April 19, 2005

A Canadian Columnist Answers His Critics

Klaus Rohrich over at Canada Free Press is an unabashed conservative (as are most at CFP). He wrote an op-ed piece last week about the values of the average Canadian, a taste of which appears below:

It appears that Canadians, particularly those living in the Greater Toronto Area, enjoy being robbed and lied to by their elected officials, which is either indicative of a serious guilt and self-loathing problem or a terminally compromised moral compass.

Apparently the proverbial "beef stew" hit the fan, and Rohrich was deluged with comments from outraged readers as he relates this week. However, see where many of the comments came from:

An unusual number of individuals wrote to me with University of Toronto e-mail addresses. I am assuming that they were students, albeit one canÕt be sure as there may have been a professor or teaching assistant in the woodwork.

Hmm...as usual, many students simply don't get it. Here are some of the highlights that Rohrich shares with us:

Another writer indicated that included in basic human rights were the right to food, shelter and health care. I guess they are if you are agitating for a soviet style big brother government. Truth is, I couldnÕt find those "rights" anywhere in the Charter of Rights after reading it carefully numerous times. Neither could I find the right for people of the same sex to be married...

Frank, from Ottawa, questioned my use of the term Canadian culture and wanted to know what traditional culture I was talking about. Frank, itÕs clear that you are a product of the current politically correct educational system of Ontario, if you donÕt even know about the history and traditions of Canada. Believe me when I tell you that Canada existed long before you were born and I, for one would like to see it exist long after all of us are gone. Yes, the movement of the worldÕs people over the last 30 years has created a multicultural environment in the west. But trust me, Frank, this has achieved basically two things. First, it has made it easier to find a delicious and interesting variety of ethnic foods in our large cities and second, it has created a series of ethnic ghettos where people who have immigrated to this country live out their lives in alienation. Maybe Quebec isnÕt so far off the mark with its language bill when you consider that there are entire neighbourhoods in places like Toronto where no one, but members of whatever ethnic group happens to inhabiting that particular neighbourhood can read any of the signs on the store fronts.

If you read the whole thing and just replace Canada/Canadian with America/American, you'll feel right at home.

Who says our neighbors to the north are so different from us?

Show Comments »