How Integrity is Saving Canada's Economy

Canadian and USA flags with rupture

In July, Canada blew our estimated job numbers out of the water for the third consecutive month. We were predicted to add 16,500 but ended up with an avalanche of 75,000. Over the last 3 months, Canada has added ~181,000 jobs while the USA added only about 60,000 (with 8x our population).

Since March of 2025, when Mark Carney became Prime Minister, we have seen an enormous shift in the way people think about Canada, both domestically and abroad. PM Carney was even invited to address the Australian Parliament, and was the third person in all of history to receive a standing ovation at the WEF (Nelson Mandela and Volodymyr Zelenskyy were the only others).

We are growing the fastest of any country in the top 10 major stock markets. And we are beloved on the world stage.

To say less: Canada has lived up to the values we are known for, and we're tearing it up.

And when I look at what it is that has seemingly saved Canada’s economy (even while we are being targeted in a trade war by our ex bestie, now turned unstable and dangerous bully), there is one word that shows up consistently.

Integrity.

And integrity isn’t just what Canada is doing. It’s how it's being done.

Trump threatens. Yells. Imposes tariffs as high as 50% overnight. He makes comments that threaten Canada's sovereignty. Carney calmly and methodically does what he does and diversifies our trade relationships. He reduces interprovincial trade barriers. He makes major investments in building the skilled trades workforce to get nation-building projects off the ground, making Canada less reliant on the USA.

One leader throws tantrums; the other is the only adult in the room.

That is integrity in action, and that's what is going to make Canada the single country that leads the middle powers through this rupture between the USA and its allies.

There is a cost to integrity, and it’s high. That's why not everyone is willing to pay it.

Like when standing up for Canada leads to an additional set of tariffs the next day. Like taking American liquor off the shelves. Like not travelling to the USA without reason. There is a price to pay for all of those things, but giving in to a bully would cost us everything.

For anyone who hasn’t clocked it yet: Donald Trump has repeatedly talked about making Canada the 51st state while using tariffs and economic pressure against us.

Whether or not you believe those things are connected, I do.

Plus, against the backdrop of everything else happening in the United States right now, I don’t believe the chaos is accidental either.

To Canadians, “elbows up” isn’t a cute little phrase.

It is the term that will forever live on to immortalize this time in history and the one that will forever be representative of the human chain of Canadians linking together to fight for our values, our sovereignty, our economy. Our country.

We may not realize it yet, but “elbows up” is Canadian for integrity, which is doing what’s right, even though it will cost us. And it WILL cost us our closest trading relationship, but that relationship is being held over our heads. That’s not a real relationship — that’s an abusive, coercive attempt at control.

Reframing “collaboration between” as “dependence on” is a classic abuse tactic, and we’re witnessing it in real time. By the leader of the free world.

Canadians have made it very clear: we will not be abused.

So, in 30 years, when the next generation of Canadians asks about the days when we didn’t have a contentious relationship with our southern neighbours, I will tell them that it was Canadians’ level of integrity that made us an unbelievably strong and unified country that they are lucky to call home.

Elbows Up, Canada. We got this

Alex Knight

President & Neurodiversity Strategist Iron & Ember written without AI