Oh my! Is anyone else as worried about the state of political affairs in this fine country of ours as I am? I sure do hope so.
So at first glance, travel and politics…huh? Backpackers aren’t thinking about that too much!…Well, they should be!
Let’s face it! Our leaders have always been interesting characters. (Well, for the most part, anyways). Take Trudeau and Chretien as classic examples. The ALWAYS spoke their mind, and despite being somewhat goofy at times, they at least had personality. They weren’t afraid to speak their minds. And they were CANADIAN! They believed in Canada. They believed that Canada was something more than America’s little (bigger) cousin. USA’s neighbour desperate to hang out ‘cause they have flashier toys than us! Harper is practically a drooling lapdog, making lovey-dovey eyes at Bush and begging.
We are different! On est different! What language do I have to say it in!?
Think about it. Every American traveller gets asked, “So. What do YOU think about Bush?” We may not necessarily be asked about our leader specifically, but I have to admit I was proud as hell to be able to say that MY leader wasn’t snivelling and hanging on to America’s coattails going to war! No way! Canadians don’t want war! None that I have met recently. And that is just one (if not prime) example of the many times I’ve been proud of our leaders when travelling abroad.
Cause let’s face it. I’m egotistical! I’d rather have every other nation telling me how lucky I am, than saying we’re just like everyone else. We’re not. We’re Canadian. We are as goofy as our leaders, and our morals are still high. I refuse to believe otherwise, despite the election results.
I can only hope that my next trip abroad I can square my shoulders, and proudly state “Yup! That’s right! That’s MY government!” instead of mumbling subordinately that we followed the herd.
So why have we chosen to go hand in hand with the evil Frankenbots? (Has no one else noticed Stephen Harper’s eerie resemblance to Mary Shelley’s monster? But I digress.) I simply cannot understand it. So for the moment it looks like my hand will go firmly into my pocket, and I will practice my mumbling (not that I’m so good at keeping quiet!)
