It's easy to paint Pierre Poilievre as the Trump of the North. His "everything is broken" meme is right out of Trump's playbook. But Robin Sears writes that turning Poilievre into a mini-Trump cheapens Canadian politics:
Justin Trudeau must avoid the temptation to paint Poilievre as a Trump mini-me. It only cheapens our politics, ironically, in a pure Trumpian manner.
Far better to champion Canada, surely. Not only is Canada not broken, we this week succeeded at getting the world’s first serious draft agreement on reducing plastics near the finish line. Our role was central, professional and won global praise.
Federal NPD leader Jagmeet Singh and the prime minister would be better off declaring they are proud Canadians. They are proud of how well we have defended our institutions; those with a greater investment in their personal grievances — premiers and their backers — than in securing democracy.
We are proud of what Canadians have pioneered in immigrant integration, AI and quantum technology, in climate change, in progress on indigenous reconciliation, and on and on.
Trump is all about denigrating his country:
In Canada, it has not been about denigrating the country — until now.
It has not been about adolescent vulgarisms in personal attacks — until now.
Coming from a man whose life achievement is limited to a few weeks as a junior minister in the cabinet of a dying government and two decades as a publicly paid opposition MP, it is somewhat galling.
While acknowledging all our deficits and the work remaining to do, we are proud of Canada. Most of us do not want to hear it described as completely broken.
The goings on in Trump's New York trial reveal just how sleezy a character Trump is.
Let's not go there.
Image: The Toronto Star
8 comments:
The vulgarities of US politics is creeping into the Canadian psyche.
The speed and willingness of its acceptance is worrisome.
The political process is being cheapened.
Due process is difficult at the best of times , those that support policy that consists of a handful of one liners, insults and willful ignorance do us no good.
A PP government will not end well.
TB
I suspect it won't even begin well, TB.
Also similar to the US is a complete lack of leaders one would want to vote for. A dismal lot across the board. It's astounding that Liberal Party can look at Trudeau's popularity ratings against PP (a yapping, snapping little dog) and think that Trudeau should stay for another election. I mean if he's 20 points behind THAT, then some people need to give their heads a shake. LM
In the end, LM, we get the government we deserve.
Politics within Canada and the USA have become the Mixed Martial Arts ,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mixed_martial_arts
The teaching community within us , the Progressive Bloggers, would tell us that their aim was to cultivate critical thinking !!!
I think they failed and miserably.
Perhaps they could not withstand the influence of the USA?
Perhaps the rest of us should have not poo pood the governments , of yesterdays, resistance to the media influences of the USA?
The Canada of Canadian content( fighting off US influences) has long gone and we are left with the sewer of US indifference to community and cooperation..
Whats the saying.
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/fool_me_once,_shame_on_you;_fool_me_twice,_shame_on_me
Are we shameless?
TB
Shamelessness has become a social disease, TB.
It won’t start well either! DF
Some things are doomed from the beginning, DF.
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