Canada 2007: Independent And Strong

Grant wrote Lament for a Nation in the aftermath of a national crisis. The United States wanted to base nuclear-armed Bomarc anti-aircraft missiles in Canada. Prime Minister John Diefenbaker accepted the missiles but said "no" to the warheads. Washington was furious and publicly rebuked him. Lester Pearson, the leader of the opposition, indicated that he would accept the warheads if elected. Diefenbaker's government collapsed and Pearson took office. Grant was dismayed that Canadians had failed to rally around their nationalist prime minister. He blamed U.S. economic and cultural hegemony: "A branch-plant society could not possibly show independence over an issue on which the American government was seriously determined." For decades, Grant's book shaped how Canadians conceived of their country's place in the world. In 1988, we voted for free trade; in 1994, we acquiesced in NAFTA. In the months after Sept. 11, 2001, only a few of us objected when our government rushed troops to Afghanistan, adopted laws that mirrored the Patriot Act, and bent over backward to co-operate with the CIA. Grant's thesis, it seemed, was being repeatedly validated. Until March 2003, when George W. Bush asked for Canadian troops in Iraq, and Jean Chrétien said "no." Canada was doing 86 per cent of its trade with the United States, and yet our prime minister was able to refuse the president on his principal foreign policy. Grant's thesis was overturned again in 2005. Bush had asked Canada to participate in missile defence, which he deemed essential to U.S. national security. But most Canadians opposed the plan, and Paul Martin said "no." Economics are important, but Grant ascribed too much importance to them. A country is more than its gross domestic product. Canadians are more than consumers. We are human beings, with histories, communities, cultures, values, opinions and dreams. These non-monetary attributes play an essential role in what we, as a people, choose to do and be. Political scientists and pollsters have discovered that the values of Canadians and Americans are diverging. More: http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/231087 [Proofreader's note: this article was edited for spelling and typos on July 3, 2007]

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