Taxed to Death: Why Canadians Are Going Underground

Taxed to Death: Why Canadians Are Going Underground By Dale Jodoin Every day, more Canadians wake up wondering how they’re going to make it to the end of the month. Prices are up, wages are flat, and the only thing growing is the list of taxes on everything we do. Rent is now so high it feels like a joke. Grocery bills are eating paychecks whole. Power prices are through the roof, and with the government pushing electric cars on everyone, don’t expect that to change anytime soon. They keep telling us this is all for the greater good. That it’s about saving the planet or growing the economy or whatever new excuse they roll out. But regular Canadians aren’t seeing the benefit. They’re being left behind. What we’re seeing is the slow death of the middle class, and worse, the rise of a new kind of silent economy one where you have to hide what you earn just to survive. The Liberals and the NDP have turned Canada into a land of hidden hustle. Not the fun kind of hustle you post about on Instagram. This is quiet, backdoor work. This is cutting lawns for cash, fixing cars in the garage, selling baked goods out of your kitchen, or helping people move for a twenty-dollar handshake. No paperwork. No receipts. No CRA. Why? Because the second you play by the rules, the system bleeds you dry. That’s the new Canadian reality. You can work hard, pay your taxes, follow the law, and still not afford a normal life. Or you can take your chances, keep your mouth shut, and do what needs to be done. And it’s not just a few people doing this anymore. It’s spreading. Fast. The only way to survive in this new Canada is to stop telling the government everything. That sounds harsh, maybe even illegal, but look around. We’re being pushed into it. The government will call it tax fraud. They’ll say you’re a criminal. But what do you call it when a system forces its people to go broke for simply trying to live? We used to be proud of our country. We used to brag about how great Canada was. But now, more and more people are ashamed. Not of being Canadian but of what’s being done in our name. While Ottawa talks about equality, they give handouts to people who just arrived while the ones who’ve worked here all their lives get told to wait. While the elite throw money at green energy plans and fancy carbon credits, average folks can’t even fill their gas tank. And while politicians pose for the cameras, Canadians are sitting in the dark because they can’t pay the power bill. This isn’t a conspiracy theory. This is everyday life now. The rich are still rich. The poor are still poor. But the working class, the ones who kept the country going, are being punished for simply existing. It’s not about right or left anymore. It’s about survival. People are afraid to speak up. They’re afraid their neighbours might report them. They’re afraid of audits, fines, or worse. We’ve created a country where you don’t know who to trust, where even doing an honest day’s work might come back to bite you if you mention it to the wrong person. That’s not freedom. That’s fear. And the fear is growing. The more the government taxes, the more people hide. And the more people hide, the more the government tightens its grip. It’s a loop. One that’s hard to break. And they know it. They want control. They don’t want independent Canadians. They want dependents. They want us poor, desperate, and obedient. That’s why they tax small businesses harder than corporations. That’s why they punish side hustles but let billion-dollar companies skate by with loopholes. That’s why they praise people who rely on government programs, but shame the ones who try to make it on their own. They’re building a country where hard work doesn’t pay and independence is punished. But there’s still a fight left in us. There are still people out there who aren’t ready to give up. If you’ve got a skill for anything from carpentry to cutting hair you need to keep it close and keep it quiet. Don’t advertise online. Don’t trust platforms that track you. Use word of mouth. Free papers. Posters on local boards. Your neighbour’s garage. Keep it small, keep it moving, and keep the government out of it. That might sound un-Canadian to some, but ask yourself: what’s more Canadian than helping your neighbour, working hard, and asking for nothing but a fair chance? That’s not a crime. That’s community. This isn’t about greed. It’s about survival. The people who defend the system will keep calling us lazy, selfish, or paranoid. But they’re the ones who benefit from it. They’re the ones who get the subsidies, the free education, the special grants, the electric car rebates, the carbon credit bonuses. Regular Canadians get none of that. We just get taxed. Again and again. And if we complain? We’re told we’re the problem. That we need to sacrifice more. That we need to work harder. We’ve been doing that. And we’re done. If this country wants to keep the lights on, it better start listening to the ones paying the bills. Because when we all go underground, the system will collapse. And maybe that’s what it needs. Maybe it’s time to stop pretending that everything’s fine. Because it’s not. The country we knew is gone. And if we want to survive what’s coming next, we can’t wait for someone to save us. We have to save ourselves. Quietly. Carefully. Together.