This is most certainly trolling, but it's fun so whatever.
Canada has had her identity problems as a civic union of three colonised peoples from totally different backgrounds. Are we British, are we French, where do Aboriginals fit in... people have struggled with these questions in the past. But today we do not, and if you are Canadian you naturally understand this. Today, despite our colonial past, we are a sovereign nation who, despite tipping our hats to our history as a dominion of the British Empire by maintaining our voluntary membership to the Commonwealth of Nations and retaining the British monarch as our symbolic head of state, and despite tipping our hats to our French colonial past in being a member of La Francophonie and maintaining an officially bilingual state, are a seperate people from everyone else in the world (including Britain, France, AND the United States of America, thank you very much). We do not need to compare oursleves to these other countries, but it can be fun sometimes and let's face it, that's what the leaders and critics of every country in the world do anyway. It follows so that Canada is a coutry of people interested in criticising and leading our own country, while at the same time reassuring our progress by using other countries as measuring sticks. Every democratic nation does this.
We have independently built a respected reputation for oursleves in the world, and have been capable stewards of our country, the second largest in the world. It is a vast and beautiful land, rich in cultures (that's plural), in culture (the arts), in history, and in natural beauty and resources. We contribute to the world in every venue that we can, producing some of the greatest artists, statesmen, inventions, and scientific advancements the world has yet seen, and we continue to do so. You name it, we can do it and we do it very well.
Our system of government is a fully democratic one. Our beloved Queen Elizabeth II is only a symbol of our history and also of our communion both within our nation and between other nations of the Commonwealth. It's something that ties us to our British, Australian, New Zealander, South American, Central American, African, South African, Pacific Islander, and Carribbean cousins. We're not the only country to have the Queen as our symbolic head of state. We are one of sixteen fine nations.
Here at home we enjoy a multi-party, Westminster-style parliamentary democracy with a Prime Minister acting as our actual head of state, doing the important work of running the country, while letting the Governer General do all the ribbon-cutting and ceremonial duties that so often tie up the valuable time of other heads of state, including the American one. It's a purely ceremonial institution that we keep around simply because it has worked well for us and we like it. We certainly do not have to take time out of our busy schedules as the citizens of a very rich, productive, and busy country to explain ourselves to you. Though I have chosen to do so because like most Canadians, I'm just nice like that.
You will find that Canada is not so different from other multi-cultural countries (like Switzerland) in that our national identity is not so often overt to visitors and on-lookers, save for the obvious things like our hockey and maple syrup (much like Switzerland's cuckoo clocks and army knives). Our cultural influences are often eclipsed by our big neighbours (for us it's the Americans, for the Swiss it's the Germans, the French, and the Italians). But the fact remains that we are a country, and we our proud of our country for more reasons that we can name. Just like every other country I guess. So now I find myself asking why you have come here to ask us why we are proud of Canada when surely you are smart enough to know this. Was it just to take advantage of our accomodating nature, knowing we would try to name a few things just to humour if not educate you, and then use your argument skills to try and cut down and invalidate those reasons? Well I have news for you. If you came here to diminish the pride we feel as Canadians for our great country using these pitiful methods, you have failed. We're still proud.
Canada has had her identity problems as a civic union of three colonised peoples from totally different backgrounds. Are we British, are we French, where do Aboriginals fit in... people have struggled with these questions in the past. But today we do not, and if you are Canadian you naturally understand this. Today, despite our colonial past, we are a sovereign nation who, despite tipping our hats to our history as a dominion of the British Empire by maintaining our voluntary membership to the Commonwealth of Nations and retaining the British monarch as our symbolic head of state, and despite tipping our hats to our French colonial past in being a member of La Francophonie and maintaining an officially bilingual state, are a seperate people from everyone else in the world (including Britain, France, AND the United States of America, thank you very much). We do not need to compare oursleves to these other countries, but it can be fun sometimes and let's face it, that's what the leaders and critics of every country in the world do anyway. It follows so that Canada is a coutry of people interested in criticising and leading our own country, while at the same time reassuring our progress by using other countries as measuring sticks. Every democratic nation does this.
We have independently built a respected reputation for oursleves in the world, and have been capable stewards of our country, the second largest in the world. It is a vast and beautiful land, rich in cultures (that's plural), in culture (the arts), in history, and in natural beauty and resources. We contribute to the world in every venue that we can, producing some of the greatest artists, statesmen, inventions, and scientific advancements the world has yet seen, and we continue to do so. You name it, we can do it and we do it very well.
Our system of government is a fully democratic one. Our beloved Queen Elizabeth II is only a symbol of our history and also of our communion both within our nation and between other nations of the Commonwealth. It's something that ties us to our British, Australian, New Zealander, South American, Central American, African, South African, Pacific Islander, and Carribbean cousins. We're not the only country to have the Queen as our symbolic head of state. We are one of sixteen fine nations.
Here at home we enjoy a multi-party, Westminster-style parliamentary democracy with a Prime Minister acting as our actual head of state, doing the important work of running the country, while letting the Governer General do all the ribbon-cutting and ceremonial duties that so often tie up the valuable time of other heads of state, including the American one. It's a purely ceremonial institution that we keep around simply because it has worked well for us and we like it. We certainly do not have to take time out of our busy schedules as the citizens of a very rich, productive, and busy country to explain ourselves to you. Though I have chosen to do so because like most Canadians, I'm just nice like that.
You will find that Canada is not so different from other multi-cultural countries (like Switzerland) in that our national identity is not so often overt to visitors and on-lookers, save for the obvious things like our hockey and maple syrup (much like Switzerland's cuckoo clocks and army knives). Our cultural influences are often eclipsed by our big neighbours (for us it's the Americans, for the Swiss it's the Germans, the French, and the Italians). But the fact remains that we are a country, and we our proud of our country for more reasons that we can name. Just like every other country I guess. So now I find myself asking why you have come here to ask us why we are proud of Canada when surely you are smart enough to know this. Was it just to take advantage of our accomodating nature, knowing we would try to name a few things just to humour if not educate you, and then use your argument skills to try and cut down and invalidate those reasons? Well I have news for you. If you came here to diminish the pride we feel as Canadians for our great country using these pitiful methods, you have failed. We're still proud.
