It used to be amusing that Americans thought of Canadians as being more liberal and more polite. They would puzzle over our accents and did not pretend to understand how we are governed. Lately they have been considering having a northern wall across the top of their country to keep our jihadists out. Times have changed Prime Minister Harper tells us. He should know he helped change them.
But what the U.S. and the rest of the world knew of Canada was already askew because we had proved to be some of the toughest soldiers in two world wars. And when our soldiers put on the blue berets of the United Nations, they proved to be even tougher when facing down problems without using guns.
Some thought Canadians foolish when they opened their country to the displaced and the fleeing and the frightened. Yet we need those people. We need them to bring their families. We need them to contribute their labour, their skills, their industry and their entrepreneurship. They add to our markets, our knowledge and our nation’s vitality.
With the Harper government closing embassies, reducing staff and discouraging family re-unification, what chance did we have to meet even more modest immigration targets? Times are changed, we are told again. The Conservatives shrugged when Europe was inundated with those fleeing the violence of the Middle East and the unrest and poverty of North Africa. It’s a European problem the Conservatives told us. And when did Canadians stop caring we ask?
But we have to be careful and do security checks the Conservatives tell us. And how do you do security checks on people who are in danger of being murdered by their own government we ask? It takes longer we are told.
For the past decade, Canadians have had a government that does not understand or welcome diplomacy. It cares not for the many years of Canada building an identity in the world. It was not really a kinder, gentler Canada that they knew. The world saw Canada as offering leadership, understanding, openness, fairness and assistance when needed. That is not something that you offer and then take away at whim.
Canada has always been supportive of Israel. That does not mean we support Israel right or wrong just to pander to the Jewish vote in Canada. That is crass and despicable.
We can show our support for the Ukraine without shoving it as Conservative propaganda in the face of people in Canada of Ukrainian heritage. That is just as crass as you can get. And nobody needs to forget diplomacy when dealing with Russia. There is a great difference between maintaining diplomatic relations and rudeness. Times have not changed that much.
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Copyright 2015 © Peter Lowry
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