Welcome to the Dark Future (1994-2020)

1994

• The Crash of ’94. Canada’s economy is deeply intertwined with the economy of the USA, when the Market Crash of 1994 starts. Canada finds its economy crippled as US market manipulation comes to light and shakes market confidence the world over.
• The Long Crisis begins. The Crash of ’94 starts what later becomes known as the Long Crisis. For over a decade, Canada finds itself dealing with the aftershocks of the collapse of the United States.

1995

• The 1995 Québec Referendum succeeds. With the world at grips with crises and anti-authority sentiment running high in Canada, the 1995 Québec Referendum swings in favor of the Yes camp, resulting in a 52.7% vs 47,3% outcome. It quickly becomes clear that the federal government will not respect the outcome, arguing that a 53% vote does not represent a clear mandate of the people. Protests erupt all over the province of Québec, quickly turning violent.
• Martial Law is declared in Quebec after police forces find themselves unable to prevent the bombing of a federal courthouse in Québec City.
• L'Étouffement. Several thousands are arrested in Québec by Canadian Police and Armed Forces on on charges of secession and treason. Many are arrested on suspicion of being socialists.
• The Armée du Québec Souverain (Army of Sovereign Quebec) emerges in Québec. Canadian Armed Forces hire the services of Militech to fight against this new paramilitary force.
• The Law on Conscription is passed. As the economy falters and homelessness skyrockets, riots and protests erupt in every province. The Canadian prime minister Jean Chrétien and his party pass a law allowing Canadian Armed Forces to recruit through conscription. This decision is wildly unpopular, as Canadians know that conscripted soldiers would only serve Canada as glorified police troopers, trained to brutalize fellow Canadians or Americans.

1996

• The Refugee Crisis. As the Government of the United States fails, millions of Americans try to flee across the border. The Canadian Armed Forces and Canadian Police Forces are unable to maintain the peace in the Maritimes, Southern Québec, Southern Ontario and British Columbia as millions of hungry American citizens stream into the country. Between 8 to 12 million Americans cross the border during the years of 1997-2000.
• Canadian Nomads are born. With 1 in 4 Canadians now homeless and a third of refugees unaccounted for by authorities, hundreds of thousands riot for better conditions. Groups of nomadic packs appear in the Prairies and spread throughout the country.

1997

• Martial Law declared all over Canada. With riots erupting in border refugee camps and in most Canadian cities, Martial Law is extended from the province of Québec to all Canadian provinces and territories.
• Bombing of Parliament. A large explosive device is snuck into Canadian Parliament by the ASQ and detonates, killing 17 Liberal and Progressive Conservative MPs.

1998

• The Drought of ’98. The historic drought reduces the Prairie Provinces to parched grasslands. Farmers go bankrupt as megacorporations buy land on the cheap. By the end of the year, All-Foods, Petrochem and Biotechnica become the majority real-estate owners in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and Ontario.
• The Battle of Sept-Îles. 1,000 ASQ militia troops seize the town of Sept-Îles and capture the 8 shipping vessels and the cruise ship refueling there. The town becomes an active war zone as the rebel forces are besieged by Canadian and Corporate forces for 5 months. The defense eventually collapses under a large-scale aerodyne bombardment.

1999

• The Massacre at Ogdensburg-Prescott Bridge. In the morning of September 16^th, 1999, thousands of homeless American refugees occupy the Ogdensburg-Prescott bridge to obtain asylum in Canada. A Canadian conscript opens fire on approaching refugees. Chaos breaks out as American refugees and American national guard units return fire on Canadian soldiers. The skirmish lasts around 10 minutes. In total, 16 refugees and 3 Canadian infantrymen die by gunfire. Over 100 refugees are wounded and a further 21 are killed during the stampede that resulted from the firefight. The US and Canada almost go to war.
• Armed skirmishes between the Canadian military and refugees, boostergangs or sovereigntists are an everyday occurrence.

2000

• The Wasting Plague hits Canada. The Wasting Plague, which ravaged Europe, enters Canada through the Great Lakes, initially ravaging low-income and refugee populations in Toronto and southern Ontario, before spreading to the rest of the country. A million die in Canada alone.

2001

• The 5 Advisors. The Canadian Government receives help from the “5 advisors”, representatives from 5 megacorporations (All-Foods, Biotechnica, Petrochem, Militech and EuroBank). They come to Canada with monetary, military and advisory help. The massive influx of money, supplies and personnel allows Canada to avoid total collapse. The 5 advisors maneuver sympathetic agents into high positions in the federal and provincial governments.

2002

• The Food Crisis. Canadian crops fail due to a mutated plant virus. Hundreds of thousands starve as massive famine takes hold in Canada. American, European, and Japanese aid helps the Canadian government avoid total collapse.
• The ASQ collapses. A Netwatch Black ICE successfully slips into an important ASQ datafortress, frying most of the rebel leadership and seizing key intel. Raids are ordered on all known ASQ safehouses.

2004

• The Corporate Coup. As the First Corporate war rages, the 5 advisors execute their plan to seize power in Canada. In a bloodless coup, acting prime minister Henry Lehmann steps down, ceding power to fellow parliamentarian Sabrina Cardinal. Cardinal declares Canadian democracy incapable of dealing with the current crisis and organises a Constitutional Commission to rewrite the constitution of Canada. The Supreme Court allows this and sympathetic actors scattered in all layers of government from every province fail to object.
• Riots take place all over Canada but are quenched quickly by the Canadian Armed Forces and Militech contractors.

2005

• Introduction of the Consulate System. The Cardinal Commission concludes with the introduction of the new “Consulate System”. Canada establishes 13 Consulates, modeled on the borders of the old provinces and territories, and abolish the old system. The British-style Parliament and Senate are abolished, replaced with an unelected Parliament and Consulate Councils whose representatives represent the interests of the most productive private companies of the land. Canada is now an oligarchy.
• The abolition of Canadian Citizenship. Naturalized Canadian citizenship is no longer guaranteed. Canadians must prove to be worthy of citizenship through literacy tests, citizenship fees and by proving that they are a “productive citizen”. Millions of Canadians lose their Canadian citizenship because they are unable to afford the 500 eurodollar citizenship application fee.
• The “Welfare State”. A variety of social programs are created to help Canadians get back on their feet. Most of this government help is only available to Canadian residents, however. With homelessness and poverty still astronomically high, most Canadians have no choice but to relinquish their citizenship to pay the bills. Over half of all Canadians forfeit their right to vote to obtain material and financial support from the government of Canada.

2006

• The Long Crisis ends. As President Cardinal is re-elected and Canadian Consulates hold their first elections, it is clear that the Long Crisis is finally over. Canada, the democratic republic, is no more.
• Bell Media and Québecor merge into Bell-Québecor, allowing them to gain representation in most Consulate governments. It controls 56 % of all media broadcasting in the country.

2007

• Revocation of Martial Law and of the Law on Conscription.
• Citizenship eligibility is tightened again.

2009

• The last rogue Nomad Nation disappear from Canada. As the Canada Border Services Agency regains control of the borders, the nomad families which refused to sign agreements with the federal or consulate governments are chased out or exterminated.

2010

• The Canadian Broadcasting Company is dismantled. Most assets are sold to media giants Bell-Québecor, Diverse Media Systems and News Network 54. Bell-Québecor now controls 67% of all media broadcasting in the country.
• Canadian Space Agency is sold to the European Space Agency. After tense negotiations with the NUSA and the EEC, Canadian Space Agency assets are sold to the ESA. In exchange, Militech and Petrochem obtain short-term exclusive procurement deals with the Canadian Armed Forces.

2011

• Expansion of the Consulate System. Four Canadian metropolises are chosen to become Consulates. These are the Consulate of Halifax, the Consulate of Greater Montréal, the Consulate of Toronto, and the Consulate of Greater Vancouver.

2012

• First consulate elections held in urban consulates. The Consulates of Montréal, Toronto, Halifax and Vancouver elect their first Consuls and assemble their first Consulate Councils.
• Massive European Community Investments in the Prairies. Investments are to alleviate pressures on European food supplies as Spain struggles through The Great Drought.

2014

• The City of Montréal declares bankruptcy. Because of economic pressures and bad infrastructure investments, the City of Montréal declares bankruptcy. Real estate projects are abandoned and the remaining public real estate is bought up on the cheap by megacorporations.
• Construction of the Mount Robson Mass Driver begins.

2015

• The Montréal Redlight District is established. Sex work and most forms of gambling are legalised within the newly established Redlight District of Montréal.

2016

• The Northern Revolt. Cyber-terrorists cut off power and NET access in Northern Canada. Left to starve, thousands of workers in Yukon and in the Northwest Consulate start striking and organizing resistance. The Canadian Armed Forces are dispatched to quell the strikes. Videos from the revolt are released to the public, causing outrage.
• Formation of the Tiguaq Nomad Nation. In and around the Bay of Hudson, the culturally Inuit (Kivallirmiut) nomad pack is born and participates in terrorist attacks against cargo ships and corporate installations in Nunavut, Northern Québec, and Greenland.

2017

• Riots break out in Montréal after the political assassination of a popular activist music band. Most of Downtown burns down due to fires.

2018

• The Muertos Riots. The Consulate of Montréal attempts to evict the squatters of the Griffintown Complex. Hundreds die in the resulting riots as armed gangs resist eviction.

2020

• There are 63 million Canadian Residents. Only 1 million of them are Canadian citizens with the right to vote.

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