The pageantry of the Donald Trump inauguration absorbed most of the political oxygen in Ottawa this week, mainly because the subtext was a growing realization that so many facets of Canadian politics have been turned on their head. The Jenga tower of assumptions that have allowed the Canadian, and global, political economy to function on a relatively stable basis is being disassembled from the bottom, threatening to wobble before policy makers understand how to react.

The suspension of the military’s second-highest-ranking officer has cast a pall over the federal government’s multibillion-dollar plan to build new warships, which the Liberals had hoped was finally back on course after listing for years. Government and military officials remained tight-lipped Wednesday over why Vice-Admiral Mark Norman was abruptly stripped of his responsibilities last week by his boss, Gen.

Organizers behind Canada’s Heritage Minutes are asking filmmakers to draft up their best proposals for new additions to the series on key moments or figures in the country’s history. Historica Canada says they’ll produce two new one-minute films this year that join recent additions like the stories of Viola Desmond and Chanie Wenjack.

A man holds up a protest sign as he marches with thousands of people through the streets participating in the Occupy Vancouver protest on Oct.15, 2011. A new report called ‘An Economy for the 99%’ paints a stark picture of wealth inequality in Canada and around the world.

But first, the Vancouver Island Party needs to find candidates for the Island constituencies before the May 9 provincial election. “We have some interest expressed by several people but we don’t have them formally signed up yet,” said party leader Robin Richardson, a Victoria resident who is a Harvard-educated economist and a former Progressive Conservative member of parliament in Toronto, back when Joe Clark was prime minister.