Lipstick on a pig: Lake Ontario Now & Forever

Trump renamed Lake Ontario "Lake America" while U.S.-Canada tariffs hit their highest level in decades and Canada's economy slid into a technical recession. Along the way — Google Maps splitting the name by country, Ontario Premier Doug Ford's billboard response, Wendat Grand Chief Pierre Picard on what gets erased when a name changes, and the much darker precedent buried in Canadian history: the 1916 renaming of Berlin, Ontario to Kitchener, after a British commander whose own record includes the concentration camps of the Boer War.

SOURCES The Phrase Wikipedia — Lipstick on a pig The Trade War Wikipedia — 2025–2026 United States trade war with Canada Canada Dept. of Finance — Countermeasures announcement (Aug. 25, 2026) The Economy Vanguard Canada — Canada 2026 Q3 Outlook The Hub — Canada could lose 90,000 jobs to Trump's tariffs Lake Ontario → "Lake America" CBS News — Trump signs executive order to rename Lake Ontario "Lake America" The Canadian Response NPR — Canada claps back at Trump's efforts to rename Lake Ontario ABC News (wire) — Ontario premier answers Trump with giant lake sign (Grand Chief Pierre Picard statement) Berlin, Ontario → Kitchener Wikipedia — Berlin-to-Kitchener name change Wikipedia — Berliner Journal ResearchGate — "There is no room in our city for hate" (scholarly source on the 1916 vote and 2020 controversy) Kitchener / Boer War Wikipedia — Second Boer War concentration camps Denali / Mount McKinley / Gulf of America The White House — Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness (Executive Order, Jan. 20, 2025) Postcast by: Casey Bradfield IG: @letcaseybe