Two nights ago, with my family I enjoyed a concert at Blossom Music Center, the summer home of the Cleveland Orchestra. It's a holiday tradition for us to take a picnic and listen to patriotic American music sometime close to the 4th. Today we took a bike ride, then had the dinner the kids prescribed, and fireworks afterwards. Four days ago was, of course, Canada's similar holiday, "Canada Day." Not much happened for that as I grew up. We called it by the nondescript name, "Dominion Day". I recall no fireworks. "Firecracker Day" was the May 24th week end, celebrating not the birth of the nation but Queen Victoria's birthday instead).
In Canada -- or at least in southern Ontario -- we prided ourselves in our low key (lack of) celebration. We told ourselves the American 4th holiday was over the top. The bicentennial was beyond our imagination. We stood for the singing of God Save our Queen. There was a great deal of discussion over whether we needed our own flag.
Supposing we agree that nations mean something -- we want to them to thrive -- I've come to realize that it requires active institution- or custom-building to make them really work. We Canadians could perhaps take a page from the fireworks and shows of patriotism in America. We might stop wanting so much to be self-deprecating and actively construct institutions that celebrate us, Canada. The flag, the anthem, the holiday. All of these and more. We might construct a real national holiday from the fabric of our past and the reality of the present.
Strong nations with strong cultural identities make good trading partners. And good trading partners live together peacefully, without the envy that now colours how many Canadians see Americans. JS Mill put it this way in his Principles of Political Economy:
To human beings, ... it is indispensable to be perpetually comparing their own notions and customs with the experience and example of persons in different circumstances from themselves: and there is no nation which does not need to borrow from others, not merely particular arts or practices, but essential points of character in which its own type is inferior. Finally, commerce first taught nations to see with good will the wealth and prosperity of one another. Before, the patriot, unless sufficiently advanced in culture to feel the world his country, wished all countries weak, poor, and ill-governed, but his own: he now sees in their wealth and progress a direct source of wealth and progress to his own country. It is commerce which is rapidly rendering war obsolete, by strengthening and multiplying the personal interests which are in natural opposition to it. And it may be said without exaggeration that the great extent and rapid increase of international trade, in being the principal guarantee of the peace of the world, is the great permanent security for the uninterrupted progress of the ideas, the institutions, and the character of the human race.
This is an interesting post for someone fresh out of the July 4th celebration in Washington DC. I felt compelled to attend this enormous event since I live here now, and found it, well, enormous.
There were so many people there that it is just impossible to explain. And even though they weren't all patriotic nuts, there was a palpable feeling of patriotism. I must say that Canadians are missing something if they self-depricate instead of feeling mass patriotism on shared holidays. It's one of the hallmarks of our country I guess.
Interesting post, anyway. :)
Posted by: ellocin1 | July 07, 2006 at 08:54 PM