Happy New Year? Why does Canada exist? Most of our entertainment and culture comes from the U.S. All of our resources are pre-sold to the U.S. and defended by US armed forces when necessary. We lay claim to "Koo-roo-coo-coo-coo-coo-coo-coo? Koo-roo-coo-coo-coo-coo-coo-coo!", and rest sublime in our thermal snowsuits quaffing cold beer(s) and delighting in being 'Canadian'. We argue for a bigger piece of the pie for our region, and deride other regions as 'greedy' or 'parasites', while not even rising from our snowsuits and beer for any more than a dismissive grunt. And while we mice are playing our squabble games, the US looks on ... and plants seeds of factionalism ... and waits ... Oh yes, I believe there is a shakeup coming. I believe we'll have to decide whether Canada's tenuous existence is worth the trouble. We'll have to decide whether to share Canada's resources with the Indigenous Nations from whom they are stolen. Hint: The Supreme Court says we must. There is no doubt in my mind that there will be those in Canada who will say "NO", and will cast their lot with the US to defend 'their' oil ... and gold ... and uranium (etc.) resources. After all, in 'Canada' we revere those who rip the earth apart looking for money. Peter Munk of Barrick Gold just got the Order of Canada for doing just that, destroying not only Canada's ecology but the environments of several other countries, and the rights of Indigenous Peoples who fight to protect the land, here and abroad:

Canadian-owned Barrick Gold, the world's largest gold producer, is exploring, building and operating huge, open-pit gold mines on nearly every continent on the planet. On May 2, 2007, CorpWatch in the US published a report detaiing the operations of Barrick gold in nine different countries, focusing on the efforts on the part of the communities to seek justice from this powerful multinational.

http://www.miningwatch.ca/search.php?query=Barrick+Gold&action=search

Where to now Canada? Are Canadians truly nothing more than a docile labour force to serve the foreign 'resource extraction' industries? Is that the true raison d'etre of the puppet corporation called 'Canada'? An 'industry' that does not own what it takes, but extracts in haste ahead of the UN and Supreme Court judgments that clarify the laws of Indigenous Rights? Is that "the true north strong and free" that we defend? Do we care?