I found a terrific Globe column via someone I follow on Twitter and I’d like to highlight it here: Canada’s Real Strength? It’s Not Diversity, by Catherine Little.
Diversity is often touted by the left (and especially by Trudeau) as what makes Canada great. However Little doesn’t see this as our strength:
However, missing in the discussion on diversity is the idea that many have come to Canada hoping to create a life based on their own choices – and not merely replicate all of the cultural traditions that would have been most likely had they stayed in their countries of birth.
Powerful thought there, and too often we see new arrivals attempt to stick to their own cultures and enclaves instead of embracing their new country. Unfortunately leftwing politicians seem to encourage and facilitate that kind of segregation. In many cases women then continue in the subservient roles they had in their previous homeland.
Catherine Little sees freedom of choice as Canada’s biggest asset.
I love this attitude but I worry that we are losing that freedom as Big Government increasingly encroaches on our lives; attempting to shame and silence anyone who dares to question the values of multiculturalism and diversity as the Holy Grail of modern Western civilization.
Blue Like You2 
Great column. Multiculturalism, don’t get me started on this one! It is the antithesis of a cohesive society, it encourages enclaves to grow and segregate, we have more and more ghettos, a nation fractured by “communities”, The Left love that word “communities”. This is the sort of thing that will bring us Sharia law in this country.
Oh Canada, who will stand on guard for thee ?
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Well said Liz!
Yes I’m all for immigration if it strengthens our country but too often it’s simply used by the left as a method to import Liberal voters and pander to their demands; instead of encouraging integration into the larger society.
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You’ve nailed it, Liz. Multiculturalism is an enormous force driving the agenda of the major political parties of this country in almost every imaginable way. It extracts a massive social and economic cost from the citizenry. It’s my belief that this issue will eventually tear the nation apart unless our leaders develop the fortitude to call a halt to its insidious spread.
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Yes, it is divisive by it’s very meaning and is bolstered by pandering politicians across the board and we all know why. Saying a word against it makes us bigots, a silencing term used by the Left and their minions. It strikes us socially and economically making it a social disgrace and an economic disaster.
A question needs to be asked, are we all equal or are some made more equal than others with Multiculturalism?
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Anyone surprised at Caroline Mulroney entering provincial politics? I thought she resided in New York.
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She did earlier, but now lives in Georgina and works in Toronto. I am not surprised, but think she is a great catch. Unlike Trudeau, she has a fairly impressive resume and rather than going for the PM right away she is simply running for MPP, not premier or PM. Also probably hedging her bets too as although I hope the Conservatives win both, I think their chances are much better provincially than federally although nothing in politics is a guarantee until it happens.
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My comment is somewhat related to the issue of immigration, although the current wave of newcomers are known as “refugees” or “asylum seekers”.
I watched a P&P segment today about the spike in “asylum” seekers at Quebec border crossings. Some valid questions were asked, but the primary one no one broached is: what exactly are those people fleeing from? According to some reports, ”the current surge consists mostly of Haitians, driven from their homeland by the 2010 earthquake, who were told by the U.S. government in May they could face deportation as early as January.”
http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/asylum-seekers-quebec-roxham-1.4232608
They have been living in safety in the US for the past seven years but now claim they are in mortal danger? I was surprised earlier today to hear former Liberal MP Marlene Jennings, who used to delight in heckling PM Harper in the House, take the hard line on the issue during a “Gang of Four” segment on radio station CJAD. She said that the border crossers were depleting the resources needed to counteract smuggling of guns, drugs, and other illegal activities. I wonder if she misses Mr. Harper now.
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Sorry this got stuck in the filter Gabby. I still haven’t been able to figure out why this happens once in a while.
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In another CBC article on the subject of the current influx of refugees, Neil Macdonald lays the cause of the problem at the feet of President Trump:. In his article entitled ‘Canada needs to come to terms with the migration crisis Trump is creating’ he declares, “Canada, sensibly, has invited those Haitians originally granted temporary refuge to apply for permanent residence on compassionate or humanitarian grounds, and has granted most such requests.” These newcomers appear to be just the beginning of an expanding stampede. He continues, “And just look at the numbers to see what might be coming: the temporary protected status for 86,000 Hondurans in the United States expires in January, along with the Haitians, and then for about 260,000 El Salvadorans in March.” There’s much more here: http://www.cbc.ca/news/opinion/haitian-asylum-seekers-1.4236104
The ball’s in your court, Mr. Trudeau. Think fast. What are you going to do now? Time’s a-wastin’.
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Of course Neil MacDonald would blame Trump, no surprise there
Wonder how Denis Coderre will be handling the influx of Haitians to his city?
Will Trudeau be welcoming them to Canada? How soon will they be free to fan out across the country? I’m assuming any immigrants accepted into Quebec are free to go anywhere in the country.
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I heard many are heading to Toronto.
My issue with this whole thing is that it rewards people who don’t play by the rules. We’re seeing this time and time again in various aspects of Canadian life. It undermines the morale of the responsible people. Then you get to the point where you ask yourself why bother?
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Trump calls these migrants’ actions illegal; whereas, Trudeau tries to legitimize them as being merely irregular. Turns out Neil Macdonald didn’t give us the whole story. Verity Stevenson, another CBC reporter did a little more research and has offered another perspective. Granted, the president may well enforce the deportation of temporary US residents from Haiti but there are other forces on the ground who seem to be in favour of all and sundry heading to Canada to accept Trudeau’s generous welcome. Ms. Stevenson’s article is all about fake news and who in our country is contributing to this expanding invasion. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/misleading-information-haitian-asylum-seekers-1.4235565
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Gabby, excellent point about asking exactly what are they fleeing from? Yes it was supposed to be a temporary situation.
Anne, those are staggering numbers! Something’s got to give.
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And about the actual topic of Joanne’s post …
This part of Catherine Little’s op-ed particularly resonated with me:
” “But we’re in Canada now.” It was a wise acknowledgment that the choice we had made to adopt Canada as our new home necessitated some changes on our part, too.” (my added emphasis)
I was not a rebellious teenager. Even back then I was rather conservative 😉 But when my father occasionally waxed nostalgic about the way things were done in our country of origin, I reminded him we no longer lived there.
It is all well and good to encourage immigrants to preserve the traditions they hold dear as long as those traditions are not incompatible with Canadian values. Of course, the question then arises: do we all agree on what those values are? We saw how Kellie Leitch was maligned & mocked for raising the issue. Can Canadian politicians, who often use the phrase “Canadian values”, agree on what those values are? Or are they an elastic political talking point used to tug at our heartstrings, signalling how virtuous we are in comparison to some of our neighbours? hint hint nudge nudge …
P.S. for Joanne: I just noticed I made a mistake in my email address when I posted my previous comment. I’m still having issues with my old keyboard vs my new computer — and my eyesight isn’t getting any better!
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Joanne, yesterday I was finally able to post two comments after several unsuccessful log ins. After the first comment appeared on your site with “awaiting moderation” I noticed I had made a mistake in my email address! My second comment also appeared briefly on your site but subsequently disappeared.
Please understand, this is not a complaint, it’s just an explanation of my screw-ups with the new computer & old keyboard.
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Aha, OK well at least the email address explains why things got held up.
No worries Gabby. We’re both figuring things out here. 😉
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I’m so concerned about my comments making it onto your biog because the world is awaiting my comments with bated breath … OK, OK, I’m kidding!
Here’s something else pertaining to your topic that got lost somewhere:
This part of Catherine Little’s op-ed particularly resonated with me:
” “But we’re in Canada now.” It was a wise acknowledgment that the choice we had made to adopt Canada as our new home necessitated some changes on our part, too.” (my added emphasis)
I was not a rebellious teenager. Even back then I was rather conservative 😉 But when my father occasionally waxed nostalgic about the way things were done in our country of origin, I reminded him we no longer lived there.
It is all well and good to encourage immigrants to preserve the traditions they hold dear as long as those traditions are not incompatible with Canadian values. Of course, the question then arises: do we all agree on what those values are? We saw how Kellie Leitch was maligned & mocked for raising the issue. Can Canadian politicians, who often use the phrase “Canadian values”, agree on what those values are? Or are they an elastic political talking point used to tug at our heartstrings, signalling how virtuous we are in comparison to some of our neighbours? hint hint nudge nudge …
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Gabby I truly don’t know what’s going on. Tonight I found a couple of your comments in the spam filter. Obviously I allowed them both once I noticed them!
I wish I could give this blog more attention but i am truly in the sandwich generation right now with duties to both my mother and grandchildren and even trying to do a bit of editing for my daughter’s book publishing venture. Once I get a handle on some of this stuff I’ll be able to spend more time trying to figure this all out. Thanks for your patience!
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Don’t worry about my comments ending up as spam. Your family comes first.
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Thanks Gabby!
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IMO our multicultural policies and Charter are magnets attracting those from countries with which we have no history to come here and live as they did from whence they came. These create what is termed “communities” by the Left, a much better word than “ghettos” but mutually exclusive.
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Oh fie, oh fiddle…an edit option would be good when we hastily post a comment!
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Ha-ha! No worries. I understand what you’re saying.
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Just heard news that Brad Wall is stepping down as premier. I think this was a good choice as he was a very good premier, but 10 years is generally about time to change the guard. Also better to end on a high rather than a low so in many ways no too dissimilar to what Gary Doer and Frank McKenna did. Parties always need renewal and I get the impression he was someone who wanted to make Saskatchewan a better province, which he did, not a career politician.
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Yes, he was a good premier, the best in the country, head and shoulders above what we have in Ontario for sure.
Now the Madam Wynne is going ahead with a wind farm on Amherst Island off Kingston…
A tragedy for the few who live there and the birds. There should be a moratorium on those monsters, we do not need the power but the Madam is a fan of Al Gore, she loves to be by his side when he visits Canada.
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Agreed. The only other two premiers who I like are Brian Pallister and Philippe Couillard. The Atlantic premiers I guess are okay as they are all centrist as opposed to staunch progressives, but none are great. A little early to judge John Horgan but from what I see so far not too impressed. Wynne and Notley are both disasters and hopefully in 301 days for Wynne and 659 days for Notley, they are both gone. I know that seems like a long time, but actually will go by fast as the time since Thanksgiving 2016 for Wynne and Thanksgiving 2015 for Notley is how long they have left.
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Yes too bad about Brad Wall. I do hope he enters federal politics at some point. One of the best Premiers this country has ever had in my opinion.
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I do too, even if just a cabinet minister, but I think his main barrier now is lack of French. Also he might be hedging his bets as while I still think 2019 is winneable the fact most of the big guns passed on 2019 suggests many are looking at history and know when a government has been in power for a while the desire for change is much stronger, whereas one has to mess up quite badly in their first term to lose. Certainly hoping that as per previous post provincially we see a few provinces swing rightward. The ultimate nightmare would be the Saskatchewan Party and Manitoba PCs are both defeated next election while all the progressive ones in power get re-elected. While highly unlikely, it is something I do kind of worry about a bit. Certainly if you go on the internet it feels like in Canadians politics progressives are the overwhelming majority although I suspect it could be an age factor as the internet tends to skew towards younger voters who lean left.
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Younger voters do tend to lean left – but then some of them grow up and vote conservative. 😉
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Generally true although I find in general with Canadians, most Canadians are left wing at heart and its usually only after a bad experience with a left wing government they start voting right. Perhaps if there is any upside to the left wing dominance now in Canada, it will allow the younger voters to see how even if left wing ideas sound appealing in terms of being equal and a more just society, they rarely work out as planned. While not as extreme in age gap in the UK, it seems those who remember last time Old Labour was in power (not Tony Blair who was fairly centrist, but rather Labour of the 70s and early 80s) massively rejected Corbyn even those who normally vote Labour whereas it was mostly younger voters who have no memory of when unions held the country hostage, nationalized companies were horribly run and held consumers hostage, and UK was called the sick man of Europe who helped Corbyn do better than expected.
I also find for whatever reason label seems to matter as the NDP when they mess up people come hard on them and won’t give them another chance for many years (In BC it took 16 years and they still couldn’t beat the BC Liberals never mind their share of the popular vote has pretty consistently fallen in the 39-42% range every election its more whether the other 58-61% largely unite behind another party to keep them out or split that determines whether they win or not) whereas it seems with the Liberals people are willing to let them get away with things the NDP and Tories could never do, otherwise perhaps an issue of branding.
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Hoping to get a new post up tomorrow. This has been a solid week of grandparenting. Lots of fun but also mentally and physically exhausting.
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Whither Bubba Brown…miss his comments?
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Yes not sure what happened to Bubba. He may not have found his way here. Hope he’s ok.
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So, Progressive Conservatives are well ahead in the polls as the countdown to the provincial election runs along. What could go wrong? For starters the media is reporting party infighting, specifically over chosing riding candidates. Mr Brown needs to nip this in the bud and fast. He also needs to refrain from inserting himself into the process.
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I think calling in PwC was a smart thing and I’ve found riding infighting is news for political junkies but rarely has a major impact province wide. It might hurt their chances in those individual ridings but I cannot see it making too big a dent province wide. Off the ridings with issues, Guelph is not one were likely to win to begin with, Hamilton West-Ancaster-Dundas will be tough as Ted McMeekin is quite popular never mind this is has a large university population. The former riding of Ancaster-Dundas-Flamborough-Westdale was an easier pick up but its split into two with Flamborough-Glanbrook being one we should easily pick up and Hamilton West-Ancaster-Dundas an uphill battle and I can only see us winning that with strong splits on the left. Ottawa West-Nepean is winneable as it was John Baird’s old riding but seems in the 2014 provincial and 2015 federal swung quite heavily against us. Does have a very large Muslim population who I know strongly dislike the federal Tories and despite Brown reaching out to minorities no doubt the OLP will try to tie him to the federal Conservatives in the ethnic communities. Newmarket-Aurora is the one worrisome as this should be an easy pick up.
I do think though it is good we have Ontario Proud now doing advertising to counter Working Families Coalition. Also Brown is doing a good job of not taking the bait on the all the traps the Liberals have tried to trip him up on and unlike some I think his choice to go more centrist was wise. I just don’t think there is the same appetite for a strongly conservative government like there was in the 90s even if we need one now so better to get elected first and then he can do some strongly conservative things in the first two years if need be. My real concern though is Wynne will throw money left right and centre which is fiscally irresponsible and if we oppose it that might be tough as well as I think on the minimum wage, raising to $15 in only 18 months is incredibly stupid economically, but politically popular so that is one we need to find a good way of explaining to the public that we care about those with low wage jobs and our opposition to the $15 minimum wage is not we don’t care about those struggling, rather we fear it will make things worse for them not better if the firm goes out of business or automates and they lose their job. Perhaps a good solution to this is since many other jurisdictions in Canada and the US like Seattle, New York, California, Alberta, and maybe BC (if the current coalition last the full four years) are raising it to $15/hour we will evaluate what happens there and if it works well, we will proceed to raise it to that level, but if fails won’t, otherwise we will make evidenced based decisions based on real world evidence, not emotions, feelings, or ideology.
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