Philippe Lagassé

Since writing that post, I have it on good authority that the RCN wouldn't really move any boats between the coasts, which makes the mixed fleet option much more plausible.

With a mixed submarine fleet back on the table, here's my take on the idea from September:

philippelagasse.substack.com/p/two-types-...

That said, 15% can matter a lot if the rest of the scores are close!

No new auto plants but here’s what else Germany and South Korea are offering in their submarine bids Both Germany’s TKMS and South Korea’s Hanwha submitted their final bids to win a lucrative contract to build Canada’s next generation of submarines ahead of the March 2 deadline.

Worth noting the evaluation criteria for CPSP:

Capability and acquisition cost will only count for 35%.

The real money will be in sustainment, which explains why it ranks so high (50%).

All those economics partnerships will only count for 15%.

www.ctvnews.ca/politics/art...

I think bluesky would be roughly 300% better if people here were capable of reading “this is an assessment of the empirical reality of a situation” without assuming it comes with an implicit “and therefore I endorse the reality of that situation”

🤷🏻‍♂️

YouTube video by Dale Smith On the Defence Industrial Strategy

Now in wide release, my latest YouTube episode where @plagasse.bsky.social and I talk about what the government has laid out with their Defence Industrial Strategy. #cdnpoli

On the Defence Industrial Strategy | Dale Smith aka @journo_dale Get more from Dale Smith aka @journo_dale on Patreon

New episodes released early for C$7+ subscribers.
This week I'm with @plagasse.bsky.social to delve into the Defence Industrial Strategy. #cdnpoli

Yes, Canada should help Europe defend Greenland. But this is why it won’t be enough to protect us from America Canada's approach must include defending itself from America's "help."

Good day to re-read these @plagasse.bsky.social pieces on Defence Against Help

Where a large power starts claiming a smaller country is failing and can’t manage its own affairs, so the large power must step in under the guise of ‘help’

ras-nsa.ca/canada-must-...

www.thestar.com/opinion/cont...

Royal Succession and the Constitutional Politics of the Canadian Crown, 1936–2013 Canadian governments held opposite views on how to alter the laws of royal succession for Canada in 1936 and 2013. This contrast was not the result of refined thinking about how the law of successi...

www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

a man in a red sweater and tie says just when i thought i was out they pull me back in ALT: a man in a red sweater and tie says just when i thought i was out they pull me back in

Oh...royal succession is in the news...

A second post on Canada's Defence Industrial Strategy.

This time, I look at how colleges and universities fit within the DIS.

Since this is Bluesky, I'll assure you that I address student and faculty opposition to working with defence.

open.substack.com/pub/philippe...

sorry

A second post on Canada's Defence Industrial Strategy.

This time, I look at how colleges and universities fit within the DIS.

Since this is Bluesky, I'll assure you that I address student and faculty opposition to working with defence.

open.substack.com/pub/philippe...

New at Debating Canadian Defence:

open.substack.com/pub/philippe...

Happy to share the Call for Papers for the Ninth Annual Spring Workshop of the Courts & Politics Research Group, to be hosted at the University Guelph on May 8, 2026.
www.courtsandpolitics.org/Events.php

I'm pretty hard on AI, but it did allow me to compliment this post with my favourite animal, the process shark (who is respecting the back to the office mandate.)

New at Debating Canadian Defence:

open.substack.com/pub/philippe...

I get that it's not good enough, etc.

But honestly it looked like the govt was willing to let the system entirely collapse.

Survival in the current environment is a win.

All else being equal:

Non-bankrupt universities > bankrupt universities.

Trying to model these ON funding changes based on imperfect data is annoying.

My very quick take is that by 2029-30, ON institutions will likely have recovered all the real *public* funding they have lost since 2012.

But total domestic income will still be down b/c of long tuition freeze.

I think

YouTube video by TVO Today How Will Canada Pay for its Military Overhaul? | The Rundown

How will Canada pay for a massive military rebuild? Billions are planned, but big questions remain about where the money comes from and how it’s spent. @jeyantvo.bsky.social spoke with @annfitzgerald.bsky.social (@balsillieschool.bsky.social) & @plagasse.bsky.social (@npsia.bsky.social)

Check out my typically rosy view of things tonight on TVO's @therundowntvo.bsky.social!

Respectfully, I think youre attributing things to me that I'm not saying.

I'm explaining why we're so constrained and why DND/CAF is so dug in on its position.

I have no issue with what citizens want or expect. But they also deserve to know why the govt may not be as responsive as they'd like.

Glad I asked, since you clearly didnt get my point in that post.

The point I was making is that any concerns people have about F35 kill switches or parts denial applies to a vast amount of CAF equipment.

And what point is that exactly?

Time n money

I dont necessarily disagree, but the serviceability would be the same as the current fleet. It was supposed to be better and will likely improve.

The F35 can use northern runways. Again, if it sounds like something obvious, why assume that DND/CAF would have overlooked it?