Second attempt at a diary, my first one, My son was gobsmacked, which is about my 10 year old's reaction to the discussion of gay marriage during the VP debate , seemed well received, and made it to the rescue page (thank you jennyjem). Some nice kossacks left some heartwarming tales in the comments section, you might want to check it out.
As I explained in the introduction to that diary, I'm a Canadian married to an ex-pat Yank. I've been strangely obsessed by American presidential politics since my late teens. My unusual hobby was high-lighted this summer when we gathered in Quebec for my wife's sister's wedding.
My mother-in-law has 3 sisters. Of the four sisters 2 moved to Canada, 2 stayed in the states. They are smart, well educated left leaning people. The cousins who came from the states to the wedding are both finishing up phd's. I know they vote dem because the last family wedding was just before the last election, and they were sure that Bush wouldn't get in. Anyway, as we gathered before the wedding, I mentioned that we'd just heard on the radio that Barack had picked Joe Biden as his running mate. "Oh," said one cousin, "Do we like him?" So there I was, the only adult who didn't have a vote, giving a brief run down of Biden's back ground---senator from Delaware, lots of foreign policy experience....
(Warning, long rambling post follows that ultimately asks the question what is it about the perception of Canada, by Americans, that politicians never seem to use us as an example of how leftist policies work.)
So why the strange obsession with American politics? Part of it, I think, is because I was a child of Trudeau---he's the first prime minister I remember, though I was 7 when he came to power, and he was a larger than life figure who transfixed my country and dominated politics for the next two decades.
Say what you will about Trudeau, he was a man of vision, and his vision of Canada was one that I lived---French and English together not just politically, but at my dinner table, in my own genetic makeup.
My family owes much to him. He was a man of intelligence and education, and flair who believed in social justice. As Justice Minister he decriminalized homosexuality, "there's no place for the state in the bedrooms of the nation", adding that "what's done in private between adults doesn't concern the Criminal Code". He repatriated our constitution and ushered in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms that ultimately led to my ability to marry the mother of my children. When he first came on the scene he captured the imagination of young people in much the way Barack Obama has, and he used their energy and enthusiasm to steer Canada to the left, and Canadian politics, since then, has paled in comparison.
But still, American politics? Well, Trudeau was my first prime minister, but the first political name in my consciousness was Kennedy---also a charismatic leader with a vision of equality.
So maybe that's it. No Canadian politician since Trudeau has seemed to have such a compelling vision to share---of uniting a divided country, of promoting social justice. (Since Trudeau it's been more about holding the line, which is not quite so poetic.)
In Canada, although we have a long way to go, (there are certainly many on the left who can point to where we still need to make change), but in some ways it feels like a lot of the heavy lifting has been done. We have a social safety net, and while we still work to keep it from being eroded, most Canadians philosophically believe it is the right thing. You won't find any Canadians arguing that universal health care is a bad thing. Gays can serve in the military, and they can get married. We think it is impolite to invade other countries, patriotic to question those in authority, and polite people don't try to push their religious views on you. We are proud that our soldiers are known as "Peace Keepers". We've abolished the death penalty, and women have the right to choose. Sure we have those who argue against these things, but they are, for most Canadians, non-starters. We are not so tied to the symbols of freedom as Americans seem to be, preferring the actual thing. (During the only World Series the Blue Jays won, there was an incident where an American Marine Honour Guard marched into the stadium with the Canadian Flag upside down. This did not set off an international incident, although during the next game, the cameras did linger on a sign in the audience that said "The Few, The Proud, The Dyslexic". )
I live in a country that often defines itself, in part, by what it is not. Canadians are people who live in North America who are not Americans. (My son has a t-shirt that asks on the front "what is the definition of a Canadian?" On the back "An unarmed American with health care.")
Maybe I've been so interested in the elections, (always cheering for the Democrats) because it seems the Democrats are trying to push your society to get to the point where they can begin to discuss some of the things we take for granted. The Democratic party leaders, always seem like my Canadian political ideal, intelligent, educated, with a vision of social and economic justice. Heck, Kerry could even speak French. (brief sidenote: how can anyone with a functioning brain actually hold that someone can be too smart for a job?) The Democrats seem to be a party of vision, and the vision they espouse seems an awful lot like, well, my country.
And it's almost like we cheated to get here. Canadians watched the civil turmoil of the sixties and adopted some of the best---a consciousness of the importance of equality for races and sexes and orientation, and implemented them in ways the American left is still struggling to do. Is it because we were not, at the same time, embroiled in an unpopular war? Because contrary to Coulter's claims, we did not join you in Viet Nam. We took on your social ideals and actually made them policy. While Americans were fighting the hippie hordes, Tommy Douglass was showing Canadians that universal healthcare was a good thing. Canada owes him much, America owes him Kiefer.
What is it about the American psyche that sets it apart from the Canadian one? I'm sure many on the left would fit in quite happily up here, if you brought sweaters. What is it about Canada that frightens people, that makes them so sure they don't want universal healthcare, or to get rid of the death penalty, or to give full rights to all of its citizens. Is it that the rest of the world thinks we're nice? Do the rednecks think they'll never get another date if they treat fellow citizens with respect and concern?
We have indoor toilets and television. We eat Pizza and pad thai. Our kids can identify their country on a map. We do not sound like Palin, and we like our politicians to be smart. Some Canadians do have guns, for hunting, and while gun violence is moving into some cities, most Canadians don't really think we need guns to protect our stuff.
Twenty four Canadians fell in the towers. It was my brother's subway stop. My sister in law had been there picking up a client an hour earlier, the building she worked in was a nearby casualty. We watched in horror here in Canada, and waited breathlessly to make sure they were okay, they were, though many of their friends and neighbours were gone. 911 touched us as well, and we followed you to Afghanistan, we are there to this day, but we did not buy the bill of goods on Iraq. And so the right wing mocks us and calls us Kanuckistan, but really.....if the worst thing you can say about us is that we pay higher taxes.....um y'all should try it.
We are connected to your country. Families cross borders, intermarry---I have a niece who is growing up in New Jersey, my wife can vote in your elections. We are like you, but with more battles on the left won. Is it possible that Obama will be able to make the push forward that stalled in the sixties. Is it possible that violence is what has stopped you? The violence of race, the violence of the military complex? Is it because your politics offers fewer choices, so the far left has less influence? Many of the lies the right tells can be dismissed by pointing north---our society functions happily, with higher life expectancy and infant mortality, we have not been met with plagues and locusts, we are proof that the scary stories are not true. Why do Americans fear becoming too much like us?
Is it because we're polite? While McCarthy ran the communists out of Hollywood, we let them run for office, we just didn't vote for them. When people talk about seceding from our country we don't run them out of town on a rail, we elect them to parliament. And we use their votes to preserve a leftist agenda :-) We vote every two, or three, or four or five years or so---our registration process seems so much easier than yours, a national repository of votes handled by elections canada, and after the vote (we put x's on a piece of paper at the local school) the vote is counted (with volunteer scrutineer's from each party watching) and we all know the result that evening. There don't seem to be registration drives in Canada, because, um, for the most part we're all registered.
What is different, at the core of our two cultures, that keeps the left screaming in the wilderness? The distraction of race, religion and wars?
Every election I watch, holding my breath, hoping the Democrats will win, but knowing, that even if they do, the battle is just engaged, and they'll have to fight for each and every centimetre of social justice. And I sit up here watching, wondering what's so scary about Canada, that so many Americans would rather vote against their own best interests, than be known around the world as nice. :-) (It's the tax thing, right?)
What's wrong with Canada that Obama is so quick to point out that he's not espousing universal health care (because that would be so horrible), why does no one ever say, "Why can't we be more like Canada where they've tried it and it works." Or if they do, they are laughed out of the room? Is it because the American's put so much faith in being the best country on earth that they can't, in fact, bear to follow another country's lead? (Not everyone wants to be an American, sorry, many other countries have their own national pride. ) What is it about Canada that makes us useless as a helpful selling point. Really, I'm not wanking, I want to know.
I understand what motivates those in power on the right---all this turmoil is good for their pocketbooks, but why are so many Americans who are not profiting buying their bill of goods.
Is it taxes? Really? Well, folks, sometimes you do get what you pay for:-)
So, how can we, as Canadians, be better role models to help our Democratic soul mates help their country help itself? Or should we just start cleaning out the guest rooms in case things go badly?