Stop the ride … We want to get off

“Be careful what you wish for” could have been the lesson from 2025.

A year ago — in the first paper of 2025 — this editorial space advised readers to “buckle up” because the political roller-coaster was about to begin. It was a look ahead to the upcoming year’s federal and territorial elections.

But in the first week of 2025, no one could have predicted the wild ride ahead. Now, the events of the first full week of 2026 — including the alarming talk of a U.S. military takeover of Greenland — suggest this year might be even wilder than the last.

A year ago, it looked like the looming federal and territorial elections were going to be the big news stories of 2025. They were, although they unfolded differently from the way we thought they might have.

In the early days of 2025, Justin Trudeau was still clinging to power, despite growing dissent within the Liberal party that eventually forced him out. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s 20-point lead in opinion polls had him standing at the doorstep of the prime minister’s office. The NDP was still an official party!

We knew Nunavummiut would head to the polls later in 2025 to elect a new government. No one saw it coming that then-premier P.J. Akeeagok would call it quits after one term as MLA and premier, plunging the territory into a search for a new premier.

So much changed so quickly.

A year ago, when this space predicted a political roller-coaster, Donald Trump was not yet president. Everyone had heard his rambling rhetoric about “tariff” being his favourite word. But it was unimaginable that the U.S. and Canada would actually be embroiled in a bitter trade war with the potential to hobble both countries’ economies.

No one had yet heard of “elbows up.”

And who would have guessed a U.S.-initiated trade war with Canada would dominate the news the way it did? Canadians certainly could have lived without that kind of excitement.

Less than two weeks into 2026, we’ve seen more shocking upheaval. The world will be watching how the U.S. capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro plays out and whether Trump will suffer any consequences for an apparent violation of international law.

Trump’s deeply disturbing and distressing talk about taking over Greenland should be cause for alarm across the world, but especially in neighbouring Nunavut where there are cultural and family connections.

Coincidentally, one of this paper’s most popular articles of 2025 was by Taissumani columnist Kenn Harper about a proposal before the First World War that might have resulted in Canada taking possession of Greenland.

Our readers were curious about Greenland’s fate even when a U.S. takeover was a theoretical topic. Last week’s events in Venezuela signal that Trump is willing to take military action to achieve his goals.

One of the lessons from 2025 is that things that were once unimaginable have become possible.

Last year was indeed a political roller-coaster — more so than anyone predicted. The way 2026 is shaping up, the thrill is gone, we’ve had enough excitement and now we just hope the ride will come to an end.