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March 2, 2025 10 mins

Welcome to The Future is Sovereign, the show where we break down power, influence, and the signals hiding in plain sight.

I’m Chelsea Dubeau and today, we’re talking about something that’s already happened—something no one is calling an annexation, but that’s exactly what it is.

Not with tanks. Not with troops.

But with servers, algorithms, and corporate control over the one thing that dictates who sees what, who hears what, and who ultimately gets to shape reality—our digital communications infrastructure.

Because make no mistake—we have already been annexed. We just don’t realize it yet.

Let’s break it down.

Ask yourself this—how does Canada communicate with itself?

Where do businesses, entrepreneurs, and even our own government talk to Canadians?

  • Facebook? U.S.-owned.
  • Instagram? U.S.-owned.
  • X, formerly Twitter? U.S.-owned.
  • Google? U.S.-owned.
  • YouTube? U.S.-owned.

Every major digital platform Canadians rely on isn’t Canadian at all.

And it’s not just about where we post. It’s about who controls the flow of information—who gets to decide what is seen and what is suppressed.

This isn’t just about convenience.

It’s about control. And we don’t have it.

Let’s be blunt—our public discourse, our business ecosystem, our news cycle, and even our government communications are not sovereign.

They are rented.

🔹 Canadian businesses? Heavily reliant on U.S. platforms for advertising and brand-building. 🔹 Government announcements? Often posted first on U.S.-owned social media. 🔹 Public news consumption? Controlled by algorithmic decisions made in Silicon Valley.

And we saw just how fragile this system is when Meta blocked Canadian news from its platforms in response to the Online News Act.

One move—ONE corporate decision—and suddenly, millions of Canadians couldn’t access their country’s news.

That’s power.

And it’s not Canadian power.

Now, let’s talk about what this really means.

1️⃣ Censorship Without Consent If a U.S. tech giant decides tomorrow that a Canadian voice, politician, or movement is too “controversial,” they can erase it. And we have zero control over that.

2️⃣ Economic Vulnerability Small businesses, entrepreneurs, and entire industries are at the mercy of algorithm changes and ad policies that can tank their reach overnight.

3️⃣ National Security Risks Social media platforms and cloud services are not just communication tools—they are data collection machines. And when that data is stored and controlled outside our borders, it’s not truly ours.

This isn’t a hypothetical threat. It’s already happened. And it’s happening every single day.

Let’s call it what it is—annexation in the digital age.

🔹 It doesn’t look like tanks. 🔹 It doesn’t look like a coup. 🔹 It looks like absolute dependence on foreign-controlled infrastructure.

The U.S. has built a digital empire—not just in Canada, but across the world.

And they control the algorithm.

They control who gets seen, who gets heard, and what conversations are allowed to happen.

That is the real power play of the 21st century.

So, where do we go from here?

Because this isn’t irreversible.

Canada needs to wake up and take action.

✅ We need Canadian-owned digital platforms for public discourse, business, and government communications. ✅ We need to invest in data sovereignty—ensuring Canadian user data is stored within Canada, under Canadian jurisdiction. ✅ We need alternative digital ecosystems so that our businesses, institutions, and citizens don’t have to rely on U.S. corporate gatekeepers.

And here’s the big one:

✅ Businesses must start building outside the algorithm.

The fastest way to reclaim sovereignty isn’t just top-down government intervention—it’s Canadians choosing

Mark as Played

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