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The Democratic Strategist

Political Strategy for a Permanent Democratic Majority

O Canada

Today, as Matt Yglesias earlier reminded us amnesiac Americans, is Canada Day–the Canadian parallel, though not exact, to our Independence Day.
I confess that I am an inveterate Canadaphile, and not for such ideological reasons as its health care system or the striking fact that even its current conservative leaders have chosen to mark this Canada Day with apologies to its aboriginal population. No, it’s the basic decency, civility, and sense of humor of most Canadians that has long attracted me. And their highly sophisticated knowledge of our own political system has always put us to shame.
Back in 2000, our then-Ambassador to Canada Gordon Giffin (an old friend) arranged for me to speak about Al Gore’s policy views to an Ottawa meeting of deputy ministers–the people who more or less ran the Canadian government. They asked far better questions–and not just on issues affecting Canada–than you’d probably get from anything like a similar audience in the U.S.
It’s been a few years since I’ve had an opportunity to go north of the border, but I miss it, from PEI to BC. I wish all our friends and neighbors there a very happy Canada Day.

One comment on “O Canada

  1. links on

    Yeah, Canada is great. I wonder how many Bush refuges will move back if Obama wins? And for all you people who think Canada is some progressive utopia like Michael Moore claims, you should have heard the uproar today when Henry Morgenthaler, the crusader for abortion rights in Canada, was awarded the Order of Canada. It does say something that he was given the award, but the social conservatives North of the border came out of their bunkers today with this announcement. Moreover, Canada has consistently refused to grant refugee status to American soldiers who have fled North in hopes of avoiding going to Iraq. The Canada of Stephen Harper is far from the Canada of Pierre Elliot Trudeau, apologies to First Nations people notwithstanding.

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