True Patriot Love

This is the first time since the Freedom Convoy that the rest of the world has been interested in Canadian affairs, so I would like to share a few brief thoughts about my home while we have your attention. Specifically, thoughts on Canada becoming the 51st state. Here in the north, many conservatives find the idea attractive, and every liberal finds it repulsive. One might assume that, as a libertarian, I would find the possibility of becoming a member of the freest country on Earth very enticing. The U.S. has much stronger speech laws and gun rights—among other things—and I would find myself in a country that has a big enough libertarian party to warrant politicians (sometimes) caring what they think. These factors would be powerful incentives to join the USA if it was ever put to a referendum. Still, when one feels that their country has been insulted, bullied, and diminished, it pricks at dormant patriotism. Canada has its own culture and history, and I don’t want it completely subsumed by our southern neighbors. This is despite the fact that I believe the USA is—or at least should be—the envy of the world.

Every country has its problems, but America really is something special.

There are pragmatic concerns as well. I doubt Trump—or any Republican—wants the Canadian population voting. If current polling is to be believed, there is almost nothing that the conservative party can do to win an election in Canada anymore. This is after almost ten years of the Liberal party driving our country into the ground, after ten years of scandal upon scandal. Unfortunately, my countrymen seem almost unbelievably dense. So, what would this mean for the 51st State? Perhaps Trump’s plan—if his comments are indeed more than jokes—is more along the lines of getting a 15th territory. While being a full-fledged member of the greatest country on Earth is tempting, being a second-hand citizen in the greatest country on Earth is less so.

Perhaps part of my bristling is also due to the fact that, despite my frustrations with my country, it is still the country of my parents, and my grandparents. I grew up with the red and white flag, and the songs of Stompin’ Tom Connors, and I’m not quite ready to give up on the idea of a free Canada. If true liberty ever blossoms here in the north it probably won’t be for a long time, but if somewhere as far gone as Argentina can begin to turn itself around, then I’ll try to stay optimistic. I spoke of patriotism, and it’s a woefully irrational thing. By my own estimation, there’s not much to cling to in this poor, increasingly tyrannical country. Like any other kind of love though, you don’t really choose it.

A poem by Lord Byron begins “England! with all thy faults I love thee still,” and goes on to mention liking taxes “when they’re not too many,” Habeas Corpus “when we’ve got it,” and the “weather, when it is not rainy.” This is a humorous poem, but it also gets at something that I think is sometimes overlooked. Patriotism is not, I don’t think, being proud of your government or your countrymen. Nor is it approving of the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and so on. Though all these things can contribute to a feeling of pride in one’s country, I think proper patriotism is more to do with affection; a natural inclination toward something you have spent time with. In “The Four Loves,” C.S. Lewis says that “almost anyone can become an object of Affection; the ugly, the stupid, even the exasperating.” It could certainly be argued that Canada is the last two, yet still I love it.

I don’t know what will happen in Canada’s election, and I don’t know what the future of the country is in relation to the U.S. For now, I will keep hoping for a Canada that lives up to our anthem’s bold claim: a Canada that is “strong and free.”