Not like us

I never got a tattoo.

I think my original hesitation of not wanting a permanent work of art on my ever-changing identity has been far overshadowed by my paralyzing fear of needles. 

Back when Truth and Reconciliation was hitting full swing I started to understand the darkness and negativity that were actually associated with being Canadian. It wasn't all maple syrup and apologies. Canadians have done brutal things to others in the name of the country. Which is why I've always been glad I never got the one tattoo I've ever considered - a maple leaf.  

But at the same time, I've turned my back on the positives of being Canadian. The fact that our parliamentary style of government and multi-party system has allowed us to avoid the political debacles we're watching unfold in the US. Our logical approach to freedom, wide open spaces and unique identity. 

With all the recent talk coming out of the US (and one orange man in particular) about annexing Canada or otherwise seeing us join the US has me contemplating where I want to sit with all of this. 

On one hand, I see nationalism as a tool to control people, just like religion. But sometimes we all need to gather together under a single banner and when you've got a pseudo-autocrat knocking at your south door, it's time to assemble under the flag. 

There's maybe a lot of us who would say "well, let's just join the US". It would certainly make travelling the continent easier, they're very similar culturally and maybe it would make things better. 

Then I remember how much I like free healthcare. I remember how I like walking in my terrifying neighbourhood without that much concern that everyone has a gun. I remember that while Canada has a dark history, so do most countries - the difference is we've decided to reckon with that past and move beyond it. That's something to be proud of and to rally behind. 

And then there's the anti-vax truckers. Remember them? That group of people who hijacked being Canadian to mean "be an asshole and do whatever you can to only think of yourself." I swore I was done with the maple leaf the moment I saw a jacked up diesel covered in WalMart flags. 

So what of it all? Why we blogging about it? 

I really don't know for sure. I know that being Canadian comes with some reckoning and maybe that's the rub. Things have been bad and bad things happened to get us where we are. But I also think that the time might come very soon where all of us - Indigenous people, anti-vax truckers and wishy washy lib-tards like me will need to come together to tell Mr. Trump and the US to leave us the heck alone. Because Drake may have lost the rap battle, but you don't want to mess with Canada.