cashewman's Journal - Day

7:35PM - To be a Canadian Overseas

This was written in December when, outraged and discouraged by our actions in Bali, I gave up on writing my paper on the UK electricity sector and began to vent. Although thankfully Bali is over, my opinions certainly haven't changed, so it's worth sharing.

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Sitting in a library in Cambridge on a late December night seems like an unlikely place to be able to change anything in Canada. Distance hinders direct action, but does provide the benefit of perspective: Once we get outside the bubble, we can see it for what it is more clearly. Only when I leave Canada and compare it with the other places I’ve lived, Australia, Senegal or the UK in my case, can I truly see the extent of my country’s precarious, still-innocent and naïve beauty, and fret at its subversive, emerging ugliness.

Only from outside can I clearly see the awe-inspiring base of decency we have, the level of tolerance and respect we’ve established and enshrined in many of our societal structures. I am fiercely proud of my ability to vote, freely and without fear, and that my country’s political spectrum still includes empathy for different cultures, religions and sexual orientations. I am fiercely proud of the belief of my fellow Canadians that universal health care is a basic Canadian right. I am fiercely proud of our ability to accommodate English and French speaking cultures, albeit sometimes with a few hiccups. I am fiercely proud that Canada ranks among the highest in the UN Development Programme rankings and Vancouver consistently ranks as one of the best cities in the world in which to live. I am fiercely proud of our reputation for humanitarianism, and the willingness of many past great Canadians to stand up for causes that represent the best of pure human strength, decency and empathy, both at home and on the world stage. I am fiercely proud of our history of peacekeeping, our involvement in the fight to ban land mines, and our commitment during two World Wars. I am fiercely proud that we don’t have a Vietnam, an Iraq or a history of colonialization. I am fiercely proud of Stephen Lewis and Romeo Dallaire.

The benefit of time and space away from my country allows perspective on these points, and provides the balance to see the emerging ugliness that my fellow Canadians may not get the chance to see. I am proud of my right to vote freely, but discouraged that my political process allows a party to rule with a majority, having only obtained a minority of our votes. I am proud that our political spectrum includes tolerance of different views, but discouraged when those views are wasted by politicians consumed in a seemingly rabid self-interested struggle for power. I am proud that we accommodate English and French Canadian cultures, but feel that there is enough room for our aboriginal population as well, long since marginalized, ignored and impoverished in society, but still conveniently presented for cultural heritage when the world is watching. I am proud that Canada is one of the best countries to live in, but am painfully aware that our prosperity largely stems from a fortunate abundance of natural resources. I am proud of Vancouver but amazed that it can also be home to the Downtown Eastside, with one of the highest rates of poverty and AIDS in the country. I am proud of our reputation of promoting basic human rights around the world, but distraught that this reputation is based on actions that largely ceased a decade ago. I am proud of our peacekeeping heritage, but depressed that we have long since failed to offer much help, pathetically ranking behind 30 plus countries in our commitment. I am proud of a history without Vietnam or Iraq, but worry about Afghanistan and shake my head at our government’s overt support of one side in the recent Israel-Lebanon war.

I am proud of Stephen Lewis, but wonder why people like him are the exception, rather than true representatives of our foreign policy. I am proud of Romeo Dallaire, but distress that we haven’t learnt from Rwanda, watching the scourge of ethnic cleansing with every passing day in Darfur.

Every poll that comes out ranking our trust in politicians at 14% causes me to shake my head, but is shortly followed by another painful example of political posturing, childish bickering or corruption, causing me to wonder how they even managed 14%. As politicians, when we gave you the responsibility on election day, we put our trust in you. When you engage in corruption in an advertising scandal, you abuse that trust. When you falsely accuse your opponents of criminal activity during a campaign, you’re abusing that trust. When you are elected under one party banner and switch immediately following the election, you’re abusing that trust. This is not an attack on any one party: all have proven themselves unworthy of the trust and support of Canadians. And most politicians: for every Chuck Cadman we get 10 Stephen Harpers, Jack Laytons or Belinda Stronachs. Canadians don’t want a minority government to be a constant power struggle with each party trying to score political points. We expect our politicians to respect the distribution of our votes and get to work on running our country.

Right now I feel we have nowhere to turn politically. None of the three main parties have shown themselves to be remotely worthy of our support. Polls show a constant disillusionment with politics among young people. Can you blame us? We are a cynical and realistic generation. We have less illusions of idealism. We understand that extremes are not healthy, and expect our society to be managed rationally. We appreciate competence. And principle. It’s tough to get passionate about rational, moderate, principled leadership. So rarely will we be on the streets in protest. More likely is that our leadership will hear the deafening silence of a low voter turnout. Our leaders fail to address the root causes of our disillusionment, glossing over it condescendingly with ‘get out the vote’-type campaigns.

I have crossed the country twice by car, and I am fiercely proud of or boundless oceans and stunning mountains, our prairies and forests. On the TransCanada 7 days in one car isn’t a challenge, it’s a brief glimpse at the unique and varied lives of my fellow Canadians. I bask in the knowledge that most Canadians identify themselves as environmentalists. I appreciate that our resources, the forestry, mining and fishing industries, provided the base that allows me to live with prosperity, education and security. But I am in disbelief that we have managed our forests so unsustainably, allowed fish stocks to crash and, while holding decent standards in Canadian mining, allowed our mining companies to trample human and environmental rights in other countries.

We have allowed our international reputation to crumble, from exemplary integrity to hypocritical bickering in Bali. And while our declining reputation is cause for distress, it is purely a symptom of a deeper lack of collective responsibility towards the world. Few countries are so perfectly set up to constructively engage the world, and help its many cultures work together. We have no history of colonialism overseas. We speak two of the most widely spoken languages. We still have the vestiges of a reputation of patient, intelligent, tolerance in engaging the rest of the world. To a degree, we still have the respect of the world. But we must earn it, not simply inherit it from the last generation’s courage and integrity. Although I have lost most faith in our politicians, I still believe in the power of normal Canadians to make a difference, within our borders and abroad. I still believe that, in spite of the thousands of miles that separate us from most of the world, we share a connection with them that hasn’t been extinguished. I still believe that passion can triumph over indifference, that collective good trumps self interest, and that Canada has an important positive role to play in the world. And if its ordinary Canadians that stand up and seize that role, then even better.