Fair Country: Telling Truths About Canada A

Synopsis

In this startlingly original vision of Canada, thinker John Ralston Saul unveils 3 founding myths. Saul argues that the famous 'peace, order, and good government' that supposedly defines Canada is a distortion of the country's true nature. Every single document before the BNA Act, he points out, used the phrase 'peace, welfare, and good government,' demonstrating that the well-being of its citizenry was paramount. He also argues that Canada is a MÉtis nation, heavily influenced and shaped by aboriginal ideas: egalitarianism, a proper balance between individual and group, and a penchant for negotiation over violence are all aboriginal values that Canada absorbed. Another obstacle to progress, Saul argues, is that Canada has an increasingly ineffective elite, a colonial non-intellectual business elite that doesn't believe in Canada. It is critical that we recognize these aspects of the country in order to rethink its future.