Article of Interest: Canadian politics: Are we that boring? If so, why?

christophermoorehistory.blogspot.com/2007/09/why-commentary-here-is-stupid.html

Here's a blog post by historian and writer Christopher Moore.

Yes, there exists a community of frustrated Canadians these days. Unsure of its existence or purpose, they wallow in a world that is neither American, Canadian or even British at its core. They seem to be searching for something that Canada may not be able to live up to.

Part of the frustration may stem from, in part, the perception of our unrealized potential and that we don't seem to be moving forward in strengthening the country.

National Post columnist Andrew Coyne, the subject of the post, may be one of those Canadians. It does seem as though our politicians are clueless but that's a function of the system we operate in. In a decentralized federal system and in a regional country like Canada, it is contradictory that the Canadian parliamentary system can be so rigid - that so much power can be concentrated in one person.

I am sure there are many who share Coyne's dissatisfaction with the country's political landscape. Moore himself has written extensively about the political process in Canada and the democratic deficit it exhibits. To say nothing of the stiffness in Canadian parliamentary politics. If Canadian politics had a colour it would be charcoal. Why? Because as much as charcoal can be blah, it can become eclectic with the right match.

So if the political system itself may be part of the problem why we may have politicians who lack panache is there anything else? Is there some social factor in place?

There are many Canadian thinkers, writers, commentators (ahem) and journalists who want more from Canada. It's how we apply our concerns and national desires that distinguishes us. It is in this process that we tend to divide rather than unite.

On this front, we may not be any different from our friends in the United States.

I'll stop here.