This is a typical graph shown in media outlets, including Wikipedia, with spikes in March 2020 and in the winter of 2020-21 that look alarming when viewed in isolation, and which are universally blamed on the covid-19 virus. However, when viewing mortality data over multiple years, as shown in Figure 1a, one sees that this is a yearly pattern with a increases in weekly deaths every winter, and there is no significant difference in the winters of 2019-20 and 2020-21 despite official tallies showing high numbers of covid-19 deaths in Canada. Rancourt et al stated this finding frankly: "there was no covid-19 pandemic in Canada. It would be difficult to conclude otherwise” (2021, page 11).
They also described in detail that the pandemic response was overly aggressive and most likely increased deaths instead of reducing them, and that the spike would have been much lower of not for the social isolation, healthcare disruption, and solitary confinement policies which increased poor outcomes in the very elderly, and the social and economic upheaval which increased deaths in young males. Discussion of response-caused deaths is found in section 4.5, “Regarding Causes of Response-Induced Deaths” (Pages 41-46). At the top of page 43 is an excellent discussion of effects of the "unprecedented strict mass quarantine and isolation of sick and healthy elderly people" as a "main cause of the 'covid-peak' in Canada." (Page 43). They later state: “We conclude that the ‘covid-peak’ was palpably induced by the pandemic response” (Rancourt et al, Page 47), and regarding young males: “Our interpretation is that the excess deaths in males of the 0-44 age group arise from the stress of the large-scale and continued societal and economic responses to the pandemic.” (Page 34).
They also described in detail that the pandemic response was overly aggressive and most likely increased deaths instead of reducing them, and that the spike would have been much lower of not for the social isolation, healthcare disruption, and solitary confinement policies which increased poor outcomes in the very elderly, and the social and economic upheaval which increased deaths in young males. Discussion of response-caused deaths is found in section 4.5, “Regarding Causes of Response-Induced Deaths” (Pages 41-46). At the top of page 43 is an excellent discussion of effects of the "unprecedented strict mass quarantine and isolation of sick and healthy elderly people" as a "main cause of the 'covid-peak' in Canada." (Page 43). They later state: “We conclude that the ‘covid-peak’ was palpably induced by the pandemic response” (Rancourt et al, Page 47), and regarding young males: “Our interpretation is that the excess deaths in males of the 0-44 age group arise from the stress of the large-scale and continued societal and economic responses to the pandemic.” (Page 34).