Week 121.
Elder Advice always welcomes Victoria Day. Not merely because she was this country’s first head of state and Canada is the sole place on earth where her birthday is still celebrated - although I enjoy the distinction. And not merely because Her Late Majesty memorably said: “Give my people plenty of beer, good beer, and cheap beer, and you will have no revolution among them” - although I suspect such wise counsel is, in large part, the reason statues of her still remain visible. Rather, Elder Advice always welcomes the May 24th weekend because it heralds the true beginning of Spring in this country and is an annual opportunity to remind his friends that: “Drink Canada Dry” is a trade-mark, not a challenge.
And a chance to reflect on what makes Canada worth preserving.
Reflecting on what makes Canada worth preserving is no easy task. “Ordinary Canadians” - fiscally conservative, socially liberal, and reasonably patriotic are beset on all sides by those who seem sure it is not. Including, most problematically, their federal government. Elder Advice has watched, with increasing disquiet, as the current occupant of the Prime Minister’s office continues down the path he began in 2015 with his infamous claim in a New York Times interview, that Canada is “the first post-national state.” “There is no core identity, no mainstream in Canada”, he trumpeted. Elder Advice cannot imagine more convincing evidence of what a deeply unserious and entitled fop he is.
Not content to meekly accept the destructive views of academics and activists with agendas to divide Canadians - by residence, urban and rural - by skin colour, white and non-white - and by history, indigenous and settler, the Liberal government has made it clear that Canada is both irredeemably racist and, when it comes to indigenous peoples, actually genocidal. For this government, it seems nothing of Canada is worth preserving, other than presumably a belief in the Liberals as its natural governing party.
Fitting perfectly into this disturbing narrative are two unfolding government actions:
Next month Canada will take another step toward citizenship as a box-ticking exercise. Swearing an oath - a vow taken by citizenship applicants to abide by Canadian laws and fulfil their duties as citizens - is a legal requirement to become a Canadian citizen. Typically, new citizens must swear or affirm the oath before a citizenship judge at an in-person ceremony. Starting in June, applicants for citizenship will be able to “self administer” the oath in an online form. Because this government believes solemn ceremonies on what should be one of the most important days in the life of any applicant, should not take precedence over the need to improve customer service by reducing processing times. Becoming Canadian will shortly require less thought and effort than I am sure Her Late Majesty devoted to selecting a unremarkable lumber town, on an equally unremarkable river, as Canada’s capital.
Later this summer those already Canadian citizens will witness the roll out of the new Canadian passport, which removes all the iconic imagery of the present design and replaces it with a collection of clip art. We are told the new design took 10 years of consultation, which is unfathomable even in a country which increasingly prides itself on talk as a substitute for action of any kind. Elder Advice is most struck by the removal of people from all the visa pages. From Nellie McLung to Terry Fox - all are gone. Perhaps Liberals are just trying to avoid their future discomfiture when Nellie is outed as a believer in eugenics and advocate for Alberta's Sexual Sterilization Act. Or when someone starts a campaign to cancel Terry for setting unreasonable expectations. In any event, the only theme of the new passport is the weather and the only discernable people are anonymous - a single indigenous kayaker, some old fellow with a wheelbarrow and what appear to be children jumping into a lake.
If you knew nothing about Canada other than the federal government’s claim that the new passport “is a representation of our national identity and values”, looking at the blizzard of snowflakes throughout, you would be certain Canadians have an inflated sense of self, and are overly emotional, easily offended and unable to deal with change or opposing opinions. Looking at the bushels of maple leaves everywhere, you would be equally convinced that Canadians - bereft of any core identity, values or principles - will go wherever any capricious wind takes them.
Of course, if the object of both these exercises is to further promote a “post-national state”- that stands for nothing and accommodates everything - I suppose Elder Advice should be congratulating the federal government on its successful ongoing efforts.
Elder Advice? Being Canadian is not a transactional relationship. We can and should be conscious and constantly reminded of the acts of extraordinary people who have for good reason, stood out in our history - the Sir John A MacDonalds, the Joseph Brants, the Champlains, the Simcoes, the Brocks, the Joseph Howes, the Tecumsehs, the James Douglases, the Sam Steeles, the Frontenacs, the Jeanne Mances, the Jennie Trouts, the Chief Peguises, the Thanadelthurs, the Smallwoods, the Nellie McLungs, the Terry Foxes. And of “ordinary Canadians” who, given half a chance, have shown themselves capable of extraordinary things. The willingness to sacrifice, the ingenuity, and the sense of community Canadians of our past have demonstrated should make us all want to follow their example. From indigenous peoples, to the English and French who ultimately established the world’s oldest and most peaceful federation, to the waves of resilient people from the world over who have sought and found opportunities here to start again and secure a better future for themselves and for their children, all have contributed to this admirable national state.
Canada is a improbable work of art. The ceremonies, language and images that symbolize it are important. They are, and always have been, intended to unite us, and should be actively promoted as such. And until those intent on tearing it all down have something plainly better to offer in their place, Elder Advice borrows from imagery in the new passport, and suggests that they all “go jump in the lake.”
Now that is something that would amuse Her Late Majesty.
Deeply unserious fop as PM does earnestly believe that his party is the Natural Governing Party of Canada and that Canada has no identity. He is focused entirely on his performances and our country has now become 20th in the world in per capita income. We owe him what he deserves: retirement from his position.