After reading a fluffy article about personality traits around the world which debunks myths of national stereotypes, particularly Canada and the US, I came across the most stereotypical Canadian public diplomacy pursuit ever:
from CTV.ca
Two brothers from Montreal are hoping to bring back hockey to the former Soviet republic of Tajikistan. And they’re asking for help from Canadians. Matthew Gray has been working with the United Nations Association in Canada in Tajikistan, the poorest of the former Soviet Union republics, delivering computers to the rural area of Khorog, when he got talking with the locals and was surprised to find that they were big hockey fans. … Gray says he realized that during that time, the locals had nothing to do. So he decided that he wanted to do something to help and thought that hockey would a great place to start.
The US has neocons spreading democracy; we have Québecois spreading hockey. I wonder if some people would consider this to be the beginning of a “Canadian Empire”?
PS. The title of this post is a reference to the hilarious movie Canadian Bacon where the US government manufactures a war with Canada to keep missile factories in business. During the crisis, NBS News Anchor Edwin S. Simon warns against the imminent threat, opening with the line: “Like maple syrup, Canada’s evil oozes over the United States.”
Comments to this entry
Curzon
October 8, 2005
3:55 pm
The first link up there is good and gets back to "what I was talking about here.":http://www.cominganarchy.com/2005/09/21/the-biology-of-conflict/
Yeah, Canada and the US are practically the same, but people define thmselves not as who they are, but WHO THEY ARE NOT. We always want to say "I'm not that!" and feel the need to fight against whatever "that" is. Canadians will continue to bitch and moan about America... until we face a common threat, and then all this animosity will fall by the wayside.
But surely "this":http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20051007/softwood_threats05107/20051008?hub=Canada on CTV.ca was far more interesting...
cheryl
October 12, 2005
4:03 am
Younghusband
October 12, 2005
1:09 pm