Thoughts on America

 

Light Moments

Men – if you need a haircut in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, I recommend ‘Biker Babe Barber’.  Yes, there is such a place and person, and she gives a good haircut.

The only two types of television ads in the U.S. appear to be for injury lawyers (“Morgan and Morgan, the largest injury law firm in the world”, probably because Americans are the most litigious people in the world) and prescription drugs (most of which don’t tell you what they are supposed to cure, but the side effects seem worse than any disease they may address).

Serious things

Among my other ridiculous habits is my habit of collecting quotations.  You may have noted that I use them frequently in my blogs.  However, they can be handy in illustrating messages using the wisdom of notable people from the past. So, here a few which could well describe the United States of today.

“Whenever you have an efficient government, you have a dictatorship.”

  - Harry S Truman (Elon Musk, are you listening)

 “Democracy was a fragile thing, stable and steady until it was broken and trampled. A man who didn’t care about shattering every convention and then found new mays to vandalize the contract that allowed free people to govern themselves, could do unthinkable damage.”

 From ‘A fever in the heartland’ by Timothy Egan referring to D.C. Stephenson, founder and leader of the Klu Klux Klan in 1920s Indiana.

 “In America, anyone can become president. That’s the problem.”

George Carlin

 Okay, enough of quotes.

I recently wrote a letter to the editor of the local newspaper (and it even got published!) in which I wrote that Mr. Trump should rightfully be called CEO Trump rather than President Trump. In examining why Mr. Trump wants to annex Canada and Greenland, I said, “One must look into Mr. Trump’s background to find the answer. He made his mark as a land speculator and real estate developer.  He still thinks like one. The one thing that both Greenland and Canada have is a lot of land.”

When I expounded of why Mr. Trump should be referred to as the CEO, I said the following, “CEOs have almost unlimited control of their company.  They can hire and fire on a whim. Promote whoever they choose. They can reduce their decisions on anything to do with their company to a memo.  Executive orders are Mr. Trump’s memos.  Although most CEOs must answer to a Board of Directors, Mr. Trump sees himself as the Chairman of the Board, a board of one.”

It would appear that the US, and by extension many other countries, is in for a very hard two to four years. In the 2026 mid-term US elections, where every congressman (congressperson?) and one third of the senators must stand for election, we may see a shift in power in the American legislature.  But that is not guaranteed. Come 2028, who knows what the situation may be. Remember what has been described as an ancient Chinese curse, “May you live in interesting times.”

U.S. Adventure

 

Well, that was, to say the least, interesting. We just spent the month of February in the United States; Myrtle Beach, South Carolina to be exact. There are a lot of thoughts that came about from the trip. I’ll try and summarize some of what we encountered.

The US overall

The US is a strange place these days.  I’ve visited there often and lived there for two years in the 1970s. I was there when Richard Nixon (“I’m not a crook”) was forced to resign. But I have never seen anything like what is going on now. People are treading carefully, not knowing what might come next. There is a sense of buyers’ remorse among the people. They are confused about what is going on and what might come next. When some people found out we were Canadian, they apologized to us on at least two separate occasions. A poll while we were there showed that 77% of Americans did not want to annex Canada.  There was a fine on-line letter from a Florida pastor who asked why the US should want to annex Canada and gave several reasons why it should not be done.  We did not have any problems from any of the people we encountered, it’s only their government that seems to be the problem.

The best advice that I can give on this matter is to embrace the American people while you condemn their government. At some point, the majority of the American people are going to realize they have been duped by Mr. Trump and will start to resist his demands. Show our friendship to the American people and they will respond.  They have no issue with Canada.

Weather

We went to Myrtle Beach for some sun and warmth; an opportunity to get out and walk and enjoy.  Well, as I said to my kids in an e-mail, one out of two ain’t bad.  For the first two weeks, that seemed to be the case. The warmer days (mid to high teens C) were overcast with heavy fog most days.  On sunny days, it was colder and windy.  The only changed to better weather came in the last week or so we were there. Note that today’s (March 8^th) temperature there is 26 C. and sunny. Oh well, at least we missed the many snow falls here.

What the weather never did was stop us from walking on the beach every day.  The beach there is long and flat. The beach below the high tide mark is nice and firm and good for walking. There was only two rainy days, and on those, I used the resort’s fitness centre to maintain some semblance of conditioning. The extent of the beach in Myrle Beach and North Myrtle Beach is 17 miles and is part of a 62-mile beach stretch along the coast of the Carolinas.

Driving

Last October, I bought a new Hyundai Tucson Hybrid. It was an upgrade to my 2021 model of the same model. I have become a true believer in hybrid cars. They combine great range between fill-ups and tremendous gas mileage. I averaged over 35 miles per US gallon diving down there, reaching 40 mpg at one time. One of the features of this car is the ability to change the settings between metric and American units. Thus, I was able to drive in miles and show temperatures in degrees Fahrenheit while in the US. The car drives very well, is a pleasure to drive and is quiet to be in. Oops, I’m starting to sound like car salesman. To me, hybrids are a great compromise and transition to all-electric vehicles.

US drivers were quite inconsistent. Some of them very fast, particularly on freeways, but many would not even drive the speed limit in urban settings.

At the condo timeshare where we were staying, we saw licence plates from all over the US, and a few from Canada. The farthest state was Iowa, the farthest province was Newfoundland and Labrador.

Retail

While you’re in the states, there is always the temptation to shop, and we did some of that. What gets you is the sheer size of many of the retail outlets. The usual suspects such as Walmart and Costco are expected to be big, other outlets surprise you with their size. I visited a PGA golf store (one of two in Myrtle Beach) that was the size of a good-sized department store. The biggest surprise was a liquor store which was several times as big as the biggest LCBO store I have every seen. It had two sides, one for hard liquor, whisk(e)y, rum, gin, vodka, etc., and one for just beer and wine. Americans, it seems, like things big.

Finis

As you can see, it was an interesting experience. We did enjoy the experience, but at the end, we were glad to get home. Just remember, the ordinary people in the US want to be friends, it’s their government that is the antagonist.

Short Snappers Again

 

I’ve written Short Snapper blogs before. They are an opportunity for me to cover a few different items in a shorter form.  Enjoy.

Carbon Tax

It would seem that the carbon tax is about to end, no matter who the next Prime Minister turns out to be. Even the people vying for the leadership of the Liberal Party are prepared to get rid of it. That is a shame. Many analysts will tell you that it is the most efficient means of trying to lower our dependence on fossil fuel. Any other attempt to reduce carbon use (if there is even one) will be more costly and will no doubt hit us in our taxes. The Liberal government’s introduction of this tax with its rebates was perhaps the most brilliant move that government made. What’s next? Or do we just give in to climate change?

 Trump’s 51^st State

Mr. Trump is threatening to make Canada the 51^st state. But that is unlikely to happen. The 51^st to 60^th state, as one commentator has suggested is even less likely. Oh, he might take over Canada, but he would never allocate the privileges of statehood.  He, or his advisors, must know that the majority of Canadians, about 25 million voters, would be more likely to vote Democrat than Republican. This would introduce 2 more Democratic senators and a significant number of mostly Democratic congressmen. It would also introduce a large number of Democratic delegates to the Electoral College. We might become a territory of the US with very limited influence in the US government, but never one (or 10) state.

By the way, if economic pressures don’t bring Canada into the US, military force may be his answer. Feasible? There is a US Army combat division in northern New York state that could be in Ottawa in 48 hours.

The Federal Conservative Party

Has anyone heard any meaningful plan from Pierre Poilievre and company to address any of their promises? Three-word slogans do not policy make. Oh, they will obviously eliminate the carbon tax, but then what. They have said they have a plan, but what is it? Will it be accepted by western members of his caucus? How will it be paid for? To balance the budget, what major programs will be sacrificed.  There are really only two such programs that could yield significant saving; defence and health. Which one would you sacrifice?  There are several other slogans that need clarity such as housing, or lowering taxes for example. Will any of them be fleshed out in an election campaign, or will be an election of slogans?

Ontario Government Propaganda

The Ontario Conservative party (read the ruling party and your tax dollars at work) has introduced a number of adds attacking Bonnie Crombie, the new leader of the provincial Liberal party.  Her biggest sin, according to these adds, is that she (alone) raised municipal taxes every year she was mayor. First, mayors do not unilaterally raise taxes, city councils do. Second, have you every heard of a municipal government that has not had to raise taxes each and every year.  The fact the cities are not allowed to undertake deficit financing coupled with the spectre of inflation in payrolls and goods and services pretty well guarantees annual municipal tax hikes are inevitable.

Inauguration Speech

Did you watch President Trump’s inauguration speech? If so, you would have watched him declare war against a sovereign country, Panama. Panama includes the Panama Canal. Mr. Trump has said America will take it back. That can probably only be done by force. That, dear reader, constitutes a declaration of war.

What do we want to be?

 

In his excellent book about the US Civil War, ‘Battle Cry of Freedom’, James M. McPherson writes the following about the aftermath of that war, “Before 1861, the two words ’United States’ were generally rendered as a plural noun, ‘the United States are a republic’. The war marked the transition of the United States to a singular noun.” The US Civil War was fought for states’ rights, in this case the right to own slaves.

Why is this relevant to Canada? Because Canada is also being challenged by a movement of provincial rights.  At a time where provinces (and territories) are demanding more money from the federal government, they also want more autonomy from federal actions. Alberta has toyed with a law to that effect.  Quebec has trampled on several constitutional rights by use of the ‘not withstanding’ clause.

You have to wonder what the provinces really want in this struggle. Do they want total control of their rights above federal law? Do they want to control their own destiny as the Confederate States of America (CSA) did in 1861? (By the way, the states’ rights were a key policy of the southern states but were one of the key weaknesses of the CSA). Do they want to bleed the federal treasury dry with their demands for ever more money?  Do they want to reduce the federal government nothing more than a money pit, and oh yeah, national defence?  Do they want to abrogate the Supreme Court of Canada from hearing and judging constitutional challenges? Their increasing use of the not withstanding clause would seem to indicate that, in some cases, this last is true. Do they want one Canada or ten or twelve individual entities? 

Nonetheless what do the people want? Surely the majority of us want one Canada. Surely the effort to win over Quebec during the last referendum showed us that we want to stay together as one country; one that includes Quebec and Alberta. Surely, we want one set of overall laws that govern all of us equally more than twelve sets of laws that divide us.

There are a number of factors that divide us. Limits on interprovincial trade are one. Perhaps we should be looking for something like the US interstate commerce laws to try and govern this issue. The provinces would, of course, loudly protest against such a move, but perhaps this is where a strong federal government can overrule. We complain about health care in this country, too often comparing ourselves to the United States (even although our lifespans are longer, and our infant mortality is lower than that country). Our model, however, should be government health systems in Europe. The difference? European health systems are national in scope, not provincial.

You may have discovered in this and previous writings that I am strongly opposed the section 33 (the not-withstanding clause) of the Canadian Constitution. And you would be right. I find it a real threat to our rights that has been used for some of the more ridiculous abuses in Canada (to limit the size of the Toronto City Council? Really!). However, the thought that one of our national political parties would threaten to use it is abhorrent. It is quite conceivable that such a government could limit or eliminate every right we think we have before the law. Even if it were only effective for the five years allowed under the Constitution, it could badly change the way our entire society works.

What, you may ask, do I want by these writings? I want the elimination of the ‘not withstanding clause’ and a federal government that is strong enough to ensure that equality and opportunity are available from coast to coast in this country.

Letters to the Editor

 

Do you read the letters to the editor? Have you ever written any? I have and have had a few published.

It can be an interesting and satisfying experience.  You can blow off steam at some outrageous happening.  You can take exception to some government action. You can express your support or opposition to someone else’s letter or editorial. Or you can try and interject some new or novel idea into the conversation.  All of which I have tried to do over the years.

“If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.”

George Orwell

I have had letters published in the Ottawa Citizen, The Globe and Mail, the Peterborough Examiner, and the Halifax Chronicle Herald. The Peterborough Examiner is my current go-to site. My most successful endeavour was probably a letter titled, “The Orphan Monument” in the Halifax paper. It was aimed at getting some action on a monument in Point Pleasant Park in Halifax consisting of an anchor from HMCS Bonaventure that includes plaques of sailors and airmen who had lost their lives in service during peacetime.  The monument was deteriorating but nobody would take any responsibility for repairing it. My letter spurred a long editorial of support alongside my letter.  Within a matter of weeks, a number of entities had come together to make a plan and have the monument refurbished.  A very satisfying outcome.

Not all letters will have much response.  You are lucky if someone responds to your letter, even if they disagree with you. At least you know that someone has taken the time to read your letter.

“When everyone is against you, it means that you are absolutely wrong-- or absolutely right.”
  - Albert Guinon

My latest crusade is a very unpopular city government decision to despoil a lovely park with 16 pickleball courts and a parking lot while losing open space and baseball diamonds used by city teams and local kids, while costing the taxpayers millions of dollars. Unfortunately, I have not convinced the city council to rethink their decision.  You can’t win them all.

Maybe you should give letter writing to your favourite outlet a try.  At least it gets you thinking.

“The capacity of human beings to bore one another seems to be vastly greater than that of any other animal.”
  - H. L. Mencken

Freedom!

 

“The public will believe anything, so long as it is not founded on truth.”
  - Edith Sitwell

The Collins Gage Canadian Dictionary defines the word freedom as follows:

“1. The state or condition of being free;

2. free use;

3. lack of restraint, frankness;

4. ease of movement or action.”

We’ve heard a lot about freedom in the last couple of years. Most strongly was the so called “Freedom Convoy” in Ottawa in early 2022.  They cried for freedom, most notably from Covid restrictions. They wanted to live their lives without masks or vaccines. Of course, there was no laws against such things.  They were ‘free’ to do just what they wanted in this regard. It is just that there were consequences if they did so such as not being able to enter the United States. But their demands went beyond that for many participants.  They wanted unfettered freedom for just about everything.  Other movements have also demanded this.  Freedom from taxes. Freedom from police. Freedom to protest. Freedom to own and carry firearms. Freedom to ignore governments and laws. Freedom from any responsibility. Unlimited freedom. Even freedom from religion.

“All human situations have their inconveniences. We feel those of the present but neither see nor feel those of the future; and hence we often make troublesome changes without amendment, and frequently for the worse.”
  - Benjamin Franklin

There is a word for this type of freedom . . . anarchy. An ugly word in many ways.

If we all lived apart from each other with no interaction, then absolute freedom may be possible.  But the moment we interact, there has to be limits.  We don’t live alone; we live in societies. We live in families. We live with neighbours with whom we interact. We live in communities large and small. We live in provinces and states, and in countries. 

Because we live with others, there must be limits, usually codified as laws.  We must not be able to kill others or otherwise do harm.  We must not be able to steal from others. We must have rules of how we govern ourselves, whether as a family or as a society. Many of the more recent laws have to do with safety; safety of the individual, and safety of the community.

In general, the rules and laws in most liberal democracies as easy to understand and abide by. In autocratic regimes, this tends not to be the case, hence the reason there are frequent protests, revolutions and civil wars in these countries.

During the convoy protest in Ottawa in 2022, I was hoping that those found guilty of fomenting the protest would be sentenced to spend a year in Venezuela, Saudi Arabia or even Russia.  Then they might understand the amount of freedom they have in this country.

Whither the Middle

 

I long for the middle. But it has gone, at least for now.  If someone starts a political party that dedicates itself to the middle ground, I’ll be the first to support it.  You see, no political party currently espouses the middle ground. They talk of the middle class but not of the middle ground. They now occupy one extreme or the other.  The Liberal Party now has moved more left than the NDP used to propouned.  The Conservatives, oh the Conservatives, now want to emulate Donald Trump, Ron Desantos, and other luminaries of the US Republicans.  The only thing they have not done is declare that they were the real winners of the last election, that it was stolen from them.

“In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
 - George Orwell

I think I can speak for the many Canadians, probably a majority of us, who yearn for a more centrist place in politics and life.  We support diversity, but do not want it stuffed down our throats. We are a little bit conservative (note the small ‘c’) with our family finances but want our governments to spend our taxes wisely.  When it comes to social issues, we generally want harmony and acceptance. We think that our primary requests for governments are good health care and education, just laws, and a competent and fair judiciary. We don’t want to lose our rights to a notwithstanding clause.  We want legislatures where discourse and debate are respectful and enlightened. We want a society where you can discuss divergent view in a meaningful way and come away satisfied with the results.  We want compromise not ‘take it or leave it’. We want acceptance and support for immigrants and minorities. Probably what we most want is honest communication. There are two parts to verbal communication: speaking and listening.  We don’t think the listening part is going very well.

“Great minds discuss ideas. Average minds discuss events. Small minds discuss people.”

- Eleanor Roosevelt

 “I wish people who have trouble communicating would just shut up.”

  - Tom Lehrer

But we’re not getting any of things, are we? Take a reasonable position and you are yelled down and even threatened.  Speak out and you’re labeled. Make a request and you’re ignored. This is not how a harmonious and civil society works.  And for many people, it is not working.  We are met with constant cynicism about just about everything.

“A cynic is not merely one who reads bitter lessons from the past, he is one who is prematurely disappointed in the future.”
   - Sidney J. Harris

So can we please move politics and life back closer to the middle.

“Man is a credulous animal and must believe something; in the absence of good grounds for belief, he will be satisfied with bad ones.”
  - Bertrand Russell

“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.”
  - Aristotle

I will now expect to hear things like, “It’s not like that anymore. Or “Who do you think you’re talking about, not me.”

I think I’m talking about real people. I think that it can be like that if we demand it and live it ourselves.