I’m going to talk about something no politician in their right mind would ever dare to, which saddens me. It makes my heart well up for Canada because we live in a time where no political leader has the courage to say anything other than to pander to one side or the other in ways which may forward their immediate agenda without thought to the greater picture. Whether this can be chalked up to the pitfalls of minority politics, or simply an erosion of bravery since the days of Trudeau, I don’t pretend to know.

The problem, as I see it, with the argument that Quebec is unique hinges on the assumption that they are unique when compared with something uniform. As we all know, Canada is anything but coherent, and that incoherence both troubles us and unites us. Essentially then, the argument is that Quebec is unique in a country whose differences bring us together.

Where would we be without Newfoundland and the Maritimes? We wouldn’t have a sense of humour, that’s for sure. And without Alberta, we would all be a lot worse off in economic terms and in cowboy hats per capita. Without Ontario’s banking and administration, we would be less organized. BC’s street and drug culture keeps us mellow. Without the prairies and their agriculture, we would be more dependent on imports. And without the combined beauty of the Rockies, the East and West Coasts, the Great Lakes, the Canadian Shield, and the mysterious Northern region, we would be a little less proud of our country.

This is not to say that La Belle Province is any less important to Canada, but they are not any more important either. Their industry and research sectors are alive and kicking and they have a unique stake in the history of the founding of Canada. They’ve managed to build a great music, art, and movie culture and star system with a relatively small population, which is an amazing feat considering how poor English Canada’s popular culture is faring.

I have many Quebecois friends and even some family, but I have always failed to see what makes them entitled to have their own nation, whether it be a unique nation currently in Canada, or a nation unique to current Canada, or a newly developed chip on the otherwise unified shoulder of the many disparate nations within Canada.

In the end, we’re all Canadians, we’re all equally different, and for the sake of our country, can’t we all just get along…

D.

Posted by D. on Friday, November 24 at Friday, November 24, 2006 | Permalink