There is reason enough for Canadians to be hopeful, even optimistic, about the future. It is tempting to despair in light of problems like inflation, ever-worsening housing affordability, and a possible tariff war with our largest trading partner. But Canada has good reason to believe in itself.
The U.S. president-elect is particularly taken with the idea of Canada becoming the 51st American state. Trolling aside, Donald Trump’s Canadian ambitions are more compliment than threat, and an indicator of the strategic importance of our vast country.
The Post-Nation Problem
In 2015, at the beginning of his tenure as prime minister, Justin Trudeau stated that he sees Canada as the world’s “first post-national state,” and that “There is no core identity, no mainstream in Canada.”Post-nationalism can be defined as the process by which countries and national identities lose their importance relative to supranational and global entities. In other words, globalism over nationalism.
Many other Canadian politicians and leaders shared this same reverence for the post-nation idea—that allegiance to global initiatives should trump national interests.
Once post-national ambitions were declared, wheels were set in motion to make it a reality. Heavy emphasis on global commitments informed domestic and foreign policy objectives, tied as they were to treaties, initiatives, and benchmarks that weighed heavily on international obligations. Uncontrolled immigration policies stressed the nation, while initiatives in the name of taming climate change like the Paris Accord and others undermined our critical resource sector and over-committed Canada to an unrealistic energy transition.
Globalist agendas have an altruistic premise, which takes into consideration the interplay of nations to attain a better global governance. They make the case that a cohesive, world-inclusive approach to governance would be of maximal benefit to mankind more broadly.
Organizations that favour globalism pursue international cooperation but often confuse cooperation with subservience. Importantly, they are not elected by the voters, who have little say in these initiatives but feel the brunt of their impact. Globalist ambitions are naturally at odds with those of sovereign nations, whose primary duty is the welfare of their own citizens.
Global organizations certainly have their place, but when they are too assertive in their influence they undermine the good governance of nation states.
The Sovereign Nation Solution
Western nations, Canada included, are seeing a surge in nationalist sentiment among voters, who feel unfettered globalization does not serve their countries’ best interests.Traditionally, a government’s job was ensuring the prosperity and protection of the voting citizen, while maintaining an interdependent but self-serving relationship with international partners. Putting Canadians first does not necessitate the abandonment of international obligations. In fact, a prosperous Canada would have far more value to offer internationally.
A wealthy and cohesive Canada requires its leadership to advocate for the pressing needs of the country first and foremost, and reject international obligations when they undermine sovereignty and prosperity. Canada may be a hesitantly patriotic nation, but we will not have our success squandered in the pursuit of globalist utopian ideals.
With some grounded fiscal management, Canada can regain its previously high level of domestic and international stature. Hard lessons from the past decade will ensure we reject the post-nation hypothesis and reinvigorate Canada as a sovereign nation, good neighbour, and shining example of democracy in action.
