Jeff Burgar
Maybe Canada is just a crowd of people. Our only common interest is we live in a country that, on a map, has a border marked clearly.
But it is a border not defended by any army, Arctic citizens, police or navy remotely up to the task.
It leaks illegal drugs, weapons, money and people in two directions – in and out. It is a border that, to all appearances, is seemingly quite able to protect some languages and cultures from “contamination.” Yet unable to stop infiltration of foreign cultures (read mostly Hollywood) from impacting the nation.
So, is this because we are unable to do so? Or more likely, simply unwilling?
A “Real Canadian” would have a ready answer: “It’s a little bit of both.”
Agree with that, and it’s very easy, also means, you are part of the problem. Not even close to being part of, as they say, the solution.
The real answer should be, it is a whole, whole lot of both!
Former prime minister John Diefenbaker, in 1957, said Canada trades too much with one customer, and one supplier. The United States. And shortly after, cancelled construction of the Canadian built Avro Arrow jet interceptor. At the time, and for the next 10 or 15 years, the Arrow was considered one of the most, if not the most, advanced aircraft in the world. It was also built by a company the third largest in Canada. The cancellation destroyed that company, AV Roe. 35 of the top engineers on the project left Canada to join NASA.
Two reasons for cancellation. First, the Arrow was considered too expensive for Canada to build on its own. Curiously, countries with smaller economies than Canada, like Sweden and Israel, have for years built their own sophisticated military jets.
The second reason was ICBMs, ballistic missiles, were thought to make such a jet obsolete. Reasoning was, with no long-range bombers to intercept, the need was for anti-missile defence, not interceptors. Again, curiously, the American B-52 long range bomber, which first flew in 1952, is still flying today with 76 in inventory. Even though it is mostly replaced by the more modern B-1 and B-2 bombers, the B-52 with constant upgrades is expected to be flying until the 2050s at least.
But, as many Canadians know, the country not only won’t build military aircraft, it can’t build much in the way of land-based equipment. Even Israel builds its own main battle tanks. Canada builds personnel carriers. Naval gear usually takes two or three decades to build, counting planning and approval.
Even an icebreaker takes forever. One has not been built in Canada for 60 years. America is no better. Tiny Finland is a world expert in icebreakers. Canada? Best at stalling pipelines than in building them.
Nothing much has changed since Diefenbaker. Still no money. It’s gone to bigger welfare, bigger highways, bike lanes, wokeism, and ever more rules.
Politicians, unlike good parents, will always give the ‘kids’ what they want. Not what is best for them.
Or best for the province! Or the country!
And too often, just best for themselves.