It wasn't too long ago when Canadians were shouting at the top of their lungs about George Bush, the Iraq War, Guantanamo Bay, Gay Rights and a myriad of other "American" issues.
But the tides have turned quickly. Canada is now what the US was in the George W. Bush days. I can't point to exact moment, but all I can say it happened really fast.
Look no further than a series of over 200 community protests against Canada being organized for this weekend across the US. This is just the latest anti-Canada protest and I for one am getting more embarrassed each time this happens. I used to get no end of pleasure making fun of my American friends and their crazy backwards politics. I mean, come on, Fox News! Need I say more!
I lived in the United States for the last three years and only moved back 8 months ago. When I first moved there, people would snigger and say something like: "Hey, did you move here to run away from the right-wing nuts running your country!" At first it was in jest, but by the time I left folks were saying: "You're not seriously moving back there are you? Canada is a mess right now."
I might have missed the exact moment the devil horns were passed from South to the North, but what I do know is who is to blame, and it can be summed up in two simple words: Stephen Harper.
Our Prime Minister, who was elected into office by less than a majority of voters, is running recklessly over Canada's image. We were once this mighty gem in the crown of the world, with untouched natural wonder. A country who was so polite that it became the butt of jokes! A country that punched way above its weight class when it came to international diplomacy - more than once I have heard it said that America is good at taking over countries, but it is the Canadians that are the best at rebuilding a country.
Now we are being protested. Our country has become a rallying point for people in other countries who want to make things better. Stephen Harper wants to ram regressive policies down the throats of its own people, and down the throats of Americans. He quite literally wants to ram a pipeline through US homesteads in places like Nebraska and pump our dirty crude to waiting offshore oil tankers in the Gulf of Mexico. And the consequences be damned.
You know. That just isn't the polite thing to do. To my American friends, I hate to say it, but you have every right to be pissed at Canada right now. We're acting like total hosers. Sorry.