Doug Saunders spends a little too much time dwelling on the North in this interesting op ed piece that explores what parts of the Canadian identity myth are due for a re-evaluation. Otherwise it's a fascinating read.
The fact that I am uninterested in the north brings my vision of Canada a bit more in alignment with the historial reality. Apparently the myth that Canada is a country pre-occupied by 'northernity'? is only true insofar as we have a lot of land up there. Development-wise the whole landmass could sink into the ocean north of North Bay and not that many people would truly be the wiser. ;) I'd notice one of my besties live in Whitehorse, but compared to the amount of growth and effort that goes into supporting our version of the sunbelt. It's almost as if the North is only needed as a source of myth.
Also interesting is that fact that as a third generation (on one side) Canadian, who's ancestors arrived from Eastern Europe, my family did more to develop the nascent idea of a Canadian identity during the depression and into the 50's then the multi-culti Trudeau generation.
mir (@) mirverburg.net
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