Mark Carney’s campaign is something out of a time machine. Thin on actual substance, he’s opted to emanate vibes instead, with cultural references to 1950s hockey, 1960s music and 1980s CBC programming, and imitations of nationalism by cheering on the stereotype of Canadian niceness. It’s quaint — but impossible to relate to.

Does he have a few policy ideas lined up for 2025 Canada? Sure. But he’s selling them by appealing to the young- to middle-aged adults of the 1990s. People who, by now, are settled in their own homes, fee simple, insulated from the worst consequences of a high-immigration, no-growth economy — and don’t have much care for those who aren’t. People like Globe and Mail columnist Marsha Lederman, who have praised his “positive” yet empty campaign, satisfied with his “reassuring-dad vibes, suggesting he’s got our backs.”