There's no more potent symbol of our flagging relative standing than the night-and-day contrast between Canada and the U.S. Our neighbours to the south are finally regaining some economic mojo. The U.S. economy created 2.3 million full-time jobs in the last year, while in Canada full-time employment has hardly changed. U.S. GDP grew at a brisk 4 per cent in the second quarter, twice Canada's likely pace (and the U.S. number is likely to be revised upward thanks to strong trade numbers). Since the beginning of 2013, the U.S. unemployment rate has fallen by 1.7 percentage points. Canada's hasn't fallen at all.
This is funny.