great importance to him: building a legacy so his name will be remembered not just in our century, but for the many centuries that follow. But how can one be remembered for a thousand years? It’s not easy. Good or bad, you need to do something very significant, very memorable. Many of the names that will long be remembered, such as Alexander the Great, Charlemagne, Genghis Khan, Adolf Hitler, were all empire builders. Redrawing maps is the number-one way to be remembered, unless you are Jesus. I don’t believe for a minute that Donald Trump tru- ly cares about “Making America Great Again” for your everyday person. It’s a memorable and effective catch- phrase. I also don’t believe that illegal immigrants com- ing over the Canadian border is of particularly great danger to the ‘Security of the United States. Instead, Trump this issue and a cent tariff was a means to open a dialogue about Cana- da. In the coming months, expect right-wing talk shows, social media bots, and Elon Musk’s X platform to spread misinformation exaggerating about “the problems with the Canadian border” or making the case for “why Can- ada should join the U.S.” Canada, with its vast resources, is a very attractive as- set for a U.S. president who constantly seeks recognition and notoriety. There’s Trump Tower, Trump National Golf Club, Trump Coins, even a Trump Bible. Does he envision a 51st state, perhaps dubbed Trump North? It’s a terrify- ing thought. Two charged after undercover investigation into fentanyl trafficking STRATFORD TIMES STAFF stratfordtimes@gmail.com An undercover investigation into fentanyl trafficking by Stratford and Woodstock police services recently led to the arrest of and charges laid against two Hamilton area men. On Nov. 28, the Stratford Police Service street crime unit concluded an undercover investigation into the trafficking of fentanyl in the City of Stratford with the assistance of the Woodstock Police Service drugs and intelligence unit. At 2 p.m., the two men were arrested by members of both police services. They were identified as Sahil Ku- mar, a 20-year-old resident of Stoney Creek, and Flamur Lama, a 24-year-old resident of Hamilton. F | Both were transported to Stratford police headquar | ters. Kumar was charged with three counts of traffick- ing a Schedule 1 substance, possession for the purpose of trafficking and resisting arrest. He was held in cus- | tody. Lama was charged with one count of trafficking | a Schedule | substance and was released on an under- taking. The investigation resulted in 189 grams of fentanyl being seized with a street value of over $35,000. In a press release, Stratford police said this collabora- tive investigation highlights the service’s commitment to fighting the opioid crisis. Stratford police extend their appreciation to the Woodstock police for their as- sistance. SUBMIT YOUR LETTER TO THE EDITOR TO US! CALL 519-655-2341 OR EMAIL STRATFORDTIMES@GMAIL.COM STRATFORD 1. Everyone has a story 2. The news should be free for all to enjoy 3. Good news beats bad news 5. Newspapers document history 6. . ee [519.655.2341 | AOC nxxsenesmmsem: | Canada Guiding Principles 4- A Newspaper should be a community effort (contribute to your local paper!) 7. Advertisers, big or small, should profit from their ads (meaning sensible ad rates) 8. Newspapers should be locally-owned and operated