I'm Canadian, and I'm not sorry. At all.

Aaron wrote an interesting post here, where he essentially addresses himself to the world and his nationality. Sebstian followed up on Australia. My (very unimaginative) take-off on their post titles serves as a tip of the hat to insightful pieces, that got me to thinking about another side to his whole idea. I apologize in advance for my distinctly Canadian perspective. If Americans are often written-off as brazen and unapologetic for anything, Canadians are often characterised as apologising for everything. We quietly wander along, never wanting to take up too much space, never wanting to make waves. Never do we come out guns blazing (insert non-existant military joke here). Rarely does anyone hear of an international scandal involving Canadians. And when it does happen, it truly is scandalous, because Canadians just don't DO things like that. Always polite. Never antagonistic. We are, for all intents and purposes, the definition of non-descript. Or so the story goes. I always found it amusing in school that we actually had courses the purpose of which was to help us define Canadian identity (no, really, we did). Often the inevitable conclusion was that we don't really have one. That we're merely an extention of our most excellent neighbours to the south. With such a powerful neighbour next door, it stands to reason that we might get a little drowned out in the process. We get their culture, television, music, books. Even their news often gets more coverage than our own - on our own local stations no less. Truth be told, their news often IS more important. When something big happens in the most powerful nation on the planet, who also happens to be our next door neighbour and greatest ally, well the conclusion seems pretty obvious... Ultimately, (our own) people define us as having as some kind of National Inferiority Complexe. And it's absolutely ludicrous. Take a look at this country. We are a huge land mass, incredibly rich in natural resources. A strong, diverse economy. We have a highly educated population, and are highly advanced technologically. We have a standard of living that is the envy of the world. We take care of our own, as well as those abroad. We have a history of participation in world events that is generally univerally respected: We are peace keepers, diplomats, and, when we believe the cause is just, warriors when we've needed to be. We have our own mind in foreign policy, based on distinctly Canadian ideals, more often than not kinder and gentler. We are culturally diverse AND culturally distinct. Our moral compass is relatively strong. (Oh yeah. And we're really good at snow removal, making beer, and churning out hockey players.) I met an amazing woman recently. We spent about 2 hours talking. She was in the Israeli Air Force. She came to Canada 15 years ago with her only child. She left behind her entire family. Her husband. Her parents and siblings. Her businesses. Financial security. Her culture. Her home. She came to Canada alone so that she could increase the odds that here child would not only have a good life, but so he could have a chance at living at all. She knew absolutely no one here. But Canada was her first and only choice. She's built a successful and secure life for herself and her son here. All on her own. There are not that many places in the world that can offer that opportunity. As a country, we're just quietly going about the business of trying to do the right thing. For ourselves and for others in the world. No fanfare. Well under the radar. Not non-descript. Just low key. And look how incredibly far it's taken us. So I won't apologise for being Canadian. There's just way to much to be proud of. Not 'better than'. or 'superior'. Just cool in it's own right. Eh?