Canada: An Extremely Brief Intro.

Canada is big.

 

Duh!

 

Canada is filled with big things, like the CN Tower, the Rocky Mountains, and our egos.  Just kidding. The Rockies aren’t that big.

 

Your average Canadian is proud of this country, the land, and what we have built out of it. Canada and its municipalities are regularly recognized as some of the most desirable places in the world to live. Canada is considered to have a very high standard of living.

 

Canadian cities were well represented, and recognized, in the just released International Awards for Liveable Communities, including the city of Oshawa in Ontario, which is near the offices of Canadian Fermentation.

 

Canada is the land of poutine, the most important culinary export of our nation. It’s also important for Canadians to eat lots of poutine during the months leading up to winter. It gets cold here and we need all insulation we can obtain.

 

Canada is also on the leading edge of technology with creations such as the Blackberry, the canoe and five-pin bowling.

 

In other word, we rock!

 

But, who cares and why should we care? Is nationalism an archaic form of political necessity or do we still need to promote the benefits and superiority of nation-states? Superiority is an inherant attribute of nationalism; when promoting and crowing about the things that make ones nation better than others you are automatically putting down the others to build up your own. Is this something that we still need to deal with in the modern age?

 

Why should we allow our emotions and global outlook be manipulated by imaginary geo-political boundaries?

 

Please don’t misunderstand. I”m as proud a Canadian as anyone. In fact I have a red maple leaf tattoo on my shoulder. While living in the U.S.A I was proud to support and promote all things Canadian. I have been known as a protector of Canadian Culture, without even really knowing what Canadian Culture really is — you tell me.

 

But the question stands. Has nationalism run its course and is it time for a new cultural paradigm? Or can we (and by we I mean all people who are proud of their nationalities no matter what they may be) and should we maintain our independent nationalistic pride at the expense of the rest of the world?